#and i am not an eloquent person. I'm bad at getting the feelings into words

[nights-at-crystarium]

You know what, I assume that people always read my pinned, or notice the pointer "new reader? start here" in every new Fragments' episode. I might be deluding myself. So hi hello lemme TALK ABOUT MY COMIC.

Before I get too rambly (and I mean RAMBLY), here's a quick intro. Fragments is a comic focused on feels and slice of life, made by a queer guy, aiming to ~character study~ the main cast (Vivi, Raha, Alisaie, Feo Ul) and fill in the gaps in canon (or linger in canon moments that needed more air imo), the tone ranging from angst to fluff to meme. Good punches require a good windup, so please don't expect angst anytime soon :3c

The story's segmented (fragmented, heh) into episodes. Episodes 1-11 take place in ARR, you can enjoy them with no worry about spoilers. Episode 12 onward is ShB, with all the spoilers and lorebending.

My storytelling style assumes you haven't only played through ShB, but know it like the back of your hand, i.e. it's for nerds and thinkers. Of course there's plenty of silly moments that don't require any deep knowledge, but the overarching story does. Often I skip canon events, only hinting that they took place, simply because I don't wanna retell the msq 1:1, I've got plenty of original scenes waiting to be drawn. You're in for a treat if you like obsessing over emotional and moral implications of things. And, yes, this's a story about a morally grey mc. Don't expect to be spoon-fed "and this's why that thing's bad, kids".

Currently I've outlined all the main story beats up until post EW, so it's like, not being winged as I go. Yes I refine things here and there, but I know where I'm going. I'm going ham!!!! With the lorebending post ShB. Initially I didn't plan to, but the more I learned about Vivi and personally grew as a writer, the more courage I got to "divorce" from canon. The general xiv story may still be good wherever it's headed, but it's not suited for an established wolgraha, so I'm making food for myself.

Everyone imagines the lil scenes from their wol's life, I'm taking that a tiiiiiny step further. Fragments tells a cohesive story that's looking to be the longest project at least in our corner. I can and will hyperfixate on this for years.

I started out just like many others, being hit with ShB like a truck, I wanted to put a catboy under a microscope and rotate him forever. Although I'd already been drawing for decades, I didn't have the comic-making skills yet, or eloquence to write the dialogue, so I spent the first half of 2022 self-studying, just because I needed a mouth to be able to scream about my ship.

Vivi didn't exist prior to my obsession with Exarch. He was made for this, he started out as a reagent (or a foil, now that I know fancy writing terms) for a rich and fun chemistry, and keep myself entertained for years, first and foremost.

Me, a fool: okay let's make a guy that falls in love with Exarch in this particular moment, what kinda life must he have led to- Me: ....oh no

The chemistry quickly bubbled up and exploded in my face, involving not only Exarch, but other characters (first as a means to subtly tell about Vivi, then they also demanded their own screentime), and here I am, sitting with a massive script on my hands, drawing my blorbos every day. Thanks for enabling that btw.

I care about characters a lot. I ask a lot of whys and hows. I'm critical-minded and burned on many bad stories that did their characters dirty, and I wanna be an opposing example. What I'm doing is extremely ambitious and risky, yes, but I can only invite you to tag along and see if I stick to my word.

The internet's a cruel and unforgiving place nowadays, and here I am, pitting my passion against what feels like decaying humanity. I'm making this comic to keep myself happy above all else, being sincere and cringe because life's too short to be anything else.

Thanks for reading this, and if you haven't yet, read Fragments here!

[the-plantlikefishie-dafi-writes]

Agreement with the Sun

An Arataki Itto x Reader Fanfic

Tags: Arataki Itto x Ruler!Reader, Fake Marriage, Made-up means of governance for Inazuma haha, SLOW BURN (At least I think it is <3), Reader is reserved but a little arrogant, Workaholic Reader, Himbo! Arataki Itto, Sunshine Arataki Itto, Eventual Fluff

Author's Note: Wow I actually gained the courage and posted this fic! Constructive criticism is much welcomed! Take note, I got too silly...

First Sunrise, First Moonfall - A Child of Ame-no-Uzume

🎶 O, Sunkissed Moon, beloved by the Sun, Its rays kiss your face, love questioned by none 🎶

He didn’t know what he expected. But, definitely not this.

If only he could get into a spar right now. Bust some bad guys with a jab, left-right, and a 'kapow!' that would be sure to wake him! But instead, the insanely boring stacks and stacks of papers made his eyes heavy even though he usually slept with his eyes open. Like, dude, what were these even for? It was a waste of good trees if you ask Itto.

If only he could catch some awesome beetles, he would have some fun with a bunch of kids by now and finally break his ridiculous losing streak which has been a major headache! However, two out of three cups of tea got cold from the incredibly long conversation by nerds who he would rather not upset unless he wanted to live in a nightmare.

Without having anything fun to do, he just spaced out. After all, Itto was surrounded by walls made of the finest purple silk and materials. Its design resembled the gentle waves of the sea and the eloquent color of electro. He eyed the gifts of foreign jade trinkets, placed proudly on quality wooden tables and the illuminating lanterns crested with Inazuma’s proud element. The scent of fine sakura perfume wafted through the air in the dim yet well lit room in Tenshukaku.

Man. He shouldn’t be spacing out like this! He is Arataki Itto for archon’s sake! The Arataki "Above All, Bold-Blooded" Itto! He can do whatever he wants… So why couldn’t he do all those he would rather do?

Well, it was because of you, The reigning ruler of Inazuma. He didn’t realize there was another ruler other than the Raiden Shogun. He didn’t really care who is in charge of Inazuma as long as he can live life as much as he wants, but maybe, you were also the reason why the humans became friendly to the onis and the rest of the yokai. He huffed, only a little as to not interrupt the conversation you and Shinobu had.

If only he wasn’t so awesomely charming and handsome that night!

You were just looking around that night. You were tiny, small compared to him, maybe, a little shy. With your cloaked figure, were you possibly a traveler?

"Hey, man! You look like you ain't around here!" he chirped as he tapped your shoulder and his hand returned to his hips. "Enjoying the festival so far?"

"Oh. I actually live in Inazuma. I just don't come out often." "An introvert! Hey, gotta respect that. You know, a lot of cool people I know are introverts like the renowned golden-haired traveler! Savior of Dragons, Conqueror of the Abyss, Teyvat's hero! Too bad, they ain't here though. Miss 'em." You nodded at his words as you dropped your hood down. And here it is, Itto always knew he was talented since birth at making friends! You finally lowered your guard, and you even gave him a smile.

…Hm? Pretty?

"Haha. I did meet them. I'm glad they reunited." Oh, so you knew the Traveler’s goals too? You’d have to get pretty close to them to do that. Just who are you, small mysterious person? "I haven't enjoyed the festival yet. I don't really know what to do," you added with fingertips pressed together and an awkward smile.

A smile curled up and a loud boisterous voice emerged from Itto, "Hahaha! Well, you are in luck, my compadre! I, Arataki the "Festival King of Fun and Revelry" Itto is here to serve you! When there's fun to be had, I am most undoubtedly there!" Oh, he could feel that adrenaline pumping into his veins! He has to get the gang into this! He looked over at his growing gang and shouted, "Hey, guys! Let's show 'em how to rock a real Festival!"

That was how the great Arataki Itto managed to get the seemingly-uptight you to a night of holler and laughs. What surprised him the whole night was not during the height of the clinking drinks and shared enthusiasm, but during the distant singing of an old man and the diminishing hype of the night. Shinobu had just pointed out your status as ruler, as the esteemed sun of Inazuma.

No way. No way.

You know how to party, he'll give you that. But, he can't believe he has been picking up, carrying you, oni-handling the second-in-command from the Raiden Shogun like a bunch of boxes… For the whole night no less!

He was also crazy loud, and he hoped he didn't say a joke that was offensive that could ruin his 150-day streak without getting into jail.

He began to shove the feeling of cold sweat in the backroom of his mind, and Itto smirked as his pointer and thumb framed the chin of his gorgeous face, "Heh, looks like Arataki the "Festival king of Fun and Revelry" served a hotshot tonight! Was my service just as awesome as you expected, esteemed sun?"

You let out a laugh. "Mister Arataki, you are adorable."

Shinobu and Itto flinched and widened their eyes. A hoot of laughter was so unusual to see from someone who is deemed stoic by the public. And, a compliment? Surely, Itto has greatly achieved many things tonight compared to everyone else in Inazuma. Of course, it is expected of the oni king! And, "Mister Arataki"? Prissy and pretty name to add to the long list of titles and all, but where did the sudden politeness come from? He just remembered that you were calling him "Itto" as the whole gang hollered while you were trying to scoop some goldfish.

"Of course, I had fun," you grinned.

Phew. Good thing you aren't nitpicky. He bowed exaggeratedly as he chuckled, "I am glad to be of service."

Itto knew you could see how his head was getting bigger than his body now. You smiled a little wider, "I enjoyed it so much that…"

Huh. There's more? Well, he was ready for you to compliment his entertaining charm.

"I wish to be your betrothed. Arataki Itto, will you marry me?" Itto witnessed you shine and sparkle to coax him to agree— you placed your hand on your chest as you knelt down on one knee, staring into his eyes with eager glee.

….HUH?

You met eyes with your day-dreaming future husband, and gave him a welcoming smile in the midst of an important discussion, cold tea, and stacked papers. It was a little forced, but the way he smiled back was so genuine and infectious, your true eloquent smile appeared. His infectious aura and presence was what made you enjoy that night and what made you choose him.

Good. He is the perfect candidate as a husband for you: an intimidating resting face everyone will cower in fear from, then the friendliest smile that knows no inequality, inclusive and outgoing personality, the leader of a gang that has been giving itself a good name in recent years, and no true influence to the government of Inazuma.

You were glad to have met him that night.

It was your time to rest in the stuffy yet plain room. Tired eyes fluttered to the beautiful sights of the Festival. Dancing sakura petals of the wind waltz with the lights of the city. The hustle and bustle sang and harmonized with the music of Inazuma. Culture of games, masks and silk infested the streets to satisfy the people and Yokai. Commissioner Kamisato was right; the Shirasagi Himegimi outdid herself this time. The night was too alluring to stay in your room as warmth started to bubble in your heart. Maybe, you won’t spend your night in your stuffy room today.

Indeed, those elders would criticize and lecture you, but at the very best, those grimy sons or selfish daughters of theirs will have no room in your work and your thoughts. At the very least, in your marriage with Itto, he wouldn’t do much for Inazuma other than some minor inconveniences. He would do his own things, and you would do yours. He wouldn’t have any problems with money, shelter, and clothing, and you wouldn’t have any problems with annoying suitors. Now, you have a reason to turn them down.

You also gave your husband his freedom to love whoever he wants.

In the lengthy contract that cited rules and regulations and written agreements between the Arataki Gang Leader and the Esteemed Sun of Inazuma, there, you have written: “The Esteemed Sun of Inazuma, □⁠□⁠□□, agrees for the Arataki Gang Leader, Arataki Itto, to have a romantic or sexual relationship outside of the contractual marriage between the two parties.”

“Hm, are you sure you want this part to be in the contract? Won’t it cause some kind of scandal? It might not jeopardize you, esteemed sun. But the Arataki gang will face grave repercussions." Kuki Shinobu voiced out.

How lucky was Arataki Itto to have a jack of all trades like her? You got a little envious, but the feeling hid behind the curtain. "Dear Kuki, is someone with the likes of Itto even interested in romance?" you whispered.

She actually pondered on your joke, but you pressed on with a grin. "Either way, please notify me if he plans to have a lover. I will make a scandal wherein I have another lover as well as make the narrative sympathize with Itto. Now, they won't be so rude if they think with their little heads. To kill the attention on me, I will announce something beneficial to Inazuma’s-"

"Wait," Itto tapped in, long fingers playing a rhythm to the dark wood. "You're going to sacrifice your reputation? For me to have my own lover?" He raised his brow.

"Of course? My "love life" won't affect my service.”

“Aren’t you technically my lover according to this contract?”

“Well, do you love me?”

“Uh…”

“Think of this as a marriage for convenience, Itto,” you gently smiled, mostly because he was cute, but slightly you placed him at a corner. “We don’t have to love each other.”

"Heh! Well, think again, sunshine!" He crossed his arms and widely opened his mouth. "I'm not gonna be some kind of cheating jerk and fail this marriage! I ain't gonna fall in love with anyone or ain't gonna make out with anyone else but my future wife! I am gonna be an awesome and committed husband as granny oni taught!"

Honestly, you stifle a laugh. "Is that so? It isn’t really cheating since we don’t have feelings for each other, and this relationship is obviously one of empty commitment. You will get bore-"

Before you could add anything, you could feel Itto's hand grab yours as he brought it to his lips. "Then, I'll use my good ol' Arataki "The Handsome Oni" Itto charm to make you fall for me" he winked.

You pondered. Does he read those cheesy light novels?

DON’T PLAGIARIZE, REPOST, OR TRANSLATE ANY OF MY WORKS.

Thank you and God bless!

[am-i-the-asshole-official]

WIBTA if I sent a strongly worded message to my ex and blocked her?

background. i (28x) dated this girl for 3 years (she is now 32f) from 2017-2020. i was also the one who initiated the break up. it boiled down to i didn't see the relationship being endgame and wanted to focus on my life moving forward while still searching for The One. dating her was getting in the way of me going to grad school, because she was emotionally draining and i'm the sort of partner that puts too much of myself into relationships. in the end, i'm proud of putting my foot down when it came to insisting i couldn't be her therapist and that we would do better separately.

i did not harbor any bad feelings towards her even if by some definitions she emotionally abused me or spat some red flags at me. i vented to a couple of close friends like a normal person, and i offered the chance for her to reach out to me (because when we started dating it was very very important to her that we be able to remain friends and i had no issue with that.)

i had no issue with that until a couple of months ago. a new acquaintance admitted to me that she had also dated this girl, and began describing some of the horrible things my ex had been saying about me.

i don't care if she doesn't like me. i don't care that she vented about me to her friends. i do care that she lied to me to people who were also my friends in order to make me look horrible and basically turned those people against me.

some lies were just subjective, like saying i treat my parents horribly despite them treating me extraordinarily well. some were demonstrably false, like claiming the car i drove 9 hours to visit her in 2018 was bought "at the end of our relationship" (reminder: 2020) and making up untrue details about how spoiled i am and how it wasn't good enough for me and i hated it.

they were so blatant i was able to send my new friend screenshots disproving one of the things she said about me in literally a 5 second search in our discord dms from 2019. (she said i called her aromantic and this offended her and i showed screenshots of her using this label for herself so obviously i thought it would be okay?)

anyway. i can't stop thinking about this absolute betrayal. she wants me to be another of her abusers so bad, she's literally ruined at least two friendships i had previously, just because she loves to share information about her life and i'm more of a private person.

i want to leave her a mic drop where i tell her what a raging cunt she is (in more eloquent words) and block her before she even reads it but i know it's insanely petty and my therapist probably wouldn't like it. i just need some kind of closure to get this out of my mind. wibta?

What are these acronyms?

[waitmyturtles]

I am late to catching up with Ossan's Love Returns, episode 6, but I'm not too late to catch on a major reason why I love this show, along with my personal GOAT, What Did You Eat Yesterday?/Kinou Nani Tabeta? -- the eloquent depictions of relationships in their deep stages.

No truer words were spoken about strengthening a relationship!

Shows that allow me to relate back to them -- woof. This got me in the chest. New love and romance is wonderful! But this scene was about LOVE WORK, the work of making love WORK. The work of arguing, feeling bad sometimes (maybe a lot during the early days of a relationship!), working on compromising yourself, which is hard, because changing yourself is hard, and changing your routines that you may have developed as an individual is REALLY HARD. All of that is just. hard.

But it's worth it when you meet the "right" person -- which is, who? The person who'll support you and help you during those changing stages. A person who won't waver, who'll be there in strength, as both of you are changing yourselves to make love work.

I often meditate on the fact that changing oneself -- say, you're losing weight, or quitting smoking or drinking -- often comes with uninvited feedback from others who may not WANT you to change. Because others in your life are used to who and how you are, as someone prior to your losing weight, or that you're a smoker or drinker. Others in your life may LIKE the fact that you haven't changed aspects of yourself, because they themselves may be afraid to make changes.

In a relationship -- the process of change unto oneself has to happen to make compromising and even a little emotional symbiosis work. The best part about finding the right partner(s) is when that partner is accepting of the changes that you're making, they respect those changes, they support those changes, and they're making life and emotional changes right along with you.

The flashback sequences of everything Maki and Haruta went through to get to their wedding speaks to this. These scenes were just wonderful encapsulations of how a deepening relationship is just as fascinating as a new one.

[ok-boomerang]

Has anyone asked for 45 yet? I'm a new zutara fan so can I request for that pairing? Thank you!

p.s- I really love your works, they make my day :)

THANK YOU for your kind words! :') I did already write 45 HOWEVER I am so excited that you are a new zutara fan that I...wrote another one for it! It is my welcome to the fandom gift for you! I hope you like it! 💕

--

“Tell me a secret.”

Zuko’s favorite time of day on Ember Island was when the sun was high in the sky. Not only could he feel the energy of the flame inside him, not only was he stronger and more capable when teaching Aang, but he also…

Let it be known that he was embarrassed to admit this.

But he also appreciated how the glare of the sunlight made a person squint, made it hard to see where they were looking and sometimes if they were even talking to you—made it difficult for others to discover if a person was staring at a waterbender in the surf, mesmerized by her smile, her easy and powerful bending, and the way her body moved.

He was embarrassed; he felt a little creepy.

But not enough to stop.

It was during Zuko’s favorite hour, when the firebender had plopped himself in the sand to relax, that his (respectful!) gazing was interrupted.

“Tell me a secret,” said Toph, coming over and plopping herself next to him.

“I don’t think I have any,” Zuko said slowly, thinking of the origin of his scar, the sham of his relationship with Mai, how much he missed his mother, how much he missed his sister—

“Lie,” said Toph lazily. “This is almost getting old by now, Sparky.”

Zuko couldn’t help it—he chuckled. “You got me,” he said, and then pushed back, leaning against the sand as he stared upward at the sky. “Okay,” he said, not entirely sure why he was agreeing so easily to Toph’s little game. “I can play the tsungi horn. And I’m actually pretty good.”

“That’s sweet,” said Toph. “But I was actually interested in a specific secret.”

“Huh?”

Zuko turned his head toward the little earthbender and watched her cackle. “Why can’t you keep your eyes off Katara?”

“What?” asked Zuko hurriedly. He hadn’t been worried about Toph at all. With the others he made a show of the glare in his eyes, but Toph…? She was regularly next to him as he watched Katara…

“It’s okay,” Toph said, waving a hand away. “You don’t actually need to tell me. I already know.”

“Know…what?”

“Hey, Katara!” Toph shouted from next to him. Zuko jumped to his feet in shock. He needed to get out of here—

He tried to step away, but found that his feet wouldn’t move—because he was suddenly buried in the sand up to his ankles.

“Can you teach me to surf sometime?” Toph yelled.

“Sure!” Katara yelled back, smile bright. “I didn’t know you were interested!”

“Zuko’s interested too! Very interested, actually—”

“Thanks, Toph!” Zuko yelped. “That’s enough!” He waved dimly at Katara, who was waving at him, a soft smile on her face.

Somehow, Zuko got the feeling he was done for.

Toph turned to him with a grin. “What, did you think I was going to stir shit?”

“I still think you’re going to stir shit—will you let me free?” he whined.

“Sure,” Toph said. A moment later, Zuko was suddenly sinking farther, and fast, until he was up to his thighs in the sand.

“Toph!”

“Oops, wrong direction,” she said lightly.

Zuko saw Toph stomp her foot, hard, and suddenly he was flying in the air, legs sprawling—and then he was landing on his butt, hard.

“Ow,” he moaned. “Toph, what the fuck—”

“Hey, Sugar Queen!” Toph yelled again. “Can you come fix up Sparky? He just took a bad fall!”

“What?!” came Katara’s voice, alarmed. “What happened?” Her voice was getting louder, as she must be hurrying over to them. But Zuko did not want to look to confirm. He wanted to be underground again.

“He landed super hard on his butt,” Toph explained, a wild grin stretched across her face. “Might have even broken his tailbone.”

“I—I—” he said eloquently, turning to Katara.

She was leaning over, hands on her knees, concern mixed with something he couldn’t quite identify. Her cheeks were warm, probably from the exertion of running over here.

“Ah, can I—um—heal your bottom?” she asked.

“Katara, you don’t need to heal me, I’m fine.”

“Toph said you might have broken your tailbone.”

“I’m fine, you don’t need to look at my butt—”

Katara giggled. “It’s okay, as a healer, you’re not supposed to be distracted by butts.”

He did not note how she didn’t say that she wouldn’t be distracted by his butt, just that she wasn’t supposed to be.

“Let me just take a look, okay?”

Zuko was going to die. He was going to die with the most beautiful woman’s hands on his ass.

Well, there were certainly worse ways to go.

He turned over, embarrassed and thrilled all at once.

And as Katara began to busy herself with rubbing his bum with her water-covered hands, he watched Toph trot away backward, not-so-subtly mouthing You’re welcome.

[satubby]

Hello! How are you? I love your account you earned one more followers! I wanted to make a request if it is not too much to ask. Can you be sfw and nsfw headcanons (in a romantic relationship) with Makima in the male version of her? please! I really would like you to attend to my request and I hope you have a good day.

[Note: Am I dreaming? Why if that's the case... don't wake me up, AHHHH!!!! ♡♡♡ Thanks for asking, I rarely (ever) get this and I'm grateful. I hope you like what I wrote because I was lazy to finish the drawing that I had originally planned. I leave you a chibi that I did in the genshin impact style LMAO]

Well it depends on where you are in your relationship. Unlike Makima, Makime is more openly seductive and is not afraid to use his charm, he is very self-centered about it.

Since I'm based on my fanfic, Makime is your boss in the fourth section of public security and you usually see him but try to stay out of it while hanging out with the boys.

Since you asked for headcanons, I'll go two ways, first I'll do the SFW and then the NSFW because I want to dedicate more time to that one since I suck writing intimate acts.

Tokens of appreciation:

Makime would show her appreciation in a peculiar and somewhat twisted way at worst. He could offer eloquent compliments and sweet flattery, but always with a hidden agenda. His words may be framed in lies and manipulations, it is likely that he seeks to obtain something in return, for example... Your entire disposition and love for him.

If you are at the beginning of the relationship, he would seek to attract you with simple gifts that you would not expect from him, for example: Roses, money or bonuses from your salary. Well, he knows you don't trust him.

If you are already more confident, he could show his appreciation through such simple acts as leaving you with less workload or pairing you up with him so you don't endanger yourself on more important missions [Which is more of an excuse to keep an eye on you and silently study you in case that he still did not declare his love openly]. He would be constantly watching over you, making sure you were safe and removing any perceived threats [Whether he was actually dangerous to you or just out of jealousy].

Makime might offer quirky and unique gifts that reflect her knowledge of your likes and interests. However, these gifts could be more manipulative than genuine intent. Sometimes just looking for a reaction from you, whether positive or not, he just wants you to pay attention.

You are really confused by their actions, sometimes you feel compelled to accept their gifts, good or bad.

Romance type:

The romance with Makime would be an emotional roller coaster. Spending time with him could be exciting and exciting, but also dangerous and exhausting. His cunning and manipulative personality would create an intense dynamic, full of mind games at the worst. Well, since I'm basing myself on the events of my Fanfic: A peach between apples, you constantly doubt the intentions of the red-haired demon since you know its nature from its original version, Makima.

Makime would seek to maintain absolute control in the relationship, although he would secretly like to have sweet moments without forcing you to participate in them, but it will only happen when he is sure that you will not let him. He can be possessive and jealous, showing his darker side if he feels you are slipping out of his control or if you have been a brat to him.

The romance with Makime, as I said, is quite nuanced and since he doesn't know the feeling of human-style love, he grew up in isolation [I guess?] He could make you feel uncomfortable without meaning to but he's still a son of a bitch, so he doesn't care about your reactions a lot, he just wants to see you nervous and/or any other emotion, you're interesting.

He would always be hiding parts of himself and revealing little clues as the relationship progresses or that he already has the certainty that you will not betray him, that you will be his completely. These secrets and gradual revelations could lead to a complicated and ambiguous emotional connection since you don't fully understand their actions.

At times Makime can be cold and insensitive to your feelings, but when he's jealous or vulnerable, he drops his cunning and prideful facade, to be twistedly soft on you. Their gifts in these cases would be more intimate, giving you things that they know you like. In his strange and sadistic way, he gives you someone's heart or kills in front of you, which leaves you quite traumatized because it is not pretty to see someone literally explode or see how their insides turn inside out (that is, the skin and organs come out of the inside ). These cases only occur when he is in a bad mood or wants to punish you.

Types of names and nicknames that Makime uses with you:

Makime's nicknames towards you influence his impressions, at the beginning of meeting you she would call you little employee or lamb, because in his eyes you look like a nervous lamb in front of its predator.

As they are already closer or in a relationship that is not [clearly if] forced, he would call you: Little doll, little rabbit or puppy.

In cases where he is in a bad mood, he usually uses demeaning names like: Pet, my prize, Dumb human or needy bitch [but these last names are more in the NSFW context].

Particularly when he is feeling most intimate and vulnerable, he often calls you my treasure, love (if not very creative) angel or princess.

You walked the streets of Tokyo, checking your makeup and everything. Makime had summoned you for something, with the control demon you never knew what he would do next or even his intentions towards you. You saw makime sitting down having a coffee, you approached him by sitting on it and adjusting the wrinkles in your clothes.

"Makime-san.... Did you need me for something? Normally I don't expect you to invite me to these types of places without it being for celebration or work reasons, your invitation and interest in me really surprises me" You said something nervous but trying to hide your discomfort or worst case scenario, those many doubts that run in your mind about this situation.

Makime looked at his glass of espresso as if it were interesting, only making you more uncomfortable at his non-response. Then he smiled widely and looked at you, what you didn't know is that this was just an excuse to spend time with you. He could practically see you anywhere and yet he preferred moments like these even if they weren't (if they are) forced. But he just wants alone time without those jerks following you around like roaches attached to food.

The redhead comes out of his thoughts about Aki, Powa and Denji turning to you again looking at you with an amused and calm smile while those piercing golden eyes follow your movements from head to toe, scrutinizing you.

"Sure... *Sigh*, you're kind of right, I invited you for a coffee, there's no problem with that... so just relax and don't try to see the devil's horn in everything, okay?" Here a sip of his coffee, while he smiles, that fucking smile that just gets on your nerves, you notice that he gives you an aura of great power when he sits near you, you start to wonder if there is something else he wants.

You don't want to be by his side, you hate even looking at him because you feel constantly violated and exposed, you hate the feeling and the bastard knows it, he enjoys getting nervous like you can't imagine.

"Makime-san, if you only called me for this I see no point in staying..." You were getting hysterical, you wanted to hit him even if it meant getting killed in the process, you still got up bowing and starting to leave. Yeah If you stayed longer, you wouldn't know whether to hit them out of irritation or the simple fact of wasting your time. Damn, you never understood their actions and that frustrates you, it's like a game of egos between tug and pull.

It wasn't until hands bigger than your arm grabbed you tightly, giving you a sharp twist, making you collide with the redhead's chest. Your face pressed against his chest, feeling the beating of his heart, although thinking about it more thoroughly you didn't know if it was just the sound he imitated to avoid raising suspicions. The breath on the helix¹ of your ear as you inevitably turned red. Instinctively you wanted to push him but he held you tighter in his arms as he whispered your name loving that blush coming from you.

You see him with a calm look, not knowing that you are telling him what he wants to hear: Those beats in your chest indicating that he was the cause of these... No one else and that puts him in a better mood.

With calm eyes, he looks at your lips and back into your eyes, he comes a little closer to you, caresses your cheek tenderly and looks at you with a more intense look. This only makes the knot in your stomach that has been building up for these few minutes increase and become more tangled like the spaghetti you ate yesterday for dinner.

"I just want to see you by my side. Isn't that enough for you?" He says with a sweet and seductive voice, he smiles a little at you, but his golden eyes look at you intensely with mixed emotions. You know that everything has an intention behind it and you don't want to give in to his whims.... But God!!, how you wanted to keep looking and admit that despite being a son of a bitch and a cunning manipulator, he's damn attractive.

You continued to stare at Makime, trying to figure out his true intentions. You felt a mixture of tension and longing inside of you, fighting against your own contradictory feelings. His closeness and his caresses disturbed you, but at the same time they attracted you in a way that you could not help.

"I don't know if that's enough for me," you replied with a shaky voice, trying to keep your guard up. "There are still many things I don't understand about you, Makime-san. I can't just get carried away by your sweet words and gestures. I don't trust you completely and we barely speak to each other."

He looks at you with a 'kind' smile on his lips and sees that his eyes become duller than usual, you avoid looking at them any longer with an insecure look, he knows you're nervous but you don't let him see everything.

"Trust takes time, you will give it to me sooner or later, you will have no other choice"

His gaze only pierces yours and his eyes remain that hypnotic golden color with those rings in them, hypnotizing you and he begins to caress your thigh with his hand.

Then as if something bewitched both of them, their lips slowly approached and he kisses your lips, nibbles your tongue and lips. Loving every inch of your mouth, your mind at this point is blurry and so you let yourself go.

[Sorry if I don't put the NSFW content yet, but I need to write that part properly and since I have a knot in my head, I need to organize myself with my creative ideas. I hope you liked it and I'm sorry if there are mistakes in the pronouns, my understanding of English is the same as a 3 year old :P]

[esprei]

have recently learned there's a bit more hate around trainwreckshipping than i was aware of so i guess i just wanted to talk about it a bit and give my two cents on the ship, how i see it and i guess my perspective on things. i've kind of always wanted to talk about it, but i just haven't been brave enough until now haha (sorry, i am not super eloquent when it comes to writing things like this so my apologies) ((also throwing it under a cut because it may get long and might also include some slightly sad-ish things so i don't want to just throw that in everyone's face you know))

----

i think i'll just preface things by saying i've always totally understood why trainwreckshipping has gotten so much flack since its inception. or hate, because maybe flack just isn't strong enough of a word. but i do understand. there were mischaracterizations of emmet by portraying him as violent to volo because it was assumed that volo was directly responsible for ingo's disappearance. i was guilty of it. suuuuuper guilty. and i can understand why that put the ship in such a position for many people. toxic, unhealthy, etc. but... i think what i'm a bit confused on i guess is the fact that it's still viewed so much this way to this day. viewed as one of the worst ships because of how toxic it is. how unhealthy it is. all because it started that way in fanon only. but you know, from a canon standpoint, it has nothing. nothing at all. so really, this ship could be anything because it's based in fanon only. no canon interactions of emmet and volo exist yet. there is no official basis on how these characters would interact with each other. and yes, while there were misunderstandings of both characters early on, that certainly doesn't mean it's still that way today. that doesn't mean that people haven't studied and looked at these two characters a little closer to understand them better and to try and make them more realistic to their canon portrayals. to make more accurate depictions of these characters and how that fits in to a healthier perspective with them. i dunno. it just kinda baffles me that with the variety of trainwreckshipping content out there now, some still call it toxic and unhealthy as if we're perpetually stuck in that time period of when it was. like it's not allowed to be anything but that ever just because it started that way. and what makes me the saddest about it all is now seeing so many friends and people in the community of the ship start to get disheartened and discouraged from enjoying something they really actually enjoy because there's still such a bad stigma to the ship. personally for a long time i've just ignored that stigma because i try not to let that stuff drag me down. but i will admit that yes, it has made me more reluctant to post any art i do of it. i've definitely had my periods where i've questioned uploading my emmet/volo art, usually as wholesome as it is, because it does have such a dark cloud around it fandom wise. it's why i made my side blog, in fact. because i just didn't feel very comfortable uploading mostly emmet/volo art here to my main because so many people dislike it or outright hate it.

and in regards to the ship itself, i think i've always thought of it in a slightly different way than most. not so much enemies to lovers but rather through the lens of how volo might could change, be redeemed, see the how his actions in the past inadvertently affected others (and by that I mean his involvement in opening the rift... like yes, that could be what caused ingo to be sent to hisui, but we don't know that for sure... and even if that was the case, volo didn't do it specifically to target ingo. volo was only ever interested in trying to get to arceus and build a better world in his vision).

or how volo could look at emmet after getting to know him and potentially see the beauty and value of the current world through him. you know, seeing someone like emmet and admiring that he can still find a reason to smile and be kind despite all of the pain and suffering he must have gone through since ingo's disappearance. volo starting to see a different perspective than he did before (aka wanting to build a new world because the current one was too full of pain and suffering) because of emmet. i dunno. that's just me personally. because since actually looking more at volo's character and his dialogue in game i've been real interested in redemption paths for him. exploring those possibilities. i just enjoy exploring said possibilities mostly through the dynamic i have in my head for him and emmet because it's fun. it interests me. i see cool potential in it. i enjoy it a lot. and while i don't think i ever portray volo super accurately, or even emmet for that matter, i still think i've come a long way since first finishing pla and ever looking at emmet/volo interactions. but regardless of all of that, that's the beauty of a ship of this nature. a ship that has absolutely no basis in canon. because it really can be anything you want it to be. it can be enemies to lovers, it can be more wholesome, it can be whatever. it's not locked into a specific dynamic because the characters have never officially met each other, let alone had a conversation. and even if that were the case... AUs are still a thing. :D

anyway that's pretty much all i had. just wanted to talk about it a bit because i've seen a recent uptick in people mentioning all of the hate and dislike for the ship etc and i dunno. i enjoy the ship a lot. it's just sad to see that there's still so much hate around it even though a lot of the content now is not like how it originally started. not from what i've seen, at least.

and while i don't expect anyone who hates it to ever warm up to it, i just wish it could be understood that the more toxic, unhealthy dynamic is not the basis of anymore. there are healthier portrayals of it now.

[foodiegoogie]

lost in the woods (of your vast beauty)

woah, this is my first piece of writing on tumblr,,,,, whaaaaaat

anywhooo, to whoever comes across this, i hope you have a blast reading this! i had a blast writing it :>

TW: nothing heavy, there is a presence of water and fish tho

also, this was supposed to be set in the forest but uh,,, idk what happened LOL <3 happy reading!

( ♡ )

Kaedahara Kazuha is great with words. No, scratch that – he's excellent with words. Actually, no, he's amazing with words. He's eloquent. Hearing him speak is almost identical to the sound of birds singing to you in the morning as rays of sunlight step into your room.

His voice is undeniably gentle. It is an audible representation of leaves gracefully drifting through the wind. Long story short, being with Kaedehara Kazuha guarantees a moment of peace and tranquility.

Of course, Kazuha, himself, knows this: he starts to speak at some point, not minding the way he tells his stories and forgets to think about anything else. In fact, he often reminds himself to speak as simple and understandable as he can while he's telling stories. But most of the time, he's off rambling to his heart's content about nature or anything else of his interest to certain people he's with.

To recap: Kaedehara Kazuha is an absolute pro when it comes to speaking, yes? So… why is it that whenever he's with you, he gets a little tongue-tied?

"Kazu?" You call him by the nickname you came up with (that he grew to be fond of as you used it over the years), "You still with me?"

"Huh?" Kazuha blinks a few times before registering the intensity of your curious and slightly concerned gaze on him. Oh shit, I must have done it again. "Uh, yeah. Still here."

"Oh, good! I thought I lost you," You chuckle awkwardly, tucking your hair behind your ear.

Kazuha thinks you did lose him. Somewhere in your beautiful eyes or your blinding smile or your pleasantly deafening laugh.

He can't even bring himself to utter a whole sentence in front of you, especially not with you looking so graceful and pretty in the sunlight. He's very much thankful that you both chose fishing as your bonding activity for the time, because he has the sounds of the water rippling and splashing to keep him sane; the same goes for the fishing part.

"As I was saying, I really don't know why Xiangling thinks I'm a bad cook. I mean, I'm not the best - that's for sure. But like… I am pretty decent," You nod to yourself as you say these words, almost even convincing yourself that you are, in fact, decent in the kitchen. This lasted for less than a minute until you remembered that you were with the most observant person you knew in Teyvat.

"I am a pretty decent cook, right, Kazuha?"

"Yeah, you're pretty."

"...What?"

Kazuha wanted to use his elemental powers to fly far, far away from embarrassing himself at this moment.

"Decent. Pretty decent."

You nodded and said thanks to his confirmation, and then you were off again on another rant, talking animatedly with hand gestures and all. Kazuha could (and would) spend a whole day listening to you, basking in the warmth of your presence, and he couldn't have imagined a better way to spend his day.

What he thought was mere admiration for someone like you, who he has spent so much of his life with so far, turned into this immense feeling of affection and endearment for you. It scared him, at first, when he realized the weight of his feelings. He could have just been confusing one emotion with another. But there was no mistaking the way his stomach feels weird when he locks eyes with you, or the way his heart beats a little faster when you smile at him. There was nothing to have second thoughts about when Kazuha finds himself to be lost in the woods of your vast beauty - and as a wanderer, that frustrates him a bit because it happens more often than he'd like to admit.

"Well, that's enough about me." You say to him after pausing for a while. "What about you, Kazu? Anything interesting happened to you lately on your adventures?"

The man in question feels the corners of his mouth slip into a frown (he hadn't even realized that he was smiling in the first place). Kazuha didn't really feel like he could tell you anything interesting at the moment. Hell, he's pretty interested in you now, would that count as a topic of conversation?

Kazuha began to open his mouth to say something after pondering for a while, but then you directed your attention to your makeshift fishing rod.

"I think I caught something!"

"May the Archons bless us with at least a Pufferfish for lunch."

"Shut up, Kazuha!"

"Gladly." He didn't actually say this to you. But Kazuha did, indeed, gladly shut up for you. He watches you struggle to reel in whatever was caught on your fishing rod with a fond smile on his face, wishing he could help you instead of just standing around like a lovesick fool.

The lovesick fool snaps out of his train of thought by the slightly concerning sounds you were suddenly making. Kazuha started towards you, arms spread out slightly in case you needed an emergency landing (he's half hoping you will need it because of obvious reasons).

"I got it! It's a–"

Your eyes squint to try and see what was hanging on the end of your fishing rod. Down goes the last of your hope to see the look on Kazuha's face when you show off your fishing skills and your expected catch for the day… which is apparently a broken piece of wood.

"Hey, don't sulk now, sunshine. I haven't had my turn with the fishing rod yet, anyway." Kazuha attempts to comfort your defeated self, feeling like a hole was carved out of his chest after seeing you so disheartened like a wilted flower - all droopy and sad. He gently takes the rod from your hands, letting his own linger a little bit longer on yours when they meet.

The rest of the day is spent like this: Kazuha gets great catches when he has the fishing rod, and you get a few ones with the remaining amount of hope within you - even then, it's to you he gives praise and admiration, not to himself and his own catches. You return the compliments though, showering him with all the good adjectives you know and taking pride in the way his cheeks look a little red right after.

But for Kazuha, the rest of the day is spent like this: He takes all the time in the world with breathing you in. He looks at you as if you're the most fascinating being to ever exist within the vast world of Teyvat. He notices each and every little thing about you like he hasn't known them all already by heart. All the while, he doesn't say a thing as he does all these things.

Because that's Kaedehara Kazuha's way. Sometimes, no words are needed to be said. Besides, 'actions speak louder than words.' On that note, peace will always be at the heart of his actions. It will always be what he will fight for and stand for.

As they all say, "beautiful things don't ask for attention." Well, it's true that they don't, but Kazuha is willing to pour every last drop of his attention on you, even if it means embarrassing himself because he suddenly can't quite find the right words to say. I guess that's the price you pay for getting lost.

( ♡ )

HIIIII THANK YOU FOR MAKING IT THIS FAR INTO THE DRABBLE o(*￣▽￣*)ブ pls feel free to comment/reblog and tell me what u think abt this one <3 also tagging @ittodori … this one's for you! (shoots ball)

[metanarrates]

What you wrote about letting the Poster in your mind die struck a cord in me. Lately when I'm writing I can't help but censor myself & add a tone of irony to it & lampshade cliches. Do you have any advice on how to write earnestly? Do you have any favorite media that is written with sincerity you would suggest?

my opinion is that if you're trying to cut out your own urges to be ironic and detached DURING the process of writing, you may end up overly scrutinizing your writing while it's happening, and that's usually what gets you too trapped in your own head to even get many words out. my advice is to simply let it happen in the first draft of whatever you come up with, and then have it be one of the things you look for while going over it in editing. ask yourself when you edit: am I saying what I actually want to say? am I being ironic for a reason, or is it because I don't know how to write anything else? can I try to do something less ironic? if I feel like I want to write something funny, can I come up with jokes that aren't "hey look at this cliche?"

above all else, when editing your own work, I find it valuable to think about whether this is the sort of story you really want to tell. if you feel passionate about it, why do you find it necessary to censor yourself? and if you find that you don't feel passionate about it, maybe you should restructure the work to make it more enjoyable to you. of course, not every scene in a story is fun to write, and not every moment of irony or lampshading is necessarily a bad thing. but if you find that irony is becoming a major habit in a work, it might be worth thinking about whether or not you're actually enjoying your own story.

as for the sincere media - most good media is very sincere! i actually think irony poisoning is the exception rather than the rule, though it is common enough in big blockbusters and the like that I do feel I have to complain about it. I would say most works I've read and enjoyed have been quite sincere. there's good stuff out there if you look.

that said, the works that come to my mind as being particularly upfront in their sincerity are:

mob psycho 100 - you've probably heard of this one. middle schooler with psychic powers and a severe case of emotional repression dispels a lot of ghosts with his con artist mentor and also figures out how to be a more well-adjusted person. mp100 has had a LOT of very eloquent reviews, so I won't say too much about it. it's just an extremely funny and shockingly emotionally resonant work.

witch hat atelier - absolutely gorgeous manga about a little girl who becomes an apprentice witch after discovering that magic is not exclusive to those who were born witches as she thought, but instead a teachable skill that has deliberately been kept in the hands of a few. the art in this is stellar, and its moments of horror are just as well-captured as its moments of gentleness. one of the themes of witch hat atelier is the beauty of art/magic and the joy an artist finds in its creation, and the artwork of the manga REALLY reinforces this theme. it's beautiful to look at and there's a quality of sincere love for both the work itself and its audience that suffuses the manga. though I will give a general tw for child harm - another major theme of the story is the responsibility adults, particularly teachers, have towards children, and this theme necessitates showing the ways that children can be harmed by teachers, as well as showing the ways that a good teacher can affect a child. it's very good!

omniscient reader's viewpoint: this one is LONG (over a million words) but is a great example of what I would call "post-cringe." a guy ends up seeing the events of his favorite fantasy-apocalypse action novel be recreated around him, and is determined to survive in this world where only he knows everything. one of the most charming things about orv, to me, is that the novel read by the main character is pretty obviously "cringe." it's a badly written escapist webnovel that is sometimes overly edgy, relies a lot on clichés, and can be very dense. the story points out sometimes how facts of the novel's world are kind of stupid or contrived. and yet, our protagonist loves that novel, and the story VERY much validates his love of it. despite him having at times a little bit of that ironic detachment towards the novel he loves, it's always clear that he thinks the cool monsters etc. are The Shit and that he is enthralled by the events playing out around him. the writing leans into how cool its setting and set pieces can be. hell, one of the big themes is how a story, no matter what kind of story it is, can mean everything to the reader who loves it. it's a good example of a work that can poke fun at its own clichés sometimes WHILE still loving those cliches and wanting the audience to enjoy those exact clichés.

again, there's a lot of good stuff out there! these are just my picks for having notable sincerity. if you read a lot, chances are that you will find a lot of great, earnest work. personally, I would recommend figuring out what genre you enjoy reading or watching, and then trying out some highly rated works in that genre. it's a great way to try out shit you haven't tried before! I would also recommend trying out stuff from 15 or more years ago, generally, if you're looking at more mainstream novels, movies, and TV series rather than specific genre fiction. the irony poisoning problem wasn't so prevalent then.

hope this helps!

edit: I FORGOT EVERYTHING EVERYWHERE ALL AT ONCE. please watch eeaao, it's a deeply sincere and whimsical piece of art

[littlecello]

Lazarus responses all in one place for better readability wahoo

belphegor1982 Holy cow, we really dodged a bullet there. Thank you for the write-up! I hadn't heard of Lazarus at all before. And now I'm very thankful that the fandom still exists and thrives! 💜

WE REALLY DID LOL. You're very welcome, glad to have been of service! And omg I feel the same ahhh! It's made me really appreciate the little space we built for ourselves over all these years 🥹

-

bisexualroger Was lovely to meet you and fern too! 😊 I definitely agree with this. I’m really glad I went for the experience, I’d have been gutted to have missed it, but ultimately yeah the shortcomings (especially with regard to how they handled the politics of the police 😬) mean it’s for the best we never got Lazarus the show. 

AHHH YES!! Seriously you all made my entire day 🥹🥹🥹 And god yeah, I am also genuinely glad to have been there, because the questions and forever-wondering would have killed my fandom-mojo I think. But now it's done the opposite and I am ENERGISED! I want to re-establish the best parts of the fandom as opposed to what we witnessed in that room! Seriously, all those cis-het men laughing so hard at all the bad jokes made me feel so uncomfortable.

-

youstupidplonkIt was so wonderful to meet you!! You’ve put this into words so much more eloquently than I have managed so far. I really do agree that the way they joked about current politics, both in the police and around the climate felt very out of touch. As you’ve said especially because the main demographic keeping this fandom active is young (from what I can tell) liberal people Thank you again for saying hi to us and taking the time to write this wonderful analysis ❤️❤️

LIKEWISE AHHH!! Your outfit was fantastic btw!! And I'm glad you feel my analysis hit the spot - hearing all the laughter around us and stuff made both Fern and me feel really lonely and out of place at times ghfkjgs. We're both really glad we aren't alone with our sentiments 🥹

-

fleurdeneuf oh wow, thank you for sharing all of this! i'm relieved the show won't be happening.

You're welcome!! It would've felt wrong not to do a little report on this, seeing as the event wasn't well advertised and tickets sold out so quickly. We've got to include the whole fandom in this! 💪

-

partywithponies I think it was very shallow as well in that it was almost entirely Life on Mars with barely any Ashes to Ashes to it at all, and coincidentally, Ashes to Ashes isn't as well known overseas. It didn’t feel for the fans, it just felt like what they thought would sell better. Poor Shaz didn't even get a single vague reference the entire event, and Alex, the literal third main character of the franchise, got one passing moment in the entire pilot.

I agree to some extent - they definitely went for what they felt would have the most recognition value. I do however think that they at least set up quite a bit of Alex involvement, seeing as she's the one who hits Sam and Gene in 2024 (or at least it's heavily implied that it's her). As for Shaz, I have to be cynical and say that with Matt and Ashley being old white men... they've probably forgotten about her and/or don't think she's important. Unfortunately.

Either way, I guess we can both agree that it's a good thing Lazarus isn't getting made as a TV show haha!

-

On a personal note, thank you all for your warm reactions to my little report :') I have to admit I was a bit trepidatious about posting it because of my (and our) negative feelings about it, as contrasted to what Fern and I perceived as a really enthusiastic response from the audience that was present... But I see now I needn't have worried. The fandom I remember and love is still here, and I can't thank you all enough for that. 💚

[dragon-swords-prophecies]

NaNoWriMo 2023 Days 16 & 17: Herald At Dawn

***I'm doing half a nano (25k not 50k) cause I have too much other shit to do (school)***

Today's (& yesterdays) Wordcount/Today's Goal Wordcount: 1105/1670

Total Wordcount: 14545/25k (58%)

Goal Wordcount: 25k

Snippet:

Leo nodded. ”There is a slight problem with that,“ he said, once Alex's tidal wave of curses began to let up. ”…What is it?“ asked Bill. ”We do not actually have the information yet.“ “Pardon? Asked Bill. Alex sighed. “My contact at City Hall cannot get us into the record storerooms until 11:30.” “Which means we cannot get anything to print until then.” “Crap,” said Jack, eloquently. The other people in the room echoed the sentiment. After a heartbeat, James said what they were all thinking. ”We are not going to have enough for an article until the afternoon, are we?“ Alex, Bill, and Leo all nodded slowly. ”No,“ said Bill, voicing all their fears. ”We don't.“ James nodded. “I'm sorry I made you all come in.” Bill laughed. “James, I don't think any of us were actually asked to come in.”

Notes: These are combined because I fell asleep typing this post out and didn't finish it enough to post it before school. (I did not write a lot (read: like 350 words) yesterday, but I also (looking at the nano website) had enough of a buffer built up to skip an entire day. which is amazing because i did so many things yesterday and didn't get home until like 10pm.) Also I am slowing infusing my own personality into Leo and he is becoming more and more autistic coded with every single word I write about him and its AMAZING and i love it. Also Alex has, somehow, acquired a sister. But she's cool!! and will shortly be most likely murdered which i feel slightly bad about but there isn't enough trauma in this book yet /half joking.

Taglist (ask to be added/removed): @thelaughingstag @gr3y-heron @another-white-void @amethyst-aster

[invisiblerambler]

I want to write an entire treatise on what the bear means to me and the way it has allowed me to explore my relationship with ambition and the fact that I was Carmy wanting to leave my hometown and never return. It has helped me heal my relationship to my hometown and the Midwest and the layers of complexity that those relationships still contain for me.

People think I am insane when I say this show is soothing to me, but it is. It's cathartic and soothing and gives language to a wide range of experiences I wondered if I could ever explain much less put them as eloquently as this show did and does.

This show makes me never want to write another word, while also making a TV show that is a love letter to what this show does in so many ways.

It won't be about chefs or cooking, or fine dining, but it will be set in the Midwest, and deal with grief and trauma and loving a place that hated you, and hating the place you can never escape.

Few other shows have felt as if they sit underneath a layer of my skin. This show does. Carmy and Syd and all of their mistakes and flaws and everything else feel painfully reflective sometimes.

The confrontation between Chef and Carmy, I sobbed watching it. Because I too, whether I like it or not feel driven some days by a person who undoubtedly doesn't think about me, but sent me off in our last interaction with a comment that haunts me.

The confrontation is never cathartic, it isn't closure, you will never get what you want from it, but shaking that feeling that you have something to prove to any person other than yourself, that runs deep.

I am currently and have been crawling out of that hole going on eight years now. Recently is one of the first times I feel the most in-control of that feeling I ever have.

I sincerely hope one day I can meet Chris Storer in a professional context and tell him how much this show means to me. I won't be the first person or the last, but it among a handful of other TV is why I want to do this so bad. Despite all the odds and the in some ways utter stupidity of wanting to try to do this... when art like this that somehow manages to be successful in a medium that is inherently commercial, it just fucking is the only thing I want to dedicate my time to.

There was a few years where I tried to convince myself I would be fine doing something else. Anything else, because entertainment is clearly insane, but unfortunately it seems like this is what I was born to do and the only thing I'm any good at.

Which when Mikey says that about Carmy knowing what he wants and being great at it, that one got me right between the fucking eyes.

Anyways thanks for reading my half coherent diatribe about this show and how stupidly meaningful it is to me. I love being on this hellsite to discourse about something that means so much.

[raisethestake]

Tech x reader (NSFW) pt. 1/2

Excuse some of the crude language, I dont picture a relationship with Tech being overly romanticised so it felt weird to have especially eloquent and descriptive words for some reason 😂

Mostly fluff, gets more NSFW the further down you read. Enjoy!

(pt. 2 in development)

· I am a retired bounty hunter who gets employed by the Republic as a reconnaissance contact

· I was born on Ord Mantell

· I am quite paranoid, which makes me a great scout as I am always on the lookout.

· I am covered in piercings and tattoos

· Tech is also covered in tattoos

[reference 👇]

Meeting

· I work in 79's when I'm not on missions. This is where I was briefly acquainted with the Batch.

· I then got put on a mission with them about a month later.

· He is fascinated by my creative knowledge and wisdom. It is different than his own knowledge and while he's actually quite good when he joins me to paint sometimes, he struggles with conceptual ideas and prefers cold, hard facts.

· Me and Tech really hit it off with intellectual debates. I learnt stuff from him and he liked it when I asked for advice, but he also learnt about social and moral concepts from me.

· I am a trained night owl because I work in a bar, but i also enjoy the mornings, soaking in the peacefulness of either sides of the day.

· We are always the last 2 to go to bed, working in silence or having hushed conversations in the cockpit.

· Tech started to look forward to this undisturbed time with me.

· everyone noticed that I was Tech's new favorite person.

Flustered

· he was sat in the corner in 79's one night looking a litle distracted. I asked Hunter and Crosshair what was up when they were getting drinks. Hunter wasnt sure, but Crosshair said

· "he's hung up on someone and doesnt quite know what to do with himself."

· Hunter looked incredulous "who??"

· Crosshair's gaze went straight from Tech to me. I responded with a snort.

· he'd gotten onto Tech's data pad and seen mission reports filed by me. It looked like he was researching me, analysing my speech and thought process to be able to talk to me better.

· they asked me what i was going to do. I made a 'fuck it' face and finished my shift half an hour later.

· i came out with shots and offered one to Tech. "Come one mopey, we gonna dance?"

· as he stood up and shotted, "theres just something i gotta do first" and I took his chin and met his lips to mine.

· he got very flustered and started babbling about something in a low mumble. I took his hand and led him to the dancefloor.

· his dancing was a little awkward and self-conscious, but he was glad it was jazz so he didnt have to let loose to blend in. He was watching me intently the whole time. Me peppering him with kisses and him beginning to reciprocate, letting go of my hands to pull my waist in close. My arms thrown around his neck, we danced in an embrace.

· as we were around the boys all the time, we didnt get ample time to ourselves.

· Tech is NOT a morning person. He will stay asleep as long as time allows and is very grumpy. He will snap at people before he has his coffee.

· The boys warned me after we'd already slept together. I enjoy quiet in the morning anyway so I hadn't disturbed him.

· Morning Tech started to appear less often as having someone wake him up with neck kisses put him in a much better mood.

· we soon worked out that his main kink was love bites. It turned him on to see them during the day and know I was his.

· Tech is a madman. He clutters, scribbles on his walls, accidentally stays up late and tattoos himself.

· I slot into this well. While not as hardcore, I also tattoo myself and I am easy with the clutter. I am not the most tidy person but I like that I never feel guilty for it because he's worse than me.

· We are the lords of parallel play. We can sit in silence for hours. Tech tinkers, I do creative things, sometimes we sit and tattoo each other.

Good Morning

· we were on the Marauder after the rest of the boys woke up early to pick up parts in the city.

· I got up to make caff. Tech came in as I sipped and looked out the window.

· he made a cup and came to stand just behind me. I took his arm and wrapped it around my waist. He relaxed into it and rested his cheek on my head.

· I kissed his hand and he melted. He kissed my temple and made his way down to my neck, his hand moving to my hip. He stretched to set down his caff and squeezed my hips.

· i set my mug down and reached behind my head to stroke his hair. He pulled my pelvis into his as he added little licks down my neck and nibbled my ear.

· i turned around and our lips met. He towered over me as we backed against the wall.

· we jacked each other off at the same time until he lifted me up to curl my legs around his head and sat me on him.

· he began respectfully, but adapted as I encouraged him to go harder.

· i ended up turning round and he took me from behind. One hand reaching to rub my clit and biting my neck.

· he finished just after me.

· i had to brace against the wall to keep myself standing - weak in the knees. Tech twisted around and leaned his back against the wall. We looked at each other panting and chuckled before he took my hand and turned me around, sinking down to bring me ino his lap, where he held me and we kissed and talked.

· Tech is a sex GOD. I've had it good from bounty hunters, but never like him. He learnt everything about the female body when we got together to ensure I had the best time.

[tales-from-nocturnaliss]

About this blog (and its writer, obviously)

Writeblr-specific Intro (coming soon-ish)

Most used tags

About Feedback Asks (coming soon-ish)

What follows: About me | My values | What to expect on this blog | A word of caution regarding my own content/writing shares | A literature link

About me

I am a chaotic good trilingual Belgian lady, writer of character-driven Dark Fantasy, and I was diagnosed autistic in January '23 at the age of 42. I'm overall a happy person, gots a husband, two cats, a great love and passion for anime (subbed) and video games, reverence for Dragons and Death (yes, the entity), an obsession with emotions and psychology, and I tend to fangirl my own characters a lot. I'm real easy to get to know since I'm open about my life and myself.

I'm also chronically stressed and tired. The assumption here is that decades of unwitting masking, of functioning by societal norms, has slowly gotten me into a state of perpetual autistic burnout. This basically means that I have good days and bad days, depending on how brain chemistry decides to fare. Generally, I dislike getting into arguments and petty debates because they waste so much energy over nothing.

My values

These past decades have gotten me here: I am all about tolerance and communication and seeing the world through each other's eyes. As such, I love meeting people of all walks of life, be they fellow autistics, ADHD, bipolar, neurotypicals, and everything in between. I'm genuinely interested in understanding how people function.

However. Tired as I always am, I tend to do what feels natural to me without too much thought at times. This means, specifically for fellow autistics, that I don't adhere to the unwritten rules and social cues of the global autistic community. Concretely: I don't speak the lingo and won't cater to specific needs on my blog. This also applies to trigger warnings, which I don't recognize beyond 18+ and gore.

This means that, here, any and all topics can/may/will be discussed, and that everyone's welcome to pitch in an opinion/thought – as long as you do it respectfully. I am generally able to perceive the difference between responses made in anger and hurt, and targeted trolling. As said above, I do like to meet people of all kinds. There's also no need to adhere to any sort of Tumblr etiquette with me. Just come as you are. We'll see if we can get along.

What to expect on this blog

Since my activity spikes at times and I mainly enjoy scrolling BotW fanarts, arts in general, and posts about writing, I can only tell you for certain that herein you can find

reblogs about writing tips on varying subjects

reblogs of dark/beautiful artwork that appeals to me

the occasional autism reblog that speaks to my personal life

the even more occasional personal blog

the very occasional writing snippet from my own works

The most important thing to remember about personal input is that, when I write about any topic, be it eloquently or like a monkey on red bull, what I say is only my own personal opinion and experience. I'm open to being told I'm wrong on more general topics, not to be yelled at or otherwise bullied into compliance. I'm cute and friendly until I no longer am.

As stated above: I am all about tolerance and communication. I'll assume any bitchiness is a reaction of hurt if you extend the same courtesy to me. I'm open to discussing potential issues as long as you try to understand where I'm coming from, too.

A word of caution regarding my own content/writing shares

As stated above, I tend not to have a working filter when it comes to trigger warnings beyond 18+ and gore. I don't think in categories. My mind is a flow of feelings and emotions and thoughts and of life, beautiful and ugly, sometimes uplifting, sometimes rife with darkness and despair. And I need to express it all the only way I know how: by simply expressing it.

Therefore, reading any of my posts comes at your own discretion. I will assume you've read through the pinned post, and direct you here should you express any sort of uninformed displeasure at reading my posts.

Still here?

Wonderful :3. Now, how about I direct you to my current big project, Ario's story, and all five (almost six) parts in his story? Yes? Yes. :3

Basically the story of a young man who decided to flee his home country, gets stuck on a ship, and then problems, comedy, sappiness and all sorts of delicious moments occur. The Dark Fantasy part is coming up in part 6. Stay tuned!

[talisidekick]

Spouse had their second round of surgery today. We're driving home and just stopping in at a co-op to get some things they're allowed to eat. We pull into the parking lot, and the inner wheel lining for our vehicle is falling off so it kind of makes this horrid noise anytime the vehicles wheel turns.

This delightfully curious and old man approaches my driver side window and has this look of concern on his face. The one where something is going horribly wrong, and you know the person -has- to know something is wrong, but you're not sure they know -what- is wrong. So I roll down the window and say hi and he goes. "So your wheel is ... um ..." and just looks down at it and and pauses, not sure how to describe the utter evisceration the wheel has done to this kind of important guard between the road and the front electronics.

And I'm sorry, but this guy looks like he's in his 60's and every alter in my brain is screaming 'make this old man not feel terrible, say -anything- to make this man feel less worried', so what do I say with a laugh and in a tone best described by '^.^'?

"Oh, I know, I'm just too poor to fix it."

Which did not make it better! Realizing that my idiot mouth blurts out:

"We're just running it into the ground! It's okay!"

Which totally doesn't help AT ALL! This man just apologetically looks at me and goes "I'm sorry to hear that, and I suppose if you take it off, that'll only make things cost more in the long run."

So now I feel WORSE and when we part he says something in Yiddish that I only recognize because I have heard it said by a Jewish friends mom when I was growing up as a teen (it got burned into my head because it was the first -ever- time I heard that language spoken). And I used to know what to say back because that friend taught me, but it's been over a decade since and I just stared trying to remember and just awkwardly said "I forget what to say back, I'm so sorry, I hope you have a good day." And then just peaced like the socially awkward DORK I am. I may be eloquent in my writing, and sometimes very well spoken on my streams, but in my real life I am neither of those things. I'm a socially nervous idiot with a bad case of word vomit. So just in case that Jewish man is on Tumblr or somehow sees this:

Sir, thank you for your concern, and please don't let my situation bring your day down! I promise you I'm still smiling and laughing and having a good day despite it all so don't let my situation weigh on you like it seemed to. I'll make it through, and I'll be taking every opportunity to make the tough situations in my life something to smile about in any way I possibly can. Your reach out was touching! It was incredibly nice of you. It's kind of made my last two weeks a bit better given I lost my job, lost my medical coverage, have missed 3 loans payments that the government is getting real angry about, and the bottom of my only vehicle I can't afford to replace is falling off. I know that all sounds bad, but you were a delightful change of pace from it all. I hope you have great things coming your way. ♥

[yuujispinkhair]

GUURRRRLLLLL

i just finished reading the last chapter of "to the end" and FUUCCCKKK...winter? WHAT ARE YOU DOING TO MEEEE?? you are HANDS DOWN one of my favorite writers EVER. the way you describe everything...you always use the most eloquent wording. you're like a visual artist, painting your vivid images in my mind so perfectly!

but listen. chapter 6? I SOBBED!! it wasn't just the story though...it's like when you hear a sad song with the most beautiful music and poignant lyrics. that's what reading chapter 6 was like for me...you moved me to tears with the way you conjured so much out of thin air. i felt EVERYTHING both sukuna and reader felt: the grief, the anger, the love, the fear, the uncertainty, the hatred, the despair, the anguish, the fury...you brought every single one of these emotions to life in 7k words. i felt that shit IN MY BONES.

how do you DO it, winter?? every time i think i've read your best fic, you go and outdo yourself. you are so incredibly gifted at this craft. i legit look up to you as a writer and an artist. and i also happen to think you're one of the sweetest, sunniest humans i've met in my life, both on and off tumblr. 💗 you're the bo to my akaashi. 🦉

i'm kinda sad "to the end" has reached its own end, but it's okay bc i know you're going to continue churning out even better work (which seems impossible, but again, you always somehow manage to top even your best work. and i admire tf out of you as a writer for the way you obviously push yourself to get better and better!)

sorry this ended up being so long 😅 i could go on and on about you and your godlike talent! i'm such a fangirl PLEASE 😭😭😭

(p.s. - i'd like to think that if the virus is ever cured, sukuna and reader will go on to have a little boy together and name him yuuji...and he'd have pink hair just like his dad and uncle 🥹💗)

KEL I READ THIS AND THEN I BAWLED MY EYES OUT BECAUSE I GOT SO EMOTIONAL AAAHHH THANK YOU SO SO MUCH!!! <3<3<3 This is so sweet of you!! And it means so much to me because I was so invested in this story. I lived in this world, and I suffered with the characters. I fell so in love with this version of Sukuna. Idk but he was such a disaster. He was so bad for himself, and that made me want to save him so much and love him even harder. I felt so protective over him :(( And the scene in chapter 6 where they confess their love is still something that makes me cry when I think about it. So it makes me all giddy when you say that you could feel all those emotions too!! I cannot even put into words how much it means to me that you enjoyed the story and especially chapter 6!! I AM CRYING AGAIN!!

Omg helppp I LOVE your headcanon about them having a little boy who they name Yuuji omggg my heart!! It's what they deserve! <3<3

Thank you again, babe! I will never forget this! It means so much to me!! Especially since I am such a big fan of you!! You are one of my fave writers and such a sweet and fun person! I am so happy that you are my friend <3<3