AUTISM POG

I had the strangest dream last night:

I love this world, this realm. I smile to myself because it feels so nice to walk amongst the theaters I so love. Even though there are no performances right now. I meet up with some friends and we take a train to the Dark City. I'm excited to start a new job I just landed.

Some of my family members work in the Dark City so it'll be nice to know some people. Maybe we'll be in the same division! Superstition keeps a lot of people out of the Dark City but the benefits and wages are really tough to compete with. And yet, they are always hiring! Great for a young adult like myself trying to save.

On my first day, during orientation, my friends and I are interrupted at lunch. Two figures dressed in black demand I come with them. I do so and oh boy, how I wish I hadn't. They take me to him. To Hades. I'd never met the keeper of the city but the rumors got it wrong. He isn't menacing. He's fucking rude. I cannot tell him enough during our first meeting that my name is not Persephone. I understand I have a connection to her, yes, past lives and such. But that does not make her "written fate" the same as mine. I leave.

Though I return to the Dark City the next day with my friends. Despite his annoying confrontation, I need this job. And yet, he needs an answer other than "hell no." I find that I am weaving through out crowds to avoid the people he sends to persuade me to meet with him again. I am constantly avoiding him. I mean constantly. I even run into him a few times at the Tower elevators and I yell "leave me alone!" as I run in the opposite direction, middle fingers up. What kind of weirdo wears a fucking black cape in today's day and age anyways?

One of my friends already working in the Tower sees me avoiding Hades' men and says "maybe you should think about it." I stop and turn to watch her mop and she shrugs and laughs, "That's all I'm sayin'."

A few days proceed and I'm finally done with training! My next shift, I'll be on the clock! To celebrate, I am relaxing with my friends and family at a park in the Dark City. I ask my Dad what he thinks of the whole ordeal. He tells me to do what makes him happy. This annoys me but I love him. I spend the night at a friend's house mulling over how hard my family is working...and them too... If we all had the proper support in a society like this, maybe we wouldn't all have to work so damn hard all the time...

The next day, I set my things down on the Tower's top floor and go to greet Hades' men. They take me to him. He is in his office, "Have you decided to stop being petulant?"

"Have you decided to learn to act like a gentleman?"

He stands, "Your answer?"

"I will consider...marriage."

I swore I heard a small sigh of relief but I can't say for sure. He approaches me and says "come with me." I follow him down the hall. As if everyone had been prepared for this, some of Hades' staff adorn me with a white cape that matches his black. I think it looks silly because I'm wearing...normal clothes but everyone else seems to approve. I let it slip even though I hadn't given a full "yes."

Hades tells me I must accompany him for the day "as is tradition." I start to deny the offer because this is my first day of work! But he declines my decline and says we will continue our conversation after the work day.

The day creeps by, me boredly pacing behind Hades as he visits different parts of the Tower in the Dark City. I stop to talk to all of my friends that I see. And Hades does not hesitate to voice his annoyance with me holding up his busy busy schedule. I retort with some insult and continue to say hi to everyone. I'm sure I've halved his tasks for the day with the amount of times I stop to chat excitedly with family. I run into one of my moms and talk a bit about whether I am making the best decision. (We are out of earshot btw). She takes a puff of her blunt and says, "Does he have money?" And I say, "He's one of the three kings! Of course he has money!" And she laughs and nods in approval.

Hades asks me why I'm huffing when I return to his side and I tell him to fuck off. To which he responded about how I have no manners, some other things I'm not paying attention to. Near the end of the work day, he's stopped by a worker about something and tells me to "move freely" about the Tower as he finishes up something by himself. I take the very welcome opportunity to go say hello to my friends on the factory floor. It's 2:57pm, three minutes to close. Everyone looks exhausted but I am just happy to see their faces. I start to think about my decision.

Man. Six months here and six months out, huh? I mean, there is the Dark City, which allows me to see my friends and family outside of the Underworld at any time of year. So long as they come. But I still cannot leave. I want to save up to move somewhere sunny... I am grateful for the opportunities that the creation of the Dark City has given people that want to work for fair wages. "A deal with the devil" was a joke before but now, the Dark City brought that metaphor to life with it's sparkling benefits and high pay rates. You couldn't expect any less from a city bred from the Underworld itself.

Even so, even though Dark City was in the human realm.... I won't be able to travel away from it for six months every year.

My thoughts have me wandering to the elevators. I don't want to be in the Tower during close. I don't want to see my friends tired faces. I wonder if I could maybe leave before Hades and meet him when he's done. I'm certain one of his workers can escort me to his home. As I approach an elevator, I am surprised when I run into him. He doesn't speak on my obvious discomfort.

"I will collect my things from the lower floor and then we can leave together."

I enter the elevator with him and of course, there's no one around because it's closing time and everyone is busy wrapping up the day. "I left my things on the top floor," I say after Hades presses the bottom floor button. "I need to stick them in a locker, at least."

He sighs and says "very well" before pressing the top floor as well. The ride is long and quiet as we descend to his destination first. I feel...overwhelmed and exhausted and have no idea how I'm going to get through the evening. I plop onto the floor in the far corner of the elevator.

Hades looks at me and my crumpled cape for a few seconds and then, to my sudden surprise, he sighs and lowers himself in the corner furthest from me. He looks...awkward and uncomfortable from his crouched position on the floor. But it makes me smile inwardly. He is looking at the numbers on the elevator go down and starts saying them softly. "137...136...135...134..."

The trip passes like this, him hushing after speaking twenty or so floors aloud. By the time we reach the bottom, we are both on our feet. He steps out, expecting me to stay put but I follow him off. He is walking fast but I catch up because I have to ask him something...something important that can't wait. "Wh.." I catch my breath as I skip next to him. Him and his stupid long legs. "Why do you even want to marry me, huh?"

He stops. I continue.

"Is it cuz I'm 'Persephone' or because you think that you love me?"

He lets out an exasperated sigh and leans down in my face, "Let me assure you, I love you to bits. But I do not like you." He snarls the last bit and I am left angry and speechless as he swiftly walks away.

Back on the top floor, I collect my things and find a worker to help me get assigned a new locker. An older gay couple I met during training finds me and they rush to give me a hug. They explain they didn't wanna leave without saying goodbye and ask how the day went with "you know who."

I shrug and start to say something insulting... but then I remember the stress from the past week with being chased down. I recall Hades smart remarks and our arguments as I try to avoid him. And I recall him sitting across from me on the elevator floor, his boots wrinkling his black cape at the effort. I recall his "I love you to bits" and such...

"It went alright, actually." I look up at the couple, rubbing my stomach from the jitters that have made a home there because it's dawned on me that in less than an hour, I will be within Hades home making the biggest decision of my life. "Fuck."

One of the men in the couple adjusts his coat and looks at me with concern, "What's wrong, love?"

"I think I have a crush on him."

And then I woke up.

SR Ask. I'm the second oldest out of 7, and the five after me all have one different parent. They're all hyper active and would probably encourage someone like mista. Except my older brother. He would straight up stab him. No one would like Fugo. With his moldy swiss cheese looking self.🤣

it’d definitely be really chaotic,, mista has a likable energy that works in his favor but fugo doesn’t have that same charisma. though he’ll refuse to lose to mista of all people... anyone but mista. shivers. 

anon 2 asked: i was just imagining narancia thinking he got rid of most of his competition when he 'sees' giorno going down on mista after arriving in venice. Would he tell sr reader? And begin this huge misunderstanding that mista and giorno are together. So anytime giorno and mista try to get close to reader she'll try to put them together instead and tell them she supports their relationship:)

Oh my god hgjteanrwefkml that’d be something else,, TBH it looked like he wanted to purge that sight from his mind so I don’t think he’d say it on purpose, maybe he’d stumble on accident and confuse SR Reader?? She’s just like huh they did what? Narancia is too stunned to recount what he saw. If she ever did find out though she’d be like oh :) a fellow member of the LGBT community, pleased to meet you .

anon 3 asked: Oh man during the fight with talking head and crush would sr reader be with trish having a mini post breakup chat? Cuz even though leaving a criminal organization is no problem, breaking up with her roommate/friend fugo would weigh more on reader. Plus it would be a great time for some trish and reader alone time. If only reader had that gelato it would've been perfect.

It’s funny you mention this anon because I’m actually working on a scenario for this exact thing HJEKGRWM It’s a combination of Reader giving her support to Trish who is still trying to understand what all just happened (with her father, etc). Reader also has some feelings to work through as well but wants to prioritize Trish in the moment. I really want to explore Trish’s character more, she feels so underrated to me. There’s so much potential with her . There must be more Trish content in this world, and I have self appointed myself to Create lots of it. 

Reader doesn’t share her gelato with anyone... if it were Trish though... she’d give her a few bites. The highest honor.  :’) Everyone else would get swatted away.

anon 4 asked: Wait what does sr reader do during the fight on the boat on the way to the island for the treasure hunt? How does she go down? Or is she one the last standing?

she’d be attacked by zucchero’s stand (i forgot the name of it whoops) after mista! so fugo is calling out to her before he also gets attacked, like “[First], now’s not the time to be messing around--” before he gets hit by the stand as well. up to that point she had been trying to get a better understanding of giorno... engaging him in casual conversation and such. 

anon 5 asked: Would sr reader help Narancia with his studies? I feel the idea of studying would be awful to narancia with tutors like Fugo but the moment he realizes he can ask sr reader for help, then his tune would change somewhat!

She’d still believe that Fugo is the best person to ask with anything academic related, but if Narancia insisted, she’d help him!! Obviously has a lot more patience than Fugo and is just preferable company from Narancia’s point of view. Narancia tends to ask reader for translations on English songs he finds interesting, it’s one of the biggest ways they’ve bonded :’)) just sitting next to one another, sharing headphones, listening to one another's music. Super cute stuff. Fugo is tempted to cut the chords to the headphones tbh. ✂️

anon 6 asked: Is abbacchio and sr reader's relationship just uncanny for the other bucci members to see? Like sr reader will sometimes say things like 'abbacchio is so funny!' or 'abbacchio is so nice you know!' And everyone else is like :/

What makes it even worse is that Abbacchio is trying so hard not to show it. The difference in how he treats you versus the others is both subtle and apparent at the same time. You’ll have his undivided attention when speaking, he’ll occasionally offer to pay for your meal, etc. Everyone’s kinda gotten used to it but Narancia still wonders if the Abbacchio you talk to is the same he talks to. He’s far more patient with you... 

anon 7 asked: Everyone in the bucci gang had a moment where they learned to respect or at least accept giorno. (Bruno after their fight, fugo after fight with illuso, etc) When did sr reader have this moment or were they just sure from the beginning giorno would do great things for their gang?

Honestly Reader’s respect for him started to grow over time? Just seeing all of his judgement calls and leadership abilities left an impression on her. He gives a very reliable vibe. The only thing she was wary of is that Giorno is so difficult to get a read on. She’s used to the others mannerisms by now, and even more prickly members like Abbacchio she can make sense of. When Abbacchio really wants to be left alone she can pick up on it. Giorno, on the other hand, is very polite; so Reader isn’t sure how genuine he’s being. So Reader’s concerns are a bit different than the others who just weren’t ready to trust him on the basis he’s new. 

For a more specific moment,, I’d say that she’d be pretty impressed after he offers to escort Trish to the boss. It feels like such a daunting task to take on, and someone who’s more passive like her wouldn’t imagine why anyone would want to do it. Bruno is doing it out of obligation. Giorno seems to have this sense of ambition to him that’s hard not to respect. So it’d further solidify Reader’s trust in him. She’d be thinking something like, ‘This is a person who knows what he wants and is willing to do whatever is necessary.’ Meanwhile Abbacchio is just admonishing him in the background as Reader stares at him like :) wow! Maybe a scenario on the boat needs to happen, while Bruno is escorting Trish. It’d be a good insight into Reader’s character ... 

Encounter With The Witches

Plot: Guilherme and Anastacia safely arrive at the house of Miss Fiona Detweiler. They also met Sir Rene Cousineau and Miss Aoife Molony. (Regency AU)

Fic under the cut cuz it’s a long one :P

The Encounter series:

Encounter With The Vampires

Encounter With A Human

Encounter With The Vampires (part 2)

Encounter With The Witches [you are here]

Living With A Vampire

Guilherme was amazed by the fact that no one seemed to notice a horseless carriage zooming through the streets of London, and he could have sworn that it would sometimes pass straight through them. Regardless, he was just glad to know that he was far, far away from Algernon and the old manor, and that Anastacia was safe beside him.

He glanced at her for a moment, and couldn’t help but chuckle at the way she looked out the window. She was star-struck, her face beamed at any little thing she saw on the street, whether it was people, or buildings, or even stray animals passing by. She seemed to be enjoying their ride to Miss Detweiler’s house, as if they were on a casual stroll around the city.

She absentmindedly glanced over at Guilherme, and immediately shut her happiness down.

“Sorry,” she said in a small voice. “I just haven’t been outside for...quite some time.”

“There’s nothing to be sorry about.” he reassured her.

Anastacia smiled at him and faced the window once more, returning her attention to the outside world, and was soon marveled by it again.

After what felt like minutes, they reached Miss Detweiler’s house. Upon arriving there, Guilherme noticed that it wasn’t exactly a house, but rather an apartment located above a rather peculiar-looking shop. He glanced at the sign above the shop and realized that it was in fact an apothecary. At least he was at the right place to treat his wounds.

“Does anyone live here?” asked Anastacia as they stepped out of the carriage.

“I suppose so.” he answered, observing his surroundings. “It did lead us here.”

They walked around the building for a while, as Guilherme was looking for a door knocker, while Anastacia marveled at the trinkets on display in the apothecary. Finally, Guilherme spotted a door far from the apothecary’s entrance, along with a tiny door knocker which was at his eye-level. The door knocker was unlike any other he had ever seen, the knocker was in a circular shape made of bone, and it was held by a small statue of a hand made of brass, though the detail on the hand looked like it belonged to a corpse. He shivered at the sight of it, but reluctantly took hold of it, and knocked on the door three times.

 On the third knock, the door opened on its own, and Guilherme took a step back, both in awe and fear. Anastacia noticed his behavior and walked over him, more so curious than scared, and peeked inside though in a cautious manner. Guilherme grabbed her arm to pull her back, afraid that she would get sucked inside, and the clash of her icy skin against his warm palm shocked him for a moment, but he still held on.

“Wait.” he said, and Anastacia looked back at him. “It could be dangerous.”

“But you’re wounded.” she mentioned.

“Well, yes, but--” Guilherme started, remembering his own consequences of wandering off into an unknown house, but then he was interrupted by the sound of feet walking down a flight of stairs, as well as voices talking over one another.

Guilherme and Anastacia stepped back even further, surprised by the sudden commotion, but as the voices drew nearer, Guilherme started to recognize one of them.

Miss Fiona Detweiler stepped outside, along with a taller and bulkier man by her side. The man looked crossed, as though he had been arguing with Fiona, while she looked just as crossed as he was, as her face was a soft shade of crimson. Both of them stopped in their tracks when they saw Guilherme and Anastacia standing by the doorway.

“Who are you two?” the crossed man asked angrily.

As Guilherme and Anastacia were fumbling with their words, Fiona squinted her eyes as she studied Guilherme, then they grew wide as though she reached a sudden realization.

“I think I know you from somewhere!” she said, and the crossed man looked down at her, furrowing his eyebrows even more.

“Yes we have,” Guilherme answered, paying no attention to the man now glaring daggers at him. “At one of Baron River’s parties.”

“Of course!” she exclaimed. “You’re his friend, Sir...um…”

“Guilherme Monteiro.” he completed, and slightly bowed before her, though wincing in pain.

“Are you alright?” she asked, looking concerned.

“That’s why we’re here.” Anastacia explained. “He’s very hurt, and needs urgent care!”

Fiona studied Anastacia for a moment, but not in the same way she did towards Guilherme, this time she looked at her coldly, and Anastacia could tell by the look of her eyes that she was very skeptical of her. 

Fiona then looked away, and walked over to Guilherme.

“Rene, help me carry him back inside.” she asked the crossed man. “We’re going to have to miss the party, sadly.”

Rene sighed in relief at the mention of not going to the party anymore, as he propped Guilherme to his side, but nervously pressed his lips together as he met Fiona’s glare. The four of them made their way inside the apartment, and after much bickering between Rene and Fiona while walking up the flight of stairs, they made it to the apartment, and Fiona locked the door behind her after everyone had entered.

The apartment was rather small and humble, as the door led straight into the kitchen, and just a few steps away was a small living room, and in between the two was a very narrow corridor leading to where Guilherme could only guess was their chambers.

As he took a seat at a chair nearby, a girl came out of the corridor and stopped near the kitchen, looking at the newly arrived guests, then back at Fiona and Rene. She was a rather tall young woman with light blonde hair, but what caught Guilherme’s attention was the dark marks scattered across the girl’s body.

“I thought you two were going to some rich lad’s party?” she asked.

“No Aoife,” Fiona answered. “There’s been a minor setback.”

“We’re here to heal my friend’s wounds!” Anastacia piped up.

Aoife also looked at the little vampire very skeptically, then glanced over at Guilherme, looking from head to toe.

“What’s wrong with him?” she asked.

And Guilherme began to retell his traumatic experience with the vampires at the old manor, as well as how Anastacia risked her own life to save him. Both Fiona and Aoife listened closely to his story, while Rene stood there with the most horrified expression on his face, as though he had also lived through Guilherme’s experience.

“Wait a minute,” said Rene, holding up a hand in disbelief, then pointed at Anastacia. “You’re saying that she is a vampire?!”

“Don’t tell me you haven’t noticed until now.” Fiona sighed.

“And you actually thought I would?!” Rene asked.

As Fiona and Rene argued again, Aoife approached Guilherme to observe his wounds.

“Looks like you put up quite a fight.” she said, bringing his leg up close to examine the scratches. “But you didn’t do so well.”

“Well, I’m not quite experienced with the sort.” Guilherme replied sarcastically.

“I know.” Aoife said. “It’s a miracle you survived.”

“It’s all thanks to her.” Guilherme said, gesturing towards Anastacia, who still stood by his side, and kindly waved at Aoife.

She looked at her up and down. “Very unusual…”

Anastacia merely shifted her weight from one leg to the other, while awkwardly looking to the side. Meanwhile, Rene and Fiona still bickered at each other, until he held up his arms in an exasperated manner.

“I need a moment!” he announced, leaving the apartment. 

Fiona huffed and marched on over to the rest. “So, what’s wrong with him?”

“Just a broken ankle, deep scratches, and a badly bruised neck.” said Aoife.

Fiona nodded while thinking of possible treatments, when Guilherme leaned in from his seat.

“I assume I’ll be taking some kind of tonic?” he said.

“Oh no, you’ll definitely be going under a healing spell.” Fiona corrected him.

“A..spell?”

Fiona blinked. “Why of course, how else will we treat you?”

Guilherme let out a long sigh. “What have I gotten myself into?”

“Don’t worry, it won’t hurt that much!” Fiona smiled happily, and turned to ask Aoife to fetch some ingredients down at the apothecary.

“Now what about your little vampire friend?” Fiona faced Guilherme again. “Is she going to stay with you, or carry on her merry little way?”

Anastacia looked down at her hands on her lap. “I...don’t have anywhere to go, exactly…”

“She’s staying with me.” Guilherme decided.

Anastacia quickly looked up at him, with a mixture of surprise and sincere gratitude on her face, while Fiona squinted her eyes a little.

“It’s not safe to linger with a vampire.” she said. “Thought you might have learned that from what you went through.”

“I trust her.” he said.

Fiona looked over at Anastacia, then leaned closer to Guilherme, whispering in his ear.

“I wouldn’t if I were you.”

“People also say to never trust witches, and yet here I am.” he retaliated.

Fiona looked at him, and just by the mere look in her eyes, Guilherme could tell that she had given up on trying to persuade him otherwise.

“You should be fully healed by morning.” Fiona said, changing the subject. “So I suggest you sleep here for the night.”

Guilherme nodded in agreement, and Fiona left the kitchen to gather supplies for the healing spell.

After waiting for a few hours, Guilherme underwent the healing spell, and it was, in fact, very painful. His skin stretched itself as it closed his open scratch wounds, as if someone grabbed a hold of his skin and was physically pulling it over his leg, and he also felt a burning sensation on his neck as it magically healed its bruises, but the worst pain he felt was down in his ankle, as he could feel his bones rearrange themselves underneath his muscles and skin, grinding against each other like rocks.

As soon as the spell had concluded, Fiona offered both Guilherme and Anastacia the living room for them to sleep, since the apartment didn’t have a guest room, and proceeded to give the two several woolen blankets and old pillows. After that, she wished Guilherme a good night, while awkwardly giving a short nod at Anastacia, and went to her chambers.

“Do you want the sofa?” Guilherme asked Anastacia.

“No.” she said, shaking her head. “Vampires don’t sleep.”

“Oh, so the story about vampires sleeping in coffins is a myth, then?”

“They think we sleep in coffins?”

“I see.” he said, accepting that as his answer, and went on to make his makeshift bed on the sofa, which was rather small for his height, but soon enough he managed to settle himself in.

He glanced over at Anastacia, who was sitting at a window sill nearby, watching the empty streets down below, and marveling herself again at anything she set her eyes on, from a street lamp close by, to a drunken man wobbling down the block, to a dirty old street dog relieving himself on a feeble-looking tree.

“You really enjoy the human world, don’t you?” Guilherme asked.

Anastacia turned, looking surprised, but smiled.

“I love it.” she said, her eyes filled with pure joy. “I find it so fascinating! It has changed so much since the last time I saw it, and that’s what I like about humans, their ability to create new things out of thin air, and they’re always so beautiful. It’s almost like magic in a way.”

“Not everything we make is beautiful.”

Anastacia paused for a moment, looking out at the window with a slightly saddened look on her face. 

“I know…” she finally spoke. “Every being has its own faults, humans are no different. But, when they do make something beautiful, it’s...astounding.”

Guilherme chuckled to himself, amazed to find an occult creature so enamored by his species’ own creations, which was something that he has despised for the longest of time. He loathed the modern inventions and ideas that were surging up these days, which were all contributing to the erasure of tasks that, although tedious, were still very effective in society, and what made humans humans.

And yet, here was this little vampire, fascinated by all of it. Perhaps it was her own naivety blinding her to the reality of it, but at the same time...there might have been some truth to what she said…

The last thing Guilherme saw before falling asleep was Anastacia looking out the window once more, with her eyes gleaming in delight.

A Capture on Genesian Road

(07/05/20 10:51) ~ Warrior Of The North ~ Bejar Bjorntand Master Tharlarion Rider ~ ~ Hraesvelgr ~ ~ says to ALL: Enters ... (07/05/20 10:52 am) Absolute Obedience Enya -=Genesian Road=- Is traveling along the Genesian Road connecting Brundisium and other coastal cities with the south says to ALL: I am forever amazed, and rendered speechless which in and of itself is a bargain for anybody who really knows me. But, alas!!! There aren't very many who can honestly say that. Not that I'm a difficult slave. Nor am I the type of slave that balks because I do not like the kiss of the whip upon the flesh of this back. It stings and though the welts are visible for days, those same welts create when itchy fabric comes into contact with it. I've had my share and I do my best to avoid being whipped. Or cuffed upside the head. Then again, the majority of the whippings were purely educational purposes only. When a slave does something wrong, punishment soon follows and the type of punishment is at the sole discretion of a slave's owner. Personal or City owned or even if the slave is being put through her paces at a Slaver's House. Indeed... sometimes lessons need to be learned the hard way. These lessons aren't always as difficult as they are challenging. I've always enjoyed challenges and look at them as pieces of a puzzle that just has to be solved. (07/05/20 11:04 am) Absolute Obedience Enya -=Genesian Road=- Is traveling along the Genesian Road connecting Brundisium and other coastal cities with the south says to ALL: These proclamations are, of course, based on my own experiences. There are a few scars that stripe my back and are quite visible when you know what you're looking for. Whip me once, shame on me, but whip me twice for the same thing then it's ALL on me. It usually is regardless, but the point is, is that slavery isn't for everybody. That pitiful creature that kept whining about what to do now? I don't see her as slave material. But, what do I know? I don't have an eye for slave flesh. Except my own and I will do whatever I can to ensure that my flesh remains intact unless told otherwise. I've always been owned by an Inn or a Tavern. Once I was even part of a Camp. That didn't last very long and within 4 hand I had been sold. Back to the beginning some would have told me. But it's not going back to the beginning at all. My future owner just hasn't discovered me. Yet. (07/05/20 11:12 am) ~ Warrior Of The North ~ Bejar Bjorntand Master Tharlarion Rider ~ ~ Hraesvelgr ~ ~ -=Genesian Road=- Is traveling along the Genesian Road connecting Brundisium and other coastal cities with the south says to Absolute ObedienceEnya: grunts (07/05/20 11:20 am) ~ Warrior Of The North ~ Bejar Bjorntand Master Tharlarion Rider ~ ~ Hraesvelgr ~ ~ -=Genesian Road=- Is traveling along the Genesian Road connecting Brundisium and other coastal cities with the south says to Absolute Obedience Enya: The medium sized tarnship had made landfall to a small port middway between Brundisium and Bazi. I had some bussines inland and thusly had brought my high tharlarion with me as it was mutch faster then walking. While the crew would resply fresh water and suplies i had made the short tripp inland to meet an old friend of mine that had agreeded to serve as a "mail office" between myself and my oldest son that was the commander of a unite of mercenarys. After some proper man hugs- and some paga letters were exhanged and i was on my way back for my ship. Taking a shorter route over some knolls rather then following the small dirt road out to the main coastal road i would halt on my vantage point as a spotted a small caravan. I was some 400 yards away so might not be noticed from the road unless someone were on alert and scanned the knols and surrounding terrain. I had not been on the hunt but i was a man of Gor and more so a Torvaldslander. hmmm......i would squint...then grunt and pull out my builders glass to get a good look of the small caravan moving on the road down below. And should anyone down there have a buildersglas and spy back on me they would see a man and beast that looked something like this I was mounted atop of my high tharlarion Scar, the reins held with calm to the left hand*1*. My frame was that off 6´4. 230lbs. I was dressed in a leather tunic with a raven sewn into the chest peace over the heart. A leather cloak with the hood up tho with the helmet under it the hood held a somewhat triangular shape. Dark brown leathers and my feet and legs covered by high tharlarion rider boots. A northern helmet, with chainmail covering the neck and with the nose guard in the down position covered my head*2*.A 7 foot spear to my right hand held aprox mid haft with the tip skyward.*3* And a 3 foot round wooden center gripped Torvaldslands shield reenforced with steel band and a center steel boss held was held to my back with a thick leather strapp, it was painted with my personal crest of a crossed gladius with a northern battle axe in a circle in a background that was devided with a deep red to the left side and a deep blue to the right side.*4* Over my left shoulder the handel of a 3 foot long sword could be seen. The cloak having been pulled aside to uncover that of my left shoulder to enabel a draw of the blade that was .36 inches total length. 30 inch blade. 4 inch cross guard, 6 inch handel with a hammer shapped pommel.*5* To my right hip i held a quiver of 10 bolts for the cavalry crossbow.*6*. To the right side of the saddel there could be seen a cavalry crossbow It was positioned in sutch a manner it could easily be drawn by the right hand and with my right boot to the stearup used to drawback and make the weapon ready to fire another bolt.*7* The spear was resting across my lap while i held the buildersglas with my left hand to get a good look at the road and my current object of interest. (07/05/20 11:34 am) Absolute Obedience Enya -=Genesian Road=- Is traveling along the Genesian Road connecting Brundisium and other coastal cities with the south says to ~ Warrior Of The North : The caravan was making slow progress. I was, in my own way, anxious to reach our destination and see what the future might hold for a girl like me. I didn't dwell on such things as that. I was curious more than anything and I knew that whatever happened was meant to be. I never counted on anything being the same or remaining the same because nothing remained the same. Changes took place all the time. Most didn't see it or didn't want to see it. But me? I wasn't better than any slave. I was merely being me and who I was and not just who I was but what I was, too. I sighed and peeked out the back of the wagon. I almost wanted to get out and walk along side the thing ... but just at that moment, I heard cries for the caravan to stop. I honestly think that this was another deterrent in reaching our destination sooner rather than later... However, because the wagon was beginning to slow and because it was time for the noon meal to be prepared and served ... I, as well as three other girls and two thralls, were unshackled and told that we were to begin the meal preparations ... I just grinned. Didn't have to beg to be let out of the wagon and I'd be able to stretch my legs and tease some of the guards in the process ... (07/05/20 11:43 am) ~ Warrior Of The North ~ Bejar Bjorntand Master Tharlarion Rider ~ ~ Hraesvelgr ~ ~ -=Genesian Road=- Is traveling along the Genesian Road connecting Brundisium and other coastal cities with the south says to Absolute Obedience Enya: As the two wagons stopped i at first thought it was becouse of me. But as the slaves were let out of the 2nd wagon and started to sett up a simpel camp site off the road to the east i would take my time to counte you all cuz yes i did know how to counte sens mother had been a scribe from Ar- murmering to myself- 1..2..3...4 kajiras... moste of them seemed rather plain but then there was you.....There was a Slaver and a young man-perhaps his son or apprentice... And two other men the drivers of the two wagon. and the two thralls....hmmm......I considered my options...i wasnt really looking to kill anyone this day but you were pretty so what to do...what to do......But then as i saw you breaking away a bitt from the rest of them and go behind some bushes probably to gather fire wood or perhaps for a nature call- eather way you were alone- away from the group and so with a sly sleen grin i would sett away the builders glass to the saddel bag and bring my spear down along the tharlarions right flank pointing forward. I gave a low sharp whistel and the Tharlarion would start to walke slowly sideways down the knoll towards the area were you were at. My hope was that you all were not paying to close attention to notice the dust nor myself as i made my way down the side..... (07/05/20 11:49 am) Absolute Obedience Enya -=Genesian Road=- Is traveling along the Genesian Road connecting Brundisium and other coastal cities with the south says to ~ Warrior Of The North : FREE!!!! I almost laughed at the thought, but then I sobered because I was free. Freeer than most women ever imagined to be. I had been tasked to gather wood and other debris to start a fire. I was given a sack in case there were bosk chips missed or left or recently dropped. I wrinkled my nose and rolled my eyes, recalling the time I had accidentally stepped into some of these ... chips ... then I began to giggle. And the giggles turned to laughter and soon I was in a fit. Here I was, in the middle of nowhere ... really, I was somewhere between Bazi and Brundisium collecting items for a fire and recalling a time when I stepped into a mess .. I wasn't paying attention to where I was going nor to how far I had traveled from the "safety" of the wagons... Another quick glance over my shoulder said I was still within seeing distance of the small caravan ... I shrugged a shoulder. Turned my back on the caravan and continued to gather items needed... (07/05/20 11:55 am) ~ Warrior Of The North ~ Bejar Bjorntand Master Tharlarion Rider ~ ~ Hraesvelgr ~ ~ -=Genesian Road=- Is traveling along the Genesian Road connecting Brundisium and other coastal cities with the south says to Absolute Obedience Enya: Then as the Tharlarion slipped as it wasnt really built like a mounten verr but a sprinter on flat lands a small landslide of rocks and pebbels whent down the side with a clowd of dust some 200 yards behind of her. I grunted gave a sharp tug of the reins with my left hand to straighten up the beast and then wacked his right flank with the butt end of the spear and he came down the side like shoot out of a canon with a leap and a THUD he landed on even ground and sett off towards you like its ass was on fire with big long bounding stepps -this when in a larger group of the high tharlarions in full run would at times have a similar sound to thunder. The distance between us was shortened very fast as i moved the reins over to my right hand to have my left hand free while i hunched forward over the neck of my tharlarion. If she was dazed and got in a bitt of panic might not even see the man atop of the beast and simply the rather lage meat eating lizard comming at her in a full sprint..... (07/05/20 12:12 pm) Absolute Obedience Enya -=Genesian Road=- Is traveling along the Genesian Road connecting Brundisium and other coastal cities with the south says to ~ Warrior Of The North : Gor, at times, is very harsh. Some might even want to call Gor cruel. Hrump! No one ever menions the beauty found here. Or the wonders of Gor. I gave a mental shrug, knowing that most are usually swept up in what's taking place with them or around them. As a slave, I didn't have to worry about that. Did I? Of course not!! THUD!!! I was leaning to scoop some dried bosk chips into the sack I had been given when I heard the noise. And rather than bring my body upright to look, I turned my head in that direction expecting to see ... what I didn't know. But all I could see was a cloud of dust. And then I heard a rumbling sound. Deep and vibrating. I looked down at the ground, thinking it was going to leap up and meet my face half-way but it didn't. It was a pale Thassa gaze that saw an enormous dark shadow that seemed to be rising out of that pile of dust and moving. Fast. It was moving very fast. I felt my jaw drop. But could I move? No, because my mind was still trying to decipher if that huge, dark shadow that was still shrouded in that dust, was real or not. The dust was clearing. And the shadow loomed. The shadow was moving. And it was moving toward me. I was unable to move. My body wasn't listening to any command I was giving it either! The dust was clearing. The dust was clearing!!!! THE DUST WAS CLEARING!!! Racing toward me was a behemoth of a beast. And astride this beast, high perched in the saddle of the Tharlarion was a man that appeared to be larger than the Tharlarion!!! I moved then. Yes I did. I moved in the direction in which my feet were facing and I didn't stop. I opened my mouth and let out a screech, that, I'm sure, could be heard all the way back in Bazi!!! But could I look away to see where I was going? No. I could not. I wasn't making as fast as progress as that beast was!!! (07/05/20 12:23 pm) ~ Warrior Of The North ~ Bejar Bjorntand Master Tharlarion Rider ~ ~ Hraesvelgr ~ ~ -=Genesian Road=- Is traveling along the Genesian Road connecting Brundisium and other coastal cities with the south says to Absolute Obedience Enya: I grinned moste pleased as she got up and ran in a straight line away from us, that be me and the high tharlarion. Her scream did catch the attention of the Slaver and the other peopel scattered around the make shift camp. First they saw her run across the road towards the sea. And then with a might leap the muscular beast leap atop of the road and they would hardly catch a glimps of my dark brown cloths in a road runner similar fassion befor she whent down the left side of the road and the tharlarion after and we were out of sight from the camp. With a small sharp whistel ones the tharlarion was snapping at her heels i would have it adjust with a diagonal stepp forward and to its right as i leaned down and to my left with my thick powerfull tree trunk arm bent and then she feelt something akin to the oar of a serpentship hit her across her shoulder blades and a paw would then secure itself to her center torso as she was HEAVED UP -off the ground as i then leaned to my right and pulled her Up and over and the wind knocked out of her as you were sett belly down across the thick next of the High Tharlarion as i layed the weight and force of my left arm across her back while a vice like paw closed in a iron gripp to her neck so she would not slipp and dropp on her head-the fall would moste likely at this speed have killed her one way or the other as two short sharp whistels would have the Lizard named Scar due to the long nasty scar running down tween its eyes from the right tempel and down to head for the coste line and the port where my ship was . The port was not far off. (07/05/20 12:56 pm) Absolute Obedience Enya -=Genesian Road=- Is traveling along the Genesian Road connecting Brundisium and other coastal cities with the south says to ~ Warrior Of The North : I can honestly say I had never been hunted. But, from my experience, there is always a first time for everything. And this, of course, was no exception. I screeched again, thinking that it wasn't doing any good, plus I believed that I was too far from where the caravan stopped to be heard above the thundering that was right on my heels. I dared not look over my shoulder. I dared not stop, either. I was already gasping for breath and the sack I had been given to collect bosk chips was still held tightly and firmly between my fingers. I grinned because I lifted my arm as high as I could, thinking that if one of the guards from the caravan could see the sack they would know where I was and come after me. Is there such a thing as luck on Gor? Because if there was, I hadn't seen hide nor hair of it. Which meant that luck didn't exist or was nothing more than a figment of the imagination. I had to know where the thing was!!! Yet, I still didn't dare turn to look fearing that to do so would cause me to misstep and fall. Or stumble. Or get trampled on. I had to know though!! So, I turned my head and all I saw were grey and green colors. I wrinkled my nose again because of the odor that engulfed me. The combination of the dust and the smell of the beasts and, I'm sure, the aroma of my own fear that mingled with those other flavors were soon put out of my mind because I felt my body plunging forward. My eyes widened. My feet left the ground, and then I was gasping for air. Again. And as my mouth opened and closed, similar to a fish out of water, I felt as if I were being squeezed and that I would be making a trip to the City of Dust ... the last thing I do remember, were my eyes closing ... (07/05/20 1:08 pm) ~ Warrior Of The North ~ Bejar Bjorntand Master Tharlarion Rider ~ ~ Hraesvelgr ~ ~ -=Docks=- At the docks, where the Thassa meets the land says to Absolute Obedience Enya: There was a rison the high tharlarion cavalry of Lara was called Shock Cavalry. I had ones upon a time been there commander. Right here and now i simply keept her like that belly down across the thick powerfull neck of the High Tharlarion with my left arm keeping her secure in this position. The beast was keept in a full run right up untill we reatched the small Port only then would i slow down and as the clicking of metal shoed claws tapped on the rounded stones of the ports streets. Only then would i relax some. I would seat myself in my usual manner of straight back. Head held high and the spear held at my right side with the speartip for the sky. Making our way down for the docks my crew was ready some of the men loitering on the docks talking and laughing as they spotted me- THERE HE IS! They would shout and then point- LOOK- He got us a gift! The men would laugh- Whatcha got there Captain??? As i halted and slided you down into the awaiting arms of two Torvie men that even with there size were rather gentel as they captured her by the legs and arms and sett her to her feet and then held her-more so to keep her steady then so she would not run away. I took a moment to look down at her dust covered self.- she had looked pretty enough from afar but now not so mutch- And what WAS That smell?!? she smelled like bosk dung- The men would wrinkel there nose and waft a hand befor there faces- WHATCHA DO WITH HER Captain? roll her in bosk shit??? - Dontcha know he likes em smelly -would the skinny looking fella simply known as nose the knife say sitting on a crate picking at his nails with one of his manny knifes- and the men laughed anew.

The Menacing Mind of Felix Lombardi-Act 2

I peek through the door glass one more time, to make sure I’m not hallucinating. Yep. Ami Fujinami in the mother, fucking flesh. 

“Felix? I know you’re in there, open up” Ami said, in between repeatedly knocking

“Yea I’ll open it up in a minute” I said as I frantically searched for a clean pair of sweatpants to wear.

Ami and I have known each other for the entirety of the 2 years I’ve been living at this apartment. She and her Grandma have taken pretty good care of me seeing as I’m not exactly the best at it. 

“Hi Ami, what brings you here?” I asked, trying to push out the conversation with my brother from my mind

“Well, a strange man in a dark blue suit was here yesterday and he gave me 2 tickets to Mysticon” 

And then it call comes rushing back

“Wow that’s weird, well have fun” I said as I tried to close the door on her, only for her to stop the door from shutting.

“He said he was your brother, and that I should ask you to go with me” Ami said, slowly edging towards me like she was trying to get a good look at the reflection in my eyeballs.

“Well, I have no idea who you’re talking about. I don’t have a brothe-”

“Hello? Mr. Lombardi? He said exactly what you said he’d say. Mhmm That he doesn't have a brother. Should I hand him the phone? Ok. Ok. I’ll tell him.” 

Oh fuck.

“He says if you don’t go to Mysticon with me, I should tell Obaa-san to lock you out of the wifi for a month” Ami said, in the most perfunctory tone imaginable.

“First of all, you can’t do tha-”

“Yes. Yes I can. And to be honest, I don’t care if Mr. Lombardi is your real brother or not, I want to go to Mysticon, and I don’t care who with. So you’re going with me Felix.” Despite the fact that Ami was more or less extorting a date out of me, she did so with the gusto and demeanor of a middle schooler who just won a spelling bee. 

“Why couldn’t you just go by yourself?”

“The deal is, I take you, and I get a free ticket. Mr. Lombardi was very clear about this” 

“So I have no choice”

“None at all”

“Alright. Come knock on my door on saturday”

“It is Saturday, you bum”

“Why aren’t we using your car?” Ami moaned as we exited the building. 

“The train is faster” I said, pulling a pack of cigarettes out of my jacket.

“Mysticon is in Hells Kitchen right?” Ami asked, whilst reaching into her backpack

“Yup, and it’s...3pm, traffic will be annoying, and I don’t wanna worry about driving back if I buy weed.” I said, pulling out my lighter

“What have I told you about smoking when you’re next to me.” Ami said, pulling out a batton, then flicking it to extend it’s length. 

I put the cig back in the pack, whilst prompting her to sheathe her weapon. Throughout the journey my mind is racing. Ami and I hanging out again? It’s not that I like her or anything, it’s just that I kind of missed her. Hey I’m allowed to have feelings aren’t I? I’m sure you’re wondering “but Felix, if you missed hanging out with her, why did you stop talking to her?” Why yes fair reader, that’s a very adequate question, however the nature of our relationship isn’t that simple. Ami is kind of an all around nerd aficionado, she cosplays, she writes fanfics, she draws, she sings anime openings on youtube, it’s kind of scary how much she does all over the place. Recently she’s started to get really famous online, she’s started to devote a lot more time to it, and She started ghosting. Being distant... And you know me, I ain’t exactly a butterfly myself, so we just drifted apart. She should be making money on youtube, couldn’t she just get her own tickets?

“Obaa San wouldn’t let me” Ami said as we reached the station. “She’s against anime conventions on principle”. 

“Is this about a ‘Japan is more than anime’ thing?” I asked, shifting over to the right as I stepped on the escalator so I could walk down past the standers.

“No that’s more my parents. Baa san is a reeeeaaally old school Otaku.”

“Then what’s her beef with anime conventions?”

“She thinks they’re ‘commodified caricatures of otaku culture’ or something along those lines” Ami said as we hopped on the train.

Granny Fujinami isn’t wrong in the slightest.

“So she won’t be mad at you for going?” 

“She’s only letting me go because I’m going with you. It’s aaalways about you with her.”

“Not my fault i’m the grandson she never had” I said while making a mocking face at Ami.

“She only loves you cuz you’re a broken mess she can nurture. You’re like my dad. Ugh, you’re like all men really.”

Ouch.

“Ouch.” 

“Suck it up loser.” Ami said, shifting her direction away from me. 

“You’re so cute when you go all Tsun” I said, pulling out my phone.

“That would imply me having any ‘dere’ for you.” Ami snapped back.

So hot.

[At the Convention]

What’s going on what’s going on going on. Everyone’s looking at us. Well I guess I am walking next to Amura. Yes that’s Ami’s social media name, you try coming up with something better at 12. Mine’s [REDACTED]. This is not what I signed up for. Louis Othello Lombardi you fucking bastard. You knew this would happen. You did your homework on Ami and figured out she’d be a lightning rod for attention. Keep me around her, and I’m bound to be assaulted by nothing. But. Fucking. People.

“OH MY GOD IT’S AMURA!” Two young girls screamed. “But I heard you weren't coming? You said so on twitter :(.“ I swear to almighty Haruhi Suzumiya, if there was such a thing as a frowny face emoji in real life, whatever that girl did was damn close. 

“Well change of plans ^_^” Oh my god, Ami can speak emoji too!

“So what panels are you going to? I heard Gail has a panel about anime piracy” Said one of the fangirls, angling towards it on the con directory. 

“Gail from Crunchyroll?” 

“Sounds fun! Felix, ikimasu!” Whoever this version of Ami was, I wanted NO PARTS. 

“Sounds lame. I’m going to the arcade.” I was putting my foot down

“Ok cool. Hand me your pass then. You can pay on your own.” 

“You can’t do tha-”

“Yes. Yes I can. You want this pass?.” Ami pulled out the 3 day convention pass out of her purse and dangled it in front of me. Obviously I tried snatching at it, only for Ami to move it out of the way. Damn japanese reflexes.

“Gotta be quicker than that. We’re going to the panel. Follow me.” Ami said, tossing me the pass.

“If you sneak off, I’m calling Obaa chan.” she said, in that her perfunctory yet declaratory way.  

“...So what you end up having is an environment where it’s harder and harder for us to justify hosting servers for anime distribution, because they don’t wanna pa- *ahem* because piracy.” Or something to that effect I’m not really listening to this Gail lady.

Anime piracy is a dumb thing to have a panel about anyway, it’s not like anybody in this room even knows how to torrent off wonwons, let alone\ how find the right codec for shows with bad compression. These are a bunch of crunchycores. The kinds of anime fans so hopped up on seasonal hype that the mere thought of an anime older than 12 months makes their tongues run dry, and their eyes wire shut.

“Are there any questions?”

“You got anything to ask?” chuckled Ami. 

“Why are we here. We both know Kissanime is in your bookmarks” I jeered.

“Networking dummy. I talk to Gail after the panel, and smooth out something over at Crunchyroll” For some reason Ami’s eyes did the dollars signs when she said “crunchyroll”

“In San Francisco? You’d hate it there.”

“I’d make it there. That’s the important part. I’d really make it. I’d be in.” 

“In what?” I said with a look of befuddlement. 

“You wouldn’t understand. You’re basically guaranteed a job after graduation” 

“Hey, don’t make it like tha-”

“Don’t make it like what Felix?” Ami snapped, but less with anger, and more a tired expression.

The Panel was beginning to wind down, and folks were getting up to leave. Ami bounced out of her seat and darted towards the stage. 

“Gaaaaaiiiil! Hiii, I follow you on twitter!” Ami screamed, like a schoolgirl seeing a classmate

“Amura! I follow you too! I love your singing” Gail responded in a surprisingly similar manner.

“Thanks so much, ugh. That means alot l love you and Sailor Bee’s podcast ^_^” This whole display was just. The worst. 

I backed off from the discussion, but I knew I wasn’t gonna be able to make it far without incurring that good old Fujinami wrath. Jeez they’re taking forever. Is this a meet and greet? Or a job interview. 

“Felix? Oh shit, how you been bruh?” This voice, I recognized it. 

I turned around, and yup, it was Tyler. 

“Who let riff raff like  you in here?” I said as we shook hands

“Is that any way to treat your one black friend:” He responded dryly. 

“I have plenty of black friends. Unlike you, most of my friends are girls.” I shot back. 

“Yea right, if you ever left your yuppie ass play pad I’d believe you.”

“You’d be surprised how many of em recognize me from Ami’s streams.”

“The streams she stopped inviting you to?” 

“Low blow T.” 

Tyler is a friend from Highschool who runs in the same online circles that I do. We keep in touch through discord and trade merchandise on message boards. He’s been trying to break into the FGC since middle school and recently struck a deal with a team based out of Brooklyn, The Mash Masters. He’s pretty good, quick reflexes, consistent muscle memory, but he lacks patience, and his neutral game needs work. 

“Where you headed to after this? Tryna hit up the arcade?” Asked Tyler as he picked up his backpack getting ready to leave. 

“I’m here with Ami, I gotta check and see where she’s headed to” 

“Whooptish” Tyler said, while making a whipping motion. 

“You know it’s not like that bro.” I shot back

“For her it isn’t, for you it is.” he retorted. 

I told him to wait up for a sec as I went over to Ami & Gail. They were still chopping it up like they’d known each other since band camp. 

“Shoot me a DM on twitter whenever you get the chance, I’d love to get you acquainted with the rest of my team. Maybe even talk bringing you to some other cons around the east coast ;)” Naruhodo, it seems this Gail is also of the emoji Clan. 

“Sure thing! Don’t forget to tweet out the channel link with the picture, and tell Vicky I said hi!” Ami said gleefully. 

“I definitely will, but uhh, she hates being called Vicky. Victoria or Sailorbee are just fine.” Gail responded, with a tinge of trepidation.

“Yea, I made that mistake on twitter once, it wasn’t pretty” I said with a chuckle.

“Oh hello, and who might you be?” Asked Gail.

“This is my friend Felix I was telling you about.” Ami said. Wait, telling her about what?

“Ah yes, the animator. Ami showed me your fan animation of Diebuster. Very interesting to see a Gainax show done with heavy Yutapon vibes” This lady knows her stuff.

“This lady knows her stuff” I said to Ami. 

“Of course I do silly, I work in the anime industry” The smile Gail shot me as she said this wouldn’t be out of place in a Shaft anime.  

“You definitely have some real skills. We’re looking for someone to do a sakuga heavy promo for our new youtube ad. If you’re interested, Ami has my contact info. It was so very nice meeting the both of you, don’t forget to keep in touch.” Gail said in a warm, professional tone as she got up to leave. 

“Well she seems nice” I said to Ami. 

“You’re welcome Felix.” Said Ami, in her usual biting tone. 

“I didn’t ask you for that. If I wanted a job at Crunchyroll I’d have one already.”

“‘Thanks Ami, I really appreciate you showing my work to someone really influential who can open doors in my chosen profession, would you like headpats?’” Ami said, in a mocking imitation of my sultry ciciillian speech pattern. 

“First of all, fine, thank you, that was a very nice thing to do, and I was pleasantly surprised. Secondly, do you seriously want headpats?”

“Don’t flatter yourself, you weirdo” And there’s the Tsun again. 

“I ran into Tyler, he says he’s going to the Arcade, and I was looking to go with. You in?”

“Tyler’s here? Yea sure, let’s go” 

Ami & I leave the stage and head over to where Tyler is sitting when I get a text on my phone. 

[11:58. Text from Lou]: Having fun?

[11:58. You]: Yea

He’s just like mom. 

“Oh my god it’s Amura! Could you sign my Fightstick?” Tyler sniggered, his fightstick outstretched. He’s such an asshole I love it. 

“Knock it off, I’d actually sign it if I didn’t know you’d just flip it on Ebay” Ami sneered, arms folded and head angrily tossed to the side. 

“Aww don’t be like that, I really did want your autograph. You’d be surprised how many Blazblue players would pay good cash for one” Tyler said, packing his fightstick back in his backpack. 

“If anyone’s gonna make money off the Amura brand it’s gonna be ME!” Ami retorted viciously.

“Now that’s just anti-black business” I said, chuckling as Tyler dapped me up. 

Ami rolled her eyes as heavy as she could roll them and stomped out of the conference room, and we sheepishly trailed after her.

By this point in the day I’d grown used to Ami being a lightning rod for attention. My camera skills must have leveled up big time from all those pics I had to take, of her with fans. Just getting to the Arcade area of the convention was a whole 20 minutes of photo after photo with weeb after arrested developed weeb, and to be honest I was practicing some big time restraint to not just walk out of the center and catch an Uber home. But surely enough, through fire by force, we found ourselves at the-

Boy was this the kind of place I wanted to be. The whole area was what you’d expect from a high profile convention in a big city. What seemed to be at least 30 TVs all hooked up with consoles spanning an entire auditorium. This wasn’t an arcade, it felt more like a Bazaar crossed with a colosseum. You have your old reliables for the boomers like Street Fighter, MK, ok that’s neat, there’s Melee, 64, Ultimate, Smash 4, oh even Brawl, full house, that’s impressive. As we moved through, you could imagine that there were furrowed brows due to the smell, but in all honesty it wasn’t as bad as most invitationals I’ve been to. We couldn’t find the game we were here for though; Blazblue. Tyler directed us to the kiosk so we could get directions. 

“Nigga where the Blazblue at?” Tyler said to one of the convention attendees, 

All the way at the back, by the Under Night” The Attendee responded.

I was just about ready to dart over there when Tyler said: 

“Nah hol’ up real quick bro, I got a question I gotta ask you” uh oh, I hear the Brooklyn leaking out. 

“Yea? Is there something wrong?” the attendee said, with a befuddled expression.

“Y’all always hide the anime fighters, what's up with that?” Tyler said blankly, almost with no life at all. 

“It’s not my decision where the games are set up-”

“That’s not what I asked bro. I’ve done conventions fam, I sat where you sat. NYCC 2017, bigger con than this, and from what I know about my time there, y’all have a meeting to coordinate where the games are set up. Correct?” Oh my god, Tyler what are you doing. 

“Yes correct” The attendee responded. 

“So you were in the room when the decision was made, correct?” This is so wacky

“Yea, but like, I didn’t have a choi-”

“Nobody’s asking about a choice, I’m asking you, what was the reasoning behind the decision?” Should I stop this? Or?...

“They didn’t want the anime stuff turning folks away” Oh no, here we go

“There it is” Tyler said triumphantly as he began to walk off. 

“Hey, I think it’s bullshit too ma-” t

“Yet you said nothing. You and all your boys said nothing. Aight, I see you fam. Haruhi’s watching you” Tyler said, his back already turned and walking away.  “Let’s go guys”

“Did you have to make such a big hoopla you maniac?” Ami said laughing her ass off. 

“Because I have Principles Fujinami, you should try em some time” Tyler snapped back. 

“That was the FUNNIEST shit I’ve seen all day, I’m so happy I knew to record that” Ami said, still cackling. 

“Wait you recorded that?” Tyler said, shocked

“I uploaded it. Enjoy being a meme” Ami said blankly.

“Not again…” Tyler sighed.

We finally make it to the Blazblue section, and it’s about as serviceable as you’d expect. Two TVs both hooked up to PS4s playing Central Fiction. There wasn’t much of a crowd, about 5 or 6 people, all looked to be around college age, couple on the boomer side though. All guys. 

“This game is so hyperactive…” Ami said, in a tone betwixt judgement and bewilderment. 

“Not every game gotta be Street Fighter” Said Tyler. “Ey yo, who got next?” Tyler asked a portly asian fellow playing Taokaka. 

“Uhh, I dunno, anybody got next?” the Taokaka player asked. The crowd shook their heads. “I guess it’s on you bro after this.” 

Nobody else noticed, But Tyler’s killing intent began to spike. I get you’re excited kiddo, but you haven’t even chewed the scenery yet. 

The game was pretty hype. There it was Taokaka vs Valkenhayn. Both characters with adequate rushdown capabilities and heavy damage. The Valkenhayn was an even match, but the Tao was just catching clutch reversals at every corner. It felt like seeing a tiger beat a lion by leaving a bigger gash every time they left the scuffle. Tyler, ever the professional, was quiet as a mouse. A mouthy prick like him? Quiet? I know right? But he gets like this when it’s Blazblue. The data collection phase. See if Street Fighter is Chess, then Blazblue is Mahjong. The same level of depth, but a wider variety of dealing with situational disadvantages and advantages. Tyler sees what I’m seeing and he’s analyzing, putting his pieces together, he’s not here for fun. This is off the job training. 

“FINISH” 6 red letters on the television screen. Read em & Weep. 

“My turn now right?” Tyler asked the Taokaka player. 

“Yup. What’s your name?” said the Tao player

“Tyro, and you?” oh yea I forgot that was his FGC name, everywhere else he’s Tyrilla. He sucks at names yes I know.

“I’m Yiao, nice to meet you.” Yiao said, pushing his glasses up.

The character selection screen pops up and… Wait don’t tell me he…Oh boy, Tyler’s picking his middle school main. Hazama. Yiao on the other hand started mousing over Tao then over to Litchi. Come on pick a character already. After more mousing, his cursor finally landed on Mai... From rushdown to range spam. Just all around bloodthirst.

Both of them sat in silence as the loading screen started up, until Yiao broke that silence.

“I’ve heard of you, Mash Master Tyro. To be honest I was hoping we’d meet. I have this Mai prepared just for you.” said Yiao. Yawn. This happens all the time. Tyler’s probably got him scoped already too.

“Yiao, third runner up at Anifight Staten Island. Three. Years. Running.” Yup, knew it. Tyler lives for this shit.

“You wanna know why HowRite was able to beat you 3 to nothing last year?” Tyler said, deadpan staring at the screen.

“THE WHEEL OF FATE IS TURNING” oh shit the round is starting.

“Cuz he knew if he lost, he’d never get to face my mentor in the finals”

“But wait. Ulysses isn’t on your team?” Yiao said confused, the backstory here is really weird, I’d be confused as well to be honest. 

“REBEL 1” 

“Ulysses is my stepdad.” 

“ACTION”

Told you. 

End of Act 2. 

Time flies | part 3

AU/Imagine series w/Shawn Mendes

Part 1/Part 2

Word count: 2K

Original request:  Hello, I was thinking if you could do an imagine wherein reader has a son with Shawn, but he doesn’t know about him, cuz reader left Shawn few years ago without a words (when she found out she is pregnant)? And one day her little son (5 years old maybe?) accidentally bump into Shawn and he is shocked that reader has a son. Sorry if its complicated 

Short description: Shawn finds out that he has a four-year-old son when he accidently bumps into him and his ex-girlfriend Y/N.

Author’s note: Please comment and keep encouraging me to write, cause if I haven’t received so many asks I probably wouldn’t even make this into series. Let me know if you’re excited for part 4 :)

  “I still can’t believe it, Shawn!” Karen’s voice was muted from behind the door, as Y/N nervously stood in front of it, hesitant whether she should knock or just leave.

  “I just found out myself today.”

  Y/N was ready to turn around and walk away, already thinking of an excuse she would text Shawn, but Tommy was growing impatient with his mother. The boy loudly shouted something about wanting to play, and Y/N’s heart started to beat faster realizing that Shawn and his family probably heard them. She quickly reacted and knocked on the wooden door, while rocking Tommy and whispering to him to be a good boy for his mommy. The heavy bag filled with a few of his toys, her essentials and a bottle of wine she brought for Shawn, was pulling down her right shoulder.

  “Y/N! Hi!” Shawn’s breathy voice greeted her, as he widely opened the door with a smile, and leaned into Tommy held in her hands, “Hi again.”

  “Hey,” Tommy replied cheekily, hiding his face in Y/N’s hair forcing his parents to chuckle.

  “It takes him some time to get used to new people,” Y/N justified, and Shawn smiled understandingly and stood back letting them in.

  Tommy who was desperate to leave his mother’s grip just a few seconds ago was now trying to get to her as close as possible, clinging onto her legs, when she placed him on the ground.

  “Honey, it’s okay,” she patted his back, and Shawn laughed at the boy’s behavior, “I’m sorry,” Y/N sighed looking at Shawn.

  “It’s okay,” he laughed back and squatted next to his son, gripping his attention, “I was waiting for you, little buddy. I picked up a few toys for you, do you wanna see them?”

  “Shawn, I brought some of his toys-” Y/N tried to communicate, but Tommy’s change in behavior interrupted her.

  He let go of his mother’s legs and fully turned to Shawn, nodding his head, eyes curiously examining his face again.

  “Okay, well, let’s go into the dining room. The toys are there,” Shawn stood up and extended his hand, which Tommy quickly gripped on with a silly smile.

  “Wow, he is so quick to abandon his mom for new toys,” Y/N playfully threw, rolling her eyes.

  “I mean who can refuse new toys?” Shawn looked over his shoulder with a toothy grin, forcing her to chuckle.

  As Shawn walked into the dining room holding his son’s tiny hand in his, his heart was radiating warmth through all of his body. He couldn’t believe that he was a father, and this was his son, but Shawn decided for himself that he had to win him over and make up for the four years he missed and be there for this little curly boy. Y/N slowly walked behind them, and as they entered the room she saw Karen and Manny quickly standing up from the couch, Aaliyah looking up from her phone to give her a small wave. Y/N smiled nervously, and watched them from the doorway, as Shawn quickly tried to introduce Tom to his parents.

  “So before I show you the toys will you introduce yourself to your grandma and grandpa?” Shawn squatted next to Tom with a big smile.

  Tommy didn’t reply but instead looked back to his mother, and when she gave him an assuring smile, he nodded to Shawn, forcing everybody in the room to laugh. He liked the attention, and suddenly felt more comfortable, now letting go of Shawn’s hand and extending it to Manny who was standing in front of him, Karen next to him.

  “Oh my gosh, he’s adorable,” Karen exclaimed when Manny accurately shook the boy’s hand.

  “What’s your name?” Manny squatted in front of Tommy, letting go of his small hand.

  “Thomas,” he announced with a grin, now focusing on Karen who also lowered herself to his level.

  “How official,” she laughed, “well I’m Karen, your grandma, and this is your grandpa, Manuel.”

  Y/N held her breath watching them, still slightly terrified at their first interaction. Shawn was smiling full-heartedly, happy that Tom won his parents hearts in a matter of a few seconds. He was so small but already knew how to present himself with all of his manners, the small things Y/N had in herself as well.

  “Well, you wanna play with some of the toys?” Manny asked him, and as he received an enthusiastic nod, he quickly got up to get the shopping bag filled with Tom’s new toys.

  As Shawn joined them in getting the toys out and showing them off to Tom, Karen stood up with a smile, her eyes now landing on Y/N, who was struggling to keep the heavy bag on her shoulder.

  “Y/N! Hi, honey, I’m sorry I haven’t greeted you yet,” she exclaimed extending her arms to invite Y/N for a hug.

  Y/N could sense the way Karen and Manny would look at her. She could also feel how they tried to ask her things, but the conversation was completely focused on Tommy, and being very polite they didn’t want to make her uncomfortable. Tommy was sitting on her lap, Shawn right next to them. He didn’t hesitate to take the opportunity of getting closer to his son and offered to feed him, even though Y/N told him that Tommy was quite independent with his food.

  “So how’s life, Aaliyah?” she asked, taking a sip of her water.

  “Nothing much except for I’m now in college,” Aaliyah chuckled, “but that’s nothing compared to having a child.”

  Everybody laughed, as Tommy furrowed his eyebrows, refusing to eat the small piece of meatball Shawn was offering to him on a fork.

  “Oh come on, buddy. This is good for you,” Shawn begged for the third time now, but Tom only shook his head, receiving a round of laughter from all of the new people he just met today.

  “He’s loving the attention you guys are giving him,” Y/N chuckled, “let him be for a few minutes, and he’ll quit playing these games.”

  Shawn nodded, leaning back in his chair, eyes still lovingly glued to the little curly boy. Shawn couldn’t believe how much this little boy was reminding him of himself, and with the more attitude, Tommy showed the more Shawn was getting attached to him. Karen was absolutely in love with her grandson and tried to steal him for a few minutes, but Tommy got shy and ran off to his mother again. Manny was satisfied with the small game he had with his grandson before the dinner and was waiting patiently to get another round. They weren’t ready to become grandparents yet, didn’t even expect to; Shawn hasn’t been in serious relationships since his and Y/N’s breakup, and Aaliyah was too young. But now having a four-year-old running around their son’s apartment was unusual to them, even though they loved it. Loved hearing small giggles, witness changes in attitude, babbling and silly questions accompanied by sounds the toddler would make while playing with his new toys. They wanted to bath this boy in their love, and couldn’t help but compare him to Shawn every few minutes, tiring out Aaliyah.

  “Warn me next time you’re planning on buying him toys, because I’ve carried this heavy bag with me all the way from home and your son- Tommy didn’t even remember about his toys,” Y/N corrected herself quickly, giving a little attitude to Shawn.

  “Sorry,” he jokingly raised his hands in the air as a sign of giving up.

  “Look at them,” Karen whispered, pointing out to a couch, “it’s like having Shawn as a kid all over again!”

  As they quickly looked in the pointed direction the scene made everybody smile; Manny was laying on the couch, while Tommy rested on his chest, both of them loudly snoring. The cartoon that Shawn put on earlier was casually playing in the background, and all of the newly bought toys spread around the ground proved that the two had a great time playing instead of watching TV.

  “I know I always joke about dad’s age, but he is a literal grandpa right now,” Shawn commented, forcing Y/N to giggle.

  “He has the energy of a four-year-old,” Karen added with a grin, “he can take a nap wherever and whenever.”

  Aaliyah who was lost in her phone suddenly stood up from the armchair and quickly walked past them to the balcony which was connected with Shawn’s kitchen. All of their gazes followed her, and as Karen didn’t pay much attention to her daughter’s inattentiveness, Shawn had his eyebrows knitted.

  “What’s that on your face, Shawn?” Y/N noticed.

  “She’s always talking to that guy,” he crossed his arms on his chest, gaining a chuckle from his mother.

  “It’s her boyfriend, Shawn, and he has a name,” Karen turned to him.

  “Whatever.”

  “Y/N, have you already thought about school Tommy will go to?” Karen switched the topic.

  “Ugh, yeah, actually,” Y/N mumbled, avoiding Shawn’s curious gaze, “there are a few places.”

  “But you have to have the first choice, don’t you?” Shawn talked in.

  “Well yeah,” she sighed, lowering her voice, “I’ve heard great things about the Coonley elementary.”

  “Never heard of that? Where is it?” Karen raised her eyebrows, and Y/N sighed again.

  “It’s in Chicago actually.”

  “Chicago?” Shawn repeated, frowning his eyebrows, “What’s wrong with the schools in Toronto?”

  “Nothing,” she almost exclaimed, wishing that this conversation would end, “it’s just one of the many choices. Nothing is decided yet.”

  Shawn opened his mouth to say something else, but the presence of his mother was making him uncomfortable to confront Y/N at the moment. He couldn’t ever imagine her moving from Canada and giving their son to a school that was in another country. He just got to know his son, and she was planning on taking him away again? Karen was having the same thoughts, but she didn’t know what to say. She felt like Shawn would get even more frustrated if she continued the topic, so she decided to leave it to themselves.

  “I think we have to wake them up; otherwise, Tommy won’t be sleeping this night,” Y/N interrupted their thoughts.

  “You’re right,” Karen agreed and walked into the dining room.

  Y/N stood with Shawn for a few more seconds, feeling the air between them intensifying again, and she didn’t like it. She quickly followed Karen, and joined her in the other room, avoiding the topic that upset Shawn so much. For the rest of the evening, Shawn didn’t hesitate on giving all of his attention to Tommy. Y/N found herself chatting with Aaliyah for another hour, often looking at the ground where Shawn and his parents were occupied with Tommy. The toddler wouldn’t stop giggling and playing out his little tricks forcing everyone to adore him even more, becoming more and more comfortable with this new side of the family he just discovered. And every time he would ask Shawn something, he would suddenly get excited and look at Y/N his eyes filled with surprise. And every time Y/N would smile at him, happy that Tommy and Shawn already started forming their unique connection. She couldn’t help herself but feel like a part of this big family, and how welcoming Manny and Karen and Aaliyah were to her all over again, and to Tommy. As if Shawn and she never break up and this was an expected stage of their life, and all of this seemed so natural, she forgot that she wasn’t in her apartment. And in fact, these people weren’t her family, and the only thing that was bringing them all together was the little curly boy sitting on the ground surrounded by a bunch of adults and new toys, enjoying the moment.

Masterlist

@justmesadgirl @wigglepotato @p3rf3ctlywrong @illletitgrow @whenyourereadyjay 

let me know if you want to be tagged in the next part :)

The week in review:

Raw 11/30 NXT 12/02 NXT UK 12/03 Smackdown 12/04 Takeover War Games 12/06 + Main Event 12/03

Raw:

...Yeah hi, what the fuck is with the doll trapped inside of the table? Is that a metaphor for Alexa??

I’m so happy for her being able to have segments with Orton. Good for her.

Alexa’s like a mere inch taller than me so she’s a nice gauge as to to how tall the men’s roster is in comparison, and Randy? Fucking tall.

So the writing was on the wall; Fiend cares about Alexa (whether the nature is abusive is irrelevant to this point) and Randy has figured out how to use Alexa as a pawn to manipulate Fiend. I was kind of hoping Fiend/Alexa were in control of the gameboard, but it seems I’ve been duped.

The only complaint I have about this is how... compliant and helpless Alexa was in this segment. She’s not only been possessed/traumatized into caring about Fiend, but furthermore she does care about him, so why wouldn’t she be fighting against Randy when she was in his arms? The writing of her character in this particular segment seemed shallow. I know she can play whatever emotion they want from her, so to not ask for any emotions at all is curious.

Also the only person who isn’t a heel here is Alexa, and I won’t really hear any argument on the manner. Fiend is a predator at best. Orton is a psychotic douchebag.

My head hurts. Imagine Becky being stuck in a tag team with Lana rather than throwing a huge fit about not being able to defend her title for fucking months.

“Sarah you wouldn’t understand, but Shayna and I are about to-- *starts smiling like a fucking idiot*” Wow I want to defend wwe’s incessant need for giving Lana a storyline but I’m so fucking tired of abysmal promos. God. I. Miss. Becky. WHY is the Raw women’s champion wrapped up in this??

“First of all... ew.” lolololol

Shayna’s hatred for Lana is fucking hilarious.

Why is it, whenever Nia and Shayna do their dual barricade ragdoll move, Nia always gets the lighter one?

Nia fucking pummeled Lana lmao.

I kind of wish this story had a live crowd, I’d like to see if all of this was actually buying Lana some goodwill from the audience.

Hilarious watching Lana sit on the bottom rope for a few seconds before climbing through onto the apron, before slinking down to a sitting position, before finally collapsing onto the floor barely peering into the ring. Tf is she doing rofl.

Now she jumped up onto the apron lacking any enthusiasm, tagged herself in, and is climbing onto the turnbuckle while seemingly sobbing. What in the fuck lmao.

God Asuka is working overtime here.

*Bonus* online exclusive: how fun, Lana and Asuka are singing and dancing together. This division is turning into a garbage fire rq.

Oh is Mandy still out with an injury in kf?

Love it when new debuts get no fucking entrance. Yikes.

Mia Yim had such a dope theme song and entrance, I can’t believe it’s been scrapped so that she can call herself “Reckoning” and hang out in some dead-end group. Shame.

Oh my god. Mia loses to Dana via rollup after taking virtually no offense. What a waste of everyone’s time. I see this going nowhere, absolutely nowhere.

*Bonus* online exclusive: lmfao the Nikki Cross interview was worth a mention. First off, Nikki looks gorgeous. Second, I feel like this is the beginning of her run of not appearing on Raw because she isn’t deemed developed enough outside of a tag team, which is sad. Third, rofl @ her giving Sarah sheep’s stomach chicken to eat, I have no words. Anyway, she should be a solid midcarder. Get it together wwe.

Highlight: Probably the Nikki Cross online exclusive

---

NXT:

They got Shotzi something that glows. Wow.

Why is there a silhouette as if Io isn’t already added to the team? Why wouldn’t she be? Shayna was in last year’s, why wouldn’t Io be in this year’s? Is this supposed to be suspenseful?? lmao plz.

Indi did not take a bullet for you, she was just an idiot. Also why does this bitch still have a neck brace on? It was an Eclipse, let’s get real for a second.

Why you acting like your team is cohesive anyway? Doesn’t Dakota hate you? Didn’t Toni just turn heel for virtually no fucking reason, after defending/consoling Shotzi and attacking Candice like a sore loser? *sigh*

I know fans are really into WarGames but I find the alliances really fucking weak every year. It’s as bad as Survivor Series, just with more weapons and brutality.

So Xia Li lost some matches and now she’s being tortured... okay. I’m gonna keep my comments on this to a minimum cuz I can tell this will be some long-term story.

Oh I really like how their respective team members are standing up in the back on balconies. I really fucking like the layout of this arena. Huge fan.

Why Shotzi vs Raquel though? Why is the team captain fighting? That’s not typical for these, is it?

Ugh failure to throw Shotzi through the ropes. There’s just... a skill gap in the division, you know? And Shotzi and Raquel are on the lower end of that gap. I don’t care if people love Shotzi, she’s MILES away from being a champion. What saves her is her risk-taking, but it’s just a matter of time before that bites her in the ass.

Shotzi’s offense is doing a minimal amount of potential damage to her opponent while taking herself out in the most convoluted way possible. She’s Sasha Banks on steroids.

You call it innovative, I call it foolish.

Raquel just standing there waiting with stairs in her hands. Beast.

Shotzi can’t have a kf leg injury, that negates 95% of her offense!

Limpy vs Gimpy

Setting up that ladder in the corner was clunky as shit.

A pure ladder stip is hard to have in a women’s singles match, but this match is a big pile of meh.

Honestly I’m not about to complain about all of these women getting involved because this is borderline boring.

AYYYEEE it’s Io! Io saved this match tbh. Love her, THAT’S my champion.

Give Shotzi’s team the advantage, I doubt they win anyway.

To be honest; you have former nxt champion Ember Moon, inaugural UK champion and former nxt champion who fought against Charlotte fucking Flair at WrestleMania Rhea Ripley, and current champion that beat Charlotte fucking Flair for the title Io Shirai. The idea of that team losing is laughable at best in kf. But they will, cuz fuck babyfaces.

*Bonus* online exclusive: What surprises could you possibly have in store aside from some random weapons? Also fuck your howl. Edit: she was talking about her stupid new tank, wasn’t she...

Highlight: Io showing up at the end of the ladder match

---

NXT UK:

Who’s this green-shirt bro and why did he run over there to break up the brawl as if there aren’t 2 dozen officials already? Men needlessly getting involved in women’s fights irritates the shit out of me.

He also got in the way of the shot for the majority of this clip. I hate him. 

I hope Jinny wins this future match.

This Aleah girl is like a cross between Kacy and Alexa, and honestly I hate it. Which is odd cuz I love them. She pisses me off though. Not sure what to make of it.

So supposedly Valkyrie is undefeated? That’s good. Let’s keep that going.

Valkyrie has nice counters and is super athletic. I say this every time I watch one of her matches but she deserves more praise.

I hate that women on UK get so little time. Send Valkyrie and KLR to nxt and send Dakota and Rhea to the MR, thanks.

I’d pay to see Valkyrie vs KLR too!

Still not a fan of Valkyrie’s finisher. Love her gear though, it looks different.

Highlight: Always a pleasure watching Valkyrie

---

Smackdown:

Lmfao Bayley “fails” to break the count before rolling back outside, so she rolls back in and fucking stomps her feet while yelling at the ref. She’s good. She’s good at the basics, good at paying attention to her surroundings, and good at improvising.

Bayley and Nattie are smooth together. They’ve never had a match, right? Other than this?

Love how Bianca has all of Bayley’s attention.

Bayley just used Nattie’s discus clothesline against her lmao. What a troll.

I remember when Bayley tapped, her entire fanbase was crying claiming she was buried. Watching it myself, she is so obviously entering into a program with Bianca. Christ 90% of her attention was on Bianca throughout the match.

*Bonus* online exclusive: Bianca just told Bayley her hair ain’t even and she looks dusty, good fucking bye.

mmmm not sure if Sasha has the admiration of the wwe universe. Look she’s a remarkable talent in the ring, but she is insanely annoying outside of it. She’s changed nothing from the time she was heel, other than no longer cheating to win. She obnoxiously cackles, she’s egotistical, she gets along with legit nobody. I’m not convinced the crowd would even cheer her, even if she’s one of the best bell to bell. Her fans can call her the number 1 babyface, but that’s a stretch if I’ve ever heard one.

“I won the first 2 women’s mitb” aaggghhhhh I hate that Carmella still claims that. Debatable. De-ba-ta-ble.

Lol “I can’t help if men are obsessed with me,” alright sure. That’s good tbh. Carmella is a notorious cheat but regardless, that’s good.

Well the reason y’all never faced one on one is because Carmella’s a Smackdown veteran and you just got here, but I digress.

So where’s the army that still runs around crying that Becky buried her when she called her the greatest woman to never be great (facts)? Where’s the outrage for Sasha demeaning Carmella and claiming she’s not in her league? Sasha fans are wild.

“With half the work I’m better than you. I held onto that Smackdown woman’s title longer than all of your title reigns combined.” omg she’s dead. Shots fired, target hit. Someone call Sasha a hearse. 

Instead of sitting there making ugly faces, Sasha really should’ve gotten up and left. Lick her wounds or something kekek.

Highlight: I’m into this Bayley/Bianca thing they’re building

---

Takeover WarGames:

I just think it’s so cool that wwe shelled out the money for a Black Sabbath song. Of course they can afford it, but for a Takeover? Points.

Nobody wants to come take out Candice rq? No? Nobody at all???

Oh hell yeah Dakota gets to start? Good for her, since she skipped out on it last year.

I don’t fucking get Ember Moon’s persona, but I like her lit gear tonight.

“Aiming it square at Team LeRae” sometimes I wonder if Vic is simply blind.

The concept of this match is fun, but it always feels a little hollow until the match actually starts.

So cool that they got Wade Barrett on commentary in nxt.

Sloppy headscissors by Ember, but Dakota sold well per usual. Not sure why they’d have Ember run the marathon.

I’d pay so much money to see the 4hw in a WarGames match.

Oh that’s cool, Raquel put her hand up to protect Ember’s face from Dakota’s kick. We appreciate a performer that protects her coworkers.

That sunset flip powerbomb by Shotzi onto Raquel off the ropes was neat.

Toni up in here just removing all the turnbuckles. I wonder if running into exposed turnbuckles actually hurts that much.

Toni barely taps Ember with a kendo stick and she acting like she’s dying.

Man that 6 woman thing was so choreographed. Even did a countdown.

Io ma’am we don’t-- we don’t need ladders... okay. Okay.

Io scaling the cage and Raquel knocking her off like in Super Mario Brothers.

I feel like WarGames is convoluted enough, but sure, let’s get into the winter of overbooked women’s matches. New season, same bullshit.

AHAHAHAHAH IO’S FUCKING SMILE. She is standing on top of the cage putting a garbage can over her head, and has the audacity to wear a shit eating grin. I cannot, this girl is crazy and I love her.

Stupid spot? Maybe. Is Io batshit insane for jumping like 10 feet down completely blind? Absolutely. Points.

CLEAN ddt by Io onto Raquel. Spiked.

Candice is dumb. Got a trash can lid standing opposite Shotzi who’s wielding a chair. Candice throws the lid, says ‘hold on’, then climbs through the ropes to grab a kendo stick while crying ‘help’. Grabs her kendo stick, goes to bat against Shotzi, gets her hand smashed lmao. Idiot.

Oh that was perfectly timed. Dakota busts Shotzi with a chair strike and barely even begins to turn around before Io missile dropkicks the chair into her from out of nowhere.

Dakota stuck a trash can over Io and then did a double stomp that impacted the trash can so badly she couldn’t slide it off lol. eesh.

Is Ember gonna attempt to Eclipse someone onto a set of upright chairs... Omg no. You’re gonna take the brunt of this, jfc don’t.

Oh good god what a fucking beautifully bad idea. I hope you’re okay bro. Man Dakota FLIPPED over. Nasty, nasty move.

That Storm Zero through a trash can was ace. Honestly I see a lot more potential for Toni here in nxt than over on UK.

This is a really good match. 

It’s not that I hate the coffin drop off the ladder onto Candice, but Candice really ruined it by preemptively grabbing a chair and holding it on top of herself. Kind of spelled out exactly how that was gonna go.

Io and Rhea make an amazing team.

Rhea and being thrown into the cage on the outside of the ropes, name a more iconic duo. I’ve heard that’s the worst part about cage matches cuz your skin legit gets dragged against the links as you slide down.

Holy shit Io just got powerbombed through a ladder. OOF.

That��s the ending?? Raquel pinned Io for the ending??? Holllllyyyy shit.

Interestingly enough, I’d have to say the 2 team captains did the least amount of notable work.

What took out Shotzi: On screen the last bump she took was her coffin drop onto Candice, which kept her from saving Io. Mess.

Some great spots for sure. Recency bias might be a thing, but I feel like I enjoyed this one more than last year’s.

Highlight: That Eclipse onto the chairs to Dakota was WICKED

---

*BONUS*

Main Event:

Main event giving people promo time? Is this typical??

Okay look. You acknowledged Alexa is brainwashed. You acknowledged that she chose him (even though she’s brainwashed so you really shouldn’t be upset). Now you’re claiming SHE came out and slapped you, as if you haven’t been relentlessly bothering her about her boyfriend that she chose because she’s brainwashed, and as if you weren’t the one who came out and confronted her. Is this not super problematic to anyone else??? Nikki this doesn’t make you a victim or even a decent person/friend lmao.

It’s a good promo though. Good delivery, very buyable.

WHY DO I GOTTA HEAR THE CAW MUSIC???

I know Lacey’s being a bitch, but it’s an awful hair style, Sarah. I’m sorry.

Lmao Lacey is so god damn funny when she has someone to play off of. I can see the appeal in her and Peyton, I can see it. I can see it. The pairing should absolutely not last long because Lord they’re abysmal in the ring together, but outside? Swell, just swell.

Lacey will always have a job solely for her character work if nothing else.

Haha Lacey running from Nikki. She’s a treat.

Really thought that spinning heel kick was gonna be the end of it.

This match is definitely Main Event(tm) worthy, but I’m glad it has some semblance of a story going into it.

Peyton’s jump kick looks dumb.

Probably for the best that Nikki loses this, even if Peyton is awful.

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*WarGames was definitely the highlight in an otherwise really lame week of wrestling. I don’t even have a runner-up, I’m just thankful for WarGames.