#its actually a challenge and i kinda dig it

[snekdood]

the problem with conservatives is they think you challenging their beliefs is somehow oppressing them

#this is why i dont think punishing them physically necessarily works. while its a short term solution in the long run- if they have a #victim complex- which most conservatives who aren't just purely evil politicians kinda have been conditioned to have- they're just gonna #dig their heels in and count that as part of their supposed 'oppression' #they think you challengeing their precious binary. etc. is somehow oppressing them bc you challenge everything they've known and #have now since kinda grown attached to and the only lense they've seen the world through since forever #basically rocking their foundation of how they see reality- and since conservatives are afraid of change (kinda in the name) rocking #what they know makes them think you're oppressing them by making them actually think and be critical baout what they know #its like they take it as a judgement also. idk. as if their way of life is bad (which it for the most part kinda is) and that we're somehow #punishing them for believing in that life. it really does boil down to fear of the unknown and a desire to cling on to whats familiar. #'how dare you question my status quo lifestyle! everythings fine!! i swear!! im totally not in denial about how shit things've become!!!' #'everythins worked for me so far!!' aka they havent died yet. and are ignoring that other people are. and think their depressing life #somehow has something to do with other average people who are what. wearing make up and feather boa's. gods greatest sin of course dfhbhg #rather than the ruling class reinforcing a system that oppresses them and sucks them dry of their labour....... #but its fine!! guys!! remember?? its familiar. and we havent died yet. so its fine. man my back hurts and i wish i could take a 3 day break #i think we gotta also acknowledge that they're probably victims of abuse (since most conservatives are abusive too and probably inhereted #that trait from their even more conservative parents) and as victims of abuse... they probably do the same thing plenty of us have done #before too- where we didn't think anything better was possible/we could escape/we deserved better so we stayed in shitty situations for #longer than we deserved. and had to just think of it all as. fine. we havent died yet. whoevers abusing us has spared us from death. #so its fine. better than death. i guess. #how bleak of a worldview.

[hwangyeonjun]

prompt: “stop teasing me”

pairing: ten lee x fem!reader

warnings: suggestive, clothed grinding and teasing, dirty talk (kinda)

word count: 706

2k followers celebration masterlist

“look, y/n!” yangyang exclaimed, shoving his phone into your face. “i ordered this shirt yesterday, what do you think?” he smiled brightly at you.

you chuckled at his excitement, his sparkly eyes warming your heart as he looked at the peace of clothing that he was showing you and sat down next to you, waiting for an answer.

“it’s nice. i think it’ll look good on you” you replied honestly, offering a small smile his way.

you heard a loud sigh and a grunt on the other side of you where ten was sitting. glancing at him, you notice a little scowl on his face which almost made you laugh out loud.

deciding to play along, you look at yangyang again. “don’t forget to send me a picture of how it looks on you”

your words made his eyes sparkle even more as he nodded eagerly, failing to notice the growing tension in the room which was caused by your very own boyfriend.

ten knew that there was nothing to be jealous or suspicious about you and yangyang. he trusted you both and you always treated yangyang like a little brother because that was the relationship you established with him ever since you met and it was completely normal and acceptable for everyone.

but although ten is embarrassed to admit, he is jealous of the attention yangyang is getting from you, even if it’s childish and maybe even selfish. he knows that. yet, he can’t shake this feeling off, because he just can’t admit that today he wanted your attention a little more, so the only thing he is left to do is to pout and hope that you’ll notice him.

later that night, when you returned back to your own house, you found ten still sulking with his arms crossed on his chest.

giggling quietly to yourself, you approached him, though he didn’t even spare you a glance. “are you mad?” you cooed, sitting down next to him.

“no” he answered quickly, still keeping his gaze forwards.

you sticked your head out in front of him, forcing him to meet your eyes. “jealous?”

he scoffed. “no”

you rolled your eyes and threw your legs over his, straddling his hips. ten’s eyes went wide for a second as he gulped from the sudden contact.

wrapping your arms around his shoulder, you wiggled on his lap. “oh come on, you know that yangyang treats me like a big sister, he’s still a kid in heart, he wants the attention”

ten hissed when you pressed down on his crotch. “i know”

“he’s been separated from his family at a young age, lost most of his childhood in the practice room, in a different country. you, from all people, should know better what that’s like” you continued while dragging your fingers from his neck down to his chest, feeling him relax more and more every passing second.

ten knew you were right, and it made him feel more like an asshole for getting visibly upset over this issue. but he was too damn stubborn to admit it, so he nodded his head before tilting it back and resting it on top of the backrest, eyes fixating on the ceiling, while his hands finally found its way to your thighs, though he only softly placed them on top, which annoyed you.

you took it as a challenge and started to grind yourself more on his crotch, his dick slowly becoming harder until you could see a visible bulge in his pants, while your hands burried themselves into his hair, slightly tugging at the roots and your lips leaving soft, wet kisses on his neck, showing a little bit more attention to the sensitive spots.

ten couldn’t suppress his sounds anymore. low grunts and moans slipping past his lips, eyes squeezed shut, nails digging into your thighs.

but when he lifted his head up and tried to remove your pants, ready to actually start doing something and take the lead, you swatted his hands away and smirked.

“nope. not so fast”

“oh come on” he groaned loudly. “stop teasing me” his last words came out like a whine which only made you smile more.

“oh baby, this is just the beginning”

#hwangyeonjun’s 2k followers celebration #ten lee x reader #ten lee smut #ten x reader #chittaphon leechaiyapornkul #nct #wayv #wayv smut #wayv x reader #wayv imagine

[throwingmetothelions]

NSFW Alphabet - Nicholas Ruffilo

I would like to say that I know it looks like I’m not being fair to Noah, and potentially the other members, but I wrote this on my laptop instead of my phone or iPad like I normally do. Whenever that happens, I have a tendency to write a little bit more because it’s much easier to type. By the time I converted it over, I realized that each blurb is double the length whoops.

HERE ARE SOME NICHOLAS THOUGHTS AND HEADCANONS. Again, it ain’t perfect truth unless I literally state that. Argue with yo momma.

A = Aftercare (what they’re like after sex)

Pshhhh. Nicholas is like … the king of aftercare. I genuinely believe he doesn't really do the cum towel, but he goes and starts the shower because he wants you to be clean. Nicholas is the type to have a waterproof mattress protector already, and he laid a blanket down that he can easily toss away so nobody sleeps in the wet spot. Nicholas won’t be satisfied until you are breathing normally and grinning a little.

B = Body part (their favorite body part of theirs and also their partner’s)

Nicholas knows his eyes are gorgeous. They look so green sometimes, but then they’re grey, and then they’re my FAVORITE - when the sun hits them they look like clear glass. I think he loves the compliments he gets on them. In literally every picture we have of shirtless Nick he’s crossing his arms over his belly and chest, or he's hiding behind someone - Nicholas Shirtless Content Challenge. His favorite body part on you is your thighs. I think he loves digging his fingers in them because they squish, the way you squeak when he runs his fingers over the part where your ass meets them, and that they are heavy when you throw them over him. Warm weighted blanket.

C = Cum (anything to do with cum, basically)

Let's twist this one around and put it on it’s ass. We’re not talking about how Nicholas feels about his own cum. He loves fingering you because he plays with it. I’ll die on this hill because LISTEN - he collects it on his fingers and scissors them apart so he can see the strings of nectar that HE caused. He likes to lick it off his fingers and your folds. He loves knowing he did that because its a visual representation of hard work kinda like the tattoos he creates. Fills him with pride, and you let him do his thing because you cannot see straight. Although, I will say that out of all of the Bad Omens boys I do feel like Nick has the lifestyle that leads to cum that doesn't taste like battery acid.

D = Dirty secret (pretty self explanatory, a dirty secret of theirs)

Ah. Okay. (Warning: please don't actually cum facedown like this. It's actually terrible for you in the sexual long run but thats why its a dirty secret). Nicholas’s favorite way to cum is by piling up a blanket or a pillow and grinding down on it while he’s laying down. Now, I feel like he discovered this because he shared a room with Noah for ages and didnt have a whole lot of privacy. Also, Bad Omens are the kings of fitting like seven men in one hotel room so you have to learn how to cope. ALSO I may or may not have stumbled across an old snapchat of Noah laying back in a bed shirtless with porn on the tv on one of those after hours channels in a hotel room. Somebody was awake and giggling and someone was snoring in the background. Perfect opportunity for Nicholas to “be asleep” wink wink.

E = Experience (how experienced are they? do they know what they’re doing?)

Nicholas actually does have a bit more experience than people probably think, and it's because Mr. Venus In Capricorn likes to build up actual romantic relationships. He canonically never did the “girlies backstage” thing, and I think hes had plenty of time to actually talk to his partners about the things women like, what works in general, and where other men are going wrong. He absolutely knows what he’s doing, and I think hes the type to actually shock you with how much foreplay he’s going to demand. There is no rushing this. He’s a very patient man.

F = Favorite position (this goes without saying)

Missionary, but he likes to push your legs back. He loves this because the filthy kisses and the eye contact are A1. That's always a good one, but his all time favorite is when you ride him. He can do so much in this position, and you get off the easiest. Nick is the type to grope you all over but its out of wonderment and fascination. Like he spends all fucking day looking at body parts when he tattoos, and he picks up on new details everytime he fucks you like this. He can also help you out a bit when you get tired, and we’ll get into why him grinding into you steals his soul later bestie.

G = Goofy (are they more serious in the moment? are they humorous? etc.)

He isn’t goofy. Like at all. I feel like Nicholas has personality characteristics that align with Katie from Horton Hears a Who in that there's an absolute childlike ignorance he can display because he’s too busy staring at shiny things or following the smell of tacos. Mars in Cancer - very mature SO if you laughed or giggled during sex you would have to stop and explain why to him before he can move on. He’s curious, because in his mind this is taking all of the big boy brain cells he has. You could make a joke or a pun about filling holes or something funny, and Nick would instantly put his serious pants on like “alrighty that’s - this is what she wants its my time to fucking GO”. Like hes not even gonna laugh at the joke.

H = Hair (how well groomed are they? does the carpet match the drapes? etc.)

So I have actually seen (I added it to a post once here I think) a Nicholas titty+chest combo that wasn’t covered and yall … he actually has chest hair lol I say that because he looks smooth everywhere else, but he does. THAT BEING SAID … he has enough chest hair that I’m sure it does that thing where it makes a thin line straight down his chest and into a happy trail. I don’t actually think that he shaves or trims anything though because I don't think he’s all that hairy? He would if you asked (don’t be a dick and ask though girl wtf) but I think he just kinda lets it go. Very chilled back individual. Very nonchalant about this. That being said, shaving other people's body parts is a part of his job so he would be a magician if he did.

I = Intimacy (how are they during the moment? the romantic aspect)

THIS IS WERE NICHOLAS RYAN SHINES. So … Nick deleted his twitter, but I swear all that boy did was joke about how sensitive he is and how easy it is to hurt his feelings.I dont give a shit - Nick is a very soft boy, and he's also incredibly soft spoken when you compare him to most men. I’m also gonna say something and its gonna piss some of you off (I seem to do that everyday so lets stoke this fire a bit) NICHOLAS IS THE MOST ANDROGYNOUS (POSITIVE) MEMBER OF BAD OMENS AND IM NOT JUST TALKING LOOKS. Listen - his mannerisms, his speech pattern, his open sensitivity, and I mean … look at him??? Very intimate dude. Very “what’s goin’ on jellybean,” while tucking his hair behind his ear. He actually is so powerful because he can turn ANY conversation intimate with that soft voice and his eyes. He doesn't mean too. Sometimes he does. Can absolutely make everyone around you disappear with a hand on your knee.

J = Jack off (masturbation headcanon)

Oof. Nicholas jerks off more than I think anyone would give him credit for. He’s mad respectful about it … He’s never been walked in on. I do think he’s pretty spontaneous about it? He’s so mellow all the time that if he did suddenly get turned on he’d have to remedy it because he needs to return to his baseline. Like for example … if he’s looking up references for a tattoo or something and he sees one too many pictures of ancient Greek statues or Renaissance paintings of women with sheer drapes hugging their curves … his nerdy ass would absolutely take it a little further by accident (he cannot control his wandering mind), and he’d jerk off about it. ALSO I’ve seen some digital art he did like a decade ago and uhm … its … its kinda fucking horny even as a joke so I know I’m right lol

K = Kink (one or more of their kinks)

Sensitive Sarahs need to turn it around now. Nicholas is the one that has the breeding kink. SO I think he blurted it out one day out of fear when he was younger. Like he was totally Mr. Safe Sex until his stupid dumb nineteen year old hormonal brain said “its okay to not have a condom Nick. You can pull out (derogatory),” and he did but not in time and it was a whole Avengers level fight in his brain. Now, he holds your tummy really tight when he fucks you and he whispers in your ear about how pretty you would look if he put a baby in there. He’s … yeah, its a kink but also this is Nicholas and he’s such dad material that he’s only half-shitting you when he's saying these things. Like he likes to keep his dick inside of you for a while after he cums just to keep it all in and whisper primal shit in your ear, but he's also actually stopping through the baby section of Target because he saw a onesie that said “My Dad Is a Rockstar” on it and he wants to show you. You are always one filthy tongue kiss away from Nicholas making you both parents.

L = Location (favorite places to do the do)

His all time favorite place I feel like - and this is something he gets to rarely do - is have sex in the ocean. I know, pH situations and all that, but he just loves how close you have to be. He loves knowing that it looks like you’re just clinging to him as you guys bob along with the waves. Nick loves pulling your bikini bottoms to the side and keeping you afloat while you keep him warm. I feel like he’s also big on sex on that couch in his living room thats in all those pictures. Yall know what im talking about … the one with the velvet. Like you put a movie on and you were spooning under a blanket and then BOOM. Your face is turned back towards him so that you can kiss him while he fucks you through Star Wars.

M = Motivation (what turns them on, gets them going)

You know what? I think, if you have tattoos, watching you put on lotion or oil after a shower would turn this man on immensely. Like he would see the ink in your skin shine, and he would watch your hands glide all over your body and he would instantly have a boner. Nicholas is also a sweet angel and, unfortunately for him, if he just thinks about you for too long he’ll get excited in public. Nick also has a thing for you wearing his old t-shirts from his scene phase that he never threw away. He thinks its adorable how you didn't really have a scene phase because you were a Hollister teen, so he always asks what the fuck you know about The Maine when you put that shirt on. He tackles you on the bed because you “don't know shit about them”, and he really thinks you should take it off baby.

N = No (something they wouldn’t do, turn offs)

I firmly believe that Nicholas Ryan Ruffilo does not have it in him to do any sort of impact play. Like if you ask him to slap you a little he’s going to remind you that you guys talked about this, and he's going to shake his head and it’ll be over. NOW - it’s worth noting that, if he's anything like any other tattoo artist i'm friends with, he laughs a little when he inflicts pain on his friends. He would do like nipple clamps, but it actually is difficult for him to even spank you. If your ass is the slightest bit red he’ll have to check on you. He absolutely cannot smack you if its anything beyond a playful tap. Like I think Nick would actually legitimately cry if he did anything that made you wince or flinch because knowing that he caused that reaction means a lot to him. It’s a bit too heavy for our friend.

O = Oral (preference in giving or receiving, skill, etc.)

Nicholas really loves blow jobs. Here's the thing we have to remember - most tattoo artists use talking as a way of distracting clients sometimes. They ask all about the tattoo, they want to know the meaning etc. its all about the client. Nick, just for a little bit, wants something to be about him and only him. He is obsessed with the way you try to hide the little gags you force down, and the way that your spit makes a bridge from your lips to the tip of his dick. He likes holding your hair and admiring you. Big admirer. That being said, if you're the type that can tolerate someone giving kitten licks for an hour, or slowly making out with your pussy until you want to grip the messy bun he keeps and shove his face into your folds THEN LAY BACK AND LET NICHOLAS DO HIS THING. Too much fascination and detail capturing to be able to just - dive in and shake his head like a pitbull on a bone. Can’t do it.

P = Pace (are they fast and rough? slow and sensual? etc.)

Pace, you question? I think he’s all over the map. Nick is 30. He’s old enough to have patience, but he’s still young enough to lose himself for a little bit and fuck you so fast you have to brace yourself lest you smack your forehead into the wall. He doesn’t read the vibe of the room or the time … he just reads you. Do you have some sort of devilish glint in your eyeballs? Are you wordlessly asking him to give you a bit of a friction burn because he fucked you so fast? Or, do you have heavy eyes and a head full of too many thoughts? Are you asking him for slow and calculated thrusts that hit so hard you can feel him at the edge of your cervix? COMMUNICATE AND YOU SHALL RECEIVE FRIENDS. I think it all kinda works the same for him. Like Nicholas knows he’s gonna cum, and he’s not that worried about how he feels about the journey.

Q = Quickie (their opinions on quickies, how often, etc.)

Absolutely he does?!? I just told you like … he’s the type to think really hard about how much he loves you and he can get hard. Ya know what? Send him a picture of JUST your pantyline and watch his face from across the room. Watch how he chokes on that water, and watch how he flips Jolly off when he beats on his back to try to help him. “What did you just read, man? Did somebody die,” Noah asks and YEAH. SOMETHING DID JUST DIE. HIS PEACE OF MIND (dont unfollow me pls) but really … it was just the band of your underwear? And he doesnt give a fuck if they’re the ones from the back of the drawer that are all cotton and no sexy in your opinion, he’s ripping them things down your legs while he covers your mouth because youre in what could maybe be a cleaning closet? Except the ground is carpet and there's a weird stain on the floor? Who gives a fuck because he’s railing you within an inch of your life?

R = Risk (are they game to experiment? do they take risks? etc.)

Okay so the birth chart says no, and I would believe it. I think outside of quickies and the little bit of public sex we discussed, I just dont think he feels the need? Like based on what I’ve seen and read he didnt have a strict childhood, and I think the freedom he was afforded means he doesn't feel the need to do anything risky if that makes sense. He wasn’t a bubbled kid - he doesn't have to go do all the shit he wasn't allowed to now because he wasn't restricted. He will experiment within reason … like if you brought home some sort of tingling lip gloss and you wanted to see what it would do during a bj he would let you. “Shine on you funky little astronaut,” he thinks as your eyebrows furrow when you try to figure out how to open the tube.

S = Stamina (how many rounds can they go for? how long do they last?)

Nick can last for like … four rounds I’m going to say. He only does because he doesn't seem like the type that needs to cum each round. Nick seems like he decides if thats the goal each time he has sex. Like the goal could be that you have fun just bouncing on it, and that’s fine! He doesn't have to cum if that wasn’t the goal. So, he can go for quite a while because he’s gonna do different shit each time. Nicholas is only going to stop because he physically has run out of steam, but honestly he’s down for you to use him. Bassists have fingers that are strong as hell and hey, you’ve ridden his hand before when he was laid back and that’s perfectly cool with him. Nicholas is notorious for actually not lasting all that long but it’s because your pussy is too powerful, and he is but a simple man. He can usually pull out and stop himself though. He’ll calm down then continue.

T = Toys (do they own toys? do they use them? on a partner or themselves?)

He owns a few, but that’s just because you bought them. Nicholas does seem to be bashful, but the days of having to walk into a sex store are over because the internet will send that vibrator directly to your doorstep! Or Nick’s! I think that you might have like … used a vibrator while he was fucking you and then it kept tapping his dick and he - it fucking scrambled his brain. You caught on quick and held it on the shaft and he had a split second urge to go back to church after he came down from that high. So yeah, I just think he’s an experimenter when he feels like he's in a safe space and he's doing safe things. He’s never been insecure about his dick because he believes that stress is a killer, so he knows that he can satisfy you. He’s proved it, but he wants you to have all the pleasure you could possibly get. If he needs to put on his wizard hat and use a fucking wand he totally will he doesnt care.

U = Unfair (how much they like to tease)

Okay. I feel like Nick is so easily flustered and he’s so emotional that you need to be careful about teasing him in public. Noah wouldn’t really, but Folio and Jolly will absolutely gang up on him and rib him and he’s going to curl in on himself if you make a move in front of them. THat being said, when you get into the bedroom he’s a “grinds between your lips until everything is soaked and you probably came all over him but he’s not stopping” type of guy. Again, he doesn't care about the journey so it’s no skin off his ass to do this for hours with his teeth grit and his jaw tight. One of the only times you’ll find sternness with him is when he grips your hips really hard because he’s stopping you from angling them to slip the tip of his dick inside. Behave.

V = Volume (how loud they are, what sounds they make, etc.)

AHAHAHA. Nicholas has the second highest pitched moans in Bad Omens (guess you’ll be waiting for Folio and Jolly to see who steals first, huh). This is purely based off the actual range of his voice. He’s got very light and airy moans. They float. I think he definitely lets it out more than the other guys because he has the least amount of shame AS AN ADULT. Younger Nicholas was different, but as an adult I think he understands that women want to hear that. That’s one of the few ways he can let you know he likes what you’re doing when his words are gone. A lot of “oh my god” and he would actually be the type to whisper your name. He was a little apprehensive about that, but he loves you so much he doesn't give a shit anymore. He’s also kinda loud when he comes. He doesn't do too much grunting, but he definitely cusses like a sailor.

W = Wild card (a random headcanon for the character)

YOU GUYS. I thought about this too hard, and it fit so well with Nick that I - here you go. You can laugh its okay. You dont have to hear me out because ive decided it happened in my head … Nicholas taught Folio how to eat pussy when they were younger and HERE'S WHAT MY HEADCANON SAYS HAPPENED: Folio was eighteen and he had a girl he liked that was looking forward to the tour ending, and Nicholas seemed like the one he could confide in most. He was scared that Noah would get cocky but then actually fail him because well … Folio wasn’t so sure that he and Noah were not in the same boat. Jolly was out of the fucking qquestion because he knew he’d make him learn how to do karate with his tongue. He wanted to impress her, and bass fishing lore wouldn't cut it. Long story short, Nicholas used his pussy licking knowledge to help his little brother out when they shared a motel room on tour once. Nobody asked why he needed to stop at the store and grab peaches at 9 pm. Folio’s tongue game was gossiped about for 3 months in his town. Some say that the blabbering she did accidentally opened up a portal. This was when Nicholas became someone Folio would always listen to and agree with no matter what.

X = X-ray (let’s see what’s going on under those clothes)

So I actually think he’s a little bit bigger than average, but only by an inch or so. Nicholas is so cool, calm and collected that I feel like he’s got to be happy with whatever he’s got going on down there. You don’t make that many dick jokes, fondle that many dudes nipples, and pose like you’re getting spanked that many times if you’re insecure about anything. He’s also straight up not worried because he is perfectly knowledgeable about what his mouth and hands are capable of, and he knows what he can do to you without actually penetrating you. Like Nicholas is the type to make you realize you can cum from getting your tits sucked. He is the inner peace and earth cracking orgasms master.

Y = Yearning (how high is their sex drive?)

Nicholas, if he’s at home and you’re there, it’s pretty damn high but that circles back to earlier. Remember we said he needs to clear his mind and get back to being zen? So he needs you to help him make the horny demons go away, and he’s absolutely the type to ask for like … mutual masturbation or something of the sorts. He’s content just jerking off alone if you’re not feeling it, but he would rather watch you lazily play with yourself, or let him fuck up into your fist for a little bit if sex is off the table. His sex drive is high, and there isn’t a damn thing you could do (besides the no’s we discussed) that could lower it. Like you walk out in a nightgown with holes in it and a grease stain on the collar? Bend over. You just came in from doing yard work and you’re sweaty and there’s dirt on your nose and you’re wearing a faded family reunion shirt and leggings that give you that belly roll you hate? He’s ready to tear your shit up; he simply does not care. Big man of taste.

Z = Zzz (how quickly they fall asleep afterwards)

So if it’s just one round it doesn’t matter if he came - he ain’t sleepy yet. He would want to maybe shower, go smoke, watch some tv with a snack, or draw for a little bit. You can go to sleep, though. He hates to say that he almost prefers it like that. I feel like Nicholas is the type to want to make sure that you are satisfied, asleep, and he knows where you are so that he can go and have his own quiet time by himself. Like after a few rounds, you would be knocked out, but Nicholas would go sort his vinyls, or fit a vet appointment for his cats into his schedule before he crawls in next to you. He seems like the type that needs to just be alone in some mild quiet for a little bit sometimes, and he finds that the best time is after he gets all of his tension out by fucking you. His whole world is so calm now.

#bad omens fic #bad omens fanfic #bad omens fanfiction #auntievwroteit

[veliseraptor]

I don't know what hopepunk is and at this point I'm too afraid to ask

well anon, part of your problem here is that hopepunk is in a lot of ways a meaningless descriptor that means whatever people want it to mean.

took a bit of digging but I found the post that broke down a lot of my issues with hopepunk as a concept/subgenre, here; to quote from that:

You may notice that the philosophy is incoherent, mainly boiling down to “the things I like are hopepunk and the things I don’t like aren’t.” It builds a philosophy out of opposition to a strawman of “grimdark” that doesn’t really exist. So hopepunk means you keep fighting for what you believe in regardless of what that is, and violence isn’t the answer, except when it is. Hopepunk is about being kind and soft but also about punching the bad guy with the gun. Hopepunk is a morass of FEELING REALLY STRONGLY ABOUT THINGS!!! without a fundamental core of… anything concrete.

[...]

Hopepunk in practice is unbearably twee.  The goal is to be to inspire a feeling of hope in the reader, which means that nothing bad is allowed to really happen, characters aren’t ever allowed to mess up or be mean or have flaws, and any mistake is well-intentioned and quickly & easily resolved by talking about your feelings.

and I could just leave it at that because, like I said, pretty good summation of my perspective, but sometimes an ask hits me at the exact right time for me to go off about something that consistently irritates me but I usually keep my mouth shut about for one reason or another.

and I feel like the first thing I want to say is. look. it's not like I'm out here going "hope is for losers and all I ever want is tragic stories where everything is awful forever." but the thing about hopepunk, at least in the ways I see it described, is that, in its dedication to be "the opposite of grimdark," shies away from representing darkness at all, except maybe in the most cursory, glancing ways. there's nothing to confront, nothing to push back against. villains are easily identified and unproblematically evil. protagonists are unimpeachably nice and good, and always have perfect politics. moral complexity is to be avoided, because raising too many questions might interrupt the positive feelings the author hopes to evoke.

not only does this create, in my opinion, really dull stories about very uninteresting characters, it also blunts anything the book is trying to say. if you don't want to confront any kind of conflict or struggle in depth then you've kneecapped your ability to talk about the full range of human experience. if the only antagonist you allow is a hollow caricature, then there's only so much room your protagonists have to express strength in opposing them.

the whole framework results in a kind of tepid, anodyne storytelling that expresses meaningless platitudes that the audience is presumed to agree with, often with a side helping of didacticism and "teachable moments." it's weak storytelling.

there's a world in which "hopepunk" is referring to a kind of story that I actually really like; for instance, there's a world in which one could call Malazan: Book of the Fallen "hopepunk." I am tempted to do that, just because I think it would drive people nuts. I think hopepunk wants to be doing something like the line from The Silmarillion that opens the tale of Beren and Luthien: "Among the tales of sorrow and of ruin that come down to us from the darkness of those days there are yet some in which amid weeping there is joy and under the shadow of death light that endures."

but out of a fear of representing anything actually ugly, or possibly making people feel kinda bad about something, or challenging the reader in any way, everything that might have been interesting gets stripped out and what's left is literature that feels like cotton candy: maybe it's sweet, but there's nothing to bite into, and nothing that lingers.

#conversating #anonymous #lise's aggressively bitchy opinions about irrelevant and unimportant matters #lise has opinions #sometimes i read things #hoo boy i think that's been stewing in me for a while

[scarlet--wiccan]

hi hope ur having a good day! sorry for the incoming stupid question but I didn't rlly know who else to ask. i plan on writing a mcu fic and wanda&pietro are going to be side characters in it, I don't like the fact that the mcu white washed them so I was planning on writing them as romani+Jewish but in one of your posts you discourage non-Roma to write Romani characters bc we might write them like a stereotype. should I write them as only Jewish or? thanks for reading

No, I would never tell you to erase or omit the fact that these characters are Romani. You should be able to include characters of color in your narrative without intruding on closed cultures or experiences that would be inappropriate for you to speak on.

In the past, I've stated that it's not appropriate for non-Romani people to write first-hand about Romani culture, community and upbringing. To that end, I would discourage anyone who is writing original fiction from using Romani characters as primary or POV protagonists. That doesn't mean you should never include Romani characters, however, rather than aiming for "authentic representation," you should focus on being aware of the social and historical contexts that apply to those characters and their circumstances. You can develop a sense of where a person comes from, what their family does, what kind of challenges they've faced, and things like that without digging into stuff like culture and customs. That may limit the scope of what you can represent-- you're not going to be writing about life inside a traditional community, for example-- but that's okay. You're just going to have to leave it to us to share those stories, if and when we choose.

With existing characters like Wanda and Pietro, it's tough because there are already so many voyeuristic and stereotypical depictions of their upbringing and their community in the canon. My goal has always been to sort through that material and identify the parts that are truthful or informative, and share them with proper context so that other fans can develop a better understanding of what these characters represent. I'm very happy to answer more specific questions about that, if you have any.

I don't know what the plot of your fanfic is, or how closely its going to hew to the M C U, but if you can do the research and figure out an appropriate, accurate way to fit European Romani characters into that setting, then more power to you. Personally, I think that those movies, especially the Avengers ones, kinda suck, and there's nothing salvageable about that version of Wanda or Pietro. It's not just that they're white, their story is an overall poor adaptation of the source material, and inserting Romani characters into those roles would actually create really awful, racist optics. These people are HYDRA collaborators, for fuck's sake. I don't think anybody, especially gadje, should be waste their time trying to "fix" the M C U Maximoffs.

#writing advice #scarlet witch #wanda #pietro maximoff #quicksilver

[dokidokitsuna]

(mild spoilers ahead) I finally finished my first run of Side Order! DX Tbh, I haven't had that much time to play lately, but I'm still kind of ashamed that it took me this long...^^;

...I'm also ashamed that the boss that killed me on both failed runs, Asynchronous Rondo, didn't show up on the run where I finally succeeded. So it feels like I didn't really "earn" the victory, which is a little frustrating...I'm sure I'll handle it next time, though. *knocks on wood*

Overall, I would rate Side Order a 10/10. ^^ It's simple, but it works.

The theming and atmosphere is very polished and immersive-- tbh I was convinced as soon as I saw the little animation when you step into the cage at the beginning of a level, and it SNAPS shut kinda violently, just enough to sell that oppressive vibe. ^^; It's those little aesthetic details that make Splatoon special...I can't think of another game that does that as successfully.

The gameplay itself is harsh, but fair. Every time I screwed up and lost a life (or failed a run...) I never felt like it was the game's fault; it was always in a moment where I wasn't paying attention to my surroundings or my ink levels...and conversely, when I made sure to pay attention to those things, I always did well. Basically, it feels just difficult enough to reward you for staying focused. I also think the design of gaining power-ups as you go (including dropped items in-level) was a great move for this game mode-- not only does it make gameplay feel rewarding by its very nature, but it makes it stand out from the rest of Splatoon's game modes, where things like specials and extra ink are treated more like precious rarities; things you shouldn't use until you really need them. On the contrary, in Side Order I really let loose with Splashdowns and Inkstrikes for the first time...ever, actually. ^^ Like, I've gained an appreciation for specials now, after being trained to do without them for so long. It makes battle feel refreshing and dynamic~.

Finally, I'm glad they actually filled the game up with relevant goodies to collect. ^^ Palettes, color chips, Marina's diary entries, Cipher's merchandise, even hint-descriptions for the chips and enemies...when they said Side Order was designed to be replayable, they weren't kidding. My completionist instinct is already champing at the bit to accomplish as much as I possibly can...this is one of the main things that was missing from Return of the Mammalians, in my opinion. In RotM there are collectibles, but half of them are just objects lying around on the ground-- if you wanna 100% the game mode, you better count on spending a very dull hour inking the map to try and dig them all up. And once you're done...hurray, I guess?? You found all the meaningless trinkets... :/ Then the other half is just replaying the meaningless missions with multiple weapons...which isn't a very engaging challenge. Despite being more complex than Side Order's floors, they're much more linear-- you basically just do the same thing three times, and either it's embarrassingly easy or frustratingly tedious. I think the main reason I still haven't done them all is because I just can't be bothered: what's the point in trying to replay an annoying mission when the only difference in the gameplay is that it'll take a little longer to move and shoot...? So I can get rewarded with a tiny checkmark...? No thanks...

With Side Order, on the other hand, the collectibles either flesh out the characters or affect the gameplay (or in the case of the locker decorations, actually look nice), and the sheer randomness of the experience keeps things fresh. ^^ No two runs are alike; the simple objectives paired with creative map designs invite a variety of approaches even with the same weapon, and even on the easiest difficulties. The game itself encourages you to roll with the punches, strategize with what you're given and get creative, which not only makes replays exciting and interesting, but fits perfectly with the story's message. Like I said, 10/10~

#splatoon #musings #side order #side order spoilers

[wormbloggign]

taylor stop lifting techniques and tactics from others challenge (impossible)

yeah.. you're a cloud of various insects, people arent looking to get in your way

taylor its not innate cmon you need to notice the swarm covering you isnt a comforting prescence for anyone but you

(also, if someone fights grue and wins, his darkness would dissipate. if they fight skitter and win, they have to deal with the many insects who are VERY pissed, and VERY unpredictable. it's simply a more extreme implicit threat than what grue has)

is she.. emulating coils convo tactics?

(TAYLOR STOP LIFTING OTHERS TECHNIQUES AND TACTICS CHALLENGE (IMPOSSIBLE))

to taylor the bugs are just her little guys, doing their best with what they got

to everyone else the bugs are spiders, flies, and wasps; vectors for poison, infection, and pain all organised by their thousands under a single cunning mind

its a very funny bit of dramatic irony (not the right term)

honestly surprised it took her this long to tell that to the PRT, taylors favourite pasttime is outing bad actors in their system

the funniest way to get immediately excecuted, ballsy move taylor

notably in those records she was telling the truth consistently, miss military seems to buy a little too much into armsmustards narratives

BY SUPPLYING RELEVANT CONTEXT TO THE SITUATION, DO YOU THINK STARVING PEOPLE WHO STEAL BREAD DESERVE JAILTIME FOR THEFT?????

(miss minutia seems very dogmatic in her beliefs of justice and criminality, kinda cringe ngl)

skitter im sorry to say but im pretty sure theyve known for a while now

they havent gone after your civillian identity yet because you havent really been findable as taylor herbert and in the rare cases you've gone out as taylor, they've had much bigger fish to fry

oh

that mustve taken a lot miss militia, i can respect that

2 ways to take this, either tattletales doing some mind games with how skitter is perceived or she wanted to get a better look at taylors butt

knowing lisa, probably both

oh yeah that too maybe

the bug pass over she does on people is very funny bc people almost definitely read it as a weapons check or an intimidation tactic but no, she just wants to know what the person she's talking to looks like

her face and eyes were covered in blood no wonder were more tense than normal "ooh why are people so unnerved around me" you look like a monster from a horror movie, you're walking around like you dont even need sight to know everything around you (she couldnt see regardless but they didnt know that)

oh theres no way they don't know her identity now

it takes one person with probably low to medium security access to hear that and go "gee, let me run a check to see if anyone with Skitters brown hair and skin colour (they wouldve seen at least that on the skitter clones, even outside how disfigured they were) matches with anyone who is blind or has been recently blinded" and then bam you find taylor with her school's recorded connection with Sophia/Shadow Stalker, her locker incident (possibly a trigger event?) her absences from school which start a couple days after skitters first appearance, line up with skitters activity AND escalate to 0% attendance once Skitter starts doing things like participating in the Endbringer event and soon after claims territory (a full time occupation seemingly), if you keep digging it seems she has moved out of her dad's house around the same time to an undisclosed house on the edge of town (no actual address given, possibly a misdirection), her father and all of his work friends survived (with minimal injuries) the Shatterbird announcement at the begining of the Slaughterhouse 9's occupation and they stayed alive for its entirety, And as a cherry on top, Taylors last 2 documented interactions with the public is Asssaulting a minor which was handled and doccumented by Shadow Stalker and COILS BOMBING where she was one of the survivors but was BLINDED, shortly after MYSTERIOUSLY DISSAPEARED with no release or transfer papers signed (or if they were, it'd be signed by Lisa W or an unknown third party)

OR

they could just ask dragon

...

that was kind of long sorry

back to the livebloggign!

(insert funny masking joke here)

sometimes i wonder if taylor has a death wish (hint: yes)

i sincerely doubt that. our girls tolerance for abuse is ridiculously high by now

the writer is fucking with me. the day we get a proper breakdown of anyones costume is the day hell freezes over

are we just gonna pretend that isnt deeply disturbing and violating?

eh, alright

taylor may know the kind of thing he saw but its very clear from how he's behaving, whatever he experienced has a lot harsher of a grasp on his psyche, probably because his trigger event and the context around it happened at such a vulnerable and young age

anyway hows that search for a villains therapist going? i really think they should invest in one

TATTLETALE YOURE GOING TO GET THE SECRET ASSASSIN SQUAD AFTER YOU PLEASE

lisa either never fucks around or never stops fucking around and i cant tell anymore

#liveblogging worm #Scourge 19.2 #worm is a comedy. to me

[pixeljade]

You know we (rightfully) dunk on flat-earthers a lot but i actually think the prevalence of flat earth theory proves how easy it is for humans to dig themselves into cult thinking by simply. Refusing to accept a basic premise they believe in COULD be wrong.

Like, its no secret that most flat-earthers are the kinda conspiracy goon that is like, white supremacy endgame. And i've seen it happen to a few folks sadly where they start out as just bland fucking conservatives who dont think too deeply about shit, but as you attempt to challenge their ideas about racism they double down and start turning to things like phrenology and eugenics to justify their shitty beliefs, and those ideas dont fully align with reality either, so they start believing that certain races are using supernatural means to counter the "science" (lol) of eugenics they were born with, and so on and so forth with conspiracy thought until they're chugging colloidal silver and rambling about nephilims and the Earth MUST be flat.

Like it doesnt matter how much actual evidence there is on the other side, because at each step, the answer cant be that you're wrong, just that your idea of the truth isnt 100% complete, and then you throw in more absurd shit that makes it FEEL more complete to YOU. And thats really all the human mind needs is to FEEL like its got a complete view of reality, or close to it.

Anyways thats part of why I do like reading about the occult and shit even tho i can maybe only vibe with the 1% thats not racist; because it represents this side of humanity that never learned deductive reasoning.

[artfoold00k]

Hey Dook, I really hope the upcoming year brings you nothing but good vibes and a perfect harmony in your awesome art! Your new pieces always make my day, seriously. You're such an inspiration, so dang talented.

Quick question for you: I often find myself stuck when I try to draw in my free time. How do you always come up with such cool ideas? Share your secrets on finding inspiration and drawing as expressively as you do, please!

(´｡• ω •｡`) Ah, you're so kind. Thank you for the good wishes. I wish you an awesome upcoming year as well.

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

That's a good question! It's relevant for many fellow artists out there.

SUMMARY: Mix: your passion, your favs, a theme, portfolio and art goals. Power up with your references collection.

In details ⤵️

For me, stumbling onto those bright ideas that really click, started with digging into who I am and what I love.

It's mainly about recognizing the roadblocks and figuring out a fix that fits you. And it's like having a chill heart-to-heart with yourself:

you: I'm stuck. Can't figure out what to draw! mind: Okay. What is your main objective? Work or hobby? you: Feeling a bit rusty. Maybe I should start with something personal, you know, for practice. mind: Got it. First things first, let's jot down your favorite things. Got a list handy? you: Uh, not really. They're all up in my head. mind: No biggie. We can roll with that. It might spark some inspiration. But hey, to spice it up, let's create a visual board of you as an artist. Your focus, your style, your values — everything. Think of it like a moodboard. you: Sounds kinda complex. I just wanted to doodle in my downtime. mind: Trust me, this won't eat up much of your time. It's a breeze, and the result might just be the secret sauce for your future drawings. Start a bit now, pick it up later.

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

I, actually, aided it further.

All my ideas that wake me up or keep boiling in my head, I write into digital lists (in my case is TickTick app). Because when I see something inspiring (or someone) I can attach a link where needed, or add a custom note with markdown available.

Then I began to fill up my reference folders. I work on them from time to time with a timer (20-30 mins). In my case, when I focus on character design, I have a collection of styles I want to try (including art from my favorite games cuz sure I want to learn how pro artists do it), coloring and drawing tutorials, educational (anatomy and all that), poses/faces/expressions, fashion, etc. *can be on your device, online drive, or a platform like Pinterest. Each set is not enough on its own. To make it work - combine things. Example: pick a pose, add a face to it, choose something trendy and fashionable, add your favorite colors/items/theme, throw some VFX. Mix and mash, don't be afraid to combine incompatible.

By establishing my priorities, I made lists (yet again, my obsession) of what I want to practice and then added each category in a randomizator to pick for me 3 elements to match and challenge. Here is my approximate plan (WIP). Random color generator (one of many out there)

I trained myself not to take too broad themes and stick to what I want to have in my portfolio (what drives my future commissions) while staying versatile. Takes practice.

I hope it helps somehow. It's something that works for me these days but might change in the future.

Find your own way because no one knows you like you do, so the most comfortable way to resolve an issue is the one that's crafted by you. Believe, your mind can find shortcuts and tips for you if tasked to do so. Don't forget to research and store.

#FUQ_Dook ❓ #art advice #dook titips 🔖

[queerxqueen]

might be totally off here but i was rewatching s2 of stranger things and during murray’s speech (ep 5, around 42 minutes in) about how the general public tends to take what’s presented to them at face value and not dig deeper to find the truth, i kinda saw a connection there with byler (?) like it seems like the whole speech could possibly double as a little subtle dig at a lot of viewers of the show for not questioning what’s presented to them and just seeing everything at surface level. this relates back to how ppl accept mike & el’s relationship w/o thinking abt how unhealthy/incompatible they are when they’re in a relationship together. but also how a lot of the audience of st isn’t digging deep enough to see the ‘truth’ aka what’s actually real - byler! an actual healthy, genuine, honest & sweet relationship that’s just under the surface if some ppl would look just a little bit harder. this show seems to be leading towards a subversion of audience expectations with byler and in doing so, challenging the heteronormative lens that many viewers of st see the show and its characters through. they did this with robin/steve, having dustin thinking they were gonna get together and then having robin come out as lesbian - subverting audience members’ expectations. however there are some hidden clues that hint towards her sexuality (ex. the stuff drawn on her shoes) that upon rewatching, many audience members are able to pick up on. hoping they do the same with byler and that murray’s whole monologue was prompting the audience to analyze the show more deeply in general, but more specifically in terms of byler’s relationship (that’s been built up since s1, but especially in s2!! but ppl have ignored that in favor of the “easier” relationship to accept - mike and el). again probably reading too much into things so pls ignore if this is completely wrong but thought i would give it a shot haha :D

btw when i said “easier” i just meant that shipping them doesn’t require much thought; if one doesn’t look very closely, they miss the obvious signs that their relationship is not perfect at all. this makes their relationship seem more obvious and built up to more casual viewers even though if people just looked a bit closer at byler’s relationship they would see how much more healthy & genuine of a couple they would be. also i think it’s interesting how a lot of people who think mike and el should be together are straight (not all, just a lot!) and straight people’s consumption of media differs so much from queer people’s. straight people have never had to look closely for representation, whereas queer people have to dig to find the queer subtext. that’s why i find murray’s speech to have such a double meaning & why i have a lot of confidence that byler will happen!! they constantly challenge the audience to think more deeply, and i feel like his speech was a little nudge towards certain viewers to try and view the show through a queer lens rather than a heteronormative one. (the truth - aka byler - has been here the whole time but most people accept ‘the curtain’ - el and mike’s relationship - rather than digging deeper to find the truth - byler) overall i could totally be reading too much into this but i think that the speech was doubling as a little clue in favor of byler happening :)

I like this idea and I think it fits with the overall themes of non-conformity and going against expectations and subverting tropes.

I was rewatching volume 4 (again, of course, this time with a romantic interest of my own) and I was noticing how much emphasis there is on themes of The Truth versus an easier-to-believe Lie and how it related to the non-conformity themes.

"Everyone is just waiting. Waiting for it to be over. While performing in a silly, terrible play, day after day. I could not do that. I could not close off my mind and join in the madness, I could not pretend." "Like everything else in the world, it is all a lie. A terrible lie." [clip]

So I super think you're onto something in regards to Mileven being an easier-to-believe lie versus the truth of Byler.

#byler #stranger things #stranger things 4 #antimileven #not super negative but to be safe #strawberrylixie

[tranquilspot]

[S] ==> The Note Desolation Plays

Very long thread ahead!

Alright! Time to comment on one of the most iconic Homestuck flashes. It has no command or name, so we'll use the name of the act:

The Note Desolation Plays First of, the flash itself.

The closeup on John never fail to get me, it's moving and impressive. The technique is simple and yet it's efficient. I think it's the first time we witness the Hero Mode. Followed by a change of scene (the empty streets). Then we zoom out, back to a more general shot, zooming out twice. Cue the visual narration.

The streets are empty. Wind skims the voids keeping neighbors apart, as if grazing the hollow of a cut reed, or say, a plundered mailbox.

Really interesting start. A simple direct description. 'The street are empty'. And then a more metaphorical one. Wind, void, neighbors. Cut reed. We went from a human/civilized/controlled concept to nature. Then back to a man-made object, the mailbox. There's an early preview of what's to come, the challenges and ideas that John will be confronted to. A breathe among the void, wandering, singing in a tube to travel and signal its presence. It's a pattern that will appear more and more in the future: the postal system on LOWAS, the pipes, and the organpipe at the end of his Land Quest. Heck, we were already introduced by DAD's pipes.

A familiar note is produced. It's the one Desolation plays to keep its instrument in tune.

The wind travels and sing. It's now music. I always was fascinated by the instruments before the beginning of a concert. It seems dissonant by actually it creates something melancholic, anticipation, yet hopeful. The beginning before the beginning. A hint, to whats to come. 'Get ready'.

But who's playing? It is us, it is John, it is.. someone else?

It is your thirteenth birthday, and as with all twelve preceding it, something feels missing from your life.

This 'something feels missing from your life' is kinda vague. It seems like a neutral statement, but actually it's worrisome. Early signs of depression? Or does he feel like he hasn't done much in his life yet? Boy you're 13, you've got a lot of time ahead!

The game presently eluding you is only the latest sleight of hand in the repertoire of an unseen riddler, one to engender a sense not of mirth, but of lack.

Oooooh a mysterious character, a hidden Sphinx-like entity. They're holding the game like a playing card, one yet to be putted on the table. I like this part of the paragraph very much. But who's holding the card(s)? The author? The CEO of the Skaianet, the one behind the development of Sburb, Jake Harley? Or perhaps alt!Calliope herself, she herself is quite enigmatic and speak in riddles. 'One to engender a sense not of mirth, but of lack.' I think this sentence is quite ignored by all. One more reason to dig as much as we can. Mirth is laughter, joy and life, the opposite of lack. Life vs Void. I also found funny to see a word having 'gender' in it. OOOOHHH a new meaning appeared! If you're team eggbert, then the lack, the discomfort that John is feeling could be interpreted as gender dysphoria. The mirth being gender euphoria. But if you're on team cis, then it's highly possible that it's depression. Though it works for both cases.

His coarse schemes are those less of a prankster than a common pickpocket.

'His'? Is that a pronoun chosen by default, or specifically picked? LE? Also, alt!Callie and Jake don't fit the prankster shtick.

Maybe John is projecting because he's an aspiring prankster. Hmm, so this mysterious figure is not funny but more criminal. Malicious, perhaps? Or just cruel?

Unseen figure with unspoken plans, keeping like an apathetic thief the long-awaited game, the start of all, the end of all. The main plot, the full(ness) that will fill the empty. Additionally, 'His' could be God himself. Jesus' pronouns in the Bible are He/Him capital H if I recall correctly.

His riddle is Absence itself.

Can this riddle linked to the Ultimate Riddle? Or perhaps it's one and same thing? There is interpretation of what the UR can be, including a long-ass post that I read several times, cause it's dense and complex. For those that don't want to read the whole thing, the answer of the riddle would be: Do as you wish. Absence. 'Waiting for something to happen', perhaps? John wishes that something happen to him, something that will motivate him and change his life. It's an early exhibit of John's mindset. Doing nothing and waiting for an external output to push him around. It's a passive and submissive behavior.

It is a mystery dispersing altogether, like the moon's faint reflection, with even one pebble of inquiry dropped in its black well.

The ripples creates movement, and once it's set in motion, he sure is going, for a little while. Here, the answer seems to be within reach, but when we look for it it gets blurry. A mix of a truth not ready to be discovered yet, and an unseen force preventing him to uncover it.

It is the most diabolical riddle of all.

Me, when I try to understand why I'm not feeling well and what's my body trying to communicate to me..

But yeah, the kids will scratch their head for a while with that one!

"Absence diminishes little passions and increases great ones, as wind extinguishes candles and fans a fire." -Walt Whitman

Speaking of scratching, this one is a doozy. Extremely straight forward, and yet I have a hard time trying to link it to John's life and adventure. What would John attribute as "little passions" and "great ones"? "as wind extinguishes candles and fans a fire" is easily readable in a literal way. But for now its deeper meaning (how it applies to John) eludes me.

Alright, if it's the limits of my intellect, then let's check the work of someone who actually understood it! It's way too long to translate and put in this already long post, so I'm going to summarize it. This sentence is about relationship. According to Rochefoucald, there's no small loves but rather mediocre ones. Absence has a different effect depending of the nature of the relationship. If the bond is weak, the distance can make it dissipate. On the other hand, a strong bond can be strengthened by it. Distance makes us think and identify if a relationship is important for us or not. Thank fuck for this analysis. Now I get it! Anything that is of little importance disappear to John's eyes, but the game and his friends? It gets stronger. The more time separate him from Sburb and his reunion with the others, the more his desire is intensified.

Yes, you are certain Walt Whitman said that. One hundred percent positive.

Aaaand we're back to 'Attribute this quote to its proper author'. Woohoo! (audience claps) This time iiiiiit's…François Duc de la Rochefoucauld (pronounced rushfooko). Oh hey french dude. I wouldn't guess!

There's also several translations for this section: -"Absence diminishes mediocre passions and increases great ones, as the wind extinguishes candles and fans fires." -“Absence diminishes small loves and increases great ones, as the wind blows out the candle and fans the bonfire.”

I guess the one with mediocre in it is the closest translation.

Small love is fine too, after all when an author mentions 'passions' they often mean love. Also 'feu' refers to a chimney fire, or fire in general. If it was a bonfire, the author would have specified with "feu de joie/de camp". Anyway, that was the translation intermission haha. Gonna love language and interpretations~

You have a feeling it's going to be a long day.

Did you mean 3 years?! hahaha But yeah, it's going to be a long and tedious 24 hours. Well well, let's sum up and reach to a conclusion: Something is missing from John's life. Someone seems to play games with him, not of mischievousness, but cruelty. John is waiting, longing for something but isn't willing to be the one to make a move, no he rather be pushed in the desired direction in a passive way. John wants to reach a certain truth about himself, but fail to grasp it every time. He wants to but isn't ready to learn it. There's also the Ultimate Riddle, which is linked to his personal riddle. Maybe it's one and the same thing. And finally, the Rouchefoucauld quote. A meditation on John's relationships (friends), the game, and himself. A bond between absence and wind is made. The wind is a melancholic melody, the full, that fills the absence (depression?), the empty. Will John be able to take back control on his life? How will he transition to the rest of the afternoon after such a deep and heavy moment? ==>

#homestuck #act 1 #homestuck reread #reread blog #music #wind #note of desolation #analysing time #the ultimate riddle #françois de la rochefoucauld #translation #french literature #full and empty

[scottathann]

The YouTubers don't want you know that MM&B is actually one of the best classic series games and is the better of the 2 snes games between it and 7. It's not really that hard of a hard game either. People who act like it's one of the most unforgiving games in the franchise are just bad at Mega Man games.

Each character has their pros and cons (although Bass is definitely easy mode overall), and you can buy upgrades over time to decrease the difficulty. Even a game over doesn't mean all is lost since you can spend the bolts you got in the level you died in to get upgrades. Playing as Mega Man makes bosses easier to defeat because his shots do more damage and the slide is a great and quick way to dodge attacks, but levels are more difficult because he can't double jump or skip entire sections with giant leaps. Bass can, which is why levels are piss easy when you play as him, but bosses are initially tough because his buster does shit damage until you get an upgrade for it. Bass also has Treble boost which lets him fly over entire screens. And people say this game is brutal?

The level design is actually pretty good I think, more fun than half the games in the classic series and far more stimulating than most X series levels. Bosses actually force you to use your brain, even when you have their weaknesses (excluding a few). For the longest time I thought Astro Man was unreasonable for a starter boss but now that I don't totally suck at Mega Man games it was actually possible for me to beat him buster-only within a few tries, and it was satisfying to learn how.

There's no e-tanks, but you do have:

-An ability to increase how much you gain from health and ammo pickups

-An ability to receive less damage

-An ability to increase damage output when you're low on health (very good against bosses)

-Rush search which digs up ammo and health

Which is quite frankly way more forgiving than Mega Man 1, while still not giving you the ability to bypass challenge with a stock of health refills. I think this is great.

The biggest problem with the game is that the King Mechs are very tedious, and sometimes enemy placement is cheap (which is not unique to this game at all lol).

The soundtrack is one of my favorite game osts, the graphics are in mm8's arstyle which is great cause I love how 8 looks, the special weapons are all pretty useful and fun to mess around with, and the robot master designs are totally sick.

I don't give a fuck about the gba version btw as there's literally no reason to play that version. If you use that port as a complaint against this game then you're stupid.

Anyway nobody gives a shit probably but I feel like this game has always been kinda overhated, and its difficulty is way overblown. I would choose this game over 1-3, 5-8, 10, all of the gameboy titles including V, X3, and X5-8. I haven't beaten 11 yet and I don't think it's fair to compare the ZX or Legends games here.

#mega man #classic mega man #mega man classic #mega man & bass #mega man and bass #bass mega man #capcom #ground man #pirate man #astro man #burner man #super nintendo #super famicom #snes

[legy]

media tag 2024

#13. Runescape

oh yeah i guess i can put this here since i got quest cape, which i would personally qualify as "any%". im still playing runescape lol im afking ghouls for the champion's scroll on my second monitor

i really like runescape 3. i think nearly anyone who dunks on it hasnt actually played it lol. at its core, mechanically, it's this fascinating outsider art mmo because it inherits many of the traits that it had in its inception 22 years ago. even the stuff that's changed is so fully outside of what every other mmo does it kinda rules

that said they were sick in the head for requiring level 95 in the newest skill to get quest cape. if i just shotgunned quests when i first started this account (2019) it would have been so much faster lmao. i like necro and its my preferred combat skill rn so it definitely wasnt a bad investment but god DAMN

i would still like to go for trimmed completionist cape (which is why im currently grinding for champion's challenge, IMO likely the worst requirement) but i'm also interested in going for cape in OSRS too. ive put a couple dozen hours on the OSRS side of this account (at like 25 qp or something? all the easy stuff. running bronzeman mode) but im kinda stuck b/c i cant log into both games at the same time and im not interested in paying two subscriptions. so i have to pick between the two. and rn rs3 is still very much holding my attention

favorite skill: archaeology. its peak. i love the worldbuilding in runescape + questing and this is just the dedicated questing skill. i do kinda feel like it shouldve been an elite skill like invention or have a higher quest barrier to entry because otherwise you just barely know wtf you are digging up but whatever. it rules

least favorite skill: summoning? tbh? it drives me insane that the only way to level summoning is by crafting pouches, and one of the pouch components is untradable so i have to compulsively hoard these fucking charms for whenever i next decide to level summoning. the rewards are obviously worth it but good fucking god. followup is hunter before bgh dropped and i also have not been enjoying my time leveling invention very much

#media tag 2024 #runescape

[butmakeitgayblog]

When you have an AU idea in your head… how do you get it to become more than just, “oh, that’s a neat concept it should be Clexafied” to fleshing it out into an actual thing? I have tiny ideas or like a general ‘I want to see them in such and such context’ but that’s where it ends. 😞 i’d like to write something for the fandom but yeah…dunno how to get there.

Oof well I may not be the best option to pick because I really have no idea what I'm doing, I'm just wingin it lol but idrk. I guess for me personally when I get an idea for a story I like I start mentally trying to evolve it in my head? Sometimes it's easier than others, sometimes the thoughts/plot points/scenes just build themselves.

I don't think I'm describing this well.

Ok so for example, professor au. The initial thought came from an ask about a teacher/student fic rec that got me thinking about how cool it would be to see that trope flipped on its head. Older professor and older student having a secret affair. So I thought about what that would look like, what their challenges would be. Then I started thinking about the characters. What personalities do they have? Who are they as people outside of this situation? How would all this bring them together? What would happen to make them fall in love?

I just kinda start doing it, granted subconsciously, because when I get an idea for something the creative juices kinda just start taking over and then it's like one thought leads to the next that leads to the next in rapid fire. So it was like "Ooo hot older professor Lexa.... Milf Clarke.... what would that look like... divorced mom with a teen kid... jaded but, not broken. She's too tough for that.... that's why she's returning to college... she's feisty... she likes a challenge... she's in a place in her life where she wants to be more daring. To push herself beyond her boring life.... And then there's professor Lexa... nerdy type.... maybe standoffish?... no, no. She puts on a front with students. She's lonely, but she presents herself as ok. Distant, but friendly. The type where you realize you've had her for 7 classes over 4 years and yet you don't really know anything about her. But. She's a teacher who inspires her students to work. Makes them want to work hard to please her. They want to follow her word and guidance... so there's these two personality types that meet in the atmosphere of the classroom, one looking to challenge her students and another looking to be challenged.... where would that lead them? What challenges will they face? How would this relationship evolve? How would they deal with the idea of their attraction vs the social taboos and regulations surrounding their situation? Personally how would they deal with it?" And then literally I just think about what they would do in various scenarios. Things like what would their first kiss be like? Their first time admitting feelings? Would they let themselves cross there boundary of sex at school? What about meeting Madi? Etc.

Am I making any sense?

I guess what I'm saying is, when you have an idea, actively try and unfold it. Dig into, and as you do the story kind of comes to you in bits and pieces until eventually you start to realize that you have plot points and character nuance and holy fuck there's a story here

At least that's how it is for me. Other writers with other processes are very much welcome to jump on this post with their thoughts and methods

#anon

[usagi-zakura]

I wanna share what I feel would be my ideal Pokémon game based on previous game features because nobody asked.

HMs... Yes I'm serious. Well...kinda. I like being able to use your own pokémon to help you in the overworld rather than random wild Pokémon like in BDSP or rentals... But don't have it take up a move slot. Maybe let certain Pokémon have "field moves" that can only be used in the overworld such as teleport, surfing or digging out of caves.

A customizable bedroom or secret base, like in Ruby and Sapphire.. Not like how it was done in BDSP where its just statues...

Underwater explorations like in Ruby and Sapphire.

A fossil hunting minigame like in Diamond and Pearl's Undeground.

Let Pokémon follow you in the overworld and make them able to keep up, instead of just disappearing back into their pokéball after a few seconds of running.

Similarly.. Let me ride any of my Pokémon that are big enough and have a suitable body shape like in Let's Go.

A plot that doesn't suck...

Stop shiny locking legendary pokémon.

Trainer customization, that's more than just 4 different uniforms and a unique hat.

Online features similar to X and Y... where its available everywhere you go, and you get little notifications of what your friends are doing or even the option to battle random strangers as you go along... just make sure that feature is optional and the challenge notifications aren't too intrusive if you decide you'd rather do something else.

While we're on the subject of online features...that whole code system that the Switch games do? Trash it. Trash it and never look back. Just tie trading and things like that to friend codes like they used to so I don't get paired with a random Chinese kid when I'm trying to connect to my brother just because we happened to use the same code! Be more like X and Y. X and Y had a nice system...

If you're gonna let me trade with strangers let me communicate. That is one problem the X and Y system had, sometimes random people would just offer to trade with me and I had no idea what they actually wanted...

Fun optional minigames with neat prices, my personal favorites are Voltob Flip, Ultra Wormholes and the photo minigame from Sun and Moon. (Which yes...I do realize that's basically Snap... just put Snap in the main series. It's fine.)

Random encounters...trash them. Overworld spawns are nicer. Just make sure they're visibly shiny. (Preferably also audibly shiny... but them not making noise does add to the challenge of finding them).

A camp/picnic system where you could play with your pokémon, make food that gives special boosts and you may as well use it for breeding too like Scarlet and Violet does... just make it easier to find ingredients, I hate having a million different ones spread across a thousand random stores in random cities.

Being able to throw items and Pokéballs directly from the overworld.

Let me skip the night/day if I want to. If you're not gonna tie it to a real world clock you may as well let me choose the time of day without having to wait a half hour.

Heck just make it like Legends Arceus but with the original battle system and abilities.

#pokémon #Legends Arceus #PLA is the best Pokémon game so far change my mind #actually you can't...

[freshlybakedspiderbread]

hi! im gonna say seiga or miko for the ask game!

seiga was just done over here but she's about to come up soon :P ! so that toyosatomimi...

General opinion/How much I care about them: i love miko... 🎧 i mentioned before about coming to love the td crew as a whole over a long time of reading doujins featuring them and Miko is obviously a big part of that too. she and her crew are such a fun addition to gensokyo's worldbuilding and Miko herself is amazing. zun's historical rpf version of prince shotoku who became a hot girl wizard and wants to take over the world and is super charismatic about it? that's unmatched.

...that said, kind of a tangent here, her premise and deliberately kinda nationalistic motifs are only fun in touhou because she's contrasted with a bunch of similarly ambitious reglious leaders and their own groups, and that you know none of them would ever actually ever 'succeed'. They'll probably always be competition and waning in powers, but that consistent conflict is sort of its own kind of peace since gensokyo can always accomodate them.

A ship I love: hey guess what im not done talking about seiga because its seimiko time. just like seiyoshi i also have a really specific headcanon backstory in mind for them which i cant really get into all of it right now, but to try and sum up: Even if Miko knew Seiga's desires were only self-serving, she admired/respected/idolised/loved Seiga who appeared before her to answer all of Miko's greatest desires, and at some point decide it wasnt enough to just learn how to not die from her, but to also become a beautiful hermit who challenges the fate the world bestows them.

And it mustve been unexpected for Seiga to meet someone who managed to see her for everything she is (which includes defiling corpses and generally making an enemy of heaven every day), and not only not really care but also Gets Her.

thaaaaat all being said, in present day Miko knows Seiga has a Reputation and gets up to Antics that doesn't exactly paint hermits in the greatest light, so she's like always bouncing between two ends of a meter where she's begging her dear teacher to reign things in, or she's trying to explain to others why digging up corpses is actually not as bad as it looks 😰🥰

A non-romantic relationship that I love: it doesnt come up in my head often but her shared parenting of Kokoro along with Byakuren and Mamizou is both sweet and extremely funny. Miko taking it upon herself as a matter of pride to guide the menreiki thanks to her role in their creation is really good, and its also really funny that despite that connection she still basically has to compete with others over her, and she probably loses to the tanuki more often than not??

also does 'ex-romantic' count because i absolutely adhere to belief that in her and okina's former lives, they absolutely were a thing, bonded over a shared love of art and beauty, created a whole bunch of noh masks together... But then Miko started caring about all that a whole lot less when a certain hermit hailing from China entered the picture, and the rest was history 😌

The NOTP: call me miss no fun but it might be miko/byakuren. i do actually really love the rivalry between miko and byakuren, the back and forths, the varying hypocrisy, the thematic parallels, and the ways they do manage to work together for a common cause! I just. have yet to see a way to turn it romantic that works for me.

also on that note if you're gonna do miko/saki (which will always just be for jokes to me and never anything i sincerely consider), saki has to be the one putting a saddle on miko 🤠

My biggest headcanon about them: everything above was kinda it 😆 maybe more will come to my mind in the future...

An idea for a fanfiction I would like to write/read about them: she'd be in the seiga backstory fic too since their first meeting is kinda vital to both characters. but as for another idea... Adventure Game type story where to earn points with the people, she susses out some random people's desires and goes to find the most quick and expedient way to fulfill them n_n

Something that makes me think of them: one time in pokemon xy i thought of naming an espurr after her because i knew meowstic kinda reminded me of her 🐱

#the next one of these i do is likely the last! #toyosatomimi no miko #touhoupawject