#and you're not allowed to demand creators make it the way you want

[theresthesnitch]

it can be both, you know? it can be both.

fem sirius can be wonderful and validating for people who see themselves align with that representation of him but also the popular trend in fandom to make a fem sirius, particularly when paired with a hyper masc remus, can start to feel like fandom is forcing an m/m pairing into traditinal steretypical f/m roles and that can cumultiviely start to feel like homophobia and that doesn't change anyone's right to create fem sirius or mean that someone who creates fem sirius is homophobic because they create fem sirius or that someone else might feel validated by hyper fem sirius but that validation might also make someone else feel isolated because they don't fit into that depiction either and it can be both.

it can be both.

#i've been thinking about this for a while #and the problem is #both sides are right #and that's okay #you're allowed to have feelings about fandom #and you're allowed to not enjoy certain depictions of fictional characters #you're not allowed to shit on someone else's feelings and choices #and you're not allowed to demand creators make it the way you want #stop being assholes #rant #might delete later

[clanwarrior-tumbly]

Hiiiii, I have a request for the newly arrived Indigo Disk-

A really happy ending for Kiki where after the whole DLC, he then starts to make amends with the BB Elite 4, his sister and protag which eventually gains him Ogerpon's recognition, prompting her to wanna go with him as an extra treat after all his angst (quq)

Yessss we gotta give him the happy end he deserves <3

.........

Setting up a small picnic within the Terarium, you brought your current Pokémon team out to play, deciding to take in the beautiful coastal biome and its warmth.

Even though you knew it was all artificial, it didn't make much of a difference to your companions. They happily frolicked in the sand and grass, although some opted to take a nap under the sun after a hard day of battling.

Meanwhile, you were fixing up a sandwich for everyone to share, deciding to add a little bit of spice to it (at Crispin's suggestion, of course). You didn't want it to be too flaming-hot for your Pokémon--or at least none that were fire types who could handle the heat.

However one in particular just seemed to be hungry for anything, as upon hearing a crystalline trill, you looked down to see Terapagos at your feet. It was gently pawing on your leg, eyes sparkling as it wondered what you were cooking up.

"Hey, little guy." You cooed, reaching down to pat its head before you scooped it up, allowing it to climb into your lap. "Smells tasty, huh? I bet you're super hungry after sleeping all those years."

It only responded with another happy trill, and you just sighed.

Who would've known this would be the legendary "Hidden Treasure" of Area Zero Heath and [Turo/Sada] sought after, the creator of the Terastal Phenomenon...

And the Pokémon that put up one hell of a fight against you, Carmine, and Kieran?

Speaking of whom...

It's been roughly a month since those events down in the Underdepths, and for the most part things have been looking up for both you and him. You were just happy to see that spark return to his eyes...

The spark he had once lost...mainly because of you.

Part of you would always remain guilty over unknowingly setting him down such a dark path--obsessing over defeating you in battle to the point where he didn't care who got hurt in the process.

He didn't wanna be that weak little kid you kept beating back in Kitakami anymore, always bragging about how much he's changed and demanding you to never hold back.

But after being humbled in front of the entire school, he was willing to do anything to have at least one victory against you.

Even if it meant utilizing a dangerous legendary Pokémon he had little understanding of....

He tried to control it, and as punishment it attacked him directly.

Arceus only knows what could've happened if your 'raidon didn't absorb the blast in time, and that selfless act made him feel all the more guilty for the way he acted towards you.

He idolized you, hated you, and yet.....you saved his life when you could have just saved yourself, his sister, and Briar instead.

He cried like a baby the whole way home, overwhelmed by everything that's happened from last year up to now, yet you comforted him and didn't tease him once.

After returning to Unova, he made a promise to fix things between you and everyone else he hurt, finally letting go of his envy and deciding to start fresh with you. His request to be your friend again had you laughing, much to his confusion..and a little worried you were making fun of him.

Then he almost sobbed after you explained that you've never considered him an enemy at all.

Despite everything, you never stopped seeing him as a friend.

Sometime later you went home to Paldea, although not without exchanging rotomphone information with him so you could have more chats.

Yep. Kieran finally got his own phone, but being from the countryside made him only somewhat familiar with the basics. You and Carmine helped him with that, of course. He loved the camera function and would often send you photos of his Hydrapple doing something cute.

They're mostly blurry, but he's getting the hang of it.

You eventually went back to the BB Academy to further your studies of the biomes, and winded up taking a small picnic break within the Terarium. No rules said you couldn't, and Drayton did insist that you didn't overwork yourself...

Which is funny coming from the guy who had to repeat classes, although you took his advice.

"Roto-to-to-to~"

Your eyes lit up as you received an incoming call from Kieran, and you greeted him with a smile, waving. "Kiki! How's it going?"

"Hey, [y/n]." He smiled back, and then he blinked upon realizing how familiar the background behind you was. "Wait..you're back in Unova? In the Terarium?"

"Uh..yeah! I was gonna surprise you, but I guess it's too late for that now." You awkwardly chuckled. "How are things going with the League?"

"Better than..I thought, actually." He sat back in his chair, tying his hair up. "Drayton and I are finally on speaking terms again."

"Oh that's great!"

"Mhm. We both felt kinda bad about how we treated each other with the whole "ex-champion" thing...said some stuff we didn't mean. Last week we were avoiding each other, and now we're having casual Pokémon battles to ease the tension between us."

"I'm glad to hear that." You nodded, taking a bite out of your sandwich.

"I..really do owe you one for bringing the club back together. I've been so bitter and didn't realize how much it was hurting Lacey and the others...not to mention how many people I wrongfully kicked out. I promise I'm gonna get all of them back into the club. I swear."

"I fully believe you. Just don't run yourself dry trying to patch up everything with everyone, okay?"

Kieran nodded in understanding, although he suddenly went quiet. You wondered why until you realized he could see Terapagos, who was currently climbing onto the table trying to get some lettuce.

"Heyyyy that's not for you, you little scamp." Teasingly, you scooped it up again, keeping a gentle grip on its belly and shell before you looked back at your friend, bashful. "Don't mind Terapagos. It's always hungry."

"I see." He chuckled. "You've been taking care of it well?"

"Yep, but have you been taking care of yourself, too?"

"...yeah." He muttered. "Carmine's been getting on my case about properly eating and sleeping again. Don't tell her this, but I appreciate it more than she realizes. And..I'll admit I was turning into a jerk like she used to be, and that's not something I want..."

"Well sounds like you're doing much better now..don't beat yourself up over it." You reassured him.

His shoulders relaxed. "I'm..trying not to....so [y/n], do you think we could meet up in person? Like at your dorm? I...feel like we haven't talked face-to-face in a while."

"Sure! I got nothing planned later so....see you in a few hours?"

"Sounds good." He smiled. "See ya."

The call ended as your rotomphone dropped back onto the table. You picked it up and stared at the case, feeling giddy about seeing him again after so long.

And to think when you first arrived here..you felt nothing but tension whenever he was in the same room as you, feeling the negative vibes rolling off of him like an aura of Bitter Malice.

You were glad those days were gone and he was your friend again.

"Pon?"

"Huh? Ogerpon..? You were here the whole time??" Surprised, you glanced over to see the grass legendary sitting on the ground beside you, being sure to stay clear of the camera view. She lowered her mask and looked at you with a knowing smile.

Considering the way Kieran freaked out when you brought her into the championship battle (not to mention him doing everything in his power to knock her out)...you would've thought she'd never wanna see or hear from him again--especially since her "betrayal" was still a fresh wound.

Yet apparently she was listening to your entire conversation with him, and had this understanding look to her starry eyes.

"Pon, ponnn?"

"Huh?" You blinked. "You wanna..see him, too? Are you sure?"

She hopped to her feet, nodding eagerly before pointing in the direction of the academy.

"Okay. Maybe..it'll be a good thing." A smile appeared on your face, although in the back of your mind you hoped that seeing her again won't scare Kieran too much.

...........

"Okay, so the Golurk congregate here....and they're usually guarding the Goletts.."

Back in your dorm room, you were just jotting down notes about recent Pokémon outbreak sightings. Ogerpon was sitting on your countertop, swinging her legs while munching on a bowl of her favorite berries you've found for her throughout Kitakami.

Right as she finished the last one, there was a knock at the door, and you both immediately knew who it was. She was a little nervous, but you reassured her that things will be okay before you went to answer it.

Sure enough Kieran was on the other side. He's never been to your dorm until now, and as he walked in was surprised and intrigued by all the stuff you had hung up on the wall.

"Excuse the mess." You chuckled, closing the door.

"Don't worry, my dorm's worse." He shyly smiled back at you, although his expression faltered as his gaze went to a certain legendary..

He immediately tensed up, not out of anger.....but like he was expecting her to use Ivy Cudgel at any given moment. "What's the Ogre doing here--wait, no..that sounded rude. I'm sorry."

"No, no. It's fine. There's actually something we've been meaning to talk to you about."

"..oh?" Turning back to you, he tilted his head.

"So Ogerpon overheard our little chat earlier, and she wanted to see you."

"She did?"

"Yeah," you nodded, feeling your heart start to race with anticipation. "And..um...maybe it's easier if she explains."

Kieran was confused as you gestured to Ogerpon, but his eyes went wide when she approached him. With no mask on, she wore a confident expression as she handed him...

A pokeball?

No..

It was the pokeball you caught her in.

"What is this? Some new trick you taught her?" Looking to you for an explanation, all he could see was your smile. "Why isn't she...afraid of me?"

"Because she knew you were trying to make amends with everybody." You patted her head, beaming. "I think she finally recognizes you as a strong Pokémon trainer, and...she wants to be yours."

".....huh?"

"She wants to be yours." You repeated, watching as he tried to process this information. And his jaw damn near dropped to the floor, but he closed his mouth and shook his head.

"Y-You're joking, right?"

"Nope. We both decided that she's ready for a new partner. Someone who's believed in her side of the story since-"

"No, no, no..I..I-I can't do that.." He shook his head frantically, backing away from Ogerpon. "I'm sorry. But she's yours, [y/n]. She chose to go with you. You passed her test and...I didn't. I was being stupid and selfish and-"

"I think I was being more selfish."

Looking up at you, he blinked a few times.

"Listen, I know everyone likes to say such great things about me...but I'm not some perfect angel." You frowned slightly. "I lied to you, I stole the Pokémon you've idolized for years...and I hurt someone who considered me a friend. You called me out on that and you had every right to."

"........"

"If anybody here needs to apologize..it's me." Bowing your head, you sighed softly. "So I'm truly sorry for the way I treated you, Kieran. I'm sorry for never considering your feelings before. I wasn't a good friend, and I wanna be a better one. So I'm gonna make this right...both of us will."

You looked back up at him, seeing the shock written all over his face. Then you glanced at Ogerpon, taking the pokeball and instructing her to get her masks off the wall. She nodded and did just that.

"You deserve to know what her power is like. The masks, the TMs I taught her...you can have them all. No trades. No strings attached..except for us staying friends, of course."

Finally, Kieran found his ability to speak again, but he was already getting choked up. "[Y/n], the apology is...th-that's more than enough for me." His eyes watered. "I forgive you. There's no way I can take her from-"

"You're not taking her away. I'm giving her to you, silly." You chuckled.

"....I..I still don't know if I can accept that. I'm not worthy of her even looking my way anymore. I was disrespectful to her wishes, I stole her mask..a-and you're saying...she forgives me?"

"I think she's gonna let bygones be bygones. Isn't that right, 'pon?"

"Ponio! Pon!" With her masks together, Ogerpon gazed at you, nodding confidently. You could only smile back as you patted her head again, seeing that she was ready for a new adventure.

You've trained her well, helping her grow stronger than ever before as you've mastered her abilities with all four masks.

But now it's time that someone else had the chance to bond with her...

Someone like Kieran.

After sending her into the pokeball for the last time, you gazed at the purple-haired boy. His whole body refused to move, so you approached him and took his gloved hand, placing the device snuggly into his palm.

For the longest time, he stared at it, and then he looked back at you. "A-Are you sure I can't just...keep her for a day and then give her back?" He began to sniffle, face growing bright red. "Because if...wh-what if she doesn't-?"

"I want you to have her permanently." Knowing what was coming, you brought him into a tight hug, feeling him wrap his arms around you and rest his head on your shoulder. "Don't worry. She's gonna love you, Kiki." You rubbed his back. "She trusts you now. She's all yours."

All he could do was nod, your shirt getting soaked by his tears as he hiccupped, thanking you over and over again. He wasn't bawling loudly like before, but he still had a tough time keeping himself together; so you led him to your bed where he was more comfortable.

You're 99% certain this poor guy's never received a hug in his life, given how he refused to let you go. So you allowed him to hold onto you for as long as he needed or wanted.

At last you got out all of the things you've been meaning to say to him...and even Ogerpon got to apologize in her own special way by wanting to be his partner Pokémon.

You thought this would have been too much for Kieran to handle, but you could see he's grown a lot and that he was ready to accept this huge responsibility.

Terapagos will remain with you, and Ogerpon will be his forever.

After everything that's happened, it's what he deserves.

#clanask #anonymous #pokemon x reader #pokemon scarlet x reader #pokemon violet x reader #pokemon kieran #pokemon kieran x reader #kieran x reader #ogerpon #terapagos #indigo disk spoilers #indigo disk x reader #platonic

[theoretical-tactician]

Hey! So, I said I might make a list of Fire Emblem modding links, so here it is! Before anything, be sure you have a hacked 3DS so you can mod your games. You can load mods directly onto a hacked 3DS OR you can use a hacked 3DS to dump your games and play them on an emulator.

If you haven't hacked your 3DS yet, follow this guide to do so! It's easy and super safe!

As for if you want to emulate, you can download the citra emulator here. Just be aware that the emulator can be demanding and not all games function great (all the Fire Emblem games are functional, though).

Now, as for game modding, here are a few of my favorite things to use as well as some interesting mods others enjoy. Feel free to share mods you enjoy and I'll add them to this list.

General Modding

Paragon - This in and of itself is not a mod. However, if you're interested in dipping your toes in trying to create your own mods, this is a good starting point! This tool provides you with a friendly user interface to mess with the code of the game and create your own custom mods (don't worry, you don't need to know how to code).

Fire Emblem Awakening

Unofficial Gay Awakening - As the name says it adds gay supports in Awakening. I can't really add anything here.

Project Thabes - This is an overhaul of Awakening, akin to a sort of remix. The idea is fixing up some issues with story, rebalancing, and remixing maps. Definitely an interesting project to check out if you want a fresh experience with the game.

Awakening HD - This is just mod to upscale textures. Really meant for people playing the game on citra, not hardware.

Twin Morgans - Y'know. If you want double the Morgan. :)

Reverse Recruitment Order - Excluding Chrom, Robin, and Lucina, all units are obtained in reverse order. Something fun to mix up your game.

Fates Stances - If you came to really love the stance system in Fates, good news! This mod implements the stance system into Awakening. Yeah, it's less broken, but way more fun.

Gender-Lock Removal - You want male pegasus knights and female barbarians? Here they are. Need I say more?

Fire Emblem Fates

Unofficial Gay Fates - It's as the name says: a mod to add gay supports to Fates. Though it's not just gay, it also generally adds additional supports between characters.

Ignis - This is a Fates randomizer that allows you to customize your own experience. This can randomize recruitment order, chest/village items, skills, classes, stats, and so on. I've been using this for years, so I can vouch for its fun and stability.

Fates HD - Just a mod to upscale textures. Meant for people playing the game on citra, not hardware.

Before Fates - This mod is currently a work in progress, but it's meant to expand the backstory in Fates. While it's incomplete, it's definitely worth keeping an eye on.

Fates Retranslation+ - If you kinda hate the translation of Fates, good news! This mod retranslates the entire game to better match the original Japanese version. It also adds some minor patches, but the idea of this mod is to fix the English translation.

Princess Personals - Legendary weapons for the princesses. Because they earned it. :)

Non-Binary Corrin - For all my non-binary pals out there, someone made a mod to make all references to Corrin gender-neutral. (Note: the mod creator is remaking the mod due to some issues.)

Playable Lilith - Do you love Lilith? Sad that she's stuck being killed off in routes and is otherwise unplayable? Well, this mod adds her as a playable character. Do it for her.

Face-Lift - This mod does some edits to characters to update things like skin tones and eye colors to look more natural/better match parents (like giving Benny darker skin rather than grey skin). It has a regular version for hardware and HD version for citra users who like having the HD mod.

Fire Emblem Echoes

Route Swap - Just a funky little mod that swaps the two parties. So now Celica and crew are on Alm's journey and vice versa.

Installing Mods

3DS

Assuming your 3DS is hacked, you should be using luma to mod games. Once you have your mod files, installing them is extremely easy. Load up your SD card and go into luma > titles and create a folder with the corresponding title id to your game.

Once you have a folder for your game, drop the mod files within (remember to unzip them, and they should be a romfs folder). If done correctly, it should look something like this.

There's one final step before you run your modded game, though! Reinsert your SD card in your 3DS and then hold SELECT while powering the console on. The luma config menu should come up. Select "Enable game patching" then press START to save.

You only ever have to do this luma step once. So once you've enable game patching, you can freely switch out mods on your 3DS and they'll run automatically. If you want to disable mods, either delete them from your SD card or disable game patching.

Citra

Just like with hardware, modding games on citra is extremely easy. All you have to do is open citra, right click the game you want to mod, and click "Open Mods Location" from the menu like below.

This will create/open a mod folder for the title you selected. Just like on the 3DS, all you have to do is insert your mod folder here. It should be inside a romfs folder like below.

If you did everything correctly, then your mods should take effect when you next run your game on citra.

#fire emblem #3ds modding #long post #if y'all need any more modding tutorials or w/e feel free to ask #i've been modding my 3ds for years at this point #and on citra by extension for a while #so i'll gladly answer any questions y'all have #and i've dabbled in making my own mods #so i can help a bit with that too

[boxofbonesfic]

"why am i even bothering to write and post anything at all?"

"ngl that makes me not want to post anymore lmfao"

Because you have people reading???? Like tf? I'm not trying to be rude, but while you are lamenting over racist people not reading your work (as are other writers that I follow) don't forget about the people who do engage, read, comment, send ask, gently requesting updates to stories because writers get pissed off if updates are demanded, and champion your writing. Some of us actively searched for black writers and stories.

I understand wanting a lot of engagements, I do, but I'm starting to feel shafted as a reader who is doing all the things these writers ask for and yet read these posts in which the writers threatened to quit writing fics because there's only 100 notes. Have you looked through the notes? Do you not see familiar usernames over and over again? So it's not many of us, and that is truly unfortunate, but the group is loyal. Stray words and so many others have already left.

Just like you're feeling unappreciated as a writer, I'm feeling unappreciated as a reader because yall (poc writers) essentially tell me there is nothing more that I can do to make you feel wanted enough to stay.

I'm sorry you feel like this, but the reality is that we're black. Whether in real life or digital, this is how the world treats us. We will have to work harder for less. It shouldn't be like this, but life aint been fair to us for centuries now. I do what you ask, so I ask that you focus on the small group of us that follow your writing through.

…i’m sorry that people sending me racist asks effects me? i’m human, too? i’m a person too? like i’m not made of stone, people being cruel to me does hurt me, it does leave lasting effects on my mental health? i didn’t threaten to quit writing, i talked about how that ask, combined with my ever decreasing engagement made me feel.

of course i look through my notes. conversely, do you see me responding to comments? asks? i’ve posted several times now about trying to commit to a more regular update schedule, about finishing my outstanding work. have you not seen any of that? i’m not leaving, but am i not allowed to speak on my experience? i’ve been back a week, and i’m already getting racist anons.

chastising me for being human and feeling a way when people are cruel to me is not how you get consistent updates, nor is it how you encourage me to stick it out. just because that’s the reality doesn’t make it right, and it doesn’t make it easier as a black content creator. i’m trying to be here, to update consistently, to be the change i want to see, but it is fucking hard, it is painful, and i’m sorry that you don’t like hearing that. feel free to follow my library blog to avoid it, i only reblog updates and new work there.

we have a saying in Jamaica: “pressure bust pipe”. i’m sorry black authors have been dropping like flies, but we are people. how much are we supposed to take without saying anything? i really don’t know what else to say other than that i’m trying.

sorry.

#ask the bones #hey nonny nonny ho ho #voice from the bones

[fairytsuk1]

streamer!au

being tomura's assistant was... hard.

what started out as some kid sitting in a dimly-lit beige room transformed into joining orgs, e-sports, drinking too much, and giving you a non-stop headache.

@tomraki: dream is fucking ugly lol

another headache. your jaw drops as the retweets begin to grow and the quote retweets threaten to drop your dear streamer's address or beloved ... well, anything. dream stans were ruthless.

"tomura!! you cannot, under any circumstances, say something like that!" he eyed you lazily before surfing through his files, saving fanart and writing down stream ideas.

"i'm not allowed to say the truth?"

"no! you aren't! you're getting devoured and what are you going to do if your org retaliates against you? we already had an issue with your gambling and then Twitch banned it and then you made a statement! again!"

he sighs drearily, "they banned my fucking revenue, i'm allowed to make a fuss about it. and aren't you supposed to support my every move?"

the way his eyes pierced you, and the slow creeping grin etched on his face grew every second. he was right, he was your boss.

but you weren't some doormat. you were shigaraki tomura's assistant for god's sake! you always retaliated.

"right, of course. that's why i scheduled a minecraft manhunt with you and him together for next week! so maybe you can tell it to his face next time."

"you didn't."

bouncy steps flee out the room before he can exact his wrath, "have fun!"

"FUCK!"

... oddly enough, he could be sweet. you'd seen him with fans too young to be watching him; he didn't go goo-goo eyed but he held a softness because he too was once a watcher of his favorite creators.

the circle of life, you guessed.

"are you having fun?" somehow, shigaraki had been lumped in with some of the more American streamers when he travelled from his cozy Japan studio to sunny California.

"no." "well, i know you like that whiskey sour." "it's mid. americans can't do anything right."

you shrug, that's enough of that. you lean against the wall while sitting next to him. he has a bit of a flush, but he needed this considering he saw StickyTape (Sero, an unfunny and bad gamer in his opinion) walk in. he knew people would be gunning for him to interact, post selfies, play happy streamer...

and his eyes wandered over to you again. god, could he quit it?

"you look nice." "do i? i wore my best skirt! figured i'd be seeing lots of famous people and networking for you, had to give em' something to look at."

the whiskey sour's in his veins now, and he decides to give up on filtering.

"your face is good enough." "what?"

are you that stupid? did you not hear what he just said?

tomura was no stranger to flirting with you, he liked to tease that eventually you two would fuck and that you'd be whining about wanting to be his and only his. and maybe you sometimes felt special knowing that you were backstage because he demanded you be there, not because it was just your job. and a long time ago, on a night he was falling in your arms due to the alcohol buzzing through his system that he whispered ...

"you're the worst assistant ever." "why?" "because you'll never love me the way i want."

what was appropriate to say? he snored into his pillow as you tenderly took off his shoes. obviously, he wasn't getting as many girls as he claimed if he couldn't see the love woven into every interaction with him

"my head hurts." "wanna go home? karl jacobs is looking our way, maybe it's best to get going anyways." "jesus, yeah let's go."

and just like that, the two of you left hand in hand.

@tomraki: how do you confess your love to someone?

@rakistanz: just tell her!

shigaraki (work): i love you

#shigaraki thirst #shigaraki tomura x reader #tomura shigaraki x reader #shigaraki x y/n #shigaraki x reader #shigaraki imagine #bnha x reader #my hero academia x reader #boku no hero academia x reader #my hero academia imagines #boku no hero x reader

[olderthannetfic]

Re, this anon: https://olderthannetfic.tumblr.com/post/719669829313953792

Yeah, well... that's the point of a bunch of internet activists: they throw the stone and hide the hand, screeching that, if you're doubting their innocence, you're an imperialist racist who should never be allowed on the internet.

Stitch, the person they're picking up a lot of their schlock from, is a master in this: they attack people, and the moment those who got attacked ask what they've done that's wrong or ask to have a one-on-one conversation with them, they shut everything down, screenshot whatever they received, block the person, and then go on Twitter whining about being a victim of racism because their words weren't listened to like the Gospel. Over and over again.

After the TOG racefaker scandal broke, I went through her blog and, just as I had expected, she too followed the same modus operandi: attack, screenshot, block, cry about being a victim of racism because people didn't let her insult them and demanded explanations about her ranting, wannabe-academic, posts.

They're not the only ones who do/did this, but these are the two examples of constant "harassment is good if I do it, but I'm the only victim and the others deserved it" cycle that come to my mind as of now.

When you're looking at End OTW Racism, you have to expect the same thing. They don't have answers, they don't want to have answers. This whole movement (horribly organized, horribly promoted, horribly everything) is nothing but a huge stroke of ego for its organizers.

You know how antis accuse others of being racist or pedophiles or whatever else because, that way, the accused cannot defend themselves? This is the same thing: if the OTW doesn't address their manifesto, then they're racist because they refuse to acknowledge it; if the OTW does address their manifesto, then they're admitting that they didn't care about racism until the moment they were called out on it and their concern regarding racism within the OTW is manufactured.

It's a win-win situation for them because, no matter how much you try, if you don't fully and absolutely agree with them, you can be branded as racist.

If you scroll through the End OTW Racism tag on Twitter, you'll see plenty of people (and especially the organizers), tweet stuff in the same vein as "I went to olderthannet's Tumblr and oof," not so subtly accusing all the people who raised valid concerns and asked valid questions of being racist.

I'm also not the first person who mentions this, but Stitch does seem to be heavily involved with the project, and even if they weren't, their words have been used to build the manifesto, and they amplified this crap through one of their Teen Vogue articles.

Now... not only Stitch is known for acting in bad faith, attacking creators of colors, branding them as Uncle Toms, purposefully making fun of them if they don't agree with them and sending their followers to attack and harass, but, just in April, they were being dragged because of another article they wrote, in which they compared writing fics about bad fictional characters to worshiping serial killers. Weeks before that, they were being dragged because their fanbase of antis discovered that their fics included incest, something that goes greatly against their preachings.

How big of a coincidence is it, that Stitch needed to have their image cleaned of all sins and suddenly a group of people drops a manifesto and hashtag about racism in fandom, founding a movement Stitch fully and absolutely agrees with and can rave about for days on end? A movement that offers very vague answers and plans, and those creators attack anyone who doesn't immediately agree with them, to the point that no questions can be ever asked about it?

Unless I'm shown actual evidence that Stitch isn't involved with this, nothing will convince me that End OTW Racism was launched for any reason that isn't to rehabilitate Stitch in the eyes of their chronically online audience.

--

[absurdthirst]

A Family for Christmastide {Pero Tovar x F!Reader}

Rating: Explicit

Word count: 13k

Warnings: Fingering, selfishness, withdrawn consent, masturbation, oral sex (female receiving), vaginal sex, bondage, cream pie, babies, breastfeeding, oral sex (male receiving), cum swallowing

Comments: Needing shelter for the winter, a Spaniard arrives on your doorstep. You offer him warmth, food and comfort in your bed as long as he pleasures you first.

A/N: We loved the idea of Pero not being skilled in anything but being a three pump chump and learning how to give head. And we had to make it Christmasy, because you know...reasons

Co-written with @storiesofthefandomlovers

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Click Keep Reading only if you have read the Rating and Warnings and understand the warnings may not be complete to avoid listing spoilers. As AO3 says 'creator chooses not to use warnings'. You also agree that you're the right age to be consuming anything here.

Pero grunts when he gets another “no” from an innkeeper. It’s the eve before Christmas and he is searching for somewhere to stay before the snow falls. He wants somewhere to settle down for the winter, wait it out until he can continue on his journey to sell his sword. 

“Fuck.” He grunts when he is sent back out into the cold and he huffs, adjusting the satchel on his shoulder full of everything he has in the world. 

“My friend, there may be an option. A woman…she has a farm. She has no husband. She may require…assistance.” He hints and Pero grunts, knowing what the man is implying but you may allow him to stay for his coins…maybe his cock if he’s lucky. He follows the man’s directions and makes his way down the path, knocking on your door.

Stirring the soup hanging in the large pot over the hearth, you straighten when you hear the knock on the door. Groaning to yourself as you set the spoon down and prepare to rebuff another ‘suitor’ now that the temperatures are falling and men are starting to idle. You hate it, how they seem determined to get you - or rather, your land. Thinking they can marry you and take what is yours since it’s unheard of for a woman to not be protected by any man. You notice your basket of wood is low and decide that once you shoo away the eligible bachelor, you will fill it up before the sun sets. “What do you want?” You demand as you open the door. 

“Señora, buenas noches. I - my name is Pero Tovar-” 

You huff and slam the door in his face with a “I am not interested in a husband.” 

Pero frowns, knocking on the door again. “Señora-” He leans in to speak through the door, “I am not here to ask for your hand, I am here to ask for shelter. I have coins. I can assist before the snow falls. I simply ask for somewhere to stay for the winter.”

You stop short, tilting your head in surprise that he is not wanting to marry you. Turning back around, the door opens again and you watch his face relax in relief that you are willing to talk to him. The temperature is dropping rapidly and the inn must be full if he is here. Probably one of the villagers sent him. “Coins?” You ask, raising a brow. Coins would be nice, allow you to not rely on what you can grow and trap when you need costly material or if your harvests are bad. “Show me.”

Pero nods, untying the coin purse from his belt and he opens it to display the gold coins inside. “I have plenty for my keep, señora. I just need a warm place to sleep and I will be gone before the snow melts.” He promises, knowing you won’t want him hanging around.

You gauge his appearance. He’s a mercenary. A sell sword. Surprised that he did not decide to stay in a brothel, you wonder if it was too costly, you’ve heard some men grumble they are charging too much for a tumble. His armor is dirty, matching his hair and his unsightly beard, but he’s tall, broad. You bite your lip and open your door wider. “Come inside and we will talk, but I make no promises.”

Tovar nods once, knowing he is at your mercy but he’s not prepared to beg. He wipes off his boots as he walks inside your humble cottage, the fire immediately warming him and he groans at the smell of the soup you are cooking. It’s heaven and you know it judging by your swaying hips. You’re beautiful, undeniably so, but he will respect you and your home. This is not a brothel.

You turn, watching him assess your house. It’s not a greedy gaze as he looks over everything you have, so you feel better about letting him in your home. “Where are you from Pero Tovar?” You ask, gesturing for him to sit down. Before he can answer, there is another knock on the door, this one much more demanding and you groan as you hear your name called out. It’s Jacob, the stable master. He wants your lands and you, something you are less than keen to give him. “Fuck.” You hiss, rushing to the door and opening it to the tall, lanky man. “No, I will not marry you.” You greet him with the same answer you have given him everyday he has come pounding on your door.”

Pero watches you slam the door in the man’s face and he can’t help but chuckle at your feisty nature. You huff, turning back towards Pero, “now, where were we?” 

He shifts from one foot to the other, “we were discussing my staying here in exchange for coins.” He reminds you, curious about the reason why you slammed the door in the suitor’s face.

“Yes.” You nod and start walking back towards your soup. You know a hungry man when you see one and he’s practically drooling at the scent of the food. “Two of your gold coins.” You decide, reaching for a bowl and your spoon to start ladling it up. “As long as you don’t mind swinging an axe for fire wood or bringing some fresh meat to cook.” You fill the bowl to the brim and turn around to set it on the table and arch a brow at him. “Nights between my tights included.”

Pero is pleased at the first part until you finish your terms and he’s choking on his own spit. “Ex-excuse me señora, did you - I don’t - my coins are for your home, not for - not for that.” He flusters, knowing he wouldn’t take advantage of you when you are kindly offering to let him stay in your home and you aren’t married or a whore.

You hum, expecting the mercenary to jump at the chance to have a hot cunt. You shrug slightly. “Fine, if you don’t wish to bury your cock in a hot cunt, that is your own business.” You tell him bluntly, finding men prefer plainly speaking amongst themselves but are always shocked when a woman does it. “However, when you leave, I will tell the villagers that we married. Prevent the offers or demands or marriage everyday. You seem dangerous enough they will think twice about doubting it.”

Tovar rubs his hands on his leathers, shocked at how forward and blunt you are for a woman. “You wish to be married to me?” He frowns, confused by you. You don’t want to be married but you want sex and yet you want to be married to him. “Please explain, señora. I- I don’t not understand.” He swallows, looking down at the soup you placed in front of him. It smells delicious but he won’t eat until you explain.

“The men- they keep prodding me to marry them and I have no desire for it.” You move over to the bread and pick up the rest of the loaf you had baked two days ago to set it down on a plate in front of him as well. “They don’t want me- or just me. They want the land, they want to control what I have.” You roll your eyes and huff. “I am no maiden and I like sex. It feels good and I enjoy pleasure. So saying you are my husband will keep them from chasing me and while you are here, we can feel good together. When the snows melt, you can go on your way and continue to sell your sword.”

Shocked at your proposal, Pero stares at you, “you want to - you want me to stay and keep your heath burning and your cunt filled before I depart and you tell your villagers that I am your husband?” He asks and you nod, shrugging, “do you have a problem with that?” He shakes his head, “not at all. I am happy to serve.” He smiles, pleased at his luck. “I am yours for the winter, señora.” He winks, picking up the piece of bread and he digs in.

You get immense pleasure from the groans that he makes as he shovels food into his mouth. He’s a sloppy eater, but you account that to his lifestyle. There must be times where he feels like he must bolt his food down, so you turn and fill up your own bowl with soup and set it down across from him. “There is plenty more.” You assure him as he tears another hunk off the bread. “I will be baking more bread in the morning.”

“Señora-” Pero groans, “you are heaven sent.” He declares as he takes another bite of the bread before he shovels more soup into his mouth. He’s starving and he is enjoying this meal. He will eagerly give you his cock in exchange for more meals like this. It’s been so long since he had a home cooked meal that wasn’t in a tavern. “Why do you not wish to marry?” He asks, his own opinion being that every woman wanted to marry.

“Why would I?” You scoff slightly. “I marry and everything I have becomes his. In the eyes of the Church he could leave me in rags and beat me while he whores his days away at the brothels and there is nothing I can do.” You shake your head. “I do not wish to marry until a man comes along who can think of nothing but me.”

Tovar stares at you, your features are beautiful, especially in the moonlight, and he hums in agreement. “Men are incapable of keeping their cocks dry while away from their wife. It’s physically impossible.” He has no illusions of grandeur about being faithful to one’s wife but he also has a moral code. “That’s why I will not marry. I do not wish to see the disappointment on my wife’s face when she discovers I have been with another. I sell my sword. I travel. I cannot afford a wife, a home, a family. I am surviving and I will be punished in hell if I dragged an innocent woman into my life when she had expectations of me.”

“At least you are honest about it” You start to eat your food and look him over. Unable to really tell his features underneath all the hair, you want to offer him a bath but it is too late for that tonight. “However, I do not have to take a husband, so I will not.”

“I understand, señora. I will be your imaginary husband upon my departure.” He winks at you and you chuckle, tearing off another piece of bread. 

“It’s a deal. You may stay until the snow melts.” 

Tovar grins, pleased to hear he has a home for the winter, “if possible…tomorrow…I would like to bathe.”

“I will insist on it.” Thank God he is not the type to have a superstition about cleanliness. “Tonight I will pour a pitcher of water for you to clean up briefly and I will see how your tongue feels against my cunt before you fuck me.”

Pero shakes his head, “señora…I do not sample the cunt I am about to fuck. If you wish to have my cock, you shall have it but my tongue will remain my own.” He never licked the cunt of the whores he bought for the night and he shan’t start now.

Instead of frowning, you shrug. “Then I do not want your cock.” You tell him bluntly. “Most men last but a few moments and leave their women unsatisfied. I am not a woman you paid for pleasure, so none you shall have.” You tell him, spooning another mouthful of the soup into your mouth. Are you disappointed? Surely, but you are not going to play the whore and get nothing for yourself.

Pero sighs, “señora…I am unskilled in what you are asking. A man like me…I am not practiced in oral skills. It’s not what I’ve paid for. My first woman was a whore, she let me fuck her for thirty seconds and then she taught me how to control myself. I never tasted her cunt.” He confesses, knowing you won’t want him if he is unskilled.

“Do you think a woman is skilled the first time she takes a cock in her mouth or cunt?” You ask, amused by his confession. Sex is sloppy and can be fun, if you let it be. Enjoyable and addicting with the right person. “No matter, if you wish to not learn, that is your choice.”

Pero bites his lip, considering your words, and he sighs, “I would like to learn.” He admits,  “if you will have me.” He tells you, knowing it will be a long winter with just his fist when you are a beautiful woman offering him a warm bed and a warm cunt. Oral is hardly a deal breaker for him, he’s just unskilled.

“I will not push you to do anything you do not want.” You hum, but he shakes his head. It would be good for you to teach him something new. He could be very popular in the brothels. “However, if you use your mouth, you might find yourself not paying as much as your companions for a cunt each night.” You add, smirking slightly.

Pero nods, “that is true, hermosa.” He calls you beautiful because you are and his cock twitches at your smirk. “I will - I will earn my keep.” He promises with his own smirk before he picks up his bowl and slurps down the remainder of the broth.

The rest of the meal passes quickly, you get up and pour another bowl of soup for Pero. Setting down in front of him with a smile before you finish your own bowl. “You have a horse, I assume?” You ask, wanting to make sure the horse is taken care of. “I have room in the barn with the goat and chickens.”

“Sí Señora, I have a horse. I will place him in your stable before bedtime. You are a very good cook.” He compliments you, smiling before he digs into the next bowl. It’s been so long since he’s had a good meal and you are looking like an angel sent from heaven for him.

“Thank you.” You smile as you watch him for another moment. “I grow all the vegetables and herbs and the meat is one of my older hens.”

Pero hums, continuing to eat. When he’s finished, you take his bowl and he makes his way outside to handle his horse, ensuring the stallion is secure in the stable with feed. He comes back in with a shiver from the incoming storm to find you warming water for him.

“Tomorrow we will bring in more water for a proper bath but I know you wouldn’t want to bathe off in cold water.” You know you hate it and avoid it when possible unless the temperature is sweltering. “After you bathe, I can wash and mend any clothes that need repairing.” Once the snow blows in, you will need to find things to keep your mind and hands occupied. Most of your sewing happened during the winter months.

“Gracias señora.” He tells you with a soft smile, grateful to you for allowing him to be here and have this shelter during the harsh months ahead. Even if he has to pleasure you, it won’t be a hardship considering how beautiful you are. He strips off, uncaring of you seeing him since you will see him naked anyway.

You hum to yourself as you gather a crock of soap and rags for washing. He is broad, just like you expected. A hint of softness that you preferred over sinew and the scars that are scattered over his body speak to a harsh life lead spent in battles. You will clean up yourself but give him privacy to give himself a good scrubbing where necessary.

He can feel your eyes on him as he strips down, making him smirk before he grabs the rag, soaking it in the warm water as he scrubs off weeks of dirt from his skin. He groans at the feeling of freshness and wets the rag again, washing his cock and balls to ensure you would want to touch him. When he’s finished cleaning himself off, he walks into your bedroom to find you with a gown wrapped around you. “I’m clean, hermosa.”

You turn and look him over. “I see that you are.” You bite your lip as you take in the sight of his flaccid cock and watch him start to stir to life. Unwrapping the gown from your body, you toss it across a trunk to reveal that you are as nude as he is. Your own cleaning had been quicker, since it is a part of your nightly routine before bed and when you rise in the mornings. “I take it you are ready for your first lesson?”

Pero’s dark eyes trail along your body, biting his lip as he looks at you, admiring your breasts down to the curls between your legs. “Yes, señora.” His cock starts to harden at seeing you smirk and you pat the bed beside you. He shifts from one foot to the other before he confidently strides over to you, a smirk on his face as he hovers over you, leaning down to press his lips to yours, his tongue immediately sliding into your mouth.

You shudder slightly, the hair from his beard tickling your skin but you don’t mind it. Tomorrow you will ask if he wants a trim and a shave. His tongue is insistent, making you think that it will feel good against your cunt. Reaching down, you wrap your hand around his hardening cock and squeeze him gently, making him groan into your mouth before you fondle his balls and feel how heavy they are.

Pero groans as you fondle him, his cock twitching and he reaches for your tit, squeezing it and pinching the nipple. “Hermosa.” He groans against your jaw while you continue to fondle him. He reaches for your waist, lifting you up onto the bed in the middle so he can spread your thighs. His cock is now hard and he grips it as he positions himself between your thighs.

“Wait.” Your thighs close and you are pushing him back and shaking your head. “I am not taking that cock until I’m ready.” You remind him. “I’m not a whore you’ve paid for a fuck.” You reach for his hand and guide it to the curls covering your sex. “Have you fingered a woman before?”

He huffs, “señora, I don’t - I want be inside of you.” He is impatient. It’s been a long time since he was inside of a hot cunt and he is eager to cum after so many months of his fist.

You nearly roll your eyes but manage to stop yourself. Deciding that flattery would be better to sue on this Spaniard rather than sarcasm. “I know you do, but your cock would hurt if I’m not ready.” You coo, biting your lip. “You have a large cock and it has been some time since I have taken a man.” 

Pero smirks at hearing he has a large cock. He concedes, trailing his hand along your thigh until he fingers your folds and he rubs your clit, knowing it’s pleasurable for women. His movements are awkward, unrehearsed since he is uneducated in female pleasure.

The man rubs your clit for nearly fifteen seconds before he is plunging two fingers into your cunt hard enough to make you gasp. It’s a frantic few pumps of his fingers, barely allowing your walls to stretch out to take them easier before he is pulling them free, shifting to his knees and grabbing his cock again. “No-” You shake your head, disappointed that he didn’t listen to what you wanted and is being selfish. “You can- this is not going to happen tonight obviously. You can take care of your pleasure because I will be taking care of mine.” You scoff as you move away from him and kick at his hip with your foot, pushing him away from you. 

Pero huffs in frustration but respects your decision. He shifts off of the bed, his cock now aching, and he walks over to the cot you set up for him in the corner of the room. Sitting down on it, he wraps his fingers around his cock, squeezing once before letting go. “I’m sorry señora. I am not - I am not trained for this.” He apologizes, knowing he should’ve let you lead.

You huff, annoyed and you shut your eyes. “Just fist your cock, Pero Tovar.” You tell him as you slide your own hand between your thighs, rubbing your clit and whimpering quietly when you find the perfect spot. “Tomorrow- we will- we will try to see if you- can listen.” You moan breathlessly, aware that you are pleasuring yourself while he is still awake as punishment for not being patient. 

Pero watches you, ashamed of his behavior as he starts to jerk his cock. Your cunt is glistening and he actually wants to taste you but that will have to wait until tomorrow. He grunts as he jerks his cock, groaning your name as he works himself towards his orgasm.

Your thighs shift and you hum as your hips start to roll up to meet your hand. "I could have- have stroked your cock while you did this." You pant out as you work your clit with your fingers. "Or when you licked my cunt- I could have- could have taken you in my mouth." You moan softly, feeling your folds get wetter.

“Mierda.” Pero curses himself for being so stupid and giving that up. He makes a promise to himself that he will learn how to pleasure you. He knows you’re a woman of your word and you will pleasure him. He simply has to give to you before you give to him. “Yo quiero - I want to learn, señora. Tomorrow - show - show me how to pleasure you.” He pleads, tightening his grip on his cock after he spits into his palm.

“You- you spit into your hand, to make it slicker.” You groan, “it is the same for when you pleasure a woman. Makes- makes it slick, wet. It hurts when you jerk your cock dry, does it- it not?” You ask, hoping to make him realize why it is important. “Im-imagine that pain inside you.” 

Tovar winces at the thought, understanding why you need to be prepared. “The - the whores I’ve fucked were already wet. I did not need to prepare them.” He explains, “you are not a whore, I promise…I will prepare you. However you require.” He vows, his dark eyes fixed on your cunt while you rub your clit.

“Good.” You open your eyes, looking down and finding him watching you. His hard cock is flushed and leaking, nearly purple as he pumps it in his fist. “We will- will spend many hours in bed this winter I think.” You predict, mouth opening and crying out in pleasure just a moment later. 

Pero hisses at your cry of pleasure, your thighs shaking and he hisses in response to the beautiful sound. “Fuck, hermosa.” He pumps his cock a few more times before he is spilling his seed onto the wooden floorboards and his fists.

You whine as you drag out your orgasm, chest heaving as your hips buck up. Watching the pearlescent cum spill over on his fingers in long spurts. Your fingers slow down and your hips shuffle back down to the bed as you pant. “Hmmmmm.” You sigh lazily as you pull your fingers from your cunt and lick them clean, used to your own taste. 

“Fuck.” Tovar groans as he works himself through his orgasm while you lick your fingers. He wants to bury his face in your cunt and taste for himself but he ruined his chance tonight. He has to make peace with that and accept his punishment. “Tomorrow.” He vows, finally releasing his cock and his hand is sticky from his seed.

Climbing off the bed, you pull your shift over your head and pull on your slippers before you grab some extra rags to set near the washbowl. “For you to clean up.” You murmur softly, striding past him to put the bar on the door and to have another dipper of water from the pail before you bank the fire. 

After working on cleaning himself up, Tovar cleans the floorboards and tosses the dirty rags in the corner with the others. He grabs his nightshirt and pulls it on, watching as you get into your bed and he follows suit on the cot in the corner. “Buenas noches, señora. Thank you for - for letting me stay.” He tells you before you nod, blowing out the candle by your bedside.

“Good night, Pero.” You murmur in response, wondering what he will look like under the mountain of hair he sports. “Tomorrow is a new day.” You hum in the darkness, quickly falling asleep after your orgasm.

****

When the sun shines into his eyes, Pero wakes with a groan. The cot is the nicest place he’s slept for months and he’s reluctant to get up but he also needs to earn his keep. After dressing, he finds you in the main living area at the fire. “Good morning hermosa, can I help?” He asks, knowing that today is a new day and he will make sure you are satisfied with him…in every way.

You look up from adding wood to the fire and smile. “Good morning.” You offer, standing and moving to the table where the bread you have kneaded is rising. “If you don’t mind checking the animals. I will drag the tub in and we can fill it.” The heavy wooden tube is leaning against the side of the house where you store it. It’s easier than trying to lift it onto the hook where your father had hung it. “I’ll chop wood while the bread bakes and the water heats up.” The leftover soup from last night and a bit of cheese is what’s for breakfast this morning.

Pero nods, “sí, señora.” Knowing better than to argue with you, he makes his way out to the table and he takes a seat, smiling at you as he picks up some cheese. “Would you like me to chop the wood?” He asks, wanting to help you however he can.

You smile and nod. “That would be most helpful.” You admit with a pleased look on your face as you slide the bread into the flat alcove of the hearth to bake . Turning, you sit down to your own bowl of soup sitting on the table. “Then it will just be getting the bath water warm and starting our meal to simmer all day.” You tilt your head to the side and watch him. “Did you sleep well?”

“I did.” You are surprised at his manners. He eats fast and hunched over his bowl but you had expected conversations consisting of grunts and huff words. It was rare to find a man who asked about more than his next meal or getting his cock wet. “I am glad you enjoyed the cot I set up. I was afraid your feet would hang off it.”

Chuckling, Pero sets the bowl down, “I was comfortable. Much more comfortable than the ground. And it’s warm. It’s more than a man like me could need.” He promises, breaking off some cheese. “We have much to do today señora, I shall get started.” He stands up after draining the bowl, and he makes his way outside to begin the chores you assigned him.

The snow has not fallen yet but there is the scent of it in the air. Humming as you go about your chores, it’s nice to have someone help, not leaving it all on your shoulders. Dragging the tub in while Pero is in the barn dealing with the livestock, you are lucky that a well was dug on your farm, your relatives making it convenient many years ago - especially since it is now just you. Gathering your buckets, you start drawing buckets of water to warm, also filling the barrel next to the door that is kept for easy access.

Pero feeds the livestock, ensuring the barn is secure and makes a few repairs before he heads back towards the cottage to cut wood. He gathers the logs first and sets them in a pile then he begins to chop, grunting and cursing when a log is being particularly difficult.

There is something to be said for watching a man work. His leathers are the first thing that come off, making you bite your lip at the broadness of his shoulders again. Picturing the sight that you had last night of him nude as the loaves of bread cool and you chop vegetables for the meat and vegetable pies you are planning for dinner tonight. He will probably eat an entire one himself. The buckets of water boil and you start to fill up the tub. It will take half the day, but it will still be hot by the time he gets done.

Pero wipes his brow after he places the logs on top of the other, stacking them until there is plenty. It’s hard work but he’s not unfamiliar with it, having done this as a young man for his parents before they passed and he left to sell his sword. He inhales deeply, the cool air hitting his cheeks and he looks back towards the cottage. You are a confusing woman, not wanting a husband to protect you, to breed you, but he understands. He is not conventional, he doesn’t want a wife, a child. He wants coins. A ruthless life perhaps but at least he’s honest with himself. After cleaning up the axe, he makes his way back into the house.

The Spaniard comes back inside just as you are pinching the crusts of the pies closed, also making some fruit pies for dessert. Those are already baking over the fire and you smile as you dust your floured hands off on your apron. “The water is almost ready.” You hustle over to take another large cauldron of steaming water and pour it into the large tub followed by another bucket of cooler water into the cauldron to heat. “Thank you. You are much faster at chopping wood than I am.”

Pero smiles, pleased you are happy with his performance and he watches you fill the tub. “Señora…would you mind cutting my hair?” He asks, knowing his locks are down to his shoulders and it’s too much. He needs it cut off so he can clean up properly.

Nodding, you pick up the shears you use to cut fabric from your sewing basket and motion towards him. “If you wish, I can cut your beard down as well.”

“Please, señora.” He nods and he sits down at the kitchen table, eager to get the scruff of his face and head. When you step closer, he inhales the scent of you and his cock twitches in his breeches, leathers discarded at the door from how overheated he was. He watches you as you start to trim his hair, unconcerned about the shears in your hand.

You run your fingers through his hair, chopping off great hunks of it so you can get the bulk off. You will go back and trim to clean it up. Furrowing your brow as his face starts to emerge from the curtain of hair, you find that he’s handsome and his mouth is almost delicate. “Hmmm.”

“Feels a lot better already.” He confesses, closing his eyes as you work on chopping off the matted locks he accumulated from months of traveling. “You are very kind. I’m surprised you haven’t been taken advantage of.” He confesses, looking up at you.

“Some have tried.” You admit, giving a small shrug of your shoulders. “They came to regret it before they took their last breaths.” They had failed to realize that your parents raised you to be tough, to be able to protect yourself. It was their mistake.

Unable to stop himself, Pero smirks at your ballsy nature, the fighter is apparent and he admires it. Far too many women rely on a man to protect them but you are strong willed and feisty. He likes that. “Poor bastards.” He chuckles, admiring you.

“Indeed.” You smirk slightly before you start to trim up the hair more neatly. “I will let you decide what to do with your face.” You tell him. “But the hair will be easier to manage.”

Pero hums, “it feels better already. Thank you, hermosa.” He tells you with a soft smile and he squeezes your free hand. “Do you have a blade?” He asks, wanting to shave while he’s at it before he gets into the tub.

“I do.” You step over to the table and reach for the clean dagger that you had laying there. It’s sharp, sharp enough to cut a man’s throat if he is not careful. Flipping it over, you catch the blade in your hand and extend it to him, handle first.

Pero thanks you and begins to cut off the masses of beard that had grown during his time without a blade. He grunts, working it down until he can use the tip of the blade to work the smaller hair off of his cheeks. When he’s finished, he looks over at you and tilts his head, “how does it look?”

“Good.” He is attractive. His jaw is strong and sharp, fitting with the nose that hooks slightly. The scar over his left eye doesn’t detract from his appearance, instead adds to the image of a dangerous, powerful man. “If you were in a brothel, the women would be fighting over who gets to fuck you.”

He can’t help but blush, unused to such compliments, especially from a beautiful woman, and it enforces his decision to please you later. He smiles, “I’d like to think you might consider fighting over me.” He murmurs, coy despite his hardened demeanor.

“Hmmm, your cock is thick and girthy.” You hum, your hips swaying slightly as you have grabbed your broom and start sweeping away the hair to clean up. “Undress and get in the tub.” You order him. “Relax and scrub your body. There is more water heating to rinse off and I will pour more in if you need.”

He quickly strips off, leaving his clothes on the chair he sat on. With a groan, Pero sinks into the tub of hot water, leaning back against the wood and he relaxes for the first time in months. He closes his eyes, just savoring the warmth while you sweep up around him.

Smirking to yourself, you watch as the mercenary named Pero Tovar visibly melts in the bath tub. His arms are braced around the edges of the tub and his head rolled back, exposing his throat. You wonder when the man has really let go and unwound like he is doing now. Setting the broom in the corner, you move over to the jug of mead you have open and pour out a cup. Heaven knows you enjoy having a cup when you are soaking in your own bath.

When you prod him and offer him the mug, he groans in appreciation and thanks you before he takes a sip. “Eres un ángel.” He murmurs, relaxing even more and he’s in no rush to get out of the tub. He soaks for an hour, until his skin is prune-like, then he finally washes with the bar of soap you gave him.

The fruit pies are cooling on the table and you are pulling your own extra shift out to wash, the bucket for your clothes already filled will warm water and you dump the things that Pero had been wearing into it with a generous heap of your lye soap for laundry. It wasn’t like the soap you made for washing yourself with herbs and flowers mixed in, although his clothes would smell better than they currently do.

Pero watches you as you bend over, scrubbing his clothes, and he decides that he will give you pleasure tonight...however you want it. He smiles, finishing up his washing up before he stands, water dripping off of his body. "Do you have rags to dry off, hermosa?"

“I do.” Turning, you stare for a moment as the rivers of water cascade down his body. “I- I’ll get them for you.” You stand and hurry over to your truck, shaking your head at forgetting to get them for him earlier. “Here.”

He takes them, drying himself off and his cock twitches as he watches you bending over to wash the clothes. "Hermosa." He shifts to hover over you, not imposing, just there. When you look up, he hopes you see the lust in his eyes, "let me - I want to taste you."

You are surprised that he is being so open about wanting to try and you smirk in approval. “I am surprised that you don’t want to eat food before you eat cunt.” You hum teasingly. “Are you sure you want to learn before it is dark outside?” 

Pero nods, “I am eager to learn señora. We have many nights ahead of us with winter and I wish to know what makes you moan, I want to know your taste so we might prepare ourselves for being trapped in the cottage. I do not wish to be selfish. Show me.” He asks, reaching for your hand.

“Very charming answer.” You joke with a small smile. Nodding, you motion towards the bed. “Go wait, I must wash as well.” You will not have him eat unwashed cunt, especially since it is his first time. While you are moderately clean, it would not hurt to wash. 

Pero nods, making his way over to your cot and he sits down to wait for you to wash up. He is still naked, uncaring of his nudity as he patiently awaits your return from the tub. He knows what to do, the mechanics of it, but he’s never really experienced it first hand, always rushing to seek his own pleasure.

You don’t hurry, knowing that he will wait for as long as he needs to in order to be able to touch you. Using a clean rag, you wash every inch of your skin and make sure you wash your cunt. You want this to be a good experience for him. Drying off and foregoing getting dressed again, confidently moving about your home with no care for your nudity. During the summer, you often spent all night without clothes on.

Tovar looks up when you walk into the bedroom area of your cottage, his breath hitching at how utterly beautiful you are. His cock starts to harden but he ignores his arousal in favor of satisfying you. “Tell me what you desire, hermosa.” He demands, voice already raspy with lust.

You smile and step closer, making Pero’s thighs spread for you to stand between them. “First, I want to kiss you.” You murmur, leaning in and finding the lack of excess hair vastly pleasing compared to the kisses last night. “Then, I want you to suck on my breasts.”

Pero obeys with a nod, keeping his arms to his sides as he kisses you back, trying to keep his tongue less frantic than last night and just savor the feel of you in between his legs. His fingers twitch when your tongue tangles with his, languid and so very erotic compared to his selfish pecks while he’s undoing his breeches.

Your fingers tangle into his freshly washed and cut hair, making him groan into your mouth when you tug on it. His arms don’t come around you, so you let go of his hair and take his hands and place them on your tits before you sink your fingers into the curly strands again.

He eagerly squeezes your tits, groaning your name as you pull back for a moment until you press your lips to his again. He moans eagerly, squeezing the flesh until his fingers pinch each nipple, delighting in the gasp you push into his mouth which is soon leaving yours to trail kisses along your neck and down to your check. He takes one nipple into his mouth, sucking harshly, maybe a little too hard, but he’s eager to please.

You hiss slightly, tugging on his hair but you don’t stop him. Loving how his tongue rolls around your nipple, you imagine his tongue on your cunt.” “Fuck.” You moan when he pinches your nipple as he sucks on the other. “More”

He follows your orders, switching over to the other breast and he pinches the one he was sucking on, letting his teeth sink in for a moment before he soothes it with his tongue. His cock is hardening, now aching with need for you but he can’t be selfish, he owes you for letting him stay in your home.

“Yes.” You gasp, stomach clenching at the nip of his teeth. Your folds are already dampening but you are eager to feel his tongue. “Stop.” You insist quietly. “I want to lay down and have you eat my cunt.”

He groans, reluctantly pulls away from your breast and he leans back to look up at you, mouth glistening with his saliva, and he watches you as you make your way around the bed to lay down. He spins, kneeling on the bed and he groans when you spread your legs. “Tell me what you want.”

You aren’t shy about pulling your folds apart and exposing your engorged clit. “Here is where I find the most pleasure.” You tell him, circling it with your index finger. “I want you to lick it, suck in it, but don’t bite. You don’t like teeth on your cock, do you?”

He shakes his head, shifting to lay down on his stomach, and he looks up at you for a moment until he shifts closer, tentatively flicking his tongue over your bundle of nerves. Your answering moan spurs him on and he flicks his tongue over your clit again and again.

Again, your hands are in his hair, guiding you where you want him. He’s inexperienced, just like he had admitted to being, but the raw enthusiasm has your hips bucking up and your panted gasps turning into moans.

Following your orders, he sucks on your clit, his tongue then sliding down to circle your entrance and he hums at your tangy arousal, his hard cock pressed into the mattress. He grinds into it but knows he has to make you cum, he wants to make you cum. He slides his tongue up to suck on your clit, pursing his lips around the sensitive nerves.

“Oh fuck,” you whine, eyes closing in pleasure and your finger grip his hair tighter. “I- once we fuck, you can- the next time I’ll suck your cock while you do this.” You promise, imagining his moans into your cunt while your mouth is around him.

Now that makes Pero fucking ache to be inside of you, the thought of his face in your cunt while you suck his cock. He fucking loves that idea and tells you that without removing his mouth. Groaning into your folds, he continues licking and sucking, listening to your moans as he figures out what you like.

A shudder runs up your spine while Pero learns your cunt. The tell-tale sign of your body priming itself to come apart. You’re vocal, moaning and writhing under his hands as they grip your hips while you shamelessly roll your cunt against his mouth. “Pero- oh God, you- your mouth is- oh fuck!” You gasp, nearly choking on your breath when he sucks on your clit again and sends you over the edge and your entire body stiffens while your cunt pulses and soaks itself. 

He grunts into your mouth, swearing that hearing you fall apart is going to make him spill his seed onto your sheets but he manages to hold back, working you through your orgasm with harsh sucks. It becomes too much and you have to shove his head away but he still licks your hole to sample your cum. “Did you enjoy that, hermosa?” He asks, wanting to make sure he did that right.

“Yes.” You pants, closing your eyes and smiling up at the beams above your head lazily. “Feel how wet I am? You will feel so good sliding into my cunt now.”

“I can-?” He doesn’t want to push you as he shifts to kneel on the bed. His cock is hard, leaking, and almost purple at the head from how aroused he is. “Hermosa…how do you want me to fuck you?” He asks, letting you lead again.

Reaching down, you wrap your hand around his cock and the man in front of your growls. His hips buck forward and you give him a good, rough squeeze. “My legs on your hips. I want to see your face when you cum for the first time inside me.”

“Fuck. Do you- I need to pull out?” He assumes, knowing you wouldn’t want a child unless you have the same herbs the brothels provide their workers. He shifts closer, cock twitching in your grip.

“I have a brew that I make.” You promise him, knowing that you will start stepping pots of the herbs to prevent a child. “You do not have to spill your seed on my belly unless you wish to.”

“I want to. Just in case. I don’t want to leave you with child.” He murmurs, caressing your thigh as his dark eyes meet yours. He shuffles closer, batting your hand from his cock and he swipes the exposed head through your folds, making you squirm, and he chuckles before his groan escapes his lips as he starts to push inside of you.

Even as slick as you are, he is thick inside you. Making your walls yield to his stiff length as he breaks you open. Leaning forward, his arms brace on either side of your body as he slides into you, moving down to his elbows and stilling when his cock is pushed in as far as he can go. “Fuck.” You pant breathlessly.

“Fuck.” He echoes. Your cunt is so tight around him, it takes his breath away, and he groans when your walls flutter while they try to adjust to his girth. This is much better than last night with his fist, your slick cunt gripping him and it’s easier when he pulls his hips back then pushes back into you.

You know he is not going to last past a dozen thrusts. He has been used to nothing but his fist and before that it was whores in brothels who didn’t mind him finishing quickly. It was another reason why you insisted on pleasure before he fucked you. That way you were not left wanting and unsatisfied. “Fuck me.” You pant. “I want to see how you fuck.”

Your cunt is heaven, he knows that now, so when you tell him to fuck you, he clenches his jaw and rocks deep into you, grunting as he works his cock into you with deep, hard thrusts that push you up the cot.

Every thrust pushes a moan out of you. When he has some control, you will enjoy the heavy, frantic pace that he beats himself into your cunt. Now your legs just loosely wrap around his hips and you let him use you, deliberately clenching your walls around him.

Pero pants when you grip him, “mierda. Hermosa. Lo- lo siento.” He growls out just before he thrusts deep into you, moaning your name before he forces himself to pull out in time. Wrapping his fingers around his cock, he pumps himself while his hot seed hits your belly and spurts onto your tits.

You watch him, fascinated with the way he hisses and his jaw clenched as he cums. His eyes fluctuate between fluttering closed and watching his seed paint your skin. Your hand moved when he pulled back, caressing his thigh as his body tenses and flexes as he cums.

Pero grunts as he works himself through his orgasm until his hand falls away from his cock, his chest heaving from the pleasure as his dark eyes focus on you. “Hermosa. Covered in my seed. So beautiful.” He compliments you, smiling at you with glassy, pleasured eyes.

“It is a good thing we have warm water.” You chuckle, amazed at much of his seed he had covered you with. It had to be more than he had spurted out last night when he had jerked off. “How are you feeling? Was it worth licking my cunt?”

With his own chuckle, pero nods and lays down beside you. “Definitely worth that, hermosa.” He promises, “I will lick your cunt every day if you allow me the pleasure of being inside you. You are - it’s incredible.” He tells you with a blissed out sigh.

You smirk, happy that you could change the mind of the mercenary. He hadn’t lasted long, but once he was used to fucking you, he was going to become a good lover. “Rest.” You command, leaning over and pressing your lips to his. “When your cock recovers, I want it inside me again while dinner bakes.”

Pero smirks, “insatiable.” He isn’t angry about that, glad to help you since you have given him a place to stay. He kisses you one last time before he settles back against your pillows, groaning at the way his entire body hums with relaxation.

You climb out of the bed and walk over to the tub so you can clean up. Wetting a rag and scrubbing the cum from your body as you look over to find him resting easy on your bed with his hands folded behind your pillows. He looks relaxed which you are glad for. “Do you hunt, Pero? Can I call you Pero or do you prefer to go by Tovar?”

“I respond to either one, señora.” He replies but can admit to himself that hearing you say his given name makes his stomach twist. “Pero. I want you to call me Pero.” He decides, smiling at you as you clean yourself up.

“Pero it is.” You decide as you finish cleaning yourself and put your shift on so you can finish the washing. “So, if you wish to hunt, I would be grateful.”

“I can hunt. Perhaps we can dry some meat for the winter? I can go out tomorrow and see what I can find before the snow falls.” He offers, closing his eyes as you finish washing the clothes and he briefly imagines a life like this, spent in your bed and by the fire. Tending to the land and not worrying about dying from a stab wound. He indulges until he remembers how much he desires coin, how much he wants to provide for himself.

“That will be good. I have some small game and some dried fish but I finished the last of the venison a week ago.” You string the clothes across a line in front of the fire to dry. “I can make the skin into some warm leathers for you.” You have plenty of your own warm skins from previous animals and it would be something he could take with him when he leaves. 

Pero smiles at how considerate you are, more generous than most he has met during his travels. “Gracias señora. I - you  are so kind. I shall have to repay you with many many nights between your thighs.”

You smirk slightly, amused at the cocky nature of his comment. You have no doubt that he will be bragging by the time the winter is over and you develop his skills beyond quick fumbles. “I have a suspicion that this winter will be very pleasurable indeed.”

****

The snow is falling outside of the cottage, the fire burning to keep the cold at bay but it doesn’t matter when Pero has your entire body on fire from his skilled tongue. After the disaster of the first night, Pero made a vow to himself to learn what you like and he’s a quick learner.  “Oh fuck!” You curse and he loves that, cock hard and aching but his tongue pushes you onto your third orgasm of the night from his fingers and tongue.

“P-Pero.” Your hoarse cry is loud and needy, almost whining as you pull against the cloths that have you lashed to the bed so you cannot touch him. It’s thrilling and infuriating, being unable to take what you want from him, to drive him crazy so he fills you with his cock like you need. Your thighs shake around his ears and your eyes desperately meet his smug brown orbs as he devours you again. “Pero!”

The Spaniard growls into your flesh, working his tongue deep inside of your cunt as your thighs shake against his ears. He loves how in control he is, completely owning your pleasure and when or if you cum. It’s intoxicating and has his cock leaking pre-cum onto the sheets. “Cum for me.” He orders, smacking his lips for a moment then he dives in to suck hard on your clit.

He rips a scream out of you as your entire body bucks and bows under the pressure of his mouth. Stars burst behind your eyes and nearly black out your vision while your cunt clamps down around the two fingers that are curled up inside you.

Pleased with himself for making you cum so hard, Pero works you through it until he is pulling back with a smug smirk. “Did you enjoy that, hermosa?” He asks you with a chuckle at your dazed expression.

“Fuck me.” You beg, tightening your thighs around him and pulling on the ties to the bed. “Pero, please, I need- I need your cock inside me. Please.” You whimper, chest heaving.

He nods, “okay, hermosa. Okay.” He relents and shifts to kneel between your legs. His cock aches and bobs as he shuffles closer until he is gripping it and notching it at your entrance, slowly pushing into you with a groan.

You moan as he fills you, your legs lifting up to perch on his hips. You love how easily he slides deep and bottoms out inside you. Learning that you love him grinding his hips as you're stuffed full and the coarse hairs at the base of his cock brush against your clit. “Pero….” You whine softly, turning your head so you can chase his lips. “Kiss me.” 

He can’t deny you anything now, not after weeks - months - of being trapped in the cottage with you. He presses his lips to yours, sliding his tongue between your lips as he begins to rock his hips, thrusting slowly and deep, grinding with no rush to cum despite his cock aching.

“Yes.” You moan into his mouth as he tastes you, feeling complete and it thrills you and terrifies you all at the same time. It would be easy to imagine him staying come spring, helping you work the land and standing beside you. He’s proven himself to be skilled, in this bed and out and you love the sharp wit he surprises you with.

He knows every little moan and murmur, knowing how to work you and how to bring you down. He knows your body as well as his own and it’s going to be hard to leave come spring but you made it clear you don’t want a husband. He pants, shifting to sink even deeper, his hips shifting yours so you are folded over slightly, and he groans into your mouth when you clench around him. You’re so fucking wet and tight, it’s gonna be hard to leave you.

“Oh fuck, Peroooo.” Your gaps of pleasure when he pushes deep and hits that wonderful little spot has you twisting your wrist and grabbing onto the ties. “Yes baby, oh fuck, please. I-I need you to - to fuck me.” You babble, mouth open and another moan pouring out. “Fill me up.” 

He pushes deep, wanting to feel and hear you cum apart. “That’s it hermosa. I need you - need you to soak me. You can do it. Ahora. No-now.” He pleads, feeling his balls pull up with his own orgasm and he pushes deep inside you, clenching his jaw to stop his orgasm from happening before yours.

Your toes start to curl and the squeal precedes the way your entire body seizes up. Your cunt locks down around him like an iron band and you soak him with another wave of your cum. “P-P-Pero!” You choke out with every thrust of his cock. 

He groans your name, pushing deep as he cums, spilling inside of you like he has for the past week as you assured him your tea was working to prevent you becoming with child. He hisses, leaning down to press his lips to yours, stilling inside of you as his cock twitches.

Whining at the heat flooding your cunt, you kiss him back and love how he starts to soften the kiss. “So good.” You murmur, blissed out and when he pulls back, you smile up at him. You wish you could touch him, stroke his back while he comes down from his high and you relax into the bed with a small pout. 

He reaches up to undo the cloth ties, rubbing your wrists and kissing your palm as he settles beside you before pulling you into his chest. “Are you okay, hermosa?” He asks softly, wanting to ensure you are satisfied and he hasn’t unknowingly harmed you.

“Perfect.” You hum, snuggling into his chest and sighing softly as you stroke his arm like you had wanted to while you were tied up. “Just like I always am.” You turn your head and kiss the scar that is three inches up above his heart, happy that it hadn’t been lower and kept you from meeting him. “We have worked up an appetite today, sí?” 

Pero chuckles, nodding in agreement. “Sí, señora. You wear me out.” He leans in to kiss your forehead while you rest against him. Your kiss on that scar makes his heart thump in his chest and he prays you don’t notice. He swallows harshly, knowing that each day that passes, he will find it harder to leave you and this cottage - no, home - you have let him in.

It hasn’t been all sex. Pero has done well hunting and the skins from the animals have been cured and worked into soft leather breeches for him, sure to keep him warm when he leaves. As well as fur lined gloves and a poncho. All tokens for him to take with him when he leaves. His clothes are all mended and patched and there is another beautiful chair that he built as well as the hooks he had made for you to store your tub more efficiently. Still, you hate to think about spring coming but it is coming. You pull away from him with a reluctant sigh. “I should stir the stew.” You murmur.

He watches as you shuffle off of the bed and he wants to pull you back but he knows he shouldn’t. He has to leave, has to sell his sword and make his coins. He can’t stay in this world with you. It’s not what he envisioned for his life. 

****

Pero looks out of the window with a sigh, the snow is melting, the sun is shining outside and it’s time for him to go. He glances over at you, watching as you work on sewing the hem of your shift where he had accidentally ripped it last night when he was eager to make you fall apart on his tongue. “Hermosa…it’s time.” He announces softly despite it breaking his heart.

It takes you a moment, your sewing needle still before you fold your shift over and set it down. “I- I must get you some provisions together then.” You tell him, trying to force a smile on your face when your heart is shattering. You had fallen for Pero and wish him to stay but he is obviously eager to go out and sell his sword and try his skills on the whores in the brothels. Standing, you rush over to the hearth so he doesn’t see the tears in your eyes. “I will make it quick.”

He watches you go, the words he wants to say are on the tip of his tongue but he can’t say them. He can’t risk it. He swallows them down and watches you rush around the cabin until he forces himself to get ready, dressing in the leathers you had made him instead of the comfortable breeches and loose shirt he’s become accustomed to wearing.

You give him the best of what you can. Wrapping cheese and bread up. Quite a bit of the dried meat that was left. He was traveling and you could cook whenever, where he was unable to. The saddle bag is nearly bursting by the time you are done and you have put off the inevitable, Pero is leaving.

While you were preparing for his departure, Pero made his way out to the stable to ready his stallion who has rested for the winter, raring to get back on the road as he neighs when Pero places the saddle on the steed. He guides the horse to your front door and you stand there with the saddle bag which he soon attaches. “Hermosa…I don’t know how to thank you for letting me stay.” He says as he stands in front of you again.

“It was my pleasure.” You tease, begging yourself not to cry in front of him. There was no promises made of love or commitment. He has said he would leave and you had said you wanted no man, it would not be fair to convince him to stay where he did not want to be. Stepping closer, you adjust the poncho on his shoulders and run your hand down the leather and small, lovingly crafted stitches. “Take care of yourself Pero Tovar, and make sure you please the whore you bed.” You remind him. “It will save you coin.”

Pero tries to commit your face to memory and he offers you a small smile, “no matter who she is…she will never compare to you.” He allows himself that one moment then reaches for the coin purse on his belt, “this is for you.” He hands you several coins, “for letting me stay.”

He’s given you too much and you shake your head. “Two coins.” You remind him, trying to hand the others back but he just pushes your extended hand away. “Keep them, hermosa.” He insists and you wish you were keeping him. Clutching the coins, you throw your arms around him and kiss him one last time. Desperate and needy before you pull away. “God be with you. Stay safe.” You whisper softly.

He presses his lips to yours one last time, nudging his nose against yours, and finally, he kisses your forehead. “Gracias señora.” He murmurs, forcing himself to pull away. He wants to beg you to let him stay but he has to go, he has to sell his sword. Without another word, he turns and straddles his horse, looking down at you as he kicks the side of his stallion to begin his journey away from you. It kills him to ride away from you but he makes a silent vow that he will return to you.

****

It’s getting colder and Pero rides north towards your cottage coming Christmastide again. Winter is coming and he longs to see you. He hasn’t stopped selling his sword so he could earn enough coins to return to you. He arrives in the village near your home and the villagers greet him with smiles. “Ah, the husband has returned.” One says, remembering him from the prior year. 

Pero frowns until he remembers that you were going to tell the town that he was your husband. He likes the idea of that and he nods, “yes. I’m back for my beautiful wife.” He smiles from atop his horse and the woman winks at him, “and I am certain you are eager to see the babe.” That makes Pero’s frown return and he offers her an awkward smile before riding to your cottage. A child? Perhaps you have moved on. Maybe he’s too late. His heart thumps as he ties up his horse and steps over to your door, hand hovering until he gets the guts to knock.

The baby squawks indignantly at the harsh knock on the door, your nipple pulled from his mouth for a split second before he frantically searches for it again. Settling down once he is sucking again as you stand and make your way to the door to open it cautiously. There have been no offers of marriage since last year but you are wary of anyone coming round. “Ye- Pero?” Your eyes widen as the man you have thought about for a year stands in your doorway.

His dark eyes widen as he looks down at the babe in your arms. The mass of dark hair just like his and he inhales sharply. “Señora.” He murmurs, staring at the baby for a moment until his eyes meet yours. “Is he - the villagers said - have you-?” He can’t believe what he is seeing.

Your eyes soften slightly at the shock that you see reflected in his face. You had discovered you were carrying his babe long after he had left and you could not track him down. You had thought you would never see him again but you had his child. “You have a son, if you wish to know him.” You won’t assume that he wants to be involved with his bastard since you weren’t actually married. The lie had allowed you to live respectfully and you were grateful for that alone.

Pero stares at you in disbelief, a wide grin appearing on his face after a moment. “Of course I want to get to know him. I want to be his father. I’ve - you are all I have thought about, señora. I haven’t been able to think of anything but you. I want you…I haven’t been to any brothels and I saved my coins so I could return to you, ask you to let me be your husband…officially.”

Shocked, you gape at him for a long moment until your son unlatches from your breast with a gurgle that makes you look down at him. “He is four months old.” You explain, looking back up at a Pero and shifting the baby so you can hold him out to his father. “I named him after you.” You admit quietly.

Pero has fought battles against mythical creatures and violent men who sought to kill him but there’s nothing that has him more nervous than taking his son into his arms. He swallows harshly, tears stinging in his eyes as he looks at the little boy in his arms who yawns and blinks those dark eyes just like Pero’s. “I’m so sorry I wasn’t here, hermosa.” He murmurs, not even looking at you as he keeps his gaze on the baby.

You pull your shift back up over your breast and start lacing it back up. “You did not know. I did not know when you left. I had been drinking the herbs, but your seed is apparently strong.” You smile at the sight of your son in his father’s arms. It’s not a sight you believed you would ever see. “It was not a hard time carrying him. And the birth was fairly quick according to the midwife.”

Pero is glad to hear that you were well during the birth and he wants to surge forward and kiss you but he doesn’t know if you want him. He says your name, making you inhale sharply, and he looks up from the babe who is now asleep in his father’s arms. “I intended to return to you to marry you. Long before I knew about our child. I thought of nothing and no one but you during your travels. I want you, hermosa. I want to be yours, you to be mine. I’m not a good man but I promise to lay my sword at your feet and be with you until the day I die.”

Your lip trembles slightly and you swallow. “I wished you to stay.” You confess, stepping closer to him. “But I knew you wanted to go, so I did not say anything. During our winter I discovered I love you. I have never wished for a husband but I wish for you to be mine.”

“I did not wish to leave, I had to go. I wanted to make enough coin to provide for us for a lifetime…and I have.” He gestures to his saddlebag. “I have enough coins to provide. I saved every coin I could. I haven’t been to a brothel. I haven’t touched anyone else since I left you, señora. I couldn’t. I want you. I- I love you.”

You’re surprised that he hadn’t touched someone. It’s been a year and men like him have needs. “No one?” You choke out softly. “I would not blame you.” You promise. “There were no vows taken.” 

Pero shakes his head. “They were not you, hermosa. I wanted to come back to you, this Christmastide to beg you to be mine. To let me stay and build a life with you.” You choke out a sob and lunge forward to press your lips to his with the baby cradles between your bodies.

Pero sighs into your mouth in relief, adjusting the baby onto the crook of his elbow so he can cup your cheek, kissing your properly, and it’s like he’s come home. “Te amo, hermosa.” He murmurs, kissing your forehead when you pull back. “Shall we place el niño in his bed and we can talk properly?” He suggests, looking down at the babe in his arms and he’s reluctant to let go but he also needs to touch you.

You smile, looking down at the baby and nod. “I have a little box that I have fashioned for him.” You explain as you turn and know he will follow you. “I have been hoping to have a cradle made since the one from when I was a babe was too old and rickety.”

Pero smiles, “I will make him a cradle, hermosa.” He promises, knowing it will be his greatest project yet. He follows you into the house, grateful he unsaddled his horse in the stable before arriving on your doorstep, and he watches as you place the sleeping baby in the box. His heart is pounding at the sight of you with his child. It’s more than he ever imagined during those cold nights traveling, selling his sword, and dreaming of being in your bed again.

You are slightly nervous, standing straight and wiping your hands on your apron and you smile at him. “Are you hungry? I have some pie that you preferred.” You had continued to think about Pero, smiling to yourself when you would eat his favorite meals you made.

Pero follows you into the kitchen, “I’m starving. I have ridden for the entire day to return home to you.” He reveals, completely meaning what he says. This is his home. He reaches for you, grabbing your waist to pull you close and he presses his lips to yours, tilting his head to make the kiss passionate and deep.

Moaning into his mouth, you wrap your arms around him and tug on his armor to bring him closer. Closing your eyes and giving into the kiss that you have wanted for nearly a year. He’s home, he wants to be home, to stay here with you and your son. You whimper when his tongue glides against yours and revel in the taste of him.

Pero savors the kiss he’s been waiting a year for. His hands sliding down to squeeze your ass through the slip you’re wearing and he’s tempted enough by you to kneel down on the floor, lifting up the slip before his head ducks under it so he can bury his face in your folds.

“Pero!” You gasp loudly, surprised that he is immediately licking your cunt, especially after giving birth. Holding onto the table, you moan loudly but not enough to wake the baby. “Perooooo.”

He groans at your familiar taste, his hands squeezing your ass to tilt your hips so he can push his tongue deeper inside of you. His nose pressing against your clit just like you taught him. This is all for you. All for you. He’s all for you.

Whining, you grab the edge of your skirts to pull them over his head, wanting to see him. You’ve touched yourself thinking about him since he left and now he’s here. Flicking his tongue over your clit, you feel the fuzzy edges of your orgasm rushing up. “Oh fuck!”

Pero loves hearing your pleasure, his tongue diving deep and his cock aching in his breeches and he hisses when you clench around his tongue. He desperately wants you to cum. Wants to hear it again, and again, and again. He groans into your folds and sucks harshly on your clit.

You shudder, your knees nearly buckling from the pressure and pleasure being forced on you by his mouth. Looking down to find his eyes closed as he sucks on your clit, you whimper and with a final suck, come apart for him.

He takes everything you give him, every drop, and he laps at your cunt like he hasn’t eaten during the year he’s been away. In part it’s true since he missed your cooking and he has missed you. He works you through it until you are pushing his head away, making him whine at the loss.

“God.” You grab his shoulders and you would pull him up but it would take too much effort. Dropping down to your knees with him and pressing your lips to his desperately. “Take- take your cock out.” You beg, pushing him back into the floor in front of the hearth and straddling his hips. “I need you inside me.”

He doesn’t deny you as he reaches down to untie his breeches, letting you pull his cock out of his trousers and he groans when you pump him. “Hermosa. Please. Take what you want, what I need.” He pleads, groaning when you squeeze him.

It has been nearly a full year and you’ve had a baby since you’ve taken his cock. Still, your walls clench around nothing as you roll the foreskin down to reveal the sensitive tip to slide through your folds before you notch him at your entrance. “I love you, husband.” You moan, sinking down onto him and loving the stretch of him inside you again.

Hearing you call him husband has him groaning your name and he hisses when you sink down onto his aching cock. “Hermosa. Mi esposa. Mi amor.” He murmurs, caressing your waist as you begin to rock on top of him, making him groan your name.

It’s frantic, the two of you rocking together. You lean down and press your lips to his, loving how he is throbbing inside you. You know he won’t last long, not if he’s gone all year with no pleasure but his hand. “Inside my cunt or my mouth?” You demand breathlessly.

He wants to cum inside of you but he doesn’t want you to be with child so soon. “Mo-mouth.” He pants out, close to his orgasm, and he’s groaning your name when you shift off of him, leaving his wet cock in the cool air.

Shuffling down his body, you're greedy as you take him into your mouth. Tasting the saltiness of his seed and your own juices as you start to Bob your head on his hard cock. Looking up at him and moaning around his length, feeling him tense under you.

He groans, unable to withhold his orgasm as he spills down your throat, moaning your name as he cums, eyes closed as he savors the pleasure that one you can give him. “Fuck hermosa.” He growls and after you’ve worked him through it, he pulls you off of his cock and drags you up his body so he can kiss you.

You smirk against his lips, not caring that you are on the floor, pressed up against his body. “I thought I would never see you again.” You admit quietly after you pull away. “I am happy that I was wrong.”

“I was always going to come back to you. When I left…it was only so I could come back and provide for us. For my family.” He adds, still in awe of his son. Pero was seeking a haven for the winter and instead he found a home - a family. It’s more than he could’ve asked for…worth more than all the coins in the world.

#pero tovar #pero tovar x you #pero tovar x reader #pero tovar x f!reader #pero tovar smut #pero tovar fanfiction #pero tovar imagine #pero tovar the great wall #tovar x reader #tovar x you #tovar x f!reader #tovar imagine #tovar fanfiction #tovar smut

[dicebound]

System Wars

So system warring in the hobby has taken a weird turn since the whole WotC debacle. I shared two different posts kind of touching on the subject, that I agree with in some manner or the other. Let me lay it out for you: No one should be shamed for their preferred system. This hobby is about fun & games and people should be allowed to enjoy what they enjoy. If you only wanna play 5e, fine. If you'd rather play anything else, also fine. If you're shaming people for their preferred system you're doing more harm than good.

A little homebrew here or there also does not mean someone needs to play something else instead. Everyone has house rules.

However, treating 5e like it's a universal system that can run any genre of game is insane. There are literally thousands of games out there that already do what your homebrew D&D 5e conversion would do and more, save yourself the energy and just play that. Additionally, Most systems you could play as an alternative to D&D are way cheaper, if not free in comparison to the massive tomes WotC puts out each year. Many of them are just as supported if not more so by their creators in the form of digital tools and add ons too. If you are affording new purchase of 5e books on the regular, you can absolutely afford to branch out into other cheaper systems. A dogmatic devotion to D&D is what contributes to WotC's stranglehold of the market share. This fear of learning new systems in the hobby is bad for players, bad for GMs, and bad for the hobby's health. If you've genuinely tried other systems and still prefer 5e, Great! Have fun! If you're a person who wants to play a genre conversion for D&D (think Pokemon D&D! One Piece D&D! Fallout D&D!) - I recommend you grab one of the numerous games specifically designed to capture that genre rather than putting a D&D square peg in a round fallout hole. If you're a player in this scenario, then shame on you for demanding your DM go through the hard work of converting an entire genre into 5e just so you don't have to learn a new system.

Some of my favorite mechanics and favorite sessions at the table have come from sessions of Pokemon Tabletop Adventures, Call of Cthulhu, City of Mist, Pathfinder 1e, etc. I've even carried minor game design back into my 5e games to make them better too. There is space for both. 5e Players and Other System Players are brothers and sisters in gaming, and we should be uplifting and challenging each other - not fighting and demeaning each other.

5e players aren't stupid, and you're not some leet gamer because you play Pathfinder or GURPS instead. 5e also isn't God's gift to gaming. Expand your horizons, but enjoy what you like. Catch flies with honey not vinegar. Telling people they have BRAIN DAMAGE FOR ENJOYING 5E is beyond the pale and insisting there's NO POSSIBLE WAY I COULD EEEEEEVER learn a new system is just laziness to the point of idiocy.

#dungeons and dragons #system wars #edition wars #ttrpg #tabletop roleplaying game #dnd #dnd 5e

[1863-project]

I am, admittedly, very, very tired.

Fandom was a safe space for me growing up in the 2000s. I turned 14 in 2003, and I was spending a lot of my spare time online at the time because it was a place that people accepted me. I liked that it wasn't too fast-paced, and I liked that I was allowed to be weird there. I got to just be me, no judgment. For an undiagnosed autistic kid, that was revolutionary. It was a subculture, to be sure - we had to keep things quiet because in real life we were mocked for liking things, and this was an era where people sometimes did get fired for writing fanfiction off the clock. But it was safer than my real life, where I was being bullied constantly to the point of permanent trauma.

Fandom isn't like that anymore, because capitalism found us.

At some point, people realized they could make serious money off of fandom, and it became an industry. Fandom changed with it, and not necessarily in good ways. There were, of course, some good things - it was easier to get good merch for a lot of things, for one - but the cultural shift from smaller, more subcultural spaces into the mainstream has ultimately changed the culture of fandom in ways that have harmed creators. Fandom went from being about creating to being about consuming. Things are now moving so quickly that fic writers and artists can't keep up with fans' demands. If you're late to a meme by a week, you're "too late." And it's not a subculture anymore, either - it's mainstream. The things we were actually made fun of for liking are now cool to like, which in some ways is nice but in other ways feels weird, because now our safe spaces are dealing with an influx of people, many of whom were actually the people who made fun of us in the first place.

This isn't to say that fandom was all rosy when I was a kid. There were a lot of issues, it could get really cliquey, and there was a lot of drama, as you'd expect from fandom spaces. But it was still more of a place where you could explore yourself and who you were instead of a place where you had to police your own behavior because people were watching and waiting to go after you for any perceived mistake. You didn't have to be pure and perfect. You didn't have to keep up with trends constantly. You were allowed to go years between fic updates, and people were just excited to get an update instead of acting entitled for one after a week of no updates.

I love talking about things I like with my friends, and I generally do so in small Discord servers these days, because it's the closest thing to what I grew up with. In those spaces, we can discuss things seriously and in funny ways, and we can safely be critical of trends in fandom spaces, like racism and ableism, that have permeated modern fandom more than ever. They were always there, but as fandom becomes more of a reflection of mainstream society than ever, prejudices become more and more obvious in these spaces. People don't like it when you point these things out, though, because they're stuck in that idea of having to be perfect, because they don't want to be called out.

The fact of it all is this: fandom is now just a reflection of mainstream culture, because that's what it's become. It isn't a subculture anymore. And it looks just like regular culture, with all the sexism, homophobia, transphobia, racism, ableism, ageism, etc. that you'd see there. These are all topics worth going into in depth, and they're all things to be aware of. Depicting things and characters thoughtfully goes a long way for people - even if you're fixing canon because God knows canon itself is also deeply reflective of these things. Stories are a product of the society they're written in, after all.

I decided to start looking into ableism in fandom specifically because I'm autistic and certain tropes actively harm people like me and perpetuate prejudices against autistic people, but there's so much to be gleaned from disability and fandom beyond autism. If you're disabled yourself or have disabled friends or family members or other people you care about, you've probably seen something that rubbed you the wrong way or felt uncomfortable at some point (mental illness is especially deeply stigmatized in society and is treated accordingly in both canon and fanon). There's just so much to talk about and this is only scratching the surface.

But right now, I'm tired and I'm angry that the space that has been there for me my entire life, the space that was a place I could safely be myself, has become what it has and has essentially pushed me out - of a space I was helping build in my younger years. That shit hurts. I can't go home anymore, and it really, really stings. I'm building new homes with new, safe friends, of course, but to know I can't go back to what I had just...it's really hurting me right now.

I know I just have to move forward, but I think it's important for me to acknowledge the anger and mourning I've been dealing with, too.

#my life is so exciting

[thelaurenshippen]

I'm just a starting writer, I did a little nanowrimo this year and wrote 39k words about a vampire gamer, I've always been a vampire girl, but here's the thing I don't know what to do with it.

Currently I'm unemployed for a variety of reasons but I'm lucky enough to have a partner who has a salary that can support us both.

But also I love writing, all my life I just wanted to write and being unemployed this year during nano gave me the opportunity to try and do that.

And now I'm curious is there a way to get paid to be a writer? Not as a marketing copy writer but a fiction writer, or essayist?

So what does one do?

Should I just publish whatever I wrote on a blog and put up a donation button?

Should I just publish on Tumblr?

Should I do it on AO3/Wattpad?

I'm at a loss.

I also don't have social media only use Tumblr and a little BlueSky after twitter exploded, and I really don't want to go and "build an audience on TikTok and booktok" (please gods no).

ah, yes, the eternal question: "how do I make money as a writer?"

I wish I had a good answer. I wish I had any answer. and I would love for other writers on here to chime in with their perspectives, because I am constantly struggling to answer this question for myself!

to answer the specific questions first: there are websites that post jobs for writing gigs - fiction, essays, etc. the one I'm most familiar with is upwork, though I've never gotten a job myself through there so can't speak to the experience. I will say that writing jobs tend to be in high demand and writing in general can be quite competitive, so working on your resume and improving your craft is an important thing to do whether you're just starting out or have been writing professionally for years.

self-publishing is absolutely an option! if you do, I would recommend getting a beta reader (or just a few friends) to read through your manuscript before you publish - it's always good to get feedback and to get other eyes on your work, no matter how complete or polished, for typos/grammar/formatting/etc. I'd also recommend reading about the best ways to self-publish - again, I can't personally speak to this as my three novels were traditionally published, but I know that folks publish through Amazon a lot and there certainly have been successfully novels (and especially graphic novels!) that have started out as blog posts/blogs. I don't recommend publishing an original story to ao3 or Wattpad if you're hoping to make money (if you're publishing for fun, go for it!) - ao3, my beloved, is an archive and therefore does not allow you to link to any kind of patreon/kofi/etc., so can be difficult to monetize. I'm less familiar with Wattpad, but I do know that they are actively trying to get into the publishing game themselves and sometimes pluck stories from their site to bring up to trad publishing, which I've heard can be....a mixed bag.

but there are a lot of authors on here and on their personal websites writing about self-publishing, so there's definitely better info out there about how to do it and how lucrative it can be!

a very good rule for self-publishing imo - whether that's through a site like amazon, your own blog, a podcast, a webcomic, whatever - is always give people the option to pay you. so, yes, put that donation button up. it doesn't matter if no one has read or listened to your thing yet, just making sure the option is there from the start is a good thing!

that's about the extent of the straightforward answer I can give you. if I were to give you a step-by-step guide of how I got to a place where most of my income comes from fiction writing, it would look like this:

write your own fiction podcast, get some actors from acting class to come over to your apartment and record for free, and produce the whole thing yourself

publish said podcast and then spend the next 2 years spending as much time on social media, at conventions, conferences - anywhere there are fiction podcast fans and creators - as you can talking about your show, all while writing and producing the show for free

get lucky and have the show take off. start to get some ad money that allows you to pay your collaborators. watch the show get better as a result. see the show take off even more. keep grinding away at social media

get a cold email from a book agent who wants to talk to you. convince that book agent to represent the YA novel you want to write in the world of your podcast

expend whatever leftover energy you have on ensuring that when people think of fiction podcasting, they think of you, even if other names are coming first. be everywhere. talk to everyone. keep grinding away at social media.

get a cold email from a fiction producer in England who wants you to write on his show. convince him to let you co-showrun it with him.

use your growing network of audio friends to get an agent and manager. use those people to get a pitch to marvel. convince marvel to let you write a podcast for them.

finally quit your day job, after doing 4 seasons of a successful podcast and selling spin-offs to a tech company, getting a 3-book deal with a major publisher, being hired to co-showrun a big budget mystery, and selling a show idea to marvel. then make all of those shows.

finish the podcast you started with, now seven seasons long. try to pitch out other ideas to all the people who wanted to buy that podcast off of you. watch them say no to anything new.

get lucky and sit next to a netflix exec at a dinner. convince her to let you write a stranger things show.

keep pitching. use the money from your other jobs to fund your indie shows. sell one show. lose another halfway through development. have your ideas optioned for television over and over and get used to hearing no's when you go out to pitch. produce and direct as much as you can to pay the bills. keep grinding away at social media.

????????

profit

that's obviously a simplification of my journey but I'm currently in that ???? stage. I don't say all of this to freak you - or anyone else - out. being a creative is hard. it gets easier in some ways and stays just as hard in others. I'm better at my job than I used to, so making shows is easier, but getting jobs and getting audience feels as hard as ever, even if I am several steps ahead than where I started. I thought I could build off the success of @thebrightsessions to make my other originals instant successes and that's just not how it works at all. you're building from the next step up after every success, not the top of the staircase.

but, like I said, I'm not trying to scare you - the thing that's positive in my weird crazy journey is the reality that there is no one right way to do something. there's a million different ways to make a creative career, especially in the age of the internet. which means that my advice to anyone who asks me how to start a career in audio fiction specifically is: just do it. don't wait for someone to give you a budget, don't try to cater to what you think the AD audience wants, just tell your story as you want to and get it out there. the best job application is being able to point to your own original work that's already garnered an audience.

I have no idea if that could as readily apply to prose writing/publishing. that is definitely beyond my knowledge base, but I'd say if you want to get a taste for what it's like to be a freelance creative, apply to jobs on upwork or similar sites, work on your original work, and find a platform that works for you on which you could potentially build an audience. and then get to know as many people as you can in your given field - I would not be where I am at all without folks like Gabriel Urbina, or Jeffrey Cranor, or Jenny Turner Hall. making friends in audio drama from the start who could recommend me for jobs - and being sure that I do the same now that I have more power - is vital. make friends with your peers (also bc they're great and you'll learn so much from them).

finally, I want to pass on advice that my uncles gave me when I was a teenager wanting to go to broadway--both of them work in musical theater (one conductor, one musical director, they are quite the power couple and my heroes) and when I was growing up, they told me "if you can think of anything else that will make you just as happy, do that instead". it sounds like harsh advice, but it's good advice. people don't pick creative careers because it's easy and stable--if there's anything else you're equally passionate about that could make you money and be more stable, there is absolutely nothing wrong in pursuing that and then writing for the love and joy of it, without the pressure of making a living. and that doesn't mean that that won't eventually lead to you being a successful full-time writer! but choosing to pursue writing full-time because it's what you want to do with your life is a very particular kind of path.

anyway, I've gone on way too long. I hope some of this was helpful - the last-last thing I'll say is that a) I obviously have a very limited perspective so nothing I say here is the be-all-end-all way of viewing things b) I had a very stable data entry job while I was making my first show that was very flexible and work-from-home (oh, to be able to get that job back now...since the pandemic, those types of jobs are obviously in high demand) and c) I got lucky. luck and timing are, unfortunately, a huge part of success in creative careers. if anyone tries to sell you on the idea that there's a guaranteed path to success that you can control if you work hard enough, they are lying to you and probably want you to buy something.

finally-finally, a vampire gamer story sounds so fun!! I love that idea!

#lauren writes things #self publishing #traditional publishing #advice #also your ask was one of the ones that didn't get eaten but thank you for sending again! #I hope this answered your question but feel free to send more! #long post #lauren answers things

[the-owlbear-outpost]

Corporate Greed Is Trying To Crush The D&D Community

Alright Tumblr, listen up! The Dungeons & Dragons community is in grave danger right now and we need your help to defend ourselves!

It's no secret that for a good few years now, we've been living in a new golden age for Dungeons & Dragons. The game is more popular now than it's ever been before. It has a thriving community of homebrewers and content creators, and is even supported by third party publishers outside of Wizards of the Coast. It feels like every day someone in this community is creating something amazing.

And Wizards of the Coast, in a display of corporate greed that would make the Abyss itself blush with envy, is planning to take our awesome community and drive a stake through its heart.

They're doing this by changing (or more accurately eviscerating) the Open Game License, which the community depends on to publish homebrew content. Quick FAQ to bring you guys up to speed:

What is the Open Game License?

The Open Game License (or OGL) is the public license issued by Wizards of the Coast, that lays out the rules for publishing third-party content for D&D.

Basically, it allows us make and even sell our own content for the game without running afoul of copyright law. This is something we normally couldn't do with the copyright system being the way it is, but the OGL is designed to skirt around those thorny issues. In exchange for following the OGL's (very reasonable and permissive) rules, we're protected from any copyright demons the lawyers send our way.

And so the fandom gets to create its homebrew stuff without interference, while the actual publishers of the game itself get to maintain the copyright on it. A win-win... or so it was.

What's happening to the Open Game Licence?

Right now Wizards of the Coast is cooking a new version of the OGL, one that drastically alters the terms of the deal. The terms of the new OGL were leaked yesterday by a journalist from Gizmodo (the article is linked at the top of the post), who was tipped off by someone inside the company. And every change they're planning to make is a terrible one. Some highlights:

-There are much heavier restrictions on the content we're allowed to publish, and it's unknown how those restrictions will be enforced.

-If we want to publish anything under the new OGL, we have to register with Wizards of the Coast, give them personal information, report our income and potentially give them royalties if our income is too high for their liking.

-Wizards of the Coast retains all rights to our creations, and may use them however they see fit without our consent.

-Previous versions of the Open Game License are rendered void, forcing us to use the new predatory version if we want to publish anything new.

-Wizards of the Coast can change the terms of the new OGL at anytime, unilaterally, with only 30 days notice.

Who does this effect?

In short: just about everyone. Homebrewers, publishers, dicemakers, virtual tabletop software developers, actual play podcasters. I can't say for sure because I'm not a copyright lawyer, but if you create something related to this game and make money off of it, chances are high that you're going to be bound by some or all of these terms.

But that's not all. This can also impact games outside of D&D. Many of their competitors (like Pathfinder) use a modified version of the d20 system, which was up to this point protected by all previous versions of the OGL. The terms of the new OGL aren't just designed to exert control over their own community, but also demand royalties from their competitors.

The last time something like this happened (the dark, dark days of 4th Edition), the community survived by jumping ship to Pathfinder. Evidently they're taking steps to stop that from happening this time.

What can we do about it?

And here we reach the all-important question. Learning about the problem is the first and easiest step, but what we can we do stop it? This is where I can finally give you guys some good news: we can stop this from happening, if we band together and act quickly!

The new license hasn't been released yet, and depending on how big of a stink we make over the next few weeks, it may never be released. Wizards of the Coast is walking on shaky ground here... not just ethically, but also legally and financially. And in kicking the hornet's nest like this, they may have overreached.

So first thing's first: Make a big stink about this. Spread this news over social media, and let it be known that you're willing to stop buying Wizards of the Coast products if this goes through. Despite D&D's newfound popularity, tabletop gaming is still relatively niche. They lack the mass market appeal that's necessary to survive a sustained boycott.

If the new license is released, support third-party creators however you can, and don't touch the new license with a ten-foot poll. WotC is trying to revoke the previous OGLs, but there's good reason to believe they can't actually do that; those things were explicity designed to be irrevocable, and there's a really good chance this whole power grab crashes and burns in the courtroom. So stall for time. Avoid publishing anything under the new license for as long as you feasibly can.

This new "Open" Game License has the potential to devastate the tabletop gaming space. Don't allow it to happen without a fight. Please spread the word!

#of course this happens a month after i start homebrewing #my timing sucks #protect open source gaming #dungeons & dragons #d&d #dnd #dnd beyond #wizards of the coast #corporate greed

[peetapiepita]

Thoughts on what general audiences can do for the WGA and SAG strikes

I've read up a lot on the strike situation these past weeks because I'm someone who consumes A LOT OF media content. The strike will affect my daily life and I'm a curious girlie when it comes to show biz rules. So here are some of the takeaways I wanna share with my fellow audience:

1. Understand the strike

The strike is happening for 2 major reasons:

1.) The studios are refusing to pay the creators/actors residuals on streaming services.

This makes it hard for the majority of writers and actors to make a living by doing their respective jobs. They used to rely on residuals from old projects (DVD and blue-ray sales, renting, etc.) to pay bills. That's just not happening today.

To try to get out of paying residuals, the major studios started this trend this year to take old and new shows/movies off their streaming platforms and use them as an excuse for a tax write-off. Disney did this last month and got a 1.1 billion tax write-off. They can currently do that without consulting the people involved AT ALL, taking away their livelihood without warning.

2.) The studios want to retain the rights to use AI writing and performing.

In the negotiation with SAG, they proposed a plan to pay actors only one day's wage to use their AI image FOREVER without paying them ever again. And the actors wouldn't have a ground to argue that. This is straight out of Black Mirror Season 6 Joan is Awful. Netflix is really writing its own villain origin story right now.

So what would happen if the workers budge and give up mid-way?

They'll end up losing their means to survive and have their images stolen. So striking for a few months is definitely better than starving indefinitely.

What's happening right now?

Right now, no projects fiananced by AMTPT companies can film with SAG members or develop with WGA members, which means only a very small percentage of all Hollywood productions can still happen. (More to come about this.)

With finished projects, if they're being released in the next few months, they're going to be released without any promo from the actors. They can't take part in interviews, premieres, fan events, or even post about their projects on social media.

2. Help with the strike.

Now that the double strike has officially happened, what's the best outcome for the workers and the audiences?

If you're just a casual entertainment enjoyer:

Cancel the streaming services not essential to you. The studios are going to panic more when they start losing even more money.

If you're a fan of a fanchise/upcoming blockbuster:

Flood the companies behind it, demanding them negotiate with the SAG and WGA on their own and agree to a fair deal. Threat not to support the projects unless it's settled fairly.

These studios with upcoming big-budget movies are bleeding money and panicking right now, any added pressure is good.

If one company buckles, the others would follow suit.

If you have money to spare: (Congrats on being rich, btw!)

Donate to the unions and support the ones with lower income in the first place, they'd be struggling with bills if the strike goes on for too long.

For everyone:

Call out big studios who are still planning on filming projects during the strike.

Please note there are exceptions to the strike rule:

1.) Foreign productions.

Please note an actor has to be part of the foreign union to work on these. Some of the foreign unions are still in meetings to decide if they'll allow US companies to work with their members, the most notable ones being the UK one and the Canadian one. Fingers crossed they don't fall for the deals the US studios are offering.

2.) Indie productions.

Indie companies can make their own deals with the workers since they're not included in the overall deal. So a very small amount of US projects can still happen. Make sure a project doesn't fall into this category before calling them out for scabbing.

That's about it for now. I might add more later in the replies if I think of anything.

#sag strike #sag strong #sag solidarity #wga strike #wga strong #wga solidarity #support wga #support workers

[rikeijo]

...

About Ice Adolescence...

If you don't like to read about negative stuff concerning things you like I'd recommend not to read this post...

Saw the post about trying to make IceAdo related hashtag trending to make MAPPA say something about YoI.

I'm not going to preach to people what they should or shouldn't do. Everyone is free to do whatever they think is the right thing to do in this situation.

However, I must say that from my experience many people in the western fandom seem to know very little about how Japanese anime industry/fandom work. This is of course because of language barrier, cultural barrier etc... I know that shows like YoI are comfort shows for many people so they simply don't want to see/read/hear/think about the negative stuff. I get that.

That being said if you wonder why MAPPA, Avex etc. ignore foreign fans so easily its most likely because most of the things that you tweet at them are so... unusual, looking from Japanese perspective, that I bet their reaction most of the time is either "..." or "haha those gaijins again lol".

Like the "we queer people demand the representation we are entitled to so give us more YoI!!!" comments...

Meanwhile in Japan, YoI is either known as the disgusting "homo anime"/"fujo anime" or fujos do Olympic level mental gymnastics to prove that they are not gay. Pure love between coach and his student, but fantasies about kawaii uke Yuuri being pursued by masculine seme prince Victor are of course allowed and recommended✨ The level of causal homophobia is probably unimaginable to people who are used to western fandom where most people identify as queer...

There was/is a lot of crazy and disgusting sh*t going on in the Japanese fandom, caused mainly by the fact that a certain very loud subset of fujos wasn't happy with how the IP is handled (too much Yurio, too little Yuuri, Victor too cute and too feminine, Yuuri too manly...). So these fujos are in a state of war with Avex (fujos usually call the company "Avekuso", kuso means sh*t) and Mitsurou ("Dodai-sensei" among many other, dodai means "foundation", because fujos didn't like it when Mitsurou once said in an interview she is a part of YoI foundation... it's used in "how dare she?!!" mocking kind of way, because they don't like her interpretation of certain things in the show) since early 2017... If you know what was going on, you're going to notice that there is a lot of hilarious dog-whistling in articles, convos with staff members on twitter and so on. Hilarious if you think how weird people can get because of an anime they like... But the people who had to deal with them, and that includes YoI creators, probably weren't having the best time of their lives.

Add in the fact that figure skating in Japan is not as popular as it was, real life figure skaters are now more advanced than Victor even, Russian figure skating scandals, Russia's attack on Ukraine... This isn't really a good time for YoI.

Not to mention the fact that so many people, in western fandom too, demand IceAdo, but only if Yuuri and Victuuri are there... There's a very real possibility that this is not what Sayo had in mind originally. I know Victuuri is super popular and for a good reason... But it doesn't change the fact that it may also be just another form of trying to harass the creators into catering to fans because everyone likes Victuuri and we demand more and you have to listen to us!!!! I really like Yuuri and Victor as a couple, but this behavior is not cool, imo...

Just my two yens...

#yuri on ice #ice adolescence #yoi #yoi fandom

[laughableillusions]

Hii, hope you doing good! ✨

Are you still doing the “Uncommon Questions for OCs” ? I’d love ask 5, 22, 24, 30 and B, F, E (is that too much??? no pressure to answer everything, of course!) for Nick and Amber!

I am still doing it!!! And I will absolutely be answering all of these questions! I just had to get to my computer bc its easier for me to like copy the question and paste it etc etc

Uncommon Questions for OCs and their creators:

5. How easy is it to earn their mistrust?

For Nick: very easy honestly, honestly you'd earn mistrust before trust anyway. Especially if you're a certain fae king (he doesn't believe a word Jareth says unless he knows Jareth is being serious). But for humankind, he's still kind of picking up the pieces that his wife left when she took off. He's open to friendships, he really is, it would just take him a long time to really open up. For Amber: She's incredibly passionate, but its hard to get her to mistrust someone. She may be rude and callous on the outside, and deny that she cares- but she does. She holds very impossible standards for the people she cares about, and even the smallest (seeming) betrayal can cause her to blow up. But within a day or two she'd forget about it. People that she does mistrust she is simply hostile to.

22. How does jealousy manifest itself in them (they become possessive, they become aloof, etc)? 

Nick really isn't the jealous type, nor does he get possesive (and it drives Jareth crazy). He is very patient and understanding. Any jealousy usually just manifests in either disappointment or sadness, usually with his friends (if he isn't invited to something etc). With Jareth, he really knows how to really get under Nick's skin. And if Jareth catches Nick in a bad mood, or if he needs Jareth's support, and ignores him- Nick will seethe and seethe and seethe, both hurt and dissapointed, even though he knows Jareth is doing it on purpose- his temper flares up anyway, and he demands Jareth's attention. (which is what Jareth wanted him to do, the bastard.) Amber is very insecure, she is still grappling with the fact that her mother just tossed her aside- and also with the fact that she doesn't feel attracted to any boys at her school when her other classmates are (she's a lesbian). So she can get jealous over little things, after going through the labyrinth, she tries to be more patient- but she's very sensitive poor thing.

24. Is sex something that they’re comfortable speaking about? To whom? 

(Answering only for Nick bc Amber is 16). Nick is very private about his sex life. As a closested bisexual man in 1988 during the AIDs crisis, he keeps that shit under wraps. Even to his closest friends who accept him, he still doesn't discuss it. With Jareth of course he does, because he's his romantic partner, but he can get a bit embarrassed or shy about some things (Jareth finds this adorable.) But besides that, he says nothing.

 30. Who do they most regret meeting? 

Nick regrets meeting his wife, even if she did give him Amber- if he had known it would've ended the way it did he never would've married her. But also because, when she left, he realized that he had always sort of followed her lead. He kept to himself, he cooked, he did what she told him to do...but he didn't even really love her- at least not anymore. He lived for her, and didn't really allow himself time for his own interests. Nick was the one who did most of the parenting with Amber, while his wife would treat her and buy her things. Amber doesn't like to remember things like that. And she will sometimes simply refuse to do that. Its not that she regrets meeting the people she did, but she regrets what she did to them to make them leave. Self reflection is tough when you feel like there's something wrong with you already. But what she most regrets doing is pushing Sarah down the stairs and breaking her arm. She realizes now how wrong she really was, and that Sarah is actually quite a nice girl with similar interests.

B) What inspired you to create them?

I had a really low grade fever one day like, a year and a half ago or smth, and I randomly got back into labyrinth for a second and decided i had the best idea for an oc. At first the original story was that Amber was a 6 year old girl who wished both herself and Nick away because Nick was crying about their eviction notice. I scribbled this in my notes app and then fell asleep I think. But then months later when I found that scribbling, I realized it would be funnier, if instead of a teen wishing away their younger sibling, it would be funny if it was their parent. Because Jareth would probably not be expecting an adult, and you can't really turn a 35 year old man into a goblin, so it was this kind of awkward situation. Of course, Amber and Nick took a life of their own and now I have crafted a full story. But its funny how my desire to be funny created them.

F) What do you feel when you think of your OC (pride, excitement, frustration, etc)?

A mix of pride, embarrassment, and also a feeling that they're lacking somewhat. The embarrassment simply comes from getting bullied and made fun of as a small child, and I just push through that. The want that I'm lacking is mostly due to Jareth. He's a very mysterious and layered figure that nobody has a read on, and I feel like committing to one story will shallow him out somewhat.- or the story I have shallows him out, and also that the self indulgent fluff I write is OOC or something. Also (I get this from my dad), I just have a curse where I sometimes think all that I write is terrible. Don't get me wrong though, I love Nick and Amber, they're OCs I'm quite proud of due to the fact that I'm writing their story by myself (I usually do roleplay). But I like how different they are, and how different yet similar their story is to the original Labyrinth. It's not so similar that it's a copy, but not different enough that it's not a completely different universe. It's a legacy sequel I guess.

E) Are they someone you would get along with? Would they get along with you?

Not really. Amber is very hot headed and takes things much to seriously, also I'm not in high school anymore so I'd probably tell her to just chill out (she would hate that). Nick is a lot like Loius De Point Du Lac and 16 years older than me so we wouldn't have much to talk about. I would like how creative he is, but he's got a bit of a chip on his shoulder as well and I would just feel bad for him.

#oc: Nick Cardinal #ask #ask game #oc stuff #original character #my ocs #labyrinth 1986 #jareth x reader #Jareth #oc x canon

[visionthefox]

Oh boy did today's episode make anybody nervous? Moon's still emotionally drained from his breakdown and we're immediately met with Molten, who has completed his mission and now has nothing to do, we don't know were Ruin is or who Molten's creator is, and that just further adds to the tension But what took the cake was Moon, he immediately became angry, demanding answers of Molten who, if we were to believe what they said, physically isn't allowed to say because of a program their creator installed in them, and Moon's response was to start going off about being judge-jury-executioner and threatening to scrub Molten's code(which sounds less like extracting data like what Moon was doing with Ruin and more like ripping out the information, which could go very wrong for Molten, and Sun points that out) Then when Sun(who had immediately gone quiet and scared from the yelling again) tried to stop Moon, Moon started going off about the whole "we're robots" thing, and what was that? Like yes he and Sun and the others are robots, artificial beings who would technically be locked down and have information extracted at the whim of their makers at any time, but that doesn't make it right, even if Molten isn't fully sapient at least they seem to be able to feel complex existential emotions, so what was his point in trying to justify a code scrub like that? Thankfully he listened to Sun's words to hold off and interrogate Molten instead(who also didn't fight and shut themselves down, making themselves vulnerable), but it makes me wonder if this is a result of his talk with Old Moon, specifically what Old Moon said about "you're holding yourself back", and with how desperate New Moon is for a way to bring back Solar maybe he internalized that, hence jumping to a vicious solution like a data scrub on somebody who so far hasn't done as much as some of their villains have, New Moon is smart, he doesn't think he is but he is, he just arguably has less experience than Old Moon if we were to consider how long each was around, and New Moon is dealing with even more threats than Old Moon had, so of course it would feel like he's failing, but that conversation...He listened to Sun at the very least, and didn't do anything like threaten Sun like Old Moon might've whenever Sun would try to stop him from doing something cruel or rash, but it is worrying that it seems like New Moon might backslide when under this much pressure Who knows maybe that's just the paranoia talking, what does everyone think?

Hiii!~ so I just saw the ep today- cuz honestly? I want to see what Eclipse pla in is at the moment- and see if i care to stay haha but alas! im with you- the hell was that "we are robots!" talk to justify him being as low as humans- if we are mean to belive in this universe- robots have to right- mean to obey- and serve- yet few robot have been LUCKY to be sentient and more LUCKY to have magic to get out of trouble.. why is Moon acting like can just be this cruel? that felt too weird- what- because he is emotionally tired and depresso he gets to literally manhandle and invate a poor's robots mind and body? oh but then "Ruin doesnt deserve to sit all alone while slowly dying!" um sorry-- what?? I feel that talk with his old self made him try to BE like him- but " better too" yet right now? he's being an asshole- in my view because what right does HE have to not only Keep the crimal- but also choose how and when he dies! why does he think only HE has the bigger lost and only HE will be the savior- we know he knows other Universes with other Moon's (since he had stated to have travel in the past) hell Reverse Eclipse may be still alive if that universe is anything close to their Universe (if I remember- Ruin said their creator was an odd one- but never said unique!) overall! dont like that Moon wants to justify not lettings others- with better judgement and no emotional attachment to Ruin- handle his fate,the Justice that all of those dimentions deserve because yes- even IF he gets to save those tho died- still HE has No Right to play Judge- thats not his place- others affected whould also be able to have a say.. also I hated that the fist thing he does is - harm- yell- demand- thats so Old Moon of him.. and is sad -because he was showing to be so different- when he Meet Reversed Eclipse? he was polite- sure he wasnt as bias as he was before re-meeting Eclipse- yet still I loved he was polite and I do understand he is working his ass out- but still - he cant be this cruel to someone CLEARLY not well- im all on Sun side- dont fall low- be better than that- Sun can see this robot is only a servant to someone else who is no longer there to guide em- Im so glad Sun was there- he is the most emotinally smart one of the two.. but yes! what do you guys think? Im with anon here- I mostly rushed my view on it- since again- I care more of Eclipse plan- but- what did you guys felt?

#sams #ask #tsams

[demonfuck]

thinking about making art that is patient

being the way that i am, this maybe kind of comes naturally to me

as a teen i found it interesting to make art with no audience in mind. as in, NO audience. it will sit on a server somewhere gathering dust

and it doesn't try to make you feel guilty for its isolation. it was never your responsibility to find it and interact with it and understand it. it's patient. it makes peace with itself

i'm happy with that process making it kind of timeless. there were never any references or details that demanded that it be read this week, or this year, or within this lifetime. i've always been fascinated by outsider art, including stuff that doesn't get found until after the artist has passed away

it makes MAKING art feel less urgent to me. to be able to make something, "put it out there", and then continue making it. i feel the URGE to get wrapped up in expectation and disappointment. to say, why did i make this if no one saw it? should i continue making it? if i continue making it, will resentment seep in to the text? what good are my good ideas if no one is looking at them?

i think there's a part of me that deliberately tries to avoid the pain of disappointment and unpopularity by expecting to be discovered long after my death. to say, well, wouldn't it be exciting if someone discovered my weird art blog or my unfinished book sometime in the future? i know of lots of comics and anime that have meant the world to me, that i didn't get to participate with in real time

still. it's all too possible to go too far with this sort of thing. i appreciate when this way of thinking let me work on art one piece after the next without stopping myself and forcing myself to try something different because this wasn't Doing Numbers. but doing it like this forever would cut me off from lots of wonderful experiences within my lifetime. to be able to learn what works and what doesn't. what's too difficult to parse, what's boring, what's annoying. unintentionally anyway. i don't mind making something difficult, boring, and annoying, but i rarely want to make something impossible to parse that puts you to sleep

when i was making art for myself, for my own needs, i'm glad i made it in a way that was criticism agnostic. and while i'd like to allow myself to maybe, advertise myself more, consider an audience more, i really want to retain the lessons i've learned in making patient art

idk. i want to push myself more this year ! because there's a major keystone of motivation in the back and forth conversation between audience and creator. i work faster when i know, specifically, that someone will see and respond to my work. and criticism plays a major role in becoming more effective at achieving whatever your art was meant to achieve. comforting someone, discomforting them, sharing a lesson, imparting a warning, or just helping them lose track of time safely in a world full of demands and danger

and then there's the money game. the "make something that will fund your next something" type game. make a portfolio of things that communicates what you're about, what your capable of now, that makes people imagine what you would make in the future if you're allowed to continue creating without starving to death. this basically runs in the opposite direction of my entire spiel about patient art, but i don't think it contradicts it. potentially, anyway

generally i think i've turned myself into that portfolio. when i talk to people, i'm showing them my Self as the thing i'm capable of. my problem solving, my comfort, my patience, my passion. i practice being valuable as a person and i hope sometimes that maybe that will be the avenue which sees my life get funded. "if you like talking to me today," i imply, "you should buy me dinner so that i am around to keep talking tomorrow!" is this normal? is this moral? join my patreon

#spitpost