#different causes but same results smh

[f1-stuff]

Hungarian GP '23 // P7 Finish

"Today, honestly, in pure race pace, I think we weren't that bad. It's just that with the slow pit stop, plus the five-seconds penalty, it puts us in a very difficult situation..."

[r0ckgoblin]

Would that I- bella ramsey xreader

“true that i saw her hair like the branch of a tree”

summary: bella is a person of many trades, your favorites just so happen to be when they play guitar and sing. you have always admired this about her, as any friend would. b/c you and bella have always been supportive of each other’s interest, they always come to you first when he’s written a song or learned a new one. why would this time be any different?

a/n: idk how to write summaries… but anyways enjoy:) (p.s. hc wise, i think they listen to hozier…yea she definitely does)

warnings: unproper grammar(maybe) how i've passed all my lit classes i will never know. probably not fully proofread, i miss the smallest things smh

*all pronouns for bella used*

you wiggle the key into the stubborn door of bella’s apartment, eventually winning the fight against it. opening the door you’re met with the sound of guitar strings being plucked and you smile softly. setting your bag on the kitchen counter you begin wandering around looking for your best friend.

“hey bels?” you call out.

“in here” he says from the sunroom.

you laugh softly grabbing a small throw blanket from the couch.

"hi" you smile, bending down to hug her, finding it a little difficult due to the guitar in their lap. the smell of old spice wonderfully clouds your sense of smell as they reach up to hug you back. the two of you gently sway for a few seconds before you pull back to adjust yourself next to him on the small couch, covering your legs with the blanket.

"how was your day?" he asks smiling over at you.

"it was good, slow, it was just a lot of cleaning up some scenes" you exhale recalling your most recent project, a movie you had been working on for the last few months, one only the people a part of it and the people closes to you knew about. acting was stressful sometimes, but the final project was always worth it, and that's something you and bella could both agree on.

"those days are inevitable, but i believe in you." they say as the lean back to rest their head on your shoulder. this caused you to blush a light pink color, luckily, he couldn't see your face at the moment. you didn't know what it was but lately you've been feeling certain ways about your best friend, and you were scared you wouldn't be able to hide those feelings for much longer. the only thing stopping you was the incessant fear of losing her friendship if they didn't feel the same way.

after moments of peaceful silence bella breaks it be jolting up excitedly. "oh! i learned a new song!"

"really? show me!'' you smiled mirroring her excitement. for as long as you've known bella your favorite thing about them has been her ability to play guitar and sing. they were so good at it, and it seemed to be a big passion of his as well.

"of course! you're going to love it, it's a hozier song" they beam at you holding eye contact waiting for your reaction, which didn't take long because you immediately grinned so big.

" you learned another one? which one?!" you question with giddy.

"you'll have to guess."

"c'mon that's no fun" you whine putting on a fake frown.

"you'll live" she jokes.

"okay, fine go." you pout resulting in a laugh from her.

she plucks some cords before playing, listening to them intently. you just stare at him in awe. before you know it, you're hearing the first notes of hozier's "would that i". you gasp in amazement, and they let a small laugh leave their mouth, somehow without losing focus. as if it couldn't get any better, he also starts singing the words along with the music.

you feel your eyes water, you have no idea why that would be happening. was it the emotional toll of being in love with your best friend, someone who you've watched grow into a beautiful and talented human being? the fear that if you were to express how you feel, it could all turn against you, and you lose the one person who means the most in the world to you? or maybe it's just because the song is so beautiful? its defiantly the song.

you got so lost listening to his voice and the way the sun setting through the window made their skin glow and made his hair shine like honey. shit you were head over heels.

by down you had drowned out her voice due to your staring that you didn't even realize they had finished. not until they're talking directly at you. you blush a little realizing you 100% got caught staring.

"so what do you think?" she ask not making eye contact.

"i loved it," you smiled,

"thank you so much." he grins, and you swear you see faint pink on their cheeks.

"i, um-", you go to say something, but you stop yourself.

"what was that?''

"i uh... i should get back to my hotel.''

"just stay here'' she says but its more of a begging question.

"no, i can't, ive got an early morning and we both know i'm not quiet in the mornings, i wouldn't want to wake you that early.'' you try and lie.

"y/n please'' he begs, grabbing your hand giving you those big brown puppy eyes.

"i'm sorry.'' you shake your head.

they tug you closer, your chests touching. they stare you in the eyes, you notice her give a quick glance to your lips. you in return look to theirs.

"there's something uh... i've mean meaning to tell you," they exhale nervously, "and i really need to get it off my chest. this um..." they swallow hard, "this is harder than i thought."

"shut up" you say with a fake serious tone.

"what i haven't even gotten to what i wanted to say." they knit their eyebrows in confusion.

"you don't have to, if it's what i think it is, i already know," you smile, "because i want to tell you the same thing."

"y/n-"

"i like you, like REALLY like you okay!"

"i-" they were speechless. you two just stared back at each other, waiting for the other to speak.

"i like you two, like reeaallyy like you." they smile wide.

you smile and release a breath of relief, resting your forehead on theirs. you two stay like that giggling back and forth.

"can i kiss you?" they speak up.

"of course." you smile.

she then softly presses their lips to yours, grabbing your face, she deepens the kiss making it more passionate but soft. his hands travel to your hair gently brushing it while your hands find the small of their back caressing softly. this goes on until your both pulling away for air, laughing breathlessly.

"so... stay the night?"

you laugh hugging them as they spin you around like something out of a movie.

the rest of the night you spend cuddled on the couch watching your favorite movies until you're both passed out in each other's arms.

a/n: AAAAHHH LETS GOOOO!!!! so BAHAHAAHAH this took longer than i wanted and it's not even as long as i wanted it:( anyways here it is, i hope you really enjoy it. there will hopefully be more in the future:) feel free to request, also let me know if my replies are off bc i clicked on one of my post and it says my comments are turned off??? idk, but my asks should be on:) love you! have a great day/night!🫶

[maidragoste]

hello, its your newest nuisance writing to you, but this time...

SPOILERS BELOW IF YOU HAVEN'T WATCHED YET, DO NOT READDDDD!! I IMPLORE YOU, DO NOT READ!!

....

ok, now that those cautions were taken I hope your day has been well and when you do watch the episode, I hope you I was gonna say find joy, but each episode I become crazier than the last and each episode is either 1/4 good or 3/4 bad.

like Aemond is becoming worse and worse before my eyes, Alicent doesn't even want to go back and is on a religious retreat like some sort of "find myself and meditate" regimen. Rhaenyra is hosting a game show called: "Welcome to the dragon games!! let us see who can claim a dragon and survive!!" Ooooooo!! And she's not even giving a waiver, smh. Like they were told nothing except that they'd possible claim a dragon, like if I left my job/life to die, don't you think I should get a notice?? Also, Ulf is the man he said he was lol.

Jace being man low borns can claim dragons is funny because they have about as much parentage as him lol. They're all bastards like himself, the only difference is those bastards parents didn't have the means to keep them like Rhaenyra did and on most occasions the parents didn't want them so Jace best count his blessings that his mom didn't leave him to the streets and that his grandfather was willing to turn many blind eyes because not everyone had that (Saera we're looking at you sis, because I know you have a multitude of babies running around).

Also, this dragon testing is like in Grey's Anatomy when Meredith and Derek were testing out cure's for tumors like it reminded me of that because in the beginning they had bad results and in the end, they did it and "weeeee, happy ending for alllllll!!" well....except those that died.... Maybe Rhaenyra watches Grey's when she's not kissing everyone on sight??

This episode wasn't bad, but like again, I think it's the writing like whomever is in the writing room needs to stop with the fillers because season 2 was clearly a filler to season 3 where the real events begin, like I get wanting a show to have many seasons, but it should have many seasons if there's cause for it. And I know that Fire and Ice is an unreliable narrator to the plot events so anything could be hypothetically cannon, but like, do we not take ideas from hypotheticals and fill in the gaps? This show is like watching one's own head cannon of events like if that's the case, let me have my turn to write up what's gonna happen next.

But, who am I lol, I'm not a film writer. Welp, thank you again for listening to my rant and you have yourself a marry day.

hey bestie i love reading your opinions of the show episodes. sorry for taking so long to reply i was busy

honestly as an aemond girl and an alicent girl it's painful to watch this season for me 😭😭

you are so right about the Rhaenyra thing. not only did she not give them any direction but she also wouldn't let them leave which is an idiotic move because she was supposed to be looking for a rider for silverwing too ☠️☠️

About Jacaerys in my opinion he is right to be angry and i understand his point of view. i really liked the scene of him facing Rhaenyra. But I admit that at the same time I have mixed feelings because in the book he is the one who comes up with the idea of the dragon seeds

I didn't watch Grey's Anatomy so I don't know what you're talking about lol

The episode was good but I feel like this was a season of transition and as you say instead of following any of the hypotheses of the book the writers are doing what they want 😭😭

I hope you're okay anon, thanks for writing to me 🥰💖

[miss-ari]

A Non-Comprehensive List of "Foods That Don't Really Exist In Australia Compared to America" In My Experience Thus Far

(Some of these you can find at specialty US food/import stores if you're lucky though!)

Saltine crackers

Graham crackers

Yellow/orange mac and cheese. It is white-ish here, comes in a smaller quantity but costs more, and does not taste the same. I tried making it like I would back home and my partner said "This slaps!" but I thought it was kinda dreadful :x

Twizzlers. Okay a lot of American candies are going to be missing but this is the one that hurts me most. Like, oh no they don't have Mike & Ikes- who the fuck cares.

Funky ice cream flavours in tubs. Australia does ice cream treats really well, you are pretty much guaranteed delicious results if it is individually wrapped. But anything outside of basic vanilla (which tastes VERY different from any American vanilla ice cream I've ever had in my life), chocolate, and neapolitan in a tub is gonna be goddamn scarce. I have managed to track down mint chocolate chip and cookies & cream but they were gross. Anything more complex- think moose tracks, chocolate cherry chip, brownie, rocky road, cookie dough, etc- you are shit out of luck my friend because if they do exist here they come in specialty brand pints exclusively and they are at least $12 a pop, kys

Jif peanut butter

Breakfast or "country" sausages. I actually had no idea that was exclusively an American thing until I moved here. No one knows what I'm talking about and I just gesture helplessly when they ask for details because I don't know what's in those either! I've never had to think about it before! But I better find out 'cause it's time to start making them myself. Send help.

(Good) Mexican food, just as a whole -_-;

Root beer. For some reason they have Ginger Beer but not Ginger Ale and I swear there is a difference but it probably doesn't matter

Ranch dressing?? I'm a good midwestern girl what is this fresh hell

Cheez-its, cheetos, cheez whiz, goldfish crackers- most salty cheese snacks. Your average grocery chain like Woolies or Coles isn't gonna have these and it's a little weird.

Fruit snacks. Presumably because they don't have enough fruit for Australia to legally call them that. I have found some at Costco but that's about it. Side note, the Kirkland chocolate chips bag says "Great for baking and snacking" so they've manually put a plain white sticker with black text over it that says "Great for baking and cooking" :')

Egg rolls. Actually most Chinese American food which. Okay that makes sense now that I think about it but orange chicken my beloved... crab rangoon... egg rolls... They do have "spring rolls" but they are kinda shit! Korean food is everywhere though and it is goddamn delicious. Oh and you can get mochi ice cream 10 for $10 at Coles. There's limited flavours obviously but they have strawberry and mango and that is all that matters tbqh (black sesame is a 0/10, truly awful)

Fritos/corn chips. Tortilla chips exist but are more expensive than you'd expect, and the "Hispanic" section of the grocery store is like. A shelf. Bitches don't even have crema smh

Velveeta

Cool whip

Not a food but Tums or even really generic antacid tablets- I cannot find them anywhere

If we're including not-foods all of a sudden: cardstock.

Candy corn

Lemonade. Australians will insist they have lemonade but it is fucking carbonated!! I'm like no no it's not supposed to be fizzy, it's not like a Sprite. "So it's just lemon and sugar water...?" Yes!!! God!!

Specifically this type of noodle:

Almond bark

Maraschino cherries

Trail mix

And your reactions will vary wildly between "Eh. That's fair." and "Oh dear god, please tell me the US import store takes requests."

[jerzwriter]

Good grief. I'm so tired of the anon hate. I promise Nonny this is a simple fix. If you don't agree with something or don't like it, then just go find something on Tumblr you do like. Then you aren't stressed and angry and causing anyone else to feel the same. Win/Win.

I am so sorry you are having to deal with that message. You don't deserve it. This is one situation though that baffles the crap out of me that someone finds issue with. I couldn't remain silent another second when it's over something I've actually experienced in my life, LoL.

As a person who received not only an impromptu proposal (which resulted in me not only marrying the guy but also still married to him for over a decade and we've managed to have two kids), I also was given a temporary engagement ring until he found the right one. I tell you they really are some of the best, at least for us, because as soon as he knew I was the one for him he couldn't wait another second to propose to me. And yes, I remember it all.

We were sitting in my apartment, late one night, watching an old episode of Friends (The One with the Chair 😂) and were kissing. In the midst of the kiss, he broke away long enough to tell me he loved me so much and wanted to marry me. I laughed and said, okay. There was no ring and he hadn't even dropped down on one knee, LoL. He then went out the next day and got a temporary ring while he began the process of having my engagement ring made. A little over a month later, my true ring was ready. Instead of telling me, he simply came over for our usual week night date, set it on the barstool while I was cooking, and waited until I saw it. Apparently I was too distracted and he was like, "Notice anything different?" After looking around, I saw the little black box and squealed over my ring. It wasn't something that would earn millions of likes if filmed, but it was sweet because he simply couldn't wait another moment to plan something. He had to propose right then.

Those who receive planned proposals, that's awesome for you and your significant other. I know they are beautiful and romantic. But don't knock those impromptu ones, Nonny.

They aren't too shabby either 😉

This particular individual has had a hardon for me for some time. I don’t know why I live rent free in her head, but I do. SMH I don’t know, if I don’t like someone, I simply don’t interact with them. 🤷🏻‍♀️ I barely have enough time for the people I want to interact with. 😂

Your proposal sounds lovely! There is no right or wrong way to do it, and I hate when people assume lavish ways are the only way to go. I am going to be honest, my friends with the courthouse and very simple weddings have fared much better than those with the $60k and up budgets.

Thanks so much for sharing andI a so happy you got your happily ever after. ❤️

[fortunatelyenchantingtaco]

Do be so interesting to read fandom history cause while i did gain interest in fandoms really early for my baby self, it also mainly took place in a ru**ian speaking part of the internet

And the fun part about being a country that just doesnt generate any revenue or is uniteresting to basically anyone. Is that while yeah i was paranoid to keep all separate (which could have been better but whatever) its also blessedly so free of any and all lefal rights. For multiple reasons, tbf, its not only the fact that people were greedy and didnt want to pay. Soviet union just didnt have proper laws about intellectual property, and people just got access to the internet, and, more importantly, everyone was poor as shit. The piracy was thriving in parts because no actual people wanted to go into Ukraine and try to restrict the internet. Like hell we were buying discs of games and such, but those were pirated too

But torrent sites were so abundant it was not even funny. They still are, just a bit prettier, and less likely to give you a malware you purge for the next three days from you pc. Like when i tell you i was surprised you can get fined or smh over streaming from the wrong site i was flabbergasted. Yeah. The same thing with fandom content, the cursed ru**ian site i was on simply did not care. No one cared about any ownership. Hell, this was technically positioned as a social medie but became really dark at some point, doxxing was way too common. And there were ‘asks’ which is basically you take on a role of a character and answer questions and post. In the later years they also got littered with legal rules but for the longest time it was just. Nothing

It do be funny how its all connected not even to the fact that Ukraine is a new country or the fact that our government just refuses to police internet (aside from when it comes to our neighbours. Thsi yeah). Its all deeply connected to the simple fact that a) all fun content wasnt in english 2) we are simply not making any money to the creator regardless. How are you going to send cease and desist to a country where that shit doesnt even work

Like yeah there was a lot of scary shit. If your family/friends/people in your city would found out that you were queer or were writing queer? Oh yeah that could result in losing basically everything. But even that was more common in our neighbour and ukraine is simply just. Idk. People are very tired and deeply do not care because even if youre not participating in stuff like that your lifelihood is dangling on a threat every day cause economy is shit and everything is shit. Most people are genuinely too tired to go and doxx someone, and im not joking rn. I would love to say its better rn but its deeplt deeply not now we are at warl

To be completely honest, i do think fanfiction writers deserve to have commisions and everything and have the option to be given shit for their work. Fanartists do, and the main reason writers dont is because for whatever reason, legally speaking, it can be argued that the person is paying for the artist’s interpretation or a charater so its not a crime. Idk it may vary between different countries its just what i heard people at mine say. Its always much more finicky when it comes to writing and there is no walking around it which sucks ass but whatever i guess. I think it was just a bit more of a pressing issue in my circles due to everyone being sad depressed poor and writing to take control of their lives in any way possible but not much space to be actually creative and try to live on writing books

Damn sorry this is not a rant just an observation of how different fandom experience is. Due to me being like in A Lot of asks i was speaking with a lot of writers and with no one who draws so idk their part of the story. Drawing asks were also there btw, can still see people occasionally post the “hi ask me questions” art. So yeah i kinda. Was marinating in this

[yostresswritinggirl]

hi! ik sojourner's already ended but i have an(other?) idea in case u ever pick it up since i love ur albedo 😳😳 ok so

what abt a reader who is rlly excited abt alchemy, but they avoid talking abt it bc they start rambling and stuttering and stumbling over their words bc they're so excited? they get assigned/asked to go w/ albedo bc they're rlly good at alchemy too, but they end up fidgeting a lot, muttering and stopping just a few words in before their volume rises and giving short answers when w/ him bc they're afraid of rambling (since they do it to think better when alone, sometimes insulting and arguing w the objects when they don't get the expected result) & being seen as annoying or unprofessional?? i'd like to see how he reacts to these and what he'd think!! and how or when he discovers the reason reader is acting like that

it's kinda (a lot, rlly skowkskdk i always have ideas but never write them) specific, but i rlly like the idea!! i'd love to see what u do w/ it if u ever pick it up in the future :D hope you're staying hydrated and well🥺🥰 -🌌

What do you mean Sojourner's already ended, Sojourner is eternal, Sojourner is forever-

Kidding aside, this is too cute to pass up, even if it's quite a lot! Cute Albedo brainrot moments always please. It might be too much sometimes but I hope you enjoy my interpretation of it! Scenarios format! Starry night, oh I'm always hydrated, thank you and I hope you're well!

For the Record

Albedo working with a Reader that's highly enthusiastic about alchemy but insecure about rambling... (masterlist)

You dealt with Alchemy a year before the Kreideprinz entered Mondstadt, your attunement to the mystic arts baffling and intriguing you every time. During that period, you're not really sure of what art you're doing but in the end, you kept doing great that the people had acknowledged your talents.

Through your own effort and self-study even if unnamed, you managed to put your talent into this art of Alchemy and created discoveries regarding powders and mineral-focused ingredients. It was a shame there was no one to share it to, and when you talk to scholars/practitioners alike, you end up rambling so much to the point that on their end you barely make sense. Whether this was caused by your eaten words or lax and personalized vocabulary over the matter, you're not sure.

Their confused and judgmental stare haunts you, leaving you alone with your raging thoughts and overworking mind when you just want to learn and expand your discoveries to other people without driving them away. Your enthusiasm is great and all, but it's not enough to make others understand.

So when the Chalk Prince entered Mondstadt, blessing the city with his scholarly knowledge and boundless creations, he easily made a name for himself and in extension the city itself.

Before Sucrose and Timaeus, you were called upon by the Grand Master Varka to accompany Albedo and be his temporary assistant seeing as his field in the division is still quite new and you were the only other 'Alchemist' in town besides him. You're both giddy and nervous, like really, really nervous.

You've heard of Albedo and maybe a caught a glimpse or two, but you've never actually interacted enough to know exactly what he looks like or how he is as a person. All you know is that he's a very, very attractive person overall.

"Good-looking, carries this aura of wisdom around him, he's just really charming," were the words that rang through your mind as you pointedly watched your steps, following the carpets leading to Ordo Favonius' laboratory while Lisa's words rang through your head.

Is he really that kind of person? You've heard that he's quite stoic too, but if he's really that distracting, you're scared that it would be harder for you to focus and help out. Honestly how would you even deal with him when your fields of Alchemy are so different from each other?

You have no idea how long you've been thinking, standing in contemplation in front of the set of double doors that leads to the workshop with nothing but doubt in your mind. But upon realizing the teal gaze of another person silently waiting instead of wooden doors, you figured it was far too long.

"Ah, I'm sorry! I was in my head, I wasn't expecting you to-!" You flailed your hands around comically before abruptly stopping, noticing the now confused stare of Albedo of which are distracted by your hands. Clearing your throat, you extended a hand towards him to shake, trying to stare anywhere but his face. "I'm (Y/N), I'll be your assistant until you're well settled in the city. It's nice to meet you, Ma-"

His hand finds yours in a firm grip, a firm shake so sudden you bit your tongue back, "Albedo, Kreideprinz of the Art of Kemia, but just Albedo is fine, I'll be under your care."

Albedo finds it intriguing and surprisingly not that distracting whenever you talk to yourself or to the ingredients whenever you so much as feel the slightest frustration. "Ugh, this Zinc powder is so stubborn, clingy," you angrily mumbled under your breath as you washed off the blue powder that spilled at your hand, "So, so clingy." Since you're facing the sink, you couldn't see the way he was holding himself from laughing audibly at your amusing antics.

You seemed lively and open, is what Albedo thought when he first met you. But this observation soon shattered when he kept getting hanged upon your abrupt stops when delving into your field, something he was really irked about the first few times. Your art of Alchemy is much different from his and he's wishing that you'd clarify and expound all your learnings to him, but in the end, you somehow step back everytime your words became lengthy.

Are you hiding something? Did you not want him to learn the same arts as yours? If those were the case, he couldn't bring himself to ask a simple question such ad why. Every time it crosses his mind, it brings a purse of a pout to his lips and furrowed eyebrows.

Every response you gave always hints even tiny bits of trivias and tips he's never heard, Albedo always takes note of your spills that always cuts before reaching its climax. "-sorry, yes, this is activated charcoal Geo and Pyro slimes reaction." He lets out an audible sigh upon your retreat, your frustrated mind too occupied to notice.

"Please," his desperation drips in his word when he looks at you with eyes filled with raw emotion you'd never know he'd be able to pull off. Your tightly locked lips only pressed on further at his puppy eyes, "Please continue, I wish to know more about your Alchemy, if you would be so kind."

"It's not really- I'm not really the best at explaining it..." You're almost fidgeting, cheeks aching from tensing and warmth. But he regarded you with a blank stare, forcing you to fill the silence, "If I- If I start, my ramblings may not uhm they're not easy to comprehend... or something."

Albedo had been watching more than he'd like to admit, and he's come to relieved (yet still confused) realization that your treatment with him wasn't his alone. You always step back before things get lengthy, words then cutting short and concise with a steeled expression. Lips caught between teeth.

"I digress," his hand motions to yourself to emphasize his next clause. "As your field and sole practitioner of this art, like my own condition, your word of mouth is the best ground of knowledge."

If he was irritated, he's doing a very good job in hiding it. And even with the respectable yet close distance in between you still felt cornered. This is still your master and it's not professional to refuse a scholarly talk, "The electro crystals when charged... ionized? create sparks, while also producing the same result when smacking- mining!"

The scribbles of his pen against his clipboard as he nods in attention urges you on, realizing his focus and sincere interest on the topic, "So when you put the little tidbits or even powdered version in a beaker thingy, depending on the material, they interact with the spark. Honestly, I'm unsure yet how lethal it is but if you put the sparks under fire too, they make like those makeshift gunpowder as well as additional reactions such as-!"

The lilt and proceeding high pitch in your voice usually signifies the approach of your insecurity as well as the climax of your enthusiasm. At this point, you pull your hand up to shut your mouth forcefully, and when Albedo really detests the abrupt end of the conversation his hand would shoot forward to grasp your own.

He'd intertwine your fingers to distract, before urging you to continue with a challenging stare, as if daring you to use your other hand to pull that off again. This whole scene felt oddly scandalous, but oh boy does it send your mind into a bambling, overloaded mess. A heated head forces your lips open even if they sometimes come out in a jumbled string, he learns to decipher them.

The more you get used to or feel more comfortable, Albedo uses that fondness skillfully whenever he wants. "Can you tell me more about the scarlet chunks from Dragonspine?" He throws it so casually in the silence as you two work back to back in your stations, without a beat as your mind is partially preoccupied, you answered into a narrative of trivia. It almost feels like you're talking to the flames of the bunsen while you wait, but Albedo smiles at the now filled silence as he listens with divided attention.

He really likes your voice, and the word of wonders you bring along with you.

"For the record, I don't mind it at all," his breath hovers on your lips, cold and prickly, "Whatever comes out of these lips, I want to hear it all."

That last part eheh

Woah, this went long. Like reader babbling hahaha. I said I'm gonna speedrun, not freaking write this long smh

@zelos-simp @legionqueensav @snackgod @rxsalinee @cala-ran @wind-wheel @lilydewi22 @yellowflowre @traveler-lumine @nonniechan @creation-magician @hanniejji @gojos-baby @just-some-stars @volleybloop @tartuu @moaa @dandelion-dreams @witchsungie @lehra @albaedhoe @xiaophilia @heisenwurst @childe-simp-exe

[lovee-infected]

So Merlin the goddamn great, smh but no ROOK LORE I AM FURIOUS! I STILL WANT TO HEAR YOUR THOUGHTS

Warning: Spoiler alert!

Oooooofff the final episodes of chapter 5 did seriously explode the fandom I see, from the overblot Grim to our twst Merlin, everything literally everything about the end of this chapter was a big surprise but... This chapter has also brought up a considerably huge wave of drama along with it, which is basically because of Rook voting for RSA instead of NRC. I, personally, considered it to be just a reason to laugh and make a meme or two about this chapter and all. But looking at the fandom, I can clearly see that it's been causing some serious consequences, some fans/creators are leaving the fandom, there has been a couple of offensively worded Rook hate posts (small memes and jokes aren't counted) and there's ever a #RookIsOverParty on Twitter now.

Okay but, it was all cool and chill until it was just a joke. Can't you see? This happens in many fandoms! And is often a good chance to laugh! But...This is getting serious. A huge majority of this fandom (even Rook/Vil shippers and Rook stans themselves) are hating on Rook/Rook stans and fans are leaving, therefore I believe the situation needs to be clarified before it leads to more dramas.

Many of you had also requested a Rook analysis before sooooo- here we go!

First off, this episode did eventually give us a considerable amount of Rook lore although it wasn't as perfect as we wanted it to be. Most of us wanted to get to know him more, but I'd say focusing on all we've got already would do for now. But before that, let's talk about what exactly happened in chapter 5 and why are fand hating on Rook rn:

after the performances are voted on, it’s revealed that nrc lost to rsa by just a single vote. that vote turned out to be rook, who voted for rsa in favor of their own team as he was moved by their spirit. the whole nrc team is shellshocked (of course) and vil faints

it’s also later revealed that rook is one of neige’s biggest fans, possessing albums full of his bromides, going to each meet and greet, and even writing him anonymous fan letters.

Okay okay I know this was quite unexpected and resulted in NRC's loss, but before you say how much of a shitty character Rook is consider this:

1) He was totally honest with his opinion and thoughts.

One of the interesting facts regarding Rook's character design and presence in chapter 5, is how he played the role of both the huntsman and the mirror.

He was honest with his beliefs and decision, although it was against his friends. Just as how the mirror introduced Snow White as the fairest one of all although Evil Queen didn't want to hear of her.

This is also what Rook did, he judged based on his idealistics towards beauty. NOT because he's a screaming Neige fanboy and NOT because he disliked Vil.

Honestly, if there's one person whose judgement would be strong and on point, that'll be Rook and only him; in parts (2) & (4) we'll explain why.

2) His decision has nothing to do with his personal relationship with Vil!

Yes, he voted for RSA, but to assume that this means he secretly preferred Neige over Vil all this time and call him a betrayer now, that's wrong.

Look, if there one person who could judge NRC's process through the training sessions fairly, that'll be Rook. He's been there all this time, watching each and every second of Vil's coaching and team's progressing, note that he also helped Vil the most, this performance would've been impossible without his help!

But, he was also there when Vil lost it, when Vil's fear of not being the winner took over him and made him even try to poison Neige. At some point Vil was nothing like the perfect coach he was at the very beginning, and if Rook hadn't told Neige to escape who knows how terrible the whole think might've gone.

His decision, on the other hand, was HIS decision. He was asked to choose one performance, and he chose what he liked; that's all, no big deal. Note that the silly thing with the whole issue isn't mainly how Rook voted for RSA, it's also about how half of the audience as well voted for RSA which makes it sound almost stupid, this point will be explained in part (5)!

3) Have you all really forgotten what Rook is like?

I mean, come on this is what he is in general! This is Rook Hunt we're speaking of, one of the rarely known characters of the game and mister of surprises and unpredictable decisions!

Him being a Neige fan is no big deal, and I assure you, he probably stans a lot of other people else than Neige too. Don't forget that this is the same monseiur Rook who gave 100 points! to anyone who participated in NRC's VDC test, so there shouldn't really be a panic taking all over the fandom just because we know he stans Neige, Rook is one to greatly appreciate the concept of beauty in general, and Neige is one of the most famous and beautiful people in the whole twisted wonderland, so other than this being much of a snow white reference, it was totally expected to see him stanning Neige as well. Keep this in mind that just because he's a fan of Neige, it doesn't mean that he hates or he has betrayed Vil.

In Rook's point of view, there is no such thing as rivals in beauty, he just appreciates both Vil and Neige's beauty regardless of what's going on between them.

4) This chapter proved that Rook is indeed a perfect friend for Vil.

While there hasn't ever been a mention of a canon relationship between Vil and Rook, shipper may be happy to know that this episode didn't sink the ship at all. And if you judge and see through what happened in the right eye, you'll see it even shows how strong their friendship is.

Note that this wasn't the first time Rook criticizes Vil either, back in Vil's SR lab coat story he openly criticized Vil and said he's gonna get fat if he continued to eat like this. See? Rook never the once lied to Vil, he openly judges him, and his judgements are logical and on point.

Vil on the other hand is always working his hardest to improve, to become better and completer by each and every day that passes. He needs such a friend by his side to judge him nonetheless, a friend to judge him just like the mirror judged the Queen. But there's a difference, Vil accepts and appreciates criticism BECAUSE, he wants to improve.

A friend like Rook is seriously what he needs, Rook supported and helped him all the way as RSA was getting prepared for VDC, he could've just made them lose and by ruining their training sessions if he wanted to! Can't you see? He helped Vil more than anyone else, but didn't lie to him when it was the time to judge. Vil still has a long way to go, and Rook is aware. He wants Vil to see that he isn't yet complete so that he can become better than he already is.

That's it, that's what a real friend would do.

5) Twst needs to be more considerative toward story line and sudden reveals.

On the one hand, it's mainly fans who are exaggerating the whole issue and starting drama over a simple voting and all, but twst itself as well is partly guilty. This is such a huge and active fandom, each and every detail about the story can be super effective (ex: Sebek being half human, Malleus being an orphan, etc). After making RSA's Yahoo performance look super silly they worst thing they could do was to make NRC lose like this, meaningless, silly and helpless. Why?

Twst seriously needs to take details more seriously as they could've AT LEAST made this comparison sound reasonable by choosing a better and stronger song than a twisted version of Heigh-Ho.

There's absolutely nothing wrong with Rook voting for Neige, but seriously? Rook voting for Neige had to be a symbol of honesty and Rook's loyalty toward the concept of beauty itself and not Vil, not an stupid decision to make Rook prefer a childish song over NRC's wonderful performance and look like a helpless Neige fan boy.

-Sigh- Well, I guess that's all I had for now, hope I didn't miss anything. But anyway, the Rook drama is slowly getting overwhelming. There's nothing wrong with memes and jokes AS LONG AS THEY'RE JUST A JOKE- offending characters with clear intention and causing drama because of it is not okay. I know that was unexpected please remember not to exaggerate the story too much either!

[nightswithkookmin]

chile i'm so glad i came across your blog, the amount of "i'm not going to assume they're dating" or "we can only draw certain conclusions but i can't say for sure" "we don't know their sexuality, BUT" type blogs i follow is getting kinda wack lmao. while i appreciate their perspective and nuanced takes i need to strike a balance. like let's get a lil delulu every once in a while. 💀

lol the im-not-a-shipper-but-call-jikook-boyfriends-every-other-post blogs are the funniest to me. the shipping hierarchy, so to speak is so weird. maybe just because im not a "shipping real people is bad" person i don't see the big deal. gonna get called delulu anyway, might as well go full out. they is gay/queer and they're fucking. i'm so sorry.

*also can we touch on the fact that shipping in this type of fandom (kpop) is kind of inevitable and unavoidable??! these boys are the other people we see them with day in and day out, interacting with each other and no one else. i feel like it's natural to ship when there's no other people around to break up everything, idk maybe someone can articulate this better than me. and people who are made to feel stupid for thinking that 2 members could actually be dating is so dumb. like is it really out of the realm of possibility that two people (jikook, cause all them other ships are....😬) who spent almost every waking minute together for like 8 years could fall in love. really?

/rant

It's the delulu hat for me

Lmho.

I guess for me being queer, I feel it's gaslighting for these people to be saying things like that. As silly as it is, it inadvertently deny and invalidate the existence and queerness of gay individuals and so I struggle with it.

This is the consequences of straight people in gay people business. They like defining gay parameters for us and it's like who asked you?? I feel people who say things like that are just plain ignorant or tone deaf or willfully homophobic.

I don't think everyone in BTS is gay but it makes me feel safe to see half the community assume them to be and celebrate them in that way. They are not cussing at them and threatening to leave the fandom or cancel them for this assumption and that is huge inspiration to me.

Those parts of the fandom are a safe space to be in as a queer army.

When people assume a person's queer sexuality they are simply admitting to themselves at the very least that LGBTQ EXISTS. This is important to me because I grew up in a community where LGBTQ didn't even exist in the collective consciousness of the people and EVERYONE IS AUTOMATICALLY ASSUMED TO BE STRAIGHT AND EXPECTED TO BE.

People read people's sexuality all the time and have done so since time immemorial and a lot of the time when they have had a sexuality read it's in the lines of straight, cis, rich, poor, superior or inferior. And that is a problem for some of us too because that discrepancy in the assumptions is as a result of homophobia and heteronormativity.

That whole don't assume a person's queer sexuality debacle sounds to me like a boujee way of denormalizing and preventing the normalization of queerness disguised under care, disguised under intelligence and disguised under wokeness. Especially when straightness is the default setting in this giant blue bulb.

We need to radicalize that. We need to change the cis straight default setting and if you are perpetuating this narrative you really aren't helping the situation. SIT DOWN.

I'm rarely assumed to be queer in certain circles and while that makes me feel comfortable within those circles it often times make it hard for me to admit my queerness openly in those circles too because I fear I will lose that comfort and respect and love and privileges that comes with being percieved straight in those spaces.

When I started my blog, I noticed some people assumed I was white and would use certain black descriptors as slurs when describing other people to me. I quickly had to switch the formal way in which I wrote to a much casual tone so my blackness would show through. Don't get it twisted. She black. She blackidy black black.

Then on the other hand, I was hesitant to let my queerness be known too because being black, I was marginalized as it is- you is black, or sound black💀 you know how it is- it's that intersectionality of oppression at play. Double double homicide.

When certain people realized I was black POC minority, their attitude towards me changed. I had those who didn't so much understand what black language is or perhaps wasn't used to being in black spaces and were uncomfortable with my blackness- these would take offense at me saying certain things in certain ways. Like chilee relax Karen, all I said was these motherfukkers gay as shit and they gay. Why you acting like I called them twinks or sommin. Right there, I'm cancelled for calling Jikook motherfuckers. They get sirens and everything😭😭😭😭😭😭

Same vein, I struggle destraightening myself or correcting people who assume I'm straight because I fear they will treat me differently if they knew I wasn't.

Straight privilege exists in the same way as white or even pretty privilege may exist and because these exist there's that automatic conception of queer, poc, ugly, fat disemfranschismet to run along side it.

People treat you differently based on how they perceive you. That's a fact. And for queer people, perceiving us as straight is the only way we get to be treated as human by the masses. And a lot of us embrace that- straight until proven gay am I right 🤣🤣🤣🤣

It's the duper's delight for me. Untill you catch me with a 5'8 melanin skinned silk pressed auntie on my left nipple good luck proving I'm gay.

It can be fun, I akekeke when some people around me are totally oblivious to the fact and even sometimes defend my straightness with their dying breath when nasty friends throw them shades or try to out me unprovoked.

A lot of us don't want to admit we are gay because we don't want to be disenfranchised.

I speak for myself when I say this.

But 'Don't assume someone's sexuality' is a double edged censorship used for and against queer people. It seemly offers protection on the surface of it for queer people but underneath it promotes heteronormativity and standardizes straightness and it is also used to promote closet culture, under the disguise of care and concern for the autonomy of queer people but that is a fallacy because our autonomy has never mattered to anyone since the dawn of homophobia.

And I don't know where this interpretation comes from. Why do people not want to assume queer people's sexuality but it's ok to assume straight people's???

It feels like a hijacked movement to me.

THIS IS THE ACCURATE MOVEMENT AS FAR AS I'M CONCERNED.

Don't assume all people are straight. It's ok to assume some people are queer because queer people exists too.

It is wrong however to assume queerness based on how a person talks, walks, dresses or even on their body type. That is stereotyping. And stereotyping is wrong.

When it comes to Jikook, Jimin is often stereotyped as gay more so than Jungkook because they have different body structures. Jungkook is stereotyped too solely because of the way his wrists hang, or based on moments he's femininity shines through.

But I don't think shippers stereotype Jikook in that way at all. I dont think shippers believe Jikook are dating eachother simply because Jungkook applied setting powder to his face that one time. They assume they are gay only because they believe those two to be dating eachother. That is not stereotyping. If those two were heterosexuals I don't think people will accuse their shippers of stereotyping.

It's one thing to assume Kai is gay because he looks skinny and dances well. It's another to assume he is gay because in a relationship with Gdragon. And if people can't tell the difference between the two, they should get some education and stop talking about things they know nothing about or only know because they stumbled across user69 on Twitter. They are not helping.

Untill people get offended when people assume others are straight, that rhetoric doesn't matter in its inequality. If you ask me, everyone is gay until proven straight.

Yet how many people will take offense at that?

Assuming people can be gay is not delulu.

It's ok to assume people can be gay. It's wrong to stereotype them as gay. If you can't assume they are gay, don't assume they are straight and don't assume at all. Run with this sis.

Wait, they don't ship Jikook but they call Jikook boyfriends???????👀👀👀👀👀

The fake woke syndrome will kill people in this fandom with these mentally confused thought crisis bunch💀💀💀💀

Jikook themselves are shippers💀

Smh

GOLDY

[eiseul]

As a POC fan, I'm going to add my two cent although apparently poc opinion doesn't matter if you don't agree with a particular narrative. 🤔🤔🤔 hence the reason why I didn't voice anything before cause fandom made it seem like my opinions are invalid. But hey shouldn't let that stop me?

There's difference between criticism/feedback and harrassment, too many people in the fandom can't tell the two apart. Incessantly being rude and harassing creators to write/draw a certain way because you don't like something is NOT the same as providing feedback and explaining the reasoning for it. There are some excellent metas here about racism/homophobia/Islamophobia in fandom that does an amazing job dissecting the issues WITHOUT being rude or displaying toxic behavior. Thank you to those that created those.

(Highkey I'm realizing there is a problem in fandom of people misusing labels as a guise to push their preference. Please, I read the metas about and I understand problematic patterns but also how is forcing bottom position joe also not racism or fetishization? I can use similar arguments in reverse, all brown people must be subjugated by white people? If you like bottom Joe, that's totally fine because that's just your preference and not some racist intention behind it.)

Also the lines of "just accept criticism and make edits, it shouldn't be hard" especially in context of artists is...how should I say 🤔🤔🤔 ignorant of art creating process. It's frustrating when people assume ART IS EASY. Do you know how hard it is to draw? Get proportions right? Get colors correct? Please if it's that easy, draw it yourself. Secondly, on this note, in this very tag, I've seen both "YOU'RE RACIST FOR COLORING JOE TOO LIGHT" and "YOU'RE RACIST FOR COLORING JOE TOO DARK". 🤔🤔🤔 please try picking out colors for skin yourself and see how you get 30 different shades depending on where you eyedrop and lighting. Apparently no matter what you do even to improve won't be good enough though 🤷‍♂️

If I hear complaints about there's only top Joe content, I'm going to say you and I must be in very different fandoms. The distribution is fairly even with some leanings to Top Joe if you ACTUALLY read the fics on AO3. And no, don't make the argument over how many are tagged top joe vs bottom joe BECAUSE PEOPLE DON'T ALWAYS TAG IT. smh the bias is real. It's not unanimous as some think. AND I seen a fairly decent amount of fics that were booker x joe, so please don't come to me saying it's only nicky being shipped with booker. What do you say about that? Why are those fics okay and doesn't warrant discussion about this beautifully established relationship? Because oh one of them is a POC so it's fine???? 🤔🤔🤔

AND bold of you to assume that my preferences are based on RACE. As if I only like Nicky because he's white? And I like Joe as top because he's brown? What if I like Nicky because I just like snipers with vintage eye bags that make ominous word drops randomly? Wtf is this narrowing these characters down to just skin colors. They are so much complex than that. You think I wouldn't like seeing Nicky railed if their colors were switched? 🤔🤔🤔 and the focus on Nicky's struggle with religion, isn't that because most people on this hell site are from western society so they have some sort of experience with Christianity? so they write about that AND not try to make presumptions about a religion they don't know much of?

Lastly, when you google shirtless marwan vs shirtless luca, you get vastly different results? Maybe that might have a factor in people's perception of body type image? 🤔🤔🤔 and maybe not racism that has been going around.

[dutchdread]

Same anon from other ask. I wasn't trying to argue, I was just asking a question and I technically never demanded an answer from you. I was just saying if you didn't answer I would just take it as a sign. I never said there was anything wrong with having debates either. But I just found it a kinda weird that you continously argue about Advent Children and Cloud's feelings with people a lot as if it's the only thing you argue about so that's why I asked, but thanks for your answer anyway. Peace!

It's the thing I argue about most, because it's the thing that's most egregious. Regardless of who you ship Cloud with, the take that Cloud does what he does in ACC because he's miserable with Tifa and just wants to die to be with Aerith is in shockingly bad taste. And it doesn't end there, it usually comes with allegations that Cloud doesn't care about the children, and that even when he makes a turn for the better it's only for Aerith. This take is insulting for every character involved. And it matters because the idea that Cloud is some kind of edgy emo has been all too prevalent in this fandom and popular culture in general. People don't see the difference between his behavior as fake Cloud and the understandable depression he has in ACC. Here we have a hero who cares too much, who is being beaten down by guilt. And people then butcher his character by painting him as the exact opposite of that, someone who only cares about one thing, Aerith.

Even lines that straight up rebuke them, such as "I pity you, you just don't get it at all, there's nothing I don't cherish", are swept under the rug in their attempts to assissinate Cloud, Aeriths, and Tifas characters in an attempt to find an interpretation that allows for Cloud and Aerith to have a romance. As a result, the movie is widely seen as a mostly vacuous action flick about an edgy teenager, rather than an examination of depression, guilt, ptsd, and the human condition. Instead of a hero who can't live with not being able to do more Cloud becomes a worthless human being who will take advantage of women and who will leave children to die just because he's lovesick. Instead of a strong woman who supports the man she loves with understanding and patience Tifa is now a whipped doormat, a secondary character whose second even to a dead girl. Aerith is no longer understanding and kind to a man who is beating himself up, she's being understanding towards an edgy child whose leaving children to die because he's a pathetic loser who can't get over her. And Zack is just posthumously friendzoned. This is how these people are painting one of my favorite stories of all time, this is how they tarnish the reputation of FFVII, and this is how they insult everyone whose gone through mental health issues. And I am not expected to correct them? This is why I say these people aren't fans of the story, because how could they be? It took me years to realize what Advent children was about, because as a teenager I also only received bad information and bad takes. Make no mistake, the reason I focus most on advent children is because when it comes to advent children, the people I argue with are 100%, unequivocally, absolutely, ridiculously, incorrect. This is regardless of whether or not Cloud ever had any feelings towards Aerith. The OG could have unambiguously painted Aerith to be the love of Clouds life and then this take on Advent children would STILL be an absolute travesty. This take is so bad that both Cleriths and Clotis should be criticizing anyone who puts it forth, and the fact that so many Cleriths seemingly are ok with it does NOT do them any favors. It in itself can be seen as undeniable proof that Cleriths have zero storycomprehension. Guy has an entire mental breakdown because of feelings of failure, developers talk about his action being caused by fear of failure, Cloud in the movie talks about being a failure, not being able to save anyone, and cherishing everything. Cleriths: "hmmm, this dude obviously doesn't care about anything and is just upset cause he can't be with his girlfriend". smh.

[sunshinecrashed]

Actually uh... perhaps #46 with aged up Hanakow it reader, like somehow he turned Human and it’s been like 10 years. Or maybe y’all both get killed and you’re like “wow Hanako, now we’re ghost again because you just HAD to stop at Dunkin and then we crashed the car cause you were choking smh” I would be very much appreciate (love your writing btw!)

ᴛʜᴇ ʟɪᴛᴛʟᴇ ᴛʜɪɴɢs

𝗁𝖺𝗇𝖺𝗄𝗈-𝗄𝗎𝗇 (𝗒𝗎𝗀𝗂 𝖺𝗆𝖺𝗇𝖾) 𝗑 𝗋𝖾𝖺𝖽𝖾𝗋 (𝖺𝗀𝖾𝖽 𝗎𝗉, 𝖻𝗈𝗍𝗁 𝗈𝖿 𝗒𝗈𝗎 𝖺𝗋𝖾 𝗂𝗇 𝗒𝗈𝗎𝗋 𝗍𝗐𝖾𝗇𝗍𝗂𝖾𝗌)

𝟧𝟢 𝖼𝗅𝗂𝖼𝗁𝖾 𝗍𝗋𝗈𝗉𝖾𝗌 𝖺𝗇𝖽 𝗉𝗋𝗈𝗆𝗉𝗍𝗌, #𝟦𝟨. “𝖺𝗋𝗀𝗎𝗆𝖾𝗇𝗍 𝗅𝖾𝖺𝖽𝗂𝗇𝗀 𝗍𝗈 𝗄𝗂𝗌𝗌𝗂𝗇𝗀/𝗌𝖾𝗑”

𝘀𝘂𝗺𝗺𝗮𝗿𝘆: 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗵𝗮𝗻𝗮𝗸𝗼 𝗮𝗽𝗽𝗿𝗲𝗰𝗶𝗮𝘁𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗹𝗶𝘁𝘁𝗹𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗴𝘀.

word count: ~1.3k?

↳ warnings: [almost] getting into a car accident, slight angst, suggestive themes

a/n: once again, thank u for being patient, lovely <3 🥺 this was kind of a mess 👁👁

Ten, whole years since you made a contract with Hanako, or Amane as you now call him, and agreed to split half of your soul with him. 

At first, he was.. very against the idea of you splitting your soul with him. To go through with such a heavy contract... you would be agreeing to cutting your own life span several years short, as a result of donating them to someone else. 

It took a lot of convincing to even begin to sway Amane. But you fondly remember telling him; “If there is one thing that I am sure about, it’s that I want you to be able to live the life that you’ve always wanted. You don’t have to be alone.” 

After your fair share of crying, comforting, laughing, kissing and more... ten years have passed. 

And here you are now. 

In the Dunkin’ Donuts parking lot. 

“Oh god,” Amane moaned. 

“These are even better when they’re freshly baked.” He took another bite of his donut and closed his eyes with an “mmm”. 

You and Amane have been doing various activities to celebrate his ‘rebirth-day’, as you called it. Pulling an all-nighter was hardly an uncommon occurrence. 

“See? I told you‒ the ‘Golden Window’ for the fresh donuts are between 10:00 at night and 4:00 in the morning!” You reclined your seat slightly backwards to stretch your arms out with a yawn. 

Glancing at your watch with relaxed eyes, you said, “And now, it’s abouuut... 5:45 am. I’m surprised they even served us.” 

A fond smirk was exchanged between you two. 

“The cashier looked like he was going to smack us upright with that metal tray.” Amane mused. 

You dug around in the paper bag for yet, another donut. “Well, can you blame him? Two sleep-deprived morons waiting for him to unlock the door fifteen minutes before opening? The sun won’t even rise for another hour.” you snickered.

“He’s gonna have to get used to that pretty quickly, since we’ll be seeing him more often. I wonder if he’ll remember our names.” 

Laughing, you pressed a swift kiss to Amane’s cheek. “Let’s hurry, so we don’t miss the sunrise!” 

“Fine, fine.” He bit his lip, trying to hide his smile. 

Amane reached his arm across you to grab your seat belt and lock it into place. 

“Buckle up, buttercup,” He patted your thigh, laughing. 

You just rolled your eyes, a smile already dancing on your lips. 

As you both pulled out of the parking lot and onto the familiar road, the only thing on your mind was how content you were. During Amane’s first year back as a human, you were both surprised with how... smooth everything came to him. Of course, he had spent many years observing society’s growth and changes, but he was able to adapt fairly decently. 

Based on how naturally he fit back into the world, you never would have known that he was previously a ghost if you hadn’t been at his side from the beginning. 

Now that he was given half of your lifespan, he was now able to actually age alongside you.

And after ten years, he was now a little taller, a little less boyish, and a little more handsome. But his playful attitude, messy haircut, and flirtatious behavior stayed the same.

“Can you pass me another donut, [Name]?” Amane asked, flickering his eyes down to search for the bag. 

“Amane‒ eyes on the road.”

“Right, right.” 

You handed him another donut, which he promptly took a massive bite out of, and gasped in realization. “Shoot‒ Did we leave the blanket at home?” 

“....uhhh.. give me a second..” 

Twisting around in your seat, you squinted in the darkness to check for the blanket. “Hmmm.” 

“Are you sure it’s not there?” He asked, giving you a questioning look. 

“Maybe it’s in the trunk‒” 

Wait.

You paused.

Amane blinked at you. 

“THE ROAD, AMANE‒!” 

Both of you whipped your heads back towards the front, just barely swerving out of the way of a fallen tree. 

The tires screeched with Amane’s sudden movement, and you held on tightly for dear life as the car narrowly missed crashing into the side barrier. 

As you came to a rough stop, both you and Amane were frozen, processing the near-death experience you just had. 

Silence. 

With a wavering sigh, you let your shoulders drop as you tightly grasped Amane’s hand. He squeezed back, and you could feel that he was shaking just as much as you were right now. 

Neither of you had to vocalize what was running through your heads right now. 

You both were inches away death.

“A-Amane,” you started. “We should get going.” 

He was trying to find the right words to say, but all that came out was a quiet, “Y-Yeah..”

The rest of the car ride was silent, in contrast to the upbeat chatter and laughter only a few minutes before.

You hardly even registered that you had arrived at your intended destination. It was a special clearing that only you two knew about. On a cliff that overlooked a gorgeous forest, the distant city lights, and a faraway sea; this was the absolute perfect place to spend mornings and evenings if you wanted to de-stress and watch the stars. 

Amane turned the car off and unlocked the doors, making his way around to the back of the car. 

“..Hey, at least we didn’t forget the blanket at home?” He hesitantly smiled, holding up the cursed fabric that started it all, before spreading it out on the grass. 

You still said nothing as you slowly got out of the car, a million different emotions crossing your face, and then‒

Thud. 

Amane stumbled back as you threw yourself into his chest and clutched onto his hoodie as tight as you possibly could. He couldn’t hear anything come out of your mouth, but judging from the way you were shaking, you were definitely more upset then you had initially let on. 

“I-It’s okay.. listen to me‒”

“How are you still so reckless after all of these years?” You said in such a fragile voice, he wasn’t sure if he even was hearing you right. 

You refused to look him in the eyes as you tangled your fingers with his own, searching for a way to anchor yourself. 

“Amane, you’re not a ghost anymore.. you’re not immortal anymore. So why do you still act like you are, after all of these years?” your voice wavered, threatening to crumble completely. 

Now, a different tone entered your voice.

Anger. 

“I’m asking you this one time; at least, take your own life seriously! I‒” you halted, your throat closing up with all of the emotions ripping through you. 

“‒I just.. I-I’m sorry..”

You let go of him to wipe the tears that were pricking the corners of your eyes. 

“..Hey.”

Amane cupped your face and carefully pressed a heated kiss to your lips. What he couldn’t express through words, he poured into his emotions.

“You don’t need to apologize. I’ll be more careful, okay?” 

Your hands let go of his to tangle into his hair, while his fingers traveled along the dip of your spine, making you shiver. Amane moved from your soft lips down along the juncture of your neck, before bowing down to scoop you up bridal-style. 

"W-Wait!” you yelped, taken off guard. 

“What was that?” Amane ignored you with a small smile, carrying you over to the blanket that he had set down on the grass, before placing you down as delicately as a flower. 

He relaxed right beside you, giving you a playfully expectant look. 

With a breathy laugh, you scooted in right beside him, bringing your knees up to your chest as you curled into his warm side. Amane wrapped his arm protectively around your waist as he brought the blanket up around both of your shoulders. 

Soft rays of orange and gold draped across the two of you. 

“Hey look,” you murmured. “The sun is finally coming up.” 

It’s the little things in life. Because even if it was only for a moment, everything was right where it needed to be.

And you could live with that.

[pourleavechooses]

Time Traveler Karl vs Reality Hopper Karl

Mandatory statement that this is a discussion of Karl Jacobs DreamSMP RP character, not the man himself.

So I recently saw someone talking about how Karl isn’t actually a time traveler, he just thinks he is but he’s actually reality hopping (or whatever you wanna call it when you go to an alternate reality). In reality, a time traveler is always a reality hopper, though vice versa isn’t always the case, and I’ll explain why he is a time traveler.

DISCLAIMER: I do not have a formal education involving any of this, I’ve just spent a lot of time thinking about this stuff. Like, I literally worried about the grandfather paradox in time travel before I even knew the name for it or that it was a common, bigger theory.

So, the grandfather paradox, for those who don’t know it, essentially points out that traveling back in time to kill your grandfather would result in you not being born which then means no one went back in time to kill your grandfather so you were born and are then able to go back in time to kill your grandfather and you create a paradox. Thus, assuming the butterfly effect applied to time travel (any small interaction or change to the time period will cause big ripples or changes to the future) just existing in a different time is enough to cause a paradox. In order for time travel to exist one would actually need to be creating a new reality where the consequences are the correct set of events for that reality’s time periods or travel to a reality where the time travel is “expected” and necessary for the timeline of that reality to play out as it should. Therefore, a time traveler must always be a reality hopper for time travel to exist paradox free.

Now I don’t really wanna dive too deep into alternate reality theory stuff (I’ve spent too much of my life contemplating time travel paradoxes, effects, and implications even as a kid smh) but basically alternate realities aren’t necessarily always based around the same reality rules (I.e fantasy magic stuff could be possible in one reality but not in another) and thus traveling to them can’t always be considered time travel.

With all of this established info, let’s get into Karl. He believes himself to be a time traveler, but some people have pointed out he might just be a reality hopper. The thing is, aside from the Mizu Tales from the DreamSMP stream most tales streams haven’t had any indication of being connected in any chronological way with the “current” DreamSMP reality timeline everyone else streams. In Mizu, Karl was a time traveler, but besides that there’s no guarantee he’s anything past a reality hopper because we aren’t really told much (though presumably the murder mystery and old west tales streams were in some way connected to the “current” timeline because of the egg).

Because we have one confirmed and two possible instances of time travel, I believe it’s fair to call Karl a time traveler and that all those other Karls in the Inbetween are alternate reality Karls (no I will not be getting into the logic of seeing/interacting/knowing of alternate reality selves, that’s too much for this) who are also presumably at least reality hoppers if they’re in the Inbetween.

TLDR: The grandfather paradox and butterfly effect (relating to time travel) means time travel is always reality hopping. Ergo, a time traveler is a reality hopper who visits realities with similar chronology/history to their reality and Karl has a few confirmed instances where he could be considered a time traveler and not just a reality hopper.

[daisukissed]

❧ pairings: karasunoxreader, nekomaxreader, fukurodanixreader, shiratorizawaxreader, seijohxreader

❧ synopsis: ever wondered what it feels like to be the national volleyball team's manager?

❧ genre: headcanons, fluff, fluff, fluff and??? ? crack??

❧ warnings: cursing, bokuto mentioned your underwear like once

❧ pt.2 here!

Karasuno High

- should really buy earplugs before applying to become their club's manager

- literally bickering EVERYWHERE and ANYWHERE

- hinata and kageyama arguing,, , noya and tanaka fanboying,,, daichi scolding all those four,, ,, suga just laughing at the background,,, , it's a never ending list really,,

- daichi probably often asks you for help in calming them down cause they somehow always listen when it comes to you???

- like you would just clap your hand and ask them to tone it down in the calmest way possible and they magically do??

- when you first joined the club, noya, hinata and tanaka were ECSTATIC

- another cute new manager besides kiyoko and yachi????? what a Life™

- your arms would hurt like a bitch after joining the club, they'll often ask you to serve or toss for them. especially kags and hinata so be prepared.

- the third years helped you a lot when you were just starting!! giving advices on what to do, teaching you the rules of volleyball and even helping you clean up sometimes!

- yachi and kiyoko ADORES you, y'all besties and nobody's gonna tell me otherwise

- you werent really close to tsukishima and yamaguchi at first but as time past by, you guys just vibed y'know

- teasing kagehina is now a daily thing amongst you three now

- all in all, Karasuno's volleyball team is a HUGE pain in the ass but you love them nonetheless

Nekoma High

- wholesome as fuck

- yamamoto would stutter his whole sentence whenever you talk to him when you first joined. this goes on for like 2 weeks.

- lev probably stepped on you at some point because "you're too small to be seen"

- n e ways,, , you guys often go home together after practice and share foods from the convenience store

- yaku would most likely steal half of your food though

- but dont worry a good pull on his hair is enough to stop him :)

- gaming talks with kenma!!! and study dates with kuroo!!! you’re a frequent visitor of kenma’s favourite pc cafe and the coffee shop nearby your school now

- they BOAST the fuck out of you the next time they meet Karasuno

- cues yamamoto arguing with noya and tanaka about who's better, you or kiyoko

- being their first manager, they're very protective of you

- you were being hit on by a guy once from another school during the nationals and they just,,, , stood behind your back and glared until he left

- yaku at the back really think he did sum when it was kuroo, lev and yamamoto who intimidated the guy

Aobajohsai High

- literal squad goals

- team pics/selfies everyday and all day

- you guys have a joint tiktok account but it really just consists of you and oikawa doing popular tiktok dances. sometimes matsukawa and hanamaki joins in too

- poor iwa-chan always gets pranked on by the four of you but it's his fault that he always falls for it smh

- anyways, the guys were skeptical of you when you first joined!!!!

- since a lot of girls have joined just for the sake of being near oikawa

- so they were beyond shocked when you only talked to kunimi and paid no attention to the rest of the team for the first few days

- you later explained that it was because you and kunimi were already acquaintances by being in the same year. plus, you were really busy when you first started so you didnt have the time to converse w/ the other members

- that's when they know u the real og

- when seijoh lost to shiratorizawa during the finals, you guys bawled together for like an hour when you got back to the school's gym

- this resulted to a sleepover at your house the next day to de-stress and just get over it tgt <3

Shiratorizawa High

- you see, things started off rough with you and shiratorizawa

- you were as stiff as a statue when you first stepped into the club

- i mean, how could you not when you were surrounded by 6 ft volleyball monsters?

- so when tendou first approached you, his height looming over you,, , you sort of flinched and squealed,,, ,,

- which led to the members keeping their distance away from you cause they thought you were uncomfortable with them or smt

- and you're like wait no i'm not uncomfortable i'm just super nervous since it's the first day and all

- but you didnt say that cause you're a dumb bitch

- instead you tried talking to them again but it always ends up with the other party answering nervously and quickly avoiding you

- cues you being big sad :(

- anyways this went on for like days until you decided to crack a unfunny joke during break time

- "hey guys, how do you make holy water?"

- ......

- "you boil the HELL out of it!!! ha haaa ha haa... Ha..."

- no kidding the room went dead silent and you want to bury yourself down the sea

- until you heard someone snort???? ? and you're looking around and found out that???? it was ushijima????

- now you got the whole club rioting on how you made ushijima laugh

- and you really wonder to yourself how you were once intimidated by these crackheads

- but n e ways that horrible joke rlly helped you out and you guys are as close as peas in a pod now hihi

Fukurodani High

- manager of fukurodani? more like manager of bokuto kotaro

- like the other members, you would throw out any compliments to bring out his full potential for the match

- the different thing about you is that you do this 24/7, even outside the match or practice

- bokuto’s ego now feeds off you

- you’re not even purposely doing it?? it just became a habit during your days as a manager

- v v v v caring towards you

- you forgot your umbrella once so you came to morning practice DRENCHED

- konoha lended you his extra gym shirt while akaashi lended his blazer

- bokuto asked if your underwear was wet and if you wanted to borrow his spandex but we don't talk about that

- have i mentioned that whenever you forget your lunch they would share pieces of theirs??

- and that if you were to get sick one of them would immediately back-carry you to the nurse's office?

- you're basically the team's little sister, sorry i don't make the rules here

[hikari-writes]

I haven’t seen other isekai villainess series yet, I didn’t even realize it was popular until after getting into my next life, so if you have recommendations, I’d love to try out more!

HameFura was my first Isekai villainess ever! Coincidentally, I'm also a fan of reverse harem so the series really excites me! I don't think there are other animes for isekai villainess (in fact, I think HameFura is the first of its genre to have an anime adaptation. I wish they'd adapt more in the future though) but as you'd probably guess, there are a lot of Light Novels featuring that genre! There are also many manga adaptations of them! Some of the popular and the ones that I'm currently reading are these, though i must tell you that some of these recs are just isekai in general/reborn/reincarnated/transferred to isekai. So these are a variation of isekai genre rather than just a "reincarnated as isekai/otome game villainess" (ho boi,,,, this is a long ass one forgive me)

The Villainess' Slow Prison Life Began With Her Broken Engagement (completed, pretty short but there are the continuation in the LN, which I'll def check in the future!)

Middle-Aged Man's Noble Daughter Reincarnation (haven't read it yet, but it seemed interesting, so I'll just add this too!)

The Vengeful White Cat Lounging On The Dragon King's Lap (this is a transferred into isekai but i thought it's pretty cute! Ongoing)

The Mage With Special Circumstances Wants To Live Peacefully (MC originally lives in the this fantasy world, so i wouldn't say this is an isekai, but it's cute and interesting, so i totally recommend it! Ongoing)

Since I Became A Saint, I'll Do Whatever I Want With My Second Life ~The Prince Was My Lover Who Threw Me Away In My Previous Life~ (reborn in the same world, really interesting and I love the MC. Ongoing)

I'm Thinking Of Quitting The Villainess' Entourage (This is cute 🥺🥺 still ongoing though)

This Time I Will Definitely Be Happy! (I LOVE THIS SO FREAKING MUCH IT'S REALLY INTERESTING AND THE MC IS JUST 👌👌👌 Completed 😢)

Tensei Saki Ga Shoujo Manga No Shiro Buta Reijou Datta (similar to HameFura where the villainess recovers her memories and changed for the greater good, but the setting for this one is shoujo manga rather than otome game. I think the MC is really cute and love how hardworking she is. Ongoing)

I’M A Villainous Daughter, So I’M Going To Keep The Last Boss (WHY DOES THIS HAVE TO END SMH 😢 Like, I love LOVE this manga so freaking much! Totally recommend it 10/10! Just a heads up, original otome game heroine who's kind like HameFura Maria in isekai manga/LN is considered rare. Original otome game heroine like this manga are considered to be more common. So,,, prepare yourself 💀)

Mahoutsukai No Konyakusha (the world the MC is reincarnated in doesn't have any relation to something from her past life, so this is a general fantasy setting. BUT IT'S CUTE SO WHATEVER 🤗 I believe this one is completed 🤔)

For Certain Reasons, The Villainess Noble Lady Will Live Her Post-Engagement Annulment Life Freely (interesting MC, story has main subject, which is medical stuff cause mc was a nurse in her past life, ongoing)

Of Course, I'll Claim Palimony! (This is just so interesting, and i love how straightforward the MC is, not a reincarnated MC or anything, she is originally from the world :) ongoing)

I Was Reincarnated, And Now I'm A Maid! (Reincarnated as the villainess maid instead! This is pretty heartwarming but there aren't many chapters currently, still ongoing)

Endo And Kobayashi’S Live Commentary On The Villainess (This is just so amazing and interesting! Not reborn/reincarnated, but instead, the ones from the normal world is playing the game and gave commentary on the game, one of the character (the prince) can hear them, even though he's in the game. Ongoing)

Milady Just Wants To Relax (reincarnated in a novel world as the villainess! Tells the story of the after life of MC opening up a cafe after she was exiled. So fluffy and the Love interests are beastmen)

Fiancée’S Observation Log Of The Self-Proclaimed Villainess (One of the most popular isekai manga after HameFura! Instead of the female MC's point of view, this is told in the villainess' (aka MC's) fiance's point of view! Also, the villainess in this one wants to confront her bad end rather than avoid it like in HameFura 😂 and she's as dumb as Katarina so 😔😔👌👌👌 ongoing)

When I Woke Up, Twenty Years Passed! ~The Villainous Daughter’S Afterlife~ (cute as shit and hot male LI 😌😌😌 ongoing)

Seijo No Maryoku Wa Bannou Desu (this one is transferred into isekai, i stan the MC so much, she was treated like shit at first, but it gets better dw,,, and the lead male is just so 😍😍😍)

The Villainess Want To Marry A Commoner (this is honestly just so cute and relatable! The reincarnated MC loves one of the supporting cast rather than the main LI in the otome game, so she gets engaged with him and decides to stay away from the heroine and the LI, ongoing)

The Result Of Being Reincarnated Is Having A Master-Servant Relationship With The Yandere Love Interest (reincarnated into yandere otome game! Male lead is a lowkey yandere for his master aka the villainess (MC), ongoing.)

Isekai De "kuro No Iyashi Te" Tte Yobarete Imasu (similar to seijo no maryoku, but still quite different! This is enjoyable too! Completed)

Inso's Law (the only manhwa I'll list here. I just love the relationship the MC and all the LI and original heroine. This one is set in a world of romance novel, but not one that the MC already read or knew. The MC just knew she got transferred and is forced to live in a romance novel world because of how all the laws that applied to a common romance novel is shown when she was living her life there. She was assumed to be the heroine's (normal looking) best friend. Ongoing)

The Banished Villainess! Living The Leisurely Life Of A Nun Making Revolutionary Church Food (ONE OF MY FAV! This is just so cute! (Heads up, shit may or may not go down 👀) but this is still the cutest shit ever, male lead is a scary looking guy that's actually really soft and dense and he loves the villainess (MC) but again, MC is too dumb to realize that 😔 BUT IT'S CUTE SO IT'S ALRIGHT! Ongoing)

May I Ask For One Final Thing? (BADASS MC! YES!! MC is originally from the world and she kicks ass at the people who wronged her, ongoing)

The Villainess Is Adored By The Crown Prince Of The Neighboring Kingdom (again, one of the most popular isekai villaines after HameFura. And again, the original otome game heroine is the exact opposite of Maria, so prepare yourself! This thing is cute as heck! It shows how the Villainess (MC) was treated like shit by one of the male lead (a prince)but then a hotter guy (the neighboring prince) came and proposed to her,, lmao serves the prince right, ongoing)

Isekai De Mofumofu Nadenade Suru Tame Ni Ganbattemasu. (Reincarnated to a fantasy setting world, and the smol MC is adored by all animals, SUPER FLUFFY, just like the title)

I Swear I Won't Bother You Again! (Reborn again in the same world,MC decided to stay away from the Heroine and won't bully her.....which backfired horribly 😜ongoing)

Marielle Clarac's Engagement (MC originally from the world, just shows the life of her as a romance novel writer in the noble world. This one is super cute too, ongoing)

I’M Not A Villainess!! Just Because I Can Control Darkness Doesn’T Mean I’M A Bad Person! (Set in shoujo manga world, and the MC was a misunderstood girl 😢😢😢😢 i love her sm 😔 ongoing)

The Reborn Witch Foretells Destruction (reborn to a fantasy world, and the artstyle is my personal fav! I just love the relationship the MC has with the love interests)

I Am Troubled That My Fiance Is A Villain (just sum cute shit, MC born as a side character, but somehow caught the attention of the otome game Villain and was proposed by him. Also the original otome game heroine is....i think you already get it by now)

The Villainess Will Crush Her Destruction End Through Modern Firepower (BIG BAD BITCH ENERGYYYYYY even though she's a freaking loli, lol remind me of Youjo Senki...villainess MC was reincarnated to an otome game and one interesting trait of her from past life, she loves guns and revolver,,, and all those stuff, ongoing)

It Seems Like I Got Reincarnated Into The World Of A Yandere Otome Game (again, yandere otome game, but the yandere flags are all taken down, so it's safe, (still have some of those yandere tendencies tho) ongoing)

Fake Cinderella (just a patisserie reincarnated to a fantasy world, and she was engaged to a prince that is really fond of her (i say fond because their age gap is a little....questionable) ongoing)

Koushaku Reijou No Tashinami (i barely understand what's going on half of the time but i love the romance the MC villainess has with her LI. (And the LI isn't one of the capture targets from the og otome game) focuses on the subject of politic so.....RIP. but i still love the romance 🥳)

Lady Rose Wants To Be A Commoner (I 👏 LOVE 👏 THIS 👏 It's just freaking amazing and cute! MC is reincarnated as the otome game heroine, but she lets the event flowed to her bad ending, so she got to be exiled and live her life as a commoner. Interesting MC and amazing artstyle! Ongoing)

I Reincarnated Into An Otome Game As A Villainess With Only Destruction Flags... In A Dire Situation!? Verge Of Destruction Arc (HameFura spinoff! This one is set in the world where Katarina is already bullying Maria because her past life memories came like, 5/7(?) years after the incident with the scar with the prince unlike in the OG. I actually just need more HameFura content so,,, 🥺😔👉👈 Katarina's still the same ol dumb so dw,,,also more side characters are introduced! Ongoing)

The Villainess, Cecilia Silvie, Doesn't Want To Die, So She Decided To Cross-Dress! (Haven't read it yet, but i LOVE the genderbend idea!)

The Earl's Daughter Was Suddenly Employed As The Crown Prince's Fiancée (MC is already originally living in fantasy setting world, and her interactions with the crown prince is just so freaking cute i can't,,, ongoing....i think?)

The Daughter Of The Albert House Wishes For Ruin (This is so much fun to read! Same as fiancee observation log, the villainess MC wishes to confront her dead end for some reason, ongoing i think?)

AND THAT'S ALL I CAN GIVE! This post is long as heck, and i haven't even talk about ALL of them, plus there's also the manhwa. 😂😂😂 but i hope you'll like these!

[constablegoo]

@astralglam​​​​ filed a report .

mint: does your muse view themself as virtuous & moral? what do these words mean to them?

OHOHO. hey hi ily. this is, of course, one of odo’s deepest ongoing battles, and the moment he stops questioning it is the moment he becomes a founder.

the founders grant themselves god status.  GOD!  status. they just reach out and pluck it. Within their range of power, the founders become unquestionably Just and Virtuous and Moral, their Word becomes Law, it becomes “the way things are” and “fact” and they create their own reality stemming from thousands of years of intense xenophobia. they’re above it all. gods don’t make mistakes, right? sure, maybe changelings were hunted and feared ages ago but they still fear it, and that drive for Order and Control over the galaxy is now encoded into their genes and they place a companion structure into the genes of every other species they control, subjugating them to the founders’ own cozy position as Gods, or-- ‘gods’. the founder (i rly don’t like saying “female” founder so she’s THE Founder. she speaks for the link.) makes it quite clear on many occasions that the founders are not here to negotiate. they fully intend to control EVERYTHING at any cost. it is absolutely  chilling  when she cuts garak down with: “they’re dead. you’re dead. cardassia is dead.” and draws the line between the dominion and everyone else miles deep into the sand.

that same genetic coding is one of the first semi-concrete things odo comes to understand about himself and, horribly, he’s landed into conditions under the occupation that very easily could have taken advantage of a less meticulous or stubborn changeling. no, odo says initially (and incorrectly), i am not bajoran** and i am not cardassian and i stand apart from either side of this conflict and so i am bound to PURE Virtue and Morality because of it. he can’t be bribed or bought or won over, and he won’t allow for anything less than a kind of incorruptibility. this effectively wins him allies (and enemies) on both sides, however -- that’s just not how the universe works. the truth of it is that no matter how much he tells himself he is not a part of their regime, his working with the cardassians makes him a collaborator in that he has then recognized their authority and ultimately upheld their legitimacy, even if he never agreed with the cause, even if he was also on some level a casualty of it. at some point when he moves past ‘contract’ investigation and begins to work permanently, he falls into the trap of thinking Order is the same thing as Justice... huge yikes. in that moment he becomes a true and apathetic villain, but he’s subsequently haunted by the resulting execution of innocents. it shakes something up in him. years pass and he still wonders, what other mistakes has he made? what other less direct consequences of his ‘neutral’ arbitration exist? he (and everyone around him) has to live without really knowing, and it’s a constant reminder to him of the power he holds and it informs his understanding of what Real (and imperfect) Justice Means.

**sidenote but later in s7 he introduces himself as ‘from bajor’ and AAAAAA. its good. very good. yeah, you’re bajoran, odo. he gets it now.

Mirror odo is really the ultimate example of an odo having taken those instincts to extremes in an environment that rewarded him for them -- there is no guilt there, and even a sadistic kind of pleasure in it. i’d argue that gaia!odo is another, less extreme example of an odo who’s been alone too long and lost sight of things when he single-mindedly (and against kira’s wishes) chooses her (one person) over 8000. like holy shit? NOT ok? uhhuhhhhfff. anyway. very fortunately, neither of these are OUR odo, but act as great foils to reflect on the worst (bastard cop) qualities or potential qualities of our goo pushed to highly visible extremes, which star trek just loves to do all the time.

but regular/prime odo isnt exactly a rule-follower, either. throughout his life, he frequently takes things into his own hands, uses his abilities to his advantage, spies, wiretaps, eavesdrops, and yes, harasses [quark] sometimes -- he develops his own set of values and personal rules and follows them; even starfleet comes in wary of him and how he operates and hes on thin ice. but because of possibly his most redeeming quality, odo is able to adapt those self-ordained values toward something increasingly honest: for how rigid he can be in personality, he is HIGHLY influenced by the world around him,  listens hard  to what his friends and allies have to say and adapts that feedback; this allows him to evolve and grow and take important matters to heart. he becomes more flexible and better able to hold onto what’s really most important after locking into a decision, because above all else, he is passionately committed to doing the Right Thing. he PLEADS with himself in things past, “your job is to find the truth, not obtain convictions.” by his tendency to push back against what is laid down as ‘law’ (something he becomes more and more aware of and effective at doing) as not always being good or right, or necessarily even creating Order (the thing he’s driven genetically to want), he prepares himself to challenge the most deadly voice of authority -- that of his own people.

so... yes and no. odo’s role and persona as ‘your average security chief’ might dictate that he be virtuous and moral, but he so obviously can’t fit the same exact mold as others in his position -- he has these insane abilities and this mind-consuming nature and it requires he tread with extra care, but he also has a potential for more adaptive, more nuanced morality. he has to build up his own definitions to the words, constantly examine and tease and test them, or else he risks straying too far from what he really wants to achieve -- harmony, honest justice. he has to accept that he’s a part of the system he operates in (not, in fact, alone or isolated! something he actually wants), and know that he is not exempt from making the wrong choice, just like anybody else.

carnation: what is your muse’s relationship with their gender? how do they express or not express this relationship?

ODO AND GENDER!!! i love odo and gender. let’s take this one step at a time. he starts out as an amorphous glob -- he has no gender. there’s no basis for assignment, no culture of difference, and all the goos are goo. odo takes on the shape of the first living thing he sees / the thing he sees most frequently: dr mora. he adopts an image of masculinity from mora and he adopts the hair. that’s about it, and it’s pretty much arbitrary. (maybe the hair is simple enough for his skills, too?) the next people odo meets are also these very masculine, military, cardassian leaders, so again -- this is all he knows! this is neutrality. i imagine it takes him some time to work out what the differences in gender are, and sex, and orientation, romantic vs sexual stuff, all of that. it’s all got cultural baggage he knows nothing about and does not experience, and he’s also dealing with multiple, clashing cultures to boot. since he doesnt have any strong inherent leaning, he simply opts out. he/him becomes his default because thats where he started, thats what he’s been able to successfully present and how people know him, and, terrifyingly, under cardassian rule, it probably offered a bit of safety, too, which was obviously something he needed at the time.

way way way way way down the line in season seven, odo asks kira to (paraphrasing) look at me. what do you see? [i see you.] but this is NOT me, this is only a shape ive assumed in order to fit in. she says, yes, i know that. but this is who you have chosen to be. “a man. a good and honest man.” (i knowww shes not really talking abt gender here BUT) its hard as a trans person not to read the metaphor. he’s chosen to express SOMETHING. he’s chosen something other than what he was given (neutrality) and although he doesnt personally buy into what ‘masculinity’ “should be” (ie the ferengi, smh) / would certainly not argue he doesnt feel non-binary, this is how he has presented all his life, its how hes been treated, and it is what he has chosen to adhere to. there’s a choice in that, kira’s right, and now it reflects something about him.

parallel this, i’ll mention the “female” founder again bc of course there is no discernable reason for her to have a gender -- other than to appeal (im not talking sexually here although there’s,, obviously weird shit happening with the link... yike) to odo in the sense that until that point odo has lived with “gendered” individuals and, i think importantly, kira is with them when they first meet. i think its safe to say the founder saw her, figured she was a friend/ally to odo or at least familiar to him, and took her general representation to appeal as a friend/ally.

otherwise... why, honestly? the founder’s got NO love of humanoids lmao why would she bother.

anyway i’d like to see odo experiment a bit. because when hes safe, he can!! aside from his own doubts and insecurities about shapeshifting, at some point he really has no reason not to, at least a little bit. really, it should just be another thing to practice, much like becoming a convincing rock or a leaf, its just that there are other significances in the cultures around him. i’d just like to see him loosen up a little. have fun. grow ur hair out a bit, odo, why are u still looking like ur terrible dad.