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#and an very well written protagonist
azirafem · 1 year
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so, i've been watching jessica jones. literally started it today, and this specific scene in jessica jones is so incredibly important to me despite it only being a few seconds long, i really wanted to share my thoughts on it. the subtle way they were able to fit an accurate representation of ableism into a scene that is completely unrelated to it is actually so incredibly astonishing, the way the lines are delivered and the way the words are expressed. even the way jessica says "the mentally challenged" is so important to me as a disabled person myself. i don't see these types of representations or topics ever talked about in media if at all, and marvel was able to include them in an unlikely situation that doesn't tie back to ableism in that moment and at the same time was able to dismiss it and disprove it and just express why this type of radical ableism can affect every person who is different than the average. ableism is so rooted and it's so important to me when any media is able to acknowledge it. i send a huge thanks to whoever wrote this scene you are in my heart
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Marvel's Jessica Jones, 2015. S01 E04: A.K.A 99 Friends.
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tomlivingspace · 10 months
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misogyny was still rampant in the first series but its interesting how much it was also a part of the plot. bluestar had to give up her kits in order to be deputy because a nursing mother wouldn't have been fit to be leader. yellowfang is blamed by starclan for being brokenstar's mother despite him never even knowing she was. it's just interesting how much the tragedy of how misogyny manifests within the clans in the first series is present and just kind of goes away. there's still misogyny but most of it isn't an intentional flaw of clan culture. the flaws of clan culture are focused more on forbidden romance romance crap
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shaolin-spin-doctor · 1 month
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not sure if this is a hot take but. imo. Fire God Liu Kang kinda sucks and it's the worst direction NRS could've taken his character in tbh
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vaugarde · 17 days
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finished “yellowface”. goddamn that was a ride… highly highly recommend if you like villain protagonists
#i didnt mention it as much but i liked all the stuff with the publishing industry in this and feeling like a fraud as a creative#except june is like. actually a fraud. but still#but it did resonate with me as someone whos recently realized he doesnt want to be a big name author and get too deep in the industry#like. the fear of never being known and dying without leaving an impact. bc books are a way to immortalize yourself#and the stress of wanting to be a big name even though you dont have the chops for it#and i still want to write. i love it. but i dont think i want to do it for a living yknow? and thats a heartwrenching thing to accept rn#bc its something i wanted for the longest time but i dont think my adhd will allow it for me anymore#ik none of this is the real point of the novel and obviously my experience is very different. bc im quitting before im even starting really#and im obviously not plagiarizing dead poc#but yeah i think junes a really well written villain protagonist bc her motivations are born from extreme insecurity from the industry#who cant see that poc have it even harder than her in the industry#because of tokenism and fetishism#because shes gotta be the ultimate victim#i really hope it hasnt come across like im complaining about the character or the book when i post passages#bc like yeah june fucking sucks ass. but shes SUPPOSED to suck ass. its the point. youre rooting for her downfall#and i think shes a great example of a villain protagonist like major props for kuang bc that shit is HARD to do#and a lot of the stuff it has to say about white women victimhood is great#because its the core of junes character and it defines EVERYTHING she does and really shows how insidious it all is#echoed voice
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lilacs-stash · 1 month
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Tbh it's probably really good for me that the Lego movies aren't my main fandom anymore because holy shit the bad takes from random ass people who don't know what they're talking about are constant and horrid
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People really struggle when a character who has a very skewed view of reality is confident in themselves like they immediately jump to "therefore the entire movie agrees with them", when the movie goes to great lengths to show them commiting awful acts and experiencing awful realities
Gone girl is a perfect example. so many people think the movie is doing the misogynistic "bitches be crazy" thing when really its showing a marriage between two very disfunctional people who are just really good at keeping up appearences. The woman fakes her own death meticulously just to frame her husband. The husband takes advantadge of that to try and get simpathy. Its an exxagerared picture of this very common type of resentment that builds in relationships. The cool girl monologue is just that. Its the characters resentment abt how she framed herself by her husband. She can't fathom that women have any individuality and starts imagining what their partners must be like that they were FORCED to shape themselves like that. Because she can't conceive that other women would refuse the deal she's been offered. She’s obviously smart, she's obviously right, so everyone else must be suffering and pretending too, right?
And instead of admitting that she just made a bad decision of being in this relationship, she frames that EVERY man is bad, EVERY woman is pretending just to appease them, EVERYONE knows this and those who don't are EVEN MORE stupid.
But the problem is, she likes to think she's smart, that she can outwit herself out of any situation, and tells the audience that constantly. While she constantly gets in worse and worse situations by herself and getting stuck in traps while STILL holding herself to that sense of superiority.
And somehow people watch that movie and think the message is "she was correct.". It makes me go kind of insane
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kisskissgotohell · 8 months
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i just wanna point out that, like. it's okay to disagree with the main character. just because they're the pov of the story doesn't mean they're infallible or that their word is law? you can like that character that tried to kill the mc. you can think the mc made the wrong choice. you can forgive things that the mc would never forgive, or choose not to forgive things that the mc does, because you're not the main character. you are the reader of the story, and just because you can't change it (and it's not the author's responsibility to capitulate to fans) doesn't mean you can't form your own opinions about it. it's fictional! that's the point! have fun with it!!
#sometimes.... main characters....... can be wrong#of course authors will generally try and make you like or agree with the mc (in some way at the very least) but like.#even the most perfect 'good guys' have flaws or else it's not usually a very well written story. and it's okay to acknowledge that!#it's not even really an issue of the whole 'protagonists can be bad guys/antagonists can be good guys' thing (ex. death note)#but like. even if you 100% root for the mc and think they're totally in the right you can still..... like the character that betrayed them?#nothing you say or think about them will make them NOT betray the mc in canon. so why does it matter if you like them despite it?#it's fiction - you can like multiple parts of the story simultaneously. it's okay. i give you permission.#on a similar note. it's okay for people to have different opinions about the same thing#to continue the analogy: maybe your friend doesn't forgive that guy for the betrayal but you do. that's great!#everyone can have an opinion about that guy and just bc someone disagrees with you doesn't mean you can harass them to change their mind.#while im down here#sorry about all this. im procrastinating on a project and ill do anything to stop thinking abt it so im thinking abt this instead#take death note. i do NOT agree with light but i also don't necessarily agree with L either. and i like both of them!#light HATES L and yet he's one of my favorite characters. i hate everything light does and yet i really enjoy reading from his pov.#its not black and white!#have opinions! change them after two days or think about the same blorbo for years! critical thinking and personal enjoyment can coexist!#anyways.
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madamescarlette · 2 years
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nothing like staying up aggressively late to finish a book that you don't realize till halfway through is kind of infuriating and wrong and yet you have to see the end so you can close the lid on the fury vs. the healing joy of going off to read a book and then reading it all in one sitting because it was glorious and exactly suited to what you needed to read at that moment!
#this is a true story btw#i wanted this book to be good so badly#it is very popular atm and it drew me in with the promises of game development & friendship and my eyes lit UP#and the first third is indeed a beautiful meditation on friendship!#but then i spent the last 2/3 being full of rage because one of the two protagonists just....turns around and decides to hate the other one#with nary a thought of explaining it. and yes i did self-id too closely with the other protag#but it was a fun stupid haze of fury that i was reading through to figure out how they finally dealt with it#only they didn't REALLY and it just was basically unacknowledged and i guess meant to be inspiring and true to lifelong friendships#but aghhhhhfdkhfj if it didn't raise my ire in every way#it was well written don't get me wrong but i got SO upset and then it is just! unresolved!#and me who likes cathartically sad or happy or bittersweet endings only haaates to be left with unresolved grey area ones#but then i got to totter off and go read a very short sweet patricia mckillip book and all is well now >:D#i was just reading it with my mug of cocoa in my hand going i love u mystically beautiful prose! i love you strange dreamy fantasy!#(part of me is also wondering if i could read 13 books between now and the end of the year to fulfill my 100)#(at the rate with that tiny little book [winter rose] and beauty next week it's....possible actually? but anyway.)#reading tag#a fun silly little story probably only funny to me but you're all hearing it despite that
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surely one of you has read nineteen minutes by jodi picoult... as usual I have THOUGHTS
#the lesson of this book has not aged well#now let me break it down quickly#but major tw if you ever consider reading nineteen minutes its a book with two teenage protagonists but it was written for a mature audience#the book deals with bullying gun violence and abuse and it does depict them quite graphically#so yeah I absolutely would not pick up this book if youre sensitive to that#but anyways the story is about a shooting that happens at a high school and then takes you back to the events that led up to it#as well as the aftermath#and I feel like the idea of Peter's has aged quite poorly#like the book was written in 2007 so the narrative that shooters are the bullied lonely kids who are getting revenge#was very popular in our society but in the year 2023 I think we are (very) slowly realizing that these kids weren’t unpopular nerds#majority of them are incels living in a country that makes it very easy for them to kill people with guns#and the book reallyyyyy misses this mark#like they portray Peter as this kid that was bullied for being sensitive and not a masculine tough guy like the rest of the boys#and its true boys who get bullied generally are bullied for not conforming to masculinity#BUTTT these boys aren’t the ones who go and kill people#its the ones who have deeply entrenched hatred for women and minorities and also happen to be able to use weapons#so yeah if the text was just about a kid who was being bullied and how traumatizing that is then yeah I think it would’ve nailed it#butttt when you try to convince us that this is the profile of a shooter you start to lose#also not nearly enough about gun control was discussed#like the book sends the message that if we’re all nice to each other bad things won’t happen ummmm yeah#but also even if we were all mean to each other we could minimize the amount of casualties by have stricter access to guns#like what people in other countries don’t have mean kids this is a uniquely american problem#anyways these are my grievances
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toiletpotato · 4 months
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youtube
Check out this production of The Mountaintop by Katori Hall and then read the script!
The script link (the second one) also includes some very helpful guides to the show!
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libraryleopard · 6 months
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Contemporary coming-of-age lit fic novel
When eighteen-year-old Lou is scouted to be a model, she initially has no interest in being the subject of photos when she could take them herself
After a tragic accident, though, Lou flees across the country to New York City and enters the dizzying world of fashion shows, haute couture, and editorial shoots
While Lou finds professional success and fame as a model, she finds herself still grappling with grief and the people she left behind
Character-focused story exploring grief, art, healing, self-acceptance, and queerness
Lesbian main character; broad cast of queer characters
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canis-dies · 1 year
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why are the characters so unlikable.
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Making a long post shorter but I really appreciated the ending of Ni No Kuni: Wrath of the White Witch for having the final villain's last minute-ish "I'm good now" redemption a) be a prerogative of the main child protagonist for plot reasons that makes sense (befriended her good side alter ego that exists as a little child) and b) said child protagonist and his friends sass the shit out of the villain, absolutely read her for filth, none of this "Oh Cassiopeia I know you're sad and have a tragic backstory(tm)" no they go in guns blazing like fuck you fuck this you're not destroying the world. And I appreciate this. That's all it takes to win me over.
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paper-mario-wiki · 4 days
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Can you summarize how the Stanley Parable is toxic yaoi without spoiling anything?
hmmm. probably not very well, but the basic rundown you need is as such:
the stanley parable is called a Parable because the story represents and expresses an important lesson or principle. in this case, the principle taught regards the concept of the self and the other, and how they naturally reject each other and embrace each other at the same time out of necessity. this is represented by the two characters in the game (or at least the only 2 who aren't just accessories of a single ending), Stanley, and the Narrator. Stanley is the silent protagonist (i believe he represents the Other), and does not speak. the Narrator is the narrator (i believe he represents the Self), and does not exist physically.
so, to summarize the yaoi:
the self and the other need one-another to exist. neither can define themselves without their counterpart to define themselves against-- but they are necessarily opposed to each other. the narrator's purpose is to describe the events of the story, and thus the Narrator yearns for complete power and strict organization. the protagonist's purpose is to create change in the narrative, and thus Stanley yearns for autonomy. freedom vs control. chaos vs order. yin and yang, you get it.
and the game is just them interacting in different ways! you get to watch the self and the other reject each other and yearn for each other expressed through the EXTREMELY talented Kevan Brighting's narration, obsessively crafted level design by a skilled team of artists, and tightly written poignant* (* some of it's poignancy might be lost because of how influential this game was, see the end of this post for more of an explanation) script.
to keep it short (which i think is different from summarizing but still useful):
you know Chell and Glad0s, and how that's doomed-narrative toxic yuri? it's pretty much universally agreed upon by everyone who's played both that that's the same shit that Stanley and the Narrator have going on, but the doom is just Yaoi flavored.
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deadly-diminuendo · 1 month
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Sweet Dreams, Darling
a spawn astarion x fem!tav reader oneshot / nsfw / ~4.1k words
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Summary: An evening spent reading a racy romance novel awakens a fantasy you never knew you had. The thought of your sleeping body becoming a thing to be used for someone else's pleasure brings you an unexpected thrill. Of course Astarion catches you in the act and of course he cannot resist teasing you. But he is willing to indulge you.
Tags/CW: somnophilia, consensual non-consent, tadpole mind sharing, vampire bites/blood drinking, kink discovery, piv sex, late act 3, mostly smut with some fluff
Read on AO3
Or read below...
Never has a collection of words upon a page enraptured you quite like this.
You could have spent hours perusing the diverse collection of books in your private suite, but the second you spotted this particular title, you simply could not resist plucking it from the shelf: Dusk’s Dark Desires. A steamy vampire romance novel taking Faerûn by storm, or so you have heard.
Whether it proved to be a well-written escapist fantasy capable of stimulating your senses, or a disaster full of laughable euphemisms and wild inaccuracies—something you and Astarion might enjoy ridiculing together perhaps—you thought you made the perfect choice for the night. Little did you know just how entirely it would captivate you.
After all it is certainly not the first time you have read something of this nature—erotic literature has long been a guilty pleasure of yours—but the book in your hands describes in riveting detail a fantasy you were not fully aware you had until this very moment.
A hazy notion of it would flicker through your mind whenever you would wake to find Astarion lying atop you, your blood such an aphrodisiac to him that he could not help but to succumb to carnal instinct, hands wandering, hips rolling, his arousal anything but subtle. His need for you never failed to ignite your need for him. All it would take was a word, a nod, a look, and then it would begin—your lips colliding, your clothes shedding, his cock sliding into your mouth, or plunging into your cunt, whatever suited the two of you best. You never felt more wanted, at least in those early days.
Even the times you did not wake thrilled you. You both treated your arrangement as your little secret, only acknowledging your intimate exchanges in knowing smiles and seductive whispers. All the nights you offered him your neck and sealed your promise with a kiss, all the mornings you awoke smiling as you felt fresh puncture marks in your skin, wondering if the act filled him with as much desire as it always seems to.
Wondering if he wanted to take more from you than your blood while you slept.
You flip a few pages back, eager to reread the passage that inspired your lecherous thoughts. Again you absorb the tantalizing prose and again the delicious encounter described plays out in your mind’s eye. A chamber cloaked in darkness, the only light a sliver of moonglow peeking in through the window. The protagonist, a mortal woman, alone and asleep upon a luxurious bed, unaware of what is soon to unfold. The vampire, graceful and silent as he enters the room, here to claim her blood—and her body.
Astarion here to claim you.
Your longing pools between your legs as you picture yourself and your own lover recreating this scandalous scenario. You imagine Astarion losing himself in your neck, lifting the hem of your nightdress, easing his way inside you, your body wholly ready to accept him even while unconscious.
What began as a tiny spark of curiosity has developed into overwhelming want. You want to wake to him indulging in your sleeping form more than he has ever dared before. Or not to wake at all, to discover in the morning that he’d had his wicked way with you while you were none the wiser.
You continue to read, immersing yourself in both the enticing words upon the page and the intoxicating idea of Astarion using your body for his pleasure. So lost in thought are you that, when the door creaks open, you jump.
Really, you should not be at all surprised. You knew Astarion would eventually be joining you tonight. Since your party began its stay at the Elfsong, the two of you have often spent your nights in this room, away from the prying eyes of the others. A cozy place for you to converse and cuddle in comfort—or, since that unforgettable experience you shared over his grave, to make love.
Your journey has held many surprises for you, but none more unexpected—and more welcome—than falling in love. Together you’ve formed a deep emotional connection founded on mutual trust, respect, and adoration—and your physical connection is all the better for it. You truly enjoy each other in every way.
And you would very much like to enjoy him tonight.
Astarion regards your flushed face with a touch of suspicion and a great deal of amusement, the curl of his lips hinting at the barrage of teases likely coming your way. You shut your book closed too quickly, too guiltily, you think. He knows he has caught you red-handed, and now you are red-faced to match it.
He takes a step closer to the bed and closer to you, a little thrill rushing through you as his gaze drops to the low cut of your chemise—but then you realize he means to glimpse at your novel, discern its title, uncover a clue to the mysteries held within. You hug the book tighter to you, not willing to give up its secrets this soon.
“Good book, I take it?”
You shrug, though you know your grin is likely giving you away. “It has been a pleasant enough diversion thus far.”
“Oh, I think it’s much more than that, darling,” he insists, sauntering closer before halting at the foot of the bed. “It must be quite an… intriguing read to bring such a pretty blush to those cheeks. Here I thought only I was capable of that.”
“Maybe I was thinking about you,” you admit with a flutter of your lashes.
“Like always, then?” He chuckles as heat again darkens your cheeks. “You do fluster so easily in my presence. Still a little shy even after all this time. How sweet you are, my dear.”
You can’t help but notice how his fingertips run up the bedpost, and you find yourself wishing those hands were all over you instead.
“Or maybe you are not as sweet as you seem, hmm?” His voice is low, sultry, the way it always is when he means to seduce you.
As if you needed seducing.
Your breath catches in your lungs as the mattress sinks beneath his weight, your body deathly still but for the pumping of your heart and the throbbing of your cunt. Eagerly you await his next move.
You watch his slow, measured crawl towards you, his hungered stare suggesting his need to devour and ravage you—but he stops, resting his chin in his hand as he lies there looking at you.
“What devilish thoughts have been going through your mind, I wonder? Dreaming up all the sinful things we might do together, perhaps? Wishing I was here with you? Touching you? Inside you?”
“Maybe,” you tell him with a coy smile. He does not yet know the depths of your depravity, but perhaps you might yet let him find out.
“And now that you have me…” He smirks, running a thumb across your parted lips, knowing he has you right where he wants you.
You cannot resist. You never can.
So you steal a kiss—and he snatches away your book.
You expected it to happen, really. It was inevitable. And though part of you is mortified that you have allowed him this much ammunition to tease you with—the other part of you wonders if he, too, just might like what he reads.
“Well, what have we here?” Astarion settles against the pillow to your left, looking all too pleased with himself as he begins to inspect his prize. “Dusk’s Dark Desires?” He sounds skeptical as he reads out the title, and though he flashes you an unimpressed look, you can detect a glimmer in his eyes. “Let’s see what dark desires have that sweet heart of yours beating so fast.”
If he had not guessed it already, he discovers it immediately upon opening the book: “Vampires, darling?” He tuts at you with mock disapproval. “Oh, my love. I should have known.”
You do feel rather embarrassed, knowing so much about the true horrors of vampirism, horrors he has had to endure—and yet the first night he bit you was a carnal awakening. A world-shattering, life-changing experience for you both.
But you fell in love with Astarion for the man he is, not the vampire he happens to be.
“It is, admittedly, a new fascination of mine. All because you are a fascination of mine. And so much more than that.”
You smile at each other, and your worries fade.
Though it soon becomes clear he intends to keep you blushing.
“My, my,” he remarks, clicking his tongue as his eyes scan the text in front of him. “Is this now a fascination of yours, too?” He begins to read aloud: “So serene did she lie beneath him, so scrumptious did she taste, so submissive was she in slumber, that he knew he must take all of her, inch by precious inch.”
This is all rather foolish, you think.
Yet to hear such words spoken in his irresistibly seductive timbre renders you speechless.
So he makes the obvious choice to keep going.
He rolls to his side, half hovering over you as he skims the rest of the page, skipping ahead a few lines: “Fear rattled her when she awoke to find him within her, fangs in throat, cock in flesh. Yet a rapturous need blossomed in her core, obliterating all rational thought. When she cried out at last, his mouth met hers with a ferocity beguiling and obscene, consuming her whole. She enfolded him into her arms and surrendered.”
A pause. The air feels electric between you as Astarion studies your face. Whatever conclusion he comes to makes him grin. “You filthy little degenerate. This really turns you on, doesn’t it?”
You are still quiet, so he persists.
“You like the thought of it, don’t you? You, lying here lost in your sweet dreams, while I take whatever I want?”
Somewhere within you still resides a shame that prevents you from confessing outright. You try to downplay it. “It’s just a silly little fantasy.”
“Is that all it is?” He lets the book fall to the bed as he moves to straddle you. “Oh, no, my love. I know you too well to believe that. Your body betrays you.”
“Does it?” you ask innocently, but you know full well it does. Lust already blazed within you before he’d even entered the room, and now his every touch fuels the flames.
“Hmm, let me see…”
His palm cups your chin.
“Pupils dilated.”
Lips inches from yours.
“Cheeks reddened.”
Fingers trace your heart.
“Heartrate accelerated.”
Then graze your breasts.
“Nipples hardened.”
Lower, lower, lower.
“Cunt soaked.”
Mouths crash together.
No more words pass between you as you lose yourselves in your fervent worship of each other, though your fantasy is far from forgotten.
Not by you.
Not by him.
+++
“I would not mind indulging you. In fact I would rather like to try it myself.”
Those were his first words to you in the morning when you awoke entangled in his arms.
You were elated. You admitted how badly you wanted it—wanted him to take and take and take from you while you sleep. Wanted to be nothing more than his personal plaything for a night.
And tonight you will put your plan into place.
You are alone. You are restless. You are wide awake.
And so you are grateful for the little gift Astarion left out for you on the desk.
Together you decided upon two key conditions to be met for your end of the bargain before he could proceed with his. One, you would remove your smallclothes. Two, you would drink a sleeping draught—and the perfect concoction is now conveniently laid out before you.
He wanted you to know you could still change your mind—but no. You are sure of what you want, and you trust him completely.
You slip out of your smallclothes, kicking them aside as you make your way forward. You take the tiny bottle in your hands, twist off the lid, and swallow the works of it down. You settle into the plush comfort of your bed, and moments later, you drift into the world of your dreams.
+++
Sweet are your dreams of Astarion.
Foggy and fleeting though they begin, little details stick with you—the melodious rippling of his laughter, the heady scent of bergamot and rosemary, the feeling of cool skin against your heat in a spellbinding dance of ice and fire. Every one of your senses recalls all the happiest moments you have shared, envisions all the precious memories you have yet to create.
Whether it is a matter of minutes or hours, you are not sure—but, in time, the nebulous becomes lucid, the vague becomes vivid.
The picture so clear before you now is you. Your chest rises and falls with the gentle cadence of your breathing, your nipples peeking through the thin fabric of your nightgown. Your hemline hiked up high, your head atilt upon your pillow, your lovely neck ready for the taking. A vision delectable and divine.
Delectable… An imagining of yourself through Astarion’s eyes, then. How curious.
Your thoughts are no longer your own, but his, or at least what you fancy his to be. How pleased he would be to learn your dreams filled with love and longing inspired the warmth of your smile, how thrilled he would feel to feed upon your sleeping form, knowing how much the notion arouses you, how much of you you’re willing to let him take.
Astarion stalks towards the bed, eyes ever watching you, drinking in every detail of your alluring figure. He cannot deny how adorable you look in your frilly and feminine little dress, but, as he often reminds you, it’s your skin that suits you best. How he would love to strip you bare, have you nude beneath him, so sweet and soft and utterly helpless. The bed creaks when he joins you upon it, the mattress dipping as his knees settle on either side of you—he freezes, but then remembers having spotted the empty vial—he need not be too careful tonight.
You will sleep very, very well.
As for his other little suggestion… Gods, he must know. His hands venture under your skirt, and when he feels the skin there—silky, smooth, shamelessly bare—he grins.
Both your blood and your body will be his tonight.
Such a generous little thing you are, always eager to be seduced, to be used, to be conquered. What luck to have found such willing prey, a perfect vessel to fulfill the needs of his empty stomach and his already hardening cock. The steady rhythm of your pulse and the heat emanating from your skin only heighten his ravenous desire.
You can almost feel him at your neck.
A delicate touch. A gentle kiss. A sharp bite.
Astarion sinks his fangs deep into you, and your blood, so rich and so decadent, fills his hungry mouth, a heavenly reprieve from his eternal curse. The taste of you is pure perfection, an ambrosia more divine than the finest wines, more filling than the grandest feasts. It’s invigorating. Exhilarating. Arousing.
He gulps you down greedily, the temptation to drain you dry ever present, but his ardent need for you ever more consuming. Unaware as you are, your body still reacts, still shivers and shakes against him—not unlike how you shudder in ecstasy when he fucks you, your self-control hopelessly lost as you come undone in his arms. His lust for blood shifts into lust for you, every drop of you he drinks seemingly travelling right to his cock.
A feeling he wanted to fight, once. To physically crave anyone, even if instigated by the act of blood-drinking, was truly shocking. Beyond what he could handle, at first. He tried to ignore it. And then he couldn’t ignore it, stealing away to the woods, or to the privacy of his tent to play out his fantasies, chase the euphoria of release. Giving into it when you would wake, sometimes even wanting you to wake so he could have you, take pleasure in you, empty himself inside you.
Now it is a feeling he has been learning to embrace.
And tonight with you—in you—he will embrace it fully.
Instinct guides his hands to grab at your gown, bunching its cloth into fistfuls and gathering its hem to your waist, exposing your gorgeous curves and your pretty little cunt. He dares run a finger along your entrance, so warm and, oh, so deliciously wet for him. A wonderful surprise to find you this receptive, this ready for his use. His cock aches to spring free, to indulge in your slick heat.
To fuck you like this, plunge into you hard and fast, eat up every last bit of you—the pleasure of it all would be immense—but your gifts to him are precious, something to be cherished, to be handled with care. As much as it is a challenge to maintain his control, to pull himself from your luscious neck, he does.
It helps to know the night will not end here. He readies himself for the delights yet to come, strips off his trousers and smallclothes, coaxes your legs apart with one hand as he strokes himself with the other.
To savour you will be so sweet.
Astarion rubs along your folds—a tease that so often has you begging for more—but now he is the impatient one. Your charming smile, your radiating warmth, your ready body, so slick with unconscious need, invites him in. The tip of his cock slips inside you and you welcome him with astonishing ease.
Pleasure—whether his or yours, you can’t quite tell—floods your mind, intensifying the otherworldly sensations of your dreamscape. The way he fills you, the way you surround him entrances you in equal measure, immersing you into a haze of languid euphoria as he gradually, gently works you open.
How cute that you cannot quite comprehend this. But, oh, you feel it, don’t you?
His thoughts again dominate yours as he buries his full length inside, relishing in how easily your body accommodates his size, how good it feels to pull away and push back into you. Gods, you look so beautiful and blissful in your oblivion. Still your body answers to his rhythm in ways subtle and sweet—a touch of colour on your cheeks, a slight quickening of your heart—but nothing gratifies him more than discovering the stirrings of pleasure swirling about your sleeping mind.
A conflict begins between his crumbling resolve to take his time and his growing urge to thrust into you mercilessly. He manages to compromise with a moderate pace and a thorough exploration of you, pressing in as deep as he is able while his hands roam across your skin. Your every curve and contour have long been mapped out in his mind, but still he touches you with a reverence befitting a first time.
How surreal it is to know this stunning, trusting, loving woman in his arms is all his. It still feels like a sweet dream from which he will one day wake.
But you are real—and you give yourself to him so freely.
Astarion continues to rock his hips against yours, moving faster now, taking full advantage of your kindly offering. You feel delicious wrapped around his cock like this, your body perfectly conforming to his shape. He does miss your adorable little moans—you have always been enthusiastically vocal for him in bed—but he must admit the endless creaking below and the wet slapping of his flesh meeting yours make for pleasing sounds in their absence.
Barely a second passes before a pretty noise escapes your open mouth—only a faint whimper, but it makes him throb with the feral need to fill you. You little minx. Even in your sleep you know just how to rile him. Well, if you are to tempt him with such provocative encouragement, then he has no choice but to fuck you harder.
He abandons all restraint in his haste towards the end, the pleasure tingling your slumbering mind enhancing his own. But, gods, what he would not give to feel all your delightful spasms and shudders as you shatter for him.
Maybe, just maybe…
You feel it. You have this whole time, really, but the waves of pleasure are far stronger than before. Each and every sensation amplified, pushed hard into your mind as he plunges hard into you. How much pleasure he takes in enjoying your body. How blissfully lost he is in his sweet addiction to you. How near he is to tumbling over the edge of ecstasy.
And he wants desperately to take you with him.
Euphoria wracks through him and through you. With a few final thrusts, Astarion pumps you full of his seed, your rhythmic pulses drawing every last drop deeper inside you.
He collapses, basking in afterglow, heart brimming with affection as he admires you. You are still sound asleep, oblivious to the waking world, that same cute little smile upon your pretty face.
Gods, could you be any more perfect?
Before he separates from your body and mind, before all fades to black, he plants a single kiss upon your soft lips, whispering one last message into your ear.
“Sweet dreams, darling.”
+++
Your eyes flicker open. You squint a little as you adjust to the shock of morning light streaming in through the crack of the open window, but you soon welcome your favourite sight: Astarion lying by your side. You are usually the type to grumble as you pull the covers over your head, chasing the often vain hope for another hour of sleep—but today you simply smile. Perhaps waking up every day next to a partner you adore just might yet make a morning person out of you.
He looks beautiful like this. Relaxed, content, transfixed on a book. He fails to notice your stare—or at least he pretends not to. Eventually you scooch closer, and at last he acknowledges you. “Good morning, my dear. I trust you… slept well?”
Something signals to you that this is not quite a normal greeting. Something you can’t quite pinpoint. He looks… exceptionally smug, even for him. He sounds… expectant, maybe?
You struggle to recall whatever it is you are supposed to know. But then you recognize the book in his hands as he slams it shut. And then you remember.
Oh, gods. Your racy novel. Your little fantasy. Your erotic dreams.
Your hand snaps to your neck, your fingers finding two distinctive punctures in your skin while he watches you with his fanged grin. He drank from you, that much is certain, but did he…? You reach your other hand to examine a far more intimate place.
Oh.
Oh.
“That,” you begin breathlessly, hazy recollections of your dreams returning to you piece by piece. “That was all real last night, wasn’t it?”
“If you are referring to the little show I gave you, then yes,” he confirms, his grin spreading wide. “Was it everything you ever wanted?”
His flirtatious drawl is full of bravado, as it always is, yet you think you can detect the tiniest hint of uncertainty behind it.
Oh, you will make sure you leave him with no doubt.
You practically pounce on him, smothering him with a flurry of little kisses. The way his laughter bubbles out of him makes your heart sing. “Shall I take that as a yes?”
“Of course,” you assure him. “And it’s like I’ve told you before. I trust you with my body.”
You plant a kiss on his forehead.
“My mind.”
And the tip of his nose.
“My heart.”
Both his cheeks.
“My everything.”
You press your lips to his, and the two of you melt into each other. Astarion holds you tight even as your lips break apart, a whispered “I love you,” filling the shell of your ear. You repeat the words back to him—and before you lavish him with the full extent of your affection you tell him only one more thing.
“You have given me the sweetest dreams I will ever have.”
+++ Thank you for reading!
If you enjoy my work, you can find more on my AO3. Additional cross posts for Tumblr and masterlist coming soon + more oneshots in the works! UPDATE: Here is the masterlist!
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doberbutts · 8 months
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i think people mostly just have an issue with the persistent centering of men when it comes to feminist issues. sure, men often suffer under the patriarchy as well, but they dont suffer as much as women do and actually have much to lose from dismantling the system (compared to what they would gain from doing so), so just highlighting this fact doesnt do much to further feminist goals
that being said i do think its something that should go acknowledged lest we fall into the manhating hole, which is obviously counterproductive
Personally I don't think it's "centering men" to acknowledge the ways the patriarchy wields misogyny as a weapon against the very people who benefit the most from misogyny in the first place, because if nothing else it can show everyone that maybe beating the shit out of little boys who try makeup and nail polish and teaching them that anything feminine is a sign of weakness is also having a direct impact on creating adult men who want to kill any sign of femininity in front of them and who think anyone feminine is less than human.
It used to be pretty common theory to acknowledge the cause-and-effect happening here, and to strive to treat the next generation of little boys with more openness towards femininity alongside the little girls learning that they did not have to conform to gender roles. Not just having well-written female protagonists but also making sure that it wasn't just girls watching and reading, to show the boys something more than the sex dolls only existing for wank material in other media.
That's not centering men. That's making sure that we're addressing the full problem instead of only half of it.
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