#that’s not actually a necessary inclusion but it’s important to me that you all know that anyway

[comradekatara]

some rly old sketches of katara and suki i keep forgetting to post. anyway Them

#id in alt text #avatar the last airbender #atla #katara #suki #katara&suki #oldergaang #they should be at the club etc etc #art #mart #also fwiw. this is not ship art #i just like the idea of them hanging out and being friends #ALSO also. the reason that katara is taller in the second pic. is because she’s wearing heels #that’s not actually a necessary inclusion but it’s important to me that you all know that anyway #bc suki is exactly one inch taller than katara and it infuriates her to no end #so she just starts wearing heels every time they go out #i know it doesn’t actually matter ok. but it matters to ME

[mirrorcatcreditcard]

Everyone is doing that "things demons find weird about humans" stuff right now and to keep up with trends (lies I'll probably post this weeks after everyone is over it) I'm doing my own.

Enjoy (⁠◕⁠ᴗ⁠◕⁠✿⁠)

Transphobia/homophobia

Starting off strong, but it has been bugging me. Let us start with the trans issues we have in the human world. Demons and angels alike are shapeshifters to my knowledge. The dame event also shows that the boys are completely comfortable with crossdressing. I'm pretty this topic is not even a thing in the Devildom. I will not go into the history of transphobia, but it is completely human in my opinion. Imagine your MC is trans or nonbinary (like mine) and they havs a conversation with one of the demons about the internalized views they have on gender and the boys just going "???? Why would your family/friend(s) say that to you?" I like to imagine they know about transphobia, but do not completely understand why humans made it an issues.

"If you're uncomfortable with your current form, you can just change it..." "I'm not a demon, Asmo."

To add on to this topic in the homophobia department (though I'm talking sexualities that aren't heterosexual), Asmodeus has flirted with Solomon multiple times in-game; and the characters all (except Luke) romance you if you so wish. MC is gender neutral to make the game inclusive. Shoot, Thirteen was added to the game though she is not dateable yet. I feel homophobia/biphobia/etc is another one of those human issues they know about but do not understand. Like kiss who you wanna kiss, and date who you wanna date. Why are the humans making it complicated? I've seen no things in-game/manga/anime that even hint towards toxic mentalities like these. It just does not exist. If anything, they are mad because someone else is getting MC's attention instead of them, not because of gender being the same or different. It is a bit far out there for some, but I stand by this theory.

"And you're telling me that your (relation) thinks that it's a psychological issue that has to do with trauma that makes you attracted to (gender)?" "Yeah it's rough." "The logic just isn't there. I-"

Memory/time

These supernatural beings remember specific details from thousands of years ago like it was yesterday. Their sense of time and memory is so weird. Solomon, a human, has trouble remembering things from the past; yet somehow (and this happens often enough in-game) these non-humans can recall a random torture session or trend that was farther back than when my grandmother's grandmother was a thought. The Great Celestial War happenings can be told in detail from multiple characters. I really do not believe they have memory repression the way humans do to cope with traumatic events. They just kind of live with the knowledge in their brain forever. Now, this is not to say their memory is perfect. But, it is pretty darn good if they are paying attention or it is important to them.

"That hit the spot better than that one specialty hell's meal from a few centuries back." "Imagine remembering centuries ago when I can't even remember my trauma..." "I thought you said your traumas haunted you-" sigh "Nevermind."

Sensory differences

These beings probably have really enhanced five senses, but they also probably lack feelings that wouldn't be necessary in their respective realms. I once saw a headcanon that demons can't smell rain like humans can, and it goes along that line. I imagine the brother's sense of touch changed after taking on demon form as well as other senses. I actually have this theory that empathy is a sense like one of the five senses for angels and they can like train it. How does each species pick up emotions is a really fascinating thing. While sadness and depression seem to have universally the same effects, anger and glee are depicted differently. Also, demons definitely have a better sense of smell, but how much better? And do your senses strength vary according to which sin you are or simply from what your hyperfixation subjects of interest are? Beel has strong senses of taste and smell. Levi has sharp eyes and good reflexes. Asmo has a vivid way of describing the more sensual things. Belphegor's sense of touch seems to be the most sensitive as he is picky with his bedding. (Barbatos is just built different.) Et cetera.

"Your skin feels stressed, MC. Have you been sleeping well?" "Yeah, school's been- MY SKIN FEELS ?!"

Magic sensory is completely different through. Depending on how long and how hard you train in magic, it has different feelings. There were instances in the game where MC would feel something different from the magic than Solomon or the brothers would feel something similar but not quite the same. It depends on the nature of magic, but I feel it's also a species difference. Angelic magic would probably be irritating to a demon where demonic magic would probably be uncomfortable to an angel.

"Bless you." "Thanks, the rage Satan had is really irritating my nose." "I thought strong magic prickled the skin-"

Random quirks

I think humans, demons, and angels all have little habits that they have that doesn't make sense from an outside POV but is normal in their society. Like how humans say "ouch" when they're not hurt or demons are more comfortable in the demon form or how angels will randomly quote rules or bits of text while talking. I can just imagine MC grimacing in the hallway and the closest being trying to figure out why and they continue walking as if they didn't just make a face that resembled sharp pain. Or, MC is having tea with Simeon and he does this habit angels do at groups with friends and leaves MC thinking there is in fact someone invisible on either side of Simeon. MC falls asleep in a cuddle pile and wakes up to everyone in their demon form snoring and has a mini heart attack.

"Why do humans use theatrics so often?" "What do you mean?" "You keep shaking your head every few minutes and motion so much with your hands when talking even thought you're not giving a speech." "Satan and Lucifer are always doing the same hand thingy whenever they talk." "...that's different."

(okay that's all gonna go jump back into my void now)

#obey me #obey me shall we date #obey me lucifer #obey me mammon #obey me leviathan #obey me satan #obey me asmodeus #obey me beelzebub #obey me belphegor #obey me barbatos #obey me diavolo #obey me solomon #obey me luke #obey me simeon #obey me headcanons #obey me nightbringer #mirr writes

[love-and-monsters]

The Ship and the Alien

5,486 words, GN reader X M alien.

Humanity sends the last of their species in hibernation pods to the stars. When you wake up an unknown amount of time later, you are on a different ship. Surrounded by aliens.

Content warnings: mentions of death and discussions of medical procedures and illness.

The Ship never had a name. People tried to give it one quite a lot. There was a naming contest first, which was a bad idea. You’d think the bigwigs would learn not to give this kind of power to the internet, but it never seems to occur to them until the two top names are ‘SaveyMcSaviorface’ and ‘The Biggest Dick Ever’ and they have to scrap the whole thing. ‘Eden’ was an idea they tossed around, but there were people who said it wasn’t inclusive of other religions and a bunch of Christians who didn’t believe in the concept at all who were pissed about the connotations of the name, so that didn’t work. ‘Destiny’ was another idea, as were ‘Eternal’ and ‘Onward.’ In the end, by the time anyone had even started to come to a conclusion on the name, everyone had started getting used to calling it ‘The Ship’ and no one was willing to change that for whatever sappy shit they engraved on the side.

Maybe they did eventually name it. I don’t know. I don’t know if it mattered, really. Anybody aboard The Ship wasn’t going to be calling it anything on account of being in stasis, and anybody outside The Ship wasn’t going to be calling it anything on account of being dead very soon. So. The Ship was a fine name to me.

The Ship was not actually one ship, at the time- it was technically seven ships, six stationed on different continents and one stationed at the north pole. They were designed to all lock together in one massive structure, but to be able to function independently, in case of a system failure. There were redundancies, ways to transfer assets between different ships if necessary, and about a billion other things that I never understood, but were probably very important for a metal tube hurtling through space. In all honesty, I didn’t pay much attention to its construction. Crushing despair combined with a vicious fight for survival every day takes precedence, you know.

You don’t know how you ended up on The Ship. You know the basics- engineers, designers, and construction workers all got immediate entry. That took up a few thousand slots. Then were the ‘important people,’ the sorts you would want if you were setting up a colony. Doctors, agriculturalists, building designers, all the big thinkers who can make sure that things run smoothly and work like they’re supposed to. Quite a few military members as well. After that, there was some debate as to who else could come on. Limited number of slots, after all. You heard a lot of very right people tried to pay their way on the ship, but it didn’t work so well. Money’s useless to anyone on the ship, and will be useless to anyone left on Earth. Some people traded favors and influence to secure their spots, but a decent chunk of people couldn’t do that and had to subject themselves to the same system as everyone else.

The way they picked candidates for the civilian slots on the ship was the same way anyone picks anything they want to be at least somewhat random: they made a computer do it. All civilians who put their names in a hat, basically, and the computer system drew them. No one could accuse it of cheating, because it was a computer. Well, people could, and they did, but the idea was that at least less people would accuse it of being impartial than if a human picked.

You were one of the picks. Placed into section 3, chamber 2, pod 3247. You didn’t tell anyone- you’d been asked not to, out of fear of retaliation from those who hadn’t been picked. You just left the shelter you’d been living in and headed to the launch site.

There was a brief physical, involving being stripped, shoved onto and into a ton of machinery, drinking some kind of gross shit that purged your body of what felt like everything you’d ever eaten, getting your head shaved, and an IV port implanted into your arm. You saw other people on occasion, going through the same thing before they were whisked away again. There were no opportunities to talk. Everything was brutally efficient.

You were allowed to sleep for a few hours on a hospital-style cot. You ended up just lying there and staring up at the ceiling. There were other people there, also trying to sleep and failing, but nobody talked. Everyone just waited.

In the morning, you were all herded into the body of the ship. It was massive, bigger than any building you’d ever been in, and still quite cramped when you walked into it. The room was cylindrical, with pods lining the whole thing. The walls rotated, allowing the pods to be lowered to the ground, people to be strapped in and put to sleep, then rotated up to the ceiling, ferris-wheel-style.

You were toward the back, so you got a good view of the people in front of you being placed into the pods, injected with the combination of fluids that would knock them out, hooked into the machinery, and then sent into ‘hibernation mode.’ On your turn, you were pushed into the pod, the fluid-filled bags that supported your body adjusting automatically. The fluid was administered through your IV port and the chill of it made your eyelids droop almost immediately. Your eyelids drooped. The world grew colder and colder as the pod lid closed round you and you were left in the pitch blackness of the pod. You couldn’t tell the difference between your eyes being closed and open, but you must have closed them at some point, because you did drift into the dreamless hibernation of spaceflight.

It wasn’t quite like falling asleep. It was more like closing your eyes for a couple seconds and suddenly everything felt like garbage. Your muscles cramped, your mouth was dry as a bone, your arm throbbed where the IV port had been attached, and your eyes couldn’t open. You coughed furiously as soon as you took your first breath.

The air that touched your skin was horribly cold, but your body couldn’t shiver. Despite having basically nothing in your stomach, your body kept trying to retch. Your limbs were locked up, barely able to move from the slightly-uncomfortable position you’d been forced into in the pod.

Something touched your arm and you screamed. Or tried to- your lungs forced the air out with a sound more like a grating huff. The touch was warm, blazing against your bare skin, and even the texture of it was unbearable. Being without sensation for so long seemed to have magnified your senses a thousandfold.

It was hard to tell how much time had passed before moving became tolerable. You tried to open your eyes a few times, but even once you could physically do so, the room was too bright to look at. You flopped helplessly on your back, squeaking and complaining whenever you were touched.

As your brain grew used to processing sensory input once more, you got better at figuring out what was happening to you. You were lying in some sort of thick liquid, with your head supported so your face was free of it. The thing that kept touching you was alive, presumably, because it was moving. It felt like you were being gently massaged. Kind of the massage used to help encourage blood flow in a limb.

You tried your eyes again. They cracked open, just barely. The light wasn’t so bad this time. Not good, but not bad, either. It stung. You could see someone, probably a person, moving around you, although you could barely even make out the silhouette. It was mostly a blur.

The massage was nice. It was sort of a more pleasant awakening than you thought you’d have. They’d briefed you on the awakening procedures- the pods would gradually warm up so you woke up slowly before ejecting everyone all at once. No one should be awake to care for you.  Maybe something had gone wrong? But not so wrong that you’d died, so it couldn’t be something you needed to worry about too much.

You took your time to come back to yourself, slowly warming up to your body again. It still felt like you’d spent a week and a half completely sick with the flu, but you were otherwise not so bad.

The room was slowly drifting into focus around you. It was actually quite dim, you realized. There were a couple of pale blue lights set into the ceiling far above you providing illumination for the whole room, so everything was dark and shadowy. There was still the silhouette moving around you, but they were sort of dark and it was hard to make anything out about them.

The silhouette moved closer, still backlit too much to make out features. There was something slightly off about the shape of it, with the head and the shoulders or something, but maybe that was some weird eye effect of the hibernation. Hallucinations sometimes happened after hibernation, they’d said. Nothing to worry about.

And then the silhouette spoke. At least, you thought it was speaking. It wasn’t using words, though. It made a low, sort of thrumming noise with the occasional pop or creak. They weren’t quite noises a human could make, or at least, not without great effort.

You froze. That was… weird. More hallucinations, maybe? Had the hibernation fucked with your brain so bad you’d forgotten how words worked? That wasn’t good- maybe that’s why you were getting woken up separately?

Before you had a moment to ponder that any longer, there was a mechanical click and a voice, sort of neutral and male, said… something. You still couldn’t understand what it was saying, but there was some confirmation that it was, actually, saying something because you recognized the language: Chinese.

There was a pause. The mechanical click repeated, and then the voice spoke again, in English. “Are you conscious and able to respond? Please raise an arm if you can understand what I’m saying to you.”

You raised your arm automatically, though it was a struggle to lift it out of the thick substance you were submerged in. The thrumming and popping noise started up again, followed quickly by a mechanical click and a voice in English. It reminded you of when they dubbed over someone on the news while they were still talking. “Please remain calm. You suffered some injuries to your extremities, as well as hibernation sickness. We’re attempting to stabilize you, but you’re in a delicate condition.”

You tried to talk, but your mouth was so dry your tongue was trying to glue itself to the roof of your mouth. If the person was bothered by that, they didn’t show it. They moved closer to your head, walking alongside the tub you were resting in. Your eyes tracked them. They were moving weirdly. Were they hurt, maybe? Alarm bells kept going off in your head, the uncanny sense that something was wrong, but nothing in your conscious brain could put together what it was.

The person moved so they were in one of the brighter section of the room. You could see more than just their vague shape. Your heart stopped.

They were not a person.

That was why their shape was wrong. You could see their torso, from their head to nearly their waist, and it was human only in the vaguest of shapes. Sort of a vaguely oval head, with a sort of human-like face, except it was flatter, with pointed, almost horse-like ears. Their eyes were a little deeper-set and rounder. Their coloration reminded you of a Doberman, almost, with black across the top of their face and a paler color underneath. Their torso was longer and more slender than a human’s with narrower, more sloped shoulders and long arms that folded up close to their chest. They made a sort of humming or purring noise as they leaned over you.

You struggled to sit up or scramble away, but you couldn’t move much. You couldn’t even scream, just sort of moan helplessly. One of your legs managed to kick out sideways and connect with the side of the tank. It wasn’t much of a hit, but that, combined with you straining the rest of your pathetic muscles to get away from the thing next to you, meant that you partially slid off whatever was keeping your head supported and your face went under the water.

It was thicker than water, but not by too much, so your head slid under it with disconcerting slowness. It was then that you discovered another disadvantage of your weak muscles- the substance was just thick enough to make moving through it, even just enough to lift your head out of the water, impossible.

You thrashed, but not really, since you couldn’t move. There was only about two seconds of panic, though, before hands locked around you and pulled your head out back out. You sputtered as the hands placed your head back on the little platform.

“Stay still.” Something was beeping frantically in the background, and you could both hear and see the creature shifting around to check on some machines. “The fluid is warming you back to proper temperature. You need to remain still and calm to avoid going into shock.”

There was no way you were not going into shock. But you’d used up all your energy in your near-drowning, so you couldn’t do much but lie there. The creature seemed to relax.

“I understand that you’re frightened. I promise, I’m trying to help you.” When you didn’t move, just watched them, they relaxed further. “Remain still. I will conclude the treatment.”

They fussed around for a little while longer, checking on whatever monitors were giving readouts for your condition. You weren’t sure what indicated that your treatment was over, since you didn’t feel much better, but eventually, they pressed a button somewhere and the fluid drained out of the tub. It was cold after the fluid was gone, and you were completely nude and shivering, resting on some pads at the bottom of the tub. The creature, thankfully, offered you warm cloths that you could bury yourself underneath.

Before you could even properly enjoy the warmth, there was the sound of footsteps approaching. A lot of footsteps. Summoning all your strength, you heaved yourself up and looked over the edge of the tub.

There were more of them. Only three, not including your creature, which didn’t seem to match up with the amount of footsteps you’d heard. And then you looked down a little more and realized why.

They were centaurs.

Sort of- their limbs weren’t hooved, and they weren’t really like paws, either. A bit more like bird talons, if birds rested mostly on their fingertips. Talontips. Whatever. They walked with their torsos bent further forward than centaurs, too, and they had long tails. A couple of them had horns, pointing back off their heads. They were wearing clothes that were relatively close-fitting, like most spacesuits you’d seen.

The one in front, with the largest horns and a sort of fancy marker around its neck, stepped froward. “On behalf of the First Branch of the Agrenier, we would like to officially greet your species. And offer our condolences.” This one also had their words picked up by the machine and recited in a language you could understand, though the voice the machine used was different, a little more feminine. Maybe this one was a woman?

The blankets hadn’t really calmed your shivering, but you managed to speak in a semi-steady voice. “Condolences?”

She scuffed one of her forelimbs, her ears lowering to the sides of her head. “Your ship was found drifting, nearly without power. There was some sort of error with major mechanical functions in the ship, which caused serious damage to the inner workings. Upon investigation of the craft, we discovered several hibernation pods, the vast majority of which were damaged.” She paused, still tapping a forelimb against the ground. “Two contained living members of your species, but you were the only one to survive the initial reawakening process. You have our deepest condolences.”             You opened your mouth, but you couldn’t think of anything to say. Your brain struggled to process anything. Two pods with living people. Only one survived the reawakening. That was- that had to be you, right? You were- the only-

Dimly, you were aware of the robot speaking again. It seemed to be rapidly switching between two agitated voices. People were having an argument, maybe? You didn’t care. You buried yourself under the blankets and hid in the warm cocoon until everything was dark and floaty and your brain didn’t have any thoughts in it at all.

Someone tried to tug the blanket away. You weren’t sure how long it had been, but it was quieter and your limbs were stiff from being in the same position. You tried to keep the blanket over your body, but there was another firm tug and you lost your grip. Your muscles were pathetic. And, as embarrassing as it was, you couldn’t help but crying out when the blanket was taken away. It was the one thing you had in the world and you couldn’t even hold onto it.

“I’m sorry.” The other voice, the one from your centaur, came again from the robot. It did a very good job at adding emotion to the voices- it sounded anguished. “You’re overheating, I need to take it, but I’m sorry.” You curled up on the bottom of the tub, unmoving. The centaur patted your head. It was a small gesture, but you leaned into it. What else did you have?

The centaur patted your head a few more times before moving on. “I know you’re probably scared, but we’re not going to hurt you. I’m going to help you. Your hibernation pod was the least damaged of all of them, but it still had some minor malfunctions. It was hard to wake you up, and you’re not going to be all there for a little while.”

You racked your brains. It was easier to think about facts. When you’d gotten on the ship, there had been a big disclaimer about the dangers of hibernation pods. They were designed to keep a human in a state of suspended animation, with body functions slowed down to the bare minimum. The upper estimate was that it could keep a human asleep and alive for over half a million years. Not that anyone had ever tested them before you. But they were also risky- even minor malfunctions could lead to an early awakening, damage to the body, or the hibernation process just killing a person outright. Even when they’d gone over that part, though, no one had left. Why would they? Between a one hundred percent chance of death and a twenty percent chance, who would take the former?

So the malfunction had probably been in the sleep-wake system, the part that regulated how the machine knocked people out and woke them back up. It was supposed to run through a wakeup cycle on its own when the main computer signaled it was time, but if that system failed, it could be manually activated, and if the waking system failed entirely, there were ways to safely bring a person out of the hibernation without machine intervention. They were always riskier, though, and even if everything was done perfectly, it didn’t guarantee a successful revival.

That must have been what happened to the other person, the one in the other surviving pod. They’d tried to wake them up and…

Nope. Focus on facts. You took a deep breath. “What happened to the ship?”

“We boarded and searched it, and transferred the central computer system over to ours, as well as the supplies we could budget the space for,” the centaur said. “I’m afraid I don’t know any more specifics than that. I’m sorry.”

“How was it damaged? You said it was damaged.”

“An impact, I think?”

“That doesn’t make any sense. The ship was designed with rotator shields and plating and redundancies to keep everything secure. It was safe. It couldn’t be-” You paused. “How many people were on the ship?”

The centaur paused, then turned to one of the machines and tapped something in. “About 45,000 hibernation pods were recorded to be on the ship.”

That was too few for the main ship, but it had been designed with redundancies. If the impact had left a portion of the ship crippled, it was designed to eject the damaged portion and continue on without it.

Which meant your portion had been spit out and left to drift while the rest of the ship continued on toward its destination.

So everyone on the ship wasn’t dead. They were just continuing on to their destination. Without you.

That should make you feel better, right? That they weren’t dead? But you just felt very, very… lonely.

“I’m sorry about your fellow passengers,” the centaur said. He was leaning over the edge of the tub, sort of draped over it so he was resting his arm and his chin there. “For now, you should rest.” He glanced toward the door and his lips lifted into a bared-teeth expression. “Before our first officer comes back.”

He lifted your arm and slipped a tube into the shunt. It took only a few minutes before liquid sleep was coursing through your veins and you fell into a deep sleep.

The awakenings happened on a more or less regular schedule, at least from what you would tell. Often they would happen in that warm bath again, with your centaur rubbing your limbs to encourage bloodflow. Sometimes there was the other centaur there as well, the female one. You were pretty sure she and your centaur didn’t get along. The robot didn’t often translate for their conversations, but they had the tenor of arguments, and your centaur was always huffy and quiet after speaking with her. You ended up keeping time by the awakenings.

After two awakenings, your centaur gave you food. It was all prepackaged meal sludge, which was designed for people who had awoken from hibernation recently, and it made your stomach cramp, but you ate it. After four awakenings, the cramps stopped and you could move on to a combination of meal sludge and broth. Whenever you could, you engaged your centaur in conversation.

“How’d you know what medicines and foods to use?” you asked as he pulled the line administering some sort of medication out of your arm and closed the shunt.

“We transferred the existing data of your ship’s computer over to ours. I’m using your ship’s guide, translated into our own language, and improvising with our own equipment where yours was damaged- the hibernation pod you’ve been staying in is one of ours.”

“It seems too small to fit you,” you said. You weren’t a small person- you were actually pretty average- but the pod was only a bit too big for you to comfortably rest in. The centaurs were bigger than you by a pretty big margin, even your centaur, and he seemed to be the smallest one you’d seen so far.

“Oh, yes, that one’s for children.”

“You put children in hibernation?” You tried not to make the statement accusatory, but it came out like that anyway. There had been no children on The Ship, for multiple reasons. First was practicality- having a population that could breed and work right away upon making planetfall was paramount, and children wouldn’t be able to do either. The second was that no one knew how hibernation pods would affect children. Would it damage their bodies? Their ability to age properly? Hibernation had only been tested on adults- it was hard to convince people to put children in pods that might kill or cripple them, even when the same people had no issue with adults, especially prisoner populations.

Your centaur seemed unbothered. “For medical purposes. That’s what hibernation pods are used for. Slowing the spread of disease until the person can receive medical attention. It’s highly risky to use hibernation pods for long term space travel.” His ears flicked. “Though under your circumstances, I can’t say I can judge you.”

Ah. If they had the computer’s logs, they all knew what’s happening to Earth. What had probably already happened. The planet had a scant few years left by the time The Ship left, and if you’d traveled far enough to come across real aliens, then you’d been traveling for a while.

The centaur walked around the pod as the entire thing shifted from a horizontal position to a nearly vertical one. “I’m going to unlock the restraints,” he said. There was a faint click and the straps that were holding you in place retracted.

Your legs wobbled. It took all your strength to keep your body upright. It was a strain to stand, to walk, even to sit up sometimes. But your centaur insisted on making you move around.

“Hands in mine,” he said, extending his arms. You placed your hands in his and stepped out of the pod. He supported most of your weight with barely a tremble as you took a few shaky steps. His hands enveloped yours, though that was partially because of their strange shape. Unlike human hands, his were six-fingered and bilaterally symmetrical, with four ‘fingers’ and two ‘thumbs, both of which were positioned closer toward the wrist and pointed further backward than human thumbs. Despite their alien shape, holding his hands felt remarkably similar to just holding a human hand. It was a comfort.

Just as you were completing your second circuit of the room, your legs trembling like a baby deer’s, the door opened. Your centaur glanced up and his ears lowered instantly. The centaur that walked in was the first officer, the female that you’d seen when you’d first awoken.

“Officer,” your centaur said. The machine that translated everything was apparently quite accurate with tone, so you could tell that he was being both polite and annoyed. “Good to see you.” He was not happy about seeing her. “I am in the middle of something, so if this is not a pressing issue, perhaps we could continue this at a later date?” Please, please fuck off.

The veneer of politeness he was using didn’t let her be outright annoyed, but the machine’s tone when it spoke for her suggested she wasn’t very happy either. “It concerns our guest,” she said, turning her gaze to you. “And it is somewhat pressing.”

Your centaur shuffled his back legs and swung his tail. “Very well. Let’s get you back to the pod.” He ignored her, focusing his gaze on you as he assisted you back to the pod. You let out a sigh of relief as soon as you were in it. Your centaur rotated the pod back into the horizontal position and started to fill it with the thick fluid that let you float comfortably.

The first officer approached, claws clicking softly against the floor as she did so. “The human will want to be awake for this,” she said. “It’s important.”

Your centaur huffed a bit, but he didn’t move to put the sleeping drugs back in your system and just folded his arms up to his chest, in a way reminiscent of a praying mantis, and waited for her to speak.

She cleared her throat and turned her gaze to you. “We’re coming across one of our stations. You will be placed on a shuttle to the station, and then sent on another ship back to Tenso-bara.”

You blinked. What was Tenso-bara?

“In my opinion, that’s not a good idea,” your centaur said. His ears were still flattened, his lips curling back from his teeth just a little. “The hibernation causes weakness and sickness, so it may not be a good idea for travel at this point in the-”

“We are not going to come across another station for several-” The translation stuttered here, blocking the word out. “And we are not in compliance with the endangered species accords. We’re required to send endangered species to occupied worlds that hold to the accords for proper categorization and preservation.”

“Those accords aren’t for fellow intelligent species!” your centaur huffed.

“They were initially designed for non-sapient life, yes, but they do not exclude sapient species. Given what we know, we may be sheparding the last member of the human species.”

“There might be others!” you said. The first officer paused, her gaze going piercing-sharp. “The Ship was designed to separate damaged segments to protect the undamaged parts. The part of the ship I was on was only a small portion of the full thing! There are probably others!”

The first officer paused. “How many others?”

“Um. I think there were around two hundred and fifty thousand. Maybe as many as three hundred thousand? I’m not sure- they were trying to add additional pods at the end, but I was put to sleep before that happened.”

“But there is no guarantee that these other people did survive. Nor do you have any idea where the ship is now.” The first officer’s voice wasn’t cold or cruel, but it wasn’t gentle, either. You drooped a little.

“No. There might be information on the computer about where we were when the impact happened, but if it’s not there, then I don’t know where the ship could be.”

“Then I apologize, but unless we have other living members of the species or some confirmation that the others are alive, then you are under the accords and cannot stay on this ship. It is required for you to be returned to a planet.” She stamped her two front feet in a motion you assumed was like a shrug. “There is nothing I can do.”

“If that’s the case, then I want to make a request,” your centaur said. He stepped forward, practically shielding you from the first officer. “I would like to request a transfer.”

The first officer swung her tail back and forth across the floor, making a soft schff, schff, schff sound. “You wish to go with the human.”             Your centaur’s ears twitched and he rubbed his wrists together. Maybe he was embarrassed at having been so obvious. “Ah, well. Yes. I think it would be a good idea to stay, since I’m already aware of the medical conditions and-”

The first officer stomped one of her feet firmly against the ground. “I will submit the request. But I cannot guarantee it will be approved.” She turned back to you, expression neutral. That you could tell, anyway. Their faces didn’t seem as expressive as a human’s. Or maybe you just couldn’t understand their expressions as well. “You will be transferred in two days.”

Without another word, she left the room. Your centaur made a noise somewhere between a relieved sigh and an irritated huff. Then he turned back toward you. “I apologize about her.”

“What was she talking about?” you asked. He picked up an IV line of sleeping meds and for a moment you thought that he was going to knock you out so he wouldn’t have to answer your questions. But he just fiddled with it for a moment before speaking.

“There are many species in the known universe, and the gradual colonization of these planets has left many of these species  in critical danger, which led to environmental accords. Severely endangered species have laws regarding their transport in space and species in critical danger need to be taken to preserves in order to breed them back to proper levels. Or just keep them until their species naturally goes extinct. Whichever.”

“I’m going to be put on a nature preserve?” you said, trying to sit up. Your centaur immediately tried to usher you to lie back down.

“Probably not for long. I’m sure they’ll work to give you freedom and self-determination and all that. We’re just… required to follow regulations.” He rubbed his wrists together again. “I do want to advocate for you, though, hence why I elected to come with you. And to give you medical care.” He made a series of thumping noises in rapid succession, which the robot apparently interpreted as laughing. “I didn’t get my xenobiologist degree just to hand a medically delicate specimen over to some idiot government worker.” His voice got softer as he continued. “You’re going to be okay.”

It was comforting to hear that reassurance. He slipped the line into the shunt in your arm and you closed your eyes, feeling an unusually peaceful sleep drift over you.

Part 2 here.

#exophilia #alien partner #alien boyfriend #monster romance #monster lover #male monster

[pedros-husband]

Rows and rings

agent whiskey x male reader (SFW)

a/n: just wanted to say that i appreciate all of the reblogs and love i've received, also i am new to tumblr so I haven't quite figured out all the different things and ways to interact, so please be patient with me, thank you <3.

Summary: you had supposed to been on a date, this was the third time he didn’t show, and your pissed, rightly so, but for reasons a little deeper than face-value. Or at least the ring in your pocket says so.

prompt: 'do you ever mean the things you say?'

This fic is ftm trans inclusive (no Amab language used)

----------------------------------------------------------------

it had started out as a small argument. you had been mad because jack forgot another date you'd planned. third time this week, actually.

His excuse was that he'd been busy with a mission, not having enough time to be worrying over 'stupid things', in his own words. but you weren't mad he'd forgotten, you were long past the point of being mad over things like that, no. you were mad because he had promised you not to forget or cancel. and you were a man of your word, whiskey knew that. he also knew how much you valued honesty and not doubling back on plans once they've been made.

when you first started dating you made it clear to whiskey that if he promised something he had to stick to his word, mostly because you had trust issues from past relationships but you'd never indulged in telling jack the details-it was never necessary, he always stuck to his word.

And to a degree you understood that jack's job was demanding and took priority over lots of things, and sometimes things happened out of the blue, but this wasn't like that. You had made sure to inform ginger and Tequila that Whiskey would be off duty for this night, just a few hours, it was no big deal. at least it was supposed to be no big deal.

Even though you were pissed that he technically lied that actually surprisingly wasn't your main source of anger. you'd been planning to propose to jack for a while, knowing he's too busy to even think about doing it after 4 years of patiently waiting you'd taken the matter into your own hands. both of you knew you were made for each other. jack reminded you constantly that you were the only man for him and he’d never even look at another man or woman the way he looks at you, and you believed him. which was why it was so infuriating that his behaviour was causing this tension in your relationship over the past week.

with the gradual build up of anger after each forgotten date your anger finally boiled over tonight. he was sat in the living room spread out on the couch, 6 hours late. you burst into the room and slammed the door shut, teeth gritted and eyes narrowed.

'jack daniels, you give me one good reason not to leave your ass right this damn second.'

he looked up from his position on the couch, groaning and rolling his eyes. 'look sugar, I'm sorry i really am but can we not argue right now, it's pretty damn late and this cowboy needs his beauty sleep' his accent is thicker from exhaustion as he stands up and moves to push past you, but you hold your ground and put a hand on his shoulder.

'no way jack, you promised me. you said that this time you were going to make time for me, it was planned out!' there were tears pricking in your eyes- this week had been so stressful with the build up of anxiety over the proposal and the repeated dissapointment of him forgetting each time.

'darlin', i said, not.tonight. and besides, it's a one time thing, i haven't lied to ya before, no biggie.'

'jack, it's not a one time thing, this is the third time this week! i understand work is important but i'm your boyfriend and i deserve your attention too sometimes! i mean: do you ever mean the things you say? c'mon, we're not kids jack.'

'your being a jerk. i am a man of my words, don't you ever, even insinuate that i'm not. i am loyal to my country and to my work, i can't help that you aren't always first.' jack practically spits in your face, gruffly shoving you backwards so he can move past you, but instead of heading to the bedroom he heads to the door. in a dazed panic you yell, tears starting to roll down your cheeks, ' i was going to propose!'

silence.

'you... you what?' he turns to face you, eyebrows furrowed in confusion and disbelief, hand paused on the doorknob.

you take a deep breath, wipe your tears away and continue 'i was going to propose to you. originally on Monday, then Wednesday, then Friday, then...tonight... look jack... i know your busy and i know i may be being a little overbearing right now, iIve just been so stressed this past week and you know i haven't been getting as much sleep an-' as you talk he strides over to you, and cuts you off by pulling you into a deep kiss, hands gripping your waist tightly.

the kiss isn't slow and passionate, it rarely ever is with jack. but it isn't filled with lust like usual, it's more, tender and, apologetic. he glides his hand up your back and lets it rest on the nape of your neck. you kiss back eagerly, hands finding their way into his shortt brown hair, before one falls back down to the pocket of your jeans and you break away.

'i-i'm sorry sugar... i ain't good with apologies an all that, but i really am. i shoulda' gone on the date the first time, shoulda given you more attention. i want you and only you, but i haven't been acting like i do, so im sorry.' jack whisper averting his gaze, as he drops his hands and puts them in his pockets sheepishly.

you sigh and pull out a small box, getting down on one kneee. 'i know this isn't as romantic as the fancy date i planned, and its abit more tear-filled and chaotic, but i love you no matter how stupid you are, no matter how many dates you miss. Jack Daniels i knew from the moment i met you that you were the man for me, and i would be so happy if you would marry me. so, will you?' you look up at him with hopeful eyes, opening the little black box to reveal a small golden band.

jack smiles and pulls you up nodding his head and kissing you on the lips over and over, in between each one whispering, 'yes, yes a hundred times yes'

after he finally calms down and you put the ring on his finger, you lead him to your room and slowly change into your pj's, a comfortable silence hangs in the air, but your both smiling like idiots the whole time.

you get into bed and he immediately pulls you into his chest, holding you tight and burying his face into your hair, fiddling with the new ring on his finger.

'i love you, sugar... and i cant wait to be your husband.' he whispers into your hair, closing his eyes as he inhales the scent of your sweet smelling shampoo.

'i love you too jack, and i can't wait to be your husband too.' you mumble, eyes heavy as you slowly drift off to sleep in the comforting embrace of your fiance.

#agent whiskey #male #male reader #jack daniels #agent whiskey x male reader #pedro pascal #gay #gay men #mlm

[noisytenant]

"hot allostatic load" is very much a work worth reading and discussing, and it's shameful how the harrowing experiences described can be found unchanged these 9 years later. it highlights so many intersecting dynamics and consequences of the transmisogyny, ableism, and racism that are perpetuated within ostensibly "inclusive" spaces.

that being said, i feel like it still kind of reifies the victim/aggressor dichotomy and maintains "abuser" as a meaningful ontological class of malicious actors, and i'm skeptical of that part of the argument.

mostly i feel like messaging is mixed; between nominal challenges to the moral hierarchy and innocence/guilt paradigm, there are a number of lines that assert the innocence and good intent of victims, while taking as fact the malice and wanton destruction of aggressors.

lines like "abusers don't spend years disabled by those thoughts [of being sociopathic, crazy, or abusive] because they don't care if they hurt other people" have me raising my eyebrows. i feel that this line of thinking leaps over all of the little social and mental tricks that enable abuse--the minimization of consequences, the willful and selective ignorance of power dynamics, the magical thinking of intent trumping impact.

it has been my experience that a great deal of abusive individuals think they care deeply about hurting others, and do at times ruminate about the morality of their actions, but inevitably fall back on various justifications to maintain their behavior. i worry that the reassurance, essentially, "an abusive person wouldn't worry about being abusive" can terminate necessary reflection and growth.

it is an important part of the healing process to first realize that it wasn't all your fault, and that you are not uniquely evil or irredeemable. but i think it's an important part of being a political actor to challenge framing issues in terms of blame and ontological badness entirely. sometimes you are the one who fucked up, badly, and the question of handling that situation is fundamental to anticarceral politics.

the essay seems to believe in a type of genuinely "bad person", but it offers little in the way of how to identify them and what to do about them. how does one distinguish confused and righteous people from "pathological liars"? how does one distinguish the airing of personal grievances privately and without a major callout from the weaponization of whisper networks and silent ostracization? what punishments would be appropriate for the "bad people" who avoid them through privilege? if someone fucks up, what does it look like for them to actually atone and change things for the better?

i agree with the concluding sentiment that "there is no kind of justice that resembles hundreds of people ganging up on one person, or tangible lifelong damage being inflicted on someone for failing the rituals of purification that have no connection to real life". we should carefully consider what tools and methods we use in a quest for a more just world, because some of them have grave consequences. but this alone feels imprecise when paired with the whole of the article's wobbly stance on victimhood and abuse, and general lack of suggestions for how marginalized people can be heard and believed.

i guess my feeling is that i'd like to view the piece as a snapshot of this kind of abuse and its effects on all levels, but i personally think many of the core arguments are better discussed elsewhere. it just isn't very precise and honed, and i think a sharp argument is required to cut through the muck of cognitive dissonance and self-justification that perpetuate the abuses we're trying to stop.

anyways, that's just my two cents. hope it resonates with others; if you see the article differently, i'd love to hear a different perspective on it too. i worry if i'm misreading somehow, or overly critical due to unexamined bias. but i can't really know if that's the case if i don't share my thoughts with anyone else. so, here i am with my thoughts. Heart

#indexed post #In particular I think the 'purity' point is kind of underdiscussed/developed #and when it is one of the main elements of the prescribed anti-criminal-justice solution it feels necessary to clarify... #I have a great deal of my own thoughts about moral purity complexes #but i think it's hard to recognize that it's happening when you're in the thick of it #So I think you really need to cut through it and expose it clearly... #perhaps i'm just asking for another essay. idk.

[army-of-bee-assassins]

Hi Disco Elysium fandom! If y'all have noticed me and a small group of other users here adding image descriptions (IDs) to your posts, and if you want to know more about why, then I have some relevant information for you here! Namely that:

The ultimate goal of those adding IDs is for as many people as possible to include image descriptions in their original posts!

I'm gonna get into the details of image descriptions (like how and why to write and reblog them) down below, but I just want to state some things from the get-go:

A post that's accessible from the start is much better than one that's only accessible in the notes. Ideally, accessibility should be included in the original post. That way, blind and other disabled people don’t need to go searching for content they can access. It is everybody's responsibility to foster an accessible and inclusive environment! That's the only way it's even possible, actually.

Also, there are far too many new posts in the Disco Elysium tag every day for a small number of people to describe them all. It's great that there's so much new content every day! But a good 98% of it is completely inaccessible, and - considering there's less than 10 of us who are regularly writing image descriptions in this fandom - it is simply impossible for us to keep up with it all. Even if someone has described your posts in the past, that does not mean you can assume that they’ll definitely describe the next post you make (not without directly asking, at least).

This is why it's important to 1) write your own image descriptions and 2) if someone else writes an ID for your post, edit it into the original post itself instead of just reblogging it (no credit is necessary).

If you want any help writing IDs (including if you want to ask someone to just write the whole thing for you), there is a (non-fandom-specific, accessibility-focused) discord server for that! Here is the link to join the server. It is very active, and I have used it myself for help with tricky IDs many times and gotten pretty quick responses.

Now, on to actually talking about image descriptions themselves! I promise, they're not as difficult or time-consuming as you may think. And I swear to you, fanartists - people will still reblog your art with a description. They're not ugly or taking up too much space. I have some great examples at the end!

Why write image descriptions?

Image descriptions explain what an image is of for people who would otherwise not be able to access it. They are necessary for blind people. Many blind people use a text-to-speech program called a screen reader, which reads text aloud. When it comes across an image, the screen reader will just say "image" and the user will have no idea what it is an image of. IDs are a solution to this problem. After the screen reader says “image,” it will then read the image description aloud. However, not everyone who needs image descriptions uses a screen reader! Some people are low vision and have trouble seeing what's in the image but can still read text visually. Some people have a hard time processing visual information and interpreting what's happening in an image. Some poor and rural people have weak internet connections and images never load. And sometimes the image is of grainy text and it's difficult to read. Image descriptions are a benefit to people in all of these situations.

Can I just use alt text?

Alt text makes the image accessible to people who use screen readers. Someone without a screen reader can also click through to alt text on a desktop browser. However, there is no way to access alt text on tumblr mobile without using a screen reader, and needing to click through to see descriptions is not ideal either. Therefore, alt text is not accessible to everyone who may need an image description. Until tumblr makes alt text easily visible to everyone who wants it, it is always going to be best practice to write an image description under the post as well.

Please use both alt text and an image description in the body of the post.

Can you put the image description under a read more and/or use small/stylized text?

Please don't do this! The small/stylized text is an obvious one. As mentioned earlier, some people who need image descriptions are low vision but do not use a screen reader. Using small or stylized text is obviously a detriment to them. It can also cause eye strain and headaches.

The read more thing is less obvious, and unfortunately something I see fairly often. Imagine for a second that you are a person who needs image descriptions. Now imagine that in order to get the full content of every single post with an image on this website, you had to click through a read more and - on mobile - fully navigate away from your dashboard. Every single time. This wouldn't feel very accessible, would it? And secondary to that, if you ever deactivate, then that ID that you put under the read more becomes completely lost to time.

I promise your description is not too long. Just use plain text and keep it in the main body of the post.

Why should you check the notes for an ID before reblogging an inaccessible post?

You may think that if a post has an ID in the notes, then anyone who needs that ID will just go into the notes to find it themself. However, this runs into the exact same issue as the read more thing: it's straight-up bonkers to expect people who need image descriptions to do this on every single post they come across.

Instead, you can easily start making your blog more accessible by checking the notes yourself and making an effort to spread accessible versions of posts! This is a wonderful way to start making your blog more accessible, especially if you're not someone with the ability to write image descriptions yourself! When you spread an accessible post, then the people who follow you will spread that version too, and it can become more widespread than the version without an ID. The more people do this, the easier it becomes for people needing image descriptions to come across them naturally on their dash!

Checking the notes for an ID is now easier than it has been in the past. In the notes, filter them down to reblogs with "comments only". This should show you an ID if there is one. Unfortunately, on posts with more than about 1000 notes or so, this feature doesn't seem to work as well (and tumblr staff hasn't fixed it since the new notes system was implemented, despite numerous complaints). The ID may not show up even though there is one. You can still scroll through the reblogs sorted down to "comments and tags" to find the image description, though this will take slightly longer. However, even on posts with thousands notes, it usually takes less than 60 seconds.

How do you write an image description?

I promise this part isn't as hard as it seems! I'm gonna link to some posts where people have explained things better than me in just a moment, but I'll just say: Any description is better than none. And even in a super detailed photograph or piece of art, you don't necessarily have to include everything. Zero in on what's most important in order for someone to understand what's going on in the image, and focus on that in your description. Not that you can't include the cool details when they're there! Just try not to get too bogged down in it.

My friend JD has a few very helpful posts about how to write image descriptions that I'm gonna link to here:

How Do I Write Good Image Descriptions?

How to Make Your Art Accessible

I also wanted to link to some great examples of Disco Elysium fanart with IDs written by the OP! Example 1 - by funnywormz Example 2 - by mascindulgence Example 3 - by empress-s

And lastly, I wanted to talk about the most common kind of screenshot in this fandom: dialogue screenshots. I have a very useful Google Doc here where I have compiled every bit of dialogue I have ever transcribed from Disco Elysium screenshots. A lot of the same quotes are very popular, so it's very easy to just ctrl + F and then copy and paste into your image description! And after the almost one year I've been doing this, there's a whole lotta game dialogue in there. If you take a funny screenshot of dialogue from the game that you want to post, there's a good chance you can find what you're looking for in that document!

I'll wrap this up with an example of one of these dialogue screenshots with a description. I make all the names lowercase (despite them being all caps in the game) because screen readers will sometimes read all caps like an acronym and just spell words out. Otherwise, it’s pretty much just a straight transcription of the text in the image.

[image description: A screenshot of dialogue from the video game Disco Elysium, transcribed below.

You - Look at the perforations.

Damaged Ledger - There are many of them. And they are divided into three separate rows.

You - Tally up the different rows.

Damaged Ledger - The first row has 18 dots.

You - Not bad.

Damaged Ledger - Not bad for what? You don't even know what it means yet. End ID.]

And that's all there is to it. As always, feel free to reach out if you ever have any questions!

#disco elysium #long post #image descriptions #accessibility #thank you so much to my friends for feedback and editing!! #for some more context on the ''too many posts every day for us few people to describe'' thing #i have about 700 drafts - of which probably about 650 are undescribed disco elysium posts #that number has only gone up and up and up even though i write ids almost every day #this is simply an impossible task without more people taking responsibility for accessibility in their own posts #if you appreciate when people write ids for your posts then i strongly encourage you to take a stab at writing them yourself #i said it like five times in the post itself but i'll say it again: it's really not as hard as it looks

[clarajohnson]

the magicians s1e13

yes i put this one off i wasn't ready yet

i love when the recaps just give everything away it's so cute of them ohhhh the watcherwoman you say? god i wonder who that is. oh jane chatwin is important you say? that's interesting.

i love that q gets into fillory and within days is like alright guess i should write an unauthorized sequel to fillory and further

"no, i just stabbed my own hand" YOU wanted the fantasy protagonist lifestyle YOU have to deal with the common risk of blood sacrifice

BOOOOO FUCK YOU EMBER EVERYBODY HATES EMBER

loveeeee the .02% opium also love "a pretty unfair way to get you to love a place" i love the way he thinks of things you neurotic little freak

NOTHING better than the way q says "nnnnbitches" in i am in that scene, bitches

(speaking to the magicians showrunners) by all means, hinge your entire quest on a traumatized boy

every knife scene is a tease until my beloved wife fen appears

you are from a place that likes murder!

it is so obvious as to almost be lazy that the watcherwoman would be q's favorite fillory villain

jesus christ i love that q is the volunteer tomato. he would be. he really would be, he cannot resist jumping into danger if the purpose is to save the things he loves.

the memory patch :-((((((

"margo being such a bitch." oh eliot waugh you are so dear to me

q's narration is pretty fun for this episode i like it quite a bit

this is a funny stage of the team assembly, the way they resist julia's inclusion when actually julia is going to be very important to everyone (i am making this up just because i like julia)

the leo blade is pretty sexy i appreciate it

TIME FOR FEN

oh wait i forgot it's a different fen :-( see you soon my beloved

"i admit i was 100% sure that i was definitely the high king. i know! shocking, right?" fucking crazy that we have to watch him experience total ego death while eliot is making stoner jokes

season one eliot still agreeing to marry fen despite all the fine print is so shocking when you think about it, like, i forget the kind of guy he starts out as, and the "my life, it doesn't work" speech is like a total shove into character development that moves so quickly and immediately blooms and is so instantly rewarding. man when this show is good it's good.

"i think you're the only person that i can stand"

these chapter titles make me believe that q is not a good writer. i imagine his fillory fics were not highly rated.

"father-in-law, why is this blade a thousand degrees?"

mrs. me !!!!!

i will say this. and this is a kind of spoilsport opinion i know this. i do not like the whole ember's jizz plot and i find it very gross and demeaning and unnecessary, not that any of this is necessary, just that this specific element feels chosen to be a gross-out.

"can you be the champion we've been waiting for? "i want to be." whew there it is!

ONCE AGAIN FUCK EMBER FUCK EMBER FOREVER !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

me when i hate the character the show wants me to hate :-o >:-(

i completely forgot plover was in the dungeon lmao you know what let martin be a little bit more of the beast !!!!!! yeah poor you !!!!

most pathetic boy in the world voice: i know you don't want to hear it right now but i love you

quentin coldwater has the craziest fucking self-esteem anyone has ever had it goes in all directions and fluctuates hourly

you're not as good as i hoped, quentin coldwater.

please not the glowing eyes jesus christ

whewwwwwwwwww the reynard scene is always going to get to me sooooo fucking bad jesus jesus jesus

"trickster of the faithful and the pure of heart" i gotta be honest i don't know what mythology reynard is part of but i don't know what the purpose of a god like that would be. this guy seems like a burnt pancake to me.

horrible. horrible!

it's so wild that she called marina. i like that she did that i just think it's crazy. and it's a really interesting aspect of marina's character too! "jesus, julia, i wanna help." the girl is not an asshole we just hate women with boundaries JOKING she IS an asshole but i do think sometimes women are allowed to be.

love that penny expands his powers with stick-and-pokes

i believe, because i want to, that there is some significance to julia going into the wellspring last.

i forgot martin is UGGOOOOO

you know i think the way this show frames the forty timelines, for q at least, is as a kind of suicide mission, which i really feel like pushing against. i don't see q as a character outlined by despair or futility i think he's all about hope and perseverance and i think that's beautiful and it's what i want for him!

shit i completely forgot about jules teaming up with the beast for a minute oh julia you're a crazy lady

shows don't have the kind of security to end a season with five out of six main characters bleeding out and absolutely no resolution anymore

#god i love this show so much #unauthorized magicians rewatch #the magicians #text

[vethbrenatto]

Journey to Whitestone: Thoughts

As a C1 tie-in naysayer, I wanted to give my thoughts on on the episode and going to Whitestone.

The Highs:

Overall, I enjoyed the episode and I think that’s kind of a baseline for me. If I didn’t enjoy the show still, I wouldn’t be watching. I thought the past characters were fun overall, even if I did feel that the focus on Vox Machina, particularly before going into the dreamscape, sidelined Bells Hells a bit. One of my favorite scenes was Ashton and Percy because it felt like a real inclusion of the BH characters rather than a shift of focus from BH to VM. I think Ashton and Imogen were standout characters in sticking to their character and how they would truly interact in this situation.

I think Matt played high-level Vox Machina NPCs well, and I didn’t consider anything out of character. I think there are many ways Vox Machina could be have come off and they still wouldn’t have been out-of-character- I think Vex could have sided with Percy in the decision that protection of her family (and the city) is first-and-foremost over saving an individual life with a risk so high and it would have been just as in character as her guilt over Laudna being the Vex-Sun-Tree-Body and her yearning to help right that wrong. I think Keyleth and Percy could’ve been chummy and friendly as they were in C1 in their meeting and it would’ve been just as in character as their formal greetings we saw Matt portray. Vex, Percy, and Keyleth’s formality makes sense to me in their natural progression as leaders- this is a facade (not the right word- but a temporary mask?) they put on in order to be professional. It asserts confidence around the people they rule and the people who seek their counsel. I am sure that behind closed doors when it’s just VM and friends, they’re still as goofy as before, and you could see that in Percy’s little cracked smiles around Gwen. I think, contrastingly, Matt played Pike right on the money that as she hasn’t ascended to that sort of role (she’s a leader in the church, but she was that even in Campaign 1, and she still acted this way) and the importance of decorum is lost on her. (And I love her for it)

I was also a big fan of how quickly Matt opted out Keyleth. I think this is smart as she’s the VM character they have the most access to and establishing her as easily available would have bad consequences on future story. (As Matt said, no Keyleth Uber, and as I hope, minimal Keyleth phone-a-friends.)

I am a big fan of the Laudna dreamscape idea. I know it would mean leaving Marisha sidelined for longer, but I’d love for this to be a couple-session journey (I saw someone relate it to the Happy Fun Ball) where they have to battle through this. It would really cement death as an obstacle. I’m still pulling for Laudna-comes-back-wrong even with the Spirit Realm twist.

The Lows:

While I enjoyed the session, I wasn’t over-the-moon excited. I think it comes back to what I outlined in another post, which is “Is this necessary?” Could this have happened without Vox Machina and I’m inclined to say: Yes. There was nothing about this session that made me feel like this had to have been done by VM. The only part that feels actually relevant is the location and Laudna’s connection to it, but the people I think could have all been replaced. 

What Bells Hells really needed was a powerful divine caster and material components. The caster didn’t need to be Pike and the components didn’t need to come from Vex. 

What did seeing Kynan add to the story? How is it relevant to our protagonists, the Hells? And what does direct access to Vox Machina mean for the future of the campaign- will these be the people they go to in times of great turmoil? Will they be inclined to come back now that they know how many high-level individuals they have met and received help from before? These are the kind of questions that I think of while watching the session. 

I like tie-ins to have purposes and I just don’t feel purpose from these connections. 

I have seen minimal discussion about the Hells’ course of action in the last session and much discussion about Vox Machina and their actions. Percy was right vs. Percy was wrong, Vex would do this or that, etc. etc. And to me that says that a lot of the session wasn’t about the Hells at all, which is fine for a session, but I just hope this stays minimized and we don’t get many more sessions where I feel like we’re more focused on what VM is doing than what the Hells are.

#cr spoilers #cr thoughts

[outrunningthedark]

yeah as far as ive seen she only wrote tomorrow that episode joaquin is directing and like her writing wasn't that bad for fomo, its just when people expect to see alot of one character when that character isnt the main focus of the episode, they think its "bad" writing, but these people have to remember that 911 is an ensemble cast and not every episode is gonna have their fave character the main focus ya know

There was quite a bit I liked about FOMO, but IA with you, I think the combo of very little Eddie after what we got in 5x14 and the inclusion of L caused people to decide it was a "bad episode" - and you all know how that irks me! (And ftr, if those conclusions are coming from fans who don't actually care about 98% of what goes on, fine, whatever. But if you're trying to present yourself as a fan of the show and still complain about every damn thing? This ain't the place for you.) FOMO gave us: - Eddie and May working together to find out where Selene/Rebecca was when the 911 call was placed ("Boom. Looks like I'm going viral.") - "Maybe she felt like she was missing out on a life she could have had, if she'd been born someone else or made different choices. Don't you wonder about stuff like that?" (Eddie said "Not really"." Like a liar.) - Eddie not knowing what FOMO means - Maddie finding out Chim took a bunch of photos of Jee during their time apart so she wouldn't miss anything important - Buck reminding Maddie that he's proof she's capable of being a good mom - Henren playing detective to find out who's using their stolen credit card (which, as a Cold Case fan, I got a laugh out of) - Eddie telling May "Trauma often causes us to turn inward...I guess therapy is rubbing off on me. Look, you hid in a place you knew, where you could feel safe and keep your family safe. I understand the motivation." - Madney watching Jee feed herself with a spoon for the first time - And then, ofc, happy Henren dancing in the club An episode focusing on characters other than your fave does not make it "bad". Boring (to you), sure, but not bad. And with Nicole writing, we already knew going into it that the men were taking a backseat. It's going to be more of the same for Tomorrow because the episode is mainly (if not totally) about two lesbians. No Buck or Eddie necessary, probably, unless it's as a supportive friend.

#anonymous #tina speaks #tv: 911 #tv: 9-1-1

[the-writers-bookshelf]

I don't know if it's just me but I keep seeing videos or posts popping up criticizing the use of adjectives in books and with every single new one the just shows up out of no where I get a little more irritated because all of these people are taking it so literally.

No, unless it's a very specific type of book they did mean that this person actually purred or growled or whatever. But these words give each thing they're attached to very different tones and I think the tone is so important to get across the feeling you want to convey.

Sorry for the mini rant, I know it's such a small thing to be irritated about but it just keeps showing up everywhere and I can't seem to escape it.

I totally know what you mean, anon!

I find that the internet/social media can be chock full of very loud people who like to complain about the most inane things.

I got caught up in complaints about literally everything being "too cliche and overused." So I tried really, REALLY hard to make every damn line "original" and guess what: it didn't work. Because readers want a specific type of book so they go by those "cliches" (or tropes) in order to find more of what they want.

Online spaces can be absolutely amazing to find other writers. But it's also super easy to get inundated with all the negative nut jobs who like to nitpick EVERYTHING.

It's not a small thing to be irritated about. It gets under your skin. It sets impossible standards for aspiring writers (and current writers). It also gets into your head and feeds your inner critic, which makes it harder to write. Those are all big things and causes problems for you as a writer.

I am an AVID supporter of using the block and unfollow buttons and avoiding anyone who spouts stuff like that. Otherwise, it bogs you down and makes you distracted by stressing over the use of adjectives rather than telling a good story.

So your rant is absolutely 10000% valid and you make a very good point that these arguments aren't necessary. It's one thing if authors use them to the point of making it distracting to read the story, but that's an easily fixable thing, and it shouldn't be, "Avoid this at all costs." That's just...shitty advice.

If you want something fun, inspiring, and helpful, I've been listening to the SPA Girls podcast on Youtube (and Spotify). They talk about writing craft, the business side of publishing, and the varied ways people can succeed with their different writing processes. They're very positive and inclusive. It's really nice to listen to people who are supportive and upbeat! :)

#asks #anonymous

[onewomancitadel]

Bf sent me this because he knew it would set me off:

I thought it was really important to track down the article (it's from The Cut: this isn't the opener as I thought, but a subheader) and give it a real read - it's from right before Dune (2021) released. Sometimes stuff is taken out of context and it's an unfair representation, sometimes - gloriously, gloriously - it sounds worse in context.

This is one of my favourite terrible times when it does!

I was wondering about the background of The Cut. A subsidiary of Vox Media, related to the New York magazine, it presents itself as - well - cutting edge popular and cultural criticism, the kitchen sink of thinkpieces about whatever currently ails the ego of the writers and editors and/or what can be safely criticised without upsetting anyone or saying anything of substance.

Presumably the actual title of this piece, What Even is Dune, Anyway? comes from a position of simply wanting to get in on the buzz. The problem with Dune is that there's a perception that it's a boy's club, and this is an attitude reproduced in the article, bolstering gender divides. The title is really meant to say, What Even is Dune, Anyway, Girlies? as a cute quip. As a cornerstone of sci-fi, it's meant to be even more tongue-in-cheek - the smugness is intended.

I'm not going to do a line-by-line read, but I hate this author and I hate everything about this article.

But the reason the author hasn't seen Dune is because she's writing this article for those wanting to understand what people are talking about without needing to get involved, or who want to see the film without spoilers, I suppose (and not read the books) - this is actually a valuable perspective, and makes sense in this magazine, so I see why it was published. It's meant to be inclusive for all the people who aren't into sci-fi, and the interest of this article isn't so much in the plot of Dune, but the celebrity spectacle of the ensemble cast, comprising the likes of Timothée Chalamet and Zendaya and Oscar Isaacs etc. etc.

Nevermind that Chalamet was pretty much born to play Paul. The celebrity is first, the actor's talent for which they're famous for is second. Lol.

As damning as the Tweet screenshot is (emphasis mine)...

Apparently, Dune had some influence on Star Wars, so you will be forgiven for believing the two franchises are one and the same; if it helps you to think of them this way, that is fine with me.

The subheader is meant to fuck with you.

So, as far as I can tell, the intention is to fuck with Dune fans either out of personal spite (eh) or out of the virality of saying ignorant shit. You have to remember that when you read annoying things on the Internet. Your attention matters, that's all. It's free real estate whether it's anger or joy. That's why this cycle of journalism is unsustainable. Think about how many people are exhausted and angry all the time online.

By the time we get into the author's version of Dune, which uncritically expects the feudal house of Atreides to be celebrated, I am ready to ragequit. The misrepresentation of Dune and the power of its prophecy and tragedy makes me cry. It's not Lord of the Rings: Lord of the Rings is a mythic epic. Dune is a tragedy. The chosen one is cursed.

And it has come to my attention that Herbert pilfered a bunch of Arabic and Persian words

He didn't pilfer 'a bunch of Arabic and Persian words'. If you are going to introduce Orientalism as a point of critique, the borrowings in Dune transcend 'a few words'. The genocidal space jihad is more than a little appropriation - the Dune (2021) film itself actually censored the use of the jihad and in place used (EDIT: I originally said it used 'crusade' here but misremembered. It's instead 'holy war' and not used as often. I don't know why I originally thought this! Nevertheless, I personally hold that the dilution was probably necessary). What this appropriation constitutes actually really matters - with its Lawrence of Arabia influence, it's not always completely straightforward. Neither is Paul directly responsible for all of the Fremen's power - their power is secret, and the rest of the empire, before Paul, did not know this (this is its own othering). That is in part Paul's corruption: he manipulates a native peoples' whose power are unparalleled, and takes them away from their home to conquer the rest of the world. It's monstrous.

This is a pithy style of pseudo-criticism of hegemony which lets you think you're clever and 'with it', without having to engage with substance. This is the foundation of a publication like The Cut. I'm not sure if this describes the entirety of professional criticism. The Cut is not a film magazine. But it does represent a very popular style of commentary that has currency for the comfort it affords.

This article offers anger for Dune and film fans and smug self-assuredness for those who aren't. It covers both bases. It's actually really clever.

But what is it all about?

To me, it sounds like the central problem of making a Dune movie comes down to the confounding nature of Herbert’s fictional universe, which simply doesn’t lend itself well to clear, concise storytelling.

This thesis is introduced right at the end. I don't know why. The article wanted to get in on the action about Dune without having to commit, and without offering thoughtful commentary. This isn't a helpful remark to someone who wants to know what the Dune buzz is about (for good or ill).

But we know why, it's because the part everyone cares about, which the OP of that screenshot so helpfully provided, is the content they want making the rounds. It's not substance. It's not about the question of adaptation, of Orientalism, of corruption and tragedy, about the cultural value and success of Dune or its place in respect to Star Wars. None of that matters.

The reason I said it is gloriously, gloriously worse in context is because it is proudly cynical and proudly ignorant. I would love to read a piece by someone who's new to all of this and is sharing their real, interesting opinion, beyond 'butthole' sandworms and whatever crass joke will appease the TikTokers. But it's not that. It made me annoyed and it was supposed to.

#stirring the pot #duneposting #dune

[anxious-multishipper]

hello! my name is ignatz but you can also call me iggy if we are mutuals/friends. i use they/them and he/him pronouns along with some neo- and xenopronouns, but ultimately i'm okay with anything and won't correct you if you use she/her. more information can be found in the link in my bio, which includes terminology i am most comfortable with and a compilation of my queer identities. continue reading for some of my opinions on subjects such as social movements, queer discourse, and fandom bullshit.

speaking of which, if you are not accepting of queer people, me calling myself a queer person, or any of the identities that i have listed on the linked page, please do not follow me.

this user is not only a supporter of but also a member of the lgbtqia+ community, and that is inclusive of all of the letters in the acronym as well as others in the "plus." that means transgender and nonbinary people, the entire multisexual spectrum (including bi-, pan-, omni-, poly-, and abrosexuals), the aromantic and asexual spectrum (including micro-identities), polyamorous/ethically non-monogomous people, and queerplatonic people.

i do not care if people have "contradicting" identities. queerness is complicated and devoid of heternormative standards of expression; you do not need to describe yourself in a way that "makes sense" to cisgender heterosexual people.

in regards to other social movements, black lives most certainly matter. if you are racist on my page, instant block. i will not hear you out and i will not tolerate you.

intersectionality is necessary in activist spaces. amplifying the voices of the most negatively impacted by harmful systems is a must. and dismantling those systems rather than repurposing them is the only way to actually change our world.

neoliberalism, transphobia, and colonialism have no place in the feminist movement. if you disagree with this sentiment, i recommend reading the trouble with white women by kyla schuller and white tears/brown scars by ruby hamad.

speaking of book recommendations, feel free to ask for some! i have a lot to give.

finally, in regards to shipping discourse, do not fucking harass people. literally just leave people alone. the internet is so easy to curate; if you do not like something, filter it out.

i think that is all of the stuff that is regarded as important on this website/that i think i should mention. if you disagree with my sentiments, you are not welcome on this page and i reserve the right to block you and/or tell you off. if you have any questions or want to know what i think about something else (or if you think i missed something in this introduction) feel free to ask!

[songmingisthighs]

Thank you so much for sharing your opinion on this whole controversy with Ateez. We have very similar opinions on the matter. I am not Desi so I feel it is not right of me to comment on the situation in itself as I am not apart of the affected group. I do however feel it’s acceptable to comment on the downright disgusting treatment so called ‘atinys’ are showing our boys. As much as we all see Ateez as the idols they are it is so important to remember that they are still people too. And people make mistakes everyday, and because of that people are able to grow everyday. I’m somewhat new to the world of K-pop and I haven’t explored much outside of Ateez, but even so I can see that they seem to be one of the ‘better’ groups for lack of a better word. These boys have an incredibly diverse group of fans, with people of all sexuality’s, races, ages etc etc, and they are always very welcoming towards fans. We’ve done the job of making KQ aware of the situation and KQ have taken the necessary actions to handle said situation. If Desi fans say that it’s not enough, or say that they expect personal apologies from the included members, then they have every right to say this. It is not up to non Desi Atiny to comment on what is and isn’t good enough, especially when people are using it to come from a place of hate. These boys are so goddamn precious, they made a mistake, these things happen, they actively want to be better and more inclusive people, having said before that they want to be more educated and want to be made aware of situations just like this one. They don’t deserve the awful treatment they’re getting, and it’s honestly making me incredibly sad and angry that people feel they have the right to treat them this way just because they’re in the public eye. There’s a lot more that I want to say but I’m struggling to find the right words to express what I’m thinking, especially when I’m feeling how I’m feeling. But again, thank you so much for sharing your opinion on the matter, it’s nice to know I’m not alone in my thinking.

🫶🏼

oh god yea frfr i'm not desi too so i'm not even talking about the desitinys being upset but it's more towards the people who took things like 100 steps too far and being such hypocrites IQBSJSJS so i'm glad some of us see eye to eye to eye to eye

i do hope this doesn't traumatize you tho bc frfr most of tumblrtinys are cool people and i'm excluding myself bc i'm just a pure bitch. it's so different like i was on twt when i saw the whole thing unfold and one thing i noticed was that rn a lot of twtinys are being "apologetic" bc now san is receiving death wishes ON HIS DAMN BIRTHDAY IN THE MIDDLE OF TOUR SEASON like fucking point me to a direction i have a guard dog who can do my dirty work (he's a shih tzu and the best he can do is fart into people's faces or best case scenario, mouths)

and really based off of the asks on my blog and the non popular tweets during the whole shenanadoodles, i can sense that a lot of us are actually mature enough to assess this situation so HOW THE FUCK DID SHIT BECOME THIS MESSY ????? my dude i can't even express how bad i feel for san and not just because his damn hair dye seeped into his white jacket on the concert yesterday but like he truly don't fucking deserve this, he's one of the sweetes people with the straightest principle and morality like FUCKING USE YOUR HEAD

but anytime booboo, my ask box is always open for random ass shit i can't even categorize anything anymore

#smt answer #anon ask

[mouthpoisons]

my opinion on just the slur moment is really mixed too, i think overall im glad they did it, bcs viks story very very explicitly being about ableism is sooo fucking like i have a white knuckle gorilla grip on it at all times if you didnt already notice. and you cant have a political conflict story without any social inequality whatsoever, that just doesnt work. they had to pick a group to have shit happen to them, and they picked a working class who are forced to live in such disgusting horrendous conditions that a lot of them end up disabled

within the context of the absolute nuclear horrendous takes that are ''diversity was important to us and theres no oppression in this world <3'' and ''a word for gay probably doesnt exist in this world bcs gay people arent oppressed'' though... the stuff vik has going on loses some of its ugly-catharsis points because that way of thinking just displays a fundamental lack of understanding of how cultures and identities form

the twitter thread that explained the writing teams stance towards inclusivity and a lack of oppression in runeterra bcs its a Fantasy World while not giving any mention to the ableism and classism they absolutely did choose to include and turn into major worldbuilding and plot details... it makes me move away from the writers having a necessary understanding of their duty of care towards disabled experiences (and the experiences of other irl disenfranchised groups) and. in the direction of ''they made him say that about himself just to be shocking or something'' or even worse ''they dont know thats a slur to begin with'' or ''they dont care or someone forgot that disabled people actually like. exist irl and are watching their show too''

#post #its a difficult one ik one of the writers making a twitter thread and maybe just not including everything #doesnt represent the whole team but not being recognised while serving as this universes scapegoat doesnt #feel fantastic #a bit of due diligence would be nice

[akindplace]

I've always thought the saying "you need to love yourself before you can be loved" was entirely unfair because it makes me scared that I won't ever have someone love me because I still can't figure out how to love myself.

Eh, I think the idea was that you to know when you deserve more when you love yourself or at least when you do not hate yourself so much, when you care for yourself at some capacity. It is not actually necessary because often being loved is not something you can actively control, right? People love you or they don't, it is mostly up to them what they feel for you. It is up to us to accept that love, to notice when people call it "love" but it is actually abuse.

It is important to know what love should be like, how it should care and respect you, instead of only hurting you. It is important for us to see red flags, right? It is important to know what good love is, what love we deserve, to not settle for half-ass declarations of love that never come to be anything other than words with no meaning.

But you can know all that, have a good relationship, be loved, and still have self-esteem issues, still not be able to love yourself completely (that is a lot of hard work!), to be depressed, anxious, in pain...

I think the saying had some good intentions when people started saying it, but honestly nowadays it is used to shame people who have personal issues into "suddenly becoming confident and happy or else they will be alone forever, forget mental illness, forget therapy, just love yourself and you will have a romantic relationship". Honestly, the saying is usually meant in that way and it's toxic positivity, and not inclusive at all of people who have personal issues.

People who haven't built up their self-love are not going to be lonely, they can be loved. It is important to see red flags, to know what love is, but that isn't something you necessarily learn by loving yourself. You should know boundaries, you should know what abuse is, you should know how people should be treated, you should know about respect and honestly you can learn about all that in other ways. Self-love isn't the one thing you need to have so you can have a relationship.

TLDR; You should know that you deserve love, even when you cannot love yourself.

This turned out to be a rant on how the saying kind turned into shaming people with self-love issues.

#answered #anon #about self love #about love #about relationships #cw abusive relationships

[forlix]

HELLO SUNSHINE ! hope you are doing okay, and yes I'll send you the abstract again, I indeed had forgotten, I'm sorry! here it is:

"This study seeks to understand how multiculturalism and the question of identity influenced both the unification and the dissolution of Yugoslavia. This monograph deals with the period of pre-unification, unification itself, and after dissolution. Describing the historical issue first,with a focus on ethnic and multicultural relations in the region as determining factors for understanding events. Thus, a specific period will be dealt with during the administration of Josip Broz Tito, which lasted for forty years and succeeded in managing relatively well the conflictual situation that was the relationship between the various ethnic groups and its model of self-management, which was revolutionary for the time. Finally, it will be analyzed how the international system received such experience, the answers to the situations presented, as well as the reasons that led to the non-consolidation and permanence of the self-management process, culminating in its dissolution as of 1990. It is also necessary to show that the region was recomposed based on the criterion of the national identities present, an aspect that interfered in the correlation of regional forces, giving a new physiognomy in its political-administrative map. This leads to an understanding of the paths taken during the twentieth century."

also, sorry for he delay on the response a lot of things happened but now it's kinda okay, so I get to write and read for this week! once I'm done and posted the jeongin story I'll send your way so you can read it if you want, I'll never pressure you 💜

thank you for always be this kind and loving! you deserve more than the words I could ever write. I hope you have a good day/night, and that only the best reach your way! everyone deserves good thing happening their way, good people deserve it even more! thank you for making your page a safe place to anyone that may come by. please take care of yourself okay? 💜

-🐼

helloooo my panda anon, my sunshine, my min to my lix :') did you see the tiktok they made together recently? i thought of you hehe we are so cute

this abstract is SO INTERESTING, are you kidding me? i wish i had more to say about it but i know little to nothing about yugoslavia; thank you for piquing my interest in learning more about this topic. but i definitely have much to say about the topics of multiculturalism and the question of identity, which are becoming more important the more globalized the world becomes. i'm american, and so much of our population comprises immigrants or the descendants of immigrants that it's a quintessential part of living here to embrace and engage with different cultures and identities, yet diversity and inclusivity continue to be treated like privileges rather than rights. i'm sure it's a totally different environment from the one that you studied, but i'm wondering if other multicultural populations like that of the u.s. would be able to learn from the aspects of yugoslavia's self-management model that succeeded or avoid the aspects that failed. ANYWAYS not me going into thesis statement mode on instinct,,,, tl;dr this sounds amazing and you are amazing, thank you for sharing 🤍

and don't ever ever apologize for a delay in responding, my love, have you met me? i'm so grateful that you continue to check in periodically at all. please do send me the fic if you still wish for me to read it and/or have posted it already! i assure you it would be my utmost joy and pleasure

you are actually the sweetest human being in the world and i hope the universe brings you nothing but wonderful things. i'm so glad that you think of my page as a safe space; it is people like you, truly, who make it so. take care of yourself as well, angel! sending you the biggest hug through the screen

#*inbox #🐼 anon