#having a blast with it though

[late-to-the-magnus-archives]

snippet!

hey you can't deal with issues unless you face them, right?

(everyone needs therapy)

----------

The King dwarfs the apple trees.

It’s quiet in the little stable behind them. Again, the animals don’t seem to care. “What did you do to the animals?” Jon says, because he can’t not wonder.

“Ensured they do not detect me unless I wish,” says the King, who hasn’t bothered to land; he hovers above the fish-pond, sending little waves across its surface. “Otherwise, they tend to be… skittish.”

“I can believe that,” Jon murmurs, wondering if it’s the same kind of influence the Hunt extends to animals. He wonders next at the rippling pond next. Is it aesthetic or practical? Is there an air-current effect, or some kind of gravitational adjustment? Can he do that without disturbing the water? Would it be palpable to anyone or anything beneath him? Is it harmful? Is it even real, or a dream-effect? How does -

“You really never stop,” says the King, pulling Jon out of comforting curiosity.

“What do - ” Careful, Sims. Jon modifies his tone. “What do you want from me tonight, sir?”

The King laughs. 

Jon reddens. As attempts to placate monsters go, it wasn’t very good. Anything to keep his attention away from that room and Martin.

“You already know,” says the King so graciously that Jon grits his teeth. “Call the Entities.”

Jon exhales. “I can’t.”

There is a low, displeased rumble, almost mechanical, not a growl, but something worse. “You won’t. I don’t appreciate lies, Archivist.”

“It’s just Jon,” mutters Jon, shaking because he hadn’t been trying to lie, really needs to not make this thing angry while Martin is near.

“As you wish… Jon.”

So that was a mistake.

Jon has no idea if it has something to do with the old concepts of “true names” or whatever, but the King saying that is far, far worse than Archivist. It pings something in him, trembles some soul-deep string in sympathetic resonance.

“Call the Entities.”

“I won’t. Sir. I didn't even choose to do it the first time.” And it hits him: “You could probably force me. Why haven’t you?”

“Before your ascension? Yes. I could have forced you, tricked you, trained you.”

Jon swallows bile.

“But now? It is… delicate. You’ve damaged yourself, Jon - damaged your soul when you rejected all you were given, though perhaps you can’t be blamed. It was too much for any human to bear.” That statement manages to be pitying and denigrating at the same time. “Regardless, I can’t force you now without destroying your ability to do it at all. You’ll have to do it by choice.”

So that’s confirmed.

Jon stares. “Damaged? How?”

“This isn’t the place to show you,” says the King. “Once you obey, I’ll show you. I’ll even heal you, if you want.”

Like hell he’d ever invite this thing to touch his soul. “I won’t call them by choice. You need to listen to me. They’ll destroy the world you’ve built.”

“A world you don’t seem to appreciate, anyway - in spite of my graciousness toward you,” says the King.

All of this is so damned threatening, all of this is a looming Damocles’ sword. “I know them. I know what they can do. I won’t… inflict them on an innocent universe.”

“Now, Jon,” says the King, and that rumble is pleased now, because Jon gave him an opening and didn’t think it through. “That’s not true, is it? You already did. You made that choice - it just didn’t turn out quite the way you thought.”

This is true. 

And all the weight of that choice - the force of it, the shame - lands on him again as though facing him for the first time.

The choice to send the Entities elsewhere, because of Martin’s plea.

The choice to send the Entities elsewhere, violating his conscience, pretending at hope.

The choice to send the Entities elsewhere, because Martin was going to die, and Jon couldn’t do that, in the end.

Could not.

But he had chosen to send the Entities elsewhere. The reason, maybe, didn’t matter.

Jon is silent.

He hasn’t thought about that moment since they arrived. He’s refused. They haven’t talked about it. Haven’t dealt with it.

Jon doesn’t think he can deal with it.

He looks at his feet, at the boots that actually fit him (one of their first purchases, and one Martin was very proud of), and cannot bring himself to speak.

“All I want you to do is finish what you already started,” the King practically purrs at him. “Call the Entities. It’s a choice you already made, Jon. Don’t worry. I will keep you safe.”

Jon shakes his head, just a little, but doesn’t raise his head. “You can’t. No one can.”

That rumble again, displeased, there and gone. “You are running out of chances to do this the easy way.”

Jon shudders hard. “I know. I’m sorry.” He’s not even sure what he’s apologizing for.

There is a moment of bad silence. The only thing in it is Jon’s fear because he doesn’t know how long he can hold out once the King decides the easy way is done.

“Enjoy your stay,” says the King. “I suggest the stew - it’s particularly hearty.” And he’s just gone.

Jon covers his face with his hands and doesn’t go back to his bed or his body until he can slow his non-corporeal breathing down.

[butchfalin]

the funniest meltdown ive ever had was in college when i got so overstimulated that i could Not speak, including over text. one of my friends was trying to talk me through it but i was solely using emojis because they were easier than trying to come up with words so he started using primarily emojis as well just to make things feel balanced. this was not the Most effective strategy... until. he tried to ask me "you okay?" but the way he chose to do that was by sending "👉🏼👌🏼❓" and i was so shocked by suddenly being asked if i was dtf that i was like WHAT???? WHAT DID YOU JUST SAY TO ME?????????? and thus was verbal again

[milkywayes]

interspecies awkwardness for breakfast a.k.a. 'I can't believe I made a comic'

[poorly-drawn-mdzs]

If Jin Ling is bald because WWX cursed Jin Zixuan then why are Jin Guangshan and Jin Guangyao bald🤔🤔

Jin Ling was always going to be bald, Wei Wuxian's curse was just an accidental prophecy that will haunt Jin Zixuan for exactly one month.

[sinn-bee]

Prologue (?) for my Dragon!SY AU ❤️

+silly bonus doodle

Thank you so much for all the love and support for this AU 🥹❤️ It’s rotting my brain at all times and I have so many thoughts and ideas for and about it 🥰

[ryuubff]

kinda tiny 1.6 sdv spoilers !!

i got real excited when i thought we could possibly make trouts race each other ... didn't even question the logistics of it all because it's stardew .......

besides that jia destroyed the competition and is enjoying their new wall decor!

[sevenrs]

so like

we're all aware that the religion practiced in rain world by the ancients (iterators, and some of the slugcats by extension) is heavily inspired by buddism-- karma, reincarnation, ascension that leads to enlightenment where the need for the life/death cycle is past you now because you no longer feel suffering

five pebbles tells survivor and monk to go west.

west.

like in journey to the west? the great classical chinese novel, an allegorical journey about human perseverance?

in a game that is so incredibly difficult that beating it would require persistence?

was this intentional? did videocult know this? why haven't i seen anyone talk about this before?

im losing my mind right now

[sukinapan]

just signed myself up for a language proficiency test a month from now so that i'm forced to study 💀

[duckdotimg]

Sloane friendly fire attack because I cannot resist her charms, for @borderlambs!

[corujalesbica]

Watching 13 year old Dick Grayson in Young Justice is everything. That more-or-less-resposible, more-or-less-reasonable big brother nightwing Dick, was a menace as a kid. He's so sarcastic, such a little shit, I love him.

[kelocitta]

Day 15: Spiders Parting Gift

[cerubean]

🎶

[indelicateink]

as an american, sam reid’s total inability to hide his contempt for overly fake-chipper american journalists, especially ones who Have Not Done The Assigned Reading know and care about the show, will never not be hilarious and iconic to me

[junebugdunes]

the pikmin experience

[silvers-starrway]

So the wildest thing happened where @mactheactor decided to dub over (if that's even the correct terminology) the Chaos Sonic animation I made!!!!

I'm still in utter awe about this like, hands down the coolest thing ever I've been thinking about this non-stop. Hope y'all enjoy it as much as I do!!

[marblerose-rue]

messy thing of my lioden king