#I made a Tumblr specifically to post trash

[fregata-magnificens]

Anyway,

The story behind this is that my wife and I fell down the Watergate rabbit hole (because we played the Watergate board game). So of course we had to watch All the President's Men.

This (from September) is the first time I'd really sat down and drawn for years and years. It's also the first time I've posted fanart (I guess this is fanart???) on the internet since middle school.

[gasolinerainbowpuddles]

991 i hav emerjenci

Wow, what an absolute dumpster fire, right? *gestures broadly* ↓Below the cut↓ are some specific things as a reader/mutual/friend/etc you can do that will make things a little better.

You come across someone posting/using someone else's work without express permission to do so:

INFORM THE ORIGINAL CREATOR/POSTER (OP) DIRECTLY ════════════════════════════════════════ ✧ Let OP know BEFORE you attempt to engage with the person on their behalf. ✧ OP will probably want to lay eyes on the situation, and, if the person stealing their work is tipped off, they might proactively block OP and/or remove posts before they can be verified as stolen. ✧ Do not harass the person who stole the work. It might be coming from a place of wanting to stick up for OP, but it ultimately doesn't help the situation.

OP is experiencing a hate brigade, nasty anons, or trolling over their fic:

PRIORITIZE ACTIONS AND BEHAVIORS THAT KEEP THE FOCUS ON SUPPORT FOR OP ════════════════════════════════════════ ✧ Reblog the fic in question with a glowing recommendation or just leave a comment under it expressing your appreciation for it. Both actions will boost the work in question as well as show direct support for OP. ✧ Reach out privately through DMs if you have that sort of relationship, or send a supportive message through asks. Keep it simple and short as they are probably overwhelmed with the shitstorm at certain points. ✧ Speaking up with a supportive comment or post for OP isn't necessarily a bad thing, but arguing back and forth with the trolls/hate brigade/etc. - even if you are doing it with intention to support OP - only fuels the fire, and some of them are doing it for the attention anyway.

OP seems down / isn't motivated to write / is expressing considerations of leaving fic writing altogether because of the current climate on this hellsite:

GIVE THEM THE SPACE OR TIME THEY NEED, BUT ALSO LET THEM KNOW THAT THEY ARE VALUED ════════════════════════════════════════ ✧ For the love of god please don't bombard them with asks about when xyz is going to be posted. This is a hobby for them, and they have jobs, families, and other life responsibilities that come first. Many would love nothing more than to sit and write all day, but that just isn't the reality for 99% of fic writers. ✧ Show their older works love, too. Many fic writers take the time to curate an organized masterlist of their works, and many have been writing for a while. There is a trove of wonderful content that can be read or re-read while you patiently wait for your fave to update. ✧ If you're waiting for an update on a specific fic, go back through the older chapters/updates and leave a comment saying you love it so much that you're coming back to visit older chapters while you wait to see what happens next in the story. I guarantee it will give them a boost of motivation for that story in particular. ✧ REBLOG AND COMMENT. Yes, do both of those things. I want you open up a fic you love and scroll down to the bottom where you can see likes, comments, and reblogs. I want you to look at the disparity between likes and comments/reblogs. Clicking a heart button is pretty much zero effort, and it comes across as such to many writers. It's not how Tumblr operates. This is a REBLOG site. That is how things make their way around. That is how posts get engagement. That is how other people can discover the fic writers you enjoy. Look, I even made a meme to show you what it feels like when after hours and hours of writing and editing you finally post a fic and then somebody only hearts it:

Even a simple "I loved this so much and can't wait to read more!" does wonders. A quick reblog that mentions your favorite part in the story is like a pot of gold at the end of a rainbow for writers.

You come across people trashing a writer you like:

CONSIDER IF IT'S HELPFUL OR NOT TO ADDRESS IT ════════════════════════════════════════ ✧ People are allowed to have negative/differing opinions about things. If they are expressing their dislike, even in a nasty way, they are allowed to do so. ✧ If it is a genuinely harmful/disparaging conversation, look to see what sort of traction the conversation has. Sometimes it's better to just let something die down before it can even take off. Examples of genuinely harmful/disparaging conversation include but aren't limited to: accusing OP of something egregious without any evidence to support it, framing rumors/gossip they've seen about OP as factual, deeming them criminally or morally corrupt based off a personal opinion they have of OP/their works. ✧ Remember that while serious concerns (like the above point) might be good to share with OP, not every instance of negativity or hate needs to be brought to their attention. If it's just some random jerk on a different platform talking about how much OP's writing is amateur hour, you should probably just leave it be. OP is a person at the end of the day, and sometimes things can be more hurtful than helpful for them to see.

OP isn't acting / responding in a way that you like:

REMIND YOURSELF THAT THEY ARE JUST ANOTHER PERSON IN THE FANDOM AND ARE NOT AN INFLUENCER ════════════════════════════════════════ ✧ OP isn't in this fandom to be put on a pedestal (of course there are always exceptions, but I'm not talking about those people) and treated like an influencer. ✧ OP creates works in the fandom because that is how they choose to engage with the fandom. It is one of many ways that people can come together in a community and celebrate an actor/movie/series/etc. ✧ OP is not a content farm. They are writing and sharing because they genuinely enjoy it. They are not being compensated. They are not being endorsed by anybody or any company. They are a normal person trying to take part in a fandom they enjoy. ✧ OP is not obligated to address or comment on a situation, an interaction, discourse, etc. They are not an influencer and aren't equivalent to the parasocial relationships that influencers (aka people who make a living off the internet) have with their followers. OP is not required to "use their platform" for something. It's not a platform. It is OP's personal account where they engage and post in fandom. That is why it exists. OP is not some mega entity that has to speak on something because you demand or expect it.

OP blocked me:

THE CALL IS COMING FROM INSIDE THE HOUSE ════════════════════════════════════════ ✧ Listen, I know it can be hurtful/confusing if you are blocked, especially if it is a writer you really like. I guarantee you that it was not done out of spite and for no reason. ✧ Take a look at the circles you run in, the posts you like, the sort of comments you leave, etc. Many writers are quick to block these days because the climate of this hellsite is very charged and exhausting. If OP sees your username cropping up again and again in fandom drama or you liked a discourse post with a shitty take or your chummy mutual is going off the rails with some bullshit, you might just get caught up in the Block Party. ✧ Don't go through another channel/account to ask why you've been blocked. No, you aren't entitled to a reason. OP is allowed to protect their mental health and peace, and they don't owe anyone an explanation of why and how they choose to curate their experience on this hellsite. ✧ If you believe you were blocked by mistake (which, again, is very unlikely), just take the L, homie. I know that's not what you want to hear, but that's just how it is.

If you took the time to read this, share it, or just in general intend to apply it to your interactions, ✨thank you✨!

Here is a Pedro gif tax for your time and attention. 💜

[ssa-atlas-alvez]

Okokokok SO….. I know the cowboy!reader is already set up with JJ- but what if there’s like one fic with hotch instead of JJ as the love interest?

Love your work! Make sure to eat and drink some water!

-Gay trash panda

Oooooo!!! Is it really bad if now I want to do that as a separate series? My whole tumblr is just gonna be cowboy reader, I can see it now (I mean it already is - don't worry I fucking love cowboy reader)

combination of this ask too

Warnings: mentions of death, child deaths, yelling, kissing (fairy heavy make out scene which feels weird to type), yelling

Taglist at the bottom of the post

When you first joined the team, Hotch was a dick. He didn’t trust you, he didn’t like that the decision to add you to the team didn’t go through him. And he made that known from day one.

He had made snippy comments from your first day and had yet to stop. You would catch him glaring at you for no specific reason. You would always be the first one he sent back to the hotel on a case. And you were sick of it. It made you want to rip your hair out. 

This time, he was particularly annoyed because you had intervened during a hostage situation. Everyone else was practically sitting ducks, trying to talk him down when there was a little boy with him. You had disobeyed direct orders and snuck into the building, taking the unsub down (you knocked him out). Hotch was absolutely fuming from the second he realised you were gone. Stream practically flew out of his ears. 

You all head back to the police station in silence, Hotch motioning for you to get in the same car as him, Reid, and Rossi. Tension filling the air. You all made your way back to the bullpen, thankful the case was close by. 

“(Y/N), my office. Now.” Hotch says, walking past you, going straight to his office. 

“Good luck,” Morgan mumbles as you walked past him. 

You walk in. 

“What the hell were you thinking?!” Hotch snaps, as soon as you were in his office, door not yet fully closed before he’s yelling.

“What was I thinkin’?” You scoffed, “I was thinkin’ a kid needed help and none of y’all seemed to be doin’ anything about it!”

“You know it takes time to talk an unsub down!”

“N I weren’t willin’ to wait!” You snap. “I didn’t wan’ another dead kid in my arms!”

“You were reckless! If you keep going like that, you will end up with another dead kid in your arms!” He exclaimed. 

You don’t care that he’s your boss, that this is probably going to get you fired. All you can think about is the anger as you slam him against the wall. You both glare at each other, chests rising heavily. Silence passed, both of you glaring at each other, chests still rising angrily.

“You keep breathin’ like that n I’m gonna wanna kiss that pretty mouth of yours,” You mumble. 

And the next thing you know, he’s kissing you. And he's breathing heavily, the thought of you pressed against him causing his brain to short circuit. You don’t hesitate, kissing him back. The argument and hatred forgotten, your hands gripping his blazer tightly as you push against him, deepening the kiss.

Some clears their throat and you both pull away at record speed. Ignoring the potential whiplash, you turned to the noise, Garcia grinned at you both. “Thank God you finally realised, you could cut the sexual tension with a knife.”

Taglist:

@xweirdo101x @xdark-acadamiax @ara-a-bird @poolclaws @chaosofmanyfandoms

@prmsn-17 @logicalhorror @shane18492 @iliketozoneout @goth-boi-atlas

@introvertpan84 @13thdoctor-run @winterwitchxxfan @ducks118 @woodandwaxwings

@aphroditeslovr @wizardmon3 @pinxeajin @pendragon-writes @chubbyboyinflannel

@migwayne @bigolgay @technikerin23 @supercriminalbean @honestlycasualarcade

@1s3v3n1 @oddmiles @kevyeen @stealing-kneecaps @criminalskies

@azeal-peal @luvfornick

[solradguy]

hey whatever happened to that post of you defending sol x ky and sol x sin

Lmao. Ok. Alright. You know what? I've been putting up with this shit for six fucking months now. I'm done with you, Xavier, and your little echo chamber on Discord. You're telling people I'm into pedo shit now and you're straight up pulling it out of your ass. I'd call you out by your handles but you're a coward that gets everyone else to do your dirty work for you.

Six. Fucking. Months.

I haven't posted anything about you publicly, and have never said a single word to you, because of the sake of the wiki and the people in that project that are/were friends with you, and cared about you. But it's clear you're absolutely out of your mind. You've crossed a line with this Sol/Sin shit. This probably isn't you that sent this ask, but I'd be willing to bet it's someone from your echo chamber Discord server because no one except the people in there hate me as much as you do. Even the transphobes on Twitter that sent me death threats have moved on better than you have.

Here's the entire story about my (not even direct) interaction with you and your server for everyone to know.

Back in March—which was nearly six months ago, I cannot stress that enough—you wanted to edit the Bedman page on the new wiki and put information on there that wasn't verifiable, namely that he was a legal adult. We had the page locked because of other people that wanted to vandalize it and weren't willing to unlock it for you specifically, but we were willing to put any additions on there that you suggested. One of our admins spoke with you to try to resolve this. You wanted full editing credits for everything put on there that was written by you. Even if you were editing the page yourself, that just isn't how wikis work. During all of this, we were made aware that you were shit talking us and writing death threats about us. You also trash talked my translations, for some reason. When the negotiations with our mod didn't give you the outcome you wanted, I believe our mod blocked you.

We thought that was the end of it. Over the past few months we'd get little updates about you from concerned people that thought we should know. Other than those updates, we forgot you even existed.

Last night I was made aware that you've been stalking my blog, and trash talking me, for the past six months, and now spreading rumors that I'm into Sol/Sin. I made two vague posts about it, the first ones I've made since this situation started six fucking months ago. I deleted them after being told they were making the situation worse, which they were. You've also been manipulating one of my friends and saying you would kill yourself if any more posts were made about you or this situation.

Then I got this ask.

Xavier: You're a lying, manipulative, piece of shit that needs to stay in his damn lane. I'm sorry for whatever situation led you to become this obsessive over not being able to edit a VIDEO GAME WIKI PAGE to say that the maybe-minor is legally fuckable, but it's not my problem. Guilty Gear and Bedman are clearly bad for your mental health if you're still this mad at ONE PERSON who HASN'T EVEN SPOKEN TO YOU for as long as half a year now. You've made me out to be a demon in your mind entirely based on vague interactions and reading too much into my Tumblr posts that were never about you.

Move the fuck on already. I have never spoken to you, I hardly know who you are, and yet you still hate me so much.

[daniigh0ul]

— #simblr gratitude day

dear simblr community,

hello! i'm going to be sappy. i just want to say that i really enjoy this corner of tumblr, and i look forward to reading everyone’s stories, seeing pretty screenshots, laughing at jokes only simmers would make, and the kindness i’ve seen extended from the people i follow and have had the pleasure of being mutuals with. and, modders, i didn’t forget you!! thank you for making this game better where it needs to be! this is a general post, because i want everyone to feel included today! consider yourself tagged, because you are. ❣️ (heart emoji)

to the storytellers: hi, there are so many stories on here that inspire me to be a better storyteller. whether it’s the people i’ve talked to about writing, plot, or character development, or lurking afar during a sleepless night while going through someone’s backlog, or seeing the cool and fun ways we use the video game(!) medium to tell stories, i appreciate every single one of you. whether the story is slice-of-life, fantasy, royalty, or something i haven’t discovered yet, i’m glad you’re telling your story/stories. and if i haven’t read your story yet, i will soon!!

to the funny simblrs: thank you for keeping this place alive with laughter. seriously the amount of times silly jokes have crossed my dashboard that made my day brighter are countless. whether we joke about the game’s numerous bugs and glitches, references to townies we love to hate (or hate to love), or things that are simblr specific, i appreciate you.

to the casual players:

y’all are stronger than me!! if you play vanilla, vanilla-lite, or modded and are happy to play through legacy and bachelor challenges, or share your sims for the sheer joy of sharing your sims, you are a pillar in this community! you keep this place collaborative and fun! please keep sharing your gameplay!

to the blender users (+ pretty picture people):

hi i adore your work. the use of lighting and composition and posing and all of the things you learned to make visuals for my eyes to feast upon? thank you!!! these are all things i’m still learning to do, so i really do love seeing it on my dash so i can take notes. keep posting them!!

to the modders: hi! thank you for making free recolors, free poses, free builds, free meshes, etc. made available to keep this hobby alive!! some of my favorite cc i have ever downloaded has been really niche cc—so if you’ve been doubting making that jester cc set or trash bag dress please do it. obviously, my examples are very silly but i’m being genuine!! i am a cc hoarding dragon and my collection is forever-growing, so continue making pretty things for my sims to wear, useful things to shove into lots, and poses to make my story-telling hobby a smidge easier thank you !!

okay, sappy time is over!! it’s impossible for me to know every single one of you, but to everyone i do know (or have chatted with, or am mutuals with, etc) you have been a fun and positive place for me to hang out online which is so rare in this age of the internet. keep doing that. and to anyone i don’t know yet, don’t be shy!! even if it’s not to me, the best way to become apart of this community is to engage in it—whether it’s sending an ask, replying to someone’s post, or joining a discord server! i promise you will have fun here!

<3 ok bye

[nonconstories]

Hello!

The search function on tumblr is trash, would you be willing to make a master list on your pinned post of stories you've written? Or is it available elsewhere? You have so many great universes and OCs, I'd love to go through your catalog properly!

Miss u hope ur good

Oh hi there! I haven't made new master posts for a while.

I have updated the ones that need updating! I'll make an eventual masterpost of the entire MOONDRUNK verse, and the ones that share a universe with WEDDING NIGHT as well.

Incest Masterpost, contains all of MOONDRUNK as well

Pack Noctifer

Monsterfucking

I will be updating this post with: character and world specific masterposts, and with the sexual health masterpost, and probably a few others.

[horizon-verizon]

The thing is that Daemon acting as a father figure/mentor to Nettles in HOTD doesn’t work because he neglected and ignored Baela and Rhaena for most of their lives, but suddenly he cares about some random girl he just met ??? Dude, your trueborn daughters are waiting for you to reconnect again. “Given how they lose Luke, Viserys, and Jace in quick succession, it would make sense for him to be protective of her”, and what about being protective of Baela and Rhaena ?

And whose fault is that? The writers. HotD had so many inconsistencies--very critical ones--in their own scripts episode to episode, scene to scene with one episode, that this is the possible inconsistency that people get hung up on? This one?

Perhaps some people who read my posts assume that I think that HotD could be "improved" in S2...nothing could be further from the truth. I happen to think that the changes in S1 made S2 unsalvagable. entertaining, maybe, bc entertainment doesn't always have to be logically consistent. But no, not sensical nor enjoyable in seeing a live version of the actual story as it was.

At the same time yes, people can & even should still criticize the S2 writing and idea of a Rhaena-Nettles merge, esp when it is the direct consequence of writing they have already said was dumb as fuck or mishandled in the first season, played for shallow drama and honestly, misogynoirist in "unconscious" bias. Otherwise we make the mistake of suppressing any observation counter to the praise of actually bad things in this show....which again, is a lot.

From the moment they made these decisions concerning Daemon's girls, they wrote themselves into stupid corners bc they had to create totally different people and motivations to follow through that are so different from their original traits and motivations we can't say that this is show in anyway reflects on real people GRRM created. From the black side of the family that became their own unit through Rhaenyra and Daemon's parenting. That is why the blacks seems so...disconnected before Rhaenys ever died. The greens are meant to be so emotionally disconnected, not the blacks.

Some people (fans and overpraisers of the show) didn't think it was a huge problem that he did that to Rhaena Or that Baela was a ward & living with the Velaryons instead of with her and Daemon (Baela being her father's daughter coming from him directly parenting her in canon and encouraging such self-assertive and daring behavior) for the Velaryons when both break lore and purposefully make Daemon not the good dad that he was.

Honestly, yes, this is karma for how Dany was written in GoT. Of course bc people didn't and still don't majorly take issue or understand with how she was treated and rewritten, we were going to get this bullshit with the people GRRM wrote in inspiration from her existence and narrative role. Of course he'd allow freaks like these showrunners handle his stories, he allowed Dany's end to go uncontested with no blog posts about how it was trash and specifically how/why without giving away the ending of his series or nay other spoilers...which yes is possible. Or didn't fight for more creative control and authority for GoT or HotD. Or at least put off HotD as he writes his penultimate book. So another of his favs gets slaughtered 🤷🏿‍♂️. Good for him.

Unfortunately for me, I have to witness such bullshit anyway in Twitter and Tumblr and TikTok even if I don't watch the HotD episodes.

[genshinluvr]

Tragic Outcomes 6

Pairings: Xiao x fem!reader x Zhongli

Summary: It's Xiao's birthday! You and Zhongli plan on making almond tofu to celebrate Xiao's birthday. While you and Zhongli are waiting for Xiao to return, Xiao seems to be a little bit occupied with something on his end that's keeping him out late.

Note: Omg, an update for Tragic Outcomes after how long? I made this angst special for Xiao's (belated) birthday because why not? This chapter is very Zhongli-focused because ✨ Zhongli ✨ and I am biased /j I'm working on updating the individual character fics that haven't been updated in a while! :> I will be updating Ayato's fic next week! Ayato's fic is coming to an end! Not sure if this has painful angst like the first part, but you guys be the judge, I guess! Anyway, I don’t post anywhere else but on Tumblr (Genshinluvr) and on AO3 (Aaliah_exo).

Warnings: Mostly fluff between Zhongli and the reader. Would this chapter be considered angst? Or maybe has light angst? Reader has to make a decision in the end.

Word Count: 7.5k

Tragic Outcomes chapters: [1], [2], [3], [4], [5], [6]

You’re used to waking up alone in the morning. Xiao is usually awake before you are and would leave Wangshu Inn before dawn. But now, you wake up next to Zhongli. Sometimes you wish Xiao could wake up at the same time as you and Zhongli, but knowing his commitment to his duties, you don’t push him about it. It’s only seven in the morning, and you’re standing in the kitchen steeping tea for you and Zhongli. 

Zhongli walks up from behind you, wraps his arms around your waist, and rests his chin on your head. You let out a content sigh and relax in his arms, closing your eyes and breathing in his scent. Zhongli’s chest rumbles when he chuckles. Zhongli leans down and presses his lips against your temple, rocking the two of you side to side.

“How’d you sleep last night, dearest?” Zhongli murmurs into your ears.

You turn your head to the side and press your lips against his cheeks. “I slept well. Although, I would much rather be in bed instead,” you mutter, pouting at him playfully.

“That sounds like a nice day, but if my memory is correct, today is a special day for a certain Adeptus,” Zhongli says, nuzzling into the crook of your neck.

You freeze in Zhongli’s arms and rest your head on Zhongli’s shoulders. Today is a special day for a certain Adeptus, according to Zhongli. Your memory has gotten slightly worse ever since the… incident a while back. You waddle over to the calendar with Zhongli latching to your back. You scan your eyes on the calendar and see a specific date circled with small doodles of a birthday cake and birthday hat on the particular date. 

You turn to Zhongli, cupping his face in your hands. “It’s Xiao’s birthday!” You exclaim.

“Yes, that is correct,” Zhongli says, his cheek squished in your hands. “Do you have anything planned in mind for his birthday?” Zhongli asks.

The timer chimes, startling you. You release Zhongli’s face from your hands and walk over to the tea and pull the teabags out from the teacups, tossing them into the trash. Zhongli leans against the counter, watching you pour a small amount of sugar into your and his tea. 

Xiao isn’t the type to be interested in a huge birthday celebration. Maybe a small gathering is something he would be interested in. Still, other than that, it’s usually just you and him that celebrate his birthday.  You slide the teacup over in Zhongli’s direction and pucker your lips, contemplating how you’ll celebrate Xiao’s birthday this year.

“Well, I usually make almond tofu for Xiao to eat on his birthday. It’s usually just the two of us celebrating his birthday rather than having a big celebration,” you reply, lightly blowing on the tea and taking small sips.

Zhongli nods, sipping his tea. “Do you, perhaps, need any assistance with preparing?” Zhongli asks, his cheeks slowly turning pink.

“I don’t know! Don’t you have work today, Mister Consultant?” You ask, poking the former Geo Archon’s chest while hiding your smile behind your teacup.

Zhongli clears his throat, puts his teacup back on the saucer, and pulls you toward him. You nestle up against Zhongli and look at him through your lashes. Zhongli places his index finger under your chin and tilts your head up. Zhongli slowly leans down to kiss you, but the door to the Inn’s room slams open, startling you and Zhongli.

Childe walks through the entrance with a huge smile on his face. You and Zhongli step away from each other. You put your teacup down while Zhongli lifts his teacup to his lips and takes deep gulps of the tea. It’s too early to deal with Childe and his shenanigans, but as his friend, you and Zhongli learned to deal with the ginger-haired Harbinger. 

“So! How did that little meeting with the Adeptis go? Meet anyone cool or learn anything new?” Childe asks, hopping up on the island and sitting on it, swinging his legs back and forth.

You and Zhongli trade look with each other. You make a so-so gesture.

“Kind of? It’s more information than what I knew before, but it’s not enough. If that makes sense,” you said.

Childe’s face pinches up, and he shakes his head. “I’m going to be honest with you, [Y/N]. That doesn’t make sense.”

“Fair enough,” you sigh. “The information given to me is helpful, but I wanted to know more about my parents and the things that happened before I was sealed away and before they died,” you said, stroking your chin.

“Like in detail? If so, I’m pretty sure Mister Zhongli over there have some answers since he has much knowledge of Liyue’s history and of the Adeptis,” Childe says, gesturing in Zhongli’s direction.

You stare at Childe blankly and look at Zhongli from the corner of your eyes. Is Childe hinting that he knows that Zhongli is the (former) Geo Archon, or is he just mentioning that Zhongli knows a lot of things? You rub your temples and shake your head.

“Listen, Childe, as much as I would love to talk about what I learned about my deceased parents, I have things to do,” you said, pulling the curtains of the kitchen open and letting the light pour into the room.

Childe perks up and looks at you with interest and curiosity, hopping off the counter and walking over to where you stand. Zhongli continues to sip his tea while eyeing Childe closely. You open the cupboards and pull out a plate. You’re planning on making almond tofu for Xiao to eat. Although, you’re not entirely sure if you have enough ingredients to make a lot of almond tofu. You walk over to the pantry, pulling out a bag of almonds. You shake the bag and weigh them in your hands. 

Childe peeks his head into the pantry. “What are you doing in there?” Childe asks, leaning against the door frame.

“We’re going to need to buy more almonds,” you murmur.

You walk out of the pantry, and place the almonds on the counter, then walk to the refrigerator. You open the fridge and stick your head inside, searching high and low for milk. You grab the small bottle of milk and sigh, grumbling about having to spend more Mora on Xiao’s birthday to make him his favorite food for his birthday. 

“I’m debating whether I should make almond tofu with what I have and go to the market to buy some more ingredients after. Or go to the market now and make almond tofu once I have more ingredients,” you mutter, putting the milk on the counter beside the almonds.

“It’s all up to you, dearest. Do you think Xiao would eat that much almond tofu? I think you have enough for one plate,” Zhongli says, untying the rubber band.

Childe grabs the milk bottle and holds it up, then glances over at the bag of almonds in Zhongli’s hands while squinting his eyes.

You raise your eyebrows at Childe. “What are you thinking?” You ask, propping your hands on your hips.

“You don’t have enough milk for one plate of almond tofu. It’s barely enough. You and Mister Zhongli can stay here while I go out and get some milk for you two.” Childe offers, putting the milk back down on the counter.

Childe? Getting milk for you to make Xiao almond tofu? Childe turns to leave, but you quickly grab onto his wrist, and you shake your head. Childe and Zhongli look at you, surprised. Their eyebrows are either raised or furrowing with confusion. You release Childe’s wrist from your grasp and clear your throat.

“Thank you for the offer, Childe, but I got this! I’ll go out into Liyue Harbor and buy some milk and maybe some extra almonds!” You say.

Childe puckers his lips. “Hey, come on! I offered to buy you milk to make your little Adpetus boyfriend some birthday almond tofu, but you declined that offer?” Childe asks.

The way Childe looks at you reminds you of a kicked puppy. He’s batting his eyelashes at you while giving you puppy dog eyes, his bottom lip jutting out. Zhongli rolls his eyes at Childe, crossing his arms over his chest. You snort and flick Childe’s nose, making him flinch and scowl at you while rubbing his nose.

You sigh and look over at the almonds and milk on the counter. “As much as I appreciate your offer and your volunteering, how do I know if you won’t poison the milk?” You ask.

Childe lets out an offended gasp, pressing his right hand against his chest. “How dare you assume I would do such a thing! For your information, I would never poison an Adeptus!” Childe says, sticking his nose in the air with a ‘hmph!’

You glare at Childe and cross your arms over your chest. You know Childe and his distaste toward your Adeptus boyfriend. There’s a possible chance Childe will try to poison Xiao, but knowing Childe, he’s more calculated about it and will take his time with slowly killing someone he doesn’t like.

“How about this! How about you keep Zhongli and me company while we go to the market to buy more milk and almonds?” You suggest. 

You walk back to the kitchen counter to put the milk back in the refrigerator and the almonds back into the pantry. Childe makes a disgruntled noise and flops on the couch in the living room, ignoring the amused look Zhongli has on his face. 

“Well? What’s your answer?” You ask, walking to the living room with Zhongli by your side.

Childe grumbles and props himself up on the couch, staring at you and Zhongli blankly. The two of you stare at Childe in return, waiting for his answer. Childe sighs loudly, dragging it out before flopping back on the couch; his long legs dangling off the edge of the sofa.

Childe runs his fingers through his hair. “I would love to join you two, but I’m going to be a third wheel!” Childe says dramatically.

“You’re not going to be a third wheel, Childe.” You deadpan.

“You two only want me to tag along because I’ll be your human wallet and pay for the groceries!” Childe says, getting off the couch and pointing an accusing finger at you and Zhongli.

You groan loudly and look over at the clock on the wall to check the time. It’s nearing eight in the morning, and you need to head down to Liyue Harbor and buy milk and almonds (and maybe other groceries) before many people start to show up. 

You pinch the bridge of your nose and exhale sharply through your nostrils. You’re trying your hardest not to stomp over to where Childe is sitting just to smack Childe upside of his head for making things complicated for you. 

“You know what, Childe? You don’t have to join Zhongli and me. It’ll be just the two of us while you do your Fatui Harbinger duties,” you say, walking over to the door and grabbing your satchel.

“What?!” Childe asks, looking at you with disbelief.

You nod without looking at Childe, putting your shoes on. “You heard me! Since you decide to be a little shithead and make things complicated for Zhongli and me, you might as well tend to your Harbinger duties while Zhongli and I are shopping,” you say, gesturing for Zhongli to come over.

Zhongli walks past Childe, ignoring the dramatic pout on Childe’s face. You snort and shake your head, reaching your hand out toward Zhongli. Zhongli grabs your hand and pulls you to his chest, wrapping his arms around your waist. Childe scrunches his nose at the sight of you and Zhongli cozying up to each other.

Childe clears his throat. “You know what? I will do that! You two have fun at the market!” Childe says, waving his hands around.

Childe is the first person to walk out the door while you and Zhongli follow after. You lock the door behind you, and the two of you set off to Liyue Harbor. At Liyue Harbor, there weren’t as many people as you expected, which is a huge relief. But there’s still a decent amount of people roaming around Liyue Harbor, making it a little bit complicated to get to the shops you want to visit for the key ingredients you need for almond tofu.

Zhongli keeps his hands on your hips while the two of you navigate through people, searching for a specific shop. You feel warmth blooming in your chest; the feeling of Zhongli’s hands on your hips and the lack of gap between your and his body makes you feel some type of way. 

“We’re here,” Zhongli says, snapping you out of your thoughts. 

You and Zhongli stand in front of the vendor, searching for the almond. While you’re searching for the bags of almonds, Zhongli quietly converses with the food vendor before you two. You hear Zhongli chuckle, causing you to look up. The two of you make eye contact for a brief second. Zhongli smiles at you and looks at the vendor, nodding his head while talking about his favorite Liyue cuisine before adding in how both of you are searching for almonds and milk to cook almond tofu for Xiao’s birthday.

The vendor’s eyes light up. “Oh! Are you two making almond tofu for your son’s birthday?” The vendor asks, smiling at you and Zhongli.

Zhongli’s eyes widen slightly. “Son?” Zhongli asks.

The vendor nods his head. “Yes! You say his name is Xiao, right?” The vendor asks, tilting his head to the side.

You clear your throat and look away shyly, heat rushing to your face after hearing the vendor’s comment. You’re unsure how to answer the vendor’s question. Would the vendor judge you for dating both Zhongli and Xiao? You’ve chatted with the vendor before, but he doesn’t know about your relationship with Xiao. 

Since you’re here with Zhongli, he must’ve assumed that Xiao is your and Zhongli’s son. You don’t know how he interpreted that when there’s no wedding ring on your and Zhongli’s left ring fingers.

“Mister Dongsheng, you have mistaken! Xiao isn’t my and Zhongli’s son!” You say, frantically searching for the almonds with your eyes. “Anyway! I would like to buy one hundred almonds and one hundred bottles of milk, please!”

Zhongli’s eyes widen. “One hundred?” Zhongli murmurs.

“One hundred milk and almonds?” Dongsheng, the owner of Second Life, asks. 

Zhongli leans down and whispers into your ears, “Dearest, I thought we were getting the number of almonds and milk needed for the almond tofu you’ll be making.

You shrug your shoulders with a sigh. “I might as well buy them all just in case I want to cook something with the milk and almonds!” You reply.

“But do you need that much milk? They expire fast,” Zhongli says, stroking his chin.

You pause and pucker your lips, debating with yourself if you should buy one hundred bottles of milk or not. Zhongli’s not wrong, considering you can fit a few milk bottles in the fridge. Why did you think about buying one hundred anyway other than to divert the conversation elsewhere with the owner of Second Life?

“Right! Then I’ll take ten bottles of milk then! While I will use them for the almond tofu, I’ll use the extras for something else,” you said. 

Dongsheng looks at you and hesitates for a moment. “And what about the almonds? Are you going to buy one hundred bags of almonds as well, or the same amount as the milk?” He asks.

You sigh in defeat. “The same amount as the milk bottles,” you answer.

Dongsheng smiles at you and Zhongli before getting you the almonds and milk bottles. Zhongli gives your hips a squeeze and reaches for the bags that contain the almonds and bottles of milk from Dongsheng. You reach into your satchel and pull out the bag of Mora, handing the total price of Mora to him.

You and Zhongli bid Dongsheng goodbye before making your way back to Wangshu Inn. You and Zhongli walk beside each other. The day has barely started, and you’re already feeling flustered because of one mistake by someone that isn’t you or Zhongli. Zhongli grabs your wrist, making you stop in your tracks. You turn and look at Zhongli curiously.

“Why don’t we relax for a little bit before returning to Wangshu Inn?” Zhongli suggests, pulling you over toward the concrete bench. “After all, it’s still early in the morning, and there’s no need to rush back to the Inn.”

“Hm… alright! We can rest for a bit before returning to Wangshu Inn!” You nod, smiling at the ex-Archon.

Zhongli places the bags of milk and almonds on the ground beside his feet while the two of you sit and look out toward the sea. Two birds land a few feet in front of you and Zhongli, bouncing around and standing beside each other. You and Zhongli watch the two finches interact with each other.

“They’re so round and cute,” you whisper.

After not hearing a response, or a sound, from Zhongli, you turn to face the dark-haired man, only to see him staring down at you. Your face turns warm, and you loop your arm around his, leaning against him while trying to cover your red face. Zhongli grabs you by the chin and tilts your head up. 

The two of you stare into each other’s eyes. Your gaze quickly falls to Zhongli’s lips before looking into his eyes. Zhongli smiles and leans down to kiss you. Before Zhongli’s lips could touch yours, you and Zhongli felt arms over your shoulders.

“It’s a beautiful day out at Liyue Harbor, isn’t it? It’s warm and sunny outside with a nice cool breeze accompanying it!” Childe exclaims, startling you and Zhongli.

You and Zhongli flinch and pull away from each other, looking away with a sigh. Zhongli gives Childe a fake smile and clears his throat.

“Childe! You have an interesting timing there,” Zhongli says, looking away from Childe.

Childe grins at Zhongli cheekily and nods, weaseling his way to sit between you and Zhongli. You and Zhongli grumble under your breath while scooting over to give Childe space to sit in between you two. What’s with Childe and being a cockblock? You and Zhongli don’t mind having Childe around— after all, he is the reason why you and Zhongli got together in the first place. But it’s just… you want some alone time with Zhongli. Sitting on the concrete bench, watching birds fly and hop around with each other before returning to Wangshu Inn to make almond tofu for Xiao’s birthday is something you want to do uninterrupted.

Childe sighs loudly and leans back on the bench. “I saw you two here and wanted to stop by and say hi before going to the Northland Bank!” Childe says nonchalantly, brushing his fringe away from his eyes.

You turn to look at Childe quizzically. “You left before we did. I thought you’d be at Northland Bank before Zhongli and I arrived at Second Life for the almonds and bottles of milk,” you say, crossing your arms over your chest.

Childe chuckles and shrugs. “I had to stop by somewhere to handle a business. You know, life as a Fatui Harbinger isn’t as easy as it seems. I have some Fatui trainees to train later today after completing some paperwork, so I won’t be able to stop by and celebrate the little twerp’s birthday with you and Mister Zhongli today,” Childe sighs dramatically. 

You scoff and elbow Childe in the gut before getting up from the bench and dusting your clothes. “I believe that’s enough relaxing for today. Zhongli and I have almond tofu to make, and you have Fatui duties to tend to!” You said, turning to look at the two men before you.

Zhongli and Childe get up from the bench. Zhongli reaches down and grabs the bags of almonds and milk from the ground, holding his arm out for you to take. You link your arm around Zhongli’s and give Childe a smile.

Childe pouts at you and extends his arms out. “What? You’re not going to give your brother figure a hug before leaving?” Childe asks, batting his eyelashes at you. 

You roll your eyes playfully and unlink your arms from Zhongli’s before walking over to the ginger-haired Harbinger. You wrap your arms around his waist and let out a strained grunt when Childe hugs you tightly, ruffling your hair with a shit-eating grin on his face. Childe releases you after ten seconds, watching you return to Zhongli’s side while fixing your disheveled hair.

You grab Zhongli’s wrist and begin tugging him toward the entrance of Liyue that leads to Wangshu Inn. “Bye, Childe! I’ll see you next time!” You say, patting his arm.

Zhongli and Childe nod to each other when they walk by each other. While you and Zhongli are walking to the entrance of Liyue Harbor, Childe stops in his tracks and watches the two of you get farther away. Childe lets out a sigh and shakes his head, propping his hands on his hips.

“When will [Y/N] just break up with that Adeptus twerp? He doesn’t deserve her,” Childe mutters, turning to walk to Northland Bank.

Back at Wangshu Inn, you and Zhongli stand in the kitchen beside each other, making almond tofu for the beloved Adeptus, who protects Liyue from evil. While making almond tofu, Zhongli tells a story of his and Xiao’s past. Now that you think about it, if you weren’t sealed in amber by your parents, you would’ve known them during that time. But you were sealed away, and you grew up without your birth parents— raised to be human instead of an Adeptus.

“Do you think this is enough? I don’t want us to make too many only for Xiao to not finish it all,” you mutter. You look over at the plate with many almond tofu stacked on top of each other.

Zhongli hums. “That would depend. Are we going to be eating them as well, or is it only for Xiao?” Zhongli asks, washing his hands under the tap water.

You can’t help but stare at Zhongli’s arms. Zhongli took his coat off before the both of you began making almond tofu for Xiao’s birthday. His sleeves are rolled up to his elbows, his gloves are off, and you can see the veins protruding from his arms. 

“[Y/N]?”

You snap out of your thoughts and blink at Zhongli owlishly with wide eyes. Zhongli looks at you curiously, his eyebrows raised, the corner of his lips curling up. You clear your throat and look away, rubbing the back of your neck.

“We can eat some of the almond tofu! I don’t think Xiao can eat all of this on his own, so we might as well have some! Of course, almond tofu won’t be the only thing we’ll be eating. Speaking of eating, we should make something for us to eat now. I’m starting to get hungry,” you say.

You turn around and walk to the pantry, searching for something to cook for you and Zhongli to eat while waiting for Xiao to return from his duties. You stand in the pantry, eyeing every ingredient while stroking your chin. Zhongli snakes his arms around your waist and presses his chest against your back, resting his chin on your head.

“You seem distracted a few minutes ago,” Zhongli murmurs.

You clear your throat for the umpteenth time. “I was, uh, thinking about food! After all, we did leave Wangshu Inn without having breakfast other than tea. I’m starting to feel famished,” you lie.

“What do you want to eat? Do you have anything in mind?” Zhongli asks, tilting his head over and peppering kisses on the side of your neck.

You pucker your lips, and your eyes land on the bamboo shoots. Your eyes light up, and you waddle to the bamboo shoots with Zhongli behind you. You grab the bamboo shoots and look up at Zhongli, lifting the bamboo shoots to Zhongli’s face. 

You poke him in the chest. “I would like to have your specialty!” You say, handing the bamboo shoots over to Zhongli. “It’s been a while since I’ve had bamboo shoot soup.”

Zhongli grabs the bamboo shoots from your grasp, and pecks your cheek. “If that’s what you desire, then I shall make them for you,” Zhongli says.

Zhongli walks out of the pantry with you following close behind. You watch Zhongli prepare the ingredients. Archons, Zhongli somehow manages to make cooking look attractive. It’s making you feel tingly on the inside. You shake your head and lightly slap your forehead. You walk over to where Zhongli stands and begin to help him prepare and cook the bamboo shoot soup. But before doing so, you walk to the almond tofu and put them in the refrigerator.

“What time do you think Xiao will return to Wangshu Inn? We wouldn’t want the almond tofu to sit in the refrigerator for a long time,” Zhongli murmurs, turning the stove on and placing the pot over the stove.

You shrug your shoulders. “I don’t know. Xiao doesn’t have a consistent time on when he’d return to Wangshu Inn after his duties. He usually returns whenever,” you say.

Zhongli pauses and stares at the pot with furrowed eyebrows. “Is that so? So there’s no specific time on when he gets home?” Zhongli murmurs.

You nod. “That’s correct! At first, it was a little bit…. Frustrating? That’s not the right word, but you know what I mean. It’s only frustrating because when I try to stay up until he gets home, it would be almost four in the morning, maybe five,” you reply.

“Will you be doing the same thing today for his birthday?” Zhongli asks, turning to look at you.

You poke the inside of your cheek with your tongue. It is Xiao’s birthday, and you usually stay up until he gets home from his duties. That was before the whole incident happened, and now you would go to bed before he gets home because, well, you have Zhongli with you now. 

“I’m going to try to stay up late, yes! But if he ends up coming home late, which I hope he doesn’t, then I’ll go to bed!” You say.

Zhongli stares at you before letting a long exhale through his nose, nodding. If you’re going to be staying up late to greet Xiao on his birthday and to celebrate his birthday, Zhongli might as well do the same. After all, Adeptis and Archons don’t need sleep, so staying up late shouldn’t be an issue for Zhongli. However, because you were raised by mortals, Zhongli’s unsure if you’ll be able to stay up past five in the morning.

The day ends up flying by before your and Zhongli’s eyes. Before you know it, you’re setting the table up and taking the almond tofu out from the refrigerator, placing them on the table. Zhongli suggested decorating the living area to surprise Xiao, and the two of you went out into the market to get decorations. 

“Do you think Xiao will like it?” You ask, turning to look at Zhongli.

Zhongli smiles and kisses the side of your head. “He’ll love it,” Zhongli murmurs, pulling you to his chest and snaking his arms around your waist.

Zhongli looks at the clock and sees it’s almost eight in the evening. You and Zhongli sit at the table, quietly conversing with each other while adjusting the table and almond tofu here and there while waiting for Xiao to show up.

While you and Zhongli are waiting for Xiao to make an appearance at Wangshu Inn, Xiao is sitting on the highest mountain in Liyue, looking at the view. Xiao finished his duty not too long ago, and now he’s having a breather. Today is his birthday, the day is coming to a close, and it’s time he heads home to you (and Zhongli).

A twig snaps behind Xiao, causing him to turn his head sharply in the direction where the sound came from. Xiao’s polearm materializes in his hands and prepares to lunge toward the direction of the twig snapping, but pauses when he sees Lumine standing there.

Xiao swallows a lump in his throat. “Lumine, what are you doing here?” He asks, staring at the blonde girl before him.

Lumine tucks her hair behind her ear and clears her throat softly. “I came here to wish you a happy birthday, Xiao.” Lumine smiles at the Adeptus and takes a small step toward him. 

“How did you know I was here?” Xiao demands, narrowing his eyes at Lumine.

Lumine looks away from Xiao and gazes up at the stars that hang above them. When Lumine didn’t answer him, Xiao let out a frustrated sigh and put his polearm away. Before Xiao could open his mouth to speak, rapid footsteps approached Xiao and Lumine, making the two look in the direction of where the footsteps were coming from.

Aether pants and puts his hands on both his knees, glaring at Lumine. “Lumine! I told you not to run off, and this is where I find you!?” Aether exclaims, propping his hands on his hips.

Lumine rolls her eyes. “Oh, please, Aether. You go on adventures with Dainsleif all the time, and yet you can barely catch up with me?” Lumine snickers, ignoring the glare Aether shoots in her direction. 

“I wanted to be alone,” Xiao states, crossing his arms over his chest.

Aether gives Xiao a sympathetic smile while Lumine pulls a container out of her bag. Xiao looks at Lumine curiously and holds his hands out when Lumine gestures for him to do so. Lumine places the container on Xiao’s hands and watches the Conquerer of Demons open the container.

“You made almond tofu for me,” Xiao murmurs.

Lumine smiles and nods. “I wanted to make your favorite dish for your birthday. I didn’t know if you had anything to eat today while you were out protecting Liyue,” Lumine says, twirling her hair around her index finger.

Xiao stares at Lumine, then looks at the container of almond tofu in his hands. Xiao nods and mutters a silent thank you to the blonde girl. 

“Is it okay if I hang out with you while you eat your almond tofu? I don’t want you to eat your almond tofu alone on the day of your birth,” Lumine says.

Aether stares at Lumine like she grew two more heads. Xiao sighs and nods, walking away from the twins and sitting at the edge of the mountain. Lumine sits beside Xiaom, keeping a decent size gap between them. Aether looks up at the night sky and mouths, “I’m sorry, [Y/N],” to himself before sitting beside Xiao.

Back at Wangshu Inn, you yawn and lean against Zhongli, rubbing your eyes. The almond tofu is getting warm the more time goes by. You can’t help but glance at the clock every few minutes, hoping Xiao will show up so the three of you can celebrate his birthday. You lean on the table and close your eyes, yawning for the umpteenth time.

Zhongli sighs and rubs your back. “Dearest, if you’re tired, we can go to bed,” Zhongli murmurs.

You shake your head stubbornly. “I’m okay, Zhongli. I can stay up for a few more hours and wait for Xiao to come home,” you reply.

Time seemed to have gone by so fast because you recalled that it was only eight in the evening. Now when you look at the clock, you notice that it’s almost midnight. Once the clock strikes midnight, it will no longer be Xiao’s birthday. You know Xiao is busy protecting Liyue. Therefore, you’re not going to be upset if he ends up coming home past midnight. After all, he’s always busy with his duties.

“I’ll be right back. You two, don’t go anywhere! I think I dropped something on my way up here,” Aether says, getting up from the ground and dusting dirt off his pants.

Xiao and Lumine stand up.

“Do you want us to come with you? It’s dark out, and we don’t want you to get hurt,” Lumine says, gazing at her brother worriedly. 

Aether shakes his head. “Nah! It’s okay! Plus, I won’t be far or be gone for a long time,” Aether replies.

Lumine and Xiao watch Aether scurry off into the night. Xiao takes a deep breath and turns to look at the view before him and Lumine.

“Thank you for keeping me company on my birthday. Even though it wasn’t necessary, I appreciate it,” Xiao murmurs.

Lumine smiles bashfully and rubs her arm. “You’re welcome! Uh…. I was hesitant to come here because I didn’t want to disturb you. But thinking about you and celebrating your birthday alone motivated me to follow my plan,” Lumine says.

A small smile appears on Xiao’s face. “Thank you, I appreciate it, really.”

Lumine looks at Xiao with wide eyes, her cheeks turning bright red after seeing the tiny smile on his face. Lumine looks away shyly and spots a lone flower from a distance. Xiao follows Lumine’s line of sight and sees the Qingxin flower. Xiao walks over to the flower without saying a word, plucks it from the ground, and walks to Lumine. Lumine looks at Xiao with curiosity, tilting her head to the side. 

Xiao hands the flower to Lumine. “Having you around would make even Qingxin feel like a treat. The beauty of the Qingxin is nothing compared to yours,” Xiao murmurs.

Lumine looks at Xiao with wide eyes, her breath caught in her throat. She gulps and grabs the flower from Xiao’s hands, her eyes falling to Xiao’s lips. Xiao brushes a stray hair from Lumine’s face, tucking them behind her ears. Lumine’s heart is beating so fast and so loud that she wouldn’t be surprised if Xiao could hear it.

Lumine closes her eyes and leans toward Xiao, her lips grazing his. Before Lumine can press her lips against his, someone clears their throat loudly. Xiao turns away and looks at Aether, who lets out a loud ‘ahem’ after witnessing what happened. Lumine tenses up and glares at Aether, slowly backing away from Xiao.

Aether approaches the two with a strained smile. “I believe it’s getting late! You should head back to Wangshu Inn! I’m pretty sure there’s someone else that’s waiting for you. And by someone, I mean your girlfriend,” Aether says through clenched jaws. 

“He doesn’t have to if he doesn’t want to, Aether!” Lumine exclaims, glaring at Aether while gripping the Qingxin flower tightly. “Besides! He already celebrated his birthday with me— I mean us!” Lumine huffs.

Aether rolls his eyes and pinches the bridge of his nose. “Xiao, you’re a dear friend of mine, but I…” Aether trails off, shaking his head. “I can’t believe you’d do this to someone you claim to love. You either pick my sister, or you pick [Y/N]. You can’t have both at once, especially when my sister tried to kill your girlfriend,” Aether says.

Lumine stomps toward Aether and shoves him. “Why are you bringing this up now, huh? It’s Xiao’s birthday, and he shouldn’t be dealing with this right now!” Lumine says. “Plus, if he’s not allowed to have both me and [Y/N], then how come [Y/N] can have him and Zhongli!? Do you even hear yourself, Aether!? Why are you on her side and not mine!?” Lumine shrieks.

“It was his birthday, Lumine. It’s midnight now, and he should’ve been spending his birthday with his girlfriend too. She’s probably waiting for him back at Wangshu Inn right now!” Aether exclaims, throwing his hands in the air out of frustration. 

It’s past midnight, and you feel your eyelids grow heavier with each passing minute. Zhongli’s in the kitchen, brewing tea for you to drink. You lay your head on the table and close your eyes, slowly drifting off to sleep. Zhongli walks into the dining room and places the cup of tea before you. 

“Dearest, you should go to sleep. It’s getting late, and I’m afraid you won’t be able to stay up any longer waiting for Xiao,” Zhongli says.

You sit up and stretch your arms in the air with a yawn. “It’s okay, Zhongli. I don’t want to miss out on celebrating Xiao’s birthday,” you say.

Zhongli exhales through his nostrils and pinches the bridge of his nose. “If you insist,” Zhongli murmurs, sitting beside you.

You rest your head on Zhongli’s shoulders and reach for the teacup. You hold the cup before your face and blow on the hot tea. It’s normal for you to not be able to stay up later than midnight. You want to stay up until Xiao gets home from his duties so you can at least tell him a happy birthday, well, belated birthday, since it’s past midnight now. You gulp down the tea and put the teacup back on the saucer, and wrap your arms around Zhongli’s waist.

“Did I make a mistake?” You ask, barely above a whisper.

Zhongli makes a confused noise and looks at you quizzically. “What do you mean?” Zhongli brushes your hair away from your face.

You stare at Zhongli, not saying a word. Your heart hurts, and even if you have Zhongli present with you at Wangshu Inn, being at the Inn while Xiao is out and about doing, who knows what makes your heart hurt. You can’t help but doubt your relationship with Xiao, asking yourself if it is still salvageable. 

You bite your lower lip and hug Zhongli tightly. “Let’s go to bed,” you whisper, tugging on his shirt.

Zhongli nods, getting up from the couch with you latching to his side. Zhongli wraps his arm over your shoulders and guides you to the bedroom. You and Zhongli collapse on the bed, you lying in his arms while he’s carding his fingers through your hair. 

You lean up and kiss his jaws, giving him a small smile before snuggling into the crook of his neck. Zhongli smiles and kisses your forehead, watching you slowly drift off to sleep. Zhongli closes his eyes and begins to fall asleep, wondering what’s keeping Xiao out for so long. Zhongli shakes his head, pulling the blanket up to his and your torso.

Zhongli doesn’t know how long he and you have been asleep. The sound coming from the living area roused him from his sleep. Zhongli slowly gets up from bed, kissing your forehead before walking to the living room where the sound came from. Zhongli steps out of the room and quietly closes the door behind him, walking toward the living area.

Xiao freezes in his spot when he sees Zhongli enter the room while he is inspecting the decorated room. The thing that caught Xiao’s eyes was a small cupcake in the center of the table, the candle on the cupcake was blown out, and the almond tofu was warm and untouched. A tsunami of guilt hits Xiao, making him clench his fist and crushing the flower in his hands. 

Zhongli leans against the archway of the room, his arms crossed over his chest while gazing at the Yaksha— his face void of emotions. 

Xiao whispers, “I apologize for not showing up on time.”

Zhongli shakes his head. “There’s no need to apologize, Xiao. It seems like you have already celebrated your birthday with someone else,” Zhongli’s eyes lock on the familiar flower in Xiao’s hands.

The very same flower a certain blonde Outlander has in her hair. Zhongli lets out a humorless hum and closes his eyes, leaning his head against the wall. All kinds of emotions rush through Zhongli simultaneously— anger, sadness, shock, and heartbreak. 

“I was going to return to the Inn, but Aether and Lumine showed up before I could, but it would be rude of me to leave,” Xiao says.

Zhongli holds his hand up to stop Xiao from continuing even further. “I’m not the person you should be explaining this to, Xiao. It is [Y/N] you should be worrying about, not me.”

The two men stare at each other in silence. What else is there to say? Xiao returned to Wangshu Inn late, past his birthday, when you and Zhongli were waiting for his return. You and Zhongli made almond tofu for his birthday, went out of your way to add minimal birthday decoration in the living area, and a cupcake with a single candle stuck in the center of the cupcake. 

And what was Xiao doing while you and Zhongli were waiting at Wangshu Inn? He was celebrating his birthday with the same girl that nearly killed you, the same girl with feelings for him, and the same girl he almost kissed before Aether interrupted. Xiao sighs and runs his gloved hands through his hair, cursing under his breath while Zhongli continues to stare at him with an unreadable expression.

The door to the bedroom creaks open. The two men turn towards the door and see you emerging from the dark bedroom, rubbing the sleep from your eyes. You look at Xiao and Zhongli cluelessly, wondering why the two men look like they’re about to kill each other. Well, Zhongli looks like he wants to kill someone. Xiao looks incredibly guilty and nervous.

“Xiao, you’re back. I, uh, I tried to stay up late to wish you a happy birthday, but—”

Xiao cuts you off.

“Why did you try to stay up and wait for me? There’s no need for you to do it at all, and yet here you are, losing sleep because you wanted to wait for my return,” Xiao narrows his eyes at you, crossing his arms over his chest.

You visibly deflate and sigh in defeat, your gaze falling to the ground. You swallow the lump in your throat and open your mouth to respond, but the flower peeking from behind Xiao’s arms catches your attention. You stare at the flower and point at it with shaking hands.

“That flower….” you trail off. “You were with her this entire time.”

Xiao lets out a sigh. “I can explain,” he starts.

You shake your head. “There’s no need to explain, Xiao. It seems like you have already made your decision,” you give Xiao a weak smile. “I’m too tired to fight and argue right now. I’m going back to sleep.”

You look at Zhongli, who stares at you intently. You hold your hand out, making grabby motions. Zhongli pushes himself off the wall and walks toward you without sparing Xiao a second glance. He grabs your hand, and the two of you return to the bedroom, closing the door. Xiao stands in the living room alone. Xiao lets the flower drop to the ground, slowly approaching the table where the cupcake and almond tofu are waiting for him.

You plop on the bed and stare at the ground. Zhongli sits beside you and wraps his arm over your shoulder, pulling you to his side. You rest your head on Zhongli’s shoulders and close your eyes. You want to cry and scream, but you’re exhausted. 

“I don’t know how much longer this will last, Zhongli. I think I lost Xiao to her already, and he’s only with me because he sees I have other options that aren’t him.” 

Zhongli looks at you curiously. “What are you implying?” Zhongli murmurs.

“It’s not fair for either of us if this continues. Xiao made his decision long ago, and I needed to accept it. He’s only with me because he doesn’t want me to be with you. And I stayed with him because I didn’t want to lose him to someone better than me, but I’m only hurting everyone if I stay.”

You open your eyes and turn to Zhongli. Zhongli wipes the stray tear that made its way down your cheek. You let out a weak and defeated sigh, grabbing Zhongli’s hand and circling your thumb over his knuckles.

Zhongli gives you a faint smile. “That decision is up to you, dearest. If you choose to stay, then stay. If not, then you leave. Whatever decision you make, I will always be there with you every step of the way.”

Your lips tremble as tears continue to pool in your eyes and spill down your cheeks. The problem is you’re unsure if you’re doing the right thing if you stay or leave. You love Xiao. He was your boyfriend before Zhongli was something to you other than an acquaintance. But you also love Zhongli just as much as you love Xiao. Zhongli has been at your side since the incident. He cared for you and protected you. 

You shrug your shoulders and shake your head. “I don’t know what to choose, Zhongli.”

How do you know if you’re making the right decision without hurting the people involved?

Note: Damn, it's been a few months since I've posted something for Tragic Outcomes, huh? I will be updating Caught in the Crossfire next week! It's coming to an end, and I want to give it a final "chapter" because I don't want it to end there. I'm not sure how much longer Tragic Outcomes will go on. I think it'll have about ten chapters, maybe? Who knows. Also! I am currently working on a mini-fic for the Isekai'd!Reader series right now! It should be out in a few hours since I am still working on it! Anyway! I ONLY post on my Tumblr (Genshinluvr) and my AO3 (Aaliah_exo)! Nowhere else except Tumblr and AO3!

My overall taglist: @deartoru, @luminarymoonlight, @exhaustedcommunist, @thelost-in-time, @hispasian-otaku, @samarill, @kazuhaprnt, @vinnie-w, @eliciana, @jjvr4yxc, @nightlysunn (Accounts that I was unable to tag have been removed. Those who don't want to be tagged in certain stories are not tagged in this particular post. Remember to check your settings if you're allowing people to mention you/tag you in posts or not)

Read more of my works on my Masterlist | Maybe support me by tipping me on Ko-Fi or by reblogging my fanfics! ^^ I will also be posting exclusive fanfics on Ko-Fi as well very soon! I might post all of my stories on there too, but who knows. You can also tip me on Tumblr if you'd like as a way to show support! ^^

[dokidokitsuna]

...I just remembered I wanted to make my own statement on the AI thing. ^^;

So you've probably heard, but in case you haven't: Tumblr just sold out everyone's data to the AI trash compactors, they probably did it long before they gave us the option to opt out, and even if you do opt out they're probably still taking and using your work anyway (telling people to opt out instead of actually asking for their permission is already scummy business practice, but when it comes to AI it's functionally meaningless. :/ It's always "well, we're telling them not to use these people's data and we're hoping they'll be nice and go along with it" with no regulations or consequences if they decide to just steal everything indiscriminately...)

Despite that, I am not leaving Tumblr anytime soon. I'm looking into other sites*, but at this moment in time, I have nowhere else to go. ^^; Besides, I still like it here. When I left DeviantArt I was already getting sick of the place, having my art stolen regularly by "fans" and paradoxically getting less and less interest in my work over time. By the time the devs turned the website into eye-blinding slop with Eclipse, I was more than ready to move on.

But I still enjoy using Tumblr. I like writing long text posts that no one would bother to read anywhere else, I like answering asks, and I like the unique sense of humor and style among the users here. ^^ It would take a lot to force me out.

Also, I can take a little solace in the fact that AI-bros do not value "low-quality" art like mine. ^^; If messy cel-shaded sketches with visible pixels ever become popular, then I'll worry, but for now I think it's highly unlikely that anyone will want to wholesale regurgitate my art. If anything, I think prioritizing it in their datasets would only make them worse...and on that note, if you do have "high quality" detailed/painterly/semi-realistic art that would be targeted, I'd recommend 'poisoning' it with Nightshade/Glaze. Although I heard a rumor a while back that AI is "building immunity" to Nightshade and already learning to work around it, but I'm really hoping that was just a wishful lie from the trash compactors themselves. I haven't heard it repeated since then, so I think it's still worth a shot. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

So anyway, like the post I reblogged said, I think the best thing we can do now is to make it clear that WE DON'T WANT AI ART. We don't care how easy it'll be to instantly generate thousands of hours of mindless 'content' to look at; we don't want it. Since regulation is lagging so far behind (wanna know why Disney's copyright hounds didn't shut this down on sight? Most likely, they're hoping to profit from it down the line) the only way to fight this right now is with individual litigation and consumer demand.

Don't support projects made with AI**; don't hate-watch them or spotlight them. Focus your energy on the millions of human artists who are still here, and need your support now more than ever.

*I've heard people mention moving to Twitter and/or Artstation: fam, you're jumping out of the frying pan and into the fire. ^^;;; IIRC, Arstation was one of the FIRST art sites to start flirting with AI, and Twitter has been selling off its users' data for several months already. Go there if you must, but don't go under the impression that it's "safer".

**Please keep a cool head when discussing AI art, and keep in mind that it used to mean something other than "mass theft". Artists have and still do create AI tools that are built on limited data sets with permission/compensation, that are used to aid them in their work and encourage human artistry (Vocaloids and DAW's, for instance) rather than stamp it out. Until a specific word evolves into popular use for exploitative AI, we're kinda stuck with this confusion, so remember to get the facts before you speak out.

P.S. Praying every night that this is a dumb fad that will soon die and go to the same hell as NFTs. >_< Praying every morning that the influx of AI art into its own datasets will eventually corrupt itself and make it useless. >_< >_< Praying every afternoon for both at once! >_< >_< >_< Like to charge, reblog to cast, all that

[yonpote]

also some ppl asked me abt what i was talking about w like. SOME fans' perceptions toward dnp's early relationship. giant nonsense under cut :3

essentially it was about like, i guess we have an idea in our heads about what a parasocial relationship between a celebrity and a fan looks like right. and there can be issues there when boundaries are crossed, particularly when the celebrity is the one to cross that boundary without acknowledging the inherent power dynamic that they hold. this is still an issue that can happen with youtubers to this day ESPECIALLY because the line between creator and fan is so blurred.

when we hear about how dan and phil's relationship started out, from the current perspective we have towards parasocial youtube relationships, it can look a lot like that power dynamic. i mean for the most part, its something that's joked about, but specifically from the view of a "crazy fan". dan is phil trash, hes the ultimate phillie, he's the parasocial fan who won, i mean even HE joked about it back in the day (in a much edgier way) with his video about befriending internet stars by doing all these horrible things.

but it's important to remember what youtube was like in 2009, and what youtube culture specifically in the UK was like in 2009. those old halloween gathering vlogs and old sitc vlogs are all still up on youtube, and you can see it really was just. 50 nerds standing in a field huddled around doing whatever. the only thing i could compare it to in my personal life was going to facebook group cosplay meetups in washington square park in nyc, just a bunch of nerds wearing horns in a park and then going to get mcdonalds afterwards lol.

a youtuber wasnt even a real thing at this point in time. there was no money to be made really, just internet clout. cant remember who said this in a call recently, but someone made this comparison: dan and phil meeting each other was less like a modern day youtuber meeting a fan and more like a tumblr user with several thousand followers meeting a tumblr user with a few hundred followers. like in terms of a dynamic, sure phil was a few years older and had some internet clout, but that didnt have nearly as much weight back then as it does today. also fine lets talk about the age gap.

dan was 18 and phil was 22. a lot of (american) people talk about this and are like "oop red flag!" and im american so i kinda get it. especially when you know about how college dudes can and do prey on girls fresh out of high school like that. but a couple things to remember.

there are different standards for age differences in relationships everywhere around the world and we cant just view everything from the one mindset we know, and in terms of mental differences, 18 really isnt that different from 22 (frontal lobe aint done developing just yet yall)

they are two queer guys. and im not saying whatever isnt possible but like its something to take into account that queer relationships are just not going to be in the same framework as het ones.

they are two neurodivergent guys. a common thing w neurodivergence is feeling like youre being left behind by peers.

alright lets focus on that last point shall we? think about it this way. dan had just finished [UK equivalent of high school SORRY FOR BEING AMERICAN] but he is taking a gap year. from what hes said and what we've seen of this time, it seems like his friends have gone off to uni and he was kind of alone and figuring out what he should even do. idk if he even decided on studying law yet by the time he started talking to phil.

speaking of whom... phil had also just finished school, he finished his masters at uni! i posted a clip on here that i found really interesting from a (pre-dan) 2009 vlog of phil being open about like, feeling scared about what to do once school was over. he had to get a job and move out of his parents house and become a Real Man.

if you think about it, dan and phil were in much more similar boats than you might think at first glance. they were both extremely internet queerdos who were being forced to "grow up" and felt kind of isolated from their peers who seemed to have their shit together in comparison. there was a lot they could relate to even outside of common interests or anything like that.

its not a lie that there was some parasocial nature to their relationship at the start, but it's not nearly the same as other later cases of youtuber-fan relationships. but also! maybe im only saying all this cuz it worked out right? what abt [redacted] and [redacted]? two queer guys, similar ages to dnp, similar amounts of internet clout, but they didnt work out. so maybe it really is just bc its dan and phil specifically that it managed to work out.

[fdrsamericanflagduckfloaty]

Drop the Miku Binder TJ rant bestie

okay so like

i was just thinking about it, and, like, i think it's fucking nuts but also really weird how the hamilton fandom (which i'm in but i swear i'm not an uwu lams turtles shipper please) somehow took this CRUSTY, TERF-BANGED, UGLY, OLD, REDHEADED, RAPIST ASS MOTHERFUCKER,

and turned his ugly ass into this.

like damn what the hell- what- how???? okay like yeah, they're using daveed diggs as a base for this bullshit, which, okay, fine, but YOU DID NOT NEED TO ADD THE INFO. The idea itself is funny but also a bit weird, however im 99% sure Diggs himself wore that shirt. However, all of the extra info??? come on. Where'd the fandom get this istg y'all-

Also, also, they did something similar by making John Laurens (gay blonde dumbass) into an UWU turtles boy. ....why. Bi trash coffee gremlin tumblr over-worked sleep-deprived alexander hamilton. like yeah relatable but. why. small bean big sweater uwu innocent boy blushy short james madison. ...why. bro was stubborn and would pick a fight and was the 'fuck you' type of shy.

I just find it wild the fandom made this and it is the entirety of the fandom into one. There's the good sides, there's the bad, and there's this. Which encompasses the ENTIRE. FUCKING. FANDOM.

The fandom has its headcanons, it has its perks, but then you reach the side where everyone is just a wild fucking original character. They don't model the historical figures anymore- they're just OCs with the name 'Philip Hamilton' or 'John Laurens' or god forbid our third U.S president 'Thomas Jefferson' slapped onto it.

I'm also so confused as to how this is what the fandom is known for. We have some good fics, we have hella good art, we have a M U S I C A L , and then the first thought people have of the Ham fandom is Miku Binder Third President Founding Fucker Slaveowner Thomas Jefferson.

I also find it kind of offensive (almost put insluting oh my ufckjg-) that they made a founder become this but like he'd probably be really pissed so please keep fucking up his memory lmao he deserves it

But like... also why. What made them think of this.

Like yeah I write 20k word TR smut but you don't see me drawing it.

You don't see me making him an UWU e-boy.

...Eh I probably would for shits and giggles tbh

But like this is founding father Thomas Jefferson. Third Pres. Second VP. First Sec. of State. And he is a furry, ex-cocaine addict. Also btw do they mean John Laurens or John Adams as the former drug dealer part because neither are better but it'd really help

Also bro literally raped his 14 year old slave and had like 6 kids with her. He had her room DIRECTLY NEXT TO HIS. He RAPED HIS DEAD WIFE'S HALF-SISTER. AND HE'S A SAD UWU MAN WHO DID NOTHING WRONG?

Let's not forget this same person made a post saying Lizzie (the Queen) would be reincarnated as a horse when she died. I'm serious. Deadass.

However, it's also funny as fuck because this entire thing is a tarnish to Jefferson and I fucking HATE that bastard so like good job lol

At the same time though it's still super weird??? But insane??? Because how did this become one of the Tumblr exclusives??? like it's Tumblr history at this point. Twitter history. You cannot express any like for the Hamilton musical before you get the 'have you seen miku binder thomas jefferson' and it's like 'well shit'.

But also remember: THIS IS NOT AN OC TO FUCK AROUND WITH. Hamilton the Musical specifically gave you and presented you the founder. Thomas Jefferson. Played by Daveed Diggs. Just because it is played by a POC, but also modernized, and vastly different from the actual founder and President, does not mean that at its core it is NOT STILL THE SAME PERSON.

If you name it Thomas Jefferson, if you use the presentation of him given by Daveed Diggs, you are still using that white fucking slave-owning racist motherfucker, and that's the point of it all.

I find it stupid but funny but also insane, and I wouldn't care, unless I KNEW IT WAS SERIOUS. The artist made it seriously. They made John Laurens. They made Philip Hamilton. They did this seriously.

but like also look at this lmao

This meme of Thomas Jefferson in a Hatsune Miku binder really got trending on Twitter at one point

It's an infamous, hellish, classic meme of both Tumblr and the Hamilton fandom, and it deserves what attention it's got, but Jesus please never unironically make shit like this again, Hamilfans, we're stained by this we don't need another😭🔫

EDIT:

i have more

So like, I just remembered: it kinda romanticizes these guys??? The musical??? so like don't get me wrong i love the music but... it puts them into this light. This pink light. It paints Hamilton as an abolitionist who was outspoken about it. When, in reality, dude traded and sold slaves for his in-laws + wasn't all that outspoken about it + was against immigrants or migrants, WHEN DUDE WAS FROM THE ISLANDS. HE HAD SCOTTISH BLOOD. AND HE'S AGAINST IT? Hypocrisy at its finest.

Washington also owned slaves and ran his own plantation too, so he's not off the hook. Madison, the 'uwu small bean' of the fandom, also owned slaves and ran a plantation. So the main people of this entire fiasco are slave-owners. Perfect. But also I've heard Ron Chernow's book on Hamilton, the entire start of the musical, is a bit biased to Ham himself, so...

You could be saying 'but FDRsduckfloaty, Sally is mentioned!' yes. But however, not enough. Not more. It's not even implied more than potentially ONCE what he did, and I'm not sure it ever was! Cabinet battle 3 states it flat-out but it was cut. For your info, Ben Franklin and John Adams are the only two you can really like in the slavery aspect. Ben bought them but let them go for their freedom, and John detested slavery and was against it. Never owned one.

Jefferson did add a slavery clause to the declaration but it was discarded, and he didn't fight half as much as he could have. Maybe he did and since it was the 1700s he didn't have a lot of support, but surely he could've done something like, I don't know, call it out after his terms? Once you're done gaining your second term and out of office, they can't do shit to it or your presidency, since it's over.

So the musical itself has its own problem and the fandom is even worse. It blatantly disregards that a LOT. A hella lot of the amrev fandom + a small part of the ham fandom has called TJeffs out for it but I mean can we please not make shit like Miku Binder Jefferson and act like he wasn't an actual child rapist???

This video does pretty well at it. I will admit the tagline 'America then, told by America now' almost sends shivers down my spine for what it really means. But then again I find men not knowing they'd make it down into the history books for starting the world's global power and the world's economic powerhouse pretty interesting. Doing something big and knowing it's historical, but not that it's going to form a very, VERY large country, where you'll be honored down the road and called a Founding Father of an entire nation? Signing papers and not knowing they're the founding stones of a country and still looked up to today? Intriguing.

But like still fuck Thomas Jefferson lmao

there's a lot more videos on it that dig deep, but the point is, that Hamilton is a good musical with good songs but it's also very... complex, and a bit problematic, Thomas Jefferson is a little bitch, and you should stan 1776 before you ever stan Hamilton. 1776 does not do this. It is much more realistic. 1776 has Benjamin Franklin and that's an immediate win. Be more like a 1776, be less like a Hamilton.

[apricxtt]

okayy, a long overdue post and one that i already tried to post once but apparently i lost connection and tumblr trashed it

butttt, now that the ronance shippers are up and ready for new content, I present you this:

Another ronance scene breakdown by yours truly - me

All the interpretations are mine and made specifically through a ronance/ romantic lens ( I realize that some of this might be reaching or exaggerating).

Now, I have not bothered to look up if the Duffer Brothers have said anything about this scene or explained it because I'm unfortunately lazy, but feel free to correct me if anything is amiss.

In this specific ronance scene or moment, really, the gang is preparing to head back into the Upside Down and get rid of Vecna once and for all.

Robin jumps first to Nancy's aid, to help boost her up and support her.

And, they could've had anyone offer to help Nancy ( even though we know that she's more than capable of doing it herself).

They could have had Eddie hoist Nancy up or Steve could have helped Nancy first to get down safely before going in himself.

But, they don't do that.

It's specifically Robin who's chosen to do that.

You could argue that throughout the whole season, each character has to interact with others in one way or another and that this was just random.

Or that, after Steve helps Nancy up from the mattress, he's pulling her up a little too fast and harshly, resulting in a general air of awkwardness once their lips nearly touch.

cough cough

forced stancy scene

cough cough

Although, it's undeniable that Robin takes a knee for Nancy here (figuratively and literally), by offering herself up to help Nancy. She pats it to signal to her that she can climb up and count on her.

And maybe, there's something more to it.

Let's analyze their looks:

Robin's, of yearning and trust and hope, telling Nancy that it was okay and that she could depend on her, that she's able to rely on her;

and Nancy's look of initial surprise, followed by realization (the subtle nod).

Robin is, in a way, even vulnerable here.

She's giving herself up to Nancy, in hopes that she'll accept her.

She's giving herself over to Nancy and she doesn't care if it's in a platonic way or if it's beyond that.

Robin is willing to take whatever Nancy gives to her, whatever she extends her way.

As their relationship develops through the episodes, we see some of that tension clear; tension from the whole ex-Steve situation and from Nancy's strained, long-distance relationship with Jonathan. It's why Nancy is so on edge in the first place and why she doesn't give Robin a fair shot when she meets her. That changes slowly, as she starts seeing Robin in a new light.

I think that this scene is the key moment, where Robin is proving herself.

She's already been through hell with Steve, and he trusts her. She's yet to gain that sort of approval from Nancy.

Because their relationships always run deeper than that simple loyalty and truthfulness.

The trust has to come from both sides and it has to be unconditional, it can't be unrequited.

They need one another to hold and turn to when the rest of the world doesn't know, or wouldn't understand.

Once someone new "accepts the risk", they have to know what they're getting themselves into and have to earn their title in the monster hunting group.

The group depends on one another and they have to be able to trust one another to keep each other safe and have each other's backs.

If an individual doesn't fit into their dynamic/friend group, they could present as a potential hazard to the group, because they could break their chain of links and be reckless, or get someone killed.

That's what I think this ronance scene is.

Robin's had to prove herself and her part in this group and I think that this is where that exact moment happens.

Two warriors, seeing eye to eye with one another, now on equal footing. Robin is trying to earn that trust and be someone that Nancy can fall back on.

It correlates directly to the scene on Lover's Lake, where her feelings and intentions cement themselves already.

It's where our main four all go into the Upside Down together for the first time.

Robin follows Nancy and dives in without hesitation, in spite of all the horrible and dangerous things she's been told about the Upside Down.

Even after Nancy told them to stay put.

There's some ulterior motive there, but we don't stay on it for long enough.

I mean, just look at the way that Robin gazes at Nancy here.

From afar, longingly, admiring her with a smile on her face.

(The irony here is that Nancy doesn't notice it - just like she doesn't really catch Robin's lingering gazes, or subtle moves, or her crush, for that matter.)

So that's why I think that it's so important and interesting. That dynamic there, between those two; ronance may not be canon but it's there for us viewers to decipher and read into things.

Sprinkles of moments and wandering eyes or hand-holding that lasts just that bit longer than it should and sapphic longing represented for us.

I hope that you've enjoyed this breakdown of another ronance scene with me :)

stay faithful to yourselves and your funky little gay ships, folks <3

[leftoverdinosaurbones]

Chapter 2: An Inconvenient Interruption

F!Reader (Dark Urge), Spawn Astarion, Haarlep - NSFW (minors DNI)

[Major Spoilers - Set post BG3]

***

Yay finally I've finished chapter 2 of the fanfic I've been working on (you can read chapter 1 here on Ao3 or here on tumblr). Shout-out to my fellow Haarlep fans <3

Content Warning: Dubious consent, light exhibitionism, smut (let me know if I missed anything to include here, please!!)

Summary: You are interrupted by some old...(friends? acquaintances? enemies?) at a truly terrible time. And they have an urgent message for you.

Chapter 2: An Inconvenient Interruption

Slowly, you open your eyes in response to the beams of sunlight rising across your room. Artificial sunlight, of course, very helpful in keeping your regular circadian rhythm in the sewers. The contraption was an incredibly kind gift from Gale. The memory rushed into your mind.

Rolan placed the apparatus into your hands, then moved his fingers to smooth out his already neatly pressed coat and fiddle with his cufflinks.

“Yes well. Gale wanted me to make sure you knew that this is something he made for Astarion, specifically.”

Rolan rolled his eyes. “The role of a messenger boy is hardly one for a man of my station. I told Gale this will be the last time I do something like this for him.” A tenderness filled his eyes as he met yours.

You roll over to pull your mind out of the bittersweet memory. Out of instinct, you reach over to the other side of the bed, fingers tracing the recent indentations left on the blanket and pillow by Astarion’s body. With the rising pressures and demands from the thousands of spawn, Astarion has spent less and less time lounging in bed.

But this time, your fingers brush across a note. While reading the note he left for you, you pull his pillow into your chest and breathe in the comforting smell, a gentle mix bergamot, rosemary, and aged brandy.

My love,

Let’s take an evening for ourselves. Get away from all of this, and have some privacy. I know somewhere quiet. Somewhere intimate. Somewhere we can…indulge in each other.

I’ll see you this evening, my sweet treat.

-A

***

Thoughts of tonight fill your head to the brim. Floating with nerves and eager anticipation for the evening, you find yourself getting distracted - exceedingly and embarrassingly so. Your various errands to help with rebuilding the city are interrupted by your daydreams, which cause you to wander off course, or even worse, force you into having to take a break in a private space to work through some of your more vivid imaginations. Fortunately, your day above ground is light.

Released from your city duties, you walk the familiar stone path to your home above ground. The faint smells and sounds of the old Baldur’s Gate are beginning to emerge, each day stronger than the last. Sounds of people greeting each other - laughing, even. Vendors hawking at their stands and now starting to bring in customers. Bakeries emitting wafts of pleasant aromas when their doors are opened. Even the unpleasant smells of living in the city - hints of animal waste and spoiled food - aren’t wholly unwelcome in your nostrils.

You stop just shy of your home to check your mailbox. Pulling out a wad of letters, you flip quickly through each one, until you spot one penned in familiar handwriting. Your heart skips a beat, tossing away the trash and tucking the remaining letters under your arm. You rip open the envelope right away, and confirm that the letter is indeed from Lae’zel. A smile spreads across your face as you clutch the letter to your heart. Your eyes greedily start to soak up the words your friend wrote. Ever focused on her goals, she describes some of the recent victories (though nothing too important, in case this letter gets into the wrong hands).

As you read Lae’zel’s description of what it’s like to fulfill her dream of riding atop a beautiful, powerful dragon, your body freezes, feeling a shiver run up from the base of your spine to your neck. The same eerie shiver from the previous night. You glance over your shoulder, confirming that no one is directly behind you, though the street hums with light afternoon foot traffic.

A pit grows heavy in your stomach as your mind races to place this feeling. It almost felt like…

You shake your head adamantly. It’s been almost a year since you last felt those phantom fingers dance across your skin. Six months since you defeated the Netherbrain. There’s no way-

Your stomach lurched as five warm, long fingers wrapped around the back of your neck, grip strong even from worlds away. Your knees, shins, forearms felt the soft caress of silken sheets.

“Shit” you whispered. “Shit”. The firm grip on the back of your neck pressed down, pushing your face into the soft sheets. You needed to do something, to move, to get out of the street. You only have a matter of moments before -

You feel two knees, two strong thighs push between your own legs, spreading them further apart to make room for this person’s body. Their hips pressed firmly against your ass, holding you in place. You feel their free hand trace lazily up your thigh, to your hip, then around to your stomach and slowly climbing up to settle on one of your breasts. The hand massages you tenderly, and for a moment you close your eyes and lose yourself in bliss - until two fingers latch onto your nipple and pull - hard.

The mail spills out from under your arm as you reach out to brace yourself against a nearby wall, stifling the sounds threatening to fall out of your mouth. Your eyes fly open to witness a few onlookers begin to make their way towards you to help pick up your mail.

Shit, you think to yourself. Truly, this couldn’t get worse.

You try to wave off your neighbors in the most urgent yet kind way possible. You feel the hand release your neck just to snap a firm grip onto your hips, nails biting into your skin. The other hand traces down from your breast, traveling lower…and you know you only have mere seconds before you need to get away, lest you need to find another neighborhood to live in.

The hand continues its journey down to dip into your folds, to deftly spread your labia wide apart, exposing yourself to whoever this person is. Your face begins to burn bright with embarrassment as you press your own thighs together - a vain attempt at concealing yourself. A finger dips between to swipe at your clit, slipping around it easily with how incredibly wet you are.

A moan breathes out your lips as the infernal fingers caress your clit. Wide-eyed, you snap your hand against your mouth to stifle the sounds but it’s too late. Some of the people gathered around you begin to take a step back in confusion, hands raised. Some of the women raise their brows and give you knowing, stern frowns but you barely have time to register their judgment before you start to feel the fingers start to circle your clit with more intensity. You quickly scoop up the scattered letters and run to your front door.

Frantic and frazzled, you finger through your keys, leaning your body up against the door to help brace yourself through the thrums of pleasure wracking up through your core. The key ring slips from your grip and clatters to the ground, and you let out a mix of a groan and a sigh, your body confused by its physical pleasure and mental frustration.

Finally, you unlock the door and throw yourself inside, quickly fixing the latch. Once safe, you rested yourself against the door, chest heaving, in the safety of your home. Sliding to the floor, you rest on your knees and elbows, matching the stance of your body double. You slip one of your hands beneath your body to join the infernal fingers between your folds, rubbing your clit with renewed fervor. Your body begins to shine with lightly glistening sweat, gathering on the small of your back and highlighting the back of your neck. You press your face against the cold wood of the floor for a reprieve against the building heat in your body.

Your body double - Haarlep - notices that you’ve joined in and begins to writhe with pleasure from the multiple sensations. The phantom fingers stop immediately, halting your own self-pleasure in anticipation. The hand tangles itself into your hair and yanks, hard, arching your head back and bending your spine, forcing you to use both your arms to hold yourself up.

Bastard.

The other hand leaves your hip for a moment to introduce a new sensation. The thick head of a cock swiping up through your folds, rubbing against your clit, before finally resting at your entrance, teasing you. Even just the tip of him felt impossibly large, too thick for you to handle - but still you ground your hips against the invisible touch. As he began to press inside, his hand snapped back to your hip. With a sudden thrust, he slammed himself inside you, splitting you open. Your body strained to accommodate his girth, the pain taking your breath away. Tears sprung to your eyes as you cried out from the sudden intrusion, the forceful claiming of your - no, Haarlep’s - body.

But you love the pain, relishing and revealing in it. Your cunt pulsed, dripping wet from the sensation. Panting with each thrust, you dig your fingernails into the floor, clawing for purchase. Pounding faster, harder, deeper into you, a desperate cry escapes from your throat as pleasure wracks your body. Your core clenches tightly like a spring, so close to release…

The hand that was wound in your hair frees you to clutch your hips to pin you in place as he thrusts deep one last time, releasing himself inside you - inside Haarlep. You can feel the heat of his cum filling you, the excess dripping down your thigh. It feels so vivid that you are surprised to find only your own slick on your fingertips when you reach between your thighs to check.

And whoever it was, the bastard made sure to finish before you. You rolled your eyes as you got on the bed to take care of your own needs. Reveling in the aftermath of your pleasure, you find a faint sense of guilt creeping up at the edges of your mind. Of course you didn’t actually have sex with anyone, nor was it really your choice, and Astarion is nothing but understanding of the situation… still you can’t help but feel a sense of remorse.

***

Coming back to your senses, you pick yourself off the bed and begin to straighten up the house. A strange, small package on your bedside table catches your eye. You pick up the note, quickly scanning the letter to see that it is from Korilla. Panic rises in your throat - you know she can travel anywhere, but realizing how easily she can get into your home only adds to the violation you just experienced.

You’re a tough person to get on your own. But it seems like this did the trick. Please come to the House of Hope as soon as possible. In the package, you’ll find what you need. I’m confident you’ll remember how to use these items.

-Korilla

You place the letter down with shaky hands. Back to the House of Hope? Your last trip there was…less than ideal. Why would you need to return? You press your hand to your now sweaty, matted hair and decide to take a shower before setting off.

Read the next chapter here

[trash-gobby]

✨🦇 Trash Gobby Intro 2.0 🦇✨

AO3: severenvansickle

Ways of Supporting me

Ko-Fi Link!!!

Redbubble: DreamScapeSev7n

Hello! I am trash_gobby, also known as trash. I kinda disappeared for a really long time from this tumblr account, only really showing up in small spurts to post or reblog stuff.

I've been dealing with a LOT of personal stuff that has made it really hard for me to keep up with this blog in general. Not for lack of desire. What's been going on in my personal life isn't really something I want to share here or anywhere regardless of my anonymity. Needless to say it's been rough and now things have really started to improve for me. I've even gotten published in an indie published anthology which was a real special thing for me.

Now I've been focusing a lot on my original works of fiction and improving things personally. I still want to post here. However, I won't be taking requests anymore and will be reformatting my content around posting only fanfics or headcanons which I will come up with. There are some stuff which people have requested in the past which I may consider working on if the mood strikes me.

A lot has changed for me in the past two years so I want to focus more on content which personally interests me right now.

There will most likely be a follow up post which goes into more detail about formatting and how things are gonna be organized once I've actually found time to devise a proper system for my old works. It might take a while though, considering I'm working full time now, and also doing a lot of important life stuff outside this blog.

Rules

1. I will DON’T encourage anyone who interacts with NSFW content who is underage.

2. Be respectful!!! No hate speech allowed (this includes anything transphobic, homophobic, transphobic, racist, fatphobic, antisemitic, ableist, Islamophobic etc.)

3. Constructive criticism is ALWAYS WELCOME!! This is a place where I want people to feel welcome to give respectful critiques of my work as I’m always trying to improve.

4. I won't be writing things from specific fandoms I've grown a certain sourness towards (usually because of the person who is in charge and not the fandom itself). I.e. Harry Potter is a bit of a sore spot for me and I have no interest in writing for it (I don't have an issue with others doing so since it's not up to me what others write and I think everyone is entitled to their own opinion and feelings about a fandom or work).

5. Relating to rule 2. - please don't bring any anti-palestinian sentiments to this space (this is not an invitation for others to be anti-Semitic so don't get things twisted. I support Judaism and the right for Jewish people to exist in peace and security within ALL countries and to be able to self determine. I think the same rights should also be extended to the Palestinian people who have been ignored by many and have had their rights and humanity stripped from them). This is not the blog of a Zionist and I would encourage others to follow or unfollow accordingly. Free Palestine 🇵🇸

✨ What I Write!!: Fluff, Headcanons, platonic/friendships, NSFW, Dating/SFW, LGBTQ+, tragedy/angst, crossover, reader x insert, character x character, mini-fics, character preferences

✨ What I WON’T write: p*dophelia, r*pe/non-con, tortue p*rn, BDSM that’s to outside of my comfort zone, b*astiality, incest, raceplay

Fun Facts About Me

1. I crochet lots of things for fun

2. I am a gender gremlin

3. My favourite all time characters are Severen (Near Dark 1987), Bishop (Aliens 1986), David (TLB 1987)

4. I am a huge A24 movie studio fan, because I am a pretentious film school graduate (I'm not a fan of Christopher Nolan or Quentin Tarantino though. Which I guess means I'm not as pretentious as I thought?? 🤔)

5. I have an AO3 account which has more stuff on it then this blog.

6. I am an aspiring author with a short story already published in a small indie press anthology (won't name here because my irl name is in the anthology). Little Ghost Books is the publisher though, and I would encourage y'all to check them out if you like 2SLGBTQIA+ horror often published indie and major horror titles. They are very worth it 💖

Masterlist for works

[moreespressoformydepresso]

Heyy, it’s been a couple of days since I’ve posted, even longer since I’ve been consistent. I would say I’ve been busy but that would be a lie because I haven’t actually had less time than usual to post. Truth is some stuff’s gone down, partially on this very platform, and it’s made it very hard to post. If you don’t want to read a kind of venty angsty personal post the TL;DR is I’ll get back to posting semi-regularly once I’ve dealt with some stuff but I promise it has nothing to do with the people who interact with my blog. You’re the highlight of my day even if it’s “just” a like and I’m sorry for the recent dip in posts.

I don’t wanna go into detail because surprise! I don’t actually like going out of my way to create drama with people and one person involved has essentially harassed me on every platform we share. That’s why I haven’t spoken about this before, and I’m only saying this now because I realized I’ve forgotten to respond to several reblogs and I don’t want anyone to feel like I’m ignoring them or abandoning this blog or anything. Basically, I feel bad about leaving without explanation and also I kind of want to vent? So without getting too specific: A close friendship recently died a slow, torturous death over several months, slowly getting worse until the other person threw me in the trash like I meant nothing. Then he came back two weeks later and tried to guilt trip me for being upset at him for how he treated me.

In that two week period some stuff went down on Tumblr here and well… there’s no way to sugarcoat this, so I’ll be blunt: it’s made me terrified to post anything on here. Every time I want to post something I feel sick to my stomach with dread because what if it’ll happen again? Or, alternatively, what if I’m next? And it sucks because I’m not even 100% sure it was aimed at me, but it lines up a little too perfectly and maybe I’m paranoid and it’s all on me but maybe it’s not and if that’s the case… I’d rather be wrong, for once, but the problem is that there’s no way to know for certain. I’ve been stewing in this weird, complicated mishmash of emotions and confusion and I honestly have no idea how to deal with it. I thought time would help, as it usually does, but clearly this is a special case.

Before anyone says it, yes. I’m aware that this is a subtweet, which is not a cool or nice thing to do unless it’s a joke between friends. That’s another thing that made me not want to post this. I hate being mean to people who aren’t mean to me first, and as I said I have no solid proof from a trustworthy source without ulterior motives that this had anything to do with me (which is what I usually use as my standard for when to start hitting back) but I just can’t seem to let it go. Every time I have an AU I wanna share I get this creeping, uncomfortable, clawing feeling crawling underneath my skin and tightening in my chest and I hate it. I hate it so much I cannot even describe it properly.

It makes me wanna scrape my skin off with sandpaper and scrub myself clean from the inside out with an iron sponge. I wanna claw my heart out of my chest and shake it until it stops feeling like this and the only comfort here is that I’ve found some fancy new descriptions to use in my writing. Speaking of: I’ll post on AO3 again soon, hopefully today or tomorrow, but just like with my blog I’m so drained of energy and I feel so nauseous about posting I haven’t been able to bring myself to do it again, which sucks because I love posting on all these platforms! It shouldn’t feel like a chore but it does now and I don’t know if there’s anything that’ll ever make it fully go away. It’s become more manageable, hence why I’m posting this, so I’m clinging to the hope it’ll all ebb away at some point. Until then though my posting schedule is gonna be even more inconsistent than it usually is, so I’m very sorry about that. Hope you all have a wonderful day and I’m sorry about the venty post I’ve subjected you to 😅

[cannibalismyuri]

way to take things out of context <33 lemme show u some things i said in the actual post that aren't taken out of the connotations i meant to imply them with?

"they also are popular bc they're seen as Better than other creators and put on a pedestal. which is both uncomfortable for them and Highly discouraging for others." this was the whole sentence. way to take things out of context huh.

"many people just disregard other rlly talented creators in favor of the already popular ones (who are popular for a reason. their art / fics / wtv Are really good and i read their stuff too! not trying to put them down here, just trying to lift other people up)" so where in this sentence do u see me saying that they aren't good writers?

"also bragging rights? babe nobody's bragging abt how they get more interaction. that's rude asf and entirely out of the question. and those popular writers ur talking abt who Could brag if they wanted to DON'T. bc they aren't despicable human beings who love to put others down." so did i or did i not clarify that i think the people byler tumblr puts on a pedestal handle it gracefully.

also the way u phrased this is Exactly what's wrong with this fandom. have u ever read anything that wasn't be the 10 writers u idolized? i've found some AMAZING, FREAKISHLY TALENTED, SWEET AND ALL-ROUND LOVELY writers in fandom whom i never would've found if i didn't Specifically try to broaden my horizons. the way you phrased this implies that there is simply nobody who compares to the writers with most engagement and like... how would u know? isn't this exactly the kind of behavior i was saying was Not It? ur putting them on a pedestal and refusing to acknowledge other people, no matter how talented they may or may not be. i'm not saying everybody is an amazing writer right off the bat and that these writers aren't amazing; i'm saying that others may be just as good. i know Several amazing writers eho dont get half the recognition as mediocre writers in other fandoms (NOT! TALKING! ABT! BYLER! HERE!) based on luck and when exactly they post. u guys will never branch out and Try to support these other fic writers who are helping keep this fandom alive and contributing Beautiful fics and then say that the tag is dying just bc UR personal favorite creators aren't creating as much. this doesn't in any way diminish the obvious prowess and skill of the Big writers, bc they're amazing writers and people, but u suggesting that nobody else even comes close? this is NOT nyt bestsellers this is FANDOM. its common courtesy to atleast respect people who write these fics for free and if u can't provide basic respect by trashing others' writing that u haven't even read bc its not one of the Big writer's writing... ur part of the problem.

and im going to say it for the last Fucking time. dont bring my fics or engagement into this. im speaking for so many other people and im trying to demand support for Everyone. this was never just abt me. i said this previously too, but i made a whole ass EVENT to shine light on less popular writers. bylerficrecweek was made for a reason. if it was just abt me and my engagement i never would've wholeheartedly put my whole heart into that project. and don't u Fucking dare insult my writing. "maybe you're not as good at it as you think"? im fucking tired of u coming on my blog, claiming im saying a bunch of BULLSHIT and recontextualizing everything i say and insulting my writing on top of that. you won't see this bc ive blocked u now but. im genuinely so fucking tired. im turning off anon. clearly who ever is sending these has a problem with me personally; so say it with your whole pussy to my face now. ok thx and im Really Fucking Tired please read the post for what its meant to be before mindlessly accusing me of shit.