#because of their speech impediment? of course not that's just how they talk!!

[la-galaxie-langblr]

Above is a recording of my first few sections of orals, it's linked to my podcast Google account so thankfully I won't be doxxing myself skdhsksjls, anyway yeah if you click on it you can listen :) I'm not great at pronunciation though so apologies in advance. If you're new here I have a fairly severe speech impediment, and I will take advice and corrections on pronunciation and grammar but not on how to stammer less.

Transcript under the cut:

Ellis: Bonjour Tumblr, et aujourd'hui je vais dire mes réponses à mes questions orales au sujet de l'école et l'université. Donc, la première partie est les questions sur les plans futurs.

1) Je n'ai aucune idée à propos de mon métier futur, par contre il vaut mieux que le travail me fasse plaisir et que je pourrais gagner ma vie. J'espère que je saurai le boulot que je voudrais faire quand j'aurai fini mon diplôme universitaire.

Et alors, le deuxième section est l'études futurs.

2) Mes parents veulent que je fasse un diplôme en gestion, alors que moi, j'aimerais étudier le français et la linguistique au niveau universitaire l'année prochaine.

Mistakes I made and I'm aware I made: should be la deuxième section and les études futurs.

[pomefioredove]

Hey Dove~

I was reading through the different headcannons and the mute reader really caught my attention. Could you possibly do the Vice Wardens (including Ruggie cuz he's basically second in command anyway) with Yuu that has a speech impediment? Basically they stutter/stumble on words, get them mixed up, pronounces them wrong, and maybe forgets certain words. And obviously with new arcana and magical words (and the weird ahh names some of these characters have) they can get pretty frusterated or embarressed.

You always have such good headcannons!! Feel free to throw in any other characters that you like to the mix as well!!

OH this hits close to home too. I stutter and mispronounce things when I do speak, so I'm using that for reference

twst x mute reader

*ੈ✩‧₊˚ reader with a speech impediment

summary: as described type of post: headcanons characters: trey, ruggie, jade, jamil, rook, lilia additional info: romantic or platonic, reader is gender neutral, reader is not specified to be yuu

see, I don't think Trey would say anything about it

he's not one to criticize strangeness

that would be rude, first of all

second of all, there's no such thing as "normal" at NRC

(even so, some people may point it out, but he's not one of them)

he doesn't have any trouble understanding you, either

he grew up with younger siblings who pronounced owl as "awa" and kitty as "shishi" until they were six

he's certainly patient

and he knows how to use context

*ੈ✩‧₊˚

honestly? Ruggie didn't even... notice?

for a while, he just thought you talked fast

he knows how it goes; you get excited or nervous or whatever, and you end up stumbling all over yourself

no biggie

then one day you come up to him all sad and teary, apologizing for a speech impediment he didn't even know you had, and he's like...

...oh! no!

of course he's not annoyed!

Ruggie's an adaptive guy, after all. when he wants something, he'll bend backwards for it

you think a little stuttering is gonna stop him from being friends with you?

*ੈ✩‧₊˚

much like Trey, Jade doesn't say anything

he just watches you talk

and smiles

like this -> :)

it's not that he's particularly concerned about being rude, he's just...

observing

humans are such fascinating creatures, he thinks

he learns all of your quirks just by listening to you

which words you have trouble with, which ones you mix up and forget, which consonants you stumble over...

he teaches himself your language

and he becomes a sort of translator for you

any time someone is rude to you, he'll come out of nowhere and tell them everything you said in the exact order you said it

weird, but nice

*ੈ✩‧₊˚

to put it plainly, Jamil has bigger problems

whether or not he can understand you doesn't really matter to him

it's not his job to worry over you

then, you come to him asking for help, and...

...well, he's flattered

he can't deny he likes that you come to him for guidance before anyone else

because of this, (and because he had to learn how to control his own tongue when he was little), he takes pity on you

whether your goal is to work on your speech, or to simply feel less anxiety about it, he's there

*ੈ✩‧₊˚

is it cliche to say that Rook already knows exactly what you're thinking?

perhaps, but it's true

he's mastered the art of observation

he can read your thoughts in your expression, your body language, even the slightest twitch in your lips gives you away

he just knows

you don't have to be a good speaker, or a speaker at all, to communicate with Rook

(and he can do all the talking for you if you'd like, he'd probably enjoy that)

and, of course, he is of the opinion that there is beauty in everything

you don't need to be perfectly clear and concise for him to like you

*ੈ✩‧₊˚

now, I can't guarantee that Lilia won't tease a little

only in good fun, of course

and only if you respond in kind

but he does find it rather cute when you mispronounce something, or mix up your words

he won't correct you or interrupt you, either

he'll step in to help if you're really struggling, of course, but he thinks of you as capable

he does remind you to take breathers when you're getting too anxious about it, though

he cares <3

[jupitermelichios]

Hey, we need to talk about the way Batfamily fans write Cass using ASL, because a lot of it is really fucking ableist

But Cass can't speak, of course she needs to sign!

Not true! There is nothing physically wrong with Cass's vocal chords or mouth, there's nothing in her brain stopping her from making sounds, and she is not an elective mute. She actually learns to speak individual words really quickly after she puts herself into an environment where that's a useful skill. Basil teaches her to quote huge chunks of Shakespeare in Nu52, and that's easier for her than forming simple sentences. That would definitely not be the case if she had any physical limitations on her speech.

Cass's disability is that she was not taught any language, and so she is having to grok the entire concept of language from the ground up. Grammar and syntax; tonality; how to combine words to convey more complex ideas; how putting two words next to one another can change their meaning; how to break down a whole idea into the individual parts needed to turn it into words; the fact that people's words might not line up with their tone and body language so you have to pay attention to both; how to tell if someone wants a response or is stating a fact; how to work out meaning from context if a word is new or someone has an unfamiliar accent; how to know if someone is using a new word or if they actually just have an unfamilar accent and all the ways words can be bent and changed before they become something new; the fact that two words can use the same sounds but have the same meaning; the fact that there can be two different words that mean the same thing. This is all stuff she didn't learn as a baby, and not knowing it would be just as much an impediment to learning ASL as learning English (for accent, swap out things like having limited movement in their hands, or having learned slightly different forms of the same sign, using a lot of home-signs etc, it's the same concept in a different medium).

There is no language on earth Cass wouldn't have these problems with. ASL is not any kind of shortcut.

But she reads body language, and ASL is kind of like body language right?

Not true, also pretty abelist! Just as the sounds which make up spoken language are essentially arbitrary (there's no objective reason why the sound "gud" should mean good, English speakers just all agree it does) so most of the signs in ASL are arbitrary! There's no reason for

to mean good. ASL users just all agree that it does. Cass knowing body language would not help her any more with ASL than it would with English, and if anything, it might make it harder, because sign uses the whole body and therefore changes the way people use body language so unless she saw a lot of ASL users as a child (and there's no particular reason to think she did), she would have to adjust what she knows about body language to account for those differences!

But she signs in the comics!

Nope! She uses hand gestures to communicate sometimes, but that's not signing. Pointing at food and miming eating to convey hunger is not sign. Pretending to punch someone and pulling it at the last second to convey you could hurt them but won't (Cass's actual first communication with Bruce in the comics) isn't signing. I've done the point and mime thing in countries where I didn't speak the language, that does not mean I knew that country's native sign language!

But she learns ballet, that's like a physical language, so sign is the same thing!

Nope! Also low key kinda abelist. Dance is a method of communication, but it isn't a full language. There's almost no grammar or sentence structure, the vocabulary is extremely limited, and also you can just make up new dance moves or use moves from different styles of dance together and still convey your meaning (you cannot just make random gestures or use BSL and expect ASL users to understand you, because they're full complex languages). Cass vibes with dance pretty hard, but that's precisely because it isn't a language, it doesn't require any of the skills she struggles with in order to communicate emotion.

But ASL isn't like a real language, it's not as complex or nuanced as spoken English so it would be easier for her to learn

That is so fucking gross I don't even want to have this conversation with you. Go and sit in the timeout box and think about what you've just said, and then commit to doing better.

But I just think that once she learned it, she'd like using ASL because [it's very expressive/she's used to her world being very quiet/she can use it on stealth missions more easily/etc]

Valid, understandable, have a lovely day

But I'm writing an AU were she uses ASL because her backstory is too comic-book-y to fit in no-capes AUs but I didn't want to erase her communication difficulties so I've written her as having a different disability

Cool. Send me a link when you're done.

But what if I write her using makatong?

(For context, makatong is a form of sign developed for people who have intellectual or phsyical disabilities that affect language use, which uses more descriptive signs which require less precise hand possitioning than other sign languages, and which has very simple grammar, making it easier to learn than ASL). Yes this would be easier for her, because it's intended for people with similar difficulties to hers, but since her difficulties stem purely from a lack of experience which can be (and are, in canon) overcome with practise, it would be kind of needlessly limiting compared to her just starting out with very simple spoken language, and wouldn't give her as many chances to develop those language learning skills. Makatong is also not mutually intelligable with any other sign language, so she couldn't easily transition from that to ASL once she got used to signing, she'd have to start learning it from scratch.

But I HC her as deaf

There is 0 comics evidence to support that, but it's a headcanon, so who cares. You do you. Have fun.

But learning sign language would be better than learning to speak anyway because it's a universal language!

That is not even slightly how it work. Go read the wikipedia article on sign languages around the world or something. Do some research.

TL:DR; Cass does not use ASL in the comics, and nothing about her disability or sign languages in general would make learning ASL easier or more convinent for her than spoken English. That does't mean writing her signing is inherently bad, but you should examine your reasons for doing it to ensure you're not just perpetuating ableist stereotypes about the language.

[doudouma]

hey there!! I hope you are doing well! I was reading your one headcannon dad! Douma x child! Reader and I was wondering if you could do a “continuation” where Muzan had to babysit the child. Make sure to take care of yourself and drink plenty!!!! :)

“douma has a WHAT!?” pt2

muzan babysitting doumas child!(reader)

_______________________________________________

╔══ஓ๑♡๑ஓ══╗

read part one here!

this is a semi pt2 of dad!douma! muzan having babysitting doumas child, hm? this will definitely be interesting〜 (reader is also still 2-5, from part one.)

there are no warnings, my dear lotus.

reader is gender neutral.❀ 〜

a/n : hello, im doing quite well! thank your for the reminder, dearest! be sure to take care of yourself, aswell〜

╚══ஓ๑♡๑ஓ══╝

ੈ✩‧₊˚༺☆༻ੈ✩‧₊˚ ੈ✩‧₊˚༺☆༻ੈ✩‧₊˚

hmm… would muzan even want to babysit doumas child?

no, but for the sake of douma getting his mission done, maybe killing some hashira plus him potentially finding the blue spider lily? yes.

he doesn’t even like douma, he’s one of his least favorite upper moons. but after all, douma is still a uppermoon. upper moon two, if you will〜

which means he has advantages that lower kizuki and demons don’t!

muzan would definitely negotiate with douma on why he has to babysit his child. they’re not his! but douma is just so persistent…

“muzan-sama〜! can you please babysit my child for me? while i go on my mission? it’s far too dangerous, i can’t risk losing my precious baby!”

“why? whatever happened to “uncle akaza”? they aren't mine, and certainly isn’t my responsibility. you should just be a better father and just protect them.”

“muzan-sama, please? i’ll give you my beautiful eye in return? akaza-dono is out somewhere. they’re just a baby to me, i don’t want them to be traumatized for what they'll witness. see how cute they look? i promise they won’t cause any trouble〜 they'll spread joy onto you〜 something you may need〜”

💢“go. and be quick. i don’t want to babysit any longer than i have to, for i have more important things to do. i have no use for your eye, either.”

now it’s just you and muzan.. muzan and you..

he would most likely sit you off in a corner and let you doodle on blank papers.

while he finishes up any work he has. and of course looking off into the area you’re in, making sure you’re not causing any trouble〜

for some reason he decides to head your way? he doesn’t even know why, he just does.

when he sees that your actually drawing pictures of landscapes and sceneries, he’s impressed?!

(yes, you are a still toddler. only cool readers over here.)

he asks you questions about your drawings, and listens carefully through your speech impediment.

now that you’ve caught his eye, he moves you closer to where he’s working, at his desk. (congrats, you got promoted from the corner to near his desk!)

out of his old man habits, he starts rambling to you about flowers, and your little self just listening, occasionally asking questions.

it seems like.. the two of you are bonding over flowers, hm? how cute♡

it seems like you’ve got knowledge on flowers yourself, so muzan proceeds to asks you,

“at any point in time of your doings, have you seen a flower thats in deep blue of color? a blue spider lily?”

whatever your answer was, he decides to keep you closer to him.

not only because you could help him find the blue spider lily, but because… well…

now he sort of favors you♡

not your father. but you. he will never admit this either, for you’re still the offspring of douma.

when he finishes up with his experiments for the moment, he turns to you and sees that you’re bored.

he would find something else for the both of you to do. taking a stroll!

he picks you up, and carries you around asakusa, and any nearby beautiful forest, while the both of you still talk about flowers, or anything your toddler brain wants to talk about〜

after around a couple of hours, the two of you return back to the castle. and what’s that, a little smile on muzans face?!

gone, as soon as you look at him, though.

he sees douma, and quickly shoves you into his arms.

“oooh, my baby〜! did you miss papa? i thought of you the whole time! oh, how much i love you♡! muzan-sama, thank you so much! i know my little one wasn’t causing any trouble, right? what did you two do?”

“they were fine. and that’s none of your business, your child is back to you without harm. there'll be repercussions the next time you make me babysit, now leave.”

muzan doesn’t have any love for children. let alone, almost anyone.

overall, he actually didn’t mind babysitting you! not only we’re you easy to handle, but you’re intelligent.

youre fun-filled toddler personality probably what was needed to cheer muzan up, even for just a minute♡

ooo〜 this was so cute, i really loved to write this! somehow, i finished this relatively quick once i started it. once again, thank you all for your patience, my precious flowers❀ 〜

[stupidphototricks]

It's interesting re-reading Sir Terry Pratchett's books in a random order, because there are connections that I wouldn't have noticed otherwise. I read Johnny and the Dead immediately after The Wee Free Men, and these two passages struck me in a similar way:

And what there was about the Queen's voice was this: It said, in a friendly, understanding way, that she was right and you were wrong. And this wasn't your fault, exactly. It was probably the fault of your parents, or your food, or something so terrible that you've completely forgotten about it. It wasn't your fault, the Queen understood, because you were a nice person. It was just such a terrible thing that all these bad influences had made you make the wrong choices. -- Terry Pratchett, The Wee Free Men

The words would fill up the hall until they were higher than people's heads. They were smooth, soothing words. Soon they'd close over the top of all the trilbies and woolly hats, and everyone would be sitting there like sea anemones. They'd come here with things to say, even if they didn't know how to say them. The thing was to keep your head down. But if you did keep your head down, you'd drown in other people's words. -- Terry Pratchett, Johnny and the Dead

Both of them describe dealing with an adversary who is smooth-talking, articulate, eloquent; someone who is apt to win the argument by saying things perfectly and making you look stupid and silly and wrong, no matter how right you actually are. Someone who can even make you question whether you are right.

I feel this in my bones because in pretty much any situation, no matter how much I believe in my own opinion I can never coherently explain it to anyone else, if they don't already agree with me. I stammer, and get confused, and can't find the right word, and lose the thread, and give up. It doesn't matter, I think.

Of course the stakes are a lot higher for Tiffany and Johnny in these books. And of course (spoiler, but not really) they find the strength, and the words, to not be overridden and out-talked and silenced and gaslighted (gaslit?), but to push back and say what they need to say.

I wonder if Terry Pratchett drew on his own experience with having a speech impediment, here. I imagine that there were a lot of occasions in his early life where people talked over him, didn't take him seriously, didn't let him finish what he was saying. And, well. We all know that as it turned out he was extremely worth listening to.

Just because someone has difficulty speaking doesn't mean that they don't have something worthwhile to say. Be patient.

Just because someone is eloquent and well-spoken doesn't mean that they're telling the truth or have your best interests at heart. Practice critical thinking.

And most importantly your opinion matters, and you should express it, however imperfectly.

[lachiennearoo]

How to Make Friends

A more-or-less clear guide on social interactions

Growing up with heavy ADHD and generalized anxiety, it was always a bit hard for me to make friends and socialize. Despite my yearning for friendship, I was always "the quiet one" and "a loner", simply because I didn't know how to approach certain social situations, and it made any friendship I had extremely unstable (except for my sister @vive-le-quebec-flouffi, who was so extroverted and friendly it was literally impossible to escape her clutches of socialization)

As I grew older, I learned through a lot of trial and error what makes a good friendship.

Or, rather... what's the best way for someone to WANT to be your friend (without being superficial or hypocritical.)

Now, obviously, this doesn't work for everyone. But this is what I found helped me the most in social circles (especially online) and I hope it can help others too

LET'S BEGIN!

1 - Be yourself

Now that sounds very cliche and cringe, I know, but hear me out, because my opinion on this is not the same as all those feelgood inspirational movies and ads.

"Being yourself" isn't as simple as it seems. Because after all, what does "self" imply? If someone is, say, a criminal, would "be yourself" mean that they should embrace their sinful side?

No, obviously not.

"Be yourself" is a bit more nuanced, but I'll try to boil it down for you.

It just means "be unashamed of your qualities which you think are flaws". For example, "be yourself" would apply to someone who sees themselves as ugly, or maybe someone with an odd yet unharmful hobby, or a weird sense of fashion, or someone with say a handicap, a speech impediment. "Be yourself" is a sentence for the specific people who have genuine good in them, but are afraid to show it to others because they have been persecuted in the past, or are scared to be. It does NOT mean to accept genuine flaws. "Be yourself" does not include say violent anger issues, an addiction, a recent crime committed, or a generally unpleasant personality. Those are obviously not things to encourage. You can understand they may be a thing that happen to you, and accept it in your life, but that's different from being proud of it or encouraging it.

Speaking of personalities... let's talk about that

2 - Be kind

Now when some people hear that, they think it means "always smile no matter what, always look happy and positive, always agree with everyone just so you don't hurt their feelings, and never cause any drama", like you're Deku in My Hero Academia or Steven Universe in his titular show.

But that's... not quite that.

Obviously, kindness is something you use to help people feel better, to cheer up, and feel happy, and obviously to be kind, you need to have compassion, heart, empathy, and always put yourself in other people's shoes regardless of who they are. But it is not necessarily all-encompassing.

There's a rule that I think anyone learning kindness must learn. It's that sometimes, kindness means to be firm.

Not mean, of course. Not judgmental, not insensitive. Don't insult anyone, don't belittle or patronize anyone or make them feel inferior to you. That's still very rude and that's not what you want.

But what I mean is that sometimes, if you know that a person's actions towards something are wrong, especially if it's towards someone else, you must be able to point it out, and act accordingly. Don't just stand there and agree with them just because you don't want to hurt their feelings. You must still be able to know right from wrong. Kindness just means you won't be an ass about it, it doesn't mean to stay silent.

Hey, that brings me to point three!

3 - Show your own opinions

If there's one thing people hate just as much as meanness, it's those who stand by and do nothing about it.

Regardless of if you agree with them or not, if you say absolutely nothing when genuinely bad behaviour is happening, out of fear of "starting a fight", you are actively making the person who is being attacked feel alone.

I remember myself, when I was bullied in the first two grades of secondary school (11-13 years old for those who don't know) for "being ugly", I was told by my mother (who was friends with other kid's parents) that some of the kids "didn't hate me" and "didn't agree with the bullying". And I asked her "if they don't hate me, why won't they talk to me?" She never managed to answer that one. And it broke my heart, because outside of my sister, I had no one else.

Don't be like that. You may be scared of acting, but you know who would be grateful if you did act? The victims. And isn't their opinion of you much more important than the opinion of someone who acts with hatred and bigotry?

If you see someone suffering injustice, or even just hear someone who has a rather harmful opinion, don't be scared to tell them that you disagree. Obviously don't be an asshole about it, stay civil, but if you voice out your opinion, you will be seen as someone who stays true to their beliefs and is brave enough to stand up for them if the opportunity comes.

There's obviously much more that comes with social life (nonverbal cues, sense of humor, timing and mood), and I don't know everything (I'm just some random québécois girl on the internet). But I hope this was a bit more helpful. I did have fun writing this, at least. So I guess that's better than nothing!

[british-catgirl]

a so anyways so original post cuz I wanted to do dis and nobody else talks about it but I stg youse need to get normal about people with speech impediments like right now i don't da typing quirk 1. because it's funny but 2. I kinda sound like dat irl too, and i like doing it in text. 'course it's part of da bit as well but alas dere's other motives but it's real demoralizing to see popular media x 'n' y 'n' z do da stupid character bit with an impediment like, it sounds exactly like how I was made fun of in school and seeing copious amounts of people enjoyin' and laughin' along with dese jokes. idfk man. i hate it so much. and nobody ever says shit about it. it's always 'why can't youse take a joke' well da joke's not funny is it? if I started deeming autistic traits as signs of stupidity, and normally, villainy all youse fuckers would burn me at da stake, as youse should. but den it comes to speech impediments and suddenly it's fine. like just c'mon. dat's all I got, c'mon.

[icycoldninja]

Could you write the Sparda men + V x gn! Reader with a stutter. I have autism, i usually repeat a word a bunch of times especially when I try to ask a question and I'm super nervous, it's really just repeating 'what' a bunch of items before i can finish the rest of the sentence. I get made fun by teachers most of the time where they will answer in the same way as i asked the question. I know what i want to say but i just can't speak the other words, it's really bothersome

Oh, I'm sorry to hear that. I can't begin to imagine your frustration with those who teased you. Please, enjoy, and hopefully you'll feel better. 💜💜

Sparda boys + V x GN!Reader with a stutter headcannons

¤ Dante ¤

-Dante is remarkably patient with you and absolutely doesn't mind waiting for you to get all the words out.

-He's encouraging, giving you a pat on the back when you start to get frustrated with yourself and even tries to guess what you're saying like Google does when you search for something.

-Is surprisingly good at reading you and figuring out what you want before you even open your mouth.

-Will roast anyone who tries to bully or tease you for your impediment while in his presence--to mock his baby is to indirectly mock him, meaning he will mock them back.

-Most of the time, Dante does the talking for you, showing just how far he'd go to keep you comfortable.

■ Vergil ■

-Vergil is quite understanding of your condition, and though he would grow impatient with others, he would never snap at you.

-Vergil is not the best at reading others, given his emotionless personality, but is very patient and will gladly and quietly wait hours for you to collect your thoughts and form them into words.

-He encourages you to write down what you want if speaking is too difficult.

-He also makes sure you understand (indirectly, of course) that he would never love you any less because of some silly speech impediment--that he loves you no matter what, even if you were unable to speak altogether.

-He will not coddle you, however; how can you overcome your issues when all you do is cower behind him in fear? Whenever it is necessary, Vergil MOTIVATES you to speak for yourself.

-Still, should anyone tease or put you down for doing so, he will take care of these obstructions swiftly and forcefully.

□ Nero □

-Nero gets frustrated very easily (anger issues) but he manages to calm himself down in time to prevent feelings from getting hurt.

-He really does love you and wants to help you, and does so by gently hugging you, telling you you're doing great, and waiting for you to finish your sentence.

-If you can't get the words out, then Nero will guess, but he's not very good at it.

-Like Vergil, he suggests writing down or texting him what you need.

-Won't pressure you into talking to others if you don't feel like it, because he knows other people won't be as encouraging as him.

-If he ever, EVER, sees or hears anyone bully you, he will whip out The Blue Rose and blast them all to hell.

● V ●

-V is as tolerant of you as you are of him. He doesn't mind you have trouble speaking just as you don't mind he's so physically weak.

-He'll wait for you to find your words for as long as you need. It doesn't matter to him, he knows you'll get there eventually.

-If you ever get frustrated with yourself, V will pull you into his lap and cover you with kisses to calm you down. He just can't stand to see you upset.

-He'll never inturrupt you and is always able to explain things better than the person who originally said it. V is an eloquent man who's great with words.

-He wants you to try and speak to others on your own, but if you start stuttering so badly the others can't understand you, then he'll step in.

-Anyone who messes with you is sure to find a shape-shifting panther and lightning-spewing bird at their throats immediately.

[obislittleone]

The Winner Takes It All

Episode 1

Pairing: Finnick Odair x Tribute(OC)!Reader

Chapter Warnings: The Hunger Games reaping. Canon typical angst. Reader has a speech impediment.

Chapter Summary: Lukas Artanhour is your best friend since childhood who makes the worst decision of his life when he volunteers as tribute for the 71st annual hunger games... Luckily, he won't be going alone, and you didn't even have to volunteer.

Word Count: 2.8k

Don't be detered by the OC in this chapter, he is just someone I made up to make the hunger games more emotional of an event 🙃

The representative from the Capitol being the same every year was almost a comforting sort of repetition through the years, but compared to the annual tradition it surrounded, you were hardly relaxed at seeing him make his dazzling appearance. A new outfit every year, made from the finest fabrics and silks that eight had to offer… And you wore the same green top and skirt. At least this year there were seashells. 

“Good afternoon, District Four!” His shout of happiness was hardly felt by any who stood here in this gathering. “There’s nothing like being here, amongst the beautiful waters and sandy beaches.”

It’s cold and windy down by the docks, with the sand getting kicked up from time to time. District Four is one of the most beautiful places in all of Panem, and it’s known, as all districts are, for its main production to the Capitol. Fish. 

The people here are wealthier than most in the districts, a close third in rank to both one and two, who reign supremely amongst the favorites. The Hunger Games have obviously played a serious part in all of that. Four being a career district meant that the Capitol goers were far more likely to invest. Careers are the favorites, no matter which district they come from. 

The reaping is today, and you don’t want to think about it. It is why you arrive at your work station an hour before you need to be there. You’ve spent years of your life down here by the docks, whether it was waiting for your father’s boat to return, or your friend to bring you the boxes that needed to be loaded onto Capitol trucks. You’re a mover, it’s your job. It doesn’t pay well, because the real money is in fishing, but you wouldn’t dare go out on a boat. 

“You’re early,” Lukas nearly spooks you, smiling after watching you jump from surprise. “Didn’t mean to scare you.”

“It’s r-reaping day. I couldn’t s-sleep.”

He was used to the skip and stutter of your words, un-phasing him as you spoke each one. 

“I get it. My mom keeps hounding me about it. Every year I grow taller, stronger, she tells me I could win,” he sat down next to you in the sand, handing you a shell he found on his way here. “Another for the collection.”

“Thanks,” you took it gratefully, placing it in your pocket for safekeeping until later. You journeyed back to his previous words, what he meant by them. “Does your mother w-wish you’d gone through the career program?”

He shrugged, looking out into the sea, his mind just as full of indecent thoughts as yours. 

“I’m not sure what she wants. Ever since dad died she’s just been… different.”

“My parents have s-said, if it ever gets t-too bad, you c-can always stay with us.”

He nods, his appreciation shown through a single sideways glance. He knows he has places to go, he knows that there are others that are willing to treat him as a son should be treated, but he wants his own mother to do it. He longs for the woman she once was, and hopes if he can make her proud enough, maybe she will be that way again. 

“I’ll think about it,” he said, but he’d been saying that for the past year. 

So far, you’d learned she’d been hitting him, been yelling and screaming about how he would never measure up to his father. You never saw these interactions of course, because if you had you may have broken down for him, your friend of eleven years. In school, he was the only one who would talk to you, the only person who ever gave a damn about the girl with the stutter. He defended you when they made fun of you left and right, for nearly everything they thought was wrong with you.

“You s-shouldn’t listen to her,” you shook your head, the waves crashing on the shoreline several yards down. It was the only thing that would remain peaceful about today, when later on two children would be hauled off and expected to fight or die. “She isn’t in her r-right mind anymore.”

“I know that.” 

He agrees, he knows. He is well aware that her mind slipped maybe even before her husband died. She had been driving him to the long hours that he’d worked, and eventually made him work out on a ship during a storm. The boat sinking was just fan to the flame of her deteriorating mental state. 

He picked up a rock from the sand a few feet over, standing up and tossing it to skip over the water before it began to wash on the shore. He gave you a hand to your feet, pulling you up until you were steady. 

“Boat leaves in a few minutes, I’ll see you when we get back,” he said, turning on his heel in the sand. You nodded at him before he walked off, into the working hours of the day. You shouldn’t even be here for another hour. You know that they’ll be gone for two or more and you don’t need that long to prep the boxes. But you can’t sleep. 

-

Lukas returned to the docks with a much better mindset. The water always made him feel serene. He came to land, lugging the giant nets tied together to keep the fish from falling out. Today’s catch was good as any other, and the songs the boys sang on board nearly made him forget everything else. 

“Salmon are catching like crazy this time of year,” he muttered, meeting you halfway to help you untie the knots and start packing the boxes. “Thinking I might sneak one home if there’s extra. You probably can, too.”

“I’ll t-try. My pa could use s-something more to eat.”

He weeded through all the skimpy ones, pulling the biggest catches out first and laying them sideways in the boxes, filling the middles with ice before adding another layer. It was the same thing everyday, but he never tired of it. He was content to live the life of a district four fisherman, and he was good at it. 

“How’s his arm doing?” He asked, since you’d brought up your father. 

He’d broken it in a rigging accident about two months ago, and the slow healing process was not doing your family any favors. You’d been hungry several times, so obviously extreme measures had to be taken. You won’t think about that right now, though.

“Not any better, n-not any worse.” The fish box was nearly packed, but you paused to think for a moment. “Maybe I s-should try and catch. It pays a lot m-more, and we could use the money.”

He grabbed you by the shoulder and turned you to face him. 

“You’d be scared to death. If your family needs some money, I can help out. It’s the least I can do when they offer me free lodging,” he half joked, completely serious in all aspects about the help with financial assistance. 

“Lodging that y-you’ve never taken.”

“Listen, I’m happy to help if you need me to. Especially with your brother, now,” he mentioned, making you think about the sweet little sleeping face you’d passed by on the way out of your home. Your baby brother, born not a year ago. You hated the idea of him growing up hungry, or having to start work early in his life like you did. 

“Well, t-thank you. I’ll think about it.”

He shook his head, seeing as how you quoted him from all the times your family offered him help before. 

He waved you off when you finished stacking the prepared boxes onto your slab dolly, tilting it back and beginning to push it towards the truck that pulled in not too long ago. It was a steep climb, up the ramp from the docks and onto the street, but it made you quite strong over the years. That and all the heavy lifting, becoming easier with every twenty by thirty of fish. 

Lukas would be taking off early today, as would most of the other boys of age. You would be heading home after loading this shipment as it were. You had to shower, had to clean up your hair and skin and make yourself presentable for the reaping. 

You opened the back of the truck, tossing the boxes up one at a time, before climbing into it and stacking them neatly in one of the four corners. You always managed to obtain a single splinter from every shipment loaded, but luckily today’s wasn't too bad, you could probably dig it out with a small pin. 

Later in the day, your mother gave you a solemn smile as you walked out the door, having just been readied and dressed in your best clothes. Even in a wealthier district, they still had mended holes in the bottom of your skirt. That’s the sad thing about every district. Even amongst the wealthier ones, there’s still poverty that simply cannot be helped. The Capitol's greed and thirst for luxury, needing every little thing that life has to offer at their beck and call. You can’t even imagine what it’s like in places like eight or twelve. Places where food is not the primary cultivation of the people. 

It was light green, your outfit. It had white seashells on the waist of the top, and a few along the edge of the skirt as well. They hadn’t always been there, but you insisted they should be. You didn’t really have much else of a use for all the shells you stole from the sands of the shoreline. You hated wearing the same outfit to this single event every year. You hardly wore it any other time, which made a distaste for it grow every time it came out of your closet. 

The way your mother did your hair was simple. A single french braid down the back of your head, tied off with a light green ribbon to match everything else. She watched how it fell a bit looser with every step you took, making your way across the streets and into the city’s center. It’s your last year, and having avoided every year before, you know you should feel a semblance of relief, but you don’t. 

Your mother waits for the peacekeeper behind a stand to check your name off a list before she parts with you, hugging you tightly one last time and allowing you to kiss the head of the baby on her hip. He’s primarily the reason you remain so nervous. Even if your name doesn’t get called, his could be, someday.

You line up in an open space, next to the last girl that checked in. She wasn’t in your row last year, you would have remembered her. She was pretty, with blue eyes and dark raven hair. Her skin was tanned like most in four, but had a certain glow about it. She’s too pretty to be reaped, you thought. It didn’t make a difference, though. As you stared head on to the bowl on the stage, centered in front of the girl’s side, you got tense. Your name is in there six times this year. That’s three more than last year, and five more than the year before. 

Someone could still volunteer. But the career program had not made mention of producing a female tribute this year. It all depended on the luck of today’s draw. For all you knew, your name would be surpassed by someone else. There were other poverty stricken areas in four besides yours, and it made sense that somebody else could have been hungry enough to outgo you. 

You looked around to the boy's side. Lukas was there, and further up in the rows. He must have gotten here quickly after leaving the docks. His face was sullen, and something had changed, but you were unsure of what it was. When he looked around, you almost thought he’d been looking for somebody, but his expression told a far different story. 

The last few children in the line were filing in, and the musical fanfare blasted through the speakers by the stage. You were grateful not to be so close to those this year. 

The representative from the Capitol being the same every year was almost a comforting sort of repetition through the years, but compared to the annual tradition it surrounded, you were hardly relaxed at seeing him make his dazzling appearance. A new outfit every year, made from the finest fabrics and silks that eight had to offer… And you wore the same green top and skirt. At least this year there were seashells. 

“Good afternoon, District Four!” His shout of happiness was hardly felt by any who stood here in this gathering. “There’s nothing like being here, amongst the beautiful waters and sandy beaches.”

His rabble was boring, and nearly the same as it was last time. The anticipation was killing just about every girl and boy in this crowd, knowing there were no careers at the ready this year. It was always easier to rest at night while knowing if your name was called, another courageous youngster would step in to take your place. 

“I’m so excited to be back and reaping this year’s tributes for the 71st annual Hunger Games!” 

There was a surge of excitement coming from the sidelines, and it was only now that you looked past the blockades to see that there were actual Capitol civilians standing there this year. How nice, some onlookers for when an innocent child gets sent away to their death. Absolutely wonderful. You looked on past them, towards the victors standing close by. They seemed anxious as well, the old woman holding one fist to her mouth while the other clutched her chest. She rocked back and forth on her heels, and had to take a step every few seconds to keep from becoming too restless. The young man was stiff, his arms behind his back and every muscle in his body tense as a board. His eyeline never left the bowls on the stage. They went through this once, too.

When you refocused on the man at the microphone, your heart beat rapidly. He was approaching the boy’s side of the stage. 

After a small flourish of his hand, the Capitol rep stuck his hand into the glass, two papers in his hand before he dropped one. The dropped paper’s namesake got immensely lucky this year. 

“Harley Miggsen,” he read the paper, but before the peacekeepers had a shot at cornering the poor fourteen year old kid, with his eyes wide in horror, another voice spoke up. 

“I volunteer.” 

Your head snapped to Lukas, his hand raised high in the air. Murmurs started almost immediately about how everyone thought there weren’t any careers prepared. They spoke softly and wondered if there would be a career for the girls, too. Lukas isn’t a career, why would he do this?

“I… guess we have a volunteer,” the man at the mic clapped his hand, watching the young man getting ushered up the stairs to stand beside him on the stage. “What’s your name, son?” 

“Lukas Artanhour, sir.”

“Lukas Artanhour, everyone!” He raised his hand as to signal applause from the capitol guests, and they cheered, happy to see that there was now a potential victor as opposed to that poor boy from before. “Now for the ladies.”

You spared a glance at the victors once more, and they looked even more on edge for this pick than the last. Female victors were obviously more rare in every district, so getting a decent tribute that wouldn’t die right away was probably preferable. You couldn’t imagine all the people they’ve tried and failed to save over the years. The young man won only six years ago, but with no other victors since, that means he’s gone through twelve tributes. All dead, all gone. 

Your mind had been momentarily distracted, or at least it had been until the next name came over the loudspeakers. 

“Mercedes Blythe.” 

It almost didn’t register. 

It almost went in one ear and out the other.

It almost was paid no mind or attention…

But that is your name, and you’ve heard it said a million times since you were a baby. Not once did it ever sound like that, though. 

You stood still until you realized there were peacekeepers on their way to grab you. 

It was slow, the way you took steady steps from your row towards the stage. You couldn’t be rushed even if they tried to make you. You could only look at the ground. You didn’t want to chance looking up and seeing your mother past the blockades. God only knows what she’s thinking and feeling right now. After everything bad happens to a family, the mother of that family should not have to wonder whether her child will live or be killed in an arena. 

You finally looked up when you got to the stairs, meeting Lukas’ eyes first, and seeing they were sad and full of pity. You stood beside the Capitol rep on the other side, allowing him to raise your hands together while the tears finally welled up in your eyes. The delay in your mind was the only one to blame for that. 

“Ladies and gentlemen, district four’s tributes!”

-

Tags (open):

[chrisevansonly]

Arlie Goes To The Paediatrician (Little Duck Au🐥💛)

Pairing: Momma Evans (Female Reader) x Arlie Mae Evans

Summary: It’s Arlie’s annual checkup with her lovely paediatrician, this time Momma’s got some questions about her speech, and Arlie’s got lots of hope she’ll get one of those rainbow-coloured lolly pops!

Warnings: no warnings, doctor talk, some medical stuff, just very precious Arlie and her caring Momma<3

A/N: I postponed this for a little while because I just didn’t feel like writing anything, but I finally had the time to sit down and get some work done so here we are!

Word Count: 831

The doctor’s office was the one place in the world a kid would normally hate, the slight smell of hand sanitizer, the noises, other children crying or throwing tantrums, well every kid but Arlie. You don’t know when it started, and you had a pretty good feeling it had to do with Dr. Charlie, who was one of the best paediatricians you and Chris had ever met, but Arlie loved coming to the doctor. She sat quietly beside you, playing a game on her iPad, which was only ever used in situations where you would be waiting around for a while, you sifted through some quick emails, and made sure to keep Chris updated on what was going on throughout the morning

“Arlie Evans?”

You looked up and smiled at Dr. Charlie, before leaning over to Arlie 

“Okay baby, let’s go see the doctor!”

“Okay momma”

Arlie handed you her tablet and you slipped it into your purse before taking her hand and going towards the exam room, Arlie of course took her usual spot up on the big purple exam table, kicking her legs gently 

“Alright, how are you today miss Arlie?”

“I’m good, can I have ‘wainbow lollipop?”

Dr. Charlie laughed as she sat down on her rolling chair with her clipboard 

“As soon as we’re done, you can pick any one you’d like, okay?”

She nodded and then the doctor turned to face you, getting her pen and clip board ready 

“So how is everything going at home Y/N?”

You crossed one leg over the other smiling in Arlie’s direction while she played with some of the fidgets that Dr. Charlie had given her 

“Everything’s been good, a little hectic with the new baby on the way, but she’s been eating well, getting lots of sleep, I guess our only concern is just her speech right now? She seems to be having a difficult time with pronouncing her R’s and certain syllables”

The doctor nodded making some notes 

“Yes, that’s right, congratulations to you and your husband of course that’s very exciting!”

“Thank you, yeah we are very thrilled”

You watched her make a few notes before she paused to look at you 

“As far as speech goes, it is normal for kids to sometimes have a harder time pronouncing letters or certain sounds, but seeing as she is turning 4 in April, there are a few questions I do have, it could just be that she is developing slower, she may have a slight speech impediment, but the one thing I will rule out now is the chance of her being tongue tied. We’ve had this discussion before, so that isn’t a factor in it”

You nodded feeling a bit relived it wasn’t anything that would require the potential for a surgery or procedure of any capacity

“Well, that’s certainly good to hear, is there anything we can do to kind of help her with those words or sounds?”

Dr. Charlie nodded again 

“Yes, so you can just keep working with her on words she has trouble with or sounds, really take your time and help her hear how the word sounds and then get her to repeat it back! If there is ever a continued issue where it becomes more prevalent when she’s older you can look into a speech therapist, but I highly doubt she will need one!”

“Okay, that’s perfect we can definitely do that!”

Dr. Charlie then moved on to finish Arlie’s exam, checking her height, weight, listening to her heart and lungs, checking her ears and her eyes, all while she asked questions about the tools being used, she’d always been such a curious girl and you knew she definitely got that from Chris. Once everything was done, Dr. Charlie gave you a few handouts and tips for working on Arlie’s speech, as well as some baby materials for baby boy, Arlie waiting patiently to get her lollipop

“Momma I pick lollipop now pwease?”

You chuckled moving some hair out of her eyes before nodding 

“Yeah baby, go pick one out”

She clapped her hands excitedly, getting down from the table and going over to pick one of the sweets from the jar, showing you proudly when she’d chosen one 

“That looks perfect my love, ready to go?”

“Let’s go Momma, thank you doctor chawlie!”

Dr. Charlie smiled giving Arlie a high five before holding the door open for the two of you

“You are very welcome miss Arlie, we’ll see you guys in a few months!”

You said your goodbyes and made sure to book another appointment up at the front this time for baby number 2, you’d come in before he was born to start a file and get any notes from the paediatrician that you’d need when he arrived. Arlie was more than happy with her rainbow lollipop and couldn’t wait to show daddy all of the colours, that is if she didn’t finish it on the drive home. 

[ddejavvu]

a guide to writing 'baby talk'

i've been writing and reading fanfiction for years! over that time, i've noticed that a lot of people attempt to either write a young child speaking with a speech impediment, or mimic the way a child with a speech impediment would talk. this form of dialogue is generally known as 'baby talk'. sometimes it's perfect, and i can hear the voice in my head when i'm reading. but sometimes, it goes wrong, and i want to explain why.

where people make mistakes is when they add letters instead of replacing letters. common baby talk in fanfictions is either switching 'r's to 'w's, or switching 'l's to 'w's. both are good examples of how children with speech impediments speak! of course, there are other speech impediments, but those are fairly common ones, and as such, are used the most in fanfictions.

so, let's talk about adding versus replacing. when you want to say 'love', while replacing 'l's with 'w's, you'd say 'wove' or 'wuv', right? because that eliminates the letter that the child is mispronouncing, and replaces it with the letter they substitute in. What you don't want to do, is something like this: "Mister" -> "Mwister" (There's no r after the m in 'mister' to be replacing), "Candy" -> "Cwandy" (there's no r after the c in 'candy' to be replacing), "Play" -> "Plway" (Both letters are left in instead of the correct one being deleted). These are all real examples that I've seen, and by pointing their errors out I don't mean to shame, I mean to use them as tools for education. Your goal is to replace a letter, not add a letter.

Sometimes, baby talk isn't easy to spell. Wardrobe is a hard word to spell phonetically with a speech impediment. The rs get substituted with w's, meaning that just swapping out the letters would get you Wawdwobe. However, phonetically, or at least, to my eyes, that reads like wah-dwobe. Be conscious of how your readers could hear the word you've typed, and if I were to adjust the spelling of that to make it sound more accurate as 'baby talk', I'd write wohdwobe. "Woh" being pronounced akin to "War" with a british accent. of course, that looks near unintelligible without context, but if I were to have a young character read out the phrase The Lion (Wion, if i was subbing l's for w's), The Witch, and the Wohdwobe, you could figure it out. And if you don't wanna go through that trouble at all, just pick another book.

I tell people whenever they ask for writing advice to please read your dialogue out loud!! this is even more important here, when you're listening for the voice of a child. say your 'baby talk' out loud, does it actually sound like something a kid would say? i work with children, specifically young ones who are just learning to speak, so I suppose I'm privileged with a better understanding of how language develops and sounds from a young child than some are. But use what you've seen on tv and movies if you don't have a real-life source! if you read your 'baby talk' dialogue out loud, and it sounds unrealistic, you might have some more research to do.

and, uh, something i never thought i'd have to say - don't use baby talk in sexual situations please.. if i ever see the word 'pwussy' under a smut fanfiction again i'm going to shoot myself in the face (also that's not even done right anyways so)

[bakafox]

Having to unsubscribe from more and more 'leftist' Youtubers who are committing to the bit that it's more important to bash the Democratic party and Joe Biden as if they're just as bad as Trump than it is to just focus on the fact that Trump and the GOP are the absolute fucking worst.

Especially since they keep pulling the 'Biden is senile and a drooling zombie' card since the fucking debate. Biden's fucking speech impediment has always been known about. He's always had pauses and problems finding words sometimes because of it, like friends of mine who struggle with that sort of shit do. 'Debating' someone like Trump on live TV isn't something a president needs to be able to do, but they'll focus on that gleefully and still never bring up all the left-leaning policies the Biden Administration has successfully pushed over the last 4 years or that were blocked by the fact Dems don't control congress, senate, or the supreme courts and

I am just begging people who haven't recently refreshed themselves on how the US system even is supposed to work to watch some stuff and refresh themselves.

Like, is the system pretty busted and rooted in shitty racist and classist shit? Yes, but it's not going to be fixed before this election, just like it isn't fixed before other elections because not enough people are willing to work for things like ranked choice voting in between election cycles.

But the system also isn't completely dead yet, and right now there's game plans and blueprints on how to at least survive within it- and how to push for changes in between big election cycles by voting the right people in during even smaller election cycles.

Those are the times you beef up third party ideals or whatever, because yes, right now, when the presidential election happens the only two choices that mean anything numerically for the electoral vote system are Republican and Democrat.

If you want to call that 'not a real election' or whatever, fine, but even if there's only two choices, one choice is still actively less harmful than the other, and if the only applicable choices in a shitty election have differences, and electoral results actually have a chance of being honored even if the less awful side wins it's still actually an election that matters. Is it a shitty choice? Is it not much of a choice? It's still a choice, and it's still a difference that can be made.

Of course with Project 2025, the Republicans plan to finish gutting and rearranging the US government to suit their desire for a theocratic dictatorship, which means they are actively working to make elections completely irrelevant or end them entirely. There will no longer be even a map or blueprint for anyone who isn't a white heterosexual Christian (of the kinds of Christians they approve of, I will bet five dollars that once in office the evangelical protestant type Christians are going to start throwing other denominations under the bus, because five dollars is all I even have right now,) to follow.

All of the between-election activism and community support and service that needs to be done is already hard, too, yes, but it will be much harder if Trump, a guy who has literally talked about having protestors on college campuses shot or deported as Hamas sympathizers, and people who think like him and will unequivocally back him takes over.

There's no real choice, but if the Democrats control senate, house, and presidency, there's actually room for a choice to grow if people don't just give up the minute the election is over and actually seek and work towards the reforms that are desired.

If the GOP gets any more seats and the presidency, I cannot stress enough that we are probably going to be living in an actual, literal, dictatorship, which by all definitions, the US is currently not, despite what I see people trying to twist definitions around to say it is because a 2 party system isn't great.

I am just so tired right now, the lives of so many people, including those of people I know personally, are on the line with this vote. I've only just gotten to celebrate things the Biden administration has done for disabled Americans and yet I know that if Trump is elected, we're going to go immediately at least back to shit like 'people buying you food can reduce or stop your SSI' if not worse since the GOP are pretty open about wanting to axe Medicaid and disability with social security.

Biden's administration has put protections for LGBT people in at the federal level, and it is remaining state's rights shit that's keeping it bad in red states, which is complicated as fuck, but if the GOP get their way, their stripping out the idea of state's rights will go after the states that are sheltering trans people or providing abortion care and asylum.

Project 2025 and Trump have made a VERY big deal out of wanting to deport millions of people and have ICE raiding churches and schools. (Oh hey remember what I said about even other Christians are gonna get shat on if maybe they're inclusive or whatnot?)

And for that single issue: Yes, Trump will be worse for Palestine. Also worse for Ukraine, Sudan, and pretty much everywhere else there is a genocide happening.

There isn't a 'real' choice, is the argument, but there still is a choice, and it's one that has to be made to try and reduce harm and keep the boot from being so firmly on everyone's neck that no one can breathe well enough to fight it.

There also is not going to be a glorious revolution formed if Trump wins, there's going to be concentration camps, deportations, increased incarceration for profit, no social safety net at all, and more and more deaths including state-sponsored violence and murders. Facists like Putin, Bibi, etc will be emboldened and given more actual weaponry and support.

On paper maybe it sounds like something that makes a revolution happen in the US, but in reality it is far more likely that it further divides and crushes people into inaction.

Also in reality the US has a fucking huge military with drone strike capabilities and the Republicans will not hesitate to make the poor neighborhoods of any US city into craters, and groups of actual revolutionaries will be very scattered and isolated and much more poorly armed because the US is a big space- and there can be no counting on Canada, Mexico, or any other nations in the world for help. That'll be the start of WW3.

If there is a revolution against a GOP dictatorship it is not going to be glorious, it is not going to go well. It should not even be being considered as a preferred option by anyone who claims to be 'for the people' compared to harm reductive voting and then community activism and pushes for voting and government reform in a setting where there is still some freedom to do that.

[anabdaniels]

Flufftober 2023 with Agent Whiskey- Day 4- Age regression

Paring: Agent Whiskey x AFAB!Reader

Word counting: 790

Rating: Teen and up audiences

Warning: The following work contains brief mentions of body shaming and mean behavior towards kids.

What was that phrase? Old wounds don’t hurt anymore? You couldn’t disagree more with it. More than ten years had passed since the last time you had seen your progenitor (calling him father was certainly too much) and you were sure that all those bad things he had done to you didn’t affect you anymore, until that afternoon. Somehow, he had found out where you worked and had just shown up there, once again telling you how ungrateful you were for having extinguished any contact with him. Years ago, you would have spent three hours fighting him, but nowadays, having such a calm and comfortable life for so long, you just ran to your car and drove home.

Once back at the ranch, you finally had come out of the survival mode and started to feel all those horrible memories of your childhood hit you hard, all those times your progenitor made you feel like the worst kid in the world just because you asked for a second explanation about something or couldn’t have the best grade on school or because he thought that was fine to say to a seven-year-old that she needed a diet.

Usually, you wouldn’t disturb Jack with these things during his office hours, but everything was hurting so much at that moment that you didn’t even though before calling him and telling him what happened.

When he finally got home, Jack felt like his heart was going to explode with the idea that you’ve passed through such a hard moment alone. He walked upstairs, imagining that he’d find you in the bedroom. He opened the door slowly, unable to contain a smile when he saw you curled up on the bed with your teddy bear, already realizing that you had entered your little space and absolutely not surprised by it.

Calmly, he leaned by your side, caressing your face and kissing your forehead, smiling warmly when you looked at him with puffy red eyes, looking desolate.

“Are you okay, honey?” when you simply let go of your teddy bear and moved between his arms, Jack had the only answer he needed to know that you weren’t okay at all. He snuggled you and kissed the top of your head, caressing your back gently. “Do you wanna talk?” he asked quietly and your answer was just shaking your head negatively.

Patiently as always, he kept caressing your back and cuddling you, observing when you tried to move your hand closer to your mouth to nibble your knuckles as you always used to do in these situations, but he stopped you, aware that most of the times you ended up hurting yourself accidentally. Jack couldn’t hide a soft smile when you pouted after his impediment, and then he opened the nightstand drawer and grabbed your pacifier, giving it to you promptly. You let out a happy noise and took your teddy bear back before nestling yourself even more between his arms with a good amount of excitement, looking at him with a soft expression, not surprisingly feeling better just for being close to him.

“Easy, baby. You’ll break your old cowboy like that.” He chuckled while accommodating you better with your head lying on his chest. You mumbled something, still with the pacifier in your mouth, making Jack raise one eyebrow. “Haven’t we talked about speaking with the pacifier?” he questioned sounding really much like a father. You nodded and took the pacifier out of your mouth before repeating what you wanted.

“Can take a nap?” you asked quietly in a slightly slurred speech.

“Of course, my little angel.” He answered calmly while patting your head.

“Thank you.” You placed your head better on his chest “Love you, daddy.” You said softly while closing your eyes and putting the pacifier back in your mouth.

“I love you too, my pretty baby.” Jack answered in a gentle tone and kissed your forehead, resting his face on the top of your head while holding you tight and caressing your back.

Ten minutes later you were already asleep, Jack kept caressing your back and appreciating the weight of your upper body on his chest. He knew that you’d probably still on the little space when you woke up, but he didn’t care, on the contrary, he was really happy with the fact that you felt comfortable and safe around him to act like that. You needed paternal love and life had taken him the chance to give someone all the fatherly love he had many years ago when he lost his unborn baby, in the end, both of you had the chance to have what you two always wanted, and it was more than enough to make Jack truly happy.

Flufftober masterlist

[dravencroft]

I saw a few people draw themselves as characters from fandoms they're in, so I decided to try and draw myself as if I lived in the World of Darkness. I thought a lot about it - I'd be a vampire, of course, but what Clan? My favourite ones are Ventrue and Lasombra, but that's not me. I'm not rich or important, elegant or beautiful; I'm not self-confident, I'm not the center of attention. I'm quiet and easy to overlook, people would rather pretend I don't exist; but I'm useful, and I always know what's going on around me because I know where to look and listen. I am ugly, my teeth are crooked so I never smile, I have a speech impediment that makes it hard to talk, and I prefer to keep to myself.

So yeah, I'm a Nosferatu. This is Dee. They're a little off-putting, with all those extra teeth, but I promise they know how to help you. Just don't trust them too much. They don't really trust you either.

[leidensygdom]

There is no wrong way to enjoy TTRPGs, as long as everyone at the table is having fun

I just saw a couple of people tagging some of my latest posts with concerns on how they are scared to DM TTRPGs because they can’t do battlemaps, so let me put a quick post together about this:

There is no wrong way to enjoy TTRPGs, as long as everyone at the table is having fun. Fun is the keyword here. Is everyone enjoying the game? Then you’re doing it right. Doesn’t matter how little or how much you want to have at your table. Doesn’t matter which system are you playing. As long as people are enjoying themselves, you’re doing it right.

This means a lot of things. Maybe your group loves playing by-the-book and never homebrews. That’s absolutely right. Or maybe your group has almost developed an entire system of their own after years of homebrewing. That’s also good- If everyone at the table like it and it is fair for everyone, you’re playing the game right!

Some people love super crunchy games filled with numbers and strategy and no RP. If everyone at the table enjoys that, then you’re doing it right. Maybe you like very deadly games and meatgrinders- If people at the table like that, it’s absolutely valid. Or maybe you just want to do RP and develop characters with none of the numbers. If that’s what your group wants, congrats! That’s also valid.

Some people love to painstakingly prepare every little detail and has 10 pages of notes for a session. It takes time, but it makes DMing easier for some. If it works for you, do it! Or maybe you like to go completely improv- If it suits your style and it works for the table, that’s also fantastic

Format-wise, you can play TTRPGs in many ways. Maybe you just want to go full theatre of mind- Absolutely valid. Maybe you don’t want to think about battlemaps but still need a way to make it work- I’ve seen people use emojis on discord to build a semblance of a battlemap. I’ve seen people use excel. People use google sheets. People use drawing software. If it works for your group, it’s good enough. Or maybe you play irl and want to go all in with painted minis and terrain, or the VTT equivalent of having fully animated maps full of spell effects and stuff. That’s also absolutely valid! Why wouldn’t it be?

There has been a lot of talking about the right TTRPGs to enjoy, and how to enjoy them, which has probably risen because of the OGL and people suddenly moving systems or finding new groups, or even people finding out animated spells are a thing. And of course, there’s some people willing to police how others have fun at their tables. Which- Let’s be entirely honest, if you see someone whine about “theatre of the mind sucks you’re just lazy” (or “you don’t need a fancy animated battlemap”, on the contrary) it’s better to just ignore the fuck out of them and move on. If it works for your table, go and enjoy exactly that. That’s what matters.

A lot of times people choose to play TTRPG one way or another to accommodate to their groups needs and their own, and trying to say what is “wrong” can easily fall into a weirdly ableist discourse. For example, I have a speech impediment: It’s gotten better over the years, but lengthy improv descriptions are a struggle. And so, I’d rather either prepare extensive descriptions in my notes, or draw a battlemap that puts my players into what I envision without a 5-minute narration that will burn my mental RAM. Someone with ADHD may need extensive notes to not go off the rails- Or maybe a dyslexic person can’t use notes too well and prefers to rely on improv. Aphantasia is a thing and some people can’t just imagine out of a text description, and they may prefer to see an animation instead of hearing someone describe it. The beauty of TTRPGs is that they’re wildly variable, and people have found endless ways to enjoy them- and adapt them to their needs.

So, for whoever needs to hear this, for whoever found some idiot on the internet telling you how to play your own home game: If your group is having fun the way you play the game, you’re doing it right. Don’t be scared to try out methods that work for you and your group, and adapt it to individual preferences, needs, and use whatever accommodations you need to make your life easier. Having fun is the objective, the way you get there is up to you.

[barzfrommarz]

Hey barz :] It’s late, and instead of working on the Pogtopia TNT duo comic I started tonight (because comics are lowkey so intimidating), I came to your blog to ask you some questions:

How often do you think about the fact that Revivebur has canonical PTSD related to swords? I think about it a normal about and it doesn’t add extra angst to anything I write, especially not a death scene or anything (some of the biggest lies ever told)

Does everyone it this fandom who likes c!Wilbur and was in a toxic relationship at one point also project that onto c!MAD duo, or is that just like a me thing? (This question is more of a joke, but still)

Any c!Wilbur headcanons that you wanna share?

Are you excited to hear about all the c!Wilbur angst in all my DSMP AU’s (it’s a LOT)

Anyways, have a good day/night, bye :D

tysm for the c!wilbur questions!

I think about c!wilburs ptsd a normal amount! I never particularly think about his trauma revolving swords tho. I think back to the moment in the finale stream where I think c!tommy pulls out a sword in anger (excuse me it’s been over a year since I watched the final stream) and I think about how that would’ve affected c!wilbur. I like to think his body tensed up and his eyes widened and he flinched back a little in that moment. Thinking it was happening again.

Maybe. I wouldn’t be suprised but I never rlly think abt c!mad duo a lot. I should more tho their dynamic has so much potential

-I like to think he’s the kinda guy to refuse to admit he’s disabled/Neurodivergent/Mentally ill. Nope i’m fine type beat. Powering thru the chronic pain and the autistic meltdowns and manic episodes like it’s nothing

-Tourette’s syndrome. I’ve never talked abt this headcanon before but I have tics irl and I feel like he would have them.

-He is a big fan of other forms of art. I think he would paint and write novels he will never show to anyone

-He lost all pain tolerance after revival.

-He has a speech impediment. He grew out of it but it never fully went away

-Pathetically anxious. No comment

-Shakes/trembles constantly. He’s just colder now

-He never knows when he is sick. He will often go weeks without realizing it and usually has to have someone tell him he’s sick (if it’s not bad enough)

-I think he would age regress to cope. In secret of course (c!quackity knows)

-speaking of c!quackity, c!wilbur never realized he was secretly crushing on him bc he never picked up on the social cues

YES I AM. I don’t read a lot of fanfiction anymore but I will still read c!wilbur angst any day

You too tysm for asking I love talking abt c!wilbur :)))))))