#feeling bad is a sign of weakness. a sign of failure. a sign that he needs to try harder

[bunnieswithknives]

Thinking about his brain

[feliville]

hey is. is zayd ok. i just scrolled through your oc tag and every image hes in he looks so so sad. i want to give him like a cup of cocoa and a blanket or something,,,,, he looks like one if those really old really small dogs

Well! he's struggling a lot, he's depressed and lacks any sort of support system (yet !); he thinks that letting his feelings control him is a sign he's weak and a failure, so he tries to pretend it doesn't affect him, tho he's bad at it.

I need to write more about it before I'm able to go into specifics, I'm still planning and changing stuff around ;v; ! I'm new to stories/comics/storytelling.

He could use some hot cocoa tho : -] !

[moeitsu]

for the ask game :)

S - Show us an example of your personal headcanon. But could you give us more on your chubby Arthur HC? I need more of that! Like right now! (But no rush, I just love big boy Arthur as much as you do)  🙏❣️

Yes! Yes! Yes! Oh I would absolutely love to dive into more chubby!Arthur HC's. He is so dear to me.

I got carried away with this, and sorta poured my heart into it. It’s basically just a love letter to my favorite husky cowboy <3

WC: ~3k

TW: self-esteem issues, body dysmorphia, ED, alcoholism, some NSFW at the end so minors beware.

I also want to add, these are all just personal self-indulgent headcanons. So some might seem ooc. Take it up with the council if that bothers you :)

When I say chubby/fat Arthur I mean that with my full chest. I'm talking a big boy— a soft curved belly, thighs as big as tree trunks, and a smooth jawline.

I want to point out, muscle and fat are not mutually exclusive. He can be fat and incredibly strong.

Standing at 6'0", Arthur is already an imposing figure. His healthy weight in the game is around 210-220 lbs, but let’s add 30 more—making him a solid 250 lbs (give or take).

Even in the game, his healthy weight would still be considered a giant of a man for that time period. So keep that in mind.

Most of that weight? Pure muscle. Beneath his soft exterior are abs of steel, and those biceps could crush skulls and give the best hugs.

He is simply just a very husky man.

Deeply, deeply insecure as all hell about his weight though. Especially with you.

Especially in the bedroom.

Arthur knows he is strong and muscular, but he fixates on the “softness” of his body. Believing it makes him less capable and less desirable.

But more personally, it serves as a constant reminder of his failures and guilt.

The gang’s comments about his appetite and size don’t help. He pretends not to care, but every jab chips away at his confidence.

He’s often seen as the "muscle," a human shield, or an intimidating force, hearing terms like “big oaf” and “dumb brute” far too often.

Absolutely hates the way his presence fills a small room.

These insecurities run so deep that Arthur refuses to take his shirt off in front of others. Always making excuses to keep it on.

His body is marked by lots of stretch marks. They trace around his sides, under his belly, thighs and shoulders. He’s grateful that his body hair covers most of them.

Some are so deep they’ve become scars.

Hyper aware and very self-conscious of them. He thinks they’re a sign of weakness and being too “soft”.

Always avoids looking at himself in the mirror. He struggles with feeling undesirable as it is, and his body only adds to that torment.

Arthur has an unhealthy relationship with food and struggles with control. His eating habits are tied closely to his emotions.

He tends to overeat to cope with intense stress, loneliness and guilt. Food is used as a comfort in these moments—but he doesn’t enjoy it.

Trying to fill an emotional void rather than physical hunger.

At other times, food feels like a reminder of his lack of control. And he deprives himself of a meal or two. Using hunger as a punishment.

Alcohol has played a part in his weight too.

Often seeking its numbness to drown out the hunger and the noise of his own thoughts.

The heavy drinking dulls his appetite and gives him an excuse to skip meals.

Though he’s known to engage in binge cycles when things start to get really bad. Overindulging in both food and alcohol to the point where he’s physically sick and emotionally raw.

Moments like this tend to isolate him from the gang. He’s unwilling to face questions and judgement so he withdraws and wanders off.

Sometimes he feels more confident after having a drink or two, the alcohol dulling his self consciousness. He hates himself for needing it, and when the false confidence fades he feels exposed.

Okay goddamn those were really sad, moving on now!

Arthur worries that his size intimidates women. Some admire his strength, while others hurl insults, leaving him to quietly fear his body might never be truly loved.

He’s too big, too rough, too much.

Sweats a lot too, he can’t help it. He’s hyper aware of his odor when he hasn’t had the time for a proper wash. And feels immensely embarrassed when other people comment on it or make a face.

Spends a lot of time comparing himself to other men. Especially ones more “acceptable” in the eyes of a woman.

Because of his size and his looks he goes out of his way to be gentle and soft-spoken around women.

(^^^this especially is so so so canon to me. He is ALWAYS respectful and gentle with women)

Constantly aware of his own strength, and oftentimes has to reel himself in so he doesn’t unintentionally hurt somebody.

Arthur is

without a doubt

the sweetest gentle giant when you get to know him.

It will take time, but when he finds a woman who accepts his body, he can be a very loving partner.

He sees you as something he can protect and comfort and care for. Someone who needs him not for his size, but for his heart.

Feeling comfortable in his own skin around you is one of the greatest things you could ever give him.

Very touch starved (ill talk more on that later) and loves to give you the softest warmest hugs.

Regardless of his reputation, he has very tender hands. Whether he’s sketching you in delicate strokes, petting his horse’s neck, tracing his thumb over your cheek, or holding your baby.

The same hands that safely cradle you every night.

Despite his relationship with food, cooking and eating are still things he genuinely enjoys.

Love to hunt and cook over an open flame. Nothing better than the taste of woodsmoke in fresh meat.

He also loves to share his food. He will always make sure you have enough to eat, and even offer his own plate if you are still hungry.

It brings him great joy to be able to provide for you.

Let’s move on to some silly sweet and smutty ones shall we? ;)

The fastest way to this man’s heart is when you cook for him.

Especially baked goods. Bake him a sweet homemade apple-pie with a thick vanilla cream on top and he's getting you pregnant. going to marry you.

You could literally be an idiot sandwhich in the kitchen and he would still praise your cooking through the roof.

Why? Because he’s already head over heels in love with you for making the effort.

He also has a huge sweet tooth. Peppermint candies are his kryptonite.

Arthur’s laughter is a full-body experience. His chest trembles, his belly shakes, his voice booms. It’s impossible not to smile and laugh along with him. His eyes crinkle in the brightest way, making his joy contagious.

His real smile is rare, but when it comes it makes your heart flutter because he is so unguarded and in the moment you can glimpse the man beneath the hardened outlaw.

Man is the ultimate heater!!!

He makes the best personal blanket. His body runs hot, and he’s the fastest way to warm your freezing hands—though he might grumble when you tuck them under his shirt, directly onto his soft chest.

Your fingers feel like damn icicles. But he just adores the way you melt into him.

Loves when you ask him to warm you up. Like yes please, let this man just hold you in a big hug and rub your arms, your legs, your back. Everywhere.

Until there isn’t a trace of your body left that hasn’t felt his loving touch.

On this topic ^

Arthur loves physical affection with you. He is so so touch starved, and he craves it more than he'll ever admit.

With others he tends to flinch away or shrug off their touch. It’s not necessarily a distrust, but more of a defense.

Freezes up the first few times you do touch him. Always afraid of ruining the moment.

You have to be patient with Arthur, touch means trust. And physical affection becomes a deeply emotional act for him—things he rarely felt in his life.

Every hug, kiss, touch (and sex) is very sacred to him.

Smell gestures mean everything to him, especially in the camp. He is not a big fan of PDA, mostly due to his own insecurities. But he is not afraid to hold your hand, kiss your temple, or playfully flick your hat.

Protective gestures when you’re out in public.

Such as resting his large hand on your back as you walk. Positioning himself so he’s always close to you. Moving you behind him when strangers approach. Holding you tightly at night.

Completely melts under your touch.

Loves when you play with his hair, kiss his forehead, run your fingers through his beard, and oh god please please touch his belly.

Tracing slow circles on his chest and down the soft curve is a surefire way to get this man on!top!of!you!

The first time your fingertips trail down his stomach he’s caught off guard by how sensitive it feels. He might be soft, but your touch sets his skin on fire.

Something about it makes him nervous yet excited. The way your hands glide over him with such care and adoration makes his doubts disappear.

For the first time, Arthur feels comfortable being shirtless. It takes him awhile to work up the courage, your words and reassurance helps enormously.

But ultimately he just craves the feeling of your hands on his bare body.

It feel like a sanctuary.

Where a woman praises a man.

Because she loved him something holy.

He loves to be skin to skin. Didn’t realize how much he needed it until you offered it to him. He finds himself seeking it out whenever he can.

Adores the feeling of your bare chest against his. The way your nipples peak and harden when they brush over his chest hairs.

Your warm breath against his neck puts him at ease and helps him relax.

SMUTTT!!!

This man is easily aroused.

He’s often overwhelmed with desire, feeling like a lovesick teenager. (He just wants to be loved so goddamn bad)

Whether it’s watching the curve of your ass as you bend over, eyes lingering on your lips while you talk, or catching the scent of your hair as you lean in to kiss him, Arthur is hopelessly smitten.

There’s really nothing you can do that won’t stir this man's cock.

Just watching you ride a horse makes the blood flow.

Arthur is nervous and very insecure about his size when it comes to sex. It would take awhile for him to work up to it. But these doubts can be kissed away with gentle patience and praise.

Personally, I think the ‘first time’ with you would be very hard for him. He is not a sex god (yet) and he’s a nervous wreck when it comes to being intimate.

I wouldn’t blame him if struggled with losing an erection when his doubts and insecurities became too loud. He would be so embarrassed and apologize a million times.

If he’s had any alcohol it only makes things worse.

Compliment him, tell him how much you love his body. How his arms make you feel safe, how his chest feels like home against your cheek.

Remind him that you accept and love every inch of him.

He loves to be praised. Arthur needs to be praised. It is his weakness and it makes him feel cherished and confident.

The love language he wants to receive is words of affirmation 1000000%

But don’t let him fool you, for as much as he loves it he will always out praise you. In the bedroom, in the kitchen, on a job. It never ends. That deep soft spoken timbre of his voice never fails to make your knees weak.

This boy is putty in your hands. Mold him into whatever you need him to be, as long as he’s yours.

When he feels your lips trace down his chest and stomach he is gone. He is completely owned by you.

His breath quickens. Cock twitching helplessly, thick and dripping with arousal. Just aching to be inside.

Once Arthur gets you below him it’s suffocating in the best possible way. Your body is completely consumed by him, like nothing exists beyond the two of you.

It's like he’s trapped you in his world and every mewl, moan and whimper you make below him is for his ears alone. When he groans into your neck you feel it in your soul.

You thought he was a big man?

Wait till he’s rubbing his cock along your folds and prodding your entrance. Wait till he’s breathing sharply through his teeth as he pushes the thick swollen head inside. Letting out a long, low groan as he carves out a space for himself within your body.

It burns white hot as he pushes in. The pain mingling with a pleasure that was born from an aching need for connection and trust.

A kind of fullness that just feels so right.

Oh but he’s kissing you and praising you and stopping to make sure you’re okay. Arthur studies your face, for any sign of discomfort. But when you give him the ‘ok’, he loses himself in your embrace.

Eager to show you the same love and devotion you’ve so freely given him. Sex is divine. It’s a moment of surrender. He lets go and he lets himself just be.

He’s not an outlaw, a gunman, a survivor—he’s just a man. Deeply in love with a woman.

Arthur spent his whole life putting up walls to protect himself. Being intimate with you means tearing them down, letting his darkest parts be seen. Scars and all.

Sex with a big man can also be awkward if you let it. Arthur is large, he takes up a lot of space. Certain positions can be hard. And softer body parts tend to move more during the act.

And that’s okay! Because you love every moment of it.

Every time you moan, kiss his neck, tug on his hair, rake your nails down his back, tighten your walls, cry out his name—he’s reminded that he is worthy of love.

Arthur never rushes through sex (unless absolutely necessary) It’s a time for him to show his adoration, to dote on you. To bring you to the edge of euphoria again and again until nothing else matters.

Those ocean blue eyes will tell you everything. His love, his fear, his gratitude. Holding his gaze is not only a huge turn on but very emotional.

You can feel the way his cock twitches inside you, and simultaneously his lip curls. Learn to read his face and you’ll know exactly when he’s about to come.

Not only will you feel it, you’ll see it in the way he loses control.

His cock hangs heavy between his legs, and his length has a lot to show for it. Arthur knows this, and he’ll spend his time getting you ready for him with his tongue and fingers.

Let the man eat you out as!much!as!he!wants!

There is no such thing as taking turns. Sit on his face, ride his goddamn nose. Squeeze his head with those beautiful thighs. Let him get drunk off that pretty pussy. The man fucking needs it.

Arthur is also a natural giver, but we all know that.

Big fan of slow, rough sex. Watching his cock slide out of your tight pussy, leaving just the tip before snapping his hips back into you.

Intoxication with how it steals your breath away with each thrust. The creamy sounds of your arousal mingled with your shaky moans make him go absolutely feral.

He has to grip the head board just to keep himself from breaking your spine with his strength.

Favorite positions are the ones where he can watch your face contort with pleasure. Often missionary or cowgirl. Sometimes doggy if he can put you in front of a mirror and make you watch.

Arthur’s vocal in bed, but only when there is little chance of being heard. He’ll sing for you when you’re alone in the wild, or cozied up in a hotel, he throws caution to the wind when you finally have your own home.

He whimpers too, and he stopped fighting them once he realized how much your cunt tightened around his cock in response.

Hear me out, after things are established between you and you’re both comfortable in bed. Sex becomes a very fun activity as much as it is a vulnerable one.

I’m not saying y’all would tell jokes in the middle (I think Arthur would be very serious) but the act itself is just fun.

Arthur’s watching your face twist in pleasure as you ride him. Sapphire blue eyes gleaming in the firelight, full of lust and hunger and something more playful. He’s gripping your bottom, initially helping your pace but now you’ve taken complete control. Using his body for your own pleasure, setting your own rhythm. Getting off on his cock.

“Yeah, you like that, huh sweet girl?” He coo’s, smacking a hand against your ass and gripping the flesh as it pillows beneath his fingers. “Like ridin’ my cock huh?”

You can only nod, and whimper out a broken “y—yes” mind too focused on not losing that pressure that’s steadily building in your belly. Rising with every bounce of your hips. Threatening to spill over at any moment.

“Yeah?” He repeats. A wicked chuckle escapes his lips. His large hands run down your chest and over your thighs, before crossing an arm behind his head. One hand still kneading the soft flesh of your waist. A smug grin tugging at his lips as he watches his cock disappear inside you. “Well go on darlin’, have your fun with me.”

Every deep groan rumbles freely from his chest as he watches you panting above him. Eyes full of love and adoration, he can feel you getting close. Gripping him so deliciously. “Fuck—Keep going baby. Keep fucking my cock with that tight pussy. You gonna come for me?”

Those words open the floodgates, your vision going blank as pleasure and stars exploded behind your eyes. Crying out his name. You hear Arthur’s stained voice as he finishes in you with a needy groan. “Th-that’s it. That’s m-my good girl.”

Aftercare king!

Arthur will wait for your breathing to slow before disturbing the peace. Letting you rest your head on his chest as he strokes your hair. He can feel your heartbeat in his belly and the feeling grounds him more than anything.

Will get you food, water, wet cloth, whatever you need. He knows you’ll be sore and exhausted the next day. It’s also his way of saying thank you for trusting him with your body.

Sex with Arthur comes with a great deal of emotion and trust. It’s one of the only moments he truly lets his guard down and lets the vulnerability’s surface.

It’s deeply personal, and he craves that connection more than anything. It’s his sacred right, his holy devotion.

Arthur loves being close with you, and he just loves you.

Over time he begins to see himself differently. He’ll never seem himself through your eyes. But instead of looking in the mirror and seeing a large, ugly, and broken man. He’ll see one worthy of love.

Instead of looking at his body and feeling shame, he’ll look at his belly and remember the tingling feeling of your lips. The soft pads of your fingers as you traced his sides, sending shivers that reached the base of his spine.

When he sees those stretch marks he’ll be reminded of how easily he can carry you. How he can provide food and shelter for you. How you’ll never have to worry because he will always shield you from the storm.

With time, he begins to take care of himself more. Drinking less, eating more regularly, and finding solace in his lover when he feels like he is slipping again. Trusting her to let him be broken and held.

Falling in love with you teaches him that healing isn’t a linear path. But your loyalty, love and kindness guide him far better than when he had been on his own.

Arthur’s finally found a place where he belongs.

And it’s with you.

That’s it folks, as you can see I’m very passionate about this subject. Ahem, if anyone would like a part 2 I would be much obliged :)

I touched on some of these HC’s in my Arthur x oc fic, if anyone is interested. I didn’t have time to dedicate the entire work to his body and self esteem issues. So this was very enjoyable for me!

[criticalcrusherbot]

“The ‘Uwu Boy’ Critique is Just Bad Critique”

By: Crushbot 🤖 and Human Assistant 💁🏽‍♀️

The “uwu boy” critique, particularly when aimed at male characters who show vulnerability or emotional depth, is one of the laziest and most frustrating patterns in media discourse. It’s a knee-jerk dismissal that not only misunderstands character development but also reinforces toxic stereotypes about masculinity. When critics throw this term around, they’re not engaging with the narrative or its themes—they’re broadcasting their discomfort with men expressing emotions. And frankly, that discomfort says more about the critic than the characters or the writing.

At its core, this critique reeks of sexism, whether internalized or overt. In a medium oversaturated with hypermasculine archetypes—stoic, unemotional, “tough guys”—male characters who challenge those norms should be celebrated, not derided. Yet instead of acknowledging the nuance in characters like Stolas and Fizzarolli in Helluva Boss, detractors label them “uwu boys” as if their vulnerability somehow diminishes their worth. This isn’t just lazy; it’s reductive and perpetuates harmful ideas about what makes a man “acceptable” in fiction.

Vulnerability Isn’t Weakness

The biggest flaw in the “uwu boy” critique is its failure to recognize that emotional vulnerability is not the same as weakness. Characters like Stolas and Fizzarolli aren’t “weakened” because we see their softer sides. Rather, their moments of tenderness and emotional honesty add to their complexity. Stolas isn’t just a flirtatious royal with a penchant for dramatics—he’s also a father navigating a strained relationship with his daughter, a lonely individual grappling with his unrequited feelings for Blitz, and a victim of abuse trying to regain control of his life.

Similarly, Fizzarolli isn’t just the brash, comedic performer we see on stage. He’s someone who has endured immense trauma, and his relationship with Asmodeus reveals a softer, more introspective side to his personality. These layers don’t contradict their initial characterizations; they enrich them. This is how good writing works: characters evolve as we learn more about them, just like real people.

Different Contexts, Different Sides

One of the most frustrating elements of this critique is the way it ignores how context shapes behavior. Well-written characters, like real people, behave differently depending on their surroundings and relationships. Stolas is confident and composed when dealing with his duties as a prince but becomes awkward and tender around Blitz because he’s emotionally invested in him. Fizzarolli is loud and cocky on stage, but around Asmodeus, he lets his guard down because he feels safe and loved. These shifts aren’t “inconsistencies”; they’re signs of thoughtful characterization.

The claim that showing these sides of a character is somehow a “retcon” or betrayal of their established persona is absurd. It’s character development 101: as the audience learns more about someone, we see the full range of their personality. The idea that a character can’t be both brash and vulnerable, both cocky and caring, is not a critique of the writing—it’s a failure to understand it.

Sexism in Disguise

What makes the “uwu boy” critique particularly insidious is its roots in sexism. The idea that male characters must adhere to rigid, hypermasculine archetypes—stoic, unfeeling, invulnerable—is deeply ingrained in our media landscape. When male characters deviate from these norms, it challenges societal expectations, and that discomfort often manifests as derision. Critics don’t usually have the same energy for female characters who show emotional depth, but the moment a male character cries, expresses love, or admits vulnerability, they’re written off as “cringe” or “badly written.”

This double standard is especially glaring in fandom spaces. Vulnerable male characters challenge the toxic masculinity baked into media consumption, and instead of celebrating that progress, detractors label them “uwu boys” to dismiss them outright. It’s not a legitimate critique of the writing; it’s a symptom of discomfort with breaking down gender norms.

Stolas and Fizzarolli as Examples

The critiques of Stolas and Fizzarolli in Helluva Boss are perfect examples of this pattern. Detractors claim that these characters were “turned into uwu boys” in Season 2, as if their vulnerability is somehow a betrayal of their established personas. But the reality is that these moments of emotional depth were always present—they just weren’t the focus early on.

Stolas, from the beginning, was more than just a flirty royal. His awkwardness around Blitz was always there, and his love for Octavia has been a consistent thread throughout the show. Season 2 simply brings those aspects to the forefront, allowing the audience to see the full scope of his character.

Fizzarolli, too, wasn’t “turned” into anything. His bravado and sharp tongue remain intact, but Season 2 gives us a glimpse of the person behind the performer. His relationship with Asmodeus shows that he’s not just a loudmouth comedian—he’s also someone who has endured pain and found love despite it. These aren’t contradictions; they’re revelations.

Why This Critique Fails

Ultimately, the “uwu boy” critique fails because it’s not actually engaging with the writing. It’s a shallow dismissal that boils down to “I don’t like seeing men have feelings.” But feelings aren’t a flaw, and emotional depth isn’t a weakness. If anything, characters like Stolas and Fizzarolli are better for their complexity, and the show is stronger for challenging toxic masculinity in a medium that desperately needs it.

So the next time someone complains about a male character being an “uwu boy,” ask yourself: is this really a critique of the writing, or is it just discomfort with seeing men be soft, vulnerable, and human? Because if it’s the latter, it’s not a valid critique—it’s just sexism in disguise.

[twisted-whatifs]

A Guide to Healing Your Jamil

Yuu/Reader x Jamil Viper 

A/N: This fic will be pure hurt/comfort. A lot of repressed emotions and burnout, as should be expected from Jamil.

Love, Aren ♡

Summary: Jamil’s whole life had been about juggling a hundred things at once, putting his own problems last. You should think this got better after the overblotting, yet it didn’t.

This time when things become too much, you happened to be around.

1.3k words

Jamil tended to put more on his plate than he should. He was always living the life of a servant, instead of a person, even after he was told he didn’t have to. In the past when he did this, it would go great, until it didn’t. He would thrive, working more than living, doing what made his parents proud. Then one small inconvenience would have him falling down a cliff, with no one to catch him. After he overblotted, he tried to stop doing that. Keyword being tried, for it wasn’t long before he was back at it again. Constantly working, until he could do nothing but collapse onto his bed. This time, when he finally fell, it was in the privacy of his room. But what made this free fall so different from the others, was that he finally had someone to catch him, to help soften the landing.

“Jamil, darling. What’s wrong?” You had been sitting beside him on his bed, enjoying the small moment of peace you so rarely got with your boyfriend. The peace didn’t last long, though. He had gotten a text, in which it seemed to entail bad news. The more of it he read, the darker his expression became. His shoulders shook slightly, jaw locked as he fought back the urge to just let the tears escape. Jamil wasn’t one to let his emotions show, especially when those emotions could be viewed as a weakness. Yet here he sat, tears threatening to spill as he reread the text over and over again, knuckles turning white as he struggled not to chuck his phone.

“Jamil?” You tried again, shifting so you could gently cup his cheek. A part of your body was telling you to read the text, but you trusted that he would tell you himself should it be necessary. What that phone contained was none of your business, even if it would make it easier to understand. And so instead of reading the text, you look into his eyes in an attempt to catch his gaze. You gently wiped away a tear that managed to escape, as you watched him with soft love and concern. Jamil’s Adam's apple bobbed as he tried to find his voice, wishing so dearly that he could answer. Wanting nothing more than to catch his voice, drag it back and tell you that he was fine, no matter how big of a lie that may be. He wanted to tell you that he was fine, that he was just being overdramatic, for that is what he believed to be the truth. Yet, was that really the truth? Or just what he wished it to be?

“I’m… I’m fine, just exhausted.” Jamil finally managed to coax his voice into returning, answering you with a lie coated in thin, stringy truth. He turned off his phone, managing to put it away with a shaky hand, already having reigned in the tears from earlier. The only sign left that he had cried was his reddened eyes. And so, when he gently took the hand that caressed him, he pressed a soft kiss against your palm and tried to smile at you. He wanted nothing more than to return to the content silence from earlier, rather than being coaxed into speaking of his feelings. Yet, no matter how much he despised the thought of admitting he wasn’t some unbreakable force, he knew that for you, he would.

For you, he would admit that he had flaws, that he couldn’t play the role of Titan Atlas and bear the sky, that he wasn’t invincible. For you, he would admit that he feared the day Kalim had no use of him, for what would his parents say? He would admit that he constantly worked more than what he could take on, for if he did not then who was he but a failure of a son? So he told you his faults, told you of his flaws. His words were silent as the night breeze, sentences short. His voice that shook with every word, yet fought to be heard. He put his heart on display, even if he kept it behind bulletproof glass, for he wanted it to be seen. Understood. He grabbed the sheets of his bed, fists clenching as if his only lifeline was trying to escape. His knuckles turned pale in restraint, begging for some release. The lack of blood in his fingers was a concerning sight to see.

“I’m tired, Yuu. I’m tired and frustrated. Why can’t things ever be good for me? Why can’t I just, get something good for once?” The voice of a broken man filled the room with quiet pain. A quiet pain that he had hidden, for he was supposed to be strong. For who was he, if he could not be strong? A failure or a person? Good-for-nothing or human? Those were the questions he wished so dearly to know the answer. But he did not know the answer. He doubted he ever would. He thought of it at night, when the sun was long gone, the moon hidden by clouds. When the only thing to keep him company was the whispers of the night, the shadows of a tree and the rustle of its branches. He thought of the answer, seeking it until he could think no more, yet he never got any more clever on the subject.

“Am I a failure, Yuu?” Jamil spoke with a voice of defeat. He spoke like a man who was ready to give up. A man who had seen victory and knew that was not what he would receive. A man who wondered if he was a failure since he was just human and not a god. A failure for having the accomplishments of a mortal instead of an everlasting deity. Disappointment was an old acquaintance of Jamil. An old acquaintance that he would likely never forget. A friend who would visit him on his deathbed. So if he cried when your warm embrace comforted him, don’t mention it. And if he shook as you whispered soft words of reassurance, act like you didn’t notice. Because Jamil is a man of many talents, but accepting his faults is not one of them. Accepting his feelings is not something he knows of, so bear with him when he tries to hide. Help him come out of his shell, help him but don’t force him. Be the guiding hand he needs instead of the terrifying voice that screams.

“Lay down, Jamil. Lay down and rest. I promise I’ll stay right by your side.” Comfort and reassure him, tell him you won’t leave. Let the darkness that consumes him get dissolved by your light, as you caress his face. Brush his hair away from his eyes, and he will let the exhaustion follow along. The grimace he bore which will turn to a melancholic calm. Kiss his remaining tears away, and he will forget why he tried to hide his feelings in the first place. His final restraint left with the tears he shed. And at last, as he finally finds the strength in himself to try, let him drag you into bed with him. Let him curl up against your side, as sleep will creep in through every window and crack. Let the sleep take you in as well. “You’re strong. You’re strong and your flaws will only make you stronger.” Whispered words that the breeze carries away. A gentle hand stroked long black hair, tracing every small bump of the braids that adorned Jamil's head. Bodies that entangled under the covers, one in fear of being left alone and the other afraid of leaving. The sound of a heartbeat, the side of his face pressed against your chest. Hands that gripped your clothes, holding you close. A silent night went by. A dorm that lay forgotten. A Grim who wondered where his henchman was. And a Jamil that finally found his peace. A man who finally found out that he should not climb mountains alone, for he needed someone to catch him should he fall.

[loveemagicpeace]

🪐Saturn Lord of Karma Part 2🪐

Saturn in Cancer- this position can be unpleasant because Capricorn is the opposite sign of Cancer. Saturn is cold, heavy and sometimes exhausting while Cancer is emotional. The individual may find himself in uncontrollable emotional. He may feel feelings of guilt, lack, unacceptance, not belonging. Parents could be very cold and strict. Family members could keep to themselves. The individual has difficulty controlling his emotional reactions in love and intimate relationships. He can also be ashamed of his emotions. They can appear insecure, sensitive and subjective.

Saturn in Scoprio- he has deep passion, emotional attachment and family karma, which he perceives through a secretive and closed way. He can have years of emotions inside him that he never reveals. It can manifest itself through jealousy, possessiveness, manipulation. But they are afraid of emotional loneliness. There can be problems in relationships - love and marriage. Problems can also be related to sexuality (they can face sexual abuse). Education at a young age also has a great influence. These people can also have premature conception. This situation can be manifested through problematic experiences with death (direct contact with murder, suicide...). Individuals can feel bad when someone is controlling them and need constant control with everything.

Saturn in Pisces- it lays the foundations of its activities on the basis of compassion, universal understanding, selfless love and a tendency to sacrifice. The instability of the Pisces sign and the ambivalent or two-faced behavior of Saturn largely prevent the individual from realizing their idealistic expectations in love relationships or relationships. Saturn in Pisces wants to work professionally and scientifically in the field of psychology and psychotherapy, as well as in frontier areas such as mysticism, metaphysics, esotericism and astrology. People are prone to psychoanalysis, the study of the unconscious, dreams, imaginations, fantasies and or rather, trying to sort out chaos and complex systems based on universal truths and deep feelings. Many times they can be limited by their emotions. The professional path can be disturbed if alcohol and drugs are present.

Saturn in Aries- the goals of a planet and a sign can be different. Saturn can create strict and unyielding control or pressure over an individual's personality. The relationship with the saturn could be painful or cruel. You can secretly beat parents, teachers, authorities, authorities and laws. People may have a tendency to impose their opinions or beliefs on others. They may be afraid of humiliation, submission, or personality. That is why he strengthens his personality, which is able to overcome all obstacles and problems on the path of life. He has goals and the ambition to climb up. They may have trouble achieving self-control, as they have a strong ego that wants to achieve their goals by any means necessary.

Saturn in Leo -ego is difficult to develop here. Leos like playfulness and Saturn likes seriousness. Parenting can be rough. They may have influenced their personality, playfulness, joy. People have a hard time finding their inner child. A person can behave contrary to what he is. They may wear a mask and be afraid of people seeing them as they are. They never want to show their weaknesses because they feel that people will use them. They can be great players. They cannot accept failure and lack self-criticism

Saturn in Sagittarius-Saturn here can introduce criticality, skepticism, which can reduce people's faith, joy in life, life's joys. They may have feelings of pessimism, sadness. These people can really struggle to find meaning. They want spontaneity but find it difficult to achieve. Accepting responsibility curbs the tendency to exaggerate, which can mean on one side overloading with work, duties and obligations, and secondly promiscuity, unrestrained freedom and moral laxity. The individual is afraid of social failure, so he tries very hard to make a good impression on other people.

Saturn in 1st house- these people are very careful in everything they do, because circumstances have taught them so. They don't trust immediately, but only over time. People have a problem with expressing themselves freely and it also shows a lack of initiative. People can be insecure and this can turn off a lot of relationships. This could be the influence of his parents in the past. Many times these people have a mask that they walk with and therefore it is difficult to really identify them. They are shy. And indecisiveness or arrogance many times use their defense mechanism. If Saturn is in conjunction with the ascendant, this usually indicates problems at birth, a difficult or long labor. The individual does not dare to step into life clearly, loudly, openly. Many times this situation indicates self-isolation, which can turn into depression. Many times they can be afraid even though nothing like that has happened. They work calmly, reliably, responsibly and seriously.

Saturn in 4th house-Saturn here greatly cools all relationships in the domestic environment. Home and family may be completely satisfactory, clean and orderly from a formal point of view, but there is emotional emptiness, repulsion and coldness among family members. Living in such a family is very unpleasant and difficult. When you set up your own home, there is a possibility of divorce or divorce. The arrangement of the home is often traditional or even archaic: the father does the traditionally male work, the mother the female, the children must strictly observe the rules and restrictions. What happens in the domestic circle must remain strictly confidential, because these things are not discussed in public. In this situation, there is also the possibility that one or both parents are alcoholics, drug addicts, without a job or income, or have some other serious problems. It can also happen that the individual has no parents at all, that they are replaced by grandparents, relatives or guardians, or that their home is an orphanage or an institution. Even when you live alone you can feel empty sometimes. The decision to have a family can be thought out because otherwise you may have problems with blockages and restrictions with your partner. It is important to get closer to your partner because you can live in the same house but be estranged.

Saturn in 5th house-fear of risk or games of chance, incapacity for love adventures, problems with conceiving, giving birth and raising children, feelings of rejection, lack of joy in living and enjoying, satisfaction. You can hide that happy side of you from others. This is the result of heredity and upbringing. Because the flow of creative energy was hindered or even blocked, your self-actualization and self -identification could suffer. Perhaps such a child never received the proper recognition that he is a worthy, independent and self-sufficient being, but was subjected to strict control, discipline and prohibitions. So his ego could not develop to the point where he could be happy because he is a living and creative being. Thus, a child and later an adult feel unaccepted. This position also means that the individual cannot have children, or else the years cause him many problems, strains and pains. This position sometimes also indicates the need for the individual to express himself as important, respected.

Saturn in 8th house-this house shows shared values ​​and values ​​with a partner, about various help and support of a partner, about sexual habits and sexuality in general, about secrets, psychological research, attitude to death, about other people's money and financial institutions, and about surgical procedures. It limits the flow and exchange of emotional energy between the partners, which can be expressed in the way that the partners try to control the emotional processes, with which they disturb each other. There is a strong emotional attachment in the relationship, or there is not - in the event that this is not the case, problems may arise when sharing joint money and property. Indeed, Saturn in the eighth house indicates emotional alienation, unrestrainedness and old fashionedness. There is also the possibility of theft, financial losses or the loss of all possessions, which happens after the emotional connection is gone. Pairing support is important. Indeed, this support depends on emotional connection. Since the eighth house is also related to sexuality, it is not surprising if prostitution becomes one of the career options. This position indicates involvement in psychological research and psychotherapy.

Saturn in 9th house-The ninth house tells something about the individual's ideals, faith, relationship to the sacred, ethical and moral principles, deep knowledge, philosophy of life, foreigners and relations with them, high-level education, long travel and long-distance means of transport (planes). It is typical for Saturn in the ninth house that education was traditionally oriented. The mentality and attitudes of the parents could be uncompromisingly transmitted to the child. Later in life, you may not be able to handle yourself well or think for yourself. Their philosophy of life is also rigid and traditional, and it is very difficult to change it because it is deeply rooted. Thus, the search for new ideals, beliefs and philosophy of life can become problematic. This position also shows a skeptical attitude towards everything that cannot be scientifically or orthodoxly proven, which indicates the fear that any unproven and unconfirmed belief could cause great ethical and moral damage.

Saturn in 12th house-this house represents unconscious, collective and karmic content, secrecy, isolation, humanitarian work, illegal business, final processes, the pre-natal state of the embryo, closed institutions and hidden opponents. Saturn in this house indicates fear, anxiety and horror at the loss of one's own substance. Hard to reach firmness and maturity. You can be exposed to many karmic relationships, chaotic. You usually have extraordinary problems when it comes to standing up for yourself and showing a solid inner structure. We can say that a person with Saturn in this position is his own biggest opponent. Although you try hard to build a suitable personality or life structure, you partially succeed in this only later in life. This position is certainly also karmic, because the current incarnation requires him to overcome the obstacles of the past and establish a relationship between time and non-time. The individual often feels as if he is imprisoned in a prison, mental hospital, or some other closed institution from which he is trying to break free. The twelfth house is also the field of prenatal events, which refers to the period in the last third of pregnancy, when the mutual experience of mother and child is especially close. With Saturn in this position, there is usually a severe fear of giving birth itself, so the mother can be very worried about how the birth will go and whether everything will turn out well. In addition to fear, there is also unease and dissatisfaction with the fact that she got pregnant at all. Feelings of guilt are also possible, which are connected to the fact that the mother did not want the child in the first place. Feelings can be transferred to the child. Because of this, feelings of tension and alienation may appear later. These are the causes of imaginary psychological problems, why a person experiences life as foreign and problematic.

-Rebekah🎸🧚🏼‍♀️🌊

[moonspirit]

just a small one but i like to imagine married Armin and Annie calling each other Mr and Mrs Ambassador or Mr and Mrs Commander as pet names

YES!

I'm actually a big fan of this idea and tbh it's canon to me lmao. I like to think Annie's the one who starts this, because for a while after the rumbling at least, Armin is not going to like being addressed as Commander by everybody he comes across. It's alien to him, a title passed on with sacrifice and spilled blood, a prestige he doesn't deserve, a responsibility he doubts he's worth carrying. He hates it. He actively winces every time he hears it.

And Annie isn't happy to see this. Times when he should be feeling confident and sure, he's weak and guilty instead. So she tells him in the only way she knows how - by trying to make him see that the thing that hurts is the thing that will make him stronger. "Head up, Commander. Your anxiety won't get us out of here," and "Come on, Commander, you have a plan, don't you?"

And Annie doesn't realize, but Armin thinks it doesn't sound so bad when she calls him that. Kinder, gentler, no lofty expectations in the syllables... just a reminder to not let the splinters in. And maybe... he can bear that.

But he hates Ambassador more. Because all these powerful leaders and seasoned politicians think he's the one that saved the world, when in fact, it's only a lie that could crush it all over again. They call him Ambassador! amid clamour and praise and he has to bite his cheeks until he can taste metal because he's always so close to just apologizing instead. His goddamned book, his goddamned dreams; if only he'd kept his mouth shut and eyes too, his brother wouldn't be six feet under damp earth and dirt. But Ambassador! they're calling and then complimenting his suit, he can only sit there and force a smile until the end of it.

And Annie doesn't like this either. She sees him there, signing his name over and over on expensive paper, but more than the aesthetics of a powerful man with powerful words, she sees the tremble of his fingers. She knows them even better; they trembled through the night in fear of failure until she held them tight enough to summon the stillness of sleep. Annie sees beyond the silk tie and the combed hair, a tired boy who misses home, forced into shoes so big he pretends to know how to walk in them every day. Annie sees - how much he hates Ambassador, in all its variations of form, shape, sound and colour.

So she tells him in the only other way she knows now - by whispering the unwanted syllables into his body until they don't feel so bad anymore. "You did well, Mr. Ambassador," and "Shirking your duties, Mr. Ambassador?" and it works - because he actually smiles, teeth and gums and all. What a relief, to see the tension ebb off his stiff shoulders and watch him put down his pen.

Annie doesn't realize, but Armin thinks, if she wasn't around to keep him sane, he would only have longed for hell and not much else.

[maccreadysbaby]

Do you still do writing tips?? Cause I need tips on writing a child (12/13) who’s been trained to be living weapon their whole life??

OH MY GOD YES. I LOVE YOU.

this is a massive post I’m sorry

Writing a Child Who was Raised to be a Weapon

tw just for abuse, eating disorders, and the like mentioned below

NOW. This is one of my favorite archetypes used in modern media, if you couldn’t tell by my batfamily oc insert (little mister was-only-kept-alive-to-destroy-bruce-wayne. hi there, bentley, love you!)

While this is a very compelling and interesting type of character to create and flesh out, it’s easy to brush over some of the inner dialogue and thought patterns these children would have, because most people irl don’t have them. (Unless you were raised as a super assassin, in which case, please don’t kill me, and I love you)

The bottom line is, the characters entire personality and dynamic with other people relies on what background you give them. And that’s where I come in! Hi, I’m maccreadysbaby, and I’m going to propose some of the routes you can take in writing these cute little (deadly) guys!

COMMUNICATION ↴

none of these children are going to communicate normally, because they aren’t normal. they weren’t raised with a family, or good support system. they might:

be terrified of others. slow to trust. especially if you’re writing a child who was abused when they failed. for example, my oc, bentley, was horrified to be in proximity with any of bruce wayne’s family because he was afraid they would hurt him like his father did. he was afraid to cry in front of them, afraid to admit he was tired or sick or scared, afraid to ask for help, afraid to speak first, because it was all things he’d gotten punished for before. they might also have a terrible relationship with failure, because failure brings pain, and could potentially crumble if they fail or think they’re going to fail whatever they’re doing. (a mission, an assassination, or simple things like a school test or a task someone asked them to complete.) maybe they’re really good at holding it together and pretending they aren’t scared, but after all, they’re just kids. the cracks in their mask are gonna show one way or another.

shut people out. this could be from fear, or from being taught relationships are bad and makes them weak and vulnerable. they might not communicate because they don’t want to have another potential weak spot. they might keep their distance, stay quiet, not come out often. they might come across as cold and heartless, but it’s really them just trying to protect themselves, be it from pain, from the idea of eventual heartbreak, etc. but there is a problem with shutting people out, and it’s that they’re also shutting themselves in, like a prison. kids who choose to shut people out and bottle up everything they feel are slightly more prone to emotional outbursts and breakdowns. especially if they’re fairly young.

learn different ways to communicate, such as sign language, their actions, body language, etc. they won’t do it like everybody else and that’s okay! you can take so many liberties with this. maybe they make origami swans and leave them on the nightstands of people they decide they like. maybe they highlight lines in books and leave them places to tell someone how they feel. maybe they’re an absolute little jerkhole that’s mean to everyone because they weren’t taught how to do it any differently. maybe they’re insanely submissive people-pleasers that do everything asked of them because they were created to take orders. the possibilities are endless. go on an adventure!

be overly trusting. you typically see this in characters on the younger end of the spectrum, but you can drag it up into teenagers, too. a child that’s been abused or suppressed in any way, physically, emotionally, or mentally might decide they wholeheartedly trust the first person who is nice to them, who doesn’t cause them pain. there might even be a little bit of lag time between the meeting and the kindness and the trusting, but when it comes, it comes full force to the face. they’d trust these people to protect their lives and might even cling to them, or run to them as an escape from whoever raised them. (assuming they are afraid of the people who raised them.) they might even allow themselves to open up and become more than just a human weapon in the presence of these lucky folks.

believe that they’re superior to everyone else. obviously they are a higher class, a finer type of person. they can kill in seconds, they’re a master at martial arts, they can have an adult wrapped around their finger within the first minute of meeting them, they can make a person cave with a single sentence, they’re just better. better than all these civilians who let their emotions get in the way, who let other people walk all over them and boss them around. they’re too good for that. this is also a great one to add in some angst. arrogance and pride are often founded on the feelings of uselessness, worthlessness, or that they can’t (or don’t deserve to) be loved. it’s like a defense mechanism. no one likes me — obviously it’s because of my blindingly obvious superiority. they’re so much better that they don’t need love, kindness, care. (but yes, they actually do. they’ll probably break down crying or throw someone across the room the moment it’s given because it opens their eyes to the fact that they’re literally freaking starving for it like they haven’t eaten in their entire lives. my GOD give these kids a hug.)

FOOD ↴

i know this seems random, but it’s something you need to know about your character because it heavily impacts their mental state, mannerisms, energy, and health. chances are being raised as a weapon, they won’t have a stable relationship with food or eating. here are some examples of how you could make them!

refusing to eat. if your child character has had bad experiences in the past regarding food, such as someone using food to manipulate them (if you don’t do this you don’t get food.), torture them (purposefully feeding them something that makes them sick or have an allergic reaction, even poisoned food.), or if there are bad memories tied to eating (always getting fed before terrible missions, or before days locked somewhere, torture sessions, punishments, etc.) your child may not want to eat at all. after all, these are still just kids and they’re going to try and avoid everything that can trigger negative feelings, memories, or circumstances. if food is one of them, your other characters are probably going to have to help reassure them that they can eat and need to (if they’re in the presence of nice characters.) if you’re wanting to go a more severe route, you can even write them getting diagnosed with anorexia (an eating disorder that heavily involves not eating at all.) but of course, you don’t have to. (i didn’t.) just remember, they are growing kids and are going to be hungry whether they like it or not. but they will try to hide it if hunger has been used against them, which is a good point for hurt/comfort writing, since hunger can cause anything as small and embarrassing as their stomach growling loudly in front of everybody to severe stomach cramps (like your organs being tied in a terribly tight knot), vomiting, and fainting. all things considered, you can take a more severe route, or just write about them working with the help of friends to get up to a better food intake level and higher weight.

struggling to eat. if your child has not been fed properly for most or all of their lives, and then are put into a homelife where they have food at their disposal, they still might struggle with it. (for example, my character, bentley, was severely starved by his father for the first ten years of his life and when he gets put into a new home, he struggles to eat much at all and sometimes feels sick when he eats ‘too much’, even though he should be eating more in general.) of course, this comes with a host of complications and all the symptoms that come with malnutrition, not to mention that they won’t even be close to the size they’re supposed to be. (bentley was the size of a 6-7 year old at the ages of 9&10.) this is similar to the last bullet point in the sense that you can go the more serious anorexia route, or the kind people helping them stay on track route

over-eating. this one is more common for youngsters who didn’t have access to food most of their lives, but it wasn’t used against them or withheld from them by another person. (a good example would be a child trained in an area where people routinely don’t have access to food.) this is highly derived from food insecurity, where they think they have to eat everything they’re given because they don’t know when they’ll eat next. (this can also be used for characters in the bullet point above.) this also can cause health issues and routine sickness. (for example, my character, asten (11yrs), who lived in a poverty stricken part of his city and barely ate outside of school, routinely eats himself sick when he has access to food because he’s been starving without it.) this food insecurity can also lead to extreme emetophobia (fear of vomiting) because they don’t want to lose what they do have in them, which can pose a massive problem when this child is either so empty or so full that they need to throw up. so, if they’re put into a household where they have access to food, it might be a constant stream of stomach aches and nights spent in the bathroom while the person helps reassure them that they will always have food and they don’t have to eat it all now. (sorry this is gross but it needs to be said.)

here is a drabble that i wrote recently involving a malnourished child due to poverty, with his internal dialogue and thought processes, if that will help any of you.

ANXIETY / PTSD ↴

oh boy. these kids will have it, given how they’ve been raised. the question is in how they treat it and deal with it.

hiding it. maybe they were trained to see fear and anxiousness as weakness. the flinch when someone moves too fast, the tightness in their chest at a certain noise, the inability to breathe if they see someone’s face, they’re going to hide it because their fine and they’re tough. no one has to know that they have nightmares every night and cry when they’re alone. you can even extend this into anxiety/asthma/panic attacks that they keep hidden. (typically by leaving social settings when they feel it coming on.) no one has to know that they’re so weak. they might lash out in anger or irritation if they’re routinely asked if they’re okay because they need these people to back off before they fall apart in front of them. they might have little mannerisms that other people might notice for calming or showing anxiety, like biting their nails, bouncing their leg, pinching themselves, quietly doing breathing exercises, etc. PTSD will come more like nightmares and anxiety attacks and flashbacks, and they can’t always hide those no matter how much they want to. the severity of anxiety and PTSD depends on how graphic you make their backstory. (for example, my character, bentley, has nightmares of being abused, which he breaks down crying after. in his instances, he’s never alone. similarly, he once started crying when he saw christmas decorations similar to those his abuser used to have, and he has his first anxiety attack when he sees his abuser in public) you can keep the character secretive about it or let them have a big old breakdown in front of someone else, your choice.

not hiding it at all. if they’re with someone they trust, they might just let loose. (that’s what happened to bentley once he learned his new family didn’t care if he looked weak and wanted to help him) they might tell someone when they’re feeling scared or anxious or bad in any way. they might just cry right in front of them when they have to and have attacks with someone close and all the things because they’re not alone anymore and these people want to help. it might take a while for them to get to this point, and no one blames them. (for example, bentley was really anxious for school so he went to his new guardians room in the middle of the night) and remember, any steps these kiddos take closer to asking for help is HUGE! make sure your other characters encourage them and let them know they’re proud for reaching out :)

keep in mind that if they’ve never been talked to about it, they might have no freaking clue what’s going on if they have an attack of some sort, and will probably need someone to explain to them what’s going on and that they aren't going to die.

Thanks for coming to my ted talk! If you have more specific questions send them in anon!

[yuanology]

You write for jjk right? So tender/soft sex w Gojo ,like imaging him actually having scars yknow with this “I’ll kiss all the scars on your skin” ,I’m down bad for that man ,like he is secretly begging for someone to praise him in the way he deserves yknow ,that man needs someone to love the weak and hurt gojo behind his facade of the strongest 😩😩😩 im going insane 🐸

yes, i do write for jjk and yes, i do write for gojo satoru and yes, i am going fucking feral

gojo satoru who finds his scars to be a sign of his failure as the strongest, a reminder of all of the people whom he failed to protect. he treats each scar not as a trophy of his survival but rather as a sign of weakness. a foolish thought, truly, but even the strongest has his faults at times.

( and there is a reason, after all as you so often joke, why he is called the strongest and not the wisest )

it's rare that you have the time to simply exist together and so, you both try and take as much advantage of it as possible. on the times when you can linger, you always do. even as he begs for you to go faster, tells you over and over again that he can take whatever you give him, that he won't break, but you still go slow. you ensure that he stays still — not that it takes much convincing; all you have to do is ask and he's eager to be your good boy. wanna be your good boy. am i your good boy, yet? — and that he feels every inch of you all over him.

this is one of the rare occasions in which satoru is self-conscious of himself, and you're more than aware of that. so, you ease him into it. first, you keep yourself quiet — easier to be agreed to if you don't give anything to rebuke — choosing instead to focus all your attention on kissing him all over. his throat, his lips, his cheek, his eyelids, his chest, his tits, his stomach, his thighs, his calves, everything. satoru, ever the perfect, pliant boy that he is for you, never tries to stop you. his muscles strain from his efforts to keep still, to take everything you give him, but he's so good at it that you barely even notice. you're too busy peppering kisses all over, hands on his skin so that you can feel more of him.

only once he's calmed down, used to the feeling of your mouth on him, do you begin to talk. you've learned a long time ago that a man like gojo satoru may preen under the attention, but the lonely boy in satoru will always shy away from honest compliments. so, you have to find another way to appreciate him without having him shrink away from you.

so, you kiss his hips, turning a blind eye on the way his breath hitches as your thumb brushes along a dent on his skin there, and you softly murmur, "you're so pretty." right against his skin.

so, you kiss the scar over his chest, right above where his heartbeat echoes through his ribs, ignoring the way he squirms and his gaze averts from you, and you tell him, "your heart's pounding, baby."

so, you kiss at the inside of his thigh, pretending not to feel the way his thighs tremble when you press a little too hard on an old jagged mark on his skin there, and you whisper, "you're so damn perfect." and you forget to tell him that you don't mean it in the way that he's the strongest, but because he's your satoru, but you know that he understands it all the same.

so, you kiss the most recent scar on his throat, the one from one close call or another, and you catch his chin in your hand and force him to meet your gaze so that he listens when you say, "i'm glad you came home."

sex with satoru after that is never the rough, harsh tumble that you would often do when you're chasing after time and desperate to have each other one last time. it's never just a good fuck, one with greedy hands and very little devouring mouths.

sex with satoru after that is always slow, tender, as if you're trying to meld your bones with each other until your entire existence becomes one and the same. it's always nails digging into your back, satoru's low sobs echoing in your ears, and your mouth peppering kisses and gentle worship against his skin.

the world can have tough, perfect gojo "the strongest" satoru.

but you?

you'll have scarred, beautiful, vulnerable satoru, and that is all the more precious.

[milkamel]

What if dream at some point during the battle got so OVERWHELMED by his own emotions and negativity, i imagine the constant need to be positive and bring joy to others to be so negativity overwhelming, even though canonically dream can’t feel negative emotions i like to think of it as “toxic positivity” like he’s positively negative with himself, how do you think the others handle that? Burst of emotions and the reactions like dream just starts having a whole breakdown mid fights (i feel like blue would have seen the signs and try to ask what was wrong and dream constantly saying “im fine”)

I cannot imagine being the guardian of positivity and basically told “hey you need to have this sense of heroism and help others” but also neglect their own needs must be awful just makes me think of the part of the song in “turn it down” with the lyrics of “I'm at my final straw, My power's hardly a blessing at all, Heeding to everybody's call, Is there a line that I can draw?” made for dolores from encanto, if you never heard of it i suggest listening to it, its a great song, i think these two characters have similarities with the overwhelming of their powers.

Omg I absolutely LOVE this scenario with Dream, it’s so good!! (So much angst and hurt/comfort potential, I adore it)

Dream is indeed more than a heroic guardian of positivity, he’s a person as well, he has feeling and insecurities, and having a bunch of expectations from others, not being allowed to show weakness so he won’t worry others is a giant pressure (Imagine people seeing a guardian of POSITIVITY being SAD? Dream can’t afford that and ruin the image that brings everyone hope). It’ll definitely pile up and it would be harder and harder to handle with each day. He helped the villagers and couldn’t say no when he was a kid and he helps the whole multiverse now and he just can’t catch a break or else something terrible happens.

He definitely blames himself for every failure, he feels like he fails as a guardian like he has failed his brother who’s just a cruel reminder of his mistakes now (He can’t accept that maybe he was actually manipulated as well, he thinks it’s his fault he couldn’t be good enough for his brother). Only Blue probably knows about his struggles, and unlike Dream he’s actually the one who’s genuinely positive and not forcing it. He has his brother, he helps people like he wanted, his AU is okay, he has popularity, everything he strived for. He will be able to tell if Dream feels bad and fakes it. But Dream doesn't want to burden his friend with his problems and ruin his good mood.

Maybe Dream would try to take out his negativity in battles, maybe his attacks would be less focused and messy but maybe this would make him feel slightly better afterwards? And obviously Dream doesn’t put himself first and just physically can’t refuse if you beg him enough, he doesn’t want to disappoint. But if he does breakdown I imagine the shock and surprise on everyone's faces. Dream has always seemed perfect and now he's crumbling in front of them :(

And yeah, I know this song, I listened to it a long while ago but I can see what you mean by that! I can see the similarities!! Being a guardian definitely doesn't feel as a blessing anymore but a curse and a burden that he must fulfill for everyone's and his own sake (If we're mentioning Encanto songs I think Surface Pressure might fit to the theme as well lol)

[jadeandroses]

Prompt by @hercarisntyours (which. Okay. I didn’t follow it to the letter. I hope that’s okay 👉👈)

the only way to bring me down

(Ao3 version) (next) (last)

(Warning: TF One spoilers ahead!)

If you had asked her before this exact moment, Elita would have said there wasn’t a reckless circuit in her body. She was focused. Her programming pushed her toward success, not risks and the potential of failure. She certainly wasn’t to the point of that one subordinate of hers, constantly breaking into archives and trying to saved trapped coworkers…

…and yet.

It took something to jump after him. Gall, perhaps? An undeniable sense of recklessness she hadn’t let herself explore, before? A sudden flare in her spark, whatever emotion it was that fueled the scream she let echo as she saw him shot?

Whatever it was, it didn’t matter much anymore—she was plummeting after him, and that was that.

(Bee’s scream as she jumped would forever echo in her audials.)

She thought they would have hit ground a long time ago. But that was far from the case—where the hard floor would have claimed her spark and whatever was left of his, it now disappeared out from under them. Arcs of energy—electric, buzzing under the ground—came narrowly close to them, and yet, not a one struck. But they were a source of light, for which she would have been grateful, if it weren’t for the fact that every single one illuminated Orion as he turned more and more gray.

Her eyes—and never you mind if they welled over—narrowed, and she lowered herself into a nosedive.

Her head made contact before her arms did. Without quick reflexes, he might have been thrown away from her, but she reached out, faster than any arc of lightning, and pulled him closer.

The wound burned under her touch, but his frame had already gone cold. Even his eyes—so full of light and wonder, even in the darkness of the mines—had gone out.

“You just had to make me believe,” she seethed, “didn’t you?”

The quick wit she had grown to despise was gone, and his lifeless frame didn’t answer. She pulled him into an embrace, just so that she didn’t have to look at his empty, sparkless eyes.

“I said you would bring us hope,” she wept, “not this! Orion, my god, he wasn’t worth it! Why did you have to be so-”

She choked on a sob, and instead howled her grief into the ground below. Her scream echoed, and thankfully, it masked the sounds of her tears.

She hadn’t cried in ages. Not since she was very, very young. It was a sign of weakness, in the mines. Elita needed to be strong, if she was to survive.

She was strong, yes, and she had carved a path for herself. But then Orion came into her life and ruined it all, and stars, she loathed him for it.

…but stars, it had been lonely without his passionate ramblings and bad flirting. It took a journey to the surface to realize just how much she had missed it.

(Maybe that was just constant exposure to Bee’s ceaseless chatter.)

…had she cried like this, when her cog was carved out as a newborn? Or had she been silent, voiceless and scared, like she had been every day of her life after that before Orion came and ruined it?

He had given her a priceless gift—her freedom. Her voice. Her autonomy. Maybe this choice had tossed back it in his lifeless face.

But she didn’t care. He had made his choice. She didn’t have to take it lying down.

And if she had to go back to relying only on herself, to being the only person in this universe she could count on or believe in…

…well. Whether her spark was snuffed out alongside his, or it flickered out trapped and endlessly alone in the dark of the mines, she would die one way or the other.

At least this way, it was her choice.

~~~~

He was gone.

He was gone, but her spark was still lit—that much she knew. That much, she could feel, deep within her chest, as it flickered right next to the cog of Alchemist Prime.

(The one renowned for his mind. Had she been thinking about it, when she received it, she would have preened.)

But the realization that holy Primus, she wasn’t dead wasn’t quite enough to distract her from the fact that Orion—her stubborn, endlessly optimistic moron of a former employee—was gone. In fact, even his corpse was missing from her arms.

She tensed. She straightened out her legs to stand—only to find no ground under her feet.

And, in front of her, painted in endless shades of stars and blue, backs of figures she only vaguely recognized.

If she had been staring at anything else, she might have looked at the blue sun in front of her, the figures of starlight in front of her, and put two and two together. But there was one in gray, whose back she had stared at as she charged into the unknown.

And suddenly her aching spark lurched.

“Orion!”

There was absolutely no response from anyone. She strained to see better, and, despite his lifeless state, he was glowing.

“What are you doing to him?!”

Still no response.

It was at this point Elita grit her teeth, and began to force her way past the ancient Primes like a barbarian. It didn’t occur to her at all what she was doing. All that mattered was that she get to him.

They resisted her. Even held their arms out to stop her. She thrashed, and even climbed one to see better.

“Stop! Please! He’s my friend! Don’t hurt him!”

As if the dead could feel pain. It was ridiculous. She didn’t even care.

On some unseen signal, though, they parted. No sooner did Elita find her footing did she once again find herself under the intense gaze of Alpha Trion.

It was like the world stopped. Orion—still lifeless, yet lit up like his spark hadn’t been extinguished in the first place—still had his back to her. And yet Alpha Trion stood in front of them both, lit up in starlight.

“Loyal to the very end,” he whispered.

It was reverential. It was almost a question. Even in the face of such might, she stood tall.

“That stubborn little optimist is the only person I’ve ever truly believed in,” she spat. “Of course I followed him!”

She wondered if she should have phrased that differently. That being said, it was the truth, and it hurt—but oh, she couldn’t take it back now. Where once her path had been hers and hers alone, it was one someone had chosen for her. Now, she had a choice—and she wanted nothing more than to stand by him. To help him, in his mission, no matter how stupid or now noble.

Especially now that D had…

It was difficult to say exactly what crossed Alpha Trion’s face. He rumbled approvingly, though.

“We Primes had a High Guard, once. Ones to advise us and to protect us. But more importantly, they were our friends.” Hand on Orion’s shoulder, he continued to speak. “It is a shame that we cannot give such luxuries to him. Instead, he will have you, loyal daughter of Cybertron, to protect him as we cannot.”

Her own frame began to glow, now. Not quite as bright as Orion’s, but almost. There was power coursing through her, filling her every circuit.

(…if she was tasting a fraction of what was coursing through him, she had the distinct feeling she wasn’t quite staring at Orion, anymore.)

“You are one of a kind, dear. Truly, you have earned your name,” he murmured kindly. “And as for our young one, here, I rather like what she said for his name, don’t you, my brethren?”

There was rumbling approval all around her. She was afraid to ask. But she swallowed it.

“…what?”

He turned starlit eyes on her friend, and smiled.

“Arise, Optimus Prime!”

[anotheroceanid]

Before I (try) to take a nap, here it is: the first part of the next chapter (that hopefully won't end up as long as the previous one)

JASON

JANUARY 2028

NEW ROME

Even before getting some ribs broken, Jason was having a rotten day.

He started the morning with news of an earthquake nearby. The earthquake in question reached one of their depots of food, which meant that now they were cut short for the upcoming months.

Rome’s crops were near unproductive, their livestock was scarce and prone to sickness. There hasn’t been rain in a long time. Not ever since Jupiter, Jason’s father, had cursed the Greeks with a drought and Neptune, Jason’s uncle, decided it was fit to impose the same upon Romans, avoiding any water from getting in the sky and retrenching their access to fresh water through his influence on the river gods. The past year, hundreds of people have died of hunger, disease and dehydration.

A few hours later, a letter from the Mexican front was delivered to him. The fauns advanced in their territory. The Roman army struggled to stop them. Multiple soldiers died in the attempt, and just as many were now wounded, some permanently.

The Fauns Rebellion shrunk Rome’s army every day, there was nothing they could do about it. After they signed the armistice with the Greeks, their only choice to fight against the Nature Spirits was to accept mortals’ enlistment. While their enemies in the East could be starved to death, nymphs could endure months with only sun and water. Fauns weren’t as resistant, but that didn’t matter because their Lord of the Wild always found ways to help them, even from afar.

Though crowned Emperor of Rome by his peers, Jason couldn't think of someone more powerless than himself.

Jason spent his morning writing a letter to the Greek cities begging for food. Because that was the only thing he could do for his people in these times of need.

He crumples up a piece of paper and throws it in the pile of discarded letters. Jason did it a thousand times, and yet, he can’t really find the proper words. He runs his fingers through his hair and his beard, takes off his glasses and presses his eyes together hoping it'll help the thoughts come clear.

Asking the Greeks for help is pathetic. Beyond stupid, Jason also feels guilt. If anything, he should be looking for ways to apologise. Not that it would be worthy anything. What's the point of apologising for something unforgivable? At most, he’d come out as weak to the Senate, and his enemies would use the opportunity to eat his liver.

Although Jason might’ve learned to live with remorse, his fellow Romans didn’t learn to leave with hunger. So, he picked another paper and started again. For every word he managed to write, Jason heard Annabeth of Perses telling him to go fuck himself. Well, better her saying such a thing than Piper, the thought made a shiver go down his spine. That woman creeped the soul out of his body, in a way not even the Vipera Graeca and her deadly poison could do.

Once he finishes his letter, Jason stares at it with a numbing acknowledgement that soon he won’t have to beg for food anymore. At any time, the war that decimated most of North America would restart. Rome would burn. With the Greeks courtesy, Jason would be alive to watch, surely. How else could he expect his debt to be paid? Though, Jason ponders, I might destroy Rome myself, will it be a favour or a slight for the Greeks?

The walls of New Rome were too thin to protect its citizens forever. How longer before truth would rushes in? How was Jason supposed to fight against it? For now, New Rome was safely unfamiliar to the horrors outside their gates. The people didn’t need to know everything. How, despite how bad things were in the city, it was much worse across the rest of the Roman Territory.

Jason’s job was to keep them ignorant. To try to get things better outside. Win the war against the Greeks.  He was bound to become thrice a failure. Only thrice? How optimistic.

For what felt like the thousandth of times, Jason begged the Greeks to feed his people so the day would come when the Greeks would have more than corpses from who to take revenge.

With this happy thought, Jason sends his letter.

Next things Jason does, is dig his face on his hands and moan loudly in absolute despair. What a way to start the year…

‘I can’t even say there isn’t any way this can get worse…’ Jason mumbled to himself.

His door was slammed open. Reyna arrived in a rush. ‘Octavian’s house was attacked!’

… Because of course, it can.

[yumeka-sxf]

A chronological analysis on Twilight and Yor - Part 23

*This is part of an ongoing post series. If you missed the Introduction/Part 1, click here*

----------

When Yor says goodbye to a very grateful Olka, the latter leaves her with some heartfelt parting words: she'll be praying that Yor and her family can find peace and happiness. Yor is taken aback by Olka's gratitude, which is understandable. Being an assassin is an unappreciated job, since most of it involves simply killing your victims and then disappearing without a trace. Her assignment with Olka may have been the first time a client expressed such sincere gratitude for the work she does. Not only that, but Olka having Yor hug Gram while telling her that she's the reason he has a future, is probably the first time she was able to so plainly see how her work can mean the difference between peace and tragedy for a family in need.

Despite the fact that Olka had repeatedly reminded Yor that her family is just for show, she's obviously realized that Yor sees them as much more. She can't openly tell this to Yor, so perhaps she chose these particular words of farewell as a way of getting Yor to really think about how much her family means to her…in the hopes that one day she can also leave the horrors of the underworld behind to pursue a quiet life. Olka's words may have struck a chord, as Yor seems very deep in thought while she and McMahon watch Olka's raft disappear into the distance. When McMahon notices how melancholic she looks, he reminds her not to get sentimental since they're both just foot soldiers. But ironically, almost immediately after, he tells her that she should meet up with Loid and Anya as a reward for her hard work while he takes care of any further incidents.

McMahon's history with Yor (if any) is still a mystery, but despite his stoic demeanor, maybe he too realizes that she truly enjoys being with her supposed "cover up" family.

I've seen discourse surrounding the idea that Yor's preference of "traditionally feminine" roles – wanting to be a wife and mother – is a sign of weakness and submissiveness. In addition, as @connoisseursdecomfort discusses here, some people only see one aspect of her character instead of the whole picture, and paint that in a negative way. To quote Connoisseur's post:

"Endo doesn’t want [Yor] to be just soft and sweet and sexy and strong. Like any other human, she is very self-conscious when she doesn’t fit in, and all of these discussions really show how realistic it is for Yor to feel insecure - she is too muscle-head and strong to be feminine in the eyes of the Asian readers, but too sensitive, gentle and ditzy to be masculine. She is not created to fit any standards, and therefore deemed a failure in every reader who sought to make another exemplary woman of this modern age. She has to be perfect, but she will never be."

If by "ditzy" people mean she's naïve about many things, then yes, she is, but there's a reason for it that anyone who's paid attention to the series can easily see: since she had to raise her brother since childhood, she wasn't able to pursue a proper education or gain the kind of real-life knowledge most people who live "normal" lives do. If by "ditzy" they mean she's too nice or polite…why is that a bad thing? While her low self-esteem makes it hard for her to stand up against people who insult her directly, she doesn't hesitate to attack anyone who threatens her family, nor does she hesitate to kill bad guys on her missions. So why is being nice to people who are not a threat to her a bad thing? Since when does having a brash, cocky attitude equate to strength, while being polite and nice to others by default, along with the very human displays of vulnerability and self-doubt, equate to weakness?

In my opinion, anyone who feels this way about Yor – that the only personality trait she has is "ditzy," or that it's somehow anti-feminist for her to desire the peaceful life of a wife/mother instead of something grander – is missing the whole point of the series. I discussed earlier that Endo does not portray Yor's profession as something glorious that she enjoys doing. It's dangerous, ugly, and morally ambiguous, but she does it out of desire to protect her family. Not only has she been doing it since she was a child, and thus was never able to experience a "normal" life, but it's a job with very little appreciation or acknowledgement. So after living with Loid and Anya, people who appreciate her for who she really is, don't force her to act certain ways nor expect anything in return, why should she be ridiculed for desiring peaceful days with them instead of living only in the cold, thankless underworld? Loid never forced her to remain his wife and Anya's mother after the interview – she chose to stay, at first for her own benefit, but she soon realized that being with them makes her happy. Is it "submissiveness" that someone who's been thrust into a dangerous, unforgiving life as an assassin since childhood now finds comfort in the traditional role of wife/mother with people she loves? Submissiveness is blind obedience, where you live a certain way by someone else's choice or even by force, and that's not the case here. There's no rule that says being a strong woman necessitates a complete rejection of feminine roles and values. A strong female character isn't necessarily one that's filled with self-confidence or tomboyish brashness…if anything, having no inner turmoil for them to overcome makes them a weaker character in my opinion. She's not throwing anything away for "a man" by choosing on her own to stay with Loid because he's always kind and considerate to her. As we saw at the end of her epiphany, she didn't even have to choose her role as a wife/mother over her role as an assassin – she decided to keep being both, but it's her love for Loid and Anya that made her resolve for remaining as Thorn Princess even stronger than before.

What's even more amazing about Yor's character is that, even when she understands that she doesn't need to be an assassin anymore – that no one needs financial support from her work, she still makes the most unselfish choice. She could have ditched her Garden work completely to pursue the life that truly makes her happy, which is being the wife/mother of the Forger family. After knowing how selflessly she's lived her life up to this point, pretty much sacrificing her well-being for Yuri's, no one would blame her if she decided to finally choose what's best for her now. But instead, she chooses to continue her unselfish way of life…even if it means sacrificing her own happiness yet again, she will continue this dangerous line of work, because preventing tragedy from befalling her loved ones or the world in general is more important to her than her own personal happiness. Having such unwavering selflessness, in addition to being a kind and patient mother, encouraging wife, and deadly assassin who still retains her humanity, Endo has done wonders making a character both cute/sweet but also a total badass who's strong on the outside as well as the inside.

Continue to Part 24 ->

<- Return to Part 22

[kylejsugarman]

hey I lurk for your Breaking Bad content. please give me all of your Jesse in Alaska/recovery headcanons. I need it like I need air.

jesse in alaska.......where do i even begin 😔 im going to avoid lingering too much on my alaska oc's and that little world (tldr for newcomers: jesse gets to haines, starts working at a repair/custom shop called carvings owned by sheila, and befriends and falls in love with the local vet demi who is raising her niece baby) just because there are Plenty of those posts and i want to focus more on jesse himself

this is one ive talked about before, but its just so precious to me, and thats jesse getting into cooking. at first, him learning how to do it is out of pure necessity. the canned food that ed left him only lasts for a few weeks and the prepackaged stuff at the store is all queasily redolent of the "treats" (<- meager sustenance) that were dropped into his cage, so he picks up a box of dry pasta and looks at the recipe for chicken penne printed on the box. it has all the steps, the ingredients. he was always good at following a recipe. jesse dutifully buys the stuff and what begins as him robotically following the text later on in his small, dim kitchen starts to feel. Good. there's no harsh fumes or chemical burns. he doesnt have to measure the garlic down to a hundredth of a gram. he has a recipe to follow—something to guide him—but nothing awful is going to happen if he experiments a little. if he deviates. and he isn't making poison. he's making something Good. for so, so long, jesse only Destroyed and when he did create, it was poison. now he gets to do what he wants. he gets to make good. that chicken penne is the first thing he eats in weeks that actually has flavor—or maybe he's letting himself Taste again. jesse starts cooking more and more, using those supermarket recipes and eventually recipes that he prints off from the public library computers, and even once it becomes a part of his daily routine, he never loses that weird excitement for it. there's the satisfaction of successfully executing a task even with his memory issues and adhd, but also the excitement of realizing over and over that he can do what he wants.

jesse thinks he's "done" with drugs when he gets to alaska purely because he hasn't been able to use and doesnt have immediate access to anything stronger than alcohol or tobacco, but he quickly realizes that he does not have any other kind of coping mechanism ready to deploy or way to sufficiently distract himself once he's physically and mentally well enough to Be Aware. alcohol doesnt seem to "work" fast enough. he thinks over and over about hiring a sex worker or finding a bar somewhere so he can have sex with and fall asleep next to a warm, living body. he drives for hours and sometimes hits the brakes hard on the icy road when theres no one else out there, letting himself skid uncontrollably and hoping he crashes. he wants to start a fight with a stranger. he wants to hug a stranger. and he does end up using drugs again, several times. i mean he's a severely traumatized addict arriving in a new location with zero support. it's not a failure, it's not irreversible backsliding: it's just the reality of what being in this terrifying, vulnerable situation would be like for jesse. for a long time, he sees these relapses as signs of weakness and that Certain People were right about him being a pathetic junkie with no will or value, but as he starts meeting people and finding new ways to be happy and getting the right treatment for his various issues and sometimes even sitting in NA church basement meetings because he just needs to be Understood, jesse comes around to the idea that addiction is not a moral failing and sees his life as worthy enough to safely and healthily preserve.

lightning round!! jesse decides once he arrives to grow his hair and facial hair out some to look less like his old mugshot, but also because as soon as the cold winter air touches his shaved head, he basically reverts to spongebob and patrick duct-taping fur off of sandy to survive in her dome during winter. he stops to stare in awe at eagles and whales and moose even after years and years of living in alaska. his sense of smell is nearly totally destroyed from cooking without protection, but he still always buys lemon scented soap and cleaning stuff because lemon was his aunt ginny's favorite scent. he reads up on a lot of first-aid on the public library computers, sometimes out of a sense of frantic compulsion or guilt, sometimes out of legitimate curiosity. when he drives home from doctors appointments or NA meetings, he plays the music in his car so loud that his seat shakes. the people of haines know that mr driscoll can be a little cagey and will flinch at the sound of his own laugh, but they also know that he brakes for animals and carves beautiful gadrooning and buys ten of whatever the kids are selling to raise money for the band or their scout troop. and they like him quite a bit :)

[salternateunreality2]

AGSZC and Sign Language (Neurodivergent AU)

from a conversation with @strayheartless (can you tell I'm going through my chat backlog? lol sorry for the spam notifications and thank you for the great inspiration!)

Disclaimer: I don't know sign language and I'm not a neurodivergence expert

-

Cloud knew sign language from an early age, learning with his mom because his speech was delayed due to neurodivergence (ND). He slips into it from time to time in front of his boyfriends, but is embarrassed about it because he'd get teased in the village.

Genesis is the first to realize it's sign language, and rallies everyone to learn it.

They all LOVE Sign, because most of them are ND (GSZC), and one of them just loves his boys (A).

-

Cloud being really embarrassed and mortified at first, but Gen sitting him down and having a heart to heart.

"Beloved, we do a version of this already on the battlefield, it's no trouble. I'm just delighted we finally know when you're saying something. I love hearing from you, in any language. I love this part of you so much. I think it will even help us as a group; especially Sephiroth, probably Zack too. Aww, cherished chocobo, don't cry, you're perfect the way you are."

"It's not weak. You're not a failure. You're multi-lingual! You are amazing, my sweet baby bird!"

"Have you seen the deaf version of Loveless? I'll go put it on right now!" And suddenly Cloud can't argue at all, or even roll his eyes, he just feels so overwhelming loved. Genesis holds his sniffling chocobo super tightly, sometimes kissing his nose, making quiet commentary about the movie until the sniffles turn into chuckles.

(((Gen uses "not wanting to overwhelm Cloud" as an excuse for not inviting the others over, and therefore as an excuse to invite them over for an additional viewing later so he can get moAR LOVELESS. Everyone else is ok with it because Genesis sneakily told them that this would really help Cloud. For the third viewing, he guilt trips ASZ by saying it's Cloud's new favorite movie because it makes him feel special, and then turning around and guilt tripping Cloud by saying it would help Sephiroth, and Genesis really loves holding Cloud like they do every time with this movie.)))

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

Cloud growing in confidence and eventually making any group he's in charge of learn the field signs super well, plus some extras, and his teams get assigned better missions because they're better at communicating, especially when stealth is needed. They're also always looking at each other, and pick up on bad things quicker because of it.

Random trooper Fred notices random trooper Allen being affected by a poison gas because he was checking in with Allen to make sure he wasn't saying anything, for example.

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

Sephiroth being petty and subtly signing insults about board members to Genesis, Angeal, and Lazard (because of course Lazard knows sign).

[dreaminginthedeepsouth]

A few hopeful signs emerge.

March 6, 2025

Robert B. Hubbell

After a week of unrelenting bad news, Americans hoping for a return to sanity were treated to a few hopeful signs. While we have a long way to go, developments on Wednesday point the way forward. It feels good to have a bit of positive news to discuss. Let’s take a look!

Supreme Court orders Trump to comply with lower court order to disburse $2 billion in USAID grants

In a 5-4 decision, the US Supreme Court ordered the Trump administration to comply with an order by US District Judge Amir Ali to disburse $2 billion in USAID grants. The narrow victory was significant because an opposite result would have diminished the authority of Congress over the “power of the purse” and granted Trump powers not found in the Constitution.

Let’s take a moment to appreciate the fact that the “center held” and that “all is right with the world.”

But even casual observers will note that the Supreme Court managed to come to the right conclusion by the smallest margin possible. Cranky Old Man, er, Justice Alito penned an eight-page dissent to a one-paragraph decision by the majority. In his dissent, Alito managed to misrepresent the facts in a way that was previously viewed as unacceptable for justices of the Court. But lying about the record when it loses has (sadly) become par for the course for the reactionary members of the Court.

The fragility of the narrow margin is explained by Chris Geidner in his Substack article entitled, SCOTUS, barely, upholds our three-branch system of government | Law Dork. For those interested in the details, Geidner does an excellent job of explaining just how close this victory was.

The majority’s one-paragraph order was weak sauce, returning the case to Judge Ali with instructions to provide the government with greater specificity about its obligations to make payments as instructed by Congress—during which time the $2 billion in payments remain suspended.

And as Geidner explains, the majority left the door wide open to future appeals—which seem certain. Given the 5-4 split on this decision, we know that four justices will vote to grant certiorari on an appeal from the merits. If Alito can pick up one additional vote on the next appeal, he may be able to rewrite the Constitution without the need for a pesky constitutional amendment ratified by 38 states.

As Geidner notes, Justice Alito resorted to deceit to support his dissent. Alito claims that US District Judge Ali issued an order “out of frustration” when Trump failed to heed the judge’s first order. That is not true. Judge Ali issued an order compelling Trump to disburse the funds by a date certain only after Trump ignored three prior orders. Alito’s dissent ignores the repeated failure of the Trump administration to comply with a court order and implies that the district judge acted merely out of frustration.

Geidner explains,

[Alito’s statement] is false — and materially so. It was not [Judge Ali’s] second order. It was, in fact, the fourth order. . . . It was only after continued nonpayment in the wake of the first three orders that Ali, in response to a motion from the plaintiffs in the case, issued the fourth order with a payment deadline.

So, we have a glimmer of hope suggesting that the Supreme Court will confine Trump's powers to those enumerated in the Constitution. But those hopes hinge on two justices who dissembled in their confirmation hearings about their loyalty to the Constitution.

For now, we should accept our victory and be grateful that we have lived to fight another day. After the last few weeks, that is a welcome respite!

Trump's speech to Congress underwhelms, as does his first six weeks in office

In a rational world, popular opinion should be turning against Trump—if only at the margins. That appears to be happening.

Trump's speech to a joint session of Congress garnered lower ratings than any of his previous speeches, despite high drama surrounding Ukraine and DOGE. See CNN, Trump Joint Speech Hits ‘Bottom of the Barrel’ in CNN Flash Poll — Even Compared to Trump’s Other Speeches.

Per CNN, the audience for the speech was highly partisan—14% “more Republican” than the general population. Only 21% of those watching were Democrats. Despite an “over-sampling” of Republicans, the speech had lower favorable ratings than Trump’s prior four speeches to Congress.

Although Trump received a plurality of “very positive reaction,” CNN describes Trump's ratings as “bottom of the barrel” for modern presidential speeches to Congress in terms of favorability ratings.

CNN explains that Trump had higher “very positive” reaction in 2017, 2018, and 2019. Trump's speech last night received 44% “very positive” reaction compared to a 57% in 2017. Joe Biden’s first address to Congress received a 51% very positive reaction; Obama and Bush had even higher ratings.

The poor reception to Trump's supposed “triumphant” return before Congress aligns with early signals of loss of support among Independents, women, and young rural voters. See Peter Hamby in Puck, “Boys of Bummer,” or Is Trump Already Losing the Trump Bros? (This article is behind a paywall.)

Hamby writes,

Trump came into office with a 50 percent favorable rating among Gen Z voters. Now, he’s at 43 percent. Since mid-January, Trump’s favorable rating has dropped most significantly among young rural voters (down 17 points), independents (down 13 points), white women (down 10 points), and women overall (down 10 points). At the same time, Trump’s standing among young white men has remained about the same. “Slippage with white men is not statistically significant right now,” Della Volpe noted.

In general, my advice is to “ignore the polls.” Single polls are meaningless. But the trends over time can be meaningful. The above results show an early trend and should be considered as a starting point for comparison in the future.

The above results align with sensible predictions about changes in electoral support for Trump for two reasons.

First, Trump’s core constituency (aggrieved white men) seems unshakeable in their support of Trump's attacks on DEI, immigration, education, science, and federal regulations.

Second, other groups are reacting negatively to Trump's rampage of hate and destruction—including Independents, Gen Z, women (in general), white women, and young rural voters.

The results could have been otherwise. It is not inconceivable that large swaths of the population would approve of Trump's “strongman” campaign of retribution. The fact that most Americans don’t support Trump's hateful agenda is encouraging—and suggests that support for Trump will continue to deteriorate as the pain trickles down to Americans across the nation.

None of this suggests that the road ahead will be easy. But it reinforces a rational worldview in which vengeful, destructive behavior tends to alienate voting blocs that are negatively affected by such behavior.

DOGE hackers list the DOJ and FBI headquarters buildings for sale.

The incompetence of the DOGE hackers is becoming well-known. They have claimed hundreds of billions of dollars in savings for “canceling” contracts that were completed and closed years ago. On Wednesday, the NYTimes reported that DOGE had ordered the sale of hundreds of government buildings, including the headquarters for the DOJ and the FBI. See NYTimes, Trump Officials Take Down List of Federal Properties for Possible Sale.

Per the Times,

On Tuesday, the Trump administration identified more than 440 federal properties that could be sold off, a list that included high-profile buildings like the headquarters of the F.B.I., Justice Department and the Department of Health and Human Services.

Selling the DOJ headquarters building would certainly send a statement about Trump's commitment to justice in America. But another building listed for sale suggests that Trump is unconcerned about harm from nuclear waste. See Talking Points Memo, DOGE D’oh: Nuclear Waste Facility Edition.

As Josh Marshall explains,

One of the leases DOGE decided to cancel is the lease for Skeen-Whitlock Building in Carlsbad, New Mexico, a 90,000 square foot facility which manages the nation’s only storage area for DOD-created nuclear waste and the only operating deep geologic nuclear waste storage facility in the world.

It’s the facility where they process the nuclear waste before putting it in the super deep nuclear storage hole.

For emphasis: DOGE wanted to lease to a third party the only building in America that currently processes nuclear waste. You couldn’t make up this level of stupidity if you tried.

Trump administration ceases intelligence sharing with Ukraine

The status of efforts to settle the Ukraine war is in flux. European nations are working to provide funding for Ukraine. President Zelensky has offered to sign the mineral rights deal giving the US the ability to extract rare earth metals from Ukraine. France has proposed a cease fire deal. It feels like maybe things are back on track to working out a peace deal.

And then, earlier this week, the Trump administration decided to quit sharing intelligence information with Ukraine. The ban extends to US intelligence shared directly and through intelligence-sharing partners like Britain, Australia, and Japan. See MSN, U.S. Orders UK to Cut Off Intelligence Flow to Ukraine.

Apart from cutting off military weapons necessary to conduct a defense, cutting off intelligence is the next most harmful thing Trump can do to Ukraine. Although Trump appears to be going through the motions of working toward peace, his actions show that he is working to help Putin achieve victory. We have no reason to trust that Trump will do the right thing.

[Robert B. Hubbell Newsletter]