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religion-is-a-mental-illness · 2 months

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By: Andrew Doyle

Published: Mar 8, 2024

Today is the fifth anniversary of the publication of Titania McGrath’s acclaimed book Woke: A Guide to Social Justice. I created this intersectional activist and slam poet in order to satirise this new intolerant and authoritarian identity-obsessed religion and its stranglehold on society. Having seen so many posh and entitled activists berating working-class straight white people for their privilege, I could think of no more appropriate reaction than mockery. Even Harry Windsor was at it. And he’s an actual prince.

Five years on, and I cannot decide whether I find it funny or depressing that so many of Titania’s ideas in that book ended up becoming reality. Nothing that Titania was ever able to suggest has not eventually been outdone by real-life activists. It is as though they were reading her book for inspiration.

For instance, in a chapter from Woke entitled “Towards an Intersectional Socialist Utopia”, Titania makes the following observation:

“Capitalism, after all, is a singularly male phenomenon. The ultimate symbol of capitalism, the skyscraper, is nothing more than a giant cock on the horizon, fucking the heavens.”

Sixteen months after the book was published, this article appeared in the Guardian:

Or what about this passage from a chapter in Woke called “White Death”? Here, Titania calls out Hellen Keller for her white privilege:

“Consider, if you will, the example of white American author Helen Keller (1880–1968). Even though she was left deaf and blind following an illness as a baby, she still managed to study for a degree, write twelve books and travel the world to give lectures. This kind of privilege is staggering.”

Compare this with an article that appeared in Time magazine over a year later, in which the author writes:

“However, to some Black disability rights activists, like Anita Cameron, Helen Keller is not radical at all, ‘just another, despite disabilities, privileged white person,’ and yet another example of history telling the story of privileged white Americans.”

And how about this tweet from October 2019, in which Titania had some advice for dog owners:

The subsequent outrage ensured that the tweet went viral. And just a couple of months ago, a leading pet talent agency in the UK called Urban Paws was asking owners whether their cats or dogs identified as “gender neutral” or “non-binary”.

After the backlash, the company claimed that it was a mistake. But the specific addition of a “gender identity” category on an application is hardly the equivalent of a typo.

And what about this article on the website of Vet Help Direct?

And then of course we have PETA (People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals), the world’s leading animal rights organisation, which posted the following call to arms on Twitter to “end speciesism”:

“Evolve your language. Unlearn how we’ve been taught to think of other animals. They’re NOT an ‘it’ and should never be talked about like objects.”

It’s about time that somebody took a stand for non-binary pigeons.

This is by no means the only example of Titania’s ideas being enacted by woke activists. Here are my top ten examples of when her absurd demands became reality…

On 22 December 2018, Titania called for biological sex to be removed from birth certificates.

On 17 December 2020, the New England Journal of Medicine concurred.

On 1 October 2019, Titania suggested that young women should be encouraged to travel alone in rural Pakistan.

On 12 October 2019, Forbes Magazine concurred.

On 15 October 2018, Titania argued that Winston Churchill was worse than the Nazis.

On 11 February 2021, Churchill College at Cambridge University concurred.

On 19 September 2018, Titania criticised Julie Andrews (aka Mary Poppins) for chimney soot blackface.

On 28 January 2019, the New York Times concurred.

On 29 April 2019, Titania pointed out that scientists have yet to discover the difference between men and women.

On 24 March 2022, USA Today concurred.

On 22 January 2019, Titania called for the Oscars to prioritise diversity.

On 12 June 2020, the Academy concurred.

On 30 January 2019, Titania accused Laurence Olivier of a hate crime for his performance as Othello.

On 9 October 2021, the University of Michigan concurred.

On 2 May 2020, Titania criticised the NHS for appropriating the LGBTQ rainbow flag.

On 6 May 2020, Forbes Magazine concurred.

On 6 June 2019, Titania demanded an option on social media to mute white males.

On 14 July 2020, Instagram concurred.

On 12 September 2019, Titania argued that scientists cannot possibly know whether ancient skeletons are male or female.

On 18 July 2022, gender activists concurred.

Titania McGrath’s Woke: A Guide to Social Justice is available to buy here. It’s also available on audio book and Kindle.

This ideology has become so deranged that it's not possible not parody it anymore. Anything you propose in jest today, they'll take up in sincerity tomorrow. Which shows how performative, directionless and unserious they are.

The Civil Rights and Gay Rights movements had specific aims: eliminate segregation, ensure all laws are race-neutral, that opportunities and resources are available regardless of race, decriminalization of homosexuality, recognition of same-sex partnerships the same as opposite-sex partnerships, including marriage. They were specific, measurable and could be ticked off as they fell.

Woke idiots have no damn clue what they're after. And all they can show us is the stupidest, most petty, most insane non-issues that telegraph to the world they have no real problems to complain about. Elimination of all skyscrapers? A lawsuit over who owns the rainbow? (Fundamentalist Xians would like to get in on that.)

They're just making this crap up as they go along, fighting for who can be the most offended and screaming about their imaginary hurt feelings to garner attention and control.

Why did we ever pay attention to this lunatics?

#Andrew Doyle #Titania McGrath #parody #feminism #intersectional feminism #parody account #LOL #funny #woke #Poe's law #wokeness #cult of woke #wokeism #wokeness as religion #victimhood #victimhood culture #religion is a mental illness

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fabianocolucci · 2 years

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Avatar (2009) and its pop cultural disappearance

Welcome back to my blog. Since Avatar’s long awaited sequel is coming out in a few months, I was thinking about the original movie, which destroyed every box office record between 2009 and 2010. Specifically, I was wondering: why did Avatar leave no trace in pop culture?

The movie itself is rarely mentioned, you barely hear someone quoting a line or a scene from Avatar, let alone remembering the characters’ names outside of Jake Sully and, perhaps, the alien Neytiri.

If we think about director James Cameron’s previous film, however, the story is another. We are talking about Titanic, a movie still loved and referenced 25 years after it was released, back in 1997. Leonardo DiCaprio is still a huge star, and, when it comes to the music, Celine Dion’s My Heart Will Go On is so famous that it could be hard to find someone who, at the mention of her name, thinks about another song.

The same cannot be said, for instance, with Leona Lewis’ I See You, and, with the actors, Zoe Saldana might be more famous for her MCU role as Gamora, ironically another alien with a colourful skin. As with Sam Worthington, while he did go on to have a nice career, he has nowhere near the star power that DiCaprio obtained with Titanic.

What happened to Avatar? How did the movie that became the highest grossing one in history manage to barely left a scratch in pop culture?

I will try to share my opinion.

Avatar was well crafted in every detail. Top notch special effects, wonderful landscapes (CGI generated, but inspired by real life landscapes), a believable alien culture (with a language created specifically for the movie), diverse flora and fauna and even the accuracy of making the Na’Vi blue because their planet, Pandora, had two suns.

However, the plot is something we have seen countless times. The main character, initially, is on the side of those who want to fight against a people. Then, he finds out that said people is actually on the good side, and fights for them. Not only there are so many stories with this plot (just to name one, the series of John Carter of Mars, created in 1912, even adapted as 2012’s John Carter), but, in that year, District 9 came out, with a similar structure, beautiful special effects and a better handled plot.

I can show you a culinary parallelism. Imagine you are walking into a luxurious restaurant. The waiters are all elegant, the chairs and tables are manually crafted, the cutlery made of pure silver and the menu is nothing short of a silk towel, with golden writing on it. You order something, whose name resembles something that came from French cuisine, and you trust the chef, renowned as much as Gordon Ramsey.

After a few minutes, in which you cannot wait to taste it, someone serves you a shiny tray. You look into it… and it’s pork and beans!

Now, tell me: if you were to think about that restaurant again, would you think about the luxury around you, or that all those efforts pretty much just served you pork and beans?

Also, Avatar even lost its potential role of an original story that managed to shine when put next to adaptations, remakes and reboots. In 2010, Inception came out, and managed to show the potential of an original blockbuster, something that director Christopher Nolan even replicated with 2014’s Interstellar, and then with his subsequent movies. Ironically, the main character of Inception was played by Leonardo DiCaprio.

What about the 3D? When Avatar came out, everything was around 3D. Movies tried to capture the 3D craze, even when it was clear how the movie was produced without said intention, and, as such, you barely had one scene where 3D was well used, and it could have been a pure coincidence.

I sincerely hope that Avatar’s sequel manages to be a success and finally give the highest grossing movie of all time the rightful spot in pop culture.

After all, from a business standpoint, it also represented a watershed. Before its release, only four movies had grossed one billion Dollars. Now, you could barely get in the top 50 movies of all time with that number.

So, what do you think? Should Avatar get its place in pop culture? Or do you believe it’s a good thing that this blockbuster came, smashed every record and then left no traces?

#avatar #avatar movie #avatar 2009 #james cameron avatar #avatar 2 #avatar the way of water #3d #sam worthington #zoe saldana #happy zozz!#pop culture #random thoughts #leona lewis #titanic

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tomorrowxtogether · 2 years

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Review: K-pop quintet Tomorrow X Together makes up for lost time at triumphant S.F. show

The sustained hero’s welcome that K-pop group Tomorrow X Together received Thursday, July 21, at the Bill Graham Civic Auditorium when they entered the stage after three years away felt like a long-awaited airport lobby group hug.

The sold-out show served as a joyful give-and-take — from their MOA (“Moments of Alwaysness”) fan base to TXT for providing inspiration and solace during tough times, and from TXT to MOA for rocking with the group during a period of pandemic-related isolation.

Group member Yeonjun summed it up when addressing the crowd: “Physical distance is not a drawback. MOAs and Tomorrow X Together are always together.”

The South Korean quintet has had to live up to outsized expectations. In 2019, TXT was the second boy band to debut for its Big Hit (now HYBE) management company — the first being BTS. On the strength of its debut single “Crown,” and follow-up “9 and Three Quarters (Run Away),” the five-member unit (Yeonjun, Soobin, Beomgyu, Taehyun, and Hueningkai) was an instant hit, exceeding and exploding expectations. With catchy songs, powerful choreography, and youthful energy, it was seemingly following a path to superstardom freshly snow-plowed by its Big Hit big brothers.

Then COVID struck.

The band members’ schedules and lives rearranged, they regrouped and released increasingly savvy, challenging music that distanced them from their fresh-faced rookie era. Subsequent releases still held moments of joy but also reflected frustrations and confusion of adolescence and an uncertain world. With tours canceled, the music served as comforting ravens to their fan base in the form of danceable, thinkable pop like “Can’t You See Me?” and “We Lost the Summer.”

Dressed in pink prom suits with sew-on bleeding-heart patches, their opening five-song set peeled back the layers of their career: the opening emo-pop anthem “0X1=LOVESONG (I Know I Love You),” the kaleidoscopic pop of “Magic” and “Wishlist,” the giddy debut-era “Blue Orangeade” and matured Britpop glide of “Ghosting.” It was an energizing TXT trail mix — more savory than sugary, still looking like a snack.

The show — the sixth U.S. stop on its Act: Lovesick tour — reinforced how TXT has evolved over three years. For nearly three hours, the group morphed in and out of personas. They changed outfits like high schoolers late for drama class — from suits to sailor tops to full rock ‘n’ roll regalia, even monster-like gauze-wrap tops. But no matter how grown or edgy they looked, they still felt like sweet kids at heart.

The LED backdrop screens reflected each mood — an icy church on a deserted planet (Krypton?), a castle, an amusement park in the clouds, an outdoor garden lit up with decorative lights, and a forbidden forest. Some of the screens were front stage left and right and must have partially blocked the view for those sitting on the sides. Fortunately, the guys took time to make their way to the far ends of the stage, even going so far as to meander into the audience and upper deck to allow more personal interaction as a phalanx of security cleared the path.

Over the evening, they showed their prowess for maximalist pop and nuanced ballads. The loudest roar of the night came with the familiar opening keyboard stab of their effervescent debut single “Crown,” which was performed flawlessly. “Magic” and “Blue Hour” were dazzling Bruno Mars-level jollies. “Trust Fund Baby” and “Anti-Romantic” highlighted their balladry, especially Taehyun who exerted as much emotion and energy singing as he did dancing.

On the flip, darkness descended during “Maze in the Mirror,” “Eternally,” and “Can’t You See Me” — a moody trifecta delving into isolation. Similarly, Yeonjun owned “Frost” and “New Rules” with an impressive spotlight dance solo and sinister facial expressions.

Rock elements came into play early and often. But if TXT is really about that rock ‘n’ roll life — and from the Nirvana and AC/DC T-shirts they were wearing during part of the show, I think so — then they should lean into it. “0X1=LOVESONG (I Know I Love You),” “Good Boy Gone Bad,” and “LO$ER=LOVER” are guitar-based alt-pop songs, and “Can’t You See Me” was remixed with metal elements, so why not have an actual guitarist or band playing on tour? Their show was performed entirely with an instrumental backing track. The prop mike stands during “LO$ER=LOVER” were used to strike rock star poses, but felt more redundant than epic with their headset mics.

Rock star tropes aside, the evening solidified the feeling that TXT is ready for Chase Center or Oakland Arena levels. Perhaps HYBE wants to ensure that TXT doesn’t skip any steps in their development — something that Olivia Rodrigo insisted on her “SOUR” tour that played Bill Graham Civic earlier in May. The trade-off of not having a full stadium show with an enlarged scale and scope is that TXT’s long-awaited first Northern California concert carried an intimacy a cavernous arena couldn’t provide.

The encore reaffirmed this thought. Emerging in white tour t-shirts and denim overalls with one hook loose, New Jack Swing-style, they waded through the crowd, even reaching the upper balcony, to vibe with fans during an ecstatic “Thursday’s Child Has Far To Go.” It was a gesture that reflected gratitude and solidified the intense bond between TXT and MOA. They’ll get to stadiums together soon. As the song goes, tomorrow is always a day away.

#txt #tomorrow x together #220724 #article #datebook #soobin #yeonjun #beomgyu #taehyun #hueningkai #ACT: LOVE SICK #WORLD TOUR

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drippingheart · 4 months

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FUSHIGURO ZEN'IN MEGUMI .

Instead of laying out a ton of details and mapping out Megumi's childhood, this will incorporate several loose ideas which will come to life in individual storylines. In the case when inspiration strikes or a collaboration clicks, such details will be added to make this vague au more hardy.

There are two routes by which Megumi falls into the hands of the Zen'in clan instead of Gojō Satoru's — a, Fushiguro Tōji does not die in the conclusion of his battle with Satoru , subsequently Megumi gets sold to the Zen'in clan. Perhaps the two do face off and Tōji does die, however by then Megumi would have been sold off already. — b, Satoru delays seeking out Megumi, and once he does it is too late. There could be attempts to offer the child asylum, but by then he's in the Zen'in compound and away from the grasp of Satoru and the Gojō clan.

Using the information provided regarding Zen'in Mai's and Maki's upbringing, we can make some broad assumptions regarding life as a Zen'in. Tsumiki is brought along simply to keep the boy compliant. Eventually Tsumiki is kept under mediocre care away from the Zen'in compound, more or less held as a hostage to insure Megumi's compliance. Life is difficult. Life is demanding. There was mixed opinions following Megumi because of the clan's disappointment with Tōji's betrayal, his mother's non-sorcery background, and his Ten Shadow Technique. There are some who overlook the misstep of his parents and embrace the rebirth of the Ten Shadow Technique, others only view him as a tainted bastard incapable of mastering his technique.

Due to certain manga events, Megumi is groomed to eventually become the Zen'in heir; this, naturally, ignites a heated rivalry between Megumi and Zen'in Naoya. Maki turned out well despite their childhood ( meaning on the side of lawfully good ) demonstrating that not all Zen'ins are doomed to be bad people. Megumi will come out of this more morally grey, perhaps leaning more towards bad than good. Somewhere between neutral and evil. He will have a steep mountain to climb which carrying a boulder on his shoulders considering he will not have the guiding star that was Tsumiki nor the obnoxiously cheery presence of Satoru.

There is so much to explore. Will Satoru keep an eye on Megumi? Will Satoru use Tsumiki's coma to contact Megumi face-to-face? Plenty to explore. As for school, I think it's more likely for Megumi to attend the Kyoto branch as opposed to Tokyo. Mai being enrolled in the Kyoto branch demonstrates the Zen'in's preference for Kyoto, furthermore they would not want Megumi to be marred by Maki's influence by attending the Tokyo branch.

What's interesting... more interesting is: how much will Megumi's power evolve under the care of the Zen'in's, how his relationship with his shikigami will change, and how the major canon events will be altered. Will Itadori Yuuji still manage to save his occult club friends and swallow Sukuna's finger? I think it would be fun to set things up where "destiny" still brings characters together and makes most of the canon events transpire despite changes here and there. Would be even more fun if Zen'in Megumi still was the cause of Yuuji's consumption of Sukuna's finger. All of this would require a lot of fun plotting!

However this is not to say I would like all canon events to remain vaguely the same. I also believe it would worth exploring how different things would be. How Megumi falling into the care of the Zen'ins would trigger this butterfly effect of change. What if Yuuji is not even in the picture? What if Megumi was the one to consume Sukuna's finger? Plenty of possibilities.

#𝟎𝟔 watch me bring our dreams alive .#canon divergence two .

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tganalostarosciak · 5 months

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Comic artists researches. Part 1

Frank Miller:

Frank Miller is an American comic book artist, comic book writer, and screenwriter known for his comic book stories and graphic novels such as his run on Daredevil, for which he created the character Elektra, and subsequent Daredevil: Born Again, The Dark Knight Returns, Batman: Year One, Sin City, and 300.

What is Frank Miller doing now?

On April 28, 2022, it was reported that Miller was launching an American comic book publishing company titled Frank Miller Presents, or FMP. Miller will act as the company's president and editor-in-chief, working alongside Dan DiDio as publisher and chief operating officer Silenn Thomas.

Did Frank Miller draw Daredevil?

He started out with minor tasks, like drawing covers and short stories for Spiderman anthologies. Then, at the beginning of 1979, came the big break: Miller became the official artist for Daredevil, one of Marvel's lesser-known series.

Who influenced Frank Miller?

Among his graphic influences were Neal Adams, Ernie Bushmiller, Guido Crepax, Will Eisner, Jack Kirby and Goseki Kojima. His made his debut in 1978 with contributions to Gold Key's The Twilight Zone. He soon also drew for DC anthologies and Marvel titles like 'Spectacular Spider-Man' and 'John Carter: Warlord of Mars'.

My opinion for this artist of his art style is very interesting for my opinion, that he uses some specific colours for different comic he made for Sin city, Daredevil and 300. As my point of view toward his comic is a mixed with a big art of scene in the comic and four small boxes to show what is going on with that scene which is very interesting to me.

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John Romita Jr.:

John Salvatore Romita is an American comics artist best known for his extensive work for Marvel Comics from the 1970s to the 2010s. He is the son of artist John Romita Sr.

When did John Romita Jr draw Spider-Man?

Romita Jr. made a name for himself as a key Marvel artist thanks in large part to his work on Spider-Man. He first drew the character in 1977, as the rising star son of the legendary John Romita Sr., and went on to become one of the definitive pencillers to ever work on the character.

What was the first comic of John Romita Jr?

Romita Jr. began his career at Marvel UK, doing sketches for covers of reprints. His American debut was with a six-page story entitled "Chaos at the Coffee Bean!" in The Amazing Spider-Man Annual (1977)

Is John Romita Jr back at Marvel?

He drew many of Marvel's greatest characters, and then moved to DC for a short period, where he also drew their greatest characters. John Romita Jr. has since returned to Marvel, getting his old job on The Amazing Spider-Man back.

My opinion for this artist of his art style is very pop culture-like as he is uses pop colours for example, red, blue, orange, yellow, etc. As he worked for Marvel as he did his work on Spider-Man as he first dew the character in 1977 as he is going to work back on the Spider-Man for Marvel.

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Brian Bolland:

Brian Bolland is a British comics artist. Best known in the United Kingdom as one of the Judge Dredd artists for British comics anthology 2000 AD, he spearheaded the 'British Invasion' of the American comics industry, and in 1982 produced the artwork alongside author Mike W. Barr on Camelot 3000, which was DC Comics' first 12-issue comicbook maxiseries created for the direct market.

What inspired Brian Bolland?

As early as 1962, aged 11, Bolland remembers thinking that "Carmine Infantino's work on the Flash and Gil Kane's on Green Lantern and the Atom had a sophistication about it that I hadn't [previously] seen." He would later cite Kane and Alex Toth as "pinnacle[s] of excellence," alongside Curt Swan, Murphy Anderson

You'll be surprised to hear that even though Judge Dredd had been in 2000AD since Prog 2 the editors weren't sure which of the interior characters would sell the comic best if that character was on the cover. Artists like me just came up with cover ideas and, if they liked them, we'd draw the cover and they would write a one-page text story based on it to go inside. These early covers of mine fall into that category.

Other covers followed for nearly a third of the first 30 progs, as well as stand-alone pages and some inking duties on Gibbons' Dan Dare. Already familiar with Nick Landau (acting editor), when another artist dropped out, Bolland was called directly to complete a Judge Dredd story in Prog 41 (3 Dec 77) and soon was established as a regular artist on the series. "From that point on," writes Bolland, "either he [Landau] or his successor Steve MacManus called me direct whenever they wanted me to do a Dredd story."

Bolland's early work on Judge Dredd was much influenced by McMahon, a talented newcomer whose idiosyncratic style was fuelling the interest in the new character. Bolland thought McMahon was "terrific, the real ideas man on Dredd," but noted that McMahon's approach was "very impressionistic," while the "average comics reader, certainly at the time, does tend to prefer realism." Bolland therefore states that he "aped Mike's genius... and then reinterpreted [Dredd] in a style which actually borrowed a lot from the work of the American artists," retaining McMahon's "granite-jawed" look but bringing a level of realism and fine detail to the character, which Mark Salisbury says "finally cemented the iconic image."

My opinion for this artist of his art style is horrific but in a good way as he is showing us in the comic with joker and batman as showing the Joker a villain in a horrific, disgusting and creepy style as he is showing toward us in world that the style of his is amazing as he did a well done of showing the art style on the comic book to show what horrific is it.

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fraener · 6 months

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11/15/23

things coming to gentle heads...finally put an end to the fighting with h for now. told him i'd been reflecting on how much we fought through the relationship and told him if he keeps treating me so mean over nothing i've done wrong i'll leave him. got some of my parts organized in therapy, been dreaming vividly of the past, feeling weak and slow through the days. this evening feeling the reconciliation of my lovers from the past couple of years....ive had so, so many beautiful lovers. i loved almost all of them, almost all of them broke my heart. ive been looking for my inspirations lately, looking for the pieces of my heart that ive forgotten, looking for my passion again. i feel like ive been in the dark for the past few years, acting behind my own back. now i am waking up in this life and trying to traverse back into the light. where have all of my lovers gone? one moved to ny, one back to the city, several stayed right where they were but left my life for reasons they never bothered to explain, one moved south from north, two are current but unattainable in some strange way at the same time. i feel really sad the last few days and today about all the people who have come and gone in my life. bittersweet i guess. its hard to reconcile the amount of people ive loved so fiercely with the incongruently minute number of people who have stayed to be loved for longer than a moment. im missing milo lately. i miss all of them. what's to be done about that? i want relationships to last longer than that. ive never had my heart as thoroughly broken as i did by that relationship but then somehow the subsequent smashings that followed have almost nearly stomped out my ability to love at all. or at least, it feels like that at times. my heart leaps here and there, just for a beat or two, then i remember what its like when the rest follows. my surface feels marred and furrowed, i need time to be smoothed out by something again. abstinence, true love, commitment to my work, anything. i wanna look back closely at my time here. i wanna love everything ive done. i wanna make this last year count for something. i wanna make music again and magic again and masks again. i need a vacation for my introspection.

of course right after this a stumbling series of coincidences where i unblocked milo on stuff since i dont think he uses it anyways and ian came back onto inst. ....for the first time in years i saw his face, forgot what he looked like. both of them were delightfully ugly which made them both really beautiful. ive had to really abandon that part of my life in order to move on but im feeling like i want to walk back into the house and see what i left behind and the evidence of what happened again. so much of me is trying to walk back to walk forward right now.

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spicycurrybread · 2 years

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Why Gamers Need to Give Star Wars Battlefront 2 Another Chance

From its pre-release marketing campaign right through to today, Star Wars Battlefront II has been marred by controversy. Crippled by a convoluted progression system and pay-to-win mechanics the game suffered critically and commercially with EA announcing it had failed to meet their sales targets. Despite this, it’s unfortunate Star Wars Battlefront II never had its time in the sun; although criticism of its microtransactions may have been fair at the time the game itself is genuinely beautiful to look at and mechanically engaging. It may have a bad wrap but with huge changes to its microtransactions and progression mechanics, I think it’s time everyone gave Star Wars Battlefront II a second chance.

I just want to get this out of the way: Battlefront II’s campaign is bad. Iden Versio is a flat character that represents a lot of the problems with Star Wars as a brand right now. She is insanely predictable and feels like a vehicle to revisit iconic Original and Sequel Trilogy characters and locations. Better Star Wars video game narratives carve their own corners in what is a really broad universe, while Battlefront II habitually colors within the lines. A lot of opportunities to develop the game’s characters in interesting ways are missed as if its writers assumed the Star Wars license was enough to make players invest in them. Obvious twists and stupid turns made for a campaign I don’t think I’ll ever return to.

Need a gaming chair? Be sure to read SecretLab Alternatives: The Best Gaming Chair Options for SecretLab Fans

However, the design of the locations in which the campaign and multiplayer modes take place is phenomenal. Environmental details like the individual leaves blowing across Theed’s stone roads and the explosive thunderstorm above Kamino’s voracious seas breathe life and urgency into what could have been empty worlds. Playing with other like-minded Star Wars fans finding easter eggs and hidden locations from the movies was a joy. Running around Star Wars Battlefront II’s maps feels like visiting the definitive realizations of these worlds, or at least the actual movie sets.

If you’re used to Call Of Duty or Battlefield Star Wars Battlefront II probably won’t feel great. It’s an arcade shooter first, placing fun and power fantasy ahead of realism. Team strategizing subsequently falls to the wayside while every character runs face first into a blaster bolt pretending to be Han Solo, but it’s fun nonetheless. Blasters feel as ‘realistic’ as you could want; Rebellion guns feel slapped together in a garage with scrap metal and rushed welding, while Empire weapons feel shiny and mass produced. Every team, be it the Clone Army, CIS, Rebellion, Empire, Resistance or First Order largely play the same way for balancing purposes, but slight changes in mannerisms and abilities make each side feel unique.

Despite its arcady nature, I would have preferred some more nuance in Battlefront II’s lightsaber combat. Lightsabers feel fine when you’re dicing up Clone Troopers and deflecting blaster bolts, but when another force user shows up to fight the ensuing duel mostly comes down to button mashing and special abilities. Characters hack and slash at each other, while the movies repeatedly emphasize the significance of lightsaber combat and a mastery of it as an art-form. Games like For Honor prove that thoughtful sword-based melee combat is possible, so I hope future Star Wars games take some inspiration.

Starfighters play as they did in Battlefront 2015, which for some is a negative. The controls are obtuse at first and require you to ignore years of conditioning for how a flying vehicle should operate, but once you overcome this hurdle they feel right. https://www.hangrygamergear.com/cool-desk-accessories-for-gamers/

What really shines in Star Wars Battlefront II is the sound design. From the whine of a passing TIE Fighter to the “ROGER ROGER” of a Battle Droid, every sound bite is perfect. The sounds of Star Wars are iconic and go just as far (if not further) as the visuals to immersing you in the universe.

Now, the point on everyone’s minds: microtransactions. How do they impact the game? How can you have fun while some nerf-herders living it up with 5 hours gameplay time and every top level unlock? To put it simply, they’re all gone. EA disabled microtransactions the day before the game released back in 2017 and completely overhauled in March of 2018 as not to affect gameplay. Microtransactions now buy Crystals: an in-game currency only used to purchase cosmetic items. Loot crates earned through gameplay and daily logins only grant you cosmetic items and Credits, which pay for upgrades and are earned in larger quantities through gameplay. If you buy a copy of Star Wars Battlefront II the only high-level players you will come across are those who have earned their stripes and value the game. https://www.hangrygamergear.com/hyperx-cloud-ii-headset-review/

As a big Star Wars fan, I was pretty unsure of Battlefront II before its release. The trailers looked cool enough and the prospect of exploring the much-maligned prequel era tickled my fancy, but my history with the dull and lifeless Star Wars Battlefront in 2015 and the never-ending controversies with EA set my expectations somewhere in the negative zone. But once I set aside all the negative buzz perforating the conversation and actually played it myself I realized it’s not a bad game. So I implore you, if you’re on the fence about Star Wars Battlefront II, play it for yourself. For only $40 you will get a complete and well-crafted experience with free future DLC on the way. If you love Star Wars give it a go, you won’t be disappointed.

The Good

Excellent Visuals

Great Gameplay

Sound Design

The Bad

Uninspired Campaign

#star wars #star wars battlefront 2 #gaming #games #video games #xbox #playstation #pc gaming

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huntertherapyeras · 2 years

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a little autistic marcy fic inspired by @titanhood's ask, which said, "Mayyyybe… a happy one could be that Marcy feels ashamed that they infodump so much, so they try to stop, but Anne and/or Sasha notice and find ways to encourage them and let them know that they love hearing them talk about their passions.":D

i'm not 100% sure if this completely fit the prompt, but i did enjoy writing it! a lot! thank you for the idea, cay!!!!

Despite what other people may think, Marcy is not oblivious. Reading social cues has never come naturally for them, not like it seems to for Anne and Sasha and pretty much everyone else. But they can be observant, sometimes. And when your people ignore your ramblings about things you love time and time again, you eventually begin to realize that they aren’t actually as interested as you thought. But Anne and Sasha did try. They really did. Probably harder than Marcy deserved. Much harder than their parents did, at least. They let them ramble on and on some days. And sometimes, they even listened.

Marcy never thought to ask for more than that, even if it did sting sometimes, the way even they would sometimes lose interest.

As a child, Marcy wore their heart on their sleeve. They felt everything, it seemed, ten times stronger than everyone else. This could be a good and a bad thing. Good feelings felt so, so good. These feelings would consume Marcy entirely. The only way Marcy knew how to let it out most days was through movement. Spinning, bouncing, wiggling, humming. It was like soaring through the sky, that feeling. Like going supernova.

Marcy does not like to think about the other feeling. The feeling of not being understood. The soul sucking emptiness of loneliness and despair – comparable to a black hole. Since their death and subsequent possession, that feeling has become much more common. It’s an exhausting feeling, only fed by the things that the core tortured them with while they had no control of their body.

It’s been a long time since they’ve felt that carefree joy in its full capacity.

It’s a surprise, when Anne and Sasha drag them out of their cave one day to go to the movies. The film adaption of the first Cynthia Coven book just came out. They’d wanted to go, initially. But between physical therapy, school, and needing more sleep than usual for whatever reason (Not Depression.), they just hadn’t made it out yet.

So here they were. Since it was just the movies and they would spend most of their time sitting, Marcy decided to forgo their rollator. There were seats at the theater anyway, they reasoned. So, date money in hand and hidden drinks in Anne’s backpack, they went to the movies. Marcy didn’t have high hopes for this movie. All too often, movie adaptations were a real letdown. Marcy much preferred their own vivid imagination to a bunch of boring actors who probably didn’t even live up to their roles.

Despite this, Marcy can’t help but get sucked in. They stare at the screen avidly the entire movie, occasionally grabbing onto SashAnne’s arms to make sure they are paying attention during the exciting parts. The quips are funny, the acting is good, and the cinematography is beautiful.

Unfortunately, the movie doesn’t fully follow the plot. Which does bother Marcy quite a bit.

“How’d you like the movie, Marshmallow?” Anne asked as they left the theater, ruffling Marcy’s hair with fingers covered in butter.

“It was. Good.” Marcy says, looking down at the floor – partially to ensure they don’t trip, but also because –

“C’mon, Mar. I know that you have more to say than that. It’s your favorite book, dude.”

Marcy bites their lip, “Well, the effects were good. The acting could was good too.”

“And?”

“... They didn’t follow the plot. Entirely.”

“Really?” Sasha asks.

Anne gently pokes their shoulder, “C’mon, Marcy. Tell us how you really feel.”

Marcy takes a deep breath.

“Well, if you really want to know–it drove me crazy that they took out the scene where Cynthia meets–”

And they’re off. Unbeknownst to Marcy, whose gaze is still locked on the ground in an effort to not trip over the obnoxious movie theater carpet, whose hands are dancing in the air, Sasha and Anne lock eyes and give each other a conspiratorial grin. They’ll get their passionate Marcy back, one infodump at a time.

#autistic marcy wu #disabled marcy wu #amphibia #amphibia fanfiction #aster.exe #titanhood #op

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astroseri · 3 years

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New Moon in Scorpio ♏️

November 15th (2-4 week Horoscope)

Through the Signs (Ascendant & Moon):

New moons periods are good for planting seeds 🌱 The seeds usually sprout/manifest in subsequent full moons (can be multiple).

Aries ♈️

Your seeds and actions will manifest transformations & breakthroughs. Starting new things with your actions or changing old ways of doing things will be successful. Also, Aries may be indulging in sex with someone in their community or who lives from a short distance from them. The thought will weigh on your mind 👀 Anyway, you will feel extremely productive during this time. Mars is finally direct so you will feel relieved as you begin to make progress that wasn’t possible before. You will make changes to your routine or work that allow you more freedom and efficiency. You will feel powerful/unstoppable right now. You could make transformations to your status. Overall you could experience more harmony in relationships or be meeting a new partner (Venus is in your 7th house). They may be clashing or be in the way of your drive to get things done though. (Venus opposite mars) You could be changing your perspective or your physique/appearance🦵 during this time. 👁👃👁 You could also be doing work in your community or neighborhood (it could be going through transformations). Mars (your planet) is going direct in Aries and the New Moon is powering it up in Scorpio (the other sign of mars). Accomplishing your desires is a breeze for you during this time.

Taurus ♉️

Your shadow side is likely to come out regarding your desire to break free from the manipulative nature of people or siblings 😒😡. It will come out unconsciously (unless you are an early degree Taurus 0-2°) -- because lilith is in the early degrees of Taurus. You will feel inwardly rebellious, but breaking free may feel difficult (it’s your fear of losing stability, of course). On a positive note you can manifest transformative relationships or partnerships that will push you forward. People you know will be trying to support you subconsciously and transform your perspective during this time. You could feel highly creative or artistic during this time and be socializing more than usual, especially on the internet 🌐

Your partners may change their appearance or presentation. Or you may meet a powerful new partner during this time. Likely a foreigner or someone from a different culture. In general am seeing that your relationships during this time will go through new beginnings and you will experience powerful new adventures and revelations. fun fact: Despite their immobility, Tauruses secretly crave adventure, knowledge and fulfilling their spontaneous explorative and sexual desires.

Gemini ♊️

You will probably be transforming your routine drastically and on a whim. To something much better. Aunts/Uncles, Distant family and daughters could play a role in your next weeks. You could encounter a sexy or powerful foreigner (pluto is conjunct jupiter in your 8th) and start a partnership. Whether you end up meeting someone like this or not, you will notice someone like this. It will be in your daily routine or job. Either sexy or powerful. In the case you are starting a new relationship during this time I am betting they are likely to be from a past life or be someone highly spiritual (south node in your 7th). Right now it’s all about you though (N. Node in 1st). I feel like Gemini’s may be diving deep into conspiracies or taboo subjects during this time as well.

Cancer ♋️

You could be transforming the way you present yourself to others during this time 💁🏾‍♀️. You may be receiving groundbreaking information from others especially sisters during the next month. A son may decide to “leave the house.” But you may be doing so too; you may feel a need to get out more. Similar to gemini you will be capable of encountering a sexy or powerful foreigner during the coming weeks. Instead of being from work though, it will be from your neighborhood/city. Likely while having fun, going shopping, or going out, you will enable this encounter (it’s in your 5th house). Like I said with gemini, if you’re not meeting this foreigner, you may at least catch a glimpse of one.

Leo ♌️

You may feel a need to express yourself more harmoniously 🕊. You may have reflected on wounds to your ego (☀️💔😔) recently or you will be . You will set new emotional beginnings and family beginnings. You could be conceiving this month (especially if you want a child). It’s more likely going to be a son—less likely it could be daughter (mercury is in your 4th). Mercury is usually boys, 4th is womb. If it is a girl she could be intelligent and energetic like a boy. I’m seeing that some really blessed/powerful kids will be conceived by Leos this month (Jupiter conjunct Pluto). Other than kids this is basically about blessed/powerful expressions. They will make an impact. You will be planting powerful creative seeds. Others may transform your beliefs during this time with their unconventional thoughts. You may make powerful transformations at work or with your routine.

Virgo ♍️

Virgo, you will be moving full throttle the next 2 weeks. You’re channeling Aries energy during this time. You could find yourself transforming your physique/appearance --> 💇🏻‍♂️. In general you will be planting a lot of intellectual seeds and acquiring knowledge from your investigations. You will be tempted to dig up a lot of dirt during this time. You are the king/queen of thinking about dark and negative topics. As well as investigating corruption and manipulation 🔍.. You will likely express yourself effectively at work during this month. You will be innovative and a high achiever at work. But an individual may misconstrue your rebelliousness and powerful expressions as you being toxic or full of yourself 😒 (you are simply stepping into your power).

---==☯︎☯︎☯︎==---

Libra thru Pisces.

Libra ♎️ - Libra, you will be making a transformation in your values, appearance or possessions. Manifesting a new appearance will be highly effective during this time. You could be making drastic transformations in your home and your emotional comfort zone. You also may be starting a new financial venture with someone, especially through a deal or contract. You have a lot of value right now (venus is in your 1st house). You are an attractive prospect. Be careful, others could be a little unfair in the financial agreement, be gaining more from you, or have an unspoken desire to be free. You are valuable. You will have a tendency to be self-sacrificing and easygoing during this time so set firm boundaries and be clear with others about what you can tolerate.

Scorpio ♏️ - Scorpio, this is your time. You will have no trouble changing your appearance or even perspective right now. Your routine, diet or workout regiment could be the source of the transformation. You will be going hard at your routine and at work. Partners may be trying to break free from your grip during this time or be seeming to act toxic but it’s because they are analyzing all the power people like you have over them. Try to give them space and step back for a while before resuming your grip lol. On the other hand, you may find yourself to be more communicative and expressive during this time. Your deep thoughts will be well received right now and will influence others. Others understand you abnormally well. People may share your passion about a subject and be supporting your point of view, which may feel strange and out of the norm as a Scorpio. Enjoy it.

Sagittarius ♐️ - You will be highly creative during this time 👨🏽‍🎨. And you will feel an unnatural insight into your emotions 🌙. Out of all the signs, you are the most likely to be receiving gains in capital during this time. These could be enormous (you have Jupiter and Pluto conjunct in your natural 2nd house and Venus in your natural 11th house.) —bill gates has this in his chart, except venus in 5th (i’m not saying your going to become bill gates rich tho lol but you can on the INSIDE at least). Remember new moons are seeds, so more than likely this will be a very lucrative idea (seed) coming to mind. It’s up to you to put your inspirations to action. This is a great time for you to meditate and quiet your mind so you can be open to receiving random ideas throughout the day. Partnerships are favored during this time 🤝. You could have a breakthrough at work or have a need to break free (get some space).

Capricorn ♑️ - Other people’s expressions will inspire transformations in your perception and actions 🤔💡. You may consume or receive some information online that changes your perspective on life and makes you see things through a deeper lens. You could make improvements to your physique, routine and workout regiment. You may also feel a desire to change the way you present yourself to others. Capricorns may want to express their unconventional beliefs and ideas. This may feel disorienting to others (who know you for your practicality), who are used to your practical side. They may be critical of your expressions (out of fear or discomfort). Make sure you are being concise in your presentation of information, and paying attention to details. Your unconventional ideas are actually very appealing to others once you present them well (Venus is in your 10th). On a side note, transformations to your appearance or public image will be highly supported during this time 🤩

Aquarius ♒️ - Along with many other signs, there the theme of transforming appearance or presentation for Aquarius (this will be supported during this time). It could either be your outlook or your physical appearance that you are positively transforming by planting manifestation, actions and intentions. You may decide to release a lot of subconscious junk 🧠 🚮 Emotional transformations and purges 😭 are possible. This could also manifest as making changes in your home (a complete revamp) or maybe moving. Also, the New Moon is taking place in Aquarius’ 10th house. New beginnings in status, career or public image. These changes will be powerful. The outcome could be massive increases in value and achievement. During this time you may come up with groundbreaking inventions, but probably ones that you have trouble putting into physical matter (they have never been done before). Also you could be creating deeply creative art or expressing enlightening ideas 🗣💡 right now.

Pisces ♓️ - New beginnings in learning and education. These personal studies and knowledge will spark ideas for inventions and unconventional creations. Your below-the-surface perception makes you highly creative, pisces 🐳.! The positive seeds that others plant in your mind during this time will manifest through your actions later 🗣 --> 💡. You are likely to be creating a lot of art or inventions during this time. In general, you could be focused on your finances, building wealth at work or sharing value through your own expression to others. In any case you will certainly reap financial gains from the actions you take right now.

*Pisces, whenever you take action it tends to increase your self-worth and value (your actions and wealth are very interlinked). Perhaps it is because you are so creative. Whenever you do practical things, the outcome is very beautiful to others (they are like --> 😮)

Thanks for reading!

@astroseri

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amphtaminedreams · 3 years

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Farewell to Spooky Season, AHS Style: Lookbook no.12

Hi to anyone reading,

Happy belated Halloween!

I capitalise it because if I'm gonna recognise any day as sacred, it’s the spookiest one of the year! Halloween 2020 obviously hasn’t been as exciting as usual, parties and club nights being banned has meant there’s been far less opportunities to dress up, but I still managed to get out for the night before they announced the upcoming second lockdown and do a couple of spooky movie nights (and carve a pumpkin!)!

I originally intended for this lookbook to be last minute halloween costume inspo but I was lazy and didn’t manage to get it out on time-a lot of these looks minus the makeup and maybe an accessory or two could work on any day or night out so I thought I’d go ahead and post it now anyway. Celebrating the fashion moments of American Horror Story is something I’ve wanted to do for a while; it’s probably not the first show you’d think of for sartorial inspiration but Mr. Ryan Murphy has fucking fantastic taste in stylists and the first five seasons of AHS in particular, which I’ll be focussing on in this post, have given us SO many amazing looks. The man may be guilty of many things-subjecting us to the character of Will Schuester, trying to turn Richard Ramirez into a thirst trap, embarrassing everyone who raved about how good Scream Queens was when he wrote season 2-but costume related laziness is not one of them. We see more consistency in a Ryan Murphy character’s wardrobe than we do in their story arcs and I respect that because honestly, as much as I love joining in when it comes to ripping into his ability to cohesively bring an AHS season to a close when it airs, I’d probably be the same; if you put Lady Gaga in front of me and told me to write her lines I’d probably end up getting overly invested in what her character was going to be wearing in the scene too.

So! Enough Ryan Murphy bashing from me! I’ll get on with it! Starting with 3 season 1 inspired looks:

Murder House: Elizabeth Short, Tate Langdon and Violet Harmon

-striped jumper from caitlinlark on Depop, kick flare jeans from ellagray-

When it comes to reflecting on season 1 of American Horror Story, all I can say do is thank the internet overlords that Tumblr has moved on from the romanticising school shooters and wearing normal people scare me tops phase to instead collectively taking the piss out of the “GO AWAY, TATE!”, “YOU’RE ALL THAT I WANTTT! YOU’RE ALL THAT I HAVEEE!” exchange.

In terms of fashion *moments*, whilst season 1 doesn’t stand out as much as the seasons that come after, Violet and Tate’s wardrobes did give birth to a bit of a 90s grunge renaissance with their oversized knits and faded jeans and layering of textures. It did also give us good costumes in the form of Alexandra Breckenridge’s Moira O’Hara and Mena Suvari’s portrayal of the Black Dahlia, Elizabeth Short; unfortunately, I didn’t have a slutty maid costume lying around so I did the best I could at giving the outfit Elizabeth wears when she makes that fateful visit to the Murder House a modern, more party appropriate update.

In terms of season rankings, Murder House isn’t my favourite. It starts off really great but lulls a bit towards the end and I could never get behind Violet and Tate as a couple because you know, one of them is a school shooter who sexually assaults the other’s mum, and that’s a hurdle that I think most couples might struggle to get over irl. That being said, it was the season that started it all and showcased some of the most innovative writing and directing on TV, and it opened up a spot for horror on primetime television which as far as I know was kind of unheard of before then. Back when I first watched it, I had no idea what to expect not only because I’d never seen horror in a serial format but also because it seemed to be able to get away with the kind of storylines you’d expect network executives to fire people over. It introduced us to Jessica Lange and Sarah Paulson and Evan Peters and Denis O’Hare who would go on to make the show what it is today and more importantly, through Jessica’s glorious portrayal of Constance Langdon, provide us with an endlessly versatile meme format for this trying time.

Asylum: ‘60s Lana Winters, ‘70s Lana Winters, and Sister Mary Eunice McKee

-afghan coat from louisemarcella on Depop, red AA skater dress from julietramage, pink gingham co-ord from zshamim-

I think we can all agree: Asylum would’ve been a perfect series of television if it wasn’t for the completely unnecessary alien storyline. Like, I get that they fit in with the whole good vs. evil theme as a kind of non-biblical alternative to the idea of a higher, all-powerful being but there was already so much going on that it just wasn’t needed. Aside from that, I think the general consensus amongst watchers of the show is that Asylum has the best writing of any season and I think I’d tend to agree. It’s not my favourite because it’s too depressing to rewatch but if we’re talking the first time round, this is the series that had me hooked. Lana Winters?

Iconic.

Sister Mary Eunice? Iconic. The Name Game? Iconic. Remember when you couldn’t go a day on Facebook without seeing that one photo of Naomi Grossman as Pepper used as the go to “what I really look like” photo in one of those “expectation vs. reality” style posts on your newsfeed? Those were simpler times.

Because this season was mostly situated within the hospital, we didn’t get that many proper outfits but when we did, they were stunning; if I had to state my absolute favourite AHS character of the entire show I’d probably go with Lana Winters and the part her wardrobe played in her characterisation would 100% play a part in that. The late 60s/early 70s was such a wonderful period for fashion and through her character we get to see both of those explored a little. Of course there’s also *that* Sister Mary Eunice scene with the red slip dress and suspenders too which yes, could be a perfect halloween costume, but I also strongly believe should be a perfectly acceptable outfit for any day of the year.

Coven: Misty Day, Madison Montgomery, and Zoe Benson

-chiffon dress from rags_to_riches on Depop, pinstripe corset from hanpiercey, and tennis skirt from mollie_morton-

I hate to be a basic bitch but I have to say it: Coven is my favourite season of American Horror Story. Once you get over the complete waste of Evan Peters’ acting capabilities that resulted from the *choice* to have him play Kyle, the unnecessary rehash of the Evan/Taissa pairing from season 1 in what I can only assume was an attempt to capitalise on the popularity of the questionable Tate/Violet relationship, and the subsequent sacrifice of any interesting character arc we could’ve foreseen for Zoe Benson beyond her obsessing over a resurrected, non-verbal frat boy, it’s a perfect season. A supreme (heh) balance of horror, humour, and character drama, as well as the stunning aesthetics and forever quotable dialogue, make it my go-to season if I’m ever considering a rewatch. And if you disagree, let me jog your memory with the most mainstream (not to get all “normal people scare me” and suggest AHS is not a mainstream show, I literally just mean in the sense that even those who have never watched the show will have seen this) reaction GIF set any FX show has even spawned:

Buzzfeed employees had a field day, Emma Roberts enthusiasts (I mean me) finally saw her cemented as the pop culture icon Scream Queens has since showed us she deserves to be (because not enough people have seen Unfabulous, Nancy Drew or Scream 4) and the gays everywhere rejoiced at the year’s worth of meme fodder they’d been provided with. It was Madison Montgomery’s world and we were truly just living in it.

And the fashion! I mean, Stevie Nicks meets 21st century teenage witches! Come on!

Freakshow: Dandy Mott, Maggie Esmerelda and Elsa Mars

-olive green satin skirt from morganogle on Depop, headscarf from tonijordan, platform sandals from elliefewt, PVC skirt from bethpin_, corset top from sadieflinter, beret from house_of_erotique, flame detail platform boots from mad_rags_vintage-

When people talk about the declining quality of AHS, they usually point to Freakshow as the beginning of the end, but I have to completely disagree. I wasn’t a fan the first time round but on rewatch it’s probably the most emotional season of them all; no, there aren’t as many “horrifying” moments as in other seasons and Elsa is probably Jessica’s worst performance (which is still an incredible one by anybody else’s standards), however it makes up for it with the most sympathetic bunch of characters yet, and on the flip side, also one of the most amusingly depraved with Finn Wittrock’s Dandy Mott. Fans usually argue that the season went downhill once *SPOILER* Twisty the Clown was killed off but for me, he really primarily served as the catalyst for the far more interesting devolution of Dandy, who, imo, is the show’s strongest villain to date, rivalled only by Bloody Face. Then there was the episode Orphans too which made me cry buckets, the sole AHS episode to do so.

We got a lot of great fashion content in this season too: the theatrical opulence of Elsa Mars’ wardrobe, “Maggie”’s nomadic fortune teller costumes, and all those twee suits we saw Finn Wittrock in. Highly underrated if you ask me. It seems an odd choice for me to use Elsa’s Dominatrix look as an inspiration for one of my looks here when we have that Life on Mars performance outfit and all the extravagant robes Jessica got to waltz around in for reference buuuut I didn’t really have anything to do the vibrancy of either of those justice so I went with the black leather option which is much more me. Am I saying I moonlight as a dominatrix? Maybe. Lol, no. I wish. It’s not for lack of trying. WHERE ARE ALL THE GENUINE TWITTER PAYPIGS AT!? Your girl wants to insult creepy men and get some new clothes out of it xoxo

Hotel: Hypodermic Sally, Liz Taylor, and The Countess

-silk white bralet from xlibby_maix on Depop-

Hotel is another season that I liked a lottttt more upon rewatch, once I knew I was okay to tune out the (completely predictable and utterly nonsensical) Ten Commandments Killer storyline that so much of the season initially seems to hinge on. I love Chloë Sevigny but the fact that her and Wes Bentley’s wooden John and Alex Lowe are positioned as the protagonists at the expense of the far more interesting Liz Taylor, James March and Hypodermic Sally really does a disservice to what is an otherwise great season upon initial viewing.

The visuals this season are magnificent and I think if I had to pick one character’s wardrobe to steal from the entire cast of AHS characters, it would be The Countess (a toss up between her and Misty Day tbh, so I kinda just settle for low-key channelling both). No fucking idea where I'd wear any of her clothes to but I’d make it work. Liz Taylor and Hypodermic Sally have some amazing looks too-there’s just honestly so much to choose from; that being said, this post wouldn’t be complete without a specific ode to the vampire goddess Elizabeth Bathory, who is everything I want to be in life minus the murderous qualities:

Everything. EVER-Y-THING. LOOK AT HER!

Lady Gaga is really a fucking goddess isn’t she. And people were claiming before they’d even seen it that she couldn’t act? A patriarchal society doesn’t like women that can do it all. Just saying.

Anyways!

That’s it for now! I hope you enjoyed the post if you did read til the end! Sorry I couldn’t get this out before Halloween, I was typing and Picmonkey-ing madly from 2 in the afternoon on the 31st but I taking fucking forever to get ready and had to abandon all hope of getting it out on the day by 4PM. I’ve got so much content planned and it sucks because a couple of them are lookbooks which now feel completely redundant given we’re heading into a second lockdown, but maybe I should just do it anyway? The grunge inspired moodboard I just did seemed to get a good reception too so I’ve got some more of them planned.

As always, hope everyone is keeping well, and feel free to inbox me with any suggestions, queries or even just to say hi if you need someone to talk to! I check here quite a lot so I should see it. Lots of love to everyone in this time!

Lauren x

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supergay-supergirl · 3 years

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6x01 Recap: Rebirth

(Disclaimer that this is all from my own memory because I don’t have access to the episode right now. Future recaps will be written with a reference.)

Setup

At the end of 5x19, Lex channeled the power of the bottled gods and became a god himself.

The Obsidian Platinum launch was secretly a means for Lex to brainwash everyone into loving him using Non Nocere (a scheme he calls I Love Lexi).

He also set up satellites around Earth that will emit a sonic... thingy... to kill everyone who hasn’t been brainwashed.

He is working with Lillian.

Plot

Nia saves Brainy from the poison in Leviathan headquarters.

Brainy and Alex kill Gamnenae(?) with the Anti-Immortality Code(?). Leviathan is officially dealt with(?).

From the Tower, Supergirl calls Lex to tell him that she’ll give herself up if he deactivates the satellites. Lex picks the Fortress of Solitude for a meeting spot. Meanwhile, the Super Friends prepare a contingency plan.

Supergirl, Alex, and Lena portal to the Fortress. Alex and Lena retrieve... some sort of weapon(?) and Myriad respectively. They portal away.

Supergirl starts recording her knowledge in preparation to die. :’(

Lex arrives, predictably doesn’t deactivate the satellites, and blasts Supergirl with Kryptonite. The sonic thingy activates.

J’onn and M’gann use a Martian ritual to explode the satellites. Day saved, part 1!

Supergirl is saved by Lena’s anti-Kryptonite suit.

All the Super Friends arrive in the Fortress for a showdown with Lex.

Lex traps Supergirl in the Phantom Zone using a Phantom Zone... transporter thing. Alex turns him mortal by shooting him with... a distilled form of the gods’ energy from the bottle? J’onn and M’gann drag Lex away to prison.

Lena and Brainy use Myriad to un-brainwash everyone on Earth. Day saved, part 2.

We close on Supergirl lying unconscious in the Phantom Zone, being approached by a group of scary-looking lizard creatures.

Fallout

Nia and Brainy tell each other they each love the other. They agree to try to rebuild their relationship.

J’onn and M’gann are now mentally bonded.

Alex takes the name Sentinel, after a friend of J’onn from Mars. J’onn puts her symbol with the symbols of the Justice League, implying that Alex is joining the Justice League.

It’s confirmed that Kelly does not know that Kara is Supergirl. J’onn and Lena tell Alex that she must tell Kelly, and Alex agrees.

Andrea abandons Obsidian North in a dastardly move against her father and turns her full attention to CatCo.

William’s article about Lex Luthor is received well. He tries to include Kara on the byline, but she’s not there for obvious reasons (Phantom Zone). Nia makes the excuse that she’s working on a story with Cat Grant.

Fun stuff, predictions, and opinions under the cut.

Fun Stuff

During a monologue, Lex [EDIT: Lillian] calls Dreamer “Dream Girl” and is subsequently corrected. Dream Girl is the name of Nia Nal’s descendant and original comic inspiration.

Lena calls Crisis “Crisis.” I just think that’s funny.

Lex does a dance to “We Are the Champions.”

Predictions

During the episode, Brainy lends Nia his Legion ring and says it might come in handy. I think this might be foreshadowing that Nia and Brainy are going to join the Legion at the end of the series. (The only evidence against this is that Nura Nal, Dream Girl, is also with the Legion.) Still holding out for Nia to join the Legends, though!

Alex semi-officially joins the Justice League at the end of the episode. I think when the series ends, she might stay in National City as a background member of the Justice League and show up for crossovers.

The ending had a very Trollhunters-season-2 feeling, aka: hero is isolated in a new, dangerous environment and has to survive while the rest of the team works to bring them back. This was a really compelling and effective storyline in Trollhunters, so if they end up doing something similar, that’ll be awesome—especially since a line in 6x01 totally acknowledged that the Phantom Zone was an extremely traumatic experience for young Kara. However, since Supergirl won’t be in some of the next episodes, they might focus entirely on the Super Friends trying to rescue her.

After Crisis, Supergirl is no longer one of only two heroes in her universe, meaning that we could see a lot more casual crossover in the future. Maybe while Supergirl is gone, some other heroes from Earth-Prime will help out in National City.

Opinions

Overall, I really liked the episode! It felt a little rushed, but that was totally fine given that they managed to tie up every single loose end from season 5, a feat not for the faint of heart. I thought sending Supergirl to the Phantom Zone was an excellent way to both explain her absence and naturally propel the plot and characters forward. Plus, Alex’s reaction was just heartbreaking, and this could play into her partly-unresolved grief arc from last season.

I want to give an honorable mention to the way they treat relationships in this episode. 6x01 places an emphasis on open communication and trust with all three established relationships: Brainy and Nia, Alex and Kelly, and J’onn and M’gann, with all three at different places in this regard. In addition, Lena and Brainy have a really nice conversation about regaining trust from their respective loved ones. These are vital elements of a relationship, especially considering the turmoil between Kara and Lena in season 5, and I’m glad the show is bringing them to the forefront.

Rating: 7.5/10

Final Word: Perfect within imperfect constraints.

#supergirl #supergirl season 6 #supergirl 6x01 #supergirl recap #episode recap #kara danvers #alex danvers #j’onn j’onzz #lena luthor #brainiac 5 #nia nal #m’gann m’orzz #s6 #6x01 #supergirl spoilers

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twstdreams · 4 years

Note

Hello! Could I request scenarios/headcannons for Leona, Azul, Vil, Malleus, and Kalim? During flying class someone jinxes their crush's broom and sends them free falling but just before they hit the ground the boys rescue them. To show their gratitude, their crush gives them an innocent peck on the cheek afterwards (oblivious to their feelings) before leaving. Sorry if this is too specific! Kinda inspired by Harry Potter lol

Yes, you can! A bit specific, but I much prefer this over vague requests, so no worries! I hope you enjoy! I combined it and did both headcanons and a short little scenario.

Heroes, Villains, and the soft spot in between

Leona Kingscholar:

Your broom sputters a bit and Leona just brushes it off with a soft laugh. Couldn’t even fly your broom straight, it’s a good thing you’re cute.

But the worry on your face transforms into panic and your flying patterns quickly become erratic

Suddenly you’re falling and Leona doesn’t even get the chance to think, not about his image or if it’s worth the effort, he casts a spell using his well of magical powers and save you from disaster

It’s not the smoothest spell on Earth but it’s strong and you land safely

You’re in shock and grasping onto your jinxed broom as a crutch, trying to keep yourself stable. Leona makes some remark about you being easy prey, but your mind is still reeling from everything that happened. You take in a deep breath as strength begins to return to your legs.

“Did, did you save me?” you ask tentatively.

“Yeah,” Leona confirms, but before he gets to finish his sentence, a quick peck to his cheek silenced him.

“I’m glad at least someone is on my side. Thank you.” Your voice drips with enough sincerity that Leona feels his heart twinge, not that his confident smirk betrays his true feelings. Perhaps, he wouldn’t mind saving you a little more often if he got rewarded like this.

Azul Ashengrotto

Azul has an inkling that something is off with your broom, he’s not an expert flyer but he’s familiar with sabotage, however, you’ve taken off before he can confirm his suspicions

For once, Azul regrets that he’s right as you life is placed in imminent danger

With a smile plastered to his face, Azul uses his array of skills to safely reduce your fall until you all but float into his arms

His expression is picture-perfect and doesn’t indicate a drop of worry, but his rapidly beating heart says otherwise

Your doe-eyed expression as you grasp onto him soothes his heart. Your grip is tight, seeking something steady to contrast to your wild life-threatening fall moments ago. Your breathing begins to even as a shaky smile makes its way onto your face.

Azul can only widen his eyes as you swiftly tug him down to plant a kiss on his cheek. He can feel a whisper of the kiss remain even after you let him go.

“Thank you for saving me. Hopefully, that’s enough for a payment?” Your voice is soft and your words are light, but worry and fear still cling to your expression.

“For today,” Azul relents, “But perhaps we should sign a contract to make sure this never happens again?” His gaze remains on you but Azul’s mind wonders how this happened and lays out a plan to find out. Though, even if he finds the perpetrator, he’d consider leaving them alone for a while, if only to assure you’d run into his arms for safety.

Vil Schoenheit

Vil was flying as well, actively trying to avoid anything that could mar his face like a swarm of bugs or flock of birds

His focus falters when he hears you shriek and horror courses through his veins as he sees you falling

He pours all of his magic into his broom in a mad dash to catch you

He chips some of his nail polish but he barely even notices because of your flailing limbs. You two land with as much as grace as possible given the near-death experience.

Afterwards, Vil insists that you leave class early and escorts you away. You’re trembling like a leaf in his arms with tears welling in your eyes. The steady feeling of the ground isn’t enough to calm your erratic heartbeat

He leads you to his room and pampers you with an impromptu spa day

The smooth pads of Vil’s fingers glide over your cheeks as he massages in a face cream. The steadiness of his fingers helps put you at ease. You always try to take care of your skin to an extent but today Vil has pulled out all the works. Cleansers to wash away the grime of flying, facial masks that leave your skin refreshed, and serums and creams that soak into your face while making it as soft as a petal. Less than an hour ago, you were on the verge of a breakdown but as Vil massages leave-in conditioner in your hair, you nearly fall asleep on his lap.

“Finished, you look beautiful.” The affection in his voice warms your heart. You sit up and look in the mirror. Your beautiful skin is surprising but the relaxed expression looking back is even more unexpected. Your lips form a soft smile. You plant a gentle kiss on Vil’s cheek with happiness adorned on your features.

“Thank you for making today a good memory.”

Malleus Draconia

Malleus sees you falling off your broom and sighs. Sure, he had compared you to a baby, but he didn’t expect you to be so defenceless.

You’re helplessly plummeting towards the ground, but a quick spell has you landing softly in front of him.

He’s not freaked out since it was so easy to save you, but when his fingers brush over your broom, he senses foul magic and immediately his green eyes are filled with rage

He doesn’t plan to let this transgression go, but he’s currently distracted by your sudden affection

Before Malleus can lecture you or remark on your spectacular fall, your arms envelop him. The act renders him speechless. People barely had the courage to talk to him or invite him, let alone bold displays of physical affections. He wonders if your brain is muddled by the traumatic experience. You raise your head to show your dazzling smile while looking into his eyes.

“You saved me,” you state, almost breathless and most definitely in awe. You lift yourself up and swiftly kiss his cheek. It’s brief and a feather-light touch, but a lingering sensation remains on Malleus’ skin all the same.

“Thank you,” you add as a pretty flush spreads across your cheeks, whether from embarrassment or the exertion of flying, only you know.

Kalim Al-Asim

You’d never feared flying, in fact, you were quite excited to soar through the skies and the freedom it entailed

That all ends when your broom fails you and instead of flying, you’re on a one-way collision course with the ground

While free-falling through the air, you were overcome with fear, your brain trying to conjure up something to save you from impending doom but fails spectacularly

Suddenly, your back meets carpet rather than the hard ground and instead of blurry clouds in the sky you see Kalim’s radiant smile

Kalim chatters about how he’s glad that he made it in time and promises to catch you if you ever fall

You can practically hear your heart thumping. Even though you’re safe now, your blood is still flowing with adrenaline from your unexpected broom induced free fall. Kalim, with a grin from ear to ear and confidence that reassures your frazzled mind, is your saviour today. Without thought, you kiss his cheek, quickly and a little unstable due to the flying carpet but sincere all the same. Your subsequent giggle mixes with Kalim’s surprised laugh as you both smile as bright as the sun, for different reasons though.

#I felt so soft writing Vil's piece #I'm pretty happy with how this turned out #twisted wonderland #disney twisted wonderland #leona kingscholar #savanaclaw #azul ashengrotto #octavinelle #vil shoenheit #pomefiore #malleus draconia #diasomnia #kalim al asim #scarabia #twisted wonderland headcanon #twisted wonderland scenario #twstdreams #twisted dreams

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babyybitchhhwrites · 4 years

Text

Shikaku x Reader 18+

Title: Kiss it Better

Rating: Explicit/R-18+

Words: 3830

Warnings/tags: barebacking, begging, older man/younger woman

♥♥♥♥

Shikaku’s body was a menagerie of scars. Some so old that you could just barely make out the pale, jagged pink lines cutting across his skin. Others more recent and darker. They were a stark contrast against his warm complexion, drawing your gaze and making the others seem less noticeable by comparison. You were struck by the sheer number of them; how every inch of his body appeared to be marred with some physical reminder or another of hard won battles just as much as narrow escapes. There were almost too many to count. Surprisingly, though, they did not detract from his undeniable good looks. If anything, they only added to the pretty picture he painted sprawled out underneath you.

Reverentially, you traced the path of what looked to have been a particularly gruesome wound with your fingertip. It was probably a miracle he hadn’t been eviscerated. You wondered how he’d ever survived - not only this attack but all of them combined. Just how many battles had he fought and walked away from? You weren’t so sure you wanted to know the answer to that question.

It’s not as if you could have ever given voice to your curiosity anyway. It wasn’t your place to pry and he was already watching you with a steady interest that made you feel decidedly put on the spot. Like a stagelight had been trained on you and you alone; effectively highlighting your role as the instigator in all this.

He seemed perfectly at ease playing the observer, your audience of one. Content to let you peruse his body at your own leisure. Those sharp, pinpoint eyes that never seemed to miss even the smallest of details tracked the motion of your hand whenever you’d reach out to touch a new scar before flicking back up to your face again, silently gauging your reaction to each one. You weren’t sure what exactly your expression was conveying in that moment but Shikaku drank it all in with unwavering complacency. If he was offended by your keen scrutinization of his scars, he certainly didn’t show it.

Drawing your gaze lower, you followed the lean line of his stomach until he disappeared underneath you. The meat of your thighs seemed especially soft and pliable where they were bracketing his narrow hips, bulging around and molding to the firm shape of him. He was lithe and hard despite his age. Despite his role as Jounin commander which consisted almost entirely of desk work. He must have taken the time to keep up on his own training over the years and with some frequency, and it showed.

You couldn’t help noticing that there were signs of past altercations even this far down on his body, much too below the belt to have been anything but a cheap shot. Who was petty and malicious enough to hurt someone here? A tinge of ire sparked through you as the pad of your finger circled the pock mark blemish that was just shy of his hip bone. It must have hurt like hell getting injured so close to the groin.

Shikaku drew a quiet inhale then and your head came up. Worry that you’d overstepped some unspoken boundary or touched on a nerve that still ached even after the flesh had long since mended itself flooded your thoughts in a sudden rush. You started to issue a hasty apology but, to your surprise, he didn’t look in any way put out. If anything, the crooked smile playing at his mouth only seemed to suggest amusement and the words died in your throat when he brought his hand up to poke at the pale indentation too.

“Shuriken.” He said, finally breaking the silence. “Friendly fire.”

Your brows lifted. “Really?”

Nodding, Shikaku abandoned the pale scar tissue in favor of squeezing your thigh. His palm was rough with thick calluses - yet more proof of his consistent training efforts - and wide enough to give the impression that even the plumpest part of your leg was a mere handful for him. It made you feel small and delicate by way of contrast, like something fragile under his touch, and you shuddered on top of him.

Your reaction did not escape his notice, the curve of his mouth taking on a more sly, knowing edge as he turned his head against the pillow to look at you from a different angle and size you up. “Back when I was still in the academy.” He explained. “Gods, that was a long time ago, wasn’t it? Just an accident during shuriken throwing practice though. Nothing to worry your pretty little head over.”

“I wasn’t worrying.” You insisted but you could tell he didn’t buy it. Huffing, you slouched forward and splayed your hands across his chest to cover the dense cluster of crisscrossed lines littering his sternum. “You just have so many ...”

“Do they make you uncomfortable?”

You thought about that for a moment. “No. They make me sad.”

Shikaku pinned you with a wry look of humor. “Whatever for? I’m alive, aren’t I?”

“Yes, but I don’t like to think about you getting hurt.”

A warm, rumbling chuckle vibrated up through his chest to set your guts on fire, making your loins twist and curl in on themselves. You drew a steadying breath as your fingers flexed and the nails sunk into the smooth meat of his pecs. There was more give than you’d expected. It was the only indication you’d yet found that his hard earned muscle mass, as slight as it was, had begun to deteriorate with the passing of time. You wondered if anyone else had noticed yet. Then, in the same breath, you wondered why that knowledge excited you so much.

“Aren’t you sweet.” He murmured, distracting you from those thoughts when he palmed your rib cage between his hands. A gentle tug was all it took for him to drag you further up his body until you were perched on his stomach rather than his hips. The casual display of strength had your pussy fluttering in eager anticipation, clenching around little more than your own slick as Shikaku threaded his fingers through your hair and pulled you down into a kiss.

His lips were firm but soft against yours, molding to your mouth in a way that seemed to suggest you two had been made to perfectly fit one another. Leaning further into him, you sighed through your nose and kissed him back. You wanted to stay with Shikaku just like this forever. There wasn’t anywhere else you’d rather be than tangled up in bed with him. But, as all things must eventually come to an end, that brief exchange ended long before you were ready for it to.

“When you make that face, I feel like I should apologize.” He said against your mouth.

“What face?” You whispered.

“The one you’re making right now.” Shikaku kissed you again; a slow, lingering peck that inspired a shudder down your spine. Eyes that were such a dark shade of brown they looked black - true black - gleamed playfully at you from just a scant few millimeters away while he studied your expression. Taking in your every shallow breath, every minute muscle twitch, and neatly filing it away for later. “I just can’t stand to see you looking so sad because of me. I don’t think ‘sorry’ would actually make you feel any better though.”

You gave your head a small shake, allowing him to cup your face in the cradle of his palms. He was so gentle with you. Tender despite the calluses digging abrasively into your skin. You hadn’t thought a man like Shikaku actually existed until you’d found yourself working under him and subsequently, perhaps even inevitably, writhing under him in blissful ecstasy only a few short months later. It was almost too good to be true. A dream you never wanted to wake from.

“I don’t want your apologies.” You told him quietly.

“What would you have of me then?”

That was a question you didn’t have to stop and think about.

“You. I only want you.”

Leaning up, you pecked at his mouth and then his chin. The coarse hair of his beard tickled slightly as you trailed butterfly kisses along the curve of his jaw and cheek until you could press your lips to the scar slashing across the side of his face. You lingered there for a moment. Feeling the heat of him seeping through his skin and into you before pulling back just enough to speak. “If I could, I would kiss away all your scars. You look very handsome with them. Distinguished. But I wish you’d never gotten hurt in the first place.”

Shikaku turned his head and nuzzled into your hair, making the tip of his nose brush the outer shell of your ear. “That’s what it means to be a shinobi. You get hurt and learn from your mistakes.”

“You’ve made this many?” You asked

“And then some.”

A faint, masculine grunt later, you abruptly found yourself flipped over onto your back. The sudden rush of movement happened too fast for you to comprehend what was happening until you hit the futon with a half stifled gasp. Your eyes widened up at Shikaku as he moved over top of you, sinewy muscles under his skin dancing in a delightful display of subdued strength. With one elbow braced against the mattress, he brought his other hand down to slip under your thigh, grabbing a tight fistfull of doughy soft flesh and hiking your leg up into the air. The faltering groan that tumbled off your tongue sounded needy even to your own ears and you grabbed onto his shoulders with fingers poised like talons.

Shikaku’s mouth curled into a mischievous little smirk, never missing a beat as he settled between your hips. His pelvis slotted to yours seamlessly, almost like you were two pieces of the same puzzle. The unmistakable nudge of his stiff cock at your pussy lips had you arching against him and trying to curl your captured leg around his ribs; writhing in anticipation as much as you were basking in the immovable force he presented above you.

He pressed himself flush to you then and your breasts squished against his chest. The sweat slick friction to your nipples sent livewire sparks shooting throughout your body, setting every nerve ending to vibrate. You drew a haggard breath, mewling softly when he bent your leg higher and hooked your ankle over his shoulder. Effectively locking you into place.

Helpless, all you could do was flex your toes while Shikaku took his time slowly angling his hips back and forth, teasing you with the hard weight between his legs. Gliding it along the puffy slit of your labia and coaxing yet more arousal out of your gushing cunt. Prodding your clit with the ridged glans on every smooth, drawn out stroke. It was maddening and wonderful at the same time. You could feel every bump and vein on the underside of his cock as it drug against you, feel it twitching with the need to sink balls deep into your body. Pulsing with red hot desire. It was enough to drive you wild and you whined softly in the back of your throat.

“Shikaku … please ...”

He groaned encouragingly in response. “Please, what? Use your words, sweetheart.”

You closed your eyes against the deep rumble of his voice, so gentle and soft despite the gruff note in his inflection. That alone would have been enough to send you over the edge if you’d allowed it. You could’ve listened to Shikaku speak for hours on end. This wasn’t how you wanted to find your release though and you squirmed, lifting your other leg to throw it over the small of his back and draw him closer. Trying to make him slip inside you.

It was no good though. Shikaku was as stubborn as a mule when he put his mind to it and there likely wasn’t a person alive who could force him to do something he didn’t want. He merely issued another low, carnal chuckle that made your pussy flutter and spasm, grinding his cock against you with more concentrated thrusts. Slipping and sliding through your drenched folds as if he were well and truly fucking you now.

You were entirely at his mercy, so wet for him that it bordered on obscene, and you shook as you threw your head back against the pillows with a half choked sob. “Please! I want you to take me … I need it ...”

“Is that so?” Humming his approval, Shikaku dipped his face down and kissed the tender column of your throat. His beard scratched and tickled, leaving a burning trail in its wake as he worked his way over the line of your jaw and higher still until he could capture your lips again. This exchange was far more heated than the last, more demanding, and you keened into his mouth when the head of his cock bumped your clit with growing insistence.

Trembling, you tore your mouth from his and gasped. “Don’t make me cum like this! I want to feel you inside of me! Please, Shikaku! Please cum inside me!”

He groaned, tense and halting as a shudder rippled down his spine. You could feel every inch of him rolling with it, not unlike the motion of a cresting wave, and your breath hitched as he adjusted the position of your leg over his shoulder. Shikaku shimmied a little lower then and leaned into you with his weight. His cock found your entrance through muscle memory alone, or perhaps instinct, and you tried to arch against him, eager for the sear of penetration. He had you so thoroughly pinned that it was no use though. Your only available option was to cling to him all the more desperately while he impaled you straight down the middle one excruciating fraction at a time. Forcing you to comprehend each inch of him that entered you in daunting slow motion.

You seethed. He had you wound so tight that you weren’t sure how much more of this teasing you could stand. The ache inside you only seemed to double down and grow more intense the further he sunk into your contracting passage, stretching you wide around his girth. It felt good. So good it almost hurt and tears of pleasure welled up along your lash line, blurring your view of Shikaku’s marred face. You tried to blink them away to no avail. He made you feel whole and complete; filling you up and taking you just shy of the breaking point. Reaching deep inside and touching parts of you that no other man had ever even come close to brushing against. It was overwhelming in the best possible way and you sucked in a ragged breath as his hand came up to cradle the side of your face, shaking.

“There you go looking sad again.” He murmured, settling against you at long last with an accompanying grunt and a wet squelch.

“I - I’m not …”

“I know, baby. I know. Shh.” Leaning close, Shikaku kissed the corner of your trembling lips. Those dark, dark irises studied you up close - taking in the flutter of your lashes, the moisture wetting your eyes, the way your brows furrowed and jumped in wonderful agony. You were sure he could see all of you in that moment, right down to your very soul. “You’re still so sensitive even after all this time. What am I ever going to do with you? Hm?”

A hiccuping moan was your only forthcoming response. You couldn’t seem to get your mouth to cooperate but that didn’t appear to bother him and you were grateful for that.

Smiling faintly, Shikaku backed off just enough to push up onto his elbow. His body, beautiful in its imperfection, flexed and roiled above you. The weight of his cock gradually retreated until you were sure he’d slip right out of you before surging forward again on a single, powerful thrust. You jerked at the intense pleasure that spiderwebbed through you, gasping and groaning. Your pussy flexed, squeezing around him in gooey palpitations that made his breath come a little harder. A little faster.

His mouth fell open with a barely audible groan, his expression pinched while he watched your face twist up in ecstasy. It looked like he was holding himself back. There was a bead of sweat forming on his brow, right above the scar gouged into his temple and you lifted a trembling hand to wipe it away. Shikaku readily leaned into the warmth of your palm, his eyes slipping shut for a brief moment.

They opened again when he angled his hips back and locked onto yours as he drove into you on another powerful thrust. He didn’t pause to let you adjust this time; quickly taking on a steady rhythm of long strokes and sharp, pointed jabs that had you seeing stars. It felt like he was punching the air right out of your lungs and your breathless cries rapidly rose to join the deafening noise of skin clapping against skin. The humiliating schlucking sound of your cunt sucking him in deep on every downward lunge seemed loud between your bodies and only added to the lewd cacophony filling the space between you two. It echoed inside your head and seemed to heighten your arousal that much more, sending you barreling blindly towards the edge of oblivion. It was as if he intuitively knew how to hit that spot inside you at just the perfect angle and, as usual, you were powerless to stop it even if you’d wanted to.

“Shi - Shikaku!”

The breath puffing out of him grew more labored, straining against the exertion. “Go on, baby. Let it go. I’ve got you.”

You screwed your eyes shut and curled into him, holding on for dear life as the pressure in your loins rapidly mounted and threatened to suffocate you. Nails digging into long damaged flesh. The tension weighing heavy on all your muscles. Your leg quaking uncontrollably where it was stretched right to the edge of real discomfort over his shoulder. The delicious burn of his cock carving out a space within you one relentless thrust at a time. His sweat damp hips driving into the backs of your thighs with loud, wet smacks. The smell of him, intoxicating and woodsy. It was too much. You could feel the heat of your orgasm bubbling over, reaching critical mass, and your hands flew up to cover your face as you shrieked in delight.

“Let me see you, sweetheart.” Shikaku’s voice rumbled above you. “Don’t hide from me.”

His long fingers curled around your wrist in the next moment, gentle and coaxing. You let him tug that hand away from your flushed cheek, watching as if through a daze when he pressed your knuckles to his chest, but the other slipped back to tangle in your own hair. You could feel his heart pounding out an erratic rhythm against his ribs and he was looking at you like you were the only woman he’d ever known. Like you were the only one that mattered. Your stomach flipped over itself and, just like that, the coil snapped.

Arching so hard that you caught a sharp pop in your lower back, you threw your head against the pillows and wailed. The fingers in your hair clenched, desperate for something to hold onto while you shook with the force of your release. But the tug to your scalp only seemed to highlight the intense bursts of pleasure radiating from your cunt, making you cry out with more fervor.

As you shattered around him, Shikaku slowed to a standstill. Panting and tense with the effort of holding his own release at bay but content to let you ride out the waves of pleasure on his cock. He stayed lodged deep inside your pulpy cunt, just watching you writhe on him and shuddering each time your contracting walls spasmed and squeezed like a vice grip. All the while, you twisted and lurched, realizing in a far off, dreamy sort of way what he was doing but you were too far gone to care. It wasn’t nearly enough to dampen the sharp twangs of ecstasy cascading over your heaving body and you groaned dazedly when you started to come down from the high some moments later.

It took even longer to find your voice and when you finally tried to speak, your voice was thick with the lingering traces of your ograsm. “You never cum when I do …”

A short, breathless laugh rang out through the statically charged air. “I like to make sure you’re satisfied first, that’s all. Is that so wrong?”

You turned your head to regard the far wall, feigning a pout. “Am I one of them?”

“One of what?” He sounded mildly perplexed now and you couldn’t really blame him for not knowing what you were talking about. You felt silly even bringing it up again but you had to know. For your own peace of mind.

“One of your mistakes.”

Carefully taking your chin between his thumb and forefinger, Shikaku manually turned you back around to look at him. The fond look of exasperation you found peering down at you wasn’t what you’d been expecting - especially not when he was still flushed and sticky from having sex - but it made your heart skip a beat anyway. He was everything you could have ever hoped for and then some.

“You know you’re not. What a silly thing to say.” He muttered, craning his neck down to kiss you again in a lazy, lingering exchange that was as possessive as it was comforting. His lips curled against yours when you enthusiastically returned the gesture, leaning up to meet him, but he was quick to pull back and pin you with a knowing little smirk. “If you don’t think I’m paying you enough attention, all you had to do was say so. We can fix that right now.”

“That’s not what I meant.” You said, trying and failing to wipe the grin off your face.

“Even so,” His expression took on an almost boyish, mischievous edge as he grabbed onto your other ankle and hefted that one up over his shoulder too, effectively bending you in half like a pretzel. “How about we rectify it anyway?”

Your heart thumped wildly inside your chest when the change in position made him feel that much bigger inside you. The glans pressed tight into your spongy inner wall, sending fresh waves of exquisite pressure shooting throughout the sensitized nerves, and you groaned. This was certainly going to be another long, sleepless night and you couldn’t have been any happier about that prospect.

“Please, Shikaku. Please pay attention to me.” You gasped.

“As you wish, princess.”

♥♥♥♥

Link to fic on AO3: Link: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24069682

#naruto #shikaku nara #shikaku x reader #self insert bullshit #my writing

312 notes · View notes

vannahfanfics · 3 years

Note

Some Nejire Hado recovery headcanons please?

Sure, sure! I know you’re caught up on the manga, so I decided to reference the events of this arc! :3 I ended up being inspired by this, so I may write a full story on it... Eventually XD Warning to others for manga spoilers ahead!

Nejire Hado Post-War Recovery Headcanons

Like many of the other students, Nejire was pushed to her limits during this battle and sustained some nasty wounds, especially when she crossed swords with the unhinged Touya Todoroki and Gigantomachia. As such, she earns herself a lengthy hospital stay. She sustained some pretty nasty burns, so the young heroine is admitted to the ICU on a healthy dose of fluids and careful monitoring to prevent secondary infections. Ever the compassionate one, Nejire is more concerned for her friends than herself, so she is very relieved when Mirio and Tamaki come to visit her several days after the crisis.

The boys were likewise worried about their female compatriot and get a little emotional when they see her, swathed head-to-toe in bandages and drowsy on pain medication. Still, she tries to put on a brave face for her best friends. She’s very happy that Mirio has regained his Quirk and praises his performance, and Tamaki’s as well, though she didn’t get to witness it firsthand. The three of them don’t talk much about the event otherwise, however, as the horrors and the subsequent societal turmoil are still fresh in their minds.

Soon, however, Nejire’s brave face dissolves, especially as the pain medication ebbs. She’s in a great deal of pain and is frustrated, feeling that she could have done more to prevent some of the villains from getting away and from society from collapsing at it has. As she tears up, reaching out to grasp Tamaki’s and Mirio’s hands, she begs them to wait for her to get better and not leave her behind. She has a long recovery ahead, but the boys assure her that they will be there with her every step of the way.

It takes Nejire a while to heal, and she is left with several scars. It’s a hard pill to swallow, especially after winning the pageant title in the previous semester. As she recuperates on the general floor impending her discharge, she critically inspects herself in the bathroom mirror, lamenting the discolorations and marred skin decorating her body. She tries to convince herself that they are good things, her battle scars and monuments of her growth, but its still hard to take the stares and whispers when she finally leaves the hospital. Recovery is always longer than people think, because even after the physical wounds heal, the emotional and mental ones are still bleeding. That’s okay though, because Nejire has her friends and her future. She’ll recover.

#nejire hado #hado nejire #bnha #mha #boku no hero academia #my hero academia #bnha nejire #mha nejire

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punkofsunshine · 3 years

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The (Informal) Miniature Anarcho-Solarpunk Manifesto

The integration of communalism into a classless system away from the main caste-esque system of hierarchy around the world is very costly when viewed from a consumer lens, but is essential in the degradation of the overbearing hierarchy that the main populace is subjected to and thusly become numb to the pressures placed upon them from an early age, spiral into endlessly consuming for a sense of being in a world that doesn’t care if you’re alive, to them you’re just a replaceable cog in the profit machine. The goal of the communalist, socialist, solarpunk, etc. should not be to live in their own bubble, but to expand their influence exponentially through participation with the outside world, turn a commune into a city as it were. Less people in a place that has dictated control by the state and the consumers within, the less control the state and capital have over people. A migration of people increases quality of life and food consumption, luckily food growth can be optimized to accommodate many people when given according to need as opposed to given to whomever has the money to afford produce. One must also keep in mind, the debt accrued is now a community responsibility, so the members will do everything in their power to keep people functioning in the community, that must include people paying off debts. Who are you if you let a fellow worker suffer on their own? Who are you to let a human such as yourself be subjected to the violence of the state in its many forms? Pushing back against such oppression is why we ascribe to this ideology, so we can taste freedom and save the earth from ourselves.

No individual is solely responsible for the pollution and poverty. Multiple corporations and their figureheads are. Jeff Bezos, Bill Gates, Bernard Arnault, Qin Yinglin & family, Michael Bloomberg, The Koch family, Jim Simons, Alaian & Gerard Wertheimer, Mark Zuckerburg, Amancio Ortega, Larry Ellison, Warren Buffett, the Walton Family, Steve Ballmer, Carlos Slim Helu & family, Larry Page, Sergey Brin, Francoise Bittencourt Meyers & family, Jack Ma, Ma Huateng, Mukesh Ambani, Mackenzie Scott, Beate Heister & Karl Albrecht Jr., David Thomson & family, Phil Knight & family, Lee Shau Kee, François Pinault & family. Sheldon Alelson, The Mars family, Elon Musk, Giovanni Ferrero, Michael Dell, Hui Ka Yan, Li Ka-Shing, He Xiangjian, Yang Huiyan & family, Joseph Safra, Dieter Schwarz, Vladimir Potanin, Tadashi Yanai & family, Vladamir Lisin, Ray Dalio, Takemitsu Takizaki, Leonid Mikhelson, etc. (Forbes) The list could go on, but I’m not about to list four-hundred people, the people have to change what the ruling class refuses to, hijacking corporate manufacturing and removing police of their power is essential. The police are targets due to the fact they protect corporate interests and stunt progressive growth, all of the people listed above refuse to let power be taken from them, there are too few people willing to make attempts to go after them because what would happen to their favourite source of consumption if that happened? What would happen to convenience? It would disappear, they don’t want to have to make things themselves, such is the first world’s entitlement. Doing without the convenience to save the environment should be a priority, things aren’t going to just get better on their own just because you installed solar panels and an eco-friendly water filtration system. The extent of the work that needs to be done is tremendous and must be organized efficiently and with regard to equivalency of power.

The world is in the process of ending due to all the turmoil we put it through, but the fact we’re more worried about comfort and convenience is very telling of what kind of culture western society has, instead of trying to fight those who destroy the environment and oppress us, we’re eager to mimic them. Why? Because they have and we have not. Such is the downfall of the consumerist mind. A majority of Americans think like consumers, not citizens, which is very telling because the anti-communist culture moted it be after the second world war. (Vox) There’s no telling where the zeitgeist is headed, but there’s political radicalization on both sides of the spectrum, sadly the other side of the spectrum is what we fought against, fascism, nazism, and authoritarianism. 2016 through 2020 were the worst years in terms of hate crimes committed on minority groups since the 60’s which is really saying something, neo-nazi groups sprung up and made themselves the focus, where there are fascists, there will always be anti-fascists or to be informal, antifa. I, the author am a background informant for the loose collective known as antifa, our job is simply to let people know where rallies are going down, we use pseudonyms and VPNs so we cannot be tracked. So why am I telling you this? Isn’t this supposed to be about what we can do to rebel against the systems that oppress us? Yes, and I’m getting there. There’s a reason I’m talking about fascism, and that is the fact fascism and capitalism are linked together.

Fascism/imperialism has been described as “capitalism in decay” by Vladimir Lenin due to the fact that neoliberalism is capitalism functioning as normal, communism post-capitalism, and fascism is capitalism going away slowly. It is an unjust and evil way of looking at the world, but once capitalists sense danger to their power, they fund fascism just so they can keep their power for longer. Anti-fascist action is also anti-capitalist action, for every nazi destroyed, we are one step closer to freedom. For every capitalist institution raided and demolished, we are one step closer to freedom. The city isn’t made of buildings that you can buy from, it’s made of the people who live there, so when the BLM protests occurred and stores were “looted” and burned, that was a form of praxis that hasn’t happened in years it was truly inspiring to see the people of Oregon (among other places) fight the police, fight back the alt-right, give capitalists the middle finger, create autonomous zones, and keep people from getting evicted during the pandemic. That is what communalism is partly about, supporting each other in the face of adversity no matter the cost of personal wellbeing, it’s the pinnacle of mutual aid.

Revolutionary action is one-hundred percent essential in securing future freedoms for not only generation Y, but generation Z and subsequent generations. As a member of generation Z, I feel fear, anger, and dread when it comes to climate change and the fact our generation will have to clean up the messes of the former generations when it comes to pollution, greenhouse gas emissions, unsustainable farming practices, soil health degradation, deforestation, the melting of polar habitats, natural disasters, etc. The weight of the world falls upon our shoulders and we realize this as a truth or we reject reality and follow in our parent’s footsteps and do nothing about it, it’s up to us, the most depressed and angry generation in the U.S.’s rather short history to right the wrongs made by former generations when most of us can’t even find motivation to get out of bed in the morning. I am writing this manifesto in my bed as I have been for the past week when I remember to write it down. It’s not enough to just write a theory however, put practice in it and it becomes more than just a talking point. It becomes a movement, how far you want to take it depends on you, but I do not condone violence against any of the people in the list above for strictly legal reasons. It is not absurd to think that we don’t have a snowball's chance in hell to stop the impending climate disaster that is about to fall onto us, because that assumption is correct. The best we can do is rebuild afterwards then hope and pray the next generation continues our work to restore the planet and maybe move outside our solar system, god willing.

I’ve tried writing a short solarpunk novel, I realized that the fiction may be important for outreach, but I was trying to add personal political theory to a narrative that’s supposed to be about a character’s internal conflicts as opposed to what I’m doing now, informal political theory, which is why I’m addressing you, the reader. I’ve read and listened to political theory in the past, and it’s incredibly dry and hard to pay attention to, don’t get me wrong, it’s important when you’re a part of various movements such as eco-socialism, communalist-anarchism, and anarcho-solarpunk, but I think it’s more important to connect with a reader or listener to make sure they understand the message before saying “do some praxis.” That is the goal here, not to be the leftist, humane version Ayne Rand, but instead instill in people a hope for the future that learns to do without mass manufacturing, that learns to make their own food sustainably, that learns that we all have a right to food, clean water, housing, medical treatment, and clean air without having to pay for all of those things. I may not be a part of the bottom percentage of people, but if I were my point would still stand strong, the notion that you have to work to get basic necessities is immoral on many levels, but in “free market” economies that’s the standard and I was as blind to it as most people before I found solarpunk, it started out by liking the aesthetic, but I started thinking about what we do to our planet and realized this isn’t just a bunch of pretty pictures, this is an idea for a utopian future entrenched in equality, sustainability, environmentalism, and anti-corpocracy.

Many people say that socialism has never worked, they give reasoning such as “Income inequality expands under socialism.” Which is just capitalist projection, during the 2020 pandemic, which is still ongoing at the time or writing, the rich got richer and the poor got poorer. “. . . in the months since the virus reached the United States, many of the nation’s wealthiest citizens have actually profited handsomely. Over a roughly seven-month period starting in mid-March – a week after President Donald Trump declared a national emergency – America’s 614 billionaires grew their net worth by a collective $931 billion.” (USA Today) The middle class, which skyrocketed post-feudalism/post-monarchy has been getting erased by the ruling class, which is the goal of capitalism. Capitalism is rooted in the aristocracy or the bourgeoisie and was created to have control over the masses without having a direct economic power structure overhead. Things may have gotten better for the growing middle class and the poor marginally, then the industrial revolution kicked in and everything went downhill from there. Pollution began with burning coal, the car came along, now it’s coal and oil, and so on until today where we have access to truly world-altering technologies, but what’s holding us back are the people who continue to exploit non-renewable resources for profit and solely profit. The betterment of mankind isn’t on the mind of the capitalist, they can avoid global catastrophe, they aren’t the peasants, they’re the monarchs. Why do you think billionaires fund space travel and cryogenics research? It’s not to better the rest of the world, it’s to get the hell out of dodge after global warming takes its toll and they have no more workers willing to fill their pockets by letting their labor be exploited. As I said above, it’s up to my generation to fix the mess they made. Maybe we’ll learn a lesson, or maybe we’ll die in the process, either way the situation is dire and action needs to be taken.

Who will take action? Well, if you made it this far into the manifesto without falling asleep or getting angry at the things I have to say, it’s you, me, and everyone else who cares, is tired of selling their soul, and wants freedom. Freedom, not via the dollar, but via being human. It matters not your ethnicity, skin colour, religion (or lack thereof), sexuality, gender, or anything else; you matter, the world matters, and it takes all of us to save it.

-A manifesto by Aeron Fae Greenwood

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