#but i wonder if native english speakers do it differently?

[sunliv]

i have a burning question actually!!!! i was always taught that in english, items and such are it/its, never any other but i’ve seen tons of native english speakers assign other pronouns to stuff, but im biased for having a latin language as my 1st one so-

[valeriehalla]

actual writing advice

1. Use the passive voice.

What? What are you talking about, “don’t use the passive voice”? Are you feeling okay? Who told you that? Come on, let’s you and me go to their house and beat them with golf clubs. It’s just grammar. English is full of grammar: you should go ahead and use all of it whenever you want, on account of English is the language you’re writing in.

2. Use adverbs.

Now hang on. What are you even saying to me? Don’t use adverbs? My guy, that is an entire part of speech. That’s, like—that’s gotta be at least 20% of the dictionary. I don’t know who told you not to use adverbs, but you should definitely throw them into the Columbia river.

3. There’s no such thing as “filler”.

Buddy, “filler” is what we called the episodes of Dragon Ball Z where Goku wasn’t blasting Frieza because the anime was in production before Akira Toriyama had written the part where Goku blasts Frieza. Outside of this extremely specific context, “filler” does not exist. Just because a scene wouldn’t make it into the Wikipedia synopsis of your story’s plot doesn’t mean it isn’t important to your story. This is why “plot” and “story” are different words!

4. okay, now that I’ve snared you in my trap—and I know you don’t want to hear this—but orthography actually does kind of matter

First of all, a lot of what you think of as “grammar” is actually orthography. Should I put a comma here? How do I spell this word in this context? These are questions of orthography (which is a fancy Greek word meaning “correct-writing”). In fact, most of the “grammar questions” you’ll see posted online pertain to orthography; this number probably doubles in spaces for writers specifically.

If you’re a native speaker of English, your grammar is probably flawless and unremarkable for the purposes of writing prose. Instead, orthography refers to the set rules governing spelling, punctuation, and whitespace. There are a few things you should know about orthography:

English has no single orthography. You already know spelling and punctuation differ from country to country, but did you know it can even differ from publisher to publisher? Some newspapers will set parenthetical statements apart with em dashes—like this, with no spaces—while others will use slightly shorter dashes – like this, with spaces – to name just one example.

Orthography is boring, and nobody cares about it or knows what it is. For most readers, orthography is “invisible”. Readers pay attention to the words on a page, not the paper itself; in much the same way, readers pay attention to the meaning of a text and not the orthography, which exists only to convey that meaning.

That doesn’t mean it’s not important. Actually, that means it’s of the utmost importance. Because orthography can only be invisible if it meets the reader’s expectations.

You need to learn how to format dialogue into paragraphs. You need to learn when to end a quote with a comma versus a period. You need to learn how to use apostrophes, colons and semicolons. You need to learn these things not so you can win meaningless brownie points from your English teacher for having “Good Grammar”, but so that your prose looks like other prose the reader has consumed.

If you printed a novel on purple paper, you’d have the reader wondering: why purple? Then they’d be focusing on the paper and not the words on it. And you probably don’t want that! So it goes with orthography: whenever you deviate from standard practices, you force the reader to work out in their head whether that deviation was intentional or a mistake. Too much of that can destroy the flow of reading and prevent the reader from getting immersed.

You may chafe at this idea. You may think these “rules” are confusing and arbitrary. You’re correct to think that. They’re made the fuck up! What matters is that they were made the fuck up collaboratively, by thousands of writers over hundreds of years. Whether you like it or not, you are part of that collaboration: you’re not the first person to write prose, and you can’t expect yours to be the first prose your readers have ever read.

That doesn’t mean “never break the rules”, mind you. Once you’ve gotten comfortable with English orthography, then you are free to break it as you please. Knowing what’s expected gives you the power to do unexpected things on purpose. And that’s the really cool shit.

5. You’re allowed to say the boobs were big if the story is about how big the boobs were

Nobody is saying this. Only I am brave enough to say it.

Well, bye!

[an-spideog]

Don't Use Duolingo if You Really Want to Learn Irish

That title is a bit dramatic, but I really don't think that duolingo is a useful tool for Irish, especially in its current state, so I want to talk a bit about why, and I'll also talk about some alternatives.

Pronunciation

The first and most egregious issue is that at some point recently-ish, duo decided to start using Text-To-Speech for their Irish course, rather than recordings of a native speaker. The problem here is that their TTS is not trained on native speakers of Irish and pronounces words incorrectly. It doesn't make consistent distinctions between broad and slender consonants for example.

Irish has no standard pronunciation, so I understand how it can feel weird to choose just one dialect for the purposes of pronunciation (the old recordings were from a speaker of Galway Irish), but having just one dialect is much better than TTS which sounds like a learner, imagine if they had TTS for the French course which sounded like an anglophone schoolkid trying to pronounce french, and claimed they were teaching you how to speak french!

Grammar

Duo tends to be correct on grammar at least, which is a start. But often people using it get very confused about the grammar because duo doesn't explain any of it. I think there's a place for immersion in language learning, and I don't think everything has to be explained like that, but within duo's system of sentence testing and exercises like that, not having any explanation for why it's "mo chóta" and not "mo cóta" can be really confusing. Duo used to have more grammar information, it's a shame that they removed it, I wonder why they did it.

Money and Motivation

Duolingo is a business, and their motivation is not to help you learn a language 'fully', but to keep you using their app and hopefully have a higher chance of sharing it with others, competing with others, buying or causing others to buy memberships or lingots or any other in-app purchases.

I don't want to make it out like duo is some big conspiracy and they're tricking people, I don't think that's the case, but it's good to remember that their primary motivation is to keep people using the app, rather than help people move to a level in a language where they don't need the app anymore.

Keep this in mind whenever you see people trying to sell you stuff for language learning.

Why do people use Duolingo

I do get it, and I don't want to make anyone feel bad for using duo, there's a ton of reasons people tend towards it at first 1. It's really well known, so especially if you're learning a language and haven't heard of other resources for it, you'll check duolingo 2. It's very motivating for a lot of people, checking in every day and forming that habit is a really good way of sticking with a language 3. It's fun, people enjoy it

If you use it for reason 3. and you still like it, then don't worry about this post, I'm not trying to yuck anyone's yums, keep having fun!

If you use it for reasons 1. or 2. you can still keep using it if you like, but I want to suggest some other things which you might find helpful in trying to get to a higher level in Irish.

Other Resources

To address the pronunciation issue, I'd heavily recommend you disregard the pronunciation in duolingo, if you're looking for more reliable sources of pronunciation, I'd look towards recordings of native speakers, you can find that on:

Teanglann and Foclóir (they use the same recordings)

Fuaimeanna

and a really useful and underused one: https://davissandefur.github.io/minimal-pairs/ where you can hear the difference between similar sounds that English speakers often mix up in Irish.

A lot of people like duolingo because it's nice to have a clear path forward, a progression that you can get into without too much decision-making. For this I recommend getting a good textbook or course and working through it, the ones I'll recommend also have native speaker audio on them.

Learning Irish by Mícheál Ó Siadhail, this book teaches Galway Irish, not just in pronunciation but in grammar too. It's quite dense but it's well thought out and well explained.

Teach Yourself Irish (1961) this book is available for free online, and is a really good option if you're interested in Cork Irish (Munster), and have some experience with grammatical terminology. I used this book myself and really liked it, but it's very intense and not for everyone. (If you do end up using it, feel free to skip the appendices at the start, they're more of a reference and sometimes put people off from actually getting to the first chapter. Also if you have any questions about it or need any help just let me know.)

If you want a video course, there's a great course called "Now You're Talking" which is available for free online, along with audio files and worksheets here. It features Donegal Irish and leads into the more intermediate level course called Céim ar Aghaidh also available online.

There's other textbooks that I have less experience with (Buntús na Gaeilge, Gaeilge/Gramadach Gan Stró, etc.) but if they work for you, stick with them, there's nothing worse than not making progress because you keep switching resources trying to find the "perfect one"

Whether or not you continue to use Duolingo, I would really really encourage you to try engaging with media in Irish. People often shy away from this when they're learning because they don't feel like they're "ready" yet. But you basically never feel like you're ready, you just have to try and find something near your level and try to get comfortable with not understanding everything. This is where you learn a huge portion of the language, you hear how things are pronounced you see what words mean in what contexts, getting input in your target language is so important!

I know content can be kind of hard to find, so I'll make a few recommendations here: There's a wealth of content available for free online (more if you're in ireland but some internationally) on TG4 If you're still starting out, I'd recommend trying to watch some kids shows since they'll have simpler language and will be easier to follow. I wouldn't recommend using English subtitles when you watch them. Some good options include:

Dónall Dána: an Irish dub of Horrid Henry, silly and childish but the actors have good Irish and importantly the show has Irish language subtitles, they don't always match but if you're still beginning and can't necessarily get everything by ear, they're really useful. (Mostly Galway Irish)

Curious George: another dub, again with Irish language subtitles (I can't remember what dialects were in it off the top of my head but I'd assume mostly galway again)

Seó Luna: No subtitles, but a good option if you're aiming for Munster Irish, the lead character has Kerry Irish

Miraculous: No subtitles but a better show than most of the other kids' ones and more bearable to watch as an adult (Mostly Galway Irish)

Ros na Rún: Moving away from kids shows, a long running soap opera, this has Irish subtitles and a really good mix of dialects within the show. If you're finding the kids shows boring or too easy I'd really recommend it, but it can be complex because of the amount of characters, dialects, and plotlines. I'd recommend starting at the beginning of a newer season and just trying to catch on to what's happening as you go.

There are a lot of books, if you live in Ireland you can get nearly any Irish book for free from a library, so please check out your local library or request some of these from other libraries in the system:

There's a series of fairytales (Rápúnzell, Luaithríona etc.) by Máiréad Ní Ghráda which are illustrated and for children, which are a really good option for when you're just starting out reading

There's kids books about Fionn and the Fianna by Tadhg Mac Dhonnagáin

There's a cute little kids' book in Kerry Irish about a cat named Mábúis

Leabhar Breac has a lot of graphic novels, some of them based on Irish mythology, some on other stuff. The fact that they're illustrated can make it a lot easier to follow even if you don't understand all the words at first.

Gliadar has just released their Scott Pilgrim translation

If you're looking for something a bit more advanced you can look at some of the books for adult learners by Comhar, they contain simplified language and glossaries but have full original adult stories.

And if you're wanting full, natural, native-level Irish there's a load of books by those same groups, and others like An Gúm, Cló Iar-Chonnacht, Oidhreacht Chorca Dhuibhne, Éabhlóid, Coiscéim, and more.

And don't shy away from older books written in Seanchló either, they can be more challenging but it's a whole extra world of books

If you're trying to improve your listening comprehension, I definitely recommend listening to shows on Raidió na Gaeltachta, hearing native Irish speakers talk at full speed is really good practice. But I get that it can be overwhelming at first. Here are some things you can do as you build up to that:

Watching those same TV shows I mentioned without subtitles is a good way to build up listening skills.

Vifax is a website where you can practice listening to short news segments and answer questions on them, then getting to look at the transcript with notes afterwards.

Snas is kind of the evolution of vifax, now using clips from both the news and Ros na Rún.

I really hope that this post can help people move away from duolingo if they're looking to take their Irish learning to the next level, if you've got any questions, just let me know!

[noaestheticacademic]

On the Identity of "Chat"

Like all the linguistics folks on Tumblr, I've been sent the "chat is a fourth person pronoun" post by a bunch of well-meaning people and and I've been thinking waaay too much about it. @hbmmaster made a wonderful post explaining exactly why "chat" ISN'T a fourth person pronoun, and after reading it I wanted to go a little deeper on what it might actually be doing linguistically, because it is a really interesting phenomenon. Here's a little proposal on what might be going on, with the caveat that it's not backed up by a sociolinguistic survey (which would be fun but more than I could throw together this morning).

On Pronouns

Studying linguistics has been really beneficial for me because understanding that language is constantly changing helped me to become comfortable with using they/them pronouns for myself. I've since done a decent amount of work with pronouns, and here are some basic ideas.

A basic substitution test shows that "chat" is not syntactically a pronoun: it can't be replaced with a pronoun in a sentence.

"Chat, what do we think about that?"

"He*, what do we think about that?" (* = ungrammatical, a native speaker of English would think it sounds wrong)

Linguists identify pronouns as bundles of features identifying the speaker, addressee, and/or someone outside the current discourse. So, a first person pronoun refers to the speaker, a second person pronoun refers to the addressee, and a third person pronoun refers to someone who is neither the speaker nor the addressee (but who is still known to the speaker and addressee). This configuration doesn't leave a lot of room for a "fourth" person. But the intuition people have that "chat" refers to something external to the discourse is worth exploring.

Hypothesis 1: Chat is a fourth-person pronoun.

We've knocked this one right out.

Hypothesis 2: Chat is an address term.

So what's an address term? These are words like "dude, bro, girl, sir" that we use to talk to people. In the original context where "chat" appears - streamers addressing their viewers - it is absolutely an address term. We can easily replace "chat" with any of these address terms in the example sentence above. It's clear that the speaker is referring to a specific group (viewers) who are observing and commenting on (but not fully participating in) the discourse of the stream. The distinction between OBSERVATION and PARTICIPATION is a secret tool that will come in handy later.

But when a student in a classroom says "wow chat, I hate this," is that student referring to their peers as a chat? In other words, is the student expecting any sort of participation or observation by the other students of their utterance? Could "chat" be replaced with "guys" in this instance and retain its nuance? My intuition as a zillenial (which could be way off, please drop your intuitions in the comments) is that the relationship between a streamer and chat is not exactly what the speaker in this case expects out of their peers. Which brings me to...

Hypothesis 3: chat is a stylistic index.

What's an index in linguistics? To put it very simply, it's anything that has acquired a social meaning based on the context in which it's said. In its original streaming context, it's an address term. But it can be used in contexts where there is not a chat, or even any group of people that could be abstracted into being a chat. Instead, people use this linguistic structure to explicitly mimic the style which streamers use.

And that much seems obvious, right? Of course people are mimicking streamers. It doesn't take a graduate degree to figure that out. What's interesting to me is why people choose to employ streaming language in certain scenarios. How is it different from the same sentence, minus the streamer style?

This all comes down to the indexicality, or social meaning, of streamer speak. This is where I ask you all to take over: what sorts of attitudes and qualities do you associate with that kind of person and that kind of speech? I think it has to do with (here it comes!) the PARTICIPANT/OBSERVER distinction. By framing speech as having observers, a speaker takes on the persona of someone who is observed - a self-styled celebrity. To use "chat" is to position oneself as a celebrity, and in some cases even to mock the notion of such a position. We can see a logical path from how streamers use "chat" as an address term to how it is co-opted to reference streamer culture and that celebrity/observer relationship in non-streaming mediated discourse. If we think about it that way, then it's easy to see why the "fourth person pronoun" post is so appealing. It highlights a discourse relationship that is being invoked wherein "chat" is not a group but a style.

[moki-dokie]

kay so on my 5th rewatch and something i wanna point out that is such a brilliant acting choice: kenneth branagh's very specific speaking cadence for fowler.

fowler's cadence threw me off so hard the first watch i could barely even tell he was irish. my gf thought he might be from around glasgow. neither of us could pin it down. it is NOT the cadence of a native english speaker, no matter the accent. the words flow strangely into each other like there's no natural punctuation in his sentence structure. even the lilt is kinda different from what you hear in the irish accents today.

so i got to thinking: maybe this is how the japanese hear him? he's fluent, yes, but his cadence is off. he's not a native speaker. it's just slightly off. that could still be a possibility but no, i don't think that's it.

and then i remembered: ireland was still speaking gaeilge in this time period. so i looked up some recordings of native speakers of it from the 1800s, before it got heavily anglicised. and wouldn't you know it, the cadence is pretty damn similar. the lilt is almost identical.

i think fowler grew up speaking gaeilge. and i think the cadence of his native language follows him into his japanese. if so, that's some next-level meta and brillance from kenneth. I'm actually really excited to hear fowler speak around other native english speakers, excited to see if it changes at all. i wonder if he'll mask it, make it more british to better blend in. i wonder if we'll get an obvious difference when he speaks to mizu vs. speaking with other english speakers.

i could be wrong about it too but that seems like an acting choice kenneth would do tbh. either way it's intriguing as fuck fowler is such a cool and terrifying villain. as much as i think mizu should have slit his throat on the boat and tossed him overboard, i'm happy we'll get more of him and his weird lovely scary voice.

[lurkingteapot]

Every now and then I think about how subtitles (or dubs), and thus translation choices, shape our perception of the media we consume. It's so interesting. I'd wager anyone who speaks two (or more) languages knows the feeling of "yeah, that's what it literally translates to, but that's not what it means" or has answered a question like "how do you say _____ in (language)?" with "you don't, it's just … not a thing, we don't say that."

I've had my fair share of "[SHIP] are [married/soulmates/fated/FANCY TERM], it's text!" "[CHARACTER A] calls [CHARACTER B] [ENDEARMENT/NICKNAME], it's text!" and every time. Every time I'm just like. Do they though. Is it though. And a lot of the time, this means seeking out alternative translations, or translation meta from fluent or native speakers, or sometimes from language learners of the language the piece of media is originally in.

Why does it matter? Maybe it doesn't. To lots of people, it doesn't. People have different interests and priorities in fiction and the way they interact with it. It's great. It matters to me because back in the early 2000s, I had dial-up internet. Video or audio media that wasn't available through my local library very much wasn't available, but fanfiction was. So I started to read English language Gundam Wing fanfic before I ever had a chance to watch the show. When I did get around to watching Gundam Wing, it was the original Japanese dub. Some of the characters were almost unrecognisable to me, and first I doubted my Japanese language ability, then, after checking some bits with friends, I wondered why even my favourite writers, writers I knew to be consistent in other things, had made these characters seem so different … until I had the chance to watch the US-English dub a few years later. Going by that adaptation, the characterisation from all those stories suddenly made a lot more sense. And the thing is, that interpretation is also valid! They just took it a direction that was a larger leap for me to make.

Loose adaptations and very free translations have become less frequent since, or maybe my taste just hasn't led me their way, but the issue at the core is still a thing: Supernatural fandom got different nuances of endings for their show depending on the language they watched it in. CQL and MDZS fandom and the never-ending discussions about 知己 vs soulmate vs Other Options. A subset of VLD fans looking at a specific clip in all the different languages to see what was being said/implied in which dub, and how different translators interpreted the same English original line. The list is pretty much endless.

And that's … idk if it's fine, but it's what happens! A lot of the time, concepts -- expressed in language -- don't translate 1:1. The larger the cultural gap, the larger the gaps between the way concepts are expressed or understood also tend to be. Other times, there is a literal translation that works but isn't very idiomatic because there's a register mismatch or worse. And that's even before cultural assumptions come in. It's normal to have those. It's also important to remember that things like "thanks I hate it" as a sentiment of praise/affection, while the words translate literally quite easily, emphatically isn't easy to translate in the sense anglophone internet users the phrase.

Every translation is, at some level, a transformative work. Sometimes expressions or concepts or even single words simply don't have an exact equivalent in the target language and need to be interpreted at the translator's discretion, especially when going from a high-context/listener-responsible source language to a low-context/speaker-responsible target language (where high-context/listener responsible roughly means a large amount of contextual information can be omitted by the speaker because it's the listener's responsibility to infer it and ask for clarification if needed, and low-context/speaker-responsible roughly means a lot of information needs to be codified in speech, i.e. the speaker is responsible for providing sufficiently explicit context and will be blamed if it's lacking).

Is this a mouse or a rat? Guess based on context clues! High-context languages can and frequently do omit entire parts of speech that lower-context/speaker-responsible languages like English regard as essential, such as the grammatical subject of a sentence: the equivalent of "Go?" - "Go." does largely the same amount of heavy lifting as "is he/she/it/are you/they/we going?" - "yes, I am/he/she/it is/we/you/they are" in several listener-responsible languages, but tends to seem clumsy or incomplete in more speaker-responsible ones. This does NOT mean the listener-responsible language is clumsy. It's arguably more efficient! And reversely, saying "Are you going?" - "I am (going)" might seem unnecessarily convoluted and clumsy in a listener-responsible language. All depending on context.

This gets tricky both when the ambiguity of the missing subject of the sentence is clearly important (is speaker A asking "are you going" or "is she going"? wait until next chapter and find out!) AND when it's important that the translator assign an explicit subject in order for the sentence to make sense in the target language. For our example, depending on context, something like "are we all going?" - "yes" or "they going, too?" might work. Context!

As a consequence of this, sometimes, translation adds things – we gain things in translation, so to speak. Sometimes, it's because the target language needs the extra information (like the subject in the examples above), sometimes it's because the target language actually differentiates between mouse and rat even though the source language doesn't. However, because in most cases translators don't have access to the original authors, or even the original authors' agencies to ask for clarification (and in most cases wouldn't get paid for the time to put in this extra work even if they did), this kind of addition is almost always an interpretation. Sometimes made with a lot of certainty, sometimes it's more of a "fuck it, I've got to put something and hope it doesn't get proven wrong next episode/chapter/ten seasons down" (especially fun when you're working on a series that's in progress).

For the vast majority of cases, several translations are valid. Some may be more far-fetched than others, and there'll always be subjectivity to whether something was translated effectively, what "effectively" even means …

ANYWAY. I think my point is … how interesting, how cool is it that engaging with media in multiple languages will always yield multiple, often equally valid but just sliiiiightly different versions of that piece of media? And that I'd love more conversations about how, the second we (as folks who don't speak the material's original language) start picking the subtitle or dub wording apart for meta, we're basically working from a secondary source, and if we're doing due diligence, to which extent do we need to check there's nothing substantial being (literally) lost -- or added! -- in translation?

[aphrmoosun]

[No words]

NOMAE ; Two Shot!

• Pair.

Noa and Mae

• Movie.

Kingdom of the planet of the apes

• Tags.

NoaxMae, yes it is a ship, dont read if you dont ship them, smutt, au, future, humans and apes politics, ape and human relation, Noa is an inocent ape, twoshot, relationship, Interspecies, strong language, honour apes, writer is not English native speaker, if you see errors tell me, etc

• Other Nomae fic.

You and Me

• Part 1.

DO NOT COPY OR SHARE IT ELSEWHERE WITHOUT PERMISSION!

Yours [second part]

The ape and the human were forced to commit to each other. Not that they were really forced, since after their first physical encounter, both were in agreement that their lives were dedicated to each other.

Noa's father was the one who opposed it the most. It wasn't normal to see a formal wedding between an ape and a human, but the political pressure around him, along with his own son's, had been enough to convince him.

For Mae, her life was starting to sound different. No interested boy came near her again. In fact, no boy at all. Noa had promised his father that he wouldn't touch her until they were married, and Mae didn't agree with that at all.

After that night, with barely an hour together, she had already gotten used to his hands and the way he touched her. And he refused to do it. Mae always initiated the approach. First, silly kisses, then touches on his hairy chest, and when she tried to go lower, Noa would run away to the nearest bathroom.

But that had to end.

Their wedding was being prepared by professionals hired by their parents, with a formal and political theme that came with it, which meant that their wedding would take place within two months to give them time to prepare everything.

Mae was sure she could corrupt her fiancé. She just needed a moment alone with him, in an intimate setting, with no one around to listen.

To do that, she planned the ice cream plan. With the excuse of wanting him to try that human gastronomic wonder, Mae managed to convince him to let her visit him at his home.

She had already bought the ice cream, and her hand trembled with excitement as she knocked on Noa's door.

He was the one who received her with a tender look. Mae hugged him, leaving the ice cream aside. Although the ape only half-responded to the hug, she didn't let go.

"Come, let's go to the living room."

Mae observed the house with curiosity. Due to the clan leader being close to humans and having economic power, there was a lot of human technology in the house, from TVs to computers and even a roomba.

"Are we alone?" Mae tried not to sound too excited.

"Yes, my mom went shopping, and Dad is never home during the day."

Noa could be so innocent when he wanted to.

For a moment, she felt bad about her plan to seduce him, but then she thought that it wouldn't hurt him, she just wanted to do what engaged couples did.

Noa led her to the living room, offering her a seat next to him.

"Here, I brought two types of ice cream for us to eat together."

She handed him a chocolate ice cream and took a tutti-frutti one for herself.

She watched him sniffing the ice cream, analyzing it with his gaze, and that made her laugh.

"Go on, try it. It's good."

Noa took her advice, taking a spoonful to his mouth, and she imitated him with her ice cream.

That's when she started to put her plan into action.

She knew Noa loved to look at her, especially her eyes, and she would take advantage of that. She lowered her gaze to her ice cream and left the spoon in her mouth, playing with it with her tongue. She didn't need to look at him to know he was watching her.

"Mae..."

"Yes, Noa?"

She felt him move uncomfortably on the couch.

"Are you going to give me some of that?"

"Hmm, yes, of course."

She took another spoonful of ice cream and brought it close to the ape, but when he was about to try it, she dropped the spoon, making the contents spill all over Noa's chest and lap.

"Oh, sorry."

"Don't worry, it was nothing."

He was going to clean himself with his hands, but she stopped him, grabbing them.

"Let me help you, it was my fault."

The human didn't think twice. She bent down to reach the ape's chest and started licking the ice cream. She knew how hairy apes could be, but it didn't bother her; on the contrary, that act had given her the opportunity to get close to his nipple, licking it in the process.

"Mae!"

Noa got up from the couch, leaving her leaning forward over it.

"We can't do that."

She couldn't respond because the ape was already heading towards another room in the house.

She assumed it was the bathroom, since he always did that every time she suggested something sexual. Mae suspected he was hiding his erection from her or going to relieve himself alone.

She wasn't going to let him do that this time.

She followed him closely, seeing that the room was his bedroom, with a door that he had closed behind him.

Mae tried to open the door, but Noa had locked it. So, surrendering, she sat on the ape's bed and was able to observe the room more closely.

There were posters of sci-fi movies featuring apes and humans. Others were of music groups.

But her gaze fell on the TV. The ape had a TV with a DVD player in it. And then it came to her mind. Noa had learned to touch her by watching a porn movie, which she assumed the ape still had.

She searched through the drawers of the nightstand, didn't find it. But she saw a box next to the closet, so she decided to look there.

Among music discs and Blu-ray movies, she managed to see a very graphic cover.

Happy, she jumped up and put it in the player.

In the movie, two humans could be seen. A boy on top of a girl. He was kissing her breasts and touching her while penetrating her with two fingers.

Mae felt a tingling sensation in her crotch and sat on Noa's bed. His bed. It was soft and smelled like him. She lay down on the bed, feeling his scent.

The room was filled with the girl's moans from the movie. And Mae couldn't resist anymore. She put a hand under her pants, moving her underwear aside, and started touching her clitoris. She caressed herself softly, feeling the wetness in her parts already.

She moved her head, resting her nose on Noa's pillow, and breathed in his scent. The movie faded into the background, her mind going back to the moment when Noa watched that movie, thinking of her. He must have masturbated watching it, thinking of how he would do all that to her.

"Noa, Noa."

She closed her eyes, letting go. Her free hand went up her jersey and bra, leaving one breast out, which she started to massage and touch with the rhythm of her other hand.

She was about to come. Her fingers moved faster, imagining they were Noa's. And with him in her mind, she came violently on his bed.

"Noa!"

That scream tore through her throat, unable to keep quiet.

The orgasm tensed her body, making her arch her back and close her legs abruptly due to the tension.

After a few seconds, she tried to calm her breathing. And when she could open her eyes, she found Noa in front of her.

"Noa." -she whispered, taking her hand out of her pants and trying to lower her bra.-

The ape was faster, sitting next to her and grabbing her hands, placing them above her head.

"Did you enjoy it?" -he asked, to which Mae only nodded, unable to speak.- "More than when I touched you?"

Mae could have denied it perfectly with her head, but she thought of having fun since he had found her like that. After all, that's what she wanted. For him to touch her again.

"More than when you touched me." -she found her voice, speaking softly.-

The ape didn't respond. He just got on top of her, looking into her eyes.

"I don't enjoy anything. Every time I go to the bathroom, I come back worse than before. My hands are so useless that I don't reach climax. The last time I did was because of your small and soft hands around my faro, and that's killing me. And on top of that, you come and touch yourself in front of my nose."

Noa didn't stop talking, and his hands accompanied everything he said. He started undressing her, taking off her jersey and finishing with her bra. He also pulled down her pants to her ankles, the same place where he put her underwear.

"I only think of your hands touching me, and that leaves me unsatisfied because I can't touch you. My hands burn, I touched myself thinking of you, and I don't reach climax because in reality, you're not touching me."

The ape started touching her, caressing her clitoris, sensitive from her previous orgasm.

"You can touch me, and I can touch you." -Mae tried to touch him, but the ape stopped her.- "Please, Noa. I'm yours. My body is mine, but it only responds like that because of you, because it's a traitor. I can't contain it every time I have you near. Neither my father nor yours can stop this."

Mae moved her hips, bringing her wet entrance to the ape's hard faro, and he sighed.

"Mae. I-I can't. If I can't live after letting you touch me with your hands, I don't want to imagine my life after being inside you."

"Please, Noa. In body and soul, I'm yours. If you take me today, I know it will be forever, just like if it's in two months. It doesn't matter when, but it's going to happen, and it doesn't matter if today or in two months. But it will happen, and it doesn't matter if you take me or not, I'm already yours."

Noa seemed moved by those words. The ape's eyes never left the human's.

Mae felt the tip of his virility in her already wet and ready entrance.

"Noa." -she grabbed his strong shoulders, arching her back.-

"Mae, my god, Mae."

The ape's words in her ear were enough to awaken the fire inside her.

He had stopped after inserting a few centimeters, and she needed him inside her completely.

Her hips moved forward, making him penetrate her more.

"Mae, Mae."

The ape of the eagle clan, known for his singing, was singing in her ear. Or at least that's what it seemed to her. A sweet melody that she was ready to enjoy.

Noa sank completely into her, making her scream his name. The ape didn't hold back and started moving inside her.

"Very... tight." -she heard him whisper.- "Please, Mae. I'm not going to last long!"

That information almost sounded like a plea to her. He was asking her to come before him so that he could finish inside her satisfied.

"Noa, Noa."

She squeezed his shoulders, moving her hips. There was no need for him to beg, since the moment he penetrated her, her vagina had started to contract. Each time with more intensity.

"Noa!"

She screamed his name and felt that electricity that only he produced in her again. Her orgasm hit her hard.

"Ah, Mae!"

Noa didn't take long to come inside her a second after she did. Mae felt the warm liquid inside her sliding out when he pulled away.

Both enjoyed the silence while trying to catch their breath.

Mae looked for Noa's gaze, finding his eyes looking at her. She smiled widely, laughing and lying down next to him to see him better.

"Now you're mine too." -she said.-

Noa imitated her, lying down next to her to see her.

"I were already yours. Since the first moment our gazes met."

Mae felt very grateful because her feelings were reciprocated.

. END!

[adhd-languages]

So if I’m speaking Spanish, and I need to say an English word — like a name, brand, website, etc — I say it like a Spanish speaker

However, I hear a lot of speakers drop into a very native English accent in the middle of a sentence to say “el Starbucks” and whatnot (I love hearing it. Just a random completely English-sounding word in a Spanish sentence)

So I’m wondering…

From my personal observations I think native bilinguals do this more, but I’m interested in more data. Feel free to reply or reblog for a more detailed answer!

(EDIT: sorry the poll is so confusing. “YES” means yes, you do the thing I described, changing your accent to a different one in the middle of a sentence)

[visualtaehyun]

I'm not making the same dumb mistake twice in a row so- 'Chop' Anon, please find the long answer to your ask right here! And curse this hellsite for eating asks...

Disclaimer: not a native Thai speaker, still learning 🙏

Anon, my answer is gonna be twofold. The word ชอบ /chaawp/ = 'like' comes up a lot this episode and you can see that it can be used exactly the same as in English, platonically or romantically, it really just depends on context. And as you said, Jane does have the context of catching Ryan staring at him, getting flustered, trying to act nonchalant, talking to himself, zoning out, and generally acting real fucking weird lmao all throughout the episode. It's no wonder that he assumes Ryan's hangry or mad again, even checking for stomach rumbles 😂

The word 'like'

Thai has this fun feature where you don't always need to use pronouns or any other qualifying words to denote who or what you're referring to which can be both a boon cause it simplifies talking by assuming others will know the meaning from a previous or given context (or you intentionally omit that meaning!) and a curse cause it makes translating nuance a bit of a struggle sometimes 🥴

For example, this routinely happens in short question-answer exchanges but I'll let you be the judge:

- Pie: แกชอบป่ะ /gae chaawp bpa/ = You like [it]? - Ryan, only staring at Jane: ชอบ /chaawp/ = [I] like [🤡?]. - Jane, turning around: [🤡?] - Me @ translating stuff like this: 🤡

เขาดูเหมื่อนชอบพี่เจนนะครับ /khao duu meuuan chaawp phi Jane na khrap/ = I'm jealous because Khun Joy keeps hitting on you. lol just kidding subs are right on

- Jane: แบบนี้ ชอบไหมครับ /baaep nee, chaawp mai khrap/ = lit.: Like this/this way, [do you] like [it]? -> this sounds like an odd thing to say to a client in both English and Thai lmao clearly you'd usually ask if it's 'okay' or 'good' or something like that but the script needed to set up Khun Joy's flirty answer - Joy: ชอบตั้งแต่แรกแล้ว /chaawp dtang dtaae raaek laaeo/ = [I've] liked [🤡?] since the beginning.

I'll get back to Ryan's last 'like' at the end~

Jane and pronouns

The second part of my answer is how interesting and, frankly, puzzling I find Jane in how he talks to Ryan. Up until part [2/4] Jane actually completely omits any pronouns with him, as he's done frequently in the past. But when he does use them with Ryan- boy oh boy, he's kinda all over the place this episode! If Ryan wasn't so busy stewing in his confused feelings and jealousy, he might've noticed that Jane keeps flip-flopping between very different choices. Kudos to P'Baimon for catching Jane acting like a lovesick fool too that one time he's smiling at the printer 👀

Here's every single instance of Jane using 1st and 2nd pers. pronouns with Ryan, every other time you read any 1st or 2nd pers. pronouns in the subs in conversation with Ryan, he actually omits them, which is most of the time!

1) When they're unseriously fighting in front of the printer:

เรานี่แหละ ประหลาด /rao nee lae, bpra laat/ เราเป็นเด็กฝึกงานของพี่ /rao bpen dek feuk ngaan khaawng phi/ -> 🫣 that last one got me a bit shy with the ของพี่ /khaawng phi/ (= mine, my [...], lit. phi's [...]) and I think the editor agrees with me there, considering the music cut out lol

2) When Jane discovers the broken bottle debacle and turns to Ryan:

คุณไปรอผมที่ห้อง /khun bpai raaw pom thee haawng/ -> back to formal pronouns again, either because they're not alone or because he's about to scold Ryan or both even

3) When Jane scolds Ryan:

ถ้ามีคนเป็นอะไรขึ้นมา คุณรับผิดชอบไหวหรอ /thaa mee khohn bpen a rai kheun maa, khun rap phit chaawp wai raw/ -> still formal

แล้วมีพี่ให้โทรหาคนเดียวหรอ /laaeo mee phi hai thoh haa khohn diiao raw/ พี่รู้เรื่องนี้คนเดียวหรอ /phi ruu reuuang nee khohn diiao raw/ -> arguably softening his scolding a bit by switching to the more familiar พี่ /phi/ they established at the end of last ep., maybe because of Ryan's voice too which at this point sounds close to tears

And then Ryan is crying 🥺 Oof. Honestly? Jane was actually harsh this time! But rightfully so too, and it's very much in line with his principles and character. And he does immediately apologize for raising his voice and being so harsh, exactly like he told Ryan he would, in ep. 3, if he did wrong by him:

ที่หงุดหงิดเนี่ย เพราะว่าพี่เป็นห่วง /thee ngoot ngit niia, phraw waa phi bpen huuang/ = That [I got so] angry is because I was/am worried. แล้วก็ขอโทษด้วยที่พูดแรง ๆ เมื่อกี้ /laaeo gaaw khaaw thoht duuay thee phuut raaeng raaeng meuua gee/ -> no pronouns here again

This is probably just me being me lol but it's giving Lian harshly scolding Kuea in Cutie Pie when he puts himself in danger mishandling a knife and then immediately softening when Kuea starts crying.

ถ้ามันมีคนได้รับบาดเจ็บ ตัวแกเองนั่นแหละจะเป็นต้นเหตุ /thaa man mee khohn dai rap baat jep, dtuua gae eng nan lae ja bpen dtohn heht/

By this point, I was literally like 'Huh. What even is going on, he's so all over the place in terms of pronoun use, where did this แก come from all of a sudden?' My reading of this is that he's actually just as unsure and confused about Ryan and his feelings for him as Ryan has been all episode.

แก /gae/ is an informal familiar 2nd pers. pronoun that's a little impolite but not nearly as rude as มึง /meung/ and can similarly express closeness with someone you know well, it's used between age mates or for someone younger. In Thai BL, you hear แก /gae/ a lot more from or between girl friends than the rude pronoun of choice between guy friends, มึง /meung/. If you scroll back up, you'll see that Pie called Ryan แก /gae/ as well! The kids are a different story though, they all use a variety of different pronouns amongst each other, depending on context, mood, situation, individual relationship, ... I ain't getting into that lol it would take forever to explain, please no one get any ideas asking me about all of that 🥴

So here we are again with the word 'like'

ผมชอบงานนี้ ชอบที่นี้ /pom chaawp ngaan nee. chaawp thee nee/ แล้วก็ชอบพี่ดว้ย /laaeo gaaw chaawp phi duuay/

Arthur meme meets 😦 emoji

Sometimes Jane looks at Ryan like he's trying to solve a puzzle. It seems like he just realized that they're having two different conversations. But judging from his subtle reactions-- He's not dumb enough to assume that Ryan means it any other way than romantically, considering Ryan's odd behavior all throughout the episode too. Looking at the preview, I think he's gonna refuse to acknowledge Ryan's clearly romantic feelings though, not least of all because HR is already looming in the background, ready to go 🚨!!!

หรือเป็นเพราะผมบอกชอบพี่ไปแล้ว [...] /reuu bpen phraw pom baawk chaawp phi bpai laaeo/ = lit.: Or it's because I've told you I like you [...] -> บอกชอบ /baawk chaawp/ = lit. tell like; tell someone you like them (romantically), confess to liking someone

So! ชอบ /chaawp/ isn't exclusively romantic, same as the English 'like', but there's just no way around how Ryan meant this. And Jane knows it 🌚🌝 Hope my rambles satisfied your curiosity, anon!

[dearmantis]

There's no love like our love

Pairing: Aleksander Morozova/The Darkling x wife!Reader

Summary: When the Royal Family finally turns on the Grisha, you find yourself caught in the crossfire. Alone, of course. You're always alone, it seems.

Warnings: murder, death, canonical persecution of Grisha, violence, mentioned death of children, sexual harassment, slutshaming, mentions of sex and cheating, suicidal thoughts, self hatred

Word Count: 6.6k words

Authors' Note: I DID IT! HERE IS YOUR PART TWO FOR A LOST EMBRACE! IT ONLY TOOK 76 YEARS! BUT I GOT IT DONE BEFORE THE END OF APRIL (this is also very not edited, and I'm still not a native English speaker).

Also, funfact: I cut the ending of this, just like I did with part 1. There was a whole other ending, but that was basically just a lot of fluff. I wasn't sure if people would want that from this series/twoshot specifically so I cut it. I can't tell of cutting the ending is a good or a really bad habit.

The title is from Lights are on by Tom Rosenthal!

Part 1: A lost embrace | Masterlist

The universe is filled with light. Billions of beautiful stars, all different sizes and temperatures, burning brightly and sending their energy out into the universe to bring warmth and light.

But there is even more darkness in the universe than there are stars, filling the space between the celestial bodies. An all surrounding nothingness that acts as a playing field for all of the beautiful, weird and wonderful things hiding in the endless sky. A canvas for everything else in the universe that hugs and surrounds all.

And one day, at least according to the most popular theories, the last stars will die and the universe will be entirely engulfed in darkness.

It began with a loud burst of light, and it will die quietly in shadows.

That knowledge used to bring you comfort and a feeling of belonging. The darkness became your new home, a special, safe place right next to your husband, but there is no safety and love to be found in the darkness now.

It was predictable, honestly. You should've known the second Vasily allowed the Darkling to travel Ravka to search of the Sun Summoner with only a few First Army soldiers for protection, but you simply didn't pay attention to the signs, too caught up in your own frustration and bitterness.

He didn't realise it either, it seems, because he simply left without even saying goodbye, leaving you behind to run the Little Palace in his absence. One night you fall asleep next to him, back turned towards him to visibly reject his presence, and the next morning he is gone, his side of the bed made and all of his most important belongings gone. No letter, no announcement beforehand, nothing.

Maybe his head was simply too focused on Alina to even remember that he still had a wife.

It doesn't matter anymore.

You're still awake when they come, three nights after the General left the Little Palace.

You're laying in bed, humming an old lullaby – one of the really old ones that you learned because he sometimes sings them to you when you can't sleep – while working on fixing the embroidery on the kefta of one of the younger students.

The disappearance of the Sun Summoner has led to chaos in all of Ravka, and there hasn't been a calm moment in the palace in weeks. You are forced, just like everyone else, to work until you pass out while keeping up appearances in front of the royal family. Everything needs to be immaculate despite the fact that the whole country is in a state of emergency, so you push small detail work like this into every free second of your day in hopes of doing something good.

You're so focused on your project that you don't even hear them approach your windows from the outside.

They sneak around, quietly taking out the guards until they're sure that they won't meet too much resistance, and then, suddenly, everything is very loud.

You don't remember what happens. Just flashes of memories. Little pieces that simply aren't enough to form a full picture, as if your body simply wasn't able to take it all in. Or maybe it refuses to remember.

Glass shatters, loud and unfamiliar steps echo like thunder through the halls of what was supposed to be your home, men with bad intentions are in your bedroom, in your house, in your garden.

And your husband is nowhere to be found.

The air smells like fire, panic and fear crackling in the air like electricity and the screams of the Grisha you swore to protect as if they were your own children echo through the building and outside.

Shots are fired in the distance, you're on the floor, the barrel of a gun pressed tightly against the back of your head.

There are more screams slicing through the night. You think you hear someone yelling your name, but before you can answer, one of the men who broke into your room slams their heavy gun against your head, and darkness welcomes you into it's familiar embrace.

When you finally wake it's to the sound of a gun shot ringing through the air, and though the bars of your new cage you watch through bleary eyes how one of your fellow Grisha runs away, his bright purple kefta unfortunately doing very little to hide his movements between the trees. You can't tell who it is, not in the dark.

A second shot gets fired. You see how it hits the Durast in the head, his body falling to the ground and staying there, unmoving. Nobody goes to check if he's dead or to drag him off and bury or burn his corpse. It's just left right there, next to a large ash tree.

Someone whimpers and sobs, begs for their life, but you can't take your eyes off the corpse. The way it just lays there, like it's nothing.

You haven't seen an actual battle in centuries. The Darkling is too paranoid to let you go, convinced that his enemies will target you in a fight and take you away from him. The thought alone used to turn his eyes cold and hard like ice, his whole body shaking with anger at the idea of you being in a dangerous situation. You haven't seen death like this, so fast and seemingly insignificant, in forever.

There is no triumph visible in the body language of the soldier that shot the Durast, but no shame either. A job done, nothing more. He doesn't celebrate or pat himself on the back. He just sits back down next to the fire in the middle of the camp and takes a sip of water, like the life he just took was worth less than even the life of a rabbit.

The other guards move to check the handcuffs of the others after that incident, making sure that everything works and no one is able to use their powers. Your heart races so fast it makes you dizzy, the fog in your head thickening and threatening to drag you back into unconsciousness.

It's hard to stay focused enough to take the whole situation in, but you try anyway, tearing your gaze away from the corpse. There are nine cages, including yours, one of them now empty.

The Grisha in the cages are, just like you, handcuffed with their hands far apart. Three of them are wearing their keftas - two of them being Alkemis, and you ask yourself if the Materialki were all still down in the workshops when the raid began - but the others, including you, are wearing whatever you wore to sleep that night. All of you are dirty, and you pray silently that none of them are hurt. It's hard to see with the lack of light. The cages all stand a bit too far away from the fire to truly see much.

The men who guard you, on the other hand, all look like they dressed up for a military parade. Their First Army uniforms sparkle almost, their faces clean shaven or decorated with carefully trimmed beards. This was planned. This whole raid was planned, probably for weeks, and you didn't notice. The idea most likely came up as soon as the General returned from the Fold, and no one ever picked up on it.

It feels like a relic from a time you're supposed to have left behind, a time you didn't even experience and only heard about from the Darkling and on rare occasions his mother.

The First Army doesn't hunt Grisha anymore. The king doesn't put you into cages. They just hate you, insult you, and harass you, but they don't physically harm you anymore. Yet... here you are.

Ravka isn't supposed to be like Fjerda, like Shu Han, like Kerch. The Darkling had made sure of that, worked for this one singular goal for centuries, and dedicated his whole life to it.

The thought of him makes your heart sting painfully, and you suppress the urge to worry for him, to wonder where he is and if he's safe. You have bigger issues than him right now. He's fine. There's no room for argument. He has survived wars and centuries of persecution. This won't kill him. He's probably out there somewhere, completely safe, trying to track down his sun summoner while you rot in this cage alongside the others.

After the handcuffs are checked you watch as four of the five soldiers walk to the cages of the two Alkemi, Ivanna and Ole, and pull them out, the fifth still sitting at the fire and watching the whole situation with mild interest.

You hear one of the guards make a suggestion on how to deal with them, and your stomach turns.

In your mind, you are 12 years old, hiding behind your mothers skirt. Her hand rests on your head, trying to soothe you as you watch with the other people your village how a woman gets dragged out of the cage they kept her in. You remember her face. She works as a seamstress. She gives you pretty ribbons to tie around your wrist or into your hair whenever your mother buys something from her.

The man – was he the mayor? The village head? You don't remember what he called himself – who pulled her out of the cage pushes her to the ground, right in front of a large rock, and motions for someone hiding in the crowd to come closer.

Another man steps forward, the blacksmith, in his hands the biggest hammer you have ever seen.

The woman starts screaming now, her voice breaking under the force of her violent sobs. Her body shakes horribly, and your own shaking hands dig deeper into the material of your mothers skirt.

"Please, please, I swear it. This is a misunderstanding. I did nothing wrong. I swear it. Please, just listen to me," the woman begs while the mayor grabs the thick rope attacked to her handcuffs and pulls her arms and hands to rest on the rock.

The noise the hammer made when it slammed down on her hands haunts you for centuries, just like her screams do.

Just like the screams of the Materialki probably will if you survive this when the guards push them to the ground. The only difference is that the soldiers have no large hammers to break their hands.

You can't move, can't speak, can't do anything, completely frozen in fear while the soldiers hold them down, each of them pressing an arm down onto the cold ground. The two have no chance to defend themselves.

The man at the fire finally stands up slowly, grabbing one of the rocks lining the fire to prevent forest fires, and walks over to the six people on the ground.

You watch him do it. You have to. You failed to protect your Grisha, and the least you can do is witness the horrors they have to go through because of your own mistakes.

Because you should've known. You should've known. Of course the royal family would turn on Grisha. Of course they would send the Darkling away before they raided the Little Palace. He is the last line of defence for the Grisha in this country.

You should've noticed the signs. You should've talked to the General about it, maybe even with Baghra. You should've started to prepare to evacuate the whole Palace, organized a place to hide with food and beds and water.

But you didn't. You didn't because you were too blinded by your own stupid quarrel with the Darkling. This is your fault. Every drop of blood that was shed that night, every bit of pain and suffering that your Grisha experienced, clings to you.

It's all your fault.

When the soldiers are sure that they broke every bone in Alkemis' hands, they put the cuffs back on and throw them back into their cages.

And then they walk back to the fire in the middle of the camp and begin to eat, ignoring the sobbing of the Grisha only a few metres away from them and the corpse still peacefully resting between the bushes and trees.

You wake up the next morning with aching muscles and the knowledge that you probably won't get out of this camp alive. Because as much as you would like to pretend otherwise, these people know you. If Vasily gives the command to have you killed, these men know that you're their target. And he would. You can't even blame him for it. You're the wife of the General, just as much of a symbol for the Second Army as the Darkling. Killing you would be a message to all of Ravka.

They don't treat you much differently than they treat the others, to your surprise. You get starved like the others, glared at like the others, and dehydrated like the others.

You could almost believe that they somehow don't know who you are if it wasn't for the insults.

Every Grisha gets insulted, some more creatively than the others. Especially the two Alkemi get made fun of for their broken, swollen, and discoloured hands by the soldiers, like they aren't the reason why they look like that. Other insults directed at other Grisha in the camp, on the other hand, are overused and boring, like when they asked Lena, an Inferni, where her spark is, why her fire has disappeared.

"I thought Infernis are always so hot-headed? Come on, give us a show!" One of the older men in the camp says to her on your second day awake, and it makes your skin crawl. You wish you could claw those mens eyes out, make them bleed.

But the insults they direct at you, those are personal. They prove that they know exactly who you are despite never saying your name once.

The Darklings slut. That's what you are to them.

His favourite toy. A bedwarmer. A plaything. A whore to entertain him. A distraction from the war. A thing he can let his frustrations out on.

That's who you are in their eyes. Nothing more. Certainly nothing that deserves respect or should be feared. The fact that you and the other Grisha can't use the small science makes them braver.

The worst insults are the ones they come up with after the third day in the cage, right after the soldiers get a quick visit from one of Vasilys messengers, because their words are suddenly no longer insults. They are observations and a horrible, new truth that convince you that their earlier insults are true, working hand in hand with the thoughts and fears you had before any of this even started.

"Don't look at me like that, whore. Everybody, even us fools in the First Army, know how enamoured your husband was with the sun summoner. How many times do you think he fucked her before she ran? Probably did it right behind your back in your shared bed, you stupid thing. I bet she was the last thing he thought of before the guards that accompanied him shot him in the head."

The soldiers celebrate the news of the Darklings death like they just won the wars with Fjerda and Shu Han and tore down the Fold with their bare hands, drinking alcohol and eating freshly hunted deer meat while you and the other Grisha grieve and starve. You don't allow yourself to cry like the others, but you can feel your soul rip itself apart.

You begin to lose yourself after that.

Your sanity runs through your hands like sand, your mind desperate to escape the smell of the Durasts rotting corpse that the soldiers never bothered to remove, the insults, the screams of the other Grisha when they get pulled out of their cages (one a day, always only one a day, like they're trying to drag it out), the desperate hunger that burns in your stomach, the thirst that tears your throat apart, the death of your husband: reality in all it's horrible shapes and colours.

First, you spend a few minutes caught up in a nice memory, like a short conversation in the gardens of the Little Palace, drinking tea and leaning on his shoulder while he tells you about his day. Then the daydreams get longer and take more control over you until you spend days staring at nothing, buried so deep in your own mind that you're no longer aware of what happens around you.

A small part of you hopes that they'll kill you while you're in that state, caught up in the past. Everything is better than reality, and with every second that passes when you're fully aware of your surroundings, that reality becomes more unbearable.

You love remembering the time before Alina the most. You know that her only sin is shining a light onto the lies, destruction, and rot surrounding you, but without her light, you were able to pretend.

You are good at pretending.

The light just makes it harder, and sometimes you slip up and accidentally sink into a more recent memory, your mind racing through different thoughts so fast that you're unable to stop it.

Like how the girl whose kefta you repaired that night, little Bibi, probably ended up dying without it after working so hard to prove to everyone that she earned it. And now her corpse lays somewhere in Ravka with no one to take care of it, to lay it to rest.

The kids are easily the worst thing to remember. Every time you do, it feels like the guilt eats your heart or whatever is left of it right out of your chest, ripping and tearing on the muscle like a wolf on a bone.

How many of them got out of the Palace in time and are now hiding somewhere, probably scared and alone with no one to help them and no idea how to get to other Grisha or back to their families? How many of them are stuck in cages just like you, starving and terrified of the First Army men who are only waiting to get the command to kill them? How many of them didn't even make it out of the Little Palace and died at the hand of the soldiers during the raid?

How many children were buried and burned that night?

Your husband isn't much better to remember either. The words of the First Army soldiers burn themselves into your mind like hot coals. You don't want to think about it. You've never wanted to think about something less in your entire life, but no matter what you do, the pain of losing someone you've known for almost your whole life feels like a knife stuck in your chest.

"... guards that accompanied him shot him in the head."

It's odd, really, how all consuming grief can be even if a part of you hates the person you lost. Almost surreal.

There have always been chapters of your life subtitled with "before the Darkling". There aren't supposed to be chapters subtitled "after the Darkling", not even a single one. It's wrong. It's entirely wrong. He's supposed to be a constant. Something that doesn't move, doesn't change, doesn't leave. He was supposed to be here until the end of everything.

He wasn't supposed to leave you behind. You can't do this without him. You can't lose him. This isn't right.

It's the last piece. The last drop required to convince you that giving up might not be the worst option. If they succeeded in killing the Darkling... what can truly be done anymore? What can you do? You can't free the Grisha in your camp, not with your hands cuffed so far apart from each other that your arms regularly start cramping, and a stomach so empty that it feels like your entire body is trying to collapse in on itself to fill the void. You can't convince the soldiers to free you. You can't save the children and rebuild Ravka into a safe place once more, not alone. You can't do anything on your own. You are nothing.

So why shouldn't you die? Why not join your husbands soul, wherever it may be now? What is left for you to do here? What can you do?

Death haunts your sense of smell and vision. It haunts your mind, and it haunts all of Ravka. Why not let it carry you off? Away from the pain, the suffering, the fear and grief and rot.

There is only more to come. More horrors that linger in the unpredictable future, and no one left to fix it. You certainly can't do it, Baghra - if she still lives, that is - doesn't care enough about others to even attempt to fix anything, and the sun summoner evidently can't do it either. All she can do is shine light on the evil lingering in the dark, but she's not strong or persuasive enough to improve and change the nightmares she exposes.

The Darkling could've done it. He would fight tooth and nail, drench his hands in blood and ash to free the others. He has fought his whole life, after all. He could've done it again.

But you can't. You can't take his position in this war, as much as you wish you could. You can't even get your hands out of your stupid cuffs, no matter how hard you try.

Baghra was right in the end, it seems. You really are too weak to stay at her and her sons side as their equal. You are dust, nothing more.

Now that you're here, stuck in a cage and unable to defend yourself in any way, you ask yourself once more how she and her son could've possibly survived this long. How did they not give up? What do they have that you lack?

"When the entire world hates you and wants you dead, the best thing you can do is live."

That's what she said back then, but you simply don't understand how she found the strength to keep going. You can't find it in you, no matter how much you look. Your whole life is gone. Your friends are probably all in cages or dead. Your husband is dead. Your home is gone. There is nothing left, no reason for you to continue.

Your husband would want you to keep going, a voice in the back of your mind answers, and you can feel the sharp stinging in your chest return at the thought.

You miss him. You miss him so much that it feels like you're being torn apart from the inside. And if you're really honest with yourself, you have to admit that you have been in this state for a while.

All of that anger and jealousy was just your bodies way to avoid facing the fact that you were lonely. No wonder you immediately fell back into routine like a desperate little cat when he finally gifted you some attention after Alina fled. Your entire being was begging to get him back.

And now you will never have him again because you were both too stubborn to simply talk with each other. He will never understand how much it hurt to see him obsess over someone else, and you will never know why you suddenly weren't enough for him anymore.

You will never hear his voice again, or knit him a new scarf for winter, or wash his hair for him after an exhausting day. You will never be comforted by him when you have a headache or watch the first snow of the year cover the grass outside of the Little Palace. You will never fall asleep next to him again, his arms wrapped around you and your face pressed against his chest as his heartbeat and calm breathing lull you to sleep.

He will never hug you again or surprise you with breakfast. He will never help you choose jewelry for an event again, give you his cloak when you're cold, kiss you, laugh at your horrible jokes, or moan your name into your ear, his voice raspy with love and desire while he tries to bring you to another orgasm before his own crashes down on him.

You will never do anything with him ever again.

Turning your head slightly, you stare at the soldiers sitting at the fire, eating some form of stew. You can't smell it. The stench of the decomposing body is too strong, and you wonder how the soldiers can stomach food in this environment.

You can barely breathe on some days without gagging every few seconds. It's so horrible that it drives tears into your eyes.

They talk and laugh about some servant girl, and you silently ask yourself what fate the servants of the Little Palace met. How many of them died that night? How many fled? Did any of them try to help the Grisha that might've fled? And saints, what happened to the Oprichniki?

Slowly closing your eyes again, you pray that the wind changes direction and starts blowing the smell away while you try to think of something that gives you strength.

The first thing that comes to mind is your amplifier.

You haven't thought about that day in a while, not since Alina came to the Palace and your heart and soul drowned themselves in jealousy and hate.

But it's not right to forget something so special. You should remember.

Who else in all of Ravka got proposed to, not with a ring but with a barn owl and a knife?

He has been gone for months, looking for something in West Ravka, choosing to trave through Fjerda and around the Fold to avoid going through it, and the constant worry that he would be discovered keeps you awake on some nights. He sends a letter once a month and promises you over and over that he would be back in the spring, but you still end up surprised when one of your friends drags you out of your bed in the middle of the night and ushers you towards the Generals quarters.

And when you open the doors you find him leaning against his desk, a knife next to him on the table and a barn owl sitting quietly in a cage, large eyes looking at you curiously, but you don't even see those things. Not at first, at least.

You just see him.

"You're back!"

Quickly jumping over to him, you throw your arms around him and press your face against him, a deep laugh bubbling in his chest as he moves to embrace you tightly.

"Careful, my love," he murmurs, his hands finding the back of your neck and pressing you closer to him.

You stay like that for a while, holding each other tightly while he whispers soft words into your ear.

"I'm so happy to see you. I missed you so much, little love. I hope you weren't too lonely without me," he coos, pressing a long kiss onto your head.

You're about to answer him when the bird finally makes himself known. Turning your head quickly you look at it, and the owl turns it's head to the side as if it's trying to do assess you carefully as well, it's dark eyes looking you over a few times. You feel a bit self-conscious in your night dress, but instead of shying away, you decide to let it look.

"Is that what you were looking for in West Ravka?" you ask, gazing back up at him.

"I did a lot of research over the past year, and I think this amplifier would be strong enough," he explains, his voice as soft as a feather.

"Strong enough?"

"To keep you with me. I didn't believe it at first either, but this little bird could give you forever. Time would no longer be able to take you from me. I could keep you for eternity."

Tears well up in your eyes, your hands moving to hold onto the front of his kefta as he reaches over to the knife and holds it out to you.

"You don't have to do it right now. You can get to know the owl and see if it feels right. Think about it for a while. It's a big commitment, after all." His empty hand moves up to cup your face, and the tenderness in his gaze makes your heart race. "If you chose the amplifier, I will stay with you. I will be at your side until the end of everything, I promise it. I will take care of you when you're hurt, hold you when you're sad, and laugh with you when you're happy. I will fight at your side, protect you with my life, and take care of you until I die."

Biting your lip weakly, you look up into his eyes, somehow darker than the night sky. "And if I don't choose to take the amplifier?"

"Then I'll still do all of those things. I will just have less time by your side, but I will cherish that time just as much, sweet girl."

You don't know when it happens because you start to loose track of time after the first week is over, but at some point in a random night one of the soldiers goes into the forest to get fresh water from a nearby river and doesn't return.

You're not conscious enough to notice it, and the soldiers are too caught up in their preparations for tonight's entertainment.

You don't even notice how they move through the camp, their eyes looking at each and every grisha they have, and judging who would be able to provide the most fun tonight. You just wish you were lying on the floor.

If you laid down, you could pretend that the heaviness on your chest is your husbands weight and not a heavy mountain of grief that tries to drag you down into the heart of the world.

He liked to do that. Lay on top of you to make sure that every single centimetre of you touched him in some way. You used to jokingly complain about it, but he never stopped. Every time he knew you needed comfort he would lay down on top of you, his heavy, strong body pressing you deep into the mattress while he talked, either asking questions about your day and whatever might be bothering you, or telling you about his, always carefully pressing small kisses onto your face and neck.

He must've known that his weight comforted you, made you feel safe. You've never wanted to be crushed into a mattress by him so badly in your whole life.

You don't hear it when they discuss if you're weak enough now to remove you from the cuffs. You don't even hear it when they open your cage, the old metal screeching loudly.

You don't realize that anything is wrong until one of the soldiers unlocks the cuffs and your body falls to the floor like a wet sack of flour. A loud groan leaves your mouth, your voice rough from lack of use.

The soldier grabs your ankles and drags you out of the cage, your upper body dragging over the floor. After being hung up for so long, you realise very quickly that you can't move your arms at all. The muscles start twitching as soon as you even attempt to bring them together, and a horrible, sharp tingling sensation makes itself noticeable. You bite your teeth together to stop yourself from screaming out.

A wave of panic crashes over you as soon as you fully understand what's going on, trying to kick the man dragging you closer to the fire, but none of your movements seem to really bother him.

As soon as you're close enough to the fire, someone flips you onto your stomach and buries their hand in your hair to pull your head up. Your back bends horribly, and you hiss out in pain as your eyes find those of the soldier who broke the Alkemis hands with a rock.

He doesn't say anything. He just looks at you, eyes taking in every flinch and twitch in your face.

You stay like this for a few seconds staring at each other, when he suddenly spits directly into your face, a wide grin splitting his face into two a few seconds later before he slaps you. Your head drops to the ground quickly.

"Let's get started. Markus can join us later when he's done," someone says. Three seconds later, before you have time to register what he means, you have a small knife in your back.

A blood curdling scream leaves your throat and tears well up in your eyes. You want to beg, to humiliate yourself even further and kiss their shoes in hopes of escaping this, but the last shred of pride left in you won't let you.

One of the soldiers steps onto one of your hands, twisting his shoe a bit in the process to make it hurt more. Someone else grabs your other arm and twists it behind your back until you scream out once more. This time, you scream your husbands name, unable to stop yourself in time. It's a broken, pathetic sound that echoes through the trees like a gunshot.

You know he won't come, but something about saying his name again feels almost cathartic, so you continue to scream it out with your full heart and soul. With every hit, every kick, and every stab wound, you scream the real name of the black heretic out into the endless night and beg death to bring you to him.

When the first gunshots get fired into the forest, you mistakenly assume that they're shooting at you and tightly close your eyes. Your heartbeat rushes loudly in your ears, and your mind replays the events of the first day when the Durast got shot. You can't even stand up and run. Your whole body is consumed by pain.

This is it, you think. Loud screams pierce through the air, gruelling, blood curling screams that scare you half to death.

Your mind races, trying to quickly find a last memory to remember before a bullet pierces your chest or head and kills you, something sweet and soft and perfect, like your wedding night, or your first kiss, or your-.

A loud scream rips itself out of your throat when a bullet hits you right into your leg. The man who shot it is dead seconds later, torn to shreds by darkness itself, but you don't see it, your eyes still rightly closed as you wait for the next bullet to hit you.

It never comes.

Instead someone yells your name, and you think it sounds familiar.

"Ivan!" the man screams, and a second later, someone carefully turns you onto your back and falls to their knees next to you, pulling your head up into their lap, their large hands cupping your face.

You don't want to die. You're not ready.

"My love, my love, it's me. Can you hear me?," he speaks. Fabric ruffles and something wide is dropped over your shaking, weak form, and your whole body feels warm for the first time in days. A familiar scent enters your lungs, somehow overpowering the stench of rotting corpse and fresh blood.

"Sasha?" Squinting your eyes, you look up, trying to focus on the blurry face hovering above yours. He's easy to recognize. The ink black lines over his face are unique to him, almost out of place in this world, just like him. You want to reach up and touch him, but you can't. Your muscles won't cooperate.

"I'm here, my little love. I'm right here. I found you. And I'm so proud of you. So, so proud of you. And I'm sorry," Aleksander answers. His eyes sparkle like stars, tears rolling down his face and dripping onto yours like raindrops. In the back of your mind, you realize that you've never seen him cry in front of people like this before. Only ever in private. Now his voice is almost breaking, his sobs so loud it drowns out the noise of your own hammering heartbeat. It must be a dream. He would never allow himself to show weakness like this.

Ivan appears next to him like a ghost, his hands covered in blood as he carefully lifts the thick black cloak Aleksander covered you with from your legs to look at the injuries there.

"Sasha," you rasp out again. You want him to hold you so badly, but you can barely speak. All you want is to be held by your husband.

"Right here. I'm so sorry, sweet girl. So sorry. I promised I would protect you, and I failed. I'm so sorry, I will never make that mistake again, I swear. I'll never take you for granted again. I'm so sorry for being late."

You want to respond, to calm him down, but he doesn't give you a chance to talk. He just continues with his panicked, slightly hysterical rambling, his whole body shaking under the force of his sobs.

"I'll take care of you. I'll make sure you're safe, and I will never leave your side again. No one will ever hurt you again."

His thumb strokes your cheek gently, and the love in his gaze almost feels like a punch in the gut. He looks absolutely in love and absolutely devastated as well. "I thought I lost you. I kept looking for you in every camp I found, but you were never there, and none of the soldiers would tell me where you are. I was so sure they killed you. I was so scared. I thought-"

Aleksanders voice shatters like glass, his body almost curling in on itself as he presses his forehead against yours. You recognize the breathing pattern he uses, an old trick he taught you a few years ago when you were still new to your position as the Darklings wife. He's trying to stop a panic attack from taking over.

"I'm so proud of you. You're so strong and brave, my darling girl. My lovely wife. I love you so much. You're so good, so good for me. I don't know what I would do without you. What I would do if they... I'm so sorry. I don't deserve you. I'm sorry."

He sounds broken, you notice. You've never heard him like this in your entire life. Tears flood your eyes, and you take a deep breath, more of his familiar scent entering your lungs. Rosemary and ash, with a hint of something sweet.

"I'm never going away again, I promise. I will never leave you again, sweet girl. Never again. You will never be able to get rid of me. I will bind myself to you, body and soul, until the end of everything, I swear it."

You're starting to get dizzy. Everything is so overwhelming.

"Am I dead?" You hear yourself asking, your vision dimming slowly, and you're sure you will be dragged back into unconsciousness by your body soon. Aleksander laughs, and it's oddly light and relieved, considering the context.

"No. No, you're alive. You survived. We both survived."

You smile.

Part 3: So I stayed in the darkness with you

Taglist: @savagejane1 @deadunicorn159

[melloollem]

Before The Great Fall|| Jason Todd (Robin) × No reader gender

Summary: You and Jason have become friends because you have a habit of walking around the city at night and Robin has a habit of taking you home.

Warnings: Comfort, teenage Jason Todd, slight flirting (The relationship is much more of a friendship), English is not my native language.

(DC masterlist)

"Where are you going so late?" A sudden voice said, making you stop abruptly and look up, trying to find its speaker, Robin. You wondered if Batman forced him to train that voice, it was so distinctive.

"Aren't you too young to be walking alone so late?" You hadn't found him yet, but now he seemed to be coming from a different, closer place. You turned your head in various directions trying to find him. "Aren't you too young to go out at night to beat up criminals?" You retorted, already frustrated by his behavior, wondering if he was going to show up.

"I'm here" Jason was enjoying how lost you looked. Before you had a chance to locate him, he dashed to your side, you turned away abruptly at the sudden appearance, the boy laughed, it was something that never lost its funny "It's never too early to start fighting crime" His voice tried to copy some kind of charm, the kind seen in movies. Now it was your turn to laugh. "If you say so," you shrugged, finding Jason's behavior hilarious.

Your reaction confused him, had you liked it? He dismissed the question with a shake of his head. "So... where are you going?" You thought about giving him an acid answer, but gave up because of how interested he seemed. "Flat tire," you said with a sigh of defeat. Jason's gaze fell on the bicycle you were carrying next to your body. It was so old that he wondered if it had really worked before the flat tire. You raised an eyebrow as you realized how much he was staring at the object in your hand.

The vigilante grabbed your bike and turned the other way. Your eyes followed the scene with attention and displeasure. "Are you going home" He answered your silent question, receiving a roll of the eyes from you. "There's no crime going on? Do you really need to keep an eye on me?" You haven't moved an inch.

"It's Gotham, it probably is" He shrugged simplistically "But tonight this is my area and if you're in it, I have to make sure you're safe" You didn't want to go home, but there was no point in arguing with Robin or he'd win, or his defeat wouldn't matter and you'd do as he said. You let out a sigh before hurrying to catch up with him. "If some super villain is following you and I'm about to die tonight, I hope you die with me," you complained walking alongside him, Robin laughed.

The two of you walked in silence. Now that you no longer had to look around, you let your thoughts take over, but Robin snapped you out of it by asking, "Where were you going so late?" You rolled your eyes at how insistent he could be. A stupid grin took over your face as you said, "I was going after crime, I'm..." You couldn't think of a hero's name fast enough to complete your joke.

"If you're a crime fighter, you'll lack appropriate attire" He looked you up and down, and you found his insinuation a little offensive. " Said Robin in his underwear," you whispered, but it didn't go unnoticed by him, who pushed you slightly with his body. His first choice of look hadn't been the best, whatever, Couldn't you forget that?

"I'm just kidding," you said when you noticed the boy's new bad mood, but your voice still sounded provocative. It was your favorite pastime to get on the vigilante's nerves.

"Answer my question" You rolled your eyes. "You're very nosy, don't you think?" Before he had a chance to respond, you added, "I didn't have an exact destination, I just went out to think for a while." Robin's eyes went down to your hands and the anxious way you waved them.

He hated the way that whenever things got bad at home, you left for Gotham without considering the dangers. He wanted to say something comforting about your family situation, but he knew you'd only get uncomfortable and try to change the conversation.

"You shouldn't do that, it's dangerous," Jason scolded you, even though he knew it wouldn't change your attitude. You couldn't walk around the city thinking that he would always show up to save you in any situation, you only believed that because it was what had been happening for months.

"Why not? That's how we met, you should be grateful to finally have some friends" You returned to your amused tone. He narrowed his eyes at how astute you were at changing the topic, but decided to let it go.

"You're not part of my personal life, why do you always assume that I don't have any other friends?" The answer came out in a monotone, he didn't know why he was still trying to fight you. "Who would want to be friends with a boy who goes out at night to fight crime? That's a sign of insanity to me," you said as if it were obvious.

"I don't think you understand the meaning of secret identity" He used his free hand to point at the mask covering his face, and you decided not to answer him.

The journey went smoothly, soon you'd be home. Jason thought you wouldn't say anything the whole way, but you did. "Do you think there's any chance of me getting out of Gotham?" The way you looked at him surprised Jason, like someone who thought he really had the answer to everything.

"Maybe, well, do you really want that?" The way his voice sounded more natural didn't go unnoticed by you. "I wish, but it seems that no one can escape Gotham, really escape." The simplicity of your speech made your lack of hope evident.

"Gotham has the lowest real estate prices in the region" Jason justified the phenomenon. You raised an eyebrow, expecting something more motivating from him, shouldn't he be a hero?

"You can be the one to change that" That was the wittiest and most realistic thing he could say, you accepted it gladly, at least he had tried.

"At least, if I stay, you'll have some friends" You brushed aside the seriousness of the conversation, not prepared to deal with it. He laughed quickly, with no chance to retort before he heard a call in his ear. You recognized the tension in his face, knowing there was some crime going on nearby.

"I'm in." You caught his attention, pointing your head towards your apartment, which was just ahead of you. "You can go." You took his bike and continued on your way. "Be careful, Robin." You shouted without bothering to look back, knowing he wasn't there.

＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿＿

This writing is intended to imitate those movies in which the characters just walk around while having a dynamic and intimate conversation. I hope you enjoy the relationship I build with Jason.

[thatdeadaquarius]

Aquarius’s Genshin Impact... MASTERLIST?!

☕️ Tip me an iced coffee?! :O

* = IMPOSTER AU = NOT dark/yandere!

* = Art made by me for the post!

☆

Turn on the background music?

Chronological-ish, so CHECK NEAR THE BOTTOM SECTIONS FOR NEWER POSTS.

(sorry about reformatting again guys...)

☆

Your Birthday! (ft. cute platonic Bennett)

...Whatcha listenin’ to Player?

You’re a walking speaker (sounds from ur memories)

Latino! Reader, You're feeling a little homesick... (mostly Zhongli scenario!)

You introduce Teyvat to the lovely music of KPOP (check the reblogs!!)

You made your babes gifts! ALL Characters/PART 1 - Travelers/Dainsleif, Pyro, Electro, Anemo

^ PART 2, of the gifts!! ^

Childe reacts to his voice actor's song covers

O Aquarius, dead stars you are, what is my horoscope today?

Razor, best boy.

Bennett, ft. Razor (part 2-ish!)

Qiqi, best girl.

Headcanons of an Avatar AU (the fantasy movies)

TCG Genius Invokation... wait, they're your Favorite Card???

* Imposter! AU while parenting Razor (non-yandere/not-dark version)

* Possession AU! - you can still control your characters, but by possessing them! PART 1

* Possession AU! - PART 2

Neurodivergent!Reader, Ganyu my beloved!

* Strawberry Scarameow.

You're an Army Veteran and you brought the gun

Minecraft AU!! :D ⛏️

Costa Rican Reader spreads their culture <3

* Possession AU Fanfic, only AO3 (Ongoing)

☆

Language Shenanigans!

OG Blunt Language in Teyvat AU! Post :) (check the reblogs for that post for awesome add-ons from followers!)

Blunt Lang. AU! Colorful Cussing

Blunt Lang. AU! Vine Boom every time you speak (+sprinkle of bilingual)

Blunt Lang. AU! Actually you’re just having to learn Teyvatian lang. that’s why ur blunt

Blunt Lang. AU! with a dash of Neurodivergent! Reader, your trying to be flowery... it’s not working...

Blunt Lang. AU! You're a writer! ...well now it's an ancient artifact and a bestseller.

Some more Blunt Lang. AU! fun AND more blunt lang. AU! fun :0

Paimon being rude in Sumeru

◇

Audio Processing Disorder (Reader with APD) Shenanigans, (mostly Diluc scenario!)

Neurodivergent! Reader stims! ...and Teyvatians thought that was your language...

Neurodivergent! Reader is a child/different ages randomly ft. Non-native English speaker

Teyvat’s countries have the Simlish versions of Japanese, German, etc.

Your Native Language is holy... except you mostly cuss with it

Slang words don’t translate well... or texting lingo

Tumblr / 2023 Slang doesn’t translate well...

...Teyvat is trying to make your slang words translate...

You’ve yet to realize that Teyvat has multiple languages (looks at hieroglyphics) ...is this Loss. the oldest record of language... “sus”

You know sign language and help out a lost kid, Teyvat melts AQUARIUS got isekaied?! with my followers??!! (check the reblogs too!) Nobody wants to tell You (god) that you’ve mixed up some words... You’re really out here just speaking gibberish, ya trickster god

You sound like an Animal Crossing character to Teyvatians

Godly game of charades scenario

You give up translating and just start running around (encoded/cipher! post)

You're an Eldritch God of Teyvat... so ofc no one understand you (check the reblogs too!)

You know French. You use this power appropiately.

Reader only writes to talk!

You're multilingual! ...Alhaitham is outside your door.

You're Brazilian, Teyvat is calm about this.

Ancient tablets nice... oh god its a hurt/no comfort fic.

*Eldritch God Reader Fanfic (thanks for 1000+ followers!!)

^^ part 2 of the above, also an ao3 link!

Teyvat doesn't write novels, but you do lol

☆

☆Taglists ☆

SAGAU ALL POSTS

@karmawonders / @0rah-s / @randomnatics / @glxssynarvi / @nexylaza / @genshin-impacts-me / @wholesomey-artist / @thedevioussmirk / @the-dumber-scaramouche

Possession AU! ONLY

@justlostintheinternet / @assassinsnake101 / @sun-wokung

♡

Wanna join a taglist for something? Just message me:

" pspspspssss tag me (insert taglist here) !! "

Hmmm... I wonder what you'll get if you send an ask saying "aquarius, oh dead stars, what is my horoscope today?"...°.•☆•.°?

♡

Safe Travels,

💀♒️

[ashs-nerd-den]

Daoine ar Instagram le leanúint chun an Ghaeilge a fhoghlaim

People on Instagram to follow for learning Irish

gaeilge.gachla

Posts a new vocab word each day

the_gaeilge_coach

Secondary school Irish teacher, is a bit of craic, posts reels about learning Irish in a way that is fun and captures your attention. Her work is aimed at exams, so it is great for anyone doing state exams or applying to the Hibernia, because we are the target audience. She has a free pre-recorded masterclass for Higher level leaving cert (Ardleibhéal do na hArdteist) which comes with an online booklet with an exam lay out and so many more free resources for everyone, exam students or not on her website, which shows a lot more of the great stuff that she does, because I haven't even tried half of her amazing resources, I'm still making my way through them because of how wonderful they are!!!

Gaeilge_bheo

Irish teacher in Australia, has a word of the day inniative for vocab, makes videos just chatting away about different odd things as Gaeilge, so she is great for whether you want to get your couple or words (do cúpla focail) or if you want some immersion content. She also teaches you how to tell people to feck off in Irish which is always useful as well as being a down to earth, funny, normal human being

gaeilge_i_mo_chroi

Posts videos on pronunciation for each dialect and common mistakes as well as covering content form the basics to the tuiseal ginideach and she has recently published a books (leabhair) so if you are interested in giving a bit of monetary support to some of the wonderful women providing us with such great resources, why not get yourself a nice book out of it. Bonus: She has a YouTube channel where she gives more in depth explanations of harder topics.

maire_nichurraoin

Is Gaeilgeoir í le Gaeilge connemara (She is a native Irish speaker with Connemara Irish) She has such a happy bubbly personality, which puts a smile on your face in seconds. She posts everything speaking in Irish (*IMMERSION!!!*) but don't worry, she has English captions included in the video. Even if I wasn't leaning Irish, I would still follow her for how happy I always feel after watching one of her reels. Agus is amhránaí í freisin!!! (She's a singer too!!!)

[novlr]

As a writer, who's first language is not English, how can I expand my vocabulary so I wouldn't be too repetitive?

I grew up in a bilingual household with a Mother whose first language isn’t English. She is a wonderful writer who creates brilliant and engaging resources for language teachers.

One of the big things she had to work on to get to that point was vocabulary. But not just the words; it was also the context and how to use those words properly. Ironically, we discovered that English as her second language was actually of benefit to her in this, as she had to be more thoughtful about the way she used language than a native speaker would be.

Like any language, the real trick is immersion. So here are some effective strategies for growing your vocabulary to bring more variety and nuance to your writing. There is always room to expand your lexicon and take your writing to the next level, whether you’re a native English speaker or not, and these tips might also help any writer who plans to write in a language other than English! So let’s explore some practical tips for building a rich and diverse vocabulary.

Why expanding your vocabulary matters

Before we dive into the strategies, let’s take a moment to understand why expanding your vocabulary is so important for creative writers:

A diverse vocabulary allows you to express ideas with greater precision and nuance.

It helps you avoid repetition and keeps your writing fresh and engaging.

A strong vocabulary can make your writing more memorable and impactful.

It demonstrates your mastery of the language and can help you stand out as a writer.

Expanding your vocabulary can improve your reading experiences.

It can give you the confidence to explore new genres and styles that you may have previously avoided.

Strategies for expanding your vocabulary

Read widely and consistently

One of the most effective ways to expand your vocabulary is to read extensively. By exposing yourself to a variety of genres, authors, and styles, you’ll encounter new words in context, which can help you understand their meanings and usage. Again, it’s about immersion. Surrounding yourself with language helps develop your understanding, and seeing words in different contexts will cement them as second nature.

Here are some tips for making the most of your reading:

Set aside dedicated reading time each week, even if it’s just for 20-30 minutes.

Choose books, articles, and other materials that challenge you and introduce new concepts and vocabulary.

Keep a dictionary or thesaurus nearby to look up unfamiliar words as you encounter them.

Take notes on new words and phrases that resonate with you, and try writing exercises to use them in context.

Consider joining a book club or discussion group to explore new genres and authors, and to engage in conversations about language and writing.

Don’t be afraid to tackle challenging texts; they often offer the greatest opportunities for growth.

Use word-of-the-day resources

Another great way to expand your vocabulary is to make a habit of learning new words each day. There are many online resources and apps that offer “word of the day” features, which can help you discover new words and their meanings. Some popular options include:

The New York Times

Merriam-Webster

Dictionary.com

Oxford English Dictionary

Britannica

Play word games and puzzles

Word games and puzzles can be a fun and engaging way to expand your vocabulary. When we were growing up, my mother would play these games with us when we brought them home from school, and she said they were a great help in improving her own vocabulary. They challenge you to think creatively about language, can introduce you to new words and concepts, and can be a fun thing to do with friends and family! Some popular options include:

Crossword puzzles

Scrabble or Words with Friends

Boggle

Word searches

Riddles

Games from websites like the New York Times

Use a thesaurus (but use it wisely)

A thesaurus can be a valuable tool for finding new words and phrases to use in your writing. However, it’s important to use it wisely and avoid simply replacing words with their synonyms without considering the context and connotation. Here are some tips for using a thesaurus effectively:

Find words that more precisely convey your intended meaning rather than just avoid repetition.

Consider the connotation and tone of the words you choose, and make sure they fit the context of your writing.

Don’t overuse obscure or overly complex words just for the sake of it. Clarity and readability should always be your top priorities.

Use a combination of a thesaurus and a dictionary to ensure you fully understand the meaning and usage of new words.

Practice writing with your new vocabulary

Finally, the best way to solidify your new vocabulary is to put it into practice in your writing. As you learn new words and phrases, make a conscious effort to incorporate them into your work. Here are some ideas for practising with your new vocabulary:

Set yourself a challenge to use a certain number of new words as a writing prompt.

Write short stories or poems that focus on a particular theme or concept inspired by a new word you’ve learned. Use your new vocabulary to explore it in depth.

Revise older pieces of writing and look for opportunities to replace overused words with more precise or evocative alternatives.

Keep a journal or notebook where you jot down new words and reflect on how and when you might use them in your writing. Write down contextual snippets. This can help you internalise their meanings and make them a more natural part of your vocabulary.

[devieuls]

Hello can I plz request Inazuma boys (if you can) react (separately) to their s/o wearing this outfit? Spicy reaction plz! It's ok if no tho! :)

Inazuma boys x ¡ FEM reader !

Synopsis: On a sultry day in the middle of summer, you decided to dress in opaque clothes that left a lot of skin to the eye, presenting yourself to your boyfriend as if you were not leaving the house naked (in their eyes, ofc).

Characters: Itto, Kazuha, Thoma, Scaramouche, Gorou, Ayato, Heizou

Note: I didn’t really know how to play this choice of clothes, but I tried in every way to stay in the personality of the characters, forgive me if you won’t read exactly what you wanted. I don’t know, some have inspired me more than others. I remember that they are not native English speakers, so forgive my mistakes and feel free to correct me. Also the requests are open to all, maybe it takes a while to answer but I do it without problems!

........................................

Itto:

The hot summer day was slowly killing your energetic boyfriend, finding him lying on the floor with his faithful pet Ushi, as he waves energetically with one of your fans, complaining through some of them about the heat that made him sweat.

< Honey, would you like to go to the beach? I know that you suffer the heat and I’m sorry to make you stay at home agonizing > You said bending down to him, to better look at his agonizing face and his eyes closed.

You had to take a few steps back because of the guy who had jumped up from happiness, mentally preparing for long swims in cold water.

< Love! you don't know how much I love you- > His smile froze once seen with what clothes you were going to leave the house. His heart accelerated rapidly as he pumped blood throughout his still-euphoric body. < Is the temperature that’s so hot or is it you? > he growled gently before approaching you, taking you from the hips and leaving a gentle kiss on your lips.

You blushed as you kissed the boy back, feeling his hands wandering over your body, touching him with extreme delicacy and devotion.

< How stupid are you! Do you like it? is great for very hot seasons > You said laughing as you wrapped your arms around her neck, putting yourself on tiptoe because of the height difference.

< Oh, you’re the "very hot season" now. I mean… > he coughed and cleared his voice < honey… you’re so… wonderful. > He said looking you in the eye, holding you close to him. Her hands ended up on your ass and she picked you up and headed for the room. < But. I can’t let you just walk out. You created a big problem in my pants and now the heat is not the only thing that makes me agonize. > He ended by lying on the bed, then tying his hair in a tail and looking at your body practically exposed to him. < God, I’d eat you for hours. >

You blushed as the boy only stayed with the leather body harness and choker, perfectly displaying his red tattoos, before getting on the bed and taking off your clothes.

Glad to see you didn’t wear a bra and take off your panties with his teeth. < We’re going to the beach tomorrow. We've better things to do. > He would say giving you a smile before disappearing between your legs.

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

Kazuha :

You could say you loved living on a pirate ship, traveling all the time, discovering new things and always being in good company, but above all you loved having your boyfriend on the crew.

You found your boyfriend sitting in front of his desk, writing something while humming something low, wearing a light crumpled kimono that leaving his collarbones and shoulder bare.

You approached him carefully, placing your arms on his shoulders and leaving a kiss on his neck, peering at what he was writing.

< Love, what do you write? > You moaned against her soft skin.

< Nothing important. Where have you been all morning? I looked for you but no one saw you, I was worried. > He said to then turn to you, closing the notebook he was writing on, and then swallowing to see the top you were wearing.

< Oh, Captain Beidou kidnapped me for the morning. She said she had clothes to withstand the heat of inazuma, as my usual clothes are " a bit heavy and covering". Do you… do you like me? am I okay? > You asked away from him to take a ride on yourself to see the boy.

Kazuha’s eyes followed your entire body, biting his lip and then getting up and grabbing your hand for a twirl.

< You are a blessing to the eyes. Whatever you wear can only feel good > He said gently, and then kiss the palm of your hand. You smiled and then looked at the boy’s bare chest and shoulder, blushing because of some sinful thoughts that were going through your mind.

Kazuha noticed it and stroked your cheek with slightly reddened knuckles.

< I’m thinking the same things about you, princess. > He said to then drop his hand on your neck, then on your breasts and end up on the crotch of your shorts. He sighed before making you back to the bed and take off his kimono completely, immediately going to touch your breasts and squeeze a nipple already hard. < Maybe, today the captain will do without our presence. > he said smiling and then start biting and sucking your neck.

-----------

Thoma :

He wouldn’t even give you time to leave the room to be seen with the new dress, as he would rush into the bedroom to watch you try on the outfit, excited to see you with new and "strange" clothes.

He swallowed seeing your thighs exposed like that, feeling already tight in his pants and cursing himself for not having enough self-control to collapse like this, unfortunately you were his weakest point and some points, like your thighs, they drove him crazy.

< Love, are you all red in your face… are you.. are you all right? > You asked approaching him worried, while you laid a hand on his burning cheeks.

< No, I’m not okay. You’re so hot you made me hard in seconds. I would like to be more cavalier not to say certain things directly but… dressed so, my head does nothing but think about how satisfying it would be to fuck you right now > he said everything in a frustrated tone.

You sat on his lap, raising his face and grinning maliciously.

< And that’s exactly what I wanted > You answered and then kissed him and made him smile as he put his hands under your top behind your back, raising it slowly.

< You really like to tease me > he said by biting his lip, then passing a finger on your column, making you pant slightly, seizing the moment to overturn the positions and put yourself under him. < Then you’ll get what you want. >

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

Scaramouche :

The boy looked at you with a bored face, rolling his eyes as you wandered around the house looking for various things to go out. He stood silently against the wall, his arms crossed against his chest and clearly crushed. Even though he wasn’t showing it, seeing you dressed like that had the blood pumping towards his cock, making it hard.

< You’re really a stupid brat. How long do you take to prepare? > He said grumbling loudly, bringing his eyes to the ceiling, clearly shattered by the time you were wasting him.

< I can’t find my fan. It was the only one I had. I’ll die under the sun of inazuma without that! > You said almost whining, looking for him everywhere and hoping that your boyfriend had a little more patience.

Meanwhile, Scaramouche was thinking about how naive you were not to have yet realized that he had your fan and this to keep you from leaving the house dressed like this. He would never admit he was jealous, so he preferred to play dirty with you.

The boy walked up to you and took you like a sack of potatoes, taking you to the bedroom with a puff. < I’ve had enough. we stay home. > He said to then get between your legs and hold your body with one hand, making you blush. < Plus, dressed like that, you made my dick hard, so you gotta fix it, baby girl. > He concluded by smirking maliciously as he took off your black shorts, sticking two fingers inside you, making you grab behind him and pant. < You’re so naive you didn’t realize right away that I had the fucking fan. Don’t worry baby, you won’t need it for a long time >

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

Gorou :

You knew your boyfriend couldn’t stand the summer heat, having dog blood in his veins he also shared this unpleasant trait with them, not to mention the fact that he went into heat at that time; which made him frustrated and stressed.

You watched your boyfriend as he stood on the ground in front of the fan, with some wet rags that were attached to his body to cool him down and lower the temperature on his body. < Baby, would you bring me some water with ice? I feel I’m going to die… > He said exasperated, placing a new cold patch on his forehead. Sweat continued to sweat down his bare chest, while his trousers were slightly lowered under his hips.

You nodded and quickly brought water to your boyfriend, it made you sad to see him in those conditions, you were used to his strong and determined personality.

< Can I do something else for you? maybe a swim on the beach could help… don’t you think? > You said looking at him gently, as you removed a warm patch from his belly, touching his burning skin.

The boy opened his eyes to answer you and remained speechless to see you dressed like that, beginning to wag his tail flapping on the wooden floor, embarrassing himself at once for his tail that could not hide his excitement.

< Oh, fuck, kitten… I’m fighting so hard against my heat and you come dressed like that… You don't help this way > He said passing a hand three white strands of his hair, slightly moist because of sweat and wet rag.

He stood up promptly to go towards you and take you to the bed, beginning to kiss your neck with fury, leaving various hickeys and bites. < Forgive me for being more rude than usual, but I need you out of those clothes… > he whisped on your neck.

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

Ayato :

Ayato was definitely the type of boyfriend who even during the hot summer days, preferred to dress with a certain decorum. Being the heir of the Kamisato family, appearances mattered and showing themselves in public in inappropriate clothing would have created ill news about him. In fact, when he saw you leaving the room you used as a wardrobe dressed in shorts and tops he froze you with his eyes, you knew very well how much clothing mattered to him and seeing you so "naked" to go out, he had destabilized.

You immediately heard the servants' looks at you and some of the maids mumbling something, while in the distance you could see the amused look of Ayaka and the distraught one of Thoma taking tea with miss Kamisato.

Your look was later kidnapped by Ayato’s, intense and angry, his hand squeezed the bubble tea as if to relieve the anger he had accumulated in those few seconds, trying to disguise everything with a smile as he headed towards you. He pushed you into the room and closed the door behind him, towering over your person, placed the drink on a shelf and then took your face from your chin.

< Baby, I don’t understand. I thought I told you to get dressed to go out, not be a slut in the bedroom with me. > He said by making you back up to the wall, slamming your palm against the hard surface, gritting his teeth. < Now everyone will be talking about you in indecent clothing. The future Mrs Kamisato who shows up inadequately dressed outside her rooms. Not to mention the men who saw what belongs to me. > he continued, his free hand ripping your top off, leaving your breasts uncovered.

You had to admit, you wanted to tease him slightly dressed like that, on the advice of his sister, but you wouldn’t have expected this.

< This is all mine. I can’t let others admire it. > He said and then stooped over you and kissed your breasts. < You already know where I want to end up with you. You embarrassed me by showing you dressed like that. Now I’ll make sure you scream until the whole building hears your voice and understands what we’re doing. Didn’t you want this? > he said smirking maliciously.

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

Heizou :

The dark red-haired had already noticed those garments in your closet a few days before, but he had not listened to that littleness, thinking that they were simply clothes to stay at home and face the heat. Being a detective, he was often in a position to have no time to focus on small things in his house and let it go, attaching plausible and simple reasons to such events.

.

After a busy morning because of work, he was particularly surprised to find you bent over a piece of furniture while you were dusting it, especially for the shorts that left your b side in plain sight. You had just returned from a morning commission and had decided not to change to clean the house, waiting for your boyfriend towards the late afternoon.

You gasped to feel a familiar touch on your hips, followed by some kisses on your shoulder and neck. < Mh, there is nothing more divine than to enter the house and see you bent to ninety and dressed like this > said the boy and then let you stand, red on your face.

< W-why are you home so early? > you asked and then turned to him, hiding your face on his chest, slightly embarrassed by the position in which he found you.

< I finished early. But I haven’t finished work yet after this, who knows what you’re hiding under your clothes. I wouldn’t be a good detective if I didn’t investigate thoroughly. I wonder what color panties I’m going to rip off today. > he said taking you in his arms, leaving a small spanking on your ass, walking towards the bedroom. < You don’t wear a bra, I can feel it. What a naughty girl, I’ll have to cuff you for that. >

[animasola86]

Struggles of a Smut Writer

Things I wonder about, mostly after I submit a piece when I should think about it earlier. Re-reading my own stuff always comes at a cost.

Anatomy

Can this even work? How does it work? What the fuck is happening?! The time I spent staring at anatomical pictures (or porn) or checking things out myself, oof. But research is important, right?

Limbs/Bodies (ties into Anatomy)

Where is his hand, where is she, how are they connected/touching, where is what? Did they move? Where is what now? How can they move? What exactly is going on?

Word repetition

Can I write cock again? When did I last use cock? Should I use something else? How many synonyms do I really know? Doesn't it sound silly? Am I even describing the right thing? (Last one ties into Anatomy/Language)

Language (can apply to any writing, not just smut)

I am not a native English-speaker, I learned from different media sources from different countries. Is this how a British person would speak? (As I write mostly for HL/HP characters, they have to sound British imo.) What's the term for this? Why does that sound so weird? Do people say this? Can I just add another gerund to this, how many times have I used "as" now? How long is that sentence really?

Details

How many details are too many details? Is it necessary to describe every single thing, isn't it too much? Can I even write vague anymore? I used to, I was so vague in my early writings, you'd have to get a magnifying glass to spot the smut. Not anymore. There are so many details now, holy shit. Too many? Or should I add even more? Is it enough? Can people understand what's going on?

Is this even sexy?

I write what I want to read, so I cater to my own tastes. Will other people enjoy this as well? Or is it too weird? Am I disgusting for thinking/writing about these things? What is wrong with me?

What next?

What can I write about next? Isn't it all the same at the end? How can I make it different/better/more diverse? How many kinks are too many kinks? Which ones have I not yet written about? Won't this get boring? Should I do reader-insert or third-person? Whose POV? How can I make this work?

The struggles are real.

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