So Venus is my favorite planet in the solar system - everything about it is just so weird.
It has this extraordinarily dense atmosphere that by all accounts shouldn't exist - Venus is close enough to the sun (and therefore hot enough) that the atmosphere should have literally evaporated away, just like Mercury's. We think Earth manages to keep its atmosphere by virtue of our magnetic field, but Venus doesn't even have that going for it. While Venus is probably volcanically active, it definitely doesn't have an internal magnetic dynamo, so whatever form of volcanism it has going on is very different from ours. And, it spins backwards! For some reason!!
But, for as many mysteries as Venus has, the United States really hasn't spent much time investigating it. The Soviet Union, on the other hand, sent no less than 16 probes to Venus between 1961 and 1984 as part of the Venera program - most of them looked like this!
The Soviet Union had a very different approach to space than the United States. NASA missions are typically extremely risk averse, and the spacecraft we launch are generally very expensive one-offs that have only one chance to succeed or fail.
It's lead to some really amazing science, but to put it into perspective, the Mars Opportunity rover only had to survive on Mars for 90 days for the mission to be declared a complete success. That thing lasted 15 years. I love the Opportunity rover as much as any self-respecting NASA engineer, but how much extra time and money did we spend that we didn't technically "need" to for it to last 60x longer than required?
Anyway, all to say, the Soviet Union took a more incremental approach, where failures were far less devastating. The Venera 9 through 14 probes were designed to land on the surface of Venus, and survive long enough to take a picture with two cameras - not an easy task, but a fairly straightforward goal compared to NASA standards. They had…mixed results.
Venera 9 managed to take a picture with one camera, but the other one's lens cap didn't deploy.
Venera 10 also managed to take a picture with one camera, but again the other lens cap didn't deploy.
Venera 11 took no pictures - neither lens cap deployed this time.
Venera 12 also took no pictures - because again, neither lens cap deployed.
Lotta problems with lens caps.
For Venera 13 and 14, in addition to the cameras they sent a device to sample the Venusian "soil". Upon landing, the arm was supposed to swing down and analyze the surface it touched - it was a simple mechanism that couldn't be re-deployed or adjusted after the first go.
This time, both lens caps FINALLY ejected perfectly, and we were treated to these marvelous, eerie pictures of the Venus landscape:
However, when the Venera 14 soil sampler arm deployed, instead of sampling the Venus surface, it managed to swing down and land perfectly on….an ejected lens cap.
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A story like Thousand Autumns is very subtle in its romance.
Shen Qiao has only ever known his sect. He knows it very well, because of this fact. He knows the people, he knows the rules, he knows the daily doings and who is doing them. He knows every blade of grass and every stone. He’s like a lonely mountain flower, on the highest peak, unseen by any but a few birds and unknowing that there’s more it might never know.
When he finds himself away from his sect for the first time, he’s confused. At most, he’s gone to the base of the mountain, maybe the fields surrounding that, but no further. The flower was plucked and tossed aside.
For a man stumbling blindly in the world, literally and figuratively, there really isn’t a better guide than one that knows just about everything. And that’s, without a doubt, Yan Wushi.
Yan Wushi has lived longer than Shen Qiao, has been more places than Shen Qiao, and has fought more battles than Shen Qiao. Yan Wushi is the perfect example of something out of reach even for someone out of reach. He’s the only one who could answer any questions asked of him, but especially the questions that Shen Qiao would want to ask him.
And there’s no question in my mind that Yan Wushi doesn’t fall for Shen Qiao at first sight, but he’s certainly attracted to him. Not in an overtly sexual or emotional way, but Yan Wushi, the way his character is set up? It’s impossible for him not to be fascinated by Shen Qiao.
He knows Shen Qiao is the very picture of a peerless immortal. He’s well aware that Shen Qiao is considered untouchable by even the people closest to Shen Qiao. He’s most aware that Shen Qiao is Qi Fengge’s (coughhndisputedcough) favourite disciple, and honestly that’s enough for him to overwhemingly want to mess with Shen Qiao.
There are a lot of reasons for Yan Wushi to fall for Shen Qiao. Most of the people in the novel fall for Shen Qiao, after all, there is a precedent.
But the one I’ve seen questioned is Shen Qiao’s affection for Yan Wushi. Where does it come from? When did it start? Does Shen Qiao even fucking like that asshole?
The easy answer is: yes, he does. The novel tells us that. Shen Qiao, despite everything, does fall for Yan Wushi’s, um, “charms” in the end. This is made clear.
But why? A thousand voices cry out. Why the fuck would any reasonable person like Yan goddamn Wushi in any capacity?
Well, there’s your first mistake. Shen Qiao is not a reasonable person.
Shen Qiao as a character is absolutely terrifying. He could absolutely destroy the world given half the inclination, but he just doesn’t want to. He’s already considered unmatched before he’s pushed unceremoniously off of a mountain, and his journey only increases his strength. He isn’t quite equal to Yan Wushi, but he’s the only person Yan Wushi ever sees as equal to himself.
Shen Qiao’s best and worst trait is his patience. He’s unwavering. He really just embodies taoism, especially as it’s presented in the novels. He is the picture of a river that doesn’t stray from its path.
Which is why it’s hard for him to reconcile his own attraction to Yan Wushi, but let’s all be clear here. Yan Wushi absolutely starts seducing Shen Qiao on day fucking one. If he could’ve (if Qi Fengge hadn’t been there) he would’ve tried to eat that cabbage when it was just a little sprout. Shen Qiao is unpracticed in most social interactions, to be frank, but he’s especially unused to romance and Yan Wushi really is his first introduction to being hit on.
Yan Wushi is far from good, at really any point, to anybody but especially to Shen Qiao. But that doesn’t particularly matter because Shen Qiao chooses to forgive him, again and again. And I really think, after giving Shen Qiao to a confirmed terrible, awful person who has already promised to do terrible thing to Shen Qiao, that Shen Qiao himself wouldn’t forgive literally anyone else for doing that. And he shouldn’t, because it was really fucked up, but that still doesn’t matter because Shen Qiao ultimately DOES forgive Yan Wushi.
What am I saying? I’m saying that Shen Qiao fell for Yan Wushi first. It is the only way the story makes any sense. Shen Qiao is annoyed at him, he’s furious at him, he’s so fucking pissed he could kill that man, but he likes him. He likes Yan Wushi’s company. He likes that Yan Wushi gives him a challenge. He’s exasperated, but he likes it.
Shen Qiao forgives Yan Wushi SO MANY TIMES. Yan Wushi humiliates him and mocks him and is the absolute worst, but Shen Qiao forgives him and more than that, Shen Qiao always is waiting for Yan Wushi to come back to bother him more.
Is there more to Shen Qiao’s attraction? Probably. Is it a daddy kink? It could be. But I honestly can’t help but read it as Shen Qiao falling for the absolute pits of a man that is Yan Wushi. Shen Qiao likes that old bastard and decides to spend the rest of his life with the fucker and he is just too much of a block of ice to show it.
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How about a popular reader x unpopular yandere>
It was lunch break and you sat together with your classmates inside the classroom, eating your food. Today's topic was the new horror movie coming out soon, you'd all seen the trailer and it seemed scary. It was one of those 'robot turns evil and starts murdering people' kind of film, and you were totally up to see it.
"Bro, did you see her face? Now that's what I call scary.'' your friend Taro said in an exited voice.
"Yeah, bet you shat yourself when you saw the trailer." Hana joked and snorted at him, Taro in return gave her a 'really?' look.
"Haha, very funny."
"I agree, I'd love to see the way you'll scream when we actually go watch it. It'll be the best moment of my life." you said, following in Hana's footsteps.
"Oh no, not you too. Bullying is bad, you know. You could get expelled."
"The only one getting expelled here is you, we saw what you did to that Mitsuki girl in 3A. Not to mention that other younger student." another one of your friends reminded him with a smirk gracing his lips. "Mitsuki was not looking good, I'll tell you. You need to stop tormenting these poor people or it'll come back and bite you one day." he mocked.
"Yeah, yeah, whatever." in the corner of Taro's eye, he noticed a certain boy enter the classroom and glancing around until he spotted your group. Taro smiled deviously, "well, talking about sad people," he turned to face you, "there is one right there."
Looking in the direction of which your friend pointed in, you realised what he was talking about and sighed at the sight. Sano Yamada, your boyfriend. Actually, you didn't know he he really was your boyfriend. It's not like you loved him or anything. How could you? Not with that plain face, boring fashion and lack of social life. He wasn't exactly a popular one...
Why are you with him, then? Because it's fun. Since no one liked him and he clearly liked you(far more than you would've enjoyed), your friends thought it'd be fun to pull a little prank on him. The joke was simple, ask him to meet you on the roof after school and 'confess' to him before revealing the truth. Your friends thought it'd be hilarious to watch him make a fool out of himself, so you agreed to partake in this.
That's how things were supposed to go. Just be a little mean and then go home like nothing happened, but the world had different plans it seemed. For when the time came for things to go down, Sani got too caught up in joy that he failed to notice you weren't done, you hadn't gotten the chance to spill the beans that it was all fake and you weren't even close to liking him. You wished to fix things so you didn't have to date him, but your friends wouldn't let you. They believed it would be fun if you simply didn't say anything and kept going out with Taro.
So that is how you ended up with an unwanted boyfriend.
"Hello," Sano said as he reached the put-together tables you were seated at. "how's it going?" Is he was trying to adapt to your group of friends and impress them. He sadly didn't succeed.
The others gave him a tight lipped smile and answered shortly with a small 'it's fine'. You could not help but sigh again at his presence, the two of you didn't even share any lessons, did he really have to be there? Understanding you were the reason for his unexpected visit, you still asked, "Sano, what a surprise. What are you doing here, aren't you supposed to be with your own class?"
He didn't pick up on your irritation and replied to your question with a kind smile, "Yeah, but I missed you so much that I thought I could come here instead." Blushingly he turned his gaze to the floor, still somewhat shy in front of you.
"Oh..that's so..sweet." You forced yourself to at least look like you enjoyed his gestures and loving gaze. Taro and the others covered their mouths to hide their snickers, you pretended not to notice. How you wished Hana was the one Sano liked, not you.
"Can I join?'' Sano wondered and pointed at a free chair next to him nobody was using.
"Eh, sure."
Ha thanked you and pulled the chair close to the tables and sat down. Giving their last mocking laughs, they stopped after you sent them stink eye. After that conversation continued on like normal. Though he'd been allowed to join you, Sano didn't dare say anything and only sat there quietly. Just like a shadow. Just like it'd always been. There but not there at the same time, unnoticed and ignored. That's how most of sano's life has played out.
"-yesterday me and Taro talked, and we thought it would be cool if we all went to mall tomorrow."
"Need those new clothes, y'know." Taro chimed in and gestured to his body.
"You in?" Hana asked and looked at you.
"Yeah, of course." you said happily, you needed to do a little shopping yourself anyway.
"Cool, we can see if we can find those dresses we didn't buy last time!"
Last time you went to the shopping centre, you discovered two beautiful dresses but sadly weren't able to but them at the time because you two were broke as hell. You were pretty sure you only had like three dollars in your bak account. While you thought you were bad, you didn't even wish to think about Hana's economy.
"Good idea, I really liked it and-"
"-sorry to cut in,'' an anxious voice had interrupted you, "but aren't we going on a date tomorrow?" Sano put his hand over yours and squeezed it, "remember?"
Right. You totally forgot. You werre supposed to go on a date with Sano this weekend, he'd inquired about it nonstop for almost three weeks now and there was only so much you could take before giving in to his demands. You thought it better to simply get it over with so he'll shut up and leave you alone for a while.
"Right, I forgot. Sorry" you apologised in an obvious fake tone.
Sano nodded, signalling he accepted your apology. He didn't see how you scowled at him behind his back when he wasn't looking.
-
Lunch time had now passed and school was almost over, the weekend fun could soon begin. Which everyone was happy over, perhaps the teacher's more than anyone.
'I shouldn't have drunk so much water.' Sano thought to himself as he wandered through the halls of the building.
Entering the boys bathroom he saw it as empty, and proceeded to open the stall door stall and lock it. But right as he was going to get down to business, he heard the door opening and others coming in. The voices weren't of people he recognise, so he didn't plan to bother with it. However, when the conversation went in a direction related to him, he had no choice but to secretly listen in.
"You know that (Yn) girl from class 3C?"
"Yeah, of course, she's hot as fuck."
"Right, but have you seen that guy who follows her around all the time?" The voice mentioned in a rude way, making it clear he did not mean well.
"I've seen him a couple times. Not the best face, if you get what i mean." The second voice said and laughed.
"Hahaha, he's not a prince charming that's for sure."
They didn't realise the person they were talking ill of were very much within hearing range and listened to every word that came out of their mouths. Sano stood there, completely frozen. Taking in what they said. Was that really how people saw you and him? While he knew he was no social butterfly and you were well liked by many in contrast to himself, he didn't think it was something people actually brought up.
"I don't get why she doesn't leave him. There are surely better guys in school, she's bound to fall for one of them."
"You mean someone like Haruto?"
The other voice exclaimed, "Exactly! Someone like Haruto is a much better fit for her, he's well in her league. "
After that Sano heard some more bustling noises, and then it was silence. He poked his head out to confirm they had indeed left. The boy decided to goo back to class, his reason for leaving now forgotten. He piled over the two students words. Were they right? Did people actually believe someone else was a better choice for you. But that couldn't be true. He was yours and you were his. You belonged together.
That's what you felt too. You must, what would he do if you didn’t? No, you have to love him. Otherwise you wouldn’t have confessed to him so sweetly that day on the roof. He tried convincing himself that he was the love of your life like you were his, something too him it wasn’t like that though.
He wondered if you actually would leave him if someone better showed up. Someone like Haruto. Those two students from earlier weren’t wrong at all, Haruto was great. At many things. He was liked by everyone, he was good at sports, good at being funny and he just had to be good-looking too.
Much more than Sano, which hurt pretty bad. He hated to admit it but you and Haruto would make a better couple. He was jealous. Very jealous. He’d have to prove he was the perfect one for you. Sano couldn’t let anyone come and steal you away!
Sano would show you how good of a boyfriend he can be and your date tomorrow would be a glorious opportunity for that.
-
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