#i have like three 'that one mutual' mutuals so this doesn't apply to me

[satoruschapstic]

add it to my notes ♡

you got so used to seeing kento nanami's heartfelt smile when he was around but do you know you are the only one who's lucky enough to see it?

pairing: kento nanami x fem!reader

content: friends to lovers, fluff, mutual pining, kento being the sweetest he is, mentions of alcohol, mentions of satoru (🕺)

a/n: i just love him so much, it hurts on every level of my existence. everyone deserves a man like him </3 all the mistakes are mine, don't judge me pls, anyways hope you enjoy <3

You've never had a friend like this.  Never. And you've never experienced such boundless support, requiring nothing in return. He’s just there for you all the time. A shoulder to cry on, a hand to hold on to, ears to whisper your craziest ideas into. You always return the favor though. But it’s impossible sometimes not to take advantage of his kindness. Yes, you get him wrapped around your finger. But he doesn't mind, does he?

Kento Nanami has always been more of a man of action; he's not into idle chatter type of guy. He believes that actions speak louder than words. That applies not only to his family, his lovers but to you as well. Perhaps that's why he is such a great friend, the best one, actually. There was never a time when he would have turned you down for having "a late-night snack" at three in the morning at some godforsaken diner. No matter how much he would have rambled on the road and rolled his eyes when you happily turned music on in his car, he’d never say no to you. Once he was quietly waiting for you in a salon when you wanted something new to be done to your hair, lazily flipping the pages of a magazine. You just wanted someone to talk to, so there he was, listening to your rumbles about your annoying colleagues for four hours straight. And he never lied to you; he swore he really did like your hair. Even when you cried when the hairdresser cut off more centimeters than you initially planned, and it didn't look in a slightest as it did in your head. You should give credit to him, cause he somehow managed to convince you that it wasn't bad at all, maybe even better than it should have been.

What made your friendship even more precious is that there were never any secrets between the two of you. You knew every single detail about all his failed attempts to build some kind of a romantic relationship, and he was aware of your struggles to find the man of your dreams. After you broke up with your ex, it was him who wrapped you in a blanket, kissing the crown of your head, offering you your favorite dessert. And you helped him move into his new place, arranging his tastefully chosen furniture in the spacious kitchen. You always watered the flowers when he forgot about them, too immersed in his work.

But something changed one day, something clicked in your head, making you look at everything from a different perspective. It was one chilly fall evening, when the wind was mercilessly tearing the remnants of leaves from the branches of already half-naked trees. But you didn’t think much of it, really; you were getting ready for a date with a young man you had met online. You had been talking for enough time to finally set up a meeting. Your gut was telling you that he could be the one. And that’s actually how you learned not to trust your gut. Ever again.

You picked out your best dress, some jewelry and styled your hair. Kento was with you the whole time, being his usual self and giving you advice, on what to say on the first date, and what you should keep to yourself, as if he was one of these couches from cheap tabloids. He was as serious as ever, hiding a small smile behind a mug of hot tea when you tried to make him laugh by mimicking Gojo. You were in high spirits that evening and as you spun around in front of the mirror, you failed to notice how his face changed just a tiny bit. His eyes faded for a good second and the corners of his lips drooped as he looked your small figure dancing using a hairbrush as a microphone. Something turned shifted inside him when he imagined someone else's hands around your waist. But he couldn't let his possessiveness get the better of him, so he just swallowed his pride.

When you were ready, Kento politely agreed to drop you off at the restaurant where you had a date with your soon-to-be-boyfriend. He smiled one last time as you got out of the car, wishing you good luck and offering a few compliments to assure you that you indeed looked flawless. He followed you with a stern look till the moment your silhouette hid inside the building. He was watching your every move through his dark-green glasses that were resting on the bridge of his nose. He stayed there for a few more minutes before pulling away and disappearing around the corner.

You were full of hopes that night. Oh god you were. But they didn't come true. He didn't show up. You stayed there all evening, drinking only a glass of wine and looking at the door every time someone came in. Staying one more second there alone and feeling the pityful stares of the waiters on your back was way too humiliating. The only thing that went through your mind that moment was to call your best friend and ask him to be your savior once more.

Kento was there ten minutes later. He was standing with his back pressed against his car, hands in the pockets of his black coat; the collar was up, hiding him from the piercing wind. Kento turned his head in your direction, hearing either the click of your heels on the sidewalk or the clatter of your teeth as you walked toward him in your thin dress, your head pressed into your shoulders, vainly hoping to keep warm. Your lips trembled slightly, holding back the sobs that threatened to come out. His heart clenched when he saw how small, fragile and distressed you looked then. He thought that if he touched you, you would shatter into a hundred little pieces. As you approached his tall figure, you threw yourself into his arms, pressing your head against his chest, having no strength to hold back any longer. His strong arms swiftly encased your waist, wrapping you in the fabrics of his coat to keep you warm.

“What happened y/n?”, he asked quietly, holding you closer to his chest. “Let’s get in the car, we can talk inside, I don’t want you to get cold”.

"Can we just stay like this for a few moments please?", you muttered, burying your nose deeper into his sweater.

Kento simply nodded, snuggling you even closer and kissing the top of your head. You remained silent for a few more minutes before he stated quietly, "You deserve so much better, you know".

The words came out so slowly, as if he was deciding to the last minute whether he should say all the things he longed to tell you.

"Your love will find you eventually, someone who'll cherish every single moment spent with you, who'll make you laugh by singing along to your favorite songs into your imaginary microphone".

You froze for a few seconds, not knowing how to react, before looking up and asking quietly, "Really?”. Your faces were inches from each other. The close proximity to you and your hot breath on his face were driving him crazy. His eyes ran frantically from your eyes to your lips, when he whispered a soft "really". It was almost ridiculous how gentle and delicate his movements were compared to his calloused hands, which so gently covered your cheek, wiping a trail of tears with his big thumb. And this soppy phrase from your favorite movie ran through his mind, "If you love, you have to say it right away, and loudly, or else this moment will pass". And it did seem to have passed, when he noticed how you avert your gaze with embarrassment. Kento cleared his throat, trying to swallow the lump of thousands of unsaid words, and with feigned confidence continued, "Let's take you home, darling. Get in, you’re freezing." He gently released you from his embrace, opening the car’s door. The drive home was unbearably long for the two of you. For you because you didn’t even know what you truly felt at that time, maybe you were just too overwhelmed to think straight. For him because he couldn't find the strength to make a move, and he thought he had ruined everything.

You’d lie if you say you never thought about him in a romantic kinda way. But you were somehow sure that he wouldn’t reciprocate. So you just resigned yourself to the idea that he was just your best friend. It was better than losing everything in one moment by making the wrong move anyways. This how that evening ended: with you being deep in your thoughts, when you thanked him for everything and headed towards apartment; and him cursing under his breath and pressing his forehead against the steering wheel.

A couple of months passed since that very evening. You both tried to keep it cool like the grown-ups you both were. If pretending that everything’s alright was a competition, you guys’d take the first place. You had been weighing the pros and cons for a long time, trying to figure out if it was worth bringing up the past and going back to that conversation. But you decided to go with the flow. And you just went on as if nothing had happened: spending time with each other, going groceries, etc, etc. Everything was the same as always. Or so it seemed. Kento started leaving a little earlier than usual. And you started skipping your dinners together now and then, dreading the awkward pauses.

That’s how you find yourself in this very situation – in the middle of the dancefloor with Satoru Gojo himself. Yes, Kento Nanami is perfect in every aspect, he is, indeed. But there's one thing Kento has never been good at – partying. He would have preferred to stay home and spend the evening in his quiet apartment, without blasting music and cheap liquor. You though haven’t had fun for as it feels like years. You don’t exactly remember how you end up on the dancefloor, dancing for your dear life with Satoru by your side. But what you do remember is a very suspicious amount of shots you both have drunk.

Your choice fell on Satoru because he's the only who definitely has some moves to show to others. He knows he's an expert at partying, and you'd rather not argue.

You can no longer feel your legs after he has you dancing in the middle of the crowd. Hoping to take a break and order another cocktail, you head to the bar. The white-haired guy follows at your heels, picking you up by the elbow just in time when you tangle in your legs and your face gets dangerously close to the floor.

“I'm fine”, you smile drunkenly, taking your seat on the high bar stool, “but thank you, you’re indeed very quick”. You pat him on the shoulder, while ordering a drink in the meantime.

Satoru gestures to the waiter that he’d better not serve you any more drinks.

“Hey, I thought we were here to relax”. You tug on his arm, “Just one more cocktail won’t hurt”.

“I think you've had enough for tonight, Miss I-Conquer-Any-Party. You've outdone yourself that's for sure; it's time for you to go home, sweets.” He says the words very slowly, obviously overpowering himself so he doesn't seem so drunk.

“Satoooru”, you're deliberately elongating the "o" sound; “you do realize that sending me home alone in this state is just reckless, don’t you.” You giggle, leaving no doubt that you're telling the absolute truth. “And if the two of us go, you won't be any more helpful than I am alone”.

He raises his index finger to object, but then gives up.

“That's why I called your second favorite – Nanami; he'll meet you downstairs and take you home.”

“Bold of you to assume that you’re my first favorite”, you remark sarcastically.

“Bold of you to argue with that”, he retorts, smirking at you.

“Whatever, you’re not coming with us?” you raise your eyebrow questioningly.

“I still have a few unfinished things to do here”, he smiles lazily. “I don't think everyone has seen what I'm capable of yet.” He flicks his eyebrows playfully, making you laugh.

And as much as you'd like to see Satoru in action, even more you'd want to see Kento now. You'll find out about Gojo's antics from someone's tik-tok tomorrow morning anyway.

And just like that, you say goodbye to the blue-eyed guy and head to the exit, where Kento's car is already parked, waiting only for you.

“Helloooo”, you chant before plopping down next to him in the passenger seat. Thank you for getting me out of here, Nanamin," you spell it out, smiling slyly, already anticipating his reaction.

“Don't call me that”, he smiles, “but hello to you, too.”

“Gotta remember that”, you laugh, “I'll add it to my notes.”

He smiles softly as he moves closer and fastens his seatbelt on you.

“Wow, a real princess treatment”, you giggle, mesmerized as you watch the deft movements of his hands.

“That's right, princess treatment for a true princess”, he sits up straight and drives off, not giving you a chance to notice the blush on his cheeks.

“You're so nice...“ you begin softly, "very, very, very nice. And caring. And kind. And... I don't know you always help me out. Why is that?” You tilt your head, looking at his face.

He hesitates for a few moments before answering quietly. “Because I'm your best friend?”, he stops outside your house, and finally finds the strength to meet your gaze again.

“The best”, you whisper, “and also extremely handsome.” You reach out to him and gently caress his cheek. “Damn, you’re so handsome. Why didn't I tell you this before?”

You look lovingly at his face while slowly stroking his cheekbone with your thumb, pausing only when his lips get all of your attention. You move closer, stopping just a second before your lips meet. He's trying to keep his composure and you're desperate, he's trying to stay sane and you're so drunk in love. You chase each other's lips before merging into a sweet kiss. He is gentle and slow. You are needy and putty, brought to the edge just by the feeling of his lips on yours. You taste like alcohol and desire; he tastes like mint and hope. His hand finally finds its place on the back of your neck bringing you closer, while the other gently caresses your side. You run your fingers through his hair winning a low groan slipping through his lips into your mouth. He fights the urge to mess everything up and keep kissing you as if his life depends on it. But he's a gentleman after all, so he does pull away, leaving you breathless and confused by his sudden change.

“What's wrong, Kento?” you ask him hesitantly. “I thought the feeling was mutual”, you furrow your brows, while moving a little farther away from him. “Or did I just make it up?”

“You did not”, he replies simply. “I just don't want to make it even more complicated than it already is,” he runs his hands gently over your cheek, and then tucks your hair behind your ear. “You probably won't even remember any of it by tomorrow, y/n”, he chuckles sadly.

"And what if I try my best? But I have to add it to my notes just to be sure," you grin before giving him one more kiss on the lips. And this time he won't pull away that fast. He's a gentleman but not a fool you know.

#extremely self-indulgent #i have no excuse #kento nanami #jujutsu nanami #nanami kento #jjk x reader #jjk headcanons #jjk #jujutsu kaisen nanami #nanami x reader #jjk satoru #satoru gojo #satoruschapstic #nanami x you #nanami brainrot #jujutsu kaisen #gojo satoru #jujutsu gojo

[ywpd-translations]

Fic rec! (part 1)

Here are some of the fanfics I have bookmarked on my AO3! I have a few more, so I'll do a part 2 of this soon enough. All of these fics are amazing, so please go read them and show the author some love!

If you have fics to recommend please share them!!

Under read more because it got long~

Makishima/Toudou (TouMaki)

Yowamushi Pedal Three Sentence Fics by mikkimouse (Toudou/Makishima / Fluff / 1282 words /Teen and Up audience. It's a collection a lovely short stories!)

Hanging on the Line by Jaela (Toudou/Makishima / 2026 words / Fake relationship / general audiences)

five times they didn’t kiss and one time they did by Yellow (Makishima/Toudou / 4003 words / 5 times / general audiences)

Aoyagi/Kaburagi (AoKabu)

reminisce by foodandfandom (Aoyagi/Kaburagi / 1253 words / general audiences /Kabu has a crush but of course he's oblivious about it /beautiful beautiful fic, I love it with all my heart)

Imaizumi/Naruko (ImaNaru)

on the west mezzanine by monkeyingaround (Imaizumi/Naruko / 3743 words / Teen and up audience / literally one of my fave Imanaru ever!!)

your hands on my cheeks (your shoulder in my mouth) by monkeyingaround (Imaizumi/Naruko / 6115 words / Explicit / basically the nsfw version of the previous one! Just as amazing)

Your Eyes by Allen_Nara (Imaizumi/Naruko / 4018 words / fluff, kissing, touching / Mature)

Butterflies by LadyMarshmallow (Imaizumi/Naruko / 1326 words / fluff, mostly Imaizumi's thoughts / not rated)

Manami/Onoda (SanSaka)

I can still use it by sky_prince (Manami/Onoda / 3913 words / general audiences / so so beautiful, this author really has a way with words)

Kinjou/Arakita (KinAra)

ready to start by joestars for phantomdoodler (Arakita/Kinjou / 3047 words / Fluff / General audiences)

do you want to be with somebody like me? by joestars (Arakita/Kinjou /3082 words /domestic fluff, getting together / Mature / god i absolutely adore this!)

third time's the charm by kinjoy (Arakita/Kinjou / 2115 words /Fluff, first kiss / general audiences)

time to go home by softintelligence (Arakita/Kinjou / 4165 words / magical realism /teen and up audiences)

Danchiku/Kaburagi

Trial Run by GingerCinnamon (Danchiku/Kaburagi / 1749 words / love confessions / general audiences /absolutely adorable)

Urakubo/Niwazuma (NiwaUra)

a beginning colored blue by championhestu (Urakubo/Niwazuma / 1284 words / general audiences / literally my favourite thing ever basically the only fic about them I haven't written myself i own this author my eternal gratitude)

Ishigaki/Midosuji (IshiMido)

Dragonfly Circle by Anonymous (Ishigaki/Midosuji / 11808 words / Explicit / it's been so long since i've read this one but i remember i adored it)

A Night, Your Night by Anonymous (Ishigaki/Midosuji / 7356 words / love confessions, angst / mature)

Arakita/Makishima (MakiAra)

One Hell of a Declaration, Darling by hostilovi (Arakita/Makishima / 9834 words / pining, future fic / teen and up audiences)

Machimiya/Ibitani (IbiMiya)

It's really something by HapaxLegomenon (Machimiya/Ibitani / 1543 words / mutual pining, love confessions / teen and up audiences / a very old one i haven't read in a long while but i remember i loved it)

Onoda/Imaizumi/Naruko

and it's all in my head but– by risquetendencies (Onoda/imaizumi/Naruko / 11792 words / getting together, feeling realization / teen and up audiences / absolutely showstopping, perfect)

Applied Research by rascals (lordlings) (Onoda/imaizumi/Naruko / 17696 words / fluff, confessions / general audiences / again, showstopping)

Midosuji/Onoda (MidoSaka)

A Cast Shadow by Anonymous (Onoda/Midosuji / 55899 words / angst, slow burn, fluff / teen and up audiences / oh god this was so beautiful i need to reread it)

Manami/Teshima (ManaTe)

One More by Anonymous (Manami/Teshima / 45712 words / getting together, banter, flirting / Explicit / i love this fic more than i love myself okay? It's not finished but it doesn't matter it's still worth reading it, literally amazing)

Various Ships

The many meanings of rival by zephsomething (Makishima/Toudou, Imaizumi/Naruko, Onoda/Manami / 1594 words / general audiences)

#ywpd fanfic #fic rec #the fanfic part of the fandom is especially dead so most of these are old #i havent read yowapeda fic in a while #the only recent one is the first toumaki - that one i read today #also i haven't included my own fics #i dont want to be too shameless lmao #btw this made me want to reread all of theeeeseeee #if you guys want rec about specific ships feel free to ask! #also please do share this by reblogging so maybe more people find it i guess?

[dervampireprince]

ASMR | Elisabeth das Musical - Der Tod x Listener SFW Death Becomes Entranced And Seduces A Lonely Prince

[M4M/GF4M] [Prince! Listener] [Seduction] [Manipulation] [Kissing - no character death, lore here is Death's kisses can kill if it's 'your time' but if it's not they don't but they're still cold and cause temporary frostbite-like symptoms] [TW implies the listener is depressed and has been experiencing suicidal ideation, Death at points advises the listener to kiss him which would kill them, please skip this audio if you think these issues could affect or trigger you and if you are affected by these issues please seek help and contact hotlines in your country. This audio is fictional, Death's attempts to be a voice of suicidal ideation should not be taken seriously nor applied to real life.] 

I've been wanting to make this audio for so long. While I've left it ambiguous enough to be enjoyed as an original audio, this character is actually from my favourite musical 'Elisabeth das Musical'. It's a German-language dark queer historical romance where Death (Der Tod) is drawn to those who think about him, in particular it follows the life of Elisabeth, Empress of Austria, and her son Rudolf. The musical does deal with serious mental health topics and some historical events from that time including the rise of fascism so please know that going in, but if you think you can handle such topics then I couldn't recommend the musical enough. 

The original 1992 Vienna production is on Youtube with English subtitles, that is my favourite production and means a lot to me as Uwe Kroger as Death is just... perfection to me, very much gender envy and has been a big influence on me and helped me with accepting myself and my gender expression, and his characterisation of Death as this genderfluid, pansexual otherworldly being is just beautiful. And if you enjoy then I'd also recommend the 2005 Vienna production which is also on Youtube with English subtitles mostly for the few extra added song and Serkan Kaya's performance as Lucheni.

For those of you in my Patreon Discord server, I streamed this musical last Sunday in there for you guys and it finally felt like the perfect time to bring this audio to life. And if Kronprinz is still around, I know you were requesting a Der Tod audio for a long time and I hope you're happy with this one. The listener in this audio series takes the place of Rudolf, but you don't need to know anything about the musical to understand these audios. I chose to present them more like my original royalty series audios as Elisabeth das Musical is not very well known outside of mainland Europe and Japan, so I hoped by framing it this way with a photograph of myself cosplaying Death from a couple years ago would entice more people who aren't familiar with the musical. 

I love this musical so much, European musicals in general are my biggest interest and if you go searching for them it wont be long until you find my sfw account @emptymasks posting too much about them. If you're interested in learning more I have some masterlists and info posts pinned on my emptymasks Tumblr, but also as part of my subathon rewards I am doing a stream on my Twitch explaining about infodumping about European musicals and I've been working on some video essays for years that I hope to get finished this year that will be up on my emptymasks Youtube channel. I also run @europeanmusicals . If any mutuals or followers from my main or side blogs finds this... well hello there, I find myself nervous to drop this in the euro musical tags, as if people are going to find this format of fanwork weird but well... I had fun, I hope you guys are nice about this (nice doesn't mean you have to like it, but please don't be mean about it if you just don't enjoy asmr or audio content).

Something something if I had a nickel for every time Prince voiced a personification of Death from different fandoms I'd have three nickels.

.

Old public spicy audios on sound gasm (link in pinned post). 2 Exclusive spicy audios on Patreon every month. I also stream on Twitch every week @ dervampireprince . [minors + ageless blogs dni. this blog is for 18+ only.] [do not repost/reupload/edit any of my content]

#elisabeth das musical #todolf #der tod #european musicals #der tod x rudolf #death x rudolf #der tod x reader #der tod x listener #the vampire whispers #royalty kink #Youtube

[slovoricbutbetter]

Anarchy Class for Subs and Bottoms: Intro

[slaps chalkboard with a spanking paddle] so! class is in session! today we'll be talking about anarchism! i know, the saying 'no gods, no masters' may be quite alarming to a lot of you, but please, do try to stop wiggling in your restraints and listen.

[picks up chalk and quickly longhands a nearly incomprehensible word.]

so the core tenant of anarchism, as i see it, is responsibility. [slaps the word for emphasis.] responsibility for yourself, your community, and the natural world around you. don't groan now! i know you submissive ass bitches like daddy to come in and take care of things, as well as the threat of punishment to keep you in line, but we must all learn to function on our own, and daddy needs support too, so suck it up or else help me god. [corrects glasses]

now, there are three main pillars of responsibility. number one! [longhands another scribble that might just be the word 'penis' but it's very loopy so who can tell] recognising and differentiating between instances where you do or do not have control. what i mean by that is, of course, is that you'll have extra homework- beat your head against the desk again and i'll assign more- on the nature of systemic issues such as racism, ableism and queerphobia in late stage capitalism, so you are better equipped to handle this pillar.

in more familiar terms, consider a potential dom. if they live halfway across the world and both of you are poor, the distance is not something you can control- however you can change other things to accommodate each other if you so wish. neither of you can take responsibility for handling the distance at the moment, and neither of you is responsible in case long distance relationships don't work for them. in other areas, however, you still have responsibility.

number two! [two words this time, they definitely say 'tasty clit'] recognising your limitations. if you are disabled, you should not be held responsible for things you physically can not do- so for example, if your disability prevents you from leaving the house, you can not be faulted for not doing mutual aid. on a similar note, taking a break is not a sin! you can not bear the load- do not snicker in class! brats, all of you- you can not bear the weight of responsibility at all times, sometimes you need to let go and be taken care of, or left alone.

in more familiar terms, limits and boundaries! we all know if a dom doesn't let you have them, that's a red ass flag the size of germany. so you have to allow yourself to have them, too- none of that 'i don't have limits do whatever you want daddy' bullshit! it's not sexy and only really shows you are not a well-established human being.

number three! [longhands 'application' beautifully and perfectly readably on the desk] if neither of the former two apply, fucking do it! get your head out your ass, take a breath, and start on the goal you wish to achieve. if you want there to be a union at your work place, start one- you're human and you have power. if you want to join a mutual aid circle, find one- the internet is a wonderful place with so much information at your fingertips. you are capable of inducing change, and while that means you might induce bad change, it also means you might shape a better future.

in more familiar terms, say there is an issue in the relationship- you can sulk and get depressed about it, or you can communicate with your dom and clear it up. now!! onto the most important part of the class.

imagine the stupidest, most pointless rule you can. now imagine your dom sets it along with dozens of harsh and stupid rules, doesn't explain them, and punishes you until you're a sobbing mess whenever you break them. they don't give aftercare, and your begging to shift the rules to be ever so slightly softer, easier, more logical, falls on deaf ears. in fact, they crack down harder whenever you try to bring up how the rules are unfair. they tell you you can never leave because they're the best there is, and you clearly deserve it anyway because you're failing at the rules.

[poignant pause.]

the state is the dom. how much do any of you know about the legal system? have you ever tried getting into it? it's dense as fuck, and purposefully so- it doesn't exist to protect us, it exists to protect the profits of some rich motherfuckers on their golden thrones sipping the most expensive champagne in ivory towers or whatever it is the one percent do. i know, i know some of you motherfuckers could eroticise what i have described, but for the love of absolute fuck, try to imagine living like that every day, with no breaks, half starved and cold and lonely.

oh, did i mention you never even got a choice on whether you got into a relationship with this guy? 'cause you didn't, you were their child bride. imagine all that shit! every red flag, right? and we just let it govern our lives like it's normal not to have a single say in how your community is ran! don't you think taking on a little bit of responsibility is better than this?

[looks around the class] okay! i'll hand out the keys to your cuffs now and we'll have a q&a. i will still be expecting the homework- what did i say about banging your head against the desk! [looks at the camera] this class is a fucKING NIGHTMARE

#... #i don't know what you followed me for but uh. this is what you get lmao #might make this into a series. next tag is the one i'll use in such a case #bd/sm classroom #bd/sm kink #bd/sm community #anarchism #anarchist #politics #long post #roleplay #school #god fucking help me #slovo talks

[voylitscope]

Someone (who is not me) should use this Irish Folktale I stumbled on as the basis for a Stucky AU.

Because listen, it's weirdly perfect?

Very Abridged Version: There is a prince. He is noble, kind, smart, strong, tall, beloved, and known for heroic acts. Then his mom dies. (Are you guys already following me? Can I just call the prince Steve for the rest of the post?)

The villain of the story uses magical cheating to force the prince Steve to go on a yearlong quest to retrieve three items. It will be nearly impossible, and the most likely scenario is that Steve will die trying.

Steve goes to see his friend the druid — because this is a folktale — who tells him there's a slim chance he won't die if he seeks the guidance of a bird with a human head. The druid also tells Steve that he has to take the druid's horse on his quest.

Fun turn of events! The horse can talk! Steve and the horse (definitely an actual horse and not how Bucky has entered this story) bond in their three-day journey to the bird. The folktale doesn't tell us what they talk about on their journey. So you can decide that in your heart, I guess. They clearly became very close friends.

Steve talks to the bird. Then Bucky the horse guides/saves Steve from multiple dangers. Steve doesn't get eaten by serpents! Steve doesn't catch on fire!

But then Bucky the horse is like, so hey, now that we've arrived outside this castle that holds one of the quest items? I need you to murder me.

And then this ridiculously dramatic back-and-forth happens. Absolutely not Bucky the horse says he has to die before Steve can get inside the castle. (There's a complicated explanation here about wearing horse skin so Steve can bypass things, but I'm skipping that.) Steve says he'd "never sacrifice a friend for personal interest!" The horse? Bucky? says that if Steve murders him, and then puts a special healing ointment on his corpse when he returns, things will work out better than Steve thinks. He says things will be much worse if Steve doesn't. He pleads. He asks Steve to just trust him. Steve eventually agrees.

Steve sobs while stabbing the — Bucky. He sobs the whole way into the castle. Like, the man is a wreck, okay? He can't think. He can't even appreciate the beauty of the castle/town because he's so distraught. ("It held no charms for him [...] the thoughts of his loss were paramount over all other considerations.") Please remember they've known each other for three days at this point.

He gets the item. He makes it back outside. He sobs more. He starts to apply the ointment to the corpse. Steve thinks about how doing this is "an act of love." And then!

Bucky? turns into "the handsomest young man imaginable," throws his arms around Steve, and starts repeatedly kissing him ("smothering him with kisses"). They stand, "locked in an embrace," for a while. Bucky! calls Steve the "best sight he's ever seen," and himself the luckiest person ever for having met him!

So, hey! Surprise! Bucky! Is also a prince! He was cursed! He was trapped! Steve saved him! He broke the curse with his act of love! And his trust in Bucky! They both cry more! They have joy! This section uses the word joy like nine times!

And! The castle belongs to Bucky's older brother, the king! All the items Steve needs are actually right inside, and Steve can just have them now! Also, he can just stay with them in the castle for his quest year! So, Steve does! And then there's something in there about their "mutual joy" and "enjoyment of fascinating pleasures." Good for them. I'm so glad they had a whole year of fascinating pleasure. (Look, I know the text I'm quoting here was written down in 1851. Different times and all that. But, I also feel like that's the kind of quote you could definitely include in an AU. So.)

They are very sad when Steve eventually goes home. "Filled with regret," even. Steve promises he'll visit at least once a year. The villain is so mad about Steve's victory that they throw themselves out a window and die (no, really), and then Steve is king and rules his kingdom. Heroically! The end!

And, okay, I mean, there is nothing in the story to say Steve doesn't have a long-distance relationship with his boyfriend, who is also royalty. Or that, since Bucky is a younger brother, he never, you know, moves three days down the road. In fact, I really feel like this would be a great ending. (I kept waiting for this story to have a part near the end where Bucky was like, hey, since you're a hero, meet my sister! Marry her! Unite our kingdoms! Because that is how every other fairytale/folktale I've ever read has ended? But no. Instead I got, spend the year with me! Fascinating pleasure! And no one got married! This story is really something.)

Anyway: This is about an Irish prince dramatically rescuing another prince from a curse he's been trapped in, through his faith in that prince and with an "act of love." Also, the two of them are obsessed with each other. It's begging for a Stucky AU. Someone please write it.

(Update: @raven-writes-fanfic is writing a fic based on this!)

#there's a great AU in there somewhere #I don't know exactly what it is #and I have too much else I'm working on to try and figure it out #but someone should do it because this is already very them #SteveBucky #My writing #(sort of) #(I'm weirdly awake very very far past my normal bedtime #(I am sorry if this is at all incoherent as a result)

[2offayyo-kzt]

Why Sean is a "sad" and "empty" character :

(a far too long and elaborate shitpost)

based on this post by @hellsmell

I used my over analysis skills dating back from my BSD era, if you're familiar with my account, nothing I've written will be new to you.

I insist, it's a huge shitpost, not to be taken seriously !

A marriage on the rocks :

Obviously, this argument only applies to the period before the Brain Scramblies ep, but given that the Rinaldis renewed their wedding vows, it means that the couple had reached an important milestone in their relationship.

So their marital life had probably been going badly for several years already, particularly in terms of communication and mutual respect.

Trust issues and low self-esteem :

Sean seems to have major self-confidence problems, and therefore frequently lies to his wife for fear of disappointing her.

His low self-esteem became particularly apparent when his entire memory was erased, and his first reaction to learning that Charmaine was his wife was "I wish".

And their couple went sour probably the moment Sean took Charmaine's presence in his life for granted.

However, Sean still has doubts, even years after having won Charmaine's heart; even if his wife has agreed to renew their marriage vows (an act that shows the love she still bears for her husband)

When Sean might have been seriously financially ruined during the Casino episode, he confided his fears to Laszlo : "She's gonna leave me Laz... She's gonna leave me."

Sean believes that if he can't provide Charmaine with financial stability, she'll leave him at the first opportunity.

Psychologically and physically abused during his childhood :

Sean doesn't seem to have had a very easy childhood, even if he never seemed to lack in terms of money (studying at a private school, owning a car at a young age) his father (Franklin) was particularly harsh with his son.

As a child, Sean wasn't allowed to watch programs on PBS.

He was also forced to kill a deer at the age of 14, which can be impressive if you're a sensitive person. And he still seems traumatized by the event, or at least it left a deep impression on him :

"First time I ever saw something die. But it wouldn't be the last."

And in the Sunrise Sunset episode, it was very strongly implied that Franklin was even physically violent with his son supposedly to "settle" conflicts :

"Now, I'm gonna count down from three. When I say go, start swinging. First one to tap out, other one's head of the household."

All that scene also indicates that Sean was forced to take on responsibilities that he was not supposed to have.

A character who can't allow himself to show tenderness :

We can assume that this rough, probably macho education made Sean feel compelled to keep up a tough facade.

Anthony Atamanuik (Sean's actor) said Sean was perpetually either "confused" or "aggressive"

And Anthony would have liked, in one episode, for Sean to show a softer side of himself.

"But Anthony if you had to pitch an idea, what's an idea or storyline you think might be Seanie's"

"It would be fun to discover, something like soft that Sean does. Like some secret soft thing. Like he's part of a quilting group, or that he rescues birds in a Wildlife refuge in Staten Island. I think I want to find one piece of him that's like gentle."

And maybe that's where his obsession with Ocean's 12 comes from, to have a support that can serve as a healthy coping mechanism but that doesn't make him "vulnerable" in the eyes of the world and is easy to justify.

A character who abuses himself :

This idea mainly comes from what Anthony said during an AMA on Reddit, where he shared his personal theory on why Sean resisted to the frequent hypnosis :

"You know, it's like if you met someone who had a very hard life, they maybe self abused a lot when they were young but then they got clean, they got like sober right. Let's say they did a lot of toxic substances in their system when they were young. Sometimes those people just have a resilient immune system for some reason cause they like... abused themselves so much when they were younger. So I wonder if Sean had, sort of, you know, he drinks all the time, and seem not to care of himself that well, so maybe he's immune to the brain scramblies because he abused himself so much that he's immune to it."

But this is also reflected in the show, where Sean drinks a very large number of cans of beer.

He also suffers from a gambling addiction and is objectively an alcoholic.

Suicidal ?

So I'm extrapolating a lot, but it's interesting to note that when the Jersey Devil threatened his life, instead of shouting "help me" he shouted "kill me".

He also told Laszlo "You're my main man. I'd die for you."

So, obviously, it's to be taken with a pinch of salt, but it's perhaps indicative of his disinterest in living.

Parallels with the Joker :

So I'm bullshiting big time here, but I find it interesting.

When Sean was dancing at the Pride Parade, Anthony did his best to "march like Jack Nicholson's Joker"

In the 2019 Joker movie, Arthur took care of his mother in the same way Sean took care of his mother who suffered from dementia.

Note that the Joker's mother, let her son be abused : "Much like her son, Penny suffered from an unspecified mental illness. She was responsible for letting her former boyfriend abuse Arthur in his childhood"

To conclude, I think Sean gives me Sad Jester vibes, a comical character, but more profound and tortured when you take a closer look.

//

I can't believe I wasted two hours writing that lmao

#wwdits sean #sean rinaldi #wwdits analysis #wwdits meta #kztpost

[sea-owl]

Do you think the Bridgerton storylines and relationships would have been different if The Bridgertons weren't a titled family, or rich but the spouses were?

Weirdly had this thought after watching the latest Magic Mike movie 😅 that somehow led to me wondering about Bridgerton and the divide between the wealthy and poor.

Current thoughts: ok so let's go Modern Au, because icbf with the regency rules and proprietry.

Bridgertons are like Modern Au Weasley family/ Cheaper by the dozen vibes.

Simon: Still the son of a Duke, canon backstory with Anthony being his best mate. They met at a fancy boarding school but Ant was a scholarship kid. In attempt to escape his Aunt's matchmaking schemes, he propses a fake relationship with the waitress he'd just witnessed sucker punch a rowdy customer. Unaware of just how inevitable their meeting truly was.

Kate: known cold stone Heiress to her late Father's company. An active workaholic who is always triggered into fight mode by that 'Bridgerton bastard' who works for her good Friend Simon (cbf thinking of proper roles rn😂😅)

Sophie: After her dad died, she's surprised to learn he named her his official heir despite her illegitimacy and only left a stipend for her step family in his will. Forced to go into hiding after multiple murder attempts, she has a fateful encounter with a struggling art student and becomes his unwilling muse.

Penelope: The Featheringtons are high class old money folk, but Pen is desperate to escape the suffocating lifestyle she's been born into. She wants to branch out make a name for herself with her own hard done work to thank not some dead ancestors lucky gamble in investment and business. Thank the gods for the charming bartender who's become the listening ear she's desperately needed all her life.

Phillip: Mostly similar cannon backstory. Except the children are his brothers and they do indeed need a nanny. Eloise didn't even know what she applied for. All she knew was she'd get a free room(no dorm expenses) free food (no meal expenses) and no transport fees (uni was only a 40 minute walk!). What a deal, and it'll keep Anthony off her case about finances!! How hard of a babysitting job could it be?

As far as I got, but would love to hear if you or anyone else has any other thoughts to share or add 😁😁

Magic Mike, lmao. I should probably watch that series if it's giving people ideas. But yeah I do think it would definitley change some dynamics espcially since three, four if we count the tv series, of the spouses came from not okay money situations.

Saphne: So for this I can still see it going as a mutually beneficial fake relationship for both. Hear me out, sex historian Daphne. It's a newer field and newly graduated Daphne is working to help get it off the ground with social media, but she doesn't have much time due to her long hours as a waitress. In comes Simon, her brother's best friend, who allows her the chance to help boost her following. Everyone would be curious about Simon Basset's new boo, and Simon will get his aunt off his back about finding love. Anthony orinally doesn't want his sister in the limelight like that but he does eventually consent when Daphne starts pulling in numbers and can leave her waitress jobs where a bunch of creaps like to come. Oops they fell in love.

Kathony: I can see this going one of two ways, the first being something similar that anon wrote, or mistress Anthony. Anthony works with Simon in his law firm, with hopes to open up his own practice one day, but that's a far off dream with seven siblings, five who are helping with the bills, and a mother to help support. Kate's frustrated with her job as the heiress to her father's company. She's needs a release. That lawyer Simon keeps sending looks handsome enough and one hate sex night later Anthony is now Kate's mistress. There's no way this is gonna backfire on either of them right?

Benophie: Hear me out, makeup artist Benedict. His true talent lies in painting, but that doesn't pay the bills. He's good with a brush, and once in a while, he gets to have fun with special effects makeup. Sophie is being paraded around as the new Pennwood heiress, despite her suspicious birth. Her stepmother is doing everything in her power to have the media downplay Sophie and her ability to be the heiress to Pennwood by getting every makeup artist to purposely make Sophie look horrible. Having enough Sophie calls her friends for a makeup artist her stepmother hasn't sunk her claws in. Enter Benedict. Benedict works his magic and makes Sophie look fabulous for her next interview. Sophie has found her new makeup artist, and Benedict has found his new muse.

Polin: Penelope is from old money, and she hates it. She feels trapped and suffocating from all the rules she has to follow. She wants to leave and make something of her own. Her friend Colin, who she met in a writer's group, jokes she can write a tell all book. That earns him a sock in the arm from Penelope, who refuses to become a stereotype. Colin wants to see the world one day. Travel to far off places, explore the culture, and most importantly, try the food. Penelope thinks he has what it takes to be a travel writer. He's shared what he wrote when in his journal during the rare family outing to the beach, and it almost felt like you were there. Well Penelope has more money than she knows what to do with and knows about running a blog. She might not what to do with herself but she can help somebody else. Who knows maybe she'll get some inspiration. Hey Colin, how would you feel about a trip to the Mediterranean?

Philoise: Throw them in the plot of the Nanny, and there's the modern philoise au. But on a serious note, Eloise doesn't even know what she applied for, all she knew is that the benefits were perfect. Needing a nanny for the weekend, Phillip hires Eloise on a test run. Her methods are unconventional, but Oliver and Amanda haven't scared her off. Phillip would almost dare to say they like her, and Phillip might like her too.

And that's all I got for now too. Lovelies join in if you want!

#bridgerton #kathony #benophie #polin #saphne #philoise

[confessionsofa-roleplayer]

For those of you who see requirements like interest trackers in peoples' rules, specific tags, or specifying a muse as a requirement, and don't like it because you think they're taking it 'too seriously'… You know what you don't see? You don't see me, behind the scenes, so frustrated and lost and overstimulated it's crippling because I don't want to assume. Because assuming is difficult and neurotypical people go through life playing 4D chess in social interactions and I'm sitting here playing 2D checkers. You don't see how many times I've tried to interact with a certain muse because I haven't been told you don't want that muse (even though you never specified what you wanted). You don't see how that triggers feelings of rejection over the sheer effort I've put in to use that muse for you, or how excited I was to use that muse, only for you to either outright reject or ignore it. You don't see how many people think I should just know that they don't want a particular muse. How I should just assume they don't want that muse. You don't see how incredibly frustrating that is… when if they'd specified, if they'd been clear, then I would have known that. But I "should just know" without being told. You don't see how when I need to check someone's muse list, I dig around on their blog, find it, remember what muse I wanted for 5 seconds, dig in their meme tag, find one meme, forget what muse I was going to send it to, and end up checking that list FIVE TIMES any time I want to send something, resulting in it taking ten to fifteen minutes per blog to send a meme or two. You don't see how people constantly change URLs or mun names because they're unsatisfied or going through life changes, change their avatar, and I struggle to associate that avatar with it. Or how you might have two mutuals with the same alias, similar URLs, and completely different pronouns. You don't see me going through my drafts, seeing a prompt (especially for single-muse blogs) and going, "wait, who's that person again? what muse do they play?" because your brain can't instantly recall information… and thus, you are forced to dig into their blog, again, to find what you need. Repeatedly. You don't see me when I don't remember who has AUs for what fandoms, or who's familiar with what fandoms, or who's open to just making AUs for any of their muses even if one doesn't exist. You don't know who's like "I love your muse/want to write with them/don't know anything about their verse but I'm willing to learn/wing it". Do you know how tiring an existence with all of the above is? Do you know how, rather than spending five minutes with three or more tabs open with someone's blog (because everyone's blog is organized differently) so I can work on a draft/send a meme/answer a prompt, I can have one tab open with my interest tracker, organized a way where I can find things with my organizational system and notes I've made based on those responses or conversations we've had? How I can just use that to compensate for how recalling things is infinitely difficult for me? That's what a few minutes of your time does, and that's why I require it. Because your five minutes saves me hours or even days of frustration. Because taking into account a requirement is respectful of me as a person, my feelings, and my mental well-being. There's a reason we make it a requirement. It's because if it's optional, less people will do it (because why do something if you don't absolutely have to?). And we're forced to experience undue stress and exhaustion to engage with them. Making it a requirement weeds out people unwilling to make (often) small accommodations for their mutuals. I realize the above experiences don't apply to exactly everyone, and that each situation is different, but my point is you do NOT see what goes on behind the scenes when you won't make an accommodation that's asked for.

#general #confessions

[tamsong]

the homestuck quadrant system & relationships in KotLC

i am fully aware no one asked for this. WAIT that’s a lie three of you asked for this. @orionhong @the-way-astray @soryasongsaa this post is for you <3 it’s been simmering in my drafts since november and i finally had an excuse to finish, and i hope u guys find it interesting!

so. what exactly is the quadrant system, you may ask? and why is it relevant to kotlc? well, we’ll start with the webcomic homestuck. (oh boy) this comic features an alien species called trolls (based off internet trolls) that have some very fun cultural distinctions, such as a caste system based on blood color and the quadrant system, which is a fun variation of romance that i think could be very fun if we applied it to elves, which don’t have enough cultural differences in my opinion.

homestuck trolls have four type of romance as opposed to one and each has its own specific purpose. 2 of them are necessary for reproduction, and 2 of them are necessary for peace and harmony in society. it’s considered desirable to partake in all four kinds of romance, and there are certain rules around this that i’ll get to later. while KOTLC elves only use the one traditional form of romance, it’s considered desirable to be in a socially-acceptable relationship, an approved match, to help grow the elven species, and have a similar sense of Regulation around romance. telepaths also have cognatedom, a special kind of relationship that adds potential for romantic drama into the mix.

i thought it would be interesting if in an alternate universe, the elves recognized more than one form of romance to distinguish their society even more from that of humans. it’s also just fun to ship characters but with extra nuance and spice. so without further ado, let me explain the four quadrants and speculate which relationships in KOTLC, both canon and otherwise, would be in which quadrant! enjoy this silly little time with me

so!! there are two categories: red romance and black romance. red is associated with positive feelings and black with negative, although it’s a bit more nuanced than that. they’re also divided into Concupiscent (associated but not exclusively linked with sexual attraction and reproduction) and Conciliatory (not associated with reproduction). each of the quadrants is assigned one of the four suits in a deck of cards, hence red and black. here's a convenient chart:

a relationship might not just fall into one quadrant, too. relationships are only meant to use one label at a time (more on this later) but often shift across quadrants or be called one quadrant but have some traits of another.

below, i’ve written descriptions of each romance type and also given suggestions for KOTLC ships that would fall into these categories. feel free to fight with me on my choices if you like.

FLUSHED QUADRANT: MATESPRITSHIP/HEARTS <3 (red, concupiscent)

this quadrant is most similar to regular human romance, and already features in kotlc. there's not a whole lot much more to say here, so let's get into examples.

a good canonical example of this in KOTLC is edaline and grady ruewen being matesprits (the name for this kind of partner). an example of flushed feelings that were mutual but never became a relationship is kenric and oralie. sophie and fitz also had flushed feelings for each other canonically, as do sophie and keefe right now, but i would say in both cases the feelings aren't purely <3. i'll talk more about that soon, though.

other noncanon relationships i would describe as matesprits/flushed crushes are tiergan/prentice and marella/linh.

PALE QUADRANT: MOIRALLEGIANCE/DIAMONDS <> (red, concilliatory)

moirails could be best described in our terms as platonic soulmates/queerplatonic partners. that being said, while it doesn't involve kissing or sexual attraction, it IS a type of romance and is distinct from an average friendship. moirallegiance is actually WILDLY similar to the concept of Cognatedom in KOTLC, which is what inspired this behemoth of a post in the first place.

(furthermore, this is why posts implying that cognates are always romantic rub me the wrong way. there are plenty of forms of closeness that aren't traditional romance/flushed).

like cognates, moirails aren't just soul besties, but they're balancing forces that complement each other and keep each other grounded. these relationships hinge on sharing feelings, mutual acceptance, giving advice, and bringing the other person down to earth.

this makes alden and quinlin a good canonical example of ex-moirails. a non-cognate relationship in KOTLC that resembles moirallegiance is that between keefe and dex: they have similar personalities, share secrets, and are able to help each other even when their other relationships are on the rocks.

while sophie and fitz obviously had flushed feelings for each other, their cognate relationship most closely resembles a moirallegiance. they're a pretty good representation of quadrant vacillation, going from close friends and cognates to dating to back to close friends (although their friendship is still recovering from that).

also, while sophie and keefe have flushed feelings for each other, they would actually make really good moirails. they repeatedly have "feelings jams" where they share their worries and trauma with each other (not to say that matesprits can't do this, it's just specifically associated with moirallegiance) like the sleepover scene in neverseen. they're able to see who each other are under their own individual masks, and have well-complementing personalities that bring each other back down to earth. sophie is impulsive but good at connecting with others while keefe thinks things through but makes decisions without consulting other people.

PITCH QUADRANT: KISMESISSITUDE/SPADES <3< (black, concupiscent)

this is where we start to get a bit confusing. pitch relationships are based on hatred, frustration, and annoyance, but just like moirallegiance isn't just an average friendship, kismesissitude isn't your average hatred. there is also an element of attraction and in homestuck is one of the two reproduction-based quadrants.

a kismesis, one's pitch partner, must be someone that not only annoys and angers you but also indirectly challenges you to grow and recognize your own flaws. a kismesis is someone you hate, but grudgingly respect, but also find attractive. basically, it's a very strong arch-rivalry. and while a kismesis is intrinsically hate-based, they’re supposed to cause more or less equal trouble for each other and not actually wish to kill or permanently disable the other. if one or both wants this, or there is a power dynamic where one is harming the other much more, then it’s not a healthy kismesis.

obviously, these feelings aren't really recognized in human or canonical elf society, but if they were i think keefe and tam would make a good kismesis pair. they have outwardly clashing personalities and abilities, but are actually very similar people with a lot of chemistry who just present in different ways. they are at odds for most of their interactions but do show trust and care.

some even better kismesis pairs could be sophie/stina, marella/stina, or even dex/stina. tbh this is just telling me that stina is really good as kismesissitude. home girl just loves hatred i guess. maruca/biana is also a plausible one. you could even do vespera/fintan. go crazy lol

a good example of unrequited pitch feelings is dex’s hate obsession with fitz in the first couple books. in recent material, keefe/fitz could be on their way to a pitch relationship after spending most of their lives in an either pale or platonic situation, but i digress.

ASHEN QUADRANT: AUSPITICISM/CLUBS c3< (black, conciliatory)

this is definitely the weirdest one and is the least defined within the text of homestuck itself, but it means we can also have some fun with it. in homestuck, the ashen quadrant is mostly used for the purpose of mediating two opposing people so they don’t fall into the pitch quadrant. it’s a weird three-way situation involving the conflicting pair and the auspistice, who would be the one having ashen feelings. these feelings might be expressed through an attitude of “god these two are idiots but they’re My idiots damn it and i need to make sure they don’t cause problems.”

two important things to note here: 1) you are only meant to have one person in each of your four quadrants at any given time. 2) while you can shift quadrants, your relationship with someone is only meant to have one of these labels at a time. homestuck trolls are very aggressive and develop feelings of dislike quite easily, so auspistices are needed to prevent people from cheating / getting into romantic fights with people who aren’t their kismesis. while elves aren’t as aggressive, this still could be a problem. for example, if tam and keefe were an established kismesis pair, but keefe and fitz started fighting in a way that could turn into hatred, sophie might be called to be an auspistice for them and make sure their fighting doesn’t turn pitch (in which case keefe would be cheating).

assuming keefe and sophie are matesprits, this also poses a problem for their relationship since sophie is acting as keefe’s auspistice and not his matesprit. It’s a lot.

auspisticism can also be a generalized way of describing relationship mediation. sophie, fitz, and keefe probably need some auspisticizing for all the quadrant shifting they’re doing.

this kind of feeling may be hard to recognize as romantic because of all the utilitarianism surrounding it. think of it as being a very dedicated therapist friend, or part of a very stressful polycule. it requires a Hell of a lot of devotion for two people for their friend to get involved in all that conflict, a devotion which can very much be romantic. I imagine sophie having a high capacity/desire to be an auspistice, as would biana.

that’s the main chunk of the explanation, and there’s a lot to play with here. beyond what i described, you can also get things like two people rapid-firing between flushed and pitch and back to flushed, to people who have feelings for each other but not the same kind, to messy groups of 3, 4, or even more people where relationship types are constantly shifting. conflict in one quadrant can also impact your relationships with all other partners. for example, when alden and quinlin’s cognatedom/moirallegiance fell apart, it could have put stress on quinlin’s matespritship with livvy to the point where the flushed feelings between them are either gone or turned into unhealthy kismesissitude depending on how you look at it.

still confused? that’s okay, you’re kind of meant to be. andrew hussie is a fucking mad lad who doesn’t even take their own story seriously. that being said he did give us the bare ideas for some cool and complex relationship dynamics and a new way of seeing romance, so i’ll give them that.

but anyways, have fun with this!! i would LOVE to see your homestuck-based HCs if you happen to come up with any. a couple more kotlc/homestuck related notes before you go:

- sophie foster is a valid troll name (6 letter first and last name) as is gisela sencen. i couldn’t find any others, which is weird considering the amount of characters.

- trolls have varying powers depending on their blood color, not unlike special abilities.

that’s all folks! have a spectacular day and i hope you learned something cool!

#kotlc #kotlc meta #homestuck #kotlc analysis #keeper of the lost cities #sophitz #sokeefe #sophie foster #keefe sencen #biana vacker #linh song #fitz vacker #dex dizznee #marella redek #marellinh #maruca chebota #stina heks #tam song #kam #keefitz

[meraki-yao]

thank you so much for your reply <3 i think grief is a good word to describe what i'm feeling. it might sound silly to some but the book has been one of my favourites since 2019 and the 'what could have been?' aspect of the movie's promotion devastates me bc the crew and the fans deserved more. i think im also a bit terrified of ppl moving on from rwrb to nick's other projects meanwhile i can't (and don't want to) do it, ugh it's just a mess of weird feelings and sadness and longing for something we've never had. not to mention how some people already talk about his new projects being upgrades from rwrb. that hurts me on so many levels bc henry is a complex and beautiful character, rwrb is a wonderful story and i genuinely think that even with all the changes they created something amazing.

Glad I could help <3

It's not silly at all. I'm in a similar position: if you've followed my blog you might have seen this but long story short my irl life is a bit fucked up and I was really, really depressed. (still kinda am) July and August, waiting and watching RWRB release became the happiest I've been since January 2022, and in the following months RWRB and the fandom (well, and my sister) nearly became my sole reason for hanging on. So trust me when I say I get the feeling.

I understand your fear, and I'd be lying if I say I wasn't afraid that the rwrb tag will be full of George instead of Alex and Henry, but please remember that liking something new doesn't necessarily always lead to leaving the previous fandom: I know for a fact that me and a couple of my mutuals are going do both. We're gonna be happy to watch M&G (personally not interested in the idea of you but the same applies) but we're still going to make RWRB content. M&G will be a great show but it won't have nearly the same emotional weight to me as RWRB. It's been five months, so those of us who hang around and are active are active for a good reason.

As for the comments about "upgrade", that's ridiculous and a very surface-level assessment. One of my best friends is studying to become an actress and we talk about acting often. Here's the thing: there isn't a thing called "easy" acting. Every genre of acting has its own challenges: for comedy many times you need to sacrifice your personal dignity; Sci-fi blockbusters you need to interact with nothing and make it look believable; even for things like kid shows you need to be hyperactive so the kids can focus and find it entertaining, which can be so draining. M&G is a historical thriller, TIOY is a romance, and RWRB is a rom-com. These are three different film genres, and each set out to achieve different things. For example in terms of relationships: TIOY needs to make the romance believable, RWRB needs to make the romance believe, funny, and be a fair representation of a queer relationship, and for M&G if history serves there's no "true love" relationship at all. You're right: Henry's a complex and beautiful character, and Nick clearly put all his heart into him. But you cannot take Henry's layers of grief, love, fear, and self-esteem, and say it is lesser than Geroge's cold ambition. Funnily enough, while Henry is so careful with his power as the prince, George rose to the same if not a higher level of power and abused it so badly, that it caused his assassination and downfall. A well-written character is ultimately, a human being, and there isn't truly a human being who's "easy to be". So don't listen to those haters.

I'm all ears if you still want to talk <3

#anon ask #answered #red white and royal blue #rwrb #rwrb movie #nicholas galitzine #mary and george #george villiers

[veliseraptor]

Okay, but consider: Groundhog Day Yi City, a tragic-comedy of repeated errors with drama sprinkles on top (results vary depending on who’s Bill Murray)

a secret that I have never seen the actual groundhog day movie. I feel like I should admit that, as a big fan of time loop stuff, I have not seen the trope namer. I just feel like that should be out there.

also if you saw me post this before it was finished: no you didn't

but to the substance of your ask: yes, I have considered this, I have considered this a lot and I actually technically have a fic in progress for it from xiao xingchen's pov but I might need to start it over, we'll see. and it is so much fun! because the success states vary wildly for each character, like:

xue yang: xiao xingchen alive, himself alive, nice domestic life preserved

song lan: xiao xingchen alive, himself alive, xue yang not alive, xiao xingchen never knowing about who he was living with

xiao xingchen: song lan alive, a-qing alive, doesn't even know what he wants with xue yang??? ahhhhh

a-qing: xiao xingchen alive, all else optional and only relevant inasmuch as it serves that end

so there are three of them aligned on the "xiao xingchen alive" goal, at least (xiao xingchen's a little more wobbly on that one), and only one person actively invested in xue yang being dead, and nobody actually putting as a definitive condition song lan being dead (though xue yang operates on a low key assumption, most of the time, that the win condition of "himself alive" depends on the condition "song lan dead"; he is not necessarily right about this but he tends to assume it's the case. however, it's not something that's necessary; I think if xue yang knew how badly things could go, he would be fine with letting song lan live if it didn't ruin the other stuff).

however, these points of agreement come into conflict with each other in several key places. I feel like I'm also thinking about these in order of priority (i.e. what's most important to least important) in which case it looks like:

xue yang: xiao xingchen/himself alive (either/or is not acceptable, has to be both), nice domestic life preserved (terms and conditions may apply, he'll make it work), song lan dead (possible condition but not required, particularly the longer he has to go on trying)

song lan: xiao xingchen alive, xue yang dead (at least initially, though I think it might eventually swap places with), xiao xingchen never knowing about who he was living with, himself alive

xiao xingchen: a-qing alive/song lan alive (I don't think he could deal with either not being true), still doesn't know what he wants to do with xue yang (affectionate/derogatory/deeply confused)

a-qing: she's got a very clear single priority and she's sticking to it.

so how this fic looks, and what the resolution is, could go any number of ways depending on who is trying to "fix" it and what the individual author decided a fix-it looked like (someone who is not me might think that just killing xue yang fixes the problem, but they would sadly be incorrect. common misconception! but inaccurate.). which is why my favorite version of this, I realized as I've been writing this post, is a version where all of them are time looping but none of them knows anybody else is, and every time one of anybody's primary win conditions are violated it starts over (i.e. if xue yang dies, even though it's only his win condition that stipulates his survival first and foremost, it still cycles back to the beginning).

just please consider with me the mutual frustration both song lan and xue yang in particular experience on discovering that they cannot, in fact, fix the problem by just murdering the other person in the right way. I feel like that alone makes this entire concept worth it.

also a-qing just getting xiao xingchen the heck out of dodge and being like "GREAT DODGED THAT BULLET" only to end up cycled back because one of the other two died. she didn't sign up for this

#conversating #anonymous #aggressively headcanons #i'm not equipped to write this right now but i'm kind of eyeing it now like in the future....maybe #but if someone else wanted to do it. please do #songxuexiao #song lan #xue yang #xiao xingchen #a qing

[gladesglo]

[ 🌧️ ] HEY SAVBEAR HERE ! THIS IS AN INDIE RP BLOG FOR GLOBOX FROM THE RAYMAN FRANCHISE est. 27th Sept. 2023

PLEASE DON'T FOLLOW IF YOU ARE UNDER 18 .

SOME GRAPHICS ARE BY @ RAYHEROISM BEL MADE THEM SO THE TWO OF US COULD MATCH .

A HEAVY LEAN TOWARDS GAMES THE GREAT ESCAPE & HOODLUM'S HAVOC. ft. other verses such as MARIO + RABBIDS SPARKS OF HOPE and CAPTAIN LASERHAWK A BLOOD DRAGON REMIX , ORIGINS & LEGENDS .

# 𝐆𝐋𝐀𝐃𝐄𝐒𝐆𝐋𝐎

affiliated with: @rayheroism / @pvachypessa & @l1mbless

( carrd . promo . playlist

OTHER BLOGS INCLUDE: @moralpuppet, @funbonded, @bearlyloved , @yellowpuppet , @ursadolls

//dash bio & rules under the cut.

MINI BIO / go to my carrd for more. verses etc 

GLOBOX is Rayman's scaredy toad best friend. He has abilities to create rainclouds to protect himself and his friends and family though mostly prefers to run and hide in the face of danger. Whether Globox is welcome to it or not somehow he always gets mixed up with the THREATS THAT PLAGUE WHERE HE RESIDES IN THE GLADE OF DREAMS. Be it through getting captured, or attacked by enemies. Globox in his mainverse lives in a large tree-based home with his 650 kids and wife Uglette.

DASH RULES

/ please read my carrd for more information/muse bio

One. FIRST AND FOREMOST. General RP etiquette applies that's always a given. 

I don't always get things right but I will always try to be the best I can be. Be sure to inform me if I can improve on anything etc. I'm friendly and I'm here to have fun as are you.

My portrayal of Globox will lean heavily towards Rayman 2 & 3 though I shall be changing pieces from both accordingly since sometimes the former contradicts the latter due to the early 2000s - edge humor in 3 . I will have a verse for Legends & Origins because I loved those games too but for the most part this is heavily, HEAVILY BASED ON THE ORIGINAL RAYMAN TRILOGY SPECIFICALLY 2 & 3 in terms of characterisation and background story for my Globox !

That being said I don't support Ubisoft as a company . I'm simply here to focus on the silly big frog I grew up with .

Two. DNI / I don't engage with people who are problematic or present problematic behaviour such as proshipping/pedophilia/incest or you are a terf/ableist/racist/antisemitist or you show any kind of hate to anyone like that . If you see me interacting with someone problematic likely I haven't been informed yet and shall deal with it accordingly as soon as I am informed. I don't support anyone who does any of that nasty behavior and I never will and if you know you engage in such behaviors then please refrain from interacting with me. You're not welcome. Likewise don't bring drama onto my blog. If you see someone problematic here just message me privately. I won't be reblogging callouts.

Three.  FOLLOWING. I'm selective. If I haven't followed back please don't take it personally. If we are mutuals and you decide to unfollow then soft block please otherwise I will see you on my Dash and still think we are mutuals and I don't really want to have to browse a list of followers to check every time I go to interact.

Four. I don't mind variants or to word it better people who play the same character as me JUST DON'T STEAL MY HEADCANNONS.

Five.  TRIGGERS Warnings for you: This blog may feature some angsty themes at times. I also require you to be 18+ for this reason. Please do not follow if you're a minor even though I know Globox is a children's character it still doesn't sit right with me as I am over 21 myself. So no under 18s please.

Six. SHIPPING eeeh, IF IT FEELS RIGHT / Globox's wife only really showed up in Rayman 2 in every other game is almost like she's out of the picture . I'll be incredibly selective as my main verse is Rayman 2 but hey if there's chemistry it doesn't hurt to ask .Still no smut. Ever. It's really not for me.

˗ . CREDITS : some graphics are by Bel ( @_rayheroism ) , some are my own, art featured in icons belongs to earthgwee , clairiphi & pinweena_pin unless specified to be my own ! & the Globox icons used in some icons are from crestamorphs videos.

NOTE ON AFFILIATIONS: the concept to me means that if you’re affiliated with my muse and mine is affiliated with yours that means I consider your portrayal my main and will most likely consider our cannons intertwined. I do not do exclusives as I understand everyone’s portrayals are unique and I am happy to see my friends interact with people who play the same muse/s as me and vice versa!

Likewise if you want to be affiliated and these terms don't suit you , please don't hesitate to speak to me I'm open to discussion always ! Same with shipping and other connections !

#[ 🌧️ ] 𝐇𝐈𝐃𝐈𝐍𝐆 𝐅𝐑𝐎𝐌 𝐃𝐀𝐍𝐆𝐄𝐑 / 𝐨𝐨𝐜 . #𓆏 𝐒𝐈𝐋𝐕𝐄𝐑 𝐋𝐔𝐌 / 𝐩𝐢𝐧𝐧𝐞𝐝 𝐩𝐨𝐬𝐭 .

[luna-writes-stuff]

Day 12: Cruel Summer, Leo Valdez

Song link

Fanfic, gn!reader

Fluff, teeny tiny angst

Word count: 2783

Tw: References to injury; description of blood. Written within an hour and a half on low energy so don’t expect too much. Mutual pining. Slight soulmate!AU (?). Piper knows shit.

Summary: When you get hit by something invisible in a park, you (quite randomly, to your liking) invite three strangers inside to help patch you up. You had no idea one would swing by every night since then, an inexplicable force drawing the two of you together.

“Fever dream high in the quiet of the night You know that I caught it.”

It wasn’t exactly meant to happen this way. Leo was supposed to handle this easy quest with Piper and Percy. All he had to do was return a stolen parchment. That was it.

You weren’t meant to be there. You weren’t supposed to be in that park when that hydra attacked you. Hell, you weren’t even supposed to be a target. You hadn’t even seen what attacked you until a stinging pain filled your side.

Percy and Leo had ran after the creature as Piper stayed at your side, her voice surprisingly soothing to your shocked state. She was kind, gentle, and helped you up. She had even offered to walk you home to patch you up there. You couldn’t show up at the hospital without having so much as a clue what happened.

You were simply walking down the path, headphones covering your ears, eyes set on the road. And then you suddenly fell over and two boys ran past you.

It all happened so quickly.

“Bad, bad boy Shiny toy with a price You know that I bought it.”

“Was this worth the fight?” Percy sighed as he stared at the parchment resting on your kitchen table. You were sat in one of the chairs, Piper doing her best to bandage you back up. You don’t know why you even allowed them to come into your apartment, but Piper was too kind, and the two boys looked worse for wear.

But as the rubbing alcohol came into contact with your skin, all that ran through your mind were the odd occurrences of the day. Apparently, the three had ran through the entire city to get a piece of paper.

It must have been really important, because they nearly got hit by a car to get it. Thrice. Within five minutes.

“Killing me slow, out the window I'm always waiting for you to be waiting below.”

Leo’s eyes had been on you constantly. To him, you looked strangely familiar. As if he had seen you before; he did not know your name, nor where he knew you from. But he had seen you.

You only grew uncomfortable under his stare. He had already introduced himself, and even made you a cup of tea to help you calm down. But that is all you knew about him. And his eyes simply did not seem to leave your figure.

“I’m sorry,” you winced, gaining all three’s attention. “But have we met?”

It was directed at Leo. And he seemed to perk up at that instantly. “I don’t know,” he answered honestly, his eyebrows raising in curiosity. “You seem familiar.”

From beside you, Piper’s eyes fell on you, then on Leo, then back onto you. A tiny grin covered her face as she finally applied the bandage.

The notion did not go unseen by Percy.

“Devils roll the dice, angels roll their eyes What doesn't kill me makes me want you more.”

“I can’t place it.” You mumbled, keeping the gauze on your side at Piper’s silent command.

Leo stood up from his seat, stuffing the parchment into Percy’s bag. He then walked up to you, kneeling down slightly to come at eye level with you. You scooted back in your seat in confusion, still holding the bandage.

With more intention, Leo stared into your eyes, squinting his, as if it would give him the answers he had been looking for.

A low hum escaped his throat as he kept observing you. An awkward cough escaped you, not daring to break the eye-contact, fearing it would be impolite.

“I think I have met you,” He began, standing back up. “I just can’t place it.”

Taken aback at his sudden change in behaviour, you frowned, nodding politely.

“Me neither.”

“And it's new, the shape of your body It's blue, the feeling I've got And it's ooh, whoa, oh It's a cruel summer.”

And so, a short, confused meeting, led you to curiosity. You had lain awake that night; wondering whatever had wounded you. Whatever had ran past you; and what Percy and Leo were chasing.

Come to think of it, you couldn’t understand why you let them into your home without even knowing their names - save for Piper.

Yet, when Leo showed up on your doorsteps three days later, you (again) had no trouble letting him in. He had claimed you dropped your phone in the park earlier, and he had taken the liberty to fix it.

You knew your phone was missing. You had almost assumed it had been stolen. You didn’t have the guts to tell him your new phone had already been ordered. You were glad to have it returned regardless.

He had spent the evening for dinner, which was the least you could do for his efforts. But one dinner turned into two. Which turned into three. And soon, he was passing by twice a week.

“It's cool, that's what I tell 'em No rules in breakable heaven But ooh, whoa oh It's a cruel summer With you.”

“A hydra?” You questioned, your legs crossed over each other as you stared at Leo from your side of the couch.

“You’re probably thinking I’m crazy,” Leo tried to laugh off, but his earlier answer had already grasped your interest.

“Leo, for days I thought I was attacked by air,” you reassured. “If you told me I was attacked by a tiny bug I would’ve believed you as well.”

The boy grinned, shaking his head in amusement. “You know,” he laughed. “Hydras are not a matter to be taken lightly.”

“I wasn’t joking,” you played off, standing up from your seat. “I’m just saying, I wasn’t thinking I would be sucked into a Greek tale.”

“You have no idea.”

“Hang your head low In the glow of the vending machine I'm not dying.”

“But why would you decide to run after a hydra?” You wondered aloud, remembering the creatures you had come across in monster books when you were younger. “I’d run the opposite direction.”

“She stole a parchment.” He simply stated, causing you to raise your eyebrows in surprise.

“Must have been an important parchment.”

“Apollo was pretty adamant on having it back.” Leo nodded.

“Apollo?” You repeated, crossing your arms. “As in, Phoebus Apollo?”

“The one and only.” The boy agreed, setting down his glass as he looked up at you. “I know it sounds insane, but-“

“Leo,” you cut him off. “Stop saying that. I believe you. Crazy enough, I believe you.”

“You say that we'll just screw it up in these trying times We're not trying.”

Now, it was his turn to look confused. He knew he shouldn’t have told as much as he just did, but that little voice in the back of his mind told him it was okay. That he could trust you.

But even with his truth, he had expected to laugh at him. Perhaps even scream at him. But you were understanding. You seemed to genuinely believe him. And it took him aback.

“I wouldn’t believe me.” He confessed. “I sound like a psychopath.”

“Yes,” you agreed without hesitation, a smile forming on your face. “But you don’t have the psychopathic eyes.”

“So cut the headlights, summer's a knife I'm always waiting for you just to cut to the bone.”

Mimicking your words, his eyes widened, staring at you with more intent than first. “How about now?”

Chuckling at him, you sat back down, looking down at your lap. “Your eyes are too warm for that.”

Immediately, his face fell, and he could feel the heat rising to his cheek. Silently chanting to himself, he forced the flames back, playing it off as a cough.

“But why would Apollo come to you?” You resumed, folding your hands together in curiosity.

Subconsciously copying your movements, Leo sighed, now contemplating his actual words. If you had been a monster, you would have attacked him already. But if you weren’t, this might be the minute you considered him to be an actual psychopath.

But your interest was endearing, and he found himself captivated by your curiosity. Your eyes seemed to shine in excitement, and your voice had been so genuine. It made him feel all light inside.

Brief butterflies flew through his stomach as he swallowed thickly, forcing the feeling down.

“Devils roll the dice, angels roll their eyes And if I bleed, you'll be the last to know.”

“I- well; Me and Piper and Percy, all three of us. We are somewhat…experts in that area.” He tried to explain.

“Mythology experts?” You prodded confused.

“No, no.” Leo denied, holding his hands up to clarify his points. “Piper is a daughter of Aphrodite.”

You nodded slowly, processing the words in your own pace. Narrowing your eyes, you tested your words. “I understand that she was quite beautiful.”

“Well, no. Not exactly.” At those words, you leaned back, not entirely sure what to answer at that. “I mean, yes. But that’s not what I meant.” Leo tried to placate.

“It’s difficult.”

“Explain.”

“Oh, it's new, the shape of your body It's blue, the feeling I've got And it's ooh, whoa, oh It's a cruel summer.”

“Her mother is Aphrodite.” Leo clarified, leaving no room for any more discussion and confusion. But your silence was deafening. Maybe he had taken a wrong example.

“Poseidon is Percy’s father. Hephaestus is mine.”

Another terrible, dreadful silence. A lump had begun to form in Leo’s throat. He’d never have to explain this to anyone; let alone someone he really liked.

“That makes no sense,” you eventually whispered out.

This was where you’d declare him clinically insane. This is where he’d leave and never return, and then wallow in his room for days and weeks to come. He had blown it. Again.

But then you said something that he would have never been prepared for. Something maybe you weren’t even prepared for either.

“Hephaestus was believed to be one of the ugliest gods. You cannot be his son.”

“Is that-“ Leo gasped, taken aback. “Are you flirting with me?”

Raising your eyebrows, you got back up again, now walking towards your mug. Holding it up for him, you gestured towards his mug.

“More tea?”

“It's cool, that's what I tell 'em No rules in breakable heaven But ooh, whoa, oh It's a cruel summer With you.”

From that night, it was impossible for Leo to not sneak out as soon as curfew started. His siblings covered for him as he ran off. He had spent days taking note of the harpies, and how to walk past them the quickest.

His friends were the toughest to outrun. Piper had specifically told him to not run back; knowing how much he had felt drawn to you. Deep down, he knew better. Every monster would come hunt him the second he set foot outside of camp. If they’d see him enter your home, he could say goodbye to your safety.

But he couldn’t help himself. He was being extra careful, but he grew anxious of the thought of dragging you with him in his life. And it had only taken four weeks for that fear to become real.

“I'm drunk in the back of the car And I cried like a baby coming home from the bar Said, "I'm fine, " but it wasn't true I don't wanna keep secrets just to keep you.”

He was on his way to your house, per usual, when he knew he was being followed. Ever since he got out of a ten mile radius from camp, he knew it. At first, he considered himself paranoid. But just to be safe, he walked down the same street twice. Purely to see if he was still being followed.

And lo and behold, those awful eyes on his back were still there. He had considered running back to camp to get as far away from you as possible. But it was late, and he wouldn’t make it in time.

Seeing his pause and ponder for an opportunity, a stray harpy aimed itself at the poor boy.

Rolling down on the floor, Leo immediately reached for a tiny dagger he stuck in his belt on his usual road to you. He never thought it’d come in handy. Not until this night.

“And I snuck in through the garden gate Every night that summer just to seal my fate And I screamed for whatever it's worth "I love you, " ain't that the worst thing you ever heard? He looks up grinning like a devil.”

As the harpy struck again, Leo did too. The dagger embedded in one of the harpy’s wings, rendering her flightless, descending from her position in the cold air.

Slaying it quickly, the boy sighed deeply. Every rational part of him told him to return to camp. To get somewhere safe. To get that gash on his arms treated.

But somehow, he managed to convince himself it was only her. That she was alone, straying from her group. The eyes on him had faded, he noticed that much.

Standing there on the street aimless wasn’t going to do him any good.

And thus, he kept on walking.

“It's new, the shape of your body It's blue, the feeling I've got And it's ooh, whoa, oh It's a cruel summer.”

“What the hell happened?” You gasped, opening the door widely for Leo to enter. Slight stains had soaked through his sleeves. His breathing was heavy, and rapid; as if he had run to you.

In his hand clung a tiny dagger, and you swallowed thickly upon it. Immediately noticing your distress, Leo placed it on the coffee table, flinging his body onto the couch.

“Leo, your arm!” You exclaimed, your voice stuck between concern and scolding.

Leo took it for scolding, raising his arm as to show you it hadn’t touched the couch yet. Breathing that silent sigh of relief, you walked up to him, wet towel already in hand.

“It's cool, that's what I tell 'em No rules, in breakable heaven But ooh, whoa, oh It's a cruel summer With you.”

“Lee, you should get this looked at.” You mumbled, sitting down beside his laying form, gently grabbing his injured arm.

Pushing his sleeve up to access the wound, Leo hissed slightly, his head turning to watch your every movement.

“What happened?”

“Harpy,” The boy sighed, adjusting in his seat, now laying his head on your lap as he watched you clean the blood off.

“She followed me.”

That’s where you halted, staring down at Leo with warning eyes.

“She was alone!” He defended, frowning as you applied pressure to the arm. “I wouldn’t come here if I wasn’t sure.”

Lie. He wasn’t sure. He just really needed to see you.

“I'm drunk in the back of the car And I cried like a baby coming home from the bar Said, "I'm fine, " but it wasn't true I don't wanna keep secrets just to keep you.”

“You’re stupid.” You muttered, now handing him the towel for the dryer edges.

“You’re stupid.” Leo repeated in a childish voice. “Making me feel all stupid inside. I wouldn’t have come here if you were any other person.”

“So, why do you?” You prodded, taking his unmoving head as a silent gesture to run your fingers through his hair.

“Because,” he began, now staring up at you from his spot. “You’re cute.”

Chuckling at his words, you shook your head, your hand still entangled in his curls.

“Are you flirting with me?” You asked through a snicker. One that Leo returned gleefully.

“You started it.”

“And I snuck in through the garden gate Every night that summer just to seal my fate And I screamed for whatever it's worth.”

He kept the towel to the wound, but refused to move it further. You could have stood up; walked to the kitchen for the first aid kit, get him bandaged up.

But part of you didn’t want to get up. This was as peaceful as days would come lately. And his cut wasn’t deep; he’d live. And if they only have half of the medicines at camp that Leo talks about, he should be fine.

“I like you,” Leo blurted out. “That’s why I keep coming back.”

You smiled at him, your free hand now reaching down to grab the towel. Instead, they lingered on his hand, a comfortable source of heat.

“I’m glad you do,” you confessed, grabbing his hand and squeezing it lightly.

“Because I think I like you too.”

“"I love you, " ain't that the worst thing you ever heard?”

#november writings 2022 #Leo Valdez #pjo #hoo #heroes of olympus #toa #trials of Apollo #leo valdez x reader #riordanverse

[dontbotherwiththepronunciation]

Something I'm curious about today: what were the proportions like in answers to the "do you relate to Theon" question? This doesn't have to be a long articulate answer with comparisons if you don't want to, I would love even to just know how many people answered yes or no, I'm very interested in how that plays out with liking and relating being basically thought of as sinonims in fandom these days

Ah! Just checked because in all honesty, I don't think I paid a lot of attention to the fractions on that question.

Problem here is that since this wasn't a question with options, but instead one where everyone wrote what they felt, some of the answers were less clear. Ex. some people said that they don't relate to Theon specifically, but to some of the themes/situations he goes through.

The rough statistic:

There wasn't much to be remarked upon, not many surprising things; out of the third culture kids everyone related to him (and so did the other types of immigrants who answered the survey), the fraction between most-liked hips and feelings of kinship were proportionate and didn't show any preferences, and out of those who would be content with endgames that allow him to stay in the North many of the votes came from those who didn't relate to him.

Still! I found it interesting how there was a small fraction of voters (from both sides) that admitted they not only related to him, but also self-inserted (is that the correct tense???) to whoever they shipped him with. This happened nine times (that I could count, but perhaps I slipped or misunderstood something); four theonsas, three Greysnows, one throbb, and another special case in which the person chose throbb as their preferred ship but explained in length how they also ship theonsa and self insert on Sansa.

I like Theon and Robb best overall, but Sansa is my fave both for self insert reasons and general thematic interest, so I love theonbaby girl. sa too (in a doomed fairytale way). In Throbb I like darker fics, hurt comfort, betrayal etc, usually interspersed with flashbacks to when they were happy and in love. Plausible deniability level Canon compliance is important to me. I like fics where Robb is already dead. If they're happy, I want it to be pre-ACOK, I'm not too into fix it first for them. I'm happy for them to be each other's first and only, or in a secretive open relationship, or just mutual pining, I can run the gamut. Theon and Sansa for me is much more about AUs, Canon divergence, and fix it fics. I'd rather they be happy. Sansa is never also a victim of Ramsay for me, no show compliance ever, she has her own shit with Joffrey and Littlefinger and Co. I like expanding on the idea that Theon had thought Ned might marry him to Sansa one day. I like badboy, player, misogynist theon because I see myself in Sansa and I like to play with modern AUs where she thinks that's the kind of man she likes, and they both become better people organically before really getting together. I also like AUs where theon is still a bad boy player but he was never that bad/has a heart of gold or whatever, because that's just fun/fluffy. OH I also like fics where theon is bi for Robb and Sansa! Robb can die and then theon can fall for Sansa.

Weirdly enough this only applied to ships.

Also on a more personal note, not gonna lie, the four/five theonsas who identify with/self-insert/kin Sansa were really fascinating to me because of

the hateful argument used against Sansan, Sanrion, Sansa/[insert older man] shippers regarding them not really loving Sansa and just self-inserting on her.

the memories of how the "You are just self-inserting" argument was also sometimes used against theyne shippers but out of the theynes who responded here no one seemed to identify with Jeyne. Anyway, mildly curious things to think about.

#hell-heron #speaking #theon survey #theon greyjoy #asoiaf

[sacrificethemtothesquid]

Hi! You always reblog really nice posts about mental health and writing, and I wanted to ask for advice! I’m struggling to focus on my writing. I spend the day thinking about scenes I want to improve etc, and when I can finally write I start doing something else, and then I waste my time with stupid shit on social media instead of doing what I wanted so badly! Do you have any tips that help concentrating? I turn off my Wi-Fi at times but my brain just keeps telling me to go check twitter or whatever, and I fall for it every time. :/ I write so slowly I lose a lot of nice stuff I make up in my head, I really wanted to get better at this. I love your blog, hope I’m not being annoying!!! Xxx

I am so sorry for the late response to this. I've been wrapped up in offline things and wanted to give you the proper consideration you deserve. You are absolutely not annoying - I'm sorry I've left you hanging for so long!

In terms of concentration, I don't know that I'm the best person to ask. I have an ADHD diagnosis and my meds help me focus. That's the simple answer, which I don't think is what you're hoping for.

BUT that being said, even with my meds, I also do the social-media-instead-of-writing thing and I completely understand how frustrating it is. I have ideas! They're good ones! But they evaporate the second I open the document, and to console myself, I seek out the instant dopamine of tumblr and pinterest, feeling guilty the entire time.

My question for you: are you trying to write everything in a straight line, or are you making notes for whichever scene is currently in your head? If I love a scene but I'm not there yet in terms of the overall story arc, I'll write that as it comes. I think of it as quilting: I come up with scenes like fabric squares, and then I can arrange and stitch them together as the narrative dictates. Sometimes they don't fit, and that's okay. Not all the fabric gets used in the quilt, but the simple act of writing benefits the whole. No writing is wasted.

There was a post here on tumblr that changed my entire outlook on living with ADHD, and it also applies to writing. I can't find the post right now, but it had to do with "junebugging": instead of forcing yourself to do a specific task, ie the dishes, you put yourself in the vicinity of the task, ie the kitchen, and putter around until you eventually get your hands in the sink. In the past, I would have been vicious to myself, cursing myself for my failure to just do the fucking thing, but if I'm a junebug - big and striped and a little dumb - I can bob around the lightbulb, occasionally harmlessly bonking against the glass in my single-minded pursuit of light. It's not my fault my executive function is fucked. It's just the way my brain is wired. Might as well embrace it.

It works for my writing too. If I'm not feeling particularly linear, I'll open the document and poke at what I've already written, or I'll brainstorm new stuff, or stitch some scenes together. I'd love to say I do this without judgement, because my therapist would be proud of me, but although I've gotten much better, I am still working on the whole "radical acceptance" thing.

And radical acceptance: it's hard. It's really hard, but it's so, so necessary. It can be true that you desperately want to write while also being true that you would much rather check twitter. These are not mutually exclusive. I want you to let go of that guilt, if you can. Like we say in my support group, if being hard on yourself worked, it would have worked by now.

Look at your writing. Ask yourself what is stopping you, what's got you snagged like a sleeve on a doorknob. Are you not sure how to proceed? Does the scene in your head not fit with what you've already written? A piece of advice I got years ago: if you're having a hard time writing a scene, the problem doesn't exist with the scene itself, it exists three pages back. It's like trying to solve a maze: sometimes if you get stuck in a corner, you have to backtrack and find a new path. This might mean getting rid of something you've written - don't delete it. Don't delete anything. Open a blank document and copy/paste it in there. Label this document "bits and pieces". You might be able to use those bits - those quilt squares - later. Another piece of advice: what exactly is the story you're trying to tell? I'm having issues with my novel. It's ostensibly a murder mystery, but the mystery part wasn't coming together until I admitted it wasn't really a murder mystery, but a love story between the protagonists. Admitting that let me change my focus from the whodunit - which I hadn't connected with and felt forced to continue - to the developing relationship, with the whodunit as the vehicle. Now it's working a lot better.

The last thing I'll say is that you might be burnt out. That's okay. Muscles can push against a weight for only so long, and creativity is the same. Are you dreading opening that document? Take a break from it. Junebug. Work on something else. Take a shower. Clean the sink. Read something else you've written. Read something written by someone else. A farmer can't work the same field all the time without the soil getting depleted. It needs some fallow time and maybe a nice cover crop to recover. This is part of the process.

Be kind to yourself, my friend. I hear a lot of pain in your voice and I want you to know that it's all right. It's going to be all right. Even if you're not writing right at this second, you are still a writer. You will always be. Every writer that ever lived has gone through what you're going through. You're never, ever alone.

Take care, and let me know how it goes.

#sorry this is so late #I hope by the time I wrote this #things are better for you #writing

[eclipsecrowned]

but yeah like. the more i think about it the more i want to make it 100% clear that as a canon writer i don't appreciate forceshipping, so in writing my ocs i will never assume a dynamic with a canon in turn. for the most part, i try to let people come to me when it concerns characters that might derail or change canon significantly -- for example, the oc in question odessa, or my ice and fire oc mira, or countless others -- because i never want to step over boundaries or force interaction with someone whose lore or character is at odds with my own worldbuild.

if i do post about an original or player character muse's dynamic with a canon, i hope it is understood that one of three things is happening:

i am talking about my own dual muses. ie if i allude to stray and ard*n having a special bond, or that i ship hel and dream, i am talking specifically about the ones on my own muse page. i am not forcing my own idea on my partners. stray does not have to be a reflection of the main villain. hel is not going to go throwing herself at every dream in the tag. if things go that way organically with a partner's muse, i'm not opposed to exploring my takes with someone else, but it's never my intent to railroad my mutuals into indulging my own personal lore. at that point i might as well write fic and leave other people out of it.

i am talking about a dynamic established in a pc's playthrough -- using my most recent gaming experience as an example, i might reference helstarion/valheart/wybelle/auzel/ruetash as being romantic, but i would never just spring that on my writing partners who play the canon, or assume they have to cater to my own savegames. i'm simply talking about in-game lore in my own personal playthroughs that help shape my take on the pc. this applies to other fandoms/games as well, too. ismail does not have to endgame with a grippy sock drow milf, it's just that he does in my worldstate. einmyria doesn't have to take the bull by the horns, that's just how i played the game. me musing about in-game ships does not mean i go into interacting with accounts for those canons with expectations.

more often than not, i am referencing ships with established partners. for example, this morning, i was talking explicitly about the irudessa ship with lee. i was not jut posting for my health about a hypothetical dynamic, i was talking about a one-on-one ship between my muse and that of a friend. this applies to more than romantic shipping, too -- ex, lea and tarhos are siblings per my and ferret's lore, aria and eld's loki are cousins in his da au, and that's between us and lightly sprinkled into other threads with friends. i may not always namedrop this fact, because i assume other people trust me as a partner enough to understand i am not throwing dynamics out there without proper plotting and discussion.

thank you, friends, have a normal one.

#psa #out of stories #idk why this is irritating me so bad and i think it's just bc it's so personal to me bc!!! #im really quite shy about my ocs. not so much talking about them but definitely in approaching others with them. #i never want to be that person just fumbling in and making sb rewrite their entire narrative to fit in my character--