#but honestly isn't really inclined to take that much of a side on any point

[drunktuesdays]

"#me about s2 of good omens" biggest it's like we're sharing the same heart moment of my life bc i wouldn't say i necessarily ENJOYED it but i sure did consume it! anyway between dustin and jim, who is the angel in love with the demon and who is the demon in love with the angel

i watched all of good omens in a fugue state yesterday, just one after another until i surfaced, blinking, horny and confused. hand to god i could not have explained the plot of this season if you paid me but yes i was incredibly aroused by the ending and will be visiting good omens dot ao3 dot org slash sort by bookmarks slash published summer 2023.

i feel like this season was one of those things where when you're writing a fic and you know you have a KILLER will-they-or-won't-they plot but you try to give your characters something to do in between thinking about kissing but you really don't care THAT much about what they're doing. so instead you invent a jon hamm to hang the whole plot on. no regrets, no notes. i really did not follow a lot of it but i'm RAGINGLY horny about the end, and who needs anything else?

[just-jordie-things]

i love you sm u are my inspiration,, ah all ur fics have me blushing n giggling like a silly little girl.

can i request sum hcs for megumi x shy!touch starved!reader. reader is shy in general, even MORE shy with affection.... but craves it so dearly oh em gee (not me calling myself out)

love you have a lovely day <3

this is delicious on god ___

megumi isn't someone who initiates much with affection. in private he might be more inclined... but honestly it just doesn't cross his mind.

he makes the mistake of assuming that if you want affection, you'll ask for it/initiate it yourself.

and there in lies the problem. you never initiate.

not that you don't want to !! my god you'd love to cuddle up with your boyfriend, have your arms wrapped around each other, cozy up on his chest, maybe even take a nap right there. it sounds so wholesome you're overwhelmed by the idea. you'd do anything to have it... except actually asking for it.

because megumi doesn't initiate much-besides the occassional hand hold or quick kiss- you make the mistake of assuming he's not much of a touchy-cuddly guy.

and now you're both sitting on the couch watching a movie and there's a whole few inches of space between you and you're losing it.

your nerves couldn't be more obvious

hands fiddling in your lap, leg bouncing, chewing on your lip, playing too much with your hair- you're every sign of a girlfriend in distress.

(although it probably takes megumi a few minutes too long to actually ask you about it)

((sorry gumi, but you're not always great with your words))

eventually he gives you a concerned look and asks you what's on your mind

you're kind of a coward so you try to brush it off like it's nothing... but of course he just stares you down and waits for a proper answer because look at you, you're a wreck.

your eyes barely meeting his, you finally ask, "do you... notliketocuddle?" it's so quick and quiet megumi could almost miss it completely.

"what? what gave you that idea?" poor boy is genuinely confused.

so you nervously explain that it seems like he never wants to be too close to you, and now he's PANICKING because oh my god he'd love to have you glued to his side 24/7??? you're the only person in the world he wants to keep as close to him as humanly possible?? he just thought you were shy and wanted to take things slow!!

(he's trying to explain all of this to you in this moment... i'm sure you can imagine how messy his words are.. but he tries his best and it's endearing and you get the point)

it ends with him wrapping his arms around you and pulling you snug against his side, right under his arm so he can still hold you while you lean into his chest and finally start to enjoy the movie.

he can feel your anxieties melting away as you relax into him. he thinks you might miss the end of the movie with how slow your breathing becomes

... but he won't mind if you want to take a nap on him. he'd really like it, actually. any excuse to have you cuddled up to him a little longer

megumi learns the important lesson of initiating affection, and now when you're alone you couldn't keep the boy off you if you tried.

(you're still a bit shy though, but megumi thinks it's a win to see your pink cheeks)

[mdhwrites]

Whats your opinion on Helluva boss's humor? Personally it kinda annoys me how the abuse so much the sex jokes. AND the swearing. It gets repetitive and tiring.

I actually don't think it's that bad. Not amazing or anything but the ensemble cast for Helluva Boss is well made. You essentially have your playful asshole with Blitz, your tsundere bitch with Loona, Millie being able to switch up roles between sweet heart and "I WILL RIP YOUR HEART OUT!" and then all the way on the other side of the spectrum is Moxxie who plays the fool and questions the violence and gratuitousness.

That is a pretty decent cast for most things honestly. It leans more mean spirited but that's in keeping with tonal priorities and humor priorities but it isn't all one note. Loona's comedy is different from Blitzo's. Blitzo and Moxxie do play off one another OKAY (I'll get to it) and Millie works well for bridging gaps. It's not doing anything brave but it's fine.

The problem actually comes more that the overall tone/setting doesn't create enough contrast from the comedy or character interactions and that is what causes the problem. Blitzo is harassed by Stolas. Stolas has a his own person who bitches at him. Blitzo is a dick with literally EVERYONE and picks fights constantly. The most effective contrast ever in the show is actually not even with the angels because of this, everyone just acts themselves and the angels are barely characters until they're assholes too which is a HUGE problem for Vivzie's works in general, but with Millie's family. Taking them out of the city and playing into city slicker vs farm tropes is actually the most varied character writing in what I saw of the show. Everyone is too samey otherwise. The nobles bicker like the commoners, their problems are just bigger. The commoners act as entitled or more than the nobles. No one gives a fuck about anything except their wangsting so they're assholes for no reason which is incredibly disinteresting.

Moxxie is the saddest of all of this because he is meant to be the straight man, the fool who is set up to be knocked down, but when people mock literally everyone around them, and Moxxie never gets shots back, he's literally just a punching bag, the point of a straight man feels kind of lost. He's a fool, like everyone else, he just has a lot more of it thrown at him to the point where it starts feeling like he's comic relief from how people treat him. The show doesn't want to frame it like that but it's not very interesting when it's not unique.

The Rule of Threes exists in comedy for a reason. By then, you can have built up a joke enough to really have it hit hard but repetition, like horror, kills comedy. You already know what the joke is. This I think is MUCH more the problem of Helluva Boss than the cursing. Like Dane Cook, people focus on the cursing when the bigger problem is that you remove all the cursing and what you're left with is very boring scripts that are very repetitive in their jokes. I bet you could make a fucking flowchart for how interactions between the main cast go which is true in a lot of sitcoms but usually takes longer than SEVEN EPISODES to get the vibe of. Let alone in a show that is not a sitcom but trying to be deep and dramatic as much as it's trying to be comedic.

But it has potential so if someone told me it got better in the long run, I'd be inclined to believe them. However... Most sitcoms, or even just comedies, have a Barney or a Kramer for a reason. This one character who is way more exaggerated than the others and is the one with the most outside perspective that others can react off of, if not be challenged by. Almost any action they make is unique because of these two elements when compared to the rest of the cast. They're not entire jokes but dynamic forces that push against the other characters in a way that otherwise wouldn't exist.

For Vivzie's works, these characters are meant to be Charlie and Moxxie but... They're boring. That's the thing everyone makes fun of them for. They don't do jack shit and they're the least exaggerated characters in their shows. As such, their voices vanish and all you're left with is the status quote.

And well, stagnancy and status quote are the death of comedy. I guess that's why it's in Hell though. See you next tale.

======+++++======

I have a public Discord for any and all who want to join!

I also have an Amazon page for all of my original works in various forms of character focused romances from cute, teenage romance to erotica series of my past. I have an Ao3 for my fanfiction projects as well if that catches your fancy instead. If you want to hang out with me, I stream from time to time and love to chat with chat.

A Twitter you can follow too

And a Kofi if you like what I do and want to help out with the fact that disability doesn’t pay much.

[cloudninetonine]

Reading the crossover stuff you've written for linked universe is rotting my head so much that it got me back into writing!!! (which is honestly a miracle I haven't written anything for myself in ages)

but like. I'm imagining a player's aid! insert who's also a big fan of Sky: Children of the Light (great game btw very fun with friends I recommend hehe)

and one day they just. find a random sky child????? In Hyrule??? so obviously since the sky child is all on their own where they really shouldn't be, mc just. adopts a kid. they can't really communicate well, if at all, except through very very exaggerated body language and gestures (emotes in the game is a common way to talk with strangers. or spam honking to get someone's attention. imagine the noise.) but eventually the player and the sky child become so close that they can just share looks or read each others body language and just know!

Wind has a new sibling now who is very happy to mess around and help play pranks on the others. The sky child wouldnt be afraid of Wolfie because they dont really have much reference for dangerous creatures except for the krill/dark dragons and Wolfie is too cute and small to scare them! Sky would probably really like them too because they can fly and they could be a really musically inclined sky child and be able to play different instruments! Like the harp in-game!! one of the links might find out about the child's arsonist related needs and be concerned, but the mc insists that the child is fine! Don't worry at all, Hyrule. They genuinely won't get any burns from standing directly on top of the campfire! they aren't a normal hylian child, they actually kinda need fire to stay alive and rain isn't good for them, it puts out their light. now I'm imagining angst with rain oh no-

the sky child (who would probably be a veteran who's been around a long time and was probably exploring out of bounds areas and somehow managed to get to Hyrule. whoops) is kinda confused but up for exploring this vast realm and find mc and they just. adopt this weird not-a-spirit-yet person who kind of has light too? so maybe a moth? (affectionate term for new players gicitdkgdigditdoyd)

and when the sky child first meets the chain, they are probably just freaking out over their clothes lol. cosmetics and basically dress up is a very big part of the game and the sky child would not be above begging to get their hands on their own really pretty blue scarf, black pelt, cool looking armour, etc etc.

So the sky child is super caring and protective over mc. they would probably bite legend at some point lmao. they can just sense the bad vibes from him! They don't really understand it, but legend doesn't like their moth, and obviously they won't stand for any slander so they bite :D (even if there could be a communication barrier because they can't speak the language, only HÖNK)

side note, I'm actually writing a crossover fic for linked universe and Sky:COTL. can you tell that i've been losing my mind over them??

Shameless plug in to my amazing friend @sketchyspook who has their very own Sky Linksona that y'all should check out!!

God I haven't played Sky in so long PIUFGP

Now back to the ask

I LOVE THIS IDEA SO MUCH IT'S SO CUTE- Player adopts a little child is one of my favourite genres honestly. LET THEM BE A PARENT!!! Running around and trying to take care of their kids they're gonna be in aches and pains at the end of it all PIUGFPI

ALSO THE SKY CHILD BITING LEGEND I'M LAUGHING- REFUSING TO LET GO AND BEING SWUNG ABOUT AS PLAYER WATCHES WITH A SMIRK

Very happy after it all, sitting on Player's lap while Legend glares across the camp and they honk happily

[acerikus]

Okay, finished the genocide run on yellow now. I can see why it's so controversial but I honestly don't have any issue w the ending - the people claiming it's depicted as a 'good' ending (or even just as a good thing for clover) need to learn to take things past face-value.

(spoilers under cut)

The entire thing is shown as a terrible power trip and the very idea of 'justice' in this route is warped beyond recognition. And it's very obviously intentional. They're so blinded by rage by what happened to the other humans that every monster and anything created by monsters is now a target by the axis fight (while ironically, they now fight more like a monster and have magic on their side).

The Mo encounter is a good show of how much what they're doing ISN'T justice in any way - it's not even like they decided to blame him for being a monster and kill them, they just robbed him because they had a gun and they could. Clover isn't enacting justice regardless of what they tell themselves - it's petty, senseless vengeance and cruelty.

And it's not a good ending for them. The neutral ending practically outright tells us that clover is naturally inclined to hear people out, lend an ear and be kind before passing any judgement. Flowey's reset hundreds of times and it seems like he could never really get them to be genuine violent before the actual game start (and by extension, the player's influence kicking in). They hear Toriel out and stay with her, which probably implies that she tells them what happened to the others as well as the struggles monsterkind is dealing with and that clover doesn't blame them.

Martlet also notes in the zenith fight that they seem to be looking for reasons to hate her during their fight - which combined with their friendship with her on pacifist and their willingness to go back and live with her in snowdin on every neutral route? Oof.

The player and flowey both caused this and both made clover infinitely worse. Which is why it's very poetic that they steal control from both us AND flowey once they hit their breaking point. But that's just it - we DID make them worse. We messed up this poor kid, and once they return to the surface they're probably NOT gonna be having a good time at all.

The reset option realistically probably isn't Clover's choice, but instead the player's. I can't help but feel like it'd bring them a little relief regardless however.

[degrees-of-fuck]

Lettie Infodump so I can talk about her here and it'll make sense

I realised I haven't properly explained what I ended up deciding my OC Lettie's uh... Deal is. I have an insane number of thoughts about her too. She's kinda my main general OC that I ported over to DoL cuz she's my main gal that I constantly rotate in my head, so this makes sense. But. Yeah. Anyway, attempting to explain miss lettice rosangel for people that follow my for my OCs for whatever goddamn reason. Infodump to provide Context about her for future posts - and a couple doodles below!

cw for more Blood Stuff than the usual DoL fare. Sucks 2 be a sacrificial lamb. and also for long.

OK so Path/ologic has always been one of the Lettie Games of All Time to me, but the way I adapted her into DoL was pretty heavily inspired by The Changeling's route (Though I also OFTEN make jokes about Cult of/the Lamb in relation to her.) Initially, because of her Dainty Woodland Weirdo vibes and stuff about her personality, I was gonna toss her at Eden and have her be a miracle-worker on the side when she's in town, but then she uh. Then she stopped being a PC and now she's just here. Among my other OCs. Doing whatever it is she does. God I really wanna do a comic based on the Pathologic intro with my PCs lol

anyway. What I actually ended up doing was making her Full Time miracle worker that was raised at the temple, because I found the image of her after being Found, spawned by the elements, getting thrown at it when her behaviour of inflicting indiscriminate psionic torture instead of crying and generally just being an absolutely horrifying creature kind of finally Broke Bailey and his goons a bit, so. Here, temple. Take this fucking thing. Kill it or exorcise maybe, I don't care just keep it away from me. And then she promptly started acting sweet as anything, having gotten old enough to start communicating a bit. (On her gaslight grindset even as an infant...)

SO. Her being thrown at the temple, plus her mysterious powers plus the circumstances of her 'birth' cleeaarly mean this is some kind of divine being, but the question of course is, In Which Direction? Upon realising that this even WAS a question, the obvious thing for her to do is to start acting the role of The Heavensent AS HARD AS POSSIBLE - Perfect and Pure and Incorruptible. Because being revealed to be even slightly bad might get her diagnosed with Lying Hellspawn. So. Yeah. Kind of a situation where you are sat up nicely on a pedestal, but don't have the Right to display any kind of moral greyness. Which is hard at times, because Lettie's kind of an asshole and only More inclined to be awful when she's being constantly treated in such a bizarre manner. Honestly even with her best efforts, I think there's murmurings of people thinking she isn't what she seems. The odd nun or monk cornering her out of sight about it and so on forth.

But yeah. Essentially, she exists more as a symbol than as a person with real thoughts or feelings. Performs illusion-based miracles, pretends to have visions and then makes them come true to fuck with people, lots of Charitable Good Deeds for Brownie Points... The OTHER thing her daily life seems to entail (Other than occasionally being molested by members of the church and overhearing people wanting to kidnap her) is being a BLOOD SACRIFICE. Her body sure is covered in weird scars from being bled on altars for religious ceremonies, or to just collect some lambs' blood for later use. And also sometimes being touched a lil inappropriately during That.

So yeah. Much thoughts on Perfection and Purity basically equating to Emptiness, Fractured Identity Stuff, Religious Trauma, the general horror-show that is the way the people that basically raised her treat her, the effects of the public eye and having to live a life where you're straight up Not Allowed to change or grow at all, because you're already supposedly Perfect. Just a hollow doll (Well not entirely hollow. She has Blood.) to project onto and adore, but also viciously blame whenever literally anything goes wrong. (I mean, is this a lamb or a goat? It's anyone's guess.)

Much Power but Zero Rights.

I have a lot of Other thoughts thematically and such but I find them hard to put into words that make sense so this is all you're getting for now.

Some Extra Facts About Her???

-Chronic Illness Moments! Being constantly a bit drained of blood, side-effects of psychic burnout plus just. Generally being sickly. This paired with the frequency with which she slips and slides around on temple floors on her sheepy hooves, I wanna start keeping count of how many times she almost gives Jordan a heart attack : )

-With her and Sydney both having kind of a IT'S COMPLICATED parental relationship with Jordan and both of them being how they are, I do NOT think Lettie likes Syd very much. Keeps telling on her when they see her break character a bit. And also is constantly just, there, being a human that she can be compared to. And if she's seen to be less virtuous than some fucking initiate, then it's OVER for her which is kinda terrifying. They rank above most of the nuns and monks at the temple on account of not personally mistreating her, but they sure do make her life harder and she delights in fucking with them.

-At some point, I made Original, Non DoL Lettie transfem because of thematic Gender stuff. Anyway I think that she came out via mix of "Your human genders don't make sense to be, but I like dresses :)" and gaslighting the temple into thinking she'd ALWAYS been this way. So she uh. Didn't come out. She gave herself bottom surgery via a terrifying blood ritual of her Own. Good for her.

-I think there is So much to explore with the Ivory Wraith. Idk the details yet, but... Yeah.

-Cuts her hair into a bob and shears her leg-wool in the summer. Also has to do smaller shearings/cuttings throughout the year probably. I think she spins it into yarn, bleaches and dyes it and knits with it. : ) Very into fiber arts in general. Sewing and embroidery and quilting are Fun and also no one can tell her idle hands are the devil's workshop if she's constantly doing something with her hands.

-I've still yet to settle on how to draw her fucking horns.

EDIT:

-Shortly after making this post, I decided she can be the PC Kylar fixates on, so I've been thinking of that. My other OC Edin already is kind of a fucking stalker, but. Yeah, it makes perfect sense for her to have multiple stalkers I think. Part of her whole deal is that she CONSTANTLY has EYES on her. Never free. Two stalkers, each with completely conflicting expectations of her is supremely on brand.

-Feeling of Kylar has figured out that she isn't what she presents herself as - but doesn't know who she actually is, instead deciding to view her as what they Want her to be, leading into the hgufkdsdjd, <3 <3 <3 You're So Naughty type shit. ... Don't tell Kylar she doesn't have a womb.

-Kylar maybe has Hopes relating to her ~special powers~ and what they could do for their parents??

[scenetocause]

i would love more of this pregnant max if you ever feel so inclined

(nsfw, mpreg, ambiguously trans max)

"I think it's a hangover, buddy. Like, I don't think we can jump to conclusions going on a podcast with Clem has magic fertility powers when there's a pretty clear explanation." Max groans, wishing Lando would stop talking about this. Or at least, do it quieter.

"Mmm," Lando's chewing his nails. "It's just you've been sick a few times and - I don't know, I guess you'd know best but I feel like... it's just a feeling."

"Yeah, Bob. So let me go back to sleep." Max rolls over, grabbing for Lando and shoving him back down into the sheets. "Be nice to me, I'm a delicate man right now."

"I'm gonna be the nicest," Lando promises, hand running over Max's back. "You're, like, honestly. I know we don't really - y'know - but I, you're really important to me."

"Fucking hell," Max snuggles closer, lets Lando scritch his scalp and feels the way Lando's unnatural body heat eases the slight nausea. "I didn't realise you were so jealous of Marcus."

-

After five months he doesn't exactly start to show, unless you've got your hand in his boxers and there's really only one person that does that but he does realise jeans aren't particularly comfortable anymore, switches over to stealing Lando's joggers. It's odd, he can feel little movements now sometimes, isn't imagining them anymore but his body looks virtually the same, which is kind of a relief.

As is knowing he's more than halfway through it. His silhouette might be unchanged but the swollen ankles and nausea he can do without. And as much as he's constantly telling Lando he's not fucking delicate he is annoyed by how much faster he gets tired, how sensitive he is to sound and lights suddenly, like Lando's fucking baby is transmitting all his weird tics to Max.

But then, it's their baby. Which they're going to have to explain, at some point but for now Max is fine with no one really knowing, only some wry comments about them really being inseparable when Max packs up his stuff (or lets people Lando's paid to pack it) and ships it to the south of France.

Lando is predictably gross about it, sticking his cold fingers under Max's hoodie so he can feel up the not-bump between Max's hipbones. Max has the simultaneously horrible and exciting feeling this isn't going to be the only time Lando manages to do this to him, which is nice because Max wanted kids, plural but also Lando's so into it he feels like he has to be a little bit grumpy about it, get Lando to make it up to him.

He does, with bubble baths and back rubs and letting Max watch his favourite films without a question and then barely taking the piss while Max is crying on him at the end of Notting Hill. By letting Max ride him, the pad of Lando's thumb over his clit, until they both come.

-

By month seven he does actually have to buy some larger hoodies, to hide it but so long as he keeps his shirt on no one really seems to notice. It just looks like he's getting fat, he guesses, curled half-on-his-side in the McLaren hospitality, waiting for Lando to get out of debrief.

He'd thought it would bother him more, doing this and maybe if it was obvious it would but now it's into the definite phase, a recognisable little human on the scans, he kind of likes it. Knowing his body's made something, brewed up him and Lando into someone new and exciting to meet.

They're gonna be cute, he knows it. Everyone's gonna be disgusted by how cute they are and Lando's gonna get another million Instagram followers.

He's vetoed any name in any way referencing the number four, that's a step too fucking far. As well as finding out the gender, the idea of it makes him squirm in a way he hadn't thought about for a long time. Fortunately Lando seems not to give a fuck about anything other than them both being healthy and also seems to get unstoppably horny every time he sees a scan, has mutated his general obsession with Max's body into a specific fascination with this.

-

Lando buries his head in Max's chest, pressed close along his side so that Lando's warm abs are against the bump and he must be able to feel them kicking. A DNF is never fun and Max is happy to hold him, hold them all together, feeling Lando's nose digging into his ribs.

Because Lando has stupidly huge hands it only really takes one of them, touch light and delicate, to span most of the bump still. Max figures (if he's honest, is hoping, never keen about pain at the best of times) maybe their baby will take after Lando and be miniature until they're eighteen or so. A long time after Max has had to extract them from his body, at least.

Like he's thinking the same thing, Lando shoves himself further up, rubs his dick, inevitably, against Max's hip and says. "I dunno how you're - do you still want to?"

Max shrugs. "It's supposed to help, apparently."

"Really?" Lando sounds deeply cynical. "I mean, how would that-"

"I don't know, mate. But yeah, not like it's easy for me to reach now and you've been away for like two weeks." He can feel his cheekbones burning but, honestly, it's felt like a long time and a man has needs.

"Oh," Lando wriggles round to be on his knees almost frighteningly fast. "Fuck, yeah, I can - one second."

Logistically it's not totally straightforward, Max having to cant his hips back on a pillow so Lando has more room but otherwise it's as good as ever. Maybe even better than normal, Max ultra-sensitive to where Lando's tongue's lapping at him sloppily.

"You taste," Lando mumbles, before diving back in again and not really finishing his sentence. "It's so good."

"You just love it," Max manages to hiss back, before he stops thinking at all and just enjoys Lando's fingers inside him, tongue on his clit. It's not a surprise, in retrospect, that Max's sloppy approach to birth control of just assuming it wasn't really going to happen got taken apart by Lando's enthusiasm for getting inside him.

They fuck with Max on his hands and knees, Lando's fingers spanning his chest to play with his nipples and Max doesn't know if he really believes jizz helps hurry up labour but he can imagine if anyone's did it'd probably be Lando's. Just his luck to fall in love with the bloke with magic balls or whatever.

-

He decides not to do it with any fanfare, just switches his PC on, baby in one arm and starts the stream. Waits until there's a thousand or so people on, titles it might be streaming less and takes a deep breath before he switches his camera on.

"Yeah, so." He suddenly can't think what to say, even though he'd gone through it in his head so many times. The whirl of his chat is distracting, trying to catch the words and then Kit wriggles a little bit, jogs him out of the trance.

"Yeah, I've - well, not just me, Bob was involved - had a baby." He glances down the responses. "How long ago? How old does Kit look? Babies are pretty little, though - not long."

"Yes, I'm gonna bring the baby to races. No, just me and him, no girlfriends. Yeah, we live in Monaco now, it's easier for us all. No, we're not married. Not yet. Yeah, the baby's name is Kit."

Right on cue, Kit makes a snuffly little noise and Max is distracted for a second. There's, it turns out, very little quiet as emotionally compelling as looking at the sleepy face of your three-week-old baby and it's honestly pretty embarrassing how much time he spends literally just doing that but it is what it is.

"But yeah, maybe not much streaming for a bit. Got a lot going on, some getting used to it and that. Yeah, Bob's helping - he's been really good, he's at the gym now. No, he's still annoying, just like. He helps."

Max can't stop himself yawning, Kit mirroring it with a soft, babyish noise that makes him melt inside. "Alright, nap time for both of us. Yeah, I'll post baby pictures. Bye chat, love you."

When he turns around, Lando's standing in the doorway. It's not where Max had expected him to be, genuinely thought he'd gone to the gym and he raises an eyebrow at realising Lando's been watching him, instead.

"I missed you." Lando doesn't even look apologetic about it, which is fine because it's Jon he needs to say sorry to, really.

"Alright, buddy." Max stands up, juggling Kit against himself. "You coming for a nap?"

"Yeah." Lando wraps his arms round them both, kisses Max's forehead and then the baby's. "Then I wanna make you dinner and eat you out."

Max rolls his eyes. Of course he fucking does but Lando can actually cook pretty well these days and he's not gonna argue with the other part.

Lando sleeps in his arms, cheek against Max's chest and snoring slightly. Their bodies still fit together perfectly, even after making a third one, snuffling in the crib at the side of the bed.

[crystalelemental]

I'll keep general responses under the cut, just in case.

It's honestly a little funny how much the notes felt like building toward a secret ending, and then just...nothing. Like what? There's an exit to the south of that screen you just can't even use. I thought maybe if I explored everything but ran out of his office instead it would change an ending, like I'd have something to incriminate him and change the outcome, but nope. It's so wild how much that whole situation didn't matter. I also way overprepared for the catacombs. I saved up for a whole bottle of St Walpurga Oil and didn't even need it.

I think the with refusal endings are odd just because of how much went into getting you that far, and that we've proven the marquises can operate in the material world. Like, they sought you out to develop these gifts, and had an invested interest in bringing you to Ozzy, and you can just...leave? Like not even leave that night and just run toward Primaldorf (which was my first inclination for an ending), but go through putting all the offerings up, visit the tree and see the riches, and then just...back out. With no consequence. After all this background discussion about how giving up your resolve will turn you into one of the Golden Girls. And the witch not showing up at all in endings unless you intentionally botch the offerings is...strange. Like is there a reason for that, or...?

I wouldn't know for sure with Hans, but at least in the wish refusal end for Leb, they talk about Hans just...dying at some point, and that he must have just let her drop the nun thing and go travel. Which...sure? I have no problem with that as a conclusion, I'd assume he found his answer about the whole witch situation. Like okay, there was no witch because you don't take your wish and just up and leave and then nothing happens ever again, so...guess St Walpurga is on the level? I guess? I dunno, it isn't even entirely important, I guess.

Like, what is the thematic focus of the game in that sense? I've only played one route so there's stuff missing, but looking at how things end on Leb Route: following the wish route while sacrificing everything is the worst case outcome, messing up the ritual to give power to the witch somehow gets you killed, the church isn't exact stable given they're willing to kill you and have this deep fixation on sin. The only good outcome is...leaving with your lover. Letting go of all of that. Because ultimately, riches and status and comfort? Isn't really what Elise wanted most. Her own words betray that pretty consistently. It's not about fame and fortune. It's about being treated well. Being seen as someone worthwhile, in a way she's often not in town. You're constantly under suspicion for...well, existing. One old dude shouts about a witch, and half the town side-eyes you like "he's got a bit of a point" despite how much you do for them constantly. Choosing the companion who does see you as you are and loves you for it makes sense as the good outcome, because that is your real wish. The witch is a little odd, in that I still can't get a great handle on too much of her existence, but she seems all about the desire to create new life; to conceive a child. Bit of a reach, but all of Elise's romance partners are girls, and Walpurga seems more of a nature witch, so is her focus on bearing life in the womb and having to reject the witch's influence meant to be about like...a compulsory heterosexuality thing? I'm not really sure, but I still have routes to play and have been awake for all of 2 hours since finishing it, so this is not exactly coherent.

The second crow puzzle legitimately almost made me refund the game. Like I was so close to losing it. We do all this bullshit and the boy still goes out of his way to be "No we saw a witch and Elise is lying!" Like, child? I should have let the crows eat you.

The berry grove isn't like...the worst of it by any metric, I think it's just more annoying. I do not like navigation puzzles where the focus is "Everything looks super similar and it's damn near impossible to find anything," and mistakes costing like a third of your HP in a game where it's hard to keep sufficient resources is...not my favorite. It is at least static, I think, so like...small favors.

[antianakin]

So I've been thinking about those posts that have gone around protesting the fandom inclination to not like villain redemption arcs because of the puritanical values that go along with believing people don't deserve the "rewards" that come with redemption arcs, usually: love, acceptance, understanding, etc. and the idea that no person deserves to be denied the basic things every human being should be granted.

And, of course, applying that to Anakin.

Because as someone who does not truly LIKE Anakin, I'm usually the first person to not be inclined to forgive Anakin post-child murder, post-genocide, post-betrayal. I'm generally the first one to believe Anakin can't get better once he's chosen to do his worst. I've called him a rabid bear that just needs to be put down for his own sake and everyone else's. There isn't a cure at this point, he can't be saved or redeemed.

Even Luke doesn't really REDEEM Anakin, Anakin's still only doing what he does to save someone he likes. Great, he throws down a regime to save a family member, where have we seen him do that before? Oh right, when he threw down democracy to save his wife and instigated the beginning of the Empire. He didn't destroy the Empire because he wanted to make amends. He didn't kill Palpatine to save the galaxy he'd helped destroy. He didn't do any of it because it was just generally the right thing to do or because he recognized just how much pain he'd caused and was seeking to do better as a person overall. He does it to save ONE PERSON, and we can pretty solidly say, he wouldn't have done it for ANYONE ELSE, probably up to and including Leia.

Which makes me believe that had Anakin miraculously survived killing Palpatine, he wouldn't necessarily be a better person. He wouldn't truly work to make any kind of amends to the galaxy he'd brought so much pain to.

And what kind of amends could he even DO at this point that would make any kind of difference? He's committed like 167 genocides at this point, oppressed an entire galaxy, killed billions of children on a whim, destroyed whole planets. What can he POSSIBLY do to make any real amends for that? What could possibly make up for that in any meaningful way? He can't undo the Jedi genocide and quite honestly no one should ever let him near a Force sensitive person, especially a child, again. He can't undo the three decades of oppression, he can't undo the fact that the Republic that existed has been basically burnt to ash and needs to be rebuilt from scratch and, again, quite honestly, no one should ever let him near politics ever again.

The best thing Anakin Skywalker can do for the galaxy at this point if he manages to survive is just disappear from it. Whether he dies or just walks away and spends the rest of his life meditating on everything he's done wrong and leaving the galaxy he's brought so much pain to well enough alone, I don't care. Luke can go visit him if he wants to, I guess, but no one else should have to deal with him.

I think that's where my biggest grievance lies in any kind of "Vader Lives" AUs, or "Vader changes sides inexplicably post-genocide" AUs. Because generally, now EVERYONE ELSE IN THE GALAXY has to deal with him like he HASN'T committed genocide. Like he HASN'T murdered mountains of children for the sake of selfishness. As if he isn't someone who would happily do so again if it came down to it as we see in ROTJ when he happily brings down another government to save one person. If saving Luke in that moment had required another genocide instead of just killing Palpatine, we all know he'd have done it. He absolutely would've murdered any number of children to save HIS child. Because he hasn't truly changed and his motivations for saving Luke are almost exactly the same as the motivations he had for saving Padme, it's just that the requirements shifted and the galaxy got very lucky that saving Luke ALSO meant taking out the Emperor and Anakin himself.

Why should the galaxy at large be obligated to share it with someone who would have happily killed them all not so long ago, just because Anakin MIGHT one day learn to be a better person? Why are they obligated to just live the rest of their lives hoping he doesn't decide to go ahead and commit his 168th genocide if Luke stubs his toe on the wrong planet? Why is their fear acceptable in favor of Anakin getting a chance to be good?

Once he's decided double genocide is acceptable? Once he spends DECADES oppressing everyone he can find because misery loves company? I don't really see a way out for him that isn't vastly unfair for everyone else.

[poisonouswritings]

I've had this scenario in my head for a little while so you people can have it now

Tw: some violence I guess? Froslass tries to freeze Adaman to death so do with that what you will. Nothing too graphic and no one actually dies.

Gn!reader, kinda long

Okay so if any of you have read Froslass' Pokedex entry you'd see

So let's imagine...

It's a standard enough survey. You're going out to research a Zoroark sighting and figure you'll add some notes to a few other pages. It isn't unusual for you to take what could be a one-day research trip and drag it out to three or four days. It's not your fault! There's so much to do and see and those damn Aipoms keep stealing your field notes

Anyways there actually is a difference this time; you've brought Adaman with you.

Ever since he discovered the excitement of Pokémon battles, he's a lot more willing to go investigate with you

You like having him around. He's certainly a better conversation partner than your Pokémon or the ArcPhone.

Irida meets you at drop-off point. She's also taken a bigger interest in Pokémon battling. And while she and Adaman still have their fair share of conflicts and arguments, they've gotten along a lot better since meeting Dialga and Palkia.

You daresay they're even friends now, at least sometimes

Anyways, the three of you set off. It's fine at first. They each have an arm linked with yours, lightly and playfully tugging you between the two of them while they bicker. You've stopped paying attention to the argument for the most part. The air is cold but right here, between these two dorks, it's warm.

You climb up steep inclines and hop down sharp drops (Adaman and Irida have to use Wrydeer, and they half-heartedly scold you for some of those bigger falls, but you don't get hurt easily so it's fine). You catch Pokémon. Fight a few. Run into the Miss Fortune Sisters and cheer on Adaman and Irida when they decide they'll 'protect you from the bandits" (and oh how Charm gags at that, but you just laugh and thank them)

The sun starts to drop. You probably won't get to the base camp before nightfall but you could feasibly make it to the Pearl Clan settlement. Irida is more than willing to put you up for a night, especially since a storm is brewing.

(To put you up for a night. She says Adaman has to stay outside. He rolls his eyes and lightly tugs you over. You stumble a bit and fall against his chest, and he sticks his tongue out at Irida and says tells her that you agreed to keep him warm out here. To be fair you did, but you meant you'd loan him your Typhlosion or something. You aren't complaining about his idea though.)

Anyways you guys are pretty far east of Avalugg's Legacy. It's getting colder. You offer to summon Wrydeer but it could only take two of you at a time. Adaman and Irida refuse to leave you by yourself. And you and Adaman refuse to let Irida walk by herself either. So you'll all walk together.

The storm is picking up. It's getting harder to see. You guys are lucky Irida knows her way around so we'll or else you'd be screwed.

What happens when a Pokémon crosses your path? An alpha Mammoswine, maybe? It's so hard to see in the blizzard that you honestly aren't sure. All you really know is that it's something big and angry. You throw your Pokémon into battle while yelling for Irida and Adaman to scatter.

It's a fierce fight. You can't see a foot in front of your face. You can only make out the occasional flash of light from a move. You throw your arms over your face and storm forward, trying to keep track of the battle, trying to keep things from going off the rails

But you can't fucking see

You get slammed into from the side. You go flying through the air and crash into... Something. Is it a wall or the floor? You can't tell because everything is just this flurry of white and grey. You think you hear Adaman screaming your name but maybe that's just the wind roaring in your ears.

You blank for a minute.

When you come back to it, Irida is shaking your shoulders, begging you to wake up. You can barely even hear her. You try to ask her what happened but she can't hear you. She tugs you to your feet, hands clenched tightly together, and you two stumble along. Your jacket got torn when you got hit. Ice cuts you like knives. You're so numb that it hurts.

Arceus, everything hurts

It feels like you're walking through empty space. Like you're drifting in and out of consciousness. There are footsteps in front of you and footsteps behind you and that's all you can really focus on.

Irida finally tugs you in a cave. You feel weak. You nearly fall on your face but Irida catches you and eases you down to the floor.

You turn to check on Adaman and see how he's holding up - he gets cold in a light breeze so this has gotta be miserable for him - but... He isn't there.

Your Pokémon is. And when it sees the look in your face it seems to know exactly what you're thinking. It shakes its head. Your blood freezes. You look up at Irida desperately. Her eyes go cold and fearful with the realization.

You take a long moment to gather your energy. Steel your nerves. It hurts to stand and you grit your teeth to keep from groaning. Irida worriedly flutters around you, trying to (gently) push you back down.

She says she'll go find him but you shake your head. This storm is Bad and Adaman doesn't have Irida's sense of direction or your Pokémon battling skills.

You don't have time to sit and rest.

Irida reluctantly agrees but makes you promise you'll rest if you need it, because you passing out and freezing to death won't help. You agree. The two of you hold hands, lace your fingers together, and delve into the storm.

Arceus it hurts

Obviously any footprints are long gone. But you call up Wrydeer and Irida guides you back to the Legacy. Of course there's nothing to see-

A scrap of blue catches your attention, half-buried in the snow. Your body is still numb so you kinda faceplant a little but it's fine you don't care you have an idea and it's just about the only possible chance you have

You call up Ursaluna. Irida grips your shoulder to keep you from getting tossed around by the gale.

Sniff...sniff...... Snort!

Ursaluna nods. You hop into the saddle. Irida sits behind you, pressed against your back to keep some of the cold off. Your lips are too cold to move the right way to make words (that's what you blame it on, not the terror that gnaws on your guts) but in your head you thank her

Ursaluna takes off, the scrap of torn fabric clenched in your trembling hand. The cold wind stings your eyes hard enough to make tears roll across your cheeks. You can't see anything anyways so you close your eyes.

Running...climbing...shaking...wind screams...rocks fall and hit the ice below...

Ursaluna stops.

You're under a rock shelf. Your body is shaking. You try to slide off the bear but your knees are so weak you nearly tumble off the mountainside. Luckily Irida grabs you and tugs you over. She wraps her arms around you and puffs warm air on your cheek. It helps. Once you're confident that you can walk without falling, she lets you go.

There's a trail. You can just vaguely make out the yawning mouth of a cave. Sounds like there's a Pokemon in there. The sound is familiar, alarms are blaring in your head, but you can't place it. You don't think it matters. You grip Typhlosion's ball in one hand. With the other, the one still holding that scrap of fabric, you blindly reach back for Irida. She catches your hand and gives it a calming squeeze. You share your shoulders, narrow your eyes, give a curt nod.

You two step down the trail and into the cave.

Eyes. So many eyes.

All frozen. All stuck staring at nothing. Children. Women. Men. Mostly men. All looking like they could come alive at any moment. But you know better. Some look scared. More look tired. Most look grimly resigned.

Irida whimpers. She doesn't study Pokémon the same way you do. She wasn't expecting this. Wasn't expecting to see several familiar uniforms either.

You squeeze her hand and press on, trying to quell the urge to gag.

You already know what to expect in the main cavern but it still makes your heart freeze in it's tracks.

Adaman. Patches of skin tinged just slightly blue. Ice stuck in his hair. Tears frozen on his pale cheeks. Eyes half-lidded as the energy is seeped out of his body.

And, of course, a Froslass.

You scream. Not out of fear but of fury. Rage. Is this what an alpha Pokemon feels like?

The sharp sound echoes off the glossy walls and bounces off frozen corpses. It surprises both of them, Froslass finally ceasing her ice breath for a moment and Adaman startling just slight awake

Irida gives you a 'good luck' squeeze and darts off to the side as you lob your Pokéball at the ghost-type.

You're so amped up on adrenaline that it's like fire is pumping through your veins. All the pain vanishes as you focus all your attention on wreaking havoc.

Some distant part of you wonders if the decór would appreciate your efforts

You're.... Efficient.

You know Froslass' weaknesses. You know how to fight it. How to beat it.

Typhlosion does great, knowing your command almost before you say it. Maybe intense emotion makes it easier to bond with your Pokémon?

Anyways.

You two beat back Froslass pretty easy. It retreats. You're nearly tempted to chase after it but since you're not entirely sure what Froslass even is - that is to say, you don't know if it hunts humans out of malice or pure instinct - you can't exactly pass a moral judgement. Besides, there's something more important you have to do right now.

Irida is sitting with Adaman's back against her chest, rubbing his arms, trying to help drag him back from the brink of a very-cool-demise

Now is not the time for jokes but it's what Adaman would want

You rip off your jacket and crouch in front of him, covering him in it, wrapping your arms around his neck and setting his forehead in the crook of your neck and rocking him back and forth and trying desperately to keep your body from shaking from all the adrenaline.

You hear Adaman mumbling softly. If you were a little less freezing you might feel his lips moving against your shoulder. You can't make out what he's saying but it doesn't matter. He's conscious. He's alive. You hug him tight and look up at Irida. You see the relief on her face, and for a moments it's like you guys aren't surrounded by frozen bodies. Typhlosion comes and sits to the side to lend some extra heat.

And for a while you guys just sit like that.

The storm finally tapers off to an end.

[analyzingadventure]

So, do you have any theory about why every time GulusGammamon appears there's a black variant digimon around? I admit this is making me super super curious and I can't stop thinking about it.

BOY HOWDY NOW AIN'T THAT THE QUESTION

Now, the thing is that right now, we have VERY LITTLE to go off of on What The Deal Is, right? Like there's near infinite possibilities to What The Deal Is, but there isn't much to indicate which option is the correct one, so like. I could theorize here for days on all the different possibilities and we wouldn't really get any closer to the truth because all we have is breadcrumbs to work off of rn

All we really do know is that: 1. There's multiple black/Virus variant Digimon (not a singular entity, this is a group of some kind) 2. They're monitoring (Gulus)Gammamon

Now we don't really know for sure if the Black Variants are following Gammamon from the shadows all the time, but between the Black Variants just manifesting out of thin air like a Final Fantasy Summon whenever Gulus appears, and them just stalking Gammamon in general (and we, the viewers, are only made aware of said stalking during Gulus' appearances), I'm more inclined to believe the latter. (Theoretically there could be some kind of a story here where every time Gulus appears some Digimon evolve/turn into Virus variants (lowkey kinda like Meicoomon infecting Digimon in tri.) but I feel it'd be kind of repetetive as far as plots go, and I can't quite see how that would tie into the rest of the story/what GG is going for, like I don't think it'd quite fit in here. Also if this was the case I think we would've seen by now at least one Digimon (side)evolve into a Virus variant and not just them stalking Gamma from a distance)

And this leads to the next question; why is this group (united by being Black/Virus variants) stalking Gammamon?

And here is where we could theorize on the possibilities endlessly

(Sidenote I think it's pretty safe to assume that, much like Agumon and co in Psi, (Gulus)Gammamon probably had a life before the series began, was either kinda reset or maybe even died and was reborn before getting sent off to Hiro by Hokuto. Gammamon doesn't remember his past, but Gulus probably does, whatever that may have been. At least that is my assumption of what's happening with Gulus, it is still possible that Gammamon was just Born This Way and Gulus is just deeply buried Naughty Side to Gammamon (kinda like Megidramon to Tamers' Guilmon). IDK, time will tell what the case here is)

Gulus could've been a like a cult leader back in the DW, leading hoards of Black/Virus variant Digimon, some of whom have tracked him down in the Human World and are watching, waiting for his return

The opposite; these Digimon have been tasked with taking down Gammamon (Gulus or not) if Gulus became a problem, them being Black/Virus variants is either a irrelevant or maybe they're the same type to avoid any power imbalances due to differing attributes

They're not like cult followers but Gulus could maybe hold some ~daaaaark pooower~ that the Variants could want to steal for themselves to take over the world or something and they're just waiting for the right time to do so

They could've been sent by Hokuto for the same unknown reasons as why he sent Gammamon to Hiro in the first place- reasons we will not understand until Hokuto gets his ass kicked

Something to do with Uver. IDK what but. IDK is it a coincidence that the Digimon seemingly returning DigiEggs back into the DW is a Black/Virus Tailmon variant? Like maybe the other Variants are also doing mail/egg deliveries, they just didn't get cute uniforms

Yeah. There's so many possibilities. And not enough of breadcrumbs to really work with any more than this right now. I'm definitely curious to find out what's happening behind the scenes though, like I can NOT wait for some more lore/plot to drop (I'd be begging Toei for some lore but honestly I got Piemon as a whole MotW so at this point I can't ask for anything more from Toei ever again)

[misscellophane-ao3]

Title - Little Apple (Demon)

Fandom - MDZS/CQL

Pairing - WangXian

Words - I didn't count. (I lied, I counted. It's 777)

Notes - This isn't edited, I just wrote it down immediately after getting the idea. I just couldn't resist the idea of Little Apple being a haunted stuffed donkey that just really likes apples.

Story -

Wei Wuxian unlocked his door, moving out of the way so Lan Wangji could step in after him.

"Here we are. Thank you so much for helping me, Lan Zhan." Wei Wuxian cheerfully said, closing the door and kicking off his shoes.

"I am always happy to help Wei Ying." Lan Wangji took his shoes off more gracefully, impressive considering the multiple grocery bags he was carrying.

"You're so sweet, Lan-Er-Gege!" Wei Wuxian chimed as he directed his boyfriend towards his kitchen, "I promise to make it up to you later." He winked, causing a light red to work its way over the Lan's ears.

"Mn."

Wei Wuxian giggled, taking a bag from him, "I can take this one! Can you start putting away all the other things?"

Lan Wangji inclined his head in agreement, watching Wei Wuxian out of the corner of his eye as he started setting things in the fridge.

The bag Wei Wuxian grabbed was completely full of ripe red apples, so he wasn't that surprised to see him walking over to a bowl full of apples that were no longer in the best shape.

There was a stuffed donkey sitting behind the bowl, the expression on its face almost looked as if it was displeased with Wei Wuxian.

Wei Wuxian paused a few steps away before he swept into a perfect bow, hands held in front of him with the bag of apples swaying from his fingertips as if in offering.

"I apologize for not getting you new apples sooner, I was busy with work, but if you allow, I will switch them for you now." Wei Wuxian spoke as if talking to someone, a moment of pause as if listening to a response, then–

"Ah, I am glad you approve, your Majesty. I will switch them right away! I even made sure they were all ripe this time, so you can't complain, alright?"

Wei Wuxian wagged a finger at the stuffed donkey before he grabbed a separate bowl to put the old apples into, he then turned and gently poured the new apples into the bowl, shifting them so they wouldn't fall.

"There you go, Little Apple. New apples for you!" Wei Wuxian patted the donkey on the head.

Lan Wangji was confused when he first came over to Wei Wuxian's apartment and was told to not touch the apple bowl. Even more so, when Wei Wuxian admitted to not being allowed to touch it himself.

He had wondered why Wei Wuxian had an apple bowl if he never touched it, he apparently didn't need to ask his questions out loud as Wei Wuxian answered almost immediately for him.

"The apple bowl is for Little Apple." He said, pointing out the stuffed donkey, "She doesn't like it when people take any." he had sighed, tone fond yet mildly annoyed, "We made a deal that I can change the apples out for new ones when they start to get bad, and use them however I want but I can't touch any apples until then. It's fine. I don't really mind."

Lan Wangji had blinked at him then, even more confused.

"Oh, Lan Zhan, that's right. You don't know about Little Apple!" Wei Wuxian smiled brightly at him, "I found her on the side of the road one day and brought her home. No matter where I set her down or how long I looked away for, I would always find her right next to an apple. If there were no apples around, she would make noises at night and toss things around. So I started buying fresh apples every week and switching the bowl out for her."

"You own a haunted stuffed donkey?" Lan Wangji remembered replying, earning a laugh.

"She's harmless! As long as she has fresh apples she doesn't care about what I do. Honestly, the worst thing she ever did was make loud noises all night and make a few of my dishes break; the one time I forgot to change out her bowl." Wei Wuxian waved his hand, "She's usually very quiet and actually pretty fun to talk to, so I don't mind keeping her around."

Lan Wangji wouldn't have admitted it to Wei Wuxian, but he didn't believe that the donkey was haunted at first, until a few weeks later when Lan Wangji kept Wei Wuxian so occupied that he forgot to change out the apple bowl.

Lan Wangji never made that mistake again.

He turned his focus back on organizing the groceries in the fridge, Wei Wuxian moving to start on the pantry stuff. Little Apple watches them from behind her bowl of fresh, ripe apples.

[slashingdisneypasta]

Horror Villains x Reader || Drabbles

Plots / Includes: Basically Freddy's S/O meeting Jason and Jason's S/O meeting Freddy.

Two unlikelies and unfortunates, honestly, get stuck in a room together.

Looking at this gif, does everyone understand what i mean when I say Freddy is a budgie???

Drabble #1 : Freddy Krueger's S/O and Jason.

Awkwardly you lean back on the wall, counting yourself lucky until this point, that Jason hadn't just killed you immediately. Though, you reckon that has something to do with the chains around his ankles. "So... "

As soon as he hears your voice, Jason looks slowly up from the ground where his gaze had been trained. You know not to flinch at the drop of a hat, though, and you've got pretty damn good practise in the art of keeping your natural bodily functions under control, too. That doesn't mean that look in his eyes doesn't make you wary.

Really, wary. You're well aware of Jason's abilities, and you don't trust that if given reason that he couldn't rip those chains right out of the wall.

Taking a deep breath, though, you raise your brows at the chains keeping you safe, chewing on your bottom lip. "That cant be comfortable. I, um... " You shake your head, awkward. "I wouldn't like that."

Obviously he doesn't respond... but you do catch his eyes turn just slightly sad. His head turns down again, to look at the way that he's tied up like an animal, and you take that as a chance.

Cautiously approaching him, you hold up your hands in the universal 'No-harm-meant' gesture, a look that hopefully reveals your true intentions clearly, rather then the threatening ones Jason might be inclined to believe you have. Really, you just want to help him. Truly.

So, chewing on the inside on your cheek you show him your hands... carefully getting down onto your knees before him. "... trust me?"

He shakes his head, and since he did that rather then wrap one of those hands around your throat and squeeze until you're dead, you just give him a little smile. "Don't I have a trustworthy face?"

And then he looks at you carefully. Most people would look back at Jason, or just at Jason, and think there isn't much substance going on in there. But you've been through this before and just as you managed to see through Freddy, you see the sensible sceptic in Jason clear as day.

And you don't blame him, for not being sure of you. You wish that you could, but you cant.

Lowering your arms, you sit down back on your heels, basically leaving yourself without defence. "... He doesn't have anything to do with this." Earnestly you look at him. "I promise." Shrugging, you allow a tiny sweet smile on your face. "I just want to help you."

The moment you see his hard gaze on you soften a little bit, become the tiniest bit more lenient, you pull a pin out of your hair and show it to him, holding it next the lock between his legs. "Now would you just let me unlock you, you stubborn old goat?"

~

"So this is a lot harder then I anticipated... " You say, tweaking away at the lock with your hair pin and chewing concentratedly on the inside of your cheek. Knitting your brows together, you try a little harder. "Mmm... "

After a few more moments, you sigh and tuck some hair back behind your ear- looking back up to Jason who's watching your attentions carefully. "So. Big strapping man like you- you got a sweetheart by any chance?"

When he just stares back, a snort escapes you and you grin, turning back down to the lock and getting back to work. "Sorry. Just making conversation. This isn't much like a hairdressers chair, though, is it? Not even a dentist's... "

Another couple moments of peaceful silence lays out ahead of the two of you when you notice Jason shift- and look up, immediately, to see what he's up to. Tilting your head to the side, you watch him straighten up and pull something out of the inside of his jacket. Its a piece of paper, which he shows you.

On it is a picture of someone who's, assumedly at Crystal Lake, smiling at the camera, and totally beautiful in that they don't look to have been uncomfortable in any way in the moment that the photo was taken. Its not at all like a normal photo, like when you stand up for a family photo with your siblings or your classmates at school. They're just grinning, easy.

Probably because they're with Jason.

The picture makes you smile. "That's them?"

He nods, and your smile widens.... before faltering, just the tiniest bit. "... You don't think, that... if I'm, locked up here with you... and in the grand randomness of that... uhm, that your... that they're... " You take a deep breath, roll your eyes and force the last bit out, pointing at the photo. "That they're with Freddy, then? In a similar place?"

Jason's eyes immediately go cold, and you follow suit. You can only imagine how that one's, going.

"Yeah... Fuck indeed."

Drabble #2 : Jason Voorhees' S/O and Freddy.

As soon as you woke up, and dragged the bag off of your head and saw that man, you knew you must be in hell, or something. That asshole that tried to use Jason, and then get rid of him, once he wouldn't do as he was told anymore.

Fucking Freddy Krueger.

You cant with this fuck; You really cant.

So quickly you had clocked the chains around his ankles and found a spot on the floor on the other side of the room, without a word. You don't dare to even look his way, lest you take off your shoe - the only viable weapon in the mysterious room, - and beat him with it.

-Freddy, though, has not got the message. He seems to have no qualms about talking to you... or more likely, bothering you.

"Okay okay okay, how about this one," He speaks up once again from the other side of the room, sending tweaks of annoyance through your very soul. Your eyes flutter shut at the sound of his voice, hoping to calm down and not want to kill him quite so badly. "If you're American when you go into the bathroom, and you're American when you come out again, then what are you when you're in there?" Obviously you don't respond, but of course that does not stop him. "Europee'en!"

You still don't respond, but by the sound of Freddy's obnoxious smokers cough of a laugh you gather that he's having plenty of fun acting as if you weren't there at all. Even if he must speak outloud.

And apparently he must.

"What did the fish say when he ran into a wall, huh??? DAM!"

The silence becomes deafening.

"What do you call a can opener that doesn't work?... A can't opener- "

"Oh my god." Finally, you whip around and glare. "Cant you shut up for 2 seconds??"

He looks all too pleased to have gotten a response out of you finally, and you feel sick for having given it to him. "Sure I can, but how cruel would that be? A gentleman like myself couldn't let another ... prisoner... like yourself sit here in silence ruminating in their own misery." He tilts his head to the side, and you glower back. "Missing Jason yet?"

Oh and the look on your face just gets darker. "He'll be fine. He's not easily taken down. You know that perfectly well."

The way Freddy's face drops causes excitable sparks to flash through you like little freight trains. "Bitch."

"Uhuh." You roll your eyes, turning back to your wall. There you continue to draw, with your fingers; There's nothing else to do! Before you were drawing a castle, but now you're fingers create the shape of a dock in your head... wonder why.

You can feel Freddy's glower on the back of your head but you finally feel a bit of piece.

~

Hours later and you're still stuck in that cell together, and you're actually starting to get worried. "Ughhhh... where even are we... "

"You think I know?"

"Well excuse me for thinking this purgatory has to have something, to do with you."

"All I know is of all the people in the world I could have gotten stuck in here with, I got you. And honestly I'd prefer a Teletubby." He growls back out, sounding as if he's rolling his eyes. "Hm... you don't think if you're here with me... that Hockey-Puck's locked up somewhere with my, uh, ball and chain, do ya?"

Your face screws up at that, because first of all- Turning your head to look at him, you raise an unbelievably confused brow. "Someone likes you??"

"Oh they like me plenty." Freddy smirks, a mouthful of other dirty ways to put it but deciding to take the tiniest bit of pity on you.

Trying not to groan, you look away from him again. "... well, even if Jason is with this probably imaginary person, its not like we could get to them!! What can we even do with that information." You sigh, collapsing back on the ground and blowing air out from your cheeks as you stare at the ceiling with the hopelessness of it all.

And up... up... up... the ceiling... Until you see a ventilation grate.

Eyes immediately widening, you roll over onto your stomach and your arms, not taking your eyes off the vent over Freddy's head, which he now follows your gaze up to as well now. And promptly drops his jaw.

"Has that been there this whole time!?"

You honestly aren't sure. But what you are sure of, is that this vent may be your chance to get the hell away from this man, and find Jason, and your eyes slowly fall down to land on Freddy. Who you don't like or care about at all, but know is thinking the exact, same, thing now. If he can get out he can find this person he cares about.

"Give me a leg up?"

[biisexualemma]

pretend pt.3. oscar diaz

word count: 1583

warnings: not really, a little sad and angsty, a bit of language but happy ending dw!

requested: 'Pretend pt.3?'

plot: oscar loves you, but you’re not convinced it can work

a/n: um thank u to those few who have waited literal months for this last part! i am struggling to write oscar atm but it’s here! and i hope you like it! oop ‘cause i kinda hate this and it took me months to figure out how to end this— anyway it’s here lol read and lmk what you think even if ye hate it

pt.1. / pt.2.

masterlist

"i think i'm falling in love with you."

you blinked, the rest of your body seemed frozen for a moment afterwards. that had been the last thing you'd ever expected from him. you could feel your head throbbing, whether it'd been from the aftermath of the party, or just your mind trying to keep up with what was happening. you furrowed your brows, your hand retracting from his palm, pushing yourself back against the seat of his car.

you couldn't process his words fast enough to respond straight away. instead you shifted your gaze out through the windshield, your mouth opening and closing every couple of seconds. you didn't know how to answer him.

oscar was watching your every move, his stomach twisting when you pulled away from him. your expression was changing ever so slightly every second, he could see you processing the information. he gulped, suddenly thinking the worst, shifting his eyes down to the space between you two. he should have kept his mouth shut and sat on his feelings. he should have let you out of the arrangement and left it at that. he hadn't thought any of this through. you had given no inclination over the past few weeks that you'd felt the same way. you were just helping out a friend.

you cleared your throat after a long silence. "you think?" your voice was still pretty quiet, like your mind was still working through what he'd said. "you don't know if you love me or not?" you were trying to make sense of it in your head, not able to meet his eyes yet.

"y/n—"

"i just think that's something you should be sure about before saying it out loud," you gulped. you were kind of annoyed with him for telling you this. a little part of you inside wanted to revel in his words, the part of you that had been in love with him for years when you were younger. but you'd moved on. you would have never had agreed to do his fake dating scheme if you'd thought you'd fall back into those feelings, you knew you wouldn't be able to put yourself through that again.

you had loved oscar for a long time, and you watched him for years treat women like they were nothing. delusional, you thought you were different and that oscar would never treat you this way, you clung to him. it took a long time for you to accept the reality, to fall out of love with him and realise he would only ever see you as a friend.

so oscar's confession now, wasn't as simple as you feeling the same way or not, it was far more complicated.

"the past few weeks weren't real oscar," you reminded him, you felt like he needed it. "you don't love me— you just love how i've been treating you. if you loved me, it wouldn't've taken you this long to realise."

he shook his head. "i was an idiot," you shifted so you were facing him again, watching how his eyes darted between yours desperately. "i was really fucking stupid— i didn't— i don't want to go back to how it was. i can't."

you shook your head barely, your eyes closing for a split second. oscar had been your best friend for years and he'd never lie to you like this. you just didn't want it to be true.

"i've seen firsthand how you are with girls, oscar. and i don't wanna pretend that you see me any differently—"

"no— this isn't— it's not the same," he was pleading at this point, desperately, feeling you slip away. "y/n, you know me," his eyebrows furrowed but his voice was soft, you didn't often hear him talk like this. it was hard to not get wrapped up in his words. "this ain't like those other girls."

you held his stare, breaking it only for a second when you felt your throat tighten. you couldn't bring yourself to fall into it, something was holding you back. it was too much to have him sat in front of you, begging you to believe him when it was too late.

"oscar, i loved you for a long time," your voice was quiet, all those years your feelings went unrequited. "and you fucked girl after girl, and i watched thinking one day you'd pick me and it'd be different but you never did, and it never was."

his lips were pursed, his hand gripping the seat of his car, knuckles white. he could hear the waver in your voice and it was hitting him like a brick. he ignored you for years, oblivious to anything you felt for him. he didn't realise, until now, how awful you must have felt.

"so, i'm sorry, if i'm not ready and willing," you tried to play off your confession, feeling the lump in your throat grow larger the longer this was strung out. "but i have been telling myself for years to move on— so it feels a bit late for you to be having this realisation when i've loved you my whole life."

he nodded. he understood, of course he did. he couldn't ask you to reverse years of heartbreak because he realised too late that you were the only thing that really mattered. he would just have to live with his mistake.

his eyebrows had knitted tighter together after sitting and listening. "if i could take back some of the shit i've done— mami— i'm sorry."

"yeah, well, me too," you shrugged, your lips tightening. you gulped when he shifted his hand over to yours, letting your palm set on top of his. he gave your hand a gentle squeeze. you were quiet for a while, enjoying the warmth of his hand against yours, finding comfort in his touch for just a little while longer.

"what made you realise?" you were almost whispering when you spoke again, everything was so quiet now.

oscar had to force himself to look at you. it was dark but the light from the streetlamp illuminated just half of your face, your eyes glossy. he clenched his jaw before speaking. "i talked to my ex."

"you did?" surprised he'd waited this long to bring it up. that had been the end goal all this time.

he nodded gently, his grip loosened on your hand, his thumb grazing the back of your hand now. his eyes were drawn to your hands, while your eyes remained on him. "yeah— made me realise she just wasn't you," he refused to shift his gaze. as did you. you felt your chest tighten. his sincerity made everything feel wrong about your decision.

"'cause you— you have these freckles on your nose that only come out in the sun," you watched the corner of his lips tug into a small smile as the image of you, sitting in front of him, sun in your eyes and wind blowing through your hair flashed through his mind. "and you make the same face every time you tell me off— your nose scrunches and you get a crease on your forehead," your eyes drooped listening to him talk as openly and honestly as you'd ever heard him talk about anything. it wasn't a side you saw often, but you could feel yourself soften, and your defence weaken. "and cesar— you love him like he's your own brother— i love that— that kid is everything to me— and he is to you too."

he huffed, the smile slipping from his face when he drew himself out of his head. he pulled away from you finally to run a hand over his face. he was angry with himself for messing this up. "and you're never gonna' forgive me," his heart was beating harder with the thought of losing you. "and i'm on' lose my mind without you."

you were quiet for a while, soaking in his words.

you hesitated, but moved your hand to his shoulder, your fingers grazing his skin, moving to the nape of his neck, urging him to look at you again. edging closer, you rid of the space between you two. oscar's eyes moved between yours, his eyebrows furrowed together softly. you moved both hands to his neck, carefully edging his face closer, your breath fanning against his lips before you kissed him.

oscar reacted, his body shifting closer to yours, his hand grazing your thigh to pull you nearer. your mind was racing, your hands curling around his neck and cupping his face as you leaned into the kiss. you were breathless when you pulled back, finally. his hand gripping your thigh now, scared you might retreat to the passenger seat again.

"you keep talking like that and i might love you forever," you mumbled, almost incoherent. your mind was foggy from this kiss and all you could feel was his thumb was now grazing softly over your thigh. his free had lifted, his forefinger and thumb touching your chin, tilting your head up so your eyes stayed locked with his.

"i swear, i'm in this until you don't want me anymore."

you shook your head, you bit your lip remembering the kiss. your eyes trailing to his lips again as you remembered the feeling. "never gonna happen."

oscar cracked a soft smile, his fingers moving to trace your jawline gently. "it's settled then."

you revelled in his touch, letting him trace over your skin, slowly feeling yourself lean further into his embrace. he pressed his lips against your forehead, lingering for a minute before pulling away and resting his forehead against yours. you tilted your chin up, kissing him for a second before pulling back again.

oscar's hand slipped from your jawline to the back of your neck, pulling you back and kissing you again. his lips moved softly against yours, for a few seconds until you reacted and kissed back. when he pulled away for air you felt yourself longing for more.

[itsclydebitches]

Here's a quandary I've suddenly found myself in: where do you stand on writers deleting their own works, fanfiction or otherwise? I've had this happen to me on more than one occasion - I go to look for an old favorite and find it's since been deleted from whatever site I read it on.

On the one hand, I'm inclined to think that, "Sure. The author wrote it, it's their call. I don't own the work - I certainly didn't pay for it. It's their decision, even if it's disappointing."

But at the same time I can't help but consider the alternative - if I believe in death of the author (and I do), that an author's work fundamentally isn't solely theirs once it's been published, posted, etc., then it also seems wrong to have a work deleted. Stories aren't the sole property of their creator, after all.

But then I circle back. D'you think there are different obligations between authors and readers and the works being made in fandom space? I know if I had bought a book and the author decided they wanted it back, I would feel pretty comfortable telling them no, given I'd paid for it and whatnot. But that's a different world from fanfic and fandom space generally.

So. You're insightful Clyde, I'm curious as to what you'll have to say here (and to all y'all thinking about it, don't flame me. I haven't decided where I stand here yet - haven't heard a good nail-in-the-coffin argument for or against yet).

Val are you a mind reader now? I’ve been thinking about this exact conundrum the last few days!

(And yeah, as a general disclaimer: no flaming. Not allowed. Any asks of the sort will be deleted on sight and with great satisfaction.)

Honestly, I’m not sure there is a “nail-in-the-coffin argument” for this, just because—as you lay out—there are really good points for keeping works around and really good points for allowing authors to have control over their work, especially when fanworks have no payment/legal obligations attached. In mainstream entertainment, your stories reflect a collaborative effort (publisher, editor, cover artists, etc.) so even if it were possible to delete the physical books out of everyone’s home and library (and we're ignoring the censorship angle for the moment), that’s no longer solely the author’s call, even if they have done the lion’s share of the creative work. Though fanworks can also, obviously, be collaborative, they’re usually not collaborative in the same way (more “This fic idea came about from discord conversations, a couple tumblr posts, and that one headcanon on reddit”) and they certainly don’t have the same monetary, legal, and professional strings attached. I wrote this fic as a hobby in my free time. Don’t I have the right to delete it like I also have the right to tear apart the blankets I knit?

Well yes… but also no? I personally view fanworks as akin to gifts—the academic term for our communities is literally “gift economy”—so if we view it like that, suddenly that discomfort with getting rid of works is more pronounced. If I not only knit a blanket, but then gift it to a friend, it would indeed feel outside of my rights to randomly knock on their door one day and go, “I actually decided I hate that? Please give it back so I can tear it to shreds, thanks :)” That’s so rude! And any real friend would try to talk me out of it, explaining both why they love the blanket and, even if it’s not technically the best in terms of craftsmanship, it holds significant emotional value to them. Save it for that reason alone, at least. Fanworks carry that same meaning—“I don’t care if it’s full of typos, super cliché, and using some outdated, uncomfortable tropes. This story meant so much to me as a teenager and I’ll always love it”—but the difference in medium and relationships means it’s easier to ignore all that. I’m not going up to someone’s house and asking face-to-face to destroy something I gave them (which is awkward as hell. That alone deters us), I’m just pressing a button on my computer. I’m not asking this of a personal friend that is involved in my IRL experiences, I’m (mostly) doing this to online peers I know little, if anything, about. It’s easy to distance ourselves from both the impact of our creative work and the act of getting rid of it while online. On the flip-side though, it’s also easier to demean that work and forget that the author is a real person who put a lot of effort into this creation. If someone didn’t like my knitted blanket I gave them as a gift, they’re unlikely to tell me that. They recognize that it’s impolite and that the act of creating something for them is more important than the construction’s craftsmanship. For fanworks though, with everyone spread around the world and using made up identities, people have fewer filters, happily tearing authors to shreds in the comments, sending anon hate, and the like. The fact that we’re both prefacing this conversation with, “Please don’t flame” emphasizes that. So if I wrote a fic with some iffy tropes, “cringy” dialogue, numerous typos, whatever and enough people decided to drag me for it… I don’t know whether I’d resist the urge to just delete the fic, hopefully ending those interactions. There’s a reason why we’re constantly reminding others to express when they enjoy someone else’s work: the ratio of praise to criticism in fandom (or simply praise to seeming indifference because there was no public reaction at all), is horribly skewed.

So I personally can’t blame anyone for deleting. I’d like to hope that more people realize the importance of keeping fanworks around, that everything you put out there is loved by someone… but I’m well aware that the reality is far more complicated. It’s hard to keep that in mind. It’s hard to keep something around that you personally no longer like. Harder still to keep up a work you might be harassed over, that someone IRL discovered, that you’re disgusted with because you didn’t know better back then… there are lots of reasons why people delete and I ultimately can’t fault them for that. I think the reasons why people delete stem more from problems in fandom culture at large—trolling, legal issues, lack of positive feedback, cancel culture, etc.—than anything the author has or has not personally done, and since such work is meant to be a part of an enjoyable hobby… I can’t rightly tell anyone to shoulder those problems, problems they can’t solve themselves, just for the sake of mine or others’ enjoyment. The reason I’ve been thinking about this lately is because I was discussing Attack on Titan and how much I dislike the source material now, resulting in a very uncomfortable relationship with the fics I wrote a few years back. I’ve personally decided to keep them up and that’s largely because some have received fantastic feedback and I’m aware of how it will hurt those still in the fandom if I take them down. So if a positive experience is the cornerstone of me keeping fics up, I can only assume that negative experiences would likewise been the cornerstone of taking them down. And if getting rid of that fic helps your mental health, or solves a bullying problem, or just makes you happier… that, to me, is always more important than the fic itself.

But, of course, it’s still devastating for everyone who loses the work, which is why my compromise-y answer is to embrace options like AO3’s phenomenal orphaning policy. That’s a fantastic middle ground between saving fanworks and allowing authors to distances themselves from them. I’ve also gotten a lot more proactive about saving the works I want to have around in the future. Regardless of whether we agree with deleting works or not, the reality is we do live in a world where it happens, so best to take action on our own to save what we want to keep around. Though I respect an author’s right to delete, I also respect the reader’s right to maintain access to the work, once published, in whatever way they can. That's probably my real answer here: authors have their rights, but readers have their rights too, so if you decide to publish in the first place, be aware that these rights might, at some point, clash. I download all my favorite fics to Calibre and, when I’m earning more money (lol) I hope to print and bind many for my personal library. I’m also willing to re-share fic if others are looking for them, in order to celebrate the author’s work even if they no longer want anything to do with it. Not fanfiction in this case, but one of my fondest memories was being really into Phantom of the Opera as a kid and wanting, oh so desperately, to read Susan Kay’s Phantom. Problem was, it was out of print at the time, not available at my library, and this was before the age of popping online and finding a used copy. For all intents and purposes, based on my personal situation, this was a case of a book just disappearing from the world. So when an old fandom mom on the message boards I frequented offered to type her copy up chapter by chapter and share it with me, you can only imagine how overjoyed I was. Idk what her own situation was that something like scanning wouldn’t work, but the point is she spent months helping a fandom kid she barely knew simply because a story had resonated with her and she wanted to share it. That shit is powerful!

So if someone wants to delete—if that’s something they need right now—I believe that is, ultimately, their decision… but please try your hardest to remember that the art you put out into the world is having an impact and people will absolutely miss it when it’s gone. Often to the point of doing everything they can to put it back out into the world even if you decide to take it out. Hold onto that feeling. The love you have for your favorite fic, fanart, meta, whatever it is? Someone else has that for your work too. I guarantee it.

So take things down as needed, but for the love of everything keep copies for yourself. You may very well want to give it back to the world someday.

[yourbuckies]

(Sorry in advance that this is long) I just stumbled upon your post about all the recent Sebastian drama spanning from July and I just want to say thank you for being one of the few people on the internet that makes sense. I’m Asian and I wasn’t a fan of Sebastian’s (I liked Bucky, but never looked into him) when the whole girlfriend thing happened, and even then I just remember thinking "this is so fucking stupid." And even now with the whole Buddha thing, I just think it's so shallow and 1/?

damaging to respond to something so innocently-intentioned and ultimately not a big deal with the same backlash that one would with an actual hate crime or legitimate prejudice. It blurs the line of what racism actually is, it pisses people off, and it pushes them away from whatever "cause" these armchair activists are trying to support. Sure, I can see how the photo was mildly disrespectful, as someone who grew up around Buddhism. But is it worth all this outrage? Absolutely not. He didn’t 2/?

commit a hate crime, he didn’t throw around slurs, he didn’t even do anything outrageous with the statue (ie. flip it off or throw it, etc). These people are acting like he fucking killed somebody. I didnt even think "I'm offended" when I saw it, all I thought was "twitter isn't going to like this." I feel like that says a lot, honestly. I've always had such a big problem with social media activists, and this whole situation is just another example of why. These people don't care about the 3/?

issues they're relentlessly attacking people over. They just want to feel like they’re a good person and show everyone else that they're great because they care enough to make an incredibly hateful tweet in the name of a social issue. It's all so self-righteous, and the way they're doing it is unbelievably harmful in terms of actual progress for actual social issues. The whole point of activism is trying to educate people and get them on your side. Ever since social media activism, I've seen 4/?

more people than ever say they feel less and less inclined to be involved because these “activists” are actually dividing people and alienating anyone that doesn’t already think like them by being aggressive and rude and unforgiving. Especially for stuff that literally doesn’t matter, such as this whole Sebastian debacle. I wish people understood that if they’re posting stuff that only people who already agree with them would like, then there’s literally no point to what they’re doing. 5/5

i'm gonna respond to this final one cause it's mostly about what i glossed over here, when i said i fundamentally disagree with how stan/fandom approaches activism. but yes, i largely agree. i'm a woc - i've mentioned that before in an old entirely unrelated ask, but i didn't bring it up for any of this cause i generally believe that you should determine whether or not you agree with a point by the strength of my reasoning, rather than being worried you're going to be perceived as racist/sexist for disagreeing with a woc.

i think the disproportionate response is smth i'm struggling with - i think we can generally agree that even if you think he's fucked up in the past, he's done nothing to warrant a year (and possibly more, judging by the twt accounts of the ppl at the center of this) long campaign against him. it's disproportionate to put so much focus on just him when like you said, there are so many issues out there that genuinely needs attention that they don't ever look at unless it's handed to them in the form of already viral twts, so it is really hard for me to take at face value ppl presenting this out of all things as their demonstration of allyship.

and yeah, i basically had the exact same reaction to the picture. i saw it, went, oh ppl are gonna make a big deal about this, and then was kinda surprised when no one said anything for a while. the same ppl who fawned over it for hours until they were told it was problematic did a complete 180, which isn't a bad way to approach smth if you're told you're wrong, except in their case, they didn't know it was problematic so they're in the clear, but he must have posted it with full intent to offend.

and to your point about the point of social media activism, this is actually a topic i've been struggling with for the past few years. sm activism is increasingly useless because with certain exceptions where being loud is what helps best, everything is treated the exact same way. apart from literally donating money, if your approach to activism is the exact same for every single issue, which is just publicly being loud, you're not doing anything.

but i think this also comes from the way we've learned activism on social media, which largely comes in neatly packaged phrases you get in a viral posts/twts; "silence is complicity" "cultural appropriation" "your feelings are valid" "hold ppl accountable" etc. but these threads don't have space for nuance, and there's no critical thinking applied after ppl read them.

cultural appropriation originally entered the public conversation as a way for ppl to be cognizant that multiculturalism isn't a free for all. because of historical and cultural context (which varies country to country!), not everything in a different culture will be for you too. sometimes it'll only be for you if you're invited, sometimes only if you're invited by specific ppl of that community. but we've gotten to this place where cultural appropriation is now just segregationist, but woke, and you end up with stuff like this, where you actually end up hurting the group you're trying to support:

this was also a part of my issue about july - i didn't actually think what ale did was cultural appropriation. she didn't wear it in a disrespectful way, she didn't try to claim it as her own - the thing that was a microaggression was actually of the conflation of jpn/chinese cultures, but that doesn't fall neatly under the buzzword of cultural appropriation for you to explain when someone asks why you're sending this specific woman death threats!

and it's not just this issue where we're kind of going backwards. if you're in the lgbt community it's not uncommon to see theory now that borderlines on homophobic. gen z is especially obsessed with posting pronouns publicly, which originally was supposed to normalize it so it'd be easier for those that want to have them but are scared, but now they use as a shorthand for whether or not someone is a bigot. if your assumption is that everyone but bigots has a public pronoun, you're going to be forcing a lot of ppl to misgender themselves, or come out when they're not ready, all to not be deemed Problematic. glaad actually did a survey that showed 18-34 years old are becoming more uncomfortable with the lgbt community, and while it doesn't say why, i figure stuff like this doesn't help.

and it's the same when it comes to activism should be about educating/getting ppl onto your side. it's clearly not now, and just largely about your own appearances. this is a good thread about why i'm not a huge fan of the whole silence is complicity idea wrt to sm, but basically it's just this:

but at the end of the day i don't have an answer for any of this. it took us years to get to this point, and it'll probably take even longer to realize we've gone too far on issues, if there ever is a reckoning for it. i don't know if that'll ever happen fully in fandom spaces - i think ppl like the ones that started this are very aware they're using this as a cudgel; they have no problem with this behavior in their faves, and they regularly exhibit it themselves. i also think there is too much fear of being "cancelled" or at least piled on for hours having abuse hurled at you if you disagree.

anyways i could go on for a bit, but we're not solving anything today. i don't really have a neat wrap up for this either, but i hope you have a good day, anon.