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st-eve-barnes · 9 months

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You know that I'm no good (chapter 2)

(modern Aegon x Reader, modern Sihtric x Reader)

Summary: You want Sihtric. Aegon wants Skade. There's only one small problem: Sihtric and Skade are dating each other.

This chapter: Aegon tries to convince you to (fake) date him and the whole thing has an unexpected effect on you.

Warning for the entire series: 18+ for explicit language and smut. Angst/comfort/fluff. Fake dating and so much mutual pining. Mentions of depression/drinking/self harm.

This is an Aegon x Reader fic with a bit of Sihtric x Reader on the side. I've wanted to write a modern AU that combines The Last Kingdom and House of the dragon for a while now so here it is!

Thank you to everyone for the likes/comments and love for the first chapter, let's get this thing going ;)

Word count: +2700

Read chapter 1 Here

***

All my fics are also on AO3

***

You were having breakfast in a local coffee shop a few days later. It was still pretty chilly outside for a July morning but you had insisted on sitting outside near the river anyway, wanting to catch the first rays of sunshine before starting work.

You took a long, satisfying sip from your caramel macchiato and then almost choked on it when someone suddenly slipped into the chair in front of you, startling you.

“Fuck,” your hand grabbed at your heart,”Aegon, what the hell?”

Aegon was looking at you with a little smirk on his lips before he sipped from his black coffee. His long hair was framing his face this morning, curly and messy as if he’d just gotten out of bed, which was probably the case. He kept his eyes on yours as he spoke,”Morning, my darling.”

His morning voice definitely betrayed he hadn’t been up for very long.

“I’m not your darling,” you smirked back at him.

“Ahh, but you could be,” he teased.

You shook your head firmly.”Um…no.”

He placed his coffee on the table and put his hands together, giving you his best puppy dog eyes,”Come on, why not? It wouldn’t even be real, just a way to get their attention.”

You sighed,”Because…It’ll never work.”

“We don’t know that if we don’t try.”

You stirred in your coffee while you looked at him but kept shaking your head.

“We get along fairly well, right?” he then asked.

“We don’t know each other, Aegon.”

“Okay, but…we get along, right?” he just repeated, making you sigh again.

“Yes, I guess we do,” you caved.

“And, I mean the idea of being with me doesn’t repulse you or anything, does it?”

You smiled,”No, you don’t repulse me.”

That wasn’t a lie, he wasn’t your type but you could admit he was a pretty attractive guy, objectively speaking.

“Good,” he grinned,”I think I can stomach being with you as well. Just for the plan, you know.”

You hit him on the arm and he gave you a cheeky grin.

It was such a small moment but it made you realize how strangely comfortable you felt around him, despite not knowing him very well. Come to think of it he’d always had that calming effect on you, much like Helaena. Maybe it was a Targaryen thing (Aemond excluded of course because he made you feel anything but calm).

But was it enough to go through with this whole thing?

“I just…I don’t know if I can do it, Aegon. I’m not that good of an actress.”

“Will you try, please?” he asked again and for the first time you could hear the desperation in his voice. He wasn’t just playing around, he wanted this to work, he wanted Skade to notice him just as much as you wanted Sihtric to notice you.

“She means that much to you, huh?” you realized.

He avoided your eyes for a moment and returned the question,”He means that much to you?”

”I don’t even know him,” you admitted,”But I feel like I’d really want to.”

Aegon stayed quiet for a moment before he continued,”I don’t know her that well either, but…I really liked her, I didn’t want to kick her out of bed after fucking her, which is a lot for me.”

You rolled your eyes at that information.”Charming.”

“She had me so completely under her spell,” he continued,”And then, just like that, it was all over.”

“Hurts, doesn’t it?”

“Yeah,” he nodded,”So…can we at least give this a go? Let’s just go the club on Friday with the others and if we happen to see Skade and Sihtric there we can just…play it up a little, test the waters and see if they notice. And if they don’t we can drop the whole thing, no harm done.”

“I don’t know,” you still hesitated.

“Okay…well, I’m not going to push you if you really don’t want to.” His voice was sincere and it somehow made you more open to the idea.

You sighed deeply, thinking of Sihtric and how nothing you had done so far had managed to get his attention, after months of pining you were still completely invisible to him. Maybe it was time you tried something completely different, more bold.

Like dating Aegon Targaryen.

“Okay, fine, maybe,” you caved.

“Maybe? Or fine?”

“Okay, fine, god you’re so pushy,” you rolled your eyes again but also couldn’t help but smile at the way he was beaming at you, his smile lighting up his entire face now.

“Okay! Good, this is great! You won’t regret it, I promise.”

“Oh, I’m already regretting it,” you sighed but your smile stayed on your face as he kept his sleepy, blue eyes on you.

***

The club was filled that night, summer bringing in a mix of locals and tourists making the place more crowded than usual. Helaena was already on the dance floor when you arrived, giving you a quick wave before she returned her attention back to the guy she was dancing with, one of Jaces friends.

Aemond was sitting by the bar, as usual far away from the dancing crowd and focussed on watching everyone while he enjoyed his drink in peace.

You searched the room for Aegon but there was no sign of him yet.

You ordered yourself a drink before deciding to make your way over to the dance floor to join Helaena. That’s when you saw him. And her.

Sihtric, and Skade, having a full-on make out session right in the middle of the dance floor. You instantly regretted coming here tonight and the urge to flee was growing fast. You could be on your couch right now under a warm, comfortable blanket watching a movie you loved instead of here, with heels that were painfully high and a dress that made it hard to move, forced to look at things that would only break your heart.

Just as you were about to turn on your heel you felt a warm hand on your arm.

“Where do you think you’re going, babe?” Helaena’s voice pulled you from your bad thoughts.

You smiled, pretending everything was okay,”To the dance floor, obviously.”

She locked arms with you and dragged you with her, leaving Sihtric and Skade behind.

After a few drinks and a few dances you were actually starting to feel a little bit better, as usual Helaena’s relaxed and positive aura managed to rub off on you. Or maybe it was also the alcohol taking the edge off a little bit, either way you were grateful for it.

It lasted for about an hour, until you both exchanged the dance floor for a booth in the corner of the club and they were right there again, making out in the booth next to yours.

If you didn’t know any better you would think he was doing this on purpose just to spite you. But of course he wasn’t, he didn’t even know you existed.

You lowered your eyes and avoided looking at them, feeling worse by the second until you felt a warm comforting hand on your knee. You looked up and much to your surprise it wasn’t Helaena but Aegon’s blue eyes that greeted you.

“Hey, my darling,” he teased, that familiar smirk back on his face.

“Hi, Aegon,” you smiled.

“You look beautiful tonight, that dress really brings out your tits.”

“Aegon!” you laughed and shook your head.

“What? I can’t say that you have great tits? I’m your boyfriend, I’m allowed to say that, right?”

“Fake boyfriend,” you stated.

“Whatever, you look amazing tonight,” he was blushing a little now.

“Thank you, I guess,” you accepted his compliment.

“Are they here?” he then asked.

“Yeah,” you nodded at the booth next to yours,”They’re here.”

Aegon took one look behind him, finding Sihtric and Skade still all over each other, and immediately turned his attention back to you,”Damn.”

“Yeah, damn,” you sighed.

Despite your best efforts you couldn’t tear your eyes off them, the way Sihtric’s large hand moved up her thigh to pull her closer as he kissed her. The way she hugged him back, her perfect figure melting into his while his other hand tangled into her beautiful long blonde curls. She looked like the kind of girl every man fantasized about. She looked nothing like you.

And just like that your self confidence started to crumble, Aegon’s compliment fading into the background while those voices in your head grew louder and louder, reminding you of all your insecurities.

You look nothing like her. He will never want you. You will be alone for the rest of your life.

Aegon noticed your absent stare and he squeezed your knee again, reminding you he was right there.

He moved a little closer to you, blocking Sihtric from your sight.“Hey, eyes on me,” he spoke softly,”Don’t look at them.”

You did as he asked, locking eyes with him.

“You alright?” Aegon then asked.

“Yeah, of course, it’s just the alcohol, it always makes me more emotional, I’m fine.”

That was only half a lie, it was mostly the Viking making you emotional, and the blonde who was practically sitting in his lap by now, claiming her territory.

Your thoughts were interrupted when Aegon grabbed your chin between his thumb and his index finger and turned your face towards his.”I told you to stop looking,” he repeated, firmer this time,”Don’t torture yourself like that, babe.”

“Sorry,” you sighed, lowering your eyes again but Aegon was quick to lift up your chin again, forcing your eyes to lock with his.

“Keep them on me, yeah?” he whispered.

You nodded and allowed yourself to shamelessly stare into his eyes. His gaze was soft but with a hint of mischief in there and you realized you had never noticed how beautiful his eyes were before now. For a moment you wanted nothing more than to stay lost in them.

It had been a long time since you’d been this close to a guy and even longer since anyone had looked at you like that. Even if it was just Aegon and none of it was real, it still made you feel all warm inside.

“Can I touch you?” he then asked softly,”Just…to pretend…if you’re still up for it, that is.”

You smiled softly at him asking for your consent and you nodded your head.“Yes, you can touch me, Aegon.”

He smiled relieved and moved his hand up to cup your cheek, his thumb caressing your neck in the process and you actually shivered at his gentle touch. He leaned in a little closer to you as well, making it look as if you were almost hugging even though there was still plenty of space between you both.

Without speaking another word he moved his face closer to yours and softly nuzzled your cheek, his breath warm against your skin. You couldn’t help but feel your face heat up. You placed your hands on his hips and he smiled against your cheek.

“Is this okay?” you asked.

Aegon laughed softly,”Yes, it’s okay, sweetheart, you can touch me anywhere you want, you don’t need to ask.”

Then he followed your lead and placed his free hand on your waist, pulling you a little closer to him while he nuzzled your jaw and your neck. You gave into it, leaning into his touch as you closed your eyes. When you moved your hand up to gently run it through his hair you could hear him let out the softest appreciative moan. It encouraged you to keep going and Aegon rewarded you with a soft kiss on your cheek.

“Well, shit,” Helaena’s voice made you both look up.

“What is it?” Aegon asked.

“This stupid plan might actually work,” she snickered.

“What do you mean?” you asked and you quickly took a sip from your drink, trying to hide how flustered you felt.

“Skade just had her eyes on you this entire time, Aegs,” she pointed out.“And Sihtric,” she turned to you,”I think you’re no longer invisible to him because he’s looking at you right now. They are so bothered, holy shit.”

You were lost for words at her statement and before you could check you watched Sihtric get up from his table and drag Skade with him. They passed by your group without acknowledging any of you.

Aegon laughed and you couldn’t help but laugh with him.

“Well, I guess we have to go through with it now, love,” he gave you a satisfied, cheeky smirk while his hand gently squeezed your hip.

“Yeah, I guess we do,” you sighed softly. You wanted to sound apprehensive or a little annoyed even, but all you could really focus on was that little spark of excitement bubbling at the thought of having Aegon as your devoted, handsy, fake boyfriend.

****

You blamed it on two things.

The first was that you’d been severely touch starved for years now, it had been a long time since your last boyfriend and since then you’d only had a few short flings, each one as disappointing as the next. Needless to say it didn’t encourage you to keep up an active dating life and somewhere between those last flings you had just given up and focussed on your studying.

Then you’d started work and it became even harder to meet people. You always had a small circle of friends and plenty of acquaintances but finding that one special person seemed like an impossible dream, one you eventually stopped chasing.

You weren’t unhappy with your life, you loved your job in the local bookstore, loved your little apartment looking out on the Itchen river. Winchester was the best place in the world to live, you were sure of that even though you had never left the UK.

The city was vibrant and lively but also somehow serene and filled with lots of nature and quiet spots. You had stuck around here after finishing university and hadn’t regretted it for a single second.

You met Helaena during your first year of university here and the both of you had become instant best friends. She and her family had lived in the city their entire lives. The Targaryens were old money, known by everyone in the city and owning some of the most renowned businesses in town.

You never cared about the money, to you Helaena was just your quirky, sweet friend with her two weird brothers. (Probably three weird brothers but you had never met Daeron before so you still had to give him the benefit of the doubt.)

Anyway, back to you being touch starved, the point was you’d been on your own for a long time now without anyone to give you any sort of real affection. And you hadn’t even really realized that until that night in the club.

Which brings you to the second thing: Aegon.

You had never seen him as anything other than your best friend’s brother, and you still didn’t, it wasn’t that you suddenly developed feelings for him. But the way he flirted and took care of you that night, all those casual touches and innocent kisses on your cheek had awakened something in you and by the end of that night your emotions were all over the place.

And it wasn’t because of him, it was because he made you realize how badly you wanted that, a caring partner by your side, someone who looked out for you, made you feel less alone in this cold world. Someone to make you feel loved and wanted. There had never been anyone like that for you and Aegon’s kindness and affection reminded you of just how lonely you’d been.

After you’d said goodbye to him and Helaena that night you had felt a strange sort of emptiness clutch at your heart, like something vital was missing from your life.

And with that feeling came a determination to go ahead with this plan however stupid it might be. It was time to take matters into your own hands and fight for what you wanted. Regardless of how it would end, at least you would be able to put an end to this pointless crush you’d been harboring for months now.

If it didn’t work out, you could finally move on.

And if dating Aegon Targaryen was the price you had to pay to make Sihtric finally notice you, then you would happily pay.

#aegon x reader #aegon x you #sihtric x reader #sihtric x you #aegon smut #sihtric smut #hotd fanfic #the last kingdom fanfic #tom glynn carney fanfic #arnas fedaravicius fanfic

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s1ckh1mb0 · 1 month

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Shoko x reader

You weren’t sure how she hasn’t grown tired of it yet. Watching Satoru and Suguru laugh with each other and not even acknowledge her. If that was you then you would have been dropped they asses. How could she possibly deal with their treatment over her all the time? Being someone’s best friend and knowing you weren’t there’s. Excluding her out of things, making jokes she didn’t get cause it was between them. Making plans right in front of her face. How could they just disrespect and disregard her as if she wouldn’t do anything for them.

You could only watch on for so long before the aura started to become miserable. You moved from the cafe table you were sitting at and approached the group. You were happily greeted by Satoru who practically engulfed you into his arms until Suguru had to pull him away and questioned you.

“Hm? What are you doing here. Utahime said you were gone for the next three weeks.”

“I was visiting my family but got into an argument so I came home early. I dropped by here to eat before I headed back to my apartment.”

Gojo cut you off without a second thought.

“So you’re free then. You should come with me and Suguru, we’re gonna go to this new place that opened down the block after I pick up Megumi.”

You cocked your eyebrow at his statement. Has he completely forgotten that Shoko was literally right behind them? They just made plans in her face and instead of inviting her they invited you.

“Are you going sho?”

“Oh uh, nah i don’t want to intrude.”

This left a bad taste in your mouth. She needed to get a grip.

“I’m gonna actually have to catch up with you guys later, I gotta visit Nanamin. But Sho can i talk to you real quick?”

“Sure.”

You motioned your head for her to follow you and brought her outside of the cafe. Before she could even get out a cigarette you spoke up and turned her attention towards you.

“Why you be letting them treat you like that koko? You know damn well I don’t like seeing that so I know that you don’t like being treated like that.”

Shoko was quiet for a moment. Not even sparing you a glance as she thought.

“False hope I guess. Suguru isn’t that bad but Satoru..it’s like a here Sugurus around I don’t exist to him. But that’s kinda how I’ve always been. Like a ghost child. Just going through the day without people recognizing I’m there.”

“But why still put yourself through that. Hun, I hate to see you upset by those dumb ass niggas. It hurts me koko. I want you to be happy. Please. Let me make you happy…”

“Eh- what are you talking about?”

“Don’t be dumb you heard me.”

“You can’t just be saying shit like that, I almost took you seriously.”

She snorted before lighting her cigarette and taking a long drag out of it, blowing the smoke through her nose before her eyes flickered open and met yours. When she looked at your face she noticed there was no smile. No laugh at the end like people usually did when asking her out. Just a look of seriousness. You were dead serious about wanting her and she couldn’t fathom it.

“You’re not laughing? Why are you not laughing? You’re supposed to laugh at the end of the joke.”

“I wasn’t joking.”

“Stop. It’s not funny anymore. Quit dragging it out and just quit joking. I’m too tired for this.”

“I already told you koko. I’m not joking. I want you. I want you to be my girlfriend. I want to treat you the way you should have been a long time ago. I want you to know you’re not invisible.”

There was a mutual silence for a minute as you both evaluated your feelings, especially shoko though.

“So…you’re not joking? This isn’t a prank?”

“No baby, this isn’t a joke or a prank. I wanna be yours Sho.”

“Alright. Shit I didn’t expect this but I’m- I’m willing to get used to it.”

You couldn’t help but smile as you wrapped your arms around her waist.

“And I’m willing to be as patient as you need.”

“Fuck. I love you so much.”

“I love you too sho, baby.”

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orestes-hungry-and-pylades-sober · 1 year

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Hot take: Marsh didn’t love Mare.

Okay okay hear me out. I take that back. Yes, he absolutely loved her, but not romantically.

Marsh isn’t the sort of person to have friends. He has people close to him, people he trusts, but they’re not his friends. He’s used to being alone, and likes it that way, actually. It’s not because he doesn’t care about people; it’s because he cares too much. The skaa rebellion is his heart and soul, the thing he has devoted his entire life to. He loves the skaa. He feels every bit of their pain as his own, because it IS his own. That level of devotion to a cause doesn’t leave much room for close personal bonds.

And then Mare comes along. She meets him and joins the revolution, because I love the headcanon that he’s the one who brought her into all this. And slowly she teaches him how he’s been wrong about friendship; how having a few close people you care deeply about, and how caring about something so huge as the skaa rebellion, aren’t mutually exclusive. She teaches him how having friends as a leader makes him stronger, not weaker.

He figures out she’s a tineye long before she realizes he’s a seeker, but in the end, their powers turn out to compliment each other very well. He can sense allomancy, and she can detect the faintest of noises and slightest movements. As a lookout pair for the rebellion and for the crew, they’re unstoppable.

(On a sidenote, that forces him to acknowledge Kelsier’s friends, and how his brother draws strength from other people, not from being alone. Kelsier is strong because he has his crew- Marsh is strong because he has himself.)

But Marsh and Mare become friends, and she’s the first person he’s ever grown that close to, that he’s ever cared about so strongly on that individual, personal level. He loves her, yes, as his best friend and close companion, but he doesn’t love her romantically.

But then there’s Kelsier. There’s always been Kelsier. He sees Mare, and he’s in love with her, completely and romantically.

If we want to go on a personal note here: a while ago, two of my best friends started dating each other. I was happy for them both, because it was really sweet and they did like each other. I wouldn’t exactly say I was jealous, per se. The thing is, I had a different friend start dating someone shortly before these two did, and she started spending so much more time with her new boyfriend, doing everything with him, and it didn’t feel as though she had much time for any of her old friends who weren’t with her romantically. I was so scared that my two very good friends who had started dating would do the exact same thing, that I would turn into an awkward third wheel, that I would be the one excluded from the group now that they were dating.

I fully admit that’s a personal failing on my part. I guess you would say that I was jealous, and a complete hypocrite, because I believe if you’re with someone romantically, you also need to be friends with them and love doing stuff with them, you know? In the end, it all turned out more or less fine for everyone involved. There was one awkward breakup, but they’re still on fairly good terms.

Basically what I’m trying to say here is that the exact same thing can be applied to Marsh, Mare, and Kelsier. Projecting onto fictional characters I don’t know what you mean. Mare is his best friend, and when she and Kelsier start courting, Marsh is so afraid that he’ll lose her and that when she’s with Kelsier, her lover, her husband, she won’t have time for her best friend anymore.

And honestly, knowing Marsh, he’d get bitter about it. In his belief that Mare would leave him for Kelsier, he’d push her away, push both of them away. And it would be hard and messy and they’d all get hurt, and in the end, I think this would be a much better explanation for why Kelsier and Marsh are so opposed. And we can even take it a step farther and say the reason Vin is told “oh yeah Marsh was also in love with Mare” is just because that’s the easier explanation. Marsh doesn’t care what they say anymore. If they want to think that he loved her romantically, sure, let them. They’d never understand how deep it went anyway.

I think a lot of this also comes from my belief that Mare deserved better. She deserved so much more than just being fridge motivation for not one but two men whose character arcs are dragged down simply by merit of her being there. Don’t take that the wrong way- of all the characters in the cosmere, Kelsier and Marsh are my two favorites - but there’s so much MORE that could have been done with Mare. She deserves more both as a character and within the story itself, and there could be a lot more than “Kell and Marsh hate each other cause they were both in love with her”. Like I also adore Mare as a character, or at least, the fandom’s take on her, and she would never put up with the brothers’ bullshit.

Oh god I feel like I just finished an essay and now I have to write the conclusion paragraph. I hate conclusions.

Mare loved Marsh. Marsh loved Mare. They were close friends, but it wasn’t romantic, and when Kelsier entered the equation, everyone got jealous and everyone got hurt. Platonic connections and relationships are every bit as deep and meaningful as romantic ones. Basically what I’m trying to say here is that Marsh and Mare were absolutely platonic soulmates, no romance involved, and Marsh inadvertently ruined it because of Kelsier.

Marsh deserves more as a character, but even more than that, MARE deserves better.

On that note, I’m off to write a fic about this that will never get past a first draft. See y’all later

#I’ve said it and I’ll stand by it #please talk to me about this more #I have Thoughts about this #and will absolutely elaborate more if you want #this is my very small contribution for everyone desperate for more marsh content #marsh mistborn #marsh #kelsier #mare #mare mistborn #mistborn #the final empire #brandon sanderson

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xavieryaa · 5 months

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Making My Own Tumblr Year In Review

So tumblr is not doing the individual years in review for 2023 like they did the last couple of years :(

This is the first year I’ve really been active on Tumblr and used it as my primary social media, so I was really sad to hear that. But then I decided…why not do it myself?

I posted 1837 times in 2023. That’s 5 times per day.

1748 (95%) of my posts were reblogs, and 89 (5%) of my posts were original.

Blogs I think I reblogged the most? Not in order.

@yipeewahoo

@hoodie-sys

@94erz

@namchyoon

@heybaetae

These are just based on me cmd-f'ing my blog using the names of blogs I remember reblogging a lot. It's probably wrong.

My top 15 most used tags (not 5 because i love tagging and want to show more):

#bts - 1045 posts (yeah obviously)

#bts pics - 803 posts (yeah obviously x2)

#queue attack my heart - 691 posts

#memery - 312 posts

#namjoon - 308 posts (i am so mentally ill)

#hoseok - 167 posts

#jungkook - 166 posts

#seokjin - 138 posts

#jimin - 138 posts (i wrote down seokjin's tag first so i put it higher)

#yoongi - 119 posts

#fic & writing - 108 posts

#taehyung - 103 posts

#bts birthdays - 99 posts

#serious posts - 92 posts

#namjoonposting - 59 posts (my favorite tag)

By the way this was so fucking annoying to do. The archive does not show how many posts you have in a certain tag. For every month I counted the amount of rows in a tag, multiplied it by 8, and added in any rows that didn't quite get up to 8. Then I added all those months together. I had to do that for every tag. Tumblr why is there no easy way to see the number of posts in a tag.

My top 5 posts of 2023:

5. Luffy Tab - 20 notes

Still can't believe we just. got a luffy tab. i just woke up and had a luffy tab

4. BTS Post Search - 27 notes

As it turned out. the poster changed their name to something else so that's why i couldn't find the post from tumblr user soupmoths -- they were an entirely different person. oopsie

Also I ended up being able to reblog it! Someone tagged me!

3. 3D Rant - 32 notes

This post got me my first hate reblog <3

In case anyone is wondering. I still agree with everything I said here.

2. Porn - 99 notes

Not doing the big link preview for this one since that on its own is kinda nsfw. Minors don’t click that link.

But yeah. That makes sense.

Even though there’s only 5 reblogs people find it semi-frequently (especially the past few days, no idea why), so I guess it’s spreading somehow? Which makes me happy :)

The Reddit Post - 2.1k notes

Obviously that was going to be it lol, over 20 times the amount of notes than anything else. My notifications were Dying.

Also, this stuff wasn’t in the actual Year in Review(s), but I’m adding them in for fun.

I liked 21k posts in 2023.

I followed 426 blogs in 2023 (not including the accounts I unfollowed).

I gained 69 followers in 2023 (excluding porn bots and regular bots). Nice.

I started 4 blogs on this account, 1 main blog and 3 side blogs.

I gained 15 mutuals in 2023 <3

All this data was as of December 18th, 2023.

#xavi.txt #tumblr year in review #year in review #diy year in review #tumblr year in review 2023 #year in review 2023

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phdmama · 2 years

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So apparently there’s some stirring of the top bottom stuff going on and since I... really like numbers, I thought I’d take a look (also because I’m so concrete it would literally never occur to me that someone would send me an ask that wasn’t... you know, genuine!).

Charts below break!

Data Collection:

AO3, searched within fics tagged as Harry Potter fandom and then tagged with Harry & Draco as a relationships, only fics tagged E. Four categories of search per year:

Include Bottom Harry Potter, Exclude Bottom Draco Malfoy (HP !DM)

Include Bottom Draco Malfoy, Exclude Bottom Harry Potter (DM !HP)

Exclude Bottom Harry Potter, Exclude Bottom Draco Malfoy (!HP !DM)

Include Bottom Harry Potter, Include Bottom Draco Malfoy (HP DM)

I did not include 2022 numbers as the year is not over. As a check, I also noted total fics per year and total fics tagged explicit and made sure my four mutually exclusive groups added up to my total explicit count.

So the obvious take from this is that the majority of fics are not being tagged with who bottoms. In the cases where they are tagged, Bottom Draco fics are tagged more than Bottom Harry fics every year I looked at. The ratio gets smaller and smaller every year, but even in 2021 the ratio is 1.73, with over 100 more fics being tagged for Bottom Draco than Bottom Harry. The ratio droped substantionally in 2015, and I am not sure why (maybe a new archive was imported with different tagging conventions?).

To get a better sense of how it looks, this is the chart without the “neither” fic numbers included:

This chart gives a sense for each individual year, how the fics are labeled (not to be compared to each other, of course):

Also just because I think it’s sort of interesting, here’s a comparison of the proportions of of E/Non-E fics, definitely looks like there’s a downward trend in E fics there.

The one other thing I was interested in was the claim that there was a trolling incident that led to this reversal of dynamics (which, as we can see from the data, didn’t happen). I went back and looked and my own rage-written fic was posted on April 28, 2021). So I looked at the montly stats for Only Bottom HP/Only Bottom DM/Total E fic posted by month and then eyeballed the proporations. So, it is true that May of 2021 is the only month where Bottom HP fics were higher (both in absolute numbers and proportion of total E fics), but that’s the only month that happens (4/2020 to 4/2022). Over that timeframe, about 6.56% of E fics are exclusively Bottom HP, while on average, exclusively Bottom DM are ~14%. In the months following, in fact, in general the Bottom HP numbers are pretty low.

So, what (if anything) does this mean? For me, for one, it solidifies that I personally really dislike reducing fic to this particular dynamic. I think it would be really interesting to do some investigating into why authors do or do not tag their fics for this dynamic, since I’m guessing most of us are aware that it’s a hot button topic (and has been in every fandom I’ve ever been in or hung out near). I know why I don’t, but I wouldn’t want to assume. Maybe I’ll write a survey.

I find the downward trend of E fics in general vs the upward trend of proportionally more fics being tagged for Bottom HP interesting, but it’s definitely not the majority (May 2021 notwithstanding).

Purely on a personal level, it was interesting to see the huge increase in sheer numbers of fics being written and posted to AO3, which is probably why I feel so overwhelmed haha.

caveat on the data: this is absolutely not a representative sample, nor is it random sample in any way. This does not account for all the fics that are not labeled but do have one dynamic or the other present but the idea of doing that data collection is absolutely fucking beyond me. So who knows what the actual numbers look like. This is simply an overview of how things are specifically tagged on AO3. In addition, this doesn’t take into any fics tagged solely by who tops.

#harry potter meta #ao3 meta #just a little tiny data thing #sort of interesting to me at least

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tiriansjewel · 3 years

Text

Another day in the jatp fandom, another controversy. As a preface, this post is really just going to be me saying: everyone needs to fucking relax. I’m tired of people calling other people out using weighty terms for no reason, I’m tired of people harassing others over something as trivial as an actor’s view on social issues, and I’m just tired of people not staying in their own circles. That’s basically a TL;DR for you all.

So, about this blocklist. Let’s get into it, shall we?

First, my main issue with this list (and I think a lot of other people’s) is use of the words “pedophilic tendencies”. I cannot understate how harmful it is to draw a false equivalence between real, actual pedophiles and smut writers on the internet. We must remember: these are fictional characters who happen to be teenagers, not real children who can be victimized. Calling adult smut writers pedophilic trivializes actual pedophilia, child porn, and CSA. When terms are watered down like this, the term begins to lose meaning. It is okay if smut written by adults about teenagers makes you uncomfortable, but it does not make the authors themselves pedophiles. Not even close.

Second, minors write smut just like adults do. The weirdest thing about this post is the fact that other minors were knowingly included on the blocklist (ie, “most writers are adults” according to the post) which suggests that the issue is with smut itself and not with who’s writing it. As I’ve said before, it is perfectly okay if you want to avoid nsfw content (which is why we have tags, by the way), but making a blocklist based solely on explicit content where you use the word pedophilia is really “not the move”, so to speak. Here’s the thing. I’m seventeen years old, which makes me a minor. I’ve written smut for this fandom, I am writing smut currently, and I will continue to write it. To suggest that smut in and of itself is bad is strange to me. Guess what? People have sex. Teenagers have sex. It’s a part of life, and it will be included in stories about people’s lives. And in comparison to other forms of explicit content like pornography, smut is a great way for young teens who are growing into their bodies to explore and learn about sex and sexuality outside of reality in a safe, contained space.

Third, there is a very big difference between adults writing about teenagers who happen to be having sex and adults sexualizing kids through writing. I’ve been around the block a few times in explicit tags, and at least I find I can always tell the difference between these two types of content. I’d also like to say that these adults (many of whom are still in their 20s, btw) were teenagers once and grew into their sexuality just like everyone else; it’s not like they’ve been separated from the experience! As a smut writer myself, rarely do I find myself personally thinking “this is hot”. I’m writing from the perspective of a character who thinks it’s hot! There is nuance and character development and thought to writing smut, yes, even pwp fics. In this section I would also like to address the fact that several of the people on this list are my friends and mutuals in this fandom. They are all lovely people who have their own reasons for writing what they write and their reason is never “ah yes I feel like sexualizing children today”. It is very shitty to make assumptions about people you don’t know and say they have pedophilic tendencies. That’s a weighty and unfounded accusation. And no, as a minor, I have never felt uncomfortable around any of them.

Fourth, many of these writers have written wonderful non-explicit fics as well! It’s a shame to write these authors off entirely because they’ve written smut. You don’t like sex scenes? Great! Exclude E and M ratings when you browse ao3. Also, some of these adult authors write fic where they age the characters up, probably because it’s closer to their own experience and it makes them more comfortable. They are literally doing exactly what you want them to do by not creating content about minors having sex. Also, I’d like to point out that Charlie is 22, Owen is 20, and Jeremy is 24, and the majority of smut is about the boys. I don’t think I should have to explain why it’s okay for other 20 somethings to view them in a sexual context, even if their characters are 17. Regardless, many of the perceived issues with these writers as people and also with their work simply do not exist.

Fifth, the number one rule of fanfiction is don’t like, don’t read. I myself have seen several nsfw fics in the jatp tag that I have cringed at and chosen not to read because of their tags, summaries, pairings, etc. And that’s okay! But never have I sent hate to these authors, called them pedos, or made large callout posts about them. I simply ignore or block the content and go on about my day. I’m not about to “yuck someone’s yum”, as it were, and I’m not going to be the moral police and tell people some type of content is wrong in all circumstances, even if I find it personally disgusting or ethically questionable. People are always going to write whatever they feel compelled to write, and the great thing about the internet is that we all have the space to express ourselves differently. As others have said, fandom is big enough for everyone. Here’s a nice little example. I’ve been in the Narnia fandom for years now. The four main characters are siblings, so there’s a lot of incest fic. I personally dislike incest fic and think it’s morally questionable, and so do many of my mutuals. We have conversations in private spaces where we tell one another who to block to avoid seeing that content, and every time I go in the ao3 tag I filter out those pairings. But never have we made public lists calling out people we didn’t know, and never have we sent derisive comments their way. Everyone must learn to keep to their own circles and curate their own feeds for fandom to be a positive experience. Everyone must learn to listen to other people and accept that everything has nuance. Everyone must be learn to be kind. As my choir teacher says, “there is never an excuse for being rude”. And when controversy must happen, let’s all be respectful, mature, and level headed in our discourse with one another.

In conclusion, this fandom has an issue with telling people what they can and cannot do or create, and that’s wrong. Fandom is supposed to be a free, positive environment. It is our duty to keep it that way. Thank you for your time.

#julie and the phantoms #jatp #fandom discourse #luke patterson #julie molina #reggie peters #alex mercer #charlie gillespie #juke #willex #ruke #lalex #flarrie #fanfiction

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miniature-space-hamster · 3 years

Text

Merweek Day Five: We Are Family

Karina Shepard is finally released from the hospital after the battle of London, and Kaidan brings her to his family home in Vancouver, where she meets his parents for the first time.

“Kaidan…” Shepard’s eyes focusing on the blur of pine that seemed to stretch endlessly from her view in the skycar, her voice sounded distant. A growing tightness filled her chest. “Are your parents going to like me?” She paused, already sounding somewhat defeated, resisting the urge to start picking at newly painted nails. She brought a finger to her mouth, seconds from chewing before stopping herself. She needed something to distract her from their destination. There was only about fifteen minutes left until they were at Kaidan’s family home.

Without breaking eye contact from the road, Kaidan gave her a crooked smile and raised eyebrows. “Why wouldn’t they, Karina?” She always seemed to surprise him with questions like this. She could face a Reaper on foot without flinching, but the thought of meeting his mother was what she worried about.

Karina wasn’t sure where to start, she sighed sharply before speaking but the noise got lost in the hum of the engines. “I mean… we were sleeping together when I was still your CO, for starters. We stole the Normandy and committed treason. Not to mention I’m the reason you got tangled with Cerberus…” She took a breath, but it didn’t feel deep enough. “How much do they even know?”

“I told my mother we were together after our date at Apollo’s.” He kept his words plain, clearly code for they didn’t know anything prior. At least no more than the average civilian.

Karina nodded, remembering Apollo’s with a slight smile threatening at the corner of tightly pulled lips. It was the closest they’ve ever gotten to normalcy during the war. A taste, albeit brief, of what was to come after the Reaper’s defeat. Kaidan was so awkward and vulnerable as he fumbled through his words. It was cute.

She finally ripped her gaze from the scenery, turning to Kaidan. “Speaking of Apollo’s, depending on how this goes I might need another sanity check.” There was a slight laugh at the end of her words, but it was strained. She tapped the door with her nails, desperately in search of stimuli to ease her anxiety. “I haven’t done anything family related in over a decade.”

Kaidan drove with one hand, reaching out for her thigh with the other and squeezed. Karina took his hand into hers before she even realized it. She focused on the strong, calloused fingers interlocked with her own. She let her free hand trace the familiar shape of his knuckles.

Kaidan knew this was going to be hard for her. She no longer had a family to call her own after Mindoir. Though he knew nothing could replace that, he wanted to at least make her feel at home with his own family.

They pulled into a driveway, past the forest of dense pine that finally brought the distant orchard into view. This was the first time he’s been home since the war. Kaidan was barely holding back a smile as he finally turned to Karina. “We’ll be fine, don’t worry. It’ll just be for the weekend.”

He hopped out of the car and made his way to Karina’s side, helping her out and grabbing her cane from the back seat, hesitating for a moment before considering getting the wheelchair in the trunk. “Are you good to walk?”

Karina gave him a slight nod, “I’ll be fine, don’t worry.”

Kaidan sighed quietly, knowing that didn’t answer his question. She always said she was fine, regardless of whether it was true or not. He looked her up and down, trying to assess the situation himself before nodding and grabbing the cane.

The doctors didn’t expect her to be able to walk so soon after her injuries, and all the surgeries that followed the battle at London. She still struggled though. At times it was like her legs had forgotten how to keep her up. But she was out of the hospital now, and that on its own felt like a victory

Kaidan offered Karina his arm, which she took with her free hand in equal parts comfort and support. She took a shaky breath when Kaidan rang the doorbell. The chime echoed through the house as she heard frantic steps shuffling towards the door.

They were greeted by a small, silver haired woman who barely made it to Karina’s chest. Her eyes lit up behind thick, black frames when she saw Kaidan. He had to lean over as she smiled and pulled him into a tight hug. It was clear Kaidan got his eyes and smile from his mother. She patted his back several times before she pulled away and turned towards Karina.

“It’s so good to finally meet you.” She pulled Karina in for a hug just as she did for Kaidan, without warning, as if she’d known her for years. Karina felt her muscles tensing up, not expecting such sudden contact. She could count on one Turian hand how many people hug her like this. Several moments passed until she returned the embrace with unsure arms. His mother soon after released, much to Karina’s relief. “Hope the trip wasn’t too bad.”

“We didn’t have any trouble.” Kaidan cut in, noticing that Karina looked more than a little overwhelmed. He took half a step in her direction, wrapping an arm around her shoulders. Karina leaned against him, desperately hoping the attention could be shifted away from her.

It was then Karina saw movement from the hallway headed in their direction. A white haired man who looked almost exactly like Kaidan stepped out.

He walked with such purpose, though it was clear he walked on old injuries that never quite healed right. Despite this, he still carried the posture of someone who served. Karina felt her own posture stiffen reflexively, suddenly feeling like she was a new recruit awaiting inspection all over again. The man stayed silent as he approached, not breaking eye contact.

Kaidan pulled his father in for a hug, neither saying a word. Kaidan’s arms shook slightly. He wasn’t sure if he’d ever see his father again after the reaper war when he was declared missing.

Kaidan retracted before making introductions. “Dad, this is Karina.”

She received a firm handshake from the man. His posture was stiff and awkward as he extended his hand. He clearly didn’t know how to address her, but the feeling was mutual.

Introductions felt like a blur that Karina wasn’t fully present for. Her mind kept drifting off before being pulled back by key words in the conversation. She was never good with small talk, and something about her surroundings kept bringing her mind back to Mindoir, and her own parents.

Luckily, Kaidan and his mother carried the conversation with relative ease. She was updating him about their family. A cousin, as far as Karina could tell. She struggled to keep up with the names.

Karina continued to sip on the wine presented in silence, letting the flavor keep her anchored in the moment. It was a dry red wine, but she couldn’t figure out what kind and felt too awkward to interrupt and ask.

And then the one question she was dreading hit like a bullet to the chest.

“So how’s your family doing, Karina?”

It was a simple enough question, from a well meaning woman who didn’t want to exclude company from conversation, but it required a far more complex answer.

She swallowed hard as she looked over to Kaidan, who looked a shade paler than he did before as he met her gaze. He was seconds from trying to intercept the conversation, before Karina put a hand on his. She knew she’d have to talk about it eventually.

“Oh, I don’t have any family.” It was simple enough, and shut the conversation down before it got too deep. She wasn’t prepared to drop her baggage on a family she hadn’t even gotten the chance to fully know yet.

Karina thought she should feel her pulse rising in her throat by now, but the sensation didn’t come. The ache was a dull one, faded by a decade's time. She quietly pushed the feeling down, shifting the collar of her turtleneck sweater. She silently cleared her throat before changing the subject.

“This wine is lovely. Did it come from this orchard?”

Karina found herself in Kaidan’s childhood bed as the night came to a close, both drained from the combination of wine and late night conversation, but neither could find sleep quite yet. Karina looked around the room decorated in hockey sticks and trophies. It looked like it hadn’t been touched since Kaidan joined the Alliance.

Kaidan caressed her cheek with delicate precision, kissing her temple before speaking. “How’re you feeling? Still need that sanity check?”

Karina leaned against the man at her side, letting her head fall against his shoulder. “Oddly enough, I’m feeling okay.” She paused for a moment, fighting the exhaustion to get the words out. “It’s weird though.”

Kaidan leaned his head against hers. The arm wrapped around her tightening with concern. “How so?”

She sighed. “Just thinking about my own family, I guess. It doesn't hurt as much as it used to.”

He squeezed her shoulder as he kissed the crown of her head, “Time has a way of doing that, huh?”

She wrapped her arms around his waist in response, holding back a yawn. “It’s like I’m almost missing the feeling of loss, because at least there was something there. Y’know?”

Kaidan nodded thoughtfully before planting another kiss, this time more tender as it barely grazed her scalp. “It wasn’t the family you were born with, but I think you managed to find your own family in the time since. You have the old Normandy crew.”

Karina nodded as she began to recline more on the bed, feeling the exhaustion finally begin to overcome her. Kaidan matched her pace, finding their usual position on an unfamiliar bed. Karina let her legs graze his own before they tangled themselves into one another.

“Maybe one day you’ll feel that way here?” Kaidan offered with a low voice, looking at the ceiling as he held Karina close to his side.

Karina pulled herself in closer, until their bodies were flush and her head rested on his chest, nuzzling before finding her usual spot. “I think I’d like that.”

#merweek2021 #mass effect #mass effect fanfiction #shenko #fshenko #kaidan alenko #commander shepard #Karina Shepard

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nightswithkookmin · 3 years

Note

Hey Goldy,

feel free to disagree but i was thinking about the whole jimin wanting to bulid muscles thing and i remembered blood sweat and tears era....the whole thing back then was that he was pushing himself to look like what an idol is 'supposed' to look like. so right now him trying to bulid muscles might be bcuz he wants to look more like a perfect idol and just have the kind of body that is expected of him as an idol. this is similar to many female idols trying to be really skinny to fit in with the toxic standards of being an idol. so more so than toxic masculinity i guess we should be worried about him conforming to toxic idol body standards.

If you don't mind, I agree with you.

Your point is equally part of the discourse: unrealistic male body standards, strict and toxic beauty standards for idols, toxic masculinity- I think they are all intersectional cousins living on the same continent. It don't mean they are mutually exclusive or that the presence of one excludes the other.

Jimin could very well be grappling with all of these at once we will never know- much like headache. You think it's just your head, next you know you feeling cold too, then you're dizzy, puking, passing out and explaining to your doctor why you're gay but think your period is late. Then you find out you're not pregnant but you wish you were because what you've been diagnosed with is far worse than being pregnant by a phantom Male who probably might have raped you when you were passed out even though you hate men and it's like WHAT ARE WE EVEN HERE ON EARTH FOR?!

Not that any of that happened to me.

As I said in the last post, I think skinny and androgymasculine is the body standard for men in Kpop. Most male idols who get cosmetic surgery or makeup do not do it to enhance their traditional masculine features. They try to look soft and feminine- especially around the jaw so it looks more oval and feminine.

When any of the members gain body weight they are immediately placed on a diet- whether or not that is healthy is another issue to debate on. You know what I think.

Fans and antis alike blatantly call the members fat and complain about their appearance, that they look chubby or fat even though sometimes it's just the bulkiness that comes from building muscles.

Much like Jimin defending Jungkook when a fan called him fat. He explained it was muscle not fat. What's wrong with being fat?

The fatphobia and fat shaming in Kpop is one conversation I sincerely don't think y'all are ready for, given recent events. Didn't Suga, the lady from Twice and one guy from Enhypen come under such vicious attacks for being fat in recent times?

People were making fun of her for being 'fat' and some assumed initially she was pregnant or something of the sorts- allegedly. Can't verify the source or identify how recent this was.

That this piece was written by someone called I love BTS is not ironic, the main irony is that the lady being fat shamed for showing her biceps and belly had just returned from a hiatus during which she had sought psychological treatment for her mental health.

The things these Idols do to maintain the looks we see on screen is outrageous and really worrying- to some of us at least. Jungkook recently saying he didn't eat anything for about 5 days when they filmed the butter MV gave me palpitations. I hope they stop glorifying these things as if it's something to be proud of. It's disconcerting at best. But what do I know, I have to leave people to make their own choices I'm told.

If I choose to harm myself because I feel pressured by my work environment it's not a choice it's oppression. Just saying.

And yes, people can CHOOSE to do bad things to themselves. it don't make those bad choices right and that's the nuance of the conversation we are having.

And I hope people who fat shame the boys know and understand the risks they take and how hard they work to meet these beauty and body standards- IT'S RIDICULOUS.

Jimin calling himself fat is not a choice. It's him cracking under the pressure of Idolhood. Like I said, he is prone to these things. And saying he is mature now and so he cannot be affected by these pressures is obtuse and toxically positive.

If you've been paying attention to Jimin for sometime now since On Era last year, he's not been talking positively about his body especially whenever they talk about his early days and when they've reacted to their debut.

He's talked about how his body looked so great then as compared to now- even though it was ON ERA and he looked pretty buffed- relatively speaking.

RM felt his biceps and told him his body now was ok. Seems to me whatever is going on with him and his view of his body now didn't just begin. Something is just acting as catalyst and bringing it all up to the surface.

He's comparing himself to his debut days and thinking that masculine aesthetics- which he himself said was a trap for him and was glad he had overcome that, "hurry up and be me now" - he's backpedaling to say that looks better than his present look.

Towards the end of 2020 we saw him proudly sporting Illucebra Arcanus- male and female adjectives, the bigender symbol, and proudly comparing his body to a flower because he says it was delicate.

But it seems to me he is struggling internally with identifying himself or trying to fit into these labels external to him. Not to be psychoanalytic or anything. I think I talked about this in one of my blogs. A florist described him as delicate during Run and he's since been using that word to describe his features. I think he wears his internal struggles on his identity on his sleeves which is very typical of people with dual like gender identities or identities that exist on a spectrum ranging from one form to the other rather than being gender A or B- sometimes those identities conflict.

He's on a journey to self discovery I'd say and that includes deciding for himself what he is rather than bending to the labels of what people think he is or should be.

Androgyny can be attained by make up, or clothes- it can be fashion or trend but it is also a valid form of identity.

All these songs they write about persona, ego, map of the soul... these are very Carl Jung in nature and it's not far fetched to assume they dabble in these things and learn from it to shape their own understanding of who they are- Jimin pays attention to these things and if you are a huge fan of his you'd know which moments I'm referring to.

Non of these however exempts him or preclude him from having toxic notions of masculinity I'm afraid.

It's like assuming gay people can't be homophobic or black people can't be racist.

I don't know why people are struggling to wrap around that Jimin struggles with toxic masculinity tendencies when he has addressed that very issue himself on several occasions- I'm simply putting a name to it. Toxic masculinity don't mean he is a toxic person or man. A toxic man can have toxic masculinity on top of his toxicity.

A woman can be a perpetrator of toxic masculinity if they are prone to expecting men to behave in a certain way that is harmful to men and other women.

These are the people who call skinny, effeminate men weak and gay and expect or encourage men to be heroes, and violent and aggressive and even nurture those traits in their men.

I do agree with Jimin pushing himself to look like the perfect idol in the past- I did, have and will continue to condemn that choice he makes from time to time just as I condemn the toxic masculinity now.

It's interesting how you see him bending to the pressures to look as an idol in kpop as a problem and articulate it well but fail to see that an ad which is pro manly men would have a similar effect on him to push him to look a certain way which is opposite of how he looks naturally- especially when he's been questioning himself for quite some time now.

If fat shaming causes idols to loose weight, there's a shaming that causes effeminate men to want to bulk up. And if the former is fatphobia and can be internalized, the later is toxic masculinity and can be internalized too.

If an idol loosing weight to meet a strict standard is not about their choice and personal body preference, skinny men gyming to bulk up isn't so much about choice either. It's nuanced in that way and those two can be happening together at the same time.

I'm ok if he is not feeling pressured to look a certain way- whether skinny or buff. If it's his choice and his alone it is not toxic masculinity or internalized fatphobia.

I loved reading your POV. Thank you.

Signed,

GOLDY

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thinkingisadangerouspastime · 3 years

Note

hi! random question that you’re not obligated to answer (i just love your ka metas): do you think that aang acted like he was entitled to katara’s affection? sorry for the bother if this is a question you’ve gotten before, i’m just curious about your thoughts

Hi anon! It’s always lovely to hear people like my metas 💛 And you’re in luck - I have not gotten this specific question before, though I have answered similar questions, and as such I will probably link those posts throughout.

Forewarning: I use the general you very liberally in this post, so like. It’s not directed at you, anon djhskdjsajs I don’t want you think my sarcasm is in response to your ask (your ask was very lovely!! 💕)

Okay. Let’s get started! The funniest thing about the (nonsensical) claim that Aang acted “entitled” to Katara’s affection is that there is no canon evidence to support it. Opponents more often than not can only bring up one (1) episode as an example of supposed “entitlement” because no other Kataang interactions in the series demonstrate entitlement from either end! Like, wow. Talk about scraping the bottom of the barrel. And I’m sure we all know what episode opponents love to propagate, don’t we?

Yep, you guessed it: “The Ember Island Players.”

From the get-go, the fact that people who vigorously oppose Kataang essentially only appeal to the contents of one episode for Aang’s supposed “entitlement” is a major indicator that, in fact, the entitlement is not truly there, and that those opponents are actually misconstruing the entire episode. I mean, if you are trying to make an argument about something but you only have one piece of “evidence” to support your claim, then a) any half-decent teacher/professor would fail you, rip and b) that’s a sign that maybe your claim doesn’t hold water. If you can’t find evidence to support it, then you’re probably looking at your case from the wrong angle. Analysis 101.

As such, I find the “entitlement” claim particularly ridiculous because opponents repeat the same faulty rhetoric over and over! The only people that might be convinced are those with confirmation bias. I’m sure that’s their audience, of course, but it’s still hilarious dfjaksdasks.

Anyways. Here’s the excerpt from the EIP transcript that opponents l o v e to spotlight with their “entitlement” claims:

Aang: Katara, did you really mean what you said in there?

Katara: In where? What are you talking about?

Aang: On stage, when you said I was just like a… brother to you, and you didn’t have feelings for me.

Katara: I didn’t say that. An actor said that.

Aang: But it’s true, isn’t it? We kissed at the Invasion, and I thought we were gonna be together. But we’re not.

Katara: Aang, I don’t know.

Aang: Why don’t you know?

Katara: Because, we’re in the middle of a war, and we have other things to worry about. This isn’t the right time.

Aang: Well, when is the right time?

Katara: Aang, I’m sorry, but right now I’m just a little confused.

Aang tries to kiss Katara.

Katara: I just said I was confused! I’m going inside. [Exits the balcony.]

Aang: Ugh, I’m such an idiot! [Puts down his head on the balcony railing.]

Opponents claim Aang’s behavior is “entitled” here for two reasons:

1) He asks Katara several questions about their relationship status.

2) He kisses her.

Before I get too far into this, we have to consider the context of the episode. Katara and Aang have this conversation after just watching 95% of “The Boy in the Iceberg,” aka Fire Nation propaganda. I have talked about the specifics of the play being imperialist propaganda here, but the gist of it is that this play is meant to demean the Gaang, to portray them as lesser and weaker than the Fire Nation. The fact that the play ends with Ozai’s victory is a stark reminder of this mentality. So: Katara and Aang have just watched this play that preys upon their insecurities and paints them as awful caricatures of their true selves. It is only natural that they would be more tense than usual. The reason I bring this up is solely to inform their conversation on the balcony, however; I don’t think their frustration solely defines what they say/do, but it’s worth keeping in mind, “Hey, they’re stressed and upset, of course this conversation might not go perfectly.”

Now, I have talked about the infamous EIP kiss before and approached all the rhetoric surrounding it like Snopes Fact Checker in this post, lmao. I did discuss in there why the kiss is wrong, which no one has ever argued against, but also why the kiss is simply a mistake: not sexual assault, not entitlement, not an unforgivable decision. I’ve copied and pasted specifically my notes on the “entitlement” claim below regarding the kiss, but if you have time, I definitely recommend the whole post jksdhjasdka (I’m quite proud of it). Anyways! Here’s the excerpt:

Claim: Aang acted entitled to Katara and her affection.

Status: False.

I’ve briefly addressed this already, but Aang backing off when Katara pushed him away is the exact opposite of entitlement. An impromptu kiss is not always indicative of entitlement. It can be, especially if the person being kissed has never expressed any interest in the person kissing them, but Katara and Aang were mutually interested in each other. They’d mutually kissed twice already by that point: in CoTL and during DoBS. The EIP kiss was inappropriate. NO ONE HAS EVER SUGGESTED OTHERWISE. But when you’re 12 and you’re already kind of in this semi-relationship with a girl you’ve been through hell and high water with (who has kissed you twice on the lips and on the cheek multiple times, not to mention it is only you she ever expresses such affection towards), it is not fucking “entitlement” to make a move on her, even when the timing is off. IT’S JUST A MISTAKE. A POOR DECISION. NOT ENTITLEMENT. NOT MANIPULATION. NOT SEXUAL ASSAULT. Full stop.

Also, these EIP people love to call Aang entitled for this kiss, but there isn’t a single peep heard from them about Zuko’s line in TSR where he demands to know what’s “wrong” with Katara, since she hasn’t forgiven him yet when everyone else has. And look. I think Zuko was just frustrated here, and that he, too, made a mistake and is obviously not irredeemable for it, but. If you’re going to argue that Aang was entitled in EIP, you’d better be ready to acknowledge the argument that Zuko was acting entitled in TSR, too. And hell, let’s take it a step further! Call Aang entitled for EIP. Call Zuko entitled for TSR. Call Sokka entitled for choosing to stay at Boiling Rock on the off chance his father would arrive, thus making Suki and Zuko feel obligated to stay behind with him, effectively putting all of them in danger. What an entitled decision, risking his friends’ lives on the 0.01% chance Hakoda would be one of the many, many possible war prisoners arriving at Boiling Rock!

Damn. That sounds ridiculous as fuck, doesn’t it?

And guess what. That’s exactly how the “Aang was entitled” arguments come across. Hate to break it to you. Trust me when I say to do yourself a favor and stop perpetuating that faulty rhetoric!

So that is what I have already assessed, lol.

To be frank, the most frustrating thing I see perpetuated is that the EIP kiss somehow ruined Aang and Katara’s relationship. But when it comes to assessing weighty issues like the notion of “entitlement” in a relationship, the fact of the matter is that you have to look at both the relationship as a whole and the context in which it is situated. Opponents never want to do that, because doing so debunks their entire (baseless) argument, lmao. Katara and Aang are best friends. And by EIP, they have both expressed romantic interest in each other multiple times. (Here is a post explaining the development of Katara’s feelings for Aang, just to put out that fire before anyone sets it lmao.)

So why, why do opponents think Katara would never find it in herself to forgive Aang for a mistaken kiss? Katara is shown over and over again throughout the series to have one of the biggest hearts. She wants to see the good in people. That’s why she gives Jet a second chance (even though a person could argue he did not “deserve” one); that’s why she helps the Fire Nation village in “The Painted Lady”; that’s why she forgives Pakku (once she sees he’s willing to change); that’s why she is the second person in the entire show (excluding Iroh) to offer Zuko a hand of kindness (in CoD)! That’s why she eventually forgives Zuko, even after all he has done to the Gaang (e.g. sending an assassin after them, being complicit in Aang’s death, attacking her and kidnapping Aang at the NWT, manipulating her with her mother’s necklace, to name a few, lmao. bless his heart, but like Jet, someone could easily argue Zuko doesn’t “deserve” another chance - and yet Katara still gave him [and Jet] one. in fact, she gave Zuko multiple).

In other words, Katara is almost always willing to extend friendship and compassion and forgiveness to others - why would she revoke that privilege from Aang after a single error that is comparatively lesser to all the other horrible things she’s experienced in the war? Again, I’m not downplaying how terrible of a decision Aang made. It’s inexcusable. But it’s not the end of the world, and considering the context of the show (e.g. Aang and Katara liked each other and they both knew it), it’s… not some heinous crime. Compared to, oh, how about attempted murder? lmaoo

Even beyond Katara’s innate kindness, Aang is Katara’s best friend. She loves him. The show portrays it as romantic through the seasons, but even if someone isn’t into shipping (which is super valid), Katara and Aang’s connection is one of the primary lynchpins of the show! (The other being Aang and Zuko, the greatest foils of all time.) Katara and Aang epitomize several of A:TLA’s thematics (and aesthetics) because they are complementary: yin and yang, push and pull, Tui and La, moon and ocean, blue and orange, water and air. This gifset and related commentary beautifully demonstrate how even when Katara and Aang disagree, they respect the other’s the decision. So after 60~ episodes depicting Aang and Katara as having mutual respect and love for each other in every form as well as emphasizing Katara’s natural inclination towards kindness/giving people the benefit of the doubt, opponents still think Katara wouldn’t forgive Aang because of one mistimed, inappropriate kiss? What?? Make it make sense, lmao.

In sum, the kiss was a mistake, not an act of entitlement, and it’s absurd to think Katara would hold that against Aang for the rest of his life.

To backtrack a bit, opponents also love to use the fact that Aang asked Katara several questions about their relationship status as examples of his “entitlement.” Just typing that out highlights the ridiculous nature of this assertion, lmao! Let me rephrase it for maximum hilarity:

“Aang was unsure about where their relationship stood? Well, how dare he ask numerous questions to resolve his confusion!”

Like, what was the alternative jskfajksdas if you are in relationship limbo with someone, it is far better to ask them ‘too many’ questions for clarification than to simply assume one way or the other! Kissing Katara was wrong, flat-out, but asking her questions to better understand where they were in their relationship was like. exactly the right decision, lmao. I genuinely don’t see how that could be indicative of entitlement? Especially because, once again, Aang and Katara both like each other and they both know that by this point in the show. That’s why Aang doesn’t ask if Katara likes him - he knows she does. That’s why Katara doesn’t negate her feelings - she knows she’s interested in him, and the blockade between them is not a lack of reciprocation, but the fact that they’re “in the middle of a war” and consequently it’s not “the right time” for them to begin a relationship. Katara has seen Aang die before! She knows he’s facing a near-impossible victory! I can’t blame her for not wanting to start a relationship with him at that point. It would hurt twice as much to lose him again if they were together in a romantic fashion (amatonormativity, am I right?). Again, Aang’s kiss was entirely inappropriate, but him asking her questions about their relationship is a) an example of fostering healthy communication and b) what any therapist would encourage, lol.

Oh, but I’m “forgetting” something, aren’t I? Right. This line:

Katara: Aang, I’m sorry, but right now I’m just a little confused.

If we want to talk about parallels, which I know the A:TLA fandom adores, this line sounds suspiciously like:

Yue: … but I like you [Sokka] too much and it’s too confusing to be around you.

Yue and Katara are actually in similar situations here. Outside forces are interfering with their relationships; for Yue, there is her arranged marriage, and for Katara, it’s the life-or-death nature of the war itself. They aren’t confused about their feelings, as Yue knows she likes Sokka and Katara knows she likes Aang, but they are confused about how to reconcile those feelings with their external circumstances. And can you blame them for that? They are facing impossible decisions (the fate of their nation and the fate of the world respectively). I would be confused, too! So Katara’s response isn’t a reaction to any so-called “entitlement” from Aang; she is experiencing genuine confusion about how to approach her own feelings for him in the midst of a war.

In sum, Aang asking questions about their relationship was a logical step to take resolving his confusion and is in no way related to “entitlement.” Katara’s confusion was not “letting Aang down easy” and interpreting it as such requires disregarding every preceding line of the conversation and its context.

As you can see, Aang’s actions in EIP are not at all “entitled.” His questions were understandable. While his kiss was inappropriate and inexcusable, it was also a mistake, and there is no canon evidence to support the conclusion Katara would never be able to forgive him (her literal best friend!) for it.

Before I end, I’ll touch briefly upon the DotBS kiss, because it is also occasionally used as an example of Aang’s “entitlement” towards Katara’s feelings. Whether you like the trope or not, this moment falls under what is called the “Now or Never Kiss.” TV Tropes actually lists Kataang/DotBS as an example under the Western Animation tab:

“Avatar: The Last Airbender: The fact that he’s finally going to face the dreaded Firelord, and possibility that he might not come back alive from that battle, gives Aang enough motivation to kiss Katara.”

Again, whether you like the trope or not, it involves reciprocation from both parties:

“The Not-A-Couple [i.e. both parties] don’t want to go out without revealing how they [i.e. both parties] really feel. It’s now or never. They kiss.”

Katara and Aang both like each other. When Aang initiates the DotBS kiss, Katara kisses him back. Her lips are still puckered when he pulls away. Furthermore, Katara had initiated a kiss with Aang prior to this incident, in CoTL. Katara was also the one to initiate every cheek kiss with Aang (who is the only character she ever demonstrated such affection towards). So Aang kissing Katara during DotBS follows an established precedent of Katara initiating different kisses, romantically inclined, with Aang. It’s not entitlement; it’s him knowing they mutually like each other and him realizing this might be the last time he ever sees her. Again, you can hate the trope, but don’t blatantly misconstrue its meaning. You’ll sound like Fire Nation propaganda, lmao. (For clarification, jic: the general you. not anon!)

Here is a fantastic post by @imreallyhereforkataang explaining the DotBS kiss in more detail as well as discussing why Kataang’s progression in the second half of Book 3 was, in fact, well-developed, and how Katara and Aang are best friends above all else and know that (which was the core of their relationship from the start).

And a bonus fun fact: in the original storyboard (link takes you to storyboarder Giancarlo Volpe’s DeviantArt with said storyboard), it is noted that Katara smiles after Aang kisses her. Why? Because she likes him as much as he likes her! It was changed by a “higher authority,” according to Volpe, probably to add more realism to the romance (i.e. Katara likes Aang, yes, but as she herself points out in EIP - there’s a war going on, and love is always terrifying to reconcile with war).

(Seriously, though, do read Volpe’s description on the storyboard. Takes you a second to scroll down and maybe a minute to read. Short yet informative, discussing how you can see on the storyboard itself that someone revised the image so Katara isn’t smiling after the kiss.)

Anyways! Opponents’ argument that Katara wasn’t interested in Aang therefore is and has always been entirely inapplicable.

To conclude: the entitlement assertion is laughable. There is no canon evidence to support it. As such, I encourage you to laugh whenever you see it! Pull an Azula, for that matter:

[ID: Gif from “The Beach” episode of A:TLA. Ty Lee, mimicking a guy, asks Azula, “Hey there sweet sugar cakes. How ya likin’ this party?” Azula proceeds to burst into exaggerated laughter, earning stares from everyone else at the party. End ID.]

Thank you for the great ask, anon! Hopefully my response was satisfactory 💛

#surprise friends!! a kataang analysis!! i probably will not write any others until may 💀#kataang #kataangtag #aang #katara #atla #avatar the last airbender #atla meta #amy answers #anon #amy analyzes

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ikingsley · 3 years

Text

Ina x MC: My Star

Summary: Ina and Luna take their relationship to the next level.

Warnings: Fluff! So much fluff.

Tag: @samanthadalton @domakir @kulaykape @hellyeah90sbaby @dopeyouth @kwaj05 @thedaft1 @swimmingshoebakerydreamer @kaitlynliaofanxx (Let me know if you’d like to be added or removed)

Author’s Notes: Events after the gala in QB Ch 16. Unfortunately, I have been busy with school and work, but I’ve still been writing. I’ve been working on a new series, one that tells about Ina and Luna’s future together. Here’s the start to their future relationship.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

May 3 @5:42 PM

Ina: Hey. I have a little something for you. Do you want to swing by my place and pick it up? Maybe stay for dinner too?

Luna picked up her phone, reading the message. They had been together officially for a few months now, but the gala had in a way halted their progress. It’d been a few weeks since Ina and Luna had truly been together for a date. Conversations through texts and FaceTime calls that lasted well into the night did occur frequently, but nothing of the romance the two had grown used to. Neither one knew how to approach the delicate situation they found themselves in.

Luna: I’ll be there.

Luna walked quickly to her dorm, grabbing a hoodie. She trudged over to Ina’s apartment and waited patiently on the other side of the door. Ina opened it and gave her that million-dollar smile.

“Hey,” Luna breathed out, her breath hitching after seeing Ina physically after weeks.

“Luna. You’re looking as radiant as ever. Come inside.”

Ina’s glance to the outside world did not go unnoticed. It was if she was searching for someone watching her. Not finding anyone who caught her attention, Ina closed the door and bolted it as she welcomed Luna inside.

“You know, you didn’t have to get me anything.”

“You finished your first year at Belvoire. I think that deserves some celebration.”

Luna looked around, taking in Ina’s apartment once more. Then she smelled it. She looked around the kitchen and saw the oven light on.

“Is Ina ‘I-Burned-Pasta’ Kingsley cooking?”

“Well, attempting to. I have some chicken in there.”

“Color me impressed. Does that chicken happen to be for me?”

“No,” Ina chimed in, turning around to attend to her food. “It’s for a twin sister you never knew you had that I also happen to be going out with.”

Luna only rolled her eyes at Ina in reaction, but reached forwards to hug her from behind.

“I missed you,” Luna whispered into Ina’s ear.

Ina spun Luna around and stared intensely into her eyes. “And I, you. Our FaceTimes weren’t enough for me. I don’t know what happens next with my future at Belvoire, but I know I want my future with you.”

Ina pressed a kiss against Luna’s temple. The timer went off and Ina pulled the chicken out of the oven.

“Me too. I-” Luna stopped.

Ina stopped and swiveled around waiting to hear those three words. “I…what?” Ina questioned. And how she longed to hear those words uttered from Luna’s mouth. Ina heard them frequently from Lilian and Charlotte, but she couldn’t even remember the last time she’d heard it from a partner. Excluding Luna, it’d been so long since she’d felt that kind of intimacy.

“I…I wonder what we have to accompany this chicken!” Luna diverted.

“Oh. I forgot to tell you. I have some broccoli in there too. Maybe I have some…wait- this went bad.” Ina dumped the rotten spinach in the trash. “Yeah, only broccoli.”

“That’s perfect.”

Soon, Ina placed a full plate in front of Luna and settled beside her. They took their first bite and surprised was only one way to describe the taste.

“This is uh…interes-” Luna remarked as she politely forced herself to swallow a portion of the food.

“You don’t need to-”

“Thanks.” Luna ejected what was left of the chicken from her mouth like it were a toxin.

“So, pizza?” Ina said and sputtered out the chicken. It was bone dry and there was too much seasoning of all sorts. Too many things had been combined.

“Please. No offense.”

“None taken. It’s the thought that counts, no?”

“You’re improving every time I see you cook, so let’s call it progress,” Luna smiled as she patted Ina’s shoulder. She stood up to grab her phone and order pizza.

Ina sighed and flopped on the couch. She so desperately wanted this night to go well. She herself was nervous. Ina had spent the previous nights tossing and turning. It finally had dawned on her that she was in love with Luna. Ever since she met her she’d slowly been falling more and more under Luna’s spell. Now she was completely enraptured by her. The simple facial features that morphed into an infectious smile. The way her nose crinkled when she laughed at Ina’s horrible jokes and witty banter. The way Luna caressed her face as she swept her into a kiss. Everything had been coming together.

“A penny for your thoughts?” Luna asked while she sat down next to Ina indicating she had just gotten off the phone for pizza delivery.

“Just...contemplating everything surrounding us. I’ve come to understand what’s truly important to me, which ultimately boils down to Lil, Charlotte and you of course. I don’t dislike my job, but maybe this is an opportunity for me to try and search for a more research-based career rather than actively teaching.”

Ina stood up, grabbing a small, elegantly wrapped rectangular box.

“I care for you too, Ina,” Luna smiled. “You so did not wrap this by the way.”

“Hey! I’ve gotten better at gift wrapping.”

“Not this good-”

“Oh hush, you. Open it.”

Luna meticulously pulled off the wrapping. Inside was a small framed poster. The poster had a big circle right in its center with some stars in it.

“Ina, this is beautiful. Is this-?”

“The stars on the day we met.”

“I don’t know what to say, babe. It’s...it’s perfect. I love you. I mean, I love it! Yeah! I love it.”

The silence that followed was highly drawn out. Both - who could talk a mile a minute when they were excited or passionately ranting - were dead silent. Ina replayed the moment in her head over and over. Had she heard right?

Luna was more bewildered with herself. She’d been too used to toxic, quickly-ending high school relationships. But as more time passed since she’d let the cat out of the bag, the more she realized that this somewhat spur-of-the-moment confession had more truth in it than anything she’d ever said before. She did love Ina. She loved the way Ina would tell her about her day, getting particularly loud during both the best and worst parts of the day. She loved the way Ina made her laugh or actually kept up with her nerdy discussions. She loved the way Ina would leave anything she was doing if Luna needed something. She loved the way Ina cared for Luna during her stressful finals and tended to her every need. She loved the way Ina balanced her so well.

But deep down, Luna was scared. Scared of being hurt again. Scared of loving someone who only loved her if she acted in a certain way. But that someone wasn’t Ina. She’d found more of herself through Ina. And she’d found something she deserved in a relationship - a mutual respect.

“Can I crash here? I’m pretty tired.”

“Yes, but Luna...”

“Good night!”

“Wait-”

Ina’s urgency made Luna swivel around and she finally met Ina’s eyes. They were full of admiration, love, happiness.

“Did you mean it, Luna?”

“Mean...what?”

“You know.”

“Well, words are a tricky thing. After all, there’s a whole branch of anthropology that focuses on linguistics. It’s very complex!”

Ina hummed softly. “Yes, well...good night.” Ina pressed a chaste kiss on Luna’s forehead and Luna began to turn around to the bedroom. “I love you, Lu.”

Again, Luna stopped in her tracks. “What?”

“I love you, Garcia,” she grinned. “Come here.”

Luna ran towards Ina as she swept her in her arms. Luna jumped into Ina pressing her lips against Ina’s. Ina carried Luna’s small frame and paraded her around the apartment, often breaking their kiss with more admissions of love.

“I love you, Ina. With all my heart. You know pieces of my past and so I was scared to say it. I know we haven’t officially been together for long, but what I feel for you, it’s beyond anything I’ve ever felt before. I am...deeply in love with you, however scary it may seem.”

“Read the caption under the stars, my love.”

Quietly, Luna descended from Ina’s arms and picked up the poster she’d just been gifted. Under the stars was a small quote.

I love you, what star do you live on? - Conrad Aiken

Ina Kingsley and Luna Garcia

The Day the Stars Aligned. September 6, 2020 | 4 AM | Dreams Diner, New York

“I love you so much you big nerd,” Luna beamed and wiped away the tears that began forming at the corner of her eyes. “I love you, Ina Kingsley.”

“Sol.”

“Sun? My name, Luna, means moon in Spanish. But I guess I’m your sun too.”

“You are. By the way, I know that, Lu.” Luna gave her a ‘really? are you sure about that’ look. “I am fluent in Spanish thank you very much! I learned it before English!”

“As did I,” Luna retorted.

“Right, well. My middle name. It’s Sol.”

A few months later...

“I can’t believe I’m here,” Ina laughed.

“Honestly, same.”

“What? You basically coerced me into coming!” Ina exclaimed. “I thought we were going to the museum.”

“We will after if you’re up to it. And you would’ve come regardless. You love me too much.”

“Touché.”

“Such a little simp.”

“And?”

“No, nothing,” Luna said quickly. She proceeded to whisper simp once again under her breath.

A strong, tatted man opened the dark curtains, letting the establishment soak in the sunlight.

“How can I help you?” he asked.

“We’re here for tattoos!” Luna said happily.

“Yes, well, we are at a tattoo parlor,” Ina retorted.

“Sorry. Don’t mind her. She’s just grumpy all the time.”

Ina made a face at Luna, her brows furrowed in frustration. Just through that look, Luna knew not to pester Ina once more. She gave her a ‘you’re in trouble when we get home’ look.

“You both are willingly getting tattoos?” the man asked. It was definitely more directed towards Ina.

Bashfully, Ina nodded. Never in a million years did she think she’d do this. A tattoo. Jesus Christ. Luna was right. If she pulled out a Merriam-Webster dictionary, she knew she’d find a full page photo of herself next to the word simp - a word they’d specifically added just for her.

“What are you guys looking for? Something small, something big? Something plain, something colorful?”

Who was this man? Dr. Seuss’s son? Ina thought to herself.

“Just something small. Maybe on my hip or something,” Luna answered for the both of them as Ina nodded in agreement.

As fun as this little bonding activity was, both women were professionals. Nothing could be too blatantly obvious. Potentially hypothetically, Ina couldn’t have her students ask her about her new tattoo rather than anthropology.

“Do you guys have any designs you want me to copy?” the man asked as he put on gloves.

“Umm...I didn’t have anything in specific in mind. Maybe her name or something that reminds me of her? A rose maybe?” Luna began rambling as her thoughts took over.

The two women stood aside in silence, pondering what they would get. It was unlike them - they were always prepared for everything.

“Hey, Luna,” Ina turned to face her partner. “Why don’t we get a sun and moon?”

“Aww, Ina,” she smiled.

Goddamn those heart eyes, Ina thought.

“Okay, why don’t you get a moon and I’ll get a sun,” Luna said. “That way I’ll always be reminded of you, and you me.”

“I’d like nothing more, my love.”

And after being called a baby multiple times by Luna and a few blaring yelps - mostly on Ina’s part - they were permanently linked by ink.

“I love you but I am never ever doing that again, Luna.”

#ina x mc #ina kingsley #queen b #luna garcia

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perksofbeingatallpotato · 4 years

Text

Shag, Marry, Kill

Harry Hart x Reader Request Warnings: Drinking Word Count: 1,605 A/N: I’m back! Although I wasn’t really gone, I see all your likes and messages. Thank you! Also, I have no first-hand experience in going to parties and playing the games mentioned below except for beer pong, forgive me. To Anon, I hope I met your expectations, and again thank you for the request! Request: “Could you do a lovely thing? A harry hart x reader where eggsy threw a birthday party and harry got too drunk and they took advantage of his drunkenness and asked him a bunch of stuff. They played shag, marry, kill and he only wants to shag and marry the reader. Make it fluff or smut, totally up to you. Thanks.”

Kingsman's resident wizard deserves all the good things in this world for everything he's been doing for the agency. And for his birthday, Eggsy organized a party for him, and has asked you for help. You were tasked with the food since according to Eggsy, he's not posh and not a foodie unlike you, but for the drinks, Eggsy said he's got it all handled.

Everyone at Kingsman was of course invited. It felt kind of odd to see the staff and the agents in their casual attire.

It was a surprise party, Eggsy managed to persuade Merlin to "come over at his place for some drinks and board games" this weekend, and he also had to tell him that you guys would need “pairs of two to play, otherwise game night wouldn't happen.”

"SURPRISE!!!" Everyone shouted in sync when Merlin arrived.

"Oh my!" Merlin clutched his chest. "Happy birthday, Merlin!" You went in to give the man a hug, Harry and Eggsy followed and gave him a hug, too.

The party was pretty casual, everyone was just eating, drinking, and mingling around. People were complementing the food and were asking you about it.

Merlin declaring a toast and saying his gratitude wrapped the party, some of the guests started to bid their goodnights. But little did you know, Eggsy has more plans. According to him, it's now the beginning of the after party.

“It’s still a bit early to call it a night, how ‘bout we play some games?”

Eggsy started setting up the table for a game of flip the cup. He divided the remaining guests equally into two teams. It was intense. Everyone seems to manage to flip their cups after one try, only the ones who've already had too much to drink were the ones who struggled. An eruption of laughter and cheers filled the room.

Your team, with the guest of honor Merlin, won the first round. By the third and the last round, everyone's alcohol level had increased and seemed to be failing and laughing at their own failures, making the game harder than it really was. Your team managed to finish first, while the opposing team was left with two more cups. Apparently, some of your colleagues are not all stiff and posh, as was previously assumed. Well, the ones that stayed anyway. After the game, more people decided to head home.

"Now does anyone would like to play a round of beer pong?" Eggsy asked. "Eggsy why don't you play? I'll sit this one out." Eggsy has planned all of this and deserves to have fun as well. He took your suggestion and he paired off with Merlin. Merlin then encouraged his closest friend to play against them, to which Harry surprisingly agreed and chose Percival as his beer pong partner.

It was absolutely entertaining to watch these skilled marksmen play beer pong when they've already had a few drinks, though they're still somehow sharp with their aims. By the second round, they were getting really competitive and really drunk. You were secretly rooting for Harry and Percival to win against your best friend. And to your satisfaction, they did. It was refreshing to see your colleagues having this much fun. It was getting really late and more guests, including Percival, decided to call it a night. After a while, it was just you, Harry, Merlin, and of course, Eggsy who were left.

You were eating a slice of cake when Eggsy apparently has another game in mind. He asked, "Drunk Jenga?" to which you and Merlin replied "nah” at the same time. Looks like Eggsy really did his research in throwing a party. Although this was more of a young adult type of party rather than a posh formal party. Eggsy then suggested “Never Have I Ever.”

You started off with an easy one such as never have I ever got a tattoo. Eggsy and Merlin were also saying casual statements such as never have I ever given a fake name or never have I ever had a speeding ticket. Except for Harry, who were saying things like never have I ever peed in the pool, or never have I ever smoked weed. It was only after a few more series of never have I evers that the three of you started to realize just how drunk Harry Hart is.

The game slowly turned from finding out each other’s little secrets to finding out Harry’s secrets, or things he wouldn’t normally share when sober. Whether he drinks or he doesn't, one of you asks him further about it. Harry was very obliging and he answers each question to the best of his abilities. Fortunately, he’s still able to form coherent sentences. It went on and on, and Harry had no clue with what the three of you were up to. At some point you started to feel sleepy, and the four of you eventually ran out of things to say.

It was past midnight. You're sprawled on the sofa. Harry was sitting on your right, Merlin’s on the couch, and Eggsy was sitting on the floor. "Okay, okay, here’s the last thing we’ll play. We'll take turns, amongst the three of us, excluding yourself of course. Name who'd you shag, marry, and kill.” Eggsy looks around the group to see if you understood him. "I'll start," Eggsy said. "Bruv, I’d marry you, shag Harry, and kill Merlin. No hard feelings, Merlin."

“Aye, I’d also marry (Y/N). I’m afraid to say I’d rather kill my best friend than shag him, which leaves you Eggsy.” Merlin said. "You’d shag me, eh?” Eggsy playfully winked at Merlin and everyone laughed. "How ‘bout you, (Y/N)?”

“Sorry Eggs, I’m with Merlin on this one, I’d have to kill you. I’d shag Merlin, and I’ll marry Harry. Not just because it rhymes.” That earned a chuckle from the group.

“How about you Harry, who’d you shag, marry and kill?” Merlin asked him.

“Merlin, it’s mutual, I’d have to kill you too. Your genius can be a great threat to this world. And I'd shag (Y/N), and also marry (Y/N).” Harry said.

Hearing that seemed to snap you out of your sleepiness and drunkenness. Harry just drunkenly confirmed Merlin's suspicions. "Bruv, that's not how the game works, you —" Eggsy stopped when he realized what just happened.

When Harry drank to never have I ever fallen in love, you just chalked it up with him being drunk. Since Harry has once admitted that he has never experienced companionship, you simply assumed the man hadn't also experienced falling in love with someone.

And now you realize Harry's kind and subtle sweet gestures towards you wasn't a figment of your imagination just because you adore the man.

The silence was interrupted by Merlin, "Eggsy, I think we should start cleaning-up." Leaving you with Harry to talk about what happened.

The two of you sat in silence. Unsure where to start.

"I like you, (Y/N), very much." Harry had too much liquid courage and he started to admit his feelings. "I know you might think I'm sad, and old, and that's gross. And I'm sorry, but I couldn't help it, being close to you, seeing you almost every day, I was feeling these inner stirrings whenever you're near, whenever you laugh, whenever you smile. You’re amazing, you’re smart. You’re someone I never thought I’d need... you’re all I want... and I, I... I just...” He trailed off.

"And you're a cute blabbering mess, Harry. I'd kiss you right now if you weren't so drunk." You replied

"You?... You would?" Harry wasn't sure if he heard you right. You took his hand and assured him, "yes, I would kiss you." Harry started leaning in to you slowly, you saw him close his eyes and then he fell asleep. You laughed a hearty laugh and it was heard all over Eggsy's flat.

"Well, someone's having fun." You heard Eggsy shout from across the hall. "Man down!" And you continued laughing. You let Harry sleep while you helped them clean up the place.

Once finished, you tried to wake Harry up. It took a few attempts before he started to stir. "Come on Harry, I'll take you home." He groggily responded with "really?" "Yes, you silly, you need to go home."

Merlin offered to help you, seeing as how Harry is taller than you, and drunk. It wouldn’t be easy to put him in a cab or take him upstairs to his room.

“Bruv, don’t take advantage of Harry while he’s drunk.” Eggsy jokingly told you before you left.

Once you and Merlin managed to put drunk Harry in bed, he said thank you and "(Y/N) please don't leave." You squeezed his hand and gave him a kiss on the forehead, "I won't."

"Thank you Merlin, guess I'll just crash on his couch." "Thanks to you too, (Y/N), the food was amazing. And don't tell Eggsy, I kinda knew. He wasn't very discreet with his plans." "Yeah, I had a feeling. Let's not break his heart." Merlin chuckled. "Thanks again, and good night."

You took the liberty of raiding Harry's closet for some pajamas and a blanket, and found a notepad by his desk.

"Harry,

As promised, I didn't leave. I'm downstairs if you need me. I also took the liberty of raiding your closet for something to wear. And I would also be raiding your pantry for breakfast, or I may have already done so by the time you're reading this.

P.S. I like you too, very much.

- (Y/N) "

#Harry Hart x Reader #Kingsman Imagine #Fic Request #Kingsman Fan Fics

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gryffindorkxdraws · 3 years

Note

Want to start off by saying that I love your mind! I was hoping to get your opinion on: what is it in jackunzel that makes it feel so right?

EDIT: changed a few things ehe

ngl i found this challenging cus it made me think of how the answer would vary per person (yeah i went there idk why sdjkknds) so lemme get logical for a sec here haha

what exactly is the definition of “feel right”?

to make someone feel relaxed and comfortable, as merriam-webster states

simple as that, right? but wait there’s more

what makes something/someone go under that category?

now from there it expands because there are so many ways of answering that with everyone having different opinions and mindsets.

fair warning before we push on, this is going to get messy (like a word vomit) with how i’m just going to pour out everything i can think off, but just know i really like this question hence the, uh, mess? lmao

so back to your question, what is it in jackunzel that makes it feel so right?

in one POV, it could be because of how rapunzel and jack represent the sun and the moon respectively, making them two contrasting sides who shouldn’t collide and yet, against all odds and opposing forces that would come between them, they did.

and we can bet on the fact that they fought hard/struggled for it, depending on how fanfic writers play with it (reminds of this sun/moon au that sold me to this trope lmao).

just because others said it’s impossible or it’s against whatever, why should they listen to the “norm?” what even is considered “normal,” when the two can explore so much more of what they could be missing from life after stepping out of others’ shadows?

i just love sun/moon dynamics. i’m obsessed lmao i read the ones below somewhere and idk where but it’s been living in my head rent free and i can’t escape it tho feel free to correct me about any of these symbol topic!

like the Sun, thoughtful and full of energy to share with everyone, is connected with one’s self and known to, yeah, radiate warmth or light. it also symbolizes firmness, strength and power. oh and life too i guess?

while the Moon, subtle but full of mysteries and wonders, can also get emotional and sway others to be more nurturing. cus like it also symbolizes calmness, beauty, and nurture. plus eternity and enlightenment?

the list goes on if we head into more of what it both symbolize, but when these two celestial bodies get together, masculine and feminine energies unite. the Sun gives out life, while the Moon cultivates it.

i have no idea where i’m going but moving on

maybe it’s that taste of rebellion with going against the authorities/society/rules/of what has always been set to find out who they’re meant to be or, y’know, finding their identity without the shackles of others (like jack learning he has the potential to be a guardian and embracing it in his own time, and rapunzel realizing she’s the lost princess and works hard to be a good one),

or there’s something about the mystery that follows the other because they’ve never met anyone quite like them (like exploring a world they’ve never set foot on),

or finding all the good and bad in each other and in their differences, but still loving the other for who they are,

or what one lacks the other makes up for it and vice versa. with or without them realizing they can help each other grow to be a better version of themselves.

opposites attract who are bound to be full of surprises.

but on the contrary, they could also be two peas of a pod. aight this definitely goes against what i said above with all the opposites and stuff, but hear me out.

while they grew up and learned how to cope with life differently, they somehow still share the same sentiments when it comes to, for example, reaching their goals.

they have their own way to go about it, sure, but my point is they can reach a common ground better together compared when they’re with others.

like rapunzel with the lanterns, and jack with his memories. at first, one hesitated and wavered, while the other disagreed and pulled away. it was only after they saw a chance/realized this was it that they agreed in a heartbeat

they ultimately made the choice of diving in head first regardless of their initial thoughts in the first place. kinda like the moment they realized they can be a step closer to what they’ve been yearning for their whole life

bam, out of the way, they’re coming through lmao

not only that, but they can also be soft, gentle, understanding despite rapunzel’s spontaneuosness and jack’s mischievousness. we’ve seen them interacting with children and they’re so good at lifting their spirits up to have some fun and that there will always be a tomorrow.

and with their peers too. rapunzel lights up even the darkest of rooms, may it be like fireworks to bring joy or a campfire to warm one’s heart. jack meanwhile keeps things light when everyone else feels tense, easing others to relax and remember there’s always a way out

don’t forget the way they both sacrifice themselves for who they care for. like, they just do that, putting others first before them. that scene of saving eugene and baby tooth aaahhhhdjhdskdjkbkfjdkjf

and when everything comes crashing down and the world feels heavy on their shoulders, they both know they’re not alone with the other there for them.

maybe it’s the mutual understanding they have for each other after opening up, and finding a friend/partner/home through the connection they made together,

or they could be a push and pull that leads them to showing an unexpected side of the other, but in reality they always had it in them and all they needed was someone to show the way,

or how they complement each other, but they’re not two halves of a whole, no, rather they’re already whole themselves and they only reminded each other that they are,

or it’s simply because they don’t feel the need to put up walls or anything of the likes, because they know that no matter what they’ll be accepted for who they are.

opposites who have so much more in common than they originally thought

in another POV it could be because of how they give such partners in crime vibe. lowkey or highkey, take your pick. nothing would stop them from moving forward to a new tomorrow, or honestly whatever it is they put their minds to.

and i am here for that

like i said in one of my posts, “They were a magnet for trouble, with the Sun being a free-spirited and vivacious fellow, and with the Moon’s knack for mischief and being a rebel without cause.”

while both are adventurous, ready to explore whatever is out there, all the while just wanting to have some fun, they still balance each other out.

with jack usually ready to do what he needs/wants to do (which helps rapunzel to trust her gut and take the risk. that he’ll be there for her whenever she’s ready to step out of her comfort zone and jump away from her tower)

and with rapunzel knowing how to handle sticky situations properly (which reminds jack that not everything has to be done harshly and abruptly. that while freezing someone could be fun, it won’t solve things in the long run)

am i making sense? idek but you’re stuck with me lol but before i forget and i can’t believe i just remembered now. the way they can help fill in on what the other is missing

rapunzel wants to see the world, what goes out there, with the people, society, and history i feel. and jack can take her to wherever she wants to go. hell, he’ll even surprise her and bring her to places he’d think she’ll like.

with his experiences, he’s bound to have an endless list of plans for them to go through and it’s no surprise that she’ll love it, and (him) his gesture, nonetheless

jack wants to be noticed by others, to be seen and heard for who he is. and rapunzel is such a welcoming person that she accepts him wholeheartedly. give him the love he was deprived of for years.

reassure him that even he has a place to call home because why would he be excluded from that? he deserves it just as much as she and everyone else does

also i like to think they brainstorm ideas together

maybe it’s how they’re both game for an adventure, sudden or not, and this makes it easy for them to team up together and take on the world

or the feeling of familiarity as they click and everything flows naturally to them, where nothing is forced or uncomfortable between them

or how it’s like they can hold on to each other, knowing the other won’t let go no matter what because they’ll always have each other through the ups and downs

or it’s in their shared smiles, mischievous sparks in their eyes, moving together to the music of their synchronized heartbeats, as they step forward to the vast unknown

finding the ‘one’ who understands them inside out that they feel at home with them

i’ve said so many things and threw out so many brain rot, but what exactly is my final answer?

it’s simple: who knows? now before you toss me aside, and i hope not lmao, lemme just say even with that kind of final verdict, you can still find beauty in it.

you see, there’s so much more to explore and delve into with jackunzel because of their potential, that i don’t want to make a set answer for your question. i’d rather much help you, and anyone else wondering, to come to an answer yourself and maybe even share/discuss it with others.

i’m running out of brain juice, but i at least hope this helped satisfy your curiosity behind your question since this is all i can give… for now, maybe? who knows lmao

tho i’ll be honest and admit i based these on how i feel about jackunzel. so if ever someone else out there wants to add more points they thought of, feel free to add on this

#rotbtd #jackunzel #rise of the brave tangled dragon #the big four #jack frost and rapunzel #jack frost #rapunzel corona #holy hell what possessed me to type a damn essay lmao #my writing

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thedreadvampy · 3 years

Text

like actually yeah PLEASE can we talk about how a lot of younger people in the queer community (and also some not younger people) seem to think that

a) visibility is the same thing as social power (both gay men and trans women have appeared regularly in media for decades of not centuries, usually as the butt of jokes; flaboyant queerness and gender nonconformity are often visible in media but that's generally been used to mock and target flamboyantly queer, GNC and trans people, not out of some sort of respect or social empowerment. Like representation and visibility are important tools to achieve social empowerment but they're also used to remove it and the fact that, say, there's more transfem characters than transmasc in media is not bc transfem people have social power it's because they've been considered a joke or a source of horror or a social deviance in themselves)

b) cis gay men, especially camp/gnc gay men, hold broad social privilege/are exaggerating when they talk about oppression (what are you on? what are you on????? broad social acceptance of male queerness has come on in leaps and bounds over my lifetime but you don't need to even look back as far as the early 2000s to see how many people in society hate and fear gay and bi men. right now! people are excluded from their families and communities because of the whisper of gayness! right now look at the world and tell me one person in a position of power who's a ~stereotypically flamboyant gay~ who's not a media personality. look at how quickly people jump to joking about homosexuality when they don't like someone. like gay men and bi men are still at exceptionally high risk of violence around the world! and I'm not just talking about the many countries which still have the death penalty or severe punishments for same-sex activity, although also YEAH WE SHOULD TALK ABOUT THAT.)

c) just in general, that the social politics of the specific queer communities they move in are reflective of the world as a whole (like yeah ok maybe GNC gay men, butches and trans lesbians have all the clout in One Specific Social Media Sphere you move in. maybe everyone around you understands the nuances of nonbinary identity. maybe everyone uses the same language. but that doesn't mean that the social hegemony of the world at large privileges GNC people and trans people, differentiates between nonbinary and GNC, or cares what language you use to describe yourself. We've come a long way but sometimes I think we're at risk of getting complacent and losing our solidarity for other members of the community bc we project our understanding of the power dynamics of a small community onto the power dynamics of an extremely hierarchical society full of people who've only learnt trans people are a real thing in like the last decade and who've mostly known about queerness as a threat)

d) that "queer" and "LGBTQ+" are synonyms (this is a matter of opinion I guess but my opinion is they're NOT! Queerness as a reclamatory identifier is a political stance! It's inherently radical; it's anti-assimilationist, activist, community-focused and founded in confrontational pride in your """"deviance""""" (as well as being heavily but not exclusively associated with leftism, anarcho-socialism, and mutual aid). Not every LGBTQ+ person is queer and that's fine. and the power of queerness comes from the reclamation of homophobic and transphobic rhetoric. so like queer may not be a slur now (let's not get into that) but it's not just ahistorical to claim it never was a slur, it also robs the word of its political and reclamatory power. Gayness, transness, bisexuality, asexuality et al are statements of being; queer is a statement of intent.)

e) that anything is Just The Facts (identity is in a constant state of flux. so is language. and appeals to history ignore the fact that debates about language and queer politics are as old as the queer community - there's very rarely been total consensus on the minute nuances of language. and personal identity is in flux too - you're not lying if you said you were ace and now you say you're straight, if you said you were a lesbian and now consider yourself a gay man, if you said you were bi and now you say you're a lesbian. sexuality and community are messy and complex and personal and often change over time. nothing's locked in unless you want it to be)

f) that queer history started in the 2000s/the 90s/the AIDS crisis/Stonewall (the queer/LGBTQ+ community has had an activist and social history for centuries and the modern gay/queer solidarity movement goes back at least a hundred years. so does explicit oppression of those groups. you can't just point to the 90s and say Look The Beginnings Of Our History)

#idk it's just a handful of #lgbtq discourse #takes #which I'm gonna tag #discourse #just in case ya wanna blacklist that #also it's wild that i keep talking about Young People Today like I'm not in my mid 20s #oh hark at me an ancient elder 😌#but i think there's a really sharp cut between people who remember the atmosphere of the 2000s and people who were little kids then #like 2009. 2009 is when the uk got gay marriage. 2010 in the US I think?#and i just. i don't understand how anyone who DOES remember that and how recent it was can be like HAHA GAY MEN HAVE SO MUCH SOCIAL POWER #hm. nah.

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jimlingss · 4 years

Text

Sugar and Coffee [22.5]

Back to Chapter 22

Words: 2729 || The Ultimate Mini-Chapter of the series

“You’re working in a grocery store now?” Taehyung asks with raised brows, surprise taking hold. He never imagined his friend being a produce boy, yet it seems fitting somehow. “Isn’t working in the bakery section more suitable?” Jimin shrugs. “I didn’t get to pick, but the job is pretty relaxed, so I’m not that worried. My manager is really nice and I’ll probably quit when I find a real position after graduating.” “Nice, dude.” They fist pump. “Now you can buy me my deli meats all the time.” “You’ll have to reimburse me, Tae.” The boy with his full cheeks has his eyes crinkled. The two boys have known each other since their elementary days — where Taehyung kept stealing Jimin’s books and pencils until one day the timid latter had enough and tackled the former on the playground. They stuck together after that, finding that their personalities balanced. It would only be later until they met Yoongi in math class, Hoseok in Jimin’s extracurricular, and Jungkook during an outside volunteering event in High School. It was how the four of them came to be, how they naturally formed a friendship over the course of time and still remain close after so many years. So Taehyung has no hesitation when his phone starts blowing up with notifications and immediately verbalizes his woes— “Oh shit.” “What?” Jimin abandons the game he’s playing. He’s never been good at them like the rest were. “Yuna found me on instagram,” Taehyung grimaces. “She just added me and liked all my pics since three years ago.” Jimin bursts out laughing much to his best friend’s dismay. “She’s the girl Y/N and Jungkook was showing around, right?” “Yeah, that sixteen year old.” The shorter man’s brows furrow. “Isn’t she eighteen?” “Same thing.” Taehyung sighs despite the fact that he’s only twenty himself and Jimin muses that he often acts twelve. But he doesn’t utter his thoughts and Taehyung tosses his device onto the couch. “She kind of scares me.” “Why?” Jimin gives a toothy grin. “She’s tiny.” “Haven’t you heard what Yoongi said? The shorter ones are always the ones closer to hell.” It’s a fair point. “The smallest peppers are always the spiciest, am I right?” “Fuck off, it’s about girth not length.” He ignores how Taehyung’s brows wiggle. “Didn’t she ask you out before she left?” “Yep.” “What did you even do? She wasn’t like that to me or Hoseok.” “Exactly. I have no clue.” Taehyung would make a joke about he’s just naturally irresistible but this is no time to joke around. Yuna is undeniably intimidating and a serious threat to his existence. “I heard from Y/N that she’s thinking of coming here, so thank god we’re all graduating in a few months.” “Yeah, well you might need another semester with the grades you have.” “Bro.” Taehyung sits up straight. “You want to fight?” He shrugs. “I’m just saying you can’t get away with a thirty percent in nutrition.” “Fuck. Don’t remind me. I need to catch up on my readings.” “Same here.” Yet no one moves. They don’t even flinch. The two should crack open their textbooks and start reading — but Taehyung’s arm only stretches to grab a controller and join the game Jimin’s in. The night continues on as the two relish in their youth and ability to be irresponsible without repercussions. Or at least too many repercussions.

The air of the small coffee shop is tense. It is as if the four walls are closing in, but still, she’s glad that it’s a public setting. She can’t bear if it was just her and him. At least in public, there are voices to fill in the background silence and the threat of public embarrassment keeps her from crying, from having an outburst. It’s difficult to face someone she used to care so much about. To this day, she still doesn’t know what she felt can be called love. But the fact that she has to contemplate it, she’s inclined to think that it’s not. But that doesn’t mean their short and sweet relationship was any less meaningful. He was her best friend for so long after all. Aeri swallows hard, sipping her drink. She tries not to get the paper cup to shake so much in her clammy hands and ends up putting it back on the table when she realizes she can’t taste it well. After another beat, she lifts her eyes to look at his and realizes that he’s been staring at her. Aeri breaks the silence. “Why’d you call me here, Hoseok?” “I thought it would be nice to talk.” “About what?” “Us.” Closure. He came here for closure, but she’s not sure what kind of closure he wants or how he wants to shut this bittersweet chapter of their lives. “What about u-us?” She hates that her voice breaks, but oddly enough, it isn’t as painful as it was a few weeks ago. A few weeks ago, she would’ve never been able to face him like this, wouldn’t be able to even look at him without crying. It seems like as time goes by, it becomes easier. “I’m sorry.” He says in a weakened tone that hurts her as well. “Don’t apologize, Hoseok.” “No, but I want to. I’ve been thinking about it a lot — and what we had….it was good.” “It was.” Aeri smiles. “Wasn’t it?” He nods, eased at her openness, that she’s not defensive or angry like he thought she would be. Like she has the right to be. “I don’t think I tried hard enough to make it work.” “I didn’t either, so don’t blame yourself alone,” Aeri says, a tiny smile tugs on her lips. She accepts his apology. “I had my part to play in it too.” “I didn’t want to hurt you.” “I didn’t either. But it’s okay, Hoseok. We just weren’t right for each other.” He nods. It goes silent. He musters a tender smile. “Truce?” “Truce.” The girl giggles when they shake hands across the small table. “You still owe me ten dollars when I lent you gas money.” “Oh, you’re really going to bring that up now?” “Of course,” Aeri laughs. “Fair is fair.” It’s hard to be acquainted with someone who used to be so much closer. Someone who has so many memories — good ones and hurtful ones. And often times the end can never be the same as the beginning. For the rest of their lives, Aeri knows that she’ll always keep Hoseok at a distance, at an arm’s reach, for the sake of her own heart and self-preservation. But she considered herself one of the lucky ones — that they have a mutual understanding, that they can still see each other, and can still have some semblance of a platonic friendship. She’s lucky when she knows that the two of them will never revert to being complete strangers.

Min Yoongi is a man of many things. He is quiet, but deadly. He is grumpy and lethargic, but will go out of his way to make someone’s life miserable and has the biggest smile when he sees suffering. He had the most joy when Taehyung stubbed his toe against the doorframe, when Jimin was last place during Smash. Most of all, he’s an enigma. Lazy, yet the hardest working. Mean and snarky, yet always willing to lend an ear and shoulder. Indifferent and aloof, yet the one who never fails to react first in a crisis. But of all things...you never expected him to be clingy. “So this is what you do all day?” Yoongi gestures to the clutter on the kitchen counter, the wires and gum paste rolled out, styrofoam and toothpicks, small brushes and petal dust shades. “You practice making flowers and then go home to suck Jungkook’s dick?” “Excuse me.” You scoff. “I practice making cakes too.” “You’re fun.” “If you don’t like it, then leave me alone,” you mutter out of the corner of your mouth, concentrating back on the rose you’re working on. “Why are you hanging out with me anyway?” “Because it’s you or Taehyung right now and I’d rather spend time with you than Taehyung.” “What’s wrong with Taehyung?” “He’s Taehyung.” A light scoff falls out of your mouth. You know the motherfucker has a soft spot for him, but he can say whatever he wants. He’ll deny it even if you confronted him. “Want to make flowers?” you offer. “Nope.” Min Yoongi would rather fiddle with kitchen materials and spin around on the stool than brush up on sugar flowers, piping flowers or fondant flowers. But you don’t have the time or energy to argue. You do, however, show off once you’re finished. “What do you think?” He hums as he looks at your finished product. “Not half bad, I guess. I’ve seen worse.” It’s not the greatest compliment in the world but you’ll take it especially since it’s coming from him. You’ve noticed in the time you’ve known Yoongi that he has a difficult time praising others. He always tries to work around it, skirting through the subject, never verbalizing his feelings despite being such a straightforward person. It never fails to be entertaining to watch. You grin. “If my relationship with Jungkook ever goes to shit, we’d still be friends, wouldn’t we, Yoongi?” “Sure,” he mumbles while resting his elbow on the counter, cheek in his palm lazily. “But your relationship with Kook won’t ever go to shit. Kid’s too whipped for you.” Your smile only widens. “He is, isn’t he?” “You are too,” he says when you attempt to exclude yourself. “It’s gross to watch, but whatever.” “You need someone in your life too, Min. Maybe you’d be less bitter all the time.” It’s not that he’s bitter, but you like to tease that he is since you know it grinds his gears. “I have a cousin of a cousin who’s around our age. Want to meet her?” His expression wrinkles like he just bit into a lemon. Yoongi sits upright. “First of all, fuck you. I’m not bitter — I’m just me, bitch. Secondly, I don’t want to meet anyone, much less your cousin. And last of all, you’re becoming worse than Taehyung.” “Maybe this is an invitation for you to leave then.” You grin cheekily at Yoongi and it doesn’t amuse him. It’s unfortunate he doesn’t have a soft spot for you like Jungkook does. “And don’t call me a bitch. Only Jungkook’s allowed to do that in bed.” “I didn’t need to know that.” Yoongi’s face crumples more and he waves at you. “Just stop talking and continue what you’re doing.” Min Yoongi is an enigma and someone you relate to the most. Often times you feel him on a spiritual level. And in spite of what he might think internally, he’s a great friend. He’s logical, reasonable, the clarity that the whole group usually needs before they think doing dumb shit, like jumping off the roof of the dining center into a pile of snow beneath, is a good idea. He’s hilarious in a sarcastic, snarky way and cares the most when no one’s looking. He reminds you of an older brother who will always watch your back — and he makes you glad that both you and Jungkook have him in your life.

Jungkook had a dream. It was odd — only because it felt so real and how it still sticks into his mind hours later. Usually dreams fade away like memories of childhoods where he can’t distinguish people, actions, his own thoughts but generally what had occurred and the feeling he had obtained. But Jungkook remembers this dream well. It was a dream where he wobbled to the kitchen in this small house with wooden floorboards and hideous wallpaper, his home, and found you by the window above the sink. Only, you were old with gray hair and wrinkles around your face, an apron tied around your body that was shorter and more sluggish. And his own hands were wrinkled like crumpled paper, round glasses perched on his nose, his movements slowed down as he staggered. You had turned around and complained about the damn neighbour kids ruining your garden with their littering and he had to calm you down for fear of you getting a heart attack. It was so entirely mundane, and he had never been more confused when he awoke. “Jungkook!” His mother shouts over the phone. “Are you still here?” Her voice sounds farther away. “Honey, the phone’s broken again! I can’t hear him!” The boy snaps back to attention. “No, I’m here! Mom? Hello?” But neither of his parents hear him. Instead, there’s rustling and the sound of his father’s voice. “Give me that. Hello?” “Hello?” Jungkook sighs. “Hello?! Goddammit, I just fixed this old thing yesterday!” “No, I’m right here!” He has to strain his voice, shouting loud enough that could warrant complaints from the people next door. “I can hear you!” “Honey, is that you?” His mom calls out again and there’s more rustling. “Where’s the speakerphone? Oh, here. Hello?” For the tenth time, Jungkook exclaims— “Hello!” “Finally. I thought the phone was broken again.” Both his parents start discussing the phone issues and Jungkook nurses his headache before the conversation gets back on track again. “Have you been eating well?” “I’ve been fine, mom.” “Good! Your grandma’s visiting and she’s been so worried about you. It’s not good to do all that exercise and not eat well! You’ll burn all your fat and just be skin and bones!” There’s the sound of his grandma’s voice at the back that he can’t distinguish well enough to make out what she’s saying. “Anyhow, your aunt and uncle send their regards. We’ll be visiting their home this time for the Holiday season come December. Also Lia and Eunbi wanted to ask if Y/N will be coming home with you.” “Uh.” Jungkook scratches the back of his neck. “I’m not sure yet.” “Oh, well, do bring her, dear.” His dad suddenly says, “Heaven knows, your mom and grandma can’t stop talking about how great she is. If she comes by, I’ll fire up the grill and we can have a barbecue too!” “Yeah, we’ll see,” he exhales sharply. Jungkook still hasn’t announced to his family that he’s dating you yet. If you agree to come back with him for Christmas, he’ll probably make it known to them but he can’t even fathom the many more times they’ll call if they knew. God, they would probably call you directly and he would rather spare you from their smothering love. Suddenly a thought creeps into Jungkook’s mind. “Hey, mom. Can I talk to grandma for a second?” “Sure! Mom! He’s here.” He can hear the phone getting passed, more buttons accidentally being pressed, and his grandma’s voice sounds closer as if she accidentally turned off the speakerphone. “Hello? Kookie, is that you?” They exchange the usual back and forth, asking about each other’s well-being and wishing one another good health. His grandma also tells him to bring you around some time when he comes home and how lovely you are — but he doesn’t need to hear it. Jungkook’s already long learnt that. “Hey, grandma.” He finally approaches the question he’s been meaning to ask. Slow and hesitant, but he manages. “What was it like to grow old with grandpa?” He can practically hear the soft smile on her face. “Oh, it was wonderful.” There’s a pause as if the aged woman is looking for a word to exactly describe her experience. Though she finally seems to be able to find it. “It was a privilege.” A privilege. That’s the perfect word. It encapsulates his dream entirely. It was sad to be aged, to see you tired, to feel weighed down himself and slower than what he’s used to. But when he looked at you, he didn’t just see an old woman — he saw the snarky girl he knew of in high school, the attractive girl he daydreamed about for so long, the one he’s with now. And the one who will join him for so many more memories. Even if it was just a dream, Jungkook’s excited to make it a reality.

#bts fanfic #bts scenario

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yakuzadumpingground · 4 years

Text

All right, I guess some of y’all want to hear it, so let’s talk about mahjong, and how to play it.

Now I did try my best to be understandable, but it’s impossible to be concise. So this is long. Sorry.

Overview

So mahjong (specifically we’ll be talking about riichi mahjong, which is the Japanese variant) is a game played by four players with a special set of tiles. You start with 13 tiles, and on each turn you draw a new tile and discard one in your hand. Your goal is to have a 14 tile hand that is 4 melds and pair, as well as containing at least one yaku.

Now you might have some questions

a. What is the tile set we’re using here?

b. What is a meld?

c. What is a yaku?

Mahjong Tiles

Mahjong tiles are divided into two parts, “number” tiles and “honor” tiles. There are four copies of each tile, for a total of 136 tiles in the whole set.

Number tiles consist of three suits, Dots (or Coins), Bamboo, and Characters (or Numbers). Each tiles has a numeric value that ranges from 1 to 9.

Honor tiles are “wind” tiles (East, South, West, and North) and “dragon” tiles (Red, Green, White). There is no numeric value attached to them.

One minor stumbling block you’ll have early on is you will have to get used to this tile set. Yakuza 6 will overlay the appropriate Arabic numeral on the number characters, or if you’re playing mahjong in FFXIV the default tile set uses Arabic numerals instead of Chinese numerals for the character suit. But if you’re playing anywhere else, well, you need to learn Chinese numerals. (And, if we’re being honest, also the kanji for the directions)

Meld

A meld is a group of three tiles that are either a sequence (1 2 3) or three of a kind (3 3 3) in the same suit. You cannot “wrap around” and go from 9 to 1. (So 8 9 1 is not a valid sequence) Because of this 1s and 9s are considered the “terminal” in the sequence. Honor tiles cannot form a sequence, only a triplet.

You can also have 4 of a kind, called a “kan,” however kan is a bit special and I’ll go into more detail later.

Yaku

Now this is the tricky part. You can have four melds and a pair, but if your hand does not contain a yaku, it is not a winning hand. Let me repeat, you can have four melds and a pair, but if your hand does not contain a yaku, it is not a winning hand. Going forward, keep in mind when I say a “complete hand” I do not necessarily mean a “winning hand.” A complete hand is one that is 4 melds and a pair, regardless of its yaku content.

So what is a yaku? Think of it like a poker hand. It’s a certain pattern or condition your hand has to meet. Unfortunately, there really is no way around this: you’ll have to memorize yaku. You don’t need to know all of them right now, and later on I’ll talk about the yaku you’ll be seeing a lot. For reference here’s a list of yaku.

Flow of the game

First, we start by designating a dealer (which in a real life game is done by rolling die, but if we’re playing mahjong in a video game it’s obviously done by the computer). The dealer is also designated as “East.” The player to the right of the dealer is South, to their right is West, and to their right is North.

Each player is dealt 13 tiles, face down, and the game starts with the dealer and goes in a counter-clockwise motion. Each player draws a tile, then discards a tile (unless, obviously, they’ve won). Discarded tiles can be “called” or stolen by other players. You can only claim the most recent discard (you can’t claim a discard someone made 3 turn ago).

pon (sometimes called pung or pong) is when a player takes a discard that will complete a triplet. For example, if a player has 2 五 tiles, and another player discards a 五 tile, then the first player can call pon and take the tile. Pon can be called by any player.

chi (sometimes called chow) is when a player takes a discard that will complete a sequence. The stolen tile can be in the beginning, middle, or end of a sequence. For example, if a player has a 四 and a 六 tile a 五 tile call be called to complete the sequence. A 四 can complete a 五六 sequence and a 六 can complete a 四五 sequence. However, a player can only call a chi on the player to their left (or rather, the player who went right before them)

kan (sometimes called kong) is when a player takes a discard that will complete 4 of a kind. One can call kan on a hidden triplet or for a pon that was called previously. Again, there’s a bit more to kan and we’ll discuss it later.

When one “calls” (aka take a discard) the meld that your the completed is placed face up and that player’s hand is considered “open.” Also, the player that called will take their turn immediately, and afterward turn order will continue normally, so if the player who called was not immediately after the discarding player, then players who do come immediately after the discarding player will have their turns skipped over. (And yes this can happen multiple times in a row and prevent a player from getting a turn and yes this is very annoying when it happens to you.)

There are, however, some massive downsides to calling. One cannot alter a meld after calling. There are also many yaku are not possible with open hands, and others that lose value when open, so be careful with calling. A general rule of thumb is do not call unless necessary.

End of Hand

Players will continue drawing and discarding until one of two things happens: someone wins, or the players draw all of the tiles. Players can win one of two ways.

Tsumo is when the player wins by drawing a tile. If the player’s hand is closed (aka they haven’t called) then tsumo is, by itself, a yaku.

Ron is when the player wins by claiming a discard. One cannot normally complete a pair by taking a discard, but one can with ron. It is not ever a yaku by itself.

If the hand ends and no player has won, then the it is declared a draw. If the hand ends in a draw, then players who are not in tenpai (noten) must pay players who are in tenpai. If all players are in tenpai (or all players are in noten) no one pays.

Tenpai is the condition of being one tile away from a complete hand. Note that you do not have to have a yaku to be considered in tenpai, nor does it matter if your hand is open or closed.

Related to tenpai is furiten. Furiten is when you have a tenpai, but you had previously discarded a tile that would complete your hand. Again, note that said discard would only need to complete your hand, not be a valid yaku. You cannot call ron in furiten. Annoyingly, Yakuza does not tell you when you’re in furiten, but FFXIV does. You can get out of furiten depending on what you discard.

After each victory (or draw) the hand is scored.

Scoring

Each player starts with 25000 points. If a player wins by tsumo, every other player pays the winner. If a player wins by ron, then the player whose discard was taken pays the winner. If the dealer wins, they earn 1.5 points, and if they lose they have to pay extra as well.

Each yaku hand has a han value, starting with 1 for easy to obtain yaku to 6 (excluding yakuman, which we’ll discuss later). Harder to obtain yaku are worth more han. Note that yaku are not mutually exclusive; you can and often will have multiple yaku for a winning hand.

If you’re looking for a more detail explanation of mahjong scoring... sorry. Mahjong scoring can get complicated, and I don’t fully understand it. One han (for a non-dealer player) is roughly 1000 points, but even that’s not a hard and fast rule, I believe. If someone knows the intricacies of mahjong scoring feel free to go off, but the computer does this for you anyway, so all you need to know is more han is good, and losing to the dealer can really hurt you (or losing AS the dealer)

In event of a draw, if three players are in tenpai then the noten player pays each tenpai player 1000 points, if one players is in tenpai then each noten player pays them 1000 points each (for a total of 3000). Two players in tenpai get 1500 each.

Flow of the game, continued

After each hand, if the hand did not end in a draw and someone other than the dealer won, then the player to the right of the dealer is now the dealer and the East wind, and each player’s wind shifts accordingly (for example South becomes East, West becomes South, North becomes West, and North becomes East) If the hand did end in a draw or the dealer won, then the winds do not change. A round is completed when each player has had a chance to be the Dealer. (So yes, this means if the dealer has a winning streak the game will go on for much longer)

Each round has a “prevailing wind,” or “round wind.” The first round is East, and then the second round is South, the third is West, and the fourth is North. A full game is 4 rounds. However, most mahjong game you’ll play are only half games, that is to say, only 2 rounds, East and South. Yakuza gives the option to only play quarter games, that is, only East round.

The game ends when:

All rounds have been played

Or a player has lost all their points

After this, players are ranked from first to fourth. (In Yakuza, only first place really pays out. Second place keeps you steady, and you lose money on third and fourth. This is also true for ranking in FFXIV, as you don’t play for currency in that game)

Thus far, this is what I would say you NEED to know to get started with mahjong, but there’s still more...

Riichi

I’m giving this it’s own section because this is a very special rule of this variant of mahjong (it is called Riichi Mahjong). If a player is in tenpai, their hand is closed, AND there’s more than 4 tiles left until the end of the hand, they can call Riichi (or a “ready hand” as I’ve seen it called in some places.)

To declare riichi, first the player must put down a 1000 point “bet,” then discard a tile. The 13 tiles left in their hand are “locked”, that is, they cannot be discarded. If a player in riichi draws a tile that does not complete their hand, it must be discarded. A win can be claimed by tsumo or ron, just like any other hand. (However, if you accidentally got yourself into furiten when you called riichi, well, oops, you’re locked into furiten. Also, if you chose not to claim a tsumo after calling riichi, you’re in furiten.)

So why call riichi? The big advantage is that riichi is a yaku by itself. That is, your hand can otherwise be worthless, but so long as you keep it closed you can win with it once it’s complete. Moreover, if you win within 4 turns after declaring riichi (and no one calls during that time) you score another yaku, ippatsu.

Another advantage to declaring riichi is that you can potentially claim more dora points. Which brings me neatly to:

Dora and the dead wall

Sounds like a movie, huh? Anyway, in riichi mahjong, 14 tiles, placed in two rows of 7 tiles, are not drawn. This is known as the “dead wall.” One of the dead wall tiles are flipped face up, and this is the dora indicator.

Dora are special titles that gives extra points during scoring. The dora indicator does not indicate that this tile is the dora tile (confusingly) but that the tile after the indicator in sequence is the dora. What does this mean? Well, let’s say this tile is the dora indicator

That means that the 4 of dots is the dora tile. Each 4 of dots tile you have in your hand is an additional han. Keep in mind dora are not yaku. Having a hand with dora but no yaku is not a winning hand.

You can potentially have more than one dora tile. Remember how I said that riichi can potentially increase your riichi points? Normally the bottom row of the dead wall is not counted, however if a player wins by riichi then not only is any face up dora counted, but any tile underneath the face up tiles on the dead wall become dora indicators. Let’s say a 5 of bamboo was underneath that 3 of dots tile I showed earlier. That means if you win with riichi, both 4 of dots and 6 of bamboo are dora tiles.

If a 9 is a dora indicator, then the 1 tile of the same suit is the dora. If the indicator is a wind tile, the sequence to determine dora is East - South - West - North (so if the dora indicator is South, then the dora tile is West) and if the indicator is a dragon tile, the sequence is Green - Red - White (so if a white dragon tile is the dora indicator, then green dragon is dora)

Some games will have “red dora.” A 5 tile of each suit will be red, and that tile counts as a dora by itself (not a yaku.) In Yakuza games, you can chose whether or not to play with red dora (it’s on by default in FFXIV)

(Also, in FFXIV, the game will tell you the dora but NOT the indicator. So if it shows 3 of dots then 3 of dots is the dora tile. I honestly find this more confusing, since the indicator is still in the dead wall and thus, not drawn. A personal preference thing, I suppose)

If this sounds a little confusing, it honestly gets a bit more confusing. You see, you can have more than one face up tile on the dead wall. How? Well, that leads me to my next point-

Kan

As I mentioned before, kan is four a kind. Kan are unique in that they have to be declared, then set off to the side with the tiles on the end flipped up. After declaring kan the player draws a replacement tile not from the normal tile pool, but from the dead wall. In addition, a tile on the dead wall is flipped face up, and this becomes another dora indicator. If a player wins by riichi, then the tile underneath that flipped tile is ALSO a dora indicator (with a total of 4.)

There are three different ways to get a kan

Closed kan are a closed four of a kind. Note that closed kan still have to be declared and set off to the side, but do not count as opening your hand. A player can also choose to wait to declare a closed kan, but unless they declare kan it doesn’t count as a four of a kind (just as a triplet with a spare)

Open kan are when the player takes a discard to create a kan with a closed triplet. This does open the hand.

If a player had already called a pon, and a draw another one of said, they can upgrade the existing open pon into a kan.

Note that kan only count as a single meld (with some exceptions, they count as triplets for scoring purposes), are not a yaku by themselves, and anyone who wins that hand will reap the benefit of additional dora, not just the person who called kan. So be careful of when you call kan, it can be a double edged sword.

Also, if more than 3 kan are called (unless 4 are called by the same person, then a fifth will end the hand) then the hand ends in a draw, no one scores points and the winds do not move. There are a few more (fairly rare) instances that will end a hand instantly. In addition to four kan called, all players declaring riichi will end the round, as well as all players discarding the same wind tile on their first turn and if a player draws over 9 terminals (1s or 9s) and honors (if they chose to abort the hand.) Again, no one scores and no winds move.

Common Yaku

Ok, so you’ve started and you have vague idea what you’re doing. What kind of hands should you be going for? Obviously this will depend on a lot of things, but here’s some yaku you’ll see a lot

Yakuhai (Dragon triplet)

Simply, just getting a triplet of a Red, White, or Green Dragon tiles. Each triplet will count as a yaku, so if you get a Red and White triplet set that’s two yaku. This is the easiest yaku to get. It only requires three tiles, and it can be open.

Kazehai (Wind triplet)

Like Yakuhai, this only requires a triplet of a wind tile, and can be open, but has some caveats. First off, not all wind tiles count. Only your “seat wind” and “round wind” count. What does this mean? Let’s say you’re in the first round (East) and you’re sitting across from the dealer (making your seat the West seat.) This mean that a triplet of East and/or West will count as Kazehai, but not North. Like Yakuhai you can get more than one, and if you get Kazehai when your round wind and seat wind are the same you get two han.

Tanyao (All Simples)

A hand that does not contain any terminals (1s or 9s) or honors. Interestingly, there is a special rule (kuitan) that determines whether or not open tanyao is allowed. If Kuitan is disallowed, then only closed tanyao counts. For the most part, kuitan is usually allowed, making this the second easiest yaku to get.

Pinfu (no points hand)

While not hard to get, this one is a little confusing. This hand has to be closed, and all melds have to be sequences (no triplets) and the pair cannot be dragon tiles or scoring winds. Moreover, the tile that completes the sequence a) cannot be part of the pair and b) has to come at the beginning or end of a sequence (so waiting for a 6 to complete a 4 - 5 is okay, but not waiting for a 5 to complete a 4 - 6) Also, despite the same, yes you can get other yaku with this. You can get a pinfu and a tanyao.

Toitoi (All Triplets)

This one is a little harder, but it’s two han and it can be open.

Honitsu (Half Flush)

This is one suit + honor tiles. For example, if I had a triplet of north tiles and the rest of the tiles in my hand were bamboo. This is worth 3 han closed, but worth a decent 2 han open, and it synergies well with Dragon or Wind hands for some extra han.

Other Yaku to note

There’s a ton of yaku and I’m not going over all of them, but there’s some interesting ones to note

Haitei Raoyue/Houtei Raoyue (Last tile from the wall/last discard)

If you get a victory from the very last tile in the hand (either by tsumo or ron) then that counts as a yaku, and thus is a valid winning hand. This isn’t a yaku you can really count on, but it shows that you should always hold out; you might get lucky

Chiitoitsu (Seven Pairs)

This is one of the two yaku that doesn’t require 4 melds and a pair; instead it requires seven pairs. It’s only worth 2 han and it has to be closed, so I personally find toitoi an easier hand to get, but it’s an interesting anomaly.

Yakuman (Limit Hands)

This isn’t a yaku, but a category of yaku. Yakumen are very, very rare (I’ve gotten a yakumen once) and worth a ton of points. Unlike other yaku, a yakuman doesn’t count individual yaku (although sometimes if the game will count a double yakuman if you somehow got two) instead your score is set to 13 han, which is 32,000 points for a non-dealer and 48,000 for the dealer.

Advanced tips and other things to know

Okay, yeah, I think I’ve definitely babbled on waaay too much about mahjong (also I’m sleep deprived and I have no idea if I’m even making sense) but just a few more tips

Of course, it’s up to you for what you want to discard first, but as a good rule of thumb go non-scoring winds that aren’t triplets - unpaired scoring winds - unpaired dragon tiles - terminals that aren’t connected to a sequence. It’s usually not worth holding onto unpaired dragon or wind tiles in the hopes you’ll complete the set. Usually

By and large, you’ve probably discerned that keeping a closed hand is better than an open one. That being said, you can pass up a potential win if you refuse to ever call. I find most people will call for dragon or scoring wind tiles. It may only end up being one han, but a bad victory is better than a loss.

Pay attention to the discard pile. Are they throwing away mostly terminals? Are most of their discards one suit? While you most likely won’t be able to discern their hand through the discards, it can give you some ideas what it isn’t. Moreover, keep in mind that every tile only has four copies. If you’re trying to get a draw of 7 of dots, and you’ve seen two of them in the discards, you might not be getting what you want.

Related, learn to play defensively. Most players will call riichi when they’re in tenpai (I’ve almost never seen human players not do that) and someone who is making a lot of calls might be getting closer but they’re showing their hand. If you’re getting the feeling they’re close and you’re going nowhere, start looking at their discard pile. You know how you can’t call ron if the tile you need is in your discard? That’s true for your opponents too. So even if they aren’t in furiten (which you shouldn’t assume they are) they can’t call a tile they’ve discarded. So if you only discard tiles that your opponent has, you’re safe from getting ron’d. That sadly doesn’t prevent tsumo, but at least you share that burden with your fellow player.

At the end of the day, this is still a luck based game. Yeah, even when you’re good sometimes you will just lose. I’ve seen newbies demolish much higher ranking players. Hell, I’ve been that person, on both sides. Like poker, a lucky player may sometimes beat a skilled player, but a skilled player will win more consistently

There’s probably stuff I’m missing but I think I need to have a lie down. I stole some pictures from wikipedia, so glance on over there if you want some more info. Also check out the ffxiv mahjong discord for more info. If learning mahjong from yakuza isn’t working for you, it might be easier in ffxiv. okay nap time bye

#mahjong #i tried (tm)

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