#but those aesthetics don't really WORK for this because the whole POINT is that the setting is (mostly) very unassuming

[ablednt]

thinking about the mysterious benedict society again and I think it was really funny that for years before the show was ever announced I’d have bad dreams (not like Nightmares. lol. but like. cursed etc.) about it getting a badly done adaption and I thought I was prepared for whatever was going to be done to it and ready to at least be able to coax new fans into reading the books

and then Disney bought it instantly being worse than anything I could have come up with /j

[thebreakfastgenie]

What is your s'mores theory?

It's not a theory about s'mores so much as a theory of s'more-making.

Graham crackers. Nabisco from the red box are ideal. If you can't get those, the Honey Maid ones are acceptable, but inferior.

You need mid-tier chocolate. Hersheys is perfect. Lowest-tier store brand chocolate is no good, but chocolate that's too fancy doesn't work either. The one area where I'm willing to diverge from 100% classic s'more is that in my opinion dark chocolate pairs better with marshmallow than milk chocolate does. However, milk chocolate has a lower melting point so it melts a little better. It's personal preference. Also you really want to pay attention to the shape of the chocolate, because it has to fit on the graham cracker and it has to be the right thickness for melting. The classic full-size bars are the best (half a bar per s'more), two minis will work in a pinch. Don't fuck around with fancy shit like Reeses cups. That's not what we're here for.

Classic marshmallows only. This is so important. They NEED to be ROUND so you can rotate them and make them roast evenly. Those square ones are an abomination unto the lord. The ones coated in coconut just don't roast as well (they are delicious though). You MUST roast the marshmallow on a WOODEN stick. Metal heats up too fast and the inside melts before it's done cooking and it falls off the stick. Sad! Also I'm sorry but the people who say they like to set their marshmallows on fire are just too impatient to cook them properly. It's pure cope. You have to cook them slow to make them puff up!!! If they're not puffing up they're not cooked right!! They should be gooey and melty on the inside and toasty and crunchy on the outside. I like a dark brown exterior it must be said but you will get that by roasting. It works best to roast over coals, not a big open flame, which does kill the bonfire aesthetic a little but oh well. Have two fires or build the fire back up after you make your s'more idk.

S'mores CANNOT be recreated indoors. They never taste right. It's not just about the chocolate+marshmallow+graham cracker combination. For one thing roasted marshmallow is a completely different flavor and it can only be achieved over an open flame. Melting a marshmallow in the microwave will never give you that. Secondly it is also about the TEXTURE and the TEMPERATURE. It's a whole experience. It should also be dark! You should be outside!

S'mores WILL be messy. As god intended. That thing WILL ooze when you bite into it. You WILL have marshmallow all over your hands, face, in your hair. If you're not prepared for that you're not ready for S'mores.

Seriously don't try to make them gourmet! I've tried it! It's never as good! You cannot beat the classics!

[genericpuff]

I wonder why christian misrepresentation are rarely talked about if compared to other religion misrepresentation. Like, I've seen people really vocal about Greek myths misrepresentation in LO and such (and it's valid because it's a culture and religion) but I rarely saw the same thing with christian even though there are many media who use christian religion innacurately, to the point where it comes off as using it as an aesthetic and not a proper religion.

Is it because of rampant religious trauma especially in western world? No ulterior motives on this question. I'm not a christian and yet I'm curious about this. I apologize if this sounds harsh.

I obviously don't have The Answer(tm) to this but personally speaking (and I'm about to get VERY personal here so take this with MOUNTAINS OF SALT), I think it's just the obvious - Christian mythology is one of the most well-documented and strongly protected out of virtually any other religion on the planet. Especially here in the West, it's commonplace for kids to go to Sunday school, for couples to have Christian weddings even if they're not practising Christians themselves, even the American anthem references the Christian God. It's simply not as easy to 'misrepresent' it because the representation is written into our very fabric of society. Even Greece itself is primarily made up of Orthodox Christians.

So anyone that does 'misrepresent' it are either completely mislead hardcore Christians, or people who are doing it intentionally, such as with the intent to make a parody of it or to deconstruct it through a different context or whatever have you. And of course, people will still get mad at those things, if you're implying that people aren't vocal about Christian misrepresentation then frankly IDK what to tell you there LOL If you want a contextual example in the realm of webtoons, Religiously Gay was dragged to hell and back during its launch for having a very crude and insulting depiction of St. Michael, and frankly, yeah I don't disagree because what the fuck is this-

(like at best it's just terrible character design lmao that said, there's also plenty else to criticize Religiously Gay for, including its fetishy representation of gay relationships and the fact that it's still just the "naive person who looks and acts like a child hooks up with mean person in a position of power" trope, blech, but the character design is definitely the first thing you notice)

There are even plenty of hardcore Christians who will deadass claim "misrepresentation" over things that ARE factually correct but they just haven't read the actual Bible and simply cherry pick what works for their own agenda. And of course those people are routinely called out by people like myself who know for a fact that Jesus wouldn't have promoted the war crimes that many modern day Christians are committing and justifying today. So it really depends on the definition of "misrepresentation" here.

The issue specifically with LO and Rachel that I personally call her out for (and many others) is that she's called herself a "folklorist" and claimed she's so much more knowledgeable on Greek myth than anyone else, while making a complete mockery of the original mythologies while not being honest about her intent as to whether LO is actually supposed to be a legitimate retelling OR a parody (because it sure acts like the latter more than the former, but she still seems to expect us to take it seriously and consider her knowledge of Greek myth superior?) Which leads to a lot of her teenage audience claiming shit like "Persephone went down to the underworld willingly" and "Apollo did assault Persephone in the original myths actually" and the classic "why would Lore Olympus lie or make up fake myths?"

You just can't pull off this extent of erasure with Christian mythology because we have a whole ass book of it that's been preserved, sold on shelves, and systematically integrated into society for thousands of years. Of course, there are people who will still try their damned best to twist the Bible to match their own bigotry with the whole "Jesus hates gays" bullshit (he would never), but it's met with equal amounts of 'misrepresentation' that are actually fully well-read and are intentionally subverting and changing things to either critique, parody, or restore the original intent of a lot of stories in the Bible without all the manufactured right-wing crap.

Greek myth, on the other hand, has some stories that are well preserved, and others, not so much. And in the modern day outside of the poems and hymns, you'll also rarely, if ever, see anyone use stories from Greek myth to ostracize, torture, and murder other people. "Misrepresenting Christianity" is more often done by actual Christians who are using the Bible to commit hate crimes than the people who have actually read the Bible and are just taking creative liberties with it for the sake of deconstructing / parodying / analyzing / subverting it. Veggie Tales "misrepresents" Christian stories because obviously Moses wasn't a fucking cucumber lmao but it still accomplishes its goal by retelling Christian stories in a way that's fun and educational for children.

By comparison (on the whole, I'm not comparing LO to Veggie Tales LMAO) LO just isn't clear in its intentions beyond Rachel's initial statements that she was trying to "deconstruct" the myths, while labelling herself as a folklorist. Therefore, I'm going to criticize how she does it because the way she's done it up until now has been very mishandled and has resulted in a lot of misinterpretations of the myths simply for the sake of fandom. And yes, these people exist in Christian media as well - they're called TV evangelists.

And that's my (very heavy) two cents.

[allamericansbitch]

my review of ttpd is under the cut

i liken this album to digging through the cushions of a couch. sometimes you find money, sometimes mindless scraps, and sometimes it's weird shit you have no idea why it's there.

first things first i'll just reiterate what i've seen a lot of people saying: she needs to move on from jack and work with new producers. the production is so recycled, we've heard it before, it's no longer serving her art (and i would argue it's limiting it) and it's tired. the first half is midnights and 1989 vault tracks and i would like a new album to sound like a new album.

but you know who came in and saved the day, my man my man my man aaron with those real instruments and decent mixing/production skills that actually work with taylor's voice!

like i said before, i like a good chunk of this album, so what i'm about to say might come off strong but trust me. i feel like this whole album is very.... unnecessary. it's very repetitive, she's reusing so many metaphors, sayings, etc just song to song and then also repetitive production like i already touched on. her current mindset of creating art as frequently as possible, quantity over quality, is just becoming more and more hard to ignore. of course she can still write and work through her feelings but you don't need to release it. you can work through it and move on. the best songs on here have authority, know what they wanna say and tell a good story. the worst are just sitting there roaming around aimlessly and not saying anything new or anything at all really. there is a really interesting, good album in here... somewhere. move the cushions around a bit more.

here's some random/general bullet points:

the best songs for me are the ones with a clear message and simple production. she's not trying to sound smart with the lyrics and just making the song clunky and try-hard. so long london and loml?? clara bow? yeah yeah

speaking of the lyrics....... my god are they rough. she saw people saying midnights had some corny lines and said charlie puth hold my beer. this album genuinely has some of her worst, which is sad because we know what she's capable of.

none of the music matches the aesthetic but sadly that's become par for the course, but now the title of the album doesn't even fit for me. i feel like, if she wanted to name it after a song title, 'the alchemy' or 'i can do it with a broken heart' are right there. this isnt giving tortured poet.

all of this to say she needs to get new collaborators, stop surrounding herself with yes men, and learn to trim the fat and we'll be in a lot better shape.

[beggars-opera]

Hey, can we move our advice about kids on the internet into the 21st century please?

I 100% agree that we should all be as private as humanly possible online, but I also know that I do not follow my own advice, nor does anyone else, including you, probably. Yes, many of us were raised in a time in which the internet could be completely anonymous, but that was in the era before social media. Facebook, Instagram, etc. started as tools to interact with people already in your social circle, which is why personal information is used on them, but they've evolved since then for better or worse, and we need to acknowledge that. Simply telling teenagers that they have to operate under an avatar at all times like we're on a 2002 message board and that they are brainwashed idiots if they don't isn't helping anyone.

If I was giving someone real life advice, it would be this:

If you are a minor, know that there are predators out there who are more than willing to interact with you, so honestly, sincerely, do consider being as anonymous as possible. That means not using your full, or even your real name (this is the perfect time to use the name you always wished you had, mine was Morgan after Morgan le Fay), and putting things on private as much as possible so only people you know, or those you can vet, can interact with you.

If you do choose to show your face, know that this comes with risk and buffering that with other things (like using a pseudonym or never tagging your exact location). This can go a long way to protecting yourself. If you're just posting aesthetic images, sure, make your IG public, but if you're documenting your every move maybe stick with friends only for now.

Even if you are not a minor, creeps will still find you. Again, assumption of risk. Either way, though, the block feature is your friend.

If you're being open online because you're really dead set on being an influencer, know that is going to come with a whole world of pain all its own assuming it actually pans out, so it's probably not worth it. Also you probably won't make it as an influencer, hon, I'm so sorry but statistically it's true.

If you're posting certain things traceable to you this could also bite you later at work, or for prospective employers.

When interacting with strangers online, always assume that people are hiding SOMETHING. That isn't always a malicious thing - they could also be protecting themselves! But don't take everything they say at face value. Online personas are always acting of a sort.

If you find yourself becoming friendly enough with someone that you want to meet them in person, take stock of how much you know about them. Do they post photos of themselves frequently enough that you can tell they are who they say they are? Are they willing to video chat with you before meeting irl? Are they willing to meet with you in a neutral, public location or with a group of friends, or do they act sketchy about that?

To the above point, meet people for the first time in a neutral, public location, preferably with a group of friends, just in case. Look, I've broken this rule myself and even though nothing happened, I still kick myself for it.

Trust your gut. You are the creator and the curator of your own online existence, so do what makes you feel safe.

[esamastation]

Part thirty-four of Shizuroth, aka, the SOLDIER General's Self Saving Shizun.

Ao3 link.

Previous parts: one, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight, nine, ten, eleven, twelve, thirteen, fourteen, fifteen, sixteen, seventeen, eighteen, nineteen, twenty, twenty-one, twenty-two, twenty-three, twenty-four, twenty-five, twenty-six, twenty-seven, twenty-eight, twenty-nine, thirty, thirty-one, thirty-two, thirty-three

-

Sephiroth feels a little better after an evening of meditation and a full night of sleep. Things look a little better in the light of day, and though the question of what the fuck he'd going to do about the war is still there, it has been put off. In favour of monster hunting!

"You seem… excited?" Angeal comments as they prepare to go.

He is! "Mn," Sephiroth answers, and carefully doesn't bounce with eagerness.

Even if the monsters of Final Fantasy can't hold a candle to the convoluted, messy and lazily put together nature of the monsters in PIDW, they're still interesting! Especially since he isn't sure what they actually are and how they work. Advent Children and Crisis Core really make it so unclear, because, like, everything turned into energy sparkles when it died? And he thinks in the movie one of the Sephiroth copies - weird to think about them now - summoned some monsters with magic? And then there was Zack in Crisis Core. Who turned into sparkles when he died!

Not everything can just disappear into energy, right, you need living things dying and rotting and composting to make up soil and stuff! If plants just disappear when they die, what do people eat, what were all these buildings made from? Plus he distinctly remembers coal being a thing in this setting, there was a whole town that got shafted because of it and everything, so fossil fuels exist, therefore stuff must leave behind physical remains! Except when it doesn't?

So! Is death like instant ascending here? Or like it descending, since all energy returns to the Planet? Sephiroth is pretty sure that Aerith left behind a body, and there were definitely corpses in the original game - but again, in the prequel it was really unclear. Enemies in combat disappeared, but cutscene death left a body. Except when it didn't!

Ah, the limitations of technology.

Still, he's interested in seeing how the creatures would look and feel and compare them to those he knows from PIDW. Final Fantasy VII had some really weird monsters, and he has a bet going with himself about how much they resemble awakened beasts or yaoguai. 

Angeal looks at him and then smiles, hoisting the Buster Sword to his back. "Ready to go, then?"

"Ready," Sephiroth agrees.

"We're going to have to talk to the Colonel first, but don't worry - I'll handle the talking," Angeal says. "He's an… old-fashioned soldier." 

Sephiroth arches a brow. It sounds like a warning. "Which means…?"

"He doesn't like SOLDIER, he thinks we're stuck up and get our abilities handed to us, we don't deserve our reputation, the usual stuff," Angeal shrugs. "Just ignore it and let me handle it."

"... If you say so."

They head outside together, and Sephiroth takes a moment to look around and try to be an objective observer. This place isn't really anything like the towns back home, in PIDW - the aesthetics are mixed, and though they're more like home than Midgar was, it's as if the place was squeezed through a funhouse mirror. It's just a little off.

And of course, there are no locals anywhere to be seen for a full comparison - just Shinra troops, infantry men and SOLDIERs. Who, the moment they notice him and Angeal, stop to stare and point and whisper.

Has the… incident in Midgar already spread this far, or is this really what it's like being Sephiroth all the time?

Depressing.

"Here," Angeal says and leads him to another house, apparently being used by the Colonel. "Remember, let me do the talking. You just stand there and look imposing, okay?"

Sephiroth snorts. "I think I can manage that."

The Colonel didn't look happy to see them, but then, he doesn't look like a man that's ever really happy. He sizes Sephiroth up and then scoffs. "It's about time. I don't know what kind of discipline you SOLDIER Firsts enjoy in Midgar, but this is a war front, sir, there are rules here."

Does that mean Sephiroth isn't a General then? 

"Right, you're right, of course, sir," Angeal says placatingly. "Well, we're here now, and we already have missions lined up, so -"

The Colonel ignores him and comes around his desk and to Sephiroth's face. "You've been in and out of Wutai for most of this war, isn't that correct, SOLDIER?"

Sephiroth blinks at the man, slowly. "I suppose so." Behind the Colonel Angeal looks panicked.

"What was that?" The Colonel asks dangerously, narrowing his eyes. "You suppose so?"

Sephiroth narrows his eyes back.

The Colonel continues. "When talking to an officer of superior rank, you answer yes sir, or no sir. You do not suppose! Now, do you have experience in the war or not, SOLDIER?!"

Oh, someone is feeling very insecure in their boots, aren't they?

Now, Sephiroth could handle this with all the tact and delicacy of Shen Qingqiu… but even Shen Qingqiu wouldn't have swallowed that kind of spiel without biting. The original definitely wouldn't have! And Sephiroth is supposed to be a villain… well.

Sephiroth smiles - the Colonel recoils.

Last night he'd reread everything there was on his phone about Wutai, going through all his missions again, trying to get as much intelligence as he could. Funny, the things the tutorial left out. 

"I'm sorry," Sephiroth says sweetly. "Who are you?"

The Colonel goes a little red. "Excuse me, SOLDIER?"

"You're barking at me as though at a private, expecting me to go yes sir and no sir," Sephiroth says mockingly. "And yet I have no clue as to who you even are."

Behind the Colonel Angeal gapes and then lifts a pleading look to the ceiling.

The Colonel sputters. "You, you - How dare -"

Ah, you gotta love zero IQ bullies.

"I was given a whole slew of missions and orders," Sephiroth says softly. "All are very vital and high priority. I'm to slay monsters that have killed your men, I'm to hunt down spies you've clearly failed to find, I'm to clear a guard station you haven't been able to get near, I'm to weaken a fortress you cannot even touch, and ten other things besides. All my mission files are very clear. And you know what they all have in common?"

He leans a little closer to the Colonel - right in his purple face. "Not a single one of them mentions you."

Then, before the Colonel can recover, Sephiroth turns on his heel with an imaginary mike drop and saunters out, feeling a whole lot better about everything. The sun is shining, the troopers are scattering at the mere sight of him, and the air is fresh and sweet with natural Qi.

Already this day is looking up.

Angeal, clearly deciding that evasion was the better part of valour, hurries after him. "We're going to pay for that later, you know," he says, sounding defeated.

Of that Sephiroth doesn't have any doubts. What good is a one-time bully? There'd either be a horrifying scene of comeuppance to bring home the realities of war, or a heartfelt discovery and understanding about how they're not so different after all, or whatever else. 

"We'll burn that bridge when we get to it," Sephiroth says cheerfully. "Now. I was promised monsters."

Angeal sighs, glancing back at the house commandeered by the Colonel. "... I guess we better clear out anyway. Alright," he motions. "Right this way to the monsters."

Sephiroth grins at his bitchy tone, and together they head out.

-

SY can have a petty bully scene, as a treat.

[000marie198]

I love it how in the movies and shows, it is never explicitly mentioned that Hiccup and Snotlout are cousins but it is shown throughout the franchise in little moments so accurately that when you tell a fan they are cousins, there is zero doubt. Their whole dynamic screams cousins, whether it be them trying to freaking destroy the other in the funniest ways or caring about the other while still throwing around insults.

That aside, what I really wanted to point out is how similar some of their skills are. A proof they are cousins is that they share some very specific talents that most people on Berk don't have, talents that match in almost a familial manner.

You guys all know Hiccup's perks and personality and talents right? Well, lemme point out some of Snotlout's and see how they match his cousin's.

A strange combination of Loyal to a fault and Rebellious to a fault. This perk doesn't just apply on Snotlout, Hiccup is like this too but in his own way. It depends on the situation and person and their mood most importantly. Hiccup would sneak out to hunt for trolls and go into forest or try and train dragons or sneak out to go on flights when he's not supposed to etc. And Snotlout would trust and listen and have his team's and leader's back even if he doesn't seem to like it at points. He cares about his friends so much (seriously, go watch the entirety of the DreamWorks Dragons series)

Inventive and artistic. Snotlout works at the armoury at the beginning of RTTE, he also invented the sheep launcher. He's also pretty good at stitching. And I'm preeeetty sure he's able to forge his own weapons and armor now same as Hiccup.

Amateur writers who're actually pretty good. Hiccup's narrations are always fun to listen to and they also indicate that he has a knack for being a writer. In an episode of RTTE, Snotlout wrote a book that the gang found to be pretty good. And while Hiccup has artistic skills in drawing and painting and sketching, Snotlout is good at designing and aesthetics.

They both have a strange tendency to go and get hit on the head by lightning. Actually, lightning really seems to love these two.

Interestingly enough, Snotlout is also shown to be pretty persuasive and encouraging to others when needed, whether it be giving a scared kid a peptalk or talking some sense into someone who's being reckless and stubborn.

Tendency to plan something extremely reckless and crazy when there's a time crunch and those plans surprisingly work. Yes, both Hiccup and Snotlout do that quite often.

They love dragons! And yes, I'm aware that by now, the whole gang loves dragons but Hiccup loves them even more. He is obsessed with them and wants to keep them safe, he cares about these creatures so so much! While the other riders love their dragons more than anybody else but not as much as Hiccup, Snotlout cares about dragons almost in a similar way to how Hiccup and Valka do. He sings lullabies to baby fireworms and is so gentle with them. In The Eel Effect, he went into Hiccup mode with a terrible terror (just before he shook the poor guy but that besides the point) and was giving a speech to start a dragon revolution because he appreciates these creatures and genuinely believes they should be treated with full respect

That is all to say, even if it isn't directly told in the movie-verse, it is shown throughout that Hiccup and Snotlout are cousins and both even have some traits and talents in common

[bibbibib]

Peeta's amputation

One of the things I really wish we'd gotten more information for in the books was the impact of Peeta losing his leg. On himself, on his habits, his reactions, anything really. We don't even know how badly he took it because around that time all Katniss was able to describe was him (understandably) being just happy to have survived it all along with her, plus he was putting on a brave face throughout the interviews, and maybe even in front of her so she would feel less guilty. And, I get it, most of the stuff I'm going to mention is just slice of life and maybe not that important as plot points, but I find them super interesting, for the perspective if anything.

Would Peeta's self-esteem take another deep dive after that? With everything happening during that time (moving out of his parents' house, his falling out with Katniss, being viewed differently by the rest of the district, living alone and possibly lonely, his romantic hopes crushed, PTSD from the Games, etc etc etc) he had a lot of triggers seemingly supporting those thoughts of being useless and uneeded and generally not good enough.

It's so frustrating to lose a limb and have to basically relearn everything from the beginning. How to navigate stairs, how to get in and out of a sitting position, how to balance and not tip over, stuff you've been doing esentially your whole life. And Peeta was athletic, he worked manually, he trusted himself to be capable of doing physical things, so that might have hurt a little more.

How about medical complications? From weird sensations to nerve pain, possibly phantom pains, everything related to his prosthetic leg (which, depending on the type, can get uncomfortable in sooo many ways, especially since he's still a teenager who's growing). And he was dumped at a place with basically no medical care at all, let alone anything specialized. Which, ok, was part of everyone's life in D12 already, but it must have still left a bitter taste... There was no one around to know much about his state, (exept maybe Ripper the liquor seller) and he had to make do on his own.

What if the Capitol had chosen his prosthetic more for aesthetic functions and less for functional? @whenthewallfell has a fantastic post about it, complete with illustrations!

Peeta's artificial foot getting tangled in the vines in the second arena and impeding his ability to run was no funny business. With prosthetic legs, there's usually different kinds for different functions. Your average foot people use to be able to walk is stiff and does a horrible job at supporting these sorts of activities. That's why equipment like running blades exists for amputees who want to be running and jumping. And you have to switch to that before the activity! Peeta apparently never got one. Even if he had, he would have to carry the alternative equipment around in the arena.

Speaking of that, even with a single type of artificial leg/foot, adjustments are frequently needed throughout the day. Most people as far as I understand remove the prosthetic to sleep, but also ball -and-socket models at least move around and need to be put back in place because it gets uncomfortable (sleeves -stump covers- sliding down, etc). The fact that Katniss never mentioned anything like this means that either he was actively not doing it in front of her or she just doesn't wanna talk about it (or maybe his leg is some fancy Capitol tech that doesn't work that way?)

Also, he's got to be hungry. All the time. He needs more food after the amputation, because the rest of his body is compensating for the lost limp and he has to use different muscles/nerves/tendons/etc. that are not designed spesifically for this. The same thing means he gets tired more easily. So Peeta being that active and training for the Quarter Quell while battling insomnia and nightmares with an amputated leg? Even harder than we thought.

[ponett]

Got a spoilery ask about SLARPG regarding Melody's character arc and, to a lesser extent, the ending, so I'll put this below a read more!

Anonymous asked:

Heya! I adore adore adore SLARPG, and have latched pretty hard onto Melody and Harmony's dichotomy for a while... I was wondering whether you saw Harmony more as an obstacle to Melody's growth, or something to be worked on and reconciled with more like Madeline and Badeline from Celeste? Unless it's spoilers of course. It's one of the few threads left open after the game, and as a plural woman myself I was just curious. X3

I'll say up front that I've generally avoided stepping in and telling people what The One Correct Interpretation is for a lot of things in SLARPG. I didn't intend for Melody to be read as plural, since in the story Harmony is a parasitic outside force, but I also understand where that interpretation comes from and won't tell folks they're wrong for relating to her like that. That's just the beauty of art. We can relate to things however we want. I just wanna make sure my personal framing is clear before I talk about the thought behind Melody and Harmony's relationship

Harmony is more of a literary device than a character. While she's not an alternate personality for Melody, she's also not really a full person in her own right. I don't think about Harmony having her own arc. She's a magical force that occasionally externalizes Melody's darker, more self-critical thoughts for the audience, where normally she would keep them to herself. She has her own design and name to make the dialogue boxes easier to follow. I also keep it intentionally vague whether or not other people would be able to see Harmony because I find that understated uncertainty more fun.

On a literal level, Harmony is a magical parasite, and therefore an obstacle to be overcome. She's not supposed to be there, straight up. But because she's just the embodiment of dark thoughts that Melody is already having, there isn't really much point in "defeating" Harmony to me - which is why things play out the way they do.

Even if Melody got rid of Harmony, she would still have to deal with those feelings. It would be a purely symbolic victory. And symbolic victories like that are often satisfying as hell in fiction, but in real life you can't defeat your shadow self to stop those 3am "what if my friends are only pretending to like me" thoughts. So instead, Harmony is something Melody needs to cope with and minimize. It's not about getting rid of bad thoughts forever, but rather learning how to deal with them better. And that's an active, life-long process. And so Harmony remains, but Melody is working on having healthier relationships with both her loved ones and herself.

I'll also say that, while I love Celeste, Madeline and Badeline's arc is mostly irrelevant to the way I write Melody and Harmony. (I don't think this ask is accusing me of plagiarizing Maddy Thorson or anything, to be clear. I'm just on a tangent since the comparison was brought up.) SLARPG began development in 2015, so the Harmony scenes, and Melody's arc as a whole, were already planned before Celeste came out. While I worried about getting compared to a much more popular game, I stuck to my guns, knowing that my story was different enough to stand on its own. If anything, I just avoided specific phrases like "reflection" or "I'm a part of you" to try and keep people from just pointing and going "Celeste reference!"

Unfortunately the "wow this is just like Celeste" comments were unavoidable, as were the newfound generalizations about what all indie games about trans girls with anxiety must be like because there are two (2) whole games that share some common story tropes, and it seems like the ending may have thrown some people off because of expectations created by Celeste. But what are you gonna do? I at least avoided my absolute nightmare scenario of Deltarune Ch.2 doing glitch aesthetics or giving Susie and Noelle a kiss mechanic lmao

[skyeblue8]

ᗯι𝜏ԋ Ɛʋҽɾყ Ɲҽցα𝜏ιʋҽട, ㆜ԋҽɾҽ 𝓐ɾҽ Sσ𝓶ҽ Ƥσടι𝜏ιʋҽട... ♚

⋆⋆⃟⊱✪⃝⃞⃝⊰⋆⃟⋆ ⋆⋆⃟⊱✪⃝⃞⃝⊰ ⋆⃟⋆⋆⋆⃟⊱✪⃝⃞⃝⊰ ⋆⋆⃟⊱✪⃝⃞⃝⊰⋆⃟⋆

So, because I'm in a bit of a shitty mood due to a whole lot of work I have to do before my break, and I don't feel like piling onto the already large list of what's wrong with the Helluva Boss series - and also, because everyone liked the Beelzebub list, I decided to do a quick list of my top five favorite songs from Helluva Boss. Despite the questionable writing, characters, world-building, creator, etc, the songs are actually truly solid when they want to be, and for that, I'm willing to give praise.

𝟏.❞𝕂𝕝𝕠𝕨𝕟 𝔹𝕚𝕥𝕔𝕙❞ 𝐛𝐲, 𝐆𝐥𝐢𝐭𝐳 & 𝐆𝐥𝐚𝐦

❥ Putting aside my general love for these girls, however brief their appearances were in the episode, this song was just incredible to me! The dancing was smooth, the beat was heavily reminiscent to Kpop, which I just love anyway, the visuals were stunning, in addition to their overall designs, and I'm honestly just sucker for fish-based characters since they have a whole siren aesthetic going on. Speaking of, many people find these twins to be reminiscent to The Dazzlings, from EQ Girls, and that's just the cherry on top for me! The full version truly makes this even better and, overall, I think the song was brilliant in establishing the whole rebranding of Mammon and how these two pose great threats to Fizz, much like those badass singer villains in Saturday morning shows. You know, the one's everyone ends up simping for at some point in their childhood. Anyway, because of the new episode, this song managed to shoot its way to the top of my faves, knocking down my original fave in the process!

𝟐. ❞𝕄𝕠𝕟𝕤𝕥𝕖𝕣❜𝕤 𝔹𝕒𝕝𝕝❞𝐁𝐲, 𝐁𝐞𝐞𝐥𝐳𝐞𝐛𝐮𝐛

❥ This song walked, so "Cotton Candy" could trip and fall on the scalding hot pavement. Apologies if I sound dramatic, and you happen to like Cotton Candy, but the amount of disappointment I feel towards the fact that we didn't get this song is indescribable. Now of course, I understand WHY we couldn't (again, waste of time when someone could've just gotten Rochelle in the first place 😑) but I digress. Aside from the fact that a specific line in the song gives clear clarification of who the hell the flying fox is, it feels like the cool, degenerative (said affectionately) party girl song that I would've actually liked to hear.

❥ To me, it's reminiscent of "Cannibal" and "Die Young", and I feel like both themes generally tie into what we think of a Modern Beelzebub to be like. The beat, the shift in pace of the lyrics that brings out the fast party vibe, the fact that it felt like a real pop song that didn't take fifteen minutes to get through just to see the rest of the episode – all these are what made this song my former #1 favorite, now my #2. And the "non-binary specimen" line was a cool, quick inclusion to me.

𝟑. ❞𝕁𝕦𝕘𝕘𝕝𝕚𝕟𝕘 𝕀𝕫 ℂ𝕠𝕠𝕝❞ 𝐛𝐲, 𝐌𝐚𝐦𝐦𝐨𝐧

❥ I know this is technically too small to be an actual full song, but I still loved it regardless. It was really cool in its short runtime for the following reasons: the Tom Hardy's vocals (idk what it is, but something about Australian accents that just sounds satisfying, especially when singing), the praising of the Twins, and the satisfaction of seeing Fizz squirm a bit. Apologies to any of you who like Fizz. I don't hate him per se, but rather, I'm just bitter that we're loosing out on other character development because of him and Ozzy. And, I prefered Robo Fizz who was an unrelenting asshole and not another UWU boy that, imo, there are one too many of in Hell.

❥ Anyway, it was cool seeing more visuals of the Greed Ring stage. And seeing the spider visuals that are associated with Mammon. I understand if some people thought it was kinda tacky, but I personally think it could work if assessed the right way. (Hint: I'll be explaining more about this in later Greed Ring Headcanons and/or Mammon Headcanons.)

𝟒. ❞𝕍𝕒𝕔𝕒𝕪 𝕥𝕠 𝔹𝕠𝕟𝕖𝕥𝕠𝕨𝕟❞ 𝐛𝐲, 𝐕𝐞𝐫𝐨𝐬𝐢𝐤𝐚 𝐌𝐚𝐲𝐝𝐚𝐲

❥ Admittedly, I was a bit iffy on whether or not I should include this considering my feelings on Verosika. I don't hate her by any means considering, you know, it's Blitzø, but she has nothing going on for her and her one note personality just feels unfair to her considering what she had to deal with. That being said, I realized that I'm judging based on musical appeal and not entirely on character, so I said "fuck it" and put this as #4.

❥ While notably slower and softer than the other songs, I enjoyed it after revisiting it. The pink aesthetic and visuals were just gorgeous to me.

❥ It's slow, playful, and it reminds me a lot of Doja Cat and her songs, and I really loved that. Above all else, it was soothing and nice, and I feel like it was wasted on the Spring Break episode though as, while the episode introduced it a bit more worldbuilding, it felt like a whole load of nothing considering it all happened in one place and that same worldbuilding went out the window almost immediately. Still love the song though. Honestly, if there was a musical battle between Verosika and the Twins, I'd struggle to pick a winner.

𝟓. ❞ℍ𝕠𝕦𝕤𝕖 𝕠𝕗 𝔸𝕤𝕞𝕠𝕕𝕖𝕦𝕤❞ 𝐛𝐲, 𝐀𝐬𝐦𝐨𝐝𝐞𝐮𝐬 & 𝐅𝐢𝐳𝐳

❥ While my opinion of Asmodeus has wavered lately, his debut song was incredible! I loved the deep vocals and jazzy tunes used in the song, and I didn't completely mind the bits with Fizz in it given all that's happened. Above all else, I adored how they called out Stolas publically in the episode. Shame it couldn't stay that way. Seriously though, as sexy as the man's voice is his design just doesn't fit that. But, yeah, that's my opinion.

⋆⋆⃟⊱✪⃝⃞⃝⊰⋆⃟⋆ ⋆⋆⃟⊱✪⃝⃞⃝⊰ ⋆⃟⋆⋆⋆⃟⊱✪⃝⃞⃝⊰ ⋆⋆⃟⊱✪⃝⃞⃝⊰⋆⃟⋆

Anyway, yeah, that was my list. Let me know what y'all think and whether or not you agree with my choices. If any, do you have a favorite song in Helluva Boss? Or a least favorite? Let me know. ✌🏾

[fullyfazed]

I keep thinking about the possibilities for the next* life series so now you all get to be subjected to my thoughts.

*not confirmed yet, just based on hope and an implied future for the series

Like I said in my other post I would LOVE for there to be a large snow biome on the map, but that got me thinking about other biomes and land features which have been under-repped in seasons past.

So I made a topographical map. Of course.

The big feature would be the stony peaks which would surround spawn (located on an island in a lake). The mountains could be used as a wall for those living inside, a lookout point for anyone living on it, and it would serve as a natural terrain challenge when it came to brawls and inter-faction attacks.

The other large geological feature would be the cavern/ravine. Another feature which could work as a base and/or difficult terrain, but could also be a good entry point for mines and the deep dark.

As for the biomes themselves I think it would be cool to use them not only because they haven't really shown up yet, but because of the aesthetics, dynamics, and building styles associated with them would be so fun to see in a season (plus the fanart would be sick)

These are just some examples but it could be interesting if there was a tree house village in the jungle, a secure winter base in the mountains, or maybe even an apocalyptic wasteland in the badlands. Obviously there are tons of other variations of bases that could be built in these areas, but these were the first that came to mind.

But Fazed, you cry, what will the gimmick be?

Well I'm so glad you asked because I have two main ideas, both of which involve an aspect of randomness. They'd be built off the original 3rd life system, so keep that in mind :)

The first idea is that every session, there's a random server-wide event. The event could be anything, like every player turns invisible, a random green turns red for the session, or a tornado shows up. Something that will bring an aspect of chaos to the server as a whole, and could potentially increase in dangerousness as the series progresses. There would only be one event per session, and there would be no way to predict what it will be, so they'd have to be handled in a similar way that the secrets are handled in Secret Life.

The second idea steams from double life, but instead of 2 players being connected, the server is split into teams, each with 3-6 players. Teams are randomized at the start of the series, and players switch teams (also randomized) when they die. So there's a real chance that someone could be caught in a trap and then forced to join their killers teams. Health wouldn't be linked for obvious reasons, but I think there could be potential in having shared status effects, inventories, or team synergy bonuses (couple seconds of resistance if your whole team is together, strength boost when all members attack one enemy, regen when eating together, things like that).

Personally I could see both of these ideas working in tandem but I understand how that could be overwhelming when it comes to the creation and execution of the series, so seeing them on their own should also work.

That's about it, I don't really have a good name for this yet but if you like any of the ideas in here please consider adopting them into your psyche.

[spider999sposts]

Congrats for your 100 followers! I want to request Hobie Brown with a Shy!Reader who's aesthetically opposite to him ("he was a punk, she did ballet" kind of vibe lol).

I was thinking something like Reader is about meet Hobie's punk friends but is feeling all shy and worried because she's afraid they're not going to like her for being so different and make her feel like she doesn't belong, but Hobie comforts and reassures her that everything will be fine and he's so sweet to her the whole time. In the end all his friends end up adoring her and thinking she's really cool in her own way.

Opposites—Hobie Brown

genre: fluff

tags: shy!ballerina!fem!reader × Hobie Brown

a.n: took the phrase "He was punk, she did ballet." a little too seriously. Hope this was good enough <3

No one expected a relationship to bloom between you and Hobie Brown when they put you on your first mission together.

You were complete and utter opposites. He was outspoken, with loud opinions and a 'in-your-face' fighting style. You were queit, you didn't speak very often, rather preferred to be a listener. You were stealthy, preferring sneak attacks before actually engaging in a fight.

Other than your complete opposing personalities, the way you chose to appear was different as well. Hobie and his rather spiked design, his darker colours of red and blue, his studded belts and various peircings. You and your light coloured suit of baby blue, white and a shade of rose. The pointe shoes on your feet alluding to your skill as a dancer, before you were ever a spider–person at all.

The two of you couldn't be any different. So when you started to date, everyone was quite surprised. "Opposite attract, can't you all see! The tension was there from the start!" Pavitr would say excitedly to anyone who asked. But no one really minded your relationship, not even Miguel, who was so hellbent over anything that could threaten the canon of events.

Hobie doesn't remember a time where he laughed this much with someone else. You brought out all the best things in him. You listened to him ramble on and on about everything he dislikes about the spider-society, occasionally nodding your head or rubbing his shoulder whenever he got too worked up. He found himself feeling comforted by your presence, he found himself listening to you when you got all prissy and asked him to do something for you, even though he took orders from no one. Almost no one. He smiled alot around you, and was a much less agitated by everything when you were near him. There was always a pink hue around his frame whenever you were around.

And he brought out a side to you that you never knew you had. You spoke up more often, sometimes going lengths as to disagreeing with Miguel on some things. You allowed yourself to loosen up and speak freely, to be less shy and interact with others. He encouraged you to be the version of yourself that you wanted to be, letting you break some rules here and there, pushing you out of your comfort zone so you could have more experiences.

And today was one of those days.

Hobie had asked you earlier that day if you wanted to go back to his universe to meet his band mates, who were queit curious to whom he was dating and spending almost all of his time with. You agreed, although you couldn't deny how nervous you felt. You were different from Hobie, but he loved you. You don't know if that will apply to his friends.

And now you were holding onto his arm as he led you down the street to the pub they preform at. You were silent for most of the walk, and Hobie took notice.

"Hey." His voice intruppted your thoughts, that were mostly you trying to figure out how to introduce yourself without seeming lame. "You're quiet."

"I'm always queit." You replied, giving him a lopsided smile, "It's nothing, Hobie–"

"You're nervous. Have been since I asked you to come with." He chuckled, stopping the both of you in your tracks. The pub was just a few meters ahead of you, "What is it?" Hobie asked, taking his hands out of his pockets, wrapping them around your waist. You set your head on his chest, sighing.

"I'm worried they won't like me, think I'm too different for you."

The words hung in the air for a moment, then his chest rumbled and you heard him laugh. You looked up at him, pouting a little. "Hey, I'm serious!"

"I know, I know." He chuckled, "But there isn't anything to worry about." He left a kiss at the top of your head, squeezing your side. "They're the ones that should be worried, frankly—"

"No, no, it's.." You took a deep breath, intrupting him. "It's not going to be like when everyone in HQ was cool with it."

"Eh? Why not?"

"At HQ, they've seen much more stranger things than people like us getting together, and..." You sighed, closing your eyes. "They've seen how we are together, you know? I don't know if your friends will understand it, I just don't want to embaress you or—"

"Embaress me? Bloody hell, love, what goes on in that pretty head of yours?" Hobie moved one of his hands and cupped your cheek instead, tilting your head up so you'd be looking at him. You blushed at the gesture, a little sheepish at how silly you sounded.

Hobie sighed, seemingly collecting his words. "You being so different from me never embarrassed me, and never will. And my friends would be daft if they disliked you at all, not just because you and I aren't into the same things. You've got nothing to worry about, Mm'kay?"

"Okay." You nodded. Hobie leaned down, pressing his lips against yours gently, his hands wandering to finally end up wrapping tightly around your waist. Your chest felt much more lighter now, but that pit in your stomach never truly left you. "I'll be beside you all night, make sure you're all snug." You heard him say as he pulled away.

And that was that. His hands didn't leave your waist as he led you down the stairs to the door of the pub. Once you were inside, you were immediately overwhelmed by the deafening sound of drums and booming guitar riffs. The sound of people dancing and singing reverberated across the small space. It was queit busy for a thursday evening, the place was so crowded that you would've lost Hobie right away if he wasn't holding you by the waist, leading you to the bar. You put your arm around his own waist, holding tightly onto his vest.

"Oi, Hobes, over here!"

Your clutch tightened around the fabric, as Hobie made way for both of you to pass through. Once you made it to his friends, he high-fived the three of them then stood by your side once again.

They weren't too unfamiliar to you. They were his universe's Harry Osborn, Ned Leeds and Mary Jane. Maybe it was the fact that they were familiar faces to you, and maybe it was the fact that Hobie's thumb was running up and down your side in a soothing manner, but you felt a bit more at ease. You introduced yourself to them, and they all were pretty welcoming. You couldn't deny the fact that they did a double take seeing you on Hobie's arm, but it was just for a split second.

You grabbed your drinks and sat down at a booth. Hobie's arm was slung around your shoulder, pulling you closer to him. "So, how'd you two meet?" Harry asked, downing his shot almost immediately.

"Work. We're...like partners."

"Yeah, we always got assignments together."

"You work at that dodgy, shady secret business Hobie refuses to tell us about too? What's it like?" MJ asked, surprised. Hobie groaned, rolling his eyes. "Can we stop talking about work, I don't think that's what you want to spend the rest of the night talking about."

The three of them agreed, and you glanced at him, smiling, mentally thanking him for the diversion. "Well, what do you do outside of work? Are you in a band too?" Ned asked. "Oh, no, no, I.." You paused a little, before looking up at them. "I dance."

"Ooh, dance, eh? Didn't take you'd be into moshing, but I get that—"

"Nah, she's a ballerina." Hobie intrupted casually, sipping on his drink. "Bloody good one too." You laughed nervously, fiddling with your hands, unable to look up. You wouldn't be able to handle it if you saw them looking at you strangly. "I'm okay at best, Hobie—"

"Ballet? That's wicked!" MJ's voice made you look up. The three of them were leaning over the table now, attentively waiting for you to elaborate further. "Tell us more, do you get on big stages?"

You feel Hobie's hand intertwining with yours, giving you a light encouraging squeeze. The loving look in his eye, his constant reassurance of you, and the pride in his voice when he spoke of what you do all encouraged you to speak. So you did. You told them all about your hobbies, and they were queit interested in listening to you. One conversation led to another, and you found yourself flowing smoothly with them, even realised you have common interests the more you spoke.

Hobie never intruppted you, only filling in when you started to get a little tense or just to clarify a slang word you were unfamiliar with. His hand didn't leave yours for one second, he occasionally squeezed it to remind you he's there. Watching you operate and glide through the conversation by yourself filled him with a sense of warmth and pride, he was glad he could ease you into this.

A few hours pass, then his friends get up, saying they're going to go dancing before they leave. They asked Hobie and you if you wanted to come, even encouraged you to try rocking with them to the music, but the both of you said you'll sit this one out. Before they left, Harry leaned down and whispered something in his ear.

Once they were out of sight, Hobie turned to you, a grin on his face. You smiled back, tilting your head at him. "What is it?"

"You're cute when you get all excited and talk about what you like doing."

Even under low light, he could see your cheeks darken. "Did I speak too much? I hope they didn't think I'm too self cent—" He intruppted you pretty quickly, pulling you close to him that you almost ended up on his lap, and crashing his lips on yours. You squealed, but quickly adjusted yourself and wrapped your arms around him, kissing him back. His lips were soft and tender but the kiss was anything but. For a moment you forgot what you were talking about. Hobie didn't pull back for a bit, and when he did, you were left dizzy.

"They didn't. They think you're brilliant. Just like I do." He mumbled against your lips. "And if you ever think like that again, I'm going to kiss you till you can't conjure up a coherent thought."

"Mm, are you sure they didn't think I'm annoying?"

"Oh, now you're just asking for it, aren't you?"

[loraluna]

Rating Rune Factory Wedding Dresses (Because I have some opinions)

Rune Factory (1)

10/10

I honestly think this dress is top tier in terms of design. The snowy white with pops of color, the scalloped flowy sleeves, the barely exposed shoulders, that lovely subtle headdress and veil, it's all so pretty and elegant to me. I believe it suits all the girls in RF1 beautifully, though I do feel like Tabatha (center) and Rosetta (right) are standouts~

Rune Factory 2

6/10

It's a very lovely design overall though I do think it creates a bit of an odd silhouette. There are still many elements to appreciate, like the lacey detailed edges and the bold but uncommon use of green. I also give them bonus points for containing a dress sprite of he/him character Ray (right) in the game's data (Trans RF character confirmed?) I think the dress best suits curvier girls like Yue (left) but it's also a real treat to finally see Dorothy's (center) lovely eyes~

Rune Factory Frontier

2/10

This dress really doesn't do it for me. I can tell they were going for more of a ceremonial robes vibe rather than a traditional wedding dress and from a distance it almost works but the outfit up close is just bulky and unflattering. Maybe if they fixed the headdress or gave the robe some really pretty accents or beading it could work, but as it is, it's probably the last thing I'd wanna be virtually married in. The one thing I do like is that it gives most of the girls a unique updo for their wedding day.

Rune Factory 3/RF3 Special

3/10

This used to be my least favorite RF wedding dress before that honor went to Frontier. The more I look at it, the more I realize that most of my disdain lies with the headdress and not the dress itself. The actual dress is fine, in fact there are some parts I really like, the sheer material on the upper arms for one, or the shawl, I just don't think it particularly looks like a wedding dress. That headdress though...oh boy, it looks like someone just glued a bunch of random sh*t they found to a headband and called it a day. It's just very cluttered and doesn't scream 'wedding' at all. If I have to pick a stand out it would probably be Raven (center) since her pose and hair color hide many of the design fails. Also Daria (right) because it seems like the sort of chaotic outfit she, herself would design.

Rune Factory Tides of Destiny/Oceans

5/10

This game didn't get the usual character portraits so the images aren't great, but my opinion on these dresses was very so-so, I definitely wouldn't call them ugly, and I do love the colors and rare use of a real bouquet, they just didn't seem to stand out all that much. Especially in terms of RF costumes. They seem a little bulky on the models but I honestly think they could have fixed that by just having character portraits. Not bad. Not great. Just middle of the road dresses. As standouts I'd pick Sonja and Electra (left and center). Their hair colors complement the dress and Electra is already suited to the poofy ballgown look anyway.

Rune Factory 4/RF4 Special

8/10

RF4's dress has a very ethereal, almost fairy-like look to it, which I personally find very gorgeous. It's pretty busy like many of the previous dresses, but unlike those, I feel like the elements here actually work together. The long flowy veil and blue rose accents are just beautiful, as is the detailed corset and neckpiece making up the torso. I'm not personally a huge fan of the flower petal looking design on the hips, but it does fit well with the whole aesthetic. As for standouts, It looks tailor made for Frey (left), but I definitely think taller, long haired girls like Dolce and Margaret (center and right) look amazing in it as well.

Rune Factory 5

9/10

I think this dress is beautiful as a whole, a bit more traditional and subdued than previous wedding outfits but personally I love it. The silhouette is flattering on everyone and the color scheme is unique among the other dresses by sticking with only warmer colors as opposed to the cool blues and greens of past games. I also love how the tint of the roses changes slightly depending on who's wearing the dress. All in all it reminds me a lot of the subtle elegance of RF1's dress and that makes it a win for me. For standouts I think Fukka's (center) complexion and hair go beautifully with the dresses colors. Ludmilla (right) also looks divine with the rosy aesthetic~

What's your favorite wedding look from the RF series? Who wore it best? Comment or tag if you feel like dishing some opinions of your own (Or just answer my poll ;)

[cottoncandyafterdark]

Chuuya Relationship Headcanons

Character(s): Chuuya Nakahara (Bungou Stray Dogs)

Tags: SFW, fluff, headcanons

Warnings: Brief mention of sex

Notes: Originally posted on ao3 here

God help whoever even thinks about hurting you, because Chuuya is protective when it comes to his lover. Anyone who so much as lays a hand on you is putting their health at serious risk, to say the least.

He's possessive as well, so the same threat goes for anyone who would hit on you and not let your rejection, nor his withering glares deter them.

As a quick aside, if the two of you ever run into Dazai for whatever reason, Dazai will flirt with you and Chuuya will lose his goddamn mind, which is exactly the reaction Dazai was hoping for.

Those kinds of situations aside, Chuuya makes a genuine effort to keep his temper in check for your sake. He doesn't want to snap at you and end up hurting your feelings, and he'd definitely never hurt you physically.

You're going to end up arguing with him at least a couple times, though, and it's going to be incredibly frustrating. It's probably actually going to be something small that causes your first big argument; he can be reasoned with on things that are genuinely important, but he will get unreasonably heated over an debate about, say, if a hotdog is a sandwich or some dumb shit like that. Once he's had some time alone to cool off, though, he'll make it up to you. You can expect flowers and wine to go with his apology. Also, the make-up sex is going to be mind-blowing.

Speaking of flowers and wine, Chuuya is going to give you a lot of 'classy' gifts like that. Flowers, wine, expensive chocolates, jewelry, the whole nine yards, really. He'll also want you to match his aesthetic when you go out together, so if you don't have any nice clothes, expect that to change very quickly.

If you're taller than him, playfully tease him about his height sometimes, and he will have the most adorably annoyed reaction.

if you're shorter than him, though, even if just by half an inch, the roles will be reversed and he will not hesitate to tease you about being short. But, you can still turn the tables on him by pointing out that he's one to talk.

Actually, there will probably be a lot of back-and-forth teasing in your relationship in general. It'll all be light-hearted in nature, though- again, he doesn't want to actually hurt your feelings.

He honestly gets a little embarrassed about saying he loves you out loud, but he'll manage to say it at least once just so you don't have any doubts about his feelings for you. The gifts, the protection, even the teasing in a way, are all his ways of showing his love for you instead of saying it.

When things started between you two, Chuuya didn't really think he'd want a long-term commitment; between the nature of his work and just, his general personality, he didn't think that sort of thing was in the cards for him, but you've managed to make him rethink that. He still doesn't want to actually like, get married, at least legally (why would a guy in his line of work ever want to get the law involved in his relationship anyways?) but if you want to move in together? Get a cat or something? Hell yeah, he's down for that.

[bogleech]

Dearest Bog,

First off, thank you! You've been my main source of biology and horror articles for years, along with having a super unique art style and aesthetic sense that I really like :)

Gushing-aside, I've noticed a trend these last few years of less emphasis on the whole months-long halloween thing. Not that you don't have enough contributions under your belt already, but i was just curious how you prioritize this stuff, how much you value the planning stages before jumping into new projects, if at all, and the direction you might want to take your site in the future, if you're able to answer that.

Apologies if this has already been explained in detail, been a follower of yours for years, but not exactly the most consistent one ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

Maybe it's the ADHD, but basically my mind is a non-stop hurricane of things I'd like to do or create, all the time, to the point that there's not enough time in even a whole human lifespan to give all of them the attention I'd want. Sharing the silly things that inspire me is really fun and I have a constant urge to do it, but my usual level of Halloween updating is as much work as a full time job; even a short little article on some goofy things I saw in a store can take me hours and I can't even rightfully justify why. Maybe I write them too carefully, worrying about the perfect flawless cadence and making it as interesting as possible for such a niche and frivolous topic? So to make those things I end up actually sacrificing as much time as a job without even the benefits of a job, and it kind of pains me to think about what else I might have accomplished if, over the years, I'd instead managed to put even 1/3 that time towards other stuff. Mortasheen is pretty big, and I actually am spending more time on it this Halloween season than on my website, though it's still slow going and with it being October 26 right now, I've already failed my goal of a Halloween release :/ ...a Halloween II release, though, is looking incredibly likely, because the amount of work left to do on it is significantly less than the amount of work I did in just the past month and a half. But @revretch got me Godot and a bunch of resources for learning game making, so I'm going to start on that soon. I'm also getting the hang of making videos more comfortably, and streaming, and other things that engage people more directly. When I've gotten more done with the Mortasheen book I'll be able to devote more to my webcomic, too, which I still care about as much as ever. I guess unfortunately my answer to how I prioritize things is just "some sort of way, I think, maybe???"

[unabashedly-so]

💙💜🩷 SDV Bachelor HC 🩷💜💙

How much has each bachelor explored their bisexuality?

Content warning: compulsive heteronormativity, loss of family, grief, risky sexual behavior mention, drinking mention. SFW.

✨The Bachelors✨

Elliott

look me in the eye and just try to tell me this man doesn't already know. i dare you i fuckin' dare you i WANT YOU TO

that line on the 10 heart boat scene about not knowing he could feel that way about another man is bullshit and that is a piece of canon I toss into the sea.

now please understand the majority of this is colored by my very vivid hc of Elliott's upbringing and young adult life, but you're literally reading a hc post that is labeled hc so you bought the ticket now board the train. choo choo mfs.

the low hanging fruit is that this is a man that canonically spends hours on hair care, dresses like that, talks like that, etc. etc.. Yes, you can be cishet etc. and do that, sure.

and don't get me wrong, it's valid that Elliott could just Be Like That. (I love and respect the hell out of that incorrect opinion)

but this man is penny-romance novel cover coded. just. think about that. think about this active CHOICE he is making.

ffs he lives on a BEACH and dresses in a THREE-PIECE SUIT with his PERFECTLY COIFFED hair that he has to spend HOURS on because that's what happens when you LIVE. ON. A. BEACH.

i am going to have an aneurysm about this man's life choices rn

he's arguably pretty self-secure*, which tracks because you don't get to be his age and not have some better understanding of yourself. As others have pointed out, there's no real ""growth"" in Elliott's arc because boy came whole because HE BEEN KNEW HE BEEN THROUGH THIS ALREADY. He's secure in his identity because he's worked it out already! He's moved on! focusing on his career and legacy now that he knows who is he and who he's not!!

*dont make me drag out the receipts his part is already long enough just trust me ok

now meet Elliott in his early 20's and wow, buddy, you are trying way too hard I promise you things are gonna be okay sweetheart

speaking of his early 20's, it's hc to me that he did, uhhhh, so much exploring. of everything. and everyone in the English and Theater department during university.

King Slut, long may he reign. 🙏

just. someone who's not as self-secure and self-aware would not be able to own the aesthetic PLUS the temperament we see with Elliott, who really only gets flustered with the intimate interpersonal stuff because he's a romantic and it's meaningful. He's confident in who he is and the kind of person he wants to be, and you don't get to that point in life without having done a lot of experimenting and soul-searching.

I could write a whole fucking meta on this boy, but for today: 9/10 he knows it, owns it, enjoys it, but he's got more interesting things going on in his opinion than to make one of his core personality traits just Gay/Queer/Bi/Pan, etc. He has an AESTHETIC and BI BY YOBA he's sticking to it.

also he can walk in heels better than you.

Harvey

Hmm, he's actually hard to get a read on for me. There's a few others in the fandom who might have a better take than me, but here's what I can offer.

first let's grant him that he's older. With age comes wisdom, experience, etc. the older bachelor/ettes are just going to be at an advantage vs the younger ones.

also... like 8 years in college. I cannot be swayed away from this as a crucial part of his journey.

twinkle TWINK-le little snack.

it just feels like one of those things he felt happening in high school and might have gotten bullied for it because everyone Knew but he couldn't/wouldn't just own it.

but then in college he finally realized that owning it would give him the power, so he did. kind of. very quietly.

he probably had a boyfriend or two in undergrad. They were definitely the kind to hold hands from the coffee shop to the library. you know the ones, we've all seen 'em. <3

and isn't he just so lucky that he can get butterflies from girls too?

a blessing and a burden for this man with anxiety because, oh no, now everyone's cute.

by the time he gets to Pelican town, his last relationship kind of ended on a sour note, so he's a little discouraged from pursuing romantic relationships, hence why he's a bit guarded and shy and nervous.

he gets a 8/10, he's just quiet about it because who's business is it but his own? also, like, he's literally the doctor for everyone. He's gotta keep some confidentiality in this small town.

Sebastian

while he doesn't show it, I'd say Sebastian is actually quite comfortable with being bi.

I mean like as comfortable as he can be around people in general.

He doesn't bring it up, and doesn't really let anyone know either, but again that's just kind of his MO, regardless of gender.

now when he's Together with someone, well that's a different story. we stan possessive Sebastian in this house 🫡

he probably wouldn't bring it up with the gang unless someone else brought it up first. 🤷‍♀️

would probably give some semi-defensive response of "yeah, what of it??" to his friends, but a low hearts farmer might get a coldly aggro "why are you asking? That's none of your business."

he and Maru Know about each other but keep those conversations private. hashtag just sibling things ig

has definitely kissed guys at concerts before. Lots of people can also provide a feeling of anonymity, letting him get lost in the crowd and not have to worry so much. 10/10

Shane

closeted sportsballer. As a former Closeted Sportsballer, I can see this going two ways.

First option: you DO NOT explore that unless you want things to get real weird REAL FAST.

Like, I'm not even talking locker room nonsense, let's be mature here. Even if you do not like your teammates, you WILL still share a Sports Bond with them built on a shared passion, a common goal, and lots of comiseration.

So if you're already on iffy social standing, which I'm just gonna go out on a limb and say Shane might have had... you're gonna have a bad time.

Then after his gridball career ended, it may have already been baked in that that was Dangerous. OR he could have just been so far down the path of self-loathing that he stopped looking at people romantically.

OR OR--part of his self-loathing actually opened him up to exploring his sexuality......

......which is a very nice way of saying he took part in a lot of risky sexual encounters. 😮‍💨 (with all genders! One night stands do not discriminate!)

so if there were any feelings involved, it was... not good or conducive to self-understanding. Probably made things worse.

cue the drinking! the depression! all the risky behaviors!

ALTERNATIVELY... Option two: he does explore Feelings For Dudes and it could have played into his sportsball exit. 🤔

Hi. Let me just reiterate personal experience here: LEAVING A TEAM CAN REALLY FUCK YOU UP depending on your life outside the sport. Sports teams are a social support group, like, I really hate the phrase "like family"... but literally structurally so similar. If you already don't have a strong family life outside of the sport (like Shane has admitted to, let's fuckin goooooo), AND being on a team is an overall positive thing in your life??

Leaving your team (willingly or unwillingly) takes away that social support. And not just the social/emotional support, but the structure to your life, the routine, the feeling of belonging, the PURPOSE!!!

gee, wonder what kind of feelings those can bring about in a person. like a sad chicken man.

are we seeing a trend here???????

Ok this definitely got more into a sportsball psychological study, but what I'm saying is my money's on gridball heavily influencing his trajectory but since he DIDN'T have the family or social supports outside of it, he crashed and burned afterwards. Contrast with Alex below who DID have social supports and--

focus, bisexuality.

Personally, I like the idea that Shane's been with dudes, but it's never been anything emotionally healthy (except maybe one pre-gridball-exodus which could have prompted the leave......🤔👀) or fulfilling.

5/10, would be 6 but he got -1 because it was driven by self-loathing. >:(

somebody come show him some mlm love!!!

Sam

baby boy. sweet baby boy.

the younger bachelor/ettes are at a bit of a disadvantage because they're in the time of their life where they would be exploring their sexualities in a conducive environment. Not to say the valley isn't but there's, uh, only 11 other singletons there and they all know each other sooooo...

that said, due to Kent's military career, it's likely Sam has had time living outside of Pelican Town, so may be a bit farther ahead than, say, Sebastian who's lived there his whole life.

speaking of Kent, it's canon that Daddy has been in and out of his life and tbf I don't remember exactly how Sam feels about that but

I'm JUST SAYIN'. baby boy gets a whiff of attention from some buff dude who wants to make him his baby girl?? melting.

you know the trope of how girls with absent fathers sometimes overcorrect for that and seek out male attention like crazy? well, who says boys are any different??

what I'm getting at is this: you're trying to tell me Sam has NEVER had a raging crush on Alex?????

I mean fr it was probably like. Alex told him "good choice" on his ice cream flavor once and it was all downhill from there.

plus I'm hoping he's got a solid enough friendship with Sebastian (and Abigail) that they could talk about these things without it getting weird.

also, singer/lead guitarist in a band?? come on, too easy.

anyway 5/10, once again a bit oblivious until he gets smacked in the face. Definitely a flavor of "haha no homo bro! :):) ...... unless...?? 👀"

Alex

closeted sportsballer, round 2 EXCEPT

he canonically admits he crushes real easy. so just statistically speaking, there's an equal likelihood that he's crushed on the male singletons of the valley, too. Which totally doesn't even take into consideration his gridballer time, which I'll get to in a second.

he also admits his crushes don't usually last very long. part of that probably has to do with a lot with attachment issues (seriously he should be more messed up than he is), but if gridball is just SDV American Football, there's probably a good deal of internalized homophobia Alex has had to either work through or not work through. hence why his not het crushes might not last long.

but confusing and conflicting as they may be, THEY'RE STILL THERE. just. probably presenting more like a "wow I'm really noticing this person a lot lately huh. I mean I guess they look pretty good and seem kind of cool..." he's completely and utterly oblivious to so much, his own feelings included.

so what I'm saying is there was a brief window of time where Alex unknowingly had a crush on Sam and, listen, under the right circumstances Sam/Alex (Smalex?) could have been canonized--don'T BOO ME, I'm RIGHT

as for gridball, compulsive heteronormativity is absolutely rampant so there's no way he could have felt comfortable exploring his interest in other gender(s). ESPECIALLY in his case where he's still kind of on the outside, trying to model himself to fit a certain kind of mold. Just, no chance, absolutely none.

and really, Idk, between him and Haley I'm starting to get real compulsive heteronormativity vibes now... not that they're mad about it, but they were kinda forced into those roles and, well, the shoes KIND OF fit I GUESS...

you might say it was ... they're kind of sh... shoeho--shoehorn--*shot*

Anyway, boy's represso. 2/10, if you called him bi he'd say wait why are you leaving , what did you want to tell me???