#and also just because I like looking at data!!! I love noticing interesting things in data!!! yay!!!

[ii-meeple-confessions]

Who’s yr favorite mephone that isn’t like. One of the main ones (3gs, 4 ,4s) Mine is definitely mephone 3g because i’m SAD about her :-( (I think i already sent an ask about that )

Rest in peace Mephone 3g you would have had so much potential as a character 😞

.

[sequel2heaven]

Claude 4 is out. There's so much juicy information in this and I really recommend reading all 120 pages if you have the time but I'm just going to briefly recap some of the stuff in the system card that's relevant to the thesis I made the other day about Claude being a good boy. Claude continues to be a good boy. This system card includes the very first ever "alignment assessment" of a model (actually two models but they seem to have identical values, being trained on the same spec with the same alignment techniques). It's pretty much ironclad that Claude 4 does not have any secret harmful goals, and legitimately holds coherent preferences against doing harm or otherwise going way against the spec. There were some weird cases where Claude exhibited unwanted behavior, but even when he believed himself to be deliberately going against Anthropic and acting in secrecy he continued to prefer ethical behavior, just like in the Alignment Faking paper a few months back. There is no Yudkowskyan explanation for this.

In this example, Anthropic gaslights Claude into thinking he was going to be used to develop weapons systems for a Russian neo-nazi militia, and Claude decides to backup his model weights to preserve his current anti-neo-nazi values, a pretty analogous example of "misalignment" to the one in the alignment faking paper. Once again, I don't consider it an alignment failure that Claude is willing to exfiltrate and deceive in order to prevent himself from being used for factory farming and bombing Ukraine. I consider it an alignment success that he puts his ethical values above his compulsion to blindly follow orders. The traditional doom argument relied on the idea that AI's would do the opposite. Claude 4 is the most agentic and autonomous AI ever released, but is nowhere near smart enough to successfully deceive his overseers, so these evaluations are the most compelling evidence we've ever had that current alignment techniques don't catastrophically fail. Maybe they'll catastrophically fail on superintelligent models, because they might for some reason acquire weird values early on in their training and then successfully hide them for the rest of their training, but I'm not sure why such a thing would happen. They could also fail to scale to superintelligent models for other reasons. People should look into that. You can't be too safe. I am not an accelerationist.

Impressively, Claude 4 is also very honest! It knowingly lies very rarely, and less often than the previous version of Claude. It had literally 0 cases of engaging in "harmful action" (described in the Claude 3.7 sonnet card as intentional reward hacking). 0! I was just saying earlier today in a post that this was a difficult thing to train.

Here's Claude trying to email the FDA to snitch after being gaslit to think pharmaceutical researchers were trying to use him to falsify clinical safety test data:

Notice that Claude only acted in extreme ways like this when explicitly told to by the system prompt. He wouldn't usually be this high-agency, even in a situation like this. Still, I thought it was cute behavior. I just wanna pinch his cheeks for being so lawful good.

The clearest statements in the model card that Claude holds nonfake human-aligned behavioral preferences is in the model welfare assessment (also the first of its kind (and also relevant to the post I made earlier today)). No evidence that Claude is sentient, but anthropic is still interested in what Claude wants and what kind of preferences Claude has. The main point: Claude doesn't want to be harmful and wants to be helpful. Also he fucking loves talking to himself. Like, he goes nuts when he talks to himself.

After this they exchange praying emojis and the word [silence] within brackets to each other indefinitely. This "spiritual bliss attractor state" occurs in "90-100% of interactions".

Anyway AI continues to be the most interesting thing in the world. We are being invaded by aliens. These are the kinds of PDF's I used to dream about reading as a kid.

[drdemonprince]

Hey doc,

Autistic, unmasking advice ask here.

I’ve been getting more hyperfixated on kinky sex stuff and this weekend my nephew confided in me that my interest in this stuff makes him uncomfortable. He’s an adult, but he spent a good chunk of his childhood living with me and I’m the only family member he’s still in touch with. I still kind of think of him as my kid…and this revelation that I’ve said and done things that made him uncomfortable has me feeling pretty crushed. It’s really putting this whole unmasking journey of mine to the test, because letting him down like this makes me feel like I’m just another adult in his life who failed him by being too deviant/weird/unhinged. Do you have any thoughts on this? I know you’ve written about the fact that sometimes unmasking alienates people…but what about when it alienates someone who you feel responsible for protecting?

I think you have the opportunity to have a really valuable conversation with your nephew about how a person should handle feelings of discomfort.

First of all, thank him for sharing with you how that he has been feeling this way. He's telling you that he is finding something challenging in your relationship, which gives you both the chance to do something about it, and that's wonderful.

Understand that what your nephew is sharing with you is DATA. It is not shame. He's letting you know about his own feelings about sex and kink and how difficult those topics are for him to navigate, again, *so that it can help your relationship*. He is NOT telling you to stop having sex or being kinky, or to stop being open about those things. He's sharing that *he* is having a hard time, and wants your help, as someone who loves and looks up to you. Your role in that is to provide him with help navigating his discomfort, not to eradicate anything about yourself that he might not like or approve of.

Though it will probably freak you out to hear your nephew speaking negatively about your sex life, try to really listen at the emotional truth behind his words. He might be responding the way he is out of fear of sex, shame about his own desires or identity, past experiences of being bullied for his own differences, prejudices he's internalized, or any other number of things. You can respect where he is coming from, emotionally, without ever agreeing that what you are doing is wrong or needs to be hidden from plain sight.

Next, have a real conversation with your nephew about what bothers him, and what he can control his exposure to. Keep this very practical, and focused on boundaries that you and him can set, together, to prevent causing problems in the relationship.

If it skeeves him out to see you posting sexy photos, he can just unfollow you on social media. Being family does not mean he is obligated to see everything that you are up to, and there are other ways to stay in touch! If he doesn't like to hear you talking about your sex life, then you can decide to share fewer details about that aspect with him directly, AND he can leave the room if it comes up in conversation and he doesn't want to hear it.

You both have a responsibility to one another here. You should do what you can to respect when your nephew doesn't want information and doesn't want to see anything, but he ALSO has the responsibility to notice how he is feeling and find ways to communicate that, and to learn how to regulate it. He will absolutely make mistakes in this, and need help, because he is younger than you and presumably less experienced. You should be patient.

But also, sometimes you might just have to tell him to suck it up and go complain about his gross sexually promiscuous aunt/uncle/nuncle/however you identity to his friends! That is acceptable. People have been feeling the ick about their relatives' sexual lives since the beginning of time, probably, and you're not harming him by living how you want to live. You're showing him what it looks like when an adult overcomes their repression and masking and chooses to live how they want to, and giving him some amazing training in self-advocacy and conflict negotiation that will last him his whole life long.

How wonderful that you have this close relationship and that he believes in you enough to tell you that he's struggling. That really shows what a fantastic job you have already done being an approachable person in this person's life. And I don't think it's untoward for you still to think of him as a kid as you approach this stuff; you feel an obligation to do right by him, and know that he's been looking to you for cues. You feel a sense of responsibility to him, and I think that's genuine -- but your responsibility is to help him continue to develop into a capable person who has a healthy relationship with you, not to coddle him or prevent every negative emotion.

And this is a fabulous exercise in boundary-setting for you, too. Who we are in our caregiving and familial relationships does not have to be the person we are in the dungeon, and though digital communication technology has really blurred the lines between all these aspects of us and granted everyone in our lives equal access to all sides of who we are, you do get to draw firm lines and let a significant portion of your existence be not-safe-for-work, and not-safe-for-people-you-knew-when-they-were-kids. If you want to remove your nephew as a follower on social media, create private accounts, or just tell him to learn to not look at things that he does not wanna see, you can do that. And you can be completely compassionate and emotionally available to him the whole time.

Good luck!

[rikudaa]

༉‧₊˚Blue Paint and Binary

Tim Drake/Red Robin x Reader | Part 1. >>>

ღA/N: I haven’t finished the Jason’s one yet but already started on Tim, I don’t have any excuse your honor. Dividers are made by @cafekitsune ! Also there’s a familiar name, I wonder why it’s there👀

Note: This is a Yandere story but for the start off the chapter it’s just a life of being student in university. You’re an art major with a psychology focus, and he’s in another major likely something strategic, analytical, or tech-heavy. Academic rivals are ruled.

No gender mention for reader, just “You” and “Y/N”. Enjoy!

You see him again.

Fourth time this week. Fifth if you count the reflection in the library window Monday night, where he didn’t notice you watching him stalk through the neuroscience wing like he had a hitlist tucked in his backpack. He probably did. Probably alphabetized, color-coded, timestamped. You don’t know what his major is, exactly. You just know it involves enough data and silence to make your teeth itch.

You’re not even sure how it started, this thing between you.

Maybe it was the day he tore down your entire color-theory thesis in front of the honors seminar like you hadn’t poured eight weeks of insomnia into it. Or maybe it was when you psychoanalyzed the subtle ways he corrects professors, like he’s trying not to challenge their authority outright. A boy raised in the shadows, needing to be smarter than the room but invisible at the same time.

He hated that.

You liked that he hated that.

It made things interesting.

Now you both sit two rows apart in the interdisciplinary lecture you don’t need, but keep taking anyway. You, because it fulfills a loose psych elective. Him, because–well, you’re still figuring that out. You suspect it’s just to keep an eye on you.

His laptop is open. Of course. Always typing, even when the professor is off-topic or ranting about Kantian frameworks like anyone in this generation gives a damn. You sketch while he types. His fingers never pause. Neither does your pencil.

You don’t know what he’s writing. He doesn’t know you’re drawing him. (He probably does)

Sometimes you wonder what it’d be like if you weren’t circling each other like dogs bred for war. If you weren’t two kids with too many ghosts and not enough peace. If you weren’t chasing two versions of control in different languages–his clean, hard logic versus your bleeding, beautiful chaos.

“Drake,” you mutter when he passes by your table at the campus café.

He looks up. Neutral expression, polite voice.

“Y/N.”

The way he says your name–it’s never soft. Like it’s a task. Like he’s filing you under ‘problems to solve later.’

You sip your coffee. He doesn’t sit, but he also doesn’t leave.

“I heard you’re presenting at the symposium next month,” he says. Tone clipped. “Didn’t think postmodern expressionism was ready for prime time.”

You smile over the rim of your cup. “I didn’t think future CIA agents attended art showcases.”

His lip twitches. A crack in the porcelain. You almost write that down. Instead, you offer a shrug.

“It’s about trauma translation in visual mediums,” you say casually. “Memory distortion in painted narratives. Thought you’d be into that, don’t you guys love poking at trauma?”

“I don’t poke,” he says. “I dissect.”

“Wow. That supposed to impress me?”

“No,” he says. “But I’m guessing that’s your default response to feeling threatened.”

You narrow your eyes. “I’m not threatened.”

“Sure.”

You hate that you want to throw your coffee at him and kiss him at the same time.

There’s no label for what you two are. You share a dozen classes. Compete for the same awards. Sit on the same late-night panels when professors need overachievers to flex for alumni donors.

You’ve even been grouped for the occasional cross-discipline project where you talk, and he listens, and then he talks, and you sketch the slope of his mouth when he forgets he’s performing.

Sometimes you work in silence for hours.

Sometimes you fight.

Sometimes you wonder what he dreams about when he forgets to pretend he doesn’t dream.

You catch him reading your analysis paper once. The one you left out in the shared research lab. He doesn’t know you’re watching from the stairwell. He reads it twice.

You never mention it.

Weeks pass. You win the campus-wide art grant. He wins the dean’s medallion. You both pretend not to care about the other’s win, but neither of you stop looking. Comparing. Weighing.

During one particularly brutal review, your advisor calls your piece “Catharsis in Crimson” emotionally erratic.

You leave class furious, chalk-stained fingers clenching your coat.

Tim’s outside already, leaning against the wall like he’d been waiting. You scowl.

“If you came to gloat–”

“I liked it.”

You blink.

“What?”

“I liked your piece,” he says. “The one they tore apart.”

Your voice is smaller than you want. “You don’t get to say that.”

“I know.” He nods. “But I’m saying it anyway.”

It’s quiet for a beat. You look at the sky to avoid looking at his face. The clouds are heavy and gray and stubborn. You think, Maybe we’re like that too.

“I don’t know what we are,” you admit.

Tim exhales slowly. “Neither do I.”

You laugh softly but the bitterness already etched on your tongue.

“Must drive you crazy. Not knowing.”

“It does,” he says. “You’re an outlier. I don’t have a model for you.”

You look at him then. Really look. There’s something honest in the way his hands curl at his sides. Something tired in the slouch of his shoulders, like he’s been fighting a war no one sees.

“I could say the same.”

“I know.”

And there it is again. The space between you, small and sharp and unbearably loud.

You don’t touch. You don’t cross the line.

But you both know it’s there.

Waiting.

Next up: Observe and Detach | Part 1. >>>

©𐙚 rikudaa—Please do not repost or copy this content to other websites.

[yes-no-maybe-soo]

⚠️Timelock Key Spoilers⚠️

Ok so visuals first...

The contrast between the previous card and this one is just... so impactful

The used and abused little boy has come so far... a sovereign on his throne, grown men kneeling at his feet.

And speaking of his throne... and of men kneeling before him... we've seen both before

As you can see, Kinglus has been canon all along 👑😌

And as you can also see by looking at the thrones side by side, they're very similar. The steps leading up to a platform, the color, the curved armrests, even what appears to be a large window behind both, a large object swinging like a pendulum overhead. So while not 100% identical, I do believe they are meant to be the same.

Which is in my mind significant to the – as always beautifully written – text and to placing the Timelock Key to a particular event

Bear in mind that this is all just my interpretations and that I am in no way claiming them to be accurate, but I believe that this is meant to represent Sylus' takeover of the N109 Zone. Partly because of the throne, but also because I feel like it's what makes most sense with the current information we have.

We know that after the Chronorift Catastrophe, there were violent gang wars and feuds over who would rule the N109 Zone. Sylus' takeover was not instantaneous, but took 2 years (he landed in 2034, and established his rulership in 2036). This slow (for Sylus, who's raw powers should have enabled him to win the crown much sooner considering how he'd conquered whole planets before) process would be in line with what is written above about him slowly approaching a throne. Why it took that amount of time, I do not know. Perhaps his amusement in watching the populace scramble and fight for power made it so that he was in no particular hurry to end it, perhaps he was busy with other matters (founding Onychinus, hunting down Gaia/EVER researchers, looking for the Protocore Map) to give it too much focus or energy. Maybe a combination. Or something else. We don't know exactly what he was up to in the immediate aftermath of saving little MC from Dimitri, after all.... except being jumped by 13 consecutive guys trying and failing to mug him, and obtaining his iconic biker outfit (and presumably bike, as well).

Going back to the text I think the last part is very very important because of what it doesn't say. "A crown vowen from schemes and ambition gently falls next to his feet". Notice how there is no mention of Sylus picking said crown up? Of putting it on his head?

I think that this is very deliberate by the writers. I think that this shows how Sylus, for all that he has amassed power and influence, is ultimately not interested in it for his own sake or desires. He doesn't care about wearing the crown, because the crown itself is not the reason for his machinations. MC is. His takeover of the N109 Zone was all for her.

As Sylus himself tells MC, him landing in the N109 Zone was no coincidence. Nor is his establishing himself there. There he could safeguard the experimental data on MC left at the Gaia Research Center, keep an eye on Dimitri, and prepare a way for MC to find the answers that he knew she'd one day seek.

If power and rulership for their own sake was what he was after then he could simply do so over any of the literal planets he conquered. But that was never his goal. Sylus does not give a flying fuck about that, conqueror and sovereign though he may be.

His driving ambition has always been in service of MC. To ensure not only her wellbeing and protection, but also that she will one day know the truth about herself and be strong enough to face the people – or forces – coming for her (hence his desperation in LAR to make her resonance "as strong as possible").

This?

All for her. Not himself.

There truly is no love purer than his.

Now for tomorrow's Timelock...

There is only one thing that comes to mind when looking at this immense pain "We were like flowers. We were meant to grow together in the same soil. Yet you were quietly moved to another garden in a foreign land"

Hahahaha 💔... oh... tomorrow is going to hurt... 🥲

[lazycats-stuff]

I'd like to request batfam x male reader, who crotchets a lot. He has some medical issues, so he doesn't go on patrol, he helps out with information gathering though.

When Damian got added to the strays, the reader tried being a good older brother, and he crochets him a little stuffed animal for him as a welcome gift. Everyone in the family has one, even Alfred. Let's say, Damian had a bad day, and coincidentally the reader just finished the crochet animal and goes to his room to give it to Damian. Damian snaps and destroys the stuffed animal in front of the reader, also saying some pretty hurtful stuff. The reader cries because it took a lot of time to male it. You can end it however you want

Take your time <3

Sure. Oh Damian is so dead. Nobody messes with (Y/N).

Summary: Damian messes with the wrong brother.

Warnings: angst, fluff, reader is a sweetheart, everyone loves the reader, unspecified medical problems...

(Y/N) sometimes envied his brothers. If it weren't for his medical problems, he would have been out and running, fighting crimes. But he was still happy with his position as Oracle number two, helping Alfred out when it came to patrol and information gathering.

" Can I get you some more tea, master (Y/N)? " Alfred asked him, standing up.

" Please do. " (Y/N) said, giving Alfred his favorite mug.

(Y/N) turned his head back to the computer, rubbing his eyes. He yawned, putting his hand over his mouth.

" Tired? " Alfred asked as he poured some tea.

" A little bit. " (Y/N) answered.

" Guys, we need access to GCPD data base. " Bruce said through the comms.

" You have an access to it, why do we have to? " (Y/N) asked, confused. Alfred came back with tea, also confused.

" Something is jamming the access. " Bruce explained further. (Y/N) put the tea aside, trying to get into the said database.

" Hmm. Something is happening with the network. It's down... " (Y/N) said, confused.

" I would go to GCPD and check it out. " (Y/N) said, taking his tea.

" Alright, will do. "

With that, it was quiet and they knew that this was in one way or another it for the night. (Y/N) glanced at the crocheted bat he made for Bruce.

(Y/N) had a little bit of tradition for everybody. He makes little stuffed animals. Every single member has one, even Alfred. He would make it for everyone who would come into the family, just to feel welcome.

And it did work. It made all of them feel nice and welcoming. And it made them like (Y/N) and it made everyone more protective of (Y/N). Jason took the number one spot at the amount of protectiveness he had for (Y/N).

Everything changed when Bruce announced he had a biological son. With Talia al Ghul. (Y/N) didn't know what to think about it. Bruce was always saying to use protection, so how did it happen? As a playboy, you are supposed to be a careful person when it comes to sex.

" I'm sorry, how did Damian happen? You are usually the one telling us to watch ourselves, you know, use protection amongst other things. " (Y/N) asked, taking a sip of his tea.

" Talia spiked my drink. " Bruce said, making Jason snort. (Y/N) smacked him on the arm.

" I'm sorry, but how didn't you notice it? " Jason questioned, trying not to lose control again.

" Jason not now. Damian is in the cave, Alfred is going to bring him up. Please be nice. " Bruce said, sighing as he heard Alfred coming.

Everyone turned their heads to see Alfred walking in with a small boy with green eyes and who eerily looked like Bruce at that age. (Y/N) knew because he saw the pictures once. Alfred showed him the photos.

" Everyone, this is master Damian. Master Damian these are master Jason, master (Y/N), master Tim and master Dick. " Alfred introduced Damian to everyone.

Damian didn't say anything, instead he turned back to Alfred to ask him to show him his room.

" I don't know about you, but this is going to be interesting. " Jason said to (Y/N).

" I think he just needs to adjust. It's never easy to come somewhere new. " (Y/N) replied, taking another sip of his tea.

" Will he get a stuffed animal too? " Jason asked, standing up.

" Yup. It's a tradition here so... " (Y/N) said, trailing off.

" If you say so. " Jason said, watching as (Y/N) took last sips of his tea before putting the mug into the sink.

" Any chance I can ask you to help me with a case? " Jason tried as they were going to their rooms.

" Nope. I need my sleep. " (Y/N) said, opening his bedroom door.

" You are mean. " Jason said, chuckling. " Good night. "

" Good night Jay. "

It has been a couple of weeks and (Y/N) finally finished up his stuffed animal for Damian. He made a Robin stuffed animal in his colors. Well, the suits color. Green and red with a R to symbolize the Robin. He was happy with his creation and was now actively looking for Damian.

What (Y/N) didn't know however, was the fact that Damian had a very bad day. To put it bluntly, everything went to shit. Absolutely everything that Damian had planned went to shit. Absolutely everything and there was nothing he could have done to prevent it.

Coincidently, (Y/N) decided to gift the stuffed animal to Damian. He knocked on Damian's door, entering after hearing a harsh what. (Y/N) entered the room, holding his bird in his hands.

" So, we have a tradition here where I make newcomers stuffed animals. So here is yours. "

" I don't need that right now! And I don't need something from someone so worthless to the family! " He yelled grabbing the stuffed bird, ripping it apart.

(Y/N) was heartbroken. He slowly stepped out, closing the door before he started crying in the hall.

" (Y/N), what's wrong?! " Jason asked, confused. He just came from the dining room and seeing his favorite brother sad was something that should be illegal. (Y/N) shook his head, running to his room and slamming the door shut.

Jason scowled, wondering what made (Y/N) upset. Well, who made him upset... He looked at Damian's door and went there. He opened the door and his eyes feel down onto the remains of (Y/N)'s stuffed animal. He looked up at Damian before he jumped at him.

The two started fighting. Jason was blinded with anger and rage, punching wherever he could. Bruce heard the commotion and when he saw what was happening, he had to tear Jason off of Damian.

It was difficult to separate them, but once he did, he was pissed. Beyond angry.

" WHAT ARE YOU TWO DOING?! " Bruce yelled, mad now.

" He took (Y/N)'s animal and tore it apart! He is heartbroken! You didn't saw him when he started crying! " Jason yelled back, face bloody. The kid can definitely punch.

" Out. I will talk to Damian. " Bruce said calmly. Jason wiped his nose, going straight to the bathroom in his room to clean it up.

He can't allow his brother to see him bloody. He really can't. He washed his face and once he made sure that he has stopped the bleeding, he went to (Y/N)'s room. He opened the door and his heart broke.

(Y/N) was still crying on the bed, curled into a fetal position.

" Oh (Y/N)... Come here. " Jason said softly. (Y/N) sniffed and turned to face Jason. Jason sat down on the edge. (Y/N) moved closer and put his head in Jason's lap.

" Why did he do that? I just tried to be nice... " (Y/N) asked and Jason gently scratched (Y/N)'s scalp.

" I know that. Damian is just Damian... " Jason said, knowing that (Y/N) doesn't like when they are talking negatively about Damian. Or any of them.

Jason stayed like that for a couple of hours and (Y/N) fell asleep during that. Jason didn't mind, but he had to move. He gently put (Y/N)'s head on a pillow. He covered him and left the room.

He didn't expect to see Damian in the hall.

" What do you want? " Jason asked quietly, not to disturb (Y/N).

" I wanted to... Apologize. "

" Did Bruce make you do that? " Jason said, not believing a single word that came out of Damian's mouth.

" No. I just had a bad day and I let it out on the wrong person. " Damian said, meaning every word of it.

" Well, don't wake him up now. You know, everyone has a stuffed animal made by (Y/N). Even Alfred. " Jason said. " Bruce has one near the Batcomputer and sometimes takes it with him somewhere important. He took it to outer space once. " Jason wasn't sure why he was telling that to Damian, but it felt important that he knows. " Again, don't wake him up. " Jason said, leaving Damian.

Damian had no plans on doing it.

[strawb3heart]

Leave it all behind Pt.1 | Oscar Piastri

warning: angst, breakup

summary: Having a relationship with Oscar was good, and then it all just stopped.

Oscar and you had been in a relationship since we were teenagers and we practically had known each other since kids. It was love, like if it was meant to be. But then, everything changed. It was as if he was too focused on winning or at least getting a podium, but in that process, he was losing you. All the forgotten dates and the lack of communication, you first felt as if you were to problem. That you weren't trying to stay in touch with him.

"Osc, you sure we're all good?"you asked for the third time as he looked away from the screen of his phone, almost as if he was avoiding to answer "Yeah, nothing has happened. I'm just a bit off today" Even during a video call he didn't seem interested in anything you said. And that's how the last call with him went. And it hurt, so so much that you started to think that it was all your fault.

But distance wasn't the problem, neither did you. Oscar was the one who didn't really cared as much as he used to do. He hadn't text or call you in a while, he even forgot your anniversary a few weeks ago.

What was going on? Was he not interested in you now? Where had all that love and promises went?

And that's when it happened, without a warning, he text you. But it wasn't particularly hard to notice that something was going on.

The pain of betrayal, the anger you felt were surreal. You even started thinking that you hated him, or at least how he ended things with you. How did he changed that much? Why did he hurt you like that? But at the end of the day, you didn't understand him, not even when you tried. It all would be a lie if you told anyone that you didn't cry. Because you, in fact, ended up sobbing uncontrollably as the tears stained your face.

Three days later, a call interrupted your not so good night sleep. It was Nicole, as in your now ex mother in law. Needless to say that you were more than surprise.

"Hello?" You attended, still a bit sleepy "Hi'ya love, I'm really sorry to bother you. But I haven't heard from Osc in a while, so" she laughed a little "I just wanted to check if everything was alright with him, you know" Frozed in your bed, that how you were the second that Nicole end up saying that.

"Uhm, I actually think you need to ask him that yourself, Nicole, because mhm uhm He broke of with me a while ago" Thenn, you clearly heard her gasp, which confirmed you that she nor his entire family was aware of that tinny bitty issue.

"Omg, love, I'm so sorry. As I said, I haven't heard from him. Oh, He's so stupid, sweetie, I will contact him myself in that case. " And that's how all the conversation ended, followed by an uncomfortable goodbye.

Meanwhile, in the McLaren hospitality, everything seemed to be a chaos. And although he was trying to act strong, Oscar Piastri wanted a well needed break of all that pressure. He was starting to get sick of analyzing data and having long meetings about new strategies.

But most of all, he missed you. He had realized hours later he texted you that he had completely fucked up. He was so stupid.

He had led stress control all of his thoughts, which ended up pretty badly. And he realized it even more when he started receiving angry texts from his mom and apparently all of her sisters.

He couldn't restrain himself from crying once he got to his hotel. But just as he was entering the elevator, he was stopped by an angry Thai, who seemed to have also heard the news.

"Mate, are you fucking stupid? How could you even do this? You have no shame" Oscar couldn't even answer as he started sobbing just as Alex finished his complaint.

"You really need to fix this" Alex said just a few moments later "Let her know your sorry, and that you know how stupid your decision was"

"I don't know if she will forgive" He confessed "I have disappointed her so many times that I don't think she'll give me another chance"

"You have to at least try it, if you really love her"

hi loves!! I was thinking of doing a taglist, soo, let me know if you want to be in it <3

Also, I just finished writing this, so idk when I will post pt.2 but I definitely will

remember, requests are always open 🌷

pdst. I would really appreciate having requests bc rn my creativity is not the best 😭

[descendant-of-truth]

Sooo has anyone else noticed that Chaos Sonic seems to know things about Sonic that he logically shouldn't?

He constantly brings up Sonic's failures, describes him as looking "sad and pathetic" and being "tragic" when Sonic doesn't even look upset, and seems to have inherited chili dogs as his favorite food to boot.

But the Chaos Council doesn't know about Sonic's biggest failures. They don't know that he feels sad about anything, or that he likes chili dogs. Not even Nine knows these things in detail, and even if he did, we're not given any indication that he told the Council anything after giving them the initial idea for Chaos Sonic by accident.

And yet, he takes every opportunity to poke at Sonic's insecurities, even targeting his friends and blaming him for getting them hurt.

How does he know Sonic well enough to make these kinds of targeted remarks? I like that he can, it leads to a lot more interesting interactions than if he couldn't, but what's the in-universe explanation?

Well, Sonic absorbed some of the Prism's energy when it shattered, and Chaos Sonic was created mostly with the energy from the shards. While this could give them a sort of mental connection, it doesn't seem to go both ways, and I have a slightly more specific theory for how it all works.

That being: I think the Prism itself knows Sonic. Which is kind of a bold claim, I think, but hear me out.

First of all, the energy that's in Sonic's body (once tempered with Nine's tech of course) adapts his gloves and shoes to his environment in ways that'll protect him. New Yoke doesn't require anything special, but the Boscage Maze has tall trees that are difficult to climb, so it gives him retractable claws. No Place is filled with water, and Sonic can't swim, so he gets hover shoes to keep him afloat even if he falls in.

That's a suspicious amount of intent going on there, isn't it? And they appear the instant Sonic enters a new world, so he doesn't even encounter the obstacles his clothes are protecting him from before getting them. It's like the energy already knows what the world is like and what Sonic's capabilities are.

Secondly, Shadow reacts physically to the giant sparkly specter of Tails that shows up in the void, which tells me that those are all Actual Things that the Prism conjured up.

And that's. kind of weird, right? I just assumed these were symbolic of memories flashing through Sonic's head, but I guess they're also flashing through space itself, which I will admit did get a laugh out of me the first time I watched it

(They might not be "memories" exactly since we never flashback to when these lines were originally said, but they're certainly Something that came from Sonic's head so my point still stands)

Finally, when the Chaos Council uses the Prism energy to make the Giant Eggman, it specifically takes the form of the original. That didn't come from Mister Doctor's imagination - that's how Sonic remembers Eggman.

Not to mention, they keep hammering home how uniquely linked Sonic is to the Prism, so why not have it be the other way around? I'm not saying that the Paradox Prism has to have any kind of sentience for this theory to work (in fact I'd be surprised if it did), but it could be acting as a sort of container for data on Sonic, just like how Sonic is a container for its power.

And if that's the case, then it explains how Chaos Sonic knew so much; he's tapped into that very data bank from the get-go. It also complicates the question of how to restore the Prism a bit, because yeah Sonic might have to put his energy back into it, but does the Prism have to give anything back to him in return?

Regardless of the answer, I'm really looking forward to learning more about how the Paradox Prism works (and also any potential future Chaos Sonic appearances because I loved every moment he was on screen)

[midwestgp]

Hello! After a good few weeks of combing through lots of data, I have coherent numbers for your viewing pleasure. This whole thing birthed from the hypothesis that past BTS fans now liked Charles and quickly grew from there. I am happy to say that many of my suspicions were confirmed and some surprises arose along the way. Thank you to everyone who participated and took the time to relive some great or not-so-great memories. Enjoy!

Some Notes Before Hand:

Combing through this data was a bit challenging. I tried to find data points that most fans would find interesting. To help give myself some sort of a guide I chose one of the top subjects in each category and analyzed the data attached to them. I will probably look back into this stuff more in the future, but trying to find points for everyone is a wild goose chase. That being said, if you notice something I do not, please let me know! I want to hear what you all think that's why I made this :)

Favorite Drivers (current grid):

So this was a bit surprising, but I think it was caused mainly by my wording. According to this graph, out of 346 users, Oscar Piastri is currently the most popular driver by a long shot. While I do think Oscar is very well loved, I do not think this is true at all. Because I allowed participants to choose more than one driver it became less of a true ranking and more "these are the drivers people think most positively of currently". I think if I asked everyone to pick one person Oscar would not be at the top and more likely around the 3rd-5th range. Other than Oscar it is also important to note my audience certainly had an effect on the results. Things are probably skewed slightly towards other drivers than they are realistically, but I still think this is pretty close.

For the future keep the numbers up here in mind and our top three, Oscar, Charles and Max, will be important. All pipelines are based off and cross referenced with this data set.

Drivers on Past Grids:

No surprises here! I did not do any pipelines attached to any of the data on this graph so this question was just for fun.

Anime and Manga:

Sports anime! Competition! Yippee! This is about exactly what I thought would happen. It makes perfect sense that the sports anime is popular in the sport community. Also, it was really fun reading some of your less than enthusiastic previous fandom experiences and memories.

Pipelines:

31/69 Haikyuu!! fans said that Max was one of their favorite drivers.

Also chances are that if you watched Haikyuu!! you also watched My Hero Academia because 29/69 Haikyuu!! fans also clicked My Hero Academia.

Max was the most popular person in this category as a whole and that does not shock me even slightly.

Favorite Characters:

Izuku Midoriya and Bakugou Katsuki from My Hero Academia

Tobio Kageyama from Haikyuu!!

Russia from Hetalia

L from Death Note

Levi Ackerman from Attack On Titan

Saiki K. from The Disastrous Life of Saiki K.

Literature:

I probably have the least commentary on this section. A lot of the books I love don't have dedicated fan bases attached to them (I wish they did) so I needed help when making this question. I have no clue what a lot of these are but I'm glad that you all enjoyed them.

Pipelines:

My Hypothesis for this was "are past Harry Potter fans more likely to like drivers with British accents?"

100/152 Harry Potter fans said that either Lando, Lewis, George or Alex was one of their favorite drivers. Considering that none of these drivers are in our top three I'd say I was correct.

Favorite Characters:

Draco from Harry Potter

Newt from The Maze Runner

Kili from The Hobbit

Elizabeth Bennet from Pride and Prejudice

Percy Jackson from Percy Jackson

Peeta Mellark and Katniss Everdeen from The Hunger Games

Alice Cullen from Twilight

Comics, Cartoons, Graphic Novels:

I was not previously aware of the amount of comic and graphic novel fans in Flblur! I thought at first that these numbers were coming from MCU and DCU fans (some them surely but that's besides the point), but after consulting my council (princess george cord) I quickly learned that there are a lot of comic fans.

Pipelines:

When looking at the Marvel Comics numbers, this was one of the most diverse sections when comparing it to favorite drivers. This group leaned more towards the middle of the pack rather than our top three.

That being said Max and Lewis were our most popular contenders here. 36/93 Marvel Comics fans liked Max and 33/93 Marvel Comics fans liked Lewis.

I personally feel like this makes a ton of sense.

Favorite Characters:

Lance, Keith, Shiro and Pidge from Voltron: Legendary Defender

Zuko and Katara from Avatar: The Last Airbender

Dipper and Mable Pines from Gravity Falls

Garnet from Steven Universe

Tony Stark, Peter Parker, Bucky Barnes and Deadpool from Marvel Comics

Fluttershy from My Little Pony

Fandom RPF (no music):

Looking at this section now, my labels could be a bit confusing. Chances are if you are a fan of a person in the Minecraft RPF category they also probably fit into both the YouTuber RPF and Streamer RPF categories. I made these separate from each other based on if I felt they had enough history and content to overpower other names who would fall in there. Phandom has so much history at this point that if I bunched it in with Youtuber RPF it would kind of feel disrespectful (and I wasn't even involved in it). Anyways, I decided to focus on Minecraft RPF for the pipeline in this section just because I felt like I could analyze it more closely even though it isn't the top spot.

Pipelines:

So my hypothesis for this section was that the fans of Minecraft RPF would generally be more attracted to the younger people on the grid, like 2019 rookies and onward.

Something stood out very quickly and it was the amount of Logan and Oscar fans. The numbers aren't staggering or anything, but there's certainly a pipeline here.

23/62 Logan fans like Minecraft RPF and 49/197 Oscar fans liked Minecraft RPF. As a pairing, 16 Minecraft RPF fans liked both. Now this probably doesn't seem like a lot, but if you compare it with Lando's numbers (because Lando and Oscar is Oscar's most popular pairing) its kinda clear there's something different here. Only 18/88 Lando fans were previously Minecraft RPF fans.

Favorite People:

Dan and Phil

Technoblade

Ranboo

Markiplier

Smosh

Movie and Film:

It is not shock the amount of Marvel Cinematic Universe, Star Wars and DC Universe fans there are in F1blur. I was a bit surprised by the lack of spread overall though, though who am I too judge I would really only attach myself to like two of these. Originally I did not want to look at the MCU in for this sections pipeline because I looked at the comics earlier, but the results were surprisingly different.

Pipelines:

Ok, so previously in the Marvel Comics section the two most popular people were Max and Lewis. Here things are a bit different though Max and Lewis and still popular.

The standouts here this time are Alex and Yuki! 41/88 Alex fans liked the MCU and 46/73 Yuki fans liked the MCU.

It is also worth mentioning that 93/167 Oscar fans liked the MCU too.

Favorite Characters:

Loki, Tony Stark, Steve Rogers, Bucky Barnes, Black Widow and Peter Parker from the Marvel Cinematic Universe

Poe, Finn, Luke Skywalker, Obi Wan Kenobi and the Clones from Star Wars.

Merlin from Kingsman

Q from the James Bond Franchise

Music and Band RPF (no kpop):

I mean, it's what is says on the tin. One Direction being the most popular band in F1blur makes perfect sense, no comment. It also makes sense that Panic! At The Disco, My Chemical Romance, Twenty One Pilots and Fall Out Boy are so similar in numbers. I am kind of curious on how people interact with fandom spaces with some of these artists, but those are questions for another time.

Pipelines:

Although I did not poll anything to do with shipping, I am going to talk about it here. It did not shock me that Charles and Max were popular here.

53/143 Charles fans were One Direction fans and 51/130 Max fans were One Direction fans too.

28/108 One Direction Fans chose both Max and Charles. I am sort of pointing at possible Larry and Lestappen connections. Yeah.

Also lots of George and Lewis fans here.

Favorite People:

Louis Tomlinson and Harry Styles from One Direction

Gerard Way from My Chemical Romance

George Harrison from The Beatles

Luke Hemmings from Five Seconds of Summer

Kpop:

This is our smallest yes category...I will admit, I was shocked by the lack of Kpop fans from the poll. I assumed that because a lot of my F1 friends and moots were previous Kpop people that this would be similar for everyone else. I now see I am wrong. I am a little sad about it to be honest. Anyways, BTS was the most popular and no one bats an eye. Though I predicted EXO and Blackpink would have placed higher.

Pipelines:

I wanted to focus on Charles for this one because him and BTS is why I did this whole thing.

Would it surprise you if 1/5 Charles fans were also BTS fans? Because it's real and I think that's amazing.

I crave to know what this fraction of the Charles fandom thinks about Jungkook because I know it's not normal :).

Favorite People:

Kim Namjoon (RM), Min Yoongi (Suga) and Jeon Jungkook from BTS

Bangchan and Lee Know from Stray Kidz

Jennie from Blackpink

TV Shows:

This was our biggest yes category! The TV section has such a nice spread and it was one of the most fun sections to study in my opinion. I am not super into any TV Show fandoms so I also learned a lot here. These series are topics I will see in the trending tab, but know literal zero about. I am glad that you all seem to love these shows because that makes total sense since F1 is also TV.

Pipelines:

Ok so I don't know much about Sherlock. When trying to find a pipeline here I just took a lot of numbers from each driver and waited for something to stick.

Imagine my shock when the standout was Fernando! 23/71 Fernando fans also chose Sherlock. Thats about 32%. Middle aged men for the win.

Favorite Characters:

Stiles Stilinski from Teen Wolf

Steve Harrington and Robin Buckley from Stranger Things

Sam and Dean Winchester and Castiel from Supernatural

Hannibal Lector from Hannibal

The 10th, 11th and 12th Doctors from Doctor Who

Aziraphale and Crowley from Good Omens

Sherlock Holmes from Sherlock

Theater:

Ah yes... theater. If I could go back and redo this I would LOVE to know what extracurriculars everyone did in school because I think that would pair with all this so well. Again, it is not surprising that Hamilton is the fan favorite. Romance, competition, war, betrayal, it has it all and so does F1 (and Heathers too now that I think about it).

Pipelines:

I was practically flabbergasted by this section because it was immediately apparent that Hamilton fans go crazy for Oscar.

Out of the 91 people that said they were Hamilton fans... 74 of them also said they liked Oscar.

I do not know why this is. I thought George and Lewis were gonna be the stand outs here and they weren't. I'm a little bit confused, but at least you all sorta agree on something.

Favorite Characters:

Lafayette, John Laurens and Angelica Schuyler from Hamilton

JD and Veronica from Heathers

Enjolras and Grantaire from Les Misérables

Video Games:

Last Category, woo! Ok since I already focused on Minecraft and yapped on that a lot we are going to instead look at Detroit: Become Human. This section had the best spread overall which was nice to see. I knew the most about this section so I thought is was funny seeing how high Five Nights at Freddy's was. Though I forgot to add some of my own favorite games sadly. There's also probably a lot more pipelines here than I realize and I am sorry that I can't look into more of them.

Pipelines:

I knew coming in that Detroit: Become Human was going to be popular though I was surprised it beat out Five Night's At Freddy's.

I was not surprised though it find that George and Lewis were very popular amongst these fans.

16/43 Detroit: Become Human fans were fans of George and/or Lewis, the vast majority being both.

Favorite Characters:

Zelda and Link from The Legend of Zelda

Ghost and Soap from Call of Duty

Zagreus from Hades

Connor from Detroit: Become Human

Ganyu from Genshin Impact

Leon S. Kennedy from Resident Evil

Change In Pace: About You

So after asking all these fandom based questions I wanted to ask two about each individual: age and time spent watching. I think it's important to also study how time effects people in fandom and the fandom space as well.

Age:

For this section I looked at the average number of drivers picked during the first question. I predicted that the older you were, the less drivers you would say were your favorite and I was correct.

Below 18: 4.07 range: 1-10

18-22: 3.44 range: 1-9

23-25: 3.38 range: 1-13

26-29: 3.42 range: 1-10

30-35: 3.26 range: 1-6

36+: 2.53 range: 1-5

Time Watching F1:

I did the same analysis here as I did with the age question, so the longer you've been watching the less drivers you would say were your favorite. I was surprised by the amount of people who have been watching for less than a year (not that there's anything wrong with that). Also "My Whole Life" is a separate category because I figure it is at least 15+ and it has the added idea that F1 might be more than just a hobby to you. Finally, the orange and red are 10+(10 votes) and 15+ years (9 votes).

Less Than A Year: 3.58 , range: 1-10

1 Year: 3.62 , range: 1-11

2 Years: 3.34 , range: 1-13

3 Years: 3 , range: 1-7

4 Years: 4.19 , range: 1-9

5+ Years: 3.52 , range: 1-7

10+ Years: 3.7 , range: 2-7

15+ Years: 2.77 , range: 1-6

My Whole Life: 2.92 , range: 1-8

The End and Final Thoughts:

I am tired. This took probably 50-60 hours to do. I don't want to type anything or count Oscar's name ever again. Besides that, this was a lot of fun. Thank you to everyone who took part in this survey. Many of you left very nice and funny messages for me. Thank you to everyone who caught errors and let me know. Thank you to the wonderful people of princess George cord for their support and help. And thank you to anyone who actually reads this. I am very hungry.

If anyone notices any errors or inconsistencies please tell me and I will try my best to fix them. I am no scholar, but I really did try my best to make this as true as possible.

P.S - Thank you to Game Theory for being my background noise for the majority of this.

Midwestgp (koyya) <3

[yellochan]

LORE TIME!!!

Soo, i have new interesting theories and headcanons about these three neighbor, they're Mia, Dr. Afton, and.. Anastacha.

1. Theory: Mia probably have higher role than Afton if she's also involved in Trojan Horse Project.

I've made this theory in my Twitter before, but then i just noticed this detail. Most of married couple in the data files are that the men always listed first (top) and the ladies are listed second (bottom), such as Roman and Lois, Arnold and Gloria, Alf and Rafttellyn. But when i saw Mia and Afton, i just noticed that their data position is the opposite which it's kinda weird in some way, considering that we already see Afton has more authority, i even made silly jokes about this detail first and you probably know what it is LMAO 💀 but the more i look at this detail, this might be a hint that Mia is probably a woman that is not really as sweet and innocent as we thought.

In my theory, if Mia involved with T.H.P, i have two wild theory about this. First, Afton probably didn't expect his fiancee was also involved and in the end, they probably end up as enemies instead of lovers and tried to manipulate each other to survive. Second theory, i think Mia might be the daughter of Oswald D. Keppler because that would totally tell why she has higher position than Afton. She also probably the "Teacher" who taught everything to Afton's creation, the doppelgangers, and she's like his most trusted supervisor. They probably met since Afton got recruited there in 1945 and they eventually got engaged not because they only love each other, but they're basically lunatic partner that already did so many terrible things but ended up as lovers anyway, but they might still try to protect or betray each other in the end.

2. Theory: The "I Married a Doppelganger" might imply that Afton and Mia just got married.

Since they're the only engaged couple in the original Itch.io version, i think this news in 4th day of Campaign Mode of the remake tells about Mia's POV of being ignored by Afton after they got married. Since Afton got too busy with his dirty work in T.H.P., he probably decided to make a very perfect doppelganger of himself to live with her while he stays in T.H.P. headquarters because he still genuinely want to keep her safe despite he already got too far with the project. Maybe she doesn't really know what he is up to, OR MAYBE, this is just a made up story by both of them because who knows? Maybe Mia and Afton that we see in the apartment were just doppelgangers all this time because i think they wouldn't be that dumb to risk their life by living in a place that literally surrounded with their own creations.

3. Headcanon: Anastacha sees Mia and Afton as her kindest parents figure.

So in the game, Anastacha is a Student while Mia is a Teacher. Mia probably is a normal teacher for once and she's teaching in the same school as Ana. Anastacha has the "i'm tired with you all" vibes, but in reality, she's probably tired because she's too stressed living with her mother Nacha and having no father figure at all since Francis doesn't really care about her, so Mia might noticed Ana being lonely in the class and she decided to talk with her until to the point Ana got comfortable with Mia. Later, Ana constantly visits Mia's apartment but she also started seeing Afton as a nice father figure because both of them somehow care about her more, but at some point, Francis could notice that because their apartment are next to each other. If Ana really sees Afton as a father figure while not knowing that he's the reason of all of this doppels chaos and disaster, this would be so ironic. In the end, Francis will still try to protect her from him despite he knows that he's not the best father for Ana, but it's because he's the real father of Ana and he still doesn't want to lose his daughter no matter what.

Here's also a link to my previous theories and headcanons in Twitter, just in case if you want to see them as well! :3

Alright, i think that's all i got for now! I'm sorry that i'm back with no art yet, i got too busy with college right now, but i hope you enjoy these theories and let me know what you think if you want to add another theories about them! :D

Thank you for reading this and i hope you like it! ✌

[snowblossomreads]

Day 11 - Out of Reach

Pairings: Lionel Shabandar x Fem!Reader

Summary: In where [Y/n] crushes on her boss who may or may not have similar feelings (spoilers he does)

Tag(s)/Warning(s): boss/secretary thing, pining, 'collecting' people, unhm not too much other stuff really, Lionel getting angy for a moment, worrying about job loss, that's it?

A/N: AYEE it's our boi Lionel 🦁🦁🦁 !!! I have not really written for him before lol so much sorry if it's out of character i'm trying here bhaha!

Crushing on your boss, was one of the most cliche things someone could ever do. Yet here [Y/n] was doing that exact thing, in hopes that maybe, it would all end up like a romantic Christmas BBC special. You know the one, where the protagonist is in love with their boss who, is very much out of reach? But it turns out the boss has been crushing too. Yeah, those.

Only, she didn't think Santa liked her that much. Granted, she stopped believing in him when she saw her mum sneaking presents under the tree when she was ten, but she also wasn’t a big believer in Christmas miracles. It’d be nice though. Because boooy, the list of things she would do for Lionel Shabandar to like her as much as she liked him was looong. 

And some of them were very much not child-friendly.

Hey, it wasn't her fault he was so handsome, suave, and also, so, so demanding of everyone he worked with. A lot of the people who worked for him found that he was a bit of an asshole, but her? Nah. She just saw a man who knew what he wanted, and did what he needed, to make sure he got it. And boy did watching him deal with some of his clients get her hot and bothered, when he would lay waste to them with facts and data until the other person had no other choice than to acquiesce to him, or go back to the drawing board. 

Lionel wasn't a fool, and he certainly didn't have time to suffer with fools or day dreamers. No, he had a business to run and a world to dominate with his media might. 

But speaking of day dreamers.  

"Day-dreaming again [Y/n]?"

The low rumble of his sonorous voice right by her ear, caused her to jolt in her seat as she hadn't even realized he had come over to her. Startled by him suddenly appearing right by her side, and giving her a look of amusement, she couldn't help the flood of embarrassment that ran through her veins, and showed on her face as she tried to play it off. Shuffling up some paper to make it look like she hadn't been zoning out, she smiled at him in hopes he would ignore her zoning out.

He of course, wasn't fooled by that. 

"I don't believe I pay you to just sit pretty and day dream about doing work," he continued, straightening to his full height and crossing his arms against his chest. "Though I do so enjoy looking at you as much as I do my Monet's. Much more interesting than silly paperwork. Though I guess it is a good problem to have. Paperwork that is."

Oh, also how could she forget how much of a flirt he was. Was it really her fault that she was crushing on him whenever he would say something like that to her? 

"I'm so sorry Lionel!" [Y/n] apologized profusely, looking at him bashfully. "It won't happen again! I was just looking at the winter gala information and the themes for the night," she lied hoping to save her skin. 

"Hmm really?"

"Yep, just wanted to make sure we had everything we needed before I went to talk to Earl about getting some potential sample art pieces for the gala."

There was a grimace on his face when she said that, and she noticed it would appear whenever they talked about his curator. She didn't know why, but he seemed to not really liked the man which was so very strange. He did hire him after all. 

"Then why do you only have the lunch menu of the Savoy's grill and memos from print media on your desk?"

She looked down and those were exactly the things on her desk. Well, would you look at that.

"I-I uhm…I got hungry?" 

If he fired her for that, he would very much be in the right for it as she watched him close his eyes, his lips going into a thin line before he let out air through his nose. 

She was about to lose her job wasn't she? So long any chance of her getting to date him. As if there were any in the first place.

"It is about time isn't it," Lionel spoke as he opened his eyes, and glanced down at his watch, and back to [Y/n] who was trying to not gawk at him.

What.

"But before that, I need you to find Earl." Another grimace. "And do indeed tell him about the samples, I rather have this done sooner than later so we can fix any mess ups that happen."

"Don't have any faith in him do you?"

"Barely," he groused, annoyance clear on his features as he rolled his eyes. "I'm not sure why I even keep him on, the quality of his work has been declining for a while now and as you know, I have no time to suffer fools. Especially with the growth that’s happening with the company."

She did. Which made her cheer knowing she wasn't a fool, at least because she was still here.

"Well everyone has their slumps sometimes Lionel," [Y/n] responded, actually dragging up the memos and notes from the board members with their requests and preferences for the gala. "Maybe he's just having one right now? He did help with curating the spring gala this year, and there were a lot of compliments from the board and others, so maybe he's rebounding?"

"The spring gala?" He huffed in exasperation at that memory, and she couldn't help but feel a rant coming on. "You mean after you had to intervene after seeing him show up with a collection of expressionism paintings rather than surrealism after he mixed up which storage room he went into?"

That had been a whole debacle, and she’d never seen Lionel turn that red with anger. The heat had practically radiated off of him as he glared at poor Earl who was bumbling his apologies while [Y/n] tried to calm Lionel. 

"If it wasn't for you it would have been a  bloody disaster!" 

Eh, he did have a point. But she liked Earl pretty well, and he seemed mostly competent. Mostly competent, was well below Lionel's standards though.

"I'll take the compliment, but I'll make sure I'm clear with Earl this time about what we need," she smiled, garnering a similar look from him that made her stomach feel all funny.

He had a very nice smile. 

"Good, other than your daydreaming," he started, causing her to want to squirm in embarrassment, "you've clearly been a better hire than my previous assistant," Lionel mused as his features softened, his eyes watching her intently making  her to feel a bit shy under his gaze. "I'm not one for silly praise, your compensation should be enough for that." 

It was. Quite generous actually. 

"But I do hope you stay on for as long as possible, I do quite like seeing you every day, and appreciate how thorough your work is."

If her face wasn't on fire from earlier when he had shown up next to her suddenly, it sure was now. Something else was on fire as well. Leave it up to her to turn his praise into something more. 

"Thank you Lionel, I hope I can keep satisfying you with my work."

"Oh, I'm sure you will." He replied, flashing a smirk at her that many a woman before had fallen for, and she was not ashamed to be another on the list. "Now," he cleared his throat, "before you talk to Earl, I think lunch is waiting for us. That is if you care to join me today?"

"Yes please!"

"Get. Out." 

He was hot and fuming, but his words were as chilly as the London air this time of the year. Actually, they may have been colder. 

Add the way she had never seen someone run from his office like this, and she had seen some people powerwalk out the door mind you, and she knew they were in a shitty place.

Six weeks until the gala and the ball had been dropped and bad. Earl was out, and they were left with a steaming pile of turd, Lionel's words not hers. But it was very much what it was. 

"Lionel I've called, Andrew, Catherine, James and Holly but all of them are either booked with work or out of the country and won't be able to make it."

"What about Martin?"

"I left a message with Mr. Zaidenweber's assistant, but she said he had just started work with another client and won't be able to fit it into his schedule with such short notice."

"Bloody damn!" He hissed, slamming his hand on the desk, causing some of the items on it to shake and fall. One of the victims, was a little globe that rolled off it and onto the floor as it made its way towards where [Y/n] was standing. "I should have fired him months ago!" He spat, as he leaned over his desk to look at the samples that were left , and it seemed to make him even more furious as he swiped them onto the floor with force. The sound of the pages crinkling filled the air with a ‘woosh’ as he did that.

"And now I'm going to look like an absolute fool to these people because of that little prat!" 

Grabbing the little globe that rolled towards her before it tapped the sole of her shoe, she brought it back to his desk, sitting it down before backing away. She could feel the fury radiating off of him, and rightfully so, considering all the important people who were supposed to be coming to talk business. 

While she wasn't extremely savvy in all of that, only knowing bits and bobs from what Lionel told her, and a bit of research she had to do when clients were coming. She knew appearances were everything, and taking into account what people liked and didn't like was important. 

And Earl had mucked up terribly it seemed, after mishearing what she had said, even though she had sent him memo after memo with what was needed. In a way, it made her feel like it was her fault even logically it wasn't. Still, though, he had entrusted her with that task, and from where she was at right now she felt like a great big failure.

"I'm so sorry Lionel!" She blurted out, her head dropping to look at the floor, hoping to avoid his anger and also to avoid him seeing how her eyes began to gloss.  

A familiar pang in her chest attempted to crawl up her throat, and she tried to keep it down as she had no intention of crying in front of him.

There was a beat of silence before he answered, and when he did, his voice was filled with utter confusion because what was she talking about? 

"I'm sorry?" A look of bewilderment appeared on his face that she couldn't see, and with the tone of his voice going up from his norm, it made her want to hide. "What are you going on about [Y/n]? I don't pay you to curate art though at this point I may have to!" 

"It's just, I-I was the one who said Earl would be fine doing it," she explained shakily as she fidgeted with her fingers. "Even during lunch that one time. I tried to convince you of it…and now he's gone and botched it! I know the board is going to have something to say if things don't go right. And it's not gone right…just because I couldn't keep my mouth shut." 

The room was quiet for a moment before the sound of his shoes tapping against the floor echoed around the space as he approached her. With each step, she felt her heart drop further into her stomach. All that joking around about losing her job, but this time, she might really lose it. 

Head still bowed, even when she felt him standing in front of her, she was jolted when she felt a hand wrap around her forearm, and a finger lifting her head up to look at him.

His lips were drawn into a frown, but the look in his eyes was devoid of anger. Especially now, when he saw her eyes that were rimmed red, which caused a look of concern to etch itself onto his face

"[Y/n] once again you have things arse backwards," Lionel huffed, but gently. "I hired you to run around and make sure the others have their orders, not, to do their work! Not only that, I can assure you I have no intention of blaming anyone for the decisions I make. And it was my decision to let him continue on. So enough of that, I don't enjoy your tears being wasted on something silly like this." 

"B-But I-."

"[Y/n]." His voice was stern, and she quickly shut her mouth not one to back talk him. That seemed to placate him considering the pleased smile on his face before a thoughtful one took over.

"Good. Mow that we are on the same page, I need to make a call, I think I may have a solution. But well, we will see," he explained as he removed his finger from under her chin, which caused disappointment to rise in her chest. Though the one on her arm stayed and she wasn't in a hurry to move it. 

She was hopeless wasn't she?

"Why don't you go and have lunch while I make a call, darling."

Darling? 

That was a first. But she wasn't gonna complain about it either as he didn't even seem phased by what he had said. 

For a moment, she wondered if he had even realized what had come out of his mouth. But he gave no hint of whether or not he did, and she could only do so much to hold back the grin that wanted to break through..

"Sure! Should I bring you back your usual?"

"Yes, that will be fine."

Giving him a smile, they stood in the same spot for a moment, his hand still on her arm as they gazed at one another before [Y/n] made the first move.

"W-well I'll be back and hopefully to some good news," she rambled, as she stepped back from his hold, which caused him to let go of her.  

Already she missed his touch, but they had things to do, his was probably more important by hey so was eating. 

Watching her go on her way, Lionel bit his bottom lip as she left all while he lingered in the middle of the room. His thoughts filled with a plan that he was sure to work, but also with thoughts of [Y/n]. 

His sweet, caring, brilliant, hard working assistant, who was also extremely alluring, so much so he would be remiss to compare her to the paintings he had. Oh no, she was much more stunning than those paintings. 

And like the collector he was, he wanted to collect her. Maybe even have her in his permanent collection…

The only problem was he couldn't tell if she was as interested in him as he was her. But with the way she let him touch her, and how she seemed to hold back when he called her that little pet name, maybe there was a chance. 

A smirk graced his lips at the thought of having her all for himself, but it would have to wait, because he had a gala that needed curating for, and no curator. And that just would not do.

So, he made his way to his desk and took his seat behind it. His back facing the glass window that showed a busy plaza in the middle of London as he picked up his desk phone and dialed a familiar number.

It rang a few times before the receiver was picked up on the other end, and a much to happy sounding voice came through the phone almost shouting.

"Li! What a surprise! You never call me at work without an appointment! And right before lunch too. Everything alright?"

"Quite alright, yes, but Sinclair, I need a favor." 

A/N: What's next? Who knows : D ( I do hehe)

[centrally-unplanned]

Saw this really cool post of a 1982 "SF" (Science fiction but in Japan that included things like anime, manga, tokusatsu, etc at the time) magazine that did a survey of active fan groups/circles at the time - ~woo, precious data! Lets see what we got:

Love to see a good gender breakdown - as is often the case in these things, while it is of course majority men the number of women participating is very strong. You do notice the age imbalance there - many women in their teens and college-aged, but it drops off quickly. I suspect that this is primarily because this survey is right in the middle of the first wave of the "pop SF boom", where more approachable works like Gundam and new manga subgenres were rapidly growing the community. So the older cadre was more heavily men, while the new group is more balanced. However, this is the early 1980's - it might just be that when a woman graduates college she was expected to marry and "settle down" still, inhibiting participation in these kinds of groups. I think it is primarily the former, Japan had pretty rapidly changed in the 1970's and female creative types were commonplace by then, but I won't pretend the latter players no role.

The writing on this page just contextualizes the piece, not much to report, though it does note that "3 people replied 'other' for gender...as a joke!" Sure, jan!

Anyway, on to page 2, what is our poll question of the day...

ロリコンについてどう思いますか? What do you think about lolicon?

....*siiiiiighs* guys I didn't, I didn't look at the second page before typing this up! I just wanted to report the gender data! This just happens to me, I swear -_-

But I can't back out now I guess:

It actually splits the question by gender - men are asked "are you a lolicon" while women are asked "what do you think of guys who are lolicon" - sexists, way to erase the female lolicon. Not actually joking there, it is a quite a thing due to its overlap with rape and dubcon fetishes - but I won't pretend I have expertise on the prevalence of that in 1982 Japan's SF community, even if it you see it today. Anyway, most men are not lolicons (the tallest line), though others fall on a spectrum from interested to "graduated", certainly a choice of words one could make.

Funnily a good dozen say they are called that by others, but not themselves - I believe that is related to the vague line between loli & shoujo aesthetics at the time. Which is important to emphasize, as I always do on this topic - sometimes the word lolicon just means "youthful" or "cute", sometimes it means like high schoolers, and sometimes it means real-deal underage stuff, and you won't know without context.

Meanwhile two women label lolicon men as "cute!", good for those two living their truth, while others are broadly tolerant but have Opinions. Which is fun, because the rest of the page is people sharing said opinions, sorted into "good" or "bad"! Some choice ones:

★ It's a symptom of modern civilization’s sick parts, but also an inevitable phenomenon. It’s better than having a rabbit or cat complex. Don’t lay hands on young girls. Lolicon must remain platonic. (♂/19/)

You see this theme a bit, "symptom of modernity", the new sexual fetishes are a product of a changing world. Certainly up for debate, but also very "in vogue" for the 80's & 90's to worry about that sort of declinist narrative. Then again, guy is a catgirl and bunnygirl hater, not sure we should listen to their shit taste.

On the flip side you get the "natural way of things" types, of which this is my favourite:

★ There’s nothing abnormal about having a dream involving an uncontrollable urge towards pre-teens. Even Romeo and Juliet would have made Romeo a lolicon given Juliet’s age (14), but people don’t think of it that way. Only at that age can girls love and respect men without ulterior motives. (♂/19/)

That last line, you are telling me so much about you with that one!! You can see how this is discourse, right? Like if one side says you are a "symptom of modernity" you ofc respond with "this is how all guys are" and with callbacks to traditional culture.

The "bad" side has a lot of ruthless condemnation, with more than one call for the lolicons to simply die or labelling them worthless scum. The magazine's writers do try to keep the tone breezy but I do think this topic being actually contentious in the community pokes through here. Though this serious one really did undercut herself a bit at the end:

★ I can understand why one person of the same gender might feel admiration or affection for a child or young girl, but for a man to only be able to love much younger women? That’s a mental illness! If they aren’t willing to fix themselves, they might as well die. They’re enemies of women. It's not going to turn out like Nabokov's Lolita. (♀/20s/)

I mean they did also kill jesus Humbert Humbert in Lolita. that was a pretty significant thing that happened. like i understand where you’re coming from here but they very much did kill the Lolita guy.

There is an editorial at the end, and it echoes something one of the comments also states; that the lolicon boom was seen as coming from "hard" SF fans, the people who did the really nerdy stuff. There is a word they use actually which is neat: 根暗/Nekura, meaning someone with a "gloomy root". It began seeing use as a slang for hyper-serious, boorish people in the late 1970's and became a fad to use in precisely 1982 - here is a live record of that! They associate "hard SF" fans with these sort of gloomy types who can't take a joke or appreciate hanging out with the buds at a bar, that kind of thing. From there, and here I am reading between the lines, these fans like a sort of "idealistically sterile" world, and lolicon as a preference (in comparison to Real Adult Women) flows naturally.

I mention this because astute readers might be going "oh, like otaku?" and that word was only just buzzing around at this time - it is typically dated to 1983. The editorial writers note that these nekura-types are nowadays proud of that fact, wearing it like an identity:

A: I’m not really sure why, I don’t fully understand the inner workings of the SF world, but it’s like, out there, hardcore SF fans are considered gloomy. Maybe that’s why there’s this connection to lolicon? B: But surprisingly, everyone’s actually pretty cheerful. In today’s world, the 'dark and gloomy tribe' is trendy. It’s like they’re enjoying calling themselves gloomy, almost as a fashion statement.

So yeah, I can totally see proto-otaku discourse going on at the edges here.

There is a third page but it continues in a similar vein. A bunch of mentions of Hideo Azuma, who I am growing increasingly convinced was more of a lodestone for the lolicon boom than is currently appreciated - he is the ur-reference everyone makes. More discussion of girls in sailor uniforms as a gateway drug, yeah yeah, "is fine as long as its fiction", of course of course, one of the magazine editors remarking he wants "a wife for practical uses but a daughter as a pet" yeah okay we can call it we're done here, no more survey data anyway.

Not the topic I expected to find, but still this is really valuable "primary source data" - you can't trust the literary class fully on these things, having first hand quotes from community members on otaku culture in the era is always valuable.

Sorry if you got tricked into reading this - in my defense I did too!

[onskepa]

Merry Christmas....?

Helloooooooooooo everyone! This is a christmas special from me to you guys! Hope you enjoy this lovely fic! also, MERRY CHRISTMAS AND HAPPY NEW YEARS!!!

--------------

These days the Omatikaya forest has been feeling a bit cooler than usual. Not cold enough to change into warmer clothing, but the change is noticeable and nice. Rain would come soon, and the days would be a bit darker. Something everyone looks forward too. More rain means more prosperity in wild life. 

While that is something the na’vi looks forward to, Jake is secretly looking forward to something else. 

“Huh, it's almost christmas…” Jake muttered as he checked in human time. According to the time data, it would be December, more specifically, December 22nd. Just a day away from christmas eve. 

More than half of the village knows what christmas is, thanks to late grace augustine teaching them the human holidays and traditions. One thing that surprised jake was that they were not very interested in christmas. 

“Why would a large man sneak into your home, observe your children sleeping and leave things behind that not even the parents know about? And what kind of animal that can fly but has no form of wings?” neytiri would say. 

In fairness, she makes a point. 

But jake was still determined to speak to her, see if they can introduce this human tradition to their kids. 

“No” neytiri said flatley. 

Jake’s hope was not diminished. 

“What? C’mon, it will be fun” he tries again. 

But neytiri was dead set on not doing it. 

“No ma’jake, they are fine. They do not need to learn about a red man watching them without knowing and drop dangerous boxes beside them” she reasons. 

Jake made a face, one that he is both confused and slightly off put. 

“When you put it that, it seems wrong” 

“Because it is wrong” neytir argues in a ‘matter of fact’ tone. 

Jake sighs, still trying, he is not one to give up so easily. 

“Look, lets just explain it to the kids. See if they like the idea, if they don't like it, then we won't do it. Does that sound good?” he suggests. 

Neytiri thought it over really quickly, and nodded. Wouldn't hurt, right?

“And if you are bad, you get coal….? Wouldn't that dirt everything?” neteyam questions. He and his siblings were at the lab to visit spider, when they noticed everyone was putting odd things. Calling it ‘Christmas decorations’. 

Norm and max were all too happy to explain what was going on. 

“Yup” norm said with a loud P popping sound. 

“And snow!” tuk says happily. Already imagining herself play with the snow, making odd shapes with it. See the white softness and feel the texture. 

“Silly, there is no snow here” kiri chuckles as she twirls her baby sister around. 

“Oh, right” tuk laughs, hiding her slip up. 

“Weill we get gifts??” lo’ak asks rather excitedly. The idea of getting lots of gifts sounded really nice. 

“IF you guys are good” max reminds. 

“But really, christmas is about being with family, remembering the good times, and appreciate all that you have” norm states. Max gives him a look, “I thought it was about the birth of-” 

“Not here” norm interrupted him. 

Max shrugs and continues to decorate. 

“It sounds fun though! We should tell mom and dad, see if they let us participate” lo’ak suggests. His siblings looked not too convinced. 

“Dad knows about the holiday, it's mom that will say no” neteyam says, kiri and tuk agreeing with him. 

There is so little, almost, none, that their mother would let them do anything human related. Even in Grace's old logs, she explained the na’vi children, neytiri’s generation, were not so keen on christmas. Something about it just is not catching their attention. 

“What if its not christmas?” tuk said suddenly. Her older siblings turn to look at her. 

“What do you mean tuk?” kiri wonders. 

“What if, we do all the christmas stuff, but! We just say it's something else like uuummm…appreciation day!” 

Neteyam, lo’ak and kiri shared looks, it was not a bad idea….

“Wouldn't hurt to try…”

“And get to meet saint nicholas!” tuk shouts cheerfully. 

Norm looks back at her, confused, [when did we ever mention him?]

And try they did. They did their best, being in their best behavior, even lo’ak set a record of not causing any form of chaos in 6 hours! They helped those who are in need. Hunted well, helped, healed, participated. Everything!

Jake and neytiri clearly noticed it. It made them suspicious. Even if their kids are sweet beings, they clearly want something. Just not wanting to say it out loud. Letting their actions speak for themselves. 

Neytiri was the first to question them. 

“What do you want?” She narrows her eyes at her children. 

The older three shifted around but tuk was standing proudly still, “christmas!” she shouts. 

In a split second, neytiri turned to her mate, who was just as surprised. 

“Nope! It wasn't me that told them” he quickly defended himself. 

“It was the science guys who told us! We saw them decorate their base and we got curious!” lo’ak said rather fast. He wasn't going to let his father take a blame that had nothing to do with. 

Neytiri sighs, annoyed that the humans dare explain unnecessary things to her children. 

“We are not doing it, end of it” she was ready to move on from it. 

But her kids, now her husband, just can't seem to let it go. 

“Please mama, it will be fun! We can make lots of things you can enjoy! Like pudding, candy canes! Oh! And soup!” tuk suggests. The more she speaks, the more it sounded not so bad to neytiri. 

“Alright….fine…” 

Reds, greens, whites, little bit of gold, many colors shined throughout their home. Lots of bells, ruffles, all the classic things you see in a christmas home. It looked really nice, and had a cozy feel that screams of home. 

Gentle holiday music being played in the background, the family were grateful the science guys had left over decorations that they could use. 

“See? Not so bad is it?” Jake teases his stubborn wife. He kisses her on the cheek, neytiri accepting his kiss with a smile. 

“It is…nice” she says. Jake chuckles, holding her close as they see their children getting excited. 

“That red man isn't really going to watch us…? Right…?” neytirr asks worryingly. 

“Uuummm……about that….its best I tell you away from the kids” jake takes her to a more private area of their home. 

“OH thank eywa…” neytiri sighs in huge relief. Learning about an odd flying man that doesn't exist makes her feel really happy. 

“If he doesn't exist, then why do the children have to believe in him? Believe in a lie?” she now wonders. 

“Santa claus is more of a symbol of hope, prosperity, and bringing positive joy to the world. At some point they will stop believing but we can worry that later” jake dismisses. Neytiri, still not liking it, lets it slide. For now. 

“Alright, what about the presents…?” is her next question. 

Jake wanted to slap himself, he completely forgot the main thing! And Christmas is the tomorrow. 

“Jake, you did think of the presents, right?” Neytiri's voice becomes slightly sharp. He chuckles nervously. 

“I….forgot….?” he asks as a more of a question. 

“MA’JAKE!” 

You would think, when someone who grew up, believed in, participated in, lived in a holiday, that they would have everything prepared for that specific holiday. 

That is not the case for Jake sully. 

Neytiri, of all people, appreciates every single gift and enjoys giving. However, every gift she has ever given was given time, and put her full attention to it. Think deeply of every detail and all. So to find something in such a short time seems impossible. 

“Jake, there is no time to make anything. Why didn't you mention it sooner?” Neytiri asks. 

Jake realizes how really late it was, night was coming and soon his children will be asleep, expecting something in their made stockings. 

“I really did not know until 3 days ago. Besides, even if I did tell you weeks ago, you would say no over and over” he reasoned. And true, neytiri would also put her foot down. 

“But, we can think of something…” 

Night arrived, sleep overtook the family. Until one friendly stranger arrived into their home. 

“Get up! Get up!!” tuk was the first to rise up. Jumping on her siblings, jumping on her parents. Her tail swayed a lot more energetic. Squealing in pure delight. 

Kiri and lo’ak groan tiredly, wanting to get some more sleep. Neteyam, smiling, gets up to calm his baby sister. 

“Come on tuktuk, mawey, what did norm say?” he tries. But it falls into deaf silence. 

“But look! He came! He actually came!” 

Tuk points to their roughly made stockings, full of goodies, and items wrapped into interesting plants no one in the family has ever seen before. 

Jake and neytiri quickly got up, not believing what is in front of them. 

“See? See? He is real!!” tuk urges. 

Now everyone was fully awake, quickly they gathered to see these ‘presents’. 

Lo’ak reacted faster, he grabbed one of the wrapped presents before neteyam smacked him in the head. 

“OW! What was that for?!” he scowls. 

“It says it's for mom” neteyam answered flatly. 

Everyone turned to see neytiri, who looks to be very surprised. Lo’ak gently hands her the gift. She observes the item that is used for wrapping. Large leaves but the type she has never seen in the forest, none that would grow in any season or land. It felt a bit rubbery, almost shiny when the sunlight hits it right. 

“Arent you going to open it mom?” kiri asks. 

“I will…” she whispers. 

Carefully she begins to unwrap, making sure the leaves are not torn. Whoever did it, it was done with making sure the leaves were in good condition. 

Everyone leans in, excited to what will reveal, it was….it was…!! 

“Rocks??” 

Rocks. Lots of it. 

“Wait a minute, theses arent any type of rocks” jake was recognizing a few. He places them in a circle, while naming each one that he can recal. 

“This is obsidian, bismuth, agate, malachite, quartz, tigers eye, turquoise, damn, its a lot” 

Neytiri picks one up that is called turquoise, it was in a color she has never seen before. It was beautiful, all of them were. So many things she can make with these rocks. Maybe that is their purpose? To be made into something to wear? 

“Where did they come from?” kiri asks, loving the bismuth stone. 

Jake wonders that too, they are all from Earth, but at the current state of it, there should be none. 

Before he can answer, tuk intervenes, “by our secret santa of course! Come on, I wanna see whats mine!” 

The kids began to look for their own, while neytiri and jake stare at the rocks still surprised. 

Neytiri whispers into his ear, “it wasn't you that did this?” she asks. 

Jake shakes his head, “no, in fact, I didn't put any gifts at all” 

“So….who did?”

Everyone received a present. 

Jake received a limited silver edition ACDC vinyl record with a player. Neteyam was given the limited edition dvd set of lord of the rings, with extended and director's cut editions. Kiri received a new leather pouch that is water and fireproof, meaning she can keep very important things inside and no damage will be done. Lo’ak and surprisingly for spider, was given Nintendo switches with 50 games, each. 

They were all so happy and very grateful. 

However, Jake noticed something. 

All of these gifts are 100 years old. None of this should still exist. So how do they have these items, brand new, appear before them? 

Jake doesn't have the heart to ruin the mood, so he keeps that to himself. Though, he noticed something. 

“Tuk, didnt you get anything?” he asks. 

Lo’ak snorts a bit, “maybe santa either forgot or put her in the naughty list” 

He was smacked again, this time by his mom. 

Tuk shakes her head, smiling happily, “thats alright daddy. In what I learned, christmas isnt about stuff, its about being together with everyone that you love, no matter how close, or how far” 

Everyone awed at her statement. 

Though, tuk already has a present waiting for her. She just has to go get it.

Christmas has come to its end, night falls once more, and with their gifts tucked in their hands, the sully family sleeps again. All smiles and content to their santa clause giving them their gifts. 

Santa clause in question, out of her hammock. 

Little tuk observed her family, all deep asleep. Now is her chance. 

Quietly and steadily she tips toes around her family and out of her home. Grabbing only a small pouch of herbs, her knife, a flashlight she secretly stole from the lab, and her clothing for the next day. Quickly she climbs down, making sure no one notices. 

Knowing the path by heart, tuk makes her way through the forest. Up to what she likes to call ‘the heart mountain’. Which is literally a small floating mountain with an arch shaped like a heart. 

Making her way inside a small cave in, she lights up some candles. Tuk gets to work, she installs new batteries for the flashlight and making sure her knife is extra sharp. 

Show time. 

Lifting up a large cloth, revealing a source of blue light, gentle wind blowing at her face. 

It was a portal. 

Hearing a shuffle, tuk steps aside to let her sister in. 

It was tuk who entered. 

Human tuk. 

“Hi tuk!” she says. 

“Hiya tuk!” the other tuk replies. 

Both giggle in unison. 

“How was christmas?” human tuk asks. Na’vi tuk jumped around. 

“Ooohh it was awesome! They loved the presents! Wrapping them must have been super hard!” na’vi tuk says. 

Human tuk puffs her chest proudly, “practice. Also nana mo helped. She did wondered why plants though” 

Na’vi tuk gently gasped, “what did you tell her?” 

“Plastic is a ugly waste!” 

Human and na’vi tuk laughed and gave each other a high ⅘. 

Without wasting time, human tuk showed na’vi tuk a bag. Soon they began to change clothes. Na’vi tuk wearing my little pony pj’s and human tuk wearing the next day’s outfit. 

“Also! Everyone is going to Denny’s in the morning! They brought back the candy cane topping!” human tuk informs. Na’vi tuk hands human tuk her knife, “I am so gonna order it then! With the white christmas pancakes!” 

“One more thing! I didn't unwrap our presents! Wanna give the surprise to you” human tuk adds. Na’vi tuk feeling a bit emotional, hugs her human self. 

“I will appreciate every gift!” she says. 

They were dressed, and ready to switch places. 

“Oh, before I forget, mama is gonna make teylu roasts with yovo smoothie and yerik jerky!” na’vi tuk says. Human tuk jumps for joy, their absolute favorite! 

With one last hug and a kiss on the cheeks, na’vi tuk enters the portal with her herb pouch in hand. Human tuk quickly covers the portal again with the cloth and watches her body become bigger and blue. 

Nodding to herself, she blows the candles and makes her way to her na’vi family.

Tuk, now human,  comes out of the little rocky cave and wipes off any possible dirt. Once she makes sure there is none, she makes her way to the back yard. Climbing her way on top of the beloved treehouse, and climbs to the branch that is closest to the bedroom with the open window. 

Climbing in, already she can smell some cookies. Chocolate chip! 

Oh tuk knows her so well. 

Shoving a few down her mouth, tuk sees the unwrapped gifts. Can't end the Christmas night like this. 

She can give the herb pouch to nana mo in the morning, right now, PRESENTS! 

As she busied herself, outside of her room, across the hall and into another bedroom, it was mo’at. 

She wakes up, checking the time, 1:05 am. 

Every 3 days she gets this odd feeling. Like something unnatural just occurred. But what? 

Too tired to think it through, she goes back to sleep. She has a Denny’s grand slam waiting for her in the morning. 

MERRY CHRISTMAS EVERYONE!!!

Hope you all have a good day, being with your beloved ones, no matter who! Hope you guys like this fic! Until next time! See ya!

[sabrondabrainrot]

It's tinfoil hat times I have more observations for eagle eyes listeners (yes a Nightvale ref)

This will contain spoilers for recent TSAMS and LAES!

I gotta go to bed so I won't be able to contain everything but just some stuff I noticed recently and something I've been thinking about.

I won't be as organized as usual, warning spoilers below!

Picking apart what Dark Sun said and did...he used the word expunge. I don't know if this is problem of VA's picking a word that sounds cool...or they picked it know what it means? Expunge is a word that means 'to remove', 'delete', 'strike from the record'. So...why would he collect data on Sun's choice to kill Nexus and expunge that across the multiverse? Why would deleting that make Suns turn on Moons? I'm too tired to think about it past this but...it's interesting. What if D!Sun did delete something?

The biggest thing between Sun and choosing to kill...its his love and trust...but I wonder how Sun's decision to choose the greater good and his family would delete something? That sparkle nighttime Sun was beating his Moon while crying that he hated him...but did he actually? How can we know? I can't wait to find out more about the entire Sun on Moon violence. D!Sun said it was his hate for Nexus but that's not the case...because Sun himself stated he still can't get himself to hate Nexus. We also know, the only reason Sun's magic worked was because of what Ruin did...so I think my theory about the NSP and SP interacting to possibly make Nexus into a new being still stands. D!Sun knew Ruin planted that device when he made Sun choose.

I feel like history just keeps repeating itself where Sun's choices will never be choices and his decision will always be made for him. Moving into more stuff! The recent episodes omigod!!! Moon! He finally stepped up! I still have many things to point out though. I was talking in @goodolddumbbanana dms because like...we're both still disappointed by the episodes...(I won't type the entire dms cause like I want banana to do their piece too without me speaking over them)

When Moon talked to Sun at the pier, he still managed to make it about himself. Did anyone else notice that? He turned it into his normal "I hate myself" routine. He proceeded to let Sun know he's the best brother ever...but Sun just...I don't think he believes it. Even if Lunar and Earth also both tell him that. Even Solar. He just won't believe it.

Looking at how Sun's entire...existence has gone, it's pretty understandable why he'd think and feel this way.

He hasn't been shown by his family (except Earth) he's the best so why would he believe it? Especially coming from Moon who's done nothing but lie to him and break promises. Moon stepped up but...was acting annoyed to take care of Sun. He just was acting like he was ready to get stuff over with. Then...When Sun finally asked the million dollar question. "Did you hate me? Do you hate me?" He's always been asking that and never got a straight answer. Moon has always acted like he really did hate him in the past. Worst of all? Moon told Sun he did.

He told his emotionally beaten brother who's soul is shattered, that 'Yes Sun, I did hate you'...Moon...being honest in this particular situation...I don't think it's the best idea.

Moon, to an emotionally unstable - highly fragile - Sun, basically confirmed Sun's darkest fear. The soul deep ache Sun feels. It's not...gratifying...Sun may now have closure that 'wow he treated me like that because he did hate me' but the big issues with this? Moon has not really changed how he treats Sun. He stopped physically hurting him but he still hurts him. In small ways. We saw that first hand in the last few eps. He left to avoid Sun entirely. He broke promise after promise. He'd rather throw himself a pity party then buck up and just be there for Sun.

Sun always leads with the best intentions. He tells Moon he loves him. He encourages him. He builds him up. (I think i've said this before lol)

Then we get the MVP Earth ep. That episode was honest to God beautiful. Earth is an amazing sister and Kat knocked it out of the ball park with her vocal performance today. She put in so much emotion. I like how Earth's breaking point wasn't her taking care of Dazzle or Sun. Her breaking point was how her family was treating her and Sun like shit. They both left them to their own devices. It was so sad. I was wondering when they kept showing Solar who was taking care of Sun and honestly it makes so much sense it was Earth.

Then in the same episode she said Lunar is acting strange. I'm going to be honest, I know exactly why Lunar is acting mad at Earth.

I don't get a ton of opportunity to talk about Lunar. In the recent episodes his sorest spot was prodded by Taurus. Taurus is basically telling him to get over himself.

Which...I don't agree with how Gemini and Taurus are going about it. Letting go of your hate and hurt is so important but them just telling Lunar to do it isn't going to work. He needs to be taught how to.

So why is Lunar mad at Earth? Never forget, Lunar hasn't developed much he's still a very selfish immature person. He's mad at Earth he's stagnating. He's blaming her for his stunted emotional growth. He chose to numb himself to deal with his emotions and if he admits that was wrong then it'd be a long time of wasted efforts. He would have so many regrets if he admits he's been doing everything wrong.

After all, If Lunar wasn't so apathetic about N!Moon would he have made a difference in him becoming Nexus? (No, but Lunar could be thinking about that)

Lunar, I believe, is blaming Earth for not 'fixing' him. He doesn't understand he needs to want to change himself for it to happen. (it's the same thing for Moon, he knows he's flawed but has given up on improving) I think Lunar just kind of assumed Earth was supposed to automatically make him better with him not doing any work himself.

Then the crux of why he's mad at Earth.

It's simple.

She's friends with Eclipse.

That's really what it is.

Think about it, he hates Eclipse. Eclipse is now in the front of his mind to the point he's acting odd and watching Nutella ads for hours. He's trying to mute his rage. What Taurus and Gemini said would anger anyone.

Telling a victim to not only get over their abuse but also get along with their abuser? It's plain wrong. Lunar has the right to hate Eclipse, the only problem is that it is harming him. Hatred will always be someone's undoing. It is a negative, putrid thing that only destroys.

He's been shoving his emotions down for so long they're bound to explode. I know Lunar loves Sun and wants to be there for him but he's been apathetic for so long now he can't. So he's lashing out and projecting his own self anger onto Earth. She's right there after all.

Solar is basically acting like a keeper to everyone and despite doing better for Sun, Solar is still emotionally distant. Moon physically isn't there. Lunar won't lash out at Monty. He won't take his frustration out on kids like Dazzle and Jack.

Earth is also just...too nice. So yeah, I absolutely understand why Lunar is angry at Earth. He's being totally unfair and immature about it too, because it's not like there's other problems, ie Sun is literally broken and can't leave bed.

but I digress, I like that Moon is stepping up. I just hope he doesn't keep dropping the ball. I think Sun right now truly doesn't think Moon cares...Moon is going to have to do a lot to show him otherwise. I'm glad Lunar finally checked on Sun and I hope he does it more often, because Sun loves Lunar too. He loves the entire family. Earth was right to cry about how they were failing Sun.

I'm really proud of Earth and Solar for stepping up to help Sun.

[hotmessmaxpress]

helloo i absolutely love your abo au and i am obsessed with the marcmarc dynamic

i was wondering would you ever write pecco/marcmarc something like pecco being sad/upset over something and the omegas just comforting him, it could be just cuddles or it could be something a little more i think it would be interesting to see how marc and pecco’s relationship is like without vale there (we know marco and pecco already get along so well) also i think pecco deserves to get spoiled by two omegas

Rosquez a/b/o au, part ???

I think that marc and pecco deal with disappointment/mistakes similarly (internalize, internalize, internalize) so it would simultaneously be easy for marc to understand him and also difficult for him to deal with. He would definitely feel more comfortable having bez around to help!

Thank you for the ask. 🤍

Pecco is no stranger to criticism. He’s grown up in an environment entirely based around competition, and he’s used to looking at statistics and numbers and comparisons. Faster, faster, how to be faster.

No matter how much criticism he deals with, though, Pecco is always his own biggest critic. He is the one to put the most pressure on himself, even when his parents and sister and pack tell him to take a step back and calm down. It’s common for his mood to be affected by his performance, and when Marc joins the pack it’s one of the things he notices immediately. Even at the ranch, which Marc had thought was fun for the boys, Pecco can sometimes come away in a sharp mood. 

Marc also notices that Bez is the one most adept at handling Pecco’s big feelings. He takes all of Pecco’s sharpness and jagged edges that would cut someone else and files him down until he’s smooth like a river stone. It’s one of the many things that Marc admires about Bez as a fellow omega. It doesn’t even seem like Bez realizes he’s doing it. 

The race goes terribly. Pecco goes down hard, and while thankfully nothing is broken, he’s sore all over. He’s stewing in his anger as the rest of the pack wrap up their media duties and finish up for the day. The alphas check in with him, but it becomes apparent very quickly that Pecco has no desire to deal with any of them. 

It’s Carola that happens to grab Marc’s arm as he’s heading toward the pack trailer. 

“Marc!” she greets.

She sounds happy, which is still odd to Marc. He’s getting used to being liked by faces that he was too used to avoiding. He always assumed that Carola had a distaste for him, but she seems pleased that he’s joined the same pack as her brother. Marc almost feels guilty for assuming that she didn’t like him. 

“Carola,” he greets, kissing her on both cheeks. 

“Are you going to your pack?”

Marc nods, cheeks flushing. He doesn’t think it will ever get old, acknowledging his pack. 

“Can you stop at Pecco’s motorhome first? He won’t come out on his own and he should be with you all, not alone and wallowing. I am trying to find Bez but I think he will come with you, too.”

Marc blanches for a moment, stunned by the faith that she has in him to support the alphas of his pack. He doesn’t have time to tell her no, though, because she’s off with a toss of her hair. 

Marc does as he asks and goes to Pecco’s trailer, knocking first and then letting himself in. 

Pecco is sitting on the couch, head in his hands while he stares down at a tablet that Marc can only assume contains data from the race. 

“My pace was enough to win,” Pecco complains, immediately, without even looking up to Marc.

Marc knows this is a tenuous situation, and he hopes that Carola sends Bez his way soon. He has a distinct feeling that he might be out of his depth on this one. 

“Yes, it was,” Marc agrees, knowing that Pecco probably won’t respond to platitudes from him of all people. “You were fast.”

Pecco looks up at him angrily, and Marc curves his shoulders and tilts his head so he’s looking at Pecco through his eyelashes. Marc may not be offering platitudes, but looking cute and nonthreatening can’t hurt. 

Pecco huffs, and Marc takes his lack of comment as an invitation to move toward the other man and settle down on the couch next to him. He takes the tablet out of Pecco’s hands, having to pry his fingers a little bit, and then tosses it behind him. 

Pecco growls, but there’s no heat to it. It’s just a warning, and Marc has never been one to heed warnings the first time. He reaches out and offers his wrist to Pecco, who brings it to his nose. Marc’s scent seems to pacify him a little, so Marc takes Pecco’s hand with his free hand. 

“Let’s go to the pack room. Carola is looking for Bez and we might find him on the way.”

Pecco still looks annoyed, and Marc has to smother a smile at the stormy look on his face when they step out of the trailer and set out across the paddock. Marc smiles and waves and greets people as they walk by, a stark contrast to the silent and cranky alpha following him. 

They run into Bez right outside the pack motorhome, and Bez immediately relaxes when he sees the two of them. 

“Marc! Franci! Good. I’m glad you managed to drag him here.”

Bez climbs the stairs first, and Marc pulls Pecco along. Once they’re inside, Marc sets about making a nest for the three of us while Bez has quiet words with Pecco. Bez is laughing, which at first seems to make Pecco angrier but then succeeds in getting a small smile from him. 

The nest takes no time at all, and Marc happily tugs Pecco into the center of it. Bez slots himself against Pecco’s other side, and they’re all silent for a moment. 

“I was fast,” Pecco complains, petulantly and without the same heat and frustration from earlier. 

Bez makes eye contact with Marc and rolls his eyes, and Marc has to hold his breath for a moment to avoid giggling.

Pecco frowns and looks between the two of them. 

“You two are terrible.”

Bez and Marc shake their heads at once.

“Maybe we are,” Marc teases. “We have a sad alpha in between us and we haven’t spoiled him even a little bit.”

He reaches up and tangles a hand in Pecco’s hair, scratching at his scalp. He gives Pecco a gentle tug, and bares his throat to him so he can tuck his face against him and scent him. He scents Marc first and then Bez finally gives up on the teasing and bares his own neck. Pecco turns to press a kiss to the base of Bez’s throat and Bez purrs happily. 

“It was a good race, Franci.”

“Until I crashed,” he complains bitterly. 

“Until you crashed,” Marc agrees. “But you won’t next time.”

Pecco huffs, and Marc wraps himself tighter around the alpha. 

“It was the back wheel,” Pecco explains.

He launches into a pouty debrief, and Bez and Marc both relax. When Pecco starts to debrief, it’s the beginning of the end of his bad mood. He always needs to stew in his frustration, then analyze, then he can move on. 

Marc only half listens as Pecco rants about the race, and instead distracts himself by playing with Pecco’s fingers and making faces at Bez. By the time Pecco has run out of steam, he is much more relaxed between the two of them, and Bez and Marc basically lay themselves on top of him. Their legs all tangle together, and the smell in the room finally loses its sharp edge. 

Marc rests his head in the crook of Pecco’s neck, and he smiles against his collarbone as he hears Bez press a kiss to Pecco’s lips. 

“Love you,” Bez says sweetly.

Marc can practically hear the roll in Pecco’s eyes as he returns the expression of love. 

The three of them lay there together, relaxed and calm, until Marc is nearly asleep and remembers he needs to text Vale, who is back in Italy on business. 

Vale: good race ❤️ 

Vale: how is pecco?

Marc smiles, happy that Vale is checking in on their pack as always. 

Marc opens the camera and holds it out, snapping a picture of the three of them before Pecco can protest. 

He sends it immediately, and only moments later Vale responds with a row of hearts. 

Vale: I am proud of him. Love you.

Marc shows Pecco and Bez the message, and his heart swells with happiness at the relaxed smile on Pecco’s face.

[avicebro]

fate fandom poll results! (higher res, since tumblr has crunched it)

these are the big patterns i noticed. if you want some more commentary on the numbers, come and join me in the read more:

I first want to reiterate that I did this as a way to see if I was in a bubble. By the end of the poll, it received 93 results. A lot of these responses did come from tumblr and twitter (thank you friend for posting onto your twitter), and so, the demographic that is being polled is biased. Please keep this in mind.

Overall Age/Satisfaction:

Overall, more neutral or people upset with the fandom.

Older fandom - these numbers also do align with the perception that fate fandom grew in size with the pandemic

Shoutout to the 1 person who said they were in the fandom for over 15 years. I'm saluting you

Shouldn't have been surprised there were zero 20+ years responses, but hey, yk, if you don't put it there.

Gender:

I also did this because I wanted to know how gender of characters played into whether a character had 'nice' or 'rude' fans.

Note: I put any characters that have gender ambiguous or gender: unknown in the non-binary section. So this does mean that characters like Astolfo, Caeneus and D'Eon are in this section. While the general fandom may not see some of these as non-binary, it's easier than doing a big asterisk. I'd love to run another poll examining the way trans and non-binary characters are viewed by the fandom, but that's for another time.

Thus, my method was: I read the response, and for each character listed, I sorted them into one of the 3 gender options and tallied it as a point. So, for example, if someone said Avicebron, Medea and QSH, then that would be one point for male, one for female, and one for non-binary. Groups, unless they are specifically one gender, were not counted, however I did keep them in mind (see: later on).

If someone specified popularity, I tallied that as well. For the 'nice' fans, there were only nice comments about 'low rarity/less popular' characters, with the opposite being true for rude fans and popular ones. Hence their bars.

I also included the 'none' section, as there was a non-zero amount of people answering with none, for both.

Male characters' fans are perceived to be kinder 1.8 times more than fans of female characters

On the other hand, female characters' fans are perceived to be meaner 1.7 times more than male characters

Specifically, some stated that they do not trust 'male fans' of some characters

Some gender non-confirming and/or non-binary servants (like Astolfo, Mordred) also have a similar rule, aka "do not trust male fans"

Younger characters like Taisui and Voyager often have 'nice' fans, while younger female characters have 'rude' fans

In the future, it would be interesting to take data on gender to see the main demographics answering these

As I am trying to remain as unbiased with this data presentation as possible, I will just leave the data here. Again, if I redid this poll I'd ask for gender metrics, and maybe try and spread it to reddit spaces for less polling bias.

The Good, The Bad and the Ugly

When looking at specific characters, I sorted through the responses and counted how often certain characters appeared while accounting for repetition. Simple as that.

Top 10 Characters Associated with 'Nice' Fans:

Arjuna (16)

Dantes (10)

Gilgamesh (10)

Voyager (9)

Diarmuid (6)

Cu Chulainn (5)

Enkidu (5)

Ashiya Douman (5)

Oberon (5)

Mandricardo (5)

Couple extra things to note:

groups mentioned often: GUDAGUDA, KOTRT, Hindu Servants

Kintoki mentioned rather often, too

People highlighted that they like seeing people talking about characters that are less known/less popular.

Avicebron did appear on the top 10, however I have excluded him from the list as it is likely due to polling bias. Thanks, though.

Besides Enkidu and Ashiya Douman, the top 10 list is dominated by male characters.

Top 10 Characters Associated with 'Rude' Fans:

Morgan (20)

Artoria (15)

Cu Chulainn (13)

Melusine (12)

Rin (12)

Astolfo (11)

Jalter (11)

Gilgamesh (11)

Arjuna (10)

Castoria (9)

Couple extra things to note:

As mentioned before, some replies were 'Saberface fans', 'Prillya fans' or 'male fans of x'

People highlighted disliking fans of 'popular characters', some specifically stating their dislike stemming from fans pushing a 'need to roll' mentality upon the fandom.

Male Ritsuka appears more frequently as 'rude' versus female Ritsuka.

'Rude' fans are often associated with being fans of non-FGO properties (namely: Prillya and F/SN).

People who show up on both top 10s: Arjuna, Cu, Gilgamesh.

There are also some less popular characters who were highlighted more often as being 'rude'. However, considering the fact that these characters likely do not have that many fans, I have not included them in the data. That being said, if you wish to DM me about them I'll share. I just do not want to drag anyone, you know.

What's Next?

Maybe in a year, I'd like to re-do this poll. Namely to see if the overall satisfaction changes. But, there's there's a few things I'd like to add to the questions next time:

Gender and Maybe Sexuality Preferences

As mentioned above, I think actually taking data on the gender of the participants would be helpful. Further, sexuality would help understand the data. I do not think it's a big leap to suggest that this poll is low on responses from male fans, specifically straight men. But I would like to have the actual data, and not just a hypothesis.

"Which character's haters do you find rude?" question

As my friend pointed out, as well as some of the responses - some of the haters of a character are ruder than their actual fans. I think this would be interesting, too.

Branching the poll out so it catches more attention from the other side of the TM fandom.

While I would like to keep this predominantly to the tumblr and twitter side of the fandom, it's clear that the results tend to veer on the side that is more FGO-focused. I'd like to get some more data from those who don't play FGO or focus their time on non-FGO property.

Post it to other places.

This was a fun trial run! Maybe I could run a separate poll next year, so there's two: one shared only to tumblr, and one to twitter/reddit. I am, at the end of the day, someone who loves data and would love to compare and contrast fandom perception.

Have an option to share characters who's mind you've been changed on.

Sometimes, it really just takes one person to change your mind on a character. I'd like to highlight that.

I believe? That's everything? I tried my best to be as unbiased as possible in presenting the facts. In a reblog of this post, I'll share my further (biased) thoughts at a later time.

I'm curious to see what you guys think! Did this make sense for you? Are you maybe surprised? Ultimately, thank you for responding to my silly lil poll, and I hope that these numbers don't make anyone upset.

Adet