#so while that part was progress it's also

[vivwritesfics]

Marshmallow

Her bed is too comfy for Bucky. But she has a solution

Fluff, fluff, so much fluff - but also I haven't written for this man in so long, it was like coming home

Her bed was like a marshmallow. Now, to most, this was no bad thing. But Bucky Barnes wasn't most. He was a soldier, Sergeant James Barnes. He wasn't used to comfort.

They'd met in such a normal way for a super soldier. Bucky had been trying to date, he'd been trying for so long after… everything, that he'd given up hope.

But there she was, reaching for a coffee that wasn't hers because she was too tired to proper comprehend it.

Her own name was called just after (Bucky definitely hasn't been listening while she ordered her own coffee, who said that?) and Bucky picked up her coffee and carried it to the outside table she'd been sitting at. There she was, ready to lift his coffee to her own lips.

“I think you've got mine,” he said with a warm smile as he showed her her own name written on the side of her cup.

She paused, pulled the coffee away from her mouth and looked at the name on the cup. Her head fell forward, embarrassment written on her face. “And my name isn't Bucky,” she said and pushed the cup of coffee towards him. “What kinda a name is that, anyway? I've never met a Bucky before.”

“It's a nickname,” he began as he slipped into the seat opposite her and placed her coffee down in front of her. He held out his flesh hand. “The name's James.”

“How do you get Bucky from James?”

Things progressed from there. Conversation was easy, in a way it hadn't been on any of his other dates and, by the end of the night, he was asking her to dinner.

It was dinner. And then a movie date. And then the library. Picnic in the park, nature walks, they did it all.

The first time Bucky stayed over (which took some convincing. They'd been seeing each other for three weeks and she'd determined that, after watching movies on her couch, it was too late for him to travel through the city back home), he'd just laid awake, sleep unwilling to find him.

He couldn't sleep, anyway. Not with her sleeping on his flesh arm. He played with her hair, touch gentle to not wake her. A little while before he met her, he would have seen a monster as his vibranium fingers played with her hair.

It kept happening. It was almost like Bucky couldn't stay away. And, every time he slept in her bed, she ended up sleeping against him in some capacity. Laying on his arm, head against his chest, holding his hand as it was wrapped around her middle.

He'd get used to it, he told himself. Lay there long enough and he'd fall asleep eventually.

Well, that wasn't how it was panning out. Bucky remained away, plastering a smile on his exhausted face the next morning so that she wouldn't worry about it. For now, it was working. For now, he was happy to wear that smile while they drank coffee on her couch, her feet in his lap.

It was his third night in her bed and Bucky was exhausted. Maybe this was the point where he could finally fall asleep beside her, holding her close.

But no, that wasn't the case. Of course it wasn't, Bucky never got that lucky.

She'd started the night laying on his chest, lips parted as soft snores left her lips. Bucky had his arm around her, keeping her close as he shut his eyes and tried to force himself into sleeping (which we know didn't work).

She rolled away from him in her sleep, releasing him completely. Bucky stayed there, laying on his back as he looked at her. She looked so pretty when she slept, and he couldn't stop himself from being jealous.

Pushing himself up, Bucky sucked in a breath. He rubbed his hand over his face, momentarily shutting his tired eyes. Even with his eyes shut, it offered him no rest.

It was, well, bullshit.

As carefully as he could, Bucky climbed out of the bed. He tried to leave the sheets undisturbed, to keep her asleep. But there was little he could do to stop himself from reaching over and kissing her cheek.

He left the room after that, feet quiet and carefully as they carried his heavy, muscled body away. He pulled the door as close to shut as he could without it clicking shut.

Loose in the apartment, Bucky didn't know what to do with himself. He got himself something to drink and just looked through the fridge. He sat on the couch, patting his thick, muscled thigh as he silently flipped through channels.

But there wasn't much he could do. Part of him debated laying on the floor and attempting to sleep, but he couldn't. Not when she was in the next room, probably searching for his warmth.

Through his boredom, Bucky remained quiet. He couldn't imagine anything worse than waking her up, not when she was sleeping so peacefully.

Except she wasn't sleeping peacefully. It was the absence of him that woke her. She knew something was wrong, she just couldn't place it. But then she woke up and Bucky was gone. That was what was wrong.

Wrapping a blanket around her shoulders and slipping her feet into her slippers, she walked out of the bedroom.

“Buck?” She called, voice groggy as she walked towards the couch. He turned his head, watching as she made her way to him and climbed up onto the couch. Throwing one leg over his, she seated herself on his lap and wrapped her arms around him. “What're you doing out here?”

His hands were on her hips as he looked at her. “Couldn't sleep,” he replied and pulled her towards him.

The kiss he placed against her lips was soft, sweet, slight beard scratching against her cheek as he moved towards her neck.

“I missed you,” she replied as she settled against him.

Suddenly, Bucky's lips stopped moving against her neck. He released a sigh and pulled back to look at her tired face. “Do you wanna know why I haven't taken you back to my place yet?” He asked and she nodded her head, fingers dancing across his chest in a soothing manner. “It's because I don't have a bed.”

“You don't have a bed?” She asked, looking up into his blue eyes.

He shook his head. “No, doll, I don't have a bed,” he repeated, his own fingers moving up and down her sides. It wasn't ticklish. No, it had her damn near falling asleep. “I tried to sleep on a bed, got an expensive one for my apartment. Had it for a week before I got rid of it. When I tried laying on the floor, I actually got to sleep.”

Suddenly, she was standing. She grabbed two pillows from the sofa, held them against her chest and grabbed his hand. “C'mon,” she said and led him over to the empty corner of the room.

Throwing the pillows down, she sat and laid the blanket down on top of her. She patted the space beside her, looking up at her with her pretty eyes.

Bucky sat beside her. She pulled the blankets over his legs and then pushed his back against the pillow. “Doll,” he began as she rolled over, resuming her position from earlier. “You don't have to do this.”

“I want to,” she replied and kissed his shoulder.

“But you back-”

And then she was hushing him, shutting him up with a kiss. “Let me do this for you. Besides, if things get uncomfortable I can always lay on you, right?”

“Right.”

She settled down against him, eyes shutting. But seconds later, Bucky had her in his grasp. He rolled her over until she was laying on top of him and kissed the top of her head. “There,” he said against her hair. “That's better.”

And, that night, Bucky Barnes fell asleep.

#bucky barnes #bucky barnes imagine #bucky barnes x reader #bucky barnes fluff #bucky barnes x you #sebastian stan #sebastian stan imagine #sebastian stan x reader #sebastian stan fluff #sebastian stan x you #marvel #marvel imagine #marvel x reader #mcu #mcu imagine #mcu x reader #avengers #avengers imagine #avengers x reader

[alcoholfreenayeon]

Three times a day

CW: G!p Mina x f!reader, smut, oral, nsfw, fluff

Word count: 2200

A/N: Happy Birthday @keervah 🥰🎉, this one is for you. Hope you like it👀

“Hah!”, you exclaimed smugly as you beat the boss after a few difficult attempts and progress further on your game. As the next part was loading, you glanced at the clock, it was almost 7 pm now and you sighed. It sucked. It was your birthday today and even though you had the day to yourself, your girlfriend didn’t have the day off. Not only that but she had an exceptionally busy day as well. It wasn’t unexpected though, she had already been apologetic the last two days and had been doing everything she could to try and make it up to you. She didn’t need to though. You were happy enough to see her be that thoughtful.

You pause your game, putting your controller to the side and roll over to your back, letting your hand and head dangle off the edge of the sofa as you look at the clock again, swinging your legs.

‘When was Mina going to come back, she said she’d be back by now’, you think to yourself. You groan and stretch, feeling lazy. You had been playing for about 3 hours straight and taking a break was probably a good idea. You sit up slowly, stretch again and then sigh. That’s when you hear the door open and your eyes light up as you turn towards the room’s entrance waiting to see the face of your love. Ruffling and shuffling sounds as you hear her take her shoes off and it also sounds like she’s carrying something, maybe food?, you think as you subconsciously began to smile brightly just at the thought of seeing her.

A few moments later, Mina is at the doorway, a tired smile appears on her face as she sees you sitting cutely waiting for her. “Sorry I took a bit longer to come back”, she apologized.

“I don’t care anymore about that, just come here and hold me”, you tell her, spreading your arms.

Mina smiles and approaches you, putting the packet on the table carefully before sitting next to you and hugging you tightly, resting her head on your shoulders while you buried your face into neck. She stroked your back softly and you held on to her tighter.

You sigh and breathe into her, taking her scent in, this is exactly what you needed. You could stay like this forever but then Mina pulled away much to your disappointment. You had a small pout but it disappeared when Mina reached for the bag and pulled something out of it, it was a box of snickers bars and another small-ish box. You were about to leap for the snickers when Mina giggled and stopped you, “Hey! Wait a second….”, she couldn’t stop smiling and giggling but she also had a slight blush now for some reason. Mina gave you the other box, watching in anticipation as you prepared to open it.

You looked at it in your hands and took a deep breath, smiling excitedly at Mina, it didn’t feel very heavy so you weren’t sure what was in it….earrings maybe? Unable to wait any longer, you just went for it, opening the top in one go and then gasped. It was a necklace, a beautiful one at that, you couldn’t believe it, you looked at Mina in disbelief who just looked back at you smiling happily, her cheeks tinted red and she asked in her cute voice, “do you like it?”.

“I love it.”, you reply, picking it up and having another look at it, “I love it so much.”

Mine kept smiling brightly, she felt so happy that you liked it and your reaction, she found it so cute. “Let me just…”, she suddenly got up and sat behind you, taking the necklace from your hand. She then moved your hair to the side, exposing your neck and then put both arms around you, and then began to put the necklace on you, you shivered slightly as you felt the metallic touch on your skin and more so when you felt Mina breath down your neck. A few seconds later, Mina was done and she leaned forward to take a look at you. “Pretty, so pretty”, she said sweetly and gave you a peck on your neck and then wrapped you around in another hug, resting her head on your back.

You were blushing now, in just a matter of minutes you went from feeling bored to lazy to happy and now you felt like the atmosphere was really intimate. You really felt so touched. Despite her workload, Mina made the time and effort to do so much for you. You put your hand on her arms and gave them a slight squeeze as you leaned back onto her. Mina sighed contentedly, leaning forward and kissing your cheek, “I love you Y/N”. You make yourself smaller in her arms as you feel blissfully happy, you loved her so much. You just wanted to melt away while Mina held you. You sigh heavily in happiness and turn to face her, getting on her lap, wrapping your arms around her neck, staring at her lovingly.

Mina put her hands on your hips, smiling somewhat shyly as you moved around, “eh…what are you…?”, she giggled but then let out a surprised muffle when you began to kiss her passionately. Mina began to relax after a few seconds, kissing you back. Pretty soon this was a full blown make out session and by the time you both pulled away, you both were breathless, looking at each other. You couldn’t help it, you leaned in and began again, Mina followed your lead. A few minutes later, you both pulled away again, unable to look from each other, panting hard. You knew what you wanted, no, needed, and were able to feel what Mina felt too, though it seemed like she was trying to not let you know. You smirked and grabbed her face, “Mina….whats wrong”, you asked trying not to sound smug.

She looked at you gritting her teeth, trying to calm her breathing down, “nothing…i-it’s nothing”, she said that but her eyes said something entirely different, you knew that look of her, what it meant.

You grinned smugly, “really…? It’s…”, you grind on her teasingly, “nothing? Are you sure? It doesn’t feel like it”.

Mina takes a shaky breath, she almost loses control but takes another deep breath and calms a little, “it’s….no, it shouldn’t be about me, not today, today is about you love..”, she says looking away, a hint of guilt in her voice.

You look at in amusement, a naughty smile appearing, “How thoughtful of you baby but you know me right.”, you slide off her legs and get on the floor, on your knees. Mina seems like she wants to protest but at the same time, she follows your lead almost instantly, trying just a little to not seem too eager but you know she’s so down for this. “Just let me…”, you say biting your lips with a smirk as you pull her shorts down and free the beast. You glance up at her with a teasing grin and then you get to work.

Grabbing her cock and starting by stroking it though she was almost completely hard anyway. You looked up at her again, lust in your eyes and then begin to give her cock head slow sensual licks causing Mina to inhale sharply and put her hand on the armrest, holding it firmly. You smile to yourself, enjoying her reactions as you continue to lick her cock while using one hand to slowly stroke the end of her shaft. A couple minutes later, you felt that it was time to move on further. You take the whole head into your mouth, sucking and running your tongue all over while being as loud as you can be.

Mina was starting to breath heavily now, her grip on the armrest tightening slowly, she was trying to keep her eyes closed, imagining random things so she can keep herself distracted but it was getting harder and harder to do that. She let out a quiet moan when you began to bob your head, taking more and more of her length little by little. Half of her cock was glistening with your saliva, you could practically feel Mina’s heartbeat through her cock.

This goes on for a couple of minutes and then you free your mouth, giving yourself a chance to catch your breath while you use that time to stroke her cock again, coating the rest of the length with your saliva as well. You could tell Mina was loving this so much, the way you could hear her breath so hard, the way her hips would start to gently squirm when you would start to take her deeper, her failing efforts to not moan out loud. You take one last breath and start to throat her cock again, going deep right from the start this time.

Immediately Mina gasps and her right hand automatically moves to hold your head, stroking your hair as her head falls back, Mina seems to be struggling to catch her breath. But you don’t care about that right now, your focus was on taking her whole length in and you were going to do that now. You force yourself to go deeper, gagging slightly as it’s a lot of effort. You have taken by 3/4th of her length and are trying to go the last mile but you feel the air in your lungs rapidly fading so you decide to take another breather. As you begin to withdraw, Mina lets out what sounds like a sad moan, like she’s upset that her cock is leaving your throat. You nearly smile but it’s kinda hard to do with a cock in your mouth. As you catch your breath, you take a moment to study Mina, her breathing is so fast and heavy right now, like she’s so close. You decide that this time you’re going to not only take her whole cock but also make her cum. No matter what.

As Mina begins to calm down a little, it’s all gone to waste as this time you are more used to it and her cock is also really slippery and wet now so you take in her whole length almost immediately, struggling a little as you start to reach the end. Mina gasps, then gasps again before both her hands grab your head tightly, squeezing it from the side while she uses her things to stroke your forehead and hair. “I’m….I’m really close…”, she pants out in between moans, her toes curling and her waist begins to rise. That’s all you needed to hear. You use all your skills to make it as pleasurable as possible for Mina, sucking, humming, rolling your tongue over her sensitive spots and of course, looking up at Mina to keep eye contact.

As you start to hum, Mina feels a jolt of pleasure surge through her and in surprise she looks down at you, only to see you with her whole cock in your mouth while you look at her. That’s enough to push her over the edge, she shrieks in pleasure, pushing your head down, holding it in place as she begins to cum. You can clearly feel her pulsate and throb as she keeps firing load after load of cum down your throat. You close your eyes as you try to keep up but it’s overwhelming pretty soon and her cum begins to drool out through the corners of your mouth. Mina fires a few more waves before you hear her take a deep breath and sigh happily. You feel really full now. Your face is a mess. The floor is messy too. You pull away from her cock and pant and smile up to Mina. “Did I do good”, you ask cheekily.

“Huh”, Mina asks, like she didn’t hear you but her cock twitches and begins to rise again and you giggle knowing the answer to your question now. You smile teasingly and kiss the tip of her cock. “Want some more”, you tease.

Mina closes her eyes, an amused smile on her face and she sighs, “Stopppp….I should be the one doing this for you”, she opens her eyes and smiles again, a slight tinge of red on her cheeks.

“Do it then”, you taunt brattily.

Mina sighs and gets up, towering over you. She grabs your hair and lifts you up. “You know, even though it’s your birthday, I feel like I’ve spoiled you too much. You’re being really bratty right now. But don’t worry.”, she says sternly as she takes hold of your arm and begins to drag you towards the bedroom, “when I’m done with you, you’ll be a good girl again”.

You can only bite your lips in anticipation as you prepare yourself for the sleepless night Mina is about to put you through. You might not be able to feel your legs soon but it’ll be worth it….

#ask me anything #answered asks #anon ask #twice #kpop gg #kpop scenarios #reader x idol #kpop headcanons #kpop imagines #twice smut #mina twice #myoui mina #mina fluff #mina x reader #mina smut #twice mina #twice fluff #g!p idol #kpop smut #kpop fluff

[frociaggine]

do you have any tips/resources for a beginner who wants to get into weightlifting?

thank you for asking!! I love this question. I love lifting! It's Good For You (helps increase bone density & metabolic rate, and it's good for injury prevention and developing functional strength). It's also a really great confidence boost. 10/10 would rec lifting to every single person reading this — if it's an option for you, give it a try.

TLDR: familarise yourself with common exercises. pick a beginner program. follow it. profit!

A more involved answer, with resources and details, is under the cut

familiarise yourself with common exercises

There are hundreds of possible exercises out there to target each specific body part. However, most of those are what's called "accessory" movements, as opposed to "basic" exercises that will pop up over and over in most lifting routines. Ideally, you want to know how to perform these movements, using light weights or just your bodyweight until you feel comfortable with it.

CORE BRACING (ft deadbugs. genuinely lifechanging skill!)

Squats.

Hip hinge. This is useful for deadlifts, romanian deadlifts, kettlebell swings & similar movements

Push movements (for example: dumbell chest press, shoulder press etc)

Pull movements (dumbell rows & many others)

That said. Please don't stress too much over "good form". Each exercise has infinite variations and especially as a beginner, you won't be lifting heavy enough weights to make form optimisation a big concern. All bodies are different and our individual stances vary a lot depending on body proportions, flexibility levels etc. You just want to know HOW an exercise is supposed to be performed, in terms of: which muscles it activates? what am I supposed to get out of it? how to do it safely? Your bodyweight squat doesn't have to be flawless, it just has to be good enough.

BTW, you know when I said that there are hundreds of possible exercises out there? Here is a very detailed masterlist + exercise guide for exercises impacting each muscle group.

learn your way around a weight room, if you aren't familiar with it already.

Broadly speaking: the free weights (bar, dumbells, kettlebells) are good for compound exercises that involve multiple muscle groups. The various machines are ideal for "isolation" exercises that target fewer specific muscle groups.

If you already know what's what, then skip this bit! But I've talked to many people who feel a bit intimidated by the weight room because they feel out of place in it, and in my experience familiarising yourself with the general layout is a good way to take away that discomfort.

And, in case this is something you need to hear: you deserve to be there, you're not taking space, and most gymgoers just want to finish their workout and shower, and won't pay specific negative attention to you. Most gyms have a weight room manager or floor trainer, at least during some shifts, and they WILL be happy to help you. If you're someone who doesn't want to be bothered while exercising, just preventively introduce yourself, say you're new

pick a program

I highkey recommend following a pre-made program instead of just fucking about on your own. Here's why

programs are well-balanced in terms of volume and muscle groups, to ensure you don't overtrain one body part and leave other lagging

they have a built-in "progression scheme" that will allow you to move to a higher weight in an optimal way — basically, you'll see strength advantages sooner

they help navigate information overload. There is SO much information about fitness out there that acts as an entry barrier. Following a pre-made program really helps with that.

If you have a gym membership, you may have the option of one "free workout program" made by a trainer who works at the gym. If that's in the cards, I'd recommend going with that.

Otherwise, I strongly recommend the "programs rec guide" over at r/xxfitness, the female fitness subreddit (the name is 15 years old but it's a queer friendly, trans inclusive space). I haven't personally done any of those, but Meg Gallagher of Before the Barbell is very solid, and that's the one I'd suggest.

get ready for DOMS

Also known as delayed onset muscle soreness. It happens 1) when you go to the gym after a while or start exercising for the first time 2) when you train a different muscle group than usual 3) when you up the intensity of a workout.

Basically, you wake up in the morning and you go OUCH!! ACHEY. That's DOMS. It happens because your muscle fibres are suffering microtears and reknitting (stronker!!) and you will feel very stiff and possibly very swollen (muscles retain water).

It'll take a few days for it to go away. IT IS SAFE TO EXERCISE THROUGH DOMS; the only thing limiting you is if you're too achy to move effectively. I recommend eating something protein heavy (more on that below) and doing some gentle exercise to make it go away faster (walking, at home-stretches or yoga, swimming if it's an option, etc.)

You DON'T want to stay in bed the whole time, because that'll only make you more stiff and make it last longer. Note that "post exercise achiness" is something that WILL go away after the first couple of weeks or so, depending on your recovery (again, gentle exercise and/or going to the gym again when you're still a bit achey is actually preferred than being completely at rest until they're fully gone away). Long term, you're NOT supposed to feel high-level soreness after working out. "No pain no gain" is mostly bullshit.

evaluate your program!

I'm always saying this, but the best exercise is the one you actually stick with. If your exercise plan is dull or fills you with dread, it doesn't matter how good for you it supposedly is — ditch it. Give yourself a few weeks of whatever program you pick, then re-evaluate: what are your favourite exercises you've done so far? Which ones you don't like? What would you like to do? Programs can and should be modified according to your preferences, and it's a lot easier to customise something that works for YOU once you're a bit more familiar with everything. For example, maybe someone at your gym is doing kettlebell swings and you think it's cool and you'd rather do those instead of crunches for your abs. Why not. Just note down what's working and what isn't, and then re-evaluate (with gym trainers if that's an option, but also, I mean it, HMU whenever).

odds and ends!!

None of these things are a big deal, but they make your life easier:

Hydrate during a workout. If you're hydrated your body works better. You'll also probably sweat during your workout. Getting through 1L of water during a 1 hour / 1 hour and a half gym session is perfectly normal.

Warm up before lifting. Something like this for a general body warmup + lighter warm-up series before going up to the weight you actually want to lift. For example: if you're squatting the bar (20kg) I'd do one bodyweight squats series, and another series holding a 10kg kettlebell or dumbell. Cool down or stretch after!

Mobility work on a day off is a good idea, even if you're no longer suffering through soreness. This is my current go-to routine, I do it about 2x week.

If possible, eat protein the evening / day after a workout. Protein is great for building muscle, and you WILL see a noticeable difference in energy level and speed of recovery by upping your protein intake. Basically: if you usually eat lentils or fish twice a week, try to make one of those times your post-gym dinner.

(In general, as a beginner you WILL see results regardless, and you don't need to optimise nutrition or anything (not to mention, it can be overwhelming / complicated to deal with.) But if you're interested in the specifics of nutrition & exercise, HMU)

keep track of your workouts! I really recommend this; it can be very inspiring to have a backlog you can look at when you want to track your progress, and you want to establish a benchmark with yourself. It can be as simple as writing down gym days & numbers in your journal if you have one; personally I use the Strong app to save my routines, and every week when I log in new workouts I modify the values depending on what weight and # of reps I hit that week. For reference, this is what a week looks like on the Strong app for me

IF I'VE MISSED ANYTHING SHOOT ME AN ASK.

#Anonymous #ask #jockposting #weight lifting #fitblr

[newwritergirl]

Starting over | Part 17

Masterlist

Summary: The evening with Bob und Javy at the Hard Deck is destroyed by a Welsh. But unfortunately it's just the beginning of the cruel man's plan.

Trigger Warnings: 18+!, Minors DNI!, past abusive relationhip, throwing up, previous assault, language, angst

Word Count: 2k +

A/N: This chapter is a bit shorter, but I wanted to post it before going deeper into the angst and drama.

With a worried look Pete turns around and makes his way over to Bob and Coyote. He doesn't let some prick destroy the whole progress the young woman made since she lives in Miramar, only because of the loose tongue of that Welsh guy.

"Bob, Coyote. A word." Maverick interrupts the men's conversation rather impolite but he needs to get this off his chest before y/n comes back to their table.

"Captain? Take a seat. What's wrong?" Javy was the first one to speak after the surprising arrival of their Captain.

"I just interrupted Welsh while he had a - conversation with y/n. She looked very uncomfortable. Just, please have an eye on her, I'm not trusting this guy, as you know." Welsh's reason for his assignment on their base is classified but everyone knows by now that something must've happened at his old base. Even with the details unknown for all of them except for Bradshaw and in parts for Seresin, they all assume that Welsh's transfer has to do something with his behavior towards women. With Nat he already bit on granite, with her strong and confident attitude he soon learned that he should shut up in front of the female fighter pilot. But with the shy It-specialist it's a completely different story.

Both pilots share a look before giving their Captain the affirmative to look out for their female friend and to put Welsh under their observation as well.

---

The cold water making contact with her hands helps a bit to stop the tremble she still has in her hands. In no case she is able to continue the evening at the Hard Deck with Bob and Javy. The nausea is still lingering in the back of her throat. The cruel nightmare, the daunting messages from that unknown number and now the repeated encounter with Welsh left her feeling worse every minute she stays longer in the packed bar. She just hopes that her two friends wouldn't be mad or disappointed when she is going to announce that she wants to go home.

With a ghostly pale face and cautious steps, always looking out afraid to once again stumble into Welsh, she makes her way over to the table where Bob and Javy still sitting and waiting patiently for their drinks.

"Hey, there she is." Bob immediately sees that something is wrong with the young woman. Her nearly ashen face gives him a reason to worry even more. He immediately stands up to offer y/n his chair so that she doesn't have to round the table to take a seat. But she touches his arm in a soft grasp as to steady herself.

"Hey, I'm sorry guys, but I call it a night. I'm really tired. Gonna call an Uber and…" She doesn't get to finish her sentence before Javy also stands up grabbing his jacket and looking at her.

"Bob and I just thought the same. Let's go home, sunshine." He wraps his arm around her shoulder in a protective manner, he already noticed her being a bit unsteady.

---

Y/n knows that some wounds never truly heal, especially the deep ones her ex inflicted on her soul. When Welsh grabbed her at the Hard Deck she felt herself catapulted into the life she once lived and she asks herself why she seems to be a magnet for men like that. Under normal circumstances she would seek comfort in her two boyfriends. They're the exact opposite of Welsh and her ex. They're protective, lovely and never had the intention to make her feel small or less worthy. How she misses them, especially now. A sob is bubbling out of her mouth and echoing in the master bathroom where she's currently kneeling in front of the toilet, throwing up everything which is left in her system. She still feels the piercing gaze of Welsh looking dangerously deep into her eyes, his strong and rough grip on her arms, she still hears his words. 'I knew you have a thing for pilots' is playing in her head in that scary tone he said those words. Does he know about their relationship? She knows that their secret relationship would probably not be a secret forever, but she doesn't want that disgusting man to spread rumors at base. She doesn't want Jake and Bradley's careers to be in jeopardy. Another painful gag bubbles out of her throat, tears of pain streaming down her cheeks when she hears her phone chirping in the otherwise silent house.

---

Utterly exhausted she stands up from her position on the bathroom floor she is certain that there's nothing left to bring up. On shaky legs she makes her way over to the sink, her pale face is reflected in the mirror when she sees another sticky note from her boyfriends.

You're the most beautiful woman that we've ever seen.

We love you. JB

Y/n doesn't know how long she looked at the Bradley and Jake's message but another trill of her mobile brings her out of her thoughts. Her heart is beating painfully in her chest afraid of another scary message of an unknown number. When she finally finds her mobile in the living room area where she abandoned it after coming home she's not sure if she is brave enough to open the two unread messages.

A sigh of relief escapes the young woman's mouth.

Bobby: Hey y/n, just wanted to ask if you're doing okay. You didn't look too good when we left the Hard Deck.

Bobby: Y/n, I'm worried. Please text me when you're awake.

Y/n: Hey Bobby. Sorry I was already asleep. I'm good, just tired. Thanks for checking in. I hope you and Javy are not mad for calling it a night so early.

Bobby: No way! We're not mad :-) Please call me, if you need something. Gonna check in with you over the weekend. Sleep well, sunshine.

Y/n: Thanks Bobby! Have a good night!

---

The bar is finally emptying, the last few patrons are finishing their drinks and the buzzing chatter is slowly quieting down. Pete Mitchell sits at his usual spot at the bar where he usually watches his girlfriend Penny preparing to close the Hard Deck. But today he is deep in thought frowning and playing with the label of his beer bottle.

A warm hand stops him from shredding the paper label further.

"Hey, stop making a mess on my bar, I already cleaned it an hour ago." Penny smiled at the pilot in front of her. "What's wrong with you, the last time I saw you frowning like that you thought about how to scare Amelia's boyfriend away."

Pete looks up from the mess he made unconsciously. "Something like that… I'm worried about y/n."

Penny looks at her boyfriend puzzled. "Y/n? What's wrong with the poor girl?"

"You know my dear, some things are classified, but for you I will make an exception." Pete says while grabbing the smaller hand of his girlfriend planting a kiss on the back of her hand.

"With Rooster and Hangman gone… I think she has a hard time. I mean, not because she's alone, but… I caught some sleazy guy harassing her earlier -"

"HARASSING? HER? In my bar? Pete Mitchell, where's this scumbag? You should've told me, I would've kicked his ass out of MY BAR." Penny nearly shouts. Her bar is a safe haven for the Navy and for other people who earn and give respect to other human beings. There's absolutely no room for scum, especially not for men harassing women.

"Slow down tiger. It's not that easy. I will kick him out…out of base and out of town. But I need to form a plan, I need the Admiral in my corner. Well, he also hates this guy, but we need to play it by the books." Welsh is a red flag, that fact is clear since he and the Admiral read his file. But until now they don't have enough in their hands to kick him out of base and out of the Navy for good. But Pete is sure that it will happen in the near future and until then they need to have a close eye on this guy.

"It's someone from the base? Don't tell me it's this new guy… I'm going to kill him." The younger woman wrings the rag in her hand as if she's imagining Welsh's neck.

"Penny, my love. This is absolutely confidential."

---

The rest of the weekend was a blur for y/n. To get through it she found herself in some kind of cleaning madness, not that the house was dirty beforehand, but until Sunday evening she has cleaned some places of their cozy home more than three times just to exhaust herself out enough to sleep for some hours.

Now, fortunately in the middle of the week she sits outside on the base sipping the hot beverage Bob brought her minutes ago and enjoying the crisp air and the morning rays of sun on her face she's miles away with her thoughts. She's relieved that she hasn't seen Welsh the whole week and that she could distract herself with a huge load of work. She helped the Admiral with another computer problem and started on programming new software for the Daggers which should help them with teaching and training the recruits.

"Hello y/n…"

The young woman flinches as she hears the familiar voice. She was lucky enough to not cross path with the nasty aviator the last three days. But today, she's not that lucky. He sits down beside her, too close for her own liking which makes her shrinking into herself even more.

"No greeting, today? I thought you were well-bred. Seems like Michael was still too soft with you." He chuckles.

The moment y/n hears the name of her ex, that man that inflicted so much pain on her, that man who nearly killed her and scarred her soul in so many ways, she feels panic bubbling in her chest. How does Welsh know her ex' name? How does he even have the balls to confront her with her past? With a loud thud her coffee cup falls to the floor, splintering in thousand pieces swimming in the still hot brown liquid. She feels her chest tightening and breathing gets more difficult every second. She jumps up from her seat beside the cruel aviator, feeling his bigger hand squeezing her forearm to prevent her from fleeing. But y/n is able to wiggle herself free and starts to sprint toward the office building. She doesn't notice where she is running, completely trapped in the panic and shock which is swirling in her brain.

---

Some hours before:

Daniel can't believe his luck when the lock finally opens with a click. It's dark outside when he arrived at the base this morning. He didn't want to risk to be seen when he breaks into the Admiral's office. Is it a bit too much to break into the Admiral's office? Probably. Is it too damn risky to steal some information? Hell, yeah. But he needs some more information about this young and sexy IT-specialist and with her two guard dogs gone it's the best time to start his little blackmail show. With the right information about her it will be easier to intimidate this slut further.

"No way…" He talks to himself in a hushed voice when he starts to read y/n's file which is securely stored in the Admiral's office. She had a bad ex-boyfriend who assaulted her? Perfect, this is just perfect. She was a little bruised obedient girl and he will get her there once again. She is just the perfect woman for him. Hopefully his plan is going to bloom before these morons are back from their deployment. But he's in cheerful spirits now that he knows all the little sad details of y/n's past. And he will launch his offensive today. The stupid girl is already afraid and nervous in his presence and this is the best point of departure to go from there. Soon she will be his little toy and her aviator boyfriends are forgotten. She needs a man with a strong hand and not these two sissies. This slut needs him and he knew the first time he laid his eyes on her that she will be his.

@djs8891

@darksparklesficrecs

@nerdgirljen

@abaker74

@crazyunsexycool

@itsarabellebabes

#hangman x reader #new writer #rooster x reader #tgm #top gun fanfic #jake seresin x reader #bradley bradshaw x reader #bradley rooster bradshaw #jake hangman seresin #top gun

[brainrot-of-a-thot]

heyyyy it's me again, but do you have any opinions on sako? like... i really like him and his personality, the way he dresses and how he likes to go to cafes! so i want to know moreeee abt him and was curious abt what u think !! (since you're always spot on when writing for them hehe)

hey again babes!! happy to see you again!! and oh, sako — I certainly do have some opinions on him! as I’ve stated before, I tend to just subconsciously engage in character analysis (honestly, it’s probably one of the main reasons I enjoy writing reader-inserts, because I get to put my analysis into writing whilst also pretending I’m witnessing their character first hand and interacting with them) — but onto the main point of sako!

post edit: this turned into something slightly monstrous so, uh, new category I guess? ‘mamaz does in-depth character analysis + headcanons’? urgh this feels like a lot of word vomit and oh lawd my passion for character analysis is sooo obvious here. I’m so sorry babes T^T

even barring the anime (which hasn’t progressed much in terms of its adaptation of the manga), sako’s character hasn’t truly been explored thoroughly, I’d say. there are certain things that can be gleaned from his appearances, such as: he’s got a bit of stubborn/hardheaded side, which formed primarily after the fall out with hiragi. I’d also say that the impact of this fall out severely stunted some aspects of his social/relationship growth, such as his ability to accept/maintain solid relationships/friendships.

I believe that sako derived purpose from feeling as though he was needed — we are shown this during his fight with hiragi via his flashbacks. when hiragi asked sako not to follow him, it completely crushed him. I can only attribute that to a deep-seated need to be accepted by someone whom you look up to (i do believe that this bit of information reveals that sako is more than likely an only child — he lacked any sort of big brother/sister figure to look up to, and it was clear that he wasn’t in the position of older sibling due to his timid nature concerning the bullies. interpersonal relationships can dictate a lot about our personalities, and that includes our place within our sibling line — an older sibling is more likely to develop a protector sort of mindset, while a younger sibling may have a propensity to rely on others like they do their older sibling.)

thus, hiragi filled that role for sako. in a way, he showed sako what it felt like to have another person to depend on and idolize, and sako related that feeling to comfort and security. that comfort and security would be increased tenfold due to the fact that hiragi saved him, and even started to guide him on how to protect himself.

losing that felt like losing an entire piece of himself because sako had formed a piece of himself around the relationship/dynamic he had with hiragi. and just as is the case with everyone who experiences some form of deep hurt, sako’s brain/heart put up a defense mechanism. in sako’s case, he turned his pain into anger and resentment towards hiragi, and he wanted to mend that part of him that had felt as though hiragi looked down on him/didn’t accept him.

sako did this by growing stronger on his own — something that, more than likely on a subconscious level, was also employed to show sako himself that he could get stronger without hiragi, and that he didn’t need him — just as hiragi didn’t need sako. he was blinded by this desire to rid himself of the feelings of inadequacy and hurt that it became the only thing he could fixate on — and so though he grew in terms of physical strength, his mental/emotional/social growth slowed to a crawl.

this is where the hardheadedness and reluctance to move past his grudge comes in. for those who are caught up in the manga, we see that sako sti has trouble speaking to hiragi even after they’d traded blows and seemed to come to some sort of understanding. I believe this is in part from the guilt/embarrassment sako felt towards his grudge. at the end of the fight with hiragi, sako acknowledges that he know hiragi was only looking out for him — but again, he was too hurt to see it that way. he just wanted the pain to go away, and the fastest/easiest method was to morph it into hatred.

all in all, I believe sako is a pure fellow; but he experienced a trauma which caused him to become stunted in some ways — and I do believe he’s trying to grow in his own way.

sako already has difficulty with social interactions, so when you bring romance into the mix… oh boy. I feel as though, like any teenage boy, romance/sex has probably crossed his mind a few times; but I don’t see sako as the type to actively seek it. just given the glimpses of his personality and seeing how certain things have affected him, I believe he has a deep, genuine fear of rejection. as such, getting close to him would more than likely be extremely difficult. he’d have walls up all around him, and though I don’t believe he’d ever be rude, he may at times come off as stand offish. I also get the feeling that he blushes fairly easily, and becomes flustered when girls/guys/anyone in general flirts with him. or it may even go over his head completely.

I think with sako, it would be a matter of taking things slow — baby steps, if you would. sako isn’t going to be taking the initiative on anything, so you’d have to do that yourself; but you’d have to do incrementally so as not to startle him.

perhaps express interest in something he’s familiar with, or something he’s a fan of (cafes, for example.) again, with sako, it’s going to be all about the pace in which he’s comfortable with following; a pace which he isn’t going to explicitly confirm for you. you’d need to be highly perceptive/observant so as to notice any warning signs.

despite this, I truly believe that sako is a genuine, pure and wholehearted lover — in such that when he does fall in love, he falls in love for good. that’s the one. that’s the one he’s going to be with for the rest of his life. I see acts of service/devotion being a major love language for sako. he wants someone to devote himself to as it gives him a sense of completion/purpose. so expect him to do everything for you, even things you don’t ask him to do.

massages, breakfast in bed, maybe even written poems slipped beneath your pillow for when he leaves your room and you wake up without him. sako shows affection deeply but in ways that aren’t too commonly seen anymore; not the biggest fan of pda, but will love you up in private. will hold open doors for you. will pull out a chair for you. would drape his jacket over your head if it starts to rain unexpectedly to reduce the amount you get soaked. for some reason, when the two of you eat together, he always waits for you to take the first bite before he starts eating. you’ll never pay for dates. when the two of you walk together on the sidewalk, he makes sure that he’s the one that walks closest to the road.

I feel he may need reassurance fairly often; a by product of fear and trauma (he definitely has abandonment trauma), and for a while, he may be completely overcome with the fear that you will eventually leave him. also, he may end up trying to tackle things all on his own, and may even push you away sometimes. it’s not really his fault; it’s the trauma that causes him to do this, the fear of reliving that same pain of hiragi but on a much deeper scale, and so things may be rocky in the beginning. you may end up getting into fights a lot — your highs will be akin to being in heaven, but your lows will make hell look like a dream-vacation spot.

he’s soft and he’s damaged in his own ways, so you’ll just need to take care of him with patience and understanding and love ❤️ but trust me when I say that in turn, you’ll be loved far more deeply and purely than you could ever imagine.

#wind breaker #wind breaker x reader #sako kota x reader

[helly-watermelonsmellinfellon]

Recently, through Twitter, I have become aware of the fact that modern American parents have been very ignorant of their parental duties when it comes to their children. Parents are banding together to complain about the schools their children attend because their kids are getting bad grades in class, or they're getting detentions for doing bad consistently, or they're being held back because they're just not at the same level as their peers.

There was an entire thread of some woman whining about how the school was failing her kid, because his English class grade was so bad. There were thousands of comments agreeing and various reposts with anecdotes from other parents with similar experiences.

"My 26 y/o son can't even write a check for God's sake!"

And one single person finally replied with, "Do you guys not teach your kids anything at home before they start going to school?" Which then spawned people with actual common sense questioning the level of involvement these people had in the lives of their kids.

This is what led to a large surge of people complaining about how it's the school's job to teach them everything and they did their job just keeping them alive.

Now, I don't want to be mean, but it's gonna come across that way.

Parents are lazy these days.

When I was a child, my Nana and mom had me learning with Hooked on Phonics before I entered pre-K. I was 3 years old and already sounding out words that rhymed. I was practicing how quickly I could say them in under 30 seconds so I could progress to the next lesson.

mat hat sat that cat vat pat bat fat lat rat brat

etc...

When I was in pre-K(4 years old), they had a single, really old computer that had a bunch of Winnie the Pooh CD-ROM games. Because I always got my work done faster than everybody else, they let me use the computer because I could actually read and follow Pooh's instructions, and it kept me busy.

And when I entered kindergarten for the first time, I was really surprised to see that Hooked on Phonics was actually part of my curriculum and I was already very well ahead of everyone else. My mom and Nana took traching me very seriously. They not only read to me, but they would also get me Madeline books and cassette tapes from the children's library downtown. And then I would listen to the cassettes telling the story while reading the book at the same time to get used to the words.

At three years old, I was helping out in the kitchen, learning all of the different kitchen utensils and types of measurement. My mom often went between English, French and American Sign Language at random times so I picked up a lot of stuff that way. We never had a computer in the house for the first 12 years of my life, but I did have an old keyboard to learn how to type. Nana gave me basic piano lessons for a couple years. Mom taught me how to hem my clothes because she would buy me bigger clothes, hem them to size, and then let them out as I grew. Hell, Sperm Donor taught me how to write a check when I was 8. He was also a Financial Adviser, so I got a lot of lessons on money management, investments, and 401Ks and shit.

All these incredibly simple things ended up benefiting me later on, because I was so far ahead of all of the other students that it consistently put me at odds with them. I was better at reading, cooking, sewing, music, languages, etc... I was allowed time to do whatever I wanted while the rest of them had to catch up.

There is a lot more to being a parent than just making sure your kid eats three meals a day and doesn't die in a stupid way. And it seems like a lot of parents these days have completely forgotten that they have a duty to their kids beyond the feeding and clothing thing.

Certain things SHOULD be taught in schools, like how to balance a checkbook. But if it's clear that the school won't cover it, why aren't YOU doing something about that? And why do so many parents have no clue what the hell their kids are even getting up to in school? Why don't y'all get involved in your kid's lives?

#parenting #bad parenting

[baileyblethen]

COMPENDIUM OF A MADMAN

Preface:

Desmos, the Greek name for shackled, is how I have often felt. It is only in writing this tale that I can feel the bonds loosen unto snapping. For, my life has been near to Phaethon’s journey. Emerging from a semi-hedonistic youth entwined with vague Catholic guilt, to eventually arriving on the platform of doubt, a stop before my way to truth. For, as with Iris, the beauty of the rainbow leaves me in wonder, and I can confidently affirm that wonder has given me closure. This tale is the truth, just from one side, mine. I do not attempt to hide any bias, for another’s story is not mine to tell. As with my real life, the story is turbulent, for in the beginning you find a youth disturbed, grasping for what he believes dearest. Pains and joys are found, but from both he does that which Ovid had his cast do, change. To metamorphose as a man is not a quick or easy affair. The trials and tribulations of life often seem to stymie the change, or even more often, sink you back further into your original state. Being twenty-eight at the time of writing this preface may mean that I undergo many more changes in my life, as long as it goes; but while it does I shall strive to align all towards what I truly seek. That is what this tale attempts to tell, a story of grasping beyond the passion driven and intemperate self, to find something sustaining, which not only sustains, but breathes life in return. Yet, ambiguous language is dangerous, so frankly the tale shows Bailey begin to ascertain the truth of life, and realize that there is a worthy life within this sphere. Contrary to Jacques Maritain, I may not have a habitus, and this may detract from the tale and attempt at art, as for especially with the beginning, it tells the story of a life lacking virtue. Yet, as Jacques Maritain, I seek to make perfect that which I create in its own image. And to do so I must be honest. Honesty for me includes creating how I recall my own life into my work, which will riddle or enhance the journey with allusion. However, I seek not to simply give an autobiography, or a dull recounting of my life. For if I were to simply retell it, I, myself would lose attention fast and label myself as an outcast sinner. I do not have the imagination to produce fantasy, but what I lay on these pages satisfies me, for it is as it was, and exacting replications can be left to the naturalists and biographers. It is also vital to emphasize that what is written is not any attempt at a progressive history, or guide in any sort of ethics. No, I believe I would be one of the poorest guides, and what I have poured out in these pages is a plea. A plea to think on the good life, as well as the bad. There is no answer given, only prompts which one may form on his own. I was born into a faith but had never embraced it, and even rebelled in some manner, until I started to become faithful, which to this day I find myself still becoming. This is evident in the writing itself, for answers were waning when I began this novella, yet I still sought to find the best of life. And now at the end of the book, I like to think of myself as a very bad Christian, but I still try. And I do sincerely hope that one day I may in good conscience write a redeeming sequel to this novella, if I am ever held fast by virtue. So Christians, atheists, agnostics, and all, you have every right to find fault with my tale, but I will hold fast to it, for what has been done can not be undone. The uplifting part I find is that what unfolds beyond this page is the chance to reflect, and perhaps there will be others who enjoy, as I do, evaluating actions and beliefs, so as to adopt, or even perfect ones learned. Looking back helps me move forward, and only then am I happy in the present, and perhaps the eternal.

I am now thirty and looking to promote my book. This piece has been for me the most honest introspection I have ever done, which prompts me to wish to share this, and hopefully has some merit to the insights found within.

It is currently free for kindle and the paperback is for sale here: https://www.amazon.com/Compendium-Madman-Bailey-Blethen/dp/B0BT6V58SM/ref=mp_s_a_1_1?crid=54JQN47XBH4Y&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.EixqhUr1p5LCgz7S4bIxPJbiIxd5ox6pLxjG0384pXM.x6U6I6JzYvFo-vkP-C81K3Ae9sriPc52GanSAIhorF4&dib_tag=se&keywords=compendium+of+a+madman&qid=1717697114&sprefix=%2Caps%2C116&sr=8-1

#self publishing #writing #writers on tumblr #author #novella #writerscommunity #books #reading #self publication

[blueskittlesart]

i see discussion abt the traveler in the notes of a reblog and i think it’s very interesting you say that bc honestly i think it’s the amount of disconnect present in The Twins Themselves and The Player that intrigues me but also intensely frustrates me. it feels like “the traveler”/you as a person playing the game and lumine/aether/the twin chosen are two separate entities and honestly that could be Really interesting if it was acknowledged and could fit in nicely with some of the vague themes of otherworldly/fourth-wall breaking stuff and personal autonomy they’ve got going on. but Nope! i think this is yet another issue of the Gacha Mechanic too in a way bc honestly all of the instances of x character bonding with The Traveler ends up pissing me off REAL bad lmaooo. i would much rather there be some kind of genuine distinction in the twin’s dialogue too bc the whole idea of. “oh this character you are playing is Their Own Character but also they have the exact same story interactions and dialogue as their twin” is just. Eeufhhh. maybe this is just a lot of personal issues i have with the setup because i am someone who not only enjoys lore but also characterization and character interactions with other characters and the world around them and i am not a fan of when a You The Player character is thrown into that. sorry for dumping this here i just need to let out these thoughts somewhere

I think what it comes down to is that on launch hyv was worried about player immersion but reluctant to commit to a true silent protagonist. in most actual gameplay, the protagonist twin functions as a silent protagonist, meaning a blank-slate character with no autonomy, completely at the mercy of the actions the player chooses for them. (the only exception to this rule is A-plot quests which directly involve their sibling.) But in the A-plot of the story at large, the twins, regardless of which one you choose, are NOT blank slates in any sense, and that's what leads to the disconnect during gameplay.

Silent protagonists are a method of storytelling unique to video games and they're specifically a vessel to further player immersion, the idea being that a player character whose backstory and personality are unknown or nonexistent is much easier to insert one's self into, thus creating a more immersive experience for the player. I think that this was probably the original intent behind the twins, at least to a certain extent, and is likely at least part of the reason that hyv is still keeping all their story cards so close to their chest--the more we learn about the twins, the less our chosen twin functions as a silent protagonist. In a game with so many playable characters that AREN'T blank slates, hyv may have worried that having no designated player-insert character would break immersion from the get-go. However, the story planned for the game at large relied on a protagonist that was, from the very beginning, NOT a silent protagonist. the twins have personalities. they very obviously have backstories and pre-game relationships with each other at the very least. they have NAMES. The fact that genshin has you 'name' your character who quite literally already has a canonical name and gives you no reasoning behind that is one of the most glaring examples of this weird inconsistency in the writing imo. It almost seems like they want it both ways. they want a perfect silent protagonist for player immersion, but they ALSO want a protagonist who is tied up in the story because of their history and relationships and personality. and it doesn't work, because those two things are fundamentally incompatible. you cannot allow your players unlimited choice in the actions, thoughts, and feelings of your playable character while also requiring that character to make certain choices and have certain feelings and relationships for the story to progress. The result of attempting to do both is a story which promises unlimited choice to the players and then jerks them along in one direction anyways, which only results in frustration and immersion-breaking. there are plenty of ways to do a non-silent protagonist in a video game without sacrificing the player's experience, but what genshin has done is given us this weird worst-of-both-worlds combo that just. does not work.

#asks #sorry for all the genshinposting guys but im so used to using my video game writing hyperfixation to analyze GOOD writing that this is #actually an interesting change of pace. im fascinated by how many things went wrong here

[writingquestionsanswered]

So Im currently trying to write my first big story - big as in I'm trying to make it a book - But im overwhelmed with what to do:

I want to write, but first I have to work out the acts and plot. But to do that I have to do some research as it's historical fiction. And that's where I'm failing, because I'm making very slow progress and it's frustrating. It also takes away the last of my motivation.

Do you have any tips on how I should proceed now or what might help?

(I might want to add that I'm working full-time outside and often can only work on weekends on it)

De-Motivated by Story Research Prior to Plotting

Research prior to plotting can be overwhelming and frustrating, so here are some tips that might help:

1 - Start with a General Summary - Before you worry about plotting out scenes and figuring out the different acts, try writing a beginning to end summary of what you want the story to be. Don't worry so much about specific details like dates, places, proper terminology or events, etc. Use general terms to fill those in. It might look something like this:

[[ SPOILERS for the novel Outlander by Diana Gabaldon ]]

A former English military nurse in the 1940s travels to Scotland and inadvertently travels back in time, to the 1700s, via standing stones near the inn where she's staying. There she encounters a band of smugglers and is taken captive and brought to the local laird's castle. Despite the suspicions of the laird and his war chief, they see her value as a healer and she settles in as the castle's healer-in-residence. During this time, she tries to figure out a way back to her own time, but also forges a friendship with one of the smugglers she patched up when she was first captured. Eventually, she is summoned for questioning by a British captain (who happens to be an ancestor of the husband she left in the 1940s) who suspects her of being an English spy, and the highlanders try to protect her by having her marry the highlander she patched up. Despite her attachment to her new husband, she runs away to the standing stones but is caught and imprisoned by the British captain. Once she is rescued by her new husband, they return to the castle where she gets wrapped up in a witchcraft accusation and narrowly avoids being burned at the stake. Finally, she and her new husband travel to his family castle, but since her husband is a fugitive, he is captured by British forces and taken to prison. The nurse is able to rescue him with the help of some of his clan, and they eventually escape to France.

[[ END SPOILERS ]]

While this is a fairly complete beginning to end summary of the first book in the Outlander series, it leaves out a lot of specific details related to time, setting, world, character development, etc.

However, going through this summary, it would be easy to see places where research needs to be done. Just looking at the first part of the summary, we can already see a lot of questions we could ask about specifics:

A former English military nurse in the 1940s travels to Scotland and inadvertently travels back in time, to the 1700s, via standing stones near the inn where she's staying.

-- Who is this woman? (Where is she from, where did she serve? Why does she go to Scotland?)

-- Where are the standing stones? What do they look like? How do they transport her back through time?

-- Specifically what year in the 1700s does she travel to? What is happening during that time?

This would give you some ideas about what, specifically, you need to research. Breaking it up in this way not only makes it less daunting, but gives you specific things to research instead of trying to learn a bunch of unnecessary data.

2 - Learn How to Research Historical Details - My Guide to Internet Research offers some general research pointers (though I probably need to update it, tbh). Also, I have a post specific to Researching an Historical Topic. Furthermore, there are some good books that guide you through researching historical fiction, as well as helpful books about specific time periods that are geared toward writers.

3 - Make Use of YouTube - I can't express enough how helpful YouTube can be when researching historical details. For example, if Diana Gabaldon were preparing to research and write the first Outlander book today, she could find videos about British nurses in World War II, specific places in Scotland where the book is set, videos about the history of the Scottish highlands, video about Scottish highlander culture, videos about clothing and fashion in 18th century Scotland, videos about the history of witchcraft in Scotland, videos about the British occupation of Scotland, videos about 18th century healing and medicine, videos about healing herbs of the Scottish highlands... you name it.

4 - Know Your Time and Dedicate Accordingly - One of the hardest things to remember when researching, plotting, and writing long fiction is that there is a certain amount of time it's going to take you, no matter what, and if you overestimate how much time you actually have to dedicate to your WIP in a given day, week, month, or year, it's very frustrating and de-motivating. One thing you might try is taking an honest look at your calendar for a particular week or month. For each day, subtract the number of hours you'll spend sleeping. Then, subtract the number of hours you'll spend working, commuting to work, traveling for work, etc.. Finally, subtract the number of hours you know will be dedicated to other necessities, like taking care of family, doctor appointments, workouts, etc. This may only leave you with barely an hour a day, but knowing you have that hour to dedicate to writing is important. Not only can you block off and fiercely guard that hour, but you can be more realistic about what you'll get done with the hours you have available in a given week.

5 - Don't Feel Like You Have to Rush It or Figure It All Out Now - We have a tendency to imagine a ticking clock where one doesn't exist. If this is your first long fiction story, especially, there is no reason to feel like you need to get this done post haste. Give yourself grace to take the time you need to get it done. Putting unnecessary pressure on yourself only demotivates you. Instead, try to look forward to that hour a night where you can dive into learning about the time, place, and world of your story. Also, don't feel like you have to know every specific detail before you start plotting or even writing. It's okay to research as you write--as you come to things you need more information on--or even to use placeholders in your first draft, allowing you to go back and fill in the research later.

Happy researching and writing. You've got this! ♥

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[arcielee]

Interview With a Writer

It is that blessed time when the wonderful and talented Miss Maggie, @inthedayswhenlandswerefew, gives us some behind-the-scenes insight to her latest brilliant narration. [Feel free to check out the Spotify playlist of all the songs mentioned and let me know if I forgot one!]

Here is masterlist to my Interview With a Writer series and the other talented individuals who allow me to continue this self-indulgent series! 💜 Picture(s) source.

Name: inthedayswhenlandswerefew

Story: 1968

Paring: modern Aemond Targaryen x female!reader, modern Aegon Targaryen x female!reader

Warnings: 18+ mature themes. Be mindful of chapter warnings.

Where did the idea for 1968 come from?

I am a high school social studies teacher by trade, and my absolute favorite class to teach is American History. The 1960s and 70s were actually one of my weak spots when I got my first teaching job back in 2020, so I ended up researching a lot about that period of time and got absolutely obsessed with it. In my American History class, I spend a whole lesson on JUST 1968, because so many important events happened in that year that are emblematic of broader trends and tensions.

One day I was re-reading one of my favorite books, The Other Mrs. Kennedy by Jerry Oppenheimer, which is specifically about Bobby Kennedy’s wife Ethel, but also gives a lot of insight into the Kennedy family generally and what it was like to live through that era. The idea of using this setting as a fic AU occurred to me, and I ruminated on it for a few weeks while finishing up Napoleonville.

Eventually, I had a revelation of the ending of 1968 (true to my usual pattern), and then knew I’d have to write the fic! I was actually really worried about all the political and historical details being too boring and/or confusing (especially for non-U.S. readers), so I was relieved that so many people gave it a chance. 🥰

Honestly, it was brilliant with the similarities to the Kennedys and Targaryens in the story. Were there any historical cameos in 1968 that you enjoyed channeling? Or perhaps struggled with?

I find LBJ super fascinating, and I feel that because of the Vietnam War he really doesn’t get a fair assessment when people look back on his presidency. His work for civil rights and the Great Society (SNAP, Medicaid, Head Start, Job Corps, PBS, etc.) was truly revolutionary, and as someone who grew up in poverty and benefitted from a lot of those programs, I don’t think LBJ’s contributions get the recognition and praise they deserve. I perceive him as a haunted sort of figure, and I really enjoyed his cameos. (To be clear, he was also super problematic and bizarre personally, and I don’t mean to excuse any of that 😂).

As for someone who was difficult to write about…honestly, the George Wallace research I did was super depressing, so while he was necessary to include, I didn’t really enjoy working on those parts!

Was there anything in specific that inspired your Reader portrayal?

Io is a bit of a composite sketch. Ethel Kennedy was known as doggedly committed to her husband’s career above all else (despite eventually being the mother of 11 children!!), and I think that inspired Io’s single-minded determination to help Aemond win the election in the first few chapters. Ethel was traditional in the sense that her husband was the center of her world and made all the important decisions, as was expected of women of her social class in that time period. But Io is also a manifestation of the counterculture of the late-60s. She is young, educated, genuinely progressive politically, and likes to party. She tries to reconcile the expectations of her family/time period and her actual personality by intentionally choosing a husband with whom she can have an equal partnership making the world a better place. And…we all know how that worked out.

[Photo Ethel and Bobby Kennedy, m. 1950]

Can you explain your interpretation of Aegon? How does he compare and contrast to Aemond? What drives them? Why are they the way that they are?

In 1968, Aegon is 40 years old, and so his role in the Targaryen political dynasty is very well-established: once his family realized he couldn’t be weaponized for their purposes, he was largely disposed of, and lives this aimless, uninspired, self-loathing sort of existence. He does have some genuine love for his family—missing Daeron and feeling guilt over him being sent to Vietnam, a vague sort of fondness for Mimi and the kids, distress when Aemond is shot in Palm Beach, an apology of sorts to Alicent by performing “Mama Tried” at her birthday party—but Aegon exists on the periphery, and he knows this, and while he doesn’t want to be a politician the rejection still stings.

At first, he perceives Io as yet another person who makes him feel inadequate and unloved; and in fairness, she is cruel to him, in fact more so than Aegon is to Io in return. It is noteworthy that in Chapter 1, she viciously criticizes Aegon in front of everyone in the waiting room (“if someone had to get killed tonight it should have been you”), but he doesn’t return fire until they are alone (the infamous cow comment), and even then he seems to regret it immediately.

Aegon, fundamentally, is more sad than mean. When in Chapters 2 and 3 Io abruptly reveals herself to be someone who is vulnerable, wounded, abandoned, and kind of a hippie lowkey, Aegon begins to perceive her differently, and she becomes an opportunity for him to be truly understood, protected, and loved for the first time in his life.

I think we would all describe Aemond as ambitious and ruthless, determined to prove that he is the best to compensate for deep, lifelong insecurities. He is a progressive politically because he sees a path to build a winning coalition, and perhaps in small part because of the whole Greeks-being-despised immigrants thing. But in 1968 there is a sense that you never fully understand who he is as a person. This is intentional! 1968 is Io’s story, and she never gets to see the whole Aemond. She sees parts of the picture, but never the full image. As awful as he is to Io, there is also a side of Aemond that truly (even if in an…unorthodox way 😂) loves Alys and their child, and there are clues that Alys understands him like no one else can (that Ouija board message… 👀). He’s by no means a good guy, but he is multifaceted. I think the stress of the presidency, and his long separation from Alys, ends up softening Aemond a bit, hence him defending Io’s reputation and ultimately letting her go.

Did anything inspire your other OCs? Specifically "The Ones Who Married In" club?

I didn’t sit down and plan what sorts of characters would be in the “The Ones Who Married In” club. I was possessed by these random visions of them: a perpetually drunk Mimi, a perhaps not too bright but very sweet Fosco, and Malibu Barbie but make her Polish Ludwika, and I was thinking: “These people are ridiculous, this will never work!” But then when I thought about it more, I realized that Mimi, Fosco, Ludwika, and Io all serve strategic roles to help advance Aemond’s career, and so it would make sense that Otto and Aemond cobbled them together and shoved them into the family portraits. I ended up really loving them, but they weren’t a big part of my original outline for 1968. 🙂

How would Io rate them based on her friendship with each of them?

Fosco is definitely #1; they connect on an emotional level that is deep but also largely unspoken. Ludwika is a close #2; she’s Io’s shopping buddy but also witty, supportive, and very feminist in her own way. And then Mimi is a distant #3. Io pities Mimi and feels loyalty to her as a fellow Targaryen, and goes out of her way to try to protect Mimi from her own self-destructive tendencies. But Io, as a collected and self-reliant person, also has difficulty understanding and dealing with someone as messy as Mimi. And of course, once Io realizes she is super into Aegon, that creates some one-sided resentment of Mimi!

Do you have a feeling of what happened after chapter 12? What is the ending you vaguely see with Aegon and Io? What about Aemond and Alys?

Where I end a fic is really the last clear image I see of the characters, so I sadly don’t have a lot of specifics to offer. What I do feel is that Io and Aegon have children of their own (like, several children, maybe even 5+ children) and Aegon is present for their early years in a way he wasn’t able to be for his kids with Mimi. Io is a stepmom to Aegon’s OG kids and has a good relationship with them, but she’s only really close with Cosmo.

I also sense that Aemond has basically no contact with Io or Aegon, which makes sense considering his abuse of Io and the lifelong fury Aegon would therefore have towards him. Aemond is happy with Alys and their son (as happy as someone like him is capable of being); he does the ex-president thing and settles into a largely ceremonial role and advises Democratic politicians, although he is not very friendly with President Reagan.

And then my wild theory is that a Daeron/John McCain ticket ends up winning the 2000 election and the War On Terror plays out completely differently!

And finally... 1968 seemed to pour from you like a fever dream. Does this mean something else might be coming to continue the Maggie's Suffering Sunday tradition?

1968 did seem to fly by, despite it being a longer fic at 12 chapters! I do have something planned for this Sunday... 😉 All I can say for now is that it is very weird, totally unexpected, and tonally a mashup of Comet Donati and When The World Is Crashing Down.

Does that seem impossible?? Think again 😏 I will be reblogging hints until Sunday! I hope you enjoy this new journey 🥰🐍

#interview with a writer #iwaw 25 #bts #of their brilliant writing #writing community #writers on tumblr

[kamiko1234]

So, the same friends who got me to read the Percy Jackson have (against my will) spoiled me by showing me this image :

Telling me his name was Jason and that he's gonna get important later on.

Now ngl, I will admit, for a hot second I though that was Luke. They look alike as fuck, and I now have developed a problem of switching up their names 'cause I accidentally clocked them under the same person. Fuck. But also, they really look alike. So, in a burst of inspiration and excitment I shall present to thee my theory :

THAT'S LUKE'S LONG LOST TWIN BROTHER

NOW HEAR ME OUT; I KNOW a first name and pic isn't MUCH to go off on, BUT LIKE- I feel I might have gotten something there. Because- this sort of resemblance HAS to be on purpose. Like, they HAVE to be related in some way and physically speaking they ARE around the same age. SO LIKE; IMAGINE THIS : what if, when Luke/Jason were in the whomb, only one of them got their father's power ? While for the other one it stayed dormant to the point where Jason could basically pass as a normal human, unlike his brother ? With Annabeth we have seen that it can be dangerous for a mortal family to have a demigod child with them due to the threat monsters pose. WE ALSO KNOW LUKE RAN AWAY FROM HOME. SO MY THEORY !?

Basically, Jason/Luke are twin brothers. Luke inherited the largest and most obvious godly part from their father. Jason on the other hand inherited next to nothing, allowing him to pass as normal human. (As far as I know there's no point where it's mentioned that it isn't possible for this to happen) As the twins grow up and Luke attracts more monsters, it get#s progressively more dangerous for the seemingly human Jason. Shit hit's the fan when during a monster attack, jason get's severely injured (that#s where he got that weird scar on his lip). His twin, Luke, horrified at what happened and under the believe his twin is dead decided to run away and get to Camp Halfblood. That's where me meets up with Annabeth and Thalia ect. HOWEVER, Jason wasn't dead. Heavily injured, yes. But NOT dead. He did however have a nasty case of amnesia. A complete clean slate, he remembered NOTHING. Their mother, not rly having been the biggest fan of Jason bc of how he endangered basically everyone around him, just straight up lied to Jason abt his twin. SO NOW I DID NOTICE THAT JASON HAS THAT NECKLACE FROM CAMP HALLFBLOOD WITH ONE BEAD SO MY IDEA FOR THAT !? He's a late bloomer. It only seemed like he got little to no powers from his father, but as he grew older the powers slowly started to surface. That meant he too started to get demigod powers as well as him starting to attract monsters.

Which is why he too has to come to camp. HIM COMMING SO LATE IS ALSO WHY HE HAS THAT WACKY ASS PURPLE SHIRT. (I'll be real I have no idea what to make of that. Looks like a spelling mistake or someone just smashing random keys on a keyboard. It isn't looking like a band to me either. Maybe it's just smth in-universe) I also have no idea what that wacky tattoo is that he has. HOWEVER; I could possibly see a future Luke centric plot where it's him going out to get his long lost twin brother back ! Possibly the plot for the 2nd book maybe ? Another theory of mine is that, should either Annabeth or Grover be the one to betray Percy and switch sides, Luke would be the one to fill in their spot in the trio. So that could possibly play into my theory, would also allow for some nice backstory exploring. But also the heartbreak of Luke finding out his twin brother who he thought DIED is alive, BUT ALSO DOESN'T EVEN REMEMBER HIM !?

I wanna see that angst. PS; ok while tagging I noticed there's no Jason Castellan tag. Which, okay may be a problem. But dw Jason props just changed last names post amnesia. Maybe his mother simply got married to someone and Jason took the man's lastname. My theory can still work. (Unfortunatly @mrfandomwars said that, when I asked abt Jason's current lastname, it would invlove revealing more canon which I don't want. So Jason ain#t gonna be tagged....)

#plz mark spoilers in your replies/reblogs so I can avoid them ^^ #at this point this may just turn into my PJO theory blog omg #welp #it's fun atleast #this theory stems from a picture combined with a name and could possibly be the most unhinged thing I ever put out #I love it #pjo percy #pjo book #pjo theory #Luke Castellan #this rly is just an offshot theory I had that you can ignore

[forgottenarias]

just some nonsense about aria i rambled about to get it out of my brain, i guess?

idk what this is but once again i went off on a tangent abt aria thanks to some influence from arthur ;) [honestly why can't i deep dive on all my characters like this rn]

Thinking about Aria pre conquering and her previous attachments-- I'd contemplated if she had some sort of tragic backstory, like there was a knight she'd sort of formed a bit of an attachment to leading up the invasion and he was killed in battle or smth along those lines, but I think her whole sense of being was SO wrapped up in being-- i'm not going to say Eilia's right hand necessarily bc i don't think she was doing tons of like... talking about policy or military issues or anything, but an important part of her life as the queen of Astaira. it sort of lead me to realize I don't think she's really had much in terms of romantic notions/courting/etc in her past? Part of that I think was just who she was-- pretty quiet and reserved and probably hiding somewhere w/ Aoife at social gatherings whenever possible! I remember Kate and I joked asp about the two of them having sort of useless husbands who just did their own thing while the women ran the country-- I don't think having a USELESS husband was her plan but she def sort of imagined a union/partnership (weirdly I don't think romance was playing into this vision of the future for her, despite the fact I think she's very much a closeted romantic!) husband who was intelligent, scholarly, and had his part in the running of Astaira-- so while she never imagined her sister would try to set up a political marriage for her, she def always assumed if/when that happened it would be something that made sense for Astaira. It was all very practical and sort of in line with that idea that Staffords are servants of Astaira. So she'd probably end up with the one who wasn't the worse and, if not at some point feeling SOME sort of romantic affection for him, at least they could be friends of sorts and share common interests have have children who, of course, would then be tasked with helping the crown and continuing the cycle on and on.

which i'm now realizing, sort of like his fear that no one will care for/love/be loyal/etc to him for just forHIM, Aria just never allowed herself to think that would be possible but, again, in a practical way?! like obviously everything goes back to what is best for astaira & helping her sister & carrying on the work of the stafford family, etc. (also i don't know if eilia realized that was sort of her worldview? i think its not anything she'd openly discuss with her sister honestly...)

BUT NOW there's this GUY who is almost in every way the antithesis of who she imagined herself ever being drawn towards-- like, if this were a bad early 2000's teen movie, she'd be the head of the debate team and he'd be the captain of (insert sport here) and WHY would they EVER even talk to each other?! haha! but then obvi she's seeing this different side of him that she expected to be there-- plus clearly SHE'S having some sort of affect on him and his thought process thanks to all their walks and talk/arguments ;) I think that's not something she's ever HAD before outside of her friendships (and while there is some sort of version of friendship there clearly its something else, what with the whole conquering/captor/flirt thing that's happening) and she just... likes how this is progressing? i think at first it was a "oh great-- more fuel for my fire of trying to worm my way into the good graces of the new regime and sow discontent from within!" but now she's making this real human connection and its scary and its annoying and its making her have all of these thoughts and see things as not black & white and she HATES that but also she is invested entirely now? and she may not have even realized it atp?!

all that being said there are still these little doubts that flair up-- which i think is sometimes part of the reason she reacts so angrily/aggressively at times (bc as we've discussed emotions are hard! don't think abou them in a healthy way!) I DO think every time she allows herself to think about "what is this connection, where is it going, what does it mean?" part of her is like "you're over complicating this-- there's probably some version of you in every castle/town/whatever this guy stops at w/ his deranged dad and you are NOT special and this is NOT different!" and i think some of that may be reinforced post Amira's Terrifying Tea Party when she figures out smth was happening w/ Eithne and she's like "oh okay, so that's his country lady he probably walks around w/ having some version of the same conversation!" (honestly the pair of them both having versions of 'oh, i thought this was something, guess its not..' is...so perfect) and she's like 'im obviously the lady entertainment when he's stuck in the castle!'

But then there are those moments where is DOES seem different and its enough to keep her coming back and trying to figure it out! i think hes right sometimes abt how she feels-- there were def moments where she's like "i want to hurt him, he deserves this, he could have stood up to his father and stopped this if he cared!" but i do think those have subded bc she realizes, again, this is not black and white and he actually has things he has to consider that SHE would consider, too! --namely his family!

plus, adding to that, there's everything I said about her realizing the manipulation is working-- i think she's confused if its working bc of ACTUAL feelings/emotions or if its working because he's kinda dumb and is just easily lead-- deep down she KNOWS its option one, hence why she feels the guilt about potentially doing something that would hurt him! and then adding in a rather, i think, fundamental shift in their views towards themselves/each other with his SHOCKINGLY DEEP AND INTROSPECTIVE confession about his views on his possible fate! i think beyond the whole "holy crap!" of the moment, it resonated w/ her in an unexpected way bc she's grappling with who she going to be in the world now that her whole purpose (helping Eilia as she rules Astaira!) has been taken away and while I think she's desperately trying to fill that void w/ her mission to save the guardians (also can we talk about the amount of pressure she is putting on HERSELF with this? oof), in the event there isn't a catastrophic event caused by the fall of the guardians, she doesn't know what her future is? is she stuck in this castle the rest of her life? does roderick finally off her when he's fed up with astaira being a problem? its not necessarily the same as arthur w/ his sole purpose in life to be emperor for his fate/his family's fate, but i think she sees some sort of connection there as well.

but now here we are and i realized that she's processing these emotions (poorly) on top of the 'you're a bastard, surprise!' announcement + amira's tea party so she's probably just... mad at arthur for reasons that aren't his fault + maybe has been ignoring him for awhile now? bc emotions & she doesn't want to hurt him & his father hurt her & did i mention... the emotions?

also if anyone made it this far WHY and I"M SORRY.

#about

[leolithe]

this has been sitting in my drafts forever so i'm just gonna post it!!! these are my Plural Lotus headcanons that are Integral to my interpretation of them

Lotus represents balance while Natah and Margulis represent extremes, but she also represents Acceptance in The Sacrifice. So it makes sense that Lotus is the most passive, or "watching and waiting" one of the three

Lotus is also the most withdrawn and cautious one because she's the one who holds the trauma of every event leading to The New War. From her kidnapping in Apostasy Prologue, she was Lotus-turned-Margulis. From the Sacrifice to her death in New War, she was Lotus-turned-Natah.

After holding back Wally, Lotus fainting was a direct result of realising that the war was over. That she was finally free. That she could finally get the rest she desperately needed. And her entire body took that realisation and completely shut down. The need for rest was that dire.

This is when Natah and Margulis start to awaken. In the epilogue, when the Operator and Drifter are asking Lotus Radiant questions, Natah and Margulis also answer at the same time, each with their own insight and inflections. This is what leads to Lotus saying that she hears voices.

Natah was just as dead as Margulis when her body was reprogrammed. (Jovian Concord monologue: "I became a memory, a ghost"). Therefore, Lotus was formed from a blank slate of a (powerful) Sentient husk and Margulis' memory.

Natah, being the Sentient body personified, is able to access everyone's memories at will. She can also read everyone's minds, while still being able to focus perfectly on the present/outer world. She uses this to watch over Lotus and monitor her wellbeing.

Natah hates accessing or reading Margulis' mind though. She does not enjoy the imperfect, inaccurate, messy nature of Human memory. So she leaves Margulis alone for the most part.

Because she sees everyone's memories, Natah is the first to realize that she was formed to protect the Lotus. She takes the role of prosecutor, and she's very fiercely protective. Natah places much more weight in remembering the trauma rather than suppressing it like Margulis did.

Margulis is someone Lotus remembers for caring for and loving the Tenno, so she was formed with the intent of having a caretaker in the Lotus system. She's best at grounding Lotus, whispering soothing words to her and generally being a gentle and comforting presence.

There is very clear friction between the way Natah and Margulis handle their roles. Natah's decisiveness can be pushed into being cutthroat and stubborn, and Margulis' healing can veer into unrealistic idealism. Natah doesn't like how Margulis encourages Lotus to neglect her traumatic memories, and Margulis doesn't like Natah's insistence on forcing her to remember. They both think the other is pushing back Lotus' progress; Natah by intentionally surfacing painful memories and Margulis by exposing Lotus' weak points to the same aggressor again.

Very much a fight between, "If you don't remember how it damaged you, it will always happen again" vs "It will never happen again, you're safe and free to live like it never did"

Natah vs Margulis isn't only about Power vs Healing/Destroying the enemy vs Protecting your allies... it's about Remembrance vs Oblivion in regards to distress and trauma.

Lotus gets intermittently pulled around by these two for a while, until Margulis' comforting lies become unignorable and Natah's ruthlessness becomes unbearable. And when Lotus finally snaps and asserts herself to them... it's a wake up slap to both Natah and Margulis. This marks the point where they start quietly trying to work together... pushing past their rivalry to then FINALLY. Explore each other's bodies. Sentient-Human headmate style.

Thank you for reading. I can go on and on but I'm just gonna leave u with the mental image of Lotus walking in on Natah and Margulis having ravenous floor sex because they've actually never fucked a woman in their lives and they're not normal about it

#warframe #plural lotus #leoframe #warframe lotus #margulis #natah #the lotus #the new war spoilers #natahgulis

[fae-morrigan]

Nah because why are you only mentioning Kenan and John Henry when pointing out the racism in the Superfam fandom? I checked their tags on your account. You have next to no posts about just discussing their characters and stories. The only times you mention Nat is to prop up your faves. So don't go acting all mighty and progressive because you also mostly ignore their existence. There is a problem in the Superfam fandom when it comes to poc and how often they get ignored, but bringing those poc only to try and appear better than someone else makes you part of the problem. Unless I'm missing some essays about Kenan's growth from a bully to a hero, what it means for John Henry to be a human hero in a city full of Supers and Nat following her uncle's example on your account, then you are no better than the ones you criticize. You need to get off your high horse and stop mentioning poc only when it's convenient. You are just being performative. It's clear those are characters you don't care about. Such a shame though, all three are really interesting.

Hi Chris Kent fan! I know its you. You've been harassing me and several other of my mutuals for the last week, and considering you are using the same rhetoric here you've used unsuccessfully on my mutuals, it really isn't hard to tell who would feel devoted enough to say this.

There are three things that are hilarious about this ask.

My primary fandom presence isn't on tumblr. I am actually on this website the least: So yes, you HAVE missed on a TON of essays about these two and how I feel about them, because you don't actually know me and you haven't even seen MOST of the things I have to say about DC comics as a whole. My primary fandom presence is on the Supertruth discord server which several of the people I am defending in this weird little flame war of yours are part of (hi @ultfreakme!) and have seen me talk about these characters and their stories at length. You do not know me well enough to assert whether or not I like a character by doing a cursory search of my blog.

Your little 'character blurbs' that are supposed to display your DEEP INTIMATE KNOWLEDGE of these characters, SUPERIOR TO MINE, are really shallow and innaccurate. Like, fanon levels of summarization. John Henry's character has very little to do with being a human in a town of supers nowadays and is largely focused on his complicated relationship with the military Industrial Complex (see Superwoman, Steelworks) as an inventor of supertechnology, Natasha is WAY more than just the nephew of John (SHE WAS PART OF THE AUTHORITY) and in fact a huge part of her presence in 52 was escaping out from under John's shadow, not following in his footsteps. You get the closest with Kenan: Yeah, he was a bully turned Super, that's absolutely the pitch GLY was using to sell Kenan as a character, but is that ALL he is to you? You're not going to mention his whole story also being a double for criticism of the Chinese government? His conflict with his parents and struggling to figure out what 'doing good' even means? What about Baixi, Deilan? (That enough analysis for you to be satisfied with some arbitrary level of 'caring'?)

The 'favorite character' in question you are accusing me of using these poc to prop up is Jay Fucking Nakamura, A MAN OF COLOR, AND ALSO A SUPERFAM CHARACTER YOU FUCKERS EXCLUDE ON THE REGULAR. He is an asian indigenous man IN THE TEXT and he is the DC character I post about THE MOST on this website. It is SUPER funny to accuse me of what, using POC to uplift the... other poc...? Thats based of me, I had no idea I was doing it! Like seriously saying this while Jay is my PFP is CRAZY funny. Do you HEAR yourself? And don't start on the "well jay isn't superfam!' nonsense because PAUL KAMINSKI, GROUP EDITOR FOR THE SUPERFAMILY, HAS SAID HE IS. But when have YOU guys cared about what the media you claim to like actually says, aye?

But lets say none of the above is true. Lets say you were right and I was just PRETENDING to care about some of my favorite characters in the entire DC franchise because... because of woke?

It doesn't change the fact that literally less than 24 hours ago you were in my inbox trying to argue that posting 'kent family' as opposed to 'superfamily' was a great Get Out of Jail Free card for excluding characters of color. It doesn't change the fact that you guys repeatedly include Chris over the canon POC within the superfamily. It doesn't change the fact that calling that behavior out is NECESSARY, regardless on if a person 'posts enough' about the characters they're trying to defend from fandom racism. It doesn't change the fact that, according to you 'agreeing' with me in this ask, you decided that picking a fight with someone who made a point you agreed with was somehow the best course of action.

But you don't agree, do you? And that's kind of what its been about all along. The fandom love of Chris Kent is changing as people notice that he is, a) not a good character b) consistently favored over better non-white characters c) repeatedly used as a tool in arguments to put other characters within the superfam down. And now that people are calling this what it is- white favoritism- you are feeling attacked because you are attached to Chris but NOT to these characters people are now pushing. So you are scrambling for reasons to tell people who express these thoughts that they're actually the bigoted ones in some way. What does that accomplish other than squashing long overdue discussions of fandom racism?

I'm not here for it. You can fuck right off.

#salt posting #fanwank #asks #Seriously anon. What did you hope to accomplish here other than stopping me from saying things you dont like? #I'm not gonna! #You are going to have to sit with the fact that you have decided THIS of ALL HILLS is the hill to die on. And its a real shitty hill.

[el-255]

I’m not sure if this has been said before but I find it very interesting how differently the writers of persona handled Junpei’s character in comparison to Ryuji’s. With the role of the mc’s best friend and mostly comic relief, I find the two of them to be the most similar personality wise compared to either of them with Yosuke so this analysis will only be discussing the parallels and differences in the way the story handles Junpei and Ryuji respectively.

To me, Junpei is handled pretty sensitively by the writers (not as much as he could be or should be, but still a lot more than most would expect given his trope); he’s given a lot of character with the introduction of Chidori and we see how he grows to like her as he gets to know her. I’ll admit it’s been a while since I played 3 so take this with a grain of salt but from what I recall, his and Chidori’s relationship gets quite a bit of screen time and development in the main story in a way that gives us a different perspective of how Junpei normally operates around the other members of SEES. With Chidori, he isn’t the class clown or the idiot of SEES, he’s simply a teenage boy who falls for a teenage girl. To me, there’s not much more humanising than that. After her presumed death, Junpei loses it and sinks into a depression, and when he finds out she’s alive, albeit her memory lost, he does his best to help her recover and grapples with the moral implications of her regaining her memory. (I think at least one can’t really remember).

This relationship is important to the story and gives us another, much more sympathetic view of Junpei’s character who, up to this point in the game, had mostly been kept in a box marked “comic relief pervert”. You root for Junpei and Chidori’s relationship because it is clearly shown how much Junpei adores her and not once after he meets her does he stray from this love for her.

It’s not only Chidori’s character that makes Junpei’s character more sensitive either, I find that his general personality and relationships with other characters to be handled better as well.

We have his friendship with Yukari (aka Yuka-tan) which I’ll begin by saying also isn’t perfect, Junpei oftentimes falls into the perverted trope so many of the male characters fall into (such is life with Atlus) and he definitely makes comments towards her that most friends wouldn’t and yeah that isn’t good, but I think Yukari gives it back just as much as Junpei dishes it out and never takes him too seriously. I get the impression that that’s just how their friendship works, it’s a constant push and pull, a give and take between them, they both take every opportunity they get to tease each other mercilessly and it works. It doesn’t feel one sided in the way that Ryuji’s interactions with other members of the phantom thieves tend to feel but I’ll get more into that later. His friendship with Yukari may not be the most noteworthy part of his character, but it’s something I think deserves a bit of credit all things considered.

He matures so much over the game and generally becomes more serious and methodical as the story progresses but in a way that is still undeniably Junpei. That’s a difficult feat to accomplish when dealing with certain characters and I think Atlus does well to make these changes happen in a pretty organic way.

Junpei isn’t a perfect character, he has his flaws and shortcomings, but out of all the bro characters from 3-5, I think that the writers of 3 deserve more merit for handling Junpei’s character arc in a way that actually feels like he’s grown by the end of the game.

I could not say the same for Ryuji.

I will preface this by saying that I love Ryuji, I think he’s a neat little guy and I think the writers did him so dirty in 5 when they clearly had the capacity to do so much more as we’ve seen already with Junpei.

Ryuji is filled to the brim of wasted potential as a character, his backstory is only barely brushed on with a few throwaway comments about his dad being abusive towards him and his mother, his abuse by Kamoshida who literally breaks his leg is barely brought up after Kamoshida’s arc, and the trauma he suffers from is never the focus of the story compared to how other characters like Yusuke, Futaba, and Ann’s are. Of course, trauma isn’t a competition and all the party members in 5 have dealt with awful shit but the point is that all of them rightfully get the opportunity to be angry about it at some point in the main story or in their social links, Ryuji doesn’t. Ryuji instead gets beat up by pretty much the entire cast of 5, is constantly belittled by the party members, and is basically treated like shit and the butt of the joke throughout the entire game.

I don’t think I even need to bring up that scene because I know everyone feels the same way about it, but I will because it’s a necessary part of this analysis. That scene haunts me, not only is it the unfunniest thing that’s played for jokes I’ve ever seen in a game, but it’s quite possibly the biggest controversy I know of in the persona fandom.

The implications of a teenage boy who was abused by his father and his teacher thinking he’s found a safe haven in the phantom thieves because they all know how shitty adults can be and yeah they insult him but they’d never actually purposefully try and hurt him, right? Only to find that they would hurt him and pretty severely after he risked his life to save theirs because they’re his best friends and he loves them is horrendous and incredibly insensitive to everyone out there who has dealt with similar circumstances. The joke he plays isn’t funny, but I take it as Ryuji trying to lighten the mood the only way he knows how and even if he was insensitive to Ann and the rest of the team who are mourning him, he does not deserve to get beaten to a pulp by the very people he almost killed himself to rescue. They don’t even fucking apologise to him, it’s all just brushed under the rug and never so much as brought up again !!!

The scene didn’t need to make the cut at all, especially with the rerelease in royal, but it did and it’s honestly astonishing that with all the backlash it received, that they didn’t just cut it entirely. And if they really had to keep the scene in the game, let him be angry about it. Let Ryuji go off at the team for beating him up after he saves all of their lives. Let Ryuji tell Joker that he expected more from him as his best friend. Let the team have to jump through hoops to gain Ryuji’s forgiveness because it’s what he deserves.

Not only this, but in comparison to Junpei, Ryuji doesn’t get as much growth in his character arc. Throughout the game, Ryuji largely stays the same which honestly isn’t really an issue, not everyone has to change dramatically and drastically to be a compelling character, but he doesn’t change at all. Honestly, from the start to the end of 5, I could barely tell you a difference between the Ryuji we see. Like I said, I don’t need a drastic change, it doesn’t suit some characters, but Ryuji isn’t given any sort of growth by the writers and any he is given feels forced because he genuinely isn’t given any of the spotlight outside of Kamoshida’s arc unlike with Junpei.

It makes me angry because like I said, the writing was already there with Junpei, they had the capacity to write Ryuji in the same sympathetic way they did with him but they chose not to !! They chose to leave Ryuji as a character who you have no choice but to take at face value because he’s not given any more than that.

In conclusion: the writers dropped the ball with Ryuji and I’m mad about it, Junpei is a good character and I’ll fight anyone who disagrees, and Yosuke is Yosuke and I mourn his cut romance route every day.

#persona series #persona #persona 3 #persona 5 #junpei iori #ryuji sakamoto #character study #character analysis #tldr is that junpei=written well ryuji=doomed by the writers #yes i have cried thinking about that scene with ryuji #it makes me so mad #i love both junpei and ryuji #might go replay persona 3 #this is really long so I wouldn’t blame anyone who just scrolls past #persona 5 royal #persona 5 ryuji #persona 3 junpei #spoliers #ig?? the games have been out for years now and if you’re willingly reading a character analysis knowing you’re gonna get spoiled? #you’re the problem

[pixlatedvampire]

You gave those wounds to your god, Enki. Did you think they would heal so easily?

(Uh Oh! Someone gave the priest catholic guilt!)

#fear and hunger #enki ankarian #fear and hunger enki #funger #digital art #csp #illustration #my art #pixel art #enki #hiiiiiiiiiiii so fear and hunger is great! #played it for 4 hours last night for the first time and I love it 🥰 I’ve made a half hours progress lol #I keep losing the save coin tosses #I can’t believe this is what it took to make my art brain turn back on smh it’s patho all over again 🤣 #not surprisingly enki is my fav immediately a sickly rude wizard priest? yeah that’s my number lol #fun fact I edited a wiki for the first time while making this #his page didn’t have his crucifixion dialogue and I couldn’t find a transcript anywhere #so I had to go find a video with the scene so I could transcribe it myself #and I was so annoyed by the end I added it to the wiki 😂 hopefully I did it right I copied the format of the rest of the page #(note that I didn’t even own the game at this point akkajdksdj) #also! this is partially based on a fic I read! it got me thinking about how he’s walking around w stigmata #also part of why I even knew there was crucifixtion dialogue #I’ll link it in a reblog I don’t remember the name rn #oh wait should I tag this for blood? idk #tw blood #insects