#i am so invested in this friendship that should've happened

[maverickmongrel]

the erins did longtail so dirty 😮‍💨

[creativepromptsforwriting]

Drabble List #8

75 prompts to write drabbles or longer stories.

"Just one of those days, I guess."

"This makes it easier to identify them."

"Have you ever had friendship bracelets?"

"Feel free to walk all over me."

"You're the one stirring the pot."

"I feel like you don't actually believe me."

"What a tragedy this is."

"This will be permanent."

"Oh well, nothing I can do about it now."

"The media is lying to you - and so is everyone else."

"Just gonna pretend I didn't hear that."

"Silly me to assume you would care."

"You should clean the mess you make."

"My life is amazing, it really is."

"Nothing to complain here."

"I can't believe that we finally made it."

"Thank you so much for this opportunity."

"Mark my words, this will not end cute."

"Have you looked in the mirror lately?"

"You look hot, mama."

"Can you bail me out? Please?"

"What a silly thing to say."

"So, this is it? Really?"

"It will never be truly over."

"That is a fascinating tattoo that you have."

"You're going to jail for this."

"What a dramatic exit."

"I know your friends."

"A seat will be assigned to you shortly."

"Here is a list of all the ways you are wrong."

"We should talk about what happened."

"Do you have your ticket ready?"

"I'm sorry, but our personal goals just don't match up."

"The boxes are all labeled incorrectly."

"Well, you should've listened to me."

"Tragic. That outfit is a disaster."

"I'm sitting front row. I always do."

"Oh you silly little thing."

"What is your star sign?"

"I'm not who you think I am."

"Can't say I'm that surprised."

"Truly legendary."

"Please, sing for me!"

"You are a true party pooper."

"No means don't even try."

"I want to find my soulmate."

"Just forget what you heard."

"Why does this always happen to me?"

"Let's go out for a cheap dinner."

"I don't want to hear about it."

"This must be a joke. Not very good one."

"A list of all the times I was right."

"I can't control my dreams."

"Finally, some common sense."

"Throw me under the bus while you're at it."

"What a wonderful surprise."

"Poor judgement is what it is."

"I was just defending myself."

"Fine, but this will be the last time."

"Oh, that's too bad."

"I will take that as a yes."

"Did we meet before?"

"Sell me your story."

"What's the point in all of this?"

"I couldn't see what actually happened."

"Can you lend me some money?"

"So start from the beginning."

"Truly, a flawless plan."

"I haven't done this in forever."

"Let's have some fun."

"What an icon."

"Make me believe it."

"It's an investment."

"There will be an extra fee included."

"Let's go back. Nothing to do here anymore."

Drabble List #1|List #3|List#4|List #5|List #6|List #7

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[destinysbounty]

I am generally of the opinion that Kai should've been the one to confront the Ice Emperor instead of Lloyd, BUT if they were really committed to the idea of giving that solo arc to Lloyd then they could have made it work in a way that is narratively satisfying and wouldn't drastically change the season's overarching plot.

Allow me to demonstrate with a proposal for an ns11 rewrite:

At one point in the Fire Chapter, Zane confesses the details of his vision, apologizing for not telling them about it as he'd been hoping it was just a bad dream. But because of his wishful thinking, his friends were ill-prepared to face Aspheera. Bonus points if we have Jay apologizing for being so dismissive of Zane's vision and convincing him not to do anything about it.

While explaining the contents of his vision, Zane also tells them about the recurring detail where Aspheera blasts and presumably kills him. In a rare moment of vulnerability, Zane confesses that this part of the vision scares him - he's died once before, and while he doesn't regret his decision, it was still a profoundly unpleasant experience and the thought of dying again frightens him. Lloyd promises to make sure the rest of Zane's vision never comes true, he personally vows to keep Zane safe. Yes, we're drawing parallels between Kai's promise to Lloyd in season 5, and yes it ends up exactly as angsty as it sounds.

Optional: change Zane's fear reflection to him being dead again instead of him as just a machine. Better yet, have his reflection show him as he was in his fight with the Overlord, broken faceplate and all. I do personally like his canon reflection the way it is, since it sets up some good foreshadowing for both the Ice Chapter and Crystalized - but if you really want to hammer the point home that this is an outcome Zane's afraid of, then changing his fear reflection is a great way to do that. Plus, this could even be the moment where Lloyd personally assures Zane that the vision will never come true.

This particular change would achieve three things:

It makes Zane's banishment more angsty AND more narratively satisfying, by making it part of a character arc. Making Zane more outwardly afraid of dying by Aspheera's hand provides us with the opportunity to explore Zane's trauma from his s3 sacrifice a bit more, as well as his relationship with his sixth sense. Plus, it would make his banishment a much more compelling character moment - not only is he sacrificing himself to save Wu, but he's intentionally subjecting himself to an experience that frightens him and has traumatized him in the past. He was scared of the vision coming true, but he himself is the one making it happen. Something something, self-fulfilling prophecies.

It adds emotional consequence. In canon, Zane got blasted, was assumed dead for a few days, and then they realized he was alive and set out to save him without any lasting emotional consequences for the characters. But if they had all promised to keep Zane safe and to make sure his vision never comes true, well. Even when they find out he's alive, that doesn't erase the fact that that they couldn't keep their promise. And now the ninja are all filled with a deep, painful sense that they let him down. When they set out to save Zane, they aren't just rescuing a friend - they're trying to rectify what they believe to be a failure.

It gives Lloyd a much more personal motivation to go out and face the Ice Emperor on his own. Yes, he already has a motivation in canon - he's the leader, he's Zane's friend, of course he wants to save him - but giving Lloyd a deeper, more nuanced investment in Zane's rescue keeps things interesting. His feelings of failure are compounded by the fact that he had personally vowed to keep Zane alive. Maybe we could even dedicate a few scenes throughout the Fire Chapter to establishing the nature of Zane and Lloyd's friendship, just to make things more interesting narratively.

This also adds a layer of complexity to Lloyd's confrontation with the Ice Emperor - now he is burdened with even more guilt, blaming himself for what Zane has become. He considers himself responsible for this; if he'd just kept his promise, thinking if he'd just been strong enough to keep Zane safe, then the Ice Emperor never would have existed. He even blames himself for his inability to help Zane snap out of the corruption.

But then, as a resolution to his guilt complex, while fighting the Ice Emperor he realizes it wasn't actually his fault. It was Zane's decision to fulfill the vision. Zane made that choice, and it's not fair to either of them to take away his agency in that by Lloyd blaming himself. Lloyd isn't responsible for Zane's choices.

Zane's belief that he alone was responsible for protecting his friends pushed him to increasingly self-destructive ends. And Lloyd realizes that he too has been pushing himself to extremes out of a warped sense of responsibility. It wasn't his fault that Aspheera banished Zane, and it's not his fault that the Scroll has corrupted Zane and that Vex has controlled him. He can't force Zane to let go of the Staff, or to remember who he really is, because that's ultimately not his call to make. All he can do is try to help Zane make that decision for himself.

And in the end, that's how Zane snaps out of it. For the first time in 50 years, someone has encouraged him to make his own choices instead of trying to control or manipulate or coerce him. And he remembers a time, long ago, when he was free.

Anyway, like, I still think Kai totally should've gotten the solo arc rather than Lloyd, but if they absolutely had to give that subplot to Lloyd then this is certainly one way it could've gone.

[rmwb-fanfics]

Why do you not like Hermione? Ron and Hermione are each other’s soulmates

I don't love Hermione. Her superfans along with the movies radicalize me into saying that I hate her. Sometimes I really don't know.

I find her irritating. I don't like the way she treats Ron or Harry. I don't care for her interests. I don't find her funny or interesting.

I generally would say that the IDEA of her and Harry's friendship is fantastic because I am a guy who has a lot of friends that are girls and I know dozens of men who just don't get it and either assume I'm gay or am just waiting for their boyfriends to break up with them so I can swoop in.

Boys can be friends with girls. I like that about Hermione.

Except I don't like her and Harry's dynamic. Their friendship doesn't feel like it gains any emotional complexity until the sixth book, and by then I'm more invested in Ron and Harry's friendship, and Harry and Ginny's romance to give a damn.

Deathly Hallows rolls around and everyone is sort of at their worst. I honestly prefer her while Ron is gone because she isn't fucking talking. She's a fine secondary character but in contrast to Ron and Tonks and Sirius and Neville and Ginny and Snape and Dumbledore, I find her to just be... lacking. She doesn't go through much growth which, considering the fact that she's a JKR insert is mildly hilarious. I just wish we got more of Hermione... struggling. I know that sounds bad but we get quite a bit of it in the books and it just doesn't seem to affect her.

Summed up, I think she's boring.

Now, on to the whole Ron and Hermione being soulmates thing. I really don't mind Romione. Like, at all. I like them in canon, specifically their little moments and implied off-page interactions, but they aren't soulmates.

Which is what makes them interesting.

They aren't perfect. Their relationship has rough edges. Hermione's a very difficult person to deal with and throughout their relationship, through marriage, kids, and whatever else, they would always have different troubles to navigate. BIG ONES. They're the type of family where their kids would be like "My parents should've gotten divorced" but like, they're 12 and don't actually understand why their parents love each other, and then by 19-20 they'd be like nah I have good parents and they didn't just "Stay together for the kids" yk?

On the scale of traumatic and fucked up, Romione falls between the idealistic-low-drama-just-fun of Hinny and the real-life-shit-happens-what-the-fuck-she's-pregnant of Remadora. I wouldn't say they're soul mates but they make it work and they're happy to keep trying and keep working on it to improve themselves and their relationship yadda yadda yadda.

That being said: FUCK I feel bad for Ron because if I had to deal with Hermione every day I'd actually blow my fucking brains out oh my god.

[insertsomthinawesome]

*pokes head out of the great expanse of information that is the internet* DID I HEAR YOU SAY KAEYA ZHONGLI BESTIES AGENDA do elaborate because I am. I am. in need.

AHAHAAHAHAHAHAH YES YOU DID HEAR CORRECTLY. Look They have so much inherent angst based on Kaeya's origins and Zhongli's orgins. And I'm definitely going to get into some fanon/headcanon territory here. But like- I headcanon that whatever part Zhongli played in destroying Khaenri'ah he feels horrible about it. Meeting Kaeya would be a grenade of emotions for him. Like on one hand: Hey! This guy is a living Khaenri'ahn, maybe i can do small things to pay him for what I've done Not that I could ever total repay it ON the other: OH SHOOT I MESSED UP SO BAD BY HIM I SHOULD JUST NEVER SPEAK TO HIM EVER AND IF HE WANTS ME TO PAY FOR MY CRIMES I WILL. Initially Zhongli would probably just be a good ole formal acquaintance. Being pretty normal about everything (he's good at compartmentalizing and burying pain) except in weird instances where he'd get really intensely invested in Helping Kaeya. Kaeya is like "Okay this dude is strange. Nice! But strange." Eventually the truth would come to light and that would be a mess, not exactly sure how it would go down? I usually play with the idea of Kaeya being pretty angry with Zhongli and softening when he realizes how much Zhongli regrets and how human he is. The start of their actual friendship would be climbing over the hurdle of Zhongli.... well being overly gracious essentially?

Kaeya would have to slap him being like "Dude you need to not bend to my every request for star's sake." Like, kaeya can understand given how much he feels like he messed up, but at this point he genuinely wants to be friends with Zhongli, not have Zhongli be his dutiful archon butler. It'd take a bit for Zhongli to shake the behavior because the guilt complex runs DEEP. Also Kaeya would have to open a lot. Zhongli is old as dirt (ha) So he can probably see through Kaeya waaaay more than he's comfortable with. Zhongli is thankfully not horribly heavy handed? But I can see him being somewhat petty or poking at Kaeya before he's ready.

Kaeya would have the bonus of Zhongli already knowing his Origins! But he would still have to contest with worrying about him flipping out over the spy thing (not to mention Zhongli was the Contracts lord.) Zhongli would also not be super cool with kaeya's more reckless and under-explained stunts. Its probably already somewhat nervewracking for him that most of his friends are mortal. Them making ill-advised decisions would not sit well with him. but with time I think they'd have a beautiful friendship! They're both protectors and have Older Family member vibes (grandpa and older brother) Zhongli would be invested in seeing Kaeya grow past his trauma and the horrible things that happened to him and his people. And Kaeya would be invested in seeing Zhongli live a happy unburdened life (he understands too well holding what feels like the weight of the world.)

And just in general I think the way they can play off of each other is really fun? Just personality wise. They're both really smart but also feel like they'd have a great time discussing stuff over tea, Really random or inane stuff. I imagine they're both kinda fed up with the Anime Plot they're born into xD

I feel like they're both little things people. LIke zhongli going on and on about the flowers being beautiful this morning and Kaeya would just be sitting there like "yeah :]" They realize how much that stuff matters.

Somebody save Zhongli if Hu Tao and Kaeya are in the same room tho. SFDLSDIHGDFIGLDHFGLASIDGHDFG Also they'd both be doing "Woe, therapy be upon ye" at each other SADLFIHSDGLIDFHGDFGHFG

Also both of them adore kids. ;;v;; The capacity they have for understanding each other's pain. Just being the "stop being strong, I know, you can't hide it from me." and "i'm sorry you have this burden, you should've never had it." and "i'm so afraid of what I am harming the people I love." THere could be so much solidarity and comfort and understanding. And conflict and frustration too! I can see them easily being very hypocritical with each other without intending too xD

So yeah! Just their whole deal can be so fascinating and fun, both of them would have so much baggage to work through with each other. And I can see every step of that journey being delightfully fun to dig into and play out in different ways!

[moonchildridden]

Trigger warning: slight mention of trauma

A small confession I have to make about the episode and how Pai's words to Sky while they were talking in Pai's room and Sky asked why he was crying turned me into a crying mess: when Pai said to Sky that he should've met him sooner, that he would never hurt or make Sky cry, it reminded me of something that I always think regarding the changes that happened to me since my trauma started.

I am a very different person today than I was 5 years ago (my incident happened in 2017, a few months before I turned 21) and that change, a byproduct of what happened to me annoys me because it didn't happened naturally and instead of making me a better person, made things worse. I was far more expressive and affectionate towards people, at least people close to me because I'm an introvert, I used to allow myself to actually feel whatever emotion I was feeling in the moment and could confide with my best friend about almost everything that happened to me. Me post-2017 is someone very closed, reserved, distrustful of anyone and everyone, my circle of friends is even smaller than it was before and I barely feel like I actually have the proper means to process emotions because nothing except self-loathing, sadness and anger lasts for more than 5 minutes.

My last relationship ended because my partner said that I didn't seem invested in them and, even knowing that we weren't exactly compatible at the time, I know very well that I wasn't in the right mind space to date anyone and ended up making someone suffer for that. Lucky me they were a very understanding person and the relationship ended in mutual accord and we are still friends til this day.

When I think about the people I met after 2017, all the friends I've made, people I've interacted with, I always wish they've met the version that isn't plagued by the shitty actions of someone else, someone that could've been much more invested, showed much more emotions and could really connect with them. Don't get me wrong, every friendship I've made since then is very precious to me and I would walk on fire for them, but I feel like they don't have the better version of me, the person they deserve to have by their side, a person who's not broken.

And every time I think that, every time I'm reminded of that, confronted with that, I can't help but feel helpless and angry for not being strong enough to run after that moonchild that got lost in 2017, a moonchild that had so much love to give and was cut short. It just sucks to feel like that sometimes, you know? Because a part of me knows it wasn't my fault but the other one, the one that is so far gone deep into the memories, just keeps screaming for me to just give up and resign to the idea that I will be forever like this, a shell of my former self.

[aetdom]

On Severe Loneliness and Being Forgotten

The second half of 2022 was the most lonely I have ever felt.

It was around September that I had started free-falling into the bottomless pit of negative self reflection, or should I say, reality checks and self-doubts.

At first it began with stoicism like, "life happens, adulting happens, we all just organically drift apart over time," or "human beings are complicated, we have our own problems and stories, we can't expect people to stay the same," or "it's normal to have new friends and become closer to them, as we grow older it is harder to maintain emotional proximity," or "our life and the way we see it, our direction, our ideas and ourselves in general have become less and less relatable. It's just normal that we would attract and be attracted to things that feel more relatable to us."

To tell you the truth, over the time, it would get severe when I finally realized that "I must be the problematic one," and that "we should normalize associating ourselves with winners just as Harvard studies said that 99% of our success in life is determined by our reference group, and among my peers and friends, I have become quite the loser," or the fact that "we're past our first quarter now, people should invest their time and energy in productive friendships, and honestly, I haven't kept up well," and "it's just normal to be the last option they think about."

I had been away for too long to come out thinking all people stay the same, while they all had evolved and changed during my absence. There I was seeing them just the same as 2-3 years ago, a solid 9/10 to me, meanwhile I had organically become a 5/10 (tops) to them since maybe a year ago.

I was not there in their big moments and I have missed out too many chapters that it would be difficult to just reconnect as deep as before.

Part of me wanted to try accepting and moving on. Part of me gave it away to the darker corner where it spread to questions like, "if they had ever cared at all, why didn't they remind me or call me out when they saw me did something I should've not, why did they just let me rot in the mud and quietly leave?" before going back to "I deserved to be lonely, I owed everyone presence but all I did was ghosting them for years or taking too many rainchecks," and "I guess I am just that toxic and terrible," and "I am no longer circle-worthy person to be honest, as I fell behind everyone, I've become more and more forgettable these days," and "I have been too much these days, it's just natural that anybody care less, they need to preserve their time and energy anyway," and "most of the time I am just too full of myself, in fact, too many times."

Then it rounded up to "this is exactly why I feel lonely and friendless, I think too much instead of actually going out there making amends and making new friends."

It was not like I couldn't do anything alone. In fact, I had spent most of my time alone. Solo-anything had been my forte since forever. I had been used to it, so used to it that I might take my me-time a little bit too long, that I went alone a little bit too much, that now when I wanted company, there were none. I failed my friends and our friendships. I did not take care of it the way I should.

To be frank, I knew all I needed to do was just not overthinking it. I needed to stop over-assuming. I needed to stop going too far taking things personally. I needed to keep moving on. People might even not think about it after all, it just organically happens, we just need to reach out to them, make simple gestures, take care of the friendship, regularly check on them, and if they don't do it first, just do it first. Approach. Make the first move. Put ourselves out there. Join communities. Create new circles. Change the narratives.

Yet the negative thoughts never left my mind, and I was alone in my room almost all the time. It was like running in circle; having nobody to talk to -> feeling lonely -> overthinking -> needing to break negativity -> having nobody to talk to -> being trapped in echo chambers with barely external reminders, second opinions and support.

I wanted to unchain myself from the abyss, but it was very hard to crawl out by myself. I was not confident enough to revoke the curse I might have put on myself. I felt helpless and hopeless.

Maybe it was too late, but I began to text my friends, impulsively check on them, or tell them that I've been thinking about them or that I simply I miss them. Because I did. (And I still do.)

Sometimes I was lucky that 1 or 2 persons would reply. After some topics, I might try to bring up my struggle. It felt like a jackpot when they spared me some advices or their warmth to comfort me. Often times, I barely received feedbacks. Not even a read mark, although they might be seen active at their public handles at the time. Not anyone's fault. I deserved it because I should have done it sooner, not having to wait until I felt lonely. I was that big ghoster after all.

Being not active on social handles had also made things worse, because nowadays, the less you put yourself out there, the easier people just forget about you. Unless there are interactions throughout the time, along with well-maintained emotional proximity.

Two months deep into 2023, I began to actually consider resigning from my current job, and by the next month, I finally delivered the letter.

It has been 4 months now, I had spent the first 2 months of the 'career break' being at hometown before coming back to Jakarta. It became apparent that I was able to think clearly after quitting the job. Despite granma's and a friend's passings in the first month, I could redirect myself and regulate my stress response better.

Hitting my 27th count around the sun, it was scary how one year has flown by. Suddenly, it was June again.

It's not surprising that although I was healthier, leaving hometown for this chapter of Jakarta turns out even better.

It's August already. These past 6 weeks I have been in my best condition.

Don't get me wrong, I am still feeling lonely most of the time, but I guess I have handled it better.

I move on, but I'm still missing my friends so much. I miss having friends, so much.

I am thankful for those 24 years. I am lucky that I met you all and got to share memories with each of you. I miss you all. I am sorry for failing you, not being able to keep up and reciprocate the kindness, being too late to change, and being such a terrible friend.

I miss you all very much.

I look forward to be a winner, a better version of myself at least, so that I can catch up. I need to work on myself first. Win myself first. Value, love, accept, feel enough with myself first to be able to radiate positivity and good energy to others.

I promise I won't be that clingy and annoying old friend who creeps people out. I will humbly earn it.

[enchantechante]

Hi,Tae!'m a CNA.I have no children but I do help with family.My friend who's a real estate investor was coming down on me hard today.She was saying I'm stuck in the rat race and need to quit my job to start a LLC, I'm behind,I should've been own a house by now,married with kids etcetera.I'm proud of her and her accomplishments but I don't understand putting me down.All she talks about is investing,real estate and so on. There is nothing wrong with that at all and little do she know,I've been taking the information and applying it on the low.She thinks she's better than others because now she has money and apparently shamming me makes her feel superior?And she feels like if you don't tell her what you're doing/show her proof then it's not happening. I agree with some of what she says but to put me down for being a CNA is shallow,I think. Not realizing that...just because I'm not doing what she's telling me to(so she thinks)then I'm beneath her.

I'm currently taking investing classes,have a mentor and also taking real estate courses.Already in talks with two people who are multimillionaires who want to help me with purchasing my first property.I'm also paying off student loans (will be done this year),working out and just working on myself.I understand nothing happens overnight and I'm thankful for where I am now.I prayed for what I have now so I know if I continue to work hard + keep God first,there's no way I can fail.I'm just taking the rest of this year to really get my money right before I get into real estate. I don't want to jump in head first,you know? I'm definitely on the right path,I just don't want her in my business since she's been so critical in the first place trying to rush me and tear me down.She can keep thinking I'm just a dummy with no future who doesn't want more out of life. 🙄

I love her dearly but right now I'm just not feeling it.I was always there for her, pushing her and being patient for years when she use to stress about her life, cheering her own...but now since she's up and got more than me(materialistically)she thinks she's better.It's just weird energy and she swears my energy has changed because she doesn't hear from me much.Not realizing that she's the negative one who's always insulting others and I love peace. I don't like to feel like I'm being interrogated EVERY time I speak to someone. Or when I answer her questions about my life and job she acts like it's boring and frustrating.

Should I let the friendship go or just love her from a distance?

Hi, Anon! 👋🏾

It seems like the relationship is expiring. She cant uplift you personally or professionally because of how you're ascending.

It doesnt make her a bad person. However you deserve supportive friends. Period. They should be helping you feel confident and grounded. Remember if youre *both* in real estate she may see you again, so careful how you release her.

Ive outgrown friends like this.

We always do ourselves a disservice when we ignore our joy de vivre draining and stay. idk why youve stayed w this friend until this point but it seems like the time to release your friend or suffer the consequences. 👋🏾

Wishing you great success clearing space for the girlfriends you deserve! 💐

[mdverse]

Am I the only one who finds it hilarious that Rachel’s former bullies treated her better and did more for her then her boyfriends? Quinn, Santana, kurt ( wasn’t a full on billy but scorned her because she was annoying) they all did more

full disclosure: this is not something i usually think about so maybe i am the wrong person to be talking to about this lol

i kind of agree? though to me it's probably more sad than hilarious. you're probably right, because while rachel did have sweet moments with finn, he didn't really treat her all that well. their relationship was a hot mess and i don't really get why it lasted as long as it did (even as an on and off thing). i can't remember if rachel and puck ever officially dated but when they did have a thing going on in s1, he was very much not into her anyway. i will disagree when it comes to jesse, because from what i can remember, he was actually really nice to rachel up until she betrayed him first with the iconic music video that was run joey run ,and the stuff that happened in funk stemmed more from the VA vs ND dynamic as opposed to him specifically wanting to hurt rachel. i can't remember much about brody other than that he should've been honest about the fact that he was sleeping with other people.

as for her former bullies... again, i don't remember much so people who are more invested in rachel and her friendships are welcome to weigh in. i think part of the reason we see them all treating rachel better than finn and puck did is in part because they're just... actually present on screen? aside from quinn, but the faberry dynamic had a lot of growth in s3 from what i can remember. on the other hand, you have finn, who was in lima and then whose story was unfortunately cut short due to real-life tragedy, and puck, who was heavily side-lined like quinn was. without really delving in to the actual storylines, i think just the fact that we have rachel living with kurt, then also santana, is a big part of why those friendships end up getting better development in the show. admittedly you'd think the writers could've done better with finchel in s2 and s3 but i just don't expect much from them in general.