#There are some shows that will try to find explanations

[carriesthewind]

WOW.

Okay, after a night's sleep, I have decided that yeah, there is value in responding to this absolutely steaming pile of ignorant, self-centered, self-important, anti-intellectual, b.s.

It looks like a number of people in the notes were swayed, at least to some degree, by this garbage, so I think it is worth trying to show why it is nonsense.

(Also it's possible I'm still spoiling for a fight after being denied an evidentiary hearing on Friday.)

I'm not reblogging the post because folks don't need a self-aggrandizing tantrum on their dash, but I do think it is worth taking a look for yourself, in order to practice your analytical skills. Some questions to consider as you read:

(1) What is OP saying in her original post? What claims is she making?

(2) How, if at all, does the poster respond to claims OP made? What claims is the poster saying that OP made? Do these match what OP actually said? If not, (a) what techniques does the poster use to transform what OP said into the claims the poster is claiming OP made? (b) What rhetorical purpose does it serve for the poster to warp OP's claims?

(3) What affirmative claims is the poster making? What evidence or arguments do they provide to support their claims? Do they explore any of the specifics or real world implications of their claims? If not, what real world implications of their claims can you think of?

(3) What other rhetorical techniques does the poster use to bolster their argument? Do these techniques actually enhance and support the substance of their argument?

(4) Relatedly, how does the poster play into the biases of their assumed audience (tumblr users with generally progressive policies). What claims do they make to play into those biases? What evidence or argument, if any, do they make to support those claims? Are these claims by the poster reasonably related to the claims made by OP?

Now, let's explore their response in detail!

(Also obviously don't harass the poster, and I would recommend not directly engaging with them at all. Harassment is vile and makes you far worse than them. And earnest engagement is unlikely to be productive - the OP tried to engage with them politely (and even offered to help) in the notes of poster's original post. In response, the poster (1) implied that OP is an obsessive rude busybody. (2) Told OP to "Shhhhh. Chill." (in response to (paraphrased), 'hey, the advice someone else gave you is probably a waste of time and effort'). (3) And finally, after condescendingly telling OP, "Breathe. Practice radical acceptance. Know that I am here on the other side of the internet, flagrantly wasting my effort and thinking of you every second of that time," proceeded to prove that they were, in fact, "thinking of [OP] every second of that time" by searching OP's blog to find this post by OP and dumping this Arrested-Development-level demand to be taken seriously in the reblogs.)

(All of which is to say: hi, poster who was "being vagueposted about." I assume you are reading this, because you demonstrably don't have the good sense to block and move on. I'm not going to block you in advance, because I think you have the right to make your own terrible decisions, and I suspect any response you make is going to be *very* funny. See you in the notes!)

So, let's go through the poster's response, paragraph by paragraph.

They begin by doubling down on the stance that, "any sufficiently deep enthusiasm is indistinguishable from academic rigor." This, they say, is their defense of that stance. Let's see how it goes - but first, I think it's worth remembering, OP's original post is literally a single sentence long.

OP's claim, paraphrased, that the claim that "any sufficiently deep enthusiasm is indistinguishable from academic rigor" is incorrect and anti-intellectual. If we read the OP's tags, she clarifies that enthusiasm is valuable, but different from expertise.

The poster starts their defense with a long...explanation that the structure of their claim was a reference to the Arthur C Clarke's third "law" (read: sci-fi fiction adage).

*deep breath*

Ok. I'm a big a fan of wordplay as the next person. And I know from personal experience that it can be really frustrating to do some fun wordplay to make a point, and then get misinterpreted here on tumblr.com.

But. The wordplay has to make a point for it to be relevant to your defense. OP's claim wasn't "this poster did a bad job with the linguistic structure of this sentence and is not familiar with classic sci-fi." How does the "rhetorical structure" of the poster's claim support the substance of their claim???

It doesn't, is the answer. The poster explicitly asks this question later down, but then they never actually answer it. Instead, the rhetorical effect of this whole digression is just to throw out surface level references to things (Arthur C Clarke! "AI"!) that might make the poster sound more thoughtful and knowledgeable. It also creates distance from OP's actual point - as the post continues, the poster has to remind us what they're talking about. This gives the poster more control over the narrative, over what claims are under discussion.

Which leads to the poster's next paragraph: the unanswered question of why the poster structured their claim to resemble a sci-fi author's famous quote, and a baseless attack on OP.

And I think it is worth really lingering on this attack on OP. The poster claims, OP perhaps is "misreading or misinterpreting" the poster's point. But what on earth is the poster talking about? OP literally just quoted the poster's exact words and then said that they think this is anti-intellectual. What "misreading or misinterpreting" is being done?

No. Instead, this attack rhetorically sets up the poster's next couple paragraphs: not actually defending their claim as OP originally quoted, but reinterpreting their own words, providing their own special unique meaning that they will then proceed to use for the rest of the post. They are redrawing the rhetorical bounds of the conversation. Rather than defending their stance, they are redefining their stance so that it matches the defense they now want to make.

(Which is still bad. It's a bad defense and it makes me very angry.)

The poster proceeds to define "academic rigor" in a way that just means, "enthusiasm." Notice how no part of their definition includes things like critical thinking skills, building up a knowledge base, testing ideas, receiving criticism (wow I wonder why), or any expertise or action to build up and test that expertise. It's just what a person "cares very much about," how much "curiosity" they have; some inherent quality someone who "NEEDS to know." (Also hit the bell for another surface level reference - this time to Herodotus - to make the poster sound more knowledgeable.) If you actually read the poster's definition, it is entirely "idk vibes i guess."

Now, having defined "academic rigor" as enthusiasm, they successfully declare that enthusiasm is a necessary precondition of enthusiasm.

And then, we get the best paragraph of this entire tantrum of a post: "Any sufficiently deep enthusiasm is indistinguishable from academic rigor. It's like a fractal -- the closer you look, the more complicated it gets." No only is this another attempted surface level reference, this time to fractals, but just. What is this supposed to mean. At a glance, it seems like it kind of follows from the last paragraph - maybe, the more an enthusiast looks at something, the more there is to know? But the closer you look at this sentence, the more nonsensical it gets. What does things getting more complicated the more you look at them have to do with academic rigor (either a real definition or the poster's enthusiasm-based definition)? More importantly, what does it have to do with proving the point - that enthusiasm is indistinguishable from academic rigor? (You might as well say, "the further you fall down the rabbit hole, the deeper you realize it goes," except then more people would realize you are expressing straight conspiracist reasoning oops.)

Now, several paragraphs in and having firmly taken control of the rhetorical boundaries of the argument, the poster finally decides to provide some context to the original statement (and needlessly insult OP for trying to be helpful again).

The poster correctly quotes relevant parts of the discussion (although mischaracterizes their own responses as "polite" instead of "incredibly condescending and rude"). However, the poster then immediately characterizes OP's response as "muddied." Because words have objective meanings, however, we do not need to accept this characterization. OP expressed her argument very clearly. Rather, it is the the poster who claimed that OP was making an argument that she was not, which we can paraphrase as, 'passion and capacity for learning are limited to formal education at academic institutions.' It would be convenient for the poster if OP was making this argument, because it could be easy to argue against. But since OP clearly stated that she does not believe this clearly incorrect thing that the poster made up in her head, the poster claims that her response was "muddied."

The poster emphasizes this false claim in the next few paragraphs. They say, "to me she seems to be arguing that one MUST (?) receive formal training at an academic institution ("academic training" "trained expertise") in order to achieve that level of rigor." But OP simply doesn't say that. You can look at the reply the poster quoted, it doesn't say what the poster says it does.

Now, this is speculation on my part, but I think the poster really believes that OP is saying 'passion and capacity for learning are limited to formal education at academic institutions.' I think they believe this because its how they feel when they hear the (correct) statement that enthusiasm does not equal expertise. The poster repeatedly says that they think that enthusiasm for learning is the same as expertise. They throw a tantrum after receiving the slightest, politest, disagreement. They think someone giving them advice that hey, maybe its a good idea to get a basic foundation of knowledge before cold-emailing experts is a busybody who is obsessed with lecturing them. The poster simply, demonstrably, doesn't believe expertise is real, and refuses to admit that someone else might know more or better than them. If they "care very much about getting it right," how dare you say they aren't as good as anyone with "academic training," fuck you very much you elitist jerk.

This sense is emphasized by their next paragraph. First, they shift the rhetoric framework of the conversation again. The actual claim the poster says they are defending is that "any sufficiently Deep Enthusiasm is indistinguishable from Academic Rigor" (emphasis added). Now, they are claiming that OP means that no one outside of an academic context "has the capacity to learn what rigor means in their field." These are very different claims, but the poster shits between them seamlessly.

Second, they just completely misunderstand what academic rigor is. I'm sorry, you can read every book and article and (*sigh* dear god) TED talk in the world, that doesn't make you an expert, and that's not academic rigor. A large part of academic rigor is in how you critically engage with what you read. Otherwise you just end up, at best, with a bunch of shallow facts that you can "whip out at dinner parties to impress [your] acquaintances" or sprinkle as references in arguments on tumblr to make you sound smarter.

But no, the poster confirms in the next paragraph, you don't need critical thinking or training or people who will tell you that you are wrong. All you need is the information. And if you disagree, you are arguing in favor of "the ivory tower." (Take a drink.)

In the next two paragraphs, the poster pays lip service to the idea that sure, it's easier to learn in academia. But even then, they imply that somehow that's the easy route, that good learning environments create weak men, that people who are self-taught are the ones who are actually building up the critical thinking skills because someone doesn't just "tell them the answer."

Then, before the readers have a chance to absorb, wait, did you really just say that academia is really just having someone either tell you the answer or where to look for the answer and therefore unsuitable for "sincerely love to learn," (because you are, in fact, anti-intellectual), the poster then throws in a bunch of shallow buzz phrases about how higher education isn't available to a lot of people.

And I say these are just shallow buzz phrases for two reasons. First, the poster never actually engages with this lack of access. It's just sprinkled in, like the references to Arthur C Clarke and Herodotus. (For example, no, actually, "any sufficiently MOTIVATED person" can't actually access all this information that is online. You need a stable internet connection, devices to allow you to make use of that connection, to speak or read the language those materials are published in, enough time and sleep and food and goddam shelter.)

Second, this doesn't actually have anything to do with the actual claim that the poster is supposedly defending. Remember that? Remember the position the poster is arguing for? "Any sufficiently deep enthusiasm is indistinguishable from academic rigor." How does, "some people can't go to college" support that claim, specifically?

It doesn't, which is why the poster's next paragraph instead claims that OP is arguing that "those people do not have the ability to hold themselves to a rigorous standard of learning."

Which just.

Fuck you?

Because yeah, that would be a shitty opinion to hold! And you are the only person raising it! You are explicitly making the claim - fuck, perpetrating the anti-intellectual worldview - that anyone who suggests "caring about something does not inherently equal subject matter expertise" is an elitist who thinks that everyone else, ordinary people, real Americans, are stupid.

I'm gong to be honest, this is the part of the poster's claims that made me mad enough to respond.The notes include people agreeing that academics and "experts" are actually pretty elitist, aren't they, and they deserve to be "taken down a few pegs," that suggesting that you need a baseline level of knowledge or vocabulary before you can engage deeply with a subject is "gatekeeping."

The U.S.'s institutions are crumbling as they are dismantled by people that are making these exact same arguments. There is no meaningful difference in the reasoning of the poster's argument here, and the argument that "alternative medicine" hacks who never completed their medical training have sufficient credentials to run goverment agencies, and that if you bring up their lack of credentials, well, that just proves what an elitist you are.

The "worldview" the poster does not accept - is telling you not to accept - is the idea that expertise exists at all.

And because that is an incorrect and harmful worldview, the poster has to use a bunch of rhetorical tricks to hide what they are doing. And then to sell it, they throw in a bunch of words to stir up the audience's preconceptions and biases. OP's claim (again, that enthusiasm and academic rigor are not equivalent) is "racist and imperialist." Why? Don't worry about it. Something something college is expensive and inaccessible to a lot of people. All you need to remember is that these ivory-tower academics are The Bad Thing.

*deep breath*

Anyway, knowing we need a laugh to bring the mood back up, the poster then says someone on reddit criticizing your argument is an "informal version[] of the peer-review process." Besides betraying a deep ignorance of the nature of peer-review (I guess even knowing how academic processes work is also elitist?), I think this means that the poster has to be cool with my post here, right? Because I'm just doing peer review? (Because also, just to be clear: "the academic structure of the peer review is a formalized process of the very human impulse to gleefully tell other humans when they’ve stuck their foot in their mouth." No. This is just. No.)

Next, more misstating OP's original claim. The poster says, "An institution of formal learning is not a prerequisite to pursue and absorb information," which OP already agreed with in the comments of the poster's original post.

In support of this claim that no one is arguing with, the poster than makes up a "guy at the model airplane shop who seems to know absolutely everything that has ever been known about WWII planes," and asks, "why don’t we acknowledge him as a legitimate expert?" The poster implies that this is because this guy is autistic and OP is a bigot.

But the real answer is simpler:

Unless you are referring to something you chose not to link for some reason, he's made up. He's a made up guy in your brain. And OP never said anything about him, so it's really weird for you to criticize OP for not sufficiently praising him as an expert. Fanfic isn't reality.

To the extent we are talking about real phenomenons - who do you mean by "we" and what do you mean by "acknowledge him as a legitimate expert"? There are lots of people with legitimate expertise, and in my experience, they often are recognized as such. And I don't know where you live, but outside of revenge-fantasies of conservative pundits and the people who are mislead by them, most academic experts aren't exactly exhausted and prestige and praise.

'Knowing a lot about a subject' is not the same as academic rigor. This isn't a criticism or insult to people who know a lot of things, despite your weird, self-centered hang-ups. Let me be clear here, actually: I am not an academic. I am a lawyer. I know a lot about the law in the areas I practice in. I do not practice the law "with academic rigor" because that's not really meaningful. I also like to constantly learn more about the law, including in many areas I don't practice in. I am not an expert in those areas. Just as an academic who studies the law and legal practice would not necessarily be good at actually practicing the law, my enthusiasm does not mean I have academic expertise (and my academic training is rather rusty, this many years out). This is normal? My ego is not threatened by acknowledging different kinds of expertise and knowledge exist?

And perhaps most to the point - "seems to know absolutely everything that has ever been known about WWII planes." "Seems to." An important part of academia - part of what makes it rigorous, if you will - is that you actually have to prove your expertise to other experts. They are then "recognized" as experts because there is a process the public can usually trust that they don't just "seem to" know what they are talking about. If you are talking to an amateur enthusiast - how do you know you they actually have the expertise they claim to have? Because I know of some guys who are really enthusiastic about the, claim to be experts, and have a lot of strong opinions about how they have reclaimed their Sovereign Identity by not capitalizing the letters in their name.

I agree with the poster's final paragraph. I love learning. But I can't see this as anything other than a manipulative postscript, a rhetorical trick of ending on a point of agreement and mutual enthusiasm. By a person - and I can't emphasize this enough - who refused assistance in learning and threw an enormous tantrum because someone suggested hey, maybe its a good idea to get a basic foundation of knowledge before cold-emailing experts.

[maxxiemoa]

~Snotlout x reader Pt 1~

An: Guess who went to the theater again to see httyd. MEEEE! Guess who has a little crush on Gabriel Howell. ME!

Summary: Snotlout is being his normal big egoed self. But ever since hiccup and Astrid got together he promised Hiccup he’d stop flirting with Astrid. But of course that meant Snotlout had a new object of affection, you.

Sfw

Snotlout was a real Viking. Big, loud, and egotistical. You’ve seen the way he throws himself at girls. He flexes his muscles and waits for them to swoon. You didn’t find him appealing. He was too arrogant. Despite this you still hung out with him. He was friends with your friends so it’s not like you could really avoid him.

As usual while you were sitting in the mead hall with your friends Snotlout came bashing in showing off the huge fish him and hookfang caught. Hookfang could probably eat it in seconds flat and just like that it would be gone and Snotlout would have nothing more to boast about.

You didn’t so much mind his need for attention as much as you minded the way he expected the attention. Like it was his right. You knew his father didn’t pay him much attention but it still bothered you that Snotlout would pout and throw a fit if he didn’t get the attention he wanted.

He came over to the table that Astrid, Hiccup, Fishlegs, the twins, and I were sitting at. I didn’t bother to look up from my stew to see where he would sit. I pretty much knew his routine. Sit right next to Astrid, flirt with her, get punched, and waddle over to sit next to the twins.

You felt the spot near you get warmer and realized that Snotlout sat down next to you. Why you? His spot is next to Astrid or pouting next to the twins. Why is he next to you? And why is he so close? You could practically hear his heart beating.

“Snotface why are you so close? Do you mind?” I slide over on the bench to create some distance between us.

He lets out a sad “hey” at the name calling but just slides over to meet my side again.

He smells of fish and sweat. If he was on the other side of the table that would still be too close. “Snotlout please, you smell like fish. If you wanted to sit so close to me you could have at least washed.” I groan at him attempting to shove him over on the bench. But to no avail. He once again scoots closer. “I give up” I say throwing my hands up. I get up and walk out the doors of the hall.

Later in the day I go out to the big hill that looks over the village, its a nice place to relax. I was drawing up some fun armor for my dragon and just enjoying the way the wind feels blowing on my face and through my hair.

Suddenly a big gush of wind hits me. The strong flap of hookfang’s wings nearly knocks me over. “Snotlout what are you doing?” I ask not so much caring as I am just looking for an explanation to why my nice afternoon is being so rudely interrupted.

“Hiccup said you hang out here sometimes” he says like it’s obvious.

“And you are here……because…..?” I try to my best to not jump on his head and wrestle him to the ground for being so annoying and self centered.

“I wanted to see what a pretty girl like you was up to.” He shoots me a smile and slides off of Hookfang. “So what are you doing? Reading?” He points to my sketch book. “Ohhhh drawing. I didn’t know you could draw” he plops himself down next to me. Thankfully he isnt practically sitting on my leg.

“Yeah I come out here to get away from it all and just create. Sometimes I just doodle and sometimes I draw up some armor that hiccup helps me make.” I’m not quite sure why I’ve decided to tell him all of this but I chalk it up to assuming he won’t leave me alone if I ask.

He leans over to take a look at my sketches. “Woah! Those are really cool. Do you think you could draw hookfang and I up something?” I giggle and agree. I can’t help but notice he smells much better than early. More fresh and less like fish. “How was fishing?”

He shoots up from his spot next to me and he is beaming. “It was great. Hookfang and I found this spot by the beach and there are tons of fish. They are much bigger than ones I’ve seen before. There are also a few shiny colorful ones. We didn’t want to fish them because they looked so nice swimming around. I can take you to see them. It’s dark but I can take you in the morning.

“Were there any fancy red fish?” I ask him patting the spot next to me.

His eyes light up and he takes a seat. “There were! There were mostly some orange and purple ones but there were a few other colors. I think I saw a pink one but hookfang called me crazy.”

I’ve never really seen this side of Snotlout before. He was calmer and passionate. Like he really wanted to share with me rather than boast.

“So said you could take me to see them in the morning?” I say wrapping my arms around myself. The wind has started to go from cooling to chilling.

Snotlout moved in a little closer and offered up his body heat. “Hookfang and I will come by your house in the morning. You should bring your dragon too. There are plenty of fish to eat.”

I lean into his side and take in his warmth. “Yeah. Sounds like fun..but can we head back to the village. It’s starting to get really cold up here. “ he nods his head and we start walking back to the heart of berk.

The next morning I hear knock at my door. I wipe the sleep out of my eyes and shuffle to the door. “Hmm, Snotlout it’s still so early. Why are you here so early?” I ask with my eyes half closed.

“I thought seeing the sunrise on the beach might be nice or whatever” Snotlout looked around the house and picked up my childhood toy pony. “Who’s this?” He asked prancing her around.

I laugh at his playing “Thats stargazer. My mom made it for me when I was little.” I take it from him and put it on my bed. “So are you ready to go see the fish?”

“Sure am” he put his arm around me and guided me to where hookfang was. “You wanna ride with me princess? Hookfang is like a seat warmer”

“I am going to ride my dragon…but thanks for the offer Snotlout” I duck out from under his arm, pat hookfang on the head, and hop on my dragon.

Once we arrive at the beach hookfang bucks Snotlout off his back. After he got up out of the sand he ran over to me and offered me a hand off my dragon. “Wow what a gentleman.” I take his hand sliding off my dragon and straighten out his helmet. “Does hookfang always throw you?

“We are just practicing an emergency escape plan incase we ever have to split up really fast. Hookfang would never throw me off his back on purpose. He respects me” just as Snotlout said that Hookfang huffed and knocked him over with his wing. “Bad hookfang! There will be repercussions for this!” Snotlout shouts with sand all in his hair.

I laughed a little bit. “Oh hookfang you naughty dragon”. I helped Snotlout up and brushed the sand out of his hair. “Hmm. I don’t think I’ve seen you without your helmet. You actually have really nice hair Snotlout.” I say still brushing the sand from it.

“Yeah my hair is pretty awesome isnt it. You can like totally play with it whenever you want or whatever.” I could feel his ego starting to drop.

“You wanna show me the fish now?” I ask walking over to the water.

He walks over to the edge of the water and points to a shiny purple one. “That one is nice but it’s not as nice as the red one we saw yesterday”. I hang off of Snotlouts arm and wiggle with excitement. He turns to me and says “I’ll make sure you see a red one.” I smile at his determination and take a look at the beach. The way the sun is coming up above the water is beautiful. “Snotlout look” I point to the horizon.

We watch the sunrise as we look for the pretty fish in the sea. Our dragons are playing around and getting to know each other better. Snotlout and I have taken a seat on some rocks near the waters edged. It’s just high enough to look right over the water without feeling like we will fall in. But even so he has an arm wrapped around my back just incase.

“You are really nice company when you aren’t worried about impressing people. Why do you care so much anyways?” I say leaning on him a bit more.

“I don’t care. People should just know how cool I am. I’m a great Viking” he puffs out his chest flexs his muscles and nearly knocks me off the rocks. “Snotlout!” I loose my balance on the rock but he quickly grabs my hands and I regain my balance. “I almost just cracked my skull opened on these rocks because you are so worried about how you appear to others.” I scoff.

He sighs and doesn’t look at me. “I just want people to know I’m strong. Youve seen my dad. Hes a great big ol’ Viking. Hes tough and nothing can take him down. He doesn’t do feelings, he makes people fear him. I need to be just like him. I want him to be proud of me.”

I feel bad for him. He shouldn’t have to beg for his father’s approval but I just wish he would be his own person. Just act the way he truly wants to. “Snotlout. You don’t have to be your dad. You are different from your father. You train dragons. You are apart of Berks best riders. You are known all around the village. You are Snotlout and you are impressive in your own way.”

Tears well up in his eyes and he try’s to blink them away but to no avail. I hold his face and wipe the salty tears off of his face. “It’s ok to just be you Snotlout. People will like you for who you are. Not for who you are pretending to be.”

[ramblings-of-a-chaotic-neutral]

Since it's been a little bit since my last au idea, here a short one for you all that came to me today!

I think a funny scenario for an au would be Arthur figuring out that Merlin has magic, but the way he figures it out is through something that Merlin didn't even do. For instance, something like this:

It's kind of implied in the show that Arthur is touch-starved, given how little positive, affectionate contact he has as a prince in the earlier seasons. Sure, the knights roughhouse with each other, but it isn't the same as a truly comforting touch.

This is also why Arthur reacts so strangely early on when Merlin tries to hug him. Such casual, comforting touches are foreign and strange to Arthur, whilst Merlin deals them out freely.

However, after Arthur finds himself in Merlin's comforting clutches once, he finds himself seeking out that feeling again, almost like he's become addicted to it, like he can't live without those warm arms around him, telling him that everything would be alright. And these new, strange urges for touch and comfort - Merlin's touch and comfort - freak Arthur out.

Now, to Gaius and Merlin, it's obvious what's happening. Arthur is obviously touch-starved, so Merlin's trying to help him by giving Arthur hugs when the prat least expects it.

But to Arthur? These strange impulses have no explanation and can only be the work of one thing: magic! He's obviously under some sort of nefarious spell that's made him addicted to hugging his manservant!

But who would place such a spell on him? Who would benefit from this? Arthur has a sinking feeling in his chest as he already knows the answer:

Merlin.

He's the only one who would have something to gain from this, since Arthur knew that his servant enjoyed friendly, comforting touches.

So of course that soft-hearted idiot of a sorcerer cursed Arthur into seeking out hugs!

Although, Arthur mused, there certainly were worse enchantments that a sorcerer could put on the prince of Camelot. Arthur must have just lucked out that the sorcerer who had managed to place a spell on him was a kind-hearted buffoon who wore his heart on his sleeve.

Because Merlin might be a sorcerer after all, but it wasn't like he was dangerous. Now that was an unbelievable idea!

[toaarcan]

Thinking about Transformers: Decepticons (2007) again.

It's a more obscure bit of TF fiction, but basically it was a game released for the DS as a tie-in for the 07 movie. That sounds like a recipe for disaster, but the game is actually really fucking good.

The game and its Autobot counterpart, released concurrently, both play well and have some excellent voice acting (Cullen and Welker are there, of course, but so are Steve Blum, Keith David, Daniel Ross, etc), but I don't want to talk about that, I want to talk about the Decepticon version's story.

The game puts you in control of a rookie Decepticon soldier, armed with the unique ability to store multiple vehicle forms and switch between them almost on the fly. Initially, he serves as Starscream's protege, deployed to Earth to assist in the hunt for the Allspark, and also to ensure Megatron never awakens from his icy imprisonment.

Over the course of the game, the protagonist is gradually recruited into Megatron's cult of personality, primarily by Barricade, and slowly turns on Starscream until he finally decides to help revive Megatron instead. Megatron makes his triumphant return, swears vengeance on the Autobots, humanity, and Starscream... and then everyone dies.

Yeah, in the console version of the game, the Decepticon campaign is a pretty generic villain campaign ending. The Autobots all die, Megatron wins and claims the Allspark, and the Decepticons take over Earth.

The Decepticon story on DS is a grim deconstruction of the faction that shows their ideology to be a farce, frames their loyalty to their leader as the source of their downfall, and ends with only Megatron still alive.

At the start of the game, the board is set up so that Starscream is the leader of the Decepticons, Megatron disappeared into space in search of the Allspark thousands of years ago, and ended up frozen beneath the Hoover Dam, and Barricade, Brawl, and Blackout are desperately trying to find him. Also, this is early, early Bayverse lore, so Megatron is literally a spark-eating cannibal. That will be important later.

Midway through the second act, the protagonist asks Barricade why the other Decepticons view Megatron as so much better than Starscream. Barricade replies that it's because they know where they stand with Megatron. Starscream is, well, Starscream. A cowardly weasel who would kill you in your sleep. Megatron would still kill you, but he'd have the spine to do it to your face. Which is... better, somehow?

The thing is, while this explanation works on the protagonist, Barricade will later be proven almost entirely wrong.

Later, when the Decepticons head to the dam to free Megatron, Starscream finally arrives in person and orders the protagonist to kill Megatron before he can thaw out, to prevent him from ever being revived. This all but confirms Barricade's assessment of Starscream in the protagonist's eyes, and he chooses to side with his new comrades over his former mentor, helping them to release Megatron.

And it's then that we get our first look at this version of Megatron. Upon his revival, he discovers that his weapon chip has been removed, and he is unable to fire his guns this way, and so he sits back and waits for Blackout to bring it to him.

Now, that might seem normal, but not if you play both versions of the game.

A bunch of missions are either shared between both games, or really similar to each other. And this mission has a counterpart in the Autobot version where, upon escaping from Sector 7's captivity, Bumblebee finds that he has also lost his weapon chip.

Bumblebee promptly goes to reclaim it himself, and fights through the military vehicles trying to stop him with his bare hands.

Now, Bumblebee is the weakest character in both games. Megatron is the strongest. And yet it's Bumblebee who is willing to throw down unarmed while Megatron waits for his giant, fully-armed attack dog to get his guns back for him.

Megatron then hangs back after sending his troops out to hunt down the Allspark and Starscream, and he's almost immediately punished for it. As he finally decides to leave, he's shot down by Jazz, who has set up a battery of anti-aircraft turrets that will shoot Megatron out of the sky if he tries to leave.

Megatron proceeds to kill Jazz pretty swiftly, and eats him, marking the second death of the game (Ratchet presumably dies fighting the protagonist in the Qatar section), but this is just the first step.

Back in the city, Brawl and Ironhide kill each other. Brawl isn't shown dying on-screen, but given later dialogue, it's implied that he didn't make it. And it's then that Starscream makes his move and it all comes crashing down.

Starscream chases Bumblebee, who has the Allspark, across the city, eventually cornering him in a car park. He then proceeds to beat Bumblebee to death with ease. It's not a remotely hard fight. You're the second-best character in the game, he's the weakest.

With Bumblebee dead, Starscream claims the Allspark for himself. Blackout arrives to try and take it from him in the name of Megatron, and Starscream immediately kills him with a single shot, just as Barricade catches up.

Barricade suggests that Screamer come quietly, but Starscream points out that he has been leading the Decepticon Empire for countless millennia, and, unlike Megatron, successfully claimed the Allspark. But Barricade is blinded by his own fanaticism, and decides to try and bring Starscream in for treason. This goes poorly for him.

Starscream could have killed Barricade just as quickly as he already did to Blackout... but he doesn't. Instead, he takes the time to demonstrate why he was the second-in-command before Megatron's absence, and why he's held onto the leadership for all these years despite his low approval among other Decepticons, and he takes Barricade apart, leaving him dying on the floor as the protagonist arrives.

And to me, this is the first real hint that Barricade is wrong. Because while Starscream did in fact command his lieutenant to kill Megatron in his sleep... Starscream isn't actually wrong about anything he's said. He has been running the empire, and arguably built it himself, considering that the Cybertronians hadn't left their homeworld when Megatron vanished. He did achieve the long-term goal of the Decepticon faction, and contrary to the way he's characterised by Barricade, he did it by slaughtering an Autobot and two Decepticons face-to-face.

Barricade, with his dying words, tells the protagonist "Now you see what it is to be a Decepticon." He'll turn out to be wrong about that too.

The protagonist chases after Starscream, and accuses him of stealing power from the mighty, but at this point he's fully drinking the Megatron Kool-Aid.

And where is Megatron while his most loyal soldiers are dying for him, and trying to reclaim the Allspark for him? He's ignoring the whole thing to go and fight Optimus Prime.

Prime has a pretty minimal role in the game, ironically, with the lion's share of the focus being on the Decepticons destroying themselves, but he gets Megatron dead-to-rights with one of his lines during the fight: "All you know is destruction, you will never build an empire."

Megatron kills Prime, only to be blasted off his feet by Starscream, who challenges him to meet him in battle. Megatron recovers, and with the help of the protagonist, goes to meet that challenge.

Sure is strange, then, that the protagonist arrives first.

I pointed out before that Megatron hangs back a lot in this game. He sits around when his weapon chip is taken, despite a much weaker bot getting his own chip back himself. He hangs back when the other Decepticons depart from Hoover Dam, enabling Jazz to get the drop on him. He gets distracted by Optimus while the rest of his troops are actually fighting to reclaim the cube. And now, despite leaving at the same time and almost certainly having the faster vehicle mode (the protagonist is usually a helicopter at this point), Megatron is nowhere to be seen when the protagonist reaches Starscream.

This Megatron consistent leads from the rear. He hangs back, sends his soldiers in first, and then arrives to finish off the enemy after the fact. He's a long way from the bold, straightforward 'bot that Barricade describes.

The protagonist manages to wrest the Allspark away from Starscream, and slams it into his chest, but unlike in the movie, it actually only injures the protagonist, while Starscream only seems to get more powerful. Megatron finally shows up, and eventually manages to deal a fatal blow to Starscream. But Starscream remains defiant to the end, there's no grovelling or pleading for mercy, he just spits that there will always be someone to challenge his rule. Megatron dismisses that threat, and consumes Starscream's spark too, killing him, but destroying the Allspark in the process.

Megatron returns to the injured protagonist, who expresses relief at their victory, but mourns over the loss of Barricade, Blackout, and Brawl (his line "Barricade and the others..." is what leads me to assume that Brawl is also dead), only for Megatron to dismiss them, saying that if they were truly Decepticons, they would've survived, equating them to "a rust that must be stripped away," before including the protagonist in that number. The protagonist says he could be repaired, but Megatron refuses, calling it a waste of resources, and proceeds to tear apart and devour his last living soldier.

Barricade never knew where he truly stood with Megatron. None of them did. He believed that, in dying for Megatron, in valuing his loyalty to his leader over his own life, that he was a true Decepticon, only for Megatron himself to equate him and his fellow loyalists to basically a robot skin rash, and say they were never really Decepticons because they died. The protagonist is instrumental in Megatron's revival and his victory, he could very easily have followed Starscream's instruction and killed Megatron in his sleep, but that show of loyalty isn't enough. Surviving the backlash of the Allspark's destruction isn't enough. He's "weak," so he's disposable.

Barricade, Blackout, and Brawl are fanatically loyal to a violent monster that sees them as expendable tools at best, and have convinced themselves in their heads that he's this great, honourable warrior who speaks to them honestly, but he's just as much of a dirty fighter as Starscream, if not more so, and he doesn't care about any of them. And they pull the protagonist into their way of thinking, tell him that their way is the true way, and it's all wrong. If the protagonist had stuck by Starscream, they would've won and reclaimed the Allspark. Megatron, Barricade, Blackout and Brawl would die, but the faction as a whole would win.

The overall goal of reclaiming the Allspark is rendered impossible, basically because Megatron and co. didn't like the guy that achieved it, and so they die like bugs hitting a windscreen until Megatron kills him and destroys the Allspark forever. The Decepticon empire that Starscream has held together for thousands of years is doomed to crumble as its leader is killed and replaced by a rabid animal with cannibalistic tendencies.

Megatron wins the final battle, and claims victory. But his plans are ruined, his soldiers are dead, at least one of them by his own hand, and the Allspark is forever gone from his reach. He is a king of nothing, and it's blind devotion to him, and inability to accept a better alternative on the part of his followers that results in the ending being what it is.

[thirstkanaphan]

hello!! i really wanted to get back into the ateez lore it's already VERY confusing and the fact that there isn't much explanation out there (or I couldnt find it) isn't helping. so do you have anything that I could refer to?? thank you<33

Hi Anon!

I recently caught up with the lore with the help of these resources and a lore tutor who put together a very comprehensive syllabus that really worked for me! I've been recapping my journey through the lore under the tag #thirst gets lore-pilled but I have only written up to Fever Part 3.

I would start with ateezstoryline.com ! They have all the diaries and links to relevant videos. I suggest @atiny-for-life or @bunnakit for more in-depth coverage. @TinyBugInk on Youtube also has some great videos full of fun theories and speculating.

I'm going to borrow a bit from the syllabus that my lore tutor provided, since that really worked for me!

Treasure

[technically the first series of albums, but they come later in the lore storyline]

WATCH Treasure Ep. 1 'Intro: Long Journey'

WATCH Treasure Ep. 1 "Treasure" teaser

WATCH Treasure Ep. 1 "All To Zero" Preview

WATCH Pirate King MV

WATCH Treasure MV

WATCH Hala Hala performance video

WATCH Say My Name teaser

WATCH Treasure Ep 2 Preview

WATCH Say My Name MV

WATCH Hala Hala MV

WATCH Illusion MV teaser

WATCH Wave MV teaser

WATCH Treasure Ep. 3 Preview

WATCH Illusion MV

LISTEN Crescent

WATCH Wave MV

WATCH Aurora MV

WATCH Wave - Overture [Kingdom performance]

WATCH Utopia (Japanese Ver.)

WATCH Treasure FIN teaser [all members]

WATCH Wonderland preview

WATCH Treasure FIN preview

LISTEN End of Beginning

WATCH Wonderland MV

WATCH Wonderland comeback stage [M Countown]

WATCH Symphony No.9 "From The Wonderland"

LISTEN Beginning of the End

WATCH Treasure Epilogue trailer

WATCH Answer performance preview

WATCH Treasure Epilogue preview

WATCH Answer MV teaser

WATCH Answer MV

WATCH Answer comeback stage [M Countdown]

WATCH Answer: Ode to Joy

Fever

[prequel to the events of Treasure, showing the boys in World A]

WATCH Fever Part 1 Diary Film teaser

WATCH Fever Part 1 Diary Film

WATCH Fever Road [the clips that bookend each episode expand on the backstories of the characters[

WATCH Zero: Fever 1 Preview

WATCH Inception MV teaser

WATCH THANXX MV teaser

WATCH Inception MV

WATCH THANXX MV

WATCH Fever Ateez comeback concert

READ: Fever Part 1 Diary entries

READ: Diary Version photocard stories

WATCH Fever Part 2 concept teasers 1 + 2

WATCH Fireworks performance preview

WATCH Fever Pt. 2 album preview

WATCH Fireworks MV teaser

WATCH Fireworks MV

WATCH Fireworks comeback stage

WATCH Celebrate special video

READ: Fever Pt. 2 diary entries

WATCH Fever Pt. 3 Preview

WATCH Eternal Sunshine MV teaser

WATCH Deja Vu MV teaser

WATCH Deja Vu MV

WATCH Deja Vu comeback stage

WATCH Eternal Sunshine special teaser clip

WATCH Eternal Sunshine MV

READ: Fever Pt. 3 Diaries

WATCH Dreamers MV

WATCH Rocky MV

WATCH Turbulence MV teaser

WATCH Turbulence MV

WATCH The Real MV teasers 1 + 2

WATCH Zero Fever Epilogue preview

WATCH The Real MV

READ Fever Epilogue Diary Entries

LISTEN: Outro: Over the Horizon

World

[we are in World Z now, trying to overthrow the government]

WATCH The Awakening of Summer (Kingdom performance)

WATCH Wake Up, The World

WATCH World Ep. 1 Official Trailers 1 + 2

WATCH Guerrilla performance preview

WATCH Guerrilla MV teaser 1 + 2

WATCH The World album preview

WATCH Guerrilla MV

LISTEN: Propaganda

READ World Ep 1 Movement Diaries

WATCH The World Ep. Paradigm preview [inst. ver]

WATCH Paradigm preview

WATCH Paradigm MV teaser 1 + 2

WATCH Paradigm MV

LISTEN: Outro: Liberty

WATCH Limitless MV teaser 1 + 2

WATCH Limitless MV

WATCH World: Outlaw official trailer

WATCH Operation: Outlaw

WATCH Operation: Wake Up

WATCH Operation: This World

WATCH Operation: Dune

WATCH Operation: Django

WATCH Bouncy MV teasers 1 + 2

WATCH Bouncy MV opening

WATCH Bouncy MV

READ: Outlaw diaries

WATCH World: FIN trailer

WATCH World FIN tracklist preview [instrumental]

WATCH World FIN track preview

WATCH Crazy Form MV teasers 1 + 2

WATCH Crazy Form MV

WATCH World FIN "World A" Preview

WATCH World FIN WILL Outro

WATCH Crazy Form MBC 211231

LISTEN: Crescent Part 2

WATCH MATZ MV

WATCH Youth MV

WATCH It's You MV

WATCH Everything MV

LISTEN: FIN: WILL

READ: World FIN diaries

WATCH Not Okay MV teaser 1 + 2

WATCH Not Okay MV

READ: THe World: To The End, extra diary entry

WATCH *Chung Ha, Eenie Meenie (there's a guardian!)

Spin Off: From the Witness

[where are we? when are we?]

WATCH Halazia MV teasers 1 +2

WATCH I'VE SEEN IT, WILL YOU？

WATCH Halazia MV

WATCH Epilogue

WATCH Halazia MBC 221231

WATCH Halazia Mnet 230112

WATCH Halazia inkigayo 230115

LISTEN: Outro: Blue Bird

Golden Hour

[Back in World A...or are we?]

WATCH Be: First x Ateez HUSH-HUSH teaser + MV

WATCH Golden Hour Intro

WATCH GH1 preview

WATCH Work MV teaser 1 + 2

WATCH (once upon a time) #shorts

WATCH Work MV

WATCH Special Clip: Empty Box

READ GH1 Diaries

WATCH Birthday MV teaser 1 + 2

WATCH Birthday MV

WATCH GH2 preview

WATCH IOMT MV teaser 1 + 2

WATCH IOMT MV

LISTEN: Scene 1: Value

READ: GH2 Diaries

WATCH GH3 preview

WATCH Lemon Drop MV

READ GH3 diary

LISTEN Bridge: The End of Reality

I'm going to quote @loving-that-officey-feel who gave me some great disclaimers going into this process:

They have a habit of showing us things long before they tell us what they actually are. Which is why I put some things on the list purely because it has the sense of 'this is a loose thread that has not connected yet but we will probably see again'.,

This also means the diary entries are often talking about the stuff we've seen in previous mv's. Like stuff we see in Treasure is explained in Fever diaries. Stuff we see in Fever is explained in World diaries... so we know some of what's going on in Golden Hour, but I am 100% sure there are also other things going on that they're currently keeping under their hats,

the longer we go on, the more clearly important Halazia gets, but because we still know so little about how it fits in the universe/timeline, the imagery around Halazia is almost more important because that's the only thing we've got to go off of how it connects to everything else at this points,

they do a lot of storytelling just with their visual vernacular. Color temperature of light, repeating visual imagery, (which is why all lore-tiny's are kind of unhinged because the point is to connect 'I saw this thing back here which is now repeated in the new mv over there' and figuring out what the connection tells out about the story and the timeline. Which is why I always pay attention to all the trailers they give us, even if the surface it just seems like 'visuals pretty'. Nah man, everything is deliberate with these dudes,

once you get caught up on the storyline, you'll realize that every single song on every single album has essentially two meanings. The meaning of if you know absolutely nothing about ATEEZ and you are just casually listening to a song and take the lyrics at face value, and then an entirely different second interpretation where if you think about the lyrics in the context of the point in the lore to which that album belongs, it is about that part of the lore.,

GOOD LUCK!!

[lottevence]

she's always a woman

⋆⁺₊⋆❀⋆.ೃ࿔*:･

steve harrington x fem!reader

summary: Steve Harrington finds himself drawn to a fiercely independent, emotionally guarded woman whose contradictions both challenge and captivate him. As he chooses to love her without asking her to change, she begins to unravel the walls around her heart—slowly letting him into the chaos she’s always called home.

trope: messy but tender love

a/n: this song always inspired me to write about complex love (sorry some parts are kinda goofy but steve himself is goofy so.)

ꕥ based on she's always a woman by billy joel

Steve Harrington had never been good with women who confused him. He was great with the ones who smiled wide and batted lashes and let him lead. He’d memorized that game in high school. But her? She played by her own rules, and that scared him more than he liked to admit.

She wasn’t flashy. She didn’t dress up for the sake of being seen. She could walk into a room in denim and combat boots and still make every head turn without meaning to. She had a quiet confidence—sharp eyes that looked at people like puzzles, a mouth that could sting or soothe depending on her mood, and a laugh that always sounded like it belonged somewhere far freer than Hawkins, Indiana.

And yet, she stayed.

She stayed in that small town, in its suffocating quiet, working odd jobs, writing poems in the margins of receipts, reading philosophy in the Family Video breakroom like it was light reading. She’d cut her hair short one week just because she was “tired of being romanticized.” The next, she wore lipstick the color of dried blood and told Steve she wanted to start a punk band just to piss off the churchgoers.

He couldn’t keep up with her. And yet—he never wanted to stop trying.

⸻

He remembered the first time he noticed her, really noticed her. She’d just snorted with laughter at something Robin said and then looked at Steve like she could see right through him. Like she wasn’t impressed by the facade, but maybe curious about what was underneath.

“You think too much,” she had said, head tilted. “Or maybe you don’t think at all. I haven’t decided yet.”

And that was the thing—she was always in the in-between. Always teasing him with affection before pulling away. One minute she’d be curled beside him on his couch, sharing popcorn, her head on his shoulder. The next, she was lighting a cigarette with a smirk, telling him not to get too comfortable.

She could hurt him without meaning to. Sometimes, Steve thought she liked that she could. Like she found power in knowing he’d always come back.

But she could be soft too. She could run her fingers through his hair when she thought he was asleep, whisper things like, “I don’t think I’m built for easy love,” into the night like it wasn’t meant for him to hear.

He heard. Every time.

⸻

Robin told him he was wasting his time.

“She’s chaos, Steve,” she’d said one night, sipping Coke through a red straw. “You can’t fix chaos. And you? You’re… a golden retriever. You want things to work out. You want answers.”

Steve shrugged. “I don’t want to fix her.”

Robin gave him a look. “Then what do you want?”

He didn’t know how to explain it. That when she walked into the room, everything got quieter in his chest. That he felt seen, even when she barely looked at him. That her contradictions made sense to him in a way no one else did.

“She’s… everything,” he finally said. “She’s always a woman.”

Robin blinked. “You’re quoting Billy Joel at me right now?”

Steve smiled, sheepish. “It fits.”

Robin snorted, "God, even started to talk like her..."

⸻

There were moments when he wanted to walk away. When she ghosted him for days with no explanation. When she kissed him one night outside her apartment, soft and slow like it meant something, and then said, “Don’t fall in love with me, Harrington,” before disappearing inside.

He didn’t listen. He was already too far gone.

⸻

It was in the quiet moments that she showed herself.

Like the time her hands trembled while lighting a candle and he noticed the scar on her wrist, old but jagged. She didn’t explain, and he didn’t ask. He just gently took the lighter from her, lit it himself, and didn’t let go of her hand.

Or the night she showed up at his door, soaked from the rain, mascara smudged, and said nothing—just walked in and collapsed on his couch. He made her tea, handed her a blanket, and sat beside her in silence. She leaned against him, whispering, “I don’t know why you stay,” and he whispered back, “I do.”

⸻

Eventually, she came to him. Not in a dramatic way, not with some grand confession.

She just showed up at Family Video during his shift, dropped a folded note on the counter, and walked out.

Steve stared after her, heart thudding. He opened the paper slowly.

“I feel safe when I’m with you. I want to be cruel less when you’re around. I don’t know what to do with that. But I think I want to try.”

No signature. Just that. That was enough.

⸻

And so, they tried. Slowly. Messily. Tenderly.

She still disappeared sometimes, but always came back. She still said things that made his heart twist, but now she also said things that healed it. She’d touch his face when he couldn’t sleep, murmur weird poetry in the dark, and say things like, “You make the world feel less sharp.”

He never asked her to change. She never asked him to understand everything.

And in all the ways that mattered, he loved her.

Just like the song said.

She’s frequently kind and she’s suddenly cruel…

But she’s always a woman to me.

[prismaticsaltedink]

Sometimes they do! A friend of mine is a paranormal investigator, and I've done a few investigations in my time- though usually I just stick to EVP which anyone can do. Anyway, one house I went to lady was freaking out because of all the orbs she saw flying around. Turned on a night vision camera and was losing her mind every time an orb flew by- there were a LOT. Thing is, any speck of dust turns into an orb with a night vision camera, and honestly I think she was disappointed when we started beating dusty things and orbs started flying out of them. Behold this haunted pillow! Behold this haunted seat cushion! Honestly a lot of things come from not completely understanding technology- what a night vision camera sees is different than what we see with our eyes, so it's spooky. A lot of paranormal photography is like that. Vortexes for example. If you image search paranormal vortex photo you'll get photos like this:

If you saw that appear in front of you that'd be terrifying. But the thing is, photos are just a moment in time, and forced perspective plays a hand as well. Look again- that's not a vortex. That's the braided camera strap reflecting the camera's flash. It'd only appear like that for the fraction of a second the flash illuminated it. Most of the time people going through their photos later have no idea what it was and misidentify it. You can also recreate it, and orbs, pretty easy. In paranormal investigation it's really important to rule out the mundane reasons for something to happen as if someone has asked an investigator there, they're having problems. One time my mentor was asked to help by a woman who kept seeing an apparition haunting her, especially at night when she was trying to sleep. She thought a ghost cursed her, as she felt sick very often. He got high EMF readings around her bed headboard. Someone looking for a thrill might hoot and holler because they got high EMF and CLEARLY that's a ghost, right? My friend didn't stop at that, he wanted to know WHY those readings were so high. Turns out her headboard was against the wall the elevator was, the elevator was putting out an insanely high (and unhealthy) level of EMF which she slept with her head next to every night. It was causing her to hallucinate. It was affecting her health. She moved her bed away from that wall and she stopped seeing apparitions and her health improved.

If you'd ask him, he'd tell you a lot of the time most investigations are very boring. Nothing happens. Or very little. The legit investigators with integrity rarely get TV air time because legitimate investigations don't make for very entertaining tv programs. There's a lot of temptation for investigators to fake things since they're pressured to have 'results' every single episode, and unfortunately investigators are just regular people with some having no problem faking results. Those are the ones that you see most often, and it's pretty much guaranteed they're frauds if money's a driving factor and they're getting crazy things happening every episode. But that doesn't mean all of us are frauds. My mentor was filming for a series that rhymes with Bitings don't sue me and a man was constantly getting scratch marks and horrible things happening to him. Off camera my mentor talked to the guy, and found a lot of trauma and things seemed to be the driving force and if he got help (/therapy) the haunting activity that seemed to be triggered by it would end by extension. But the network didn't want to get him help- that'd end their show. His wife didn't either, she loved getting the attention and new outfits every episode. My mentor walked- he had too much integrity to go along with that. I believe they just got the next paranormal researcher in line willing to go along with anything for a buck. :/

Honestly, I probably wouldn't believe in the paranormal if I didn't have my own first hand experiences with it that I've struggled to find any other explanation but none other were reasonable- and I know a lot of you out there have too. So I'd just ask that you not harass or group those of us with experiences and an interest investigating in with the frauds and fakers. I won't try to make you believe anything you don't want to. But if you do have something strange you can't explain? There are folks like me and my mentor who have a bit of experience that may help. So many people are afraid to ask or reach out for help because they're so afraid of being judged, shut down, told they are crazy, or lying. But most of the time that's not it. A lot of times people really do need help with something strange happening, so please don't be afraid to ask for it. Sometimes it can be explained by a completely mundane reason with just a little investigating! ...and sometimes it can't. Which, well, that's how it just goes sometimes.

[iamyounicorn]

there is a story trying to form in my head that sounds like a perfect plot for one of those yaois you read once and never find again, which sucks because I am so bad at drawing comics bigger than one silly page

[quirkle2]

mogami arc thoughts. posting this feels like getting skewered in the town square

[clumsypuppy]

footnotes arent enough I need you to talk to me like im fucking Amelia Bedelia

[velaraffricate]

actually, I might have a decent idea for the isekai thing: I want the world switch to happen after a suicide attempt for sure, i've had this idea for a long time actually but never did much with it. maybe they were transported by the gods who took pity on them, and maybe during the course of the story they discover legends of this happening to other people too.

[tyrantisterror]

When I was 3 years old I went to a preschool that had this little green crocheted crocodile finger puppet that was my absolute favorite toy to play with of all time. I named her Chelsea, because Chelsea starts with C and crocodile starts with C and more often than not wild animals in fiction aimed at kids have names that start with the same first letter as their species. I played with Chelsea every day, because she was my favorite toy, and because the other kids weren't really interested in her, and also because I eventually started to hide her in a special secret spot in the room so no one else would find her before I did. She was so beloved by me that when I graduated from preschool, my teachers gave Chelsea to me permanently, because it was clear no one else would ever love that little crochet crocodile as much as me anyway (in part because I hid her). They waited a few weeks after I graduated before doing it, too, and sent Chelsea with some post cards as if the crocodile had been on a whirlwind "travel the world" vacation before deciding to come live with me.

And Chelsea remained my favorite toy all through my childhood. There were others I loved nearly as much, like my Imperial Godzilla and the big red T.rex from the first Jurassic Park toy line and my tiny knockoff plush Charmander, but Chelsea always held the place of honor in my heart. She was my absolute favorite toy.

I kept a lot of my favorite toys through adolescence, even if social pressure eventually got me to give away a lot of them (and some, y'know, broke). That's obviously not surprising to you if you've followed my blog, since I still collect toys into my adulthood. But it's important to note because while I know I made a conscious effort to never throw out Chelsea every time I pared down my collection... at some point, she went missing.

I became aware of it when I graduated from high school. I was feeling really emotional about leaving that stage of my life and, y'know, becoming an adult and shit, and in that state I decided to find Chelsea to reassure myself that I hadn't entirely left childhood behind. But Chelsea wasn't there. No matter how hard I looked, I could not find Chelsea anywhere.

And that was, like, devastating, because the only explanation was that somehow, at some point, I had accidentally tossed her out with some other "childhood junk" while trying to grow up and be responsible in my teen years. I had literally thrown away my childhood in a careless attempt to be more grown up.

Of course I knew she was just a toy - nothing more than some yarn twisted together in the loose shape of a crocodile, lifeless and soul-less and more or less worthless in the objective light of day. But she was also Chelsea, my best friend since i was three, my stalwart little pal, a source of comfort for most of my life at that point, and I had just... tossed her out! Like garbage! What kind of person was I becoming if I could do that to my best friend?

I was very visibly distraught, and my mom noticed. Being very crafty, she tried to find the pattern for Chelsea so she could crochet me a new one. The problem is, she had no idea where to find said pattern. She checked all her books of crochet patterns, and when that failed she tried the internet, but no matter how hard she looked, she found nothing.

So my mom found the next best thing.

The original Chelsea was a tiny finger puppet, and I had "met" her when I was three. Well, I was eighteen now - shouldn't Chelsea have grown too? And as has been established, this crocodile was fond of whirlwind vacations. My mom found a pattern that looked as much like Chelsea as possible while also being a much bigger crocodile, and gifted her to me before I left for college - to show that while we can't stop the flow of time or how it changes us, that doesn't mean we have to leave it behind.

And yeah, I decided to believe it. That's Chelsea now. Yeah, I know that in reality it's a completely different set of yarn made by my mom rather than... whoever it was that crocheted the original Chelsea, but then, Chelsea was never really the yarn. She was the feelings I put into the yarn, you know? So that's Chelsea, all grown up, and still my most prized toy.

...

Flash forward... Jesus, eighteen years, holy shit. A few weeks ago I saw a post trying to identify a different crochet crocodile pattern, and thinking it was cute, I decided to try and look for it on ebay and etsy, just to see if maybe I could find it. I didn't, but do you know what I found instead?

A very familiar crochet crocodile finger puppet. An intensely familiar one, you might say. Of course I bought it. And of course I asked the seller if, perhaps, they might have the pattern for it or know where it came from (they did not, alas). And after a few days, she showed up at my house.

She's not Chelsea, obviously. For one thing, she's far too clean and fresh looking - Chelsea was very well loved, and looked the part, while this crocodile finger puppet has definitely not endured years upon years of a child's affection. And, more importantly, she's not Chelsea because we've already established that Chelsea grew up into a bigger crochet crocodile. This has to be Chelsea's younger sister, Cici.

And if I could find another of Chelsea's kind after all these years, then maybe, with a bit of luck, I might find the pattern for her, and be able to make more of them. Fill the world with Chelseas.

[tankgotstuckinthecircusgate]

oh y know. maybe carlo has 2 ugly houses on his property bc his & lauretta's families live here. like yk. familiality

[ratherchili]

𖹭 cw: suggestive, edgy, mdni

part one | two | three | four | five ‹soon›

Unfortunately for you, your big brother's friend sukuna can be surprisingly light on his feet for someone so large. It seems that startling the living hell out of you is his new favorite pasttime. And he's around all the time now. He shows up unannounced and lets himself in. When you ask Toji why he has a key, he just laughs and says, "He doesn't. He wants in. He gets in."

Okay? That's cryptic and annoying, but you'd rather feign indifference than ask questions. Why overcomplicate things?

Mostly, he just sneaks up behind you and shouts, "Hey, brat!" In his stupid, booming voice as he claps all four of his large hands down on your shoulders. You count it as a victory when you detect his smokey scent first and actually manage not to jump out of your skin. Although you still break out in goosebumps at his touch, he doesn't seem to notice, judging by the satisfying look of dissappointment on his face. Your satisfaction is short-lived, however.

The sound of the two men crashing through the front door in the wee hours of the next morning startles you awake. You flick the bedside lamp on just in time to see sukuna crash through your bedroom door. Of course, you scream and clutch the pink duvet to your bare chest. "Oops," he says, with a shit-eating grin. "Wrong room." Toji drags him out with some half-assed muttered apology about drinking too much. You're not so sure that's a pertinent excuse. The smug look he shoots you before the door slams shut seems pretty much par for the course, at this point.

Sadly, that was not the end of early morning encounters with the monster. Now he has you caged in against the counter, nearly breaking your back in an effort to lean away from him. Evidently, he had seen fit to creep up behind you and you between the kitchen counter and his mountain range of a body. And you wee only trying to steam milk for your latte. What the fuck is his problem, anyway? Can't a girl make her morning coffee in peace? Your protests remain lodged in your throat, however, along with your racing heart.

He's so large and so close you have no choice but to look at him, which, to your horror, still renders you temporarily speechless. Being so close to him reminds you a little of the first time you ever saw a tiger at the zoo. The animal was so unlike anything you had ever seen before, so deadly and beautiful, that you could hardly believe it was real. Could hardly believe that it was roaring and pacing close enough that you could reach out and sink your fingers into its thick coat if not for the bars. The bars kept you safe, then. What is keeping you safe, now?

It is unsettling, the way his upper set of eyes remain locked on yours while the lower set look down at the hand scalded by your spilt coffee. "What's the matter brat? Hurt yourself?" He mocks as you clutch the injured hand to your chest. You hardly notice that one of his hands has left the counter, but somehow you don't flinch when he lifts it to your cheek to tuck a lock of hair behind your ear. "Did I scare you?"

The gentle gesture alongside his mocking words is so disconcerting that you remain a quivering-lipped mute as seconds crawl by at a snails pace. You wonder if the action was subconscious on his part. Seems the only viable explanation.

You don't find your voice again until Toji's breaks whatever hypnosis the monster has you under. "Let's go," he says, and, just like that, Sukuna pulls away and you are finally able to pull air into your lungs again. "Gonna be gone for a couple of days-" Toji begins, addressing you.

"Please tell me you're taking it with you," you interject, stabbing an index finger in Sukuna's direction.

"Yeah," he says. And sukuna gives you one last smug, spider-eyed glare before he disappears through the door.

You're so relieved that it doesn't occur to you how quickly a couple of days can pass. Or that, when they do, your brother might not be the first to return. Relieved, not only to be free of Sukuna's bullying for a time, but also because what you feel is not truly fear. It's more like awe, if you really had to put a name to it. But you make a point not to think about it too much, or at all if you can help it.

part one | two | three | four | five ‹soon›

taglist ‹ age in your bio to be added ›

@orikixx ; @scorpiosugar ; @just-lilita ; @shesabeeler

[ama3003]

In the Middle

Character: Bucky Barnes

Requested: No

Type: Angst/ Fluff

Summary: Being caught in the middle is always hard.

A.N: DO NOT READ IF YOU DON'T WANT THUNDERBOLTS TO BE SEMI SPOILED!!!!!!!!! I have seen Thunderbolts* on Thursday (amazing btw) and have been craving Thunderbolts!Bucky. Also reader is like mid to late 20s.

Also double whammy with these fics. Also thank you those who requested some fics. I'm getting on them right now. Keep em coming!

Again THUNDERBOLTS* SPOILERS ARE IN THIS FIC

3...2..1...

“I cannot believe this dude,” Sam says, pacing the living room like it personally offended him. His hands are moving almost as fast as his mouth. “I tell him Ross wants me to rebuild the Avengers, right? I open up—I mean really open up. I tell him I’m not sure I’m the guy for it. That maybe Steve made a mistake giving me the shield.”

He stops mid-step and points dramatically in the air, like he's building up his case.

“And you know what Bucky says? ‘No, he didn’t.’ That’s it. No discussion. Just—‘No, he didn’t.’ Point. Blank. Period. And I'm not gonna lie, that's all I needed to hear."

You open your mouth to say something, but Sam’s already spinning toward you.

“And I believed him! I believed him because I thought he was my best friend.”

"Hey!" you cut in, brows raised.

Sam waves you off. “Nah, nah—don’t ‘hey’ me. You know you’re like my sister. Ultimate mega best friend status and all that, but not the point right now. Lemme vent about your ugly boyfriend real quick.”

You throw your hands up in surrender. “Go ahead.”

“Thank you!” Sam claps once, then starts pacing again. “Then I find out there’s already a ‘New Avengers’—capital N, capital A—already up and running. And guess who’s right in the middle of it? Bucky! Like I wasn’t gonna find out!”

He stops again, staring at you like it’s your fault. “You know what I call that? Betrayal.” He jabs the air for emphasis. “Straight-up betrayal.”

You’re sitting on the sofa, letting him work through it. Honestly, you couldn’t blame him. Bucky had called not ten minutes ago to talk about—of all things—the copyright on the Avengers name.

Now Sam wants to sue them.

“Fourteen months,” Sam says, voice rising, “of back-and-forth with this man and his ‘new family.’ You remember what we went through? What he went through? Guess what? We were his family first. And now he’s calling me like I’m the one stepping on toes? Like I’m in the wrong for trying to do what Ross asked me to do?”

“He told you to back off?” you ask, already knowing the answer.

Sam gives you a long-suffering look. “He wants me to give him the rights of the name."

"So it didn't end well..." You sighed, rubbing your temples.

"Y/N… if I’m venting like this, how do you think the call went?”

You try to offer something. “Can’t you just… I don’t know. Combine the teams? Be the MegaVengers or something? Steve literally said ‘Avengers, assemble’ and there were like a thousand people who showed up. We all kind of worked together then.”

Sam looks horrified. “No. No combining. It’s not about numbers—it’s about principle. That man knew what this meant to me. And now he’s trying to sidestep it like it’s nothing.”

He crosses his arms and looks at you with purpose. “You need to talk to him. Get him to step back.”

You shake your head. “Nope. Not getting in the middle of this.”

You meant it. You’ve known Sam for years—he was your ride-or-die, your day-one, the brother you got to choose. But through Sam, you met Bucky. And he became your favorite person. You were in between your best friend and the love of your life.

You learned about the ‘New Avengers’ team at the same time Sam did. The two of you had stared at the screen in disbelief.

But after hours of yelling at Bucky—tears, arguments, explanations—you got it. You understood that he hadn’t meant for it to happen like this. That Valentina made moves he couldn’t stop. He hadn’t betrayed you… not intentionally.

Still, the line between intention and impact? That’s where Sam lived.

He stares at you for a moment, then reaches into his jacket and hands you a folded sheet of paper.

“What’s this?” you ask, skimming it. Then you stop. Your eyes widen.

“I want you to join my team,” he says simply. “The new Avengers.”

Your jaw drops. “Sam…”

“Don’t look at me like that,” he says quickly. “You really think I’d build a team without you? Come on. We’ve never not been on a team together.”

“Sam, I… I can’t sign this,” you say, handing the paper back. “You know I can’t.”

He rolls his eyes. “You can. You should. Y/N, I’ve already started recruiting. I’ve got a plan, but I need my right hand. I need you.”

You stand, walking toward him. “And I can’t go against Bucky.”

He exhales sharply, then softens. “Just… think about it, okay? I don’t need a yes right now. Just don’t say no yet.”

“Sam…”

“Think about it,” he says again, looking at his watch. “Ugh—venting session’s over. Gotta go pitch Ross on the plan. Wish me luck.”

He leans in, presses a quick kiss to your cheek, "Please think about it," and walks out the door.

You sit back down, staring at the paper. Then you run a hand through your hair, heart pounding.

A few quiet moments pass.

Then you grab your bag and head straight for the other tower.

*****

“James Buchanan Barnes—you are in so much trouble.”

Your voice echoed through the tower as you dropped your bag with a thud. The team—scattered around the lounge doing everything from eating chips to watching TV—immediately snapped to attention.

A chorus of "Ooooooh!" broke out like a middle school lunchroom.

Bucky stood up fast, hands already in the air like he was facing down a SWAT team. “Okay, doll, don’t be mad.”

You marched forward, hands on your hips. “Don’t be mad? You asked Sam to drop the Avengers name.”

“He’s suing us!” Bucky shot back, already defensive. “We had the name first! Val got the jump on it—we just made it official.”

He crossed his arms like a stubborn teenager. Behind him, his teammates exchanged exasperated looks, a few shaking their heads like, here we go again.

“Are you both five?” you snapped. “You need to talk. Face to face. Not through lawyers. Not through phones. Like actual adults.”

“He doesn’t want to see me,” Bucky muttered. “And honestly, I don’t want to see him either.”

He tried to hold his glare, but it faltered when he looked at you. He could see it written all over your face: this was tearing you up. And he hated that he’d played a part in it.

“I saw Sam today,” you said quietly. “He asked me to join his team.”

The room fell completely silent. Even Yelena put down her snack.

Bucky blinked. “And… what’d you say?”

“I told him no. For now. But he asked me to think about it.”

Bucky scoffed like that was the dumbest thing he’d ever heard. “Think about it? What’s there to think about? You’re not joining them.”

Your eyes narrowed. “Excuse me?”

Every single person in the room physically cringed. Even Red Guardian mouthed oh no.

“You’re not serious right now,” you said, voice low and dangerous. “Did you just try to tell me what to do?”

“I’m saying Sam’s being irrational,” Bucky argued, digging his own grave. “He’s suing us, Y/N. You can’t join them. That’s not how this works.”

You stepped toward him, fire in your eyes. “He’s not being irrational. He’s hurt, Bucky. He thinks you betrayed him. And the truth? Even if it wasn’t on purpose—you kind of did.”

Bucky opened his mouth, but no words came out.

“I get it,” you added, softer now. “He shouldn’t have filed a lawsuit. It’s messy. But this—this whole thing—is a disaster. And you’re both too stubborn to fix it.”

Bucky slowly reached for you, pulling you into his arms. “I’m sorry,” he murmured into your hair. “I never wanted to put you in the middle of this. I just... I won’t give up on this team.”

You let him hold you, but your heart was heavy. “I know,” you whispered, then gave him a small kiss. “But I can’t keep being the bridge between you two.”

He pulled back, looking at you. “Then don’t be. Move in with me. You said you were thinking about it. And hell, you could just join us too. We’d be unstoppable.”

You stepped back, blinking. “Are you seriously asking me to join your team right after I told you Sam asked me the same thing? Are you kidding me, Bucky?”

“Not cool,” Yelena muttered, earning a death glare from Bucky.

Then your phone rang—loud and dramatic. Mariah Carey’s voice filled the room. You groaned and answered.

“What, Sam?”

“Figured you were over there,” he said. “So I’ll keep it short. Ross and I have a few new recruits saying yes already. We might fast-track things. So I need an answer. ASAP.”

“You gave me thirty minutes—”

“Thirty minutes for what?” Bucky leaned in, practically pressing his ear to your phone.

“Would you stop?” you muttered, pushing him back.

“Is that Barnes?” Sam asked over the line. “Yo, Barnes—fuck you.”

Bucky blinked. “What did he just say?”

You sighed. “He said—”

“I said fuck you,” Sam shouted, louder this time.

You snapped.

“That’s it!” you barked, stepping between the two of them. “Both of you, shut up.”

The room fell into stunned silence.

“I am so done being in the middle of your pissing contest,” you said, voice shaking now. “You used to be a family. We used to be a family. And you two are tearing it apart like a couple of overgrown toddlers.”

Bucky looked like he’d been slapped. Sam was silent on the other end.

“You know what’s really messed up?” you added. “You both say you love me, you both trust me—but you’re trying to make me pick between you. And I won’t. I won’t.”

Everyone was still, barely breathing.

Then Sam, faint over the phone: “Wait… Did Barnes ask you to join the FAKEngers?”

“We’re the real Avengers, for the record,” Bucky muttered.

“Oh my god,” you said, throwing your hands up. “I’m done. Until you both grow up and get your shit together, I’m out. I’m not picking sides.”

You turned, grabbed your bag, and stormed toward the door.

“Wait—what do you mean?” Bucky called, chasing after you.

You turned back, pointing between him and your phone. “I love you, Bucky. And Sam—you’re my brother. But if you two can’t stop acting like enemies, then you don’t get to have me caught in the crossfire.”

And with that, you hung up the call and walked out.

Back in the room, Walker slowly picked up the paper. “Ouch,” he said, wincing. “Don’t you just hate when they walk away?”

Yelena smacked him in the head. “You’re not helping.”

***********

It had been a few days since everything exploded—and both Sam and Bucky were unraveling in their own ways.

Neither of them said it out loud, but they both felt it: the quiet ache where you used to be. The texts left on read. The silence that said more than any shouting match ever could.

Eventually, they both found themselves doing the same thing—sitting alone, staring at their phones, thumbs hovering over each other's names.

Bucky sighed, ran a hand through his hair, and hit the contact.

Sam’s phone lit up. He stared at the screen for a long second before finally answering.

“Barnes,” Sam said flatly.

“Wilson,” Bucky replied, just as dry.

A beat.

Then Bucky exhaled. “I miss her.”

Sam’s voice was quieter this time. “Yeah. Me too.”

Another pause.

“We gotta fix this,” Bucky said. “This whole thing… it’s not worth losing her over.”

“No, it’s not,” Sam agreed. “We should talk. In person. Try to settle this."

“Tomorrow?” Bucky asked.

“Yeah. Tomorrow’s good.”

“Alright.”

“Cool.”

“…Fine.”

“…Fine.”

They hung up.

No apologies yet. Not out loud.

But it was a start.

Maybe this whole MegaVengers idea wasn’t so bad after all.

[dollyichi]

I JUST GOT A CRUSH! ᯓ★ katsuki bakugou x f ! reader. 1.02k words / fluff / not proofread

bakugou is bad at social media. not exactly terrible, yet not so great either.

he really doesn’t care too much for it nor does he use it that often but he’s not that unfamiliar with it. he finds himself being on tiktok from time to time though he never really bothered to make it known that he had an account in the first place, just enjoying whatever he comes across and liberally blocks accounts that come up on his fyp that pissed him off. he never posts anything either so it didn’t matter. it’s a typical account with a generated username and a blank profile, 57 following, 0 followers.

recently he found a video that he wanted to share (an edit made by a fan) and posts the link on twitter, alongside saying how ‘it’s real sick’ of them to make that for him. he didn’t even know videos like that were famous. the effort and skill it took made him think it were cool.

what he also didn’t know, was that his profile would be revealed when you press on the link.

he got so confused when his account suddenly gained so many followers in just two days since he ‘never mentioned it.’ that was until he sees the replies on his tweet that the linked he used to share got him exposed.

he checks it out for himself which proved that he did actually share his account without knowing, but it’s ‘whatever.’ even after everyone found out he just used it like normal. it’s only a pain when they kept asking him to post something.

he truly is without care, yet he underestimates the fans who immediately stalk his ‘almost’ empty profile. you see, he doesn’t know that his reposts are public because he doesn’t actually look at his own profile. it’s usually a like, like, repost, favorite, like, then close app routine that he does before he goes to bed.

there's a few funny videos here and there, cooking videos and recipes too, things he'd like to try out soon for himself, or techniques that were really helpful for him. some are also videos of fan edits that he recently discovered, where the same video he shared was at the top of the page.

yet, there was one reoccurring face that kept popping up. a pretty girl who likes to lip sync some songs or show off their trinket hauls. sometimes mini vlogs from their day to day or makeup vids. and the topic trends everywhere: DYNAMIGHT TIKTOK CRUSH

when you saw it you really couldn’t believe it yourself that the one anonymous commenter on your videos was a pro-hero, your favorite nonetheless. though, it makes you a little nervous since your face is plastered all over different social platforms because you’re only active on that app. you don’t know where to go from there except squeal into your pillows. definitely flattered when you recall the many times he called you pretty on your vlogs.

as the rest dive deeper into his little ‘crush’ they even saw him comment on a few of your videos with compliments that sounded extra flirty. they teased him so hard saying how he looks like a creep especially with that profile. he’s never gonna hear the end of it. soon a new topic blows up that reads: GO FOR IT DYNAMIGHT

in his defense, if he were to give anyone an explanation, he thinks you have a really nice smile and a really soothing voice. also that you’re real cute and charming, that’s why he could watch and even rewatch all your content in one sitting. he couldn’t get enough of you, absolutely smitten. even had to ask kirishima how to turn on notifications for an account in the guise of turning it on for his agency's tiktok.

you’re also the only account he’s following that’s not a cooking channel or a pro-hero. and yeah it’s basically all that, a crush. not that he expects you to actually give him a chance, he’s happy just seeing your content.

however, the poor (not really) bakugou is actually unaware of the whole situation of his ‘tiktok crush’ trending since he was finishing a mission. only finding out when he got a call from kirishima asking if he found a girlfriend already. “what the fuck are you on about?”

“your fans are talking about how you keep reposting videos of this one girl on tiktok. i mean, it’s kinda obvious if you’re dating.” and it hits him, quick. your username (the one he could only remember, really) flashes in his head, but he laughs it off. “nah nothin’ like that. think i could shoot my shot though?” he asks him and kirishima says, “haha! i think she already beat you to it.”

not knowing what he meant, he swiftly gets home, showers, and lays on his couch whipping his phone out of his pocket to search up your username. and there he was, staring at his phone, unable to stop the smile on his face when he sees the thumbnail of your new video. he opens it immediately and there you were, holding a dynamight figurine (a very limited one too!) close to your cheek that you’ve never shown before until now. you never thought to show it thinking he might see it and think of you as weirdo. it gave the opposite effect actually, even made him more confident because who would've thought your pretty collection had a 'random guy' in there (definitely not random for you at least).

bakugou immediately likes, reposts and adds it to his favorites. even screen recording the whole thing cause you never gave access to download your videos—it was a very special moment for him okay!

he then comments, ‘you can have the real thing too.’

a few minutes later it’s got your icon with a heart beside it. he chuckles, happy that you finally noticed him. beams when he gets a notification that you followed him back.

he’s definitely going to dm you after he calms down. just hopes this time you don't beat him to it again.

do not copy, plagiarize, translate, or repost my works

note : i love a katsuki with a crush i think it's so cute. but i love it even more that he's still confident about it!!! i like to think that reader probably has like 20k followers or something so pretty big but not as big as the others. the first time he met you he stumbles upon a video of you talking about the ice cream u just got and then he got hooked cause u were so cute when u were picking the flavor. PLEASE DO NOT SHARE THIS ON TIKTOK BTW >< also minors & ageless blogs please do not follow me!