#making 7 posts in one evening may be a record for me

[murderbot-moodboard]

Whew! Murderbot Episode 8. What a ride! As has become tradition, below the cut are assorted thoughts about the episode, which I typed up during my second watch. I've since consolidated them for clarity, if not brevity—fair warning that this is definitely a long post. I've divided the episode into sections and added headers to hopefully help with readability.

In/Around the Hopper:

- The Sanctuary Moon opener was interesting, because we finally see one of the infamous examples in media of a bot going rogue and killing everyone. But in this instance, it seems like NavBot 7 could be responding to some kind of betrayal, so it may not be completely unwarranted. I'm curious whether the bot will actually kill Officer Hordööp-Sklanch or not, and whether that's something we'll find out later.

- In the first scene with Murderbot, Mensah is showing outer signs that she's having another panic attack, and we get to see how she manages it when she's not in a situation where she feels she can just openly panic. Interestingly, Murderbot doesn't comment on it this time. Ratthi, sadly, has apparently learned nothing from his dismal track record with weapons. I do like that they incorporated the drone plot element from the first book by saying SecUnit was having its surveillance cameras send data to its transponder.

- GrayCris has at least three more SecUnits of "the kind that kicked SecUnit’s ass." (Wow, don't beat around the bush, Pin-Lee.) Ratthi's right, Pin-Lee is good at... whatever they did to identify the GrayCris logo. Also, it's interesting that all the stuff GrayCris is attributing to PresAux was stuff that Murderbot did independently. Murderbot and the rest of PresAux remember the fight very differently, but at least PresAux listened to Murderbot's reality checking. And I laughed out loud that Murderbot is already telling Ratthi to stay in the hopper!

In the Habitat:

- I thought it was interesting that when Murderbot checks the habitat, the shot comes to focus for a moment on LeeBeeBee's blood on the wall. Maybe as a reminder of what's at stake, and how GrayCris has tried to fuck them over so far? Or of the violence Murderbot has already committed?

- Let's do surgery! I'm not a medical expert and I'm going to ignore the question of how realistic any of this is in favor of its impact on the plot. It's cool to see all of PresAux present to support Gurathin and help Bharadwaj however they can. Bharadwaj continues to be badass throughout this whole scene. This seems to be her own time to step up and fill the role she's needed for, even when it's not something she's necessarily an expert at. (She is much better at this than at combat-style stone throwing.) Ratthi is also attempting to step up and be comforting, but although his efforts are endearing and well meant, um, that's about it, lol.

- And we get right into the angst with Gurathin refusing painkillers despite the rest of the team's protests. When Mensah won't listen he calls her Dr. Mensah, which is I think the first time he's called her that when speaking to her (iirc the rest of the time it's either "Mensah" or "Ayda"). “This is how it started.” That makes so much sense, especially considering how callous the Corporation Rim is about human safety and mental health. It's so easy to imagine Gurathin getting injured and receiving pain killers, then continuing to crave the relief/escape they bring from a completely shitty daily life and a lack of emotional support.

- Gurathin and Murderbot had the same thought at the same time! I really love how the show is playing up the parallels between them. I'm hoping we get some kind of payoff for it by the end, but we'll see. Also love that apparently Mensah has Murderbot figured out well enough to suspect it didn't “do this before” but rather got its idea from a TV show. 😂 The question is, where did Gurathin get the idea from? Or did he come up with it all on his own?

- “It wasn't so long ago you plugged into me.” “Let's hope you still remember after this is over.” Murderbot woke up and chose violence to threaten Gurathin like Gurathin threatened it when he was the one with the power. Now that the balance has shifted, Murderbot isn't being cruel to him, but it is being a petty little shit, and I love that for it tbh

- Omigosh this is amazing!!! They're mind melding through the augments!!!!! Mind-sharing is my absolute favorite scifi trope, and it's a big part of why I enjoy Murderbot Diaries fanfic that has Murderbot and other characters connecting through the feed and interacting with each other's systems. The fact that they're not only introducing it as a plot point this early in the larger TMBD storyline, but also visualizing it and having Murderbot describe it for us, makes me absolutely feral with excitement for what they might do with it in the future!

- Mensah holding Gurathin's hand. That is all. 🥹

- Murderbot seems to be pulling out its MedCenter Argala surgeon persona again. “By the way I wasn't doing this to be nice. It was just preferable to hearing Gurathin scream.” Suuuure, Murderbot, keep telling yourself that. Then it says going into Gurathin's data after Gurathin went into its data “was only fair.” Methinks it doth protest too much and might actually feel a little guilty about it.

- We're actually getting to see what it's like to interface with an augmented human mind!!!!! And apparently getting a glimpse of a visual memory and Gurathin's thoughts, it seems like. Gurathin loves the others “as one loves their own children” but he loves Mensah “as an equal; as my better.” Someone on the New Tideland server suggested that this could mean Gurathin thinks the others are all naive and Mensah is the only one who understands things the way Gurathin does. There was also discussion of whether he was even referring to the rest of PresAux or not. I don't have any answers but I'm hoping we'll find out more at some point.

- Holy shit, Murderbot, don't get lost in Gurathin's mind and start blabbing all his secrets! 😂 And then it pulls out the surgeon persona again. Also interesting that Gurathin thought he might've said something, maybe not only because these are his thoughts, but also because of how their minds are connected through the link?

- Was Gurathin working his way into Murderbot's systems the whole time? Damn. Love, love, love the handling of this scene. And Murderbot can't handle how disappointed they look, especially Mensah—it's after she turns away from it that it puts up its helmet and walks out. It's really come to care about being liked and accepted by PresAux and respected by Mensah. Feeling like it's lost that really, really hurts. (Relatable.)

After Murderbot Walks Out

- Bharadwaj seems like she may be rethinking her view of Murderbot. At least, she's admitted she would be dead without it. She seems to have reached a place where she can hold both that truth and the truth of how she felt about LeeBeeBee's death.

- Mensah's decision to change the subject seems to be partly a tactical decision, but her brief outburst at Ratthi shows that it's partly because she's having her own emotions, and she knows they don't have time for that right now. But then a few moments later, she puts her hand comfortingly on Ratthi's arm, as if in apology for her anger and acknowledging the emotions he's feeling. Also I like how all of PresAux is being insightful and figuring stuff out together in this scene. They're not supersoldiers, but they are intelligent people who work well together.

- “There was no governor module forcing me to protect them.” “I was screwed too. There was no way off this planet without my clients. It was pretty clear that I revolted them.” It's good to have these reminders of Murderbot's perspective. It still can't trust anyone except itself will look out for it or prioritize its survival. Love that we got to see it watching its favorite episodes to self soothe. "Murderbot and Its Selfish, Ungrateful Hippie Clients" sounds like a crack in the fourth wall to me, lol.

- I laughed about the throuple conversation going completely different than planned. 😂 I'll be interested to see whether Pin-Lee and Ratthi end up in a relationship separate from Arada and Pin-Lee's relationship, which would still be a legitimate poly arrangement. It's good to see that they're finally trying to be more honest about their feelings; that will make a big difference in whether they can potentially find an arrangement that works for all of them.

- Okay, re: the ending, obviously it's supposed to sound like Murderbot is thinking of betraying Preservation Aux. But I think the wording is key here—“I could write my own story: The Rogue SecUnit Who Betrayed Its Clients.” I think Murderbot's plan is going to have something to do with teaming up with PresAux to make it look to GrayCris like Murderbot turned on PresAux in some way (which could look similar to or completely different from the events that happen in the book).

- Also, the ending was quite funny to me. Murderbot, you gotta work on your entrances. And alas, Gurathin's hopes of never seeing it again are dashed, lol.

***

All right! If you made it to the end, you are an amazing person and I hope you're having a great day! You've been scrolling for a while, so you might consider drinking some water and stretching at this point. (Or don't, totally up to you.) Either way, thanks for coming with me on this exploration of Murderbot. With two episodes left, I think the best is yet to come.

[liskantope]

One thing I fear about Trump winning, among 100 other things, is the continuing erosion of trust between men and women. Specifically, I could imagine single, liberal women in the US just deciding not to give any guy (even if they're anti-Trump) a chance.

Do you think this is a real possibility?

Yes, I do think it's a real possibility, although just a small bump along the trend I suspect we are sliding along where young/young-ish women seem less likely to value being in a relationship with a man. It's not even in the top 20 reasons for concern about the Trump victory, but it's probably a thing (albeit a fairly subtle one that would be hard to prove is really happening).

I suppose if a guy is vocally anti-Trump in the right ways, such a trend might not affect him anyway. (Although, as with guys who are really vocally feminist, some women must get suspicious about virtue-signalling what should be equivalent to "being a decent person", and I wouldn't blame them.) I don't know about those of us who are anti-Trump but in a "sometimes anti-Trump people overreact or take some things he says out of context or catastrophize about him in counterproductive ways, and by the way he's most likely not going to actually do anything much to further restrict abortion" way.

[straycatj]

Not Rocky, only sucky — A record of the unauthorized use of my photo in Oliver Clegg’s work

This article documents the events surrounding the unauthorized use of one of my photographs in a work named Rocky by Oliver Clegg, from the initial discovery through to the current situation.

Please consider this a formal report for those who have supported me.

September 7, 2021

I posted a photo of my cat Kofuku and Mr.J.

At the time, someone even made a pixel art version of it, and many people enjoyed it together.

January 2023

A kind follower sent me a mention to a post introducing a “work” by Oliver Clegg.

Clegg later claimed he had tagged my Instagram, but in fact he had created a brand-new tag called “straycatmrj.” This has also been documented.

By that point, someone had already annotated his work via Hypothesis, raising questions about his use of materials.

February 2025

The traced work resurfaced. I began an investigation.

That same month, I consulted a lawyer through an initiative supported by Japan’s Agency for Cultural Affairs:

Bansou.Support – a legal support service for copyright infringement and similar issues on the internet.

I was informed that:

Because the image is viewable online from Japan, this constitutes copyright infringement under Japanese law.

In my case, this use clearly does not fall under fair use.

My rights are protected internationally under the Berne Convention, regardless of the creator residing in the United States.

April 2025

Once again, I saw another traced work posted.

The uploader promptly removed the post and even issued a follow-up to explain the situation. I deeply appreciate their response.

However, the traced image continued to be reblogged.

I decided to follow through on my prior consultation and contact the gallery representing Mr. Clegg.

April 30, 2025 (JST)

I contacted the gallery directly.

A lawyer had advised that “this kind of issue is often treated seriously as a matter of credibility by galleries, so it’s worth contacting them.”

However, I received no response—perhaps because I am merely a Japanese individual blogger.

May 3, 2025 (JST)

I sent a follow-up message, stating that unless I received a response by the close of business on May 6 (EDT), I would make the findings public.

May 7, 2025

With no reply, I published the facts and timeline on Tumblr.

Many people offered support. However, I also witnessed comments that ignored all legal context, and some individuals spread false assumptions and slander.

Such baseless speculation only reveals more about the mindset and behavior of those making it.

I would like to take this opportunity to again express my sincere gratitude to those who responded respectfully and supported me.

May 8, 2025

24 hours later, with more response than expected, I published a follow-up thank-you note in the form of a reblog.

May 9, 2025 (Night)

60 hours later, I discovered that the relevant Tumblr tags were no longer functioning.

I suspected a technical issue—or possibly a report by someone connected to the other party.

I contacted Tumblr Community Support, and they responded promptly, stating that the issue had been resolved and would be reflected within 24 hours.

Shortly thereafter, the tag search functionality returned to normal.

May 10, 2025

72 hours later: search results had shifted.

Tumblr Search When searching for the artist’s name, I noticed that the specific work featuring my cat no longer appears in search results.

Google Image Search The image now appears to be filtered under SafeSearch.

Once again, I would like to express my heartfelt gratitude to everyone who supported and stood with me.

Thanks again to everyone who helped clarify the origin of the image.

(This post may be useful to those researching digital appropriation or copyright boundaries in art.)

[news4dzhozhar]

Yasmin Porat, a survivor of the bloodshed at Kibbutz Be’eri, near the boundary with Gaza, says many Israeli civilians were killed by Israeli forces.

An Israeli woman who survived the Hamas assault on settlements near the Gaza boundary on 7 October says Israeli civilians were “undoubtedly” killed by their own security forces.

It happened when Israeli forces engaged in fierce gun battles with Palestinian fighters in Kibbutz Be’eri and fired indiscriminately at both the fighters and their Israeli prisoners.

“They eliminated everyone, including the hostages,” she told Israeli radio. “There was very, very heavy crossfire” and even tank shelling.

The woman, 44-year-old mother of three Yasmin Porat, said that prior to that, she and other civilians had been held by the Palestinians for several hours and treated “humanely.” She had fled the nearby “Nova” rave.

A recording of her interview, from the radio program Haboker Hazeh (“This Morning”) hosted by Aryeh Golan on state broadcaster Kan, has been circulating on social media.

Notably, the interview is not included in the online version of Haboker Hazeh for 15 October, the episode in which it apparently aired.

It may well have been censored due to its explosive nature.

Porat, who is from Kabri, a settlement near the Lebanese border, undoubtedly experienced terrible things and saw many noncombatants killed. Her own partner, Tal Katz, is among the dead.

However, her account undermines Israel’s official story of deliberate, wanton murder by the Palestinian fighters.

Although it no longer appears on the Kan website, there can be little doubt about the recording’s authenticity.

At least one Hebrew-language account posted part of the interview on Twitter, now officially called X, and accused Kan of functioning as “media in the service of Hamas.”

Porat also gave her account to the Israeli newspaper Maariv.

However, the Maariv story, published on 9 October, makes no specific mention of civilians being killed by Israeli forces.

And in a half-hour interview with Israel’s Channel 12 on Thursday, Porat speaks of intense gunfire after Israeli forces arrived. Porat herself received a bullet in the thigh.

Not only does Porat tell Kan that Israelis were killed in the heavy counterattack by Israeli security forces, but she says she and other captive civilians were well treated by the Palestinian fighters.

Porat had been attending the “Nova” rave when the Hamas assault began with missiles and motorized paragliders. She and her partner Tal Katz escaped by car to nearby Kibbutz Be’eri where many of the events she describes in her media interviews took place.

According to Porat speaking to Maariv, she and Katz initially sought refuge in the house of a couple called Adi and Hadas Dagan. After the Palestinian fighters found them they were all taken to another house, where eight people were already being held captive and one person was dead.

Porat said that the wife of the dead man “told us that when they [the Hamas fighters] tried to enter, the guy tried to prevent them from entering and grabbed the door. They shot at the door and he was killed. They did not execute them.”

“They did not abuse us. They treated us very humanely,” Porat explained to a surprised Golan in the Kan radio interview.

“By that I mean they guard us,” she said. “They give us something to drink here and there. When they see we are nervous they calm us down. It was very frightening but no one treated us violently. Luckily nothing happened to me like what I heard in the media.”

“They were very humane towards us,” Porat said in her Channel 12 interview. She recalled that one Palestinian fighter who spoke Hebrew, “told me, ‘Look at me well, were not going to kill you. We want to take you to Gaza. We are not going to kill you. So be calm, you’re not going to die.’ Thats what he told me, in those words.”

“I was calm because I knew nothing would happen to me,” she added.

“They told us that we would not die, that they wanted to take us to Gaza and that the next day they would return us to the border,” Porat told Maariv.

In the Channel 12 interview, Porat elaborates that although the Palestinian fighters all had loaded weapons, she never saw them shoot captives or threaten them with their guns.

In addition to providing the captives with drinking water, she said the fighters let them go outside to the lawn because it was hot, especially as the electricity was cut.

[brokerplushsg]

Screw it, here is the list of all the Block Tales Parody accounts that I know of currently.

So for those not in the unofficial Block Tales Tumblr parody discord server run by @redzania, I have been accounting for every Block Tales Parody Askblogs on this site and today because why not, I've decided to post the list of all the Block Tales Parodies me and the server had been able to find so far. (I belive we got most of em so if ur Parody is not on here, pls tell me!)

Reblog this list if ya wish to help promote le fellow Parodies and maybe even drop a few asks into some! :D Especially ones that are New and have Low traction to help them actually appear in the search bar as well as general interactions too :D

Tbh it would also be wonderful if this inspires you to make parodies of your own, especially for characters with no parodies yet lol /nf

Should note a disclaimer that all the notes written for le ask blogs are not 100% accurate as even tho I am the unofficial accountant, I am not an algorithm or any kind of robot in general and thus not looking and recording every blog 24/7 so it might not be the most accurate- 😭

If u want me to update or change something, lmk! :D

Anyways, here is all the Parodies mentioned below! :D

PS: skim through the screenshots above for more info before exploring and dear mods/muns, sorry for le notification lol

Caves:

Supreme Ant

@the-best-queen

Roadtown:

Accountant Jim

@accountantjim

Mount Blackrock:

Banished Knight

@the-banished-knight

@thelonelyblackrockknight

Blackrock Castle:

Knight

@most-loyal-knight

Kitchen Chef

@blackrockskitchenchef

Cruel King

@my-cold-personal-tragedy

@blackrocks-king

@artic-king

Rugged Rainforest:

Venom Wizard

@our-forest-willrise

Turipolis:

Mayor Thaniyel

@mayor-of-turitopulis

@mayor-thaniyel

@askvenomswapthaniyel

Sacred Hollow:

Woodsman

@askwoodsman33

Greifer (All 9 of y'all should group up and form the sickest gang ever)

@mayors-son

@w0rlds-c00l3st-gr13f3r

@th3-gr13f3r

@ask-mayorau-brad

@asktoxicgriefer

@bloodied-gardens

@gr1ef3r-ask-blog

@gr13f3rpwnzn00bs

@aftermath-grief

Telamon's Manor:

Hax

@hax0r-gh05t-xd

Dream World:F'Ella

@Funk-Faction

Your Bombing Pal

@your-bombing-pal

Greed

@tixhoarder

Solitude

@solitairefrom-blocktales

@theembodimentofisolation

Fear

@fearfulpurple

@benevolentindigo

@anonymous-hyacinth

Hatred (For the literal embodiments of hatred, Yall are all so nice 😭)

@the-scourge-of-everyone

@ask-builderman

@ask-hatred-and-guilt

@hatenfelidae

@buildingabetterfuture

Reoccurring:

Red Noob

@knightlyredtwin

Blue Noob

@knightlybluetwin

Noobador

@numberoneuncle

Kyoko

@kyoko-the-adventurer

Jerry

@jerryfromblocktales

Conductor Noob

@conductornoob

Purple Noob

@purpleswordslashes

Green Noob

@poisonous-green-mace

@greenbeingmean

Others:

Players

@tutorialterryanduhhhummm

@undertaleknockoff

@collectorofswords

@averagemoth

@waitin4more

@purpleishmedication

OCs

@celestrpblog

@that-greenie-guy

@theewanderingwizard

@seethewe

@mintyshinigami

AU worlds

@plushandthewildones

@theblocktaleroleplay

Crossovers

@reddheirwinginquries

@the-doctorsoffice

@angelicallyresurrecting (Ngl idk if you are even a rp askblog so sorry if u ain't 😭)

Alright, some of yall may be asking why I have decided to do all of this labor; Well, like I said, I wanted to introduce others to RP blogs to increase interactions and awareness that these accounts all exists lol, and to reassure le mods that they aren't the only ones in the Parody Block Tales Tumblr Multiverse™, so yeah, shoutout to everyone here, and know that you are seen. :)

[Also, here is BUX for reaching all the way to the end!]

[w1ngedv1ctory]

manfred von karma and beanix are narrative foils, actually.

so, this is a parallel that drives me INSANE as a parallel lover but i see no one talk about it.

(this is a long post, so put on your seatbelt)

think of an attorney with a win record. always crushing the opposition, even if their methods may be slightly unhinged. something happens. they say the evidence is forged. (manfred was unaware of the is-7 forgery, phoenix didn't know about the diary page) a father leaves the courtroom and a kid is left behind. and that attorney takes the kid wreathed in red(ooh colour symbolism) looking like a copy of their father in. am i talking about manfred and miles after dl-6 or beanix and trucy after zak disappears? 

they also both have a defense attorney nemesis. gregory and kristoph are direct opposites. one calls out forged evidence to stop von karma. one is the reason the forged evidence was there in the first place. 

also manfred and beanix both have their main colours be grey and light blue. i do not think this is a coincidence. colours in ace attorney are a pretty big thing but i digress. 

also the case that leads to this is ultimately solved by thier protege. the kid they mentor. is-7 by miles. wearing red, and the disbarrement plus the misham trial and all that by apollo, wearing red. 

but they are also opposites. 

von karma cares for perfection. he does anything to be perfect. even training a parrot. because he would cross examine a parrot if it meant he could win. he becomes a man obsessed with perfection. that one implusive moment almost ruined him. if he had just let it go he wouldn't have been indicted for dl-6.  but he tries to frame miles. and the legal system finds definitive evidence he did it. they would never have found that if he shut his trap. 

phoenix cares about justice. justice for all. matt engarde. he doesnt let the guilty get away with it. he actually follows what von karma pretended to. and instead to being impulsive after the disbarment, he plans. there's no definite evidence so he changes the law so he doesn't need it. he uses a hat camera to zoom into kristophs boobs. 

also the kids they adopt they treat differently.  von karma can't help but to treat miles like miles edgeworth. he can't stop seeing his own faults in him. he can't stop seeing his own guilt reflected back in the boy. phoenix sees trucy and is like ah so i have daughter. i love her so much. trucy is still a magician. she gets to follow her childhood dream. unlike miles who is so crushed with the weight of what von karma did that he can't bear to be a defense attorney. the situation of yanni yogi going free disillusioned him from the idea defense attorneys were good, but trucy helped her dad (zak) with the magic show and subsequent disappearance and yet still found it in herself to love magic. miles never changes his last name . he's still intrinsically linked with gregory.               

trucy changes her last name. 

phoenix is the father that stayed. he lets her be a magician and a performer but she doesn't have to perform for him. he's accused of murder. like her other father. this time trucy doesn't make him disappear.

also random thing. phoenixs badge is on his shoulder/heart kinda area. its taken from him. leaving a gaping hole. rather like a bullet id say. 

[scary-grace]

Opposites Attract (Chapter 6) - a Shigaraki x f!Reader fic

Your quirk lets you capture almost anyone with ease, and you can't believe you let Shigaraki Tomura escape. Shigaraki can't believe it, either, and according to the League, there's only one possible explanation -- you let him go because you've fallen in love with him. He decides to find out if it's true. You decide you won't fail to capture him again. You both get a lot more than you bargained for. (cross-posted to Ao3)

Chapters: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7

Chapter 6

The doctor marks your height, and you watch the number pop up on the computer screen. “Why do you always take my height?” you ask as you put your boots back on. “It never changes.”

“We’re measuring change over time. Now your weight.” The doctor watches you make your way to the scale. “Boots off.”

You take your boots off again, then step up. There’s a ping, and the doctor scoffs. “I know you didn’t gain three hundred pounds in six months, Skynet. Stop altering the readings.”

“It’s unnecessary to weigh me,” you say. You’ve talked to other participants in the study, and you know getting weighed and having their weight commented on makes them feel gross. “It’s got nothing to do with my quirk. Or anybody’s quirk.”

“We’re measuring change over time,” the doctor says again. “The point of the weigh-ins isn’t to embarrass you or anyone else. It’s to measure the effect of sixth-generation emitter-type quirks on the human body. We don’t know what changes may result from quirks like yours.”

“I get it,” you say. “You still don’t need my weight.”

“If you’re insecure, I can tell you that it doesn’t look as if you –”

“I’ll break this scale,” you say. The doctor looks shocked, then offended. “Either record my weight with the extra three hundred pounds or don’t record it at all.”

The doctor sighs and gestures for you to step off the scale. You start putting your boots back on for the second time, trying to suppress the weird surge of triumph you get from breaking a stupid rule and getting away with it. That’s not something you had before. You know where it came from.

The doctor continues on with the questionnaire. “Are you on birth control?”

“No.”

“Are you sexually active?”

“No.”

“Are you sure?” The doctor gives you a look, which you return. Then she taps the side of her neck, and you cringe.

You aren’t sexually active. Making out doesn’t count as sexually active. Having a whole hickey on your neck, one which you thought you’d covered successfully, doesn’t even come close to counting. The doctor marks a yes anyway. “How many partners do you have?”

You could argue about it. “One.”

“Was that so hard?” The doctor clicks through to the next screen, or tries to. You tap your finger against the table and scramble her hard drive ever so slightly. She turns to look at you, already exasperated. “Was this you?”

“No,” you say, innocent as can be. She can’t prove it was you, and besides, it was her fault. If she hadn’t been so insistent on the sexual activity thing, you wouldn’t have had to crash her computer.

You aren’t sexually active, but that’s not for lack of opportunity. The Shigaraki thing has officially gotten out of control. You were going to end it, whatever it was, but then you kissed him, and now he thinks you’re his girlfriend. Ever since the confrontation where you stole the quirk-canceling bullets but let him escape, he’s been at your apartment more nights than not, and it’s – weird. Weird because he’s a villain. Weird because in spite of being a villain, and in spite of the fact that he’s not your boyfriend, Shigaraki is still somehow the best boyfriend you’ve ever had.

He doesn’t make promises he can’t keep. He tells you how he feels about things – if he doesn’t like something, you hear about it, but you hear about it when he likes things, too. And he likes you, a lot. Usually guys play hard to get, trying to keep you on your toes, seeking their approval, but Shigaraki doesn’t. He shows up often. He doesn’t want to leave once he does. He’d come by more often if he could get away with it. There are only three problems. First, that he’s a villain. Second, that he wants you to be a villain, too. And third, he’s just really, insatiably horny.

Part of the reason you’re not sexually active is the same reason he’s been staying so much later than he used to. When he’s with you, Shigaraki has a time-management problem. He wants to eat dinner. He wants to talk. He wants to watch something. And he also wants to make out, whenever one of the other three things isn’t happening. Getting him the gloves was a mistake, because Shigaraki’s now the handsiest person alive in more ways than one. Even when you’re both doing something else, he’s always touching you – your hand, your shoulder, your back, your foot, whatever’s in reach. And more often than not, it turns into making out at some point.

The handsiness is a big distraction for you. So much so that you didn’t notice he’d marked up your neck until after he left. Shigaraki is going to hear about that from you the next time he comes over. Or maybe you’ll just pay him back in kind and let the League of Villains do it for you. Failing that, you could move your relationship into sexually-active territory, then tell him it’s off the table if he chews up your neck again. The doctor is one thing, but you have friends, too, and none of them need to know anything about what’s happening in your apartment four or five nights a week.

The doctor finally reboots her computer and moves into the next part of the questionnaire. You’ve been doing these twice a year since you moved to Japan to attend UA – it’s one of the conditions of your presence here – and the interview’s never anything but uncomfortable. You know why they do it. They want to see if the presence of a sixth-generation quirk affects the way you think about your quirk, which means that they hook you up to an EEG and ask you to talk about the day your quirk awakened. You’d be perfectly happy never to talk about that day again.

You can’t read an EEG, but your results must be consistent at least, because they don’t try to stick you in an MRI. They do have follow-up questions, though. An unfair amount of them. “We’ve followed your professional activities since your last evaluation, and we’ve noticed a shift in your use of your quirk,” the psychologist says. “What’s the origin of that?”

“Uh –” You should have guessed that they’d ask this. You should have had a response ready. “I guess I always thought it was too dangerous to use on a broad scale. That’s what everyone always told me.”

The psychologist nods. “And recently?”

“I realized I needed to use it more. I tried to think of ways to make it safe, and I have,” you say. “My property damage figures have been reasonable.”

“They’ve been subthreshold,” the psychologist says. You blink. “In fact, the truck you flipped during the latest League of Villains incident required no repairs other than a windshield replacement. The damage caused when you stopped the Tohoku Shinkansen from derailing was similarly small. In your past evaluations, you’ve seemed almost afraid of your quirk – not unusual, for a sixth-generation wielder. It doesn’t seem like you’re afraid anymore.”

You don’t answer. “Why is that?” the psychologist prompts. “I’ve been evaluating you since you were fourteen, and it’s a significant shift in viewpoint. Did something happen?”

Yeah, something happened. Shigaraki happened. You might be justifiably wary of his quirk, but he’s never been scared of yours – he’s always commented on how strong it is and how well you use it, usually in an appreciative tone, although there have been a few times where he was visibly surprised. Nobody else has had that kind of confidence in your ability to handle your quirk, and it’s kind of rubbed off on you. If Shigaraki, who knows all about destructive quirks, thinks you can handle yours, maybe it’s true.

It goes further back, too – to your failure at Kamino, which led directly to your decision two weeks later to say screw the property damage and stop the Shinkansen anyway. Shigaraki might be trying to turn you into a villain, but he’s made you a stronger hero in the bargain.

“Well?” the psychologist prompts again.

“I don’t really know,” you say. “I was scared of it as a kid. Maybe I just grew up.”

That wasn’t the answer they wanted, but it gets you through the rest of the evaluation, and you really couldn’t ask for more than that. It’s late when you leave the building – you grabbed the last possible slot, coming here straight from patrol – and it’ll be even later when you get home. Shigaraki won’t stop by tonight, you don’t think. That’ll be a good thing. You always feel weird after the evaluations. Even though the research is theoretically going to enhance understanding of quirks and help sixth- and soon to be seventh-generation wielders cope with their abilities, it still makes you feel like there’s something wrong with you.

Because there is something wrong with you, just like there’s something wrong with a lot of sixth-generation wielders, apparently – your use of your quirks is too instinctual, too unconscious, and therefore too dangerous. Your metal sense, your awareness of the magnetic fields you manipulate, is something you have to consciously ignore if you don’t want it to distract you. It’s always there. You tap into it as you walk to the train station, scanning everything around you. The parked cars, the quiet streets, the infrastructure always humming just below the surface. And there’s something else, too – a human-shaped concentration of iron, barreling towards you at high speed.

You grab for it, latching onto the magnetic field, but your attacker’s too close. Momentum does the rest, and his fist strikes the side of your head with blinding force.

You feel like your head’s exploded. Everything whites out, then comes back spitting sparks, like an old-time desktop computer with an ax through the screen, as the person who struck you drags you into the alley and out of sight. “Got you,” he hisses, his voice low and rattling. He’s big. Big isn’t a problem for you, usually. You claw for your quirk, grasping his magnetic field again, only for him to backhand you across the face, scattering your concentration for good this time. “Nuh-uh. Try to freeze me again, you bitch. I’ll make this hurt even worse.”

You don’t freeze him. You drive your knee into his groin, and he slams you back against the wall with a snarl. Your head strikes with a hollow crack, and your vision goes white for longer this time, your head splitting with pain. The criminal drops you to the ground, aims a kick directly into your ribs. The air leaves your body in a harsh, painful gasp, and you slump sideways. Your quirk is straining to break free of every control mechanism you’ve placed on it, ready to pull the city down to save you, to bury this man under tons of rubble and steel and let you crawl away alive. You could do it.

But you can’t. You can’t risk killing other people, so the choice is brutally clear, obvious even to you with your aching head and bruised ribs. Someone is going to die tonight. If you don’t let go of your quirk, let it protect you, it’ll be you.

A blurry shadow appears at the head of the alleyway, blocking the light. A familiar voice rings out, jagged like you’ve never heard it before. “She’s mine.”

“Come and get her, then, runt.” The man turns away from you, towards the intruder, and you force yourself into motion, grabbing his foot and trying to yank him off balance. He kicks back in response and you throw yourself sideways, narrowly avoiding getting your face smashed in. “I told you, you fucking bitch. If you try to –”

His voice cuts off in an abrupt gurgle, and you look up to find him already crumbling, falling to pieces from the spot on his shoulder where Shigaraki grabbed him. Shigaraki throws him aside while he’s still disintegrating and gets right down on the ground next to you. “What happened?” he demands. “Are you –”

You shove him away, hard, and even so, you barely avoid throwing up on him. Your ears are ringing and your head hurts so badly that you almost wish someone would come along and kill you. Maybe Shigaraki will do the honors, since you almost puked all over him. The retching makes everything worse, but you can’t stop. Even getting dragged behind a train didn’t feel like this.

“Hey. Come on.” Shigaraki is pulling you backwards, away from the puddle of vomit and the pile of dust that used to be a human being. “Sit up. Let me see. How many times did you get hit?”

Three times. But it wasn’t until he threw you against the wall that you went down for the count. You hold up four fingers, you think, and Shigaraki’s voice sharpens. “You could have killed him,” he says. You shake your head. Big mistake. You find yourself retching again, and Shigaraki holds you upright, still snapping at you. “Bullshit. I know you could have. You can do anything with your quirk. Why didn’t you do it?”

“Hero,” you mumble. “Heroes don’t –”

“I don’t care what heroes do! If I hadn’t been here – fuck!”

What was he doing here? He’s mad at you – probably the exposure, because you’re in a populated area, and he’s Japan’s most wanted criminal, and right now he’s dealing with you. A stupid, injured hero. “You have a concussion,” he says. “You need a doctor. Where’s the nearest clinic?”

“My phone –” You fumble in your pocket, and Shigaraki lifts it out of your hand. Unlocks it, too. When did he learn your passcode? “You need to get out of here. If you get caught –”

“Shut up,” Shigaraki snaps. He consults the screen of your phone. “Three blocks that way. Let’s go.”

He doesn’t ask if you can walk, so you don’t have to lie and say that you can. If he lets go of you, you’re not sure you can stay upright. Shigaraki wraps one of your arms over his shoulder and one of his around your waist, and starts dragging you down the street. You mumble something about getting caught, and he ignores you. He has the hood of his coat up and his head ducked, and although you can see his face when you look up, you can’t read his expression even a little bit.

Finally you’re across the street from the urgent care, just outside the glow of the streetlight. “I can’t go in there. Can you get across the street?” Shigaraki asks. You give a thumbs-up. It’s safer than nodding. “Good. Go.”

He says that, but then he doesn’t let go. Your vision is still a little blurry, but you blink up at him, trying to clear it. He’s mad at you, you think. Sorry, you say, or mean to say. Something else comes out: “You saved me.”

“Shut up.” Shigaraki apparently doesn’t trust you to do that, because then he kisses you – even though you threw up ten minutes ago and haven’t done much more than spit a few times to clear things out. “I – just go.”

You get your feet under you and push away from him, getting upright under your own power. Then you turn away, step into the circle of light cast by the streetlamp, and start staggering across the street. You make it all the way to the clinic before the dizziness overwhelms you.

The nurses are really nice to you. You’re in costume, and you clearly got beat to shit, and when you tell them it was a criminal who attacked you, they get even more sympathetic. They do ask how you got away, though. You’re so out of it that you tell them someone saved you.

“Who?” the nurses ask, and you shake your head, even though it nearly blacks you out. Even if you told them, they wouldn’t believe you.

Your cheekbone is fractured, your ribs are bruised, and you have a concussion. But because you didn’t pass out, it’s not considered severe, and as a result, they release you to your own devices with some painkillers, prescription anti-nausea medication so you can keep food down, and instructions not to overwork your head. The nurse who goes over the discharge instructions with you hints strongly that you should call someone to sit with you. You tell her you’ll call somebody if you get worried, but you don’t need to be worried. You’re fine.

You’re fine, but the walk to the train station wears you out. You’re fine, but you get dizzy climbing the stairs to the platform. You’re fine, but you have to set an alarm on your phone to remind you of your stop, in case you fall asleep. You’re not supposed to fall asleep for long periods of time right now. You’re not supposed to read or look at your phone or listen to loud music or anything. Your injuries are bad enough that when the nurse logged them into the hero network, you were automatically removed from active status for a week. But you’re fine.

You’re telling yourself that – fine, fine, everything’s fine – when someone sits down right next to you on the train. There are dozens of empty seats, but they chose the one next to you, and people who do that rarely have good things in mind. You really hope they keep their hands to themselves. If your limbic system activates, it’ll take your quirk with it, and right now, your ability to control your quirk is at a low ebb.

A hand slides from within the sleeve of a black coat, clad in a black artist’s glove. It settles on your leg, palm turned upwards. You look over and up and find yourself looking into Shigaraki’s red eyes. His face is shrouded by the hood of his jacket. He doesn’t say anything, and neither do you, but you lace your fingers with his and lean against him, your head falling onto his shoulder and staying there for the rest of the ride home.

No one speaks until you’re actually inside your apartment building, and Shigaraki’s the one to break the silence. “This place looks even worse from the inside. Which one is yours?”

“You don’t know?” Of course he wouldn’t – he only ever comes in through the window. “It’s 4B.”

“Right.” It’s quiet again as you climb the stairs. “Keys?”

You don’t need keys – at least not when your quirk’s under control. Right now you’re going to have to try hard not to blow up your doorknob. You move the tumblers with agonizing slowness until the latch clicks, and Shigaraki pushes it open, looking impressed. “You can pick locks now?”

“I just know how this one works.” You only thought as far ahead as getting to your apartment and getting inside. You’re out of ideas past this point. “Um, Shigaraki –”

“Quit acting surprised. I said I couldn’t go in with you. I never said I was going to leave.” Shigaraki is going through your fridge. He stops and looks up. “What is that?”

“Huh?” You’re holding a piece of paper. You don’t remember being handed one, but it’s easy to imagine it happening. “I think it’s discharge instructions.”

“Let me see.” Shigaraki snatches them out of your hand, scans them. “I’ll read them. You’re not supposed to read right now anyway. Go – do something.”

Do something. What do you usually do when you get home, right away? Get out of your costume. You make your way down the hall to your room, shedding costume pieces as you go. It occurs to you that it’s not nearly as safe as it usually is for you to have Shigaraki in your apartment – not just for you, but for him. You don’t have an insurance policy on him right now, and worse, your quirk is all the way out of your control. If he startles you, you could hurt him. It’s happened before. Maybe you should warn him, but what would you even say? You finish changing clothes and sit down on your bed to think about it.

You must think about it for longer than expected, because the next thing you know, you’re propped awkwardly on your pillows with an ice pack balanced on your face. Shigaraki’s never come back to your room before – whatever the two of you have been doing, you kept it on the couch – but he’s here now, stretched out on the bed next to you and playing a game on a phone. Your phone. “Um –”

“I don’t have one right now. And mine didn’t have any games,” Shigaraki says. You try to sit up for a look and he pushes you back down. “You’re not supposed to look at screens.”

“What are you playing?”

“The one where you make a disease and try to kill the world. Weird game for a hero to have on her phone.” Shigaraki’s wearing his gloves. “This virus one is tough.”

“Yeah, if you’re playing on Mega-Brutal,” you say. You glance at Shigaraki from under the ice pack and see him scowling. “You don’t have to do everything on hard mode, you know.”

“Neither do you,” Shigaraki says. He pauses the game and sets your phone down, and you can tell he’s not happy. “I’ll kill creeps for you. I don’t care about that. But I need to know. Is it that you can’t, or you won’t?”

“I don’t want to kill people,” you say. Shigaraki makes a skeptical face, and you realize that you’re lying – that you’re lying, and that he can tell. “I didn’t want to kill the people who would have died if I’d tried to kill that guy right then.”

“Collateral damage? Don’t lie. I watched you rip the guts out of one of Twice’s copies without hurting anybody else who was there,” Shigaraki says. “Level with me. Which is it?”

You don’t know how to explain. “I didn’t have control. I still don’t. I’d have just been protecting myself, not fighting back, and I couldn’t –”

“Why do you think that would kill somebody?” Shigaraki demands. He’s mad at you, like you thought – but not for the reason you thought, and as you watch, his expression shifts, contorts. “You’ve done it before. When?”

You don’t want to tell him. It’ll just make him try harder to turn you. But you don’t want to fight about this, and given how much exposure he risked helping you, you feel like you owe it to him. “When my quirk awakened,” you say. You already had to talk about it once today. What’s one more time? “Someone was shooting at me. I sent the bullets back at him, but I wasn’t thinking. I was just scared. And he wasn’t the only one I hit.”

Your quirk awakening definitively killed two people – the man who decided to shoot up your primary school, and a police officer who’d arrived too late to stop him – and one of the shots you returned was the final blow to an already critically-injured victim. You also damaged the building, pulled up every water pipe and buried fiber-optic cable on the school grounds, and distorted every radio broadcast going in and out of the police perimeter. Your quirk awoke in response to fear, and in protecting yourself, there’s no such thing as a proportional response. If you’d used your quirk tonight, facing a criminal who’d beaten you half to unconsciousness, he wouldn’t have been anything close to the only casualty. And you decided a long time ago that it was better to be hurt than to hurt others. Or it was decided for you. It was such a long time ago that you don’t remember which.

Shigaraki is staring at you. The silence is a heavy weight on your chest, so heavy that it forces words out of your mouth. “Say something. Please.”

“You were – a kid.” Shigaraki’s mouth distorts around the words. “Nobody came to save you, so you had to do it yourself.”

People were coming. They just weren’t coming fast enough. Shigaraki’s still talking. “When you were talking about the law the first time I came over – the intention thing – and premeditation – this is why. Right?”

You almost nod, then remember how badly nodding hurts. “Right.”

“So it wasn’t on you,” Shigaraki starts, then stops. Something’s happening to him. All the blood’s draining from his face, and his hands are trembling in his lap. “If it matters, what was happening before – then –”

“Hey.” Even through the pain in your head, you can see that Shigaraki’s in trouble. You sit up slowly, keeping the ice pack in place one-handed, and edge closer to him. It’s not just his hands shaking now. His whole body is shaking, too. “Shigaraki, hey. Hold it together, okay? Everything’s okay.”

“Not if you’re right.” He’s speaking through clenched teeth. “If you’re right about this, then that means he’s –”

“Who?” you ask. Shigaraki shakes his head. You’ve never seen him like this before, and if he wasn’t wearing his gloves, you’d be getting as far from him as possible. You know what it looks like when someone’s about to lose control. “Okay. Let’s not talk about this anymore. Um, should we –”

Your eyes fall on your phone. You pick it up and find that Shigaraki’s paused it midway through getting his ass kicked. When you look at the symptom clusters he’s evolved and the transmissions he’s selected, it’s not hard to see why he’s losing. “I’m just going to fix this,” you say. “Want to keep me company?”

For a moment you think he’s too far gone to respond. Then one shaky hand comes up and takes the phone from you. “You’re not supposed to look at screens.”

“Okay, so you can look,” you compromise. You’re glad he’s got it. The blue light from the screen was making your skull ache. “I’ll tell you what to do. You have to devolve some stuff.”

“I’ll lose DNA points.”

“Yeah, you will.” You roll so you’re lying on your side, raise your head slightly so it’s against Shigaraki’s shoulder. “But you have to get rid of Total Organ Failure right now, or it’s going to kill off everybody before they can transmit the disease.”

“Fine.” Shigaraki taps the screen with his thumb. He’s trying to free his arm from his side, and once it’s free, he wraps it around you. Then he curses. “Now it says I need higher-level symptoms again.”

“Evolve Necrosis,” you say. “It still kills people, but their bodies become transmission vectors after they’re dead. That should help.”

Shigaraki taps the screen again. “I didn’t know you liked games.”

“Only some games,” you say. He’s calming down. You can tell, even before you set one hand on his chest, just over his heart, and feel the movement of the iron concentration in his veins slowing down. “Did you pick any transmission or mutation genes when you were setting up your virus at the start of the game?”

“Don’t remember.” Shigaraki lifts one shoulder, then lets it fall. “How’s your head?”

“It hurts,” you say. “How are you?”

“I’m getting my ass kicked by a mobile game on my girlfriend’s phone. How do you think I feel?” Shigaraki’s voice sounds like his again, but his arm wraps more tightly around you, molding your body against his. “Next time, if I’m not there – kill whoever you have to, however you have to. You’re more important than they are.”

“It’s not going to happen again, Shigaraki,” you say. It won’t – not so long as you limit the number of headshots you take. “My life isn’t more important than anyone else’s.”

“It is. To me.” Shigaraki’s chest rises and falls beneath your hand in a deep, slow breath. “And you shouldn’t call me that anymore.”

“What?”

“Shigaraki,” he says. He’s looking away, tapping impatiently at the screen, and the words come out quieter than usual. “You should call me Tomura.”

A jolt runs through you – half excitement, half apprehension. Somehow it feels like a mistake, saying yes to this. More of a mistake than losing focus at Kamino, than letting him in that first night, than kissing him and letting yourself forget for longer and longer periods of time what he’s done and what he’s planning to do. Knowing it hasn’t stopped you yet, and it doesn’t stop you now. “Tomura,” you say, and you feel him relax completely at last. “Okay.”

<- Chapter 5 Chapter 7 ->

tag list: @shigarakislaughter @deadhands69 @cryptidfuckerofficial @lvtuss @f3r4lfr0gg3r @minniessskiii @issaortiz @evilcookie5

[judesmoonbeauty]

𝕁𝕦𝕕𝕖 𝕁𝕒𝕫𝕫𝕒'𝕤 𝕄𝕒𝕚𝕟 𝕊𝕥𝕠𝕣𝕪: ℂ𝕙𝕒𝕡𝕥𝕖𝕣 𝟞

This is a fan translation only. Please expect grammatical errors and translation inaccuracies. This is a full translation. Creative liberties are taken for characterization and smoother translation process. Cybird owns everything. Re-blogs are appreciated, but please do not post my translation elsewhere. Thank you for your support! ☾.

Both chapters 6 & 7 discuss snippets of Jude's past records. If you'd like to read the event in full, then please check out my collab translation here.

Jude: I’ll take on any challenge. I’ll do as the princess commands.

The outcome of the contest was left up to me.

(I think I should choose a contest that would be beneficial for Jude. But….it should be a fair match.)

(And this might be a chance to get to know Jude better….)

Kate: All right then, please choose a drink that I would enjoy the most from this establishment.

Number One Gentleman: Okay, sounds good!

The number one gentleman winked and presented me with the most expensive drink the venue had to offer.

Meanwhile, Jude poured something into a glass —

Number One Gentleman: Just water? What, is it some sort of special gimmick?

Jude: There’s no gimmick.

Jude: The lady doesn’t appear to be used to drinking, so I served her this.

Kate: How did you know that I’m not used to drinking?

When I asked, Jude gently moved closer to me.

The soft sofa sank and the distance narrowed between us.

Jude: Reading facial expressions are the basics of negotiation skills — No, it’s because I was interested in you.

(…....)

Jude: ………….It’s perfect for birdies. Drink it, 'fore ya collapse.

After dropping a cheap line, he whispered this into my ear so that only I could hear.

Seeing me turn red while within Jude’s arms, the noblewoman who suggested the contest smiled.

Curvy Noblewoman: ….Seems like the victor has been decided. Young lady, whom do you choose?

Kate: I choose…..

—Right at that moment, the door busted open.

Noblewoman’s Husband: You’re fooling around with young men again!

Curvy Noblewoman: Oh, you!

Noblewoman’s Husband: Damn it all, even though we’ve been married for years…!

(Um? What…?)

While staring the abrupt scene of chaos Jude leaned in close to me.

Jude: Let’s get outta here ‘fore it gets troublesome.

Kate: …….

Blushing at the sight of Jude right in front of me, I nodded firmly.

Kate: Haa, Haa…..Wh-what about Ellis?

Jude: Don’t worry, he’ll make it out easy.

Kate: But is that all right, you missed your chance to claim the land deed…..

Jude: Pretty sure that noble lady’s in the habit of cheatin’ ‘n other things.

Jude: Got loads t’shake her down with, I’ll just take it later on.

Now that I think about it, I feel like I gained something from what I saw tonight.

Kate: I see. What can I say, that’s cunning of you….Heh, hehe….

Jude: Ha, what? Yer laughin’ outta the blue’s creepin’ me out.

Kate: I mean, I never expected my first Crown mission in a while to end like this.

Kate: Plus….Pff…..Jude your fake personality’s something you’d see in a dream!

Him acting like a gentleman to the lady clients may be the best thing I’ve seen tonight.

Dying of laughter, I pressed the back of my hand to my mouth trying to contain it…..

Jude: Huh…..so ya can laugh like that?

Kate: That’s because you’re usually saying things that make me angry, Jude.

Jude: ‘Cause ya ain’t a bit hateful it’s cute.

[Answer: Turn Red +4/+4]

Kate: C-Cute….?

I was so shocked that my cheeks felt like they were on fire.

Seeing me that way, Jude’s lips twisted into a mocking smile.

Jude: Ha, so foolish. Yer a damned fool if yer pleased with that rubbish.

Jude: Ya got flowers for brains, so time to stop goin’ to places like that.

Jude: You’ll end up losin’ everythin’, lookin’ all kinds of pitiful ‘n humiliated.

(But I want that thrill back even for a moment….)

Kate: Thanks for the advice, but don’t worry, I won’t be going back!

I spewed my pent-up feelings.

Kate: Anyway, the club turned up clean, so Crown doesn’t need to condemn it, right?

Jude: Yeah it’ll be left alone, whether that stupid place’s ‘round or not, it ain’t for better or worse.

Jude: ‘Sides….it’s better than buyin’ ’n playin’ with women for their bodies, innit?

— The moonlight shone on him as he grumbled.

Something I couldn’t put into words made my heart shake, but it was just for a moment…..

Jude: Oh, forgot to ask ya somethin’ important.

Kate: Something important? What is it?

Jude: Which one was the lady gonna choose in the end?

Kate: That’s….

(I didn’t expect to be asked that now….)

Darting my eyes around, Jude laughs.

Jude: Woman’s so easy t’read it ain’t even funny.

Kate: I haven’t told you the answer yet!

Jude: Yeah, yeah, yer foolish ‘n cuuute. I’m goin’ home.

Here Jude repeats kawaii twice emphasizing her cuteness.

Jude mercilessly quickens his pace, and I follow after him almost running just to keep up.

(There’s no doubt that I was going to choose Jude at the time…..)

But—

(I definitely DON’T want to tell Jude that!)

The following day, after the let down of a mission —

Jude: Oh - I forgot some documents in the room. Hold this briefcase while I go get ‘em.

Kate: Sure….whoa, it’s heavy.

While being toiled away by Jude since that morning, a refreshing smile happened to pass by.

Roger: Hey, Jude. Can I borrow your lil lady for the day?

Jude: She ain’t mine, so do whatever ya want.

Roger: Hm? Well then, I’ll just take ya up on your offer and snatch her away.

(Umm…So, does that mean I won’t be helping Jude with work today?)

As I was confused between their two gazes, Roger took the briefcase from my hands and returned to Jude.

Roger: C’mon, Kate.

Kate: Whoa, hey, Roger!

Even though I was being tugged along, I turned around and saw Jude walking toward his room disinterested.

Then I got into the carriage with Roger.

Kate: Is there something going on?

Roger: Yeah. There’s a British Medical Association conference today. Hm, even if I say that I’m not sure if you’ll understand.

Roger: Basically, doctors and students who aspire to become doctors, come together to present their academic research and interact with each other.

Kate: That’s right.

(I understand that much about the British Medical Association, but why would Roger want to bring me along?)

In the middle of pondering over that, Roger’s lip pulled into a smiled like he could see what was happening in my head.

Roger: There’s a man named Oswald Simmons who’s taking to the podium today.

Roger: It seems like that man was Jude’s benefactor who once looked after him.

Roger: Maybe you can learn something by speaking with him. You’re having a rough time finding “something to like” about him, aren’t you?

(Jude’s benefactor?!)

I couldn’t help but lean forward at the unexpected good luck.

Kate: I was definitely going to become his prey, thank you!

Roger: Haha, it’s fine. I’ll ask that you be my secretary for a day in exchange.

Kate: Yes, of course!

Roger: All right then, I’ll be in your care.

What he handed to me was a notebook so thick, that I thought it was a bit much…..

Roger: Look over the medical presentations from the first half of last year.

Roger: It’s fairly specialized research, so it’s best to know some of the fundamentals.

Kate: ………….

Nothing free comes cheap.

—This guy is probably a scoundrel too.

The British Medical Association conference started right on time —

Oswald: You there, tell me the year and place that ether anesthesia was first utilized.

Black-Haired Student: Huh, me? Let’s see 18……

Oswald: Too slow, Boston, USA, 1846. William T. G. Morton was the first to use ether in public surgery.

Oswald: Young lad there, explain the difference between chloroform and ether anesthesia.

Freckled Student: Uh, well chloroform is more powerful than ether, and……

The doctor who was Jude’s benefactor - Oswald Simmons - was outstanding at the podium.

Oswald: You lot all need to start over from your mum’s womb. Gits.

(I feel like he and Jude have something in common.)

The students leave the lecture room teary-eyed and exhausted.

(I’m a little scared to speak to him…)

But then there’s no point in coming this far.

Gathering my courage, I approached Oswald who was tidying up the podium.

Roger: My name’s Roger Barel. That was quite an interesting lecture.

Oswald: Barel? Ah, the eldest son of the Barel family. Your father assisted me the other day.

Oswald shook Roger’s hand and then turned his attention to me.

Oswald: Hm? And who is this young lady?

Kate: Nice to meet you. My name’s Kate.

Kate: Um, you know Jude Jazza, don’t you? We’re Jude’s friends.

Oswald smiled meaningfully at that remark.

Oswald: Haha, I suppose there’s something you want to ask about him.

Oswald: What’s the point in standing around and talking, come along.

Kate: Okay….!

People in the dining hall were scarce, probably because it was well past noon.

Oswald: You’re “looking for something to like about Jude.” Well, I never expected to asked such a cute question.

After listening to my story attentively, Oswald smiled pleasantly.

Kate: Cute…..?

Oswald: He’s the got the kind of personality that makes people hate him, doesn’t he?

Oswald: I thought for sure you’d say, “Tell me about Jude Jazza’s weaknesses!”

(Jude has a lot of enemies. I think that’s probably normal…..)

Kate: Heehee, I would like to know Jude’s weaknesses though?

Oswald: Haha, you’re such a frank young lady. Very well, I’ll tell you everything I know.

Kate: Huh, are you sure?

Oswald: Yes, because it seems amusing.

Roger: I get the feeling Jude’s like his benefactor.

Then Oswald started to tell us about

— His first meeting with Jude.

Oswald: That was more than 20 years ago now.

Oswald: I was doing charity by treating the workers at the port, Jude brought his younger sister and came to speak directly with me.

(Jude has a younger sister….)

This is the first I’ve heard anything about Jude’s family.

And I’ve noticed one more thing……

Kate: What do you mean by speak to you directly?

It seemed worded that way for a reason.

Oswald: He asked me to heal his sister’s illness.

Oswald: Even though Jude himself suffered from poor bronchial issues and severe asthma.

Roger: Both of them? Then it’s highly likely environmental factors were the cause of the illness?

Oswald: Yes, undoubtedly. It was plain as day they were living in terrible conditions.

Oswald could tell at a glance their condition was abnormal, so he gave them a free exam.

However, their symptoms were severe—

Oswald: Continuous administration of medication is needed to treat the illnesses.

Jude: Medication…..means it’s gonna cost money, yeah?

Jude: Money again. It’s all ‘bout money.

Jude’s Sister: Big brother, let’s go home? [Cough], I’m fine.

Jude: …….Ya ain’t fine.

Jude looked at his younger sister with concern —

Jude: …………

That’s when Jude picked up a fallen liquor bottle, smashed it, pointed it at Oswald and threatened him.

Jude: I’ll pay ya back double. So, lend me the medicine!

Technically, the line translates to, “Go ahead and invest in me.” 投資 “Toshi” meaning to 'invest capital' or 'investment' in general. However, at the start of Past Records, Jude is five years old. So, I felt “lend” would be a more appropriate term for baby Jude, and added the word medicine to clarify what Jude was asking for.

[Main Story Master List] [His Side Story - Chapter 6] Dividers: @.natimiles

GAHHH I love them together so so much! They way he loves teasing her and how she WANTS exciting missions - QUEEN. And the way he switches back to his to his normal speech as he whispers in her ear!!!!

Tags list: @sh0jun @theimaginativelyreticent @sapphire-323 @velisle @nateko @greatwitchsongsinger @injudescoat @aeyumicore @complexivelovely @cosmowgyral @lunaaka @rosalyne08 @8the-perfect-lie8 @voydsoul @goustmilk @kraiyne

If you wish to be added (+18 YO), or removed from my translations tag list, please let me know!

[revvethasmythh]

Have you witnessed discoursing about Orym in the past several months? Would you like to be more well-informed about the subject matter? Well, then, do I have a post for you! As a reference for myself and potentially for others:

A Comprehensive Write-Up Of Relevant Times And Contexts Where Orym Has Brought Up His Dead Family While The Group Discusses The Vanguard/Predathos--With Receipts

Disclaimer: these are all of the instances in which I was able to find independently through the Critical Role transcript search, not from rewatching everything. It is therefore possible there are some instances unaccounted for.

Episode 34. Post-resurrection after being killed by Otohan Thull, he brings up the fact that Otohan had a hand in killing his family to emphasize to Imogen how dangerous Otohan is and that she may potentially continue to be an issue for her specifically due to her apparent interest in Imogen (exalting her during the battle in the previous episode)

2. Episode 46. An early God Talk™️, prompted by Ludinus using (presumably) Feeblemind on Professor Kadija Sumal. He holds his opinion until the very end of the conversation, after entertaining Imogen's idea that "they make some good points" and listening to the group discuss if the gods are good or bad for several minutes.

"I don't need to debate it. I lost my husband and father to these people, I'm not on board. Some of the gods are terrifying, and some of them have put their thumbs on the scales for people for centuries, even in the last few decades. Who are they, who are we to decide who lives or dies, god or mortal or otherwise? I don't think they have any good points."

3. Episode 49. He brings them up combatively ("Well, Imogen, I wish. my family didn't have to die for their brighter tomorrow"), against Imogen's statement of, "What if it's not that bad? [...] What if what we're doing is just fighting change?" after she solely received a vision of a Utopia-like future from her mother. Imogen backs down quickly after his reproach and acknowledges that the vision was likely a part of cult brainwashing.

4. Episode 61. Orym pulls Prism aside, after she asks the party and Elder Abbadina if Predathos would cause a world-ending event, or if it would only be bad for some (the Elder did not know anything about Predathos at all), to say, "I don't think we know anything [...] The only thing I have to go on is the track record of the guys trying to bring Predathos out. And that track record is not very good." At further prompting from Prism about if he ever thought the Vanguard's ideas were right, he says, "Prism, I don't understand the gods. I don't know anything about the titans. I don't know an eidolon from eyeliner. [...] But I'm a widower, because of the people who want to bring this about. So it's hard for me to wrangle with the other side."

5. Episode 61, pt. 2. Orym listens to the party converse with Elder Abbadina for a little while longer before silently sneaking out "to go think about his dead father and his dead husband."

6. Episode 77. Another God Talk™️ with the whole party, prompted by FCG asking what everyone's motive was in going to the moon. For his reasoning, he says, "We don't know what's going to happen to any inch of this world if Predathos is unleashed. Yeah, this started with my husband and my father. It's so much bigger than that. If my life can secure the lives of everyone who comes after us, well spent."

7. Episode 92. After the death of another loved one to Otohan Thull, in response to Liliana's statement that temples might hunt down Ruidusborn in the theoretical event that Ludinus' plot is foiled, "Cold comfort for my family in the ground."

8. Episode 92, pt. 2. In response to a throwaway, thoughtless comment Ashton made that, "I hope [Liliana] is right. I really do. I hope her ends are fucking great because these means are just not forgivable." Orym has Chetney bring out Otohan's sword, jams one into the sand and declares, "This is the sword that killed my father and my husband. She is not right."

UPDATE: 8/14/24

9. Episode 102, during the confrontation with Ludinus. Interjected during the ongoing conversation, specifically during some bantering between Chetney and Ludinus as to the last time they met (when Chetney attacked him as a werewolf). He says, "You put a hit on my family, a successful one, fuck you. Fuck you." Ludinus later apologizes for the deaths of his family, claiming Otohan was "overzealous in her methods." Both Imogen and Laudna respond immediately that he was responsible for Otohan's actions.

10. Episode 103, during yet another God Conversation. Orym tries to redirect conversation about Ludinus and the gods, stating that they are different topics. Ashton concurs, and Imogen states that she agrees with Orym that Ludinus doesn't get to decide for everyone. Dorian then interjects, "But the gods do?" Which prompts Orym's blunt response to him specifically that, "If Ludinus had sent people to your home, and taken brother and your father and countless others, how philosophical would you be about it, Dorian?"

-

So, with all of the information in front of us, what conclusions can we draw from them? When asked by others to assess if the Vanguard has valid points, Orym repeatedly abstains from having an opinion. Whether or not the Vanguard has a reason to be upset is irrelevant to him--what is relevant is the loss of life they have incurred along the way. Orym takes no stance on the gods, he repeatedly states he doesn't understand them or know anything about them or harbor much of a connection to them. As far as he is concerned, his role in this is to oppose the violence being done to the people of Exandria. Why waste your time debating the merits of a cult's ideology when you know, in the end, you will have to fight against them to end the slaughter? To protect people?

And for what it's worth, in almost every instance, Ashton has effectively taken the same side as Orym. I have not included all of these moments, but they are easily located if you wanted to search up these moments on your own. The continual focus on de-legitimizing Orym's opinion seems strongly tied to the fact that he has a personal reason to hate the Vanguard. But facts being facts, Ashton hates them just the same--and he has no love of the gods, either. He hates the Vanguard based on their actions, same as Orym. In fact, Ashton and Laudna have both expressed outright dislike for the gods, and all other Bells Hells except for FCG expressed ambivalence. This is not about the gods. Not for Orym, not for the others who remain. This is about no more bodies on the pyre of Ludinus' machinations.

P.S. if you know of any other instances this topic has come up that I have not included, please feel free to let me know! I want this post to be as comprehensive as it can be, but I am fallible and may have missed something. Don't be afraid to tell me about a scene I missed!

[thorough-witness-enjoyer]

Looking for Community Perspectives on Destiny‘s Themes and Main Conflict for a Cultural Project!

Greetings everyone!

I‘m currently working on a personal project that ties in Destiny‘s themes and main conflicts with encouraging people of my ethnicity to tell our own stories, even if they include thematic elements that may not be traditional in Western media or have been actively discouraged by oppressive powers in the past!

My focus will be on how others perceive portrayals of social issues/powers we have struggled against as they are depicted in fiction, and to bring Destiny to the table, I want to connect it back to the Witness as a main antagonist and people‘s understanding of the role it plays in Destiny‘s main narrative!

I‘m coming here to ask some questions and have a space for people to engage with the thoughts of others in order to understand what people take away from the story of Destiny! These questions are asked for the purpose of steering my further research and conclusions; nothing will be published and identities of those who participate are not recorded!

My main questions are:

1. What do you think Destiny tries to say about the nature of existence and humanity’s place in it with the philosophies surrounding the Veil and Traveler?

2. What do you think Bungie‘s intentions were with creating the Witness and it’s beliefs to be the main antagonistic force in the Light vs Dark saga?

3. How do you view the Witness‘ relationship with the Traveler and Veil (and what can that tell us about humanity)?

4. What stands out to you about the religious influences in Destiny‘s story and how do they enhance and/or diminish the narrative it is trying to tell?

5. Has any aspect of Destiny changed your worldview and why?

6. Do you believe the Witness to be an evocative villain? Why or why not?

7. Do you have personal experiences that affect the way you view the Witness?

8. Why do you think Bungie decided to make the Precursors and the Witness separate?

9. Why do you think Bungie made the Witness a collective of a civilization’s ethos instead of a singular being/person?

10. Is there anything about the Witness‘ design/influences behind it that you would like to point out (especially in regards to its nearly human look?)

11. What can be taken away from the Witness‘ methodology for obtaining disciples, what it seeks in a potential disciple, or the relationship it has with its disciples?

12. What lessons can be learned from the Witness‘ formation and the affect it had on the universe?

13. Do you have any resources (novels, shows, philosophical concepts, mythologies, etc.) that relate to Destiny‘s main themes or my inquiry in general?

Feel free to comment, reblog, or tag this post with any of your responses to any of the questions (or even any additional thoughts that are related!!) You don’t have to answer every question, so feel free to choose the ones that speak the most to you!

I also open my dms with welcoming arms as well if you have any follow up questions or resources that might aid in my project!

All and any help, even the mere act of sharing this post, is deeply appreciated as this project is very dear to me and I could use all the insight I could get!!

Thank you all for your time and I’m excited to hear from you guys!!

[humansbgone]

The storyboard is done! On top of that, all the lines have been recorded, and I've just about finished placing them in the file for the final animatic render!

Voice work took a little longer this time around because, as you may have seen earlier this week, this time it wasn't just me doing them! We've got a whole cast for some new voices:

Cashier: e_doodlesnstuff

Clef: Manfred King

Bombardier Beetle: Will Quisenberry

Unsure Hiver: Snager

I'm incredibly excited to share their performances with you. They definitely brought something to the table that I couldn't have just talking to myself!

In the interest of not spoiling too much, I've limited this preview to a beginning sequence with Rose and Soph. A lot of you have wondered what carnivorous macrovolutes eat, and here's your answer!

Now, the bad news. This episode is going to be...INCREDIBLY long, compared to what I've done previously. The last episode already had the longest pre-Gregorsa animation at almost exactly 7 minutes, and this one is going over 11--not counting the Gregorsa lecture or credits. I am getting some help on the work for this one, but even so, it's going to take a while.

I'll wrap up animatic work this week and get it shipped out to SinclaireDeLune (https://www.instagram.com/sinclairedelune ) and DDX.EXE (https://ddxexe.bandcamp.com/ ) for backgrounds and music, respectively. DDX.EXE will also be handling sound effects this time, which helps a ton!

Next week, a break from HBG work to watch some tutorials on rigging. The latest Blender version has finally broken half of my rigging process, and the other half is a precarious Jenga tower on its own, so I'm going to have to get a new system going entirely and rerig every character. Additionally, every character model in the episode needs an overhaul (some more dramatic than others), and I've got some new models to make. Including a very intimidating one that I've been putting off.

So, we're looking at over a month for all that. Then, staging!! Even at this length, that should only be a week or two. Luckily, none of the assets are too difficult, and I can ask for help with those, so that will also probably be a week or two. Hopefully, background art will be mostly done then, and work can begin on animation! ...Which will anywhere from one to two months. Luckily, work on Gregorsa's lecture and notes should be brief after that, just a couple days.

So, all told, we're still in the realm of an April-May release. We'll see what happens. Until next time!

[owlphibiaisthebest15]

Why I believe that Shadow the Hedgehog is autistic!!!

Hi everyone! As of writing this, 2025s Autism Acceptance Month is coming to an end. So I want to do a little rant on why I think Shadow has Autism.

As some of you might know, I brought up this headcanon a few times this month, so I probably sound like a broken record at this point. But I've studied a lot of this characters' lore and personality traits that really motivated me to do this long overdue analysis. While I did mention other fictional characters I see as autistic in an earlier post, I'm choosing to do just Shadow for this, because as some of you might have noticed, my main interest has shifted from Amphibia to Sonic the Hedgehog with my favorite character being Shadow. But I assure you, I still plan to talk about my other interests, such as Amphibia, in future posts.

Before I begin, I want to clarify that this is just a headcanon and that I see myself in some of my favorite fictional characters all the time. So, if you don't think that Shadow is autistic, that's totally fine. I just want to voice my opinions, not start an argument like some people would do.

Also, I'm not the first Tumblr user to make a post about this hc. The first Tumblr user I saw made a post about it was @shortmobian. Here's the link to that post if you want to see it.

I will probably use some of the information from this post and do some that's not in this post because I'm autistic myself, and I find some of Shadow's quirks and mannerisms to be very relatable to me as well.

So, without further ado! Let's get started!

1. Hyper concentration

As a lot of us know, Shadow has a very goal driven nature and will do whatever it takes to achieve his goals. Autistic people can be like this, as sometimes when we set off to achieve something, we won't rest until we achieve that goal. Kinda like how I'm determined to get this entire analysis done and posted before Autism Acceptance Month ends.

2. Poor Social Skills

Socializing and understanding social cues may be easy for some people, but for a lot of people on the spectrum (yes! me as well!), can seem like a challenge, and some prefer not to do it.

Shadow the Hedgehog is no exception to this, as he's usually very quiet and doesn't say much whenever he's around others, and even so, he's mostly seen standing around alone, and distance himself from everyone else as much as possible.

In Twitter Takeover no. 7, Knuckles even states that Shadow hardly ever talks when he doesn't need to. Hearing that is what really motivated me to do this post, because like Shadow, I'm quieter when I'm with people, even my family, and I often don't speak unless if I'm spoken to.

When Shadow does speak, he speaks in a monotone voice and makes it short but tends to say exactly what is on his mind in the most straightforward way possible.

He has his moments of being brutally honest and blunt, which occasionally makes him come out as rude or mean. Something Rouge called him out on Tails Tube episode 9.

Shadow is also pretty bad at following social protocol, as social cues often tend to go over Shadow's head, or he just completely ignores them.

Shown in Sonic X and The Murder of Sonic the Hedgehog, he's really bad with new people and at first showed a aloof or nasty attitude with the player and Molly for the first few interactions, but was somewhat more cordial towards everyone else, but not by much.

Not to mention that even after he recovered from his amnesia in his own spin-off game, he has his moments where he can be pretty gullible and comically bad at deciphering other people's intentions, as shown in Sonic Rivals 2. For the most part, he doesn't care for social interactions or activities at all and prefers to spend most of his time alone and do his own thing, for the reasons I mentioned in one of my screenshots here. While he did attend Amy's birthday party, he even dressed up and tried to get her a last-minute present. He still had to be bribed into attending to Sonic's birthday party by Rouge and reluctantly agreed.

Given his lone wolf nature, sometimes he prefers to solve any current situation at hand by himself. But does allow others such Sonic and his friends, or Rouge and Omega to help him, even when he doesn't need it. I can relate! Sometimes, I don't like working with others, and I least try to do things myself. Unless if I have or want to, and if they'll let me help.

3. Low Empathy

Like what @shortmobian said in their post, Shadow has a hard time emphasizing or connecting with other people's emotions. This leads to him doing what he thinks is right, without thinking or caring about other people's considerations. Which makes characters like Sonic fear what he'll do when he takes matters into his own hands.

But this does not mean that Shadow is some heartless jerk with no feelings. As Maria said in Sonic x Shadow Generations: Dark Beginnings, he has a big heart and cares about others deep down. He just has trouble expressing his emotions and greatly limits his trust to anyone outside of Team Dark and Sonic and his friends.

Season 3 of Sonic Prime best shows just how loyal of an ally he can be when he does his best to keep Sonic out of Nine's clutches, and later pushes himself to his limits to save a dying Sonic from fading away. Which also shows that despite their often bitter rivalry, he does care for Sonic, even if he'll never admit it. Outiside of saving the world numerous time, he's also shown acts of heroism and kindness to others such as Rouge and Silver in Sonic Heroes and Sonic 06, shown when he saved Rouge at least once in both games, and he was even the reason why Silver realized his mistake and became an ally to Sonic and friends in Sonic 06. He even set aside his own goals to help his allies when they were in trouble a couple of times in Sonic 06 as well.

Aside from occasional anger or annoyance, Shadow also seems to prefer showing emotions whenever he's not around anyone else, specifically sadness, even his own allies, which I can relate to.

But when under a certain amount of stress or other emotion, he's shown to get pretty irritable with everyone else and will sometimes even lash out in anger.

4. Hates being touched

As @shortmobian put it, Shadow often hates when people unexpectedly touch him, and he will either react violently at the one responsible or just freeze entirely. Touch can be a sensory issue for autistics, and occasionally prefer to avoid contact with others unless we initiate it.

5. Avoids Eye Contact

Even when Shadow is having a direct conversation with someone, there will be times when he'll either partly look at people when he or others are talking or completely avoid looking at them altogether. Even when he does make eye contact. Sometimes, it's not long before he looks away from the person he's talking to. Eye contact can occasionally be uncomfortable for people with autism, and it can be hard for us to look at people directly at eye level even for a short time.

6. Stimming

Also stated by @shortmobian (if you see this post. I'm sorry for the constant mentions) Shadow occasionally stims during idle animation, such as playing with his quills, fidgeting with his gloves or inhibitor rings, etc. Stimming comes in many forms, and it helps autistic people feel more comfortable in their environment.

7. Specific routine preferences, sensory issues, and special needs

Shadow revealed quite a lot of his eccentric habits on Sonic Twitter Takeovers, like his obsession with cats and his unique taste in his diet of coffee beans becoming a popular meme. In Sonic Twitter Takeover no. 6, when he was asked by RealShadowFan01 if he would marry them, he unexpectedly agreed, but only if they would follow his very strict set of rules, which they must accommodate to his needs, such as the wrinkled bedsheet thing, which is implied to be a sensory issue for him, and routine. Autistics and other neurodivergent people tend to have sensory issues and prefer to have a daily routine and have specific needs to make us more comfortable and reduce anxiety.

8. He struggled with schoolwork

Don't get me wrong, Shadow is by no means stupid. If anything, he's one of the most intelligent characters in the Sonic Universe. Sure, he's no tech savvy like Tails or Eggman. He's still pretty close. But that's not to say that he did well in school, as seen in some artwork which later made its way into Gerald's Journal that he did go to school along with Maria on the ARK, showing him with an uninterested look compared to the more enthusiastic Maria, who even states that he never turned in a single assignment in school in Shadow Generations. While some autistic people excel in schoolwork, others like me tend to struggle a lot with certain assignments and barely pass each grade.

Well, that's about all I wanted to say. If you read this and made it this far. Let me know what you think, and as I said before, Shadow being autistic is just my headcanon. If you still don't think that Shadow has autism, that's totally fine. I'm just sharing my thoughts and opinions. If there's anything I missed, feel free to share your thoughts. Despite all the ableism going on in the world, I hope everyone had a good Autism Acceptance Month this year. Remember, if the world chooses to become your enemy, you fight like you always have.

[macgyvermedical]

Hello Ross!

Came across your post reblogged by @msbarrows. Sorry if you've been asked this before, but what are some good steps to take now before the new regime comes into effect in January?/RFK Jr brain worm antivaxxer BS.

Thank you in advance.

I know just about every post on the subject says this, but- get your vaccines up to date. Buy yourself a nice TDaP from the CVS for Christmas. The Department of Health and Human Services (of which RFK Jr will have control) oversees the CDC and the FDA. While it would be unlikely he would go for an all-out ban on vaccines, he could make vaccines a hell of a lot more optional and refuse to approve new ones. Considering another goal of the administration is to repeal the ACA, that would mean childhood vaccinations would no longer be covered by private insurance (I was a child prior to the ACA and my mom paid $750 to get (fully insured) me vaccinated (about $1,638 in today's dollars). Meaning people will likely not be able to afford vaccines even if they wanted them. And a combination of expense + lack of mandate would mean a drastic reduction in the number of people who get vaccinated. While vaccines are less effective without community (herd) immunity, they are still great at keeping you from dying. So get them while they're available and covered.

Get your records. Download or request as many of your own medical records (and those of your children!) as you can. You can get most of your records through MyChart or other online portals. If you received medical care before electronic charting, you'll have to directly contact your hospital or clinic's records department to see if they can send you copies. Save them in hard copies in a binder or at least on a flash drive or disc you have the ability to read from a computer. This makes your medical care portable if you have to see a new doctor without a lot of time to plan.

If you're on more than one medication, have a "medication reconciliation" appointment with your doctor. Learn what meds you are on and know what each of them do. Call your pharmacy and learn how much they cost without insurance. Ask your doctor if there are any cheaper alternatives that treat the same things. In the case of an ACA repeal and loss of drug coverage, you're going to want to know so you can make an informed decision about which drugs you buy.

Get your mental health straightened out as much as possible. RFK Jr. has said things against antidepressants and other psych medications. While again, he's probably not going to ban them (Think of the lost productivity! Think of the pharmaceutical companies losing revenue!) he may make it hella difficult for new antidepressant meds to be approved.

Get on long-term birth control of you can get pregnant and don't want to be. The copper IUD is the longest lasting form of birth control and can prevent pregnancy for more than 10 years, but hormonal IUDs can last 7 or more. Each has their own side effects and benefits. You can always get it removed later if you change your mind, but getting access to birth control might become difficult.

Have any semi-elective procedures done ASAP. At least get them scheduled. If the ACA is repealed you may not qualify for health insurance and you really don't want to have to pay for a surgery out of pocket. Plus, if the FDA becomes less reliable, you're going to want any tools or implants used in that surgery to still be safe.

Get new glasses. If you have vision insurance, get a new pair of glasses (not contacts) now with your most up-to-date prescription.

Get any dental work you've been putting off done if you currently have dental insurance. Get a cleaning and any preventative care done you need too.

[laora-ryn]

Chester, [ERROR], and Jonathan Sims: The Anthill Theory

Hello Tumblr, may I present a follow up to my initial thesis that [ERROR] is Jon? As well as a rebuttal to the argument I've seen floating around:

"[ERROR] can't be Jon! Jon is in the computers!"

Why are you treating these like two distinct eventualities?

Jon died as an omniscient, omnipotent demi-god half a step down from The Eye itself. Jon died at the exact moment that he was pulled through a rift in space-time. If Jon survived that, I doubt he'd end up human on the other side. He'd probably end up as something else entirely.

Something none of us, and none of the Protocol-universe characters, have ever seen before.

"Imagine you are an ant, and you have never before seen a human - "

1. We have Chester, who has Jon's voice, and has shown signs of autonomy and a personality where Norris and Augustus have not.

I have another meta post picking apart the fr3-d1 stuff, but for the sake of staying on topic, I will show an abbreviated, summarized list from that post below:

Mystery emails sent to various OIAR employees:

Episode 4: Gwen receives an email from an unknown source showing Lena trying to kill Klaus

Episode 4: "the system" sends Alice a notification that Sam searched for "Magnus" and "protocol"

Episode 7: Sam receives an email from a "John" with an internal email address, with Gerry's name and address

Episode 20: Sam receives an email from a garbled email address, with documents from 1999 regarding Starkwall and TMI

Error messages:

Episode 3: Alice receives a jmj error that Colin troubleshoots. Freddy snarks back at both of them

Episode 17: Alice receives a jmj error that Gwen troubleshoots. There are plenty of error noises, but imo it comes across less snarky than it did in episode 3

Other miscellaneous interactions:

Episode 5: Alice: "what the hell is wrong with everyone today?" OIAR computer, not having been touched or interacted with: [error noise]

Episode 17: Chester reads a universe-hopping statement to Celia

Episode 19: Sam asks Alice to talk with him about the Magnus Institute. Immediately, Alice's computer throws an error, like it wants her to stop working and talk with Sam

Magnus Institute Statements read to Sam:

All of the below statements are read out by Chester, and are (meant to be, in 21) read out to Sam specifically:

Episode 1: RedCanary

Episode 9: the cursed dice Magnus statement. This one starts on its own, while Sam is doing the Response Dept paperwork

Episode 14: the snake emporium. I'd almost mark this one as too much of a stretch, but Sam himself caught the Institute mention and was bothered by it

Episode 19: the one with Newton's alchemical tree that talks about the Protocol

Episode 21: the one about the Dome construction in the 90s, which Alice intercepts on Sam's computer

As far as I can see, the only statement that mentions the Magnus Institute that isn't read by Chester to Sam is the one that is read by Chester to Celia, as mentioned above

In terms of Norris and Augustus:

Martin was pulled through the rift at the exact same time as Jon, except as someone mostly human. Relatively human.

Jonah was too, but Jonah was already a static dead body at the moment of the rift - it wasn't the released potential energy of his death that catalyzed and pulled everything through the rift.

It makes sense, to me, that if all three of them are here, Jon is in a uniquely powerful/sentient position in comparison to the other two. Which leads us to point 2:

2. We have [ERROR], exhibiting characteristics that are indicative of Jon and no one else

See my other meta post for more info, but in summary:

The tape recorders spawned specifically for Jon in TMA, via the Web

Did even Elias show abilities to compel people to give their statement? He could tell people their statement, and force images into their heads, but could he force it out of their mouths? I don't remember seeing that

Along with the other evidence that isn't Jon-specific but is indicative of a TMA character:

They were initially trapped underneath the Magnus Institute - which could also be Jonah, or Martin

Their apparent desire to protect Gwen and "all of them" - which could also be Martin, or some non-familiar benevolent being

Jon being Chester and Jon being [ERROR] are not mutually exclusive.

Who's to say Jon, the Archivist, or what's become of him, or what's left of him, isn't the fingernail, and the boot, and the eye? Maybe he's even something else we, the ant, never live to see, or don't have the senses to perceive at all!

Additionally!

I think this might even tentatively explain why [ERROR] is voiced by Beth Eyre instead of Jonny - beyond "it would be way too obvious if they want it to be a plot twist"

If Jon/the Archivist is split into multiple parts of the same whole, in this universe. If, in the chaos of interdimensional travel, traits/attributes/parts of Jon were not distributed equally or correctly. For our anthill example, perhaps the color of our gazing eye, or the rubber material of our stomping boot, was applied to our fingernail instead. Maybe [ERROR] should have Jon's voice, but they don't. Maybe they didn't have a voice at all. We didn't hear them say anything at all in episode 10, only take a deep breath

Maybe they had to take a voice from one of their victims. Do you think there was a reason that we heard the autopsy statement secondhand, after the doctor transcribed it, rather than the victim's voice herself?

(When, as far as I know, the common ways to record information during autopsies is either with a voice recorder, or dictating to a secondary person to write, who was demonstrably not present? When, by all rights, there should have been a voice recorder present?)

I'm currently working on a master TMAGP timeline (and a TMA one otl), but an extremely abbreviated, specific version of it is as follows:

9 March: Sam and Alice visit the Magnus Institute and release [ERROR]

20 March: the autopsy victim is found dead in a park

22 March: Alice encounters the drowning woman

12 April: [ERROR] appears during Ink5oul's attack on Gwen

How many victims do they have, since Sam let them loose? Is it just the ones we've already seen, or were there others too?

This could go off in about 5000 different directions so I'm going to cut it here, but what I'm getting at here is - it makes a LOT of sense to me that we might be looking at another "creatures far beyond our comprehension" here; it'd make a lot of sense thematically; and it's just really freaking cool, if I'm being honest!!

[lupins-daughter111]

Shifting Advice

(from the comment section of a livestream I watched yesterday) (hello to everyone who followed me here!!!)

1. You are shifting every single day even if you don’t realize it

2. You can group shift but since each person experiences different things you might have different recounts of your shift

3. You can shift to you group Dr by yourself. You don’t need to wait for your other people.

4. You don’t need a method to shift, but it can be helpful for focus and unwind.

5. You can put anything in your script. It can be the most embarrassing thing ever, the only person who knows is you.

6. You don’t even need a written script to shift. As long as you have it in your head, you will shift. (I use it because I find it helpful since I forget a lot)

7. You can shift anywhere. Literally anywhere. (Ex: I have a DR where I live in a made up place and just exist. I have a post apocalyptic DR where I travel through ruined cities. I have a DR where I live I. A cottage. I have a DR where I fly planes. I have a DR where I’m in space.)

8. Not all advice you receive will be right for you. What worked for one person might not work for you.

9. Sometimes you need to put down your phone and stop going on your socials for a bit. Clear your head and just shift.

10. Shifting tik tok is (mostly) toxic at times. Don’t believe everything someone says.

11. Stop using Character ai and all those apps for a day or two. (I don’t have a reason for this but I think you should connect more with your Dr than a robot)

12. Make a Dr scripting journal where you put all your thoughts about your Dr. You can write letters to your s/o or just plan your day in your Dr. I also record my shifting attempts

13. Make a dream journal or keep a journal by your bed. Makes it easier to remember dreams about your Dr or thoughts you have about shifting when you’re asleep so you don’t have to get blue light from your phone and then stay up for an extra hour

14. Take breaks!!!! Even if you are trying only once every weekend, you still need that mental break from thinking about your Dr. I know it may feel literally impossible but just put your phone down and hide your script or journal for a week or two and clear your mind. (After tonight I’m literally doing this because I think about my Dr 24/7 now and it’s getting severely unhealthy.)

15. Have fun with your experiences. You found shifting for a reason. And now maybe it feels like a chore. But you don’t have to force yourself to do something that takes your energy away. Do what makes you feel right and shift on your own terms.

At the end of the day it’s your choice. It doesn’t matter what theory behind shifting you believe because you are in control of your own mind.

You don’t have to follow this list exactly. You can pick and choose how to shift and make your experience unique to fit your needs.

If you stuck around to the bottom of this crazy advice post then I wish you the absolute best of luck with shifting and I hope you shift in the next 24 hours with ease 🫶🫶🫶

[likeadevils]

Reputation Timeline

This is a very long post that puts all the songs on Reputation in order of Taylor making them, with as many specific dates as possible. I’ve also included other songs she wrote while writing Reputation and quotes from Taylor and her collaborators talking about her process. 

If you don't want to read the whole post, check out this playlist of the album or her entire discography.

KEY:

Song Dates:

🟢: There is some type of official source for the date

🟡: There isn’t an official source, but everything points to that date

🟠: I’m pretty sure that this is when it was written, but I wouldn’t be shocked if I was wrong. Or the period of time is just too large to be a definite date

🔴: Unknown, year comes from U.S. copyright offices

Other:

✍️: Record of Taylor (possibly) writing a song

🎤: Record of Taylor (possibly) recording a song

📌: Misc album activity

Part 1: Pre-writing

📌 Dec 11, 2014: Vogue interview conducted: "I don’t get so caught up in the work that I don’t appreciate the crazy, incredible, astonishing, joyous success that’s happened,” she says. “Putting pressure on yourself is good, but putting unnecessary stress on yourself is bad—so I don’t worry that I haven’t started the next record yet. I don’t worry that I don’t know what it’s going to be. I’m not worried that I have absolutely no timetable as to when it needs to be done. It could be two years from now; it could be three, it could be four. Or it could be one. You get these bursts of inspiration right at the moment you’re not expecting to. You just have to live your life, and hopefully you’ll take the right risks."

🎤 March 2, 2015: Photographed leaving a studio. (Note: I can not find a place that specifies if this is a recording studio, dance, photography, radio, or television studio).

✍️ April 8, 2015: Ed Sheeran: "We have plans to work together soon"

📌 April 29, 2015: Entertainment Tonight interview published: "I’m not making the next record yet, that’s going to take a lot of thinking about what that should be. With 1989, I love this album so much that I think it’d be doing a real disservice to try and copy it the next time around. I think it’s going to have to be something very different, creatively"

📌 May 20, 2015: Marie Claire interview published: Taylor is not even sure she'll have made another album by the time 2020 rolls around. "I'm not going to put out an album until I've made one that's better than this one and that's going to be really hard."

🔴 2015: ...Ready For It? (First Draft)

Heather Wirth (Taylor's assistant during the 1989 tour): "There was one time where I was traveling with her on her tour and she was sitting in the back of her plane, I could hear her just throwing words together and basically in front of me, she ended up writing Ready For It."

Taylor was on the 1989 tour from May 5-December 12, so all we can narrow this down to is the year. Here is my opinion on how complete this version was.

📌 August 25, 2015: NME interview conducted: Swift speaks about the challenge of following the stellar '1989'. Does the thought scare her? "Nooooooo. How could the next one be as big? Maybe the next album will be a bridge to somewhere else. Or maybe I'll just go ahead and change everything." I ask for a hint from the handful of songs she's written so far and she replies with a scoff. "No! Why would I do that?! God!" The 1989 Tour wraps up in December. After that, Swift says, "I think I should take some time off. I think people might need a break from me. I'm going to… I don't know. Hang out with my friends. Write new music. Maybe not write new music. I don't know."

🎤 October 7, 2015: Photographed leaving a recording studio in New York

📌 October 19, 2015: GQ interview published: "When I’m prewriting-- which is what I’m always doing, like right now, I’m not actively making an album-- but if I get an idea that I feel like is a cool observation and it’s a cool lyric thing, I type it into this endless notepad on my phone.”

📌 November 13, 2015: Vogue Australia interview published: "I'll feel like I'll need to give people a breather from me [after the 1989 era] because at a certain point they're going to get a little sick of hearing about me, so I'll need to go away for a while then, depending on my gauge on how sick of me they are, I'll decide when to put out the next album."

📌 November 28, 2015: Beats 1 interview conducted: "I'm always writing because that's not really something I can turn off." So are you writing with anything in mind? "Hopefully you write with something in mind. The intent is to make something good. That's kinda all that I have right now, just, don't finish a song unless it's great. I don't write 30 songs a month. I write something when it's great, and I finish it if it's great. If it's not, I just stop halfway through and go, 'Well, I'll wait for something great to come along.' [...] [1989's success] opens up a lot of possibilities in my head as to what could come next. Right now quality is the only thing I have to focus on. It's, all right, make something... make something great."

🟡 January 2016: This Is What You Came For

Rihanna and Taylor were both in LA in late January/early February 2016, and Calvin skipped the 2016 Grammys because he was in the studio. It's possible it was written earlier (Taylor and Rihanna were both MIA for most of December 2015) but their schedules before November 2015 and after March 2016 get too complicated. Calvin showed the finished product to Rihanna on April 17, 2016, so it was definitely done by then.

📌 February 19, 2016: Vogue Interview conducted:

As for future plans . . . who knows? For the first time in years, Swift is not sure exactly what is next. She is very much OK with this. So what the hell are you going to do with the rest of your life, Taylor Swift? "I have no idea," she says, with a sigh that's more blissful than anxious. "This is the first time in ten years that I haven't known. I just decided that after the past year, with all of the unbelievable things that happened . . . I decided I was going to live my life a little bit without the pressure on myself to create something." Do not freak: Swift is not abandoning making music. Those who know her know this is chemically impossible. ("Her not being creative is one of the last things I'd ever worry about," the musician and producer Jack Antonoff tells me later.) "I'm always going to be writing songs," Swift says. "The thing is, with me, I could very well come up with three things in the next two weeks and then jump back into the studio, and all of a sudden the next record is started. That's an option, too." But probably not for the moment.

📌 July 17, 2016: Snakegate.

📌 August 29, 2016: Lover Diary entry: "This summer is the apocalypse."

Part 2: Writing

🟢 September 2, 2016: Gorgeous (First Draft)

This portion of the Making of a Song series.

🟢 September 6, 2016: King Of My Heart (First Draft)

This portion of the Making of a Song series.

📌 September 9, 2016: Gigi Hadid: "You know, she is starting to go back to work in the studio again"

🟢 September 16, 2016: Gorgeous (Second Draft)

This portion of the Making of a Song series.

🟢 September 17, 2016: Gorgeous (Third Draft)

This portion of the Making of a Song series.

Taylor is seen wearing a black tank top and fedora in her Nashville apartment, which lines up with what she wore to the Nashville Music City Wine and Food Festival on September 17. From there, the rest of the dates are just math. 

🟢 September 19, 2016: Gorgeous

This portion of the Making of a Song series. 

🟢 September 19-21 2016: King Of My Heart

Making of a Song series: 19, 20, 21 Taylor: "I've always wanted to structure a song where each individual section of the song sounded like a move forward in the relationship, but still be listenable. So I wanted the verse to sound like it's own phase of a relationship, the pre-chorus to sound like it's own phase of a relationship, and the chorus to sound like it's own phase of a relationship. And i wanted them to all have their own identity, but seem like they were getting deeper and more fast-paced as the song went on." Taylor: "King of My Heart' was influenced by Khal Drogo and Daenerys [from Game Of Thrones]. It's even got this post-hook of drums—I wanted them to sound like Dothraki drums."

Taylor is seen wearing the same outfit in the September 19 Gorgeous video, and this date of the KOMH video. It's also the same outfit as a video she later posted to The Swift Life (RIP) where she talked about how excited she was to be working after a long break.

🟢 October 14, 2016: I Did Something Bad (First Draft)

This portion of the Making of a Song series Taylor: "I wrote this song on piano [gasps and ooohs from the audience] It's not gonna sound like it though! You're not going to say that after you hear it, it's not that kind of song!" Taylor: "'I Did Something Bad' I wrote after Arya and Sansa conspire to kill Littlefinger [on Game of Thrones]."

The episode of Game of Thrones where Arya and Sansa conspire to kill Littlefinger was aired on August 27, 2017. Filming for the season began August 31, 2016, so Taylor could've gotten some insider information? I don't know. She visibly did not write this song in September 2017.

🟡 October 26, 2016: Delicate

This portion of the Making of a Song series. Taylor: Next we have track five! I didn't even do it on purpose [...] but when I finally was like, oh this is the final tracklist, I was like 'Oh, I did it again. I did it again.' [...] Track five is a kind of legendary-- not legendary, that's ridiculous! [Reassuring shouts of 'No!' from the audience] Amongst us, amongst us! Like, 'Oh, you know, I'm gonna like track five, track five's the emotional vulnerable song.' [...] There's an affect that you mat hear on the vocals throughout the rest of the album and it's a vocoder. Whatis that, you say? It's a vocal effect where you sing and the vocoder splits your voice into chords, and you can play your chords on your voice on a keyboard, in chords. So basically, if you're singing the notes of a piano, you could play your own voice. So that's what you'll hear in the beginning and throughout this song, and then you'll hear it several times. We tried it in the studio and I thought it sounded really emotional and really vulnerable and really kind of like, sad but beautiful? This is a song that like-- the idea of your reputation is definitly something I play on for the entire album. But when the album starts off it's much more bombastic, more like 'I don't care what you say about me I don't care what you say about me my reputation doesn't matter!" But then it hits this point where it's like, Oh god, what happens when you meet someone that you really want in your life?' and then you start worrying about what they've heard before they met you, and you start to wonder, could something fake, like your reputation, affect something real, like somebody getting to know you?"

Taylor is seen wearing a thin gold choker she was fond of in October 2016, with her post September 24 haircut (straight across bangs instead of a side part). Since she normally goes into the studio with Max Martin and Shellback with a few ideas, and creates multiple songs during their sessions, I'm inclined to group this song with IDSB and place it in late October. 

🟢 October 27, 2016: I Did Something Bad

This portion of the Making of a Song series. Taylor: "This group of producers is a lot smaller than it was on 1989. I picked people to who I worked with on 1989, but I felt like they would be versatile enough to kill 1989 and make something new. There would be no way for me to make something even similar to 1989 and have it be effective. It had to be completely different because the album was it's own thing. It was just two groups, it was me and Jack Antonoff, and me and Max Martin and Shellback. And this was the first song where Max and I felt like we'd really done something different than 1989. [...] So I brought it into them and I was trying to explain the production. I had had a weird dream and I'd woken up with this sound in my head that was so hook-y and so catchy that I knew it had to be in a song, because it was so annoying. It wouldn't stop going through my head. And the sound was RAH-TAH-TAH-TAH-TAH-TAH-TATATAH-TAH, and then it was like TYAH-TYAH, TUH, BRUH! Like after the chorus, that's what I want to hear, but I don't want it to be my voice, I want it to be an instrument, what instrument is that? So I was like playing this voice memo to Max and he's like, 'Oh no, there's not an instrument that can do that. But what we could do is we can take you voice doing it, pith it down so it sounds like an enchantress, slash, a dude.' So that's what you're hearing after the chorus. But, anyway [...] this is when we first kind of knew we might be on to something with the album."

At 4:18 you can spot a gold temporary tattoo on the inside of her wrist, similar to ones she was wore at Drake’s birthday party on October 23. Since she is seen working until sundown (She leaves LA on October 28) and had to be in Nashville 13 days priar (She was seen in New York City until the 13), October 14 and 27th are the only dates that make sense.

📌 January 3, 2017: Lover Diary entry: "I get all scared about the future because so much has changed in the last year of my life. I mean this time last year I was living in LA, getting ready for Grammys and now, I’m essentially based in London, hiding out trying to protect us from the nasty world that just wants to ruin things. We have been together and no one has found out for 3 months now. I want it to stay that way because I don’t want anything about this to change or become too complicated or intruded upon. But it’s senseless to worry about someday not being happy when I am happy now. Ok. Breathe."

📌 January 6, 2017: Taylor likes a tumblr post with an quote from Ed from April 2015 saying Taylor and him planned to work together soon.

🟢 January 10, 2017: Don't Blame Me

Taylor is seen wearing a similar jacket as she was papped wearing on January 11th in the Making of a Song video. (This is pure speculation on my part, but the mood also seems to be a bit lower than on other days). We know she was in LA around this time "for work."

🟢 January 11, 2017: Dancing With Our Hands Tied

Sessioner: "taylor set it up by saying that inspiration for the song came when she was back in LA after spending several months out of the public eye. as we know now she spent basically all of this time in the UK with joe without anyone knowing she was in a relationship. back in LA (i think for work), she went to the gym only to be caught by paparazzi on her way out.. the paps shouted all kinds of things at her including comments about her weight... remember this was the first time she had been properly seen in months and nobody knew she was in a relationship.. she described being really overwhelmed by the experience but that her thought process was less about herself and more about how she could possibly have a normal relationship when this was her life. taylor actually said that after the incident she went straight to the recording studio, cried, and wrote this song."

There are multiple accounts of what seems to be a similar story. January 11, 2017 is one of two times she is seen leaving the gym after a long paparazzi dry spell, the other being in July. Seeing as the song is produced by Max Martin, who is located in LA, and the July pictures are in New York, I’m inclined to agree with the original source.

🟡 January 2017: Dress

Jack Antonoff: "Dress is my second favorite [from Reputation]. It's the first one we made for it." Taylor: "This song is one of those where, like almost every other line is something that I came up with like, a year before, and then when I was writing the song i just cherry-picked and I was like 'Like that, like that, like that, like that'. And I was really proud of the hook of this because it sounds like a pick up line, and yet it is a love song about deep and tender feelings."

Dress is copyrighted for 2017, and production for the Look What You Made Me Do music video began in January, meaning if Jack is remembering correctly and Dress was made before Look What You Made Me Do, it was made sometime in January 2017. Taylor was in London until January 7, then LA from January 10-13. While we don’t have exact dates, we know Taylor was in Nashville in early February preparing for Super Saturday Night. She was possibly in New York on February 1, when she posted this video with Gigi Hadid, who was photographed in New York the day before.

🟡 January 2017: Look What You Made Me Do

Taylor: "It actually started with a poem that I wrote about my feelings, and it's basically about like, realizing that you can't trust certain people, but realizing you appreciate the people you can trust, realizing that you can't just let everyone in, but the one's you can let in you need to cherish. And it had all the verses in it basically as is, but when the beat hit, we were like 'Oooh, look what you made me do, look what you made me do' and we were like 'Oh my god, we've got it, edit out the rest of the words and just do that.'" Joseph Kahn: "Started concepting and prepping [the Look What You Made Me Do music video] in January. Shot in May."

While it’s possible Taylor reached out to Kahn to start a music video before she had a song to go along with it, I find it unlikely. Look What You Made Me Do is copyrighted for 2017, and Taylor has her J initial necklace on while recording Look What You Made Me Do in Miss Americana and promos for the Making of a Song Video, dating the song to post-Dec 13, 2016. With the exception of Christmas, she seems to have been in London for most of December. Taylor stayed in London until January 7, then was photographed in LA from January 10-13. While we don’t have exact dates, we know Taylor was in Nashville in early February preparing for Super Saturday Night. She was possibly in New York on February 1, when she posted this video with Gigi Hadid, who was photographed in New York the day before.

📌 March 2, 2017: Ed Sheeran: "Taylor isn't going to be releasing until probably the end of this year - Christmas is the smartest time to release because that's when everyone buys records."

📌 May 2017: According to Joseph Kahn and Todrick Hall, the Look What You Made Me Do music video was filmed this month.

📌May 4, 2017: A source (probably Tree Paine) tells E! News: "Taylor has been writing and recording her new album in Nashville for the last several months. She has been working on it around the clock and will be making an announcement soon. She is really excited about her new music and can't wait to share it with her fans. She has been entirely focused on that and not much else. She has been 100 percent dedicated to making music the last few months and that's it. She is really looking forward to finishing the record and being able to have some down time to reconnect with her friends."

🟠 May 2017: ...Ready For It?

Taylor: "Ready For It introduces and metaphor that you hear throughout the album, which is this crime and punishment metaphor, where it talks about robbers and thieves and heists and all that. And I found that an interesting metaphor, but twisted in different ways throughout the album. The way that it's presented in Ready For It is finding your partner in crime and being like 'Oh my god, we're the same, we're the same oh my god!Let's rob banks together this is great!' And you will hear that theme carried on throughout the rest of the record, but not exactly in the same way as you heard it in Ready for it."

In Miss Americana and promos for the Making of a Song series, Taylor is seen recording with curly hair, her J necklace, and not her Sapphire Evil Eye Ring, which starts showing up on June 27 (we don’t know exactly when or why she got it). Since the song partially focuses on whether or not her lover is ready for the media frenzy that surrounds dating her, I’m inclined to place this song in May, when her and Joe’s relationship leaked to the press. The song was recorded in Sweden, and we can assume she was in Europe between May 15 and June 1, 2017. (That being said, we can assume she is in Europe for most of the first half of 2017).

🟠 June 2017: Call It What You Want

Taylor: "The way I feel this album is, as far as the storyline, is it starts with getting out any kind of rebellion, or anger, angst, whatever, and then falling in love and realizing that you settle into what your priorities are. And like, your life changes, but you welcome it because it's something that matters to you. This last part of the album feels like settling in to where I am now. So it started with where I was when I started making the album, and it ends with where I am now, and this song really reflects that, probably the best on the album." In the Making of a Song series, Taylor is seen with straight hair, her J necklace, and not her sapphire evil eye ring, which starts showing up on June 27 (we don’t know exactly when or why she got it). Once again, I am tempted to put this after her relationship leaked to the press, probably in early June (She is in the states on the 1st and 3rd, and probably leaves sometime in mid-June).

🟠 July 2017: Getaway Car and This Is Why We Can't Have Nice Things

In the Making of a Song series, Taylor is seen with curly hair, her J necklace, and her sapphire evil eye ring, placing the song sometime shortly before/after June 27th. We know she was in the states for most of July, and in New York City on the 17th and 24th.

🟢 July 2017: End Game

Ed Sheeran: "End Game was written - I was playing Mohegan Sun in Connecticut [on July 14, 2017], and she has a place in Rhode Island, which isn't too far. So she hits me up like, 'I know you're in Connecticut, come around.' I go around, she plays me some of what turned out to be reputation, and plays me this End Game, and I was like 'Man, I really like this. Can I do a verse? Can I do a rap verse?' And she was like, 'Yeah, for sure!' So the next day, I remember, I was in bed, and woke up and got my laptop out, put the song, just looped it, wrote this verse, and I went in with Max Martin, who she did the song with, and recorded it. Then Future did a verse, and then Taylor wrote a verse and we did the video."

🟡 September 2017: So It Goes…

Oscar Görres: "I’d just become a father. I was not in the room when the melody and the lyrics were written. Max and Shellback did half of the album with her in L.A., and I had done this [instrumental] track—which is weird too, because I don’t do tracks. [...] Shellback was looking through things on his computer, listened to that track, and Taylor reacted to it. "Oh, what’s that? That’s special. I haven’t done anything like that. Can we do that?" [...] She wrote everything quickly. I woke up—this is the funny part of the story—and someone is FaceTiming me at 6:30 in the morning. [...] I called [Shellback] back and saw this girl on his couch. She goes, "Hi! It’s Taylor! How are you? [...] We just heard the track. We had the melody. The lyrics are like this. I can read you the lyrics! I had this idea. What do you think about that?" And I was like, "…yes!""

According to social media, Oscar Görres had a daughter in 2015 and a son in September of 2017. Personally, I believe the September 2017 date. Taylor has also been known to add a song to the album incredibly last minute, multiple sessioners have said Taylor said all songs on the album were about her relationship with Joe, and the tracklists in the reputation magazines are out of order, suggesting a late change.

🔴 2017: New Year's Day

Taylor: We threw a big New Year's party in London this year [2017], and I was thinking about how everbody talks anf thinks about who you kiss at midnight, right? [...] And I think that is very romantic, but I think there's something even more romantic about who's gonna deal with you on New Year's Day. Who's willing to like, give you Advil and help you clean up the house. I think that states more of a permanence. So I was thinking about that, and I wrote a song called New Year's Day. Oh, Oh! There are two lines in this song that I'd been saving for a really long time, for the right moment, and I picked them for this song. The first one is 'Please don't ever become a stranger who's laugh I could recognize anywhere' and the other is 'Hold on to the memories, they will hold on to you.'" Jack Antonoff: "We wrote that song in a second, cause we didn’t plan to write it. I think if you plan to write a ballad, you always get less than you hope for. We wrote that, and then the scratch take in my home, we kinda like, played it together--" [Jimmy Fallon interrupts and they never return to what he was about to say] Jack Antonoff: Was there ever a conversation about taking this stripped-down song and building it up into something more in line with the rest of the album? "No, no, no. Not only that, but it was the quickest [song to record]. If you listen to the piano on that record, you can hear me moving around. You hear things clicking. Those are the "scratch takes" — we did that very quickly. It came out in that sort of goofy Hollywood version of how music is written, where it comes out of moments of inspiration. Part of the process is you do that [scratch take], and then you do it for real. But we just sat there: That’s the song. I’m so proud of it because, personally, I think it’s some sort of hint at the future."

That's all for this timeline! Check out the others in my pinned post.