#Pre-Romantic Logicality

[hellhoundlair]

will never get over the fact that sams grief after dean died in season 3 turned him into the same revenge obsessed man their dad became after mary died. the fact that thats not subtext or whatever thats just the show.

[elisedonut]

halfway tempted to re tag a few older fics as romantic that were not before

[sixtharrow]

It’s weird. Way back in the day (like, pre-Voltron Legendary Defender era) the relationship between two unrelated fictional guys being considered “brotherly” would have been quite validating to us slash shippers. It’s like, oh wow, they’re that close, huh. They already consider themselves each other’s family. They’d die for each other. We’d have thought a romantic relationship stemming from that was perfectly logical!

And it’s not like the ship would ever be canon, so having that sort of deep bond was the next best thing. The fanworks would just have to take it from there.

But it’s so different these days. A character says “you’re like a brother to me” and now shipping two unrelated fictional guys is literally incest? Even though this has been a trope in straight romances for forever? Wow, the view has really shifted! Of course, shippers back in the day were much looser regarding canon roles, ages, power dynamics, or hell, even whether or not two characters existed in the same universe in the first place! But this is one argument I’ve just never been a fan of. Like, I used to say my first gf was my sister all the damn time because I didn’t know how else to interpret my feeings for her early on. And the fact that this seems to disproportionately affect m/m ships and f/f ships is telling, too. Also, people’s views of each other can...change? Sure, maybe Character A once saw Character B as his brother, but something is different now, and so he has to go and navigate those feelings. I mean the whole point of fanworks is exploration. For the characters as well as the writer. And just like back in the day, the ships are rarely canonized, which means something is always being changed or expanded. We just didn't have killjoys in our ears telling us we couldn’t ship two unrelated fictional guys because one of them once referred to the other as a brother or whatever. Well, we did, cause homophobes exist, we just didn’t usually hear it from fellow shippers.

[yinyuedijun]

CORRUPTIVE | ratiorine x masc reader

Ratio has been running himself ragged on a project. His blood pressure has been catastrophic, and his mood even worse. Aventurine offers a convenient outlet for his stress. (Or: You new boyfriend is a corrupting influence on you.)

3.2k words. written for @ficsforgaza's kinktober — prompt was double penetration (2 holes). reader is masc + afab (no surgery, explicit terms used), addressed as "boyfriend", "good boy", "baby". soft degradation, praise, 1 instance of name calling. pre-established romantic relationships with aventurine and dr ratio. divider by @/cafekitsune!

Ratio doesn't know why or how you ended up so besotted with Aventurine.

It isn't a matter of your intellect (of which you have in spades) nor your good-hearted nature (which is vastly different from the disposition of the gambler), though both make it puzzling that you would be so interested in the Stoneheart. It is simply that Ratio has never met a man as shy as you, and to this day he can’t fathom how you ever manage to entertain the gambler’s overt degeneracy both in and out of bed. When you’d first asked Ratio whether he would be comfortable with sharing you with the man, Aventurine’s arm hanging off your shoulder and a wicked smile on his face, he had been hardly able to believe it. Ratio even wondered if his synesthesia beacon was malfunctioning, and if by ‘sharing with’ you actually meant ‘rescuing from’.

“Don't worry, Doctor,” Aventurine had purred. “If you ever get jealous, you're free to join in on the fun.”

Ratio had bristled. Jealousy, at the time, implied to Ratio that he was irrational enough to fear that Aventurine might somehow steal you away from him if he did not choose to mutually participate in the relationship. But looking at the facts and at your behavioural history, it was simply inconceivable that Aventurine would be capable of ruining your bond. Logic dictated that your relationship with Ratio was too secure for it to dissolve simply because you were separately engaging in romantic relations with another man.

“Do what you want,” Ratio had said dispassionately and without hesitation. “It doesn't change anything between us. Do try your best to survive that insufferable attitude of his, though. You are free to come to me if you ever need a break from the gambler.”

Since you’ve begun seeing Aventurine, though, Ratio has begun to suspect that Aventurine had meant something else by jealousy. Something less related to the emotional dimension of sharing you and more to do with the physicality of it. Something about seeing you in the mornings-after and noticing the marks that Aventurine likes to litter across your neck. Something about how you seem more and more shameless every time you sleep with Ratio—how you seem able to take him deeper into your throat each time, how you seem to moan louder every time Ratio slides into you, how you now openly whine and beg to be filled by Ratio even though your cheeks are always hot with the embarrassment of doing so.

Something about how Aventurine seems to be training you to become unrepentantly needy for cock.

You are, again, a shy person. Your sex life with Ratio is largely reserved, fairly vanilla, and—and as far as he can tell—so satisfying that you never ask for anything else when he suggests it. I’m not very adventurous, you’d once laughed at him, more than a little sheepish. But dating Aventurine has clearly had a corruptive influence on you, and it had only become fully clear to Ratio the other day when he had moved to gently prep you, only for you to shake your head and reach between your legs, spreading yourself open for him.

“I-it's okay,” you’d panted, barely able to talk through the haze of your lust. “Aventurine already stretched me out earlier—see?”

When Ratio saw that your hole was not only gaping, but still dripping with Aventurine’s cum—he’d nearly passed out.

And now, as Ratio sits in his office, trying desperately to focus on revising the latest RFP from the Intelligentsia Guild while he listens to the rhythmic creak of your bed in the other room, the obscene noise of Aventurine’s hips slapping against your own as he pounds into you—

Well. Ratio admits that it should not have taken him so long to understand the meaning of ‘Join in on the fun’. He supposes he should acknowledge his own idiocy when he is guilty of it.

He would rather die than acknowledge that he does want to join the two of you, though.

Ratio is, for the millionth time, revisiting the blasted black hole information paradox: his least favourite problem in the entire field of quantum mechanics. He has an unquenchable thirst for knowledge, but he does sometimes wish to have less knowledge about this specific problem. Despite the fact that humanity has now colonised countless planets, asteroid belts, and moons, the exact properties of black holes remain an unknown that Ratio intends to eventually characterise. It's only a matter of time and effort—a great deal of which he's already spent, to no avail. Irritating, as it is a roadblock for a critical and time-sensitive project at the moment.

“Veritas,” you say, bringing him a bowl of hearty goulash that Aventurine had leisurely cooked during the time that Ratio had been slaving over these blasted equations, “you should take a break. You’ve hardly gotten any sleep for the past week.”

“Sleep can wait,” Ratio replies. His back aches, his wrists hurt, and his head is throbbing. His jaw aches from how much he's been grinding his teeth. “I am on the verge of a breakthrough—I will not rest until I’ve solved this.”

“But I'm worried about you,” you argue.

“I have no need for your worry,” he dismisses—snaps—and he knows he’s gone too far when he sees your brow furrow.

Aventurine, of course, manages to somehow be there. Why he's emerged from the kitchen to spectate on the two of you is a mystery to Ratio, but the Stoneheart appears to be openly and genuinely displeased at the interaction. It is a rarity for him, as Ratio has observed a trend in which Aventurine is least likely to show distress when he's actually hurt, and most likely to feign hurt when he's in control. A negative correlation, so to speak. The man does not like to reveal his emotions. But Ratio can generally get a good read on the Stoneheart, and he can tell that Aventurine’s current frown is genuine.

The concern on his expression fades when you roll your eyes at Ratio. “Okay, you should sleep and eat. Someone’s hangry.”

Ratio clears his throat. Always quick to own his errors as soon as he recognises them, he says, “My apologies. That was beneath me.”

“It's fine.” You stand behind him, placing your hands on his shoulders. As soon as you begin to knead your hands, Ratio becomes acutely aware of a knot at the base of his neck that your fingers are quickly undoing. “I know you're just stressed. You’ve run yourself ragged, Veritas—you’re going to get sick at this rate. Can I help you relax?”

Ratio closes his eyes, tries not to melt at your touch. You aren't wrong, he thinks. Prolonged stress compromises the immune system, and falling ill would hardly do anything for his overtaxed mind. He should do something to relax. He thinks about stepping away from the desk for the first time in hours, sinking into a warm bath… with you there, obviously—so he may wash your back, run his hands along your hot skin, kiss your shoulder amidst all the steam and fragra—

“I have an idea of what may fix the Doctor’s worsening health,” Aventurine says, his sly voice shattering Ratio's pleasant fantasy. The academician scowls.

“I have no need for your ideas,” Ratio snipes in revenge.

“Are you sure, Doctor? Because it seems you're running short on them.” Aventurine’s neon gaze roves over the several monitors in front of Ratio, all of which display his failed models. Ratio is startled.

“You understand the work here?”

“Not at all,” Aventurine replies breezily. “It was just a lucky guess. Or maybe an obvious one.” He slinks closer, wearing a grin that is both familiar and gratingly handsome. Ratio might have even found it charming if he didn't have such an outrageous headache. “Either way, it's clear to me that you need a break, plus a way to work off some of that stress.”

“Neither of which require your assistance.”

“Perhaps not mine,” Aventurine agrees. He's smiling when he adds, “But maybe our boyfriend’s?”

Ratio’s eyes narrow. He decides that he doesn’t like the cunning in his voice. “What do you mean?”

Aventurine’s mouth curls in a wicked, wicked way. He gives you a quick glance, as if asking you for permission, but you don't say anything to stop him—even though you can't look at either of them in the eye.

“Well,” the gambler says, “the two of us have been talking, and it turns out that your boyfriend’s been having some very interesting daydreams involving you…”

Ratio can't believe that this is happening.

In the first place, he'd hardly been able to process Aventurine’s suggestion. Ratio has long deduced that that you’re now much more open in bed, more transparent in your lust, but a fantasy like this one is still unprecedented based on his prior experiences with you. He hangs onto his disbelief right until the moment that you’re nude in front of him, face pressed into his pillows, ass up while you present yourself to both men. Aventurine has expertly teased your holes, so both of them are clenching and pulsing, needing to be filled. You're keeping yourself spread for them both obediently, so Ratio can see perfectly the way your cunt begins to drool when Aventurine eases his fingers into your other hole.

“Did you know, Doctor,” Aventurine drawled, “how much your boyfriend enjoys having both of his holes fucked at the same time?”

Ratio swallows. Can't take his eyes away from your glistening cunt, the way it twitches each time Aventurine moves his fingers inside you. “We—we have never tried.”

“Huh. Guess I can't blame you—it took a while for us to get him there.” His eyes almost gleam, the strange violet of his irises filled with cunning. “We had to go real slow with the toys, you know. I trained him pretty well, but”—Aventurine’s gaze flicks down to where Ratio is hard and throbbing—“he’s still never taken something as big as you. Not while I'm already inside him, anyway.”

You let out a whimper at the observation. “Are you excited?” Aventurine coos. You squirm, as if trying to push your hips toward them, and Aventurine laughs. “So needy. I’ve turned you into quite the cockslut, haven't I? But don't worry, baby. We’ll give you what you need soon enough—right, Doctor?”

Ratio struggles with a reply. He’s not talkative during sex beyond reassurances and encouragement, and perhaps the occasional curse. He doesn’t have a disposition for theatrics, and he certainly doesn’t have any inclination toward degrading ones. But Aventurine performs sex and decadence easily, his tongue silver and deft around his filthy words, his expressions nearly made for it. Ratio’s gut tightens when the gambler smirks at him, his cock twitching in his hand. I know what I'm doing to you, his face seems to say, and it leaves Ratio feeling at once irritated, out of his depth, and alarmingly horny.

For the sake of his blood pressure, Ratio turns his attention to you. The state that Aventurine has you in is obscene, panting and writhing as he eases a third finger into the tight ring of muscle that he’s trying to tease open. You moan a little, then whimper when Aventurine’s other hand finds your cunt. Ratio’s cock throbs at the noise that your pussy makes when Aventurine begins to tease it, dripping wet and embarrassing.

This is when you start to beg: “Please. Please, I'm ready, I promise. You don’t need to go slow, Aventurine, I promise, I can take—”

Your voice cuts out as Aventurine removes his fingers. Your holes are left empty, and Ratio can tell how badly you need them to be filled from the frustrated noise you make. Aventurine guides you into sitting, takes the opportunity to kiss you. “Since you asked so nicely,” Aventurine accedes, his lips moving against yours. He glances at Ratio after pulling away. “Well, then, Doctor—which of his holes would you prefer?”

Ratio swallows. He glances at your pleading expression, then at the space between your legs. At his hesitation, the corner of Aventurine’s mouth lifts. “Wait,” he says, “don’t tell me you’ve never tried anal?”

“Of course we have,” Ratio says curtly, almost defensive. Then he hesitates. “But we usually have… trouble.”

Ratio is large. It isn't a boast, but a factual statement, at least according to the statistics you once rattled off at him. It's challenging enough to make himself fit into your pussy; it’s an even longer process with your ass. He isn't sure from the way that you're begging that you can wait so long—and frankly, he isn't sure if he can either.

But gods, seeing Aventurine work you open for him like that…

Ratio’s concerns seem to have the opposite effect on Aventurine. He looks almost gleeful when he says, “Trouble? Oh, well, that settles it.” He cups your cheek, looks fond. “What do you think, baby? Can I use your cunt while Ratio fucks you from behind?”

You look deeply flustered, but you nod anyway. “Y-yes.” Your voice is trembling with excitement.

“Good boy,” Aventurine replies. He gives Ratio an appraising look, his eyes as hungry on him as they were on you. His gaze hardly strays from Ratio’s, even as he sits back and prompts you into straddling him. The position gives Ratio a maddening view of Aventurine’s length between your slick thighs. “Wanna give us a hand, Doctor?”

“You may run your mouth the whole night if I don't,” Ratio says dryly, and Aventurine laughs as the larger man places his hands on your hips. Aventurine pumps his length, lines himself up with your entrance. Ratio hears it when he nudges himself between your dripping folds, teasing you with the head of his cock.

“What, you don’t like my banter? Will you find other uses for my mouth later?” Aventurine teases, and Ratio is suddenly torn between thoughts of shoving his cock deep into Aventurine’s throat or making you ride Aventurine’s face. Both make for tantalizing images, and he decides he’ll revisit them later. He can already tell that the Stoneheart would find them equally appealing.

“We’ll see. For now”—Ratio begins to guide your hips down—“I’m sure there are other ways to get you quiet.”

Any witty retort dies on Aventurine’s tongue. He throws his head back as you sink onto his cock, overwhelmed, and Ratio can hardly blame him—he knows firsthand how good your cunt feels, always so tight and welcoming. You take Aventurine with more ease than you do Ratio, but not by much: it’s still an agonisingly slow and sweet process, getting your cunt to swallow the whole of him. Given complete control of your motions, Ratio guides your hips up and down, forcing you to take more of Aventurine’s length with each motion. He’s rewarded with the mesmerizing view of your pussy stretching out around the other man’s cock, leaving it glistening and creamy white with slick and pre.

When Ratio finally has you bottom out, Aventurine’s balls dripping with your arousal and pressed flush against you, the both of you let out strangled, broken groans. He lets you catch your breath before pulling you back so that Aventurine is pressed against your front walls, then pushes your belly for good measure. From the gasp you let out, Ratio can tell he's just forced the other man’s cock against your g-spot.

Aventurine’s eyes rove up and down your body, drinking in the sight of you. “Very good,” he purrs. “Are you ready to take Ratio now?”

“I—I think so,” you pant.

“I'll go slowly,” Ratio promises, and Aventurine watches carefully as he reaches for the lube.

“Don’t feel bad if you can't last,” he drawls, and Ratio tries not to scowl. How juvenile. The gambler must sense his disdain, because he shows his teeth in an almost-smile. “I'm being serious, Doctor. It feels very different from fucking someone by yourself, you know.”

“I’m certain I'll survive it,” Ratio says flatly. He pumps his cock once, twice, and Aventurine grabs your ass to spread you for him. Ratio starts pushing into you, begins stretching your tight hole around his girth. It has you shifting and squirming on Aventurine’s cock until Aventurine is forced to still you with his hands, his fingers digging into your hips.

“Be good now,” he says. “Stay still until we’re both inside you.”

“O-okay,” you say, voice watery, and Ratio almost feels bad at the whimper you let out when he pushes another inch inside you. Almost.

He can't help but mentally curse the other man as he slides into you. He hadn’t been lying. On a normal day, you're barely able to accommodate Ratio, but with Aventurine’s cock already deep in your cunt, sliding into you is even more difficult than usual. You feel almost unbearably tight and hot around him, and every time Aventurine moves inside you, Ratio can feel it—every twitch and press of the other man’s cock, barely separated by your walls. It's maddening.

It must be overwhelming for you, too. From the noises you're making, Ratio can tell you feel nearly at your limit. You’re choking by the time that Ratio is halfway inside you, your face thrown into Aventurine’s neck.

“I—I’m so full,” you gasp, and Aventurine hums soothingly as he kisses your nape.

“You can do it.” His eyes flicker to Ratio, who nods and keeps pushing. In a bid to help you relax, Ratio reaches between your legs and finds your sex. Your clit is swollen, neglected, and your hips jolt as soon as he starts rubbing it. Unwittingly grinding against Aventurine’s hips, you make the gambler groan at the motion, and the noise goes straight to Ratio's aching cock. He can hardly believe it when he finally manages to bottom out—leaking and twitching inside you, his balls heavy and tight against Aventurine’s.

“There,” Aventurine says, sounding fully in control even while breathless, “such a good boy, taking us both… we’re going to use your holes now, okay?”

Ratio knows that it's probably the praise that does it. As soon as you hear the words, you let out a familiar kind of whimper—pitched, frantic. “O-oh fuck,” you choke out, and suddenly Ratio feels your walls clenching hard around him, pulsing as your body tries to milk them both. He hisses and manages to hold back from his climax, but Aventurine is shameless about letting you drag him over the edge with you—Ratio can feel him twitching and spurting ropes of cum inside you, the pump of his cock as he begins to fuck you through your orgasm. Ratio can't tell if it's Aventurine’s cum or your squirt that's dripping onto him right now, only that the mess is making him throb inside you, and—

“Fuck,” he snarls, and he pulls out of you so that he can grab the base of his cock. He needs to cum so bad that it nearly hurts, but he doesn't allow himself to finish. Not yet.

You're incoherent with pleasure for a long while, your body a wanton mess between them, but Aventurine—never one to stay quiet for long—quickly recovers and regains control. He pulls out with ease, and Ratio is treated to the obscene sight of your empty holes, both gaping and leaking into their thighs, a mess of cum and pre and lube.

“See?” he pants, grinning at Ratio. “Hard not to cum, isn't it?”

Ratio has to breathe deeply to calm himself. “It did feel… different from usual,” he acknowledges.

“I'm sure,” Aventurine purrs. He glances at you, smiles fondly. “How do you feel?”

You make a euphoric, exhausted noise, and both of your partners understand it to mean that you’ve enjoyed yourself.

“Was that too much?” Ratio asks.

You make a noise that sounds like a No. Aventurine’s grin is sly; he glances at Ratio’s cock, still swollen and aching, and he kisses your forehead.

“Good,” he murmurs. Ratio can hardly believe it, but he can see Aventurine starting to stroke himself, already hardening again. “It looks like the good doctor is still in need of release. You won't mind helping him out for a little longer, will you?”

end

thanks for reading! <3 please do let me know if you enjoyed this, and remember to check out @ficsforgaza's fantastic writers and donate to the cause if you can!

[toriaaniin]

What If There Is a Contract?

Making sense of the silence, the suffering, and the sacrifice

This post emerged from reader responses to my Shared Camouflage entry — a swell of questions, confusion, and speculation about what could possibly explain the year-long chaos we've all witnessed. This isn’t meant to be a definitive answer, and it won’t solve every mystery or satisfy every doubt. But laying out a framework — one grounded in timeline logic, PR behaviour, and pattern recognition — might help clarify how we got here. We don’t know for certain if a contract exists.... but from a critical thinking perspective, based on what we’ve observed unfolding in public view, it’s the most coherent explanation for the prolonged confusion and controlled visibility we've seen.

The Migraine Questions

Why would anyone agree to something this damaging?

Why would Luke allow himself to be hated for a year?

Why does Nicola seem to let herself be erased?

And if this entire PR narrative — the public pairings, the optics, the storyline — is fake… what is the point?

What We in the Lukola Ship Know (or Strongly Suspect)

Luke and Nicola are together.

Baby Newts (to many of us) is real.

Antonia is not a girlfriend — she is a presence, not a partner.

There has been a clear pattern of PR pairings, silence, and constraint.

The Theory: What If a Contract Exists?

Pre-Contract (Feb–April 2024)

Luke and Nicola begin reconnecting in a real way around Valentine’s Day. Antonia may have still been loosely in the picture, but by mid-spring, the momentum had shifted. By April, Luke and Nicola were deeply engaged in joint promo content and travelled to Australia for the first leg of the world tour. Clues suggest that Baby Newts was conceived sometime before or during their Italy stop.

In late April, Antonia begins teasing photos from a previous LA trip with Luke and his friend group. PR may have noticed an opportunity. A soft PR agreement might have been arranged to leverage Antonia’s proximity without confirming any relationship — a move that could signal to external observers that Luke was still romantically ambiguous, thus cooling the escalating Lukola buzz without committing to a new narrative or taking attention away from Bridgerton S3 promotion. From a PR perspective, it offered plausible deniability, control over optics, and a short-term distraction. No formal contract yet — just access.

Initial PR Agreement (May-June 2024)

At the NYC premiere on May 15, Antonia attends the afterparty. Nicola looked visibly unhappy, and Luke was clearly stressed. Whatever informal arrangement existed up to that point may have backfired. I believe a formal PR contract was drafted shortly after this... not to protect Antonia, but to contain her, while still using her presence to quiet the rising Lukola buzz.

This is when I believe Contract 1 was signed — including provisions for:

Appearance agreements

Social media engagement

Quiet narrative control

Possibly, retroactive IG clean-up (e.g. Luke’s back-liking spree)

If Luke and Antonia had been in a genuine relationship, the rollout would have looked radically different. She would have been gradually introduced to the public — first perhaps as a member of his team, then as someone likable in her own right, with small public comments and professional proximity. A staged “getting to know you” arc could have ended with a soft announcement. It wouldn’t have pleased everyone, but it would have translated goodwill into redirected support. Instead, what we got was confusion, coldness, and backlash; the telltale signs of a narrative being managed, not lived.

Why do I believe that Contract 1 was signed after NYC? Because in the days that followed, Luke — or someone on his social media team — went back and liked every single post on Antonia’s Instagram grid dating back to July 2023. This kind of retroactive engagement reads like a calculated attempt to build a visible digital history, likely to legitimize the narrative that they had been close for some time.

Crisis Escalation & Possible NDA (June–August 2024)

On June 12 — just one day before Papgate and the official launch of Season 3, Part 2 — Nicola posted a song with lyrics that said "I'm gonna wait for you." With the benefit of hindsight, many interpret the posting of this song as a quiet, emotionally grounded farewell to Luke before he disappeared into the obligations of Contract 1. Nicola’s action in posting the song reads as a final moment of personal truth before strategic silence descended. From that point on, Luke was seen fulfilling obligations with Antonia — publicly visible but emotionally absent. Nicola, likely in her first trimester, faces this largely on her own.

The London premiere on June 13 is followed by the infamous Papgate in the early hours of June 14. During the premiere, Luke expressed excitement about "the next day" — when Part 2 of Season 3 would be live and he could finally talk about the final four episodes. But that next day never came for him. He was silenced. There were no post-release interviews, no promo push, no celebration. On June 15 — just after Papgate — Luke posted an image to his IG stories from Episode 6 of Season 3, featuring Colin and Penelope dancing at the Mondrichs’ ball. In that scene, Cressida Cowper walks in and Colin says, "I will not let her ruin our night." Luke didn’t include the line in his story, but the fandom recognized the scene — and the subtext. It felt like a quiet, coded message: a moment of resonance that reflected the chaos Luke was enduring at that exact time. Even in silence, there was signal. Crisis management for Shondaland may have entered at this point, concerned about affects Papgate could have on Bridgerton watch-numbers, etc. Whether this is when the original contract was rewritten or enforced more aggressively is unclear — but the cost became visible. Luke looked distant. Antonia went rogue. The narrative was slipping.

The Sorrento trip in late July marked a turning point. Following this trip, I believe that if an NDA was not already in the contract with Antonia, it was enacted at this time. Luke’s presence was scrubbed from all the friend group’s Sorrento posts, and his long-standing friendship with Rory appears to have ended. Antonia archived grid photos and her posting behaviour where Luke was involved changed. It was a digital purge that signaled a shift from messy coordination to controlled silence.

Re-Negotiation & Reset (Jan–Feb 2025)

I believe re-negotiation of the contract occurred a few months earlier — likely around November 2024 — after a noticeable pause in what seemed to be a planned soft launch by Luke and Nicola. Activity suggested they were preparing to become more open, but abruptly pulled back.

Around this time, it’s possible that Antonia’s agent or legal team approached Luke’s team regarding unfulfilled obligations. From Antonia’s side, her motivation may have stemmed from the ongoing online hate she’d been receiving and a desire for greater visibility (which would explain the concentrated tabloid placements that followed). Alternatively, the push may have come from Luke’s team, frustrated by Antonia’s occasional IG story taunts (including a particularly pointed one in mid-November: PastaGate), and looking to reestablish structure. Regardless of who initiated it, the re-negotiated contract seems to have held benefits for both parties: increased media coverage for Antonia, and a way for Luke and Nicola to draw attention away from Nicola during Baby Newts’ early months. A revised agreement was likely drawn up — one that Luke and Nicola agreed to honour not immediately, but beginning in early 2025, when they needed the most cover.

In late January, the contract appears to have gone into effect in its new form. This is when Antonia reappears — at the BOSS event, the GQ BAFTA-Film After Party, then during the BAFTA-TV weekend — but with extreme limitations. She has no purse (no phone), she posts nothing herself — no grid posts, no stories in real time — as though she's not permitted to. The only exception was following the BAFTA Pre-Party, when she shared a few professional images to her stories after Luke posted his own grid carousel. Since then, she has posted nothing — not from the BAFTA Awards ceremony, nor the afterparty. The pattern feels tightly controlled, not casual. It feels like a renewed but heavily restricted version of the earlier agreement.

The BAFTA events themselves felt like a deliberate reboot of Papgate, but with tighter choreography. Nicola was once again alone. Antonia, once tentative, now had a clearer spotlight. Luke remained emotionally distant. Instead of rewriting the narrative, they appeared to copy-paste the original disaster — upgrading the visuals without changing the story. That repetition didn’t clarify anything. It deepened the sense that this wasn’t a love triangle. It was a contract playing itself out in reruns.

Nicola is still quiet, but not erased. Luke is present, but distant. The new contract feels designed to mask the truth, not push a lie.

Where We Are Now

I believe the contract may be close to expiry. 🤞🏻 If it began shortly after the NYC premiere (mid-May), it may end in May or June 2025... possibly one year from Papgate. The hope is that once expired, the truth won’t need a soft launch. It will simply be allowed to exist.

Why Would Anyone Do This?

Because once the machinery was in motion, stopping it might’ve caused more damage than continuing. There may have been legal exposure, brand risk, or fear of backlash — not just for Luke and Nicola, but for Baby Newts too.

Because protecting the reality of their relationship — and the life they were building — mattered more than preserving public image. Once the contact ends and life settles down, each of them can and will work to repair any reputational damage done. This is the one of the reasons I believe Luke is currently rebranding (note that branding is an organic activity that never ends. Think Madonna, regularly re-framing herself). This past year has felt an eternity to us, but in the span of their careers, this is a blip. Consider too that our Lukola numbers when compared to the general audience numbers is very small. Luke & Nicola will recover, and this too shall pass.

And maybe because they thought it would be over sooner.

The Real Cost

The toll hasn’t just been emotional. It’s been professional. Luke’s reputation — once poised for ascension — has been dragged down by the optics surrounding this narrative. If Antonia were truly his partner, her public behaviour has done little to support or humanize him. If she isn’t, then the damage is even worse — a year-long campaign of cold optics and missed opportunities, tethered to someone who never earned the public’s trust. Either way, the brand has suffered.

Luke’s public warmth has been replaced by guarded neutrality. Nicola’s spark, while still glowing, has had to dim beneath performance. The fandom has whiplash. The story has slipped into ambiguity. And the joy that was once so easy to witness is now obscured by strategy.

But none of it means the love isn’t real. It just means the world hasn’t been allowed to see it.

Yet.

Aaniin Xxx

P.S. Find a listing of this blog post series along with short summaries of each - including those not yet published - here:

[franklyopinionated]

Annabeth haters: Rachel was Percy's first girlfriend. She and Percy were dating in The Last Olympian.

Percy in The Last Olympian: made a romantic move on a girl for the first time when he asks Annabeth if she wanted to make out with him before he killed the Minataur. Saw Annabeth in the Styx when told to envision what tied him to his mortal life, kept thinking about how beautiful Annabeth was and at the end of the war decided he didn't care about anything else as long as she was ok....not to mention he gave up immortality partially because he couldn't ever choose to leave her (his literal words to Athena).

So by the logic of Annabeth haters who are now making up a canon where Annabeth was not canonically Percys first and only girlfriend, Percy is a dirtbag who would have cheated on Rachel if Annabeth said yes to his request to play tonsil hockey pre battle.

[aeternallis]

Colin's jealousy just hits so well for me this season because unlike Simon and Anthony's jealousy (which mostly comes from male ego and physical lust), Colin's jealousy is born from something much deeper, beyond the surface-level, primitive instinct of seeing he has competition. That's not to say some of that isn't influencing Colin's actions, it most certainly is, but it's not the main force driving his emotions.

His jealousy doesn't come from out of nowhere, yknow?

His jealousy is born from shared history with one of the few genuine relationships in his life that he holds close to his heart, an unconscious, albeit cherished understanding that Penelope is a constant in his life. It's born from the slow, painful realization that he had lost her without even knowing it (further shaking his already flimsy resolve to try and fit into society's standards of being a typical rake), and whilst making a genuine effort to earn her good graces back, unwisely set himself up to lose her again.

Whereas Simon and Anthony's jealousy is superficial (and logically speaking, doesn't make much sense and only speaks to their self-entitlement due to their positions in society), Colin's jealousy is a humbling experience for him, which lends itself to his growth as a character and as a man. It's no wonder he'd described it as "a feeling that is like torture, but something he cannot, will not, does not want to give up."

Can y'all imagine Simon and Anthony having the same sentiment as that without it coming off as OOC? Simon was determined not to continue his family line and Anthony couldn't let go of his pride and obligations, pursuing Edwina until the latter had to set her foot down akjhdjsvbd If they had had any choice in the matter, both of them would have done their utmost to not have to feel anything towards their love interests pre-marriage. (Colin too made an attempt with that second brothel scene, but let's be real, it was half-assed at best)

Colin wants Penelope so much to the point he'd fully embraced even the torture of wanting her. And honestly? That's so damn refreshing to see, considering the typical romantic leads we usually see on television are trying to repress their emotions, not embrace it.

Colin yearns and wants, and he wants unashamedly. He's not jealous of Lord Debling; it's less about Lord Debling himself and the superb qualities he has that makes him an eligible gentleman specifically for Penelope and her circumstances, and more about being threatened by the concept of any other individual having the chance to establish that same emotional connection he has with Pen, and the possibility of that growing into something even more.

For all his kindness, Colin is actually quite possessive of that special connection he has with Penelope, and for a man who's already at odds and ends with his purpose in life and who he is in the grand scheme of the ton, understandably so.

It's why I knew in my gut during my first watch-through of s3 part 1 that although Colin had offered to help Pen find a husband by teaching her how to seduce men, he had never actually set out for it to be a successful endeavor. Lol If anything, it was just an excuse to be able to spend time with her. He had, albeit subconsciously, probably pictured the entire exercise to be something more along the lines of the incident with Lord Basilio, i.e. joking/gossiping w/ Pen about her prospective suitors and how unsuitable they are for her.

It's why Colin's excuses regarding Lord Debling about being a bad marriage prospect for Penelope sound so damn weak, his best reasoning being that he's "too particular."

For Colin, no man was ever going to be good enough for Penelope if it wasn't himself.

[thoughtsforsoob]

txt - how they propose

a/n: I got inspo to write this when dates dropped for the tour! i am not officialy in posession of a pre-sale code and im hoping to get some good tickets!! i will come back with an update (LA moa's lets talk :) anyways, please enjoy! this piece was meant to be really sweet and even silly at times so please let me know what you think of it! as always, inbox is open.

yeonjun

at a fancy dinner

yeonjun is really excited when it comes to fancy, romantic outings but this one was going to be the best one of all. Of course, that’s because of his proposal plans. He is definitely the kind of guy that sort of spoils it or gives hints because he tells you to go out and get your nails, hair, etc… done. especially emphasizes getting your nails done. He covers it up by saying he loves seeing you all pretty and pampered but deep down, you sort of know what he’s hinting at. Anyways, moving on to dinner. He takes you to a fancy new restaurant that just opened in the city. It was on the top floor of some fancy building. There was a view of the city from where you both were seated at a small booth. He was sitting right next to you and talking your ear off about the day he’d had at work. He didn;t even drink, opting to let you order a drink so he can drive home. He buys you whatever you want to eat and watches you enjoy your food with those adorable, lovesick eyes. You whine at him to stop watching you but he says he can’t help but watch the love of his life. Eventually, he takes you out onto the patio of this restaurant and it was pretty empty since there were only a few more couples around. He takes in the view with you and asks you to take a cute video with him. He sets up his phone at a good angle and presses the record. He goes back to you and kisses your cheek. He takes your distraction as an opportunity to pull the ring out of his pants pocket and when he pulls away, he gets down on one knee and proposes. “Will you do me the biggest favor ever and be my Mrs. Choi?” 

soobin 

at home

Soobin was never one for big romantic gestures and he was happy that you were okay with it. His ideal date was at home, snuggled up on the couch or in a pillow fort, watching movies or playing video games together. sure, he did take you on little outings once in a while but he preferred staying home. When it came to his proposal plans, his logic was to stay home, plan and cook a little dinner and use all the extra money to buy you the prettiest ring he could find. He loved the whole ring shopping process “i know this probably isn't from some of the members. anyways, he tells you of his date plans for the night and you were into it. He tells you to dress normally with one of his hoodies and your favorite sweatpants or leggings (soobin loves your legs in leggings btw. he said so). you come in and he is dressed relaxed as well in those gray sweats you liked and a t-shirt you gave him as part of his birthday gift. He serves your dinners and then he takes you to his bed, getting comfortable together. after one episode of that new anime the both of you had started, he turns over to get something from his nightstand. he shuffles to sit on his knees and reveals the box to you, opening it shortly after. "i know this probably isn't the best proposal but we’ve had such a nice night. I love spending time at home with you. can we be homebodies together, forever?'' You nod and hug him super tight and he returns the hog. He gives you a sweet kiss after putting the ring on your finger and you two go back to watching your show and cuddling.

beomgyu

theme / amusement park

This man is so cute when it comes to a proposal. Let’s just say for the sake of this story that he takes you on an LA trip and you both have a knotts berry farm day! You two decided to skip out on disney because you two have already been together on a previous trip. You both also really wanted to see all of the snoopy memorabilia. You both have an amazing day getting on rides, drinking boysenberry juice and talking to each other the whole time. He loves seeing you so happy so he never says no to you not once that whole day. He lets you drag him to all of the performances happening at the park and even lets you take a picture of him with Snoopy, making finger guns at one another. As the day starts to wind down, you both decided to go souvenir shopping. Huening specifically requested a snoopy t-shirt so you both went to find him one. Beomgyu asks you to pick the t-shirt and he stays behind to find a snoopy plush to include in his proposal. He finds one and pays for it, as well as the requested souvenir you picked. He takes you back out to the park and you both take a seat to rest for a while before leaving the park. You take out your phone and dont notice when he turns around. He takes the plush out of the store bag and the ring out of his bag. He puts it in the plushies hand and turns back around. He taps your shoulder and you are met with a snoopy with an engagement ring in his hand. “Will you marry me, pretty lady?” he says in a high pitched voice and you gasp so loud that people turn around to look. You are absolutely red but you nod and beomgyu makes the plush put the ring on your finger. You call him a dork but he doesn't mind. He's your dork, forever. 

taehyun

at the beach

you and taehyun went to the beach often. it was always so quiet, especially when you two visited at night. These outings were frequent, especially when you both went to travel somewhere different. In this case though, you were both home in Korean. Taehyun was on a small break during the summer time before their next tour and he decided that now was as good as ever to propose. He drove the both of you to your favorite beach at around 8pm. On the way there, you both made stops to get dinner and then to pick up some snacks to enjoy while hanging out at the beach. Once you both get there, Taehyun sets up your beach blanket and you both sit down, starting to snack on some grapes. Taehyun took about 30 minutes before he decided to ask you. He scoots close to you and pulls the little box out of his bag. you give him a confused look and he opens it, looking at your shocked reaction. He wanted to give a whole speech but his words got stuck in his throat when he saw your reaction. you say yes to him and he hugs you, slipping the ring on after.

huening kai

in your hometown / family dinner

I think kai is really big when it comes to family so having your family present for such a big event was important for him. Not only that, it was also really important for him to get along with your family and have their approval. So, during this trip to your hometown over a winter break, he sends you off to go shopping with your close cousin/sibling. He takes this opportunity to gather the rest of your family and ask for their approval to propose to you and of course they say yes! They even help him plan a whole thing. They were excited to see that he loved you a lot and cared enough to ask for their opinions and approval. This especially swayed your parents, who came up to him after and had a little chat with him about what they’d do if he ever hurt you. Moving on….you come back home from shopping and you show kai all your finds! Later on that night, your family is all gathered together in the backyard around a bonfire, having drinks and chatting. After a little while, your family gives kai strange looks and you’re sitting there absolutely confused. Kai looked over at you and smiled, “hey baby. I wanna ask you something. Will you do me a big honor and marry me?” he pulls out the ring and as soon as you say yes, he slips it on your finger and everyone cheers!

[nikethestatue]

You know how I know?

You know how I know that Gwynriel doesn't exist, there was never a GA book planned, that it was never going to be a thing, that there was never going to be any Ilyrian plot, or that SJM never breadcumbed any GA hints or foreshadowing, and never planned for any 'Azriel book'.

It's actually rather simple. SJM told us so herself.

SJM told us what stories she wanted to tell. She told us 'i know what the next book will be about (Nesta) and the one after that...' She told us ' I wanted to tell the sisters' stories', and then, after ACOSF was already published, she yet again reiterated that she knew that the next book would be about and it's the last book that she wasn't sure about. It's the last book that she had 5 couples to potentially choose from. But she didn't know.

So, if 'Azriel's book' was going to be next, after ACOSF, and SJM had Gwynriel all pre-planned, then, logically, Elucien's book would've been the next and final book.

Let's flip it!

Say the next book would be Elucien, and the final book would be Gwynriel, which is supposedly set up and ready to go post-ACOSF.

Then, the question is, if Gwynriel has been planned all throughout ACOSF, and breadcumbed, and romantic languaged, and you name it, then...why wouldn't SJM herself not know what the final book would be about?

The math, my friends, isn't mathing on this one.

Because if we had Gwynriel all set up and Elucien and their amazing bond, then why wouldn't SJM simply say 'yes, I know the next 2 couples.'

Which also tells me that Elucien will NOT be the last book.

[inthekitschen]

OK OK THANK YOUUUUUUUUU <33333333333333 i would LOVEEEEEEEEEEEEE to ask for ritsu pre-relationship headcanons :3 like how he falls in love, whats hes like while pining, etc etc WHATEVER YOUD LIKE TO WRITE!!!! i am going to eat it up regardless STARES AT UUUU THANK YOU SM <3 TAKE UR TIME I HOPE THIS IS FUN TO WRITE!!! :D

Okay okay okay this was so cute to write and think about 💜💜💜 I love it and I might use this prompt for other characters in the future

I hope you like it!!

Paralegal Falls in Love

Be prepared for the slow burn of the century

Because it might actually take a century (hyperbole, but you know what I mean)

Ritsu has absolutely no intention of obtaining a romantic partner during his studies at Darkwick. He can save that for after he becomes the best defense attorney in Japan.

Until then, the only partnership he is interested in is business partnership.

...

So why does he start getting nervous when it's time to meet with you? Why do you occupy his thoughts when you're not around?

Luckily, he is a master at lying to himself logical reasoning

Surely, the reason his heart beats faster at the sight of you is because he knows breaking your curse is the key to winning the laurel crown.

And similarly, the reason thoughts of you plague him in your absence is because he knows you're actively aiding the other houses in their efforts to win the crown.

Which is your job, so he doesn't hold that against you.

So why does his chest tighten when he sees you with the other ghouls?

He'll figure that one out later.

It takes outside influence to finally realize what’s actually going on with him.

Taiga has a gun in his face again. When Ritsu finally reminds him of his identity, Taiga squints his eyes at him

"huh. Didn't recognize you without your girlfriend. She dump you?"

And Ritsu short circuits.

"Y/N is my business partner. She is not my girlfriend. I will ask you to refrain from making such comments in the future, as they can be considered slanderous."

"geez, no wonder she dumped you."

And Ritsu finds that even more slanderous, because if you were dating — which you're not, but this is a harmless thought exercise — your behavioral model indicates that there is a less than 3% chance you would end the relationship and —

Hm. Perhaps there's a reason he included subjects like that in your behavioral model and no one else's.

Once he realizes his feelings for you aren't strictly business, he's actually very fast to do something about it.

He spends the entire next business day drafting a contract for the change in your partnership, and includes clauses for both scenarios of you either returning or rejecting his feelings

He ignores how writing the latter clauses makes him sick to his stomach.

When you arrive at the diner for your meeting he gives a pretty long monologue about how his feelings have shifted, and should you feel the same way, he would like to pursue a romantic relationship alongside your current business partnership. Should you not feel the same way, he would like to continue your business partnership unimpeded.

It takes you a minute to realize he's asking you out lol.

You return his feelings (obviously) and later he sends you the invoice for his consultation.

Just tell him that you're not paying for a service that was not previously agreed on by both parties, as stated in article whatever section whatever and he will consider another proposal (marriage. He considers marriage)

[haveihitanerve]

Katniss and Gale Katniss and Gale Katniss and Gale where to begin...

Let me start off by saying this- I am not a Gale supporter. But! I am not a Gale hater either. He is a completely nuanced character that has so many layers and depth and complexity and I love him as a character even though I'd never want anything to do with him.

Now- that being said, let's compare him and Peeta, and why Katniss picks Peeta but why she was also so confused picking between them:

When Katniss thinks of Gale, it is from a perfectly analytical standpoint. It's how their relationship works. They are hunters and barterers. They don't deal in feelings, they deal in what the other can give them.

Now, this isn't to say that Gale did not truly and deeply love Katniss, I don't doubt that. His feelings for her are honestly the one thing I cannot argue. He does love her. Maybe it's in the twisted way that Snow loves Lucy Gray, maybe not, but he does love her.

And Katniss loves him. She does. But she sees him as an older brother, or even a replacement father, and the only reason she considers romantic feelings for him is because he's close to her age.

When Katniss considers Gale, it's purely off of what he can provide for her. "When I'm older, I'll need to marry because I need someone who can support me, and Gale has been doing that, so he's the logical option" kind of way.

She does not, in any way, consider these points in a positive light. Oh yeah, I'll marry him, we'll hunt together, we'll stay like this together, and bada boom bada bing.

When she considers children- which she remarks strongly she does not want to have in the Districts because of the Games- she notes how they'll have Gale's eyes, but nothing about it is like "oooohh I love him, I can't wait for my kids to have his eyes😍" its more of a "well, we'll be married, and maybe we'll have kids, and those kids will have his eyes. Welp."

Everything she does with Gale is based on familiarity and friendship, not some great romance. When he kisses her and tells her he loves her, she feels disgust and pulls away. When Peeta does the same, she feels uncomfortable because she doesn't know her feelings well enough yet to reciprocate the words and that makes her uncomfortable for him.

"I knew you'd kiss me. Because I'm in pain. Don't worry, it'll pass." Honestly this was Gale redemption arc for me. He knows she doesn't love him, and he knows that she doesn't know that. So, he tests his theory, and then BAM when it's proven, he tells her, because they're friends, and then basically allows her to move on. He admits that his pain will leave and then so will she. I very much enjoyed the maturity in this scene, thank you Gale.

I can't believe I'm about to bring my fricking History class into this, but oh well here we go, ahem:

After wars, what has been documented repeatedly, is that people want to revert back to status quo, to what they know, to something familiar and steadying. Wars are a time of great upheaval and unsurety and chaos, and so once they're completed, people look back to the old ways as a guide and try to burrow back into that safety.

Gale is pre-war. Peeta is War. The Games are the War.

So, when Katniss returns from her Games, she dives into Gale. Because he is pre-war, she knows him, knows their relationship, knows who he is and what he'll do- he is comfort and family and familiar.

Peeta is new, and memories of war and he is unfamiliar terrain. So she pulls away from him and pushes back closer to Gale.

But the old ways, Historically proven, do not end up to be the good or right thing to do after war, because they were before War and before everything changed because of war.

So, while Katniss seeks out the comfort and stability of Gale at first, because he's what she knew and she desperately wants to return to the person she was before, she quickly(not quickly at all she's a lil slow but give her time she's deeply traumatized shhh) moves on to Peeta.

Peeta who is the fresh start, who is the forward moving ideals and ways and who is post-war and peace.

Gale is what Katniss knew with the Games, and he was her comfort then.

Peeta is who Katniss knows during the Games, and her comfort then. So as she transitions out of them, it's no big surprise that he is the one she seeks out and he is the one she ends up with.

Anyways this was a long rant but I have feelings and um... yeah! Hope this made sense or smth...

[rad-roche]

hi! i love love love the way you write nick valentine so much!! if it's alright to ask, are there certain things you keep in mind when you're writing his character?

you just write him so accurately and so well, and i've been trying to nail down his flaws and motivations and how he sees the world and have been having some trouble writing him for some reason, and wanted to know if you had any tips! thank you so much— i love your comics and your fic!! ♡♡♡

thank you very much!! and sure, it's no problem :} throwing in the caveat that this is just how i do it, and i'm no authority or anything. i just do fan stuff on the internet, and there are as many ways to write something, or somebody, as there are people to do it

out the gate i have good news and bad news. the bad news is 'oh god, is this in character?' never goes away. i get it all the time! i've never not had it!

the good news is, thinking about that means you're more likely to be perceptive about what does or doesn't feel 'right'. with that in mind, always reference your source material first and foremost. skim through quest compilations, dialogue. notice what words crop up a lot, stuff like 'oughta' and colourful turns of phrase like 'the biggest chip in the pile'. you have a lot of leeway with him since he's such a throwback to a certain kind of character, so while you don't have to do what i did and go full-throttle genre pastiche, reading a couple of old detective novels won't steer you wrong vis a vis his voicing. if you just want to write nick and don't have a wider interest in the genre, any lew archer novel is a really good look at how to do it. same big, bleeding heart, same propensity to have an awful time

as for character, flaws, motivations, it's kind of a hard thing to pin down because, by merit of wanting to write something, you want to bring your own spin to it, right? you can make some pretty sweeping changes and get away with it! the only romantic interest nick expresses in the game is flirting with irma and lamenting somebody else's dead fianceé. the thing i did with him and gloria is wildly different

my big thing going into it was, since dmt/dww is third person limited, i could really play up his flaws. so from there, i could extrapolate. i think part of what makes something feel 'in character' is adding two pre-existing points together and making something new from those. stuff that isn't out of nowhere, just a couple of steps along the road. just some examples from mine:

he's a detective, so he's a good logical thinker, but he's a freak occurrence he can't untangle = he overthinks simple things, especially in regard to himself and his happiness. it's left him both selfless/deeply empathetic and a little pre-occupied with himself and his circumstances

he loves the work he does and is willing to let late payments go = the business is running at a loss, and he only operates on the fact that everybody in town owes him a favour

the original nick was sent to a trauma treatment program after the preventable death of his fiancée + he frequently makes jokes at his own expense that he clearly means/is willing to put himself in harm's way frequently = nick, down to his bones, is clinically depressed, the severity of which varies from month to month

and so on and so forth. how 'in character' this is going to vary from person to person, rightly, but i think the method is sound even if you disagree with the conclusions. people are pretty complicated and contradictory, so you can lean into that. i hope absolutely any of that made sense lol

[blacknedsoul-blog]

Nevermore is a gothic tragedy. Part II: Supernatural Brides

I had set out to finish this saga of essays before Nevermore came back. And then I realized that all the fucking references I have on hand were going to require at least one essay for each. Which means a total of…at least four parts.

So I made it my goal to finish at least one. And since we're talking about tragedy, it seemed logical to continue with the gothic novel.

Before I start, I have to make a little disclaimer: most of my sources come from Spanish material that I'm not sure I have an English translation because they are loose essays I have from my college days and prologues to books from different publishers that are dedicated to publishing gothic novels. If you understand Spanish, I'll be happy to pass the material on to you if this interests you. But if you only understand English, I'm afraid I only have two sources for you: Supernatural Horror in Literature, an essay by H.P. Lovecraft on the foundations of cosmic horror that reviews the history of horror in fiction and The gothic quest a book of about 400 pages that describes in detail the history of the gothic novel, I hope the density of that work compensates for not being able to deliver more finished information.

Brief (seriously VERY brief) history of the gothic novel

Here is something a bit tangled, because the Gothic novel goes hand in hand with many of the topics of the literature of romanticism (literary movement with which it shares time) and it is also necessary to understand some historical and architectural issues.

Let's go by part: Romanticism is a literary and artistic movement that formally emerged in the second half of the eighteenth century (it is estimated that the first works of the same are dated from 1770, approximately) consisting of three parts: the so-called pre-romanticism, romanticism as such and late romanticism.

Anyway, even from its beginnings, this movement emerges as a series of anti-classical ideas that sought to recover folkloric and medieval elements, were obsessed with the inviduality of creativity, nostalgia for nature (something that would later become nostalgia for the time before the industrial revolution), considered passion and sentimentality as the creative axis and in general were looking to Greek tragedies and other fantastic tales as a source of inspiration.

This clashed with the strong Christian values of the time and the rise of technological advances. A contradiction that is present in the works of this literary movement.

Another important historical fact that is necessary to understand is that this kind of novel gets its name directly from Gothic architecture. These works were intended to take place in castles, monasteries, mansions belonging to ancient families and medieval cemeteries. The reason is simple: the Goths were considered shitty architects and many of these buildings had been abandoned for decades if not centuries by 1700, so you could walk down a path and simply find an ominous monastery or the remains of a mansion and if you asked someone where it had come from, they would probably tell you about 15 different versions, but all involving dead people and ghosts living there. As you may have gathered from the above, the writers of this period were eating this stuff up with fries.

It is with the convergence of all these elements that Horace Walpole's novel The Castle of Otranto was published in 1764. A text born from a nightmare that this man had in the castle of Strawberry Hill, a neo-Gothic property that belonged to him. The novel is mediocre at best, but it lays all the groundwork needed going forward: ominous ancient places full of legends where the crumbling architecture is a reflection of the moral and emotional corruption of the characters.

Feminine entities

One thing in which the Romantics differ from the Gothics is their view of love. In this era, love is perceived as a kind of force that is above the characters, something so beautiful that it is capable of making them completely lose their minds (this is tied to the concept of the sublime. And where the romantics embrace this concept as something beautiful, the goths say “this is fucking disturbing”.

For this reason many gothic stories are up to their necks in supernatural brides: beautiful ghosts dressed in white, beings that we consider references to nymphs who only need to whisper in the ears of their victims to become obsessed with them and, above all, vampires. Vampires whose description you will have in detail because the narrators of these stories spare no words to point out how beautiful they are.

Because these supernatural brides are there for one thing and one thing only: to make our sad male hero lose his mind with the power of their impractically long eyelashes. Sometimes they love them honestly and deeply, sometimes they are insidious, evil and lying; on more than one occasion both alternatives are true at the same time. But the reality of things is that, in the end, the love of these supernatural brides ends up completely destroying the unfortunate object of their affection.

If this seems a bit sexist to you, that's because it is. There's no argument here and it's not worth delving into any further.

I've talked about Annabel as a vampire before, but this time I want to talk more in detail about two issues: how supernatural brides work and the consequences for the protagonist of having a relationship with her and the similarities this story presents to a particular job.

Love and death

What is a ghost? A terrible event doomed to repeat itself over and over again. An instant of pain, perhaps. Something dead that seems at times still alive. A feeling, suspended in time, like a blurred photograph, like an insect trapped in amber. El espinazo del diablo, Guillermo del Toro (original quote in Spanish)

One interesting thing about this whole thing is, too, that while the attitudes of many of these supernatural brides may remind you of variations of a succubus (you know, a female entity that is there for and to seduce), the reality is that the gothic novel is steeped in religious puritanism, so these ladies (most of the time) don't usually need to be sexual with their love interest/victim to get their attention. They usually only need a single glance.

If you think I'm exaggerating:

Never gaze upon a woman, and walk abroad only with eyes ever fixed upon the ground; for however chaste and watchful one may be, the error of a single moment is enough to make one lose eternity. 

The dead women in love, Théophile Gautier

Another thing is that these supernatural brides are usually here at just the right time to skillfully grope the weaknesses of their beloved lover and victim: Are you a feisty guy who thinks he's not afraid of anything? Well, the spirit of the water that will end up bewitching you dwells in a mysterious fountain that no one dares to visit out of fear (Ojos Verdes, Gustavo Adolfo Bécquer ESP/ENG), Have you just obtained eternal life by making a pact with the devil but are a little terrified of what might await you in the solitude of immortality? The beautiful young girl just revived by your own hand has opened her eyes and both you and she know in this one look that you will spend eternity together (The Skeleton Count, or The Vampire Mistress, Elizabeth Caroline Grey), Have you just moved here from Naples and are feeling incredibly lonely? Well, it turns out you have a beautiful neighbor who also seems interested in you. By the way, she's practically a poisonous plant (Rappaccini's Daughter, Nathaniel Hawthorne).

Examples like these are plentiful and most end in three ways for the victim of their affections:

Death.

Madness.

Or eternal mourning for having lost her despite having been a victim of deceit or manipulation.

In Lenore's case, her “supernatural bride” appears after the incident in which she rips the wallpaper off the wall: if flowers symbolize feeling alive, she doesn't need them. There is no need for flowers because she is irreversibly withering away.

And when all seems lost, she receives a visitor.

Annabel is a ghost in Lenore's life. The fuzzy silhouette that represents the one thing that made her happy during her confinement, her last glimmer of sanity in a situation where she could no longer hold on without breaking. A specter whose shadow Lenore has been obsessively chasing since a previous life. And every time she manages to reach her, something snatches her away: Annabel goes back to a place where Lenore cannot reach her with her hands.

This is the sad fate of supernatural bride lovers. Because for the gothic novel, when love transcends death it is not a reason to rejoice: the character's life has been permanently disrupted and all that remains is a feeling that is beyond reason. Love becomes the cruelest and most terrible of punishments.

Carmilla

If you're still here with me and you haven't read Carmilla yet, I highly recommend that you do because if you like goth lesbians, this is exactly your shit.

But just so we're on the same page: Carmilla is a short vampire novel published in 1872 by Sheridan Le Fanu in his collection In a Glass Darkly. The plot is about Laura, a young woman who lives in a proper gothic castle located in Austria and her life will be disrupted with the arrival of a beautiful young woman her age named Carmilla.

Both Lenore and Laura live in almost complete isolation barely accompanied by maids (And, in Laura's case, her father) in a huge estate that is surrounded by an appropriately dense and slightly terrifying forest. Now, the reason they are both here is different: where Lenore is locked up against her will, Laura simply lives in a place that is difficult to access.

But let's make a slightly insidious reading here.

One of the first things we know about Laura is that the maids she lives with, despite being fond of her, consider her “a bit touched in the head” and the incident where Carmilla enters the room when Laura is a little girl is completely dismissed for this reason.

Laura is 19 years old when all this happens and at no point in the play is it mentioned that she has any suitors or intentions of getting married, a bit strange for the time in which it occurs. One would assume that the reason for keeping her so isolated is precisely that Laura's father doesn't think his daughter is particularly sane in the head.

As does Lenore.

Add to that the fact that they are both grieving. Lenore for Theo's death and, in Laura's case, for learning that the daughter of a dear friend of her father's has died in strange circumstances and, although she did not get to know her, this fact affected her a lot.

Anyway, sooner rather than later this almost supernaturally beautiful young lady of her own age shows up and kicks in the door saying she wants to be friends. Carmilla through a carriage “accident” near the property and Annabel requesting a meeting to get to know her.

In both cases, the dynamic established is the same.

On the one hand, we have a young lady who looks completely ecstatic at this pompous and definitely somewhat deranged creature. Laura spares no words in explaining to the reader how fucking beautiful Carmilla is, how important she is to her and how much she loves her. And Lenore, well, Lenore does this:

On the other side, the supernatural (girl)friend returns her affection with the subtlety of a kick in the teeth:

Annabel is a little more subtle than Carmilla was before she and Lenore were a thing, but we still see her get super physically close (something she doesn't usually do with other characters in Nevermore, so this is something she only does with Lenore).

Fun fact: that gesture with the fan means “I'm shy, but I'm interested.”

Unfortunately for our comphet-filled protagonist (because she watches THIS and still thinks they're “good friends”) her days in the company of this girl end in tragedy. Carmilla is eventually unveiled as a vampire and killed, while Lenore sees Annabel leave and, taking into account that they are both in Nevermore, subsequently sees her die.

In both cases, the protagonist's life has been scarred by her supernatural (girl)friend: neither a year-long trip abroad nor a new group of friends can take Laura or Lenore away from the memory of those happy days that are now irretrievably tainted.

Conclusions

I think one thing that has happened to me writing this now that I seriously pulled the rug out from under me regarding the amount of references in this comic and it has been non-stop bullshit. They're all still framed within the genres of tragedy and gothic novel, but even with this essay I've fallen short on some topics.

I don't know when I'll continue with this saga because it really involves going through an awful lot of material, but I can at least say one thing for sure: the amount of detail it has is, honestly, quite impressive.

[azaharinflames]

Okay but like-

The wildest takes I've seen in this episode—negative takes at that—are so laughable, I'm sorry.

Of course, these criticisms come from that side of the fandom, which we had been expecting anyway, so it's not like it surprises me. I fully expected them to hate this episode once they saw GayEddie wasn't happening, and neither was Buddie.

But the criticisms are getting to me, to the point where I find them funny.

-'Why are Tommy and Eddie acting like they're friends?' / 'Why were they 'teaming up'?'- because they are, babes. That was established as early as 704, pre-BuckTommy going canon. They get along. They have a sort of similar humor and the same skepticism. And this is good, because for the first time we have a romantic partner of Buck's getting along with his best friend and seamlessly fitting into his world. But you hate that idea, sorry, I forgot.

-'For a moment I thought it was gonna be revealed Tommy was cheating on Buck with Eddie' / 'This is foreshadowing on Buck finding out Tommy first fell for Eddie'- based on what, exactly? I'm sorry, do you think your partner getting along with your friends means they are cheating on you? My God what an insanely toxic mindset. Imagine your boyfriend teasing you with your best friend, what a crime. And also, again with the whole 'Tommy couldn't get Eddie, so he settled for Buck' - dude. dude. Tommy slept on a couch to be close to Buck in case he needed it. He listened to him and took him as seriously as possible without enabling him when Eddie couldn't have cared less. Hell, Tommy dressed up for a mummy's funeral. You don't do that for someone you're 'settling for'. Wtf.

-'Tommy and Eddie were getting along better than Tommy and Buck' - I am sensing a pattern, and it is already exhausting. But also- no. They were not 'getting better'. They were the realists opposite Buck's more dreamer personality. They are skeptical people who were trying to find the logical explanation for what was happening to him - to make him feel better and not as worried. But to say they have a better relationship than Buck and Tommy based on that is wild. Especially after the end monologue.

-'Episode was overhyped and not all that' - well, I'm sorry you hate fun (sans Denny's accident, because 911 will not let the Wilsons breathe, it seems). 805 was a genuinely great episode, and honestly, the kind of episode 911 had been missing for a long time, yet exactly what they needed.

And last, and my favorite I gotta say:

-'The characters felt ooc' - they did not. They were very much themselves in canon. But this is what happens when you watch the show through shipper-goggles and refuse to see it for what it is. But this is our canon Eddie, not the eternal savior fanon version of him that you created. This is our canon Buck, not the dumb fanon version of him. And this is our canon Tommy, not the monster fanon that you've grossly created. It's so funny to me because in this ep everyone felt so much like themself, yet they claim that isn't the case just because Eddie wasn't defending Buck (against Tommy, apparently, but for no real reason), Buck was involving Tommy in his spiraling rather than Eddie, and Tommy was being the supportive partner Buck has deserved all along.

Long story short: the episode fucking slapped. And it's a shame that some people won't let themselves enjoy it for what it is.

[imbecominggayer]

How To Write Romantic Relationships [MASTERPOST]

How do you balance between having emotional and meaningful without also having sappy and cliche?

How do you organically incorperate romance to the plot without having too force it in?

Don't fret my romantically inexperienced little writer! I'm here to help!

A) Make It Meaningful

Look, you can put in all the effort and still have readers not give a f$ck about the romance.

Why is there romance? Is it to create conflict? Illustrate a character's flaws? Is it a fun dynamic?

Make characters individually interesting. Your readers should understand why a character has fallen in love or you will have a riot on your hand! Remember when your favorite character fell in love with the equivalent of cardboard? Not fun. Remember: FLAWS!

The characters should be physically attracted to each other. It's pretty awkward having a romance where one character is just supressing disgust for the other.

The characters should feel emotionally connected.

Unless this is the main focus of the relationship, the characters should share core, fundamental beliefs. They can express these beliefs in different ways but it's awkward trying to ship pacifist x murderer.

Characters either need to share the same level of critical thinking ability or be willing to fall in love with an idiot. By the way, you don't love idiot x smart, you love emotional x stoic, reckless x reserved, or emotionally intelligent x logical.

B) The Meet-Cute Or Meet-Hideous

Now you might be saying, "but my dynamic is "friends/enemies to lovers"! Not strangers to lovers"!

Cool. You still have to understand how they met initially whether that was 5 minutes ago, 5 months ago, or 5 years ago. How two or more characters meet can influence first impressions, expectations for the relationship, and what these characters know about each other.

If two people met with A thinking B is an angel and B thinking A is the most boring person alive, that's a meeting that's definitely going to influence each other's expectations for their relationships and for each other.

Then, if you are writing a couple who met before the beginnings of this story, you also need to investigate their "re-meeting". This re-meeting demonstrates how the relationship is between characters.

Is there tension? Are they breaking apart? Are they meeting after a period seperated?

For strangers to lovers, where characters meet in canon and not pre-canon, a writer needs to focus on the meeting.

What are their first impressions? What is the environment around them? How is everyone feeling? What's the initial dynamic?

Common Pitfalls:

Love at First Sight. Unless you have a story where you are switching between the love interest's perspective, then the only way the audience is going to fall in love with this character is through the protag. And while the protag can fall in love at the blink of an eye, the reader can't. If your audience isn't invested in the characters, that's a problem.

Boring Meeting. Unless the entire point of the meeting is that it's mundane, try to give the meeting significiance.

Lack Of Characterization. Writers often copy the standard rom-com meeting but it does a disservice to your characters. Distrusting characters won't fall in love immediately. Reserved characters won't leave their routine for anyone. Let the meeting be guided by the characters.

C) Romantic Chemistry

In order to make a couple romantically compatible, their traits need to complement each others.

Readers tend to implicitly see the potential two characters could have if they just got together. Having two characters with opposing but balancing characteristics could satisfy this thirst.

Readers understand that a character battling depression is more likely to thrive with someone who provides benefits in relation to the depression whether it's compassion, open-mindedness, or perceptiveness.

D) Conflict

All relationships need conflict! This type of conflict tends to be man vs self, man vs man, or man vs society

Characters are either struggling with their own characters flaws, the external threat of another character, or the interference of society.

Common Pitfalls:

Lack Of Themes. Let the themes you are working with inspire what type of conflict impact the relationship. Don't throw in a plot twist or an inorganic cliche.

Lack Of Grounding. Authors can be so focused on the spectacle of a grand fight that they can loose their characters and the grounded experience of an unstable relationship.

Lack Of Characterization. Whenever authors grab a random conflict, they risk a character acting outside of their parameters which make the move feel shoehorned in.

Lack Of Justification. Don't have the conflict show up out of nowhere! Write little moments where something seems off. Then when these little things pile up, it won't feel shocking but justified.

Lack Of Punishment. Characters shouldn't come out of these moments without questioning their entire existence. Have them re-evaluate their beliefs, expectations, and actions.

Lack Of Power. Give your love interest and your protagonist the chance to air out their grievances. Don't let your characters suffer in silence. Call these characters out on their bs.

E) Actions In Love

Everyone has their own ways of expressing love, so don’t assume that there’s only one right way to write about it. Some characters show their love through physical acts of intimacy such as holding hands and kissing. Some characters compliment. Others show it through grand romantic gestures. Others are more subtle.

Try to weave these little acts of sincerity throughout all of the scenes where your two lovebirds are in love.

[bhaalist-inquisition]

Listen. I love whatever the fuck Durge and Gort has going on when they both are their most stoic, cold and brutal selves. And logically I know that most pre-tadpole versions of Durge is like. Stone cold stoic killer with the emotions bottled and tossed out to sea. But. I also love Durge being way more "human" than they should be. Specifically when they managed to show emotions. I think it would be very neat if Gortash managed to get Durge to blush at literally any point during their (work and/or romantic) relationship, simply by just being how he always is with Durge and Durge, who as mentioned has the emotional capacity of a cicada, has absolutely 0 idea how to process any of it or hide the emotions. Which ofc just results in "what do you mean im blushing???? I am a pure scion of bhaal- I DO NOT BLUSH- STOP LAUGHING-"