#I have a hard time believing they have nothing they could potentially add if they wanted to --and maybe they just don't want to

[rawliverandgoronspice]

still a hardcore believer in the "totk was absolute development hell" theory btw, even if I know it will never be confirmed or denied, but all the signs are there honestly

[heliads]

Hellloooo!!! I don’t wanna add to your workload so if this just piles on, please delete it! 😅😊 I just had an idea for a newt x reader fic where they’re in an established relationship in the Glade and during a bonfire one night the boys all ask newt questions about what it’s like to date reader and how it feels and newt just answers with the upmost sweetness. Reader overhears and fluff ensues!!!!

fluff ensues has got to be one of my favorite plot descriptions. like yeah it absolutely will do that (and no worries, nothing will stop the workload from being! newt just helps make it better <3)

masterlist

Newt is aware that he is a little bit luckier than most. This is a sentiment that he never thought he’d be caught dead believing. Not in the Glade. Not in the Maze. Not anywhere in this surreal mess of a place. Yet it’s on repeat in his head on a day to day basis nonetheless, ticking off the hours like an alarm clock consisting solely of his blessings. 

Newt didn’t think he’d have that much to brag about. No memories means no history he can mention to his equally luckless friends. Still, he’s got one important victory in his life that no one else can even dream of, and that’s the fact that he’s dating Y/N. Yeah, that certainly sets him apart in the world of good things given to kids who can’t quite convince themselves they deserve them. 

Some would say that Newt is being a little dramatic. He would argue that his response is perfectly within reason. One girl has been sent up in all the months that anyone’s been in the Glade, one girl and one girl alone, and she just happened to choose him. Around here, that’s grounds for being nominated for sainthood. 

Newt isn’t going to act like he’s not just over the moon every time he thinks about the whole situation. Against all odds, Y/N fell in love with him. That’s so unreal that Newt has to pinch himself every hour on the hour just to make sure it isn’t a dream. He never tries too hard, though. Just in case. 

He didn’t have many thoughts on love before she came up. There wasn’t really time now, was there? It was just him and the scores of other stragglers making do in their bloody terrible world. You don’t spend much time lingering over potential sweethearts when the closest thing to a Romeo is Gally yelling at everyone in the Glade except his friends.

Not great dating material, to say the least. Even when Y/N came up that one month, though, he still hadn’t fallen for her from the start. He liked her, obviously, she was nice and didn’t test his patience, but he was perfectly content to keep her as a friend, just that. Great expectations have a way of letting you down. Newt’s learned that if you keep your eyes on the ground, stop looking up at the sun and stars, you’ll be able to deal with it a little easier when all your brightest aspirations go away.

He’d done that before and he planned on doing it again. Even as time passed and he realized that his heart had a funny way of speeding up whenever she was nearby, when it occurred to him that his daily routines always had a way of working in chances to see her, Newt forced himself to ignore everything. Maybe he liked the way the morning sunlight always played on Y/N’s face, maybe he could have spent hours wondering over the way her eyes sparkle when she laughs. It was nothing that he could ever commit to treasuring above anything else.

It took several rounds of self-talk and about a dozen different interventions staged by his friends for Newt to get up the courage to tell Y/N how he felt. Hell, it took at least half of those interventions for him to even admit how he felt to himself. Newt had been internalizing for so long that bringing some of those emotions to the forefront of his attention was damned near impossible. Minho, Alby, and a few others, however, were so sick of seeing him ‘mope around like a lovesick fool,’ to quote them specifically, that they were dedicated to the task of getting him in order.

It worked, too. Newt had run through what could have been a hundred speech variations in his head, all mentioning her character or her sense of humor or any one of the millions of things he liked about her best. In the end, he didn’t choose a single one. The second Newt pulled Y/N away from a crowd of their friends for ‘something he needed to say in private,’ every single whirlwind of thoughts storming through his head came to an abrupt stop. He totally blanked out. 

Newt wouldn’t even know that he managed to force any words out at all were it not for the fact that the effects of that interaction are quite obvious. Somehow, Y/N ended up returning his affections, and they’ve been doing pretty well ever since. Newt doesn’t like counting his eggs before they hatch and all that, but he’d go so far as to say that he doesn’t see it ever breaking down for quite some time, if ever. They’re alright. They’re great, and they’re happy, and in a place like this, you take that and run with it for as long as you can. Maybe it’ll ruin itself someday, but Newt plans on pushing that off to the distant future for forever and a day.

In the meantime, Newt gets to think about how lucky he is. Despite the fact that Y/N’s apparently been crushing on him for just as long as he started liking her, and despite the fact that Frypan proclaims on a daily basis that he’s never seen two shanks more alike, Newt still feels like all of this is just one great coincidence. Maybe it was never supposed to happen, but it did, and he’s going to love that and her for as long as he can.

She’s waiting for him now, he thinks. Work is over for the day, and there’s a Bonfire Night happening this evening too, courtesy of the shivering Greenie fresh out of the Box who still can’t seem to keep his shock from showing. The fool to whom this celebration is owed looks like he’s going to keel over, what from the way he keeps half doing a backbend from continually craning his neck up to stare at the Walls, but the rest of them can get drunk and fuck around and generally have a good time. 

Greenies never appreciate their Bonfire Nights enough anyway. It’s up to the rest of the Gladers to show them what it’s like to have fun. Who knows the next time they’ll be able to stop stressing over the ruins of their lives anyway? Newt’s heard half a dozen Gladers proclaim that they only live bonfire to bonfire anyway. They might as well prove it tonight.

Newt meets Y/N on the outskirts of the bonfire just as the dark starts to fall. Dusk kicks up its heels, keeping watch over the revels and hiding the sun, which can never bear to see whatever mistakes they’re going to make next. Y/N holds out a hand to him, one Newt gladly accepts.

“I can’t believe it’s been six months now since I first showed up,” she grins, gesturing towards the Box with her free hand, “Feels like just yesterday.”

Newt snorts. “Time flies when you’re having fun, huh? Trust me, the Greenie Days get faster and faster. I swear I just finished touring the last kid, and now we’ve got another one to keep pestering us with questions.”

Y/N shakes her head, considering this. “Nah, I think this one will be better. He’s too scared to speak above a whisper. If you try, you can just ignore him.”

Newt chuckles. “I’m not supposed to be bullying the Greenies. Alby says I’m meant to set a good example.”

“I saw Alby telling Minho to trip the new kid to see if he’d finally make a sound if he bit the dirt,” Y/N comments, “I don’t think kindness is really in our books.”

Newt arches a brow. “I could see that happening. Did it work?”

“No,” Y/N says, disappointed, “Kid was so scared to move a muscle that he didn’t fall at all. Just kind of stopped walking like he’d hit a wall instead of Minho’s ankle.”

Newt tries to bite back a smile. He’s only half successful. “Shame. That would have been fun to see.”

Y/N laughs. “That’s what I said. Anyways, they’re all over there, near the fire. I think the next strategy is to give the kid some of Gally’s brew in the hopes that it’ll coax something out of him other than his dinner.”

Newt shudders. “Best of luck to him.”

“And to me,” Y/N replies, “I think I’m going to get a glass of my own. See you in a second.”

Newt waves a casual hand in goodbye, watching as his girlfriend weaves through the steadily forming crowds of Gladers in an attempt to track down a drink. He takes a seat near an overturned log, staring into the fire as it disappears into sparks. Six months since Y/N appeared in the Box, so it’s been indeed.

Newt can’t decide whether that feels like a long time or not nearly long enough. Y/N’s changed him in almost every way, that much is obvious. Sometimes, in meeting someone you know will impact you forever, you almost want them to have been around for much longer. Strangers aren’t meant to become your best friends, not until you’ve known them for years and you have scores of memories to share. You want to give them decades in your mind, centuries, as a sign that they’ve been so important to you. Mere months aren’t enough. Surely it should be more.

It isn’t, and maybe that’s for the best. Newt has no memories save for when he came up his own share of months ago. All his friends are new, all his enemies still more recent. Maybe the girl he loves has only been in his life for a short time, but his recorded life is short indeed. Everything is modern. That’s just how it is.

Newt becomes aware of eyes on him and realizes that he might not be the only one reminiscing about when Y/N came up in the maze. A few Gladers have come up by Newt’s side, steadily appearing out of the gloom and smoke to stare at him.

Newt glances at them questioningly, and a few moments later the bravest of them dares to voice their collective thoughts. “What’s it like dating Y/N?” The boy asks, “you know, since she’s the only girl?”

Newt smiles to himself. “It’s great,” he says.

This clearly isn’t the response the other boy wants. “Yeah,” he repeats, “but what’s it like? It’s not like the rest of us have our own girlfriends to compare it with.”

Newt bites back a laugh. “Well,” he begins, noticing out of the corner of his eyes that the other boys draw closer to him expectantly, “it’s like having a best friend, but even better. She’s someone I can talk to at any time, but I don’t have to worry about seeming uncool or weird around her. Y/N knows exactly who I am, the good and the bad, but she’s chosen to be with me anyway. It makes you feel like you can do anything.”

The boy nods, accepting this. “Are you ever worried that she’s going to get tired of you and leave you for someone else?”

“If you’re asking me if I’m worried about competition,” Newt says slowly, “I’d say, don’t think you even have a chance. She’s my girlfriend, you bloody shank, not some object you can steal away. Anyway, obviously I’d like it if she stayed with me a while longer, but I’m not scared, no. I know that we’re happy, and that’s enough.”

The boy’s face flushes scarlet when Newt calls him out, but he seems to have made his peace with it at the end. Newt’s half expecting more questions, but all of a sudden they scatter to the corners of the celebration. A few moments later, the cause of the disturbance becomes obvious:  Y/N herself takes a seat next to him, glass in hand.

“It seems like you had a score of admirers,” she says, lips twitching up into a smile.

Newt groans. “More like your admirers, trust me. They wanted to ask about what it was like to date you. Not something I thought I’d be discussing with the Slicers-in-training, but why not?”

Y/N laughs. “Oh, I know. I have to say, though, it was very sweet. Being with me makes you feel like you can do anything?”

Newt feels his entire face heat up, and he briefly ponders launching himself into the fire to escape it. “I didn’t realize you were eavesdropping. That’s rude, you know.”

Y/N just grins. “I do apologize. It was very sweet, though. I appreciated it.”

Newt rolls his eyes, but he can’t keep a smile off of his face for long. “Does that mean you won’t leave me for some random boy who showed up a few months ago?”

“I’ll consider it,” she assures him, “like you said, though, I wouldn’t worry much. I happen to like being with you quite a bit as well.”

Newt reaches over, wrapping an arm around her shoulders to pull her close. Y/N leans her head on his shoulder, and they stay there for quite some time, watching the embers of the fire curl into ribbons of smoke up in the darkest reaches of the sky. The bonfire dances, their friends shout and clap and laugh all around them, and through it, they keep going. All is well.

tmr tag list: @rogueanschel, @ellobruv, @retvenkos, @neewtmas, @thatfangirl42, @hiya-its-amber, @gods-fools-heroes, @hope92100, @23victoria, @w1shes43, @ilovexavierthrope, @fadedver

[deathbxnny]

Hi, this is my first time active on tumblr community, English is not my native language, so please forgive me for spelling mistakes <3

I have an idea for s/o Mitsuri (kny) with Blade, Jing Yuan, Dan Heng and Luocha please. who were dying in their arms and praying for another world, when they were reborn, and were turned into ordinary people with an ordinary past. Before I die, I want the reader to ask: "If we were to be reborn in a more beautiful world where there is no pain and loss, would you be my bride?". I am really looking forward to the reactions of the characters in hsr. Hope this angst idea is good enough-

Pray for you when you go, someone often remembers. When you return when someone is waiting. Pray for you to become the best memories in the world. Wishing you a life filled with love and happiness. I really appreciate you for the quality articles <3 Take care of yourself and I love you so much. Sorry for writing so long. (Sorry for the second post, I realized I forgot to add the character's name, so sorry =( )

-----♡

A/N: I know exactly what scene you are referring to here and I'll never recover from it tbh... Also thank you so much for your kind words and for the request! I hope this is okay!<33

Content: Potential Spoilers for kny! (?), Reader dies, hurt/no comfort (kinda), established relationships, angst, mentions of fatal injury, just pain

Reader has no set pronouns! (Though they do refer to themselves as a "Bride" per the request, but that's not outright mentioned here.)

((Not fully proofread))

-----♡

》Jing Yuan

Jing Yuan's usual calm and playful facade drops instantly, when he has your bloody and near lifeless form laying in his arms. He holds you close, knowing that your end is near and that there is nothing he can do now. He tries to still appear so calm and collected like he always is, but it's hard, when the love of his life is dying.

And it becomes even harder, when he hears you utter those heartbreaking words, as you look up at him with pleading, weak eyes. He can't bring himself to speak at first, mainly because he wants to believe that there is still some hope left in saving you. But he is no fool. He knows, that you are doomed.

And so he nods, promising you that he will, his arms holding onto you tighter, when the last breath escaped your lungs and you smile in satisfaction at him, already looking forward to seeing him again.

"Ofcourse, my love... I'll wait eons for your return, if I have to."

-----♡

》Blade

He nearly loses his composure at the sight of you, the blinding rage of the loss he felt in his heart making him nearly dip completely into insanity. Yet he keeps it at bay for a moment, just to hold you in his arms. He's trembling and for once in a very long time, he feels afraid and lost.

Your words make his already broken soul break even harder, burn up into fine ash, until it gets blown away by the wind and leaves a gaping hole in his existence behind. He can't process them at first, wanting to be stubborn even in the face of your inevitable doom. He doesn't want to show, how much this weakened him, just to spite the grim reaper himself.

And yet, it all fails, when he just let's out a pitiful, broken sigh and agrees in pained defeat, just to give you your peace. You smile at him, as the last of your life fades out, your eyes looking right through him. Only then, does he allow himself to break completely.

"Very well... but don't keep me waiting for long... I beg of you."

-----♡

》Dan Heng

Dan Heng didn't know, how you two got to this point. It shouldn't have happened. He should've protected you. And yet, you protected him from the attack. You were bleeding out, your life draining from you faster than he could stop it. Once more, a person he loved dearly was slipping through his fingers and there was nothing he could do.

He felt like a failure, like all of this was his fault. He should've died instead. Not you. And that thought gets only solidified by your heartbreaking, hopeful words. You didn't deserve this fate. You deserved someone much better than him.

And yet, he selfishly agrees to your final wish to bring you satisfaction. Your smile made it worth it, the relief in your eyes before they were drained of their beautiful spark and dulled making all the heartache disappear for only just a moment. Left behind was the emptiness Dan Heng felt, as all he could do was stare down at you in defeat, his heart broken once more. And for good, this time.

"For you, I will do anything, my love. So I'll see you then..."

-----♡

》Luocha

Luocha didn't want to believe, that it was over. That there was nothing he could do for you. He tried everything he could. He was a doctor, surely he could save you from this simple injury, right? But it was no use. You knew it. He knew it. And yet, he still denied it to the bitter end, until you gently grabbed ahold of his arm and just shook your head. A signal, that it was truly over.

And for once, he breaks down, holding you close, begging you not to disappear and yet all you could do was chuckle and utter your last wish for him. It was a promise, that eventually, you'd return to him. You'd find eachother in the next life, you were sure of it.

He was reluctant, still so stubborn and heartbroken to accept your doom, until he did. His soul died with you, when you took your last breath, he swore it. And he blamed himself, for not being able to save you, when he surely should've been able to.

"I'll find you in the in next life and the one after that one too, my dear... I promise you that."

-----♡

A/N: I hope this was alright! It was honestly heartbreaking to write... also thank you for the request!<33

[ryosei-hime]

Moxxie’s Abused Body Language

Obligatory disclaimer: This is my interpretation of the subject at hand. Nothing I say within should be taken as an attempt to state what is and is not canon. If your views or interpretation differ, this is not an attack on you personally or those who interpret things differently from me.  

So, with that out of the way, this post’s focus is primarily on Moxxie’s character and how the Spindlehorse crew managed to convey a lot about his childhood abuse through the use of body language in season 2, episode 3.

It’s very easy to see that Moxxie begins to show signs of fear from the moment he realizes where they are. He becomes physically and vocally distressed to the point that he actively fights getting out of the helicopter before Blitz pushes him out. He’s literally shaking here.

Even Millie’s presence isn’t comforting him. In fact, he becomes even more nervous when Crimson takes her hand and watches them very carefully. He knows what Crim is capable of and he knows he won’t hesitate to hurt Millie. Neither being a woman nor technically family is enough to stop him.

A lot of Moxxie’s body language during the introduction of Crim is very obvious. He hunches a lot. He has a lot of darting eyes and fiddling motions. He becomes quieter and more withdrawn than usual. He’s noticeably uncomfortable the entire time.

Even Blitz picks up on it. Once they’re inside, he’s much more subdued than usual throughout the rest of the night and seems to be focusing on assessing the situation. 

And, of course, you can see that Millie knows something is wrong from all this as well. She’s in tune with her husband’s feelings. In the scene where Blitz and Crim are talking, Millie’s eyes follow Moxxie’s as they dart, looking where he’s looking to track the source of his distress.

Anyone who has been raised in an abusive home recognizes certain tones when used by their abusers. We can hear that tone when Crim says “Moxxie, I raised you better than that.” This is a warning tone. This is a threat to get back in line and know your place before they put you in it. Moxxie obeys this underlying command quickly, habitually falling back into appeasing his abuser to avoid his wrath.

I believe he does this not only due to his own trauma reaction but also in an attempt to keep Millie and Blitz safe. If he sets off his father, he knows both of them would come to his defense and that could lead to them facing the same fate as his mother. I personally believe Moxxie is well aware that her attempts to help him as a child resulted in her murder, and he would do anything to avoid the same fate for Millie. 

However, we all have our limits, things we can’t help but stand up for even in the face of abuse. You can see that Moxxie cares a lot about his identity as a bisexual because he actually speaks up against his father’s past treatment of his relationship with Chaz despite the potential costs. He’s indignant that Crim would spend so long making him miserable for who he is only to turn around and pretend to accept queerness just for the sake of money when he wouldn’t make that effort for the sake of Moxxie himself. It’s clearly a very sore spot for him.

But the minute things turn to guilt tripping about abandoning the family, Moxxie sinks down into his seat in shame. Familial duty and obligation like this is something that’s hard to shake as a child of abuse. No matter how much you understand on a logical level that you don’t owe the people who hurt you just because they gave you life, it sticks with you. And when you add the mafia and its sense of duty on top of this, it’s gotta be staggering.

So, Moxxie is immediately obedient when Crim decides everyone will be sleeping there that night. He’s been successfully put back in his place with fear and guilt. Hoping that if he can just get through this ceremony without causing a stir, he can leave in peace and never be bothered again as he’s been promised. He’s so convinced he can give his father what he wants and make him go away, that he’s a little caught off guard when called back to continue the altercation. 

And then Crim hits him.

I want to take a moment to talk about the surprise on his face here. One might think this means that Moxxie wasn’t heavily physically abused as a child, because the blow surprised him. But I don’t believe that’s true. Even when you’ve become used to being hit, you still react to sudden strikes this way. Especially if your abuser is one that’s hard to read. Crim strikes me as the quiet until he’s not kind and it’s hard to predict when that kind of abuser will strike. It’s also likely been years since Moxxie has had to deal with anyone hitting him in a domestic situation. So, of course he’s shocked by the sudden blow. But we’ll come back to that.

Panic begins to set in as Moxxie realizes, as far as he’s concerned, he can’t possibly concede to his father’s demands to marry Chaz. An instinct to do whatever needs to be done to appease the abuser has kicked in. He wants to give Crim what he’s asking for but can’t. And he knows being his son doesn’t mean he’s safe from his wrath.

Again, even in this moment, he speaks up for his bisexuality. And this is obviously an old argument that’s just become tiring at this point for the both of them. They slog through it like a well worn groove. But Crim doesn’t have the patience to run that track for long right now because money’s on the line.

He’s not playing this game with Moxxie anymore and Moxxie will be made to know it. Crim reminds him what he’s capable of.

The first thing shown in the flashback sets up how Crim feels about Moxxie’s relationship with his mother. He thinks she’s making him weak by seeing to his needs (cutting his food) and not demanding he do things for himself. She’s actively standing in the way of him preparing Moxxie for the life he’s chosen for him.

In my opinion, he does think he’s doing what is best for Moxxie considering the world he’s growing up in and the path Crim has chosen for him. Abusive parents often do in these situations. Each time his mother stands in the way of preparing Moxxie for that life, Crim sees it as both a disobedience towards him (which is already unacceptable) and a hindrance to his progeny, a source of pride in his world. He can’t have a weak son or it’ll reflect poorly on him with his associates.

So, of course the only thing to be done to save his own pride and his son’s life as Crim has planned it, is to remove this obstacle and get back to teaching his son to man up and become what’s expected of him - which is, of course, to become a carbon copy of Crim. And I feel like their designs being so similar really helps to underscore this desire of Crim’s whether or not that was done intentionally. 

We see evidence of physical abuse toward his mother during the flashback. In my opinion, she’s likely protecting Moxxie from suffering it himself as mother’s can sometimes manage to do in these situations by taking on even more abuse of their own. So, it’s possible there was very little to no physical abuse for Moxxie until his mother was gone.

But it’s shown onscreen that Crim has no problem hitting Moxxie even as a child. As far as I’m concerned, this is when Moxxie’s physical abuse from his father likely starts in earnest. But Moxxie probably learns that as long as he obeys him, he can avoid this abuse. So, I believe he would have been able to decrease the amount of abuse he received in time by being more obedient. 

I wanna take an aside for a moment to back up - or maybe better to say go forward - to his past with Chaz. In that flashback, Moxxie is shown being painted nude and his body has no white marks. One might question whether or not he actually received physical abuse based on this fact but to me it has no bearing on the issue. 

For one, smart abusers often try to find ways to do so that don’t leave marks. And Crim is the head of a mafia family. If he were to go around openly beating his kid, it would reflect poorly on him. Not because anyone in the organization would care about the actual abuse. But because it would make him look brutish and stupid for allowing it to be seen by everyone. That sort of leader just doesn’t last long and can be a danger to the longevity of the organization itself.

For two, imps get white marks from more extreme injuries such as gunshot wounds and broken arms. It seems that the skin has to be broken or theoretically burned to leave an actual mark. At least from the evidence we’ve seen so far. 

Given these two points, whether or not Moxxie was physically abused doesn’t really hinge on how many white marks he has on his body as far as I’m concerned. We’ve seen plenty of imps take blunt force trauma that didn’t leave them covered in white. 

If I were to speculate on the trajectory of his experience with abuse overall, he likely received none to very little as a child before his mother’s death, a lot after her death with it decreasing as he learned to obey and avoid triggering his father, and barely any as a young adult. 

I believe that reaching that time of almost no instances of abuse once he’d become what his father wanted possibly left him a little more comfortable than he could have otherwise been during the first part of this episode.

And yes even with all the fear and nervousness that I’ve pointed out, I do think there was a sense of security in the possibility that he could appease Crim in the end. Now Crim is telling him in no uncertain terms that he will kill them all if he doesn’t get what he wants. 

He knows this isn’t an empty threat. Those who suffer abuse at the hands of their family know the difference between warnings and promises.

I don’t think I really need to go over this scene. Moxxie is disgusted as he should be.

But this whole circus clown of a come on, definitely leaves him worse off once Chaz is ejected. The terrible price he has to pay to protect his loved ones has been thrust into his face, as it were, immediately, giving him no time to process first. 

Once he does get some time alone to think about his situation, he has something of a breakthrough. I really appreciate the growl in this scene because I don’t think we very often hear Moxxie growl. We usually get hisses from him instead it seems. And I think it helps portray the depth of his anger over what his father is demanding of him.

As far as Moxxie knows, his father has promised that all he has to do is marry Chaz. He wasn’t told he had to stay. So it would be easy to just comply and leave. That’s the safe route. But doing so would, presumably, violate vows he’s made to Millie. It would compromise the integrity of his relationship with and devotion to her.

This is important enough to Moxxie to fight for. Scrolling through his pictures of Millie not only made this clear to him, but I think it also helped to remind him that he left once before. He can leave again. He doesn’t have to be pulled back into the life that he worked so hard to escape. He doesn’t have to compromise what he wants from life to appease his abuser anymore. 

This is a very brief moment but it’s also a very important and powerful one if you know what you’re looking at. It’s so, so easy for abusive family to cause regression when they manage to wiggle back into your life for one reason or another. Family reunions, funerals, weddings. They will take those moments to grab you by the ankles and start pulling you under again. 

And that’s when the consequences and stakes aren’t even this high. But Moxxie won’t let himself be dragged back down and I really appreciate they gave him that moment no matter how brief. 

And even though they don’t go through his thought process for you to see that, you hear it in his speech the next day when he stands up to his father. I honestly appreciate that Moxxie threatens Crim the way he does here. It not only shows he’s regained confidence in himself and his skills, but he’s also speaking Crim’s language now. He’s putting himself on equal footing with him, insinuating he’s as much of a threat as Crim is to Moxxie.

I’ve seen a lot of criticism of this moment: that having Moxxie zapped and forced into the wedding regardless makes his standing up to his father fall flat. And I would agree with that a little but for the fact that there’s still time to bring that confrontation back around to completion. As season two and Helluva Boss as a show is still ongoing, there are plenty of episodes left for Moxxie to follow through with his threats and support this breakthrough with actions. Crim is clearly coming back, after all.

I also think, however, that having that moment at all is still very important to character development. Simply because there was no physicality to back it up, doesn’t mean the emotional journey that led to it was entirely worthless. Moxxie still had very important character development here. When he left the first time, he simply disappeared and did not confront his father. But now he has. And that makes a big difference. 

When he returns to his life, it’ll be with a different mindset and a different kind of confidence. He’s no longer running from his father, hiding from his duties, or obscuring parts of himself from his loved ones. He’s truly stood up and taken his life fully into his hands. And now there are parts of himself he can share with Millie that he couldn’t before. This can only bring them closer and make their marriage more intimate.

In the same way, he now has a point of connection with Blitz over their daddy issues, which brings them closer to fulfilling that true friendship Truth Seekers hinted at. One step at a time, Moxxie and Blitz come closer to understanding one another.  

All in all, I loved this episode. It does a good job of handling the subject of abuse and associated tragic backstory without sensationalizing or downplaying it, both of which are extremely easy to do in a comedy-drama mash-up. But I personally feel like they managed to hit the sweet spot between the two.

[marvelmusing]

Keep Your Judgement

Chapter Four

Pairing: Aleksander Morozova x Fem!Reader

Summary: During a walk around the Sanctuary, you share some theories with the General, and a familiar face makes an appearance.

Warnings: mentions of canon level violence, minor spoilers for season two.

My Masterlist • Series Masterlist

“Well, that was pathetic.”

Huffing a sigh, you stare at the tiny scratch on the bark of the tree directly in front of you, then you glance over at Fruzsi. She raises a brow wryly at you as the corner of your mouth twitches as you say,

“Once we get back to the Little Palace, I hope you consider becoming a teacher. With an attitude like that you’d be a good replacement for Baghra.”

She scoffs a laugh.

“Thanks.” The questioning tone of her voice makes you laugh as you shake your head at her.

“That wasn’t a compliment.”

Whilst David and Vladim are both content to work for hours at a time, you find your thoughts to be most productive during a walk in the fresh air. Which is how you had ended up attempting the Cut on a tree after talking with Fruzsi about whether it is something only a summoner can do. She thinks it is, while you theorise that any Grisha should have the ability, it’s only a case of directing your power in the right way.

She had given you some pointers, explaining how she summoned her power, which you will admit helped a little, but you could barely compare your attempts to the feats you had seen the General accomplish with his power.

As if your thoughts of him had drawn him closer, you spot the General making his way through the trees, shrouded in the mist that Fruzsi and her fellow tidemakers have been maintaining to keep the Sanctuary hidden from your enemies.

He nods at the two of you, saying your names in greeting. To Fruzsi’s credit, she doesn’t bow this time when he addresses her. Plenty of the Grisha considered the General a saint-like figure after his return from the Fold and supposed death.

“Might I discuss something with you, sir?” you ask him.

He regards you for a moment, assessing you once again, before he nods slowly.

“Of course.”

He gestures in the direction he had been walking, his palm open to the skies, and you step over a large stone to join him.

As the bottom of your boot meets dew covered moss, your balance shifts and you skid slightly. Half over the rock, you stumble forwards, landing against a firm chest as the General steps closer. His arm wraps itself securely around your body, keeping you pressed steadily into him.

“Careful now.” His voice is low, an indecipherable edge to his tone. His dark eyes betray nothing of his thoughts, but your cheeks warm at the thought of him scolding you.

Swallowing hard, you shift you gaze quickly away from his lips, unaware that your gaze had fixated there.

“Thank you,” you whisper.

Once you’re steady on your two feet, he withdraws from your space, and the two of you begin to walk through the woodland that surrounds the Sanctuary.

Around you, tidemakers maintain the mist and plenty of stray Grisha make their way towards the building to seek refuge from the persecution that continues throughout Ravka.

The General is the first to break the silence between you.

“How goes your search for the fox?”

After he had mentioned the fox that lives in the nearby woods, a potential amplifier for you to claim, you had read up on both amplifiers and the story of the Too Clever Fox. Even foxes themselves had become an element of your studying, to the point in which you’ve even been dreaming of the fox.

“There’s a few burrows I’ve been investigating, and I think I’m getting closer.”

Almost every day, you journeyed to the north, finding tracks, and scouting over hunting trails. Like the General, you also believe that a fox lived in the woodland, unlike any other.

He hums thoughtfully, and you glance at him before you add,

“But that’s not what I wanted to discuss.”

He meets your gaze, lifting a brow at you.

“Oh?”

“I have a theory, about how to improve your condition.”

At that, he halts in his steps, forcing you to face him directly. He inclines his head, a silent invitation for you to continue.

“Vladim seems to think the only thing that can counter merzost is more merzost.”

As always, he studies both your words and your expression, reading through them to find what you truly mean, nestled underneath.

“You don’t agree with him.”

Looking away, you share your concerns with him.

“I believe that more merzost will only make your symptoms worse. To increase your suffering for the sake of studying merzost would be too much of a risk, with no guarantee of us finding anything helpful.”

He’s silent, a curious glimmer in his eyes as he studies you, and you begin to fear that you’ve overstepped in some way. Then his expression smoothens into something neutral, but not cold.

“What is your theory?” he asks.

“Merzost is drawn directly from the making at the heart of the world – it requires balance. I think you need something equal but opposite in power, to counteract the effect of merzost.”

“Opposite,” he repeats distantly.

Nerves fill you, watching his face carefully as you say your next words.

“The sun summoner.”

He straightens, dark eyes losing whatever distance had clouded them previously. Now he stares sharply as he looks down at you.

“I beg your pardon?”

Despite the shift in his temperament, you persist in your explanation.

“There already exists a link between you both, strengthening it might allow you to draw on her power to balance the merzost. But it would require physical proximity.”

He nods, shoulders rigid with tension.

Yesterday, scouts posted near Kribirsk had brought reports of a huge light event inside the Fold. Alina Starkov had survived. From an unnamed source, the General had discovered that she has claimed another amplifier. The sea whip.

Combining two amplifiers was unheard of, a contradiction to everything you know about the limits of Grisha power.

The General hadn’t told any of you about what happened in the Fold, and whilst you had heard rumours of the Fold expanding to destroy half of Novokribirsk, you have no idea what occurred between the General and the sun summoner.

When the General had asked you and David about the possibility of him being able to sense Alina through their connection – the one created by the stag amplifier – you had noticed how his voice had softened when he said her name.

Only a month ago, you had seen the two of them at the Winter Fete, the stoic General smiling gently at her as he held out a bunch of beautiful blue irises. The look shared between them, as she accepted his arm, is playing over in your head as you stare at him now.

At the news of her survival, you thought he would be relieved, perhaps even overjoyed. But instead, he had carried on as usual, organising your forces to free more Grisha from prison camps. There has been no word of seeking the sun summoner from him.

There aren’t many places she could go, after all the Little Palace had been raided and surely she wouldn’t side with the monarchy. Not after they had turned on Grisha so quickly.

“I shall take your suggestions into account,” he says, appearing rather lost in thought. His brows are drawn together, pinching the skin of his forehead where one of the dark scars traces through his skin.

When you nod in acknowledgement his attention snaps back to you, as the movement of your head appears to have pulled him away from his thoughts.

Holding his gaze, you scramble to come up with some sort of response. Instead, you settle on changing the subject. Looking away quickly, you take a step back, continuing your walk around the grounds.

“I have a theory about my amplifier. Once I have it, of course.”

As you spin lightly on your heels to see if the General is following, you catch a glimpse of an adorable mixture of confusion and amusement crinkle at his features.

Then he lifts a brow at you, falling into step by your side.

“Do tell.”

“Some of the books I brought from the Little Palace spoke of how gaining an amplifier was originally considered an exchange of power, between amplifier and amplified.”

He nods.

“Ideas about Grisha power have changed dramatically over the years.”

Over the last week, Baghra has been held captive in the cell that sits by the windows in your workshop. Luckily your desk is rather tucked away, giving you some distance from the old woman’s scornful eyes and snide comments. But you cannot help overhearing the conversations between her and the General – her son.

It's no surprise to you anymore that he is far older than any of you had previously believed. It had taken you a day of contemplation to realise and accept that he is the Black Heretic.

He had created the Fold, but you don’t know why.

Perhaps it had been a mistake. Perhaps he had been curious about merzost and wanted to experiment like Morozova. Perhaps he had wanted to create something for the otkazat’sya to fear – a tangible and undeniable proof that Grisha are powerful.

Without the skills of a heartrender, you have no idea if he was being genuine when he pleaded for his mother to help him, to not turn away from him as he tried to protect his people.

All these years, he has used his power to build a safe place for Grisha, when he could have walked straight into the throne room and killed the king where he sat.

If the General had wanted the throne for himself you fully believe he would have claimed it centuries ago.

“A lot of the books mention becoming one with the amplifier,” you tell him. “Plenty of our folktales feature animals with human traits or saints who are also animals.”

Once again, he reads between your words, deciphering exactly what you are leading up to.

“You believe you could merge form with the fox.”

He doesn’t sound doubtful, but the questioning tone in his voice makes you worry.

“It’s just a theory,” you add hastily. After a few glances at his frown, you stare down at the grass beneath you dejectedly. “You don’t think it’s possible.”  

He shakes his head.

“It’s not that.” He hesitates for a moment, and you wait for him to continue. His next words are slow and calculated carefully. “Perhaps the risk of attempting it would not be worth the consequences, should it not work how you anticipate.”

There’s something familiar about what he’s saying. Then you realise it’s a near mirror of your sentiments regarding the use of merzost to alleviate his pain from creating the nichevo’ya.

But you aren’t as valuable as the General. Why does he care about the consequences of you being stuck as a fox for the rest of your life or turned into some frightful half-fox creature?

He catches your eyes once again, but you have no idea how to ask him to explain himself.

Then movement in the corner of your vision captures your attention.

Another Grisha, looking worn and beaten down in ordinary civilian clothing as they make their way to the Sanctuary for the hope of some safety.

The man is tall and seems familiar. It’s only once your eyes focus properly on his face that you take a hesitant step forward.

“Feyda,” you whisper. Then louder, “Fedoyr!”

Hurrying towards him through the trees, you see the moment he recognises you and begins to move quickly in your direction. The two of you barrel into one another, his arms wrapping tight around your body as you cling frantically onto his clothing.

From the very beginning, Fedoyr has been by your side. Before the testers had discovered your power, you had been living in Os Kervo, while Fedoyr’s family lived in one of the smaller villages just before Novokribirsk.

Almost as soon as Fedoyr joined the small travelling party you were a part of, on the way to the Little Palace, the two of you were friends. The first time you entered the Fold, at only nine years old, was with him by your side.

He is the closest thing you have to a family and both of you are teary eyed as you draw back to look at one another.

“How did you survive?” you ask.

“I stuck to the edge of the Fold, deep enough in to be hidden but close enough to run from the volcra. I decided to come out around a mile away from Kribirsk.”

“I thought you were dead.”

“How did you get out?”

“Managed to unlock my cuffs, freed some of the others at the camp, then the General arrived.”

“Ivan?”

“I haven’t seen him.” Worry twists at your stomach. Ivan is well known as one of the General’s most valued Grisha, if he is still alive he will be in danger. “But he was on the skiff with the General.”

Fedoyr’s expression shutters slightly. All this time spent travelling, you know he will have already run through every possible outcome in his mind, that a reunion with Ivan might never happen.

He keeps his arm around you even as he straightens at the sight of the General approaching. Warmth flushes over your cheeks as you realise you had just practically run away in the midst of a conversation with him.

“Fedoyr. It’s good to see you.”

“General.”

Something heavy hangs between them, questions and answers weighing in their eyes.

“I should go,” you say softly, pulling away from Fedoyr.

The General nods in agreement.

“Fedoyr and I have some matters to discuss.”

Those words have your stomach plummeting, but you nod nonetheless, giving Fedoyr’s arm a reassuring squeeze before you step back towards the house.

The General meets your gaze for the few seconds you have before you have passed him. There’s countless feelings you could use to describe what you find in his eyes – curiosity, sympathy, and something darker, almost possessive.

Shaking yourself, you push the thought of his eyes away and focus back on the work that awaits you in the workshop.

-

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[m-feline]

No way out but his arms- Part 2

Emperor Thrawn x Freader

Part 1, Part 2, Part 3 (TBA)

Tags: suggestion of divorce, treason, bath, deals, mention of children, suggestion of smut, suggestion of breeding.

(I asked @vibratingskull to write the spicy part of this story. The link will be added when it is done. The picture is from @netmors .)

You were not in the best of moods. This evening had been horrible. And at the end of the night, Thrawn still expected you to join him in his chambers. You needed everything possible to calm you down and to make you forget what happened at the banquet.

–

The banquet has been a success so far. The guests, food, and topics of discussion went smoothly without any issues. You didn't even think about spending a night with Emperor Thrawn until someone had to say something stupid.

“Your majesty, Good evening to you.”

Grand Moff Kothos was one of those disgusting people you had to endure on the political side of the government. He was one of the few remnants of the government from the time of the previous Emperor. But he was also one who indulged in the rumors that Thrawn had warned you about.

“Moff Kothos,” You greeted the man stiffly. The evening was almost over except for a small get-together with a glass of something bubbly. One more hour and you had to go and ask Thrawn to take you away. But then again if you do it in front of this man, you kill the rumors right there.

“I understand, there will be a new meeting next week,” Kothos said. Kicking the bush as always, he wanted something and you knew it. What you wanted was to remove this man from his position and give it to someone more deserving. You could do it, but without a reasonable excuse, you would be no better than other Moffs, Senators, or even the previous Emperor, in abusing your power. You didn't want to become that. If you had to be the Empress you would be someone who follows the laws and improves all lives of the Empire's people. Which was easier said than done.

“Yes, the meeting will be held without any changes,” You said with a neutral tone.

“I was wondering what topics would be discussed during that meeting,” Kothos said. You didn't miss the glint in his eyes. He was clearly wanting something.

“Then I wish to add another topic,” Kothos said. “There has been some talk about the union of someone important, and that their union is not working.” He thought he was subtle but he wasn't. He used to be good with words but now it seems the age reached him sooner than expected.

“Both are important figures, but me and a couple other Moff's have come to the conclusion that we can discard one if necessary,” Kothos said, and you felt how your stomach went hard. “As much as both of them have improved the current government, we believe a separation is recommended and maybe even welcomed.”

“A divorce, you say,” You say a bit coldly. If it were that easy you would have done it already. At the latest after your brother died.

“In time for that too,” Kothos said. “But we can't have the innocent party suffer and be left all alone. So maybe it would be best to introduce a new partner to the said party.”

That thought never occurred to you, if Thrawn has a lover, he could leave you be. If you play your cards right he will divorce you and you and your family can be free. But it wasn't that easy. He never made an appearance in the political field, even less appeared with another potential Empress. He was always on a campaign to protect the galaxy from enemies which were discovered not too soon after your wedding. And he has efficiently ended all rebel activities with minimal casualties. Now his main focus was on the outside threat coming from the Unknown Regions and possible alliances from other species from that same space. The Chiss Ascendancy to be precise, his home world. There were talks about a possible pact but nothing sure. But that was one of the reasons Thrawn needed you to handle the political power of the Empire. He would not let you go that easily.

As you didn't agree or disagree with any of his words, Kothos continued.

“Of course, but not just anyone will do. Naturally someone who already has made something for the Empire,” Kothos said. You mentally roll your eyes, of course he already has someone in mind. Someone he has connections with. You begin to wonder who he plans to introduce to Thrawn.

“Tell me, your highness. What do you think of my son?” Kothos asked. You looked at him with wide eyes full of confusion. Why would he ask that? Why would you ever care for his obnoxious son? Kothos had to be either stupid or didn’t care about your opinion as he continued. “My son is well known in the social circles, and he has some merits from the navy, but above all else he is way better partner than a non-human.”

As you realize his intentions, you become angry every minute. How dare he? Your family’s life is on the line. And even if it wasn’t, you would never choose a pompous son of an old Moff. And above all else, even if you were at odds with Thrawn, you would never cheat on him.

“Sure, he only got a rank of a Captain before he ended his service, but I assure you he will be very useful,”Kothos continued. “I will help you get divorced, and transfer the power from the Emperor to you. And when you marry my son I will gladly help you with whatever…”

“You filthy pig!” You shout and slap the man as hard as you could. Kothos had managed to keep the conversation in low tone and no one had paid attention to it. But when you had shouted and slapped the man, everyone turned to look and stopped their conversations. For a long moment everything was silent as people tried to figure what was going on, and Kothos was trying to get over the shock over the rejection and the pain on his cheek. The silence was broken quickly by the sound of steps that made way through the crowd to the scene.

“What is the matter?” Thrawn asked with a cool and calm tone. You turned at him but you were too upset to speak right away. Thrawn came to stand next to you and took your hand, that you used to slap Kothos, and inspected it. “What happened?”

“I…”

“She slapped me,” Kothos said, pointing at you. “I was having a civil conversation and…”

“He wanted me to divorce you for his son,” You said with the conviction you had mastered in the senate.

“No, I…”

“He said that if I marry his son, he’ll help with dethroning you,” you kept talking.

“No, I didn’t …”

“You claim that the Empress lies?” Thrawn asked coldly. The other guests began to murmur as they heard and realized what was going on. Kothos was indeed an old Moff from the regime of the previous Emperor, but for him to dare suggest his son for the Empress to marry, or to claim she lied in front of the current Emperor without proof, was a very poor decision.

“Your highness,” Kothos tried to sound diplomatic. “I believe the Empress misunderstood what I was saying.”

“Then what were you trying to say?” Thrawn asked,

“He spoke how he and other Moffs believe we should divorce, how it would be unfair for the innocent party to lead alone, and then he asked what do I think of his son,” You said.

“That does sound very upsetting,” Thrawn said. “I can’t help but feel offended.”

“Your highness that was not what..,” Kothos tried.

“Whether you didn’t mean to upset the Empress,what you said did indeed cause offense and so the Empress can’t be blamed for striking you,” Thrawn said.

“But, sir…”

“Just because you have served the Empire from the days of the first Emperor, doesn’t mean you can disrespect the Empress,” Thrawn said. The murmuring got more intense as people kept whispering about Kothos.

“Since I have served so long I do have some rights,” Kothos tried to save his face.

“You were offering a plan of conspiracy to me, Moff Kothos,” You said out loud coldly. “What you were doing was speak of treason right before my husband, the Emperor.”

That did the trick to make Kothos go pale. And soon people murmured that his position was now everything else except secure. With a small gesture of hand, Thrawn called the guard and gave the order to arrest Kothos. Kothos tried to say something to save himself but no one listened to him anymore. The whole ordeal had soured your mood, but as the scene was cleared you recalled that you still had to spend a night with Thrawn, as he circled his hand to your shoulder. Even now you had to ask him in front all the guests to end the evening sooner, and make it sound as if you wanted to spend the night with him. As if the previous scene wasn’t enough to end the rumors. but right now you didn’t feel like pretending to be a couple in love. But you wished to leave early that was for sure. So you looked at Thrawn at your side.

“I want to go to my chambers,” You said to him.

“You mean our chambers,” Thrawn said.

“You are jesting,” You said sourly.

“I do not jest,” Thrawn said. “But considering what just happened I let you go early to freshen up before I arrive. No need to beg me to come with you.” You were partly relieved you no longer had to beg for him. But you still needed to spend the night with Thrawn, and you knew how it would be spent.

“Fine,” You said and tried not to grumble.

“I will see you soon then,” Thrawn said.

–

So here you were, soaking in a big tub in the huge bathroom of the Emperor’s suite. You needed it after the fiasco that happened moments ago. Every time you would sleep with Thrawn you would try to mentally prepare yourself. It was for your family. You would slip your thoughts to the past when you first met Thrawn. Back then you had no qualms with the Empire, but you didn't support it either. You didn't know your parents were secretly aiding the Rebel Alliance. So, when you met Thrawn you didn't see him as such a bad person. In fact, you were a bit intrigued by him. He was mysterious yet very polite. Though he didn't understand politics very well, he knew art and culture. Then he began to spend time with you. Your parents were wary of him but they didn't forbid you to see him. When he disappeared you were sad for not seeing him. But when he came back your entire family was surprised and worried. When he came for you they were terrified. But from then on Thrawn did his best to be a decent husband to you and a dignified Emperor. Of course, he couldn't spend time with you all the time due to his duties. But when you were in private and you weren't acting up, he would become the sweetest of lovers you ever knew. That is if he was in a good mood and you had behaved like a good wife. As you sat in the water you prayed he would be like that now as well. Sometimes, you wished he would be a selfish bastard who would take you roughly every night, then you would kill every bit of admiration or fondness toward him, and you could demand a separation legally by claiming to feel unsafe. But no, the only time he has ever forced you was when you acted all bratty at him and threatened to run away. But whenever he suggested you spend a night in his chambers, he would make love to you nice, slow, and possibly all night long. In those times you can't help but fill the room with moans and cries of ecstasy as he brings you to your high.

You sighed as you dip yourself more to the warm waters till only your nose was above the water. You weren't in the mood but you knew that with Thrawn's skills he gets you to that mood. And you hated yourself for that. But he did let you off the hook with the begging. But now surely he expected a docile wife waiting for him to bed.

While you were worrying about your morals and the night's finale, you missed how the door to the bathroom opened and closed as someone came in and walked to the big bathtub.

“Everything alright?” Thrawn asked and made you almost jump out of the tub. You were angry for him scaring you like that but you were also anxious that he wanted to start something right here and now.

“W-why are you here? Can’t you see I'm not ready,” You asked, trying to get some authority to your voice.

“I wished to get a few things done before our night together,” Thrawn said, coming closer. You had hopes that he would keep his distance since he still wore his full attire. “How do you wish to deal with Kothos?”

“What I wish for and what I should do are two separate things,” You sighed. “If I could I would remove him from his post, take away his title, and appoint a new governor for his sector.”

“And why not do it then?” Thrawn asked.

“Because I don't want to abuse my power,” You said a bit louder.

“You are the Empress, if you want something done just order it,” Thrawn said.

“I'm not a tyrant. If something is done it will be done by the law with the council,” You protested.

“I'm sure the council will agree,” Thrawn said, and pulled his hand back to pull out a datacard. “Especially once they see this.”

“What is that?” You asked with suspicion.

“All the evidence of corruption of Kothos and a couple of more Moffs. How you wish to use it will be up to you,” Thrawn said, keeping the datacard between the two of you. When you tried to reach it, he pulled his hand back. You turned and tried again but this time not only did Thrawn pull the card away but he also grabbed your hand with his free hand. You were suddenly out of water and you couldn't decide whether to use your free hand to push him away or to cover yourself the little you could with one hand. “It won't be for free.”

“What do you want?” You knew the answer but dared to ask. He already got you to come this far by threatening your sister, what more could he want?

“I have a proposition for you,” Thrawn said and brought the datacard before your eyes. “You get this, if you listen to it, without interrupting me or acting up.”

“Does it have to do with us sharing the bed?” You asked.

“Very much,” Thrawn said. “And more.”

You felt the chill in your spine. Then again you were standing naked and wet from the warm bath you had a moment ago. But just thinking what he might be about to offer made you worried.

“Y-you just want me to listen?” You asked, confirming his words.

“Yes, only listen, whether you accept my proposition or not will be entirely up to you,” Thrawn said and let go of your hand. “I will leave now and wait for you to finish here. I'll keep the datacard so it won't get damaged from the humidity.”

Once he was gone you sunk to the warmth of the waters again. You had a bad feeling of this. But so far he only asked to listen in exchange for the datacard that could make your work easy. Well, easy for your mind. As he suggested, as the Empress you could simply order to replace Kothos and take all his possessions. But you didn't want to become that. It was one thing for your family to know you married the Emperor, but to hear you take down governors by your whim, you were raised better than that. You could never face yourself. Your morals wouldn't allow it.

You soaked for a moment more in the water before you got out and dried yourself with the soft towels. For one part you were grateful to Thrawn that he rarely allowed servants to his chambers or to his bathroom if it wasn't for cleaning. He preferred to do things himself as much as possible. But for certain occasions he allowed servants to come to aid with clothing like earlier. You were not in the mood to hear any words from the servants, whether they tried to cheer you up or simply make you feel better. You had no nightclothes to put on and since you knew what was before you, you didn't need it. You took a light long satin robe that could be tied from the front. Once you got your hair dried you came out of the bathroom to the master bedroom.

Thrawn had already discarded his attire and waited for you wearing his own robe, while sitting on a lounge chair drinking some wine from a chalice. When you came out he drinked the sight of you with his eyes as he set down the chalice.

“You look beautiful,” He said when you finally got close enough.

“What is it that you wish to speak about?” You asked. Thrawn didn't say anything but moved his finger as a sign to call you to come closer. Knowing him, he surely wanted you to sit on his lap. But you were already bracing yourself and you were mentally prepared to only hear his offer, so instead of his lap you sat next to him on the lounge chair. Thrawn didn’t show any disappointment instead he turned to face you fully before he talked.

“I am tired of using your family as a leverage to get you to behave as my wife, and I'm sure you would be less stressed every time I mention your family,” Thrawn began. You went tense when you heard his words. Was he seriously going to let your family go? It was too good to be true. What was the catch? Thrawn could see your inner turmoil as you were going through possible conspiracy theories inside your head. He smiled as he waited for you to say something. But he had said that if you listen without interrupting you would get the datacard. And you needed that datacard to finally remove the corrupted old Moffs who abused their power. So no, as much as you wanted to ask and know what Thrawn was going to suggest how to keep your family from being hostages against you.

“So, I came up with another option. A life for a life,” Thrawn said. You frowned as you didn't understand what he meant, and Thrawn saw it in your face. “I want you to bear my children.”

“What?”

“You heard me, and you interrupted me,” Thrawn said.

“But…”

“We had an agreement,” Thrawn said. You opened your mouth but didn't say anything as you kept repeating a mantra inside your head. Just listen, just listen, just listen. No need to agree, you don't need to accept it.

“I want you to bear my children. Little heirs of the Empire. We have been married for some time and our union isn't bad, but isn't good either. If we have children I'm sure even you will behave for their sake,” Thrawn explained. You lifted your hand like a child in a school, and you didn't miss the smirk Thrawn had on his face when he gave permission to speak.

“You mean ‘a child’, not children,” You say.

“No, I meant children. Plural,” Thrawn said. “You give me a child and I let go, and never touch again, one of your family members. And last time I checked, you have more than one family member, minus one.” You finally get what he meant. He won't chain you by your family but by your children. He wants you to get pregnant and have his children. The night just got worse.

“Have I made my offer clear?” Thrawn asked.

“You did,” You growled. “If you want heirs can't you just get a concubine like other rules do?”

“No,” Thrawn said, his voice growling and his red eyes blazing. “I want you. Only you. And I want you to bear my children.”

“And if I say no?” You asked angrily.

“Then your family may have to suffer another loss in the future,” Thrawn said, his voice cold. You bit your cheek inside your mouth as you went through his words and what he wanted.

For one part he was going to let your family go. But he was going to chain you with your children. Will you agree to that? Will you be able to love them if they resemble Thrawn? Oh Stars, you hated yourself for even thinking that. How could you abandon your child to him? Wait, how many children did he say again? Can you even have too many?

“How many did you say…?” You asked disheartedly.

“One for each of your family members,” Thrawn said, the coldness was gone from his voice as he knew now that you would soon give in. “And I give you my word, I won't touch or hurt the member you choose. Even if they try to defy me, I would simply lock them up for good. But I won't hurt them.”

You let out a sigh when you heard that. This was a new chain you would accept in order to protect your family. Your first chain was the crown of the Empress, now it would be your children. But you would do your best to look after people living in the galaxy. You just had to come to terms that you were bound to Thrawn. As much as you disliked it. But better him than some power hungry Moff trying to push his son at you. Maybe one day. One day long, long time from now, you might get used to Thrawn, and perhaps let him into your life. But you didn't feel like it today.

“Will you let go of my family when I give birth or when I'm expecting?” You asked, staring at your hands on your lap.

“I let one of them go when you're expecting our first child. For the others, after the delivery,” Thrawn said as he got up from the chair and walked to the huge window of the room.

“Can we skip this night then? It is not my day yet?” You asked, hoping you could get a breather tonight.

“Your auspicious day is tomorrow,” Thrawn said without looking at you. “I checked with the droids for your monthly cycles to be sure. And no, that does not mean we will skip tonight.”

“Why?” You asked dreadfully as you got up from the chair.

“Because my dear, I need to prepare you to take me fully,” Thrawn said as he turned to face you. “We will be occupied for the next five days to successfully get you with a child. And I'm making sure you will be thoroughly satisfied.” You got scared of what he just said and tried to get to the door and get away. But the panel didn't let you get out. Did he lock you inside his room?

“I have instructed the servants to only contact us through datapads if necessary. And most of our schedules are completely liberated to focus on our endeavor to get you pregnant,” Thrawn said, walking away from the window towards you. “Don't worry your assistants know that you will be unable to attend a few meetings and they will make sure that everything will be taken care of.”

“I'm not going to remain locked in the same room with you for five days,” You growled as you still tried to open the door.

“You have no choice, my dear. You are here and you are free to leave after I'm truly finished with you,” Thrawn said, coming right behind you to slip his hands around you. “Now, allow me to make love to you, slowly and tenderly, before I start to breed you in earnest.”

“No,.. why… why?” You asked while you gave up on trying to get the door open, yet you still tried to get out of his grasp.

“Why what, love? Ask properly,” Thrawn said and kissed your neck.

“Why… Why me? Why now?” You cried as you also realized that you couldn't escape him.

“Because I want you. I wanted you from the beginning when we met. I didn't push the issue of children on the wedding night so you could get accustomed to your new life. But now,...” Thrawn said and chuckled. “Well, I'll tell you more tomorrow, now I want to taste you.”

Thrawn untied your robe and left it open from the front while his hands found your chest and began to fondle you. You tried to keep yourself from letting any noise but once one of his hands reached for your sex, it was game over for you.

“I know you enjoy what I give to you,” Thrawn said right next to your ear. “The way you make noises when I use my fingers, my mouth, my cock. Stars, you feel so wet already.”

“It… I… it was…’cause the b-bath,” You tried to keep yourself moaning. But Thrawn knew how to make you scream once he set his mind to it.

“Is that so?” Thrawn asked, and you felt how he was smirking behind you as he brought his fingers to his mouth to have the first taste of your wetness. “And here I thought it arouses you to know that the most powerful man in the galaxy can get to his knees for you.”

He stopped touching you and took a step back. You tried to keep yourself up by leaning against the wall. But soon he made you spin to face him, he lifted you over his shoulder and carried you to bed. After setting you softly to the bed, he removed his robe while looking you up and down.

“Relax and get comfortable on this bed, we'll be spending a lot of time here for a while.”

[umlewis]

lewis hamilton is interviewed after qualifying, japan - april 6, 2024 (transcript under the cut)

Interviewer: "Lewis, your best starting position of the year, your final flat-out laps of Suzuka for Mercedes. You certainly looked like you left it all out there today." Lewis: "I did. I was giving it everything. The team did a really great job this past week, making adjustments to our setup. This is actually the first weekend I've not gone crazy with setup and I'm not testing a bunch of things, so I'm back to a bit more normal and I think we got the car into a much nicer working window. So every lap's been really enjoyable driving. The guys are just [laughs] a little bit faster. I mean, we were a second or just over a second off last year to the Red Bull, and seven-tenths is better. I think maybe if we'd done something a little bit different, maybe we could have been another tenth faster, maybe, but other than that, that was everything. So I think what it's given us is, I know exactly where the car is not strong enough. I can feel it in the car and I know, now, to be able to tell them, like, push in this particular area. But I'm hoping the race will be stronger for us tomorrow, and I've really enjoyed driving so far this weekend." Interviewer: "So does that mean that you and the team have a direction now? A good direction to go with this car and potentially…" Lewis: "I personally believe so, yeah. I mean, what we've noticed is from track to track it's been really, really hard to get the setup right [laughs] and it's been so far out each time, and in some places it's just felt like nothing we could do gets the car in the sweet spot, but this weekend it's much more in a sweet spot, so I hope that continues in the following races, and then we just gotta add performance."

[mbti-notes]

hi! im an entj and i wanted to know if you have any tips on how to be a better student whilst not thinking too much about grades or results. i feel like i place alot of emphasis on grades and results and i think it often hinders me at times. i often have trouble finding more ''meaning'' in my work and i'm not sure how to add more value into it other than achieving a good grade.

Your question is too vague because you haven't specified what level of schooling you're at and what your idea of a "better" student looks like. This "hinders you" how exactly? What is the exact nature or source of your discontent? What exactly are you aiming for? Without this context, it's hard to craft a response.

Did you know that professors in the US are witnessing a "literacy crisis" in their students that has never before been observed in the history of modern education? While there have always been unmotivated and underachieving students, nowadays, an alarming percentage of motivated students are barely able to handle more than ten pages of text at a time (the average assignment used to be 20-30 pages), nor are they able to analyze and comprehend the meaning, themes, or arguments being communicated in the text.

A literacy deficit poses a serious threat not just to the student's individual success, but also to the integrity of higher education and the functioning of society. Colleges have no choice but to "dumb down" their offerings over time. But more importantly, a successful democracy is difficult to sustain without intelligent and literate citizenry making sound judgments about complex social, political, and economic issues.

One obvious factor contributing to this problem is that many students have fallen behind due to the pandemic. Another obvious factor is the smartphone and the major role it has played in decimating people's attention spans. Extended focus and concentration are extremely important for learning, but endless internet scrolling trains the mind to expect rapid change and crave instant gratification. Yes, anyone who genuinely wants to be a good student should care deeply about the factors that hinder/inhibit their learning process. Increasingly, misuse of technology, such as smartphone addiction and excessive reliance on AI, is a major factor that prevents students from reaching their greater potential.

High school and college students are still in the early stages of ego development. Since their self-awareness hasn't had much time to develop, they don't tend to be aware of their own underlying motivations, for example, they will often just do something because it's just what everyone around them does. Additionally, heavy social media consumption at this stage of life leads them to believe that "success" is just for show or about obtaining likes/praise.

This brings us to the main factor to consider, which is that students are increasingly trained to be motivated by extrinsic rewards. For example, in the US, school funding is often tied to exam scores, so teachers have been forced to focus more and more on teaching only to exams, in order to secure funding. Higher education has also become much more competitive, which means excellent grades are essential for securing a seat in university.

While there is nothing wrong with extrinsic motivation per se, there is something wrong when a person is only motivated by extrinsic rewards, to the point where they are completely ignorant/neglectful of intrinsic rewards. The research strongly suggests: People who are more intrinsically (than extrinsically) motivated tend to be better learners because they assign their own value to learning and understand the inherent virtues of intellect, knowledge, and skill, apart from their real-world applications. The topic of intrinsic motivation comes up often, I suggest you read past posts.

Before you asked me for "tips", did you put in a reasonable effort to inquire into yourself and figure out why you overemphasize extrinsic rewards? Could you come up with the reasons/causes on your own, through self-reflection? It's difficult to find the right solution to a problem when you don't understand its origins. This is an important point because a common symptom of extreme extrinsic motivation is abnormally low self-awareness due to having little to no inner life. How's your inner life?

With regard to type development, people who are very extrinsically motivated tend to a) be too easily influenced by environmental factors, and b) lack introverted development. The answer to your question already lies within you, specifically, in the state of development of your introverted Ni and Fi functions:

1) Extrinsically motivated people tend to believe that their life lacks meaning because the world lacks meaning. What they don't realize is that meaning starts from within, so the actual problem is that they aren't able to generate enough meaning on their own.

Ni is a key function for constructing meaning, usually through patiently exploring context and connections to a bigger picture (of life as a whole and/or the world at large). As such, lack of Ni development commonly manifests as:

dislike of ambiguity (due to preferring clear categorical answers)

impatience for complexity (due to wanting easy answers)

superficiality (due to not going beyond the known/obvious)

lack of vision (due to overemphasis on rapid results)

Since you didn't provide any details about function development, I can't speak to how much you struggle with the above issues. The only thing I can say is that all of them are detrimental to learning. Clarify your aim: Do you want to be a good student in school or a good learner in life? Do you know the difference? It is the difference between lower order versus higher order learning, which I have already explained in previous posts.

A good student wants to know the final answer. A lifelong learner uses ambiguity as an opportunity to explore more nuanced truth.

A good student can handle some challenges but stops at the most difficult point. A lifelong learner takes the initiative to unravel complexity and eventually encounters profound wisdom.

A good student reads the book all the way through. A lifelong learner is intellectually curious, which leads them to discover new realms of knowledge far beyond the book.

A good student follows instructions and is reasonably competent as a result. A lifelong learner sees the greater potential of the field as a whole and gradually becomes an expert as they attempt to realize that potential.

If a certain activity or subject matter doesn't hold any meaning for you, is it because it's boring, or is it because you haven't really given it a proper look? This isn't to say that you have to be an expert on everything; it is only to say that you won't be able to truly appreciate something until you dig deeper into it and actively nurture appreciation for it. This brings us to the second point...

2) Extrinsically motivated TJs tend to believe that "utility" is the only measure of value. What they don't realize is that value is inherent to existence, so the actual problem is an inability to recognize value.

Fi is a key function for assigning value, usually through forming uniquely personal and intensely emotional attachments. As such, lack of Fi development often manifests as:

taking things for granted (due to not honoring their value)

dismissive attitude (due to lack of emotional attachments)

passionless existence (due to fear of emotional intensity)

Again, I can't speak to how much you struggle with the above issues. I can only inform you that they also tend to be quite detrimental to learning:

Human beings need to stay fed and sheltered in order to survive, but they also need activities that affirm their humanity and enrich their life. What happens to learning if your only concern is securing a comfortable material life?

Human beings learn best through feeling deeply moved and inspired by the best of what humanity has to offer. What happens to learning if you remove the human component of knowledge and only treat it as "data", just another object for your consumption and disposal?

Human beings discover themselves and express themselves through their varied interests, which is how every subject comes to have its fans, devotees, and experts. What happens to learning if you refuse to take an interest, downplay enthusiasm, and temper or repress passion?

If a certain activity or subject matter doesn't hold any value for you, is it because it is "worthless", or because you are blind to its value? This isn't to say that you must love everything; it is only to say that you won't be able to know yourself truly and feel energized about learning as long as you have a habit of dismissing every aspect of life that isn't immediately or practically "useful" to you.

Having intrinsic motivation basically means you generate your own personal reasons for learning. Nobody can force you to care or take an interest. Becoming an adult means you have to be the one to realize the virtues of going above and beyond whatever is required to ace exams. It may all sound very abstract, but this makes the difference in determining whether you will end up being just another cog in the machine of society or whether your life will always feel imbued with a greater sense of meaning.

[oh-my-damn]

I personally don’t care who chris dates, I’ve been here since minka but he’s been so strange and boring lately. So I’ve moved on to other people to pay attention to. I mean chris pine has such a good attitude and personality. Chris evans just…repeats himself over and over and tries too hard to be seen as this “deep and intelligent” man when he’s pretty average and shallow.

LISTEN

I don't care how much potential hate I might get for this, SO....

I will say it and if you want, I am okay with yelling it from the rooftops, because it do be the truth

Chris Evans? He is not deep and intelligent.

Anyone who has ever known someone who is actually deep and intelligent (or who might even be so, themselves) knows that.

It is all an act.

I have been preaching this for what seems like forever, but I want to keep making this point, over and over.

The Chris Evans we think we know is not the actual person that is Christopher Robert Evans.

So so much of his public persona is fabricated for the masses. For fans. For PR. For likability.

And it's become very very obvious in the past few months.

And now you might say; well, that just goes for a few parts of him.

But here's the thing; it doesn't.

Because if he could do this, then what couldn't he do? Some of what he's showed us might be real, but some of it might also be fabricated.

And with everything that's happened, I'm leaning towards the latter. And it is a lot easier to just assume that 99% of what we know about this man is fabricated.

Because nothing adds up anymore. None of the persona we loved or supported is there right now. And it's a lot easier to just accept that and say "Okay, well, he was probably never the person we thought he was."

Because why would he be?

I find it a lot more believable that he was portraying a character (he is an actor, after all) rather than that he was baring his soul to millions of people and has now done a 180 and completely changed as a person.

Darkness always lurked underneath the surface.

But the muscles, the jawline, the cheekbones, the wigs, the spraytans, the nosejobs, the CGI, the fucking dickpic, just kept us distracted you guys.

It kept us distracted. And we ate that shit up.

But now it's time to put that god damn fork down and look at what we're really eating. And realize that the meal we're being served?

Is fucking BULLSHIT.

[thatgirl4815]

hey! saw you were wondering/theorizing that San might have recognized Ray at the bar. do you think San could have a crush on Ray? i also feel like there's more going on than we know yet

Hi! Ultimately, I think there are 2 likely possibilities for why Sand reacted the way he did when he saw Ray passed out by the toilet...

1) Sand sees someone passed out drunk--who he has likely seen around the bar multiple times, considering Ray and co. seem to be frequenters--and is reminded of something from his past. I mentioned in another post that it could have something to do with someone close to him who was an alcoholic. Personally, my bets are on his father given his immediate reaction to Ray’s “Are you my father?” which, while I’m talking, could say something about Ray as well. It seems a bit telling that Ray's drunk reaction to Sand giving him a hard time is to think about how a father (likely his father) would react to him in this state (...or it means nothing and I am once again reading too far into things).

Anyways.

I'm less inclined to believe this first option given that Sand only really reacts to Ray after he looks up. This implies that it could be less about Ray being drunk by the toilet and more about who Ray actually is. (Regarding your theory that Sand has developed a crush on Ray, I don't necessarily think this is the case. I wouldn't completely rule it out, but Sand's expression has a layer of exasperation in it that doesn't quite fit.)

This brings me to theory #2.

2) Sand recognizes Ray from around the bar; he could also be familiar with Ray's wealth. I wonder if this look of recognition/exasperation is because Sand knows the family Ray comes from. Assuming Ray's father plays a big role in why he is the way he is (drinking-wise), would it be a stretch to say that Ray's family's influence has had an impact on Sand as well? Maybe Sand was screwed over somehow as a result of this family. It might not be quite so direct--perhaps Sand was not personally screwed, but he recognizes Ray as someone with privileges that he lacks. His animosity is understandable; Ray is swimming in cash, but what is he using it for? Partying every night and getting way too drunk. Sand understands the division that has been made for us, the audience: Sand is poor, Ray is rich, and that social separation is already a substantial barrier in their relationship. Add Ray's drinking problem into the mix, and there is clearly a lot of conflict to work through.

As I said before, I'm more inclined to think that Sand knows who Ray is--more specifically, he knows Ray's reputation. If anything, this pre-existing negativity towards Ray only serves to illustrate how selfless Sand is. Yes, there is the argument that if Sand didn't help Ray, he would've attempted to drive home by himself and potentially injured others in the process. But I don't think I need to expand on all the ways that Sand treats Ray much better than he probably deserves.

Sorry, this got really long-winded and strayed off topic a bit. I have too many thoughts about where this dynamic might go haha.

[akiyamastar]

Okay, here we go. Lingering thoughts I had about the Hands of Time season, and a character analysis of Nya and Kai Smith that accidentally happened in the process.

I was excited to watch season 7, considering Kai and Nya's backstories could potentially be brought to light, and they're my top two favorites. I was speculating on what we'd see in the season. Perhaps we'd see how the two managed on their own. We'd learn the truth behind their parents' backstories, where they've been, and their potential stance in the war 40 years ago with the Time Twins.

Nonetheless, while the season does introduce these elements, it doesn't dive deep enough with them. In a previous post, I talked about how they could have made the war more nuanced in nature so the Time Twins would have a better motive, leading to others having a reason for helping the "bad side" (hence, their parents being "traitors" for a good reason). It would've been an intriguing concept.

The tension in the scene when Kai confronts Ray was really good and one of my favorite parts of the season: it could've continued a running idea of conflict between the weight of what one believes in versus carrying on the legacy of one's parents.

However, the "traitor" concept was immediately thrown out over the course of a few minutes, which I found disappointing due to the suspense and build-up throughout the course of the entire season.

It left me wondering what the point of setting up such a plot point was. However, I do understand them not wanting to add too much complexity and simply making it a misunderstanding.

What bothered me more about the season was not this, though, but the lack of exploration of the impact of their parents not being there on Nya and Kai.

If you think about it more. The fact that Kai had to raise Nya alone is fucked, for lack of better words. They confirm they're teenagers in season 8, so they were extremely young when having to take care of the blacksmith shop and live on their own, and the two Smiths are close in age. The idea of Kai easily letting all this go without any confrontation, even if he's now realized that his parents were forced into blacksmithing for the enemy, feels uncharacteristic of him: they were never there when their two children needed them most. I was wondering why that emotion wasn't explored more in Hands of Time. 

It is true that it's not their parents' fault that they could not support them -- they were threatened and forced to work for the Time Twins at the risk of their children being endangered. However, this doesn't negate the fact that they had to manage everything alone at an abnormally young age.

Additionally, while Nya is more cool-headed than her brother, she still has the same sense of frustration toward similar things, even if she tries to dial it back. The whole thing with Samurai X was bothering her during the season, leading to her being more distracted by that. Still, she does have a tendency to enjoy picking things apart, and I feel like she would normally have been invested in figuring out the logo on the helmet. She’s also someone who has strong beliefs, and I honestly thought she’d react more too, just like Kai did.

In general, I can’t imagine the two siblings not feeling inwardly torn about how they feel seeing their parents again after so long, even when confirming they’re not traitors, considering the psychological effects of being estranged from them for so long.

From how long they were on their own, it’s also no wonder the two siblings have developed the same tendency to be hard on themselves, wanting nothing more than to be strong and self-reliant. Consequently, they’ve developed an abnormal vigor toward self-improvement.

For Kai, this is expressed more outwardly with his anger towards not being "powerful" or "good enough". There's also his stubbornness in wanting to be the “chosen one”, although this is more present in earlier seasons when the green ninja was undecided. While he's gotten better, this internalized envy does come back to bite him. In current seasons, Kai’s main issue stems from his powers making him either feel too confident or not confident at all. When he doesn’t have his elemental powers, he falls into a slump and is worried about being weak.

For Nya, her need for strength is somewhat expressed more inwardly, with her wanting to build up her strength and not rely on anyone. This is shown by her reluctance to let Jay into her heart due to the fear of being undermined, the way she secretly builds up Samurai X’s persona and trains on her own, and generally her hesitance in being part of the ninja versus standing confidently alone, preferring to be independent. Especially considering she was once kidnapped by Garmadon, I bet that event was traumatizing for her and may have made her feel that she can’t afford to be a “liability” ever again. She does try to act more rational than Kai, but it's clear that she has the same impulsive, "I need to be strong" nature.

I was expecting more feelings of inner turmoil towards seeing their parents again, and maybe even anger, because where had they been all their lives? Why weren't they present as parental figures to the point that they didn't even know if they were alive or not? I did want to see the emotional clash drawn out better.

In the end, I also felt that we're still left with many unanswered questions that make the Nya and Kai focus season, which could've had a lot of potential, appear weaker when addressing the core elements of their backstory.

I love both of them a lot and I enjoyed the season regardless. Even then, the topic of their parents does make me speculate about the details of their childhood, and the lasting effects their separation had on the two siblings, only having each other as family.

[enden-agolor]

Hey enden! I just wanted to reach out as I know these are hard times for you. I’ve been wanting to say something and give you some support, but I have never known what to say, so I’m just gonna wing it.

First off, I would like to preface by saying you are an incredibly humble artist and writer. You carry great talent, yet you seem to almost expect people to not notice that. Never forget your talent, and that even something you spill out at 2am will most definitely be praised. You inspire me to create, I have been in a art and writing slump for so long. I got caught up in life and lost the love for it. You’ve lit that spark in me once more and want to get me creating, and most definitely writing, in honor of you!! That’s amazing man. You have some real special talent, and the mcsm fandom alongside others are seriously so so lucky to have you.

Second, I send nothing but love and support to you and your boyfriend. I know everything will work out just as you guys need it to. If she doesn’t get her karma legally, she most definitely will another way. I know you guys are so strong and will pull through with flying colors!! Death of a loved one is never ever easy, and the worst always happens to the best people. Know that none of what happened is your fault, don’t let guilt consume you, and both of you take care of and love yourselves. You guys seriously deserve it.

Lastly, on a less dreary note, I would like to ask if you had any fan fiction prompts for Jesskas? I want to write so bad, but I cannot come up with a proper idea that is really interesting and solid, yanno? I want to write something long, that I can really pour my heart out into. So if you had any tips or story prompts, it would seriously be appreciated, and you of course would get a huge shoutout, as you would with or without helping me since you are such a huge inspiration to me.

Best of wishes Enden!!

This may be a long response, so here-

First off, I suppose you are right when you say I don't really expect people to enjoy the content I create. It's not an easy concept for me to grasp. I have a lot of trouble seeing how people can like my stuff so much, or god even say I'm their favorite mcsm artist when there's so many others out there that carry so much more skill with colors and backgrounds and such. I know I'm not supposed to compare myself to others, but it is an incredibly hard habit to end. It's why I'm so shocked when I see actual fanart of my aus, or god even my writing. I cannot go back and read me own works for the life of me because I just cringe so bad at it, so when people say it's good I really just have to trust them and believe it.

All I could ever dream to do is inspire people to create and grow with their own imagination, so hearing that my stuff has done that sort of thing for you (and others who have told me the same) it brings me so much joy, but it truly is entirely hard to believe that it's me and not someone else being the one to do that. I don't know, but I am very honored to hear this from you. It only inspires me to push myself further and I don't know. Maybe some day I can push my imposter syndrome aside and really get a firm grasp on my full potential and be proud of it.

And thank you for the love and support towards our situation... As the days go by I fear more and more that that woman will get to keep her dog and nothing will come out of this other than we just have to move past it. So I hope you're right when you say she'll get her karma some other way. I've never in my life wished something bad to happen to someone. Not like this... So if karma does catch her, let it be as devastating to her as it was to us.

Now, real life shenanigans aside, we can get to the jesskas stuff 😏

For fanfic prompts, I always suggest exploring canon before getting into anything truly ambitious. If there's a certain scene in the game you'd like to further explore and add on to- do it! Like I've always wanted to write a fic that gets into a deep emotional moment between Jesse and Lukas after Jesse rescues Lukas and Petra from the Nether during episode 8 and they all enter the player dorms for the night. Just those off screen moments where you can take the characters and add more to the story is easy and fun in itself. I always like to look deep into the emotional aspect of it all, and really dive into how the characters might be feeling after a situation and how that gentle moment alone together could bring them closer. What I already mentioned being a good example because it's directly after PAMA, Jesse having to watch Lukas and Petra(or Ivor) die, and so on. There's a LOT of feelings to explore there. If that's something you'd want to try and tackle, go for it!! But if there's another scene from the game that really sticks out to you that you feel could be so much more, go for that too. It's good to start small and practice how you want to write the characters. Only reason I started a huge fic like Recovery straight away was because I'd been rping jesskas for like a year and a half already and was confident I knew how to write the characters and I wanted to do more for the little community by writing a nice big fic.

And again, it's Minecraft. There's a whole world to explore and put these two right in the middle of it. Think up certain scenarios you like and add on to it! Like if there's a certain scene you really want to do, build to it. Give the characters a goal and put obstacles in the way so you can really flesh them out on the way to that goal. What made them want to go there? How do they get there? What do they do when they get there? How do they communicate with others that might also be there? And how differently do they treat eachother compared to how they treat the others? Those are all things you really want to know ahead of time. Also pay attention to the scenery. Really look into the visuals your mind creates and do your best to get into the details about it all. There's a lot to get into with writing, and the best part about it is you're in complete control, so go crazy with your imagination, especially since it's Minecraft. It could be entirely self indulgent, or even something out of your comfort zone. No matter what it is, it's still growth and it's still progress to being a better writer. Just make sure you're having fun.

Also, thanks for taking the time to send this ask. I appreciate you 🩷

[warwickroyals]

🖋️AUTHOR'S NOTES

READ THE POST + RELEVANT STORY POSTS: PHILLIP

For the first time, we're seeing how Phillip and Jean's relationship is being received by the royal family: Not Well. Phillip had the good sense to prevent Jean from becoming mixed up with the royal family because they correctly predicted that they wouldn't approve of her. We the readers know the positive impact Jean has had on Phillip's life, but the rest of his family are unaware of that and have jumped to many conclusions just based on their prejudices. There's some dialogue spoken by Princess Mary (Louis's cousin) that I cut because it was pretty on the nose, but it involved Mary caring more about Jean's well-publicized thirst traps rather than her being Asian. "I didn't even know she was Asian until the media reported on it," Mary says, an assertion so laughable that even Shelby is confused by it. I cut these lines out because, on top of being blatant, they add nothing. The lines that really matter aren't part of an unhinged sexist rant. In particular, it's this line right here:

"Not everyone is meant to be a princess."

Yes, that's true not everyone is meant to be a princess, and it's the exclusivity that causes these toxic beliefs to come out. In order to become a princess all Jean would have to do is marry Phillip, nothing about her character would prevent her from that rank. However, those already within the system have a lot today about her character regardless. It's almost as if royalty is an inequitable system at its core and those with power will do anything to maintain that inequity so as to keep themselves superior.

This calls to Shelby in particular who, unlike the old blood princesses, has no coherent reason that explains her dislike of Jean. Jean is both uninteresting enough for her to not warrant any media attention, but at the same time is a homewrecking monster destroying the royal family and preventing Phillip from being a good father. It makes no fucking sense.

Below is a screenshot I really wish I could have included, but it's still canon. Shelby's lack of compassion hasn't had an effect on Imogen, it seems. While Shelby seeks to exclude outsiders, here's her six-year-old daughter openly spending time with Margaux, an outsider from birth, blissfully unaware of her mother's illogical prejudice.

READ THE POST + RELEVANT STORY POSTS: NICHOLAS, SCHUYLER, SCHUYLER II

I've stated before that I want to get into the power behind the crown: the palace staff. The staff are the people who really get things done within the royal family. They control how the media reports on the family, government affairs, and liaise with external stakeholders and potential business partners. Obviously, this comes with a lot of power, but on top of this, certain members of staff are not above manipulating their relationships with their bosses in order to get what they want.

Enter Jennifer Ware, Nicholas's shrewd communications secretary. Jennifer and Nicholas have a shared interest in the sense that they're not all that fond of Alex. Both believe he's a huge liability that compromises the monarchy's image. Here we're seeing them work together to control the narrative surrounding Alex. Nicholas relies on Jennifer to get his side of the story out in the press, and Jennifer is happy to oblige as if it further alienates Alex from the main fold.

However, I think there are some underlying tensions there. Nicholas has previously rejected offers to brief the press about family members, mainly Louis, in the past. With Alex however, Nicholas seems to throw away all his standards and seems almost guilty as a result. He insults the quality of the article and states several times that no one will believe it. Jennifer's the one who has to twist his arm a little to insure him "Truth is subjective".

Translation? "If I push this lie hard enough, people will believe it regardless." And, boy, is Jen pushing this story. We're introduced to Nasty Women a talk show meant be a spoof of The View and L0ose Women. Here we see one of the hosts, Blainley, parroting Jennifer's spin on things in a far more aggressive manner. Blainley will become a recurring character and she serves as an example of the corruption that flourishes when the media sells out to these huge institutions. The more we see of her, the more galvanized she becomes.

Poor Tatiana, I'd like to imagine she was trying to take her mind off things by watching one of her favourite talk shows during a painful dress fitting (she is Nasty Woman's main demographic, after all). Instead, she's treated to the hosts shit-talking her child. She was probably so preoccupied, she didn't even hear the insults coming from her dressmakers. Palace staff at Chester Palace are a little too comfortable, it seems.

READ THE POST + RELEVANT STORY POSTS: TATIANA, SCHUYLER, TATIANA

Ah, devoted mother Tatiana, how I'm going to love deconstructing your character. We've seen Tatiana's grief be self-sacrificing and, let's be honest, slightly annoying. Now we're actually getting into the negative side-effects of her being so damn lonely all the time: her affair with her private secretary. Suddenly it makes sense as to why Schuyler hasn't resigned from his position. We also get glimpses of Schuyler's personal life, he has a single daughter who 1) lives away from home despite being quite young and 2) doesn't get along with him very much. We also get glimpses into just how close the Schuyler family is with the Danforths:

"Saoirse likes me. I’ve been giving her hand-me-downs since she was fifteen."

There are several reasons that Tatiana is having an affair with Schuyler in particular, most of them emotional, but the main one being more calculating. Schuyler's position allows him a great deal of power and Tatiana's closeness to him allows her to easily sway him into doing things. We see that at the end of this post, she's getting Schuyler to do her dirty work and "handle" the mess that is Alex's personal life. She's very good at it, she calls him "David" (the first time we've heard Sky's given name) and lays it on thick for him without coming off desperate (which, is what most people see her as). That's a pretty big dick move from Tatiana, considering Jennifer explicitly told her not to get involved. Maybe there is a little bit of defiance in her after all? She did promise to help Kamryn out.

Plus, I love the location of NYC (Putting the Empire State Building in the background such a fun little detail). I'd like to imagine that Tatiana and Schuyler don't actually "see" each other that much, but when they do it's never on Sunderlandian soil. Schuyler in particular seems paranoid about the press finding out and why shouldn't he? Between the two he's the married party.

Also, Tatiana genuinely isn't an alcoholic. But she loves her Merlot.

[pinklikeroses]

Lore Olympus 245

Okay I’m gonna do best to try and keep this brief but if you know me—once I get started it’s hard to stop

Here go

First and foremost this episode was pointless… aside from the brief Demeter cameo…it was wasted time.

Second this was yet another “girl boss” moment or was supposed to be….

The amount of hypocrisy and bullying Persephone does,… at this rate she’s a corrupted, bully using her power to pick on those lesser than her. This wasn’t wasn’t a girl boss moment this was embarrassing. Where do I even start?

First off she should’ve confronted Hades about this not Leuce. For a “modern day” interpretation of the gods this was poorly executed and such a sexist stupid move on Persephone’s part. Ppl will often more than not nowadays tell women to confront their parter not the “other woman”

If Leuce and Hades have history, she should’ve talked to her husband, she should’ve asked him questions! How long had he and Leuce been talking? When did they stop? Did they really have a strong connection or did she misread him? Doe’s Leuce understand the boundaries Hades addressed if he addressed any? And did he make it clear Persephone is the only one for him? Persephone should be holding hades accountable and asking why on earth Leuce would think it okay to instigate an affair in the first place

We’ve seen first hand Hades isn’t a loyal partner. Neither is Persephone. Dude straight up lied to her in the early episodes! Said he was single even though he was clearly dating Minthe , and when Minthe confronted HIM about it he changed the subject ans claimed she had nothing to worry about despite the fact he kept lusting after Persephone any way!

Persephone had a crush on hades knew he was in a relationship and pursued him anyway. She didn’t even bother confronting him about proposing to minthe before they got together. So her confronting Leuce is hypocritical bc before their marriage, before they were together, Persephone was the home wrecker, Persephone was the other woman! She only comes across as insecure and imposing.

Now it was wrong for Leuce to instigate an affair no matter how air headed, but hades should be the one to confront her not Persephone. He should be the one to make it clear he has no interest in her. That he only cares for his wife.

This comic makes it so clear it doesn’t care about women only the “good” ones, the “pure” ones. And some serious favoritism issues with the cast.

Something else I want to bring up and this is super super important is now not only are Leuce and Minthe done dirty in this comic but how it botched up the og myths.

With Minthe and Persephone, in the og myhs , it’s believed Persephone and Hades had other lovers despite being married. They had an open relationship if you will. Even though they could take on other lovers they still belonged to each other, and their lovers stayed in their lane. However the problem with minthe was that was deliberately trying to overthrow Persephone and take her place as queen. Persephone being the wrathful goddess that she was not only turned minthe into mint but stomped her into pieces , and in some iterations— tortured and ate her.

She did this to show she was the one and only queen and no one could Take her place.

The og myth with Leuce, was an ocean nymph kidnapped by hades loooooong before he kidnapped Persephone and made her his wife. He married Leuce and stayed with her till she died and turned her into a poplar tree and placed it in the Elysian Fields.

Turning a woman who too was abducted against her will, forced to marry a god she potentially had loving relationship with—into a sleazy “home wrecker” is vile. It did nothing but add useless tension between these two characters

Hades would make a terrible father. He neglected Thanatos his entire life, gave a woman he wanted to bone more love and compassion than the adopted son he had. The on,y good thing he ever gave Thanatos was a half assed apology and a sandwich. He’s shitty guy with nothing but shitty excuses.

The good thing was seeing Demeter again with the hope she and Persephone can finally talk things out and hopefully patch things up……

[bluegekk0]

Is there anything about your au that you haven’t had the chance to talk about because it hasn’t been asked?

hm, this is a bit hard cause im pretty sure i share a lot even if not directly asked about it hahah

though i supppose a topic i might have only mentioned in passing and never talked about in detail is feral pk and his sexuality. sure, he was married to the white lady and is now together with grimm, but it's not as simple as him being bi/pan. i actually headcanon that he was closeted gay for most of his life, and in the most complicated way possible (as expected since it's pk). the marriage to wl, while they had a strong emotional bond, wasn't actually true love, not on pk's part at least. he just wasn't aware of that, as he grew up an outcast and never had a chance to explore his sexuality and feelings. when he changed forms, the white lady was one of the first beings who showed him kindness, and he enjoyed her company, so he assumed that it was love and married her

was he lying to her for the duration of their relationship? you could say that, yeah, though he wasn't fully aware of it. i think she eventually realized that he wasn't romantically or sexually into her as much as she was into him, so i imagine it was part of their divorce. though i headcanon wl as someone who's very understanding, so i don't think she would be mad at him for that. it would hurt, yes, but in the end she couldn't really fault him for it as it's something he clearly hasn't figured out himself. plus he never cheated on her (sure, there was the dalliance between him and herrah, but it clearly never went anywhere), so she had no reason to actually be angry at him

as cheesy and self indulgent as it might be, it was grimm who helped pk figure it all out, though again, it was way more complicated than it probably should have been. because pk was convinced that he and wl were in love (even if he clearly didn't know what that meant exactly), he didn't think too much of grimm's attempts to woo him, most of grimm's subtle (and not too subtle) signs fell flat as in pk's eyes they were close friends. he did feel strange around him, the weird feeling in his stomach wouldn't leave him alone for as long as grimm was in the room, but he was clueless enough to never make the connection. he didn't feel the same way around his wife, so it couldn't have been love, right? it had to be something else, maybe grimm just had that aura to him? he was a higher being after all. that's how he explained it in his head, at least. was it silly? absolutely, but his brain just works like that

he wouldn't truly connect the pieces until after the hibernation, when he had a lot of time to think back and realize how much he missed grimm. i think that's when he realized they weren't just close friends and that there was something more to their relationship, but at that point he thought it was all for nothing, as he believed he would never see grimm again (and even if he did, so much time has passed, he was convinced that grimm already forgot about him). so when he learned that grimm was still in dirtmouth, he had to take the chance and confess his feelings, and luckily for him, they were still mutual

i realize this may seem like a dig against his canon relationship with the white lady, or a cheesy attempt at making his relationship with grimm "the right one", or maybe even me being a contrarian for the sake of it, but it's not like that. i think wl is a neat character, i don't hate her, i actually love the wholesome fan content between her and pk, plus i do think they were happy together (well, until the vessel thing at least). i just think it adds another layer to feral pk and his whole thing of putting everyone else above himself. he was so occupied with his idea to create a kingdom, to help the bugs in it live the best life, to save them from potential danger, that he never took the time to think about himself, even something as obvious and simple as whom he loves. plus it goes well with the idea that by trying to be someone he really wasn't, he was lying to everyone else and causing them pain. he wasn't as great of a king as his subjects thought him to be. he wasn't as flawless as hollow saw him to be. and he didn't truly love the white lady the way she loved him. because he never figured out who he truly was, he unintentionally made everyone around him suffer. there's a lot going on in his head that might not make sense, and i think that adds more depth to him. at least for me personally

i apologize if this isn't something you were hoping for, anon, but i really wanted to talk about it cause it's been on my mind for a long time haha

[iwanthermidnightz]

After watching +20 shows (via livestream of course) i can finally gather my thoughts around it:

-Damn the people that made other people believe that Lover was a bad album for just one or two songs. Lover is the perfect opener and its really sad we didn't get Loverfest, the way Cruel Summer gets the crowd all hyped up within minutes wow just imagine 2hrs of just that

-Since the release i'd always favored folklore over evermore but i was so so so wrong! Evermore (in my opinion) is the strongest set of the tour, it really elevates and completes the album. The songs order is perfectly curated, the performances are distinctive but cohesive, and the public interaction during CP takes the cake. (and y'all may hate me but folklore set feels all over the place in comparison)

- The whiplash from the transition to Rep is necessary bc Rep is just in a league of its own. Reputation is THAT bitch and will always be THAT bitch, period. The crowd goes the loudest and the whole thing is just iconic.

- 1989, you will always be the be the perfect pop tracks, nothing more to say.

- At this point Midnights feels kinda rushed but for me the tour version sounds waaaay better than the studio version (at least for my ears). I think she should do a tour only for Midnights (idk when, she needs to rest too lol) but this set and performances have great potential, it just needs to be exploted. Also Karma is the perfect song to close the whole thing.

Sorry i think this thing got way too long 😅What are your thoughts? (if you already wrote them down could you link me to them so you don't have to repeat yourself)

My thoughts? I mean the show is incredible. It makes sense in the long run because timing is everything. It’s strategically timed. There’s something for everyone. The visuals are a huge part of it.

MAATHP into Cruel Summer was the perfect opener. Somehow I'm craving more Lover. Her entrance is goddess-like.

I thought it was funny how one minute people are crying at the end of evermore and then the snake comes on stage and everyone has to wipe their tears like brave little soldiers to get …ready for it 😂 I bet that was strategic.

For the evermore section I feel like tolerate it should be replaced with ivy (ivy truther forever). Not a tolerate it hater, it makes for good theatrics, I just like ivy better.

You can tell in pictures how sparkly and magical the folklorian woods look, it makes sense. I personally love the visuals of the cardigan music video so that would’ve been cool to incorporate. mad woman would be fun to add to folklore too. I see evermore as a continuation of folklore so its hard for me to separate the two.

1989 is flawless.

What I enjoy the most is seeing her with her guitar for the surprise songs. She plays so beautifully. I wish that part was longer. So many of her songs come to life for me when its just her and her guitar. Theres only lover, fearless, all too well and betty that she plays guitar on. But I get that she has so much ground to cover.

For midnights we basically get clouds, closet visuals, vs stage for mastermind, burlesque energy for vigilante shit and rainbows for karma. I’ll take it, but I think there could have been more trippy visuals if time allowed.

I probably didn’t fully answer your question but basically, I accept the eras tour for all that it magically is and I’m just happy that Taylor is back out in the world. It’s nice to see her more than once every few months 😜