#(I know that's esoteric just bear with me)

[fingertipsmp3]

You wouldn’t last an hour in the asylum where they raised me (the sims 1&2. And I’m talking to people who have only played ts4)

[provider-of-guardians]

How do you come up with characters’ names?

Ngl, I often go with the first thing that comes to mind XD I remember I used to look up names for specific meanings and I'd use whichever one had a meaning I was looking for and a vibe I like. Others just pop into my head and I go "yeah that sounds right" (Like Elysia, and pretty much all the fauns really)

[cuethediscoandthedrinks]

my loves!! i got that pussy tea for u ehhe (˃ᴗ⩹)

avatar reactions - oral sex ⋆｡ﾟ☁︎｡⋆｡ ﾟ☾ ｡⋆

jake ⋆｡ﾟ☁︎｡⋆｡ ﾟ☾ ｡⋆

• charmingly; being wheelchair-bound back when he was a human means jake's had to up his oral game. therefore he knows exactly how to have you quivering and gushing all over his pretty face. jake's pretty big on tongue especially, whether it be using the pink tip to leave little quick kitten licks across your swollen bud; or wider tongue-strokes across the length of your exposed pussy; or even eagerly thrust it as deep as he can past your clenching opening, deep inside your wet warmth

• likewise, this man loves to chuckle and smirk as he does it too--paired with heavy eye contact and some well-placed thigh spanks, nothing riles him up more than seeing you squirm and squeal as his chesty hums and laughs vibrate through your sweat-covered, hyper-aroused form above (or in front of) him.

quaritch ⋆｡ﾟ☁︎｡⋆｡ ﾟ☾ ｡⋆

• sloppily; quaritch loves some hot, juicy pussy to slurp up, 100%. being a sadistic lover, when he goes down on you he continues to maintain his dominance; there's no letting you take control with quaritch. being a marine, he'll utilise that discipline and patience to tease you, making you whine and buck up your hips as he tongues extra hard against your swollen, sensitive cunt

• he'll be unabashedly confident in his ability to please you, too. wide-toothed grins, crow's feet, hot breaths on your exposed flesh, he's going at it--"..mmphmm..unhhpm..you like-mphm-like that, darlin'?..goddamn..always so sweet for me mama.." he'll muffle out, as he continues the brutal onslaught of his rough, eager licks and slurps as he eats you out for all you're worth.

tonowari ⋆｡ﾟ☁︎｡⋆｡ ﾟ☾ ｡⋆

• earnestly; it's different for the metkayina clan, as they're all socialised to accept interest and enthusiasm wholeheartedly; be it for the sea, the all-mother, childrearing, but especially the fulfillment of their loved one's needs. therefore tonowari takes his job of pleasuring you seriously; perhaps not dominantly, but with the utmost respect and desire

• tonowari's favourite meal is your swollen, throbbing mound, gyrating desperately against his awaiting mouth. he's a big boy, and so'll make sure to eat up every drop of slick essence you can give. using his wide, thick pink tongue, he'll lay it flat along the length of your pussy--eyes softly closed, eyebrows raised slightly in unconscious earnest intrigue, tonowari's just here to make his um'ma happy. and if that takes some extra languid suckles and messy, wet smears of your aching cunt across his eager face, this papa bear's all game.

tsu'tey ⋆｡ﾟ☁︎｡⋆｡ ﾟ☾ ｡⋆

• religiously; tsu'tey's a mature omaticayan, born and raised in the higher ranks of the clan, and reared in a heavily esoteric and introspective community. when this man eats pussy, he eats it like he's eating the most sacred of offerings from the all-mother eywa herself. almost as though he sees it as a spiritual practice, tsu'tey finds much pleasure and satisfaction in seeing you get wetter and wetter; your outer pussy swelling from arousal, clit throbbing, opening clenching, all at the mere prospect of being pleasured by your mate

• tsu'tey takes it incredibly seriously too--not one for overt emotionalism, he'll be surprisingly deliberate and careful with his actions; making sure to remain skilled, focused and successful in pleasuring your body. he'll swiftly use the tip of his tongue to tease your slick entrance, and leave studied nips and open-mouthed kisses to your outer pussy. he'll use the pads of his fingers scoop up your excess arousal, taste it, feed it to you, or even smear it across his forehead, cheeks and chin whilst chanting a prayer to eywa, thanking her for blessing him with such a mate.

ronal ⋆｡ﾟ☁︎｡⋆｡ ﾟ☾ ｡⋆

• intentionally; this can go either way for ronal, as depending on her mood (and your good behaviour) she can either be soft, almost maternal in her movements, or calculated and unyielding as she punishes you for breaking one of her rules, or not fulfilling her expectations. some days she'll leave gentle kisses to your thighs, humming softly in satisfaction at your writhing hips and heaving chest. other days ronal'll take no issue with laying some firm, sharp spanks to your exposed pussy, hissing, snarling and baring her sharp piercing fangs as you squirm in anticipation

• she may decide to let up after some especially harsh punishment, using the long pads of her fingers to smooth soft traces in between your spread legs, massaging your outer lips. coaxing out your rich juices for her to wantonly lap up, all the while sporting a gentle smile. but if she's feeling a little more disciplinary, ronal won't hesitate to grope your soft thighs and tongue hard, thrusting deep into your oversensitive cunt as she coerces yet another white-hot release from your exhausted, fucked-out form.

neytiri ⋆｡ﾟ☁︎｡⋆｡ ﾟ☾ ｡⋆

• playfully; neytiri gets the most satisfaction from seeing you succumb to her ministrations; more than punishing, more than rewarding, perhaps even more than teasing. being able to coax out your needy whines, feel your shuddering hips, and the lewd clenching and throbbing of your warm, wet mound fills neytiri with an almost addicting sense of pride.

• no one can satisfy her mate like she can, and she'll be virtually unable to repress the grin, creased eyes, bared fangs and little sultry giggles she lets out as she watches you come undone in front of her, teasing with a "..now, look at my sweet, sweet girl, aah..so wet, so much..all for mama, yes?..ahhmm, yes, my girl.." as she continues milking your body-wracking orgasm. fingers jutting hard into your g-spot, neytiri's hums of an almost innocent contentment contrasting lewdly to your needy moans, and the wet, slick sounds of your opening sucking her fingers back into your needy pussy.

hope u enjoyed bbys<3

[moorishflower]

Dirty Talk (Dreamling, Explicit)

This is because of @landwriter making me realize I don't have much practice writing dirty talk. This is still pretty tame in that regard.

"I don't think you're even capable of talking dirty," is what Hob says, one fine winter evening, comfortable and a bit comfortably tipsy, sat at his regular table in the New Inn with Dream of the Endless sat across from him, and he knows by the way Dream rears back like a cat whose nose has been flicked that he's made a mistake in saying it. It's only been a few months since Dream has come back into his life, since he's gifted Hob with information and explanations and finally, in the trenches of autumn as the leaves had crumpled from the trees in red and gold splendor, the rare sight of his smile and a trembling lower lip, and a soft, My friend, but in those few months Hob's come to the realization that he would do anything, literally anything and everything, to hold Dream's friendship. To make him feel safe. To keep him here.

And maybe mocking his friend's mode of speaking isn't the right way to go about it but, again, he's just pissed enough for it to not seem like a big deal, and Dream doesn't seem upset so much as he seems offended. Mates give each other shit all the time, Hob reassures himself, and it's not like they were talking about something life-changing. Dream had only been complaining about his sibling interfering with his realm, which has apparently caused some sort of imbalance in the Dreaming, and from there had followed a great lot of metaphysical and esoteric explanations that boiled down to 'wet dreams are on the rise' (pun intended). It explains why he's had so many in the past week. It doesn't explain why so many of them have featured dark hair and skin like cloaked starlight and eyes bluer than the Aegean Sea, but that's his albatross to bear, not Dream's.

And then Dream had said something along the lines of how sex dreams had used to have poetry to them, there'd been an intimate back and forth, not just of bodies but of words, a build-up and a climax. One thing had led to another, and Hob had said what he said, and he stands by it. Still stands by it, even as Dream's eyes turn flinty and the corner of his mouth turns up into a smirk that would shame the devil.

"I am the Prince of Stories," he murmurs. His voice is a laser that cuts through the raucous din of the New Inn. There's a van's worth of footballers a few tables down, either celebrating or commiserating, it's not clear which, and the entire pub is lousy with the noise. Hob doesn't have to lean forward to hear his friend, so tuned is he to that purring baritone, but he does so anyways. It gets him closer to Dream, who also leans in, like he's about to share a secret. "Do you truly believe me incapable of crafting words titillating enough to bring one to completion?"

"I don't think you've ever said the word 'cunt' in your life," Hob says, doubling down like the idiot he is. He's never claimed to be a wise man, and especially not when he's in his cups. Besides, it's the winter hols, he's got nothing to do tomorrow, and if he ends this night with nightmares that make him piss the bed he'll concede that Dream has won this round.

"You would be incorrect."

Hob can't imagine Dream ever speaking in a way that's less than dignified. There's such power to him, all the time, such staid and solemn surety, and there's no room in that sort of denseness for telling your partner how much you'd like to suck their brains out of their prick. More's the pity, because he thinks if he could imagine it, the shape of his stranger's lips around the word 'cock' would surely be a fine feature to add to his repertoire of fantasies.

It's at this point that Hob makes the stupidest decision he's made all night.

"Prove it," he says, and takes a sip of his drink, secure in the knowledge that six centuries of swiving has rendered him immune to embarrassment, even in such a public setting. There is a long pause during which the only sound is the ambient riot of the Inn around them, the clink of glasses and the cheering -- or bemoaning? -- of the footballers, the nearly-incomprehensible drone of the sound system piping Top 40s Modern Rock into the kitchen behind the bar, Marv the bartender swearing as he uncorks a bottle of champagne for a mixer.

Then Hob feels something brush against his foot beneath the table, and the rest of the pub goes silent.

Or rather, not silent, but…muffled. Like someone's draped a great blanket over the both of them, and now it's just him and Dream, as it's always been, as it always will be, facing each other across a worn, wooden table, as much of the original wood as Hob had been able to salvage. He's worked it into the foundations, into the bartop and the tables and the floor, trying to preserve the stories he'd told for his stranger, the history, like it was ale that had soaked into the floorboards. Dream's eyes are focused on him, impossibly blue, and he feels another soft touch, this time higher up his leg. Like a foot stroking up his calf, except no game of footsie has ever left him feeling this breathless before, this yearning.

"Would you have me prove it to you with words of prose, Hob Gadling?" Dream's voice is a thing with texture. It'd be prosaic to compare it to such human stuff as velvet or fox fur, but Hob's limited in his petty human understanding, and to his ears it's plush and warm and welcoming. It's a voice to bury your face into, a voice that drips down the skin like warm honey or candlewax, with just enough bite to be interesting. "Would you have me woo you with poetry? Shall I compare thee, not to a summer's day, but to the wild bounty of the fields? More comely than all of autumn's fruits and grains, thy hair rich as the loam and the fertile earth?"

Fertile is an unfair word for him to use, Hob thinks. His brain's scattered out his ears in an attempt to try and hear better, but he doesn't have a choice, because if he wants to not hear he's going to have to get up and leave. And not listening to this just…isn't an option. Not with how Dream is looking at him, head cocked like a bird and his mouth red as garnets shaping around words, words, words.

"Shall I opine about the shape of your body? How broad and virile your chest? I have seen you at sport, Hob, and I know what you hide beneath sweaters and cardigans. I have seen the daydreams of those who lust after you. They imagine you coming in from your war games, stripping the shirt from your back and drinking the sweat from your body. They imagine what it would be like to sink to their knees and bury their mouths into your most intimate places. Worshiping you with hand and tongue. Would you have me describe these fantasies, Hob?"

Oh, please, he thinks, and wonders if it must show on his face, how dry his mouth's become, how tight his trousers are now, because Dream's little smirk grows wider. His pupils are blown so large they nearly eclipse his irises, and there's only a thin ring of startling blue outlining a sea of infinite void.

"Or would you prefer it in cruder terms?" The light pressure that's been dragging up and down his leg inches higher; it feels like fingers kneading into the soft insides of his thighs, and Hob's legs fall open to give the phantom hands better access. The Inn looks and sounds like it's moving in slow motion, but maybe that's just because he can't look away from Dream.

"Would you like me to describe how beautiful your cock is?" Dream asks, and he says it with the disaffected expression of someone asking about the weather and the deep and growling voice of a jungle cat, and Hob is fairly certain he makes a noise of his own, something undignified and stifled by how quickly he bites his lip. "How the weight of it would fit perfectly in my hand? You are made for pleasure, Hob. Thick. Heavy. Better still, to hold the shape of you in my mouth."

"Oh, fuck," Hob says. He's barely aware that he says it, but Dream's eyes light up with fiendish inner fire. There's no blue anymore. It's just black, and stars, and Hob drifting in them like a rogue comet, burning up.

"Yes. I could describe how you would fuck me. How you would turn me inside out. I would want to ride you first, to see the shape of you inside me. I would want you to fill me with your spend until I could taste it in my throat, and then, when I had found my pleasure, I would want you to bear me down into the bed. I would want you to break me in half, Hob Gadling, because I will accept no less than the most ardent lover, and if I do not finish the night with your cum leaking down my thighs and my arsehole gaping for you, I will not be satisfied."

The ghost-touch that's been drifting higher and higher along his thighs presses firmly against his groin, and Hob makes a strangled, gasping little noise, swallowed up by the thick syrupy slowness of the Inn, and comes in his pants. It's an orgasm so sharp and sweet and high that it feels like the prolonged note of a flute, and leaves his thighs quivering in the aftermath, and his breath coming in heady little rasps. He hadn't even been aware he was that keyed up, but then, he hadn't been aware of anything but Dream, and Dream's voice, and now how Dream is staring at him across the way, eyes glittering like a thousand diamonds set in velvet. Hob watches as he slowly lifts his hand from beneath the table, spreading his fingers. They're covered in cum, little beads and drips of it sliding down to the second knuckle, and Dream holds his gaze like a fist around Hob's heart as he raises his hand to his mouth and begins licking his fingers clean.

There's another noise, an uncomfortable whimper, that Hob doesn't want to think is him but probably is.

"Have I sufficiently proven myself?" Dream asks, popping his fingers free of his mouth with the most obscene, wet sound that Hob has ever heard. He imagines those fingers spearing into him and making that same sound from all the lube dripping out of his arse, and Dream's nostrils flare.

"Dunno," Hob manages to say, when he finally finds his voice. It's a thready, needy voice, but it is there. "Could use some more convincing. Don't suppose…you fancy coming upstairs to continue this conversation?"

There's a gentle stroke along the inside of his thigh, making his poor, spent cock twitch, and Dream smiles at him. "Yes. I believe there is more I could tell you, Hob Gadling."

And there is. A lot more. That night, and into the morning, and the next, and the next. Hob needs a lot of convincing.

He's grateful Dream seems up to the challenge.

[raelle-writing]

Jin and the Dichotomy of Cowardice and Bravery

Yes I know the title is esoteric, bear with me. I've been thinking a lot about how in episode one, Jin calls himself a coward when he's talking to Phee.

It's possible he was saying that just to get Phee to leave him alone, but honestly he seems to believe it. And he certainly has some avoidance tactics. Running off to the US and never coming back isn't the healthiest of coping mechanisms. And we still don't know exactly what he's running from. Phee? What happened to Non? His friends who don't seem to care much about him? All of the above?

It seems that Jin self-identifies as a coward, which is interesting because when he's put in stressful situations and danger, he acts in an extremely brave manner. He doesn't show any signs of hiding or running away when faced with danger.

When they find Por in the woods, Jin is one of the first people to go up and check on him, instead of pausing/freezing and freaking out like many of the others. He and Phee are the ones who wrangle the others to help Por, and find the saw.

Throughout the next episodes, Jin is one of the ones trying to keep people on track. He seems relatively calm in the face of all of it, and focused on trying to get them out/get them help.

He's also the one most willing to help the newbies investigate the weird stuff happening, instead of shutting them out like a lot of the others from the original group. He's the one who stops Tee from destroying the tape, jumping into a fight without second thought.

He's also the one who goes out first to lift the shirt off Deng's body, and then later goes back to cover it with a sheet when the others are unsettled by it.

And throughout all of this, he's the one who comforts the others when they need it, and offers them physical reassurance when they're freaking out.

He's also one of the ones Tan calls for when he comes back injured, and he's one of the ones Phee asks to come help him look for Top after he's gone missing. He's clearly someone the others see as a really steady presence, since he seems to be top of mind when things go to hell.

Jin is also not at all hesitant to go into the temple. He's the one Tan clings to, clearly afraid when they enter. He's freaked out when the ghost attacks him, but doesn't run. In fact he checks on Tan before the ghost swings the ax at him.

He talks about being scared when he's in the coffin with Phee, but that's after he's already done so many brave things...

All of this makes me wonder - why does Jin see himself as a coward? Is it because he didn't stand up to his friends more about Non? Is it because he's running from things with Phee? Is there something that happened in their past that makes Jin feel like a coward?

It's very interesting from the outside perspective, and makes me wonder even more about what happened in the past. Because we know something took away Jin's happy smile and turned him into someone much more dispassionate and snarky. But we still don't exactly know what.

We also don't know why, if Jin liked Non so much and didn't like how his friends treated him, Jin is still friends with all of the bullies. Maybe that's the core of why he thinks he's a coward.

I don't know if I have a concrete thought to complete this, I just find the dichotomy of how Jin sees himself, versus how he actually acts in the series. It's fascinating to see and adds a lot of depth to his character and I can't wait to see how he's developed further!

[wavesoutbeingtossed]

OK, I had a fleeting thought about the TTPD announcement then lost it and now I think I remember what it was, so bear with me.

Disclaimer: I don’t actually think this is what the intro is alluding to! I think the poem is a direct reference to the actual songs on the TTPD! Or at least its themes. But, it’s stuck in my head and you all know I love to write about her albums so here we are.

The introduction to the album has us all gagged, right? The opening salvo of what is going to be a gut punch of a tale:

For some reason last night, my brain likened these lines to the relationship’s corresponding albums.

And so I enter into evidence

The thesis statement: She’s looking back on her own words, a reflection of her lived experience, what she shared and what she didn’t. She is submitting the case files for consideration:

My tarnished coat of arms

Reputation: an album about the how the world turned against her, but she found a love that felt safe and warm amidst the storm. Her very identity was put into question and she had to relearn what mattered to her. Yet, as we’ve since gleaned, that growth also seemed to be part of what ultimately doomed the relationship, and caused immeasurable heartbreak in the process.

My muses, acquired like bruises

Lover: His presence and their love inspired some of her most vulnerable love songs, where she put her own anxieties, fears and hopes in the spotlight, opening herself up to a degree that reached new heights in her music and her life. But those same vulnerabilities also left her open to greater hurt, especially if those same things may have been used as a flashpoint for conflict.

*To be clear: I think there actual muses she’s referring to on the album are multiple; I kind of get the feeling that it’s going to be about her body of work, that it may not just be about an individual or individuals but a whole host of “muses” that have inspired and hurt her, but… That doesn’t fit into this post lol.

My talismans and charms

Folklore and Evermore: Using the “magic” of fiction or esoteric stories to process feelings she may have been experiencing, or to deal with difficult situations she felt like she couldn’t share, did not want to, or maybe did not realize were as severe as she now knows they were in hindsight.

(Talismans and charms both being objects believed to hold magical properties to protect against evil/bring good fortune)

In other words, using the two pandemic albums to stave off difficult choices/realizations, escaping into this alternate reality (the cabin in the woods, as it were). Putting a magic spell over them for a time to “protect” them from the world turning upside down, perhaps by the way she pulled him into her world for a little bit too. But also as it turns out protecting herself from what might have been happening in front of her in the fallout. Using her music as a lifeline for herself, but also in some ways for them. Because the music is always going to be the way forward.

The tick, tick, tick of love bombs

Midnights: A survey of difficult sleepless nights throughout her life, and the aftermath of the things that kept her up at night. As we’ve all talked about, it feels pretty likely that the reason these ideas felt so salient to her was because she was processing similar feelings about her current relationship. It may have felt like there was a metaphorical clock ticking about the fate of the relationship, counting down to a now-inevitable explosion.

(Also interesting: all the clock imagery in the Midnights artwork and promotion.)

The wordplay of the bomb-ticking with love-bombing is both genius and distressing and may be its own post once TTPD is released because the implications are… uncomfortable to say the least. It’s very, “now you’re running down the hallway, you know what they all say, you don’t know what you’ve got until it’s gone.” There’s the clock running to the end of the relationship, but it could also be a reference to coming to expect a profuse display of love after every conflict or instance of hurt, implying a cycle of dysfunction, whether in the past or present.

My veins of pitch black ink

The Tortured Poets Department: It’s not just an allusion to being metaphorically dead, blood turning dark once the heart has stopped beating (like the end of the relationship); her heart has gone cold. It’s more pointedly a reference to the words spilling out of her, the way writing is a lifeline. (Which she has said herself many times, but specifically about the promotion of TTPD on tour.) The songs on this album are swirling through her veins, and this bloodletting is a lifesaving act for her.

All’s fair in love and poetry

It’s the summation of the files she’s produced as evidence. She’s laying bare the good, the bad and the ugly throughout these chapters, and with the submission of TTPD, the final one, the jury can reach its final conclusion. (As will the relationship.)

The Chairman of the Tortured Poets Department has defended her thesis in six parts; it’s up to the board to do the rest.

(Can you tell I’m obsessed with this poem and I can’t wait to see how it ties in to the actual album?)

[batsarebetterthanpeople]

okay legit question. and i'm eager to have this discussion. can you help me understand why you think that izzy scene was comedic? if it's purely based on those pathetic whimpers he made at the end of the scene, i'm honestly not convinced. god knows i've made pathetic noises like that when i've been genuinely upset about something. yeah that shit's awkward but isn't dismissing the noise as comedic sort of relying in the expectation that drama should be pretty?

and this ask wasn't meant to sound dismissive of your opinion btw, or defensive of izzy. (i love that weird and evil little freak for being a weird and evil little freak and thats all.) i'm just confused as to how that scene could be read that way.

Ok so lets start off with that in season 1 Izzy is not granted like even a shred of sympathy in any similar situation. We've seen this man cry before and when it happened Ed and Stede were making sex noises in the background and there was a jaunty little tune over it. Generally when writers and directors want us to be sympathetic to a character they build an emotional connection to that character and they just haven't done that for Izzy.

But moving onto the scene itself: This is the extended joke set up in season one of the disconnect of treating a pirate ship like workplace with HR. They're having like an intervention for Izzy and using the words "unhealthy relationship" and "toxic" to talk about toe chopping, which is excellent. I know the internet vernacular has kind of made these the go to words but you get how "toxic relationship unhealthy boundary setting" is not generally how television characters talk about stuff like this. Jim and Frenchie are out here using modern therapy words.

Then Archie starts talking about how much Rhino Horn Ed does which is incredible. they could have said he's doing weed, they could have said he's doing opium, they could have said he's doing a more modern drug, ofmd doesn't shy away from that, but instead they went with the most esoteric ye olde Viagra pull ever. Ed's doing fucking RHINO HORN???? Superb.

Then there's the the fact that Izzy clearly hates every second of it. Like these teddy bear capybara friend shaped men (Fang and Frenchie) are just like "hey you ok bro?" to a guy who HATES expressing any emotions so much that he spend like a whole season trying to stop Ed from doing it. Like you can feel how bad he wants to throw himself overboard from embarrassment

Then there's Fang. Dionysus an Emmy for that man. He pats Izzy on the shoulder and then Izzy pushes him away with the weakest I'm fine in history and then he goes in and gives him a hug from behind which is very much reminicent of like a hold a medical professional would use to subdue someone who is a danger to themselves or others without harming them. And then he just starts rocking him

And then there's the actual breakdown itself. I want to preface this with that I understand that in real life you might make some weird noises during a breakdown. But this is not real life. Usually when actors have breakdowns on stage or tv they have to decide what choices they're going to make. You can do a pretty cry, you can go overdramatic and comedic, you can make the audience uncomfortable in a veriety of ways. What Con has chosen here is air being let out of a balloon, He snorts like a pig, he whimpers. You know when you blow up a balloon and you pull the valve tight and it makes a screaming sound. His choice to heem heem whimper is histerical. And then he makes the sound and fang gives out a soft "am I crushing you" as if Fang thinks he's making the noise because of physical discomfort.

and then like everyone else's reactions. They're all so uncomfortable. Fang is like It's all right it's all right while Jim looks to Archie like "are you seeing this?" and Archie looks back and forth between them and then Frenchie is doing this with his face

and then there's the music. My god the music is just the sappiest shit ever over this??? like the whole thing is hillarious. Emmys for all of them

Edit: I forgot the funniest part. This whole thing is this Tweet

[aetherialpiplup108]

How the Alchemy of Souls Season 1 Ending Perfectly Demonstrates Yeong's Guilt, Uk's Persistence, and the Beauty of their Bond

I should hate the ending of Alchemy of Souls season 1. Jin Mu's random contrived bells showing up and being used as a pivotal series-defining plot-point in the same episode drives me just as insane as it did Mu-deok. And it kills me to watch two characters who are defined by their ability to challenge the world and resist fate succumb to its pressures (note: I don't think this is a flaw in the series since it's simply a fraction of the overarching theme the story is trying to convey but boy did it hurt). I should have been so massively disappointed and yet the climax itself runs rent-free in my head a full year after I saw it for the first time.

First of all, we finally get sword-fighting Yeong again and in the absolute worst way possible. It creates this wonderful cognitive dissonance in your head where you're simultaneously crying in angst while cheering on Jung So-min as she puts on the performance we've been longing for the entire show.

Next, there's the behemoth stabbing scene itself. When Mu-deok regains consciousness in Uk's arms, there's a brief look of confusion in her eyes likely due to the gaps in her memory, the heaving of his voice, the desperate way his arms are wrapped around her, or maybe even the blood seeping between them. But the first thing she says even before processing everything is: "Jang Uk? ...Did I do this?"

Despite embracing the ruthless assassin lifestyle (a hard path she undertook due to the love she felt for her family and the immense grief felt in their loss), Yeong does care about other people. We know this through the way she slyly sneaks in affection towards Uk, helps Yul heal and let go of the guilt he's held onto since running into her as children, and offers Go-won an esoteric companionship they both come to value greatly. In season 2, through amnesiac!Yeong, we're given an even clearer glimpse at her intrinsic compassion through the unhidden empathy she shows to practically everyone she meets.

But the real Cho-Yeong spent years of isolation in Danhyanggok's cruel winters training, breathing, and living for revenge. Knowing only how to kill and draw blood, of course Yeong believed she'd end up hurting anyone stupid enough to come too close. It's why her first instinct is to shear off every potential bond she could make: to protect herself from any more loss and to protect others from her. When it became impossible to deny the love she and Uk shared, Yeong chose to wield it callously to avoid getting attached, to remind him and her that she wasn't round-faced Mu-deok who was free to earn and give affection. She was Naksu. Undeserving, dangerous, poisonous Naksu. We see this thought process and self-denial make a reoccurrence in season 2 when Yeong immediately distances herself from Uk the second she gets her memories back, even if it agonizes her, because she can't bear to hurt him again.

Rather than assigning blame to Jin Mu, she takes her sword through Uk's chest as mere confirmation of what she always believed: how could the ruthless shadow assassin that lives off revenge be allowed to love and be loved?

Yeong's guilt is especially ironic when paired with Jang Uk having no doubt in his mind that she's innocent. He gets stabbed and just pulls her close before he's even able to process what's going on because they'd been there before at Jeojingak when he had her hold a sword to his neck.

Jang Uk is the first and only person, really, to hold complete confidence not in Yeong's prowess as a mage but in her character and ability to care. And it means more because as her pupil, he's the person (aside from herself) that Yeong's been the harshest with. She continually put his life in danger whether through poison or overtraining or by inciting death matches, and hurts him again and again with words and actions (gambling the jade egg) meant to prod right at his insecurities. Yeong had thought this would be enough to keep him at bay, to force him into a transactional relationship where she wasn't afraid he'd run away too soon and yet wouldn't let herself build up hope that he'd actually stay when the terms of their initial agreement were met.

Except.

Uk had already seen glimpses of that lonely girl Yeong buried inside and actually tried to understand her, failing at times but doing his best to make sense of the way she thinks without judgement. In the process, he realized just how much Yeong values the people she loves, how much she wants to protect those who've shown her even the ounce of kindness she doesn't think she deserves. That's how he knows, instinctively, that she couldn't have stabbed him. It's how he knows she wouldn't even fight Dang-gu (although, I'm not sure if he was aware that she killed Cho-yeon's father before arriving in the forest). Because how could someone who's so grateful for the love they deem themselves undeserving of cast it aside so easily?

And finally, because somewhere along the way this post devolved from a loosely structured rant over one scene to a frantic gush over these two ridiculously endearing characters, the beauty of the climax is shown in the way Uk just watches helplessly as Yeong struggles and breaks down in a way so uncharacteristic of the stoic, emotion-swallowing woman who could only say "I like you" under copious amounts of alcohol. It's so unbelievably soft (idk, maybe I'm just a lunatic) when he slowly searches for her hand, using the last pieces of his strength and then some to lace their wounded fingers together, somehow managing to use his entire blood-soaked body in the last 2 minutes to show her that she has his entire heart, whether she deserved it or not, and there wasn't anything she could do that would make him leave.

of course, these are just my interpretations of the characters. Maybe I'm completely off or reading way too much into it.

tl;dr: I have a lot of criticism for certain aspects of Alchemy of Souls, but the relationship Jang Uk and Cho Yeong share is so powerful. Though tragic and shockingly reliant on plot-convenience, the finale of season 1 depicts their relationship beautifully by illustrating the depth of their trust and reliance on the other. Also, UkYeong has rooted itself thoroughly in my head. I've never been so invested in a ship, someone send help!!!!!

[shrimpmandan]

It's always been so weird to me that people are all about ideas such as "language is made up, words evolve, everyone has a unique sexuality!" when it comes to lesbians and asexuals, but when it comes to bisexuality, the conversation suddenly becomes "actually this term has a rigid definition and if you identify with it, you're transphobic and behind the times"

And like, bi history is a massive interest for me, right? I'm not gonna claim to be a historian, but the amount of people who say shit about bisexuality that's just plain incorrect is insane.

Bisexuals have always shared spaces, terms, and community with lesbians and gays. Many bisexuals called themselves lesbian or gay prior to coming out, and many of them hold onto both labels-- thus bi lesbians and bi gays. Hell, I fucking identify as bisexual and gay simultaneously. I think I always have. The fact that I would only get significant flack for this if I was a bisexual woman identifying simultaneously as a lesbian is fucking insane. "Dyke" and "fag" and everything in-between has always been inclusive of bisexuals. Bisexual butches, femmes, twinks, bears, and everything in-between have always existed.

Bisexuality has MULTIPLE definitions. Not just historically, but person-to-person. I know bisexuals who are attracted to people regardless of gender or sex. I know bisexuals who only date cis men or cis women. I know bisexuals who have fucked women but only date men and vice-versa. I know bisexuals who have even more esoteric and specific orientations, such as only dating men and trans women, or only dating women and trans men. And regardless of how you feel about any of those, they are still bisexuals. Those are still forms of bisexuality. It is an orientation that is inherently varied, and has become increasingly so as the arbitrary, rigid lines between male and female have been weathered by the sands of change.

Hell, people LOVE that one post about a bi trans man identifying as both a butch lesbian and a gay man-- and I get it. I could never personally-- it'd make me VERY dysphoric-- but I never much cared for the dynamics of opposite sex relationships. It's something that's very awkward to navigate as a bi trans person. Subconsciously, I've always entered same-gender relationships. Back when I still identified as a bi woman, I dated and preferred women. Now, as a bi man, I largely date and prefer men. And yet, being aspec, I'm also indifferent to most people sexually. Simultaneously, everyone is hot and everyone is meh. Not repulsive, just meh. It's a weird reality to live. Effectively, I fuck or date people regardless of gender. If I'm feeling fancy, I define my bisexuality as being attracted to both types of sex characteristics regardless of their configuration-- explicitly inclusive of intersex and trans people.

And yet people still refuse the variance of the bi experience, whether it's bisexuality as neutrality, bisexuality as "every relationship I'm in is gay", bisexuality as in "I don't even really think about the gender/sex of who I'm attracted to", or anything in-between. Bisexuality is oversimplified as "attracted to two or more genders", or "attracted to both genders/sexes", as if those definitions fully encapsulate the bi experience when they don't. Plenty of bisexuals absolutely fit into those two definitions, but to act as if ALL of us do, to deny the rich history and variance of bisexuality, has been a deep-rooted and recurring problem that loves rearing its ugly head every damn year.

Happy Pride Month.

[classpect-navelgazing]

do you have an analysis where you talk about why you disagree with what canon has to say about classpects anywhere? i looked but tumble isn’t exactly the greatest at searching for stuff. i’m just curious to know what the issues are with what was said in canon

Sure. Though I don't know if I'd say I "disagree with canon" so much as I think the more someone tries to give us a straight up, clean answer on it, they're probably an unreliable source. My source is canon, but more holistically.

For me I think this started two places. First: I just..... don't really buy the idea of Pages being the Slow Burn class. I never bought it, honestly? As soon as I figured out how Jake English manages people and their expectations of him to get what he wants, it threw into question the whole concept of the class. Because Jake is the second most emotionally intelligent character in HS after Karkat, but he uses it for himself rather selfishly instead of for a greater cause. When Jake subtly or subconsciously tries to bend the story to his will, he's remarkably effective.

So, of course, I looked at Tavros. What does Tavros Nitram want? Well, he wants to have fun, to progress at his own pace, and to kind of do his own thing. I found it very interesting how the people around him sort of bent to what he wanted. No one stopped Tavros from dreaming on Prospit. He didn't do anything to get those mechanical legs, which he textually wanted, other folks took care of that for him. No one really stopped Tavros from playing the game (both FLARP and SGRUB) the way he wanted to. Aradia enables his allegedly bad class choice, Karkat orders Vriska to save his life, and when Vriska wants to force Tavros to play her way, Kanaya interferes. It's all very cohesive to me in a way that I genuinely do not know if the creator intended, but the pattern is absolutely there.

So, whoop, Pages Are A Slow Burn gets tossed into the garbage where it belongs.

The other one that really made me go "huh" is Calliope's Active/Passive thing. From the moment I read it the first time, I was like "i'm........ not sure that's a thing" and on every subsequent reread and relisten, I became even more certain she's just theorycrafting and its not borne out in the actual text. Which, frankly, fits into Calliope's whole thing of being a proxy for fans, particularly their speculation. She outright says to Dirk she gets carried away with her theorizing.

Like... for me its the Prince thing. I flat out don't think Princes are "The Most Active Class," at all, full stop. The idea is kind of silly to me. Eridan wasn't fucking Super Active, he just became extremely potent when he finally went off. And Dirk, similarly, is the king of Hurry Up And Wait. When shit pops off, he acts with incredible effectiveness, but the rest of the time he's zoning the fuck out, white lying about how cool he is, and fishing.

Same with Seers on the opposite end. Am I meant to take seriously the idea that Rose Lalonde and Terezi fucking Pyrope are the most passive class, nah. No sell. I literally and actually think I could make a better argument that Witches are more passive than Seers.

And then I just... don't agree with Calliope's verbiage of the classes. Dirk was not a destroyer of heart/soul, his most dramatic and effective moments in the story are harnessing his aspect, and in the conversation where Calliope tells Roxy her verbiage, even she says its a little esoteric and hard to grasp.

Calliope's trying to apply very firm wording and delineation to something that Terezi much earlier calls a "hyperflexible mythology." That reading of classpect frankly bears out a lot more, imo.

Which just led me to the conclusion that: all the stuff Calliope says, its her opinion. What I am interested in is action. What do these people do, what do they think of their aspect, how does it manifest.

My conclusion was basically: fuck passive/active, this is all about your role in the narrative. Which, in my opinion, fits very well into the two ways HS is structured: as a video game (the vernacular, the commands, the literalization of abstractions like inventory and leveling up), and as a stage play (the acts, the curtains, the intermissions).

[muzzleroars]

Heyo, I’ve been following you for a while now and I just wanted to let you know that your art is super inspiring to me and always makes my day better! I’m writing/worldbuilding a story with many religious elements and the way you explore religious concepts and angels as beings in your art and writing is so inspiring and really helps me think up different stuff as well, so thank you so much for that!

Also, Michael! Gosh I love his character so, so much, he’s so wonderful! He’s interesting and relatable and tragic and honestly just plain beautiful. I want to give him some nice hot tea/soup and a hug because, man, he deserves it.

Anyway, wishing you all the best!

gwahhh.....thank you so much!!!!! this is honestly all i could ever ask for when it comes to the art i make and the little presence i have here. i know i've said it before, but getting inspired by others is one of my favorite things about an art community and so if i can provide that to even one person, it makes my time and effort to create feel so worth it!!! and it's kind of corny but it means a lot particularly in this case bc angels and demons/christian mythology was one of my first super deep interests so i've been cooking on these guys for a long time it feels like!!! it feels especially good to really be diving into academic and esoteric understandings of them and adding onto my characterizations further, so helping to inspire your own artwork feels amazing!! i hope your story goes well (feel free to tell me about it if you want!!!! i'd always love to listen!!!) and that you enjoy diving further into these topics if you do!! there's such an interesting, complex mythology out there that's super fascinating and surprising to explore.

and im so glad you love mike, he's always been an interesting figure to me....ever since reading paradise lost, i always kind of wondered what things were like for michael on the other side of that, to be so exposed to war and banish your once beloved prince. it always struck me deeply how milton described lucifer experiencing pain for the first time, when pain had never existed before then, and so i began to think....what is it like to be the one to do it? SO mike's been stuck in my brain for awhile too, and i think that really bears out in what i've done with him - he caused the first wound, he rid heaven of lucifer, and he became prince in his place (sharing headcanons with epiphanius of salamis wooo) and then placing that in this canon, where there is clearly a critique of dogmatic, rigid religion and how it is so dangerous to its adherents, how even the suggestion of imperfection is eradicated, it really fully fleshed out what michael was in my mind - left to rot just like god's kingdom, and in desperate need of healing. SO clearly he's got a hold on me too lol

[rosekisspeach]

TAROT READING//Taem's view on mingkey relationship

Date: 31/Jan/2024 Marker: Taem's Songs Deck of Cards: Sefirot The Spheres of Heaven Tarot (Marseille, Kabbalistic teachings, and esoteric wisdom)

Notes Upfront:

I don't ask my cards questions that I already have answers;

I don't prey on information I should not know;

I respect their personal lives and;

This is for FUN ONLY.

✦ This reading is requested by/uploaded due to the asking of reader tk (AO3). You can ask me for other tarot reading, or discuss mingkey with me on AO3/twitter/tumblr✦

The deck I use to channel taem is the sefirot spheres of heaven tarot, which is quite sophisticated more like old-fashioned grandpa who isn't into gossiping for interpretation. However, they have a sweet spot for taemini, and is willing to show me a glance of his exceptionally beautiful mind. !!Be aware we have many symbolic connotations that are a bit vague.

Let's crack the Cøde . . . . .

Base Card: King of Cups Bummie: The Tower R, Page of Wands Ming: 9 of Wonds, The World Mingkey: Devil, Temperance R Mingkey work: Sun, Knight of Wands

Although I said it earlier, I want stress again that taem has a precious mind that I think nobody but himself understands what is going on there. I will try my best to tangibilize the energies I receive so please bear with my figurative languages & word choices.

Let's start with the overall vibe. We have the King of Cups here and I can immediately see why my cards are fond of taemin. He is very grateful. He is grateful of having kibum and minho as his hyungs, co-workers, care-givers, and mentors. He is also grateful of kibum and minho just being close, because their energies (even those feisty and fighty ones) are rain drops that nourished the relationship amongst SHINee members, awakening their pride and competitiveness, and reminds them that they are alive instead of some zombies following rules and orders in the industry. They always break the facade peace and taemin learnt to appreciate their honesty & rationality. This is something mingkey has been able to do since day one. And it empowered taemin, it empowered jinki, and of couse, Jjong (the three cranes and one of them fades away) to fiercely be themselves as boldly as they could. The 91s are the glue that bonds the team together, and especially after jjong, taem began to see how much effort these hyungs have put into protecting the name SHINee, to provide safe space for console, and still, to shine as themselves. Each rain drop might seem subtle and insignificant, but together, the water flow can overcome everything ( "以柔克刚" soft is more "powerful" than the hard). In taem's mind, mingkey are people that offer him kind guidance, peace, and companionship, people he can rely on, and grow with.

But taem does not know how to express these emotions in words, and this is why he uses bodily language/facial expression to convey his gratitude. It is also why he is a big supporter of 91s. Taem believes the vitals of SHINee are very much mingkey-connected, so things get bitter if "dads" fight. I don't suggest that taem sees them as romantic couple (In fact, I often sense no-sexual/asexual energy from taem, perhaps due to his devout faith). He just really wants to make sure mingkey don't fight ugly so everyone is happy (6v6

How Taem sees Bummie:

Chaotic, self-destructive (see elaboration), hard candy, but has a heart of gold. To some extend, taem is "afraid of bummie" because although every member of SHINee pushes their limits in working and taem himself is a perfectionist when it comes to dancing, kibum, only kibum, burns like a moth to the flame. He burns because he wants the world to see who he really is. Bummie is always eager to try new things, to learn new skills, and to kill his old self over and over again. Kibum is constantly transferring, or more like metamorphosis, that reminds taemin to keep growing and becoming. However, Taem is afraid of him because these changes are what most people stay away from, but kibum enjoys being pushed to the edge and jumping over the falling tower. Nothing and nobody can stop him from his own will power, and taem respects kibum's decision, but he hopes at least there are more people appreciate and care for him. Kibum should not scream till throat hoarse just so the world accepts who he is. Kibum deserves better.

And taem adores bummie. Bummie is one of the sweetest person taemin ever knows. He enjoys life - gardening, cooking, taking care of commedes and garçons and frankly everyone he knows no matter if they are older or younger than him. Kibum can be strict because he wants the best for taem but would never get mad when taem "stole" a luxurious sweater on his birthday. Just like the hopeful young adult holding the brance of pure lotus, Kibum has a heart of of innocent child (赤子之心), and taem loves him for that. Taem can always trust him and be his true self with kibum.

Bummie is still a newborn baby~

How Taem sees Ming:

First of all, taemin respects minho a lot, but he is as critical as jjong when it comes to ming sometimes. The 9 of wands match my reading because in taemin's mind, ming is definitely a man of action and this attitude earns him great success in his career and personal life. However, there is something missing, and that shows in minho's loneliness. The lotus blooms yet all the branches turn away, emphasizing ming has taken actions to nurture his mind but he did not listen to his heart. Do you remember the crescent hanging over ming's head in my first reading (ming's take on their relationship)? I think the energy is very similar here. Taem wants to tell us that despite ming's proactive mindset, he is lying to himself and is hesitant to try out new possibilities because he gets afraid like every one else. However, it is not ming's fault and he needs time to see the clear picture.

And the world card drops again, which is ming's current objective that he has to ride the journey of growing from the loss, stepping to embrace new point of view of life, and eventually following his true heart that he reaches the reality he hopes to rebuild. Ming is desperate for love, and he cherishes shawols because being with us feels like warm home. However, remember ming keeps saying that he just wants to be loved in relationship and he will provide anything and everything. What ming really needs is faith (ת (Tav) in hebrew means "faith" & "salvation") and Taem wants ming to believe that he is loved. He deserves love. His love is returned if he believes a little more.

I will make money and do housework I only need you to love me

Mingkey Relationship + Work

They together are devils. The devils of aggression, addiction, but also achievement. The design of devil card reminded me a lot of the pic where taem stands between mingkey in MBC end year stage, observing the pair staring each other in amusement. This is what he sees (ע), this is also what we see. Their constant fights and the chemistry comes out of their love-hate relationship is undeniable, fuelling their working competitiveness but these energies can also flame them. This is why the reversed temperance dropped. They still need to work on how to solve their tensions and be "in between (not too aggressive nor passive 中庸之道)" when disagreement arises. And instead of waving the blaze, taem wants them to communicate like the pouring water (empathy, understanding, love).

!!skip this part if you only see them as platonic friends/co-workers and resume when you see exclamation mark again!!

Devil card manifests strong sexual attraction because in the traditional Rider–Waite system, devil card's design is similar to the lovers, but instead of guarding angels they are devils constraining the pair in lust and alluring desire. Since I grasp asexual energy from taem due to his religious beliefs, it is possible that taem is trying to tell us that mingkey's dynamic have some element that is not in his belief, and it is the "devil" for them. Mingkey deny to acknowledge the sexual attraction despite everyone sees it. Worse, it occasionally influences their work and group work because they have trouble resisting it, hence the reversed temperance (I will do an elaborating reading on their sexual attraction privately, if interested, talk to me on twi or tumblr)

!!resume here!!

In taem's mind, mingkey are a duo that support each others in work, and their existences fuel the other to express and achieve success. The two cranes are ming and bummie (in this reading, each member of SHINee are cranes which I think is very taemin coded, hehe) that fly around and fly upper to the higher sky, bringing warmness and sunlight to their reality. The Knight of wands say the exact same thing, mingkey's leadership, working morals, and endless ideas pushes the group to move forward, and inspire taemin in his career. Unlike Jjong, taem does not worry that much about mingkey (because he sees them like mentors, while Jjong sees them as younger-brothers), but he indeed hopes these two can achieve harmony and balance that is also beneficial for themselves and SHINee as a whole.

-over-

Feel free to chat or find me on twitter @rosekisspeach

[xerith-42]

There is no normal to return to.

I'm going to return to normal, or as normal as I usually am on this blog. But that won't stop me from talking about this. I have quite a few reblogs and posts queued up to give some important thoughts I had while I was away in regards to... my usual content. But I also still have plenty of posts about Palestine and the ongoing situation, and I'll be doing everything I can to stagger updates on the funny haha block man stuff, and the actually serious stuff.

If there's another strike called for, I will likely participate in it. Maybe this means my content will be inconsistent and kinda... bursty I guess? But I'll take the hit to my usual stuff and just spend more time on it if I have to. I had fun over the winter break, but life is picking back up anyways. I'm not really returning to normal, I'm shifting to a new normal. And talking about this conflict and the ongoing situation will become part of this new normal for as long as it has to.

I was honored to see the kind of reach my words could have, and I appreciated the amount of people who engaged with my content for possibly the first and last time. Depends on if I have more wildly intense thesis' about the situation to share (I probably will). There's always a part of me that wants to resist "getting too political" but then I remember I'm a dyed hair multi pronouned genderfuck with revolutionary ideas like "people should just get to live their lives however they want without the threat of violence, oppression, or actual genocide." Just some crazy wokeist ideology that totally doesn't bleed out from my creative works at all.

Because my experiences with fiction and the real world don't influence each other at all. Not even a little.

I've had quite a few social media accounts become pretty politicized or even start that way unintentionally, mostly because I started social media accounts centered around art. And all art is political. All art is personal. All art is influenced by politics and by people. That's how art always has and always will exist. So I really shouldn't be surprised this would happen when I got onto Tumblr.

I don't mean to suddenly bear my soul and go on some vague esoteric rant about my state of existence in a system of systems designed to harm me placed onto one of many infinite planets capable of creating life in our ever expansive universe, but that's just how I am. That's just how humans are. My spaces are always going to become political because I as a person am politicized. Our world is politicized. We are politicized from the moment of our inception. From the moment that someone becomes aware of our life the decisions made about it are endlessly wrapped up in the collective of politics even if we are but one measly part of that greater or worse collective.

Even something as seemingly unimportant as Minecraft Roleplays are deeply personal and political pieces of art and unique life shaping experiences. Never let someone tell you that you're being "too political" because in our endlessly politicized world, that's like telling someone that they're being "too human". It's not annoying to care. It's not too political to care.

TLDR: Art is political, everything is political, and even if you plan on "returning to normal", know that you should instead adjust what you define as "normal" to include pertinent issues and be ready to adapt to it. People want you to believe that disruptions won't work, but money and numbers talk. Disruptions to core systems of the western society work. Never underestimate that. Maybe you couldn't do a lot for this one, but keep your eyes out for the next one. Set aside a few bucks to donate. Read some of the reports about the ongoing conflict from ethical sources unafraid to speak to the real atrocities. Even little things can add up.

[yuyinesque]

MYSTERY CAT. (or simply … indigo!)

“simply… indigo? refer to me as mr. indigo; i’ll become an

universal liability if you refuse. i always get my way, after all.”

𑁍 ﹏ sobriquets: mystery cat, spider-cat, indie, fish face, biscuits, indie kitty. mr. indigo, mr. meanie, bs, mijo, son, my son, puppy, mutt, little nimbus, baby blue/twinkie (via ichor 𖤐), little stray, pretty kitty, pretty boy, prince, young master (indigo), jophiel, anja, quidnunc, (big) lotto, lucky charm, gatito bonito, rich bitch, kitty, bell, pussy cat, alley cat, catnap.

𖥔 ﹏ additional photos: ⚀ ⚁ ⚂ ⚃ ⚄.

𖥔 ﹏ general background: Ever seen one of these before? I’m sure you have. The Maneki-neko, also known as the Japanese “beckoning cat” is a benevolent apparition that bestows alms upon the ones who owns them. Usually you would see one of these statues in casinos or small businesses since these feline spirits tend to beckon in customers or good fortune, hence the way their paw lures in whatever their human desires. The left paw invites clients or customers, whereas the right invites fortune or good health; very rarely you’d find a maneki-neko that utilizes both of their paws simultaneously. Indigo is capable of shape-shifting from male, partially male (calico cat demihuman; calico catboy), or simply a norwegian forest calico cat. While his cat form is presentably female, his human/catboy form is not, as for he is a trans individual. A little more about him is that his own, the one he grants wishes to, is Illūnis, a malevolent apparition called a Rusalka. Despite her indifference towards cats, she saved him while he was just a kitten, for he was, no matter the AU, was on the brink of death. You can assume where he gains a few of his esoteric traits from; being raised by a homicidal spirit isn’t something you usually encounter.

𖥔 ﹏ trademark notables: Innately calls people “dear” when you’re concerning or confusing him (or becomes more polite in general). Nabs jewelry or any shiny material (whether it's his owner’s or something from an expensive store). Has purplish dark circles underneath his eyes considering that he doesn’t get a good amount of sleep due to his insomnia. Consumes unhealthy amounts of sugar, and I don’t mean confectionery. I mean sugar. Sleeps in the most unconventional places to feel hidden and safer. Doesn’t enjoy kids much (lacks the patience) but will risk the moon for the elderly. Ears are always in airplane mode in cat (boy) form, especially when he’s in public. Walks around with a gold coin, consider it a lucky one if you will, though if people tend to test him, he flips the coin (heads meaning whoop their ass, tails meaning flee. unfortunately for him, it nearly always lands on tails). Taps his fingers on his lips when he’s giggly, excited, or ecstatic, though if he uses one hand it indicates that he’s nervous or overthinking. Sleep talks and either spouts suggestive or ominous messages. Knows one too many things about most of the individuals of any given AU. Always in the lap of a highly attractive male in cat form. Comedically, he has a job EVERYWHERE… tired of seeing him in every little shop with a wink or straight-faced peace sign.

𖥔 ﹏ genshin notables: He’s a dendro-bearing resident of Liyue, quite the charismatic and memorable one at that. As a kitten, he used to live in Snezhnaya with his previous owner, Dottore, who not only captured him for personal experiments, but thrown him out when he was no use to him anymore, leaving him in the Snezhnayan snow. Because Illūnis was also once a resident of Snezhnaya, she found the poor thing and took him in as her own. Regrettably and reluctantly, of course. Once Illūnis became the Sentinel of Liyue, naturally they would have to reside there, specifically in Lone Cloud Pavilion. Indigo acts as Illūnis spiritual messenger, so he’s quite literally all over the map. He knows… everything and everyone because of this. Anyway, the citizens of Liyue (besides Traveler and Paimon, of course), have no way of knowing that this gift-giving kitty and this narcissistic catboy is the same person, so you can assume that his reputation varies. He’s much more adored in cat form, but as a human, people were weary of him; he enjoys both reputations, however, so he didn’t do anything. Not to mention that he gets custom-made collars from Ningguang, and he uses false visions he wears depending on the form to keep his existence a mystery.

𖥔 ﹏ atsv notables: Uhhh… anti-heroic spider-cat who will save the world if you keep your children on his taxes. Anyways, N/A for now.

𖥔 ﹏ jujutsu kaisen notables: Uhmmm… a human-born grade two curse who is also a sorcerer for the intel, benefits, and thrill. Anyways, N/A for now.

𖥔 ﹏ yandere au notables: As a yandere, he’d be the possessive and manipulative type, which is practically a given since these traits are in his character. Just not in an extreme degree. Growing up with Illūnis alters his empathy and basic perspectives. For example, stalking could simply be his way of “checking on” someone and manipulation are just as mere as white lies. While he’s not a murderer, he’s not against making scenes look like a simple accident if needed. But first, he’d stick to blackmailing, for, as we know, Indigo is great at finding out every single thing about a person. This could also seem obsessive towards his darling; he knows things about you that you couldn’t even address at the moment since you lacked the proper insight. But he didn’t. A better reason to keep him around, no? Anyway, as I said before, he could get eliminating, but if he has to kill, he’d get something else to do the work for him. He has a voracious, cannibalistic mother after all, so it’s best for his victims to not get too testy. He would also be a self-indulgent yandere, which is the type that prefers to be worshipped incessantly by his love interest. This could also lead to an obsession. If you squint, of course. Indigo is quite the arrogant kitty.

𖥔 ﹏ birthday: april 29th.

𖥔 ﹏ age appearance: twenty (20).

𖥔 ﹏ zodiacal big three: taurus ☼ | scorpio ❍ | libra ⇡

𖥔 ﹏ race, ethnicity, nationality: asian, japanese, nationality varies depending on the au.

𖥔 ﹏ sex, gender, sexuality, pronouns: female, trans male, uranic, he/him.

𖥔 ﹏ mbti: entp-a (the assertive debater).

𖥔 ﹏ likes: bubbles. brain-training (sudokus, anagrams, crossword puzzles, chinese checkers, etc.). honey garlic salmon (reminds him of illūnis and circe). traveling & nature walks or sprints w/ xīn’yuè. taking the longest naps. studying finance/economics, he is a lil’ financial adviser. numismatics!!!!! sitting in laps (‘specially, and only, in the laps of a pretty man). MONEYYYYY WOOOOOO. the elderly, so sweet, so quiet, LIKE JIHANE sometimes. socializing. lipstick (really, it’s a guilty pleasure). gossiping about everything, everyone, doesn’t matter, even matter isn’t safe. dangling earrings, jingly jewelry (often steals jihane’s). icicles! chandeliers (‘minds him of icicles). any self-care methods. physical affection, greatly. words of affirmation, mmh. jewelry or anything sparkling (crystals, keychains, aluminum foil, icicles, etc.). winter!! catnip. journey walks/exploration walks. controversial debates. blumei, best child/puppy ever. kittens, much better than real children. chin/ear scratches. valentine’s day. mmh, fish, but please cook it. why would he want uncooked seafood? diadems & crowns. being called handsome. nami from one piece; y’all sleep on her. kenma from haikyuu; sleeping. nose kisses. bird watching. people watching. romance k-dramas. writing in cursive. yoga!! frankly and secretly? dogs; very energetic like him but they get too loud. puppy/bunny-coded characters. treasure hunting. birthdays, but his.

𖥔 ﹏ dislikes: citrus fruits. spending money cuz be fr. lack of attention/affection. children (kittens are much more tolerable). crying in front of people. pimples.. gross. oversleeping/overexertion. PAIMON, SHUT UP FOR ONCE (genshin au). unnecessarily loud people/music. judgmental individuals (hypocritical ass). hyperactive individuals, what even is zolene. beer, tf? little miss goddamn yashmi-noir (as if she isn’t an upcoming favorite; she’s still an ick tho like maju). over-socializing. too much authority. spicy foods; zolene why. his insomnia. fucking inazuma (genshin au). puppies??! especially if they misbehave?!? seething hot days. FOXES (“they’re catlike freaks despite being another mutt classification… the contradiction is humiliating. y/n, have you seen a tibetan fox? it’s not safe for work”…). needy fucking individuals and they don’t even be cute with it (spider-man au). practicality. unapologetic individuals since he’s ironically apologetic. GREEN, ironically… easter (unless there’s money in one of those eggs). uncooked fish, why does sushi exist, he may ask? the aftermath of a goddamn sugar rush. forest clearings. baths, but knows it’s mandatory in human form too. the fourth of july, LOUD. unnecessary sleepless nights or nightmares. unrequited love. flower crowns, mightest well give him the real thing. & emhalo plants… ew.

𑁍 ﹏ quotes:

About Us: Mystery Cat ୨୧ “Why is the title so indistinct? Mystery cat? Really? What does a man have to do to free himself from this tree? Induce his ethanol intake? Please, a flea could come up with something better.”

About Sentinel Illūnis ୨୧ “Selenic Sentinel number three… What did she do this time?… Nothing? You just believed that I’d know of her? Unfortunately, yes, but we’re not on speaking terms at the moment. She frightened me with her behavior, then—… Huh? Oh no, she didn’t try to eat me. She simply has the audacity of a toddler, feeding me raw fish straight from the sea like I’m some sort of animal. I’m… still trying to wrap my head around the situation before I wrap my hands around her neck. *long sigh* …Really, how dare she?”

About Ichor ୨୧ “Really, Illūnis speaks entirely illy of that woman; never a green flag. He’s a Dao, a malicious earth genie who has also created the Selenian race. Again, don’t question me. I know everything. Tokyo—Ichor is a conflicting individual much like their nymph acolyte. Except be has the personality of that sun mutt but knows things even Illūnis has trouble comprehending. Horrifying, isn’t it? An aspirational man…”

About Gojo Satoru ୨୧ N/A FOR NOW.

About Zhongli ୨୧ “A dignified man he is… *long, dreamy sigh* … I’ve always prided myself on the simple fact that I’m well acquainted with him. Though unfortunately, greed runs wildly in my veins *purrs a bit* … this acquaintanceship is entirely dissatisfying. Traveler, he will become my next plaything.”

yuyinesque | translate with permission & peruse without theft

[sabakos]

What's your favorite thing to cook and your favorite meal you don't know how to cook?

Favorite thing to cook: Chili - I like to make it with ground meat and chunky meat and beans and bacon and throw all the onions and garlic and peppers and tomatoes and such in a blender to save on chopping and because it pretty much comes out the same from my testing. I have a full recipe written down somewhere if you want it, but it's kinda esoteric, it's basically a thick spicy meat pudding it's so good and it makes the whole house smell like a meat-flavored scented candle, but if that was good instead of awful. Uh, I usually use beef but I've made it with turkey or venison and I want to try bear meat at some point, it's just a matter of balancing the spices differently if you change meats as long as its still dark meat. Chicken chili is also something you can do but I recommend not putting in tomatoes and maybe upping the peppers, like "white lightning chili"

Favorite Meal I don't know how to cook - Sushi, technically I do know how to make rolls, and also nigiri if it's salmon or maybe tuna but i don't know most of the sushis. I would just eat sushi of various kinds and nothing else forever if i could get away with it but I'm not rich and i'd probably die of mercury poisoning or malnutrition or something dumb no one's even heard of before. Maybe that would be an alright way to go, it would be like donating my body to science except more useful.

Anyway just so you know, being a vegan is morally correct but I'm a huge sinner, I love sinning so bad, I'm sorry animals, I'm sorry planet, I'm so selfish and I'm not going to make it up to you in any way that matters before I die. Thank you for letting me kill you. Well okay fine, technically somebody else did that but it's still my fault...

[ravenkings]

tbh one of the issues i have with the whole idea of like censoring ~scawwy~ content for kids or trying to protect them from it, especially as someone who was scared of literally everything as a child, is that kids' fears all tend to be so specific, esoteric, and idiosyncratic that i think in many ways it's EXTREMELY difficult to know what is going to scare a child (not to mention the fact that many of those fears and phobias are ones they will eventually grow out of.)

like........... some of the things i was "scared" of as a child include: a specific scene in the sound of music (that did NOT involve nazis btw), a teddy bear my dad got me that made a weird sound if you turned it upside down, clowns (but not even just clowns in the flesh like for a lot of people. i mean EVEN THE MOST VAGUE REPRESENTATION OF A CLOWN like, for instance, a christmas ornament my parents had or like the illustration on a box of colored straws i saw in the supermarket once) as well as MULTIPLE animated disney movies.

the point i'm trying to make is that life is, more often than not, scary and uncomfortable, and beyond even the unfeasibility of trying to protect a child from all the things that could possibly scare them, i actually think you're doing them a HUGE disservice by not allowing them the chance to work through some of their own fears and anxieties in a supportive environment, since knowing how to deal with these things is necessary for being a fully functional adult.