#The whole household has been super sweet to him the whole time

[justminawrites]

None of you understand Amber Bennett: She's just a girl, your honour. A review of the show writers' least favourite love story from Invincible season 1.

Now let me just preface this by saying I have 2 points to make. Just two, very long, super rambly points that does have mild spoilers for Invincible season 2. Read at your own risk.

Point 1: Amber isn't "understanding" enough is utter bullshit.

There’s no indication that civilians outside of the ones associated with the GDA have any idea how brutal fights are for superheroes. Amber quite literally has no idea what the hell Mark is going through, even after the superhero reveal. The only thing she has a smidgeon of understanding of is his dad beating his ass on live TV. And even that is a heavy maybe because we don’t know how much of the fight the cameras could cover and how much was broadcast to the general public. 

Point 2: Amber’s dated Losers before.

This is stated explicitly in canon, she's “been down that road." Furthermore, she’s also the daughter of a single-parent household. She used to hang out a community centre as a kid because her mom did late hours. Daddy Issues anyone? She’s got a lot of her own problems that we never get to unpack or linger on because the writing decided she wasn’t going to end up with Mark. 

What if she’d already dated an absolute bastard before Mark? Someone who seemed sweet and genuine at first, but then he started slacking. He’d be late to dates, stop taking an interest in anything she did, and just never show up for her in any way that mattered. Amber would make up excuses with her friends and family, oh he’s busy, he’s studying; he cares, I swear, he just has a strange way of showing it. 

Her friends and family don’t believe her completely but they humor her because she really seems to like him. And the ex-boyfriend isn’t a douchebag the whole time.. he brings gifts to make up for being late, he plies and pacifies her with honeyed words and promises to be better.

But each time the lies get more and more difficult to believe. Traffic and science projects, traffic and science projects, even when he shows up smelling like weed and alcohol. Her friends and family give her tight-lipped smiles when her ex-boyfriend gives her sloppy kisses and proclaims over and over “She’s too good for me, this one.”

She tries to be empathetic, she tries to be understanding when they’re alone, he can tell her what it is that’s wrong. But every-time she brings up giving them some space, he takes it as an indication of her not believing him and he guilts her with one sob story or another— she knows him, he was so gentle and respectful before they started dating, does she really think he’d do this to her if he didn’t have a good reason? Just a masterclass in gaslighting. So she gives him a second chance, third chance, fourth even. 

But then he begins cheating on her. Whenever she confronts him about it, he plays victim and accuses her of being “crazy” even though the entire school knows otherwise. She catches him one fine day, and dumps him on the spot. For a short while, Amber’s very proud of this but as time passes she starts to feel extremely embarrassed that it took that long for her to catch on. 

No one blames her, of course, but they all say something along the lines of “We never liked him anyway” which makes Amber doubt the perception of him she had. She internalises their support as a failing on her part to be vigilant, she didn’t want to end up making the same mistakes as her mom, after all. 

Amber becomes guarded. She doesn’t entertain male attention (from Todd, for example) but then she finds out resident wimp Mark Grayson takes a beating for her and she feels bad. 

So she gives him a chance. Mark was a nonissue, a nobody with no track record of being amazing or awful, just an in-between, normal guy who was maybe a little soft spoken and needed to stand up for himself more. 

But every time they try to hang out, something comes in between them. The excuses are laughably obvious this time and Amber is caught between trying to understand if Mark Grayson is trying to let her down easy because he’s not interested or if he’s just another douchebag taking her for a ride. 

He leaves her alone during their study date for an hour to do something shady and/or potentially related to Eve (I know she overheard him yelling at Cecil in his bedroom); Mark tells her he’s been to Mount Everest, but can’t tell her How he got there, and leaves on a non-specific trip for two weeks, right after their first date, and can’t even tell her Where he’s going or what he did when he was there?

So she does what she’d wished she’d done in her first relationship, she sets her boundaries. Firmly. She gives Mark multiple chances to come clean when she tells him she’s not riding that wave again. It’s been brought up a few times that Amber has lingering relationship-trauma.

During their study date Amber tells him she’s been in relationships with violent potentially abusive guys (“Met plenty of guys who were willing to throw a punch for me.”); or when he stands her up for the Dinner with her mom she tells him that he needs to make a choice because she’s “Been down this road before, and once was enough.”

But he still keeps at it and she starts getting tired of defending him to her friends and her mom. He’s just busy, he’s just studying; he cares, I swear, he just has a strange way of showing it. And this time they shake their heads and lightly imply that she’s stuck in a pattern. Amber can feel them comparing Mark to her old boyfriend and it all becomes a bit too much. 

Either he’s a no good drug dealing prick or he’s just wasting her time, whatever it is, Amber’s had enough of being left in the dark. 

The soup kitchen is the final straw, but then she finds out that he gets run over by a bus. He actually gets hurt, this is the first time Amber’s seen him hurt, and she feels awful because if she hadn’t pushed him to show up for her again and again maybe he would’ve been more careful. 

He doesn’t let her visit him in the hospital. A hit and run on the wrong side of town was the story this time— he can’t even tell her this, the specifics of his accident! Eve was his first point of contact after his parents?! At this point Amber is convinced that he’s involved in something violent or something to do with Eve, or both and she’s not sure she wants to keep going with this. 

Amber is confused and hurt but she also feels responsible for Mark’s injuries. Maybe she Was too paranoid, maybe she Was projecting all her relationship-trauma on him and he would tell her what happened at his own pace. So she backtracks, gives him another chance.

College is really the best of all worlds, Mark makes her promises that this time will be different, and Amber tentatively agrees to college together. (She’s still stressed out about his injuries and on edge the whole time though and asks if he has a concussion). 

This is really important because Amber ends up at Upstate U later. She decided to go to college with him, basically because of Him. This wasn’t any specific plan she had before, this was her making room in her life for this boy and potentially everything their lives could be together. 

Then the Reanimen Incident happens. And she loses her shit. Mark Grayson is not the flakey but well-intentioned boyfriend she thought he was.. Mark Grayson is not even a good person! He LEFT her and William at the drop of a hat to save his own slimy skin, that bastard! Her intuition was right, she never should’ve given him a chance. 

Amber was no longer going to give Mark Grayson the time of day, much less share a bed with the self-serving jerk; she wouldn’t give him the satisfaction of spinning another tall tale. Or seeing her cry. She closes the door to the shower rooms behind her, and overhears Rick leaving to get them all some beer. Dorm room walls are thin, after all.

Then she hears something else.

“You’re Invincible!” William’s voice carries over excitedly, “And you never told me?”

Here goes the "problematic" bit.

I think Amber was lying when she told Mark she knew he was Invincible weeks ago. Amber didn’t even know who Invincible was until a few minutes after the Reanimen attack. She isn’t acting for anyone around her, she’s genuinely confused when the superhero jets off because she’s never seen him in her life. 

I think she overheard William freaking out about it in the dorm room and she pieced together Mark’s absences with his vague excuses and why couldn’t visit him at the hospital. She takes a shower to cool off but sitting and stewing on all of it just makes her angrier and she decides to go to the frat party just to get away from Mark for a while. 

Now why wouldn’t she just tell him she overheard them talking? 

Amber is an assertive independent character with a lot of pride. And that’s not a bad thing. Amber has a lot to be proud of. She has a strong sense of justice, she doesn’t take crap from anyone and she has too much self-worth to put up with liars. 

You can clearly see this in the way she approaches Mark in the beginning. She asks William if he’s dating Eve, and then instead of calling him herself, she gets Todd to give Mark her number so he can call her if he’s interested, despite the fact that she already is. She has too much pride to chase him. It’s one of her fixed flaws, and it’s consistent to her character. 

So finding out that Mark is actually Invincible almost by accident, is kind of embarrassing for Amber. Not only because she yelled at him for disappearing but for all the times he misled her and lied to her only to actually have a good reason for doing it. There’s a lot of mixed emotions there, shame, guilt, concern. Guilt.

Admitting that she overheard he was Invincible would be like admitting she was a stupid, nagging girlfriend who had no right to be a part of his life (the way the fandom perceives her) so she doesn’t. She tries to distract herself with the party, flirts with someone she just met not ten minutes ago, and feels awful because he immediately drops the girlfriend bomb. 

Now she’s forced to confront the fact that she has a boyfriend, and her flakey, well-intentioned superhero boyfriend is sitting and moping in the dorm room because she doesn’t have the guts to tell him she knows. Because telling him she knows would remove the choice he’d need to make when deciding whether or not he was serious about their relationship.

Amber was serious, Amber was going to change her life and potentially open her future to college with him, but was Mark really sure about Them if he couldn’t even tell her of his own accord? 

Telling him would be like giving him another out. And Amber was done giving him an out. 

When he finally confesses he doesn’t see why she’s mad at him, because he doesn’t see her at all. He can’t even begin to imagine what this roller coaster of a weekend has been for her because she’s been serious about him all this time and it took them breaking up completely for Mark to choose her back in the first place and go all in. 

Now it’s true that Mark is entitled to his secrets but Amber is also entitled to being upset that he can’t tell her 1 solid thing about his life. Not one thing does he trust her enough to explain, and at that point why should they even be dating each other? Why should she change the course of her future for a guy who can’t tell her where he was last weekend?

Then Omni-man beats him up on live TV, and now that she knows that he’s Invincible, she finally gets a glimpse into the bloody, gruesome world that is Mark’s. His Dad isn’t a superhero, his Dad is a Monster, and Mark is discovering this the same time as the rest of the world.

So she freaks out because she cares, and she’s so relieved to see him not beat to a bloody pulp like on TV that she kisses him. She likely had no intention of getting back together with him before that, but world-ending fiascos often come with heightened emotions, and they’re just kids at the end of the day. 

She’s not a manipulative, narcissistic villain, she’s just a proud girl, in love with a boy who can’t decided whether or not he loves her back. 

Now do I think Mark is a terrible jerk who doesn’t deserve Amber? No. I watched Invincible the same way it was intended, almost entirely through Mark’s eyes, and it’s hard to assign blame in this case because we see how horrifying and traumatic being a superhero actually is. But that’s the point, we only see one half of the story. 

We see Amber through Mark’s eyes and in his opinion she could afford to be more compassionate to his excuses the moment she finds out he’s a hero, the way Eve can, but that’s not true at all because Amber has no idea what being a hero is like. Eve does, and that’s the difference that Mark is wilfully blind to. 

But Mark also has no idea what Amber’s life is like and it’s easy to get lost in the sea of all the lives lost and villains fought, that he genuinely hasn’t spent any time with his girlfriend as a person beyond his Girlfriend. Amber isn’t a person to him, like William stopped being eventually; they became sort of tethers to Mark’s humanity, a way to distinguish himself from his Dad. A way to ground him. 

Seriously? When was the last time Mark even talked to William, his once Best Friend? They’re not his Mom, they’re concepts to him. They’re civilians, potential victims he could end up losing if he doesn’t police himself and his powers. Mark slowly becomes disillusioned to his own life as a human, the more the leans into the Viltrumite half of his parentage. 

It’s a little tragic but it’s the story we’re seeing. In season 2, when Mark and Amber break up and he gives up his dream for college, these two things are almost explicitly correlated. Mark is coming to terms with the fact that he’s going to outlive everyone he knows, even his new baby brother and that is just the most chaotic example of a slow-burn trauma if I’ve ever seen one. He’s giving up being human, but maybe not giving up his humanity. 

______________________________________________________________

TLDR: None of you understand Amber Bennett because the writers decided that Mark would outlive her before he ever had the chance to see things from her perspective and I am SALTY about it

[sunboki]

maybe it’s my hormones?? i’ve been so soft lately .. here’s evidence

warning — pregnancy, reader has feminine pronouns

there are oftentimes a lot of moments chris will keep in his memory hall of fame with you and him, but what he hadn’t anticipated was this moment.

since leaning down over the toilet bowl to gape at the pregnancy test you held reading positive, chris was in love.

as if that was even possible considering how madly he was in love before, now was an entirely new level.

like last week, when he was accompanying you to the grocery store and a man preoccupied by his phone nearly ran into you — causing you to have to stop and spend a whole five minutes to calm your bodyguard down. no less his hand was always on your lower back everywhere you went. something very attractive of him to do.

in current time though you’d finally arrived at the bahng household in australia, greeted by the barking of berry and the rest of his family. this was your second time meeting your husbands family and their warmth was simply infectious with how much they favored you over chris, something everyone laughed about countless times in good fun.

after all the jet-lag and hormones though you couldn’t help but be exhausted, resorting to cozying up on the couch and watching Bluey while chris heated up chili from dinner.

“honey~ i’ve got the super duper hot chili that you wanted~” in a sing-song voice, chris maneuvered out of the kitchen, holding the steaming bowl in one hand and his own snack in the other. yet upon peering over the coach to where you lay comfy, he noticed you weren’t only sleeping, but joined by berry who was now dozed off on top of your round tummy in a protective manner that nearly sent the witness crying.

a heart attack did not give justice to the way he felt. not at all. the sweetness of it all making him simply melt.

“thanks for watching over her berry, i know i can trust you to keep her safe, okay? she means the world to me, i can’t wait for you to meet the new member of our family.” he carefully leans down, face all stretched and smiley prior to abandoning the dishes on the counter.

trust that the man snapped countless photos and videos of the precious moment, and as much as the boys found it cute — they got worried chris would never stop talking about it. like, never.

he didn’t.

all rights reserved by @sunboki. repost and plagiarism will not be tolerated.

[lemonxdaisybby]

How about the Legends and Ichigang fellas taking shower by themselves and with their s/o? Just anything that comes up

Hello! Thank you for your request! 💕 Some mild NSFW hcs, hope that’s okay x

I’ve just done Ichigang guys for now because I am v dumb and wasn’t entirely sure who the Legends consisted of. I’m not sure if you mean Kiryu, Majima, Saejima, etc, but also didn’t wanna make any assumptions incase I got it wrong 😭 I’m so sorry, please free to send another request in if you wanna add more characters for this hc 💕

Ichiban:

When showering on his own, Ichi would be a fan of cold showers. He has one each morning, and he finds the cool water tends to wake him up properly, and makes him more alert. He only really has warm showers if he’s feeling ill, or if it’s especially cold out…or if he’s showering with you.

He would be so shy the first time you shower together, as he wouldn’t really know what to do with himself, or where to look. He wouldn’t want to come across as a creep so would actively try to avoid looking at you at first, until you laugh at him and tell him to chill out. Then he’s gonna relax and realise he’s been overthinking the whole thing.

Sometimes, showering with Ichi would end in sex, and other times it would just be completely innocent, with the two of you washing each others hair. There would be no expectations.

You two would probably be a lil goofy in the shower, styling each others hair to make it stick up at odd angles, or creating bubble beards with the shower wash. Very cute and sweet.

Nanba:

Man is frugal, and very conscious of his water/household bills. Showers are gonna be quick, speedy and efficient. He probably would be eager to shower with you because firstly, saves on water and bills, and secondly, he gets to see you naked. There is no down-side.

Likely uses the most basic of shower products. He doesn’t really have a preference for shampoos, soaps or shower gels/washes, and tends to just get whatever is on sale.

Showering together would never really get sexual. Nanba can’t see very well without his glasses, so likely would be a little clumsy when showering, and is definitely not up for attempting to fuck you in there. However, once you two are out the shower, well, that’s another story.

Honestly, showering together would just be quick and no nonsense. There wouldn’t really be any goofing around. He’s there for a purpose, to get clean. No shenanigans.

Adachi:

Hums and sings in the shower. Also, he just really enjoys showers in general? He is so happy when showering, and will always have a lil content smile on his face. Adachi has super hot showers too, the heat relaxes his poor old muscles.

He likely prefers baths, to be honest. As he can just lay back and close his eyes, and maybe even have a beer whilst he bathes.

He has a yellow rubber ducky just sitting on the side of the bath. He bought it because he thought it looked cute and funny. He won’t admit it to anyone, but sometimes after a hard day, when having a bath to de-stress, he finds himself absentmindedly telling the ducky about his problems. He wouldn’t necessarily talk to it, but he’d kinda lean back and just begin venting, glancing at the duck every now and again and telling it how lucky it is, not having to deal with everyday shit.

When showering together, if it’s in one of those shower cubicles, it would be a bit squishy, as he’s so huge and takes up a lot of space. If it’s a shower-head over a bathtub, it’s less squishy but you two will definitely end up fighting about who gets to stand under the shower head.

Horny man, so he probably adores showering with you, and often it does end up with sex. He’d lift you up and have your back pressed against the wall, with your legs wrapped around his hips as he slowly thrusts in to you at a relaxed pace.

Joon-Gi:

Joon-Gi takes hygiene and beauty regimes very seriously. He likely uses the most luxurious shower washes and shampoos ever, and has a careful shower routine to follow. He showers every morning and night.

Showering with Joon-Gi wouldn’t happen often. Showering is like his chill time. He likes to relax, unwind, and allow his mind to go blank. He takes it as an opportunity to pamper himself too.

However, on the occasions where you do shower together, he would help you wash your hair and body. He would not allow you to wash him or his hair though. He’s very particular and likes to do it himself.

He would have been pretty bashful the first time the two of you showered together, not quite knowing what to do with himself, or where to look.

On rare occasions, showering together can result in shower sex, but most of the time, it’s pretty innocent and he’s more focused on getting clean.

Zhao:

Zhao showers every morning, and is likely still half asleep when showering. There has been the odd occasion where he’s almost dozed off whilst standing under the shower head, the feeling of the hot water cascading down his back almost sending him to sleep.

Definitely smooths his hair back under the water like one of those fancy shampoo adverts.

He does jerk off in the shower when showering alone. The hot water has him relaxed, and also it’s easy to clean up after.

When showering together, it’s always going to end up with sex, with only one exception - when you’re ill. If you’re feeling pretty sick and weak, to the point where you’re struggling to walk or carry out daily tasks, he will shower with you. It would be so soft and wholesome. He’d wash your hair and body for you, and then help you dry afterwards. He’d be pretty good at taking care of you when you’re sick.

Any other time you shower together, you’re gonna end up with your front pressed against the cool shower tiles or glass, as he thrusts in to you from behind.

[sebsxphia]

Hiiii Seb! @sugarcoated-lame back again! Hope you’re doing well and having a lovely day my dear!! <3 an ask you got about single dad Rhett & single mom reader where their children kinda set them up got me thinking about single dad jake and single mom reader except it’s like an enemies to lovers sort of situation 👀 you meet when you’re both called down to your kids’ school to meet with the principal bc Jake’s son and your daughter have been fighting/not getting along in class (you can’t tell me Jake’s kid wouldn’t be an absolute menace and love to pick on all the girls and pull their pigtails so to speak 😂). So maybe you don’t like Jake at first bc he’s a bit blasé about the situation, saying it’s normal, just kids being kids and that they’ll work through it on their own. Ya know, just being his usual cocky, smug self, saying he was a little rascal as a kid himself. So the two of you start arguing in the principal’s office (and Jake finds it super hot when you start yelling at him bc he definitely loves it when women are a little mean to him, and you can’t help but think about what a waste it is that someone that attractive would be such a dick) and the principal has to tell you both to cut it out 😂 You never hear about any further incidents between your kids again because unbeknownst to you, when they left the school that day, Jake told his son he should apologize and try to be friends. But every time you see him after that when you’re both picking your kids up from school, you’re rolling your eyes and glaring at Jake as he just waves, giving you that signature smug smirk. So your kids, now friends, conspire to get you and Jake together, each asking to be taken to the park on the same day and “running into each other” there. You’re left to sit on a bench with Jake while your kids play, staring straight ahead watching them in an effort to ignore his presence. Eventually when he can’t take any more of the tension he tries to talk to you, probably saying something like, “what, you’re not gonna yell at me today?” Joking around and trying to lighten the mood, telling you you’re really cute when you’re angry which leaves you blushing and trying not to smile. And that’s when you learn Jake is actually really funny and charming. And maybeeee that smug grin of his is actually starting to grow on you a bit, and he just wants to keep making you smile and laugh because it’s one of the most beautiful sights he’s ever seen. After a while of playing, your kids are running up to the bench where you and Jake are sitting, begging the two of you to take them out for ice cream and of course neither one of you can say no to your babies. So you go and get to spend more time with Jake, getting to know him a bit and watching him interact and goof off with his son and your daughter and you think maybe, just maybeee he’s not so bad. 🥹 I’m sorry this turned into a whole ass novel lmfao oops! 💜💜💜

AH!! my love, please don’t apologise at all!! we love whole ass novels in this household and i love this so much!!!! 🥹🥹

enemies to lovers with single dad jake and reader?? oooof. you’ve created something really special here!! because of course you think he’s an ass at the beginning, but then you get to know him and see how sweet he is with his son. you see that he’s had to practically raise his kid on his own all the while being a pilot in an elite ‘death’ squad and you understand that he must have a lot on his plate. you come to acknowledge that jake can’t always keep tabs on his son’s behaviour, but he’s trying his best.

you would offer to take care of his kid on days when jake was busy with work, seeing as he was such good friends with your little one anyway. a couple of play dates ended up with you staying in jake’s house so your little ones could sleep over together while jake was away for work. that then turned into you leaving jake dinner some nights, which then turned into you and jake finally sharing a kiss on his couch when he came home from work absolutely exhausted and so grateful you were there to look after his son.

thank you so, so much for this my love!! 💌💖

[fenharael]

me and my partner have been doing couples therapy for a few months and tried it a year or two ago. I love him, but honestly, I'm so super frustrated at this point. I feel like ever since he moved out here I've just become so...complacent. I know it's not fair to blame that on him because the truth is the COVID pandemic just turned me into a mildly agoraphobic depressed shut-in that hasn't really recovered. but I was hoping to have my partner move in with me would help but I feel like it's been draining, not just financially but also emotionally. He is genuinely a good, sweet person and I love him a lot, he just has so much past trauma that affects what feels like EVERYTHING in our relationship. and like, I have my share of baggage, but it's just exhausting. I feel like we are incompatible in just a basic living together situation. For example, I really really really HATE when things are dirty, it makes me legitimately upset. idk if it's a latent OCD thing or a dad-trauma thing or what - but the fact remains I hate it. I also really can’t stand messy things, but I can manage it, also I end up being really messy in my. own room so I can't judge other people for it… but I feel like our home has just been so dirty. :| I really am not happy most of the time bc the constant dirtiness is upsetting and I feel like when I try to take a weekend to clean everything it never stays that way and it's like a losing battle. I’ve talked a lot to my partner about better-dividing household labor and chores, and its helped somewhat but  its been such an uphill battle and honestly it’s just not enough for me. He helps a lot with hlike stereotypical "guy" stuff like electronics or appliances and the cats and the car which is great- but I need help with day to day shit. I need help with COOKING which has been a huge huge point of contention between us. At this point I think i really just want to live alone. I want control over my own space, I want to feel comfortable and clean and safe. I don't want to break up with him, but  right now we are not good housemates. Honestly, I’ve never had a roommate I liked living with except Hannnah because she was just as much of a clean freak as I was and super nice, it was really amazing. Every other person has been hell. Maybe its just because of who I am. I dont know. I feel really bad about this, but its just a lot of things adding up. Maybe some physical space apart will help make things better. I'm just tired of feeling like a parent and a caregiver, I'm tired of feeling like I can't rely on my partner for BASIC things, i'm tired of doing a lot of the emotional heavy lifting. And honestly I’m kind of pissed about the finances in our household which is a whole other thing.

This isnt to say I'm not difficult and he hasn't done stuff for me, he has! i'm very difficult, I'm moody, and particular, and he does a lot for me to comfort me. but I don't know. I just feel bad bc i feel like I’m arguing with someone who is trying  to convince me they’re helpless and incapable of doing basic shit. I can just never tell if  I’m  too much of  a callous hard-ass with too high expectations of people or I am lacking in empathy or compassion. Sometimes it feels that way. Sorry for this vent I just needed to write it down.

[panelshowsource]

random thoughts dump of the week bc none of this deserves its own post

coming down from a smol john kearns kick and really enjoyed it, guy has a ridiculously sweet presence and i really like his voice. it also brings me great joy his previous career was working in museums and as a tour guide. i would like that life, i think (i worked at universal orlando for a little bit in 2013 and was always super jealous of the vip tour guides lol). he mentioned on one of his rhlstps that despite winning arguably the biggest (british) comedy awards there are, he never released a standup special or dvd, and he kinda wants to keep it that way so he has something special between him and his live audience — and that really made me sad face. like, my guy, what about those of us who can't see you bc won't leave that damn island. (also ed gamble's new tour having no nyc date felt personal...) in another episode, he talked a little about, in great part due to social media, people want comedians they can know everything about, get the whole look of; comedians who are the same people onstage as off. he's not like that and doesn't really like the idea of that. i think there's a lot to say about that subject but i'll just leave it for now...

speaking of touring ed byrne next week!!! and jimmy and alan carr coming up!! what a fun time :')

speaking of rhlstp and ed, one thing that occurred to me and i thought was quite funny upon listening to his recent episode is that both richard and ed have that self-aware side of them that admits to bitterness, professional jealousy, annoyance with critics/haters, believing they're not as successful as they deserve to be, etc. while it can come off whiney here and there, it's not too obnoxious or anything, i just found it amusing they had this (often concealed or private) quality in common. i might even put jenny eclair in that camp (others too but that's a discourse i don't really wanna start lmao)

if another youtuber, following amelia dimoldenberg (and munya? does he count?), had to go on taskmaster i would probably vote for ollie kendal off of jolly. in my mind he and alex would be genuinely good friends outside of the show

man i miss the horne section podcast so bad

honestly, i'm a little surprised david mitchell doesn't have a podcast. he loves radio, it's not too demanding of a gig, and he's got tons of interests that could make engaging premises for podcasts... i'm sure someone has floated this to him before, so i need the reason why he said no. maybe he was busy with his book. would love a history pod fr

does anyone else ever remember when david mitchell was in rick and morty and just sit back and go O_O also when he was on graham norton with hillary clinton like lmaooo i just love the idea of the booking agents for that show being like "we're having fucking hillary clinton on who can we bring for comic relief who is a household name but not problematic but intelligent but actually funny" i mean they hit the jackpot of course but it cracks me up that that's his brand

did david ever watch succession? rob def did but i need more about it from both of them

sometimes i think about when david accepted his bafta for peep show and the music that was playing while he walked to the stage was "sex on fire" by kings of leon hahahahaha like what who was djing that night fr

where did charlie brooker go

speaking of back in the day — and i do mean back, like 15+ years ago — and my main panel show obsession was buzzcocks, there were a few non-comedians who would come on panel shows who were properly fucking funny, like martin freeman and josh groban, and i'd always pray they'd eventually come on again. and i think at the time the person at the top of my list was professor green. how random is that TT he was just always up for laugh and just so likable. i also LOVED the song "just good to be green" with lily allen in like 2010 lmaooo this really ages me :)

been really enjoying some old angus deayton-hosted stuff, like old hignfy and wilty. i got into panel shows after he'd stepped out of the spotlight, but i remember being crushed when i found out about his scandal. i also remember stephen fry standing up for him and chastising paul & ian publicly after That Episode of hignfy — which absolutely blew my mind, even though stephen has always said what he thinks — and i agreed with him and am not sure even today if i fully forgave paul & ian for how they treated angus. ik he's still here and there, but i wonder if we'll ever see him in any properly notable capacity again

just watched the latest hignfy actually and jack dee pheww he's ageing very nicely let me just say it and pheww emmanuel sonubi please and thank you. also, paul's outfit was quite nice. an enjoyment of the eyes indeed

i've been making a lot of typos in my gifs lately for literally no reason other than not proofreading my rushing and it's embarrazzing i'm gonna do better

speaking of gifs i have NOTHING!!! in my drafts folder. nothing. no content. nothing is made. nothing in the queue. [sigh] sounds like tonight we be bustin it out huh. idk about other gifmakers (i actually don't follow any other panel show blogs, but this isn't necessarily a panel show blog thing, just a regular original content thing) but i don't usually make gifs throughout the week — instead, like, marathon gif like two times a week and build up 10–20 drafts to post throughout the week. if you gif every single day or to keep up with all of the new content, it starts to become a chore, which is never fun :(

speaking of which i probably won't gif outsiders too much because people don't seem to care too much about it + the webrips are just...so ugly in gif form, even at 1080p! it's a dave thing fr, taskmaster used to be the same way -_-

okay here we go into gif mode btw i got some of your requests and will def make them!!

[hazelnut-u-out]

EPISODE REVIEW TIME:

(spoilers for "juricksic mort" ahead)

SOOOO, not a whole lot to say about this episode. i'm super happy that morty was more involved!! it was kind of a weird plot that felt out-of-place for the season, but i guess that was the point.

a little list of my thoughts:

-RICK DRIVING MORTY TO SCHOOL. RICK DRIVING MORTY TO SCHOOL. so sweet. he's becoming a staple parental figure in the smith household.

-ANYONE ELSE PICKING UP ON THAT TENSION BETWEEN RICK AND CURTIS??? (i was hoping for a BP moment this ep but... when curtis paged him i was thinking "your crush will call you" and... uh... yeah, the shoe kinda fits...). honestly, i feel like their tension has shifted a bit from sexual to romantic, too???

-i thought it was kinda cute that rick was so interested in hosting the oscars.

-MORTY IS SO DAMN CUTE OH MY GOD. when he said "clever girl" i literally said "AWWW" out loud lmao.

-i really really loved the detail of rick drinking wine with beth. i know it's something small and silly, but i've really been waiting for a moment where rick drinks "beth's poison" while they have a drink together (since we know they often go "tie one on" etc.)

-THE BETHS IN THEIR OSCAR GOWNS??? AFLASGAHG

-morty was so cute in his little suit. (it gave me campain manager morty flashbacks to that scene after the debate in "the ricklantis mixup")

-i also loved the part where rick hit the mic with the oscar. that was so cutie.

-RICK THINKING HE'D IMMEDIATELY BE GOOD AT SKATING BC HE PLAYED PRO SKATER 3- i loved that. all of the details that he's essentially a teen boy.

-I LOVE THAT THEY'RE NOT REVERTING BACK TO RICK BEING A DICK TO MORTY. they have such a cutesy, domestic, and sweet type of relationship now. sure, there was the moment where he said calling morty a "genius" was ironic, but he tussled morty's hair and actually offered to take him to boob world. i think it was so fucking sweet for him to be like "figured my guy deserved a vacation!" truly some grandpa and grandson wholesomeness.

-i think that was kind of a cheap way to solve the whole portal travel/rift issue, though.

overall, i liked the episode. it was more of an adventure-type deal, and it brought back some more of the "rick and morty" dynamic the show has been lacking.

i have to say that it did feel sliiiightly more geared towards the "bro" side of the fandom this go around, which is a switch-up from this season so far- BUT, i feel like the teaser after the episode definitely left the door open for MORE serialization. that to build suspense coupled with the month hiatus has me thinking that this was more of a one-off episodic fakeout before they get a little deeper into the heavy stuff, but we'll see. the fact that they mentioned prime again in the season synopsis DEFINITELY had me thinking that he's gonna be relevant again.

i also feel like there wasn't enough of rick being an asshole to morty (quite the opposite, actually) and a little too much homosexual tension between rick and the president for this to be too much of a dudebro-centric episode lol. PLUS the "poor people" commentary in the beginning was definitely shitting on the top 1%.

(i feel like the elon musk mention was kind of confirmation that rick couldn't give two-shits about elon lmao).

decent episode overall!!

super sad about the hiatus :(

[cat-vase]

OOOO how do you think block and christina would interact in the future when they're both adults since block was just randomly adopted by the puppingtons?

i’ve had the entire night to think about this, but i still really don’t know! while i’m trying to develop these characters we don’t see much of more, i haven’t thought this far ahead yet! 

i think... she would be happy for him. that he got out of their household, i mean. and while the puppington household isn’t much better, at least he has shapey, y’know? and that means she’s alone, but... you can’t not be happy for your siblings, even if their happiness directly reflects into your sadness. ... speaking about that from experience. i feel like she has a lot of fondness in her voice when she talks about him with orel, when he shows up to trade him for shapey (and fails), but maybe that’s just her liking orel and me seeing what i want to see.

i think it would be really weird to have your sibling be... not your sibling? anymore? just a distant friend, so close yet so far away at the same time. at first when they’re adults (and can finally see each other again without either ones’ parents being in the picture) i feel like it’d be really awkward, especially if they don’t have much in common? but eventually, due to Sibling Magic™, they’d get closer and closer with one another and be really sweet :) aaaand maybe a little menace-y. and they’d probably joke about the whole situation, once it’s been a while. “i’m disowning you!” “you already did!” “BLOCK NO-”

block and shapey would definitely be the duo of the ages though, and christina would tag along like “PLEASE don’t accidentally create mustard gas in your bathroom”. that might be their dynamic, actually! they’re not super close, but still love each other and want the best for each other :) eeeeven if they drive each other crazy. maybe block becomes a firefighter because if he’s going to light stuff on fire, he might as well learn to put it out, haha 

[morteamore]

Adopted another child. Rhyses Pieces. Really just Rhys, cos I'm a dork. Rhys is a sweet, polite 2 year old teen. Maya has tried to get the door open to his room twice. I think she knows he's here and is jealous of the attention he's been getting. She tends to like being around other cats a lot, though, so hopefully they'll be good friends.

Rhys currently weighs 13lbs and lugging the muscular boy up the apartment stairs was an ordeal because he required a big carrier. Since he's part Turkish Van, he can grow up to another 3 years. I've never met a huge cat that wasn't absolutely charming, though.

My biggest cat was a tuxedo named Oreo who weighed in at 22lbs at full size and was three feet long. He was bigger than the shih tzu/schnauzer terrier my family owned at the time, and very much ruled the household. Which was fine, because he was nothing but a big mush that was smart as hell and super friendly with everyone including children. His favorite thing to do was lay along the entire length of my arm or the width of my shoulders when I was sitting trying to game or watch a movie. And nope, I wasn't getting up for a while.

Unfortunately, not many pics of Oreo left. He was before digital cameras and phones were a thing. But I did find a couple I kept in an album, like the one of him taking up the whole bed

[bangfantanfic]

Hi hi hi!! Both of the updates were so good!! Aaah!! Oh my god the way that none of these princes are good people?? Jk?? Yoongi??? Wow wow wow I’m so excited but also a little afraid for reader lol

This probably counts as a spoiler so you don’t have to answer, but will major bodily harm come to her? I can handle like; bleeding and roughhousing and general yandere-ness, but if it comes to like losing a finger or more I kinda have to tap out. Oh that sounds awful. “Bodily harm is only okay if it’s not done to me 😌”

But!!! Moving on to hybrid babes omg. Jk?? Sir??? Living for the drama??? King shit move right there. I’m sure it gets very boring having the same stuff happen day in day out. And??? What is going on with Jay??? Hello?? Brother has been making me super sus this whole time and this? 😤 sir get your act together before I’m forced to contact your fiancé.

And then Tae Tae!! Our sweet boy Tae Tae 🥰 or is he? 🤨 how did you sir manage to get over to human hotel? And of course he’s reading between the lines, someone has to. 🙄 and jk was screwjng up all his efforts!! He can’t have that. I can only imagine the reaction of the boys once they smell reader on him though 🥴🫠

Anyway. Thank you thank you for the updates!! They were amazing as always 🥰

ahh thank smmmm omg 🥰🥰 but yes, all the princes are just awful people hahahah

At the moment I don’t have any major sort of bodily harm happening to mc, but it will definitely be put in the warnings if it does eventually happen so just keep an eye out for the warnings!!

JK is just an absolute jerk and I live for it ngl. I would be so bored living the same day on repeat, I don’t think I could cope with that. I would go crazy. Brother Jay is just a sussy man, we don’t trust Jay in this household.

Taetae is just too good, he knows what she means even if she doesn’t. He had readers back ✌️ I’d be mad at JK too for messing up all my progress too. Buddy boy has to get in line 🙄

Thank you sm for reading though, and interacting. I honestly love reading all your thoughts on everything, it makes my day! I hope you continue to enjoy my work!! 💕

[shakysniffles]

just updated my pinned post to include OC info but since I just spent the last hour or so writing it up, they deserve their own post too!

Note that no-one has names yet xD If you have ideas though feel free to drop me a line <3 I keep the universes pretty loose so although you can probably see three clear-cut stories / worlds, they do overlap however I see fit.

🌺 - [she/her] high class spy who appears very gentle but hiding a steel resolve. Snzfckr, very in love with her partners 💛 and 🖤. Has a rather strong sensitivity to dust and owns an adorable puppy <3 Has some slight dom tendencies and really enjoys watching people putting on a bit of a show while holding off on her own pleasure and edging for as long as she can.

🖤 - [she/they] another spy, met 🌺 on a mission and decided to switch sides and is now a double agent. Isn’t often around as a result :( also a snzfckr and discovered this in a snzing while hiding scenario, but isn’t yet ready to explore it much :) Clams up at people telling her what to do and finds it very difficult to relinquish any kind of control or be vulnerable in front of others due to years of only being able to rely on herself but 💛 and 🌺 slowly earn her trust and are very sweet and patient while they wait for her to be ready.

💛 - [they/them] ray of sunshine <333 Has a wonderfully sneezy pollen allergy, which extends to floral perfumes, and very eager to please 🌺 and 🖤 and will happily induce for them. Sneezes are very drippy and spray all over and constantly borrowing tissues or handkerchiefs because he likes how flustered it makes 🌺 and 🖤. They’re just being a shit on purpose, they’ve never been ill prepared despite their laidback attitude in their life, but they LOVE to tease by asking for snzy supplies.

💚 - [he/him] He gets all the himbo tags not bc he’s dumb (he’s not!!) but his brain stops working when he’s sneezy and he comes over all bashful and clumsy and his sneezes sneak up on him so fast that he gets rather sloppy with his covering. He’s absolutely mortified by the whole affair and is very apologetic and interrupts his apology with yet more sneezes. Very messy and snotty and LOUD, his sneezes are a whole spectacle and a half. He doesn’t have any allergies, he’s just prone to head colds. He’s also really artsy - loves to paint and play music and is very generous and shares everything with his friends and family :) I sometimes ship him with 💖

🧡 - [he/they] snzfckr, scientist, lonely heart. lives with an android he built himself (💿) and they get up to some wild times together. He’s pretty clumsy but when he’s sick he plays it up bc they’re super fucked up and there’s nothing they like better than spreading those viral particles far and wide and he really really gets off on it. They also get turned on by their own sneezes and if he’s being honestly, he loves being all gross and disgusting and sneezing openly and spraying over everything. However this is all very much only in his own home, they do take their work super seriously and have a minor mental block with regards to sneezing in public so when he loses control at a conference it’s the absolute worst thing that could have happened and in the aftermath he runs into 💖 and they get together soon after <3

💖 - [he/him] another scientist but much shyer than 🧡 He really enjoys letting people take the reins in a relationship and He’s so polite like literally the nicest guy ever and at first 💿 has beef with him for “taking over” and tries to torture him with allergens but this only revealed that he’s also a snzfckr (just much more mild in manner) and at first he was super embarrassed at being found out bc he thought 💿 had gone snooping but the misunderstanding was soon cleared up and the happily sneezing household now gets along swell :D Sometimes I ship him with 💚 bc I like the art / science contrast <3

💿 - [she/it] the most sadistic lil android you never knew. Not technically a snzfckr but she was programmed and built by 🧡 to help him and it interpreted that to include helping him get off so it’s really just an extension of their desires. but it has an AI brain so it’s developed and evolved beyond that and now enjoys torturing both 🧡 and 💖 and frankly anyone foolish enough to ignore warnings about being left alone with her....

💙 - [he/him] obligatory businessman always down for an office fuck :P Son of the CEO, is actually genuinely good at his job, garners a lot of respect, and is set to become the big boss some day... if he can stop sleeping around the office lmaoooo... was put onto snzfckery by a secretary he slept with while he had a brutal cold and he has a bit of a praise kink so it all meshed rather well and he’s more than happy to keep exploring snz kink further. Bit of a workaholic and frequently shows up to work while atrociously unwell and his brother will come out and drag him home. He has some awful allergies too but swears up and down that they don’t affect his work - meanwhile the entire teams’ getting a free shower while he tries to present because he’s pretty damn useless at stifling

🔘 - [he/him] ngl he’s just a dilf and frankly i’m embarrassed about him <3 amalgamation of every old man I find attractive and he gets tagged when I get the vibe lmaooo. technically 💙‘s CEO dad but I try not to think to hard about that part bc 😳😳😳

🧡 and 💿

[princess-pill-enjoyer]

Misc: Small changes on my page

Maybe I'm the only one that's super attached to my pfp now HAHAHA

It's one of my favorite pictures of Juice. Dude was just chilling Plus the hoodie cool I woulda jacked TF out that mess if I ever met him in person. I dont even care. It could be a whole ass concert going on and if I woulda saw it I would be TELEPORTING to get that shit 💀💀💀

Anyway, I'm gonna change it something different. It's a favorite sure but I feel like it's hard to tell it's him + it's not centered and that been annoying me ever since I noticed

it'll be between these. uhh i don't know how I'm gonna choose but I will eventually. don't ask me why I have that many pictures of him cause I couldn't even tell you LMAOO

Ah this is gon sound so pathetic and I know I'm partially this hype about him cause it's become something me and R mutually enjoy but I wish I coulda met him. I won't lie to me his music isn't so so groundbreaking as some make it out to be imo. But even with that.. I dunno. It was nice to hear something negative about drugs for once you know? A lot of artists I listen to that talk about that sort of thing make it like its a flex. Not to say he doesn't lmao. But I like that I can listen to one song about him acting like codeine is the most amazing substance ever known to man but within the next song acknowledge that his addiction is a problem even with it feeling like its helping.

Plus, I appreciate the variety in his sound. I feel there's this weird.. standard? i dunno. Im used to the sad songs always having to be slow and traditional instruments and all that. I like that I can jump into a slow song about him thinking about his past and then the next I can go into a hype song about him needing to change before its too late

I'm not religious atp and maybe I just haven't found the religion that speaks to me. But if the Christians were right about there being a second world where everyone just chills for the rest of eternity, I hope I can see him there. His songs mean a lot to me now. Some of being small, some of it being a huge part of me now, but overall I just wish I could give him my words of appreciation

Shit makes me really sad. I wish he would've had more time in the spotlight. He's still a household name anyway but it sucks that he can't see just how big he is nowadays

ah see this is why I never talk about why I like Juice cause everytime I do I circle back to him going too soon and I tear up. I'm glad he got to live a cushy life for a little bit at least. I know he got hella money just from Lucid Dreams alone

HA aww that reminds me of this one interview where he was just like.. yeah.. that shit wasn't a big deal like hat 💀

LIKE??'

mf you made one of the most iconic and recognizable songs of our gen and you gon fr say that

He also said he ain't even like the song like that but that I can't fault him on. He didn't get enough time to show his full scope smh. I wish he couldve made ore stuff so he could move past the dude-that-made-Lucid-Dreams title he had

I've gotten better with it but it's still CRUSHING to think about. Shit is still mindboggling

Edit: I ended up coming across this picture and it made the choice obvious. I feel like I don't have too too many pictures of him cheesing so it's always stood out to me. I remember at the time I didn't even like land of darkness like that but I kept listening to it cause the picture was so sweet. Dude looked hella happy :)

Tho.. mb for lying. was not the plan T^T

[ocean-anchored]

Dear future self... November 13, 23

I haven't written an actual update on things in a while now. I've been pretty mentally burnt out, especially emotionally with the whole Zack situation which I'm not going to touch on, so I thought I'd get another recap out. Work. Well things with Ed have still been going really well, we've downsized back down to just us two essentially as a team, things with Jordan didn't work out which is ok because he was tough to deal with and Orlando sometimes is in the background but wants to do his own thing. Ed still appreciates me hugely and encourages me a lot so things are still really great. Hoping our Funding might come through in the next week or two cause we could possibly go to Florida the last week of the month which would be awesome. GSU is kind of at a hold which has taken a lot of work off my plate. I'm in more meetings down which is great, keeps me busy but sometimes I wish I had a bit more work, but the flexibility is amazing, I really can't complain, he takes really good care of me. Things with Danny aren't good. I've been saying now for like 6 months that his company isn't going to last long, which still is true. I don't understand most of his business decisions, he's just so all over the place and brutally annoying and hard to deal with. He makes my life and work very very hard, always changing procedures etc and then micro managing when Chrystal & I have never been an issue in the 5-6 years we've been there. I already knew we shouldn't have gone into the meeting 3 weeks ago because he was in sour mood already, but I bit my tongue that meeting a lot, till he continued to push my buttons and nit pick everything so badly so I decided to comment on how he doesn't follow his own damn processes which resulted in him getting very angry and essentially raising his voice yelling at me and cut me off multiple times for the stupidest thing that also had no relevance because HE changed his stupid procedure 6 months before then. Anyways, I've been dodging him since, I guess we'll see if he ever apologizes, right now its just easy money for me to go in, do my work and leave so whatever. I finally met a new girl friend from Bumble, Sandra, last night for a drink and she's so sweet. I was super intimidated initially because shes's super pretty & would be labeled as one of those super hot fake looking girls which she's SO down to earth. We had so much more in common than I imagined, it was really wild talking about relationships, going to therapy, attachment styles, and what growing up in a narcassistic household was like. I don't think I've personally met anyone that has had a "worse" story than I have, people have always looked at me funny when I say things I dealt with growing up because no one could relate, but she definitely topped mine and it was baffling. She's really strong and knows her worth now which is incredible to see what she came from and who she was. She's really sweet and we had a great time so I'm really happy to be adding her to my circle, hopefully someone I can grow with over the years. It was mine & Ambers 1 year anniversary yesterday, she did remember which was nice as she's in Dominican right now. Man I just can't say enough how much I love that girl though, she's really my little soul mate. It's nice to have some other girls though cause sometimes I feel like she can't really relate to my relationship issues because she's been with Naythan forever, which is amazing but just sometimes hard for me to talk about with her so thats why it was so nice to connect with Sandra. Things are good with Sasha still as well, had a nice dinner out a week ago with her an Shruti & we're going to the grape escape this weekend together which should be fun. I definitely have got some really good girls around me that I'm really thankful for, our relationships are really growing and strengthening and I couldn't be more grateful.

[dogboynico]

seven d’vilkan timeline until just transferring to solis

⚠️ child abuse, transphobia, neglect, abusive relationship and probably a lot of other things i cant think of atm errr i don’t know how tumblr formatting works (my bad). this is going to super messy and all over the place but its mostly so i can have most of his shit in place

Varius is the king of io’thea (imaginary lithuanian place) and his wife and him have 5 kids, all girls. he hopes for an heir to the throne, so he’s like Okay might as well have a son out of wedlock. cool. and he meets Renata (my beloved) in a quaint little village a good distance away from the manor. she hates him at first because he’s sort of an asshole but he wins her over because he can be (selectively) sweet. he starts spending less and less time with his own wife and children, helping around here and there in her little home. she does not know he is the fucking King though (since their little village falls just outside the boundaries & is rather isolated) and she would not fuck around with him if she did know. varius falls in love with her, and Renata later lets him know she’s pregnant. in private, Evelia (Renata’s mom) lets her know that she is absolutely CERTAIN that it’s a boy. because i love foreshadowing. meanwhile in the Lutkus household Varius’s wife (Camelia) is like    “Heyyy i’m pregnant again btw. get back here and help me take care of the kids you mangy fucking scoundrel”. [during this time, renée is 11, edeline is 7, silvija, rubyna, and adria are all 1] Varius’s love for Renata is very fleeting, and he mostly just used her as a means to an end. it’s the first time he’s ever felt so strongly towards a person, and it scares him. he really DID love her but he loved his position in society more than he loved her so he goes back to being a Good Dad (for now) to his children and leaves Renata heartbroken in her village. they had previously been talking about marriage (she doesn’t know he’s already married!) so this comes as a complete shock to her. i’m sure werewolf packs are very close knit and would normally help her raise her kid but she’s sort of like    a social pariah in the village. not because she really did anything wrong it’s more like   she and her mother live in the village but they haven’t really been accepted into the pack. i should clarify that the village is the more stationary part of a bigger pack that travels around very frequently. Renata’s other two children travel around with them rather than stay at home with her and Evelia (because Evelia isn’t well enough to travel).  they especially don’t really want anything to do with her once Varius started swinging around (because he is new and seems like a threat)

Camelia has her kid, Adelyte, sometime during the end of february (i think it’d be funny if he was born on a leap day). all is good in their household and Camelia doesn’t care too much anymore that Varius probably cheated on her, she’s just glad he’s back and helping take care of their children. they make amends with each other but there’s a sort of stiffness about them now. wherever Renata and Evelia live, Seven is born and they’re happy with him. he isn’t born a boy to his grandmother’s surprise, but they’re glad he’s a healthy pup anyway. he looks just like his mother, which is a relief to Renata. any reminders of Varius’s visits are scraped clean from the household and his chair is thrown out. things are rather tough with a new mouth to feed and only one person able to support them, but their lives are peaceful for a time. his mother and his grandmother start teaching him ice magic from a very early age, since it’s their whole bloodline thing. i like to imagine that born werewolves tend to have their first shifts at around 9-10 years of age ? there’s not much his mother and grandmother can really teach him until his instincts kick in, and they never get to teach him about pack dynamics since their “pack” is just his mom, grandmother, and him. he’s a little uncultured sorry. he does get along with the other village kids, even if they’re a bit wary of him at first ! it’s at around 5-6 years of age that he’s like Hey mama i am just like the other little boys look at me go :) and his mom is like Oh ok i see let’s make you some new clothes sport. i imagine he’s like. very adamant as a kid about knowing that he is in fact male so his mom knows early on and she’s very supportive of him and so is his grandma (bless them) back in the Lutkus household, Varius and Camelia realize that something is very wrong with Adelyte when they try to start training him in magic at age 5. it’s the first time he’s ever tried to use magic and he’s somewhat successful, but upon using it he triggers a degenerative disease. surprise ! Camelia’s bloodline is riddled with [i havent come up with a name yet im so sorry] which tends to skip generations, which she never warned Varius about. they get into THE biggest argument of their marriage over this, because Adelyte’s health quickly deteriorates. it’s a magic degenerative disease, and once the person who has it USES magic for the first time it starts up. it saps away at their magic over time, and eventually their life force. Adelyte is a very sickly kid, and they are like Ok no more magic for you  also sorry but you probably will not be king since we don’t expect you to live much longer. (he does end up living fairly long in canon, til like his… 20s-30s? which is a lot longer than he was supposed to) Varius and Camelia are in the process of divorce because ever since they learned that Adelyte is sickly, they’d been having nonstop screaming matches. not a healthy environment for the other kids but they turn out okay because camelia ends up taking them (most of the time) in the divorce. Varius ends up finding out via god knows how   that Renata ended up having a boy too ! he pulls up to where they’ve been living happily, with an offer she can’t refuse. Evelia is frail and often ill due to her age, and Renata can’t keep up with a rambunctious kid who keeps straying to the woods. in exchange for being able to take in his son as an heir (surprise, renata!), Varius will supply them with all the medicine Evelia needs. he’s aged seven here btw ! thought you should know. (i imagine that he would go by whatever name Renata gave him until later in his teens) it’s with a heavy heart that mother and grandmother set the little guy off towards a supposedly better life. i know that technically yes Varius and Renata could get married here but no they will fucking not because renata feels too betrayed by his leaving her. also because he still sucks and is a king and thinks shit like   “I dont want to marry a commoner who is also a werewolf the church will make fun of me :(” after a couple weeks of living with Varius in his now empty manor, Seven is like Hey um hi hey sir when am i going to see my mom again? and Varius is like  “Actually that’s not your mom anymore also wouldn’t you like to meet your siblings instead let’s go meet your siblings aha ok let’s go” basically he’s avoiding the question. seven meets his siblings when they come over for a visit (since they are still royalty despite Camelia and Varius no longer being married) it’s nice ! they have a nice time. he gets along with Adelyte and even gets to play with him in the few hours Adelyte is allowed to be out of bed.  around this time Varius starts to realize that Seven isn’t amab (surprise motherfucker). where he’d previously been a rather aloof father to him, he starts to get more and more aggressive with him. Varius feels like he’s been cheated out of a son. during this time he hires private tutors for Seven, since he can’t send him to a school. seven had already been introduced to the public at this point, so he couldn’t just send him back to Renata or anything instead he opts to keep seven behind the walls of the manor, where no one could look at him too hard. visits from his siblings are very infrequent due to the animosity between Varius and Camelia, so he grows up mostly like an only child.  he tries (read: has one measly attempt) to maintain the rep of a sort of good dad but all Seven wants to do is go home to his mom. understandable. Varius gets fed up with him and decides that he’ll just have to mold seven into the type of person he wants him to be. think frollo from hunchback of notre dame here, where he tells seven it’s best for him to remain isolated from society until he’s ready. whenever he punishes seven for stepping out of line, Varius tells him that he’s sorry and that it’ll be good for him in the long run. "you aren't a man, but if you even want to resemble one you have to perfect yourself. you must excel at everything you do, you have to cast aside your flawed, non-human nature and build yourself in the name of god." he’s    pretty transphobic in private towards Seven in a sense where he’s says   “You are the heir to the throne but you will never be my son” behind closed doors. the whole sibling rivalry thing starts when they’re young. Varius pays more attention to Seven (because he’s constantly looking out for behavior he can correct) and Adelyte interprets this as fatherly devotion towards Seven. he’s extremely jealous of him, since Varius doesn’t visit Adelyte’s room very often in favor of teaching Seven manners and commands. to go into more detail with his training, he’s basically taught seven commands like a dog. hand gestures that mean “come here”, “be silent”, “speak quieter” etc etc. seven’s adhd makes him uncomfortable with eye contact but varius like. worsened that by a lot. eye contact is like    something ingrained into him by his father but only in certain situations. when he meets people who are very important to his father he can mask and hold eye contact for a while but in solis which is his safe space he just cannot do it with anyone. (there are some exceptions to this). Varius teaches him that certain whistles mean different things for like public settings. no one really witnesses the way Varius treats him in private so Adelyte just thinks that Seven is actually having a good father-son bonding moment constantly. Seven really believes that they are, because his father loves him. right? (debatable).  (this is sort of unrelated but wtv) seven grows his hair out pretty long until one day his father says it makes him look like a woman so he lops most of it off. (he does later let it grow out again once he’s an adult) the rivalry is kind of onesided since it’s mostly Adelyte tell people “I’m going to excel at my things and be way better at everything compared to my runt of a brother”    while Seven is just trying to scrape by and appease their father. Seven starts learning the family trade, which is shadow magic and an assortment of banned black magic. not very good for his mental health. traversing the void as a child is scary! it’s not entirely bad at first until at some point Varius gets fed up with his slow process and shoves him into the deep end, both physically and metaphorically. he’s trapped in the void for around a day and half before he makes his way back. (there is so much More to this trauma but i cant find where i wrote it) Varius makes him use only shadow magic but he continues practicing ice magic in his room since it makes him happy and reminds him of his mother. i am a firm believer in thinking that the type of magic you use constantly at a young age has lasting effects on your body. this is why Seven’s body temperature is colder than what an average person or werewolf has. atp he’s started taking doses of testosterone with black magic, which slowly has a toll on his body. the veins on the insides of his thighs are a very dark, almost black color due to the way it’s rotting him little by little. i dont delve into this a lot in canon solis because i always forget but he is like scary good with shadow magic but it drains the energy out of him super super quickly. also he just doesn’t like using it. i’m not entirely certain yet HOW she does yet but Renata drowns and seven sees her go under.  this is where his intense fear of water comes from. her last spell / dying curse is for seven to bring ruin to the bloodline which inflicts him with his infamous bad luck. Varius boots him off to private school (he’s like 13-14 at this time) because he’s also grieving. he did love her to some extent, so the loss makes him start acting irrationally and the pain of seeing seven around (who looks Just Like her) is too much to handle.

Varius passes the family tome down to Seven before he leaves for school. which includes some very fucked up dark magic.  anyway Seven goes off to the institute and meets Lysander a couple weeks in. Seven seems to attract trouble wherever he goes, and lysander is certainly a Guy ! but he’s the first person seven meets who isn’t outwardly abrasive towards him, so Seven takes a passing interest in him. Lysander becomes very curious about Seven because he never changes with the other boys in the common rooms or dorms or wherever they all get changed (because 1) he has boobies and 2) bruises/scars from his father). he follows Seven around for a while before he gets fed up smelling him all the time and pins Lysander to a wall and asks him what the fuck he was doing following him for days. Lysander is like “i think you are very handsome, i wanted to get to know you better in hopes that i could be your boyfriend.” which has seven absolutely FLABBERGASTED. Lysander is a sweetheart in the beginning, doing all the things a good boyfriend should do and being very pleasant towards him. this phase lasts maybe around a year or so ?? they’re around 15 at this time. over the summer, Seven invites Lysander over to the manor so they can hang out (also he hopes that the presence of a guest will prevent Varius from any further harm). that’s where everything goes downhill Very quickly. the pair are very close, close enough that Varius realizes that (surprise!) his heir likes boys. he is not pleased. he doesn’t do anything while Lysander is there because he has a reputation to uphold but the day he leaves Seven is in for more Retraining (abuse). when he returns to school Lysander is like “Hey bud you aren’t looking so hot what happened when i left?” and seven lies “Aaahhha nothing i’m okay! my dad was just a little stricter after you left is all" Lysander doesn’t believe that in the slightest and forces Seven to show him his back, turning him around and pulling his shirt up to take a look at the scars (this is a red flag but seven is colorblind)

after this it clicks in Lysander’s head that seven doesn’t have anyone that sticks up for him. i haven’t mentioned it yet but he has exhibited some violent tendencies towards Seven before this point and it only gets worse after the summer trip. things escalate to the point where Seven breaks up with Lysander for fear of his own life. it doesn’t go over well with Lysander, who promptly lures Seven out with intent to kill. it ends with Lysander having his insides turned to outsides. it’s a sort of romantic moment in a twisted way because they are tender with each other while Lysander lies on the grass in agonizing pain. both of them sustain injuries from this, Lysander having cut Seven in multiple places with a silver dagger before finally going down. Seven realizes he /liked/ doing that. it’s all he’s been conditioned to do over the course of his life. the incident is covered up by the school because you can’t just tell people some guy almost died and also Lysander’s parents + Seven’s dad aren’t gonna like…. go around telling people their sons are gay. so it’s kept quiet and Seven goes back home for a time (he’s 16 almost 17 at this time). this is where he finally gets sent off to solis.  as a side note, lysander doesn’t die from the mauling. he gets taken to a very expensive cleric (he has gnarly scars from the event though). i should mention. seven has a TRUCKLOAD of issues. anger problems, touch issues, jealousy problems, he’s very possessive of what’s his, he doesn’t like to share his food, rsd to the slightest things, he smokes?? there is a lot. his anger issues arent particularly bad anymore but he does have some days where he has to lock himself in his dorm to avoid people. he’s also really really awful with touch, and being even shoulder brushed by strangers can cause him to either freeze up and start panicking or set him off. 

[shafhimo1]

Kundru ki Sabji | Tendli Recipe

There are few vegetables used in Indian cuisine, which are not really popular and are not given their due credit by many people. Ivy gourd or tendli/tindora/kundru is one of them. Most of the people have an aversion towards this veggie, hence, it is not even that common in households. However, I guarantee that with this Tendli Bhaji, that notion will change. This Tendli Recipe is a Gujarati style Kundru ki Sabji made with ivy gourd, potatoes and is easy, vegan and gluten free too.

About Kundru ki Sabji

I got this simple Tendli Recipe from a Gujarati friend of my husband. Thanks to him and his mother, I now know a couple of Gujarati recipes too. There’s something about this particular food culture that may not woo a lot of people at the first go. But once you keep trying dishes from the Gujarati food culture, you’ll know the versatility and the real flavors, which are much more than just sweet. This Gujarati style Kundru ki Sabji is one of those recipes, which are not just super simple and quite basic at the very first look, but also packs super flavors in it and is very well textured too. The veggies ivy gourd (tendli) and potatoes (aloo) add to the texture bit as well as make the dish comforting too.

Ivy gourd has many regional names in India. For instance, it is ‘tendli or kundru’ in Hindi and Konkani, ‘tondli’ in Marathi, ‘tindora’ in Gujarati, ‘dondakaya’ in Telugu, ‘kovakkai’ in Tamil, ‘tonde kayi’ in Kannada, ‘kundri or toruni’ in Bengali, etc. It is small in size, but is considered as a wonder ingredient because of its medicinal and health benefits. You really don’t have to do much to prepare this Kundru ki Sabji. Just fry your whole spices like mustard seeds, cumin seeds, curry leaves, ginger, green chilies along with the chopped ivy gourds and potatoes in a pressure cooker. Then, spice it up with turmeric powder, coriander powder, cumin powder and red chili powder (if using), pour in some water and season it well. Next, just cover and pressure cook till well done. You can keep the Tendli Bhaji gravyish or simmer it further for a semi-dry version.

More On This Recipe

Tendli or tindora has been a regular vegetable at my mother’s place. She would make a Goan style Tendli Recipe, which we would relish with chapatis and dal. It was so regular at my place that after some time I quite got bored of it. When I was away from home, I did miss this vegetable. Such are our minds. When we have it, we get bored of it or take it for granted, and when we do not have it, we miss it or long for it. Because of this Kundru ki Sabji, I’ve again got a hang of it and have now made it a part of my meals, whenever I get ivy gourds. My mother would make various Goan-style coconut based stir-fries with almost all the vegetables including ivy gourds and I would simply love all of them. In addition to chapatis and dal, this Tendli Recipe tastes really amazing with Gujarati rotli, plain paratha or even dal-rice combination. Step-by-Step Guide

How to make Kundru ki Sabji

Preparation 1. Clean 250 grams of tendli or tindora or kundru (ivy gourd) in water. Then, wipe them with a kitchen towel and chop lengthwise into 4 pieces. Wash, peel and dice 1 large potato too.

Make Tendli Recipe 2. Heat 2 tablespoons oil or ghee in a 2 litre pressure cooker. Add ½ teaspoon mustard seeds. I have made Tendli Bhaji in my small pressure cooker. It saves time, fuel and is easy for me. However, you can cook this recipe in a heavy bottomed pan or kadai/wok too. 

3. When the mustard seeds crackle, add ½ teaspoon cumin seeds.

4. Now, add 1 sprig curry leaves, 1 inch finely chopped ginger, 1 slit green chili and fry for a minute.

5. Add the chopped tendli and potatoes.

6. Add the following ground spices: - ½ teaspoon turmeric powder - 1 teaspoon coriander powder - 1 teaspoon cumin powder - ¼ teaspoon red chili powder, if using – the addition of red chili powder is optional.

7. Stir to combine the spices evenly with the veggies. Add ½ cup water and salt as required.

8. Pressure cook on medium heat for 1 to 2 whistles or till both the ivy gourds and potatoes are tender and cooked well. Check if there is any water still remaining. If yes, then keep the cooker on the stovetop, so that the water dries up. Also, the potatoes and ivy gourds should be completely cooked.

9. If you want a little gravy, then you can keep the water and no need to simmer the gravy. Since we like this Tendli Recipe as a side dish with roti, I prefer it with no water.

10. You can serve Kundru ki Sabji or Tendli Bhaji with Gujarati rotli or chapatis. This sabzi also goes well with plain paratha. You can also have it as a side dish with dal and rice.

Expert Tips

- To save on time, fuel and make it an easy task, I usually cook this recipe in a small pressure cooker. However, you can also make it in a heavy bottomed kadai or pan/wok. Just that it will take some more time for the veggies to cook. - You can opt to make the recipe with either oil or ghee (clarified butter). - Adding red chili powder in this recipe is optional. You can skip it. - If you like coconut, add some coconut to the veggies, once the cooking is complete. Read the full article

[lebubblyblogger]

How unlucky can I get???

So here’s what happened during my semester break. 

Today is the 2nd of July, 2022. I am WORKING...Yes, I had 3 weeks break from Uni and I decided to spend those 3 weeks working at my old workplace as a casual worker. You know what this means? not only I get to see my old co-workers, but I also got to see Jason!! I had so many shifts with him actually. We mostly did work and stuff but we still talked a lot and had a good time. On one of our closing shifts, Dean had an idea about a “plan of date” I guess. He recently went to the museum with his wife, he said that it was really fun and he wanted us to go there too. Dean kinda mentioned it a little bit to both of us, sort of hinting that me and Jason should both go. Few minutes later, Dean came up to me and he said that I should “ask him if he wants to go to the museum with you”. I was really scared and nervous, coz everything so far was going well, it wasn’t awkward at all, I was very happy and content to where things are going right now. However, I also wanted to take the chance to hang out with him again. The last time me and Jason hung out was last year, we both went to this asian restaurant, he surprisingly enjoyed it actually...Anyway, it took me a few minutes until I finally decided to ask him. So I did, and to my surprise...HE SAID SUREEEE. I was honestly not expecting that, there was honestly no hesitation to his answer...And at first, not gonna lie, I thought he was just bullshitting.... I thought he didn’t mean to say yes or anything, it almost didn’t seem genuine. I told him a day later that I was free next Tuesday. He said “I’ll see”. At this moment, I was thinking “alright, he’s going to say no...his answer sounds forced...maybe he feels bad??what it he secretly hates me???” all of these thoughts are coming up in my head, I was overthinking a lot....Until yesterday...it was my last shift with him...I was going to say bye, but before I could even mention the plan again...He was the one who brought it up. He said “Are you going now? Is it your last day? I see...well about Tuesday...I will say yes for now unless they gave me an extra shift on that day, but yes, I’ll go with you on Tuesday.” NOW HERE’S WHAT I’M THINKING. If he actually didn’t care, he would just brush off the topic right? or not even mention it...BUT NOOO, HE WAS THE ONE WHO BROUGHT IT UP BEFORE I LEFT! So in my opinion, that alone proves that he is being serious about taking me to the museum - which I’ve never been before....SOO COOOL: TUESDAY, MUSEUM, AFTER 12PM....right?? 

You see, I was super stoked and excited about this. But it all went to shit within 24 hours....

I went to work again today as usual (it was my last day before coming back to Uni). I was telling Dean how excited I was and how I couldn’t wait until Tuesday. After my shift, I said bye to everyone, I went upstairs, checked my phone, went to my sisters texts and saw a photo that she just sent an hour ago. GUESS WHAT? IT WAS A PHOTO OF A POSITIVE COVID RAT TEST. Now idk about the rest of the world, but if someone has covid in my household, every household member has to isolate for a week. So that’s what I need to do. Cool right? get to miss a whole week of Uni. Then I realised....SHIT MY HANG OUT WITH JASON IS IN 3 DAYS!!! I’M GOING TO MISS IT!!! FUCCCKKKK MYYYY LIIIIIFFEEE!!! What is my luck right now? this would have been the perfect opportunity to hang out with him....for realzies...but this stupid virus has to ruin everything for me...AGAAAINN. UGH!! I already messaged Jason about this, he hasn’t replied yet as of now. My isolation period is only for a week though, hopefully I at least have one free day 2 weeks from now, and HOPEEFULY HE IS ALSO FREE. I’m still waiting for him to reply. All I have to do is wait now....Please sweet Jesus let him reply ASAP. 

Anyway gtg now, I’m sleepy af. 

Edit (3rd July, 2022): HE REPLIED!!! He said alg, he won’t be taking any more extra shifts after this week!!! NICEE. Now let’s hope I don’t get the virus 🙏. Alright I’m tired, going to sleep now, see y’all whenever :))