#which is just the most privileged fucking attitude

[rohirric-hunter]

A while ago I submitted a bug report in LotRO and I got a generic kind of ‘We’re aware of this issue and working on it’ reply, but then at the end of the message it said I could keep up with things like that on the LotRO forums and really? Really? I am playing a game that I love, staying in my lane, minding my business, and instead of submitting bug reports they want me to go to the LotRO forums? Last time I went to the LotRO forums I encountered a pack of individuals who want female dwarves and apparently female Stout-axes don’t count because they’re the same as male dwarves and to these people it seemed obvious that the gender option on Stout-axe dwarves was meant as a joke. They refused to elaborate on what traits they would like these new “real” female dwarves to have and accused everyone who was happy with the Stout-axe option or just mentally assigning whatever gender they liked to their regular dwarf of being “conservative dinosaurs.” I wouldn’t willingly spend time on the LotRO forums if they paid me. Fuck that.

#lotro #ignore me im complaining #also i find it very interesting that they were accusing other people of being 'conservative dinosaurs' #when there position was LITERALLY 'i know it says its a woman but it doesnt look like a woman to me so its not a woman' #*their #they also insisted quite stubbornly that it doesnt matter what tolkien said about his dwarves #because apparently lotro needs to 'keep up with modern expectations' if it wants to survive #which is just the most privileged fucking attitude #translation: this is directed at a different target audience and i dont want it to be directed at them i want everything to be for ME #theyre like customers who go into a barnes & noble and get pissy when the bookstore doesnt have a very big pancake mix selection #not even to mention the fact that i have never once in my life encountered a fantasy series that didnt have female dwarves #more or less the same as they are in lotr #that is. difficult to distinguish from male dwarves #on the bright side iirc the end of this thread was cordovan shutting it down #with a note that he could tell they were ban evading to keep making contentious threads and they were dismissing it out of hand

[murdrdocs]

thinkin abt messy audible sex w stiles

It’s like your senses are heightened, the ability to take in absolutely every single thing happening around you a new addition to your usual life. Maybe, if you weren’t in these specific circumstances, you would be a little freaked out. Heart racing for another reason, a different type of overstimulation seeping into your body and sending you running instead of chasing the sensations. 

But with Stiles above you, left hand pressed into the pillow under your head, right hand gripping your bare hip like his life depends on it, you’re able to use your enhanced-like senses to your advantage. You’re able to smell the remnants of Stiles’ cologne and your perfume as your combined sweat washes it off, replacing the traditionally pleasant scents with untraditionally aromatic smells of sex. You’re able to feel Stiles’ silky soft hair under your fingertips, and the easy way his cock slides in and out of your welcoming walls. But most of all, you’re able to hear the sound of you and Stiles together, the wet squelch of your cunt taking his inches with each thrust, the near silence of the refusal to let him go as he pulls back. 

When you’d first started a couple of orgasms ago, you could barely hear all of that, your moans and Stiles’ praises drowning the sound out. Then after your third orgasm, you’d gone silent, your euphoria rendering you speechless, soundless even. It’s then that you could hear it all, Stiles noticing first as he shushed you with a just as audible kiss. 

“Listen to that. You hear that?” He waited for your response, amber eyes flickering between each of yours. When you did hear it, mouth dropping a little as your eyes hazed over, he smirked, a curt amused chuckle falling from his lips before he kissed you once more. “Making fuckin’ music, baby.” 

Usually, Stiles fucked you with as least some sort of percision, some technique that he'd picked up which always made you mess. But you were already a mess, and Stiles' style of fucking you tonight was messy. Uncoordinated thrusts that had you wanting more and less. Fingers added along with his cock, the slightest stretch having you seeing stars. Circling your clit and spitting on it and even fucking speaking to your cunt. He's like a different person.

You were fucking gushing around him, a product from the first orgasm Stiles had given you with his fingers, then the second with his tongue, and the impending third from his cock. You’ve been in a position similarly to this one before, but your abundance of arousal was unusual, probably an effect of Stiles’ new haircut and particularly cocky attitude today. 

Both had you wanting him more than usual, trying to keep your hormones subdued even though it made them worse. Pretending like you didn’t want Stiles eventually had you pressing yourself against him when you were alone, close to begging for him to touch you but you’d never have to beg Stiles, he thinks it’s a privilege to have you like this. 

To him, his form of heaven is bringing you to the edge again and again. It’s why he’s bolstering right now, chattier than usual as he praises you for even being this wet for him. It starts off as praise, and it starts with him talking to you, but then you feel as if he’s talking more to himself. 

“So, so good for me, sweetheart. You don’t even know what you do to me, do you? Think about you all day. My girl. Letting me treat her like a little slut. Don’t even know what to do with myself most of the time. Can’t do anything but jack off, thinking about how good you taste, how good you feel.” 

And as much as you like hearing Stiles talk, you just need to hear what the two of you sound like a little more. So you bring him down to you, nails digging into his scalp to silence him even as you push your lips to his. Then, you pull back enough to speak to him, a commanding, “listen” let out into the air. 

Stiles smiles against your lips, and then he listens.

#stilesworld! #I feel vulnerable putting this out there erm #but likeeee tehe #inspired by that one post #stiles stilinski #stiles stilinski x reader #stiles stilinski x you #stiles stilinski smut #celeste writes misc

[infictionalwonderland]

hi, can you do headcanons about klaus mikaelson being your sugar daddy?

pairing: klaus mikaelson x sugar baby reader

warnings: lots of talk of money & finances, swearing, some sub/dom dynamics, talk of body and body image

you need not lift a finger cuz thy lover will provide 😜😜😜

kidding but im also not

you are so privileged.

every fucking thing that you want is given to you within a literal blink of an eye

& all you have to do is simply pout prettily and ask your extremely hot sugar daddy

(he’ll always agree, he can never say no to you)

you the newest everything and even your friends and family are decked out in any designer things they want

‘can i—‘ YES YES YES YOU CAN ANYTHING. is klaus attitude to you.

(he pussy whipped)

the only thing he straight up refused to was getting you botox or plastic surgery

you tried to ask once and he immediately shut you down

“y/n, love, no. you are by far the most exquisite person whom i have ever come across, now, why would you want to change such perfection, hm?”

“you know how i loathe to deny you anything but i will not assist you in ridding the world of the true beauty you bring to it”

but clothing, jewellery etc.. there is not a single no in site

in fact he even suggests a lot of the shit he buys for you

“mmm, what do you think about this necklace, love? i think your pretty little neck needs some charms to keep it company, don’t you?”

“this dress would look ravishing on you, my darling”

and despite this power dynamic of him being ‘in charge’ of your finances and luxuries, you’re the one who’s truly in charge

(and you both know it)

something that always gives you a rush and klaus will forever deny till the day he dies was that one time in the lingerie shop…

he came to the changing rooms with you, suffering in his arousal as he give tight lipped compliments to every piece of lingerie you tried on. only wishing to get his hands on you.

after all the trying on (must’ve been at least 12 sets) you said you didn’t think you were getting any of them

& to your utter shock and his utter shame the hybrid had scrambled into his knees in front of you, being still clad in the last set, and had literally begged you to buy them

and then begged you to touch him

you’d walked out of the lingerie shop, a splitting grin on your face with a blushing original hybrid trailing behind you with bags in hand and a lingerie sized dent in his card

best day ever

some part of him just sparks in delight with you wear the clothes he buys for you (which is most of your closet) bc ur his and wearing the clothes he bought you

and wearing the hickeys that he gave you on your neck

in conclusion, being klaus sugar baby is the existence that we all want

lucky bitch xoxo

#klaus mikaelson #klaus mikaelson imagine #the originals #klaus mikaelson x reader #the originals imagine #klaus mikaelson x you #klaus x reader #the originals x reader #the originals fanfiction #klaus mikaelson smut #sub klaus #dom reader #elijah mikaelson imagine #rebekah mikaelson #elijah mikaelson x reader

[spacelazarwolf]

sometimes when talking to cis white women i’m just like. completely floored by what a warped perception of privilege and oppression they have. i was talking to a white cis woman i’d just met, right after the emergency order went public in missouri restricting gender affirming care for trans missourians of all ages, and we were just casually talking about clothes. i mentioned that i often have a hard time finding men’s clothes that fit, and she responded “well at least you have the privilege of pockets now.” i laughed, thinking she was joking, but instead she doubled down and insisted that having larger pockets in my pants was a legitimate societal privilege because it meant i didn't have to spend money on purses. and again, this was after the missouri attorney general had pushed through emergency legislation targeting trans missourians, legislation that will absolutely kill trans people.

i've also had cis white women tell me i'm privileged because apparently they thought that as a trans man all i'd have to do to get sterilized is just say 'pretty please' and any doctor would immediately approve a hysterectomy. they told me that "cis women have to fight for the right to have sterilization surgery, but trans men don't because it'll just get covered under gender affirming care." which is just so absolutely fucking wild on so many levels. 1. trans men do regularly have to fight for the right to get sterilized, and our fertility is frequently used as an excuse not to provide us any sort of gender affirming care at all. it's one of the most common arguments republicans all over the country have been using in order to ban gender affirming care. 2. it's incredibly common for sterilization to be pushed onto people of color and disabled people, and even some trans people.

and idk i feel like that very much contributes to this attitude among cis queer women that trans men just have it so easy, because their perception of oppression is based entirely in their experience as a cis white woman, so if someone doesn't experience oppression exactly like they do then clearly they're not experiencing Real Oppression. idk it's just wild.

#atm #and like i've had convos like this w white trans women before as well #but they generally go a bit differently #bc they can at least try to relate to the trans part of my experience #but that's a separate post that i don't feel like getting death threats over rn

[wannaeatramyeon]

Vegetable anon here if you remember 😭 I have a random thought idk what to do with. I feel like gun would ironically be really interested in how you do your makeup and attentively nod while you show how its done. Whilst goo......right after you apply your foundation would say "I don't see any difference" and eye roll😭😭😭😭 LIKE UKWIM

Vegetable anon of COURSE I remember you. (Your other ask is still in my inbox. It's just taking time 😭). But you know when a silly idea just grips you?

Makeup nonsense with your boyfriend: Gun Park, Goo Kim

Mostly G/N.

Gun Park x Reader

Gun is intense. You know this. But you've never had his focus and attention quite like right now.

"How hard can this be?"

Famous last words. Out of everything, Gun did not expect this to catch him out. His hands and fingers are not made for intricate work. Even his handwriting is barely legible.

So eyeshadow? Eyeliner? Mascara? You may very well be losing an eye.

He holds the brush between firm fingers though the pressure is feather light along your left lid.

When he shifts his attention to your right, you open your now free one and chance a peek at him.

See the crease between his brows, his nostrils flaring at this being a challenge, the way his tongue darts out to wet his lips.

It's sort of. Cute. And you think about his reaction if you called him cute. How his anger and confusion would flare up equally. Which makes him all the cuter.

You giggle at your thoughts, body shaking and completely throwing Gun off-

His other hand shoots up to grip your jaw.

"Stop fucking moving."

...So much for being cute.

You arch a brow at his tone, his attitude. It's not your fault he has found something he's bad at.

Gun swallows down his scowl and his irritation. If this was anyone else.. But it's not. It's you.

"Please." he grits out, short and clipped. Pressing a quick kiss to your lips as a truce.

Seriously. Why the hell is he doing this? Why is he spending a Saturday afternoon doing your goddamn makeup instead of literally anything else? Instead of doing you.

Clarity hitting him and realising the absurdity of this, Gun nearly downs his tools-

Shit.

The eyeliner. It's wildly uneven. This will never do. With a sigh, he continues on with his handiwork.

.

.

Goo Kim x Reader

A perk of being with Goo Kim should be being able to pick through his words.

Understanding that there is very little you can take at face value, even where you are concerned.

Having applied your makeup, spending far longer than you usually would, you turn to your boyfriend, expecting some flattery.

Either way, you think how you look doesn't actually matter. Goo probably can't even tell.

But surely it's a girlfriend privilege to expect some flowery words. Most partners would just tell you that you look nice and call it a day.

It takes a couple attempts to even catch his attention, phone glued to his hand and tapping away at some gacha game no doubt.

At the third go of you clearing your throat loudly, he peers over the top. Disinterested and annoyed to have had his focus taken away.

You point at your face, obviously fishing for a compliment. Something to appease you for the extra time and effort.

And honestly? You think you look pretty damn good.

"What?" Goo's eyes return back to his screen after scrutinising you for a split second, "You look the same."

Just as your own annoyance bubbles-

"Beautiful as always."

Oh.

That bastard.

Goo, knowing his words have hit the target, throws you a quick wink and finger guns before resuming his game.

Sure you can't take his words at face value, but with you, they always hold at least a grain of truth.

#what was that about gun park being my grumpy soft blorbo and not a mass murderer #lookism #lookism webtoon #lookism manhwa #lookism fic #lookism x reader #gun park #gun park x reader #goo kim #goo kim x reader #wannaeatramyeon

[enbycrip]

I need people to stop telling trans binary and nonbinary people who vent about their family forgetting or not using their pronouns or chosen names to “just cut them out of their lives if they can’t respect who you are”.

*Lots* of us are disabled. I really depend on help from my folks to manage my life when things are bad.

But, frankly, even if I didn’t - I’m not going to cut my folks, or the rest of my family, out of my life, because things they do hurt me. Because they do, sometimes right to the heart for things I don’t think they realise mean a lot to me, but that *doesn’t* stop me loving them. Nor them loving me. My folks are also right at the limit of their capacity caring for three people to different extents, and that doesn’t give them a lot of capacity to spare for learning or processing stuff they don’t necessarily see as all that important.

Trans folk, and disabled folk, which have a big crossover in the middle of the Venn Diagram there, are socially marginalised and isolated. Lots of trans and disabled people are literally cut out by their families for being who they are, and that is a big, big cause of marginalisation and isolation.

The idea that the rest of us should just do that to ourselves when people we love hurt us by not understanding who we are - and this stuff *isn’t* actually that easy to learn for people outside the queer, disabled or queer disabled communities if they’re not incredibly motivated to do so - is incredibly fucking damaging and, to be absolutely honest, a complete cop-out by people who are not willing to put up with the emotional labour of understanding that most lives are not simple, and marginalised people have to constantly deal with trade-offs in most areas.

I don’t remotely mean that people should put up with abuse if they have the capacity to leave that situation. But people need to expand their understanding to a) behaviour that hurts us is not necessarily the same as abuse, and b) marginalised people *are* frequently stuck in abusive situations, and this sort of absolute “leave or shut up” attitude people are so keen to put out online further traps and isolates marginalised people who are stuck, instead of giving them emotional support and, hopefully, physical and informational support too.

The idea that we can simply and easily withdraw from parts of our social network without it costing us something vital is incredibly privileged, and incredibly dangerous.

We talk so much in environmental and social movements about building community. We always talk about it in this purely positive light. I need people to start engaging with the fact that real, as opposed to idealised, community, is a multifaceted thing, and all the more so for people who are intersectionally marginalised - anywhere at the crossover point of queer, disabled, BIPOC, trans, neurodivergent, migrant, and other things. We are communal creatures by nature, but, frankly, capitalism has done a *lot* to break that up, and to prevent us from learning the skills of negotiation and existing in community as equitably as possible. And that includes in small communities like families.

Part of that, frankly, *is* letting people have vent spaces. Without necessarily jumping in to problem solve unless people *ask* for that. Venting is literally one of the ways that people move towards problem solving themselves - it not only lets them express emotion they may not have the space to express properly in the situation that’s causing it, but it starts letting them lay a situation out and put it in perspective. And online venting is great, tbh. It stops individual people from becoming sole venting spaces, the emotional labour of which falls disproportionately on women and femme-read people. And it means that, if you don’t have the spoons to hold that space for people, you can scroll by.

I absolutely do *not* find this stuff easy. At all. I am *way* too autistic for that. That’s why I work *hard* at this stuff.

We *need* communities. We are communal primates. It’s what we are and what we do. And, frankly, we need to get better at being in community with each other to build the future we need to survive. Capitalism and oligarchy has been far too fucking effective at pushing a narrative of individualism which ignores our responsibilities as humans - to each other and to the planet we live on. We need to learn to see the costs of isolation and being isolated, and learn the skills of supporting each other and negotiating with each other.

And, absolutely honestly, if someone *is* in a situation where they do need to walk away from a relationship (of any kind), they will be *so* much better able to do so if they have a community of genuine support from others around them.

#disabled #disability #trans #nonbinary #trans nonbinary #marginalised #community #community building

[writingfarintothedark]

So I saw this opinion from @bitchypuppystarlight saying Simon was "unfair" when being upset with Wille about Alexander taking the fall for the drug situation.

Hm. It is reductive and unfair (haha) in my opinion to say only Simon was "unfair" in this situation. The whole situation was unfair and messed up, Simon and Wille had their reasons for what they did, but they were both in the wrong.

Something this show clearly did in season 1 is show how people and situations are multifaceted- characters in this show are rarely completely "right" or "wrong"- they all have their justifications for doing what they did. So it is interesting to see a take that completely blames Simon- especially in THIS situation, which was one of the most complicated and messy plotlines in the show, where Wille made his fair share of mistakes as well. In fairness, I do think most people caught onto that this was meant to be a complicated issue.

I'm not sure I am following the opinion "Wilhelm had nothing to do with the whole thing." Wilhelm...willingly TOOK the drugs Simon sold? And the "Society" was almost caught taking those drugs, which would have landed Wille in deep shit, so he very much had A LOT to do with the whole thing. That was the point- Simon AND Wilhelm were totally entangled in this situation. Wilhelm is not blameless here.

It was pretty clear that the fight Wilhelm and Simon had in the music room showed the hypocrisy/double standards when it comes to how working class poc (like Simon) vs the rich elite would be treated in this entire debacle- Wille calls Simon selling drugs "low", but he was the one who TOOK those drugs as well.

It wasn't like the Society was going to fess up collectively with Simon- their plan was to pin it ALL on Simon. Their plan was to screw Simon over, and to get away scot-free because the words of the rich white boys would be valued above Simon's, a non-res. How is that fair? So Simon was rightfully upset at those implications.

THEN what the Society ended up doing was blaming the whole thing on Alexander. So again, they lied and threw someone under the bus. If we understand Simon's character at all, it'd be obvious why he would be "indignant" with that- it is unjust! He doesn't like unfair things, that was established about his character from day one and he was intentionally written like that- to contrast the entitled attitudes the elite students at Hillerska have. Simon likely had residual anger at being the potential scapegoat, and then he found out another boy was the scapegoat. Why would he be happy that Alexander got thrown under the bus for something Alexander had a minimal part in, while the most privileged group of boys didn't? Why would Simon condone that? Why is that something to celebrate?

And I think "indignant" is a strong word to use in that situation anyway...Simon pretty quickly came around, accepted the situation, and comforted Wille. He saw that Wille was in a tough mental spot, with a lot of pressure, and that Wille just wanted to help Simon. Simon immediately hugged him and they made up.

Simon and Wille are BOTH very much in the wrong here, as is everyone in the Society. They all fucked up- that is the point! They're human! They make mistakes! But they all had their reasons. Simon has none of the privileges these other students have, and he was trying to navigate this environment to take care of his sister and his grades. Wille had just lost his brother and was facing this new pressure of being Crown Prince. They had their reasons for what they did, but that doesn't make it right. And clearly, they paid for these mistakes later down the line.

We're not supposed to condone these actions, we're supposed to understand them though, and pointing the finger at any one person in this situation is reductive.

#young royals #wilmon #simon eriksson #prince wilhelm

[rosyjuly]

galex sugar rush au because i've been hooked on this terrible show and i want baker boys pining and whipping up gorgeous desserts.

The whole thing had been George’s idea. 

“No.” 

“Alex, come on,” George had said, trying to catch Alex’s eye, but Alex had been looking away, handsome face scrunched up in a grimace. 

“Be serious now,” Alex had scoffed. He had finished his coffee with one last gulp and sprung to his feet. George threw his paper cup in the trash and followed him inside, looking at the nape of Alex’s neck as they’d crossed out of the courtyard’s sunlight and back into the dark of the kitchen’s staff entrance. 

“I am being serious,” George had said, trying to keep his voice low, avoid drawing attention to the discussion now bordering on an argument. “Listen, it’s fifty grand – think about what we could do with that money.” 

Anyway, they’re watching the episode now with Alex’s siblings, piled too close together on the couch. 

“Don’t you start it without me,” Chloe says, pointing at Alex, when the microwave beeps. Alex’s apartment is only barely bigger than a studio; with the six of them crammed into the makeshift living room it feels practically claustrophobic, a train carriage at peak hour. The old couch doesn’t have the stamina to support three people anymore and every time Alex shifts it sags and sends George and Zoe tumbling down into the middle, the two of them pooling around Alex in a tumble of legs. George keeps his hands in his lap, just in case. 

“I’m telling you,” Alex groans, “you already know the result! Why are you making such a big deal out of it?” 

“If it was a big deal you’d have fucking made something,” Luca says without looking up from his phone. 

“There’s popcorn,” Alex tells him, nodding at Chloe who’s returning with two bowls from the kitchen. 

“Albono, you’re the laziest person I know,” George says. He drags a playful hand through Alex’s hair; the bleached strands are soft between his fingers. 

“I deal with enough food during my day job if you haven’t noticed, thank you very much,” Alex says, rolling his eyes. He doesn’t pull his head away though. He picks up the remote and presses play, which finally shuts everyone up, even if just while Hunter March explains the rules of the chocolate-themed episode. 

“Aww, I didn’t remember you guys had matching little outfits,” Zoe clicks her tongue. 

“George’s idea,” Alex says, reaching around blindly for the popcorn. He’s right. It was: but it’s just blue aprons, nice cotton ones in a deep navy color, big, practical pockets on both sides. George actually wanted headbands, too, but Alex took one look at the bandanas, and said it’s either them or him. It was an easy choice, after that. 

George crosses his arms over his chest as the other teams are introduced. Most of them look smooth, in sync; he’s been trying to avoid stressing about how he and Alex will come across. 

“We’re friends and coworkers,” he sees himself say on screen, over-articulating the words like he does when he’s stressed. Alex next to him looks almost bored, eyebrow half-cocked at the camera. 

“I got him drunk enough to admit that he hired me because he thought I was cute,” Alex says, flashing a bright smirk. 

“For the record, I don't have hiring privileges,” George-on-the-screen says after a guffaw. George remembered feeling caught out: it’s not like Toto hadn’t asked him what he thought of Alex after his trial shift, and Alex was definitely his type: tall and handsome with an attitude. And he hadn’t even bleached his hair back then. 

“Oh, you guys were laying it on pretty thick,” Zoe says, stuffing a handful of popcorn into her mouth. 

George hums, crosses his arm on his chest. He and Alex look like as much of a well-oiled team on screen as they feel in the kitchen, leaning close together over the countertop, notebook spread out in front of them. 

“I think we should do something a bit more out of the box,” George-on-the-screen says, sketching up the bottom of the cupcake. “Peanut butter, raspberry, chili – that’s done and dusted.” 

“Why don’t we do a pistachio one?” Alex says. He draws the frosting, dots the top part of the swirl. “Pair it with some nice dark chocolate in the dough, some crushed nuts on top, hm?” 

In the next interlude, Alex says, his apron clean, his hair artfully swept to one side, “He makes it tasty, I make it look good.” 

George snorts, nudges their knees together. “As if it wasn’t you coming up with that concept and like, half of the others.” 

Alex doesn’t answer, but he presses his leg along George’s. 

George still can’t believe Jacques Torres was in the same room, that he tasted their cupcake and liked it – liked it enough to name them the winners of the first round, blown away by the richness of the frosting, the satisfying, salty crunch of toasted pistachios. 

For the confection, the two other teams already picked ruby chocolate, so they settled on gold instead to set themselves apart. George isn’t sure how much footage will be shown of them – probably more, now that one team’s already been eliminated. But he isn’t prepared for the exact moment when Alex-on–the-screen says, “Why don’t we do ice cream?”, watches with avid mortification how George-on-the-screen immediately nods, face tense, mouth pressed in a thin line. 

“I can do it with liquid nitrogen,” George-on-the-screen offers, already checking the shelves for the equipment. 

“Those glasses are so funny,” Chloe says, phone pointed at the screen. She’s posting a story about it – George can’t wait to see the mocking caption. Better to focus on how silly he looks while he’s taking out the ice cream of the container, goggles and big, rubbery gloves on, instead of the immediacy he seeks to fulfill Alex’s every request. He’s never even used liquid nitrogen before; only knew the technique in theory. And it showed. The ice cream came out a touch too soft. Not even Alex’s carrot cake crumble could save it; the judges were more impressed by the flambéd bananas with the ruby chocolate soufflé. 

But they went through. The girls exhale in relief, and so does George, even though he knows the outcome, has lived it for months now. 

In the final round, they have to create a chocolate wonderland; whatever that means. George remembers the paralyzing fear he felt in the moment, blanking – but Alex was already sketching, his face lit up with excitement, hands moving in sweeping, relaxed motions. 

“And we can do the ferris wheel with salt sticks,” Alex-on-the-screen is saying. 

So they made a realistic Winter Wonderland cake; the fair in a cold, London December, covered in mud instead of snow. A large sheet cake with silky chocolate ganache, on top the barren trees, overpriced amusement rides. 

It must look impressive enough, because even Luca puts his phone away, watches the screen with barely concealed attention. Alex-on-the-screen is making the ganache, pouring heated up heavy cream over the chocolate. When he calls George over for a second opinion, he’s offering the spoon, his other hand cupped under it for any spillage. George-on-the-screen is taken aback, blinking owlishly for a few seconds before snapping out of it and tasting. It was exquisite, of course. 

When they’re done with the assembly and the piping, Alex-on-the-screen asks, “Do you need me to boss you around?” because George keeps hovering at the edge of the shot, fetching salt sticks and shying away from trying to build the freaking carousel. 

“Mate, the editors really liked you,” George snorts, trying to hide his embarrassment. “I had good moments, too! Where are they!”

“Natural charm, what can I say,” Alex says, but he nudges a friendly shoulder against George’s. 

It doesn’t even come as a surprise that they win. Their opponents’ cake was, well, cute, but lacked the kind of single-minded focus Alex and him brought to the table. 

On the screen, he and Alex hug long enough that something starts fizzing in his stomach, hot and uncomfortable. He excuses himself as the music starts up and Hunter March starts thanking them for watching another episode, stares at himself in the bathroom mirror. It can’t be that obvious all the time, he thinks, because otherwise Alex would have noticed it already, would have said something. Anything. 

When he comes out, Alex and Zoe are talking in the kitchen, voices low and hushed. He raps his knuckles lightly against the door. Zoe looks up, face sharp as she says, “I better go, I’m already an hour late to my friends.” Before she leaves, she fixes Alex with one last look that almost makes George flinch. It would be better to flee. Easier, at least. But Alex has always been kind; even if they hadn’t won the prize, if they hadn’t convinced Susie to invest in their confectionery, Alex wouldn’t just blank him. 

The front door closes. The flat is quiet again: it’s just the two of them and the dishes in the sink. George itches to grab a sponge and occupy his hands; shoves them in his pocket instead. 

“Felt weird to see ourselves like that.” 

“Yeah,” Alex says, giving him a small smile. He doesn’t seem mad, truly. “Kinda insane to think about it, still, you know? Winning. Um, the money, of course. Our own place.” He looks down and shakes his head, smiling to himself. 

“We make a good team,” George allows himself to say. 

“We sure do.”

For a few seconds, they watch each other, the silence stretching like a taut bow. Then Alex clears his throat – George tries to steel himself for the blow, school his face into something neutral enough for the rejection. 

“Um. Zoe said,” and he clears his throat again, “she said that I should man up – her words, not mine – that I’ve wasted enough time already.”

“With, uh, with me?” George asks with a valiant attempt to ignore the lump in his throat. 

“Yes– no! Not with the shop, of course, just–” Alex scrubs a hand over his face. “Fuck, I’m getting this all wrong, just, let me–” and then he’s stepping in, cupping George’s nape with a hand as he slots their mouths together. George makes a noise that he’d deny on his deathbed – Alex seems into it anyways, he thinks – and presses closer, kisses him back. 

#would i recomment the show? ehhhh #but it's fun and this is like 1.7k written in a few hours just because #galex #little fic #george/alex #idk my own tagging system but what's new!

[kaylinalexanderbooks]

OC interaction

Thanks to @mysticstarlightduck here and @illarian-rambling here!

Rules: describe an OC and then how they would interact with the OC of the person who tagged you!

The descriptions added up and now it's long. Under the cut!

Mystic's OC 1:

Nimwen is an 18 year old girl who has spent most of her life (since she was 8) travelling through the uncharted forests of a region popularly called "the wilds", with her adoptive brother Scarlet and their little band of misfits. They live on the outskirts of society, since their kingdom has been so dilligently outcasting them, but they don't seem to mind it. All in all, Nimwen is an awkward, overly anxious, often paranoid but incredibly sweet girl, though she rarely lets strangers get too close to her. She embodies the energy of a skittish deer that will bolt at the nearest sign of danger, even if its a false alarm, though she has very good reasons to be that way - her father was wrongfully executed for treason, and the people of the kingdom didn't exactly give her much reason to trust them after what they did, so yeah. She's very in touch with nature and other people's feelings though she somehow seems very much oblivious to her own. She prefers to avoid confrontation, and will only fight if that's the absolute last resort in a life or death situation. She loves very deeply and makes strong bonds once you get to know her properly.

Mystic's OC 2:

Renn is a young man in his late teens (his exact age hasn't been specified yet, but he's suspected to be around 16-19) with a penchant for dark humor and a love for all that's mysterious and slightly macabre. He has a very strong vibe that is reminiscent of those early 2000s goth/emo kids, minus the angst - just the aesthetics and the sometimes deeply philosophical existential crisis - despite his fantasy medieval setting. He is a rule breaker and likes to question authorities at every chance he gets, and is also very savvy about the true inner workings of their seemingly perfect kingdom. It is implied that he has some kind of secret he is keeping hidden at all costs, and that implication would be true, but its not what most people would assume. While the townsfolk mostly label him as this unhinged/"crazy" reject who is always causing trouble and is up to no good, he is actually a really sweet kid that just had some truly fucked up stuff happen in his past. He is a loyal friend and values honesty and integrity above all else, even if it means he'll have to go down fighting for what he believes in. Despite all of this intensity, he just wants someone to truly understand him and have a pure friendship towards him. He is also implied to be gifted in some kind of magic, though it isn't specified which, and that he has knowlege of "forbidden arts".

Katie's OC:

Ivander Montane is a 30 year old corrupt detective from the trade city of Unity. He has blue blood and double-pointed ears, wears fancy suits, and walks with a cane. His estranged family runs the banks of Unity, however he left them years ago, and in doing so, broke a divine contract, which left him cursed to slowly and painfully be transmuted into mist over the course of many years. Personality-wise, he's kind of a privileged shithead. He's got the catty attitude and love of gossip of a middle school girl, and can insult your outfit just as acutely. He doesn't have a sincere bone in his body and is afraid of any form of intimacy. However, deep down, he really just wants a friend and to not be in pain anymore. Show him the slightest hint of compassion and he will crumble. His hobbies include being a hater, fashion, and marksmanship (he's a crack shot with a rune rifle). All in all, he's got the snark of a drag queen, the heart of a lonely noir detective, and a body that's been through a cheese grater.

My OC:

Maddie is an 11-year-old girl who is quiet, curious, and a bit of a risk-taker. She's generally well-liked but isn't sure why people like her. She fidgets and squirms and likes to remain active, especially with her hands. She's a STEM kid through and through, loving each letter in the acronym. Maddie takes things apart, such as pens, to see how they work and eventually joins her school's robotics club. She believes in direct fairness - will match your tone with her - and gets a little upset if she is misunderstood, which is often, since she thinks she's straightforward. Her honesty leads to her being nosy, as she believes everyone should be open. Maddie is an animal shapeshifter, and enjoys the physical sensation of morphing as well as pushing her limits a little too much. She's a gamer who prefers consuls with buttons and enjoys old sci-fi shows and modern cartoons. Despite not quite understanding emotions, she does try to be there for the people she cares about, and usually tries to defuse a serious situation with a little joke.

Maddie + Nimwen:

Maddie likes adventure and risk, so I think she would be interested in hearing Nimwen traveling through uncharted forest for a decade. Her sibling is much more comfortable staying in, well, her comfort zone, so the idea of two siblings doing this would be a little foreign to Maddie. Being overly anxious and sweet would remind Maddie of her sister, but Lexi is a lot more outgoing. She wouldn't really understand Nimwen being skittish, but maybe Maddie's more adventurous nature would rub off on her. She may be a little caught off-guard by Maddie's shapeshifting. Nimwen being in touch with nature combined with Maddie's animal morphing will be interesting. Maybe Ninwen's knowledge of animals can help Maddie understand them more, since she's more of a hands-on person and is functioning based on reading up on animals - something she can only tolerate knowing she'll shapeshift later. Nimwen could also give Maddie more emotional advice, though it would take a while for Maddie to understand why Nimwen wants to talk with her. Maddie is a little over-eager to fight, so Nimwen may have to hold her back, or Maddie may try to get Nimwen to fight with her. I think this would be a fun little sister-esque dynamic!

Renn + Maddie:

Maddie is best friends with an emo/goth leaning person, so I feel like Renn is familiar territory. Maddie also likes breaking rules for the thrill and questioning authority, so I think they'd be an unstoppable force. Maddie is nosy, though, so I think she'd be a little too curious about Renn's secrets and business. They're both honest, Maddie almost blunt, so I feel like they'd get along. She'd also be curious about his own magic, and would probably show off her powers. I think Maddie would be a little weirded out if Renn wants to be friends with her - and since they seem to understand each other, that may be possible, though not sure how he'd feel about her being a kid - but I think in the end they'd be an unstoppable duo.

Ivander + Maddie:

Now this is an unlikely pairing. Maddie's nosy nature would probably get on his nerves. She'd be curious about the cane, why he's always in pain, etc and may ask too many questions and not pick up on how he doesn't want to answer them. She would probably though recognize his shitheaddedness and would just match his attitude with her fairness policy. Maddie has an odd fashion choice - bright and colorful with mismatched patterns, but I don't think she'd be that hurt by any insults, just confused. And of course would get him back. Maddie is a nice and kind person but isn't good about empathizing, and if Ivander doesn't show her compassion, she won't show it either. They'd annoy each other, and honestly they may have fun doing it. At least Maddie will find it very exciting to poke at his patience.

To describe OCs to pair with Maddie --

@monstrouswrites @mrbexwrites @elsie-writes @steh-lar-uh-nuhs @stesierra @sarandipitywrites @sarahlizziewrites @mk-writes-stuff @jezifster @jessicagailwrites @leahnardo-da-veggie @pb-dot @ohnomybreadsticks + anyone else!

TSP intro

TSP tag list (ask to be +/-): @thepeculiarbird @illarian-rambling @televisionjester @finchwrites - y'all can hop on if you want!

#the secret portal #tsp #teaspoon #maddie morgan #of starlight and beasts #mystery of the mortal god #oc interaction #other people's ocs #my ocs #oc tag game #writing tag game #writers on tumblr #writing community #writers of tumblr #writing on tumblr #writeblr #writeblr community

[midmorningsong]

So this morning a staffmate told me about the recent Miami Zoo Kiwi incident that’s come to light, and I’ve been fucking livid all day.

Just been reading through a bunch of articles (majority NZ news sources) and the Zoo’s official statement, and somehow it’s even worse than what my irate coworker was able to convey to me. Miami Zoo had the absolute fucking privilege of receiving a (North Isl. Brown (?)) kiwi egg to hatch and raise as a species you would never normally see outside our little island at the bottom of the world as part of a some global zoo wildlife initiative.

Brief brief summary: viral videos coming out of this kiwi (Paora) being put on a table and patted by paying customers under bright lights, having selfies taken, made to run around during the day, keeper pursuing him whenever he tried to hide in his box. All around blasé attitude from keeper talking about this bird while he’s being paraded about on display. There’s video footage but I could seriously only stomach watching it once. He’s been there for 4 years and in the wake of this outrage they’re claiming to be building him a ‘proper enclosure’ now. He’s been handled like this at least 4 times a week and his current enclosure has been 3x3m.

They had access to super fucking detailed information on how to take care of this very sensitive and specialized animal, and what the fuck do they do? Disregard ALL of it to sell cutesy, ~rare bird~, self-obsessed animal encounters.

Either you knowingly and intentionally went against SO. MUCH. vital animal husbandry or you are just such a fuckwit you legitimately think it was good animal handling, I don’t know which is worse honestly. If it’s the former, congratulations; American Capitalism continues to be the most nasty, disrespectful piece of shit I see regularly parading about in broad daylight. If it’s the latter, then are your staff for real just exotic pet-obsessed freaks who showed up one day in a uniform and you just went ‘yeah sure you can be a zookeeper good enough’. Shoutout to that ‘keeper’ who had Paora’s head pinned to the fucking table with his fist going ‘hohoh yeah he’s just like a dog he loves being pat on the head’ yeah sure thing idiot I bet your zookeeper degree taught you all animals and birds especially just love being slapped around and treated like dogs.

The thing that’s got me the most though, is how over the top and pitiful they are being in their apology; “we’ve offended a nation...”, “it should have never happened”, “we are so sorry this video has caused stress to people”, ok yeah but fuck what we think why is there exactly ZERO mention of the stress, harm and sheer exploitation you have put this animal through??? Like yes, Paora is a taonga species and that is certainly adding to the severity of this response, but in and of itself the fact that their official statement answers ONLY to humans’ responses and outrage and not the failure to care for this animal is telling as fuck to me.

I really liked reading iwi leader Paora Haitana’s response (who Paora the kiwi is named after), in much nicer words than me expressing deep concern over the harm to Paora, the disrespect it is to him as a taonga species and us as protectors of them, and also heavy, heavy emphasis on words holding no shape under the weight of everything that has happened; they need to follow through and follow through right now with adequate care.

Personally I’d like to see Paora moved to a zoo that actually cares about his needs and conservation education over selling clickbait. I feel the love and intention of bringing him home to Aotearoa, though I don’t know how realistic that is with the risk of introducing diseases from abroad into the NZ populations. I also would expect a thorough investigation of Zoo Miami’s husbandry for all their species and the credentials of their staff.

Thanks for coming along to rant o’ clock, I’ll be back to reblogging regular fandom shit now so please don’t follow me if you’re expecting more of my own content lol. Enjoy some great twitter banter from this mess

#zoo miami #miami zoo #zoo miami kiwi #Paora #paora the kiwi #animal husbandry #aotearoa #nz #kiwi #kiwi bird #taonga #taonga species #cw animal abuse #shoutout to that brilliant blog article #titled 'miami zoo to stop deranged treatement of kiwi' #or something to that note #like thank you THANK YOU please say it louder

[rahirah]

On Getting William Laid

OK, so I will happily concede that the writers probably wanted the audience to see William as a virgin. BUT they never stated that outright, and if you are like me and wish to buck the popular fanon, here is some ammunition for you.

The most common objection I see to William having done the deed are:

He is a Victorian and Victorians are famously prudish

He is shy/awkward with women

He is uninterested in mere carnal desire until Dru comes along

To take these in order – the Victorians were only prudish in public. They were obsessed with sex. You repress that much, man, it‛s gonna come out somewhere, and in works such as My Secret Life or The Romance of Lust boy howdy does it. You name the kink, and the Victorians were into it – or at least, the men were. (I am far from an expert on Victorian porn, and I am not aware of any aimed at women, but that doesn't mean that there wasn't any, or that women might not co-opt porn aimed at men if that was all that was available.) Voyeurism! Scat! Masturbation! Incest! Lesbians! And that‛s only one chapter!

Moreover, prostitution was absolutely rampant. It wasn‛t just brothels; there were sex workers all over London. And the brothels ranged from dingy dangerous dives to expensive gentlemen‛s clubs. In fact, GillO once wrote extensive meta on how, if you analyze the historical anomalies of the costuming and language used at the party where William was turned, the only logical explanation is that it was being held at just such a high-class brothel.

Which leads into point two. William is awkward (to a point; he does not seem to me to be particularly shy, just kind of... oblivious to social cues) around women of his own class (or possibly of higher class, depending on how you see his and Cecily‛s relative social status.) However, it‛s very unlikely that he would have been equally awkward with women he saw as his inferiors. And a middle or upper class Victorian gentleman would have very much seen A) servants, and B) prostitutes, even high class ones, as inferiors. (The way Spike treats Harmony is very much in line with the attitude Victorian men had toward sex workers. Whereas he sees Buffy, Dawn, and Joyce as ‟ladies.‟)

And lastly, point three. I submit to you that William Pratt is in fact HORNY AS FUCK. Yes, he wants marriage and true love, but (whether or not he would admit as much to himself, or anyone else) he also wants to get it on. The godawful poetry he writes to Cecily is full of equally awful sexual innuendo.

My heart expands 'tis grown a bulge in it inspired by your beauty effulgent

His heart isn‛t the only thing expanding and bulging, I tell you what.

Oh, lark, grant a sign if crook’d be Cupid’s shaft.

‟Cupid‛s shaft‟ is crooked, huh? Remind you of anything?

BUFFY: Uhh, you're bent. SPIKE: Yeah, and it made you scream, didn't it?

Now mind you, I‛m not gonna argue that William was out there banging the maids every weekend. I‛m just saying, the guy was almost thirty, and lived in a milieu wherein if he wanted sex, he could stroll down almost any street and get a quick knee-trembler (and it was pretty much expected that a gentleman would do so, because a Real Lady, such as they might be married or engaged to, wasn‛t supposed to want sex at all except as something to be endured for the sake of children.) Maybe William never, ever took advantage of the mountain of social privilege he was standing on. But I don‛t think it would be utterly impossible that he did.

Your Honor, I rest my case.

#btvs #buffy the vampire slayer #Spike #meta

[reflections-in-a-critical-eye]

Another day/week/hour of accumulating thoughts which haven't marinated enough.

That Zzinu guy (I can't remember his actual name) is really hanging out with everyone relevant in the industry, he's everywhere 👀 I saw him with RM on IG and at some concert, had no idea they were buddies.

Why did Jungkook come back just for a few days? What was that damn urgent to fly to Seoul only to go back to US in no time? I thought someone would enlist, but nope.

I took the bus downtown twice today instead of calling for a car. I have to stop being delusional and accept that I'm not rich.

I'm not gonna write a review of Tedros' album cause I don't feel there's a point, but I do have like a few things to say. Why is it being talked about like he started working on Layover 3 years ago? I mean, he started working on music, yes, but this thing that came out? That's like some team who probably put together the music a lot more recently. But hey, I'm just babbling so what the fuck do I know? Slow Dancing sounds good. I mean, nice enough to have it in the background in a playlist. All the songs feel too short, like they're some samples and they just decided to release them that way. Since his contribution was mostly singing the actual songs, it feels like he gave Min Hee Jin a pinterest board of who is Taehyung and from that entire thing, she created the Kim Taehyung artiste aesthetic. It's her vibe all over it. Just as it's her entire shtick all over NewJeans. It screams more MHJ than the actual idols.

I tried so hard in the past 30 min to stop myself from being bitchy, but I can't help it. To those who think that they got out of the jikook cult and now they're smarter and feel the need to still use the tag to post their bullshit? Wake up, you're still in a cult, you just switched to another. Absolutely pathetic. I wish I could fuck with pjms cause I admire the way they stand up for Jimin and they're like the most organized fanbase. But the moment they started using cult/tkkr narative and making Jimin sound like a puppet, I just knew they're not better. And a sign that I cannot affiliate myself to any group in this fandom, I'm riding on my own like I always have.

You know what's ironic though? Jikookers are basically the only ship fandom within bts who since the beginning and especially in the latest years, should have just sat back and relax cause they're so damn privileged. No other pair in bts is giving what dumb and dumber (I call them that with all my love) are doing together, but there's not a day in which I don't see stupid anons or jikookers fighting and bringing arguments. Waste of time!

And in that vein, pjms would only have to learn from their god damn classy bias who is no doormat and act accordingly. Fight for him without acting so damn stupid. In terms of artistry, he's the best out there out of this group and others in his generation. Isn't that fucking cool? And look at his behavior. Let army and kpop stans get frustrated thanks to Jimin's achievements and how you can contribute to that, not using the same foul language which only trashy stans are using. Do better ffs. Fix that attitude. And stop believing you know Jimin's brain and soul inside out. No one does. It only makes you sound like any other delusional kpop stan.

Key's Good & Great is out. I only had time to watch the mv once during actual work hours (fitting) and I can't get into anh details, but I liked the idea of workaholism tied to a simulation. There's tons of layers and stuff to be analyzed there, perhaps some other time.

#m thoughts #also I do not need harassment and informants going around and spreading stuff based on what I write #these are literally opinions #not universal truths that I impose forceably #leave me alone #do I have to repeat every single time that it's not that serious? #I don't care about others #but it's not for me #the minute I press post and leave the app #my mind is somewhere else #chill #do I have to give a warning every single time? #no I don't hate Tae #no I don't hate x and y member #no I don't hate everyome #at least on twitter people have more balls #that's the difference here #we're chicken shits on tumblr

[usuratongaychi]

On Sakura

I hated sakura so much when watching the show, yet when you list out her achievements it DOES LOOK LIKE SHE IS USEFUL, so why when actually watching the show does all of that disappear? Why is she so hated in the fandom?

(Ignoring the fact that this is a shounen based anime, where the main fanbase is a bunch of misogynistic men)

From a writing standpoint, kishimoto doesn't have the best outlook on women. In my personal opinion, I really dislike how women are portrayed in the series. A lot of it falls under the “nagging wife” archetype, which just reminds me a lot of those old boomer jokes abt hating women or hating their wife.

Also, when i talk about disliking sakura, I’m not talking about her in the OG. I mean, she was 12-13 then, and most 12yr olds are annoying. Comparatively to Naruto and Sasuke, she lived a pretty privileged life, so I think her attitude was justified. Both Naruto and Sasuke had their…moments…as well.

I think in a lot of the filler, they trump up her personality to the point where its annoying, similarly with naruto but bc hes male and also a mega idiot already, it isnt talked about. Filler isnt present in the manga, so manga readers tend to appreciate her more.

here is where i get a little biased..

Comparatively to naruto and sasuke’s connection (they are literally soulmates, platonically or romantically), her romance with sasuke is so flat and one dimensional. Shounen in general as a genre focuses so much on male characters development. It honestly feels like their romance was hastily thrown together at the end of the series. This makes her devotion to him seem shallow and vain.

(This next part is only really applicable to shippuden and somewhat in the OG series i dont really expect a 13yr old with no jutsu to be the best fighter)

I feel like the series intentionally makes her, and really every woman character weaker in terms of endurance (besides Tsunade). Like it feels like the writers say "thats enough fighting for a girl, make her get knocked out" 20secs into a fight. I remember watching her battle with Sasori and being so excited for her to be a badass in shippuden..only for a bunch of episodes to pass and not really getting that same feeling again. To be fair, I wonder if i would have felt the same if I skipped filler episodes. Regardless, I think she could have been more involved in combat, I would have loved to see that from her. “But she’s a healer!!” she can fight also, doesn’t she do that in Boruto? She can do both.

I also think the studio fucks her over a LOT. Theres a few other moments of her in the anime saying some pretty outrageous things, one of them being “I wish i had parents I could respect a bit more, I’d be better off without them….Why’d you have to be here now? If it was Sasuke, I know he would understand”, to an orphan, which is wild as fuck. I can’t remember if that episode was filler or not, but some of the lines they give her are just outright insane. I can’t think of a sane character that would say that.

In conclusion to this essay of a post..

Fuck The Writers.

#sakura haruno #sakura get behind me i will protect you from these writers #haruno sakura #im sorry i actually hate kishimoto

[colorisbyshe]

I think part of the frustration with people being so uninformed by historical movements, especially 2nd wave feminism, is that they don’t get that political lesbianism as a movement was deeply lesbophobic too, and still realistically hurts lesbians today with the subconscious attitude that simply choosing not to date men or interact with men is what makes a lesbian. Which then is how you also get weirdos thinking lesbians should make space to give dating men a shot. And thinking lesbians, who are not attracted to men, are exactly the same as the rage bait terf folks harping about cutting men off from dating women.

Obviously this is. A facet of the larger problem with this ideology, but it’s frustrating how few people acknowledge how damaging it was for more than lesbian separatist reasons. Straight women (a significant amount of political lesbians) largely trying to take over lesbian spaces in the name of feminism was also deeply traumatic for the community too.

Absolutely, it was also a grossly biphobic movement AND.... misogynistic. Second wave feminism, separatist feminism, political lesbianism found a way to really attack all women on an ideological level, not even getting into how the entire era was also... deeply racist.

Political lesbianism was not for lesbians (especially when its leaders tried to define lesbian as just women who didn't date men, by choice or otherwise) or any other women attracted to women. It wasn't for anyone other than the most privileged of women and often led to just attacking more vulnerable, more marginalized women.

While the ideology is not identical, movements like 4B are not for the longterm benefit of most women. Or most marginalized people. (When you separate women as the only cause worth caring about, you leave out... every marginalized group. When you stop caring abut the rights of every marginalized group, you inevitably harm... the women of those groups.)

I'm not even going to claim to be an expert on any of these movements: I have done readings on those I am speaking about but haven't done extremely deep dies into them but part of why I haven't is because... the flaws ae on the surface level. You don't really have to get into the nitty gritty or nuance of these movements to realize that they are fundamentally flawed.

To have a movement that effectively says "Women's oppression is literally stored in the balls (ie the sex with men, which are presumed to be people with balls)" is... inherently stupid. You aren't more or less oppressed when you have sex with or date men. Men aren't getting their power from sex or romance with women. You aren't really harming or criticizing rape culture.

Likewise with political lesbianism, being perpetually single or fucking women doesn't free you from misogyny's impact or even necessarily empower you against it. "Act the right way towards men or you deserve what you get from them" isn't feminism. It is victim blaming, though.

These movements just sort of become... prescriptivist in the same way the systems they're supposedly rebelling against. "Act this way or you're the enemy." "Do this or you deserve what you get."

"Our gender MUST act this way" only ever hurts your gender.

Which is the flaw of most radical feminist movements. They exist to take power from men and then lord that same power over more vulnerable and/or more "deviant" women. Or any other more vulnerable group (like white radfems using white supremacy in tandem with their radical feminism).

There's nothing wrong with being a lesbian. There's nothing wrong with being bisexual or straight and choosing to not date or have sex with men. For whatever reason.

Turning that into political movement where you then try to dictate the right/wrong ways to have sex, date as some sort of moral code... that's where you are just recreating the harms you're supposedly against.

Like... on the most obvious level, these movements are extremely stupid and there's no other way to frame that. They’re not just morally bad, they make no fucking sense. Even if you don't understand the bioessentialism, the way certain identities are stripped of meaning or politicized even when they're innate, or whatever...

just on its face... how the fuck are women liberated by new terms dictating what sex and love they're allowed to have, what reproductive choices they're allowed to make? implying by having sex with someone gives them power is inherently and obviously harmful

we need to be so fucking real

#it's hard to talk abotu this #because i know ppl can so easily twist this into sounding like choice feminism #or 'not all men' if i talk about it in depth #which is why i haven't gone into those points much here #but like

[ewanmitchellcrumbs]

It's been 62 days since episode 10 premiered. In that time I have seen depictions of Aemond go from a glorious badass with complex emotions to a one-dimensional framework onto which "fans" can hang anything they want.

I know you love our boy as much as I do and I know we probably agree on most aspects of his personality. So I would like to know some of your headcanon about our Kinslayer. If you would be so kind to indulge me.

Yaaaassss, I love this! Thank you for asking!

SFW:

Aemond has classic middle child syndrome. As the eldest, the most is expected of Aegon, Helaena gets attention because she is the only girl and Daeron is the youngest, so he is babied.

Because of this Aemond feels he has to work harder to stand out. He studies harder, trains harder and as a result thinks he is better than his siblings and cousins. He also has the purity of his bloodline that he enjoys lording over his bastard nephews.

This attitude makes him an insufferable little shit at the best of times, so Aegon, Jace and Luke go out of their way to make his life miserable. That doesn't make it right, but it is not wholly undeserved.

Aemond does feel lonely, but it's a loneliness of his own making. He claims Vhagar because he sees himself in her - she is lonely and misunderstood, but she is also fearsome and the best dragon that Westeros has to offer. All qualities he believes they share.

Losing his eye spurs a determination in him. He has to work even harder to be the best. Not only is he middle child and not in line to inherit anything, but he now has a disability.

His experience at the brothel when he was 13 is not one he has fond memories of. For Aemond it is the lack of control he had over the experience that creates the negative experience. He swears he will never partake in carnal acts of the flesh again if it is not on his terms or he has to part with coin for it.

As he says, he doesn't "give a shit about tourneys". The combat skills he has spent years perfecting aren't for other people's entertainment, they are to make him a fearsome opponent. He is battle ready.

Aegon may have a reputation for being lecherous towards the serving girls in the Red Keep, but Aemond is no saint. He just knows how to be discreet. He doesn't take what isn't offered willingly though - he has no desire to force himself on anyone, or at least no intention to anyway. This relates to both servants and visiting highborn ladies alike. Aemond is handsome, he knows he is handsome, so he does not deny pleasure when it comes knocking.

Aemond has not married because he knows his betrothal will likely be used as a political move by his family. He trusts his mother will make a suitable match and in the meantime is happy to pursue his own interests. Aemond's attitude towards his eventual wife will be determined by how attractive he finds her and whether he finds her to be interesting or not.

Although Aemond appreciates a sharp minded woman, he is shallow and looks very much come first. Alys Rivers' appearance is what first grabs his attention - he is driven by the desire to fuck her. Her cunning mind is what keeps him interested once he has sated his physical appetite, however.

NSFW:

Aemond is a selfish lover. Whether his partner comes or not is inconsequential to him. However, he gets a real ego boost from knowing he has made someone climax without trying. Of course they have. He is Aemond Targaryen after all.

For Aemond, sex is about control and power. He will make a point of staying fully clothed while whatever conquest he has beneath him is totally bare. If their fluids happen to drip down onto the leather of his riding trousers while he is fucking them, he will make sure they clean it up. Going as far as to grab them by their hair and force them to lick themselves up if he has to.

His arrogance extends to the bedroom too. He will remind his partner what a privilege it is to fuck a Targaryen, he gets a sick thrill out of making them beg for him to come inside them, for it is a privilege to have the seed of the dragon. He makes sure they drink moon tea afterwards, however. He despises bastards.

He is incredibly discreet. He does not care for public displays of affection and will treat his partners with cold indifference until it comes time for them to attend to him in his chambers. Even then he is aloof as a lover. It's straight down to business - no kisses or soft touches. They'll be dismissed afterwards. No invitations to share his bed or cuddle.

He does not operate under the illusion that any romance will spring forth from his sexual exploits. He knows he is destined for a political union, so any sexual relationship he indulges in is fleeting.

Whether Aemond remains faithful to his wife or not will depend wholly on his attraction to her and whether her personality keeps him interested. If he is satisfied with his match then he sees no reason to stray. If he's dissatisfied then he will fuck who he wants and not care if his wife does the same, as long as she does not disgrace him with bastard children.

Atypical relationship dynamics and learning his wife's sexual likes and dislikes are things that Aemond has to be taught and will take time to develop. He'll get there eventually, but he is far from a Disney prince and never will be.

#aemond targaryen #house of the dragon #aemond targaryen headcanons #aemond targaryen smut

[cookinguptales]

Okay, I’m gonna start with Freddie. Now... when the spoilers first dropped and I heard them without watching the episode, I was actually fully expecting to feel as bad for Freddie as I do for Marwa. But then I watched the episode and was like... you know, very few people would deserve what happened to Freddie here but I think he might be one of them. lmao

(Full disclosure before I start, I did go to a fairly prestigious school for many of the exact same subjects that Freddie seems to have studied. I also talk about Genji Monogatari and the Palatine Hill for fun. So I am in a very unique position to hate Freddie specifically because I went to school with so many douchebags just like him. But I will freely admit that I might be projecting.)

So, other than repeatedly just calling him “That ‘Elgin’ Marbles-Fucker” to my friends over the past week, what do I think about Freddie?

Hmm... I think Freddie’s character can actually be summed up very well by the list of activities he showed the screen. That crazy motherfucker wanted to go see The Met, The Whitney, and the Chelsea galleries in the same fucking day. That sounds like the action of an art lover until you realize that means that he’s not taking enough time to actually look at anything.

Freddie, I think, is the type to race through a gallery simply for the experience of it -- and not fully appreciate a single thing he saw there. The kind to have a conversation about an archaeological site without actually saying a damn thing. The kind to have a boyfriend without ever putting in the work to learn who he actually is.

I very strongly get the impression that Freddie grew up fairly rich and privileged and probably got a lot of things handed to him over the course of his life. He strikes me as narcissistic and self-involved while being very willing to let Guillermo shoulder a lot of the emotional load of their relationship alone, as well as being the kind of person that will flit from interest to interest without a lot of care for price or fallout because he’s always been able to.

I do think that some of this may be the writers just writing the most British character alive and some American writers just always associating British people with poshness but... yeah, there were a lot of markers for privilege in him, from his job to his attitude to the way he carries himself that I think are difficult to overlook.

The narcissism is pretty self-explanatory, tbh. Nandor used hypnosis to make both Freddies be cool with the fact that they were cloned, but he didn’t make them get along with each other. He certainly didn’t make Freddie 1 cheat on Guillermo with Freddie 2. So we’re already working with a character here who’d rather spend time with himself than any other person, is perfectly happy to have academic conversations where he just goes in circles with a person word-for-word agreeing with him (which would be literal hell for me, but I digress), and who doesn’t mind cheating on his partner at least once, arguably twice.

Freddie is oddly like Nandor, in a way... I don’t think that Freddie ever set out to hurt Guillermo in this episode. He just... didn’t think about how his actions would affect anyone but himself. Nandor treated Freddie like a shiny, but Freddie treated Guillermo like one, too. He moved on from Guillermo and cheated on him and really ignored his feelings for the whole episode because he didn’t think it would be a big deal. Freddie just approaches everything in his life with this surface-level interest that he never actually commits to. It’s a happiness without true satiation and a sort of bland niceness without kindness.

He just kind of... alights on things like a butterfly. He seems nice enough and people like him and he’s happy enough to be there, but he’s ultimately going to fly away because at heart, that butterfly does not give a fuck about you.

I’m also fascinated by the way that Freddie approached this whole trip. While it was ostensibly a trip to go visit his boyfriend, he really made it about what he wanted to do 90% of the time and it’s not even really made clear if he spent any intimate alone time with Guillermo whatsoever. (And I’m not even talking about sex -- I mean genuinely any quiet time where he actually got to enjoy Guillermo’s presence without distractions.) 

He was just as happy to do his list of NYC stuff with someone else, he was okay ditching Guillermo to hang out with other people (including himself), and he showed a remarkable lack of interest in Guillermo’s feelings, worries, or even his hobbies. Like... it really felt more like this was him gallivanting halfway across the world for a NYC vacation than it was ever actually about Guillermo. Which makes me so sad for him, tbh.

And I’ll get into this more in another essay but just... it didn’t seem like he was that invested in Guillermo. He never seemed that intimate with him, never really listened to what he was saying (hello, showing up at someone’s house without warning them??), and dropped him like he was nothing the second a new shiny showed up. It makes sense that he’d use Guillermo as an excuse to visit NYC, but why even carry on this relationship for all these months in the first place...?

My theory is that Guillermo was a very convenient person for Freddie to be around. He spends a lot of his time talking him up, he’s always learning about Freddie’s interests, and because he’s lying to him for the entirety of their relationship, he never really asks Freddie to do any emotional heavy lifting. So I do think that Freddie likes Guillermo. He has affection for him. But Freddie is also on a fundamental level okay with a surface-level relationship that flatters him while not actually asking anything of him. This relationship was always innately casual to him.

I think it says a lot that by far the most successful relationship Freddie has is with himself. Not only does this feed into his narcissistic tendencies, it is also the easiest possible relationship you could ever have. There are no arguments. You don’t have to learn about the other person. You don’t have to care about someone else’s feelings. You never have to do anything you don’t want to do. You can just have these boring, surface-level conversations where the two of you speak in circles without actually saying a damn thing.

Honestly, I just think that Freddie is one of those selfish douchebags who seems nice until you realize they’re not actually talking to you specifically. They’re just... talking. And saying vaguely nice things. This kind of person is not remotely dependable; they have all the trappings of niceness without actually caring about you. You are basically the same as talking about the weather to them. They’re happier if it’s a sunny day, but it’s not exactly a make or break situation for them either way.

Freddie never actually cared about Guillermo. He didn’t care about Nandor, either. He didn’t even really care about traveling the world studying art; he sure gave that up quickly enough and he wasn’t exactly studying the art in NYC to start with. He really just cared about himself and living an easy and unexamined life that allows him to go from interest to interest without actually demanding anything from him.

And some of that is probably that he was designed to be a plot device, but some of that is just... Freddie. That “Elgin” Marbles-Fucking Douchebag. lmao.

#wwdits #wwdits s4 spoilers #freddie