#but your writing itself is yours and can be registered and protected as such

[tippenfunkaport]

FYI, I have also locked all my fanfics down to registered users only because of the AI scraping on AO3. I'm one of many fan creators doing this right now and I know it stinks for users without an AO3 account, but it's the only option writers have available to us at the moment to stop our work from being scraped and stolen.

If this makes you mad, the Federal Register is currently open to comments on AI accountability until June 12th, 2023.

It only takes a second to leave a comment to ask for legislation that works used in AI creations or training MUST secure the express consent of the original creator before they can be used. If we can get protections for artists, writers, musicians and everyone who creates that their work cannot be used in AI without their permission, we can go back to making fanworks freely available without fear of them being misused. Until then, we're stuck playing defense until the courts catch up.

(If you're a fan creator looking to do this as well, AO3 has a tool to let you do all your fics at the same time in seconds. On your dashboard, go to Edit Works and you'll be able to change the status on everything at once.)

If you missed the context, AO3 recently found that the archive was scraped for use in AI services like ChatGPT and Sudowrite. While they put in protections in December 2022 to try to stop it from happening in the future, it's not foolproof and there is nothing they can do about works already swiped prior to that date. The archive is recommending fan creators restrict their works to registered users only to prevent against additional large scale scraping in the future.

[erika-xero]

Beware, the long post incoming. Pro tips for artists who work on commissions!

DISCLAIMER: I do not have, like, a HUGE online following and can’t be called a popular or viral artist, but I do have some experience and I’ve been working as a freelance artist for more that five years, so I could share a few tips on how to work with clients with my fellow artists. Scroll down for the short summary!

First of all, you always need to have your Terms of Service written down in a document that is accessible for your potential clients. And by terms of service I don’t mean a set of rules like “I don’t draw mecha, anthro and N/S/F/W”. There is much more into it, than you may think when you first start drawing commissions.

You’ll need to understand how copyright law/author’s rights in your country works (for example, US copyright or Russian author’s rights, be sure to check your local resources). There are a bunch of sites where you can actually read some legal documents (. I know it might be boring, but TRUST me, you WILL need this knowledge if you choose this career path.

Russia, for example, is plagued with shops selling anime merchandise. The merchandise is usually printed somewhere in the basement of the shop and the shop owners literally rip off other people’s intellectual property. If the artist ask them to remove their IP from the shop the owners usually try to fool them with lies about how the IP works. They will tell you, that you have to register copyright on every single drawing and if you don’t do it anyone can reproduce and sell your artwork. In reality, copyright law in most countries simply doesn’t work this way. Once you create an original work and fix it, take a photograph, write a song or blog entry, paint an artwork, you already are the author and the owner. Yes, there are certain procedures of copyright registration, which is only a step to enhance the protection, but you become an author the very moment you create a piece of art, and no one have a right to take your creation from you. Knowing your rights is essential.

Some of your commissioners may try to scam you too, but most of them might simply not be aware of how copyright law works. I literally had people asking me questions whether or not the character I am commissioned to draw becomes MY intellectual property. I literally had to convince the person (who was legit scared, since the commissioned piece was going to be a first image of his character ever created) otherwise. If you have an idea of the character written down or fixed in any other form such as a collage, a sketch, or a concept art -- the character is yours. Artist may have rights to the image they create, but not the character itself. Your potential commissioner must acknowledge that their characters, settings and etc. is still theirs, while your artwork is yours, if your contract doesn’t state otherwise. You can sell the property rights on your artwork to your commissioner if you want, but it is unnecessary for non-commercial commissions. And I strongly advice you to distinguish the non-commercial commissions from commercial ones and set the different pricing for them. Even if you sell ownership of your artwork to your commissioner, you can not sell the authorship. You will always remain an author of your artwork, thus you still have all the author’s rights stated in the legal documents.

Another thing that is absolutely necessary to be stated in your terms of service is information whether (and when) it is possible to get a refund from you. You absolutely have to write it down: no. refunds. for finished. artworks.

You have already invested time and effort to finish an artwork. The job is done and the money is yours. I’ve heard stories of commissioners demanding refund a few months later after the commission was finished and approved by the commissioners, because, quote “I do not want it anymore”. Commissioning an artist doesn’t work this way, artwork is not an item purchased on shein or aliexpress that can be sent back to the seller. It is not a mass production. It is a unique piece of art. Example: My friend once drew a non-commercial commission for a client who tried to use it commercially later on. She contacted him and reminded of the Terms of Service he agreed with, offering him to pay a fee for commercializing the piece instead of taking him to the court or starting a drama. He declined and suddenly demanded a full refund for that commission via Paypal services. My friend contacted the supports and showed them the entire correspondence with that client. She also stated that the invoice he paid included a link to the Terms and Service he had to agree with if he pays that invoid. The money were returned to her.

However, partial refund can be possible at the certain stage of work. For example, the sketch is done, but something goes horribly wrong. Either the client appeared to be a toxic person, or an artist does not have a required skill to finish the job. I suggest you keep the money for the sketch, but refund the rest of the sum. It might be 50/50 like I suggested to my clients before (when I still could work with Paypal), but it really depends on your choise. I suggest not doing a full refund though for many reasons: not only you make yourself vulnerable, but you also might normalize a practice harmful to other artists this way.

The main reason why full refund when the sketch/line-art are done must not be an option is that some clients may commission other artists with lower prices to finish the job. This brings us to the next important point: you absolutely need to forbid your clients from altering, coloring or overpainting your creation or commission other artists to do so. This also protects your artwork from being cropped, changed with Instagram filters or even being edited into a N/S/F/W image. Speaking of which. If you create adult content, you absolutely need to state that to request such a commission, your commissioner must at least be 18/21 years old (depending on your country). And as for the SFW commissions you also have to state that if someone underage commissions an artwork from you it is automatically supposed that they have a parental concern.

There is also a popular way to scam artist via some payment systems, called I-did-not-receive-a-package. Most of the payment systems automatically suppose that you sell goods which have to be physically delivered via postal services. This is why it is important to state (both in the Terms of Service and the payment invoice itself) that what commissioner is about to receive is a digital good.

And the last, but not the least: don’t forget about alterations and changes the commissioner might want to make on the way. Some people do not understand how difficult it may be to make a major change in the artwork when it is almost finished. Always let your commissioners know that all the major changes are only acceptable at early stages: sketch, line-art, basic coloring. Later on, it is only possible to make the minor ones. I prefer to give my commissioner’s this info in private emails along with the WIPs I send, but you can totally state it in your Terms of Service. I do not limit the changes to five or three per commission, but I really do appreciate it when I get all the necessary feedback in time.

To sum this post up, the info essential for your Terms of Service doc is:

- The information on whether or not your commissions are commercial or non-commercial. If they are non-commercial, is there a way to commercialize them? At what cost?

- The information on author’s and commissioner’s rights;

- The information on whether (and when) refunds are possible;

- The prohibition of coloring, cropping, overpainting and other alterations;

- The information on whether or not you provide the commissioner with some physical goods or with digital goods only;

- Don’t forget about your commissioner’s age! If you work with client who is a minor, a parental consern is required. And no n/s/f/w for underage people!

- You may also want to include that you can refuse to work on the commission without explanation in case you encounter a toxic client or feel like it might be some sort of scam.

- I also strongly suggest you work with prepay, either full or 50% of total sum, it usually scares off the scammers. I take my prepay after me and my client agree on a rough doodle of an overall composition.

- I also include the black list of the themes: everyting offensive imaginable (sexism, homophobia, transfobia, racism, for N/S/F/W artists it also might be some certain fetishes and etc). Keep your reputation clean!

- Ban N/F/T and blacklist the commissioners who turn your artworks into them anywayss, don’t be shy <3

These are the things that are absolutely necessary but are so rarely seen in artists’ Terms of Service that it makes me sad. Some of these tips really helped me to avoid scams and misunderstandings. I really hope it helps you all!

[gentleralts]

not to be a downer but while i agree with the sentiment of what the "death note AU where hbomberguy solves the kira case while investigating light yagami for something unrelated to the murders" post is trying to go for, it gets a bunch of stuff fundamentally wrong about light as a character and of how the death note itself works, and as a noted Light Yagami Hater™ i feel like i should set things straight here:

light was top of his class in high school and got into one of the most prestigious universities in his region. he does his research pretty thoroughly and would not even consider plagiarizing anything, especially with how unreliable it would make you look if you got caught. this "light would probably be a plagiarist if he was a youtuber" bit seems like it's there just because the james sommerton video is so fresh in our minds; if that post was drafted like a year ago there'd probably be a bit in there instead about light straight up lying about his accomplishments and how his mother is very proud

"light would have unhinged right-wing political takes if he was on youtube" there's a pretty significant possibility that he would, although not intentionally. light would brand himself as more of a center-left intellectual debater type and gets popular going up against people who are so right-wing that his points seem progressive by comparison (on top of him being conventionally attractive), and that would make stuff like his misogyny and pro-cop stances and "there are some types of people the world would be better off without" sentiments stand out when comparing him to more leftist youtubers. hbomb's initial investigation into light likely started out with the thesis of "light yagami can get away with saying shit like this because he's an extremely fuckable twink"

the thing about that post that stood out to me as its most egregious mistake though was the insistence of legal names being the ones you need to kill someone with the note. you've probably seen joke posts going around before like "if you write a trans person's deadname into the death note it kills you instead," and that's built upon one of the rules of the death note:

[id: The names you see with the eye power of a god of death are the names needed to kill that person. You will be able to see the names even if that person isn't registered in the family registration.]

a name doesn't have to be legally registered for it to work, and a legal name might not even work in some cases. granted a change of a legal name could still be a viable defensive strategy to throw off someone trying to research what your name is, but outright saying "i've legally changed my name to something you won't be able to find out so you can't kill me" will not protect you from the death note at all.

in my opinion, i believe the point in which hbomb spots the thread leading to his conclusion of light yagami being behind the kira murders is around the end of the yotsuba arc. he'd be able to intuit the first, second, and third kiras being separate entities by the types of people they kill, and the situation of "this guy i've been looking into has dropped off the face of the internet for like two months and the kira murders are suddenly different" would probably be too interesting of coincidence for him to ignore

[jobean12-blog]

Heart of Darkness

Pairing: Bucky Barnes x reader (Demon AU)

Word Count: 1.089

Summary: The time to run has finally come but you never expected to find the road to your safety paved in darkness.

Author's Note: This is my entry for my lovely friend @witchywithwhiskey writing/moodbard challenege Horror Movie Hoe-athon! Thank you for hosting sweets! 💕I used one of the quotes which I've bolded in the story and on my crappy moodboard lol! This is mostly super soft- I just can't seem to get away from it lately haha. Thank you all so much for reading! Much love always! ❤️❤️❤️Divider by the awesome @firefly-graphics thank you Daisy🥰

Warnings: some small angst in the beginning but lots of super soft sweetness mostly and flower talk :)

The sun is warm at your back as you approach your cottage, your basket of wildflowers swinging freely from your arm and the sweet aroma of the blooms carried on the breeze.

As you get closer you notice that the door is slightly ajar, and a chill emanates from within, slithering over your skin and stealing it’s warmth. Even though the hairs on the back of your neck stand on edge, you’re pulled forward by a mysterious darkness, tempting and dangerous in it’s allure.

With tentative steps you move forward, pressing your shaky fingers to the door to push it open. The darkness instantly surrounds you and the chill seeps into your bones. Your mouth opens in a scream but it’s silenced by the cold press of a hand to your mouth.

Deliberate and steady steps have your back to the wall before you can register more than the large form in front of you and as your eyes adjust you can make out the silhouette of a man.

The darkness slowly starts to dissipate and a soft silvery glow fills the room, it’s light gradually revealing what holds you captive inch by inch.

His long, curved horns frame a face with eyes so blue they shine brighter than anything else in the room, and his wings, huge and black, circle around you as a voice, rich like silk, fills your ears.

“Do not scream,” he whispers as he gently removes his hand from your mouth.

Your lips tremble and his eyes drop to follow the movement, his thumb brushing over their outline before he cups your cheek.

“You are not safe,” he states. “You must come with me.”

You can’t find your voice, the terror of what he is overwhelming your senses and your eyes squeeze shut as you drop your chin, silently willing away this nightmare.

“Please,” he begs.

Your breathing becomes ragged and you can feel the scream bubbling up in your chest but then you feel something unexpected, something…oddly soothing.

Your eyes open slowly, lashes wet with unshed tears and you let out a shuddering breath.

“I…I don’t understand.”

He leans closer and his tail continues to wind itself gracefully along your body, the sinuous movements mesmerizing you. You relax into his touch, a feeling of safety overcoming your initial fear.

“I need you to come with me Angel.” 

Your eyes fall when you feel the edge of his tail graze the swell of your breasts, the strong appendage moving higher and higher. He pulls you against him, his body a wall of muscle pressed to your soft skin.

“We don’t have much time,” he warns.

“But...who are you…how do I know…”

Your words die on your parted lips as he dips his head, running his nose along the column of your neck with a deep inhale.

“I’ll protect you,” he murmurs, soft and cool lips brushing the shell of your ear.

You shiver in his arms, falling harder under his spell.

“How do I know I can trust you?” you whisper, wavering between the urge to try and flee or fall deeper.

“Even Hell has it’s heroes…and the thing that hunts you is far worse than I.”

His words send a skitter of fear down your spine, different from how you originally felt in his presence and it causes your breath to catch.

“Where will you take me?” you ask, feeling your body become more pliant the longer you’re in his arms.

“Far away from here where you’ll be safe,” he promises. “And there will be plenty of flowers for you to pick and land for you to wander.”

His lips are feather light as they slide from your ear and down along your jaw, hovering just above yours before he whispers, “but…there is a price.”

Your gaze meets his and you fight hard for release, pulling back slightly but finding it impossible to look away. He sees the war in your eyes and the tip of his tail settles just under your chin, bringing your lips back to his before he murmurs, “you’ll belong to me…”

Your eyelashes kiss your cheeks and you let out sigh, the feel of his lips making your body melt into his.

“Forever Angel.”

~Several months later~

The scene before you is awash with vibrant colors and the air is filled with scents of renewal. Beneath the shady canopy of a majestic old tree, the dappled sunlight filters through tender green leaves, casting playful shadows across your skin as his fingertips dance lazily along your curves.

“When can I open my eyes?” he asks, a smile pulling at the corner of his mouth.

“I’m almost done,” you tell him, your fingers moving gently through the dew-covered grass in search of another flower.

His long fingers continue their wandering, every so often sliding beneath your skirt and causing you to giggle.

“James…” you admonish lightly. “I’ll never finish if you keep that up!”

He pouts, shifting his huge, dark wings, a stark contrast against the explosion of radiant color surrounding you, and waits.

“There,” you sigh, adjusting one last flower before you hold up your work. “Open your eyes.”

Blue eyes that match the color in the sky above open.

“Angel,” he croons as his face lights up. “It’s beautiful.”

You carefully lift the flower crown and place it between his horns, tending to anything out of place until it sits just perfectly atop his head. The bright blooms are a rainbow of color against his dark hair and you can’t help your wide grin.

“I think I like this one best,” you decide.

“You always say that Angel,” he teases as he pulls you into his embrace.

You rest your head on his chest, closing your eyes and breathing him in.

“You and the flowers are my favorite things.”

He tightens his grip, your name a whisper on his lips.

“You spoil me with your beautiful things. I don’t deserve them.”

With a soft kiss to his skin you sit up, straddling his waist and taking his face in your hands. Your fingertips lovingly trace along his jaw and then higher to each of his horns before they drop to his wings and you let the silky feathers slide between your hands.

“I love you James…for exactly who you are.”

He wraps you in his arms and buries his face in your neck. “As dark as I am, I will always find enough light to adore you to pieces, with all of my pieces. I love you Angel.”

@book-dragon-13 @goldylions @blackwidownat2814 @kmc1989 @hiddles-rose @randomfandompenguin @sebstanwhore

[irisintheafterglow]

rn im so obsessed with dabi and gojo, so may i request a fic where reader, in the middle of the night, clings onto dabi/gojo while they sleep. like, they subconsciously cuddle them

I'VE BEEN WAITING FOR THIS ONE (finally writing for dabi) TURN IT UP !! also apparently i have the same birthday as him???? so like basically we're soulmates-

you don't know what else to say when you hear him slide open your window.

"ew."

"a pleasure to see you too, doll," he mutters in amusement, slipping off his shoes and leaving them on the ledge. "and here i was hoping you'd miss me."

"not in your wildest dreams." like clockwork, he makes to climb under the covers with you but you stop him with a sleepy but firm shake of your head. he gives you a look like you'd just told him to jump off a building.

"you serious?"

"shower first, then you can come in here."

"c'mon, sweetheart. i'm exhausted," he drawls and you nearly break, trying your hardest to glare at those stupidly bright eyes and infuriatingly soft smile. "let a man rest a little, yeah?"

"nope." you flip over to your other side as he scoffs at your back. when he believes you're asleep again, quiet footsteps creep toward the space beside you and the mattress sinks with the weight of his leg carefully positioning itself by yours. "shower or i'll freeze your balls off," you growl half-heartedly, very much still awake. he's not deterred in the slightest.

"you wouldn't dare." an arm drapes possessively over your lower torso and you fight the instinct to melt into him.

"wanna find out, hothead?" he clicks his tongue and lightly squeezes your hip. he was trying all his tricks tonight, but you'd learned how to pretend to be immune. "touya."

"mmm?"

"shower, please."

"the things i do for you," he murmurs in defeat, pressing a quick kiss to the top of your head before sulking off to the bathroom. you drift in and out of sleep during the time he's gone, vaguely registering the sound of the pipes creaking and the smell of his body wash. before you know it, the noise of the hair dryer ceases and your bedroom door creaks open again. this time, when he slips into the blankets with you, you don't protest as he pulls you flush against his body, your back against his chest. his chin finds the junction of your shoulder and his hair tickles the back of your neck. his warm breath exhales deeply against your skin. "you smell like me."

"ran out of shampoo," you lie and you can feel his mouth curl into an arrogant smirk. "and there's no way in hell i'm using twice's."

"it's okay to just admit that you miss me, baby," he teases and you roll your eyes. "say that you were sad and be done with it."

"go to hell," you grunt and you feel his chuckle over your body. after you finally drift off again, you turn to bury your face in his neck. his arms secure themselves around your body and you barely need the blanket anymore from how warm he naturally runs. he hums in contentment, bathing in the way that you didn't see him as the monster the rest of society did. he'd rather die than be a danger to you, to have you fear him in a way where he couldn't hold you closer when you needed him. he loved your biting tongue and your razor-sharp wit, but he also loved how you trusted him to protect you while you rested. he was safe for you.

and, even if he never admitted it aloud, you were safety for him, too.

if you enjoy my writing and would like to support me, you can buy me a coffee on my ko-fi! you can also check out my full masterlist here :)

[wordsbyrian]

Overprotective - Alexia Putellas x Reader

Summary: Part 2 of Team Dad, in which R is an overprotective father.

A/N: This isn't the fic that I wanted to post today but I was an idiot who made the decision to write a 5th holiday fic the day before I post. So you guys get this one which was supposed to be for next week instead but that means 2 holiday fics next week. Also this is barely proofread so sorry about that.

Ever since it became common knowledge that you are the team dad of the Spanish national team, fans have been making a ton of videos showing off your most protective on-field moments.

To be honest, you find the whole thing to be a little ridiculous because any teammate worth their salt should make a fuss when one of their own gets taken down.

But, in all fairness, you might take it a little too far, especially if the number of yellows your mouth has earned you is anything to go by.

Currently, you find yourself in one of those exact situations as you get in the face of the Norse player who just took Pina off her feet.

You’re so focused on verbally tearing the player a new one that you barely register the combined efforts of Mapi and Patri to push you away from her.

Even when your club teammates, Maria and Vilde, come over you don’t cool it.

It takes the ref coming over and threatening to card you for you to walk away from the young Norsewoman.

“Try doing your job ref,” you tell her before walking to get in position.

Luckily Pina seems to be perfectly fine, more than fine in fact because less than five minutes after coming back on the field, she does what she does best and sends the ball soaring into the back of the net.

“La Estrella Bebe does it again,” you say, joining the group hug and patting her on the head, “Let’s finish strong girls.”

And you do, although when Patri gets taken down by the same Norse player that took down Claudia, you can’t help but run your mouth.

“Ref, you’re eyes, do they work,” you ask the center ref, “I’m seriously asking because I want to know. Usually, when someone puts their studs into an opponent's legs, that’s a card. So I’m just wondering.”

“Watch yourself, Y/L/N,” the ref says.

“What, it’s a serious question that I want an answer to because normally that’d be at least a yellow.”

For a moment, you think that your pleas have worked, watching as the ref begins to pull a yellow card out of her pocket. Those hopes are dashed when it’s shown to you instead of the Norsewoman.

“Wrong person,” you say walking away.

When the game ends, after you’ve apologized to Maria, Vilde, and their teammate, you’re pulled to the side for a discussion with your coach.

With that out of the way, you re-enter the locker room only to be greeted by the sight of your teammates recreating your outbursts.

“Ref, do your eyes work,” Leila mimics to the amusement of everyone else.

“Ok tonto, we get it, you’re funny,” you say taking a seat at your locker.

Your protective streak shows itself again later that week during a team outing to a nightclub.

And by this point, you’re certain that the universe really wants to see you punch someone over one of the younger players.

Why do you say that?

Because for the last 15 minutes, you’ve been standing in the corner watching as a guy blatantly stares at Laia and tries to subtly follow her around the dance floor.

Of course, you do realize that she can take care of herself but it's always better safe than sorry.

What you don’t realize is how hard you’ve been glaring at the guy, trying to get him to leave her alone with the power of your mind.

And you don’t realize it until you find yourself glaring at your girlfriend instead.

“Hi amor,” you say, leaning around her to keep your eyes on the strange man.

“Hola,” Alexia responds leaning into you, “What are you doing standing in the corner by yourself?”

Filling her in on what you're doing, you aren’t surprised when she rolls her eyes at you.

“You’re supposed to be having fun,” she says, pressing her body against yours.

“No, I’m supposed to make sure all of you get home safe, especially you drunky.”

“I’m not drunk.”

“You’re not drunk,” you repeat incredulously, “So it wasn’t you that untucked my shirt so that you could put your hands up it. A ghost did all that?”

It’s a good thing you weren’t expecting a response because the slightly painful way Alexia rakes her nails down your back lets you know you aren’t getting one.

Rolling your eyes, you pull her closer to you and try to relocate the guy who was watching Aleixandri.

And you do find him.

The only problem is that he’s apparently gathered up enough confidence to approach her and it appears he is not taking no for an answer.

Shaking your head, you unwrap Alexia’s arms from around you and begin walking toward them.

As you walk away, you can hear her yell something about not making any dumb decisions but you’re too focused to worry about the consequences of your actions.

When you get close enough, you place your hand on the back of the man’s neck and yank him away from the City player.

“Hey there, buddy,” you say, turning him around to face you, “This is the only warning I’m going to give you, leave her alone. Stop staring at her from across the room and if you value your ability to chew your food, do not approach her again.”

The idiot looks unimpressed and slightly confused.

“What does that even mean?”

“It means that if I see you near her again, I will break your jaw so badly that you’ll be tube fed for the rest of your life,” you tell him, glare firmly planted on your face. “In fact, you might as well go home now because I’ll break your jaw if I see you talking to any woman for the rest of the night.”

He takes a step forward, trying to intimidate you, but the effect is ruined by the way his voice shakes when he says, “You can’t do that.”

“Do you want to test that theory,” you ask him, taking a step towards him in return.

By this point, a lot of attention has been drawn to the pair of you, so you’re not surprised when a few security guards make their way over.

“What seems to be the problem over here,” the taller one asks.

Shrugging your shoulders, you roll your eyes when the idiot begins speaking.

“The problem,” he says turning to the guard, “is that this woman has just threatened to physically harm me.”

“Is that true?”

“Of course not,” you lie, “Ask anyone, I did not say anything to him besides asking him to leave my friend alone.”

The people around you nod in agreement with what you’ve said.

Upon seeing this, the shorter security guard massages his temples and sighs heavily before speaking, “How come every time you come here we have the same problems, Jorge?”

He then grabs the idiot by the shoulder and leads him away. 

“So that guy regularly harasses women and he’s still allowed to come here,” you ask the remaining guard.

“His uncle is the owner,” he explains before walking off.

Taking a deep breath, you look over at Laia and see her laughing at something Patri said.

That doesn’t last very long though because you're approached by Jenni who informs you that it’s time to go.

It isn’t until you’re all walking back to the hotel that you learn that anyone heard what you said.

“Do you like to chew your food,” Claudia asks Aitana, recreating the way you pulled the man to face you.

“What are the two of you on about,” Leila asks.

“That’s what Y/N said to the guy who was bothering Laia,” Pina explains.

“No, it’s not,” Ona says, “It was more like this.”

You all watch as Ona stops in the middle of the sidewalk and puffs out her chest in a hilarious mimicry of you.

“Stop staring at her from across the room and if you value your ability to chew your food, do not approach her again,” she says, trying to make her voice sound like yours. “Then she was like, I’ll break your jaw and you’ll be tube fed for the rest of your life.”

You can’t help but laugh at the display because there’s no doubt that you looked that ridiculous while talking to that man.

“Y/N/N,” Alexia says, letting go of your hand, “Please tell me you did not threaten that guy from the club.”

“Alright, I did not threaten that guy from the club,” you say plainly, “I made him a promise, whether he felt threatened by it was out of my control.”

That gets you some laughs from the team but only earns you a glare from your girlfriend.

“I don’t know why I’m surprised.”

“None of us know why you’re surprised,” Mapi says. “Y/N spent the entire night standing in the corner like the overprotective papa she is.”

“I’m not overprotective.”

Unlike earlier in the club when everyone agreed with you, this time you’re met with various noises of disagreement.

“Alright, fuck you guys. I’ll just let creeps hit on you from now on.”

The response is as instant as it is simultaneous.

“No, you won’t.”

[sirianasims]

After the main course, Paul went to the kitchen to get the dessert ready before midnight. I excused myself and said I needed some fresh air.

I had been to Del Sol Valley a few times when I was little, visiting my grandparents, but I didn’t remember much about the city itself.

The back of Paul’s mansion was the only thing not surrounded by fences, and the view was both breathtaking and terrifying. Bright lights as far as the eye could see, occasional premature fireworks going off, faint background noise from traffic that never stopped.

It felt like we were gilded birds in a cage up here, always on display yet forever out of reach.

I couldn’t imagine anything further from Copperdale and the quiet, snow-covered forests around it.

I wondered if Paul would expect me to move in with him at some point. I didn’t see how he’d be able to work from anywhere else. I could work wherever, but could I live here? Surrounded by fences and cameras and security guards in a huge, empty house?

I pushed the thought away as I heard the clacking of heels behind me.

“Julia, can I talk to you for a moment?”, Sierra asked softly. “I would really like to apologise for what I said earlier. It was never my intention to insult you.”

“I know you didn’t mean it like that, but I still can’t help feeling that you don’t like me very much. Or maybe you just don’t think I’m good enough for Paul?”

Sierra bit her lip.

“I shouldn’t have brought up his exes, especially not in front of you. The thing is, they rarely lasted long enough for the media to catch on – half the time I didn’t even get to meet them before he ended things. So when Paul first told us about you, I got worried. I saw him falling harder and faster than ever before, but you’re so much younger than him and I was struggling to see how it could possibly end well.”

“Right. Thanks for the vote of confidence.”

“I’m just being honest with you. I tend to be, perhaps, overly protective of Paul. He was even younger than you when we met, we shared a shitty apartment with a few other aspiring actors, all trying to break through. We cheered each other on, audition after audition, practicing lines, commiserating over rejection letters… And then he got the call for Llama Man, and I ended up as an extra in a cop series which later got me the lead in Cop & Llama, but I’ve fought hard to escape that, branch out to other roles, and Paul just… didn’t even try.”

“But he says he prefers the voice acting, though. If you’re his friend, why do you keep pushing him if he’s perfectly happy?”

“Because I’m his friend. Sure, he says he’s happy. Maybe he even believes it. But Paul was always the best of us, and he never took his talent seriously. He’s a great voice actor, but it always felt like he secretly wanted more, he’s just scared. What if he sucked? The media would have a field day, writing about how he should just stick to his cartoons. You’ve seen what they’re like, you just had your first front page. Which, by the way, must be rough. I’m sorry for adding to the stress you must be under right now. Can we maybe start over?”

“Apology accepted, I’m too much of a fangirl to be mad at you anyway. And I’m managing, but I must say, being on the cover of a magazine is a lot less fun than advertised.”

“Trust me, it depends heavily on the kind of magazine. But being hung out to dry by some gossip rag is a rite of passage in this business. You should have seen the frenzy when rumours about me and Dave started circulating. It was wild. I once walked out of an interview because they asked me if the llama costume stayed on during sex!”

“Well? Did it ever?”

Sierra grinned.

“No way – do you have any idea how heavy and warm that costume is? It’s not exactly a sexy superhero muscle suit, it’s a full size sports mascot.”

“True. Although I’m not sure I’d appreciate it if Paul kept his costume on either.”

We both laughed, and I barely registered the steps behind me before I felt Pauls arms around me, his warm hands covering my eyes.

“Guess who.”

I heard Sierra chuckle. “Actually, Paul, we were kinda busy out here, bonding over the trials of dating men in llama costumes. It’s a very exclusive club.”

“I guess Dave and I have to start our own club then. But it's almost midnight and I would like to borrow my girlfriend, if you don’t mind.”

“Fine, you can have her back. I’ll just go get myself one of those fruit tarts before Lee and Dave eat them all.”

She walked back inside without waiting for a response.

She wouldn’t have gotten one anyway.

beginning / previous / next

[v3nusxsky]

Hellooo I wanted to ask for a leonora lesso x reader fic that's hurt/comfort, when r has a nightmare of a previous SA she wakes up and accidentally destroys stuff w her telekinesis abilities and leo tries to comfort her but r pushes her away because she doesn't want to hurt her, Leo assures her that she won't get hurt and comforts r through it? It's oddly specific but inspired by that song beuatiful boy by John Lennon and yoko ono specifically that remix that goes [the monsters gone hes on the run and your gfs here] this is something I experience when I dream of it sometimes and you write comfort so well <3

He's gone Darling

*Authors note~ I had to check this song out I've seen it all over my TikTok but never placed the song till now.  Y'all really are giving me some amazing songs to add to my playlist &lt;;3*

Trigger warnings~ past sexual assault

Prompt~ see ask^^^^

You hated that they could still hurt you now. It didn't seem fair. You'd suffered at their hands for years, abuse of every kind and you never told a soul due to the fear it would get worse and no one would believe you. Yet you'd managed to escape now and you were safe. You'd found a nice job in the school for good and evil. And hell you'd even healed enough and found a beautiful woman who made you feel like you were the most beautiful person in the world. Your life had started looking up until these stupid nightmares began.

At first you tried to mask them, not really wanting to admit that he still had power over you.  But your girlfriend was extremely observant and noticed you were avoiding her. She confronted you about it and you explained everything. Immediately she began thinking of anything that could help get a good nights rest. Together you decided you'd sleep in her chambers tonight and she'd watch over you to ensure your safety. Truthfully you were scared but the idea of curling up in her embrace sounded so much more appealing than the fear you felt.

That night you were all snuggled into her side, head resting in her chest as she held you rubbing soothing circles and humming to you as you fell asleep. Safe. That's all you had to remind yourself. You were safe with her. Her hand never left your back or your hair and for a while you were okay. Your little sleepy breaths were truly adorable and she couldn't understand just how they could've hurt you.

Your breathing sped up, and your limbs began to flail, tossing and turning as you tried to escape the memories and images your mind conjured up. A traumatic onslaught of the worst times of your life. Your own telekinetic abilities responding to the blur of emotions you were experiencing. Your body trying to protect itself from the threat that was no longer real. Lamps, clothing and even a few picture frames were being thrown across the room. Leonora ducking every single one and attempting to rouse you from the torment of your own mind. Your dream state was too strong and as the dream progressed so did the items being thrown as you hit and kicked out desperate to make it stop. Your crys were crushing her heart as she sat helplessly calling for you to wake up reminding you that you are safe with her and they weren't here no more. It's just your Nora.

You awoke with a frightened scream and you immediately pulled your knees to your chest rocking yourself as you cried. You hardly registered your girlfriends presence or her words of reassurance as you continued to babble incoherently about what you'd seen, what they did. Leonora knew it was wrong, that you had no control over the information you were now telling her but the rage that bubbled beneath the surface was a different monster to battle. They weren't important right now, what was important was you.

"Love? Can I touch you? I need you to calm your breathing darling girl" she murmured and you flinched away from her. "No! No touch! Please no" you sobbed absolutely broken. "Okay darling okay no touch can you take some deep breaths?" You nodded and greedily sucked air into your burning lungs. "Good girl pretty, you're doing so good. That's it keep going" she encouraged until you finally felt ready enough to throw yourself into her awaiting arms.

You sat there in silence snuffling quietly into the column of her neck. You'd nuzzle closer every now and then and she would make sure to hold you tighter. "Love? You're getting sleepy shall we try again?" She murmured kissing your head. How on earth did she know you were falling asleep cradled into her body. "Scared" you mumbled, "wrecked room" you whispered guiltily. "Hush love I don't mind about the room. How would you like to try sleeping?"

"Mmm like this?"  You mumbled not really wanting to move. Thankfully you didn't have to, Leonora shifted to lay more comfortably for you both and hummed you to sleep once more. They may have hurt you but you had her now and no one would ever do such a thing to you ever again. The last thing you heard was the reassuring words, "The monsters gone  he's  on the run and your Leo's here my beautiful beautiful beautiful girl"

Word count~ 913

[metvmorqhoses]

Nononono waitttt what do you mean about Good Omens season 2?? Why didn't you like it?

I personally thought it was better than season 1 - better paced. There wasn't a single boring moment. And sure, the plot maybe had fewer stakes, but seeing as this was a bridge season between season 1 (the of Good Omens book) and hopefully season 3 (the book that never came out, “668” or something like that), I thought it was good. Warm & fuzzy.

I need to know your opinion now

As abashed as I am to have to respond to such enthusiasm with, well... the very opposite of enthusiasm, please at least know that I consider the truth the best thing I have to offer in general and in regard to that unfortunate (yet somehow still-untouchable?) mess the second season of Good Omens has proven itself to be in particular, so accept it as some sort of well-intended even if perhaps unwanted gift.

This is probably the most unpopular opinion one can have on Tumblr right now, so I'll go straight to the point: Gaiman managed to ruin Good Omens (perhaps he isn't able to write it by himself, perhaps he got carried away with fan service, who knows), once one of the most delightful, witty, engaging, profound books/shows existent, changing its register and raison d'être in order to turn it into, per great popular request, the same lame simple plotless cheesy cookie-cutter gay romance without rime and reason apparently every single piece of media is deforming itself into lately.

The dramatic loss of... artistic quality this show suffered is appalling and even more appalling is the fact I seem to be one of the very few on this green earth to have even noticed? Did I perhaps read too much in the show before? I don't think so, it was indeed a masterpiece. I saw many die-hard fans of the series beyond puzzled at this last season too, straining themselves to try and make sense of it with wild theories, justifying them with the simple fact that Neil Gaiman is a genius and surely this hot mess must mean something, right? I wasn't aware the world was mostly populated by hysterically besotted people hailing Neil Gaiman's alleged greatness from dawn til dusk without contextualized merit, and the discovery didn't particularly excite me, to be quite honest. I think a healthy amount of fairness in the critique of any artist should always be the norm, but I digress.

I'll try to keep it as brief and matter-of-factly as possible, especially since some time has passed and the fumes of my rage aren't as scorching or as precise as they used to be lol

In a word, this season was subpar. Not only did it lack that original witty, ineffable meaningfulness, that intrinsic and very human sense of wonder and protectiveness towards life and its profound sense the original show brimmed with, but even from the most basic literary point of view, it literally lacked a plot worthy of this name, a story, characters that felt complex and real instead of caricatures who tried and reenact themselves, and in general what should have been, quite simply, good writing.

More than Good Omens' long-awaited season 2, this felt more like a high-budget filler fanfiction created by someone who didn't know what they were doing with story and characters most of the time, but who sure as hell wanted to please the audience to disastrous lengths.

The very first thing that irked me beyond belief, and it literally started from minute one, was the immediate, more or less subtle, change in acting from both Michael and David. Michael stressed it way more, with, in my opinion, quite tragic results, thing that from the start immediately allowed me to guess where they were going with their (already established as extremely complex) relationship, entirely turning the vibe from sophisticated allegory of Divine Comedy kind of love (love for your enemy, love for your friend, love in all its form and in its entirety) to banal romantic comedy-level gay drama, downgrading what Crowley and Aziraphale shared (the subtle abysses of it!) into the most boring and obvious of soap operas, obviously forcing them to act out of character in order to compensate (was any flash-back meaningful to their character or the story? Was there a writing reason behind any of them beyond writing for the sake of filling screen-time?).

Some relationships deserve to be left alone, alone in their subtlety and ambiguousness or you'll inevitably ruin them. Not everyone must kiss on screen, no matter how much the audience screams and throws up for it. This little woke drama completely ruined and eclipsed everything else those two characters were for each other, turning them from cosmic and devastatingly loyal best friends to petty and dumb lovers that need two plot devices (the messy pointless and quite frankly offensive representation-wise lesbians from across the street they literally met five minutes prior) to tell them they actually have feeling for each other and should share them. After literal millennia of this relationship, relationship that has its own inner workings and reasons, we needed the plot-lesbians to subvert the order of things and spur Crowley into action, obviously obtaining disastrous and lame results? Are we witnessing the interaction of immortal beings or five-year-olds? The only way I can genuinely make sense of this dumbness is considering those two female "characters" (that feel anything but real people) no more than that, characters, golems, put there by Metatron via the power of the Book of Life (again, so many Chekhov's guns with no use whatsoever in this season) in order to separate Az and Crowley using the only thing that could succeed in doing it - an ill placed declaration of love.

But even this doesn't match the true être of what Good Omens originally was nor comes full circle with the ineffable mystery season 1 ended with. It genuinely feels like Gaiman changed the whole rhyme and reason of the story, vibes, meaning, register, just to meet the modern needs of a category that is sadly phagocytizes everything else in both life and fiction. And I find it a true pity - and a bore.

And even leaving aside this personal boredom of mine at a non-existent plot that consisted in 1) a big mystery that promised cosmic repercussions (season 1 ended with the after-nonapocalyptic world that was slightly changed just because two enemies had loved each other and life too much not to oppose god's plan - fact that was probably god's plan all along), mystery that was actually no mystery at all (two random, from the original story's perspective, previous minor characters in literally ten supernatural minutes fell in love and run away together) and that meant virtually nothing in the grand scheme of things, but serving as a plot device so that the other two minor new characters could intrude into the protagonists' relationship so they could finally have the excuse to jump literary genre and kiss & queer tragedy the story away 2) an endless series of symbols, facts, episodes and characters that constantly seemed to hint at something but that in reality resulted in nothing story-wise (also, the change of heart in God's personality, first the witty and almighty trickster for the greater good, now the divine bully??), even leaving all this aside, I'm mostly disappointed the quality of the writing plummeted so inesorabily one of my comfort show turned into the symbol of an artistic era I'm utterly distraught to have to witness - the era of crowd-pleasers and un-imagination.

As for this being a filler season, writing in such an unresolved way (basic and predictable plot, colourless characters, cliché romance, hours of happenings that don't mean a thing in the current story) is unacceptable and a failure, even if you are a famous writer. You cannot waste hours of the audience's time going nowhere shielded by the sole future promise of sense. Writing doesn't work that way, and I'm sincerely appalled to see people noticing it and deciding to excuse it with a "surely next season everything will look genius!". It doesn't work this way. The faults were too many, they can't possibly be all resolved next season. This product wasn't great, even if your faves kissed and your little fanfictions came true.

The sad thing is, Good Omens used to be a work of art, not the next consumeristic piece of fiction to satisfy woke needs.

[jiminrings]

miss j. minrings at this point i'll take anything you give tbh i missed your writing so much that if you don't push through with the sneak peek, i will probably shave my head 🫥🫴

:D

Jungkook reminds you that love is unfair.

He reminds you that love is unfair in the same way you remember that you don’t belong to his world. He’s the walking proof that it’s possible to have everything without suffering, and as much as it isn’t his fault that he was born to it, it irks you.

You don’t hate Jungkook, no. It’s much more complex than that, something to do with the bitterness in your mind and heart from doing everything only to barely equate to what Jungkook– people like Jungkook — get for doing nothing.

You don’t hate Jungkook, he’s tolerable. He’s loving to the people dear to him; stuck-up most of the time but won’t go out of his way just to be an asshole. He can hold conversations with you, sometimes steering outside the parameters of you being his bodyguard and him being your boss. He’s rude at times but he’s tolerable — it’s the best of what you could get from people like him.

What you hate about him is that he probably hasn’t had a bad day ever in his life. 

You don’t know him to an intimate degree but you know, you know that Jungkook has not worked extremely hard for anything ever in his life. He hasn’t fought for anything because he didn’t have to.

Maybe it’s just a bad day for you today, accidentally scrolling past an article that detailed about your abrupt exit from the fighting scene. It makes your throat constrict when you skim through it for a second and register the exact words that have once crossed your mind before in a fit of insecurity; you were cowardly and cheap for leaving the octagon to become a glorified babysitter for Jeon Jungkook.

Perhaps it’s such a bad day for you today that even when you think about how your job as a bodyguard pays so much more than your occupation as a fighter, it does nothing. The lack of fatigue from guarding a nepotism baby outweighs your body more than the injuries you’ve gotten throughout your career. 

Despite being stagnant in the water instead of flailing around, you have never been more afloat than now. You’re financially and physically stable more than ever and it’s because you protect, not fight.

Even if you hate him sometimes, you protect Jungkook with your whole life. You guard him like your life depended on it because for so long, it’s been ingrained in your head that it was either do or die. That if you don’t work hard enough, there won’t be food on the table. That if you don’t fight desperately and harshly enough, no one would be able to take care of the people you’ll leave in your wake.

You do your best when you follow Jungkook to bars and assess everyone in there in the process, prioritizing your regard for his safety more than his remarks of you being a cockblock. You adhere to instinct and hold him by the waist in crowded places, even if he grumbles that you’re spoiling his game.

You pour your all when you accompany Jungkook to a private fitting and wait for him outside of the dressing room, patiently anticipating what he’d look like in a suit meant to accept an award for being one of the most influential individuals in this generation. You don’t know exactly what constitutes to him being influential besides being himself, but perhaps his existence itself is what’s most outstanding about him.

You pour so much of yourself that when Jungkook steps out of the dressing room, you smile at him fondly, sincerely. 

You give so much of yourself that protecting Jungkook has become synonymous to falling for him.

You think love is unfair because it’s biased. It’s cruel and it chooses because love is simply not for everyone. Love is not for the weak.

Love is unfair because it finds its way to you in the form of him. You are what makes love weak, and Jungkook is what makes it cruel.

[anothanobody]

To have one of my favorite writers like my prompt is my highest point in the fandom. But I insist, this story is yours, make it your own au or what you like best! I really don’t have it in me, but you do! It is my honor!

So, in History, Attila invaded and destroyed a good chunk of what remained of the Western Roman Empire before being stopped at the Battle of the Catalonian Plains in modern northern France. This campaign even included a dramatic meeting between Attila and Pope Leo ‘the Great’ at the gates of Rome itself, when the Pope convinced Attila to turn back.

This started in 450, and the fall of Rome was less than 30 years later in 476. So you can imagine the Empire wasn’t so great and was in perpetual crisis when Attila invaded. Many historians assume Honoria sent that letter convinced that Attila could be bought off as an ally against other enemies (the invading Germanic tribes that were also Attila’s enemies - and who defeated the Hunnic Empire for good in the later Battle of Nedao). Other historians assume that, in his own twisted way, Attila wanted to become emperor and protect Rome as his own. Anyway, he WAS a brutal conqueror, known as the ‘wrath of God’. And Honoria’s gamble - made without the Emperor’s knowledge or approval - backfired horribly.

So having Princess Mikasa ask for Barbarian Emperor Eren for help, maybe even offering her hand as reward in her desperation to save her crumbling Empire, could be a good start. And Eren does come, just not in the way she expected. This would be, most likely, an enemies to lovers. I don’t think Mikasa would love from afar this brutal enemy of her brother the Emperor, who killed so many of her people. It’s up to you to make it Angst, but I’m a sucker for romance and in the end I’ll always want a Happy Eremika. Maybe this Eren could indeed help save this fictional Rome? Rome allied with the Germans to stop Attila, after all.

bro you make me gonna cry with that first paragraph like really. warmed my heart and made my whole week with it. cuz stop that’s so thoughtful and cute. 🤧😭 really it’s an honor a huge one to be high regarded or even regarded as a good write really. 😩 anon stole my heart with praising. anon marry me.

but yeah i want some romance too! maybe we could do a bit more nuance. like we can have the conqueror the brutal one with the people of the Empire or the Emperor itself wanting to do some shady shit secretly. endangering her. or something more that i don’t have in mind now. but at the end she sends the letter for help for herself in a rush, she would rather have it with a barbarian king that would always be in battle and being forgotten to the side. so when he invaded he found her and like letter said he married her, she was filled with guilt at the consequences she registered for her people, a lot of anger and sadness at herself. but with his barbarian king something was being created that she didn’t expect.

or i mean give me your input anon. about how to structure the romance, my beloved spouse.

or we can go angst and do the original. imagine doing the same as risks:the series but here is only like historians give the full story on different accounts. one is a romance and the other is a fateful mistake.

btw both will have angst just cuz mikasa will be go through it as her people will die, either guilt or guilt. 🤔

[noxtms]

❝       WITH A SWEET LITTLE BABY ON THE WAY, COME & HELP US PREPARE FOR THE VERY SPECIAL DAY ! join us for hande abaci & blaise zabini’s baby shower on saturday, the 10th of december, at 2pm at alton house, godric’s hollow. a light lunch will be served & semi formal floral wear is expected of all guests ! the thrilled parents are registered on diagon alley for gifts, and to make the day even more special and fun, please bring a childhood photo of yourself as we’ll need it for one of the baby shower games that we’ll be playing. rsvp by december 8th to sabiha abaci or madam oliviette zabini and include in your note if you have any special dietary requirements !       ❞

WHO, WHAT, WHEN, WHERE :  

the abaci family history stretches back a lot farther than most others mentioned on the sacred 28 list and includes an unconfirmed descendancy from godric gryffindor himself ; they were certainly one of the first wixen families to settle in the hollow, and with the small fortune that they had amassed from invisibility cloak sales, the original abaci’s purchased a large amount of land just outside of the main village that they maintain to this day. their ancestral home is alton house, a huge manor nestled at the heart of an impressive landscape that includes a well tended hedge maze, grecian sculpture garden, orchards and immediately around the main home, beautiful flower gardens and several overflowing greenhouses. smaller properties - the cottage homes of the groundskeeper, security wix, and hande abaci’s own father - can be located elsewhere on the property, and all is surrounded by a magically protected wall that has kept the abaci family safe through two wixen wars. sabiha & demir abaci’s home is rarely opened to outsiders, and they rarely stray from within the safety of their own estate ; their list of close friends is a short one, and the offering of alton house for the zabaci baby shower took acquaintances aback, especially when everyone knows that the staff of zabini manor are much more used to hosting various, large numbers of guests. 

of course, anyone capable of reading between the lines would notice the rather intentional delegation of oliviette zabini to only second in command. if you knew her, sabiha abaci’s desire to take control of this particular narrative would not be much of a surprise.

the theme - the one thing that the expectant parents had final say in - is floral. “ come as your favorite plant, ” their friends are told, while associates and plus one’s are instructed to stay just on task. the shower itself is being held in the function room on the first floor. the wall of glass doors to the tiled patio outside ( which leads directly into the gardens ) will remain open throughout, though the december chill will never permeate the air. the arboretum has provided the most impressive of displays to act as centrepieces on white clothed tables, with a sea of vines and cherry blossoms hanging across the walls. themed food has been prepared by the finest chefs while decadent treats have been supplied by the syrupy sweet bakery, and hande took great enjoyment out of pinning flowers onto delicate crowns, by hand, to offer as party favors & potting tiny succulents that can be taken home to use as placeholders. in addition to the classics ( guess who with the pictures provided by their guests, don’t say baby, even the estimate of the baby bump- ) games will include count the bertie bott every flavor bean & pin the tail on the hippogriff for anyone hoping for more generalised fun, and everyone will be welcome to write on the offered slip of paper whether they think blaise & hande are expecting a little baby girl or boy. 

OUT OF CHARACTER:

this mini event starts with the posting of this message and will end two weeks from now, on december 27th ! it will overlap a bit with our next major event, but that’s ok ! 

all threads are to be confined to the discord, as this is not an on dash event. feel free to continue your ongoing dash threads as normal ! 

it’s up to you whether your character would attend or not, but don’t feel too worried about the believability of it - you’re more than welcome to message to establish a solid reason or just throw caution to the wind and make something up ! this is a large event and the guest list is made up of people known by five different people, however tangentially, and that’s without throwing in plus one’s. everyone’s welcome, but no one is required & if you decide not to participate that’s totally fine ! 

you can find a channel over on the discord for baby shower outfits, which should be semi formal floral wear - characters can actually embody their favorite plant or go more neutral, so long as they stay on theme ! 

if you have any questions or concerns, please don’t hesitate to message the main, and please like this post once you’ve read it ! 

[papalo-palo]

WHM 50, MSQ 34 - The Lord of Crags (Unlocked)

I returned to Costa del Sol to speak with Y'shtola and Wheiskaet. The former saw my crafted robes and said nothing. The latter saw I had completed his trials by errand and congradulated me. It turns out that Y'shtola and I were the honored guests that Gegeruju was expecting for a grand banquet.

Normally impatient, Y'shtola gave a moment of respite and encouraged me to join the feast with all that I could bring. Though no one said the reason why out loud, I understood that not only did everyone already know that I was determined to face Ifrit one way or the other, but the sober remaining Company of Heroes understood that I was not promised to survive the encounter.

This wasn't a going away feast for the soon-to-be-triumphant hero. This was a living wake for the hero-that-would-not-return.

After the austerity of Stillglade Fane that I trained in, and the echoes of the fallen extravagance of Haukee Manor still chewing on my memory, it was with some difficulty that I was able to allow myself to engage fully with the feast. However, once I brought my full attention to bear, I understood why the Culinarian Guild has such a severe reputation. Is it truly possible to glimpse the true form of reality by partaking in gustatory delights made from rare and unique ingredients? For a moment, it felt as if it were true.

But like all moments do, the feast ended and there remained only an empty plate, a full stomach, and a deep dread as Y'shtola and I locked eyes and knew what else we had to do. Reaching the kobold aetheryte was simple work for the Maelstrom guard, Y'shtola, and myself. After some consideration, she activated the aetheryte and located a possible destination deep within O'Ghomoro. We retreated back to Camp Bronze Lake where she sent a missive requesting assistance from either the Adventurer's Guild or the Scions of the Seventh Dawn. Only now does she look at what I am wearing.

"So it seems you have received more than just the well-wishes of your peers and associates. I see you have received the attention of a skilled crafter. Yes, this does better suit your improved ability to channel aether into mana, but keep in mind that there will be many situations where despite the advantages such gear can cloak you with, the very environment itself will limit what you are able to do with the aether you are able to draw upon. Do not become so dependent on the advanced skills that you have learned, that you forget your training and the abilities you first learned when you set out."

"Having said that, it appears that despite the urgency of my call, that there will not be others soon available to help us confront Ifrit. As much as you have progressed, you are not yet able to confront such a primal on your own. I will not be able to assist you as I have to maintain vigil at the aetheryte so that you can return, or that I can send others to you. As such, Papalo, if you are eager to practice your skills so that they do not become faint, present yourself to your Grand Company, and see how you can be of help there."

Serpent Commander Vorsaile Heuloix was quick to remind me of my obligation to House Dzemael of Ishgard. I consulted with the quartermaster to determine of the omnicrafter's gift was sufficient to provide protection in the cave system. She was disappointed to see a member of the Order of the Twin Adder in "common adventuring slops", but did acquiesce that they were better than what I could obtain from her with grand company seals.

With how fast everything is happening, I chose to stop once again in the Carline Canopy with a serving of eel pie and a tankard of mild ale to record these happenings. As I write, I overhear some adventurers inquiring the Adventurer's Guild of available assignments. Y'shtola had already registered me for assistance with confront Ifrit. I had best conclude this entry and register for assistance with Dzemael Darkhold while there is still assistance to be had either way.

[whereareroo]

DEAR MR. TRUMP

WF THOUGHTS (3/7/24).

Dear Mr. Trump:

I’m writing to congratulate you on your many victories in the recent Republican primaries. You were the GOP presidential nominee in 2016 and 2020- -and it’s now clear that you’ll be the nominee in 2024. Whether I like it or not- -and I don’t- -that’s a unique accomplishment. Congratulations!

Please don’t let this congratulatory letter swell your already huge ego. No matter what happens in the upcoming election, history will not remember you fondly. My guess is that you’ll be remembered in America the same way that Germany remembers Hitler and Italy remembers Mussolini. You talk like a villain. You act like a villain. You’ll be remembered as a villain. No matter what you do with the rest of your life, the first paragraph of your obituary will be filled with references to your two impeachments, your 91 indictments, the legal finding against you for sexual assault, the multiple legal findings against you for fraud and defamation, and the massive financial penalties that were assessed against you because of your wrongful behavior. You will be remembered as a con artist, a criminal, a fraud, and an insurrectionist.

All of the damage to your reputation was self-inflicted. Before you ran for president, you knew that your closet was full of skeletons. Because of your self- esteem issues, you put yourself under the spotlight anyway. In addition to your skeletons, the glare of the spotlight has also revealed your warped view of the world. Your massive flaws have been exposed and, slowly but surely, you’re now being held accountable in various ways. No smart person with your baggage would have run for president. If you hadn’t run for president, you could have protected yourself (and your family) from exposure and the consequences. You couldn’t help yourself. When the opportunity presented itself, you ran towards the spotlight. The heat that you’re feeling is the result of your own decisions and your own actions. Stop blaming everyone else.

Despite my personal wishes, there is a good possibility that you will win the 2024 election. If you get back to the White House, you have promised that you will order the Department of Justice to investigate your many grievances. One of your biggest grievances is your view that elections are rigged and voter fraud is widespread. You talk about those alleged problems at every rally.

If you do make it back to the White House, can you do me a small favor? When you ask the Justice Department to investigate election rigging and voter fraud, please ask that the following be investigated:

A. So far in this primary cycle, you’ve run in 20 state primaries. Voters registered to vote using a wide variety of different methodologies. Voters have voted using absentee ballots, mail-in votes, early voting procedures, and by visiting various types of computerized voting machines on primary day. You won in 18 states. In these elections, you have not raised a single complaint about election rigging or voter fraud. How is it that election rigging and voter fraud only occur when you lose? The Justice Department should get to the bottom of that question. Have the bad actors actually developed a rigging/fraud system that is only visible if Trump loses?

B. Despite overwhelming evidence to the contrary, you continue to argue that the 2020 election was “stolen” from you due to election rigging and voter fraud. Your unsubstantiated claim is supported by many Republicans in the House and in the Senate. Many of them won tight elections in 2020. You appeared on the same ballot as those Republican candidates. Even though they claim that there was rigging and fraud with respect to presidential votes on the 2020 ballot, these Republicans claim that they rightfully hold their seats because their elections on the same ballot were not tainted by rigging or fraud. How can it be that on a single ballot there can be vote rigging and voter fraud with respect to one candidate (Trump) but not with respect to all of the other candidates listed on the very same ballot? If the votes for the Congressional candidates weren’t rigged or tainted by fraud, doesn’t that mean that the presidential votes were valid too and that the election wasn’t stolen? It’s notable that your Republican supporters in Congress are totally comfortable with their own election results and that they’ve never called for a review of their own elections. The Justice Department should look into this strange situation. It seems that elections are only rigged, and voter fraud only occurs, when the candidate is Trump and he loses. Isn’t that odd?

Mr. Trump, thanks for your attention to this letter. I tried to keep the letter short for you, and my requests are small. I will use every ounce of my energy to thwart your reelection. Every night, I pray that you’ll lose. If you win, please give my requests serious consideration. Either the vote manipulators possess some type of magical skills that defy rational explanation, or your talk about rigging and fraud is complete and utter hogwash. If you win, I realize that you will stack the Justice Department with your political loyalists. Nonetheless, I’d like them to do an investigation and explain: (1) How vote rigging and voter fraud only occurs on votes related to Trump, and; (2) Why vote rigging and voter fraud only occurs when Trump loses. Thanks. I can’t wish you good luck. Instead, let me simply say that I hope you get what you deserve.

From A Concerned American,

WF

[thenamesofthings]

Franco Franchi, after Bartolomeo Cavaceppi (c. 1716–1796), c. 1800. Carrara: 24 1/2" ht.

"You boast that you are Lords of the World, but you do not possess a foot of land which you can call your own"

…Within the limitations thereby imposed upon him, there can be no doubt that the efforts of Augustus were successful. Thus Velleius, writing a generation after the inauguration of the new regime, but before the spell had been broken, records the impression made on the popular mind by the Pax Augusta in terms which fully admit the claims made by the emperor for himself:

There is nothing that man can desire from the gods, nothing that the gods can grant to man, nothing that wish can conceive or good fortune bring to pass, which Augustus, on his return to the city, did not bestow upon the commonwealth, the Roman people and the world. The civil wars ended . . . foreign wars suppressed, peace re-established, the frenzy of conflict everywhere lulled to rest, validity was restored to the law, authority to the courts, prestige to the senate; the power of the magistrates was reduced to its former limits, except that two were added to the eight existing praetors. The traditional form of the republic was revived. Agriculture returned to the fields, respect to religion, to mankind security of possession, old laws were carefully amended, new legislation enacted for the general good: the senatorial panel was rigorously, if not drastically, revised. Dis- tinguished men who had held office and won triumphs were at the solicitation of the emperor induced to adorn the city with their presence . . . the dictatorship, which the people persisted in offering him, he as persistently refused.

One may smile at the exuberance of this rhapsody on the part of a courtier, an officer of Tiberius Caesar who, like Tiberius himself, regarded the Augustan settlement as the last word in political wisdom. Velleius, indeed, writes like the retired colonel that he was. His observations must nevertheless be accepted as an authentic expression of the spirit of his time. They record the widespread sense of relief occasioned by the cessation of prolonged civil strife, and by the realization of security and well-being under the protection of a strong government. They are a reflection, in terms of the average limited intelligence, of sentiments which pervaded the literature and thought of the Augustan age.

These sentiments, so far from implying any subjection to alien ideals, register the apparent achievement of purposes inherent in the traditional idea of the commonwealth. They express, in fact, the almost universal belief in the final accomplishment of that new deal (nova concordia) towards which the aspirations of all but a few senatorial reactionaries had pointed ever since Gracchan times. Accordingly, they disclose Augustus as the ultimate heir and executor of the revolution whose gains he was now to consolidate. But this, in itself, does not exhaust the meaning of the Augustan settlement. For, in order to effect his purpose, Augustus aligned himself with what was strongest in the conservative tradition which the elder Caesar had never understood. Moreover, he made heavy drafts on the Graeco-Roman social heritage which was common to Left and Right alike. In this sense, the Pax Augusta emerges as a final and definitive expression of the spirit of classical antiquity.

The character and aims of Roman radicalism, which gave rise to the tumultuous revolutionary activity of the first century B.C., may perhaps be illustrated by reference to the works of Sallust, the Jugurtha, the Catiline, and the fragmentary Histories, together with the two Letters to Caesar which, whether or not apocryphal, certainly embody stock ideas of the time. To judge from these works, the long period of senatorial ascendancy, dating from the wars of overseas conquest, constituted a usurpation which, notwithstanding the profit and glory it had brought to Rome, entailed the evils of monopoly. The genuine civic ideal, on the other hand, was enshrined in the forms of the primitive commonwealth, a society of peasants and soldiers from whose ranks were recruited the physical force (vis) necessary to protect the state, as well as the authority (auctoritas) and wisdom (consilium) by which it was directed and controlled. This society by overcoming its economic problems (debt and land) through the conquest and federation of Italy, seemed to the author to have realized the fullest potentialities of the Roman order. Accordingly, with Sallust, the Roman order is ultimately referred to a material principle. In this principle he discovered the secret both of its strength and of its weakness. For while it served to provide the impulse to overseas expansion, the process of expansion sapped the foundations upon which it was thought to rest. In other words, the acquisition of empire served to introduce an era of unrestricted competition, transforming the community of embattled farmers into a vast cosmopolitan society in which a bloc of landed magnates and financiers confronted a submerged mass of proletarians, subjects, and slaves. Thus, by the conquest of the world, the Romans had prepared a virtual servitude for all but the few in whose hands lay the means of exploitation, the control of economic and political power.

To what extent the balance had been upset was revealed to the new proletariat in the burning rhetoric of Gracchus: 'You boast that you are Lords of the World, but you do not possess a foot of land which you can call your own'.

In the unforgettable phrase already quoted, Sallust records his sense of the evils produced by this predatory imperialism at the same time as he suggests its deeper implications. To him it not merely involves a crime against the subject peoples; but, by undermining the material basis of civic life, it overthrows the rights and liberties of the commons. In so doing, it subverts the entire basis of the Latin commonwealth.

In this context the revolution was conceived as a conservative movement, a protest against the prostitution of a common good (res publica) to the interests of a narrow and selfish plutocracy. Hence its characteristic features; such, e.g., as the persistent attempts made by reformers to break down senatorial control over the executive and the judiciary as well as to restore the material basis of freedom through a programme of land-assignations in Italy and abroad, and to humble, if not to destroy, the power of the speculator and money-lender. It was, no doubt, as part of this scheme that the dole was introduced and developed to the point where it became a scandal even to revolutionaries. It could, however, be defended as a palliative, which was at least less demoralizing than the bread-lines already fashionable among great nobles as a means of exhibiting their generosity and of acquiring political influence (gratia).

In such phenomena may be seen the blind but not wholly ineffective revolt of the masses against tendencies which, as has been suggested, involved the extinction of their civic personality. These tendencies are clearly revealed in the speeches which Sallust puts into the mouth of a Lepidus or a Catiline. They explain the utter inability of academic republicanism, such as that professed by a Cato or a Brutus, to cope with the situation. There was nothing in the armoury of their ideas by which they could appeal with conviction to men whose bellies were empty and whose spirits were soured by the glittering spectacle of aristocratic wealth and arrogance. They explain also the suspicion with which the masses received the advances of Cicero, whose liberalism hardly served to conceal his association with financial and political privilege and who, after the part he had played in suppressing the Catilinarians, was, by his own admission, the most unpopular individual in Rome.

For, as they implied a social rot of which Cicero, for all his generous ideas, was only dimly conscious, so also they required more drastic treatment than it was within the power of this self-styled saviour of society to provide. In other words, they called for a Caesar, as the only possible answer to an insistent demand for the subjection of power by power…

—Charles Norris Cochrane (1889–1945). Christianity and Classical Culture, 1940

[hiremaid-verifiedhelpers]

Is your Helper a Victim of Domestic Violence?

Help your helper against violence. For the past many months, my house help had been struggling with domestic violence, including physical abuse. Sadly, I had no inkling, till it grew to the extent that I had to intervene and help her register a case with the police. I was surprised, and ashamed, that I had been unable to see the signs of abuse of a Helper who had been looking after my house so that I could work in peace.

Domestic Workers vs Employers

During this process of helping her I learnt that it was common in her community to suffer emotional and physical abuse at the hands of husbands and in some cases the sons. However, these women largely chose to suffer in silence mainly due to the lack of awareness, social support, and self-confidence.

I think there would be many more like me who would like to help their Helpers who were victims of domestic abuse but might not know how to help. That is why this small write-up about some tips to help women who suffer domestic violence:

Know the signs: The abuse could be physical, which is easy to detect. But, it could also be emotional and/or verbal abuse, which makes the victim either extra aggressive or extra silent. Any change in behavior should therefore ring the alarm bell.

Similarly, there could be financial abuse, where the victim does not get money to take care of her needs, and in fact, might have her own salary also taken away by the abuser.

Educate your Helpers: Tell the Helpers that they should find out about the local help in their communities. These could include Mahila Mandals, local NGOs, as well as women’s cell in the local police station. They should also stay networked with their neighbors who can help them in need.

There is also “The Protection of Women from Domestic Violence Act (DV Act) 2005”, for women undergoing domestic violence. The law in itself is woman-friendly.

Some facts you can tell them is:

The Act looks at domestic violence as a civil offense, and makes it easy for women to give evidence, obtain compensation and even punishment or penalty.

It can also be applied to brothers, uncles, aunts, cousins, parents-in-law, brothers-in-law or sisters-in-law or others in the immediate family who trouble or attack a woman or girl verbally, sexually, emotionally, economically, psychologically, or physically.

The victim cannot be evicted from her home.

Ring the Bell: Tell them of this simple yet effective way to help each other during domestic violence. Women should just ring the bell if they notice a violent situation in the neighbourhood. They could use the old neighbourly approach of asking to borrow some sugar or salt as an excuse to intervene. The ringing of the bell would break the cycle of the violence at least at that time. This is something which they can all discuss and agree upon for use at any time in their own groups.

Help them with technology: If your Helper has a smartphone, help her download a free safety app for women, which they can use if they are in danger. This is especially helpful when domestic violence is physical.

Listen and be the back-up: Sometimes just by listening to a victim you can give them the confidence to report the matter. Your listening can make them believe that people will not judge them for the violence inflicted on them. In the absence of this confidence victims can feel isolated or belittled, or even guilty. Help them get out of this guilt. Let them know that you will be willing to support them in case they want to go to the authorities.

Make the calls: If the situation is beyond simple intervention, call the police or your local support services, or an NGO, which you can easily find on the Internet. You can do so even when you want to remain anonymous. Also, help the victim find the assistance she needs, whether it is legal information, local domestic violence programmes, or finding a safe place through a battered women’s shelter.

Document everything: Document any signs of abuse that you witness. This can be in the form of dates, notes, pictures and other similar things. This documentation can help if and when the victim decides to go to the authorities.

If you know any person who is searching for a job, please get her registered here, so that the person can become independent financially.