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#the instances i'm referring to are as follows:
ssahotchnerr · 2 months
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public displays of affection - aaron hotchner x reader
the aaron take on the derek/penelope workplace seminar (episode of reference: 9x12)
cw; bau!reader, established relationship, suggestiveness, small allusions to sex, fluff <3, bau family banter, aaron being mortified😭, references to the episode wc; 1.4k
"penny," you shut one of your files, placing it in your desktop organizer. "you're creating a draft."
"this is bad. oh so very very bad." she stammered, continuing to pace back and forth, "i'm just mentally preparing myself to be humiliated in front of the entire unit. for the second time, may i add. god, who blabbed this time?
"what did you even do?" spencer chimed in, his head lifting from his current read.
"i don't know." she exclaimed, an exasperated breath leaving her. "nothing out of the ordinary, so that means anything is possible. you," she pointed at morgan, who casually was making his way over to the rest of you. "we're in big trouble."
"this could be totally unrelated." jj reassured her. you agreed, giving penelope a nod and a hopeful smile. "there was no footnote on what this meeting consisted of."
"well, there was no footnote last time. and to this day, i still get asked what flarpy blunderguff means." she huffed, crossing her arms and turning towards derek. "i love you my hunk of a man, but this. this is a nightmare."
as two began rolling around, the bullpen filled in anticipation for the seminar, a light hum in the room as conversations were exchanged back and forth in waiting.
in addition, a presence soon stilled beside you. one always familiar, but surprising under the current circumstances.
"what are you doing here?" you looked up to find aaron's gentle eyes. he took a seat on the edge of your desk, just behind your chair.
meetings like these - usually below aaron's pay grade. he hadn't needed to attend the last, infamous meeting for instance, HR meetings were normally things he had prior knowledge of, or simply not worth his valuable time as unit chief.
"i got the email as well." aaron's hand found the back of your neck, his fingers comfortably kneading into your always-tense muscles. every so often, his hand would brush to your shoulder, and then back again.
"oh no," penelope slapped onto derek's arm, the smack covered up by slim buzz within the vicinity. "what did we do?"
"looks like we're about to find out." dave stated, his eyes following the woman who had just entered the bullpen, moving to the front.
the notorious HR lady of the bureau, nancy, sauntered over to the large presentation screen set before the clusters of desks. not wasting a second to get down to business, she turned toward the crowd of eager agents.
"thank you all for your attendance and time, this shouldn't take too long." she started, poised and head held high.
penelope took a deep breath.
"this afternoon's presentation," nancy clicked a button on her remote, displaying the title page. "public displays of affection."
oh no.
aaron's hand, which had continued to smooth out the stiffness in your neck, halted immediately.
"as you all- most are well and should be aware, keeping conduct professional in the workplace is a must to prevent disruptions within the environment. displays of affection - examples upcoming - can cause extreme feelings of uncomfortableness amongst your colleagues, and can be distracting nonetheless. all of which, creates a...."
just as last time, she clicked her remote. and adjacent to penelope and derek's presentation, in big letters across the top:
"hostile work environment."
derek immediately snorted under his breath, inviting others to openly laugh as well. despite the urge to shoot daggers at him, you were utterly incapable of pulling your attention away from the front.
it wasn't a top secret ordeal - everyone could infer the pair this presentation was centered around, and be correct.
"and so," nancy exhaled a breath, her eyes darting in your and aaron's shared direction for a smidge second, causing the heat to grow in your face and body. "i urge everyone to refrain from the following,"
similar to yours, aaron's face burned, comparable in color to his tie. he let out a nearly inaudible, nervous cough from above you.
"sitting on one's lap, while working on caseloads - not appropriate."
more laughter rippled through the division.
"oh god." you mumbled under your breath, uncomfortably crossing a leg over the other as your palm covered the bottom half of your face.
contrary to the present belief, aaron was a stickler on pda.
for the first few months of your relationship, he hadn't dared to touch your arm, back, anything in order to maintain such affection within the field; it was reserved for closed doors at home only. he loved you, but he wanted to uphold his reputable professional nature.
but as time moved forward and your relationship progressed, he hadn't gotten sloppy, per se, but more relaxed or lenient was a better way to put it.
some displays were accidental by habit. if he wanted to give you a quick peck, depending on the situation and setting, he would. seated beside each other, he would lovingly squeeze your thigh under the table, if you needed the encouragement or if you made him proud in some regard. if he were feeling frisky one day - sure he would do something, just to rile you up for later, to each of your benefit. so on and so forth.
and if he was initiating affection, you took that as the all-clear to do the same. in variation, of course.
so more often than not, it was in private. just not... always. and the lock on aaron's office door often came in handy for that.
"prolonged kisses in the bullpen, elevator, not appropriate."
once. you were caught once in a (very) heated kiss in the elevator.
as you and aaron cowered in embarrassment, both dave and morgan looked far too amused for their own good. the rest of the team - raised, entertained eyebrows, tossing glances to one another while trying to constrain their laughter.
nancy swallowed, as if she needed strength to deliver the next point, "grabbing one's behind when going up the stairs, not appropriate."
another mortified cough exited aaron.
she went on, giving more examples of affection aaron and you were completely guilty of. and if just one singular time wasn't enough, she went-forth on the explanation that such displays can cause a barrier within the workplace.
when you thought it would never cease, nancy finally delivered her ending statement, "save it for home people, thank you."
and with that, as well as the screen darkening, everyone disbanded, low murmurs and chuckles filling the room as each went about their usual routine.
you looked up at aaron in absolute horror, whose face was currently in his hand. but even that didn't hide the blush brewing within his face, his ears flushed wildly as well.
you reached up, grabbing his wrist to pry his hand away.
"nuh uh uh," derek grinned as he wiggled his index finger at the two of you, imitating nancy to a tee. "not appropriate."
"you hush." you got to your feet, allowing you to remove his hand more easily. you cautiously prolonged your hold, brushing your thumb across his knuckles before letting it drop. "aaron?"
his brown eyes found yours, full of embarrassment. "that was..."
"humiliating?"
he nodded, his head accelerating in speed with each nod, "yeah. that's the term i would use."
"oh you poor dears." penelope breathed out, the one compassionate member of the team.
"damn." emily chuckled.
derek cackled again, clearly not ready to let this go. honestly, he probably never would. "thought we didn't notice when you pulled the blinds in the office, did ya?"
aaron gave him a pointed glare, putting a very quick end to the conversation. just as the rest, the team carried on with their remaining work for the day - you and aaron remaining frozen in place.
but surprisingly enough, a laugh did escape him, shaking through his chest. "guess i have to tone it down a little, huh?"
"oh thank god," you blurted out and exhaled in relief, a small smile forming on your lips. "i thought this would cause an avoidance arrangement or something." you teased - partially.
"of course not. some reservation, maybe, but not avoidance." aaron laughed quietly again, a sigh escaping him.
"that was bad, wasn't it?" a slightly pinched expression took form on your face, your cheeks tinting once more.
"it wasn't... good." aaron admitted with some hesitation, but his brown eyes still glowed despite the lines of troublesome. his hand found yours - after scanning that no one was paying attention to the two of you - giving it a squeeze. "but hey, out of problems to have, i'd take showing my love for you any day."
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crows--den · 2 years
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Ok good talk, Teo.
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girlrotterr · 1 month
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Ultraviolence pt.3
*⁀➷ read part one!
farm!ellie x fem!reader TW!: references to alcohol and substance abuse, along with instances of emotional and verbal abuse. Mentions of miscarriage and PTSD. a/n: the final chapterr!! so internally grateful for all the support this series received. I appreciate you angels & send all my love
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You took a deep breath, choosing your words carefully.
‘We both knew the risks. You didn't force me to come with you. We made that decision together," you said, trying to reason with her.
She shot you a glare, her eyes red and filled with anger. "Don't make fucking excuses."
The room turned cold. She wiped away her tears with a rough motion, revealing a hardness in her eyes that hadn't been there before.
"I lost everything. All those people I killed, all the pain I caused, and for what? Nothing. Revenge didn't bring them back. It just left me with a trail of fucking corpses."
You reached out to touch her shoulder, hoping to provide some comfort, but she shrugged it off. 
"Don't fucking touch me. I don't need your pity," Ellie snapped, her voice cutting through the air like a blade.
The warmth that once existed between you had disintegrated, leaving only a cold, bitter residue. She stood up abruptly, storming out of the kitchen. You stood there for a moment, feeling the sharp sting of Ellie's words. For one final time.
Taking a deep breath, you composed yourself and followed after her into the living room. Ellie took a seat on the couch, retrieving a cigarette from her pocket. Her hands trembled as she attempted to calm herself. With puffy eyes, she avoided your gaze, her eyes darting away from yours.
"Ellie, I can't stay here like this. I can't watch you destroy yourself," you said, your voice steady "If you won't let me help, if you won't let anyone in, then I can't be a part of this. I can't keep trying to fix something that you're determined to break."
Ellie turned to face you, anger simmering in her eyes, a huge shift from the vulnerability she had shown moments ago. "So that's it, huh? You're going to leave?"
"It's not about leaving," you replied, meeting her gaze. "I’ve realized that I can't force you to change. I can't make you confront the past if you're not willing to face it yourself."
Her jaw tightened. 
"I can't do it anymore, Ellie!" you continued, your voice with frustration. "I can't stand by and watch you destroy everything, including our family. The constant anger, the distance, it's not fair to him, it's not fair to me."
A flicker of anxiety passed through Ellie's eyes, so quick you almost missed it. But it was there, a crack in her facade. 
"I found a place," you confessed, "Maria.. helped me. It's a small house.” 
Ellie clenched her fist tighter, her nails practically piercing right through her skin. "You can't just take him away from me."
"I'm saving what's left of our family." you shot back, "He deserves a stable environment, one where he doesn't have to-."
Ellie suddenly got up, her eyes begging, yet her body language was saying something entirely different. Trembling, her fists clenched, and her gaze locked onto you with worry. No, it wasn't just worry—it was raw, genuine fear. The very fear she dreaded most was happening right before her eyes. You were leaving. Taking your son with you, and leaving her behind. Ellie's hands quivered, her nails digging so deeply into her palms that they burned. 
Her breathing came in shallow gasps, her chest rising and falling rapidly as she struggled to calm herself. "Please,.." she whispered, "Don't…leave..me"
"Ellie..." Your voice quivered, torn between your own fear and wanting to comfort her.
But she wasn't finished. With desperation, she took a step closer, her voice trembling as she continued, "You can't do this. p-please, don't take him away from me. I-I..need you both. I can't... I can't do this alone."
You felt a lump form in your throat. 
"We’re leaving." you finally said, your voice remaining firm. 
Desperation and anger flashed in Ellie's eyes. "No, no, no!" she cried out, her voice turning into a panicked plea. "You can't just abandon me. I-Iwon't let you."
Ellie bolted towards the stairs, her footsteps hard against the wooden steps. Panic rushed through you, followed behind her, fearing what she might do next. As you reached the top of the staircase, you saw Ellie rushing towards your child's room.
"Ellie, stop!" you shouted, your heart racing.
But she ignored you, flinging open the door to your child's room. Panic and confusion gripped you as you chased after her. 
"Ellie, please!" you pleaded, your voice trembling with desperation.
She turned to face you, desperation on her face. "If you leave, I'm taking him with me. I won't let you take him away!"
Your heart thumped in your chest as Ellie's trembling hands reached for your child. In a flash, she scooped him into her arms, holding him protectively against her chest. His innocent eyes widened in confusion, fear surrounding him.
"No! Ellie, stop it!" you cried out, reaching out to her.
But she clutched him tighter, her voice trembling. "No! n-not yet.. It's too soon! I... I haven't... I haven't..."
The realization struck you. Ellie’s words trailed off. She was lost in a moment of painful memory. She was thinking of Joel. The wounds of their relationship still raw and unhealed. Your child in her arms was a symbol, a fragile connection to the past that haunted her.
"Ellie..." Your voice softened, the weight of her grief finally making sense."It's not him. He's safe. You're safe."
Tears welled up in Ellie's eyes as she clung to your child, her shaking grip. "I... I couldn't save him. I couldn't save him..."
The weight of her words settled in the room, and you finally understood the depth of her pain. It wasn't just about you leaving; it was the fear of losing the people she cared about, a fear rooted so far deep in the scars of her past.
Your child, looked up at Ellie with innocent eyes. "What's wrong mommy ?" the small voice asked. 
Ellie's gaze shifted to him, pain and guilt plastered on her face. She couldn't find the words to answer, her throat tightening.
"Mommy, why are you sad?" he continued, he needed to know what was wrong. He couldn’t stand to see Ellie like this. 
Ellie's breath hitched, pulling the child even closer to her chest. The room seemed to trap her, the walls closing in as if they were tightening, her grip on your child's arms remained. As if he was her only form of escape. 
"I..I won’t.." Ellie mumbled, almost to herself, her voice strained.
Your child’s worry grew, he turned to look at you, needing an answer. You knew you had to do something, but what?
"Ellie, please, just listen to me," you pleaded, taking slow steps towards her.
"g-get away!" she yelled, holding onto your child even tighter, her hands clenching around his small arms.
"ow!" he yelped, a sudden pain in his voice.
Your heart raced with a surge of panic. You didn’t want him to be involved in this.
"please, just let him go, and we can talk about thi-"
"Shut the fuck up!" Ellie yelled, her voice vibrating throughout the entire room.
Your child's eyes began to water, his anxiety growing with each passing second. He didn't know what to think or do. 
"m..mommy, i-it hurts.." he hiccuped, looking up at Ellie with stained cheeks, tears streaming down like rivers.
Ellie's mind was in complete disarray, buzzing with countless thoughts that raced with chaos. Her hands shook, her body unable to find stillness. Her eyebrows furrowed as she struggled to gather herself. Adrenaline surged through her veins, her breaths coming in heavy uneven gasps. She couldn't focus on anything anymore; all her senses were useless. 
A ringing began to buzz in her ears, her eyes frantically scanning the room, catching a glimpse of you, your lips moving as you tried to speak to her. But the ringing was so unbearable, drowning out any sound.
"ELLIE!" your voice pierced right through it. 
───
“ELLIE!” 
Ellie snapped her neck towards the shout of her name, eyes widening as she took in the sight before her.
There you stood, hands trembling, your shirt drenched in blood, the crimson liquid slowly seeping onto the damp grass. Your eyes were wide, on the verge of bursting. filled with an overflow of tears. Your legs shook, threatening to give way at any moment, knees weakened by the sharp pain from the blade lodged in your lower stomach, Your throat felt strained, as if ellie’s name was all you could speak. 
Frantically, Ellie ran towards you, her heart pounding against her chest. With each step, she stumbled, her breath quickening.
no..No..NO!! 
As Ellie reached you, a rush of tears burst from your eyes, your face covered in salty droplets that slid down your quivering lips.
"Fuck, fuck, fuck!" Ellie exclaimed in panic, her hands moving frantically as she tried to figure out what to do. "H-Here, baby, lay down," she urged, her voice trembling as she tried to stay strong. 
Ellie gently guided you to lie down, your entire body ached with anguish, trembling as you grunted in pain, trying to remain as quiet as possible. Not wanting to attract any attention. 
You were completely surrounded by the WLF. 
You sank into the damp grass, the earth stained with blood, the sharp scent of iron filling the air. Ellie knelt beside you, her hands trembling as she stared down at you.
"I need something to stop the bleeding," she muttered to herself, her eyes darting around.
"s-stay with me, please," she pleaded, her voice trembling with fear. With swift movements, she tore fabric from her own shirt, clutching it tightly in her shaking hands.
"I'm going to t-take it out... okay?" she said nervously, her gaze fixated on your stomach.
You weakly reached for Ellie's, your own hands completely bloodied from clutching your abdomen. Ellie looked at you, her eyes watering, her gaze filled with terror.
"I got you." she said, leaning forward and placing a kiss on your forehead. The softness of her pink lips being the only warm sensation your body felt. You closed your eyes, hiccuping as silent sobs shook your body. 
You nodded weakly, unable to utter a single word. The pain was too overwhelming, threatening to consume you if you let out even a whimper.
Ellie nodded back, a gesture of readiness. She placed her right hand on your stomach, shaking uncontrollably as she made contact with your cold skin. 
You brought the side of your hand up to your mouth, pressing your teeth into it to suppress the agony.
Ellie reached for the handle of the blade, her hand hesitating as if she were afraid of the very object she needed to hold. Her heart sank as she drew closer to it, her hands finally gripping around it with a shaky grip.
She knew what she was about to do. Pulling out the blade meant unleashing a flow of blood, a sign that your baby's life would be lost along with it. It meant she would have to endure yet another loss of someone she deeply loved.
Ellie's mind raced, her breath quickening with every passing thought. Tears streamed down her face, her chest rising rapidly with the weight of the decision before her. Her lips quivered as she bit down on her bottom lip. 
What she would give to be the one to die instead. 
The baby she could've raised.
Her hand tightened around the knife.
The baby she had dreamed of carrying.
Swiftly, Ellie pulled the blade, the sharp "shling!" sound muffling your groans as blood began to pour out.
The baby she would've killed for.
Urgently, Ellie applied the torn cloth to your wound, her hands working quickly despite their shaking. She pressed down firmly, trying to control the flow of blood as best as she could.
You clenched your teeth, suppressing the cries of pain that wanted to escape your lips. Every movement sent waves of agony through your body, but you gritted your teeth and endured. Your face was completely drenched in tears and snot. 
You had lost everything—the future you had daydreamed about.
Ellie's arms shook as she patched you up, her body convulsing with sobs, her bottom lip bitten to muffle them. Tears streamed down her face, falling onto your skin.
"Ellie.." you whispered, your voice barely a breath. 
───
"Ellie.." you repeated.
You stood before her, your presence causing her eyes to flicker as if what was before her was unreal. Ellie's gaze dropped to your child, his head resting gently against her chest. For a moment, it seemed she had disappeared entirely, lost in a memory. 
"I..." Ellie began, her voice choked as she looked back up at you, tears glistening in her eyes. "I can't keep running from it.." 
"I need to face it.” Ellie continued, her tone serious. "For you, for our child... for myself. I need to change, to become someone you can rely on, someone worthy of your love."
Your heart pounded, each beat a flicker of hope. You realized in that moment, the true reason you couldn't fully accept Ellie's presence this morning. Despite her being in bed with you after months of being absent, she remained unrecognizable. She wasn't the woman you had fallen for, the woman who once held a place in your heart. 
"I'll.. find you again, I promise," Ellie said finally, her voice firm. "No matter what it takes, I'll find my way back to you."
Finally. 
Ellie's words created something, a belief that maybe, just maybe, things could change for the better.
With tear-filled eyes, you gently squeezed her hand.
— 
Tommy’s truck sat parked in the driveway, hauling boxes filled with you and your child’s belongings. With a heavy sigh, you struggled to carry one of the larger boxes towards the truck.
“That’s a heavy one, let me get it for ya,” Tommy offered, stepping forward to take it.
“Thank you,” you replied gratefully
“No problem,” he responded with a chuckle, making his way towards the truck. 
As Tommy loaded the remaining boxes, you took a moment to glance around the mostly-empty house. Most of its decorations had been packed away, leaving the space feeling a bit bare., Ellie’s belongings being the only ones untouched. 
"Mama! Mama!" Your child's voice yelled, filled with excitement as he raced towards you. "I checked the whole house and no more boxes!"
You smiled proudly at him. "Thank you, honey," you said, reaching out to ruffle his hair as he giggled happily.
You had explained to him that you were moving into a new home, and that Ellie wouldn't be joining you right away. Instead, she would stay at the farmhouse, protecting it from monsters until she was sure it was safe. Only then would she come to live with you. It was the easiest way to explain the situation to him, and he had undoubtedly understood.
"Hey," Ellie called out as she walked outside 
"Hey," you greeted, offering her a warm smile. "We're all ready to go."
She nodded softly, her gaze shifting to your child. "Did you secure the house?"
Your child giggled, rushing towards Ellie and embracing her tight hug before doing a playful salute. "All clear!"
Ellie chuckled, ruffling your child's hair playfully. "Good job, kiddo."
"Alright, everything's packed and ready to roll," Tommy announced, clasping his hands together. "Oh, but uh, mind if I use yer bathroom real quick?"
Ellie nodded, gesturing towards the house. "Door to your left."
"Gotcha," Tommy replied, hurrying inside.
Ellie approached you, her steps hesitant. She reached for your hand, her touch gentle as she caressed it softly with her thumb. The sensation of your skin against hers stirred something deep within her, a longing she hadn't realized she harbored so intensely.
"I..." Ellie hesitated. She wanted to say the words, those three simple words that held so much. But she knew she didn't have the right to utter them, not yet. She had to prove herself, show you that she was worthy of saying them, and that you could believe in them too.
As you gazed into her eyes, you saw her determination. It was a silent promise, to do whatever it took to earn back your trust and love. 
"make us..believe again," you said, meeting her gaze. 
Ellie nodded firmly.
You offered Ellie a final smile before lifting your child into your arms. "Take care, Els,"
"Take care, Mommy! Keep the monsters away!" your child chimed in.
"I will," Ellie replied, her voice filled with reassurance as she waved goodbye to both of you while you walked towards the truck.
Tommy emerged from the house, embracing Ellie before stepping back and shaking her hand firmly. "Be safe," he said.
"Don't worry," Ellie responded, feeling the paper Tommy slipped into her hand. "I am."
With a firm nod, Tommy walked away towards the truck, getting inside and starting the engine. As the truck began to move, Ellie waved goodbye, your child's head poking out of the window as he waved back. The truck slowly but surely disappeared into the distance,.
Ellie lowered her hand from waving goodbye, clutching the paper tightly in her grasp. With heavy steps, she entered the house, shutting the door behind her with a loud thud. Throwing the folded paper onto the kitchen table, she quickly ascended the stairs to your old shared bedroom.
Opening the door, Ellie headed directly for the closet, rummaging through it until her fingers found the familiar grip of her shotgun—the same one she had drunkenly tried finding that one night. Gotcha.
Snatching up her packed backpack, Ellie hurried back downstairs, clutching her shotgun firmly. At the kitchen table, she placed her bag on its surface, extracting shotgun shells and loading them into the weapon. Placing the gun on the table before unfolding the paper.
A tourist map of Seattle.
Ellie's lips curled into a smirk as she scanned the map thoroughly. "Huh, you’re still there," she muttered, eagerness coursing through her veins.
Stuffing the map into her pocket and slinging her backpack over her shoulders, Ellie grabbed her shotgun once more. With ease, she cocked the weapon, the familiar click echoing.
She was truly going to face her past.
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strawberrystepmom · 6 months
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pairing: werewolf!kakashi hatake x f!reader
word count: 5.2k
about: your boyfriend leaves you alone for one week every month and you can never seem to put your finger on why. convinced he’s cheating, you book a romantic getaway to pin him down and figure him out. while preparing to leave, you instead discover the hairy secret he has been keeping from you all this time.
contents: nsfw - mdni. cw knotting, cw mating, cw breeding kink. miscommunication with resolution, established relationship, piv sex, vaginal fingering, reader has breasts and is referred to as pretty and mate multiple times, reader has pubic hair, few mentions of birth control (reader is on it but method is not specified), sloppy and messy sex (saliva is mentioned but there is no specific instance of spitting)
notes: part of thot-o-ween 2023! ngl i had the most fun writing this one out of the whole group this far and i hope that it shows and you enjoy reading it! thanks for the support the last four weeks and i'm so glad we are getting into the thick of the good stuff now. ♡
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“Don’t be ridiculous, he absolutely adores you.”
Despite the consistent reassurance of your best friend, you aren’t certain that your boyfriend Kakashi does adore you. 
It’s not that he isn’t wonderful because he is. Supportive, serious without being a bore, and surprisingly humble - these are all things it takes no effort for you to feel and say about him. Despite this, you can’t shake the nagging distrust you’ve felt since he told you he’s going on his once a month week long business trip. Unfortunately, this time it coincides with a romantic getaway you tried to book for the two of you as a surprise. Despite days of trying to convince yourself that it’s nothing and you have nothing to worry about with his cyclical departures, you have a really bad feeling. 
“I can’t explain it but my intuition is going crazy. It feels like he’s lying to me.”
Your mind has played through all of the reasonable possibilities for his departure and is now filtering through the unreasonable ones. The “he has a family he’s hiding from me” paranoia pings between your ears like a racing pinball and your friend can tell, her face set in a displeased frown. She has been placating you for the past five months, politely shoving you in the direction of speaking your mind to the man, but she knows you’re uncomfortable with the idea.
She reaches across the small table the two of you sit at, dotted with discarded napkins and cups full of rapidly melting ice, and grabs your hands between hers. You appreciate the gesture and squeeze her fingers with your thumbs, smiling softly. 
“You already know my advice because I’ve given it freely. What you do next is completely up to you.”
Nodding, you know she’s right. She has told you to confront him, to snoop, to follow him and these all sound like wonderful ways to handle the issue in theory. In practice, though? That’s a different story. 
Dropping her hands and picking your phone up from the table, you sigh and open the little green bubble that is the messages app. Kakashi’s thread is at the top of your list and you open it, smiling looking at his sweet wishes of a good evening with your friend. 
Hope you’re having fun. See you soon. 😊
“I booked that cabin before he told me he was leaving, do you think I should still tell him about it?”
Your friend nods firmly, sticking to her earlier advice.
“Yes, you should have told him as soon as you planned the getaway but maybe he can arrange something with work if he knows. It’s still a week out.”
Sighing, you nod in agreement and tap out a message in response to your boyfriend, worrying your lower lip between your teeth.
I know this is kind of off the cuff and you already told me you’re going to be gone but I booked a cabin for all of next week for the two of us. If you can’t make it, I understand. Romantic surprises are so hard sometimes!
The message whooshes and shows as sent, the blue text bubble sitting as heavy as the anxiety in your stomach. It’s long winded and something you probably should have said in person rather than via text but considering how nauseous you already feel anticipating his answer, you think this may have been for the best. You lock your phone and place it back down, not wanting to stare at the screen any longer, and the waitress comes to drop off your check. 
Just as you reach for the little black tray with your receipt, your phone pings and your eyebrows raise. You smile at the waitress as you slide your card onto the tray and send her off, picking up your phone as soon as it’s not rude to do so.
You are so thoughtful. Don’t worry about not saying something sooner, I will see what I can figure out. Thank you for doing something so sweet.
Maybe your mind really has been playing tricks on you. It’s hard to hide your grin as you pass the phone across the table and your friend smiles as she reads as well, holding her hands out and tilting her head.
“See? Good communication is key.”
You know she’s right.
Across town, though, Kakashi paces the floor of his bedroom wondering how the fuck he is going to make this work.
How he ended up landing someone like you is still beyond his rational understanding. You are too good to be true and booking a surprise romantic getaway, in any other situation, would be a gift. A luxury, even. Time spent with you, secluded, watching the autumn leaves fall? He couldn’t dream of anything more but next week simply does not work for him.
Pressing the screen of his phone wildly, he swipes through apps until he finds his moon phase tracker, popping open the calendar to see when exactly the full moon falls. He’ll get more details from you later but if you booked it from Monday to Sunday, he may be able to pull off leaving early but staying for most of the time. The full moon falls on Friday and realistically if he spent the week with you up until Thursday, he may be able to pull it off.
Sighing, he slumps down on the edge of his bed and scrubs his hand over his face. The luck he has had over the last few months hiding his secret from you has been nothing short of fortuitous and he’s glad for your trust in him even though it eats him up to lie about his whereabouts for a week every single month. 
Putting you at risk is the last thing the man would ever want to do so he’s already taking a huge chance trying to make this week work knowing that his hormones are stronger in certain months rather than others. He has felt overcome by his instincts this entire month, it’s the reason he has buried himself in busy work rather than spending his free time with you, but he knows that if he hangs you out to dry this week it could result in him losing you.
That’s simply not an option he’s willing to entertain so he will figure it out despite how it makes his gut twist and his mind race. 
Swiping off of the moon cycle app, he opens his messages and the cursor blinks at him tauntingly while he considers what to say. 
I can come along Monday through Thursday if that’s alright with you?
Tapping the little blue arrow that sends the message off to you, he feels a weight on his shoulders that he can’t quite name. It’s sadness because he knows eventually he’ll have to tell you the truth about himself or let you go but selfishly, he wants to put it off for as long as he possibly can. 
Something about you makes him believe that those old stories his dad told him growing up about their kind having fated mates may have been true. His mother was his father’s mate, she knew of his secret and kept it until the day she died, and despite this harsh world, Kakashi has always kept the smallest kindling of hope that it could be true.
Then he met you and his body all but told him it was, the ruts coming more consistently and stronger, lasting for longer than they ever have. What started as one day a month he had to hide away to keep from exposing himself became two days, and then three, and then an entire week having to seclude himself from you to keep from giving into his more base urges.
Another sigh leaves the man and he taps his feet against the floor beneath them impatiently, clutching his phone in his palm. Three pings in succession make him lift it to his face, squinting slightly thanks to the brightness of the screen, but he smiles reading your words.
Omg yay!!! 
I’m glad to get you for even that long
Thank you for making it work for me
It’ll be a risk but he’s willing to take it to see your pretty smile and to spend time cozied up reading and watching your silly shows and enjoying each other. 
It’ll all be worth it as long as he can keep control.
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The days leading up to the trip pass uneventfully for you but Kakashi feels differently with each hour that passes, especially today.
He’s hot. Cloyingly and overwhelmingly, to the point he has to lay on his couch in nothing but boxers and an old tank top dug out of the back of his dresser drawer to try and cool down. Sweat glistens across his skin and his very bones ache, all of the blood in his body running to his cock and making it impossible for him to think.
When you arrive at his apartment to spend the night in order to make leaving in the morning simpler, you’re shocked to see him lying on the couch with one hand down his boxers halfheartedly playing with his hard cock with one arm thrown over his eyes. His cheeks are pink and he’s panting, only glancing up briefly when the door opens and shuts. He scrambles to sit up but you can tell he’s struggling, his abs tensing with every breath he takes.
“Oh babe, are you alright?”
Dropping your bags at the front door, you rush to his side and kneel on the ground next to where he is strewn across the sofa. You press the back of your hand to his clammy cheek and coo, your other hand tangling in his unruly hair and combing it away from his forehead. He doesn’t uncover his eyes but his breathing is so heavy you worry something is seriously wrong with him.
“Kakashi, what’s wrong? Are you sick? Do you need to go to urgent care?”
He shakes his head and groans, chest still heaving and you notice the tip of his cock peeking above the waistband of his boxers. It looks the same as you remember it in every way except for the color - so red, as if it’s blushing to be spotted and leaking a pool of sticky pre-cum onto the barely exposed skin his tank top isn’t covering. You know the two of you have been too busy the last several days to spend much quality time together and sex hasn’t been possible but you’ve never seen someone so horny they’re actually ill because all current signs point to that being the exact issue.
“Talk to me. What’s going on?”
Embarrassment keeps him from opening up. Kakashi is ashamed of who he is, a beast more than a man, and he’s even more ashamed that he has no way of keeping the secret from you any longer. This rut is too strong and he needs you to leave lest his instincts take over his logic. Pulling his arm from over his eyes, he tries to sit up and you assist him to the best of your ability, his cock throbbing through the thin fabric of his boxers and catching your eye despite your attempts to focus on his handsome face. His stormcloud colored eyes have never looked more tumultuous than they do right now and you reach out to cup his face, only for him to gently grasp your wrist and pull you away.
“Don’t touch me.”
The look on your face, brows pinched and mouth agape, reminds him that he’s a monster and not a man and he should have never brought you into his life. The only thing he can do is hurt you. His grip on your wrist is gentle and he loosens it further but you capture his hand in your own, eyes brimming with tears of frustration. 
“Please tell me what’s happening,” your voice cracks as you speak and you feel warm tears spill down your face, irritated by your own ability to hold it together, but your worst fears are coming true in front of you. Something is off about your boyfriend, you were right, and now he’s denying your touch when he clearly needs it. “I just want to know the truth.”
The truth would be a heavy burden for both of you and the last thing he wants to do is force you to carry it with him despite the pleading look in your eyes and your quivering bottom lip.
“What are you hiding from me?” 
Your voice cracks again and his heart breaks all over, gray eyes trained on your face despite his disgust with himself. Despite the tears and the way they blur your vision, you scan his face and drink in every feature because despite how you feel right now, you love this man. You were hoping to tell him so this week, tucked away in the idyllic countryside, and now you feel the dream slipping away from you.
“Are you married? Do you have another life?”
Desperation for the truth makes your hands shake and he shakes his head, blowing a breath out of his lips. He continues to feel so hot it’s painful, like he’s burning alive, and he is resisting inhaling and choosing to breathe through his mouth instead to keep from catching your scent that is gradually replacing all of the fresh air in the apartment. 
Allowing you to hold his hand, he sits forward and looks you in the eyes. If his gut feeling is real, if what he believes about you is true, then he needs to be honest. If you are his mate then you’ll understand. His voice shakes when he speaks and you scoot forward on your knees, closing the distance between your bodies as much as possible, still kneeling on the floor next to him. 
“I think I should be offended that you’d even think that about me.”
Despite yourself, you laugh and he hides a smile of his own, eyes darting away from you. He pulls you up to your feet and scoots over on the couch, hissing as you occupy his space even further. You are affecting him more strongly than you ever have and his self control thins with every moment that passes. 
“I’m sorry, I just don’t know what else to think. The weeks away, the secrecy, all of it…my mind has filled in the blanks I don’t understand.”
Kakashi nods. He understands, he truly does, knowing that his behavior has been less than exemplary while he has tried to keep his secret from you, but he wants to right his wrong while his mind is still clear. His cock throbs angrily, still pressing against the bottom of his stomach even while he sits, and he knows it’s now or never.
“This is going to sound ridiculous but I’m not what you think I am.”
Tilting your head to the side, you look over your handsome boyfriend and wonder what he could mean. Is he lying about his job or where he’s from? He can tell you aren’t following so he looks away from you and tries again, spitting out the words he himself has tried to run from his entire life.
“I’m only half a man, the other half of me is something else entirely.”
Again, you look lost and he grasps your hands in his own hot ones and chuckles, letting his eyes shut.
“Werewolf. I’m a werewolf.”
He opens his eyes at the sound of your surprised laughter and he’s met with the smile he has found himself falling more in love with every single day, your nose scrunching the way he finds utterly adorable.
“Kakashi…” you start but he squeezes your hands and shoots you a look so earnest you feel guilty for ever questioning him. His cheeks have turned from pink to flaming red, the same color as the engorged tip that is still peeking out over the top of his boxers. Your jaw drops and he groans, eyes falling to your lips. 
“What is happening right now is called a rut and unbonded men like me go through them occasionally.” You nod, understandingly. You are always unfailingly kind and patient to him, more so than he deserves for lying to you all these months. He takes your silence as permission to keep speaking and you remove your hand from his to push his sweat slicked hair off of his forehead, noticing the way his nostrils flare with your touch. “Mine have been happening more frequently than that, though, because of you.”
He expects to have lost you again and to see confusion on your face when his eyes flit up to look at you but instead he sees a sweet, almost nervous, half smile. You don’t know what he means or how you could possibly be affecting his rut but the insinuation that you have this strong of an impact on him is flattering to say the least.
Arousing too, you think while pressing your thighs together. Your focus shifts from the heat in your own core to Kakashi and you lean your head on his shoulder.
“How can I help you through this?”
Your boyfriend is far from shocked that this is your next question for him but he’s grateful, shaking his head and gazing at you nervously from the corner of his eye. You have been surprisingly okay with everything so far, or at least it seems like it, but he worries how you’ll react if he tells you everything. 
“Well, ruts are usually resolved by…well, for lack of a better word, mating.” Nodding, you keep your cheek pressed to his shoulder. “It’s not just, you know, having sex like we usually do. It’s more than that.”
You shift where you sit and he watches you intently, gasping when you move to straddle him and sit on top of his thighs. His bulge presses against your core and you hum, still combing your fingers through his hair. Those instincts he was dreading continue to work at him, his mind all but overwhelmed with the sight and scent of you, and his mouth fills with saliva.
“I can handle a few days of fucking if that’s what will make you feel better,” you smile and press a kiss to his forehead, his hands finding their way to your hips and holding them tightly. His grip is harsher than he has ever touched you but it doesn’t hurt, it’s simply anchoring you in place. “But if that’s not all, I will do anything you need.”
He chuckles lowly, the sound sexy and ringing in your ears, and you instinctively grind down on his lap to relieve the tension of your own arousal. It doesn’t take much to turn you on, not when it comes to him, but the mystery of what you have to look forward to makes your head swim. 
“I, uh…well, I’d need to knot you.”
Your eyebrows raise and your eyes glisten with mischief watching him search for the right thing to say. 
“What does that entail?”
Again he sighs, cock throbbing painfully, and you press your lips to his forehead again. He holds you in place to keep your hips from grinding or bumping against him. His mind is growing fuzzier with each passing second and he doesn’t need the encouragement of your luscious hips to turn him into something he can’t explain away with a conversation. He’s teetering on the edge of it anyway.
“You’re familiar with my dick, of course, but when I’m rutting it’s different. It’s…” He trails off again and you reach down between your bodies, snapping the elastic waistband of his boxers. You smirk, the little temptress that you are, and he groans in defeat.
“Show me.”
Despite his brain telling him not to, he nods, happy to bend to your whims as long as you’re okay with what you see. He shifts where he sits, keeping you anchored to his lap with one hand and he uses the other to pull his boxers down around his thighs. You gasp when you notice the thickened base, larger than you’ve ever seen it and swollen. 
“This is your knot?”
He nods, eyes fixed on your face as you inspect the newest part of his anatomy, to you anyway, and he’s relieved to see nothing but curiosity on your face. Your hand drifts back between your bodies and you squeeze the base of him, his knot almost too large for your hand to wrap around, and his hips buck into the touch. He pants, chest heaving with each breath, but you keep your grip intact.
“So let me make sure I have this right,” you start and he nods to indicate that he’s listening despite the overwhelming pleasure he’s feeling at your touch, lower lip tucked between his teeth. “You need to knot your mate to get through this and feel better?”
He nods again, happy that he doesn’t have to explain the gory details and that you were able to fill in the blanks on your own.
“Do you know who your mate is? Is it someone I need to go find for you?”
Shaking his head, his brows furrow.
“You are my mate. That’s the only explanation why my body is reacting like this to everything about you.”
His voice sounds strained, struggling to hold onto his humanity with each passing second. You mercifully let go of his knot, the relief on his face disappearing when you do, and you lean forward, just inches from his lips.
“Then fuck your mate and feel better, baby.”
Sealing your offer by pressing your lips against his, you’re shocked to find that they’re as hot as his hands, his body, his cheeks, but they feel like home to you and the sloppy sound of your tongues running against one another in open mouthed kisses fill your ears. His grip on your hip tightens and he does his best to remain gentle as he slides you off of his lap and places you on your back on the sofa below you. He pauses for a moment to glance over your face, to be absolutely certain that you still want this, and you smile at him.
Reaching for the button of your jeans, he helps you slide them off and tosses them across the room, your panties coming off with them and the rest of your clothes in short order. He wants to shred them, to see the pieces fall and flutter away from your beautiful body, but he holds himself back.
This is just the beginning of his rut, after all, and the two of you are bound to have a very interesting week ahead of you so he savors this moment, the first that he can be who he really is in front of someone he loves.
It’s freeing and terrifying but his cock is throbbing so painfully he can’t focus on anything else.
“Tell me if I’m hurting you, okay?”
You nod when he slots himself between your spread legs, his boxers and tank top gone. Your cunt pulses at the sight of him, walls clenching almost painfully around nothing as you look at the size of his knot and wonder how you’re meant to fit it inside of you, but he quiets your wandering mind by leaning down and pressing his chest to yours, kissing you sloppily.
“God I love you,” he mutters and you hum in agreement.
His mouth is wetter than it ever has been, a side effect of his current state, and saliva drips down both of your chins and drips into the valley between your breasts. You moan into his mouth and your hips cant and grind against his erection that slips into the cleft between your pussy lips and he feels himself slipping further and further into the basest of his needs, the warm slick seeping from your cunt a nectar he can no longer resist.
Kakashi’s fingers slide down your body, dragging through the pool of saliva between your breasts, down your torso, across your belly button, and finally down to your aching pussy. He makes himself useful quickly, one of his long digits replacing his cock and running through your soaked folds. You whine, hips bucking, and he increases the pressure of his finger as he slides it over your slippery clit.
“My pretty little mate is so eager for me, huh?”
Nodding dumbly, you spread your legs further hoping he’ll take the hint to get moving to where you need him the most. Your eyes dart from his face to where his finger slowly slides inside of you, warmth accommodating the digit with ease thanks to how soaked you are, and sweet relief washes over you. Tipping your head back, you softly moan beneath him while he works you open for him - he’ll need all the help he can get if you’re going to take his knot, and a second finger joins the first while his thumb massages your clit just the way you like.
“Oh baby, you feel so good.”
You nod and hum, hips grinding into every thrust of his fingers in and out of you, the sound of your own sloppy pussy making your breaths stutter. Who would have guessed you’d be so into finding out your boyfriend’s not so little secret? 
His fingers continue to spread you open, shifting and grinding against the spot deep inside he knows drives you wild, and you know you’re about to cum for the first time tonight when his thumb grinds small circles directly into your sensitive clit. Your back arches off of the couch and you clench around his fingers, mumbling his name. His lips find yours, chests still pressed together, and you whimper into his mouth while your legs shake.
Withdrawing his fingers from inside of you, he holds them up and spreads them apart, breaking away from your lips long enough to let you look at the slick that webs between them when he does. You gasp, his fingers glistening with your arousal, and he smirks.
“Think you’re wet enough for me now. Gonna stuff you full of me, is that what you want?”
Nodding, you shiver, catching a glimpse of the hunger in his eyes. He’s the same man you love and have known for all this time but there’s a hunger you can’t wait to sate dancing in his eyes. Your cunt clenches again, finally ready for more after your orgasm, and he reaches between your bodies to position himself at your entrance.
The first inch isn’t anything you aren’t used to but you still gasp as he slides himself inside of you, your nails digging into his shoulder while his blunt head prods at your eager cunt, slipping inside with ease. He sinks deeper and deeper and you gasp breathlessly when he stops just short of the inflamed knot at the base of his cock.
“Can’t go all the way in, not yet,” he explains, grinding his hips and guiding them to make sure the head of his cock brushes against the same spot his fingers were just working. You are breathless, wordless, and completely overwhelmed, deciding to let him have his way with you however he needs. His hands travel the expanse of your waist, settling on either side of it, thumbs brushing the underside of each of your breasts that bounce slightly with each movement he makes.
He isn’t satisfied keeping his hands at your waist, though, and one travels back down your stomach and rests in the hair covering your mound. He loves the feeling of the hair between his fingers and he stretches his hand so that his thumb brushes against your clit, maintaining steady pressure on the bud while he grinds and thrusts in and out of you.
“Baby,” you coo from beneath him and he smirks, leaning forward enough to fold your legs up against your sides. Your thighs are pressed against your torso and your knees rest by your ears, the shift in position making you groan, shocked at how deep he is despite the whole of him not even being inside of you. “Need it all, Kakashi, please.”
How can he deny you when you ask so sweetly and he’s so close to cumming himself?
Shifting his own position so that he is practically mounting you, the front of his thighs pressed to the backs of yours. It feels like you can hardly breathe with how he has you folded but you don’t mind, succumbing to the mind numbing pleasure of the additional inches of him slowly sinking inside of you.
“Tell me if it hurts, okay?”
You nod, licking your lips, and he continues to push what remains of his cock inside of you. His hips grind and shift and you do your best to lift your own to meet him but he stills you with the hand spread over your pelvis, pressing directly on your clit while you stretch to accommodate his knot that slowly slips inside of you.
The stretch is delicious and your lashes flutter against your cheek, eyes rolling back into your skull. He thrusts shallowly, not wanting to release his knot from your warmth, but he gives in quickly and withdraws his knot. You gasp at the loss of the fullness but he’s quick to rectify his wrong, slipping his knot back into you in a quick motion that leaves you breathless. 
“Full,” you spit out with a nod and he chuckles, dipping his head to kiss you again.
“Not as full as I’d like you to be but soon.”
You giggle and kiss him back, his grunts and pants against your lips making you whimper. He’s so sexy and you’re so full of him, your head spinning when his grunts increase in a way you know means that he’s close. His cock spasms inside of you and his thumb doubles down on its ceaseless pace on your clit, his knot swelling as he groans and fills you with his release. His knot remains swollen and keeps his cock in place, the warmth of his spend filling your pussy. 
Reaching for his face, you grab both of his cheeks and kiss him, his thumb still rubbing idle circles on your clit until your hips jerk and the sensation becomes too much. 
“I love you,” you return his earlier sentiment with a smile against his mouth. He smiles and kisses you back, the two of you afraid to part and technically unable with his engorged knot still inside of you.
“We have to stay like this for a little while,” he explains and you nod, eyes glossy and body limp. “Instincts say I have to make it take even if we both know it won’t.”
Smiling, you keep your grip on his face and kiss him again.
“Do you feel better?”
He nods, sighing contentedly.
“For now but we have a long week ahead of us and the full moon is on Friday.”
Dots connect in your head and you giggle, wrapping your legs around his waist while he gradually shifts and rests his head on your chest.
“Good thing we’ll be all alone in the woods then, huh?”
Kakashi chuckles and nods, kissing you between your breasts.
“My thoughts exactly.”
650 notes · View notes
incognitopolls · 11 days
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Genuine question
Why is it bad/frowned upon to submit one poll to several blogs? I personally haven't done it, but I've considered doing it for different responses as not everyone follows the same poll blogs / all of them.
I think it's fine if one person wants to submit their own poll idea to several blogs for whatever reason. The desire for more data is real, especially if it's a burning question that you can't easily get answers to another way. I don't think that's what curiositysavesthecat was referring to, though; it sounds like they've received submissions that are exact copies of polls that are already published, suggesting that it's a different submitter who saw the original poll and thought, "Hey, fantastic idea, let me copy that."
We're talking about two different scenarios:
In the first scenario (what you're talking about), curiousblog1234 wants to know if people sing to their pets. curiousblog1234 sends this poll suggestion to 5 poll blogs because they really want to know and get the biggest sample they can.
In the second scenario (what I'm talking about), curiousblog1234 wants to know if people sing to their pets. curiousblog1234 sends this poll suggestion to generalpollblog7. The poll goes in generalpollblog7's queue and is released 2 weeks later. At that point, opportunistblog55 grabs it and submits it to a few more poll blogs.
There's a secret third scenario in which I do think it would be pretty fair to submit someone else's idea to another poll blog, which is if the question curiousblog1234 submitted to generalpollblog7 was, for instance, "Autistic people, which sense overwhelms you the most often?" and, after it was posted, opportunistblog55 submitted it to autismpolls40 because they knew it would get more targeted responses there.
Submitting duplicates of someone else's polls to other blogs isn't morally bad but it strikes me as just kind of rude if there's not a reason for it. Idk.
Also… this won't be true for every poll blog, but if it's a perfect word-for-word copy of a poll posted on this blog there's a very good chance that it's not the original submitter, because as I've said before I proofread and make slight changes to the wording of most polls to improve clarity at minimum.
Anyway.
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cereovo · 8 months
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A set of very conceptual notes I drafted a while back for someone asking for advice on learning to draw humans. I'm entirely self-taught so this is less of a tutorial and more of a very rambling set of general principles I follow and ideas that helped while I was learning. I figured I'd post it in case anyone else could get use out of it!
I also recommend checking out:
Drawing East Asian Faces by Chuwenjie
How to Think When you Draw (lots of good tutorials in this series)
Pose reference sites such as Adorkastock
Transcript and some elaboration under the cut:
Img 1 - Drawing a face
The two most important elements (at least for me) when drawing a face are the outline of the cheek/jaw and the nose*. I often start with a circle to indicate the round part of the skull, then add a straight like and a 'V' to one side [to create the side of the face and the jaw]. The nose creates an easy template for the rest of the face's features to follow (eyebrows at the top of the nose bridge, eyes towards the center of the bridge, ear lines up to eye) and the placement/direction and overlap with other features is a very simple way to indicate dimension. [A sketch of a face that has been adjusted by moving its parts to create 3 different angles. The following text is underneath:] -Different 3/4th views can be created just by adjusting the position of and amount of overlap between the facial features. - The top of the ear usually lines up with the corner of the eye. Think of how glasses are designed [specifically, how the arms run from the eyeline to the ear] [I go on a tangent in these next few paragraphs] *One thing I see many artists do - not just beginners - is learn how to draw A Person. As in, one singular person with one set of bodily proportions and one set of facial features. It's an issue that runs a bit deeper than 'same face syndrome' because sometimes these artists can draw more than one face, they're just not very representative of [the diversity present across] real people. Part of the reason I'm talking more about how to think about approaches to drawing - rather than showing specific how-to's - is because there is no one correct or right way to draw a person. The sooner you allow yourself to explore variety - fat people, old people, people of color, people with [conventionally] 'unattractive' features - the easier it'll be! Artists often draw their own features honestly and without [harmful] caricature, so it's always a good idea to look at art made by the kinds of people you're trying to draw if you're ever unsure about how to handle something. In general, it's far more important to learn how to interpret a variety of forms than to learn how to replicate the Platonic Ideal of the Human Body.
Img 2 - Stuff that helped me
Jumping into drawing humans (faces or otherwise) straight from photo reference can be overwhelming. The trick is to simplify forms into shapes - but even this concept is sort of abstract and it may be hard to know where to begin. Good news - Thousands of other artists have already figured it out. [When starting out] I needed to learn from photo reference AND artists I admired in order to improve. [When looking at stylization you are inspired by] ask yourself: WHY does this simplification work? How can I translate it into a different pose? Instead of copying what you see in a photo reference exactly, try to focus on the general forms first. My two biggest style inspirations for humans while learning to draw them were Steven Universe and Sabrina Cotugno's art. SU gets a lot of hate [in this instance I was specifically referring to a time on tumblr when the art was knocked for 'losing quality'] but its style does a great job of simplifying anatomy in a way that still portrays a diversity of bodies + features. [Extremely simplified drawings of Lapis, Steven, and Amethyst] SU characters are still identifiable- and still read as 'human' - even when reduced to just a few lines!
Img 3 - Things I keep in mind while drawing side profiles
- Eyebrows + eyes close to the 'edge' of the face - Forehead needs enough room for a brain - Eye is > shaped from the sides - Mouth kinda halfway [between the nose and the chin] but closer to the nose - Skin/fat exists under the jaw [and connects to the neck] - neck is about one half the width of the whole head - the back of the skull always sticks out a bit further than you might expect - Sometimes less is more - contours exist on every face, but drawing them in may make your character seem much older than they're supposed to be. However, it's a good idea to use them when you *want* your character to look old! These are very general notes- every face is different and has different proportions [and playing around with them creates unique and interesting character designs]
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skzhua · 18 days
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a price i'm willing to pay | part 27 - play pretend?
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MASTERLIST
pairing: ceo!bang chan x entrepreneur!reader
genre: social media!au, arranged marriage, fake relationship, fluff, angst.
warnings: swearing, might have suggestive bits.
summary: following a scandal threatening the survival of your business, you have no choice but to associate yourself with a competitive company.
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Needless to say, you were stressed. Even if Chan’s building was not that far from yours, the few minutes you had to wait for him were agonizing. Moving your knee up and down, biting your bottom lip as you stared at the time, picking the skin around your nails… There wasn’t a thing you weren’t doing in attempt to calm yourself.
“You good?” Changbin questioned you as he was heading out for his own lunch break.
“Yup, never been better,” you sent him a thumbs up but by the look on his face, he was not convinced in the slightest.
“I’m going for fried chicken; do you want me to bring you some?”
You swooned at the gesture but shook your head no. “Chan and I will eat together.”
The disappointment was obvious on his face but he smiled nonetheless, waving at you as he walked out. You almost felt bad until you remembered the messages exchanged with Chan. You had no idea what he wanted to talk about. Did he want to discuss your future projects? Was he regretting collaborating with you? Or worst, did he want to divorce you after realizing he made a mistake?
So many things ran through your mind that you didn’t take notice of Chan standing tall in front of your desk, blazer slouched over his shoulder. Once your eyes set on him, you swallowed thickly upon taking in how fucking handsome he was. There were times you could refrain yourself from such thoughts, but you were all over the place today.
“Really? You’re checking me out right now?” he sighed in disappointment, although he still had a hint of amusement in his tone.
“I’m not,” you argued even if you knew the blush on your face would betray you.
“Sure, sweetheart,” he chuckled. “Shall we go?”
“Where?”
He perked an eyebrow up. “To eat..?”
“Right,” you cleared your throat before gathering your jacket and purse clumsily.
There was no denying it; this was the cutest sight Chan had had of you so far. Still, he tried to not let it show through and guided you out to the café nearby. You chose a booth that was a bit further from the other tables so you could have some sort of privacy. You sat down, legs jittering under the table, and motioned the seat across from you for Chan to sit on. Only, as is he was intentionally testing your patience and making you even more nervous on purpose, he shook his head and walked to the lineup at the cash register. From there, he sent a small smile to your direction but you could only roll your eyes. This was one of the instances where you would remember why you despised him in the first place.
It only took him a few minutes but he finally sat with you as he brought along with him two carrot muffins and two lattes. You would lie it you said you didn’t find adorable how he remembered your usual and that he ordered the same for him. Nevertheless, this was not what you were here for.
“How was work this morning?” he asked after taking a sip and you deadpanned at him.
“Really? That’s what you’re going to say first?:
He sighed. “I don’ know how to bring the subject into the conversation smoothly.”
“Just say it as it is, it's killing me how I have no idea what you want to discuss about.”
His gaze softened before he cleared his throat. “I know you said to never bring it up again, but it's been on my mind for months and I think I'll go crazy if I don’t have answers.”
Your body stiffened. You knew exactly what he was referring to. The question was why would he bring it up now, after months since it occurred. If it bugged him so much, you would have maybe let him speak.
“What are your questions?”
He seemed surprised and somewhat relieved to see how calm you remained. “Why did you say to not talk about it again? Are you ashamed of it?”
“Ashamed of it?” you repeated. “No, of course not. It's just- I wasn’t thinking straight that night.”
“So your solution to something you caused was to ignore it,” he scoffed. “Does it mean you regret it?”
“Wasn’t it obvious when I ask you to not mention it again?”
His jaw clenched and he took a sip of his latte as a temporary distraction. “Is it that bad that we kissed?”
“We're business partners, Chan.”
“To you, that’s what we are. But I would have hoped after the year we had, you would maybe consider me as your friend at the very least.”
You gulped at his statement. The thing was, you never knew in what category he fitted. At first, it was your rival. Then, a business partner. But with time, you saw your relationship with him to a level you never thought it would reach. You sought to him for comfort, you would call him at random times to get your mind off things, you would actually enjoy your silly fake dates, and — although you would never admit it out loud — the posts you made about each other online made your heart swoon. He was never your friend, but he wasn’t someone you hated anymore.
“Another thing,” he continued after seeing you would not answer. “If you have something with Changbin, it was never my intention to come between the two of you. Heck, I was even a replacement for him that night since he couldn’t come.”
“That’s not true,” you were quick to correct.
“Why did you invite me over the one time he wasn’t going to be there, then?”
You groaned in frustration. “You and Changbin are two totally different people. In no way did I ever think of you as replacement for him. And to answer your question, it’s because he hates you.”
He took a second to register what you said before speaking again, hesitantly. “Do you have something going on with him?”
“Alright, jealous boy, I think we covered enough ground here,” you tried to dismiss the topic but, clearly, he had no intention for you to do so.
“Y/N, do you?”
You thought for a moment, which in itself would have sent Chan's mind into a whirlwind of overthinking, but you responded. “Wonhee thinks he does have feelings for me, but I don’t see him like this. If so, it would have happened long ago.”
He struggled with containing his satisfied smile. “And, are you seeing anybody?”
“If you don’t count, then no.”
His eyes lingered on yours for a moment which inevitably made you self-conscious of your words. You didn’t think before speaking, and somehow, it felt like you said the right thing. Still, you had no idea what you were implying with this. Did you want to be with him for real? Or did you say that because, in a way, you are seeing each other? The latter sounded like the most likely to be, but the first one had a ring to it that was melody to your ears.
“That’s all I wanted to discuss,” he ended up responding, much to your disappointment. “Just let me know if you do begin to date, because-"
“I won’t.”
He frowned at your interruption. “What?”
“We're married, I'm not going to hoe around for no reason.”
“We're married on paper, Y/N.”
“It doesn’t mean I don’t care about you. If you are uncomfortable with it, I won’t. Besides, you’re not so bad of a husband.”
His cheeks turned pink while his smile grew, showing his dimples in the process. He sent a wink your way as to tell you he knows what you meant but in all honesty, this took him aback quite a lot. And this was the moment he knew his feelings were definitely stronger than what he had originally thought. In a way, he was grateful you didn’t seem to catch onto his very flustered self. However, a part of him wanted you to know he took this compliment to heart.
“I should get going,” you broke the silence, showing him the time on your phone. “Thank you for the latte and the muffin.”
“It’s nothing. I can walk you to the company.”
You pondered for a second and smiled. “Would you mind?”
“Of course not.”
So, a few minutes later, you were strolling around the city towards your company building. The streets were rather calm, surprisingly, and the little noise there was simply made your surroundings the more welcoming. Today was just perfect.
“We can stop playing pretend, you know?”
His voice caught you off guard. “Come again?”
“You understood me the first time, Y/N,” he breathed out, stopping on his tracks. “How long are we going to keep pretending you and I aren’t something more than just a public relationship? Because, I'll keep going.”
You were out of words, speechless. How could he say something of that sort in such a bold way? You never had the time to think if this would go any further, mainly because you avoided the thought the times it did pop up in your brain. Chan was never the man you'd take interest in, even less in a romantic manner. Not only that, but you had very strong negative feelings towards him not so long ago. But again, the evening strolls with him were always something you looked forward to. The way he'd make the stupidest joke was both something that annoyed you and cheered you up. His crazy sudden dates filled you with adrenaline as you couldn’t wait to see what prepared just for you.
And the kiss at the sleepover. The way he looked so beautiful in the dim light. The softness of his lips that you still think of from time to time to this day. The gently cuddles he gave you the next morning while eating your breakfast…
“I doubt we've been playing pretend this whole time,” you said in a small voice, taking a step towards him.
He took a step closer as well. “Have we not?”
“I don’t think so…”
Crash.
In the middle of the sidewalk, not a care in the world, you were kissing him once again.
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“Sunghoon?”
The latter jumped up from his seat, straightening his posture as Jisung arrived at his front desk with a smile plastered on his face. “How can I help you, Mr. Han?”
“There is a last-minute appointment this morning with Miss Park Yoonchae.”
Sunghoon looked at Chris' agenda before frowning. “Are you sure?”
“Yes, I'm sure,” he answered with a roll of his eyes. “She'll be here at 10, you can send her over right away.”
“Important meeting, I see?”
“Depends of the outcome.”
And as told to Sunghoon, the woman dressed from head to toe in designer clothes was standing before him at ten o’clock sharp. As he would always do, he argued a bit with Yoonchae as she was not marked in Chan's schedule. Nonetheless, he did let her through when receiving a deathly glare from Jisung across the room.
“Mr. Bang should review his front desk staff,” Yoonchae muttered under her breath before coming up to Jisung with her innocent eyes. “Hannie! It's been a while!”
“It has.”
“Is Christopher available right now?” she asked while the man was escorting her to the big boss' office.
“If it isn’t, it must be for an emergency. Otherwise, he’s here,” Jisung affirmed, opening the door wide for the girl to walk in.
Chan was there. Only, he was not alone. Not only was Changbin sitting comfortably across him, but so was Minho. Both of the men turned around at the sound of someone entering and frowned when they took notice of Yoonchae.
“Oh, it was today, wasn’t it?” Chan asked as if the answer was not obvious already. “Yoonchae, right?”
“The one and only,” she smiled, even if her displeasure was evident.
“I apologize for my unprofessionalism; I swear it was not intentional. I can see you next week, if that works for you.”
“No.”
“Oh, well-"
“I didn’t come here today for no reason,” she sighed out, walking up to his desk. “I have an offer.”
“Miss, we're kind of in the middle of-" Changbin began but was quickly shut.
“I'm sure you can wait ten minutes or so.”
Chan and Minho exchanged looks before the latter nodded and gestured for his friend to follow him outside the room. Satisfied, Yoonchae smirked at the boys as she took their latest seats, sprawling her coat on the chair next to her. Jisung sent a thumbs up to Chan, and closed the door.
“What did you come here for?” Chan questioned in a forced way.
“Ad you may know, I have a very influential presence in the media.”
“I am aware; proof of it being the atrocious review you made of my wife and I's products.”
“I have millions of followers,” she went on to say, ignoring Chan’s remark. “Many of which could become potential customers of your brand.”
“What are you getting to?”
“I want to become an ambassador of Bahng Fragrances.”
The first reaction of Chan was to scoff out a laugh. There was no way the person who bashed on every beauty item she found would want to work with him. However, when her face remained unchanged, his own smile fell.
“You were serious.”
“Very serious.”
“I'm afraid I can’t do this.”
It was her turn to scoff. “Mr. Bahng, in all due respect, I think you have no choice.”
“My company's success does not rely on your reviews. An even better reason to refuse is the way you treated my wife.”
“I have nothing but respect for your relationship, but let’s be honest here. You are not actually together.”
Chan shook his head in disbelief. “How can you make such an assumption?”
“Because Jisung told me.”
In the split of a second, Chan froze in place. Either she was playing with him, or she was telling the truth.
“Jisung would never do that.”
“Oh, but I have text messages at hands to prove it. I can post them online whenever I please,” she giggled, holding her phone up high. “So? How about we work together, Mr. Bang?”
taglist 1: @lenilla15 | @muddy-waters | @nanaspalette | @nattisbored | @popcatx0 | @vanblack95 | @aestheticsluut | @thanxxskz | @minhoino | @taetertotsv | @luvscrazy | @lethallyprotected | @foxinnie8 | @jisuperboard | @jihanlovic | @soobin-chois | @jinxwhore28 | @purplelandsworld | @yeojoongiee | @smugrogerina | @jaehyunicecream | @urmomlikeslinotoo | @syprosight | @thesassy-mia | @chaotic-world-of-the-j | @heartsforlevi | @miyakoa | @seungincore | @skzsilentcryy | @owotalks | @hanjsquokka | @evermourning | @bangchansbae | @qweebarse | @linosllvr | @kpopsstuffs | @tinyelfperson | @jabmastersupriseee | @imsiriuslyreal | @chrizzztopherbang | @ilovejeongin_007
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project-sekai-facts · 10 months
Text
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someone asked for the full list
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don't question what i use tiermaker for
Tier 1: As stated in today's fact, Shizuku and Haruka can be considered the most attractive characters in the game, as multiple characters have shown attraction to them. Shizuku moreso than Haruka, but there's not too much of a difference to separate the tiers.
Tier 2: These characters have all been stated somewhere to be attractive.
Mafuyu is considered to be outstanding in all fields, including appearance. It's occassionally commented that she is quite pretty. Ichika and KAITO's first kizuna title is "Ikemen while playing", ikemen meaning handsome or cool. Ena has a Twitter account for selfies that has a reasonable following, and she often gets comments saying that she's pretty or cute. Len has a similar sort of idol aura to Haruka does, and is referred to as 'princely'.
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Tier 3: These characters are never explicitly stated in the game to be attractive, but you can work it out.
A few background characters in Petit SEKAI Episode 9 mention that Akito and Toya are hot. Given that the miniseries is non-canon and a gag show it's up for debate how true this is, although it is a believable detail, hence why they're in this tier.
As for Rui, we have to look at the Valentine's Virtual Live from 2021 (wiki screenshots below). Keep in mind here that Rui is not popular in school at all and doesn't have many friends at this point in the game. He mentions that he received a few boxes of chocolate in his shoe locker on Valentine's Day, which admittedly could be platonic. However, the fact that this continues on into a joke about Tsukasa trying to claim that he got chocolates too before revealing that he got friendzoned by multiple girls (more on that in a second), makes it seem more likely that these weren't platonic. Linking back to the fact that he's not popular and doesn't really have many friends, he's probably pretty good-looking.
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Tier 4: An being scouted as a model was an important part of the plot of Wishing For Your Happiness Upon The Blue Sky, and it's mentioned in an area conversation that Kanade has been talent scouted for modelling before.
Tier 5: Full disclosure that probably all of the MMJ VSingers are either pretty or cute, the ones mentioned here are just the ones I remember it being stated/implied. In the April Fools 2022 area conversation with the Lukas, MMJ!Luka says that WxS!Luka is very cute. N25!Luka calls her MMJ variant out for calling herself cute, and MMJ!Luka says that she herself is cute. (TL)
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Kohane is mainly referred to as cute by An, which is biased, but other characters have pointed this fact out before as well, so she qualifies for this tier.
Mizuki loves cute clothes and accessories and always tries to look cute. I believe a few other characters have called them cute, but unfortunately the only instance I can actually remember is one transphobic faceless background character saying "you can't tell and they're super cute".
Also Minori and Airi are here because they're idols and have been called cute because that's part of being an idol I suppose.
Tier 6: Yes he gets his own tier because it's funny. This guy runs on rule of funny like 50% of the time. Anyway, as mentioned earlier, in the 2021 Valentine's Virtual Live, he gets annoyed when he hears Rui talking about receiving (implied romantic) chocolate and tries to claim that he too received (implied confession) chocolate, before saying too much and revealing that he only received friend chocolates that girls gave out to all the other boys as well.
Tsukasa's actually a lot more popular than Rui and doesn't have the same "outcast" reputation, plus in his A Once-In-A-Lifetime Pandemonium card story, Ibuki (Taniyama) mentions that Tsukasa's friends from class are really popular with girls, and Rui's friends are surprised he's in that kinda crowd (not that Tsukasa quite gets it). What I'm saying is that he's in a crowd of popular guys that are good with women and he's failing in that second aspect. The reason why is never stated but considering the school's resident outcast is able to get Valentine's chocolate for probably no reason other than looks, it's safe to assume Tsukasa is maybe lacking in that field.
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But.
I think two guys have flirted with him? One definitely has anyway. The other is more up for debate but was probably written with the intent of ship tease. Depends on how you choose to interpret it.
In other words on a scale of attractive to unattractive he's the secret 3rd option (appeals to the mlms).
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celaenaeiln · 9 months
Note
Please talk more about B & D’s “unable to be defined/labeled dynamic/relationship as it encompasses many labels yet at the same time cannot be fitted to just one label” dynamic 🙏
I'd be delighted to!!
Link to original post
In the previous post I had included a panel where Bruce is referred to Dick as his "surrogate father, mentor, friend, and partner." These words could not be more different from each other and while they should not be used in conjunction with each other, they have never suited these two people more. In fact I don't there is any character pairing in any fandom that has the same dynamic that these two have. Dick and Bruce's relationship has a complicated depth to it that Bruce and the rest of his children don't have.
I think the most confusing thing is when Bruce constantly confuses Dick being a son and a partner.
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First thing I want to start off with is that Dick and Bruce used to sleep in beds so close together it looks like one bed. In the 1950's this arrangement was known as the "twin beds" which were typically used for married couples. Children slept in a separate bedroom which begs the question why Dick and Bruce had a sleeping arrangement similar to that of marriage partners. This is the first weird thing about their relationship.
Not to mention, the romantic boat rides they used to take together. But was this normal then between father and son or is it just a romantic thing now, I don't know. As well as when they decided bronzing themselves naked next to each other. Not really sure what was going on there, if it was acceptable during that time or what but I do know that the reason that creators decided to send Dick to college in 1970 was because they wanted to beat the gay batman and robin allegations. It's weird as hell that they even came up with these ideas. Also the robin crossdressing. For justice, am I right?!
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I feel these instances are important because it breaks any barriers they have between them. They're so (platonically for me) intimate that there's nothing but each other in their souls. One of the key reasons that their relationship is vague and intense and encompassing.
Dick is also considered Bruce's partner intellectually.
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Instead of Dick listening to Bruce and following behind, as it's often shown in robin comics, they talk on equal terms. There's other moments of this shown too:
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I think this is the reason why Bruce considers Dick a partner. He's not only exceedingly intelligent, but he even at a young age he's able to keep up with Bruce's thought process as an equal when even the justice league and other major adult heroes fail to do. Bruce's inventions are Dick's inventions because they played an equal role in creating them. This is why he's called the Prodigal Son.
Now onto him being a best friend and a son mix.
We know the classic example of Dick expecting to be Bruce's best man and Bruce thinking the same. But there are other moments that indicate that too.
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But it isn't one sided because Dick also sees Bruce as his best friend:
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Dick punching Bruce in the throat and single handedly carrying him like a sack of potatoes is just funny as hell.
Also including the fact that Dick and Bruce embody sleepover, besties behavior:
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BUT HERE'S WHERE IT GETS JUICY.
Having your child act as your bestfriend is terrible for your child's mental health.
I'm speaking from personal experience but when your parent trauma dumps their life onto you at a young age, you mature emotionally much faster than you're supposed. You start becoming aware of people's thoughts and emotions at a deeper level and you start attuning yourself to others. In layman's terms: you change yourself to be able to meet your parent's high expectations and act as an emotional sponge for their anger, sorrow, disappointment, and frustration about their own life.
I'm not hesitant to admit that Dick's manipulation tactics most likely stem from this behavior. He knows what he wants and he will do anything to get it. This doesn't mean he's a bad person though. In fact I give him the highest level of respect of any character because all his intentions are good. He doesn't cheat, lie, or trick people into killing themself or harming others or bringing them down. He does it to make their lives better which is-I'm sorry, I don't have the proper words to express the multitudes of emotion I'm feeling for that.
(I nearly went into a massive monologue about how other people view his manipulation but that's for another post. )
This is also where things get complicated, and why we know Bruce and Dick as the way they are.
Dick has become so emotionally and mentally adept that he's able to pick up on others' thoughts and attitudes (Bruce specifically) before they even realize them. This is why Bruce is so dependent on Dick for everything. In one comic Garth says "Dick's a good listener."
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I'm going to deviate for a minute here and include a panel that shows how this personality trait affects Dick's other roles:
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Speaking more about Bruce's impact on Dick, there's this:
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Aside from the huge ass painting on the wall of just the two of them-the panel is another perfect example of the complicated depth to them. They see each other as equals and when something interferes with that perception, then they start having problems. It haunts Bruce that the 8yr old he took in is equally matched to him in skill and ability but he also recognizes that Dick is too young to be able to do so. He should not have to experience the pain and responsibility of an adult but Bruce can't just get rid of him because Dick is the only one capable of keeping up with him. His heart also breaks when Dick is away (he starts crying in a panel multiple panels as Dick is leaving). For Dick he's already far used to the roles and responsibilities that he doesn't consider his age a factor as to why Bruce refuses to let him do the same things. This is a source of miscommunication between them. Bruce knows Dick can succeed at anything given to him but feels he shouldn't have to deal with those things. And Dick doesn't understand the hesitance when he's proven to have accomplished those tasks and greater before.
To expand, Dick's relationship with Bruce reminds me of Slade's relationship with Billy Wintergreen when Deathstroke tells him "You've been with me through everything...but now I have to say goodbye when you're unconscious or else I can't do it." Or something along those lines, the vibes are the same.
Oh yes, and this scene too:
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Which mimics a lot of the confusion other characters have over Dick and Bruce's relationship.
But the difference between Slade and Billy vs Dick and Bruce is that Dick and Bruce's relationship is blurred on ALL fronts. There's not a single moment where Bruce has viewed Dick strictly as a son.
This leads me into the mentor aspect.
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Note: while Dick knows Bruce the best, Bruce also knows Dick the best of all his children. There's a certainty to the way he speaks about Dick's abilities that he lacks when discussing his other sons'. That doesn't mean he doesn't know what they can do-he well aware and knowledgeable-it just means that his relationship with and understanding of Dick far exceeds what he has with the others.
Holy crap there's so much I'm bouncing all over the place-let me go back for second to partners.
Everyone knows this iconic scene whether you're in the fandom or not:
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But few people know what comes next-
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From the dawn of Batman and Robin comics, Batman has been obsessed with controlling Dick. I don't understand why he doesn't use his manipulative tactics on anyone else. There's a comic panel where Dick tells Barbara, "...you and Bruce don't need to manipulate me into doing what you guys want." It was always his way or the highway with him and Bruce reflects on this again in Batman and Robin Eternal. Dick also tells Bruce he's being pig-headed during the 1966 comic version of the Warner Brother's film and when Bruce asks him "Am I really pig-headed?" Alfred goes "hell yeah." Essentially.
(Also going to sneak this in as another example of why Dick wasn't an angry robin to a previous post
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)
Ofcourse Bruce seems him as a son too:
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THE FULL ON SMILE HE HAS ON HIS FACE JUST LISTENING TO DICK TALK!!!
Also in the linked previous post there's the panel of Bruce begging the judge not to take away his son from him. "Dick is like my own son!I've even changed my will so that incase of my death, Dick will get my entire fortune! You honor, I...I love that boy! Please don't take him from me!"
We already know many references about Dick being labelled Dick's son so I'll leave this aside for now.
Now here's the main point- the way Bruce and Dick interact with each other has so much history they're unable to explain themselves to others or each other. There's so many complex emotions between the two of them that sometimes even they're confused.
But seriously. What is your obsession with Dick, Bruce?
Lemme explain.
As everyone knows Dick and Clark are best friends. They are so close to the point where Bruce actually sweeps the stuff off his desk in the batcave and says "LET ME JUST GET RID OF ALL OUR TROPHIES. I'LL JUST MAKE ROOM FOR THE ADVENTURES OF SUPERMAN AND ROBIN INSTEAD!"
WTFFFFF BRUCE. WHY ARE YOU GETTING JEALOUS OF YOUR 15YR OLD'S FRIENDSHIP?
Oh, yes, what trophies am I talking about? Trophies of their battles together of course!
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Which means the batcave is memorabilia of their time together. You know what that also means? It means that Bruce sulks in the Batcave because in the cave, he can literally surround himself with the time he spent with Dick.
Bruce is so abnormal about Dick. He sees Dick as an all in one. Every single relationship category you can think of, Bruce has bundled it up and put it into Dick. If all their various relationships became a physical string, Bruce would have a leash on Dick that resembles a thick, corded rope. So if you cut one thread of, say, friendship, the rope won't tear become the other threads of partnership, family, and other ambiguous threads would still hold them together.
Bruce has a leash on Dick but something Dick doesn't know and Bruce won't admit is that Dick has a leash on him too.
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HERE'S THE INSECURITY WITH DICK AGAIN. THE MAN THINKS THE WORLD OF DICK BUT HE'S HORRIFIED AT THE THOUGHT, AT THE POSSIBILITY, THAT DICK DOESN'T FEEL THE SAME OF HIM.
He's constantly seeking reassurance of his place with Dick through the only way he knows how-manipulation. While Bruce consistently distances himself from his son, he's doing it on purpose so Dick will come running back to him. I mean-isn't that what he did with Jason? Expelling Dick in fury and fear and not telling Dick about taking in a new robin?
In the comic Dick drops by and tells him "I found out through a newspaper and since I haven't been robin..." to which Bruce responds horrified and guilty. He knows what he's doing. He just doesn't want to get caught as to why.
Others have picked on this obsession he has with Dick too:
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Someone clearly knew the importance of Nightwing to Batman. They knew what his death would do to him. And in response Bruce went out of his way-to a foreign land-just to take revenge on the man who almost took “his boy” away from him. Leaving with a parting promise, an oath, to hunt down the other one and leave him crippled for life too. Did Batman know KG Beast would survive or did he just leave it up to fate?
In the previous panel, apart from KG Beast calling Dick "your boy" to Batman, it's only implied though. So how do we know if Dick really does have that much weight to Bruce? Well not only is it confirmed, it is engraved in stone:
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And when the blast nearly kills Dick, Bruce nearly kills the man who did it. WITH A GUN.
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Also him trying to strangle Lex Luthor to death before Lex chokes out in between stolen gasps that Dick's not actually dead but he will be if Bruce continues.
Did you know that the dead Robin in the Superman vs Batman movie was confirmed to be Dick? Yeah. That says a lot right there.
Brothers
I'm not going to get into their brother relationship because that involves how Alfred treats Dick as a son rather than a grandson and is opening a whole new mansion of stuff so I'm going to wrap this up here and say the two of them are a LOT.
Bruce and Dick's relationship is impossible to define and that's why they keep ending up fighting. Their relationship doesn't have clear boundaries and since each type of relationship (brotherhood, father/son, partnership, friendship, colleagues, idols&pedestals) has it's own unique problems, and because the two of them alone are all those things, they have all the problems of each of these categories combined. But they also have all the benefits. Inseparably entwined these two.
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bonefall · 5 months
Note
So, I'm writing an essay on the whole STATE of misogyny in WC for one of my university classes, and I was wondering if I could ask you a couple of things! No pressure of course, please feel free to say no!
A) Could I reference your good takes with appropriate harvard referencing and links back to your blog?
B) Are there any specific moments from the books that you think should be covered the most?
C) The end result will be a visual essay, so it's like those fun infographics people on Tumblr make on like ADHD and stuff, so when it's done, would you like to be tagged to read it?
(Sorry for anon, I'm nervous lmao, but if you'd be more comfortable I'll resend this off anon)
AAY good topic! You've got a lot to work with. Absolutely feel free to reference anything I've written, and tag me when you're done.
While you're here and about to write something so legitimate, I'm also going to recommend you check out Sunnyfall's video on gender in Warrior Cats. She breaks down the arcs into numbers, directly comparing the amount of lines mollies have to toms, and examining the archetypes women are usually allowed to be.
I think it's a must-have citation in a paper about WC misogyny.
...and, I think it's insightful to look at the WCRP Forum thread about the video. Note how the respondents immediately come into the thread to complain about how the video is too long so they didn't watch it, dismissing Sunnyfall as not being entertaining enough to hold their attention, even whining that she starts with statistics to prove her point, which I'm convinced she did exactly because they would have cried that she "had no evidence" if she didn't.
I am not a scholar, so I don't know how to document or prove that the books have an impact on the audience outside of anecdotes. But I think if you do write a section about fandom, it would be worth mentioning the in-universe and metatextual apologia for Ashfur and its reflection in the real world discourse, the authorial killing of Ferncloud because of fan complains, and the utter defensiveness against the discussion of misogyny you see outside of Tumblr.
You may also want to check out Cheek by Jowl, a collection of 8 essays about sexism in xenofiction by Ursula K. Le Guin. There's a very unique manifestation of authorial bias in animal fiction, having a lot to do with how the author views "the natural world," and it's worth understanding even though Warrior Cats are so heavily anthropomorphized.
So... Warrior Cats Misogyny
I think discussing individual instances can be helpful, but I'd implore you to keep in mind what's REALLY bad about WC's misogyny is framing and the bigger picture.
Bumble's death is shocking and insulting, but it's not just that she died. It's that the POV Gray Wing sees her as a fat, useless bitch who took his mate so she deserves to be dragged back to a domestic abuser, and he's right because the writers love him so much. It's that Bumble's torture and killing only factors into how it's going to hurt a man's reputation.
It's how Clear Sky hitting, emotionally manipulating, or killing the following women,
Bright Stream (pressured into leaving her home and family)
Storm (controlled her movements and yelled at her in public)
Misty (killed for land, children stolen)
Bumble (beaten unconscious, blamed nonsensically on a fox)
Alder (child abuse, hit when she refused to attack her brother)
Falling Feather (scratched on the face, subjected to public abuse and humiliation)
Tall Shadow (thrown into murderous crowd, attacked on-sight in heaven)
Rainswept Flower ("blacked out" in anger and murdered in cold blood)
Moth Flight (scratched on the face for saying denying medical treatment is mean, taken hostage in retaliation against mother for the death of his own child, which he caused)
Willow Tail (eyes gouged out for "stirring up trouble")
Is seen as totally understandable, forgivable, or not even questioned at all, when killing Gray Wing in an act of rage would have been "one step too far" with the ridiculous Star Line.
"Kill me and live with the memory, and then let the stars know it would only matter if a single one of your murder victims was a man."
It's the way that fathers who physically abuse their kids out of their ego (Clear Sky, Sandgorse, Crowfeather) aren't treated anywhere near the same level of narrative disgust and revulsion the series has for "bad moms", even if they're displaying symptoms of a post-partum mood disorder (depression, anxiety, and rage), an umbrella of mental illnesses 20% of all new mothers experience but are heavily stigmatized with (Sparkpelt, Palebird, Lizardstripe).
It's Crookedstar's Promise giving him two evil maternal figures in a single book, while bending over backwards to make every man in a position of power still look likeable in spite of the fact they're enabling Rainflower's abuse. Leader Hailstar is soso sorry that he has to change Stormkit's name for some reason, in spite of leaders being unaccountable dictators the other 99% of the time, and Deputy Shellheart functionally does nothing to stop his own son from being abused or even do much parenting before or after the fact.
It's the way men's parental struggles are seen sympathetically, and they don't have to "pay for it" like their female counterparts (Crookedstar's PPD vs Sparkpelt's PPD, how Daisy and Cinders are held responsible for Smoky and Whisper being deadbeats, Yellowfang's endless guilt for killing her son vs Onestar's purpose in life to kill his own), even to the point where a father doesn't have to have raised their kids at all to have a magical innate emotional connection to them (Tree's father Root, Tom the Wifebeater, Tigerstar and Hawkfrost).
It's less speaking lines and agency for female characters, being reduced to accessories in the lives of their mates and babies, women getting less diversity in their personalities, with even major ex-POV characters eventually becoming "sweet mom" tropes.
You could zoom in on any one of these examples and have an amoeba try to argue with you that "Oh THIS makes sense because X" or "Ah well my headcanon perfectly explains this thing" or "MY mother/girlfriend was abusive/toxic/neglectful and I've decided that you are personally attacking ME by having issues with how a character was written or utilized," but the beleaguered point,
That I keep trying to hammer in, over and over, across books worth of posts,
Is that these are trends. More than just a couple one-off examples. It's the fabric that has been woven over years, showing a lack of interest in, or even active prejudice of, women on behalf of the writers.
LONG STANDING trends, which have only gotten worse as the series progressed. From Yellowfang being harshly punished with a born evil son who ruins her life in TPB and the mistreatment of Squirrelpaw that begins in TNP, all the way up to the 7 Fridgenings of DOTC and Sparkpelt's PPD being a major character motivator for her son Nightheart.
So, I would stress that in your paper, and structure it less as "the Sparkpelt slide" and "the Yellowfang slide," and more as "The paternal vs maternal abuse" slide, and "the violence against women" slide. They're really big issues, there's tons of examples for each individual thing.
Anyway to leave off on a funny, look at this scene in Darkest Hour that I find unreasonably hilarious,
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"Everyone who matters to me; my truest friend, my sensible and loyal warrior, the wisest deputy I've ever known, and 2 women." -Firestar, glorious idiot
He can't even think of a single trait for either of them what the hell does "formidable pair" mean lmaooo, when I finished a reread about a year ago this line killed me on impact.
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heartfullofleeches · 8 months
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Kreme Filled
Yan Candy Person + G.N Candy Witch Reader
Summary: Blurb in which Witch Reader teaches a friend a bit about their anatomy and said friend teaches them about theirs. Said friend almost happens to be made of fried douth
(Tags: Light/Candy body horror, slightly suggestive, fingering but not in the way that you think, no use of y/n - reader is referred to as Sweets)
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"Whoa!- I didn't know you had a hole here too. I learn something new about you everyday, Sweets!-"
Living with folks made out of pastries and sweets for so long, it's surprising how easy it was to forget their various attributes and lack there of every now and then. Showered by so much love and acceptance in the community, it almost came as a shock the first few time to remember those caring hearts were made of sugar and syrup instead of the same blood and tissue as your own. Often times you recalled only these features by the spillage of their syrupy fluids, but frequent instances across that further separated your human skin from their sweet, doughy flesh.
Kreme was one of the sweetest souls you've met by far both in personality and taste. A local pastry with a hair that reminded you of freshly made donuts and coincidentally made of the same dough. Piped with passion for design and clinging to your side, Kreme visited your bakery daily for different pigments of frosting to decorate their clothing and self with whenever creativity struck which was hourly for them. On the plus side you had a few bracelets and rings too delicate for you to wear, but made them happy when displayed around your kitchen and home.
While piping the frosting need for a new batch of sprinkles on a tray, Kreme had grown bored by lax amount of attention on them and so they decided to pull a little prank to lighten the mood. They slathered their hands in powered sugar, snuck up behind you as concentration lowered your guard, raised your shirt under the guise of a friendly hug, and brought their powder covered hand down on your sides. Rubbing the powder into your skin, Kreme noticed something as their palms ran over your stomach. A hole almost like the one in their torso only much smaller and refused to open no matter how their fingers pried. They tried again, but stopped upon hearing you cry out in discomfort.
"Ow! Kreme, that hurts - cut it out."
Kreme immediately drops their hands, staring at you like a deer in headlights as you face them. "Oh! I'm really sorry, Sweets - it's just that your hole is so tiny I was trying to make it bigger for you." The fiend slaps their hands over their mouth. "I'm sorry - are they supposed to be that small for your kind? Please don't tell me I seriously hurt you."
You gently pull their hands from their face, wiping yours of its confusion in attempts to soothe their rising fears. "I'm okay, Kreme, really. But, what do you mean by... hole?"
Kreme lifts your shirt and points at your stomach. "This one! Never seen anything like it before."
You follow their finger, gears clicking as you look just above your waist. "Oh.... ohhhh that hole. Well, when people like me are... created, we're attached by a cord to our makes that gives us nutrients till we come out and that "hole" is where we were attached at."
Kreme touches your skin, eyes growing wider with every word. "That's so cool! I love learning more about you, Sweets. Human stuff was so boring when the others told me about them, but when it's about you I wanna listen all day... Wanna see mine?"
"Your what?"
Kreme laughs. "My hole, silly. It goes all the way through and I can put so many things in it. Frosting, jam, sprinkles. I love sprinkles - especially the ones you make me. Anyway, wanna see it?"
"Um...."
Not waiting for a reply, Kreme rolls up their tee and proudly presents the centimeters wide hole in the center of their chest. Crouching on your knees, you could see straight through it, and in at the softer wall of dough that made up their inners. By guessing, you estimated you could fit around three fingers in the hole with no problem. You try to shake the thought, but it keeps crawling back to mind.
"It really is a hole..." You reach out to examine the crater - having enough restrain to before your hand meets their skin.
"Yea!.. Stick your fingers in it."
You stumble on your feet and words - caught off guard by their sudden shift in tone. "What?"
Kreme smiles, directing one of your hands towards the entrace of their hole. "I want you - to put your fingers inside me. I can tell that you're thinking about it~"
Urged by their guiding hand and pleading eyes, you extend your index finger and slowly begin to insert it into their hole. The texture is akin to mashed cake as you imagined, but it's slightly more moist than pictured. Tearing an earlier theory you add another finger and push them both deeper, the walls of pastry around them contracting as Kreme whimpers - squirming, and even whining out as you pull back.
"Am I hurting you?"
Kreme shakes their head, grip alarming firm for someone of their kind. "No... no, no - it's just that whenever anyone else tries to touch my hole it's always a bit uncomfortable, but if it's Sweets.... If it's you, I'm okay with anything. Please keep going."
You didn't want to hurt them, but your curiosity had been peaked.
"Lemme know if any part of this bothers you and we'll stop, okay?"
Kreme nods as if they understand, but is too transfixed on your fingers as you add yet another and shove them all inside of them to utter more than desperate cries. Cold air kisses your fingertips as they fall out the back entry of their hole before being sucked back in. There's a little wiggling room, but not enough where you can't attempt to put in another digit. Kreme, noting your hesitant and dying to feel more of you looking around.
"Oh, oh - check out this fun trick I can do." Reaching over to the table, Kreme nabs the - tilting their head back as they swallow the frosting. Your fingers rooted in the tightness of their midsection run slick with cream as it slides down their throat, pouring out over your hand and onto the floor - spilling onto your apron and legs. Working as a lubricant, you successfully fit all fingers of your dominant hand in side of the pastry and out through the other side as their legs buckle, nearly giving out as they hover over you. You stand to help them upright and due to the building ache in your legs from your position. Kreme throws their arms over your shoulder, pushing with every pull and shaking as your hand stretches their hole wider. It'd close back to normal later on, but for now they revelled at the thought of having a permanent marker of your affliction on them. Tearing them up from the inside and leaving them starving for your attention whenever you close your doors for the evening. It too much. If only they could have one thing to be left with until the next day. One little thing to keep them going until the sun rose tomorrow.
"Sweets... Ah... deeper... I wanna feel you... always..."
As with all good things, their pleasure comes to an end to soon. You slide your hand out of their torso, allowing them to fall slack in your arms as they collect themselves. You subconsciously lick at the frosting coating your hand still in autopilot from closing shifts at your bakery, which in turn adds to their lightheadedness. You play coy to the kiss they sneak to your cheek as they stand on their own, gazing bashfully at the floor.
"Sweets?...."
"Yeah?.."
"I sorta lied when I said I never paid attention to things about humans... I know about various parts of their bodies and some of the urges... your kind gets... We really aren't so different if we really think about it."
You pause mid wipping your hands on your apron. "What are you getting at?"
"I'm saying the next time we do this I want your cream inside me instead. I don't want anything else than to feel you inside me - forever. It's the only thing that can make me truly happy. I never want to leave you so please don't leave me.
Kreme kisses your cheek again as they grab at the strings of your apron. "Just give it some thought. For now, I'll be taking this since I got it all dirty. Love you bunches, Sweets - bye!"
Loosening the tight knot, Kreme tears off your apron and waves it as their flag of triumph as they flee out the back door of the kitchen - leaving you alone to clean everything up.
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justxaxbit · 1 year
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I need to talk. I hope I can make myself clear.
Nowadays, I started reading romance again. I've always been a fan. However, my experience now as a hxh fan is finding a lot of romance tropes Togashi used for his work, which is fun! (I feel validated bc I've been saying he uses a lot of romance tropes since the first time I've read his work).
Nonetheless, I wanted to talk about one specific scene: "Gon, you are light". The parallels of light and darkness is commonly used in shonen (and it always ends up being so gay), but something that may happen in romance is the following. The love interest seems to shine in front of the protagonist (and vice versa), and it usually happens when the MC is feeling so much love for the other person for one reason or the other. The emotions are so strong that well, that person seems to be shining because they are so bright. It's a vulnerable moment for the characters.
And I can't stop thinking about that and then this scene.
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And since I couldn't stop, I remembered some other times in which Gon must have shone so brightly that Killua had to physically look away (since I'm sure this wasn't the first time it happened, he literally said "sometimes", refering to more than once).
And when are some other times in which Killua physically had to look away?
The "I'm really glad I met you" scene.
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The dodgeball scene.
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I'm sure there's a lot of more times in which Gon shone. For instance, during Gon and Hanzo's fight. Killua was literally having a whole moment trying to understand what was happening (of course, it adds to the other conflicts that I'm not mentioning).
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That scene is kind of a theory of mine (I don't usually see it being talked about), but I do believe it's really important. Some chapters later, we see Killua really excited and talking about that fight to his dad.
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And then this scene. Illumi explicitly says that to Killua, Gon is "a radiant presence".
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I really love how Togashi wrote this metaphor since the very beginning and how he continued to developed it. And I can't stop thinking about it so now I'm here on Tumblr. I avoided the angst of the Chimera Arc, of course.
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z0mbiefrank · 1 year
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MCR5 Theory: Secretary Gerard is a character called The Widow
I'm unsure if everyone is thinking along the same lines, but I have yet to see anyone talk about it, so I've put together this post with evidence and links. (this will expand on the 9/11 theory. also special shout out to @autistme who made a spreadsheet with all the aus eagles lyrics) MCR performed Eagles at all six Australia shows this tour. At five of them, Gerard was dressed in a grey suit and skirt, commonly referred to as the secretary or office lady by fans.
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(📷 Dough Peters) Here's a quick reference table for the things I will be talking about here. (Not necessary to read, I will explain it all)
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At Brisbane, the drumheads read "everything under control" followed by "here comes the airplane". The planes have yet to hit the towers, but disaster is imminent. Eagles has evolved a lot over the tour but the Aus dates heard a new consistent change in the first verse.
All along the river bends All along with all my friends Yes, all around the river bends All together with my friends
There is minimal change for Brisbane 2. Notice how gerard is dressed as the secretary and says "my friends".
Next comes Melbourne 1. The drumhead reads "TErrOR". The plane has hit and there is a dramatic change to the first verse.
All night long the widow sends Valentines to bitter friends Yes, all night long the widow sends Valentines to all my friends
This character with friends now has a title, and it is The Widow. She has lost her husband in the attack. Her friends survived and she is sending them letters of love during this terrible time.
Melbourne 2, Gerard breaks the outfit chain. He is wearing jeans and a t-shirt, there is no hint of office wear, he is no longer playing the widow, he is playing himself. The drumhead also seems unrelated to 9/11 "BARK BARK BARK". They sing the same first verse as the previous night with minimal change, except for the last line
Valentines to all her friends
This is the only instance where Gerard does not refer to the friends as "my friends" at all during aus eagles, and it is because they weren't in the skirt suit that night, they were not the widow.
Next comes Sydney. The Widow is back and she's covered in blood! Something awful has happened to her, she's dying. But the drumhead reads "UNKILLAbLe". (This was written by Frank, an extremely powerful thing for him to do considering his accident in Sydney and PTSD. MCR has always used concept albums as a vessel to speak of things the band has been through.) The widow continues to write her letters during eagles despite the blood on her face.
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(📷 Jess Gleeson) Sydney 2. The Widow again. She is in the exact same outfit, down to her boots (sports mode), but this time she is not only covered in blood but her eyes are WHITE. She is dead! The drumhead now reads "Unkillables", this is no longer specifically just one, but multiple people. It could be mcr as a band, mcr as individuals, or mcr fans themselves. In the context of a concept album, unkillables can take on a whole new meaning. It brings to mind the supernatural, ghouls, vampires, werewolves. How is it that the widow is dead, yet she is walking on stage right in front of us? Staring at us with blank eyes on the big screen? Is she a ghost, a zombie? I'm not sure. But she is still the widow. Even in death, she is searching for her husband.
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(📷 ashymcr , expiiredglitter)
Which leads me to Summertime. The piece of evidence that drove me to write this long-ass post. As we know, it is a love song about Gerard's marital partner. Before they played, Gerard spoke in a breathy and musically haunting voice "I'll find you. I'll find you. come find me." Definitely something a lost and ghostly widow would say. They also bring out a white handkerchief, they do not have it in any other songs. Throughout the performance, Gerard clutched it to their chest repeatedly and held it lovingly in both hands.
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In the third picture, he is looking down sadly at the handkerchief singing the line "If you stay, I would even wait all night." (video)
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This is very clearly The Widow. She is mourning her husband, she is dead, lost and searching for him. Perhaps the handkerchief is all she has left of him, or it is simply to dry her tears, but she is clearly in mourning for her marital partner.
And finally, Eagles at Sydney 2. The first verse stays the same except for the third line. "Yes, all night long the widow sends" becomes
Yes, all day long the widow sends
She is writing night and day. She does not rest. Her outfits in Sydney are exactly the same. Every single other secretary's outfit is subtlely different, but now she is dead, she is stuck in the same clothing like a ghost. The Widow also makes an appearance later in the song.
We found the widow And hit her with a baseball bat
I have less ideas of what this could be about, but I think if some dead lady was walking about being unkillable, people would get freaked and attack her with a baseball bat. The concept of "unkillables" is something I could write a whole other post about but I'll spare you for now.
To conclude, I think The Widow as a concept album character would fit right in with MCR. They are no strangers to lovers separated by death. Others on here have spoken on how the feminine outfits Gerard has chosen this tour have often been of women scorned or living in the shadows of powerful men. I believe The Widow would fit right in. Even after her husband has died, she is only talked about in reference to him. She is The Widow, something that tells us more about her husband than herself.
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thefoxtherapist · 10 months
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Hey…. would you mind me asking for persona 5 Akira or Ren that has a crush on the reader but is too afraid to ask and Arsene tries to help by taking over and saying some really smooth lines and flirts but fails because the reader is weirded out.
P.s I love your writing. Sorry if my grammar is bad. I studied English but I'm still working on grammar.
Hello! Thank you so much for the compliment, and your English is great don't worry about that ^^
I hope this is okay! Have a great day :)
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Akira was a lot of things, smart, strategic, charismatic. But he was far from competent at flirting. Some connections to others came naturally, his friends and allies, for instance. But some connections just fell out of his purview. They were work! All friendships were work to maintain, but those ones were easy. You. Something about you, specifically.
He leaned on his hand, watching you from nearby. His crush was getting ridiculous, distracting. Morgana had noticed, meowing quietly from within his desk to tease him. Something Akira ignored. It wasn't like Morgana was any good at flirting either, if one could even call his sad attempts to woo Ann as flirting.
Akira rested his head on his arms, sighing quietly into his uniform jacket. He didn't even need to flirt! He just needed to talk to you, ask you out to go somewhere. He had no trouble asking the others to hang out. The bell rang and he sat up properly, catching a glimpse of you collecting your bag out of the corner of his eye. 
He stood up, bringing his bag over his shoulder. And suddenly, he felt like a visitor in his own body. A weird sort of warmth flooded him and he was pivoting almost awkwardly. Arsène? The him within seemed fed up with his pining, and before he could react he was in front of your desk as you got up with your bag.
You looked at him, his sudden appearance somewhat of a surprise. "Do you have a map? I keep getting lost in your eyes." The words from his mouth were the worst. Arsène, what are you doing? You blinked, once, twice. Arsène certainly wasn't going to succeed with lines like that. That was just embarrassing.
"Excuse me?"
And your reaction was even worse. “I believe in following my dreams, so you should lead the way.” No, that’s even worse. Arsène…. You looked incredibly conflicted, glancing away from him before glancing back at him. Abort mission. The lines weren’t even that good, where did he get them? Maybe it was one of those magazines Akira had read while he was at Ann’s.. 
Akira forced control of himself once more, a nervous smile gracing his features as he looked at you. He wasn’t sure how to save this situation. “Sorry, my friend told me those would work. I shouldn’t have listened to him.” Yeah, smooth. You returned his smile with one of your own, though you didn’t seem completely convinced. 
“You’re the transfer student, right?” 
“Akira.”
You gave him your name and he nodded, he’d already overheard Kawakami refer to you during class. Another moment passed with the two of you looking at each other, you looked away from him first and he followed suit. Morgana moved around in the bag, as if to remind him to actually say something, maybe. A wingman, for sure.
“Do you want to go to Bikkuri Boy with me? I’ve heard good things about the selection there.” Akira steeled himself for a no, especially after Arsène’s unwanted attempts to help him with the whole thing. You pulled your phone from your pocket, glancing down to look at the screen quickly. Why was he so nervous? He could defeat shadows, steal treasure..
“Sure.”
“That’s okay maybe- sure?”
You exhaled a small laugh, pocketing your phone as you looked at him. You gave him a nod, adjusting your grip on your bag. “Yeah, sure! I’m kind of curious about all those rumours.. And who better to go to than the source, right? Just, no more bad pickup lines.” You laughed this time and Akira couldn’t help his smile, nor the chuckle as he pushed up his glasses.
“No more bad pickup lines, promise.” Well, he wasn’t very useful, but Akira did have to give it to Arsène for actually getting him in front of you to talk. You gestured towards the classroom door and Akira was quick to follow you. Talking to you came easier than he thought as you made your way through the school towards the exit. A lingering thanks left to his Persona.
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mellomaia · 9 months
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One memory that I've come to recontextualize as a manifestation of infodumping now that I've self determined as autistic is how, when I was in 4th and 5th grade, I LOVED learning about animals. I could talk and talk and talk about animal facts. I would correct people immediately if they said things about animals that I knew to be false, thinking, "They wouldn't want to have misinformation about animals. I'm sure they'll appreciate the correction." If you said something like "blind as a bat" near me, you would hear about it. I found animals fascinating and it didn't occur to me that others didn't.
When I did learn that, it became harder to talk to others. As many have pointed out, infodumping is less about the subject of the infodump, and more about showing someone how much you like them and enjoy spending time with them by being willing to share your knowledge on something. So when I realized that infodumping was more likely to push others away or make them think I was weird, I was really lost and didn't know how to connect with others in a way that they would recognize as me trying to be their friend.
I often didn't understand the references others made or interests they had. Most of the times that I tried to be interested in something my classmates seemed to be interested in, it backfired. Once, for instance, I noticed others talking about music they liked. I thought about what music I liked, which wasn't that much because I didn't follow celebrity culture. I think most of the people I felt I was a fan of were people who had performed as the musical guest on All That at some point. I would think to myself, "Yes, now I have something to talk about them because I like music, and they like music." Then I would ask my parents for permission to buy CDs by artists whose music I enjoyed.
Then, I come to find out that the celebrities I happened to choose were ones that classmates thought were uncool. So then I didn't feel I could speak about this subject either, and I had to go back to the drawing board. It's not to say I never had any friends, but before undergrad, none of my friendships never lasted longer than 2 or 3 years back then. Not just because of this dynamic; other factors were involved, but still. It probably didn't help that I felt I couldn't be genuine, I'm sure. Feeling chastened against communicating about a subject I was passionate about made social interaction way harder than it needed to be.
Anyway, I don't have a much more complicated conclusion than, I think the world would be a much better place if it was socially acceptable to ask people what animal fact they learned recently and what their favorite animals were, instead of, like, the weather, and asking "how are you" when it's also not socially acceptable to say anything other than "fine," or maybe "tired."
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eschergirls · 2 months
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March 2024 Escher Girls Update and Patreon Thank You!
Hi everybody!
It's a new month, so it's time for a site update and to thank our awesome Patreon subscribers!
First, I've restored more posts that were broken in the move from Tumblr due to being animated gifs or posts/users being deleted/leaving Tumblr before the export, etc... I also reformat all the posts to be easier to read and add image descriptions to all the images.  This month, one of the posts I restored was this great breakdown and redraw by LessTitsNAss of the Superman vol. 3 #9 cover featuring Anguish/Masochist punching Superman while in a boobs and butt pose.  At the time the preview of the cover came out, the character was named Masochist, but I believe she was renamed to Anguish when the comic was actually published, hence why some of the posts still refer to her as Masochist.  I put a combined image of the redraw and breakdown as the image for this post, but if you want to see larger versions of each part, go check out the post!
And I'm continuing to work my way through the Tumblr inbox backlog so old submissions might be showing up.  Due to the way Tumblr piles up everything in descending order of newest first, a lot of the older stuff got buried since I get a lot of submissions, and it takes a while for me to get to it.  I'm really sorry if it's taken this long for your submission to show up. 
I've also been continuing to appeal mistakenly flagged posts by Tumblr's algorithm which can't tell the difference between stuff like a solid coloured body suit and actual nudity (it flagged Johnny Storm as being naked, for instance because he was on fire).  The algorithmic flagging, sudden rule changes, and other controversies, are the reason I host Escher Girls independently as well as cross-posting on Tumblr because then there's an archive of the posts that aren't affected by posts being flagged or removed on Tumblr or if Tumblr goes down or something.
And it's also why I really appreciate everybody who supposed us on Patreon and Ko-Fi. <3  It helps me pay for server costs, upgrades, domain hosting, and other things that help to keep the site going. :)
So I want to thank everybody who supported Escher Girls on Patreon in February!
Thank you so so much to:
Anne Adler Cat Mara CheerfulOptimistic  Chris McKenzie Em Bardon First Time Trek Greg Sepelak Ian Cameron Ken Trosaurus Kevin Carson Kim Wincen Kristoffer Illern  Holmén Leak  Manuel Dalton Mary Kuhner Max Schwarz Michael Mazur Miriam Pody Morgan McEvoy randomisedmongoose Rebecca Breu Ringoko  Ryan Gerber Sam Mikes Sean Sea SpecialRandomCast  Thomas 
And a special thank you to PJ Evans for donating on Ko-Fi!!!  I really appreciate it. :)
Also a huge thank you to everybody for reading, submitting, and generally commenting and engaging with Escher Girls!  It makes running the site so worth it. :)
For those who want to follow us without using Tumblr, we have an RSS feed. (For newbies, RSS stands for Really Simple Syndication and is basically a feed you can read using an RSS reader. Simply copy and paste https://eschergirls.com/rss.xml into an RSS reader and it will keep you up to date on Escher Girls!)
Thank you all so much,
Ami
If you have any issues with the site or suggestions to improve it, please do not hesitate to contact me and let me know!
If you wish to support Escher Girls, you can subscribe to our Patreon at: https://www.patreon.com/ami_angelwings or donate through Ko-Fi at: https://ko-fi.com/amiangelwings.
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