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bangtaninborderland · 10 months

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NIRAGI: Consent

Summary: You don’t feel too good about trying something new, luckily Niragi takes the time to listen, his solution bringing you comfort.

Genre: smut, comfort, 18+, requested.

A/N: this was a small idea I had for request that gave a very vague description, I hope you like it! It’s not too long but I thought it was cute, remember consent and through discussions are sexy.

Warning: fingering, kink discussion, edging.

Alice In Boderland Masterlist

"Where are yo-" Niragi stopped in the doorway, mouth shaped in an o as he looks at you crying.

"I'm sorry." You sobbed, holding the rope he had asked you to get. "I can't."

"Can't?" He shook his head, padding over to you.

The bed sink a little as he sat beside you, arm pulling you in for a hug. "Come here, baby. Talk to me.”

“I wanted to try it for you, I know how much you like that stuff I just don’t know how to stop panicking every time I think about being restrained.” You explained through a series of heavy breaths, the scent of his cologne calming you somewhat.

“Pretty girl, what am I going to do with you hm? You wanted to please me so bad that you wanted to try something even when you were scared?” He chuckled, reaching to brush your tears from your face.

You nodded, leaning further into him. “I wanted to be good I really did, I just… I can’t.”

He pulled you into his lap, securing his arms around you. The warmth of his frame pressed against yours only brought you a sense of comfort you were desperate for. “The thing about bondage and kinks darling is that they are supposed to be enjoyable, you can still be good and not be ready to try things that make you feel sad or uncomfortable. I would never expect you to do something that made you feel uncomfortable in a bad way.”

“I know you like it though.” You sniffled, your head resting against his collarbone. “I don’t like it when we can’t do the things you like because you’re so good to me, you take care of me and I want to do that for you too.”

“Doll, look at me.” He breathed, hand coming up to guide your chin, smiling when your gaze landed on him. “There’s an awful lot that you do for me, when you give me your trust during a scene you’re doing something for me, when you cheer me up on a bad day you’re doing a lot for me, your presence, your laugh, even our conversations does a lot for me. In the past, I wasn’t the best with my anger but having you here helped, I learned to be a better man because I had you. Don’t ever downplay what you’ve done or who you are because you can’t do one thing, one thing that, in comparison to all the other amazing things you’ve done, is nothing.”

“It’s just…” you trailed off, trying to find the right words. “I want you to be happy with me, I don’t want you to think I’m incapable.”

He hummed, finger tapping against your leg. “Do you trust me, baby?”

You nodded instantly. “With my life.” You firmed your voice, wanting to show how much you meant the declaration.

“Lay down.” He motioned to the bed, helping you off his lap.

You laid the way he directed you, head on the pillow.

He gave you a smile. “Now hold your hands above your head and don’t let go of the headboard.”

You followed his request, gripping it tightly. “I won’t let go.”

You watched as he trailed his hands up and down your thighs, goosebumps forming over your skin. “So pretty, so good baby.”

You preened at the praise, letting your eyes flutter closed as he continued moving. You tensed your legs as his hand slid under your shirt, finger tracing your nipple. “Look at you staying still, don’t even need ropes when you’re so good at listening.”

His touch mixed with the praise only served to encourage your arousal, but still, you remained in place, wanting to show him just how well you could behave. “Feel s’ good.”

“Remember be still sweetheart.” He whispered, his finger moving down to trace your pussy from the outside of your underwear. “Who does this belong to?”

“Y-you.” You stuttered. “Only yours.”

He hummed, pleased with your response. Your grip on the headboard tightened as he pushed your underwear to the side, finger sliding up and down your folds before dipping inside of your hole. “Fuck.” You nibbled at your lip, resisting the urge to buck your hips for more.

“So wet for me, who knew my baby could get turned on so easily?” He teased, slipping another finger in.

“More-more p-please.” You whined, knuckles turning white.

“Whatever you say doll.” He chuckled, fingers picking up the pace as he slid them in and out, curving them up now and again to brush against your g-spot.

You kept still and he fucked your cunt with his fingers, your moans growing from a small whimper to throaty grand, your toes clenching and unclenching. “Gonna-gonna cum.” You blabbered out, words slurred.

He pumped his fingers into you a few more times, bringing your orgasm to the edge just one more and you’d-

Your eyes shot open as he removed his fingers, wiping them on a nearby cloth. “Wh-what?” You felt your orgasm slipping away, still not daring to move.”

“Relax darling, deep breaths. You’re going to sit there and not move, don’t touch, I’ll be right back.” You knew he wanted you to let your orgasm go, forgetting the idea of having one today. Despite how desperate you felt to just rub your thighs together, how easy it would be to reach down and find the pleasure you were slowly losing you didn’t. You stayed still.

You were sure it had been at least 10 minutes when he came back into the room, a bottle of water in hand. “You can let go now, come to me.”

You crawled over to him, he had sat on the edge of the bed making it easier for you. He uncapped the water bottle pushing it to you. “Drink.”

You accepted it, only realising how dry your throat had got once the cool water slid down it. “Thank you.”

“Do you know why I asked you to do that?” He raised an eyebrow, taking the water bottle back from you before closing it and placing it on the floor. “Do you know why I told you to stay there?”

You shook your head, you knew he had a reason but it wasn’t entirely clear. “I didn’t need a piece of rope to keep you still, you listened so well and you didn’t move, you made me so proud. Despite the fact you could have moved you didn’t, you still submitted and followed what I had instructed you to do. That’s a thousand times more satisfying than having you tied up.”

You let the words settle in your mind, he was right, somehow you understood the way it made him feel. “I really wanted to show you I could be good.” You explained, wanting to make up for your inability to be tied.

“You’re always good, when something pushes your limits I will never force you to do it. I will never force you into an uncomfortable situation for my own gain. There are always options and other things that can be tried.” It was moments like these, tired from playing, his hand running through your hair as you laid your head on his thigh where everything just felt right, felt perfect.

“You edged me.” You simplified. “You edged me, you gave me the ability to take what I wanted but you knew I wouldn’t.”

“Correct baby.” He laughed. “You did so good, I knew you’d listen.”

“How did you know I didn’t…you left the room.” You outed, turning to look up at him.

“I stayed by the doorway, I’d never leave you during a scene.” His smile turns a little more serious. “I’ll always be here for you.”

“I love you.” You smile, tucking your face away against him.

He leans down placing a kiss on your head. “I love you too pretty girl.”

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am-i-the-asshole-official · 7 months

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AITA for making my family spend extra unnecessary money on soap? TL;DR at the end.

Warning: This is gross, or at least it is to me. Either way don't read while eating.

I'm sort of a "clean freak", if that's a thing. I wouldn't say I'm a germophobe (it's not like I'd be qualified for diagnosing it either) but I certainly have some fears and tendencies that I don't notice in others, like panicking and holding my breath until I leave a room that someone has sneezed in, covering my whole face and looking away when someone coughs, refusing to interact with people who caught a cold, washing my hands before and after doing anything, etc. I'm not sure of what I'm scared of specifically, I'm not scared of developing an illness (serious or not) or anything. But that's just for context.

So, here's where the issue arises: my family and I use the same bathroom. I noticed that the bar soap in the shower often has hair sticking to it. Pubic hair, of course. Sometimes the walls have (not pubic) hair too, heck, even the shampoo bottles. I can't live like that, I hate to be dramatic but I can't stand how gross it is to me. And I know that in many of these situations no one is bad enough to be an asshole, there just needs to be some communication and the problem will be solved, but as entitled as it may sound I don't think a 16 y/o should be the one teaching basic hygiene to a 40 y/o couple.

I've come up with a solution. Here, bar soap comes in packets of 3-5 individual bars, so whenever they replace the soap I take another one from the packet and keep it to myself until it's literally gone. And when it is gone, I take another one, which results in soap being consumed twice as fast as it normally would be. My mom has noticed it, and while I haven't told her it's me, we've all heard her complaining about how someone keeps wasting the soap away.

My stepfather makes the money in the house, and we're above the average family economically speaking. My mom and I have dealt with financial issues all our lives until she got into this relationship. I get why she's money-paranoid, and so am I, but I'm way more hygiene-paranoid than money-paranoid.

TL;DR: Our bathroom soap often has hair in it and I find it gross, so I use a separate soap bar that my parents pay for without telling them or anyone.

So, am I the asshole?

What are these acronyms?

#aita #am i the asshole

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blurblicalscripture · 2 years

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my shy girl

warnings/ SMUTTTTT, weed, unprotected sex (don't fucking do itttt)

pairing/ eddiemunsonxshy!fem!reader

summary/ y/n likes eddie. eddie likes y/n. she's too shy to make the first move, he's too oblivious to make the first move. like most things in eddie's life, [the purchasing of] weed ends up being the solution to the problem

The picnic bench wobbles as you bounce your leg, only steadying as he sits down across from you. "Ah, my favourite customer."

Your palm is sweaty from the bundled up cash you're holding. You squeak out a "Hey."

"So, the usual?" he chirps, digging through for the little baggie. You hum out a "mhmm." You aren't interested in the weed at all as your eyes wander to Eddie. You enjoy the clink of his rings against the metal box, song-like.

A hand waves in front of you. "Earth to y/n?" He lilts.

"Oh, yeah, sorry. What?" You shake your head, still a little fuzzy.

He huffs a laugh. "I said that's twenty five, if you would be so kind." He holds the bag out to you in one hand, his other an open palm, elbows on the table. You flatten out the cash, hand it to him.

It should be thirty. He knows, you know. But you can't argue this with him again. You've lost count of how many times you had lost that battle. "You're my most loyal customer, y/n." He'd say. "It's only fair."

He clasps it in his palm, theatrical. "Pleasure doing business with ya," he says, shoving the cash in his little box and beginning to stand.

"English!" you blurt, a hand coming straight to your cheek. You sort of yelled, but it's Eddie, and he isn't exactly jarred by weird.

"English." He repeats, his tone a lullaby compared to yours. He lowers back on the bench. "What about it?"

"Uh, the english project." You swallow. "I heard that you could use some help."

He taps a finger on his lips, feigned thinking, eyes wandering to the sky above. "That I could."

"Well you obviously don't have to but if you want we can work on it at my house and my parents aren't at home and it'll be quiet. But it's up to you cause I'm sure you have better things—"

He waves his hands. "Y/n." You look at him and shut up, eyes wide. "That sounds good." He draws out the words, slow and measured, as if to reassure you. "I have my van if you want a ride." He points his thumb toward the parking lot, the corners of his lips quirked up softly.

"Yeah, okay." You smile gingerly, grabbing your books. "Did you maybe want to get your textbook from your locker first?"

He chuckles, keeps walking to the van. "I uh, I don't exactly have a textbook for this class. Or any class."

"Oh, right. Well you can use mine if you want."

He stops at the van "Ever so kind, y/n." and opens the passenger door for you.

His van is comfy, same as always. He plays music that's a little loud—not too much, but it makes you feel lively, the bass and drums in your chest—and you even find yourself singing along.

He turns down the volume, Paranoid fades into the background. "You like Black Sabbath? How am I only finding this out now?"

"Oh, um, yeah, and my dad likes 'em too. Paranoid is like one of my favourite albums." You fish in your bag and pull out a cassette tape. "I made this new mix a couple weeks ago actually."

He takes it from your hand, glancing between it and the road. You tense at that, fingers digging into the leather of the seat, but he keeps driving smoothly. He runs his thumb over the neat handwriting.

"Mötley Crüe, Iron Maiden and Metallica! Shit, y/n, I think I've met my match."

"Your partner in crime," you quip.

"The Bonnie to my Clyde."

You both giggle at that. "Don't tell me you're a burglar now. We're going to my house!"

He chuckles. "Speaking of which it's this way, yeah?"

"Almost. Next turn in." You point to the entryway.

"Right, right. I was a little high the last time I was here." He says.

"A little?" You scoff. "You ran over my mom's rhododendrons. I had to tell her it was the neighbour's dog."

"I'll get her new flowers," he huffs.

"No, you won't."

"No, I won't." He's grinning like an idiot.

You room isn't terribly messy but you scramble to shove the pens, books and notebooks off your bed and onto the desk. He has given you a ride home before but never dared enter. You never dared to ask him in.

"Sorry, I was up studying last night," you murmur as you neaten up. There are a couple cans of red bull on the pillow and you sweep them into the little trash bin. You opt to leave the cassettes and walkman on the bed.

"I would say I get what you mean but I'm not exactly renowned for my studious tendencies." He glances over at the books like they're written in another language. "But I have had my fair share of all-nighters."

"Playing at The Hideout until dawn then passing out in your van after does not count." You joke. He laughs and your stomach jumps.

"Right. So, where do we start with this project." He moves over to the bed, sitting close as you flip through the textbook. Your thighs touch.

"Well, we have to argue here that Othello's downfall is his own fault, not Iago's." You point out each character, explaining with your hands. He watches closely.

"And on the other hand we have to argue that Desdemona isn't as innocent as people assume she is. Then we tie both arguments together to explain the tragedy."

"Ok. Lead the way." He says.

About two hours later you're surrounded by half-eaten snacks, more empty Redbulls and a stack of various tapes.

"This Othello guy, he really loves that Desdemaria."

"It's Desdemona. And loves?" You drop the flash cards onto the bed. "He literally kills her." You chuckle.

"Well, yeah, but only cause he was so mad that she betrayed him." His tone is light, as if he's still pondering. "And he did it to redeem her, you know, so she could go to heaven or whatever. That's kind of love, right?" He rests his chin on his palm, knees crossed up on the bed.

"That's kind of beautiful, Eds. And brilliant. Write that down," you order, gesturing with a pen. He can't help his laugh, murmuring a subtle 'okay bossy.'

"What was that?"

"Nothingggg," he drawls, scribbling down the note. "Now, this is officially the longest I have ever sat down and worked so I think it's time for a break."

He gets up before you can stop him and walks over to the shelf with books, CDs, cassettes; all of your junk.

"This is cute," he says, holding up a framed photo of you and a sad looking, very wet cat. "Yellow galoshes were very in back then."

"Totally, but Bat wasn't a big fan of the rain. Hated getting his ears wet."

"Bat?" He sets back down the frame ever so gently. "Interesting name for a kitty." You continue to speak as he looks through the book titles, nerves in your stomach mixed with some other warm feeling. There's something intimate about having Eddie look around your room.

"I couldn't say my Cs when I was little." You laugh. "He kind of suited it though. He had little flabby bits under his arms that looked like wings." You gesture to your underarm, jiggle it a little. He chuckles.

"There's a cat just like that living under my trailer." He scans the highest shelf as he speaks, balanced on his toes. "I just call her Mews though. Sometimes she'll come up and— wait, what is this?"

You startle off the bed, terrified of what he has found. "Oh, God, what?"

He holds out a sizeable bag of weed.

"Oh, I-" you start.

"If you needed me to teach you how to roll up you should have just asked," he says, fishing for some papers in his pocket. "Can't believe you've been buying from me all this time and haven't smoked any of it." He's shaking his head but smiling nonetheless.

"Oh, it's okay, Eddie. I...I don't smoke." You place a palm over his hands, stop him from peeling open the bag. Suddenly you feel overwhelmingly guilty, your voice gets smaller. "You can have it back if you want. Sorry if I wasted your time." You stare at your shoes.

He puts the bag on the shelf. "You could never." You look at him now, his eyes honeyed brown. "Like I said, you're my favourite customer, but that's not cause you bought so much weed." He's grinning, laughing airily. "Like, a ridiculous amount of weed. But really. You're great to talk to, y'know."

"Really?"

"Sure thing. That, and the fact that you look real pretty when we do talk. You get all flustered and shy." He's smirking.

"Shut up." You shove his arm. "Let's finish this dumb project."

You sit a little closer now, knees crossed under you both and nearly touching as you swap pages of notes to read. But none of it is going in. The words are buzzing on your tongue.

"Eddie?"

He looks up at you.

"I like to talk to you, too."

He shuffled closer, your knees touch. The cutouts on his jeans line up just right; you're skin to skin.

"That's good to know," he drawls, shit eating smirk plastered across both cheeks that fades as fast as it had appeared. "But wait, why the weed?"

You flush from the neck upwards. "Didn't know how else to talk to you," you mumble, but he hears you. "It's also why I kept coming to the Hideout."

"Ohhh, see now that makes sense. Lovely thing like you doesn't belong in that dump." His fingers play with the straggly bits of his ripped jeans, knuckles brushing your knee. He moves his hand up, barely grazing your thigh. "I can't believe you did all that just to talk to me."

You cover your eyes with your fingertips, press hard. "It's dumb, I know," you say. But he doesn't think so.

Eddie takes your wrists, slides his hands up so his palms are against yours. His fingers are warm, calloused and smooth.

"It's not. It's really not." He says, leaning forward.

You whisper "Eddie." And close your eyes.

"Tell me to stop and I'll stop."

You press your lips to his. They're wet, plump from his nibbling. Your hands come to the nape of his neck, hold onto the hair tight. He shudders, pulls back.

"Have you done anything like this before?" His voice is achingly soft, a little higher than you expect. His fingers come to hold your face, thumbs pressed into the space under your eye. You could laugh, cry, shout into the pillows.

"Uh, not with anybody. I tried by myself before but I couldn't figure out how to..." you trail off.

"That's okay. You want to?"

You nod.

"Words please, shy girl," his thumb swipes over your lip.

"Yes, Eddie. Yes."

His hands move to the hem of your shirt. "Can I?" He waits. You lift your arms over your head.

Your bra has a little pink bow right at the centre, but the lining is black. He's hard already. "This just for me?" he asks.

"Uh, kind of," you're smiling a little through the words. "Wear stuff like this normally anyway though. It's soft, see." You, ever so innocent, bring his hand up to feel the band under your arm, just before the cup.

"It is. You're beautiful, though. Don't need this thing." His hands slide back to the clasp. "Can I?"

You breathe out a "yeah."

Not long after he's between your legs and similarly in a state of undress, his tongue flicking at your clit, just one finger working your pulpy walls open but it has you keening.

Your skin is balmy, hands resting on your ribs as you watch him over your rising and falling chest. "Can you cum for me, pretty girl? It'll be easier if you cum first," he says, "if you want to do that part today." He pauses and you whine.

"Yes, please. P-please, Eddie, don't stop." Your hands find his hair, scratching at his scalp. Your back arches up as he adds another finger, cooing at your little sounds of pleasure.

"Such a good girl, gonna give it to me now, yeah?" He sucks harsh on the bead of your clit, tongue pressed flat against it inside his mouth.

"Yes, Eddie, I-ah!" You moan, high in the back of your throat, breaths heavy and quick. Your legs shudder, closing on his head, and he laughs into your cunt, pushing one thigh back out with his free hand.

"Fuck, babydoll, there you are. That's it," he praises as he lays off your clit when you squeal, still gently stroking his fingers up, up, up inside your fluttering walls.

You clasp his cheeks between your hands, bring him up to your face. You're still a little breathless when you ask for a kiss. He happily gives it to you.

Against his lips you plead "Eddie, I want you inside, please. 'M ready now, promise."

He's scooping you up then, both arms steady around your back, and puts you in his lap. Your legs are spread over his, though he's still in his boxers and you tug at the band.

"Off, please."

"So needy. Who knew my shy girl had it in her, hmm?" You do your best to hover over him on shakey legs as he shuffles the boxers off, wiggles them down his legs.

"You ok to be on top? Want you to go at your own pace," he says, hands firm on your waist. You nod at him, baby hairs stuck to your wet forehead.

His eyes are soft, caring, something akin to adoration glimmering in them. "It's probably gonna hurt a little, okay, but not for long. You want to stop at all and we stop, okay? Don't try keep going, even for me."

You press your fingers into the back of his neck, interlocked. "I trust you, Eddie." You rest on his shoulder, suckle at his neck. You love the little purple hues left behind.

You go to move, hesitate. "Can you-I'm not sure how to..."

"Sh, it's okay, I'll talk you through it. Just sit up on your knees for a sec, okay." He takes one hand off your waist, lines himself up. Feeling his head swipe up and down your slit has your knees already buckling. His grip on your flesh tightens.

"Ok. Now, slowly, sit down and take whatever you can. Doing so good for me." He kisses your cheek.

You look down and watch as you lower yourself, knees a little creaky. The second his tip breaches your entrance you yelp, a sharp pinch that had you squeezing your eyes shut.

"You're okay, breathe for me, gorgeous," Eddie says, both hands now on your hips, holding you steady. You heave a breath, sink down more and more.

You relax as the full feeling of Eddie being inside you takes over. He feels heavy inside you, not too thick but enough that your walls can pleasantly squeeze around him.

He's groaning the whole time, lips on your temple murmuring praises into the skin. The second you're fully seated you both gasp, the stretch and depth of him becoming comfortable inside you.

"Shit, you feel perfect inside. So soft and warm." He lets out little grunts, trying to stay as still as he can. You rock your hips forward, clit catching his pubic bone.

"Ah, Eddie! Fuck. So deep." You keep up the rocking, little moans at the beginning of each breath. Eddie's mouth drinks them down.

You stop for a second, walls clenching tight around him. "Is-does it feel ok for you?"

"Yeah, it's better than I could ever even imagine, babe." He brushes hair off your forehead. You wanna try something else?" He moves his hands to your back, slides down to hold the back of your thighs. "Try bounce a little, okay?"

You do as you're told, the drag of his cock along your walls is heavenly. He hisses between his teeth. "Shit, that's it, that's really fucking good, babe."

You lean back on your knees for better leverage and suddenly he's hitting your sweet spot every single time. You nearly scream, clamping a hand over your mouth. Eddie is quick to hold your wrist.

"Nuh uh, lovely girl, want you to make some of those wicked little sounds for me, yeah?" He places two fingers on your clit, pressing down and rubbing quick.

"Oh, Eddie, I think I'm gonna—oh fuck!" You bounce down hard and heavy on his cock as you cum, grip like a vice around him. He laughs underneath you, a sound of pure joy. "Shit, that's fucking insane," he pants.

You nearly slump forward on him but he pushes you back instead, guiding you to lay down. He pulls out slow as you whimper, using your wetness to pump himself hard and fast. "Where'd you want me, pretty?"

Looking up at him with doe eyes you draw circles on your tummy with your fingertip. "Here, Eds, cum for me right here please?"

His eyes screw shut. "Ah-shit." It feels warm and wet on your stomach. You press a fingertip into the hot spurts, bring it to your tongue. Your eyes flutter shut and Eddie groans.

"You're full of surprises, y'know that." He collapses beside you, pulling you in close. "Beautiful, beautiful girl."

"Can I? Be your girl?" you ask, fingertips dancing up his arm.

"Course you can." He whispers into the shell of your ear "My wicked, shy girl."

Sorry that was LONGGGG but I hope u enjoy.

#eddie munson x reader #eddie munson smut #eddie munson stranger things #eddie stranger things #stranger things #eddie munson #eddie munson fluff #eddie x reader

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butch-reidentified · 1 year

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ima go ahead n answer both these at once if that's good w yall.

here's the referenced post for anyone who missed it.

I've posted a LOT about adoption before. feel free to search #adoption, #ethical adoption, #adoptee or #adopted, etc in my tags for those posts. if you can't find them bc Tumblr is shit at searching lmk and I will try to dig em up. I have a Google doc of organized/categorized Tumblr links because of the search function being such a joke

anyway that said. what I meant is that it is sooo obvious to most adoptees from a young age that it's a consumer industry and we are a product for sale. most of us who always knew we were adopted have that horrifying realization very very young, far too young to know how to deal with it. yes I am glad when other people figure this out too but it's a bit irritating for non adoptees to act like this is some mystical wisdom they alone could've uncovered when it's part of the trauma inherent to adoption to realize you were purchased 🤷

I'm not against adoption like some adoptees are, but I could write ESSAYS on my criticisms of the industry and how it SHOULD work. in fact, I have written essay length posts about it in the tags listed above. but ultimately nobody gives a fuck & NOBODY of any political orientation wants to hear that adoption perhaps isn't the utterly selfless flawless silver bullet solution to unwanted kids that everyone treats it as. yet statistically we KNOW most adoptees are extremely damaged by it, the research is there but nobody talks about it. nobody likes you if you talk about it. the walls go up real quick.

one of my favorite things is how adoption seems to be the ONE area that absolutely nobody respects lived material experience about. even loads of leftists/radfems who are always going on and on about the importance of listening to people's real, lived experiences will aggressively talk over us adoptees if we dare have the audacity to critique adoption/the adoption industry or acknowledge that it's fuckin traumatic even for an infant being yanked away from the only stimuli you knew for 9 months and put somewhere where you can't recognize yourself in anyone or anything for the next 18+ years. and that's best case scenario! scenario where they don't abuse you or spend your childhood guilt tripping you because they oh so selflessly took you in when nobody wanted you and now look how difficult you are, crying all the time n shit... just as 1 common experience I know many share from my own life and talking to other adoptees.

but nearly every time we try to talk about this, even if it has nothing to do with criticizing the adoption industry and we are JUST tryna get painful shit off our chest, some non adoptee or 8 is/are gonna jump down our throat (and often even say all the same shit our parents guilted us with as kids lmao)

it's also 1000% a feminist issue bc SO many mothers are forced into adopting out a kid they wanna keep, or adoption being available is used to justify forcing women to give birth instead of aborting an unwanted pregnancy when those women would otherwise choose the latter. not to mention the designer baby shit & the preference for white male babies... and the fact that it's human beings being literally sold as a good. Just because it's legal and isn't outright sex slavery or "forced labor" (tho adopted kids are so often viciously abused and often in those exact ways) doesn't make it right to buy or sell a human being, doesn't make it not human trafficking. & I say this as an adoptee who was ALSO trafficked as a teenager.

#mine #ask #anon ask #anon #ethical adoption #adopted #adoptee #adoption industry #legal trafficking

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anincompletelist · 6 months

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halloween, huh fic recs :D

so it's CRIMINAL how little time I've had to read fic lately, BUT I've been trying to catch up on some of the ones that I've missed! the halloween huh fest fics were revealed not too long ago, and I've been slowly working my way through them and wanted to share some of the ones I've loved lately!

you can find the complete list here, please be sure to go browse and bookmark the ones that look interesting, and send love to all of the authors and mods that put so much work and love into this fest!

[disclaimer: I will probably read and love ALL of the fics in this fest because I'm a sucker for anything halloween or au BUT I am a slow reader and these are just the ones I've completed so far :) enjoy, and happy reading!]

in order of reveals --

Incenatus | @missgeevious | E | 11k

Alex receives an invite to the hottest and most mysterious party in New York, but he's unprepared for what he finds there.

Night Class | @orchidscript | E | 12k

Alex how found the simplest solution for all the facts he had been presented. There were plenty of them to make sense of. Alex was taking the path of least resistance, accepting that whatever remained after all was stripped away must be the truth. June could laugh at him for the rest of time if she wanted. He was right. He knew he was right. He had to be right because nothing else on earth or in the universe made sense. Henry Fox — his smarmy, entitled, wealthy, bland, irritating neighbor — was a vampire. Alex knew it. He could prove it.

Freaky Friday (I woke up in my enemy's body) | @happiness-of-the-pursuit | M | 8k

“So he’s entered some weird-ass, stress-induced fever dream where he’s in Henry’s body. It’s probably, like, the latent guilt Alex feels for the repercussions this will have on his mom’s approval rating even though the whole thing is objectively stupid and people will forget about it in a week.” Or, a FirstPrince Body Swap AU.

These violent delights | @lizzie-bennetdarcy | E | 14k

There's an empty corner near the back of the shop, and he tucks himself in. Perhaps he's waiting for his target to walk into the cafe — it wouldn't be the first time. Suddenly, as though a hand has reached out and yanked on his hair, Henry's gaze is lifted and he knows it's who his Senses have been telling him to find. Sitting at the table across from Henry, sinfully long eyelashes lowered as he focuses on the pile of papers in front of him is the most devastatingly beautiful man Henry has ever seen. It's such a shame he has to kill him. Henry is a vampire hunter, with a very intriguing target.

Save a Horse, Ride a Princess | @affectionatelyrs | E | 8k

“I have to say, this is all quite literal, don’t you think?” Alex wouldn’t know literal right now if it hit him in the head. “Huh?” Henry points at Alex: “Pillow Princess,” and then to himself: “Cowboy. Ready to ride and all that.” Alex nods dumbly. “Right.” (Or, Alex and Henry dress up as the ultimate couples costume for Halloween — themselves — and they both feel some kind of way about it)

you knew what it was (he is in love) | sheWritesToLiveVicariously | M | 3k

“I’ll text you later.” “You’d better,” Henry murmurs, pulling him in from the waist. One hand comes up to pull back the hat off his head, and Henry leans down to kiss him, and the entire thing feels painfully romantic and Alex fucking loves it. (Alex and Henry halloween/trick-or-treating meetcute. Henry has a daughter, Alex is babysitting his niece, and the girls know each other.)

that's all for now! I still have a ridiculously long tbr list ( @littlemisskittentoes @heybuddy-drabbles @hgejfmw-hgejhsf @inexplicablymine @read-and-write- @raysletters I'm looking DIRECTLY at yall's next and I can't WAIT to devour hehehe)

please visit the link above for yourselves at leave kudos and comments for all of these lovely & talented people! more to come! <3

#fic recs #rwrb fics #rwrb #red white and royal blue #red white and royal blue fanfic #firstprince #MY FRIENDS ARE SO TALENTED PLS GO YELL AT THEM #my fic recs

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areyoudreaminof · 11 months

Text

Nothing Can Break Me: An Emerie Playlist

You asked for it, and I’m delivering! The holy Valkyrie Trinity is complete! Emerie, what can I say? A survivor who's held her own in a terrible family and society, taking pride in her strengths. She has risen above so much in her very short life. I think Emerie might be the closest thing this series has to Wonder Woman after Feyre. For Emerie, I wanted some heavier sounds and I felt really strongly gravitating toward more female and queer artists. Listen Here! And follow me behind the cut for a deep dive!

Moaning Lisa Smile-Wolf Alice

All in the books and all in her blood And nowhere to run ‘cos it's out of control You wait for something to undo these feelings Waiting and waiting, but it's out of control Scrap the blues if the blues don't work Flash your teeth, though the inside hurts Scrap the blues if the blues don't work Doesn't make you feel better, just makes others feel worst

Circuital-My Morning Jacket

You think you'll find yourself out there Out in the lion’s den In some bloody battle Over belief systems

Or disappear into the vacuum Total neutrality Where you can't lose nothing But nothing can be gained

Well anyway you cut it We're just spinning around Out on the circuit Over the hallowed ground Ending up in the same place That we started out

ANIMAL-PVRIS

When you cage an animal Their claws will start to show They're aimin' at your throat It's time to let them go When you cage an animal Their claws will start to show They're aimin' at your throat It's time to let them go

My Number-Foals

Now the wolf is knocking at my door Bang-bang, it asks for more Stand here, we stand tall We can move beyond these walls And I don't need your counsel And I don't need these city streets And I don't need that good advice 'Cause we can move beyond it now

Cornflake Girl-Tori Amos

Never was a cornflake girl Thought that was a good solution Hanging with the raisin girls She's gone to the other side Giving us a yo-heave-ho Things are getting kind of gross And I go at sleepy time This is not really, this, a-this This is not really happening You bet your life it is You bet your life it is Oh honey, you bet your life

Wolves Without Teeth-Of Monsters and Men

You hover like a hummingbird, haunt me in my sleep You're sailing from another world, sinking in my sea Oh, you're feeding on my energy, letting go of it She wants it And I run from wolves, ooh Breathing heavily at my feet And I run from wolves, ooh Tearing into me without teeth

Fox Confessor Brings the Flood-Neko Case

Driving home I see those flooded fields How can people not know what beauty this is? I've taken it for granted my whole life Since the day I was born

What purpose in these deeds? Oh, fox confessor please Who married me to these orphaned blues? "It's not for you to know, but for you to weep and wonder When the death of your civilization precedes you."

Entertain-Sleater-Kinney

So you want to be entertained? Please look away, don't look away We're not here cause we want to entertain Go away, don't go away

Reality is the new fiction they say Truth is truer these days, truth is man-made If you're here cause you want to be entertained Go away, please go away

Runaway-Yeah Yeah Yeahs

I was feeling sad Can't help looking back Highways flew by Run, run away No sense of time Like you to stay Want to keep you inside

All alone Not so strong without these open arms Hold on tight All alone

History Repeats-Brittany Howard

I just don't wanna be back in this place again I mean, I done cried a little Tried a little, failed a little I don’t wanna do it again

I mean, I've already been I came and went I washed my hands with it I don't wanna do it again Don't push me

Anxiety-Lady Hawke

I’ve always been so cautious But I’m sick of feeling nauseous It’s not that I am losing This wall of my own choosing

Take me on a ride Show me how to hide the voice in my head Meet me on the road, tell me all you know I’m here on my own

Should Have Known Better-Sufjan Stevens

I should have known better To see what I could see My black shroud Holding down my feelings A pillar for my enemies

I should have known better Nothing can be changed The past is still the past The bridge to nowhere I should have wrote a letter Explaining what I feel, that empty feeling

Last Girl-Soccer Mommy

I want to be like your last girl She's the sun in your cold world and I am just a dying flower I don't hold the summer in my eyes

Maybe I'm just feeling like I don't have a chance this time 'Cause I don't have a chance this time, I swear

Help, I'm Alive-Metric

If we're still alive My regrets are few If my life is mine What shouldn't I do? I get wherever I'm going I get whatever I need While my blood's still flowing And my heart still beats

Taglist: @aldbooks @bookofmirth @brieq @bagelfyre @c-e-d-dreamer @cursebrkr @darling-archeron @damedechance @gwyns @gimme-mor @harrysringss @highqueenmorrigan @historiaxvanserra @ineffable-resplendence @kataravimes-of-the-shire @krem-does-stuff @krem-has-a-mess @kingofsummer93 @lidiacervos @moononastring @octobers-veryown @ofduskanddreams @panicatthenightcourt @queercontrarian @reverie-tales @asnowfern @spell-cleavers @separatist-apologist @thesistersarcheron @thelovelymadone @the-lonelybarricade @ultadverb @vulpes-fennec @velidewrites @vanserrass @yazthebookish @mossytrashcan @emerieweekofficial @shadowsxgwynriel @shadowriel @captain-of-the-gwynriel-ship @archecosmo @bennylavasbuns @lilith-clawthorne-stan @tuzna-pesma-snova @andrigyn @lulling-night-sky @headcanonheadcase @moodymelanist @foreverinelysian

#emerie #acotar playlist project #pro Emerie #nesta #Gwyn #valkyries #here we go lesbians!#Spotify

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cerastes · 8 months

Note

My current biggest hurdles are getting my AC to move how I want it to--specifically EN management and verticality. The tutorial boss felt like I was using all my energy just strafing and listening to Walter tell me to get off the ground. I did learn to be more aggressive and win, but the follow up training and missions hasn't really given me more opportunity to practice.

Second hurdle is how to better recover and avoid getting staggered myself beyond never get hit. Threading the needle between using energy to not get hit but also using it to close the distance and get in the kills/damage I need to finish a mission. Outside of AC I like mobile close-range and/or long-range play styles.

The tutorial chopper is pretty demanding for new players, so don't let it discourage you. The "best solution" to it, in the tutorial Loader-4, is to Assault Boost at it when it's just using its machine guns (ie not shooting direct rockets at you). Putting that on quotations because Hey, As Long As It Works. When Walter tells you to get off the ground, it's specifically to avoid the splash of the telegraphed rockets, not necessarily to stay on the air at all times.

Now, basically, you have to treat being off the ground as an action phase for you: You are using resources to stay afloat, and it gives you better innate evasion and maneuvering, plus any benefit that altitude differences might give you over an enemy, if you were previously level with them (keep this in mind), but of course, it comes at the cost of not being able to stay in that state forever. This is in contrast with how in For Answer, you could just perpetually fly if you built that way (and even get Quick Boost chains in for reasonably long), which I mention just in case you've heard of that and were wondering what's up with that in 6. So, in the chopper fight, for example, you only really want to leave the ground when it's shooting rockets at you, if you need it for the extra maneuvering to dodge missiles, and to attack. Being off the ground isn't an offensive phase or a defensive phase, it's an action phase: You can do more things in general, for both offensive and defensive ends. It must be treated as such.

Don't look at Quick Boosts as your Soulsborne i-frame roll or quickstep, look at Quick Boosts as, again, an action: It can be used for breakneck evasive actions when you need it to be that, but also, it can be your way in to your ideal range, whether that's pulling away or going in. Spamming QBs is going to eat your energy, and thus, your action resources. Learn to move and evade without the use of QB, and to use QBs when it's 'right' to do so.

Are you noticing a pattern here? Your resource, EN, is not a defensive tool, or an offensive tool exclusively, it's both. The tempo in Armored Core comes from knowing how to flow freely in action, using it offensively, defensively, and both simultaneously as the fight calls for it. Try to internalize that. If you see a barrage of missiles homing on to you from an angle, you could QB to avoid it, but that'll take EN, which doesn't recover as fast in the air as it does on the ground. Instead, you have to try to use your normal boosting movement to move in a way that the missiles miss, such as crossing past them as close to them as you can afford so they can't physically home in on you and hit you. Find the right range relative to your enemy that afford you being able to strafe around them in a ring without their shots hitting you. Armored Core is about finding out things about the specific fight you're currently in, and there's no universal formula for that, but there is a number of good habits that will let you find out the information you need ASAP so you can adjust to it. Am I getting hit a lot while boosting? Is this mitigated by QBing? What do I QB at and where? Does it benefit me to have an altitude difference? How much does it benefit me to be above the enemy? Things like this.

Both hurdles are tied to this, because learning your use of resources and your movement will invariably result in getting hit less or not in any significant amount of times that you'll get ACS broken. "Threading the needle between using energy to not get hit but also using it to close the distance and get in the kills/damage I need to finish a mission" this is pretty much what you have to learn, but also, always keep in mind that your enemy plays by the same rules as you do: They have reload times, they have limited actions, they have to consider the exact same things you need to consider, and are punished for the same failings. Knowing when to use your EN to focus on evasion or for going in is exactly what you should be trying to learn, and it becomes easier when you realize you DON'T need to be QBing all the time, just regular, smart movement and changes in altitude are enough most of the time. QBs eat your energy fiercely.

To get a handle of movement and economy of action, I recommend these loadouts:

With Weapon Bay: Right hand Assault Rifle, Linear Rifle, or Machine Gun, right shoulder missiles launcher/Left hand Shotgun or Machine Gun, left shoulder melee weapon of your choice

Without Weapon Bay: All the same but decide whether you want to keep the left hand firearm or melee weapon, then left shoulder another Missile Launcher or Grenade Cannon.

Simple but effective loadouts that give you close range agency, aren't prohibitively expensive so you can stay mobile, and can dive in and bail out while staying relevant in offensive terms. This may seem a lot at once, but take it at your own speed and once it clicks, trust you me that it'll click.

#thefrostyknight #armored core 6

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ruewrites · 2 months

Text

Kinktober 2022 Day 29: Medical Play

AO3

Ship: Barbatos/Diavolo/Solomon

Word Count: 957

Warnings: smut

A/N: Thank you top the folks over in the Tea House for helping me figure out what I wanted to do with this! I think I'm relatively pleased with how it came out <3

When Solomon had jokingly asked where the sexy garters were, he hadn't anticipated Barbatos roughly pushing him back against the table the second he got the chance. Thin paper rustled beneath him and a bright light almost blinded him from above. He squinted and went to sit up only for Barbatos to firmly press his shoulder back into the table. His hands lingered before he pulled away, but Solomon could still feel his eyes piercing his skin.

Even when playing games, Barbatos wouldn’t let his professional facade slip.

It was a shame really.

“Your bedside manner could use some work Barbatos,” Solomon teased, “What if you had harmed a hair on my head? It seems a bit counterintuitive for a nurse to harm a patient.”

Barbatos hummed, the sounds of clinking metal and the shuffling of objects on the counter filled his ears. “You always have had an unruly streak,” a hum resounded deep in the back of Barbatos’ throat, “Rougher treatments are one of the best solutions, based on our history.”

That was a promise, one that sent a pleasurable tingle down his spine.

Before he could conjure up a retort, another door on the opposite end of the room opened. If he didn’t think that Barbatos would have swatted at thim again, he would have turned his head to see who had entered the room. Running water cascaded down into a metal sink as the newcomer spoke.

“Is everything ready Barbatos?”

“I have prepared everything to your liking, Doctor. Sterile and shining to perfection.”

“Wonderful,” Diavolo’s face came into view as he leaned over Solomon from behind. His smile was as shiny as ever, yet Solomon couldn’t help but shiver despite himself. “It isn’t every day you get to take a look over human anatomy after all, and we must make sure our visitors are in perfect condition.”

Diavolo certainly seemed eager to play his part, a little too eager. He was breaking character. This was nothing like any doctor’s appointment Solomon had been to before. Then again, when exactly was the last time he’d been to the doctor? Perhaps things had changed.

“I trust I am in more than capable hands. Tell me what is needed of me.”

Did doctors still use leeches? They probably still used leeches… sometimes…. Right?

Diavolo stepped over to his side, fingers trailing from Solomon's jaw down to his bicep. Solomon wasn't a small man perse, but Diavolo was large, even for demon standards. Another, more slender hand mirrored Diavolo's motions on the opposite side. Barbatos’ nails were short, but sharp, and he had no doubt that the demon could disembowel him with a single swipe. The thought was dangerous, yet thrilling. He could feel himself stirring. The smaller fingers pressed right underneath the upper corner of his jaw.

“Pulse seems to be upregulated,” Barbatos mused, head tilting up to look at Diavolo, “I believe we must find out how to alleviate this ailment.”

“I believe you're right, we can't have our patient feeling anything but the pinnacle of calm.” Diavolo's eyes shifted over Solomon's body, looking over every inch of him until he settled between his legs. “Well, that certainly looks different.”

As large hands slid further up his thighs, Solomon felt his predicament worsen through the tightening of his pants. A soft hiss left his lips as he leaned his head back, eyes still fixed on Diavolo.

“I believe that this may be our predicament.”

“I believe you may be right sir.”

“Shall we take a closer look then?” slowly, his zipper trailed downwards and his pants and undergarments were yanked down in one fell swoop. The force had his cock springing to attention in such a way that it smacked against his abdomen before bouncing back up. A pearl of precum that started to form at his tip had dispersed quickly in tiny droplets. There was something a bit embarrassing about two pairs of eyes being fixed upon his manhood in such a vulnerable state, but any thoughts revolving around hesitation quickly dispersed as warmth enveloped him.

The movement of Diavolo’s hand sent pleasurable tingles up his spine. As his finger swiped against his tip, Barbatos flicked one of his nipples from overtop his shirt, ripping a soft and short moan from his lips.

“My, what unorthodox methods,” Diavolo grinned, “I thought we were caring for our patients here.”

“In my experience, individuals like him do well with a little pain.”

To emphasize his point, Barbatos bit his ear rather harshly. The moan that escaped him came out in broken beats. A gloved thumb slipped into his mouth and held his jaw open, refusing to let any more of his sounds be muffled.

“No cheating,” Barbatos hissed into his ear, breath hot, “Let him hear what he wishes to.”

As he continued to stroke, Diavolo dipped two fingers into a small jar sitting next to him on the table. The following pressure applied to his hole made his brows furrow together. His hand continued at a steady pace as he stretched the muscle around his fingers. “The patient needs to relax Barbatos, he’s stiff.”

Without a word, Barbatos latched onto his neck, fixing a deep purple bruise onto fragile pale skin. As he did, Diavolo started to curl his fingers upward and Solomon’s toes downwards. The pace of his breathing quickened, and Diavolo waited until their eyes met to strike the final blow. With a smirk, he licked along his frenulum, and Solomon came with shuddering gasps. His head lolled to the side, cock twitching, yet still surprisingly erect.

He could feel Barbatos’ smile against his neck.

“Well,” Diavolo started, cum still streaked across his face, “It appears we still have a few tests to run.”

#ruewrites #obey me #obey me solomon #obey me barbatos #obey me diavolo #kinktober #kinktober 2022 #medical play #barbatos x diavolo x solomon

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yakool-foolio · 7 months

Note

oh yeah i don’t think i’ve asked this

how much does shinigami’s mannerisms change when it comes to the DKY au, especially in regards to within the mystery labyrinth? yuma and shinigami in the canon game had some interesting things going on (i am looking at the sword dance thing) so i was wondering if it was any different for yakou

(y’know i feel like for yakou there’d be a LOT more gaming references (zelda, etc) in the opening segments before actually entering the labyrinth compared to what shinigami does in-canon but maybe that’s just me 🫠)

It's been really fun thinking up the way that Shinigami gives Yakou the solution blade. While they may not perform an elaborate dance, Shinigami still shows off her flamboyance, which takes Yakou some time to get used to.

The summoning of the solution blade starts with the usual vow of giving your life for the truth before Shinigami offers for Yakou to unclasp the gold emblem off the wrappings around the nape of her neck. After some initial hesitation, he takes it. The shimmering lock swiftly transfigures into the hilt of the sword in his hands, but the actual blade doesn't form yet. Shinigami puts her hands over Yakou's as she steadily holds the handle and puts her lips up the emblem. Yakou glances away out of embarrassment until Shinigami opens her mouth and flames pour out, the fire instantly hardening and forming into the obsidian blade. She takes the sword from Yakou and draws the sword down toward both of his shoulders, knighting him. As she smiles, she suddenly tosses the solution blade above their heads and exclaims for Yakou to catch it. The first time this happens, he visibly panics, but still attempts to catch it. He surprises himself by catching it cleanly with one hand, holding the blade out in front of him with a proud sparkle in his eyes. In later labyrinths, he gathers enough courage to do various flurries with the sword to show off his improvement. Shinigami snickers and applauds him, completing the vow and summoning.

Shinigami definitely adores referencing various video games to 'speak Yakou's language,' in and outside the mystery labyrinth. Here are a few examples of her references:

Yakou, entering his first RDM: WHAT AM I SUPPOSED TO DO HERE?! Shinigami: Just think of it as like that game where you slice at blocks with a saber to the rhythm of a song! Yakou, realizing this is the first reference she's made: W-Wait, you know about that game? I can't even afford a VR headset! How does a death god know how to pla- Shinigami: Sir, focus! We can talk all about you being broke later!

-----

Shinigami, spotting some pottery at a store: Hey, do you think if you shattered one of those pots you'd find some shien inside? Yakou, absolutely appalled: Shini, no! That's vandalism! Yakou, not a moment later: But it'd sure help pay off my debt to Halara...

-----

Shinigami, yawning while watching the play at Aetheria Academy: Can we please skip this cutscene, Sir? Yakou, sighing: Sorry Shini, looks like this cutscene is unskippable. Shinigami, frustratedly tugging at Yakou's disguise's hair: We better not have to go back in time four minutes before someone's death then. I couldn't bear sitting through this again when nothing's happening! Yakou: Just enjoy the performance, it's not that hard!

#your honor they were in a silly goofy mood #death knight yakou au #rain code #rain code spoilers #yakou furio #shinigami

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tlbodine · 1 year

Text

Socializing 2.0 - Talking to People Who Are Upset

I was trying to write this as a reblog to my other "how to socialize" post and it keeps glitching out, which is very irritating. So here, let's try it on its own post.

Last time I talked about some tips for making small talk, and some scripts/talking points for how to show interest in what people are saying even if the topic doesn't excite you.

Now, I want to talk about a different scenario that can be really challenging for everybody (but, I think even harder for folks who don't come by empathy easily). Which is: How do you talk to somebody who is upset or having a tough time? How do you express sympathy without making the thing about you and your feelings?

While I'm by no means an expert at this, and I can't claim I've got the solution for every scenario you might encounter, I do have some tips and techniques that have helped me along the way and hopefully they can prove useful to you, too.

STEP ONE: Identifying that a person is upset

Sometimes it's very easy to tell that someone is upset, because they will yell "ARGH I AM SO MAD ABOUT THIS!!!" or they will be crying or some other obvious outward sign. Other times, though, it can be kind of tricky to tell. It's even harder in text, where you sometimes have to guess whether someone is jokingly mad or mad-mad when they post keysmashes, all caps, angry emojis, etc etc.. Folks also sometimes deflect from their actual emotions by joking them off. Or they'll say something you feel is alarming, but then don't act like it's a big deal.

People are complicated, in other words. So it's OK if you get this wrong sometimes. Everybody does.

In general, some signs that people might have something the matter:

Obvious outward expression of emotion (yelling, crying)

Acting more withdrawn or subdued than normal

Appearing distracted or disengaged

Looking more disheveled than usual

Acting unusually rambunctious or like they're compensating

If you notice somebody seems upset but you're not 100% sure, you have a few options:

Politely ignore it.

Let them bring it up if they want to. This is a safe bet if you are not very close -- ie, they're strangers, coworkers, acquaintances etc. HOWEVER, if you choose this route, you can still do this person a kindness by not imposing on them.

For example, if your coworker seems upset about something and you have a question about the job, could you ask someone else instead of approaching upset coworker? Could you quietly do them a favor? For example, could you offer to take over for them at the register and let them work in the back? Offer to watch things while they take a break? Small kindnesses can make a big difference in someone's day. It's not always possible, but it's nice when you can!

If nothing else, try to avoid dumping anything on them while they seem upset. If you're also having a shit day, you can probably find someone else to rant to.

Ask if they're okay.

This is more appropriate if you have a rapport with the person. If they are your friend or romantic partner, or if you have a rapport with them and want to express that you care, it's probably best to acknowledge that you've noticed something is wrong. Avoid saying anything that might be perceived as aggressive; don't way "What's wrong" or (even worse) "What's wrong with you?" Instead, try, "Is everything okay? You seem a little down today."

They may respond:

I'm just a little tired

I'm kind of distracted

What? Oh, haha, no, I'm fine...

Sometimes they mean this at face value, but more often what they actually are communicating is "I'm not OK but I don't feel comfortable talking about it."

That's fine. Don't pry. Drop the subject, and proceed as above -- politely ignore their perceived signs of discomfort, but be kind to them and avoid dumping anything on them unnecessarily.

Do not be surprised or alarmed if, after some time has passed, they come back around to reopen the subject and start to open up about whatever is bothering them. Then again, don't take it personally if you never figure out what the deal was. Maybe they really did just have a headache. Maybe they had an issue they figured out on their own. Either way, it's no longer your problem.

(note: this is a little more complicated if it's someone you live with and it goes on for a while, but that scenario is out of scope for this post).

STEP TWO: They Told Me They're Upset

Okay! So whether you started here with them, or this just came up after you asked if things were ok, you now have confirmed that a person is upset!

If they tell you the gist of what's going on, it's a good idea to acknowledge it. But stay fairly neutral about it and avoid value judgments.

For example: "My grandpa died"

An appropriate response might be, "I'm sorry to hear that" or "Oh jeez, I'm sorry :("

Some other great all-purpose responses when someone says something bad happened are: "Dude, that sucks :(" and "oh no!" or "oof."

Next -- and this is really important -- you should follow up by asking, "Do you want to talk about it?"

(you can also use that question any time someone says something vague like "I had a shitty day today" or "I'm so pissed off.")

If they say no, they don't want to talk about it, follow up with, "Well, let me know if there's anything I can do." And then, ideally, volunteer a couple options of things you can do, depending on your relationship and what you are capable of doing: cover their shift, approve their time off, take care of a chore, listen if they change their mind.

If they DO want to talk about it, by all means, let them talk.

Ask if they would like advice or if they just want to get it off their chest. If they don't ask for advice, don't give them any.

Use your active listening skills and ask questions. Avoid prying or traumatic questions, but don't be shocked if you receive more intensive answers than you expected. A safe question to ask when someone says someone died is to say, "Were you close?" or if a pet died, "How long did you have them?"

Validate their emotions, but avoid bringing your own judgments to the table unless they ask for your honest opinion. For example, if someone is ranting about their romantic partner, it's cool to say, "I'm sorry that happened. You shouldn't have to put up with that." but it's not so cool to say "Your SO sounds like a dick, you should leave them."

Ask if they would like a distraction or to be cheered up. If you're in person, and you're amenable to the task, "Do you want a hug?" is also acceptable. (just respect whatever they said).

You'll want to be mindful of your energy. I personally have the best luck with projecting calm, neutral, slightly joke-y vibes. "It do be like that" and "Dude, that sucks" delivered with some genuine warmth in your tone or an empathetic emoji can go a long way.

STEP THREE: How to Not Make It About You

There are a few ways you can unintentionally make something be about you when someone else brings up something that's upsetting them:

One-upping them. "That's nothing. This one time, I had...."

Invalidating them or passing judgment. "That's not a big deal" or "What an asshole!" (you can agree with them that someone is being a dick, bit they need to be the one who says it first)

Trying to relate to them by telling a story about your own experiences, which ends up taking a really long time, or puts them in the awkward position of feeling like they have to comfort you.

OK. So a couple things.

Relating to people with relatable experiences is not a bad thing! In fact sometimes it can be really helpful! HOWEVER if you go that route you need to be really cautious of a couple points:

The story needs to be brief and stick only to the most relevant details. it's FINE if you don't provide the full absolute context of the entire scenario. You just need to tell them the relatable part, and then relate that back to them and how they are feeling.

For example:

"I'm so sorry to hear your dog died. I had to put my cat to sleep last year and I remember how guilty I felt, worrying whether I waited too long. Did you have a lot of time to prepare with your dog or was it pretty sudden?"

This is good! Here you are relaying information that you understand some of what they're going through, introduce an emotion that may or may not resonate with them, and then hand the conversation back to them with a question. Now they might tell you all about how, yes, they worried about that same thing too! Or no, their thing was really sudden and unexpected. Or whatever they tell you!

Then you can respond to that thing like, "Oh wow, I can't imagine how rough that must have been." or "Jeez, that's so hard. How are the kids taking it?" or whatever else seems appropriate in that moment.

STEP FOUR: OK But Now They Won't Shut Up About It?

One downside to expressing concern in other people's affairs is that this can sometimes mark you as their new confidant, purely because people so rarely just listen and care about other people.

If it's just the occasional bit of ranting, it's probably fine to just let them do their thing. And if they're coming to you to rant and off-load their stuff, then it's probably fine and expected that you can respond in time and maybe you guys are just ranting buddies.

But if you end up in a scenario where they can ALWAYS complain about their thing, but you can NEVER complain about your thing, that is a toxic dynamic! That requires some intervention! Friendship cannot be built on that foundation.

If you've expressed your condolences or listened to someone rant about whatever is pissing them off and you feel you have nothing more to offer the conversation, you can just say that: "I don't know what else to say, really. It's a tough situation and I hope it gets better for you."

And then you can just. Exit the conversation.

Some additional lines to keep in your back pocket include:

"I think that's beyond my pay grade to help with. Have you spoken with (a therapist/counselor/clergy member/whatever)?"

"That's so frustrating! You should definitely go talk to (the person they are complaining about) about that."

"Well, if you ever need someone to (specific thing you actually are willing to do), let me know."

Being kind to people and showing concern for their problems does not mean you have to become an unpaid therapist or doormat. You get to maintain boundaries about that stuff.

Anyway! This is super long! There is so much more I could get into here but I'll leave it at that. I hope this is in some way helpful to you.

#long post #social skills #soft skills #psa #in case nobody ever told you #autism #adhd #neurodivergent #what else can I tag this as #blanket disclaimer #I am not a psychologist or a professional #I'm a writer who spends a lot of time watching humans #and am generally perceived as a good communicator #I guess #ok good luck have fun

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ploppythespaceship · 1 year

Text

Tears of the Kingdom is fantastic so far. Genuinely an incredible game that somehow manages to exceed astronomical expectations. But there are a couple UX things that are surprisingly bad -- "surprisingly" because I feel like a game of this caliber that was delayed so many times really should have caught these in playtesting.

This post contains no spoilers until after the cut. Everything above the cut is basic gameplay mechanics that are accessible within the first hour of play.

1. You should be able to fuse weapons directly from your inventory. It's actually baffling to me that you can't. If I have a gem that I want to fuse to my sword, I have to select the gem, select hold, unpause the game, toss the gem on the ground, switch to the sword, select fuse, select the gem, and select my sword. Why on earth is it that many steps?? It can be slightly sped up by throwing the item on the ground using R and the quick menu, but that's still a lot. You should be able to select a weapon in your inventory, hit fuse, then select a material -- done. This is so obvious to me that I am still shocked it's just not an option. You can destroy fusions from your inventory, so why can't you make a fusion there too??

2a. The materials quick menu is a lot, whether you're firing an arrow or just finding something to throw. Every item you've ever picked up is in a single long row that you have to scroll through desperately to find the one thing you need. Part of this is unavoidable simply due to the amount of materials in the game, and the ability to sort helps a little. But you should really, really be able to set favorites. Ideally the favorites would be in a ring menu similar to the hand abilities, with one of the options being to open the full inventory, but even the option to set favorites that will always appear at the top of your regular list would help tremendously.

2b. Also, while I appreciate being able to craft your own arrow types and not rely on always finding or buying the ones you need, you should be able to stockpile certain arrow fusions ahead of time. I pretty much always want fire arrows, shock arrows, ice arrows, bomb arrows, and homing arrows on hand, and having to individually fuse every single shot quickly gets tedious.

This last one is a spoiler -- don't look under the cut unless you've completed at least one of the main story sections.

3. The sage abilities are incredibly inconsistent to activate, especially when you have more than one following you. I currently have the Rito, Goron, and Zora sages, and they're becoming a lot to manage. If you want to use their abilities, you have to stop, look around to find all your followers, locate the specific one you need, approach them, and press A. And I swear they are never around when you want them, but when you're just trying to pick up some materials, they're practically on top of you and I'm using their ability by accident. I'm not entirely sure what the solution is -- you could give each ability its own combo to activate automatically, but they'd quickly become unmanageable.

#personal #the legend of zelda #tears of the kingdom #tears of the kingdom spoilers #totk spoilers

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tijuanabiblestudies · 4 months

Note

... why did a butch chew your face at the club?

*deep breath* OK SO

i am 19 years old and a freshman in college. my egg is not even lightly chipped at this point; for all intents and purposes i am a girl. it is a friday night and i am sitting at my dorm room desk, probably on livejournal. my roommate comes in and says "hey [deadname]! wanna come to [local nightclub]? it's gay night!"

(during my girl years, i largely identified as bisexual. my roommate, a straight girl, knew this, hence the invitation.)

"sure," i say, "what the hell," and proceed to doll myself up for a night on the town. my outfit is perhaps not strictly relevant to the tale but i am going to describe it anyway. from bottom to top, i am wearing:

knee-high silver boots

black fishnet stockings

black miniskirt

red-on-black My Chemical Romance off-the-shoulder top (Revenge era; iirc it had some cool art of a graveyard on it)

on the face: black eyeliner, red lipstick

and to top it all off: red-on-black pinstriped fedora. or trilby, i guess, if you want to be pedantic, but everyone at the time called them fedoras.

thusly prepared, i join my roommate and several others from our dorm and we pile onto a bus and head downtown. we get to the club. the music is bad, but i start dancing anyway. as i do, i notice a butch gal standing on the edge of the dance floor, looking at me. i look back, make eye contact, smile a little bit. i am not expecting anything in particular to come of this. clubbing etiquette is unfamiliar to me.

the next thing i know, she is RIGHT up on me. bumping and grinding ensue, followed in short order by kissing. rather intense kissing, in fact. by which i mean she is biting me, repeatedly and not at all gently. lips, neck, collarbones--pretty much everywhere above the tits seems to be fair game. bite bite bite.

i...have no idea how to handle this situation. in retrospect, the solution seems obvious: use words and/or body language to convey that i am not fond of what is happening and would like it to stop please.

i do not do this. my entire brain freezes up like the proverbial deer in headlights and i just sort of accept my new life as a chew toy.

it goes on for a while. time loses all meaning. i have long since lost track of the people i came with. i am vaguely aware that straight men (it's "gay night" at a club in a college town, of course it's lousy with straight tourists) are appreciatively watching me get eaten alive. my, uh..."dance partner" (neither of us is even pretending to move to the music) speaks to me a few times; at one point, she laughingly says "you're so serious!" and i have less than no fucking idea how to respond. at other points, i can't hear her over the music and just sort of make what i hope are appropriate faces and/or noises. all the while, the biting continues. it hurts rather a lot.

finally, finally, 2am rolls around and the club prepares to close. my masticator mercifully releases me. i do not even bother trying to find my roommate et al. i retrieve my coat from the coat check and get the fuck out of dodge.

it being late, the buses have stopped running. i have no way of getting back to my dorm short of a long hike, and these boots were not made for walkin'. it is cold and i am tired. i find an unlocked door in a university lecture hall and sleep on a bench inside, for some value of "sleep."

after sunrise, i head back to the bus stop. in is now the weekend, so the buses don't start running until later, but luckily there is a girl at the bus stop who is also trying to get to the same general area as i am, and she calls a cab and lets me share it with her.

when i get back to my dorm and check myself out in the mirror, i find that i am covered in bite marks. remember the red lipstick i had on? it's gone now. my lips, instead, are purple.

i wish i could end this with a moral about underage drinking, but i was stone cold sober the entire time.

#storytime with jonas

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lorenzobane · 2 years

Text

I cannot believe I am doing this, but it's just driving me fucking crazy. This is about the utterly exhausting and circular and goddamn endless discourse about AO3, and I simply cannot take it anymore. The hyperbole, bad faith arguments, and deeply strange interpretations of what is going on are..... Why. Don't we have enough problems?

Recognizing that this is exhausting and stupid (it was trending on Twitter???? GUYS??) I'm putting this under a cut to not clog up people's dashes. I just feel like there really are solutions and people keep talking around each other and lobbing wild accusations. Come on- CP apologists? Pro-censorship? Let's take a breath. Apologies, per usual, I talked way too much.

First- let's get some perspective. Fanfiction is a hobby. That is all it is- it is not, at its core, more moral or less moral than crocheting. That isn't to say that you can't be a remarkably talented fic writer or that fic writers are never professional writers (though when professional writers are writing professionally, they are not writing fic. Therefore they are not engaging in the hobby of fic writing. They're engaged in the vocation of writing.).

Just like any other hobby, people who do it often get better at it and begin to hone their skills in much the same way that any other hobbyist does in any other skill. But at their core, the point of writing fanfiction is to have fun doing a creative activity with people who are interested in similar topics to you. It is not going to solve racism or cure wealth inequality, or usher in a new shining dawn for gender equity. It, because it is written by very normal people, will always reflect the real flaws and virtues of real and normal people. To suggest otherwise is self-aggrandizing and nonsensical. I'm glad people find joy and pleasure in writing fic (I am one of them!), but we have got to stop saying things that deify fic above other forms of art or writing. AO3 is basically a hobbyist forum and that is okay.

Now- onto my actual point: whatever happened to nuance?

"These freaks will do anything to defend child porn/racism." Okay- well, that is a pretty incendiary thing to say. What is actually being said? People who oppose bans are typically looking at the censorship on TikTok, Tumblr, Facebook's attempts at monitoring, and fanfiction.net and see nothing but colossal failures. So when people suggest potentially banning or deleting erotic works with minors, others who have never seen it done well and have only ever seen it backfire for basically every other tech company are understandably skeptical. Why would it work on Ao3 when it hasn't worked anywhere else? And if these people are still going to write it, except untagged, now we have an even bigger issue because you can't avoid it.

The typical solution for this is "okay, well, hire moderators or build an algorithm," which is expensive and will almost certainly lead to more backlash because they'd need to fundraise for even more money that people already resent having to do at all. Not to mention the backlash when they do/don't decide that something is harmful that other people might/might not. This is especially true of issues regarding racism- unless everyone they hire has a Ph.D. in the topic, I doubt taking the problems to a random committee will solve anything. And maybe I'm insane, but I REALLY do not want a computer taking charge of issues as sensitive as this. As a general rule, I do not want an archive to be making moral decisions about anything. As even more of an aside, I just refuse to describe a dead person as "unalive" in a fic because an algorithm went too far.

Okay- but does that mean we shouldn't do anything about those problems? Do I think the people who sincerely believe we need to fix things are "pro-censorship"? Of course not. There really are existing solutions that are common sense and broadly popular that would put the power in the hands of the readers as opposed to censoring the writers. Instead of focusing so hard on regressive policies to punish or try to eliminate the problem (which is pernicious enough that a simple ban wouldn't work anyway), why not focus on progressive policies that people agree on and can actually work to make people's lives better? People are capable, smart, and thoughtful- when given the tools they absolutely can manage their own online experience.

Author blocks: People should absolutely be allowed to block authors. This one is easy and obvious- it doesn't do much by way of protecting people before they see content but it does help protect themselves from ever seeing it again.

Saved excluded tags: Create a system where you can input certain tags that you always want blocked no matter which fandom you're looking on at the site. This one is another great way to put power in the hands of the reader.

Community fics: Allowing authors to select a group of people that they want to share their particular fic with. If you want to write your cannibal mermaid fic about Hamilton and you don't want to face backlash? Just set it to only be accessible to selected users.

For ideas that go a bit further*:

Stronger age restrictions: If the concern is that young people are being groomed, maybe a solution here could be to have members (I really can't remember how this works because I signed up so long ago) give their birth year. Then just automatically filter out any E or M rated fics for people under 18, similar to how they filter out member-specific fics.

Member-specific fics: On a related note, an option could be to have fics that include an "underage" tag and are E/M are automatically member-restricted.

*Caveat: these two face a similar unintended consequence that would restrict minors from interacting with erotic content at all. Now, for little kids that is fine but for a 16 year old... I mean, there really are teenagers who write porn and there really are young people who are going through puberty and... well. This restriction would obviously be a burden specific to them, but would protect them. Also- they can just lie, lol.

Anyway- as with all policies and all problems, you are always going to deal with unintended consequences of any new policy you put out but you have to be willing to accept that and at least think them through. It drives me CRAZY when people act like we either decide to do an ineffectual ban or we do nothing at all. I am begging you to be at least willing to LOOK for middle ground.

But at the end of the day, remember: This is a HOBBY. It really is not that deep. There are about 5 million users, and even if you say that the real number is closer to 8 million that is still .1% of the global population. I am BEGGING you guys to stop calling each other CP apologists and freaks and pathetic losers and pro-censorship weirdos and purity culture losers. There IS a real problem here and everyone is a little bit right. Just, like, chill a little.

#ao3 discourse #ao3 #what if everyone took a chill pill #its actually interesting because at the base of this stupid internet argument #is a really really fascinating look into different people's views on the philosophy of speech #and the philosophy of loss #it DEFINITELY strikes me that most of the people who oppose bans the most are people who reference other lost archives #they use free speech as their defense but its so often couched in fear #and its not unwarranted! Internet censorship has worked exactly zero times #but there are other solutions and other ways to think about problems

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nokingsonlyfooles · 3 months

Text

The menus don't work, the menus don't work, the menus DON'T WORK...

OK, my few readers. I took a break, I went back to fix the navigation, it's unfixable as-written.

I need some complex stuff in places, I was willing to forgive WP for putting out a new site editing interface that barely works - as long as it has the basic features someone would use on a storefront. I'm an outlier. I know this.

BUT IT IS NO LONGER POSSIBLE TO CREATE A MENU WITH A WORKING SUB-MENU IN IT. IF YOU TRY, THE SUB-MENU LINKS ARE UNCLICKABLE.

I am using their site editor and their 2024 theme, I should say.

I crossed my fingers and looked for the (now liable to vanish from anything more complicated than a paragraph) "edit as html" option. Nope! It's gone! I can't fix it. I would have to hack the interface somehow to fix this for WordPress, within WordPress.

I had to go looking for plugins. I HAD TO GO LOOKING FOR 3RD PARTY SOFTWARE TO GET A FUNCTIONAL MENU. And, of course, they paywall features I need. I found a "floating" menu that actually does work well enough (it's a little cramped on mobile unless you put the screen in landscape mode, but at this point you should really do that anyway, I can only format so much) but the sub-menu function is paywalled. And I'm actually fucking tempted to buy (haha, I mean "rent") it. Because the damn thing works in dark mode and across devices. And it sticks to the side in a fairly unobtrusive way, which WP's menu will not. It won't stick anywhere. And it sure as hell won't do that thing where you scroll up and it plops down for your convenience.

But if I use that floating menu without sub-menus, it's gonna get longer, and longer, and longer, until it doesn't fit on your mobile screen anymore, or potentially your tablet or desktop, and then I dunno what happens. Also, in order to keep it small, everything is a cryptic icon that displays a title when you tap it (on mobile) or hover over it (on desktop). That's kinda counterintuitive, I don't know if I want my one working menu to be like that.

I might keep looking and find another plugin that also works that well but... it's not likely. Or, if I do, I may run into another paywall. They gotta get their rent somehow!

This is a stupid problem and so far I am unable to come with with a non-stupid solution. I can:

Put all the links in the header menu, and you'll have to scroll through EVERYTHING to find the actual content every time.

Put all the links in the content area, in different places and different combinations depending on the page. (And this would mean doing some reformatting on every instalment AGAIN.)

Start fucking around with the sidebar - I don't know if it works and I'd have to rip up every template I've already made to add it.

Put all the links in the footer menu, and nobody will notice them.

Put all the links in the floating menu (see above for the issues with that).

Make sub-pages for Misc/Notes and similar that are just lists of links and serve the function of a sub-menu.

Actually put the content on the sub-page and have it navigable via anchors (this seems like it would be a bitch to load, but most of my content is just text).

Make a list of links that isn't actually tagged as a menu, thus losing the collapsible function for small screens.

Kill God.

That last one is probably the most doable but I feel like someone would get mad at me. Like, Hazbin Hotel finally got its first season on Amazon, and if God dies they might have to rewrite some shit.

If I don't lay out the money for the cryptic icon menu, we're probably going to end up with three or four accordions that are not technically menus at the top of every page. And I'll hafta check back every once in a while to see if WP fixed their shit yet.

If they don't stick with that site editor and make it useable, all this work is going to vanish like chalk marks in the rain.

I WANTED to put up another six-pack in February. I have it ready to go! But the site doesn't work. If I can't fix it this week, I won't even be able to put things up without illustrations. And forget having time to fill in the missing artwork. I got enough to do trying to kill God!

#tin soldier and soldier on #updates #website woes #in other news i woke up with an inexplicable ability to focus better on text today #which i should not have?#I'm not wearing reading glasses to write this #pretty sure this isn't gonna stay like this but wtf happened?

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rphelperblog · 1 year

Text

Elijah Mikaelson Quotes

updated and inspired by @noble-stag-elijah @enduringlystoic

“Good thing, we brought the german sports car.”

“No one hurts my family and lives. No one.”

“I gave my word.”

Can I suggest you take a step back?”

I'm not trying to impress the girl.”

Perhaps I'm not making myself clear here. This is a threat.”

“Do not make me break my word.”

“You don't make it easy to love you, brother.”

“I need some air. I’m still feeling a tad…Dead.”

“And while we may not choose our family, that bond can be our greatest strength or deepest regret.”

“Surely, my quest for your salvation makes me the most insane man on earth.”

I rather enjoy Thanksgiving. The turkey, the cranberry sauce. The lies, the deceit, the betrayal.

If I'm moving too fast for you, you're welcome to wait in the car.”

I...let this person in. I let her in. I don't let people in. You knew this, and you've taken her from me. I needed her and you've broken me.”

Well, I've given up on giving up. It's an affliction.”

Because of all the people who could be here, you're probably the only one he wouldn't immediately slaughter.”

I have denied every single impulse that I have ever had for that women out of some misbegotten respect for intentions that you don't even have.”

Look, you know I'm no stranger to violence. Typically however I'm possessed of a certain control. However now and then I can be consumed with the chaos and untethered from that control.

You will not break me.”

I'm afraid we might have to resort to something deliciously medieval here, brother.”

Watch your tongue. I am not the fun loving social butterfly you may recall.”

next time I ask you to take out the trash, try not to dally.”

Hatred's a hell of a thing”

Let me assure you my charms are quite adaptable, “

: So this is your solution? Mend the home, mend the man?”

I don't do teams.”

You do know you're entirely demented, don't you?”

Yes, remind me to remind you to get in line.”

I'm not in the habit of asking permission.”

Give me a month. I'll get you a list.”

You do realize I don't care.”

Probably no one...alright, potentially everyone.”

“To me, the very definition of the word 'Broken' suggests that something can be fixed.”

We should adapt for our audience, yes.”

A lovely dream, one just beyond our reach.”

I always come back.”

Perhaps. You must never surrender the fight to regain that trust.”

You know, difficulties aside, I value my family above everything. I am sorry that yours failed you.”

Is that what you want? To be normal?”

Yes, well, when you put it that way it does sound a little reckless.”

Option one, go about your business like a good little boy. Option two, violent disembowelment. What’s it going to be?”

You mobsters all suffer from such hubris.

Do you have any idea how rare love is?”

Forgive me. Thought you were in danger. It appears I was mistaken.”

I thought only of you. Every day I fought for your return, searching for a way. You were not forgotten.”

Though in the event you end up suffering I can't say I won't enjoy it immensely.”

if we cannot trust one another, we cannot work together.”

I'm afraid that's not an option.”

“Gentleman, shall we?”

Do forgive me, but if anyone is to teach my brother a lesson, it's me.

“Family is power.”

I recognize that tone of voice. Clearly you have some diabolical machination. What is it?”

I will always choose him.”

“Always and forever.”

“We free him today even if I have to burn this city down

“No mountian is endless. Some are just steeper than others.”

“Shh, grownups are talking.”

I trust you can find your clothing and the door.”

You ever experienced something so profoundly wonderful that when it was taken from you your life felt unbearable?”

“The very definition of the word broken means something can be fixed.”

“As a devout feminist, I refuse to say you hit like a girl.”

“How dare you come here and think you can threaten me.”

“Do you have any idea how rare love is? In a thousand years, I have found it but twice, and when I have, I have honored it.”

“Family above all.”

Would you mind sparing me the deadbeat dad lecture?”

With a little salt and an old wound.”

You will always have a choice.”

We must work together. Let's make the city whole again.

I believe that when you love someone and that person loves you in return you're uniquely vulnerable. They have a power to hurt you that's like nothing else.”

Well then go. You are free.”

As long as it takes, and by whatever means necessary.”

I suppose we shall have to call this your white period.”

: I'm warning you. I've forgiven you. I've stood by you. I've forsaken every single one of my desires in the name of your ridiculous redemption. No more. If I want something, I'll take it. And nothing--nothing--will stand in my way.”

I am obscenely fond of torture, but yes. When I'm entertaining, I like to be the one to decide when and how we should violate the guests.

Not a fan of your continued indifference.”

You are a deranged and ridiculous child who cannot be left unsupervised.”

I can't kill you at this very moment, but I could just as easily tear your eyeballs from their sockets and feed them to your sister.”

The Italians call them Strega. The Yoruba of West Africa call them Aje, meaning mother. Where my mother was from they called them Hexa, and here, we call them witch.”

The rifts in this city run far deeper than I even imagined. These tribes, these factions, they're families. Families who choose to fight. Mayhem has descended upon our home, and if I am to choose a side, to our victory, Brother.”

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