#I am legit on the fence about posting this

[skaldish]

Y'all…I'm having a very disturbing realization dawn upon me. I don't really have a way of articulating this clearly yet, but I wanted to bring it up in case other people know about it:

I'm noticing that many people (namely white Americans) seem to act as branded-versions of themselves rather than who they genuinely are. Specifically, what I'm beginning to understand how insanely pernicious it is. I knew it existed because I grew up in it, but didn't realize how uncanny it actually looks when you watch it happen, nor what the implications are that we do this instead of connecting with each other as people.

It seems like any descriptor under the sun can become a brand, so long as it's understood that way more than it's understood as just a descriptor. "Man" is a brand. "Punk" is a brand. "Conservative" is a brand. "Left" is a brand. "Queer" is a brand. "Protestant" is a brand. "Catholic" is a brand. "Anticapitalist" is a brand. "Young professional" is a brand. "Good" is a brand. Words like "BIPOC" are also interpreted within a brand context.

I'm not sure if this is something that has always been there, but I only just noticed? Or if it's on the rise with commercialization? A bit of both? Something else?

[sabrondabrainrot]

WHAT DO YOU MEAN???

@peachyfnaf your reposts are so OMINOUS

WHY ARE YOU SO OMINOUS

What do you MEAN you're looking at me with your big ol' sad eyes??? What's gonna happen????

I just paused my current progression to go back and watch the laes eps I missed and BRUH I'm in SUSPENSE

MOON GLAZER???

Rants on lore for TSAMS and LAES below spoilers beware!

I'm at the part when he had a really confusing nightmare and now he's spiraling. Old Moon said some really messed up stuff to him too and that's helping his spiral. I really didn't like how Old Moon told New Moon to die for his family. Old Moon also said Sun would try to die for the family but Sun doesn't really act like he has a death wish? Like I think a lot of ppl don't understand Sun. Also, Old Moon.... technically speaking not only is New Moon your legacy but he's in a way like your wish child? You wished to be a better brother and in a way New Moon inherited that. Idk I also feel like that dark Sun fellow is really targeting New Moon?

I am also sad at the lack of Sun. He shows up every now and again but he's barely present in the 3 shows I'm currently watching. Where's my boy?

With LAES lore I'm now at the part when Earth is kind of having to decide if the Creator is a liar. I think it's actually so understandable that Earth is struggling to accept the fact her dad is a chump. Lunar getting frustrated by the training and getting no answers is also neat. The episode where Solar and Lunar made a device to help Lunar with his mind power was so sad and so sweet. I didn't expect Solar's mind to look like the tv kid moment from the Tim Burton Willy Wonka (I love that movie and knew right away).

I feel like Solar himself is in a lot of weird denial. Like, is it just me to be bugged by how he describes his Sun and how little he mentions his moon? Isn't it canon that he watched his Moon basically die twice? (When he met Lunar way back when he told Lunar about his Moon disintegrating from removing KC?) but back to his Sun..."he knew the consequences" bro that's all you have to say? A homie died for you and you can't even say one nice thing about him? I think it's just Solar avoiding his grief like 1000% but I swear it's so disrespectful. You love him and he loved you just say something nice about him.

It's so odd to watch old episodes to get caught up to the eps I'm at in the other shows cause I know Solar dies and I know what Ruin does, so it is bittersweet to see one alive and the other one sinless respectively. Puppet on site kidnapping Ruin for their podcast was so funny.

I'm still on the fence with Earth giving people 'Therapy'... Like on one hand she's giving her family a place to be more open and vulnerable free of judgement but I'm also just like not sure if she should be the one to do it? Like, her therapy protocols as far as we know are ones the Creator taught her 'on a whim'. Can we even trust the things she was taught were legit?

Also Sun 6th sense looking right at invisible Lunar was the funniest thing ever. I love him he's the biggest brother ever.

Should I keep making posts overanalyzing the quirked up YouTube show? Too bad, I will keep going. You can't stop me.

[i-m-snek]

Welcome new followers!

I legit got 1k new followers from that ‘how to cook a snake’ post, so allow me to introduce myself! My name is Laura, Cis woman I go by she/her. Herpetologist and advocate for forward thinking when it comes to keeping reptiles. I’ve been keeping reptiles for 10 years now, and I regularly update my knowledge based on recent research. I specialize in ball pythons but have a fair amount of knowledge on other species as well. My entire life is based around giving my pets the best care I possibly can, and educating people on reptiles. I currently work as a tech in an oil and tire bay as my day job, but I make D&D dice on the side.  Now, for what y’all followed for! Allow me to introduce my babies, along with showing off their setups. 

This is Dante! He’s the first snake I’ve ever owned, got him 10 years ago and had him since he was only a few inches long. He is a Motley morph Corn snake, incredibly sweet and docile, and very curious. I have him in a bioactive enclosure, I’m still trying to find plants that he won’t destroy though lol. Ignore the dirty water bowl, I gave it a wash after I took the picture

Next up is Thresh! He’s a pinstripe morph Ball Python, hovering around 10 years old, I’ve had him since he was a baby as well. He’s generally slow moving, curious, and incredibly sweet. He is in a basic enclosure, but I plan on swapping him to bioactive in the next few months. 

Here’s Leliana! My gorgeous and amazingly sweet Blue Eyed Leucistic ball python (from a lesser/mojave pair). The absolute sweetest snake, she is curious and friendly, one of my best ambassadors! I’ve had her for about ten years, and she remains as my top favorite snake. She is currently in a basic set up, I am unsure if I’m going to put her on bioactive since she doesn’t have any melanin to protect her from light. I may just use gentle plant lights if I do

This is Navi! My high red Brazillian Rainbow boa. She can be a little bit grouchy so I try to keep her handling to a minimum, as to not stress her out too much. When she is out though she is very fast, and wants to explore every nook and cranny she can find. As she’s aged her colors have dulled a bit, which can randomly happen to rainbow boas sometime. She’s been checked at the vet just to be safe and is still perfectly healthy. She is currently in a home made enclosure that is set up to be bioactive

This is Zevran! He’s a bi-colored crested gecko. I swear he has a single braincell that just pingpongs back and forth all day LOL. He is an adorable little goof, very sweet and curious. He fires down the nice light orangish pink you see in the photo, and fires up a nice bright orange color. He’s in a semi-bioactive enclosure, meaning there’s no plants and no UVB tube. I may upgrade him to full bioactive soon.

This is Kitana, my rescue bearded dragon. She is incredibly mild mannered and sweet, and very smart! She will glass surf to tell me when she needs to poop so I’ll take her outside to do her business. She is leash trained and loves outdoor time, and cuddle time. She does the cutest little shimmy to get cozy when I have her on my lap. She is currently in a home built enclosure with a tile base. I don’t know if I’ll swap her to bioactive or not, still on the fence about it. (She does have a water bowl, its just hiding behind the wood in the photo)

This is Aerith, my orange dream fire pinstripe ball python. She’s always hungry, poised and ready to eat any time I enter the room, she’s a little easier to stress out so she’s in her enclosure most the time, but every once and a while she is calm enough to come out and chill on the couch with me. She’s in a basic setup, but as with everyone else I’m gonna try and upgrade her to bioactive.

This is Asriel! My disco/fire (possibly enchi, possibly yellowbelly, which we are trying to prove out this year). I hatched him myself and raised him from the baby, he is incredibly sweet, very curious and super confident. I adore him so much honestly. He’s currently in a bioactive setup!

This is Aurelion Sol! He is a mexican black kingsnake, I think he’s around 12 or 13 years old? I got him when he was already an adult and around 9 years old or so, he’s from the same breeder I got Dante from. When I got Dante, the breeder also showed me baby mexican black kingsnakes that were from this guy and Cassiopeia (who has sadly passed away.) Aurelion is -always- hungry, and will try to catch and eat anything that moves. This photo is a rare occasion where he isn’t trying to eat me. He is currently in a basic set up, not sure if I’m going to swap him to bioactive or not. (he’s on the top shelf so it’s hard to get a pic of his enclosure)

This beautiful girl is Crunchwrap Supreme, a Suma (possible yellowbelly) ball python! My most recently acquired baby, and I already adore her so much. She is a little shy, but so so sweet. Once she is comfortable she is incredibly curious! She’s a fantastic eater, and I can’t wait to watch her grow. She is currently still in her quarantine enclosure, but as soon as she’s out I’ll likely get her set up in a bioactive!

This is Raina! My vanilla fire enchi yellowbelly ball python. I got her from a friend, who got her from @tailsandco​ (Hi Shelby! Been a while). I had adored Raina since the first time I saw her on Shelby’s blog, and some things happened and she ended up in my care (I am still so grateful like LOOK AT HER SHE’S GORGEOUS AND SWEET). Raina is so, sosososo sweet. She’s Asriels mama, and she’s a little small compared to my other females but that’s just a genetic thing. She eats well, and loves to take naps on the couch while I watch youtube. She’s in a regular setup currently but I want to put her on a bioactive as well!

This is Rhea, he’s a disco/fire ball python. He’s the father of Asriel, and has such a goofy personality. When he’s exploring he regularly goes underneath his own body and then just. Sits there like he’s stuck even when he’s not. He is incredibly sweet and loves to periscope! He’s currently in a basic setup, but as with everyone else, I plan on converting him to bioactive. 

This is Tali! She’s a merauke locality scrub python. This species is actually well known for being incredibly bitey (as most arboreal species are), however there are always exceptions to the rule. I picked her out from her clutch mates because in the photos, she was the only one not poised to strike at the camera. That indicated the potential to be a calm, relaxed animal. I worked with her since she was a baby to make her comfortable with me, and trust me. If she turned out to be bitey I wouldn’t have minded, I knew what I was getting into. But the patience and trust paid off, she is the absolute sweetest! I still get her out of her enclosure with a snake hook for safety reasons, but once she’s out I handle her with my hands. She is so, so sweet and I am forever grateful for how much she trusts me. Her, Leliana, and now Crunchwrap are all competing for my number 1 top favorite snake I own. She is currently in a huge bioactive setup! I plan on getting more of the Dracaena 'Marginata' (the tiny palm tree looking thing) soon. This is just the left corner of the enclosure too!

This is Undyne! She’s a Merauke locality Blue Tongue Skink :) She is incredibly smart, not quite on the level of a tegu but pretty close. I’ve been doing choice based handling with her and it’s improved our levels of trust by a ton. She loves crunching on ice, and exploring the livingroom in her play pen. She’s currently in an 8 foot long basic enclosure. Again, I really wanna put her on bioactive but I gotta figure out what plants are safe to be in there in case she wants to munch them. Lol

This is Pharoh! He’s my rescue cat that I found in my front yard when he was a kitten. I found him during the beginning of COVID so we were home together every day for 3 months. He is incredibly sweet, cuddly, and also playful. He’s a mama’s boy, he follows me around the house 24/7 and if I’m sitting, you can bet he’s in my lap. He gets special meals where I put him in the back room so I can safely have my reptiles out, and he doesn’t see it as a bad thing because he gets a big special meal. He even has a giant running wheel to help keep him entertained while I’m at work. He’s such a good little man 

I also have a couple spiders, but I don’t want to tag this big post with it so I’ll leave them out and possibly do a post on just them later on.  But yeah that’s the family! I pride myself in taking the best possible care of my pets that I can :)

[parttime-creative]

I recently made a post about how I love gideons different depictions in fanart and on the cover (x) in which I mused about how I still wasn't sure if she was wielding a long sword or a great sword and several people have made good points of arguing that she is wielding a great sword not just a long sword.

Now that I've started to read Harrow for the first time (yes I am late to the party I am sorry. But I finally got the second and third book) her sword is more often described as a "two hander" or "great two hander" (which btw STILL doesn't make it clearer for me because Harrow is arguable so tiny and scrawny that she'd probably call a dagger "great" in comparison to her noodle arms... But that is beside the point xD) however the cover art (as I've not yet finished HtN) does look like another weird mixture between a longsword and a great sword and I remain confused.

The handle is much longer than for a usual longsword, however would fit a federschwert (a different type of longsword especially made for fencing, not so much for the battlefield. It's blade is usually much thinner tho, so I doubt it is a federschwert) it's crossguard also is kinda too big for the usual longsword, yet not entirely unseen. I did wield longswords with a crossguard like that.

However judging from nothing but the cover I do still think Gideon wields a longsword. Because the cover sword is just TOO SMALL for an actual greatsword.

I dont believe people realise HOW FUCKING HUGE an actual greatsword is. Like, yes Harrow is supposedly small so the sword on the cover DOES look big on her. But it is diagonally on her back and now reaches almost her knees. An actual GREATSWORD wouldn't even fit that way or her back (yes it's a fantasy drawing, yes usually swords like that can not be carried to draw on the back regardless if it's a long or great sword. We're gonna ignore that, cuz magic and necromancers and lyctors)

So I remain with my headcanon, that Gideon wields a longsword and not a greatsword.

To summarize:

A longsword is made for dueling AND for the battlefield

A longsword has several similar and adaptable techniques to a rapier in wielding.

A longsword is however heavier than a rapier, so a life long longsword fighter would have habits that would make their rapier fighting style uncanny ("you wield your sword like someone who is used to a two handed weapon")

A longsword CAN be wielded with one hand (a great sword 100% can't. It's just too damn big)

A greatsword is literally made to swing around yourself to makd room on the battlefield. Its slow if you want to hit something and it needs A LOT of momentum to be wielded. It was made to slay horses and break spears and knock people off their feet. If someone is used to wielding a greatsword all their life, learning the nimble techniques of a rapier in several days maybe a few weeks is.... hard to say the least. Their muscles wouldn't even be made for that.

A longsword is also called "zweihander" in german so harrow or gideon calling it a "two hander" is absolutely legit.

And last but not least, Harrow calling it a "great two hander".... Is just because she is DAMN tiny. I am 165 cm / 5' 4'' and my longsword reaches to my chest and it is not one of the big ones.

In conclusion: FOR ME IT IS MOST DEFINITELY A LONGSSWORD AND NOW I CAN COSPLAY/IMAGINE BEING GIDEON EVERYTIME DURING MY FENCING LESSONS EHEHEHEHEH

[okamirayne]

Hello lovely human whom I have loved for… 13 years? Damn. Silly question for you. Since I simply adore your writing, and that includes your answers to asks. I would love to see inside you brain regarding ships I have seen you re-blog about over the years. Like if you were to read a fic for that ship what would you want to see from it, from plot to dynamic etc. I’ve seen you post about Ricky’s, merthur, destiel, sterek—anyways that’s who I can’t think of at the top of my head… any secret ships?? :o anyways you’re amaaazzzinggg tha bessttttest. Patiently waiting for the day I get to finally throw money at you for whatever you publish. I’ll go feral for it. I owe you after 13 years ~ 🐝 (Oooh! Has the UK finally let you watch the new TWD content 😩)

Hello fellow Earthling (Little Bee 🐝) whom I deeply appreciate and am sending all the big love to for taking the time to write me this delightful message. 💖 So wildly happy to hear from you! Thanks for your patience as I get to messages. 💜

I would love to see inside you brain regarding ships I have seen you re-blog about over the years.

Like if you were to read a fic for that ship what would you want to see from it, from plot to dynamic etc. I’ve seen you post about Rickyl’s, merthur, destiel, sterek—anyways that’s who I can’t think of at the top of my head… any secret ships??

Ah, Rickyl...absolutely my OTP of TWD.

What would I want to see from a Rickyl fic? Plot/Dynamic etc? Well. It always depends where in the timeline, you know? I mean, for me TWD sadly lost it way plotwise (which can happen with long-running series) so I would love to just ERASE CHUNKS OF IT 🤦🏻‍♀️. There's what I'd write and then there's what I've read, you know? I tend not to read fanfiction when writing fanfiction, oddly enough. But with these two I'd love to see them navigate a slowburn connection through any given shitshow scenario depending on the timeline of the show (The Farm/The Prison/Govenor/Negan/TOWL)...it really depends on when and who is in the picture (at least regarding Rick, seeing as Daryl shys away from relationships) and what craptacular event the characters are having to survive...to say nothing of what struggle they might be going through mentally/emotionally. Daryl coming to terms that he's got feelings for a dude? Rick straddling the fence between crazy and stable and getting hit with a wave of "wait a second I'm feeling ten kinds of different about my ride or die best friend". 🫶🏼

That season Rick exited held so much potential after that fight 😭👇🏼

For me the relationship aspect is usually set against some backdrop of big story (oh god, you see what I'm like? I can't even manage a one shot - WHY AM I LIKE THIS?) because that fleshes out tension and emotional intimacy. I have various little plot bunnies that hop around at random when I see these two pop up on my dash.

Outside of Rickyl: I have big love for Donnie (Daryl/Connie)

…but that ship never left the harbour despite all the legit wind in its sails...so, so sad and waste of a beautiful character (Connie) 😭.

Oooh! Has the UK finally let you watch the new TWD content 😩

YEESSSS, my dear!!!! FINALLY! I literally just finished watching The Ones Who Live (sadly, i was never sold on the Richonne pairing, but I can appreciate the storyline, even if I don't feel the dynamic between those two at all - despite Andrew Lincoln's absolutely phenomenal acting, he's undoubtedly one of my fav actors). DARYL DIXON airs in a few days time (1st August), so I'm preparing myself and girding my damn loins for what might come bursting out of a burrow in my fangirl brain. If they don't have some kind of Rickyl reunion at some point in TWD-verse, I shall have to generate at least 10 different headcanons for myself. 😏

Merthur...

Oh god...this one HURTS. It will never NOT hurt. Huge potential for pre-ENDING and post-ENDING (can't even say it). I've enjoyed reading some post-ENDING scenarios in fanfic as well as those that take place before the ...ENDING....either way, there's so much deliciousness surrounding prophecy, Arthur's ignorance of Merlin's magic, Gwen and all that jazz. There's a lot of canon to support the ship, which is great as I like to stay in the canon world as much as possible when writing fanfiction. I'm not a massive AU fan. Ideally I try to get it to read like 'this could legit have happened' - with a lot of creative license, sure. Would definitely enjoy exploring post and pre ENDING. Two whole different worlds, especially a modern era fic. Dynamic? Their banter is awesome. The loyalty. The social challenges standing in the way (to say nothing of the whole 'oh by the way I'm a warlock' issue). Then of course a modern day setting brings with it its own challenges and delights. It's a pairing full of wonderful temptation.

Destiel....

Oh hell, it's a no-brainer with these two. From start to finish. Dynamic-wise? I cannot stand weak Castiel. So a strong, "I am the one who pulled you from hell and I can toss your ass back into it" Castiel rather than the fawning cas-trated Castiel is an absolute MUST for me personally. I can't stand the weak Castiel who takes shit from Dean...I lamented the death of his balls and self-respect. Dean...just a whole bag of angst and complicated homophobic issues. As with most ships I ship, certainly the m/m pairings, I personally need both males on an even keel. That's how I roll and that's what I look for in what I read on the occassions I'm reading fanfic. The Supernatural plot murdered my willingness to suspend my disbelief a few seasons in and totally lost me. But I would personally stick with the Lucifer threat and stay in that mythological playground if exploring a plot with these two. Cas would still be funny, he'd just not be a total wetwipe when it came to dealing with Dean's shit.

Sterek...

Big caveat. Reading/writing these two requires me to look a few good years POST Teen Wolf series -- so basically when Stiles is older and working his big brain badassery in some bureau or the other (FBI or otherwise)...this is the whole 'even keel' coming into play. He has more power (or energy) in the dynamic; same banter, but levelled-up chemistry and a bit rawer. So...older Stiles teaming up with Derek and let's go wandering into that delightful forest of possibility. So many paths the plot bunnies could go bounding down.

Okay...I'm not even sure if any of that properly answered your question about the pairings you mentioned, luv??? 😅 I hope so?? Feel free to let me know if not. I could write essays on my thoughts with these pairings and all the other ones sitting in their respective little burrows, deep in my dastardly brain. So sweet that you'd be interested in my rabid plot bunnies. Just need to teach them how to produce ONE SHOTS.

Patiently waiting for the day I get to finally throw money at you for whatever you publish. I’ll go feral for it. I owe you after 13 years ~ 🐝

I just...right in the heart. I can't formulate a proper response to this but I am prepared to teach an interpretive dance to someone who can masterfully perform it on ice. Because it deserves ice. There's too much nuclear-powered heat coming off my face. Thank you so much. You made my heart do some hardcore base drumming which counts as a cardio workout right now. THANK YOU for the love, fun ask, and support, sweetheart ❤️💜❤️

[musicfeedsmysoul12]

Since you’re done The Owl House: thoughts on the ‘proship Lunter?’

Okay before we start ANYTHING: While I am a loud pro-shipper (or whatever it is when I’m just like: SHIP WHAT YOU WANT IT’S ALL FUCKING FICTIONAL) Does this count as a Proship?! I mean, the one line ‘you’re family now’ could be seen as that but in the end, they’re not related. I posted about found family and how it doesn’t need to be in the nuclear terms of ‘siblings/parents’ and that if you call your partner family…

Yeah. It just makes me think of people getting grossed out when people go: yeah I made a new family with my husband/wife/partner cause ‘oh god they’re family and dating!’ And while that’s not true it certainly feels like it I’m not going to lie. (Yes I know I’m poking at the bear. I don’t care.)

Lunter as a ship has a lot of potential for a story arc and for parallels. It’s also kind of cute I won’t deny, in the way most ships of ‘serious and energetic are’ because Hunter is a fairly serious person who is allowed to grow softer and dorkier as he explores himself. And I personally still believe he didn’t get put into season 1 because Disney would have forced it to be canon Vs Lumity and we’d have queer baiting claims. He should have been in season 1. But I won’t argue about how the show was set up cause of getting cut and a few other things.

Do I prefer Lumity? Yes. Lumity is adorable and I like ‘energetic and serious’ relationships so seeing a wlw couple like that is cute. But I will say Lunter isn’t bad. It’s a ship with potential.

In general though, I prefer the idea of the Hexside Squad (Luz, Willow, Amity, Hunter and Gus) in a QPR because you can’t fight off a tyrant, get stranded in the human realm and try to find your way back home without bonding on a deep level.

Some of the bonds are romantic, and some aren’t. I headcanon Gus is purely platonic with all of them but will always put them first. And the bonds between them will never break. They’re also all family and incredibly strong together.

Like I legit imagine them all living beside one another, kids running from house to house, no fences and just being themselves way into the future.

So as a short answer: Lunter is a valid ship, I prefer Lumity but they’re all QPR anyway so whatever.

[taelonsamada]

2022

Saw @dominimoonbeam do this and thought it was a fantastic idea, not only to remind myself how much I’ve accomplished this year, but also set goals for myself for 2023!!

2022 was an INSANE year for me lol I had discovered redacted late November/early December 2021, but REALLY sank into the fandom around March 2022, and the people I met in that fandom were all amazing and wonderful and insanely supportive. Thanks to that support, I finally delved back into the world of fanfiction for the first time in almost twenty years, and the response has been…. Well, I’m not ashamed to admit I’ve cried several times when seeing how people have responded to my silly little stories lol On top of the fanfiction, the fanart and the response people have given it have not only had me drawing more and thereby increasing my drawing skills, but my commissions have skyrocketed, which has allowed me to tame some bills that were hanging over my head (AND YES I AM AWARE THAT I STILL HAVE SEVERAL COMMISSIONS WAITING, I HAVEN’T FORGOTTEN THEM, I PROMISE 😭) And as if the craziness weren’t enough there, I even got to travel to Boston and meet one of the amazing friends I’ve made in person, and while there I achieved a decade long dream of getting to see the Final Fantasy concert Distant Worlds!! 🥰

Progress was made here at the camp, too!! We finally got new batteries, which means we’re able to operate more solely on solar, which allows us to consume less gas and thereby save money AND be less dependant on outdated resources! Frustratingly, the mine got a 3 year extension, but that just means three more years of telling the government where they can stick it, so more chances to stir up some drama lol

And of course, this year I’ve also finally achieved the dream I’ve had since I was 9 and published my first book!!!! What. WHAT. And on top of that, you all have been wonderful about that book, and very supportive 😭 I am a legit different person in an entirely different place than I was in December 2021, and I just cannot believe it. And I have every intention of making sure 2023 is just as wonderful lol

Goals for 2023:

Finish writing Tarnished Truths, the sequel to Silvered Scars

Edit and polish Tarnished Truths

POSSIBLY publish Tarnished Truths (depends on how long editing and polishing takes)

Write the third book in the series (which will be following Reid, the Alpha of the pack from Silvered Scars)

Finish writing Between You, Me & The Fence Post

Finish Return to Shore

Put a dent into my Redacted WIP file

Make more art (definitely been more focused on writing the last few months)

Save up enough money to begin building my own cabin out here in the woods

Again, I wanna thank each and every one of you who’s been along with me for this insane ride, and I hope you’ve had fun on this journey! It’s far from over, and 2023 is definitely gonna be an interesting year!!

[sugar-coated-prat-dragon]

I missed A LOT💀 Tanner and Lizzie broke up?! Idk why or the circumstances but I hope Lizzie is okay! And Tanner and Mary seem to be pretty happy! I legit thought they weren’t dating till just now😭 anyways, I hope everybody has no hard feelings towards each other! I am quite surprised Lizzie and Tanner broke up considering how close and how long they were together😭

When I met Tanner and Mary in Orlando last May I started to wonder if they were a couple (mostly because the way they interacted with one another when they saw my object to autograph which was a picture of Sam and Robby with hearts around it).

I mentioned to one of my friends that I had a feeling they were together and she agreed as well, but since we had no real proof, she asked me not to mention it because I didn’t know for sure and I figured that was fair.

After Lizzes sister mentioned they were still together, I was kind of on the fence, because I didn’t want to say her sibling was lying (or perhaps she just really didn’t know?)

In November-December Tanners cousin started posting all the pictures of her, Mary and Tanner at Disney (where Mary was constantly holding the nephew) and where she and Tanner seemed very much like a couple.

Around that time, I started just flat out thinking that they had to be a couple, because Lizze not being with them on an outing like that was a little much even for good friends.

Than I saw post about the two of them having matching couples shirts in Disney.

On top of Tanner and Mary having matching necklaces at the Orlando con, Mary going to visit his family in Ohio, and of course the way they’re almost not even bothering to hide there affection anymore, ect…

And we’ll…. It’s pretty hard to deny now.

Lizze posted that she was single yesterday. Probably has been for a while.

The fact that there’s now an official announcement that Lizze isn’t dating him anymore just makes the possibility of it easier to accept and I don’t think Mary’s been dating her ex-boyfriend for quite a while.

I have no idea why Tanner and Lizze broke up, but they seemed like they were trying to reconcile in December of 2022 when they were in Hawaii, but maybe that’s when they couldn’t and decided to just be friends?

I remember seeing a video during that time of them kind of side hugging and walking together at night while in Hawaii. That could have been when they decided to merely be friends? But it’s impossible to know for sure.

Lizze seems ok. She stopped smoking and I see her posting a lot with her friends. She seems like she’s doing alright.

[unclevladscorner]

Six months Post Top Surgery

It's officially been six months since my top surgery!

I was actually on the fence about top surgery for a long time and I finally committed and had surgery this past March.

The Good: I've been healing well without any complications or infections. Recovery was never very painful, and I was able to go back to work on time. I am a lot happier since I have a chest I actually like, and I've seen a HUGE reduction in dysphoric feelings about my body.

The reduction in dysphoria was actually unexpected. I originally committed to top surgery for purely cosmetic reasons.

The Ugly*- I'm not totally happy with how my nipples look and I'm still carrying some debt from the surgery.

Overall, I have no regrets. I'm still 100% happier after having my chest reconstructed than I was before the procedure. I'll share some images and more details under the cut-

All things said and done, I think everything turned out really well. I opted for a more expensive surgeon and a different type of gender affirming chest masculinization to preserve my nipple sensation.

I got buttonhole, which is the successor to T- anchor. You can read about it here-

So far, so good. Sensation is still returning in my chest, and my right nipple has the same level of sensation as the skin around it. It can take a year or more to regain any erogenous sensation in my nipples, though.

The left one has been a slow healer from the beginning. Slower to lose it's scab, slower to fully heal over, and it's been slower to regain sensation.

Both kind of look like they are 'melting' off my chest because of the big light spots around them and in the healing areola.

Scarring so far is actually really minimal, as you can see. No big dog ears at the sides, either. I had a lateral chest lift included to prevent dog earing.

My biggest scar is on my right side.

I suspect the skin became separated really early into the healing process when I lifted my arm too high over my head, or pulled on something the several days right after surgery. Thankfully the wound did not reopen or anything like that, but my right side was very sore while healing.

Even with my mild dissatisfaction in how my nipples look, I am still really happy with the results overall. I legit did not realize how much having top surgery would improve my overall quality of life.

The relief was almost immediate. It makes me really happy to see a much more masculine chest on my own body. My chest had lost a lot of mass over the last eight years and it was really saggy and unattractive. The change has really positively reinforced how much I feel at home in my own skin.

Working out has been easier, too. I'm at a point now where I can work out regularly, and I am much more comfortable doing so. I won't see any big muscle gains for a bit, but I'm looking forward to redefining my chest further through regular exercise.

For anyone out there on the fence, ow who's scared of getting gender affirming surgery-

-Research is key. What you want and how you want to look is the most important thing to consider. You want to pick someone who is both reputable and will do work you are happy with. It took me two years to pick a surgeon. Look at before and after photos, listen to former patients. There are more variety in what you can get and how the results look than in the past, too.

-Your reason for surgery doesn't have to be deep. I decided to get top surgery for purely cosmetic reasons. The rest has been a bonus.

-Start saving! Save some money now, and Future You will have an easier time doing what you need to do later. It's much easier to meet a small gap in funds through crowdfunding or loans. It can also help build a healthy financial habit you'll keep the rest of your life. Even if you don't know what you might want or need later, having money in the bank will make that possible. It doesn't have to be a lot, even $10-$20 a month will get you started and build the habit.

No matter what, remember that your happiness and comfort is more important than anything. Get joy where you can, and take care of yourself!

[shinymisty-blog]

The Supporting Cast

I wish the list of recurring characters in the show was longer. I love these characters and feel like they could have done so much more if given another episode or two to flesh themselves out just a bit more. But…we aren’t here talking about the one-offs. We are here talking about those who did have multiple episodes.

A few characters who appear more than once that I won’t add here are characters like Lady Windermere and Lionel, who only really appear with a character attached to them in one episode, and Athair, who only appears during the Chaos Emerald Crisis Arc, which is already going to be in its own 

Disclaimers and notes for this particular post: •Be warned: These posts are often just MASSIVE walls of text! I have the "Keep Reading" tab there for a reason! •While there is no real order to these, I’ll try to keep things in order of relevance. •There will be times when I'll reference something that involves things that would be more relevant after the 40 episodes. During these headcanons, I'll place a nice little ✨ to indicate that it is one of those headcanons. (Everything mentioned will have some sort of explanation if needed). Think of it as a sneak peek at the story I am working on. •If I happen to update anything within this post, I’ll reblog it with the tag #Sonic Underground Project Update, along with a note on which information was updated. 

Links: Master Post | The Origin’s Arc  

·.¸¸.·♩♪♫ Bartleby ♫♪♩·.¸¸.·

Sir Bartleby MontClair of Dresdin! I love this damn mink so much, holy shit. I had no idea I would, but getting ready for the project I had THOUGHT this mink was heavily tied with Sleet and Dingo and, thus, started headcanoning things for him and their interactions…

Only to find out they only work together in, like, two episodes. 

Thankfully, by the end of the series, I grew attached to Bartleby. I genuinely believe Bartleby to be the character who had the BEST arc in the show, so the fact that the most important part of his arc was when the series was canceled REALLY stings. Why couldn’t they have had a line or cameo or SOMETHING  of Bartleby adjusting to life in the Resistance Base? Ah well, that is why we have fan fiction.

Also…I am on the side of shipping Bartleby with Sonia. I smiled whenever they were together, and by the end, it felt genuine. Bartleby gave up EVERYTHING for Sonia. 

•♫•♬• Headcanons •♬•♫•.

➣Bartleby’s birthday is in late April. As a birthday gift, he is allowed to hold a celebratory party for the other aristocrats. 

➣When they were children, Bartleby and Sonia would get into some trouble, as kids do. His mother was very strict and would punish him severely, making him rather complacent as a young adult. ✨Sleet helps him get out of this. And is surprisingly supportive of the mink. 

 ➣While Sonia snuck out of the house as a child, Bartleby would often tag along with her. If they were caught, he’d act as if he was staying with her to keep her safe, but the reality was that he enjoyed getting out of the house, free from his mother.

➣At an older age, Bartleby picked up fencing. ✨He continued learning both offensive and defensive movement when he started working with Sleet and Dingo, who offered to teach him the basics. He enjoys it quite a lot. 

·.¸¸.·♩♪♫ Trevor ♫♪♩·.¸¸.·

While we don’t get much of him, I really like Trevor. But we… don’t get much of the poor guy. He is a friend of Sonic’s, so that’s cool.

I do find it funny that he is designed to make you think he’s not much for technology…he is shown to be a bit of a mechanic. But this is legit all we know about him.

•♫•♬• Headcanons •♬•♫•

➣In case it isn’t canon, Trevor is a mouse. (A Deer Mouse to be exact)

➣Trevor was born at the start of spring. (Late March) He is also the youngest of the group, and the only one to have been born after Robotnik took over. 

➣When he was an infant, Trevor lost his family in a raid attack. Due to this, he doesn’t anything about his family or when he was born. 

➣Because of the raid, he was a part of the first generation to grow up in Sanctuary, a fact he isn’t completely happy to admit. 

➣His eye color is hazel. 

·.¸¸.·♩♪♫ Cyrus ♫♪♩·.¸¸.·

I grew to enjoy Cyrus a lot during my original journey. He had good character growth and seemed to hold a lot of weight as a member of the Resistance. He is able to relate with the triplets as the other mobian who has a family member that was Roboticized (that we are told). Unlike the triplets, however, he was able to give his father a proper farewell.

He has a good arc, and some can argue was finished…but I personally felt his story wasn’t finished. But yeah. Technically, he had a finished arc. I just feel it was missing something.

•♫•♬• Headcanons •♬•♫•

➣Cyrus was born in late Winter. (December/January) He was born the same year the triplets were, making him 16.

·.¸¸.·♩♪♫ Knuckles ♫♪♩·.¸¸.·

I don’t have much thought about Knuckles. He wasn’t ever my favorite Sonic character. Nonetheless, I am glad he did fall exactly into his gimmick of “being a gullible idiot.” He wasn’t immune to it, but that at least gave him some character.

I…do not like his sudden relationship with Sonia, though. It felt forced and out of nowhere. 

•♫•♬• Headcanons •♬•♫•

➣Though, technically not a headcanon, he was born in late winter/early spring (February)

➣Also not completely a headcanon, his eye color is purple.

➣His mistrust in every mobian was there even before the show. ✨ It also lingers after the war, too.

➣Knuckles also doesn’t forgive too easily, either. If a mobian did him wrong, he would not let them forget it. 

[nathank77]

3/27/24

1:29 a.m

I still don't know what to do about my PCP in terms of my sleep meds/the investigation and telling the truth. She won't ask but lying will actually make her potentially more open minded... I'm really on the fence.

Let me put it this way if I didnt have to report Kristen, I would lie without even thinking about it. There would be no anxiety about it. The only reason I'd want her to know is if I decide to take antipsychotics and that's years from now.... and I mean legit years. Like 3 or 4. Maybe never.

Anyways I made a couple psychosis videos on my trans channel. I took down the one I wanted Elise to see. I was talking directly to her but she didn't watch it. It's whatever. That's one of the reasons I don't think she's here, even though part of me does. Maybe she couldn't look me in the eyes. Idk..

Anyways I privatized it. Here is an update. This is just an update. I posted another titled, "Psychosis Discrimination Dehumanizing Stigmatization From Medical Providers," I might privatize that one too... but idk. It helped talking about the stigma and label personally. I want others to know how stigmatized I am and how saying you have auditory hallucinations defines you to many people.

[glitchstoxicwaste]

I AM POLITELY BEGGING THAT WE GET SLASHERS WITH AN ABSOLUTELY FERAL S/O, I'M TALKING SOME REAL GREMLIN SHIT HERE, JUST THESE STOIC MURDER BOYS WITH THE EMBODIMENT OF CHAOS RUNNING AROUND THEM

Slashers x Feral! Gremlin! Reader

OH MY FUCKING GOD I LOVE YOU SO DAMN MUCH!

Hope it's good-

Woah I posted more than once a week? Holy shit man-

Slashers

TW: Feral ass reader, suggestive themes in Bo's, let me know if I missed anything

Continue below the cut!

Michael Myers!

Bro is legit the meme of the dog sitting at a table saying "This is fine" and you are the flame, but remove the text, add a mask, and make the flame a human spider in the corner screeching loudly because your Dino Nuggies aren't done yet.

He has now added a fence around the property with a sign that says "Beware of dog"

So imagine the mailman's surprise when he just sees you run, trip, land on your face, pause for half a second, get back up with your head down, then full on fucking sprinting his way like Sonic the damn Hedgehog.

I shit you not he saw his life flashing before his eyes, bro chucked the mailbag at you and stumbled to go the other way yelling "I'M TURNING IN MY TWO WEEKS NOTICE!"

Every day Michael comes home late to find you dead asleep in the most uncomfortable looking position ever on the floor in the Livingroom, pool of saliva under your cheek, body twitching randomly.

He just sighs, picks you up, takes you to bed, and lays next to you to try and get some sleep.

On days people come onto his property when you both were chilling outside, the teens that hopped the fence freeze when they see Michael and you being calm on the porch, eating cookies, him drinking water, you having a Monster Energy Drink.

You both whip your heads to face them and they freeze like deer caught in headlights thinking Michael was going to attack, but when you and him looked at one another, nodded, and you both got up, the laugh you made scared them more than the giant holding a knife.

Before Michael was even stabbing the teen he caught, here you came, bouncing in joy, you have an unconscious teenager being dragged behind you, you scared him so bad he knocked the fuck out.

He loves you, he does, you entertain him, bring him excitement, and you're basically his own personal security dog, but, you're human.

Jason Voorhees!

Under normal circumstances, he would keep you in the cabin to keep you safe, now, he keeps you in the cabin to keep you from biting the ankles of the trespassers.

You are like a squirrel with rabies, but human, and the foam in your mouth isn't from rabies, its from your saliva bubbling because you're fucking VIBRATING uncontrollably.

One time, you and him went to the lake, he wanted you to swim and release some of that energy.

He didn't expect you to run up to him holding a fucking snake by its head yelling "LOOK WHAT I FOUND!"

He got so scared for both you AND the snake, did it bite you? no? Did you bite it? Yes? Why is he not surprised...

On days it seems him and Pamela can't keep up with the trespassers, they release their ultimate weapon, Jason's s/o, you.

At first when you waltz up to them they think you were lost, but then you jump on one of them, yeah no... FUCKING SCATTER!

You befriended all the animals in the area, including insects, you give spiders little offerings for fucks sake!

Whenever he's chopping firewood, you'll be doing laps, running around him at full speed panting like a dog and giggling uncontrollably.

You tripped over a rock and your face planted right on a log, he hate's to admit he enjoyed the calmness and silence of you laying there processing what just happened... but either way he was about to put the axe down and check on you when you slowly got up.

You stood with your back to him and he walked over to you, he reached to put his hand on your shoulder but you had whipped around and gave him a huge smile and a thumbs up.

He would shrug it off and hug you... if you weren't pouring blood out of your nose and missing a tooth.

What is he going to do with you.

Norman Bates!

You bring a new excitement into his life!

And let me tell you, Mother was shocked at how you weren't sex crazy... you were CRAZY crazy.

He keeps you with him, a child harness on you at all times, there were a few times he muzzled you because you were legit barking... he doesn't know what else to do!

You keep kids entertained... sometimes...

You're hard to control, after a while he just had you attached to a kid harness which was attached to the door handle to the room behind the reception desk.

He gives you Energy Drinks when you keep quiet while he checks people into the motel.

He really starts to appreciate the silence of being alone, but he would never leave you, he loves you too much.

Brahms Heelshire!

He doesn't understand at first, you were so tame and respectful up until he came out from the walls, then you turned rabid.

Is this what it's like whenever he would throw a tantrum? Is this all of his old nanny's revenge for him killing them and throwing tantrums? Oh god...

After a while he becomes numb to it.

When groceries are delivered to the house and the doorbell rings he watches as you do slide across the floor, crash into the wall, and swing the door open as you bounce on your toes.

You both put groceries away, then its back to screeching down the halls and laughing randomly.

Once someone broke into the house and Brahms didn't know until he heard someone yell out in pain, he rushes to where you are and is dumbfounded when he sees you latched onto the intruder with your teeth buried into his shoulder.

He asked for a nanny, not a weird ass dog.

Bedtime excites him, you're calm and pliant for once, he can admire your relaxed state now, your face showing no emotion, body spent from the running, nose having a little dry blood from when you knocked over a book case and broke your nose earlier.

Billy Lenz!

Oh no...

Bad idea mixing you both...

The Moaner and the Gremlin met and started dating...

You both ran everyone out of the house with your spontaneous bursts of energy.

The noises you both make could make anyone uncomfortable instantly, from him slurping on his own saliva and his heavy breathing to you soft and random laughing and cracking your joints roughly.

One day you both were decorating the tree for Christmas, he couldn't get the star up, so you ran and jumped on it causing it to fall.

Billy shouted "Timber!" and you both began laughing.

But he does love the silent, calm, cuddle moments you both have, it makes him feel loved and appreciated.

Thomas Hewitt!

The whole family got used to you right away.

Legit imagine being a victims facing Thomas, a huge, buff, tall man holding a chainsaw, and then all of a sudden you see a tiny human pop out from behind him physically vibrating.

You became the family's alarm for escaped dinner, you can sense movement outside, whip around, and bolt out the door yelping and screaming.

The family goes outside to see you chasing down someone, tackle them, and then sprint back with a living person being dragged behind you.

Hoyt fears you and keeps away.

Luda Mae appreciates your liveliness and dedication to Thomas.

Thomas loves you and your acceptance.

Due to you being.. well.. you.. he doesn't feel bad about taking off his mask.

One time Hoyt said something dumb about Tom's face and before Luda could do anything about it you lunged at him.

You wrapped yourself around his leg tight, and bit his thigh HARD!

You caused him to have a giant scar, a large chunk of his leg missing, a hole in his jeans, and a proud smile on your face.

Bo Sinclair!

You annoyed him, you still do, but he learned that you can't be tamed in any way.

You escaped his traps, escaped Vincent, and ATE YOUR WAY THROUGH WAX! FUCKING WAX!

He has you help out in Ambrose, you scare people more than he does when he holds a gun to their head.

You being there causes them to freeze, you have a spot in the corner of his garage, a little cot and a sign above it that says "Don't come near me, I will remove your limbs."

People become more pliant to Bo when you stand by him as he works.

He can let all his anger out on you and the next day you'll be calm from him using up a portion of your energy while he is in bed knocked out and spent fully.

When Bo flirts with other people you keep him in line, he senses danger whenever your even a little pissy, so when he gets caught flirting he knows to introduce you as his s/o before he gets his knees bent backwards.

Vincent Sinclair!

You are not allowed to be hyper in his art room, the art room is a thing you earn to be in.

When you're hyper and in "Havoc" mode you and shipped to Lester to let out energy with Jonesy, or to Bo to annoy.

When you're calm and not so hyper you can be in his art area with him.

You keep watch of those in that room, attacking anyone who dares to escape.

He uses you as a reference a lot.

When he wants to draw a landscape he lets you out with him so you can get out energy.

Chuckles when you roll down hills because you lost balance while running and started to tumble.

Tells you to catch any tumbleweeds that roll around, knowing you'll be distracted by them running sporadically around.

Plays with your hair if you have any and chuckles when you purr and lean into his touch.

Amused when you fall over because he moved his hand, thus loosing your support.

Adores to draw your sleeping figure, so rarely calm and relaxed, you're his favorite work of art, but god you sure are a piece of work.

Lester Sinclair!

It's like having two dogs, except one is human and he's in love with you.

Adores watching you and Jonesy play and roll around, you both having fun doing wild things fills his heart.

Brings you to work with him, you make work more fun and interesting for him.

He can't help but laugh when you annoy Bo, because everyone knows you will knock him on his ass if you wanted to.

Appreciates how you don't care about his smell and lack of hygiene.

When you both wrestle and rough house it makes him happy to know you trust him enough to do this with him.

Learns to appreciate quiet time though.

The silence and calmness, domesticity of the situation, makes his heart flutter.

At night when you both are snuggling into each other with Jonesy at you feet, the thought of tomorrow excites him more now than it did before.

[notyetbulletproof]

I do think what was missing was a proper conversation between Edwina x Kate x Anthony and Mary.

Post almost wedding. Again after love declaration, again before wedding. I’m sad we didn’t see all this.

Plus also a proper conversation with and perhaps apology to Kate about him being captain mixed signals because the feels were all consuming.

Not to like punish him or make him feel worse about everything but just to take real accountability and mend what was broken you know? Or at least ADDRESS IT. It happened in the show of course. A little but also a lot of it being tied to guilt, shame, pain which I absolutely understood. I am just in agreement with folks that believe more could have been done to show how Anthony took accountability. How he (and Kate) dealt with those consequences together. How he faced up to the true impact of his actions.

Just would have been interesting if we got more of it instead of idk, lord featherington nonsense— I mean seriously who cares about that guy. It was legit a recycled plotline.

Edit: I also understand that this (Anthony’s conversations with the Sharmas) may have been cut down to account for Edwina being able to stand on her own and advocate for herself. For Kate to have the convos with Mary. For Edwina and Kate to mend fences (this one was no where near enough. honestly to cut Anthony’s development in this respect and NOT give it to Kate is just a wasted opportunity. I hope they learn and make changes in season 3. Give Kate that time!).

The fact that they highlighted the importance of Kate x Edwina as much as Kate x Anthony kinda explained why certain things were not explored. And of course the fact that they were trying to make the whole show more ensemble-ish. Still lead by the main love story but laying more ground for people to want to tune in to the next love story and the other characters in the ensemble. A book audience might but a show audience would need clear incentives within the show.

Still I stand by what I said, I would have rather seen Kate x Anthony and all the people in their lives than watch lord featherington cheat his way through the ton.

Right?? I mean it would have been better development for them all. Mini series man. Win some lose some.

[okamirayne]

When FFN shuts down/disappears will you switch your work over to another site? AO3 or live journal or wherever? Because I really love your stories, especially your break to breathe series and I would hate to see it gone.

Whoa, hold up… is FFN legit shutting down???

And…

…is Livejournal still…ALIVE???? 😱 I honestly thought it gave up the ghost years ago?? 🤯

Ah yes, I’ve been asked re: AO3 before and while that’d been the plan, I’m now very reluctant about it due to my work having been stolen/downloaded repeatedly from AO3 and posted elsewhere.

I am a big fan of AO3 but good god I wish they’d offer authors the option to prevent their works being downloadable. At least give the choice, you know?? Sadly stories end up posted elsewhere (I’m looking at you, Wattpad) without permission or credit, just blatant plagiarism. UtS is my biggest BtB project and I’m reluctant to see it stolen that way given everything that went into it. It was irritating and upsetting enough dealing with that with the other fics. 🤦🏻‍♀️

That being said, I haven’t ruled out AO3 for UtS or HHU. 👍🏼 I’m firmly on the fence atm and will consider it should FFN go up in flames. Hopefully not 🙏🏼

Thanks for your support, Anon! 💕☺️

[sharkfish]

Ace headcanons for cas are actually. Kind of bad because they’re rooted in ableism, he’s coded as autistic before any headcanons come into play and people just LOVE to make every autistic character asexual.

if you’re not autistic and coming onto an ace persons post about how they don’t like ace headcanons about a queer autistic character you’re not the hero you think you are

Sincerely an autistic ace person who hates the way neurotypical aces write ace cas and wish you’d stop because it’s clear y’all hate us 🫠

i'm a little stoned so bear with me while i try to arrange vaguely coherent sentences to think through this. edit: i'm so fucking sorry for the disaster that follows. my brain is working about as well as my electric fence is rn, whose charger is currently in the red and says "CHECK FENCE" (because i guess the dial in the red doesn't make it clear enough i've got a problem). despite that... i hope someone out there has some idea wtf i'm trying to say and can help me out here.

this is literally the first time i have ever heard anyone express something like this, and i've seen a whole lot of talk from autistic people, ace people, autistic ace people, etc, about how much cas (& their reading or hc of cas as autistic and/or ace) means to them.

—background info: i am neurodivergent, but not autistic. i'm also ace.

—sidenote: thank you for bringing the ace autistic stereotype to my attention. i'm legit not sure how honest this ask is in general, but thinking back on autistic characters i've seen in media, i can see that being a thing. there's a long history of seeing people with a variety of disabilities* (*i know there's some nuance and conversation around whether or not autism can/should be actually considered a disability) as uninterested (even undeserving!!!) in sex or romance, as if PWD aren't fully-fledged humans with rich interior lives just like everyone else. that's not ok!

—sidenote 2: i made a mistake in my OG reblog of that post by even bringing canon into it. it's like pointing out bible contradictions to christians in an attempt to deconvert them--it's irrelevant because the bible isn't a real story. i don't fuck with canon. the author is dead. etc. BUT that doesn't mean the way people interpret a character can't be Problematic (for lack of a better term) when we compare it to canon. i just shouldn't have brought canon into it because i don't actually care about those specifics.

so -- i'm not doubting the validity of a character being "-coded," because that has been the only way for many people to see themselves represented in media (see: hays code, etc). i think there might be a convo to be had here though about how we define "-coded." ugh i'm struggling to articulate what i mean, but i guess... when is it "-coded" and when is it "i see myself in this character, regardless of authorial intent" and when is it "i will make this character x thing because i damn well want to and not even god himself can stop me." smarter people than i have talked about this i'm sure. i'm just not sure the threshhold where a character is "-coded" (or "similar to" or whatever) where it is canon to the point where representing a character otherwise is erasing a marginalized identity.

i'm trying to suss through in my head.... ugh, something about cas being non-human without any understanding of human mannerisms, culture, etc, in-universe. i understand people seeing themselves there. i see myself there — i often feel like an outsider, like someone who can't show my true self to any of the people around me, even the ones i love, i often feel lost in a world with rules i don't understand or agree with (some of which are around sex!). but i guess as an allistic person, i would feel really uncomfortable declaring a character autistic when the mannerisms/etc that tend to lead autistic people to seeing themselves in him are literally caused by him being non-human. to me that feels like some sort of implication that autistic people are not quite human.

if i'm understanding what you're saying, it sounds like it would have to be clear to everyone that he is autistic, and representing him as anything else would be ableist (bc erasure). maybe i'm totally totally off-base here. but i guess i'm asking myself if making him allistic is erasure, or if deciding a not-human character is autistic because of their alienness is a little hinky in itself.

—it is worth nothing that the OG post that led to this ask did not say anything about cas being autistic. maybe you're OP and you just forgot to include the most important part of your "cas can't be ace" argument (i would tend to think "it's ableist" is a better argument than "he's horny"), or maybe we're just moving off on a tangent, or whatever.

as an autistic ace person, i imagine you know how little (respectful) rep there is out there for autistic people and ace people, much less autistic ace people. do you legitimately not want to see someone like you in stories? do you legitimately want to put a ban on ace autistic characters?

because you're certainly not alone as an ace autistic person, and other autistic ace people deserve to see themselves. art exists so we can see and be seen. (art is also discovery, which is another reason representation is so important!) and i have cried, actual wet tears on my face, from seeing characters who look like me. i cried the first time i heard a character identify themselves as ace in popular media. shit, i'm old enough that i still get emotional seeing queer couples in media and just existing out loud. that shit really, really matters, not just to reduce stigma but to tell people they aren't alone. (i also cry when someone leaves a comment on one of my ace stories or trans stories or stories with mentally ill characters saying it made them feel less alone.)

i have bipolar. the optics on bipolar are not good and there are a lot of fucked up representations of people with it. people fuck it up more often than not. but banning people from writing bipolar characters is moving in the wrong direction. we have to be thoughtful, and we have to examine ourselves and others, and we have to do it right. there's just no way to do it right if you can't do it at all.

ultimately i'm just not sure how it's fair to say a character can't be ace if they are also autistic(/adjacent). hell, you're going to have a hard time convincing me it's fair to say a character can't be ace for any reason.

—sidenote: is this like the anti thing where you have to declare your traumas and diagnonsensicals so everyone knows it's Acceptable for you to write a certain topic? like, if it turned out i was autistic, would it then be ok for me to write ace autistic characters? as mentioned before, the OG post didn't say anything about autism and neither did i. or did you 100% know i don't have autism because i think it's ok to hc cas as ace? anon, are you allowed to hc a character as ace and autistic?

honestly this came so out of left field. the idea of "i am both x and y, but it is Wrong for a character to be both x and y" is so strange. it brings to mind people who are like "GOD you WOKE IDIOT SNOWFLAKES, i'm so TIRED of you forcing diversity in my face, WHY is this character black AND a wheelchair user?!" and of course the answer is... because some people are black and use wheelchairs? i think this is one of those situations where we go so overboard trying to do the right thing (e.g., not create disrespectful representations of autistic people) that we end up with the same result as the people who want to do the wrong thing (e.g., no one is allowed to write characters with multiple marginalized identities).

sincerely, a person who is sincerely confused by an autistic ace person saying characters are not allowed to be both autistic and ace

ps: just for funsies i was looking to see if there was an autistic ace mash-up pride flag (saw one someone suggested on reddit but there doesn't appear to be one widely used) and learned a fun fact! a survey of 2400 autistic adults found they were 3-9x more likely to identify themselves as asexual, homosexual, or bisexual than the general population. the article mentions that folks who answered the survey were specifically 8x more likely to describe themselves as asexual than the general pop. this is completely irrelevant to the actual discussion in this post, just something to say when mom asks if you learned anything on tumblr dot com today.

[muffinlance]

Scaled Over, and Other Total AU Fics

I mentioned this briefly in tags a few posts back, and now it is living in my head.

The situation: With Mini-Muffin now here, my writing time is extremely limited. I've been focusing on fanfic, but that is not a state that can continue for more than a few more months, because I am also a Serious Face writer and I need to get back to peddling stories I can actually claim ownership in.

This isn't to say I have any intention of abandoning any of my fanfics, but it is to say that I've got to figure out how to ration a scarce resource so it also helps with my Serious Face life goals, ie being a legit author. Which could mean that I go radio silent on posting now and then while working on Serious Face projects.

Alternatively...

Scaled Over (my dragon!Zuko fic) is already so canon divergent it could legitimately be an original fic if I changed the names. Which is the reason I've been neglecting it, because I've been on the fence about tweaking the outline and straight up writing it as an original novel.

Which leads to an interesting experimental compromise, and what I'd like to gather opinions on: if I published Scaled Over chapter-by-chapter on AO3 as an original work rather than an Avatar fic, would people read it? If I edited it up real pretty at the end and self-pubbed, would people be willing to buy a copy to support the author?

Because if that is a viable system, then I have so many fics I could write for you guys using certain character archetypes we all know and love, and I wouldn't have to go off into my Serious Face corner where you can't see what I'm working on. (And I am loving the real-time feedback I get through chapter-by-chapter postings, it would be fantastic to keep that up.)

So, an informal opinion poll: would people be interested to see Scaled Over as an original work? 'Cause if folks are, I'll re-outline it as such and run this as an experiment.