#i do love intensely messy wlw.

[mamawasatesttube]

▵ for made for sunny days

❖ for storm in a bottle and aftershocks (i look forward to seeing how you surprise me!)

↻ for your ghost i will gladly bear

<3 <3 <3

▵ pick a fic and I’ll tell you my favorite line

The phone on the nightstand buzzes. Cass doesn’t bother checking what it says, but Tim leans over to peek at the screen, then smirks. He rests a hand atop Kon’s head, fondness and love radiating through him despite all his snarky words.

i cheated a little by going for a passage rather than line, but shh. its just like... the way cass specifically as narrator can so easily see the way tim is worried and full of love he doesn't know what to do with. tim and kon are more focused on what they're both saying to each other, but to cass it's about the underlying emotion. it's also about tim being a bitch. i enjoy when tim is a bitch.

❖ pick 2 fics and I’ll combine them somehow

(storm in a bottle and aftershocks!)

ohoho this is definitely a single scene in the aftermath of the climax (i.e. tim finding out that superfam are selkies). he suddenly understands why lois stared at him like she was thinking of boring a hole in his head with her eyes, and why clark looked so analytical and unhappy, that day he fell into the harbor in january and kon fished him out, bundled him up in his favorite grey jacket, and brought him home to take care of him.

because. kon's favorite grey jacket. his pelt. he never lets anyone touch it, after how horribly he was abused for it as a child when he didn't even know. and he wrapped it around tim to keep him warm. to save his life. how much did it hurt him to do that? how violated did he feel, while tim soaked in a hot bath to stave off hypothermia?

tim didn't know. at the time, he had no idea. but now he knows, and the guilt is eating him alive. not knowing isn't a good excuse for how he clutched it around his shoulders, digging his fingers into the manifestation of kon's personhood. he can't fathom how kon can even stand to look at him anymore, let alone touch him.

he needs to apologize. he needs to. the guilt and horror are an anchor around his neck, and he's going to drown.

(meanwhile kon is just out here like yippee yaaaay tim in my jacket <3 <3 <3 yaaayyyyy yippee wahoo yay tim wow yayy yippee yay yay!!)

↻ pick a fic and a different ship and I’ll tell you how I’d rewrite it

your ghost i will gladly bear

HM!!!! oyl tim + robin kon is such a specific situation it's kind of hard to transpose that dynamic onto other ships without a lot of fiddling. that being said, i AM thinking about your cissiecassie + cassierose au where cissie is cassie's very beloved, very dead wife and cassie is So Fucking Normal about it. the cassie from that verse meeting a cissie from a dead wife cassie universe...

honestly if they're adults and they were married to each other and then lost each other. i think they would have some very emotional messy sex and then both feel so guilty about it afterwards, as if they both cheated on their dead wives. if you say "HOT FUCKING MESS YIKES YIKES YIKES!" in the mirror three times at midnight, the outline for this fic will manifest in your home.

[musical-chick-13]

Thoughts on toxic yuri?

One of my very favorite storytelling concepts, I love it when women make each other worse. <3

I do think it's important, for me anyway, to note the difference between a dynamic that's toxic in one direction versus something that is mutually toxic. The first one doesn't really interest me a whole lot, usually because it means one character suffers constantly without being allowed to do anything else--at the very least, it will come across as the more ""normal"" character not really being that into the relationship in question. I need BOTH parties to be unhinged.

The important thing for any fictional relationship (though we're specifying toxic yuri here, obviously) is that it's interesting. If there is no limit to what the women can do within a dynamic, then there are an infinite number of ways for that dynamic to go. And while you can learn a lot about a character through examining their values and positive qualities, you can learn just as much (if not more) by considering their flaws. And those flaws really come out in the case of toxic yuri; characters get to show the uglier parts of themselves in this context, which I am always a fan of. A fraught, complex relationship, when written well, can be a really great way to psychologically explore the characters: what inspires them to act this way? why do they think this behavior is acceptable? if they don't think it's acceptable, why do they keep doing it? what do they think about the concept of love as a whole? how far would they go for intimacy or to be understood? how do they view other people in general? and probably most importantly, what led to them developing the beliefs underlying their actions in the first place?

From a more "psychologically, why do people enjoy this" standpoint, mutual toxicity often goes hand in hand with extreme obsession, extreme jealousy, and a willingness to forgive a whole lot of horrible shit. Which, yeah, in real life you don't want to be in a relationship like that. But I think there's a lot of emotional resonance in exploring those feelings. The idea that someone will never leave you. That they think so intensely about you specifically that they'll break anything and anyone to stay with you. That even if you're the worst version of yourself, someone will still want you because that's still you. Someone knows exactly how to fuck you up because they genuinely understand you. Things in fiction that we would never want in real life can be incredibly interesting or even cathartic to witness from a distance. I think we all feel things that scare us sometimes (or even simply feel an innocuous emotion so intensely that it scares us), and looking at unpleasant feelings within fiction can help identify, parse out, process, and successfully cope with those feelings. And I think, at the end of it all, a lot of people want to matter to someone, in some way. It makes sense that some creators would take that concept-of meaning a great deal to another person, of affecting them deeply-to its absolute extreme through writing.

(And also, consider. That I am very gay. And that horrible women are very attractive.)

[k0yaz]

hello hi sorry i know your inbox is probably super full rn 😭 but can i request a one-shot of arlecchino comforting female reader while they have a panic attack, preferably without specifying the reason for it if that’s okay <3

burning flame.

Pairings: arlecchino x fem!reader

CW: sfw, female reader, panic attacks, big anxiety wow, it’s a rlly short oneshot sorry, this is off my own experience of what ik of a panic attack so I apologize if what you were hoping for is a little different i hope i covered atleast the fundamentals of it, soft arle yay, symbolism woah, wlw, fluff, not proofread.

A/N: More arlefreaky content yayayayaya this actually turned out really good I’m proud 🕯️

“There you go, breathe.”

Arlecchino’s calloused hand pressed flat against your chest as she whispered to you in hushed tone, heart thudding against your chest so quickly and violently that she could feel it against her hand. Still, she didn’t budge, pushing her hand further up as it grazed the cloth of your shirt along your skin. Your mind still spun as a storm continued to brew up within you, vision all blurry and your surroundings unclear. You begin to question where you were, only able to hear the fervent beats of your pulsing heart and shaky breaths emanating from you.

However, Arlecchino’s hand didn’t budge from your chest, keeping firm despite your intemperate heartbeat pounding so viciously, as if it was actively clashing against her palm. Shallow breaths fanned over her blackened hand, your uncontrolled hiccups and wide eyes making you jolt with each rough jerk of your body. You nearly tumbled forward as it grew hard to maintain any semblance of tranquility, both within your messy thoughts and your surroundings.

The harbinger’s broad arms circling your waist and hemming you into her grasp slowly began to subside the intense whirlwind of dread swallowing your subconscious whole, making your breaths become more drawn in and elaborate. Yet that awful unrest and distress resumed to gnaw at you continuously. Arlecchino didn’t take long to notice this, proceeding to trace your tensed up muscles from the collarbone down, outlining your silhouette slowly.

“Deep breaths, (Name).”

Flickers of light above outstretched your own shadow before you, causing you to nearly stray away from Arlecchino’s easing words, yet you did as she instructed, drawing in a deep intake of air through your nostrils and pushing it out of your lips. “There you go. Keep doing that. And focus on my hands.” She asserted, giving a gentle nudge to your shoulders and coaxing you to relax them.

You complied, lowering your hunched shoulders and fixing your mind to feel her nails gliding along your skin from the way she held you, back flush against her chest.

Repeating each deep breath, you gradually found yourself slowly fluttering your eyes open, submerged in a mellow sense of comfort flooding your senses. Your squinted gaze weakly shifted over to the flickering candle rested atop the bedside table, its flame jittering in the blink of an eye repeatedly. You leaned further into Arlecchino’s touch, seeking her warmth as her hand shifted to rest atop your head.

You were strangely similar to this alluring candle, your brightness always flickered with each gust of wind threatening to erase your flame of a soul in a seemingly endless battle. However, Arlecchino stood with you through thick and thin, at your worst and at your best. No matter how you saw it, Arlecchino was your burning flame, who kindled the wick of your candle. She was the lighter to your flame.

“Feeling any better?” Arlecchino mused, glancing down at your slumped body as she continued to hold you. You only gave a quiet and exhausted nod in response, signaling that you wanted to rest with her for a bit.

No matter what, she‘ll always be there for you.

A/N: I LOVE HOW THIS ONE TURNED OUT PERSONALLY WAWAWAW also I hope that you’re doing well anon and that you’ll get through whatever you’re going through <33

[redr0sewrites]

Kim'dael x reader Headcanons

she is criminally underrated omfg here are some headcanons reqs are open!

🥀CW: nsfw, mommy kink, blood/knife kink, thirst and filth, bondage, mentions of wlw sex ig?

🥀 minors dni with the nsfw part

SFW:

SHE PAINTS HER NAILS ALL DIFFERENT COLORS ALL THE TIME

shes gotten really good at it, and she will do yours if you want her too

shes a really intense lover, but has a softer side

shes always flirting with you, and enjoys seeing you flustered

she will let you do her makeup, and will be smirking at you the ENTIRE time

she will teach you how to fight and defend yourself if you dont already know how

she has lots of enemies, and wants to make sure your safe

she has lived a long time, and knows how to read people very well. she can always tell when your feeling upset, but will wait for you to talk to her sbout it as she doesnt want to intrude

i feel like she would give you lots of gifts, shes not necessarily good with words but she will gift u lots of charms and trinkets. if she sees you wearing any jewelry shes given you, her heart will flutter a little

there has to be a lot of trust and communication within the relationship, kim'dael knows she isnt the easiest to love and that her life is difficult

if anything were to happen to you, she would go apeshit even if your wounded with just a scratch whoever hurt you is going to PAY

she likes really long, intimate kisses that lead into messy makeout sessions

if you let her drink your blood, she will be very, VERY careful not to hurt you or take too much

she finds your blood especially strong because of your bond and your love so she will save it for special occasions

she is very intelligent, and she enjoys talking about complex things with you

she plans ahead alot, and is always very punctual for dates

she INSISTS on paying for you milf behavior

she is very passionate about her past and her beliefs, and if you feel otherwise that may lead ot disagreements

she doesn't like avizandum or any of the archdragons very much

she mourns the moonshadow companions that she lost so long ago, but acts like it doesnt bother her anymore

NSFW

DOM DOM DOM

if you have a vampire kink your in luck

she is SUPER into marking and by the end of the night your skin is covered in bite marks and scratches

seeing you bloody is a turn on for her, and she has a knife kink. she wont hurt you too bad, but enjoys running the knife over you during sex and watching you shiver from the cold metal

super into bondage (i forget the fancy name) and will tie you up with thick red ropes in intricate designs

she will tease you for HOURS before the sex even starts

if you have boobs, she will ravish them

she also enjoys if you mark or play with hers, and will smirk the whole time

she prefers recieving to giving, and will pull on your hair when your going down on her

she will not be afraid to grind her hips on your face, she LOVES seeing your face all messy from her cunt

she also enjoys riding your face, your fucked out expression is something she cherishes

very much into scissoring teehee

if u have a cock, she LOVES riding you until your whimpering she will not let you cum until she does

SO MUCH DEGRADING SHE IS MEAN

mommy kink? mommy kink

"awe, your gonna come already? thats too bad, mommy hasn't come yet.. i guess if you beg really sweetly, mommy might let you come sooner. come on, i know you can do better then that doll~"

scratches you down your back with her long nails and will watch as you squirm and whimper

she is also into pain herself and would very much enjoy it if you gave her hickeys

POSSESSIVE POSSESSIVE POSSESSIVE

she is into public sex, its such a turn on for her if you guys are almost caught

sex in the woods/outdoor sex is definitely a yes for her

she can go all night, shes not stopping until you both are more than satisfied

SHE IS SO UNDERRATED WHERE ARE THE FICS FOR HER??? auugh she is so fine. reqs are open, lmk if you want more! i tried to make this gender neutral, but i feel like she would be more inclined towards a female/gender neutral partner however this can be seen as a male reader :) lmk if there are any mistakes!

[arceespinkgun]

My issues with IDW1's portrayal of queer relationships are a lot more simple. I loved the WLW relationships and thought they did fairly well. It is important to note however, that I am neither a woman/woman-aligned person nor WLW (although I haven't heard any or much criticism from that demographic with the portrayals, besides the lack of fanon content for them in comparison to MLM relationships)

I, however, have many grievances with the MLM representation and the narratives they chose to give them. I understand that in the "grand scheme" of things, no one by the end of the war was "good" but a lot of the MLM characters did terrible things even before the war broke out (whether intentionally or not, through their inherent ignorance and how the system functioned)

There seemed to be a theme of MLM characters being acknowledged as downright monsters or their monstrous being dismissed and the common factor was that they were MLM. One option could be vaguely interpreted as saying “The only thing worse than a war criminal is a MLM war criminal" (whether the authors intended to or not, and they definitely didn't), whilst the second option glossed over character complexity and their active contributions in a prejudiced society in favour of highlighting their queerness. Frankly, I don't know what's worse because at least the first option is in your face and is brought up/criticised, whereas the latter goes unchallenged due to simply being representation that isn't blatantly offensive/damaging

Well, this turned into a whole essay....

(Warning: I make some really harsh criticisms of both IDW1's WLW and MLM representation in this post that I feel like could potentially make people upset. Please know that there are many romantic relationships from IDW1 I like and that I'm glad representation was obvious and present in the series—but I do feel like the patterns probably unknowingly perpetuated by the series deserve critique. My intention is not to make anyone feel like they can't enjoy something.)

I've been thinking about this ask to try and figure out what I think was going on, and this is what I've come up with. First of all, I'd like to say that I personally have plenty of issues with the WLW representation in IDW1, even though I enjoyed all the individual relationships in that category. Second, I understand why you'd say it comes across like "The only thing worse than a war criminal is a MLM war criminal," because of things like Prowl's and Tarantulas's past relationship being both obvious, yet also only implied and referred to through symbolism and innuendos related to horrific acts (for example, Tarantulas's infamous "Come; I want to show you something naughty" line is referring to a completed torture device). Or because of strange details like Ultra Magnus's first condemnation of Megatron when he thinks he's betrayed them being the mild and personal, "He's a serial abuser" of all things. And while I agree that in a lot of instances, writers' choices to have certain really despicable characters be queer (often intensely and obsessively so) was distracting and a really odd choice that added basically nothing to the narrative while from a reader's perspective, playing into offensive stereotypes (also ableist ones because my goodness are so many of the most violently, unforgivably evil villains in late-phase IDW1 mentally ill, disabled, and MLM), I think there's a lot more going on. Because then of course there are plenty of MLM characters the writers want us to root for, whose relationships are shown to be good (even though you or I may disagree). So what does that mean? And how do the WLW relationships factor in by comparison?

Well, here's what I've come up with. I think the trend you're seeing might be that IDW1 generally filters queer relationships through these two sets of stereotypes:

1) Lesbians get married after their first date, and their love is pure, redemptive, and stable.

2) Gays are messy, dramatic, and potentially predatory.

Now to be fair, I don't think this framework was intentional. And these stereotypes aren't reflected in the stories of every single writer. But if you view IDW1 as a single text and try to figure out what it's saying about queerness, the differences in WLW and MLM representation seem pretty obvious. More below the cut:

For example, the only 100% confirmed WLW couple we actually see fall in love and get together is Arcee and Aileron, and while I enjoyed all of their moments together, it happens super quickly, and neither of them had other partners beforehand. Arcee was written with many, many transmisogynistic stereotypes in many of her appearances, but her romantic life was not complicated in this respect. She and Aileron never hit each other in anger like a couple like Cyclonus and Tailgate did, for example.

Every single other confirmed WLW couple was already together by the time they made their debut, and the struggles their relationships face are almost all external. And there are enough WLW ships in this canon that this pattern is really obvious. We don't get to see a love story or longing and desire with Jumpstream/Dust Up, Greenlight/Lancer, or Anode/Lug. Plus, note that if you look at Lug's and Anode's arc, it's the story of two lesbians who end up settling down and deciding to raise a family after a life of danger and adventure.

Think of all the things we DON'T get with the WLW representation (but were involved in the MLM representation). Having a string of partners who didn't last due to death or divorce. Relationships being strained by addiction. Grooming, physical violence, analogues of sexual assault, and mental intrusion towards a partner or potential partner. Nearly getting everyone killed to impress someone who's never noticed you. Queerness being associated with torture. Obsession with someone ending in your own and others' violent deaths. Do I necessarily wish any of this stuff had been attached to WLW relationships? No!!! I think most of these things are rooted in offensive stereotypes. But given that this is how MLM relationships were portrayed, the inequality there contributes to assumptions about WLW and women in general.

And there are things with MLM representation that aren't bad that really show how lacking the WLW rep was. Think about this—we didn't even get something as basic as Drift's and Ratchet's bickering "will they or won't they" romance arc with any WLW representation. That's how little drama and desire was permitted to WLW (I love Lug's bickering with Anode but they were introduced as a married couple).

Now, I can think of one big exception to this rule, and it's IDW1 Elita-1. She's menacing, powerful, tyrannical, somewhat bigoted, has a big redemption through death moment. But the thing is, as far as I can remember, Elita was only vaguely lesbian-coded, and she wasn't obsessively fixated on another woman or anything the way characters like Tarn, Pharma, etc. were obsessively fixated on other men.

And when it comes to why queerness was often focused on above other horrible things characters perpetrated, I think the answer is embarrassingly simple. The writers who wrote the edgiest shit like dramatic gays™️, possibly out of internalized homophobia. Many of the story elements reek of the type of internalized homophobia that results in people thinking MLM stuff is sinful and dirty (Pharma's last words before the drills go into his brain, anyone?)... even though IDW1 also tries to showcase positive MLM relationships at the same time.

I think some people may wonder after reading this post, "But didn't the TF franchise already improve when it comes to this stuff, like in IDW2? Why discuss this and criticize it so harshly?" My response would be to say, yes, it did improve! I'm glad we got to see women like Road Rage and Nautica falling in love over a longer span of time and we got to actually see, you know, Road Rage pining! And I'm glad we got to see Blast-Off have a positive relationship instead of the one involving violating his love interest's mind in IDW1. But I think it's important to know what was lacking in earlier series to remember what to avoid and continue to improve on in the future. We don't want to forget how bad things were in IDW1 and let the bar be on the ground it's so low.

There is a lot more I could've talked about here, like about specific problematic elements in individual relationships and how they relate to offensive stereotypes, or more about transness, or something about how specific writers' takes differed. But I think this tackles the general pattern you noticed.

[blossomkoushi]

Can I request a fff threesome? Would love to be fucked by yachi and saeko please

SOME WLW CONTENTTTT we love to see it (..this is lowkey a fic ngl)

contains: afab reader, she/her pronouns, sub!reader + yachi, dom!saeko, sex toys, use of "good girl", saeko is a lowkey sadist tbh, mentions of overstimulation, some nipple sucking, cunnilingus

MINORS DO NOT INTERACT

"feels good, doesn't it?" saeko hums, sitting at yours and yachi's legs, keeping the vibrator pinned to both of your clits. yachi's high whines and sobs trigger your own sweet moans, the vibrations forcing pleasure through your body and making your legs shake.

"s-saeko, p-please" tears are streaming down yachi's face, her lower lip wobbling and chest shaking from her heavy sobs. "p-please, 's too much!"

while this was your first direct stimulation, yachi was already at the point of overstimulation. your mouth having pulled three orgasm from her while saeko sucked and pinched her nipples, her pussy was sore and nipples glistening.

saeko studied her for a moment, clicking her tongue and handing you the vibrator, "keep that in place and don't move it off until i say you can" her stern voice sent shivers down your spine, a gasped confirmation passed your lips and left a small smile on hers.

saeko turned her attention to yachi. the toy was no longer touching her, leaving her legs shaking and chest heaving. saeko shushes her soothingly, gently rubbing her tummy and chest, leaning down to kiss her hotly.

the sight makes you shake, throwing your head back and moaning loudly as an orgasm washes over you, shaking as you don't move the vibrator, sobbing with the oversensitivity. saeko turns her head to smirk at you.

"good girl, keep that vibrator in place for me, want to see your pretty pussy cum again" she leaned over for a moment, pressing a button and making the vibrations more intense, rubbing your leg when tears prickle in your eyes.

"s-saeko? can... can i... please?" yachi pipes up, sitting up and watching your shaking body with glossy eyes.

"please what, princess? use your big girl words for me" saeko remains at your side, rubbing the insides of your thighs and gathering some of your slick on her fingers, pushing the soaked digits into her mouth and moaning lewdly.

"i-" yachi squirms, blushing, "can i.. can i p-play? please? wanna- wanna play with her, please?"

"good girl. yes you can, come here" saeko helps her move closer, sitting back and watching as yachi takes in your body. saeko takes away the toy pressed to your cunt, lowering the setting and putting it against herself, sighing in pleasure.

yachi watches you with wide eyes and leans down to press her lips against yours. it's messy, her lips are wet from tears and spit, smearing the mixture against yours while your tongues glide against each other. your hands cup her tits, moaning into the kiss as she moves over to straddle your hips. her hands slide back to cup your neck, breathing heavily and trying to push her body closer to yours.

"hitoka" saeko calls for her attention, smiling sweetly when yachi looks over at her, eyes glossy and lips puffy. "y/n was so nice to take care of you, how about you return the favor, yeah? her pussy looks delicious, doesn't it?"

a hot blush washes over yachi's face as she squirms in your lap, nodding shyly and moving down between your legs. she pushes them apart carefully, eyeing your glistening folds and pulsating clit, her mouth watering. saeko moans from behind her, the buzzing of the vibrator getting louder, making you and yachi squirm. yachi finally licks over your pussy, her hands pinning your thighs apart while her lips wrap around your clit, sucking softly. a moan rips from your throat, hands flying down to grip her hair.

oversensitivity and pleasure buzzed through your body, tingling down your legs and up your spine, yachi's fingers buried deep inside your pussy. your heavy breaths and moans filled the room, along with the lewd slurping and squelching of yachi's ministrations, as well as the moans and buzzing coming from saeko. your hazy eyes opened to look at the last mentioned, sobbing with overwhelming need as your hands reached out, grabbing the air to signal her coming closer.

"wan' you-- please, wan' you" you babble, nearly yanking her body down to push her tits against your face. your eager mouth finds one of her nipples, suckling happily.

"good girl, so pretty for me and hitoka. wanna cum baby? cum for us" she coos, petting your cheeks and down your chest, pinching your nipples.

the coil tightening in your stomach suddenly snaps. a gush of wetness cover yachi's fingers, your loud moans getting muffled by saeko's heavy tits on your face as your body shakes, toes curling from the overwhelming pleasure. the pleasure is never ending, yachi's insistent mouth staying glued to your clit as your hips buck, almost at the point of screaming when she finally comes up. your slick and cum is covering her face, running down her jaw and neck.

"good girls, so good for me" saeko smiles, brushing yachi's hair back and holding the back of your neck. "my turn now, yeah?"

[akari-hope]

Not sure why you think that wlw are more shunned, viewed as predatory, and otherwise demonized than mlm relationships, particularly enemies to lovers dynamics? Sapphics are by and large wayyyyy more well-received than mlm. Sapphics are seen as soft and harmless and lovely even when they’re fighting, while mlm are seen as dirty and emasculated and generally viewed with complete disgust.

i said that mlm are FETISHIZED more in enemies to lovers dynamics than wlw. wlw are more DEMONIZED than mlm in enemies to lovers dynamics. and i gave clear examples of dynamics that reflect this in that post, so i'm not pulling this out of my ass. neither is good. both are bad. they're just different kinds of bad. i'm pretty sure i made that clear but if i didn't, i'm restating it now - NEITHER MLM NOR WLW ARE TREATED WELL IN MEDIA REGARDLESS OF DYNAMIC. THIS IS NOT OPPRESSION OLYMPICS. DIFFERENT PROBLEMS DOES NOT EQUAL BETTER PROBLEMS.

i am, however, a lesbian, and i'm going to be able to speak more coherently and authentically to the sapphic representation and general treatment of women in media than anything else. it's my firsthand experience and it's always going to be easier and more accurate than my musings on the experiences of other groups of people. and given that i have a particular fondness for enemies to lovers dynamics, of course i'm bound to contemplate sapphic enemies to lovers dynamics specifically.

but if we must dance this dance bc you decided to take a bad faith interpretation of my words, women have to do more to be loved in media, and they have to do far less to be hated. this is a fact plain and simple, and if you can't acknowledge that we are not even remotely on the same page. You can look at ANY piece of media and see this is true. the supernatural fandom's treatment of basically any women vs. the kingdom hearts fandom's treatment of kairi vs. the naruto fandom's treatment of sakura. etc. etc. etc. i could name examples all day. these are women who, yes, have shoddy writing, but instead of getting the same treatment of a male character with shoddy writing - immediately getting fleshed out by fans - they get set aside as annoying, bitchy, mary sues, etc. even female characters with GOOD writing will get this treatment, a la lightning farron from final fantasy xiii. male characters with the SAME EXACT TRAITS are often beloved by fans. easy example, see cloud strife from final fantasy vii, who shares a hysterically huge amount of personality traits with lightning farron.

and this is BEFORE we even get into the discussion of being sapphic, or god forbid any other type of minority. traditionally beautiful white cishet women who are feminine and kind are the only women to ever pass for general audiences, and even then it's not consistent. women must be "palatable". versus white men, who are allowed to be dark, messy, gritty, murderers, even genocidal dictators and still be beloved by fans. and yes, the qualifier of white is necessary here - men of color, especially black men, do not get this same generosity from fans, and you bet your fucking ass it goes triple for women of color.

and again, this is BEFORE WE EVEN FACTOR IN BEING GAY OR MENTALLY ILL OR ANY OTHER FACTORS. THIS IS ASSUMING ALL CHARACTERS ARE CISHET AND NEUROTYPICAL.

women are "soft and harmless and lovely" as you put it when they fight...if they're fucking tifa lockhart. if they're feminine and sweet and cute normally, or at least perceived that way. if they look like they're out of madoka magica (and oops not even then, bc you bet your ASS there's insane demonization of miss homura akemi). and also, friendly reminder, that "soft and harmless and lovely" thing isn't a compliment. it's fucking infantilizing at best.

for sheer simplicity's sake, to compare two ships that are on a relatively equal playing field in terms of representation, i'm going to take a look at the general reception of goro akechi/ren amamiya from persona 5 (i'm using ren as his name for simplicity's sake) and madoka kaname/homura akemi from madoka magica.

some brief context for both: both are heavily queercoded, homura is initially introduced as an antagonistic character but it is later revealed to not be the case, akechi is initially introduced as a friendly character but it is later revealed to not be the case, and both homura and akechi have clear and intense struggles with trauma and other mental health issues.

judging by what i've said, from your own logic, surely homura is a widely beloved and not at all vilified character. after all, she's feminine, she's not REALLY a villain, and she's got sympathetic motivations. right? wrong. homura is widely beloved... by sapphics. but even people who LIKE THE SHOW DO NOT ALWAYS LIKE HER. homura was WIDELY hated and discoursed back when the show first aired. you still get people who hate her. and even more frustrating, despite the blatant, you-absolutely-cannot-miss-it queercoding, sapphic fans of the show still have to argue that it's not just "girls being friends". it's not even a true enemies to lovers setup, and you still cannot escape homura being called toxic and predatory.

now let's take a brief look at akechi and ren. like previously stated, akechi is revealed to be an antagonist later in the story. and when he is, he tries to shoot ren in the head and frame it as a suicide. this is, quite obviously, a lot different from homura and madoka, where homura never even directly fights madoka. surely by your logic, akechi would be widely seen as a villain, unforgivable, horrendously terrible? well he most certainly isn't. he's one of if not the most beloved characters by fans. his relationship with ren is more often than not read as romantic, and it's practically treated as canon by a large majority.

and like i previously stated, i am not saying the mlm example i've given is without issues - akechi/ren is highly sexualized and fetishized. it's just a very DIFFERENT problem from the vilification that wlw characters often receive. and i am not saying that mlm are NEVER vilified. i am simply saying the large, overarching trend in fandom is to be forgiving of men, and unforgiving of women.

i simply do NOT see mlm ships get the same treatment in this regard to wlw ships. sora/riku from kingdom hearts and catra/adora from she-ra have...practically the same narrative in many ways. childhood friends separated by a worldwide conflict, becoming enemies, fighting each other multiple times, arguably with intent to kill, eventually saving each other and finding a way to reconcile in order to emerge victorious against the true villain. riku and catra are strikingly alike, as are sora and adora. but riku is once again a fan favorite character. and catra has received backlash after backlash after backlash. i hardly even post about she-ra anymore and i STILL get people in my inbox talking about catra discourse!!

again, i'm NOT saying the script is never reversed. there's not really anything to be won by making absolute statements like that. i'm just saying that i have never seen it, and even on the odd chance that i do it's never as severe.

once again - yes mlm characters face backlash. no one is saying they do not. but it is different backlash. i am specifically discussing the fan reception of wlw characters and ships bc that is my personal experience. different problems do not equal better problems.

i'm tired of bad faith interpretations of my posts. unless you want to have a respectful and thoughtful conversation (which i AM open to), don't come at me with boldfaced accusations.

[nakedmonkey]

i know you haven't written a lot of it past year but whats your top 5 gg fic from 2020?

Hi anon! Thanks for asking! I am honestly so surprised at how much this fandom has grown and just how huge of a selection of writers it has. We’re very very lucky. I remember posting my first fic when there were maybe 3 or 4 active writers, so this is very cool! That being said, I want to highlight the femslash in this fandom because it’s SO good, there could be more, and what little we have deserves some attention. So here are my top five of the year! 

Beth x Rhea

Soon, by watermelonriddles is a really sweet and sad snapshot of Beth’s guilt about taking Rio away from his son, and about her conflicting feelings for Rhea. The author captures Rhea’s trust in Beth and Beth’s nurturing side so well, and the dynamic we got a tiny glimpse of before Rhea was taken away from us (bring her back Jenna!). Beth’s intentions are never malicious but they’re often not the best choice, and that’s represented here in such a great way. 

Eager by nomind is just a sweet little ficlet about Beth and Rhea in an established relationship out on a date on their anniversary. They’re wearing dresses and being lovey and cheesy, they’re going to a movie. I love it I love it! Would LOVE some more of them. 

Beth x Ruby

Almost by subtlesraf is...oh my god. This fic took my breath away. I was surprised that after/during Beth and Ruby’s big fight we didn’t see a surge of femslash for these two because the prompt was THERE. I’ve always felt like Ruby and Beth’s relationship is so, so intense, like their love borders on romantic love canonically, and this fic captures the intensity of their love and the fragility of female closeness and the impact that betrayal has on these relationships. I love their love and I was so happy to read something that zoomed in on them so beautifully. 

Now for my ultimate wlw OTP in this show

Annie/Nance

Not So Simple by makemeanybraver takes place soon after Nancy gives birth. She’s struggling with postpartum depression and calls Annie for help. I find it really interesting that it’s canon that despite the animosity between them, Nance can’t help but seek comfort in Annie, and Annie can’t say no to providing that comfort. I love moments where relationships make significant shifts toward something more, and this is such a great take on that. I love these two and how complicated and beautiful they could be. This fic is such a great depiction of what could happen. 

june after dark by prettylittlementirosa AKA @hypermania is chef’s kiss perfection. First of all. What a title. It makes me want to scream it’s so good. Annie’s voice is perfect, Nancy’s voice is perfect, Ben’s voice is perfect. Everything is perfect. There are so many callbacks to those moments between Nancy and Annie where they were almost getting along, to Dakota’s birth, which in my opinion were Annie’s more intense emotional moments on the show. I love the complex shit they’ve got going on between them, and look, yeah this could be messy, but @hypermania captures exactly how this could work in one little portion:

Because it was there when Nancy was on her couch, venting about her marriage and her friends and her life. It was there when Nancy was clutching at Annie’s arms, wrapped tight around her chest, just trying to get through the horrors of child birth when she thought her life was falling apart around her. It was there the next time she saw Nancy, with a whole boob out, trying to get Dakota to latch on, mumbling something about normalizing breastfeeding and instagram hashtags and really, it’s been there ever since. It’s just that it feels impossible to ignore right now as Annie watches Nancy sway back and forth with Dakota, lulling him into a restful sleep, one hand propped under his butt, the other rubbing soothing circles into his back.

Without even thinking Annie reaches out to tuck an errant strand of hair that’s fallen in Nancy’s face behind her ear. Nancy freezes, her blue eyes snapping up to meet Annie’s, and fuck why did she do that?

She steps back, clearing her throat, and shoves her traitorous hand into her pocket.

“I’m just gonna go get Ben and we’ll be out of your hair.”

Nancy doesn’t say anything, just watches as Annie retreats.

And yeah, Annie’s mortified, but–

But.

The way Nancy’s expression turns from surprise to confusion to something else is going to play on repeat in Annie’s mind for weeks.

Fuck.

Considering all of Annie’s questionable choices, pursuing a relationship with Nancy would be the best bad choice she could make and the only proof I need is this beautiful fic that makes me clutch my chest with emotion. 

[miuki-akanero]

Hi!!! Am I able to get some wlw imagines with Percy where the reader is the receptionist at the police station? Thankyou!!! 💙

Of course, sunshine! I hope I didn't make any mistakes since I don't really know how things works there:<

Percy King x Police receptionist fem!Reader

✪ While she loves you with all her heart, she won't let it affect her working process. Which means she might act more distant and cold towards you at the begining of your relationship

✪ She will calm down eventually, but she still be way more strict with you at the police station than at home

✪ Even though, she will do her best to see you at her free time and to make sure that you're alright. It doesn't matter if you "only the receptionist", every job as a police worker is pretty much intense

✪ Automatically kiss you in the cheek everytime she runs into a new case

✪ She will passionately fight for you if someone acts homophobic towards you or diminishes your hardworkship at the police station. I mean, she won't physically fight these people, of course, but she definitely will make them remember laws which can get them arrested for their behavior

✪ She always feel calmer whenever she sees you. And extremely proud when she sees you in your working process

✪ When things get messy and someone dies during any operation, she comes to you, stands nearby your desk and then asks you to hold her hand. She is clearly heartbroken, but your presence and warmth help her move forward

[daisymakesstuff]

NSFW Alphabet- Ximena x MC

Happy Ximena day!! 

We don’t have any info on past romantic relationships for Ximena so I’m just assuming she’s some sort of wlw for this prompt because she was the LI we all deserved and never got. I put these under a read more because most of them are smutty, as the title suggests.

MC goes by the Choices default name of Ellie Wheeler

There are two NSFW Alphabets so I cherry picked from this one and this one and combined a few prompts into one response. 

Tagged: @desiree-0816 @client-327 

A = Aftercare (What they’re like after sex)

Ellie still has her head thrown back, eyes closed and basking in the afterglow when Ximena kisses her way back up Ellie’s body. They’re light, affectionate kisses, far more chaste than the trip down. Ximena coaxes Ellie with gentle pressure to shift over so Ximena can tangle them up together under the sheets.

“I love you,” she murmurs.

  B = Body part (Their favorite body part of theirs and also their partner’s)

Ximena’s arms are an expertly crafted work of art, from the sweat she has put into building their strength to the hours spent designing the ink on her arms. Her favorite place to put them is on Ellie’s hips. Together they dance to oldies in the garage, and Ximena’s new favorite sound is the way Ellie giggles with joy when Ximena dips her at the end of Fly Me to the Moon.

C = Cum (Anything to do with cum basically… I’m a disgusting person)

She’s got Ellie up on the hood of a brand new BMW X5 M50i, legs spread and skirt pushed up haphazardly. The voices of the crew carry from the kitchen, laughing and jovial and distracted. Ximena’s fingers on her hips keep Ellie in place when she comes with a cry. Ximena’s mouth glistens when she pulls away, grinning up at Ellie through her lashes as she carefully licks her lips.

D = Dirty Secret (Pretty self explanatory, a dirty secret of theirs)

“Oh! I’ve been looking for this!” MC pulls a pastel blouse out from the back of Ximena’s closet. “How did it end up here?”

“Oh,” Ximena tries to dismiss it “it must have been there for a while.” Too bad she’s not one to dismiss anything.

“Ximennaa?” Ellie prods, in her sweetest most innocent voice that is not at all teasing in any way. Turns out neither of them are good actors.

“Well…it was back when we’d just gotten forever and you left your shirt here and I—” Ximena pointedly looks away, and Ellie can see the blush creeping up on her cheeks.

E= Edgeplay (Similar to ‘Kinks’ except it’s a lot riskier than usual kinks (knifeplay, breathplay, etc.).

Ximena is used to people taking her at face value. They think she tops. They think she’s kinky—because she’s tall or has tattoos—but the Mercy Park Crew know she’s a woman who rejects handshakes for hugs, and Ellie Wheeler knows that the closest she gets to any sort of  edgeplay is edging.

F = Favourite Position (This goes without saying. Will probably include a visual)

When Ellie straddles Ximena’s thigh it feels a lot like a cupcake is trying to dom her,  Ximena strategically leaves this part out of their conversations, but watching Ellie take what she wants is the hottest thing she’s ever seen.

G=Got Caught – (How they react when they get caught having sex.)

It is one of those days where they only make it to the bedroom because they are both too polite to make out in front of their friends. Ximena kicks off her pants, and has to sling her arm around Ellie to keep her from faceplanting when she tries to do the same.  It’s only a few seconds until they’re kissing again, hands between each other’s thighs, trying to find a rhythm the both find gratifying. Then, the door opens. Ximena pulls away at the sound, but there’s no way for them to cover up. A distinctly Colt-like silhouette is in the doorway.

“Ximena—” He closes the door and tries to back away, but it’s too late.  

“WERE YOU RAISED IN A BARN!?” Ximena shouts. Colt can feel her expression through the door. He doesn’t need to see it. “You knock on doors, Colt! You knock!”

  H = Hair (How well groomed are they, does the carpet match the drapes, etc.) & X = X-Ray (Let’s see what’s going on in those pants, picture or words)

Ximena is no porn-star. She’s never felt dying her hair would be worth the maintenance. She keeps herself trimmed, but not bare.  Her inner lips are dark at the edges and peak out like ruffles between her thighs. Ellie thinks she’s perfect.   

I = Intimacy (How are they during the moment, romantic aspect…) & P = Pace (Are they fast and rough? Slow and sensual? etc.)

Exposing herself physically means dealing with the emotions that come with that. For her, there is no way to separate sex from intimacy. The first time Ximena and Ellie have sex, it’s with more than just lust between them. They felt the need to be together in a way they hadn’t been before, to get even closer in their relationship. It’s no longer their first time anymore, but Ximena touches Ellie with love and affection just the same.

Usually, she works Ellie up nice and slow. Ximena likes to take her time and savor how beautiful is. Equally, she enjoys leaning into Ellie’s affectionate and enthusiastic touch. Something so pure is rare in a life like hers. They have their days though, where everything between them is rough and frantic with need. Ximena is sure Ellie knows just how much she loves her in those moments, too.

J = Jack Off (Masturbation headcanon)

Masturbation is a stress reliever for Ximena. She fingers herself after particularly intense days, working her thumb in circles over her clit until she pushes herself over the edge. The ecstasy eases her adrenaline crash.

K = Kink (One or more of their kinks) & S = Stamina (How many rounds can they go for, how long do they last…) & V = Volume (How loud they are, what sounds they make)

“C-close,” Ximena pants,  pulling lightly on Ellie’s hair. Ellie slows, but doesn’t stop, shifting the movements of her tongue often enough so Ximena can’t get the build up she really needs. Another draw of Ellie’s tongue has her letting out a moan. Thankfully, both of them are quiet enough that the neighbors haven’t yet felt the need to complain.   “Ellie… Ellie please.” Wait…“Are you— is that the alphabet?”

Ellie peers up from between Ximena’s thighs. “Yes?” she answers innocently. Ximena snorts with laughter, and Ellie’s eyes darken with desire once again. “Are you ready for a third round?”

Ximena’s fingers curl in Ellie’s hair. “Please.”

L = Location (Favourite places to do the do) & U = Unfair (how much they like to tease)

Ximena prefers not to be interrupted, and to have enough space for both of them to be comfortable and able to move around. Usually, that means the bedroom, but they’ve gotten creative on several occasions.

Since the Colt Incident, Ximena’s new favorite way to tease Ellie is to get her worked up, and then make her wait while Ximena locks the door wherever they are. Really though, it’s Ximena who likes to be teased.

M = Motivation (What turns them on, gets them going)

When Ximena gets up in the morning, she finds the bed empty. She pads out to the kitchenette in their motel. Ellie is up on her tippy toes reaching for the box of cereal on the upper shelf of the cabinet. Her t-shirt lifts, revealing just a sliver of the smooth skin on Ellie’s hip, and then Ximena spots the two bowls on the counter for them. Ellie doesn’t make it to her cereal for another hour. Other nights, when Ellie gets particularly wiggly in her sleep, she ends up with her clothes askew, the bottom sheet tangled around her, and at least one breast nearly out of its shirt. Ximena always makes sure to wake her up with kisses on those days, and unwrap her from the sheets like a present.

N = NO (Something they wouldn’t do, turn offs)  & R = Risk (Are they game to experiment, do they take risks, etc.)

If Ximena didn’t like to take risks she wouldn’t have joined the Mercy Park Crew. That said, she gets most of her thrills in car heists and illegal street races. She can be an enforcer when she needs to. At 6’4” she towers over even most men. She can, and has, beaten men nearly to death with her bare hands. But that’s not who she wants to be, and it’s not who she wants to be with Ellie either.

 Anything that might really hurt either of them— or is too messy— is off the table, but that won’t stop her from getting creative with new sensations and angles.

O = Oral (Preference in giving or receiving, skill, etc)

Before their relationship began, Ximena didn’t have much experience, though still more than Ellie. It was their encouragement and eagerness for each other that got them through the early days, and now they’re both proficient in what the other likes.

Ellie asks one time, if Ximena preferred giving or receiving oral. Ximena loves them both for different reasons. It’s easy for her to compare which sensations she prefers on her own body, but how it she supposed to compare the kind of pleasure she gets from making Ellie gasp and grind her hips into her mouth, to the pleasure she gets when Ellie uses her tongue to show Ximena just how much she loves her?

Q = Quickie (Their opinions on quickies rather than proper sex, how often, etc.)

Ximena rubs her nose up against Ellie’s in an Eskimo kiss. Colt dutifully pretends he doesn’t see anything, for now. Ellie takes the opportunity to nibble teasingly on Ximena’s ear.

“Do you think…maybe we forgot something back in our room?” Ellie whispers, breath hot on Ximena’s ear. The words go straight to her groin, but Ximena shakes her head softly. She has never been one for quickies, not often. If there’s not enough time for actual sex, it almost always means they have somewhere important they need to be.

“No, I think we have everything.” Ximena’s voice deepens, “but, I’ll make sure to do a thorough inventory when we get back.” T = Toy (Do they own toys? Do they use them? On a partner or themselves?)

Thieves moves from crew to crew on a regular basis. Her whole life fits in a duffle bag, and sex toys haven’t earned their spot in it yet.

W = Wild Card (Get a random headcanon for the character of your choice)

After a long, lazy morning makeout, Ximena finally goes to get out of bed. Ellie is not having it. She wraps her arms around Ximena’s neck, and her legs around Ximena’s waist, assuming her body weight will keep Ximena in place. Instead, Ximena just braces her with one arm and lifts them both of the bed together. Ellie squeaks with surprise and delight, pulling Ximena in for a deep kiss. It’s not long before Ellie is grinding her hips forward, desperate for friction. Ximena can feel how wet Ellie is against her ribs. Ellie loves that Ximena is so strong.  Good thing Ximena likes showing off for her.

Y = Yearning (How high is their sex drive?)

Once their sexual relationship starts, Ximena likes to turn Ellie into a puddle at least twice a week. Before that, when she was single, once a week was usually enough to satisfy herself. There were plenty of beautiful cars to keep her mind and her hands occupied

Z = ZZZ (… how quickly they fall asleep afterwards)

Ximena is full of energy, even more so than Ellie. She’s both a morning and a night-sex person, depending on what they get up to. A good orgasm is one of her favorite ways to start the day, but a couple of rounds before bed helps her drift off a lot easier. 

[midoriyaizukustan-inactive]

ok ive been thinking about this for hours now and its keeping me from doing my dumb homework SO

ive been thinkin about todoiideku as one does and i keep trying to figure out who would fall for who first and who would be the first to realize theyre crushing on the others (because lets be real those things do Naught always go hand-in-hand)

so ive been thinking abt it and i think midoriya would get to the point of crushing on the others first because that boy just loves so intensely but also because of the fact that he loves so intensely, i dont think hed notice when the feelings took a dip into a more romantic nature so he's probably just “iida and todoroki are so strong and smart and brave......theyre gonna be great heroes im glad they can inspire me whilst also being my friends!!!!!”

iida is up next to start crushing but he probably has a similar problem to midoriya where he confuses the feelings for admiration for a while (cause like,,,,during the sports festival iida LITERALLY says ‘’i think youre a great hero and person which is why i wanna challenge you so i can better myself’’ to midoriya and then when they do the swimming thing/””endurance training”” where iida tells midoriya its funny how they became so close like. and then after the stain arc when todoroki is talking to iida and breaks thro to him abt how he and midoriya arent gonna leave him and he understands whats its like to have a narrow-minded mindset but iida cant let it take over his life to the point where it hurts him?? i cant remember if he says anything for sure in canon but theres no way iida doesnt look up to todoroki after that like bruh)

and then finally todoroki would be the last to have like actual romantic feelings for them cause we all know hes got walls protecting his walls when it comes to feelings (im gonna kill endevore) but eventually iida and midoriya’s kindness and determination and thoughtfulness will get through to him

however while hes the last to actually get romantic feelings, todoroki is the first to realize he has them bc hes exactly the type to notice when things change even the slightest bit (probably because growing up in an abusive household means you need to get a read for those things. again im gonna kill ende-) so when theres this tiny little shift in their dynamic and when todoroki realizes that how they make him feel has gotten a little more intense, hes immediately like “oh shit. oh fuck.”

since i sincerely doubt todoroki has had a crush before he probably tries to be subtle but completely fails and yaoyorozu ends up swooping in to save his disaster gay ass in an act of wlw/mlm solidarity

iida would be the next to realize im thinking bc even tho he has a similar problem to midoriya he doesnt love as intensely as generally as midoriya does so when he notices just How intense his admiration for todoroki and midoriya is, he’d probably realize “hmm.....thats probably more than admiration”

iida is (surprisingly i know) a disaster gay and he puts his entire foot in his mouth every time he tries to act normal around them from that point on poor guy. he calls tensei abt it one night in the mdist of a gay crisis and tensei helps him chill the fuck out thank u tensei

anyway midoriya still probably wouldnt realize until literally everyone else besides him has noticed his crush and they all slowly spell it out for him because “holy shit is he seriously unaware” anyway so midoriya is like “whys everyone being weird about me talking about how i wanna get my shoot style closer to iida’s moves like iida is so strong and determined and hes worked with his legs longer than i have so obviously he would know more than me abt tips and tricks....hes so smart and fast.....and strong.......and cool......and kind......and patient......uHHH ok well why are people being weird abt me talking about how happy i am that todoroki has opened up to us in the past year like it shows how brave he is and hes really shown off how kind and caring he is and how hard he tries in both socializing and hero work and academics and hes just so cool even when he doesnt have the emotionally distant exterior and hes so sweet and pateint and lets me ramble and.....oh shit”

since midoriya is the KING of disaster bi’s he immediately breaks something when he realizes because oof rush of feelings rush of feelings uh oh uh oh. so he goes to uraraka because “hey she recently got together with tsu yaoyorozu and jiro she probably knows a thing or two about crushes on multiple people” so he BRAGES into her fucking room and is like “URARAKA IM HAVING A CRISIS PLEASE HELP ME” to which she responds “oh fucking finally”

anyway idk how the confession scene would go but i think it would involve midoriya maiming his got damn self again and todoroki and iida being so stressed about that that they blurt out feelings it would probably be very messy but in the end sweet and i feel like their attitude abt it at least in the beginning is “this is special and lovely so lets just not put any label on it for now and just see how it goes” before eventually they all proudly say “yup these are my bfs i love them with my whole heart” (and eventually eventually “yup these are my husbands i love them with my whole heart hhhh)

anyway yeah i was just thinking about todoiideku because i dont think ive ever loved an ot3 ship so much before and im just soft i want my three favorite boys to be happy and so ive just been intensely picking at the dynamics and considering “who would be the poor fucker who pines for the longest” and that has lead to this

anyway hope u enjoyed this this got a lot longer than i thought it would be lol. uh stan todoiideku!!

[the-prophet-lemonade]

For the fanfic ask - Wednesday and Friday 😊

i’ve already done friday, so here’s the other one!

wednesday: name a fic which you have posted which you think is underrated?

another lover hits the universe. listen, this fic is my baby, my passion project (even as i’ve left snk behind) and i love it so much (even though it’s not finished and exists mainly in the depths of my google docs). it’s a very personal fic as it is a love letter to my favourite genres (outer space, hard science fiction, space horror) and also my first wlw fic where the main character is a lesbian, so that was very refreshing to write as i hadn’t written a love story like hers before ... but because of these exact things, i think it’s a little underrated as it’s not something many people would click on as it fulfils a pretty niche interest haha

the other thing that makes it one of my faves is that said main character is allowed to be messy and fucked up and kinda unlikable at times, forced to make terrible choices and do terrible things, and it really challenges the different standards we hold male and female protags. she was very intense and interesting to write! 

one of my fave comments on another lover said this, which was possibly the greatest feedback ever: “I came for the space gfs but will be devouring everything, stunning. It made me realise how much /more/ I expect from female leads, like I want a character who is STRONG & a leader & also complicated, so the depiction of vulnerability, of fear, of Fucking up, is so uncomfortable & challenging. I love it! “

the main character in another lover is largely underutilised in the fandom and often relegated to a supporting character with the same role again and again, so it felt necessary to give her main billing and her own love letter, as she’s an incredibly powerful and complicated character, easily one of the best to come from the source material.

i also think another lover is some of my best quality writing as well ... it goes heavy on the metaphors and melodrama, sure, but i think it suits the environment, these starship pilots trapped millions of lightyears from their home planet at the mercy of this black hole gobbling up star dust ... there’s so much richness to be found in outer space and celestial imagery, so i just went for it. 

bonus: one of the characters is a robot. it’s a win-win situation 

ask me fic questions

[swashbucklery]

hey pal don't you think precious introspective bean kara danvers would make a great ceramicist?

Do you know that as a matter of fact I DO and i have a number of soft, tender emotions about it WHAT AN UNUSUAL COINCIDENCE.

So first of all what you need to understand is that if you’ve never seen a beautiful woman using a pottery wheel, you need to. Like, go onto youtube if you must (a good search term is “pottery wheel throwing”), it is a very pretty kind of art to watch and it involves nice strong hands and lots of forearms and good gay poses. All you wlws thirsting over beautiful women playing the cello, come over here and let me pitch to you Kara Danvers: ceramic artist.

Like. 

First of all just consider Kara working in her studio, her hair’s up in a messy bun and she’s wearing a t-shirt and probably some clay-spattered overalls and muddy old sneakers or boots and she looks so comfortable and soft and that’s just her natural state when she’s making.

And she looks at the clay with this gentle, intense focus that’s just breathtaking, like she seems relaxed on the surface but there’s so much strength in her arms and back. Working with the clay, especially big pieces takes a lot of power and focus and a lot of patience and that’s kind of what she loves about it. She has to make art with her whole body and be present with it and LOOK that can be a metaphor for Kara learning to connect with her body because of her powers or that can just be Kara who has anxiety and finds that being with her art settles her, both are deeply Kara and both are delicious.

Kara who’s soft-spoken and maybe even a bit shy until you get her talking about her art and then she lights up, giggling and gesturing and oh she has so much to say about different kinds of clay and glazes and air temperature and humidity and all the ways that makes different qualities come out, it’s just so interesting and she loves it so much.

Kara whose fingers get so delicate drawing up the sides of her vessels once the clay is all centered; she throws these little teacups and beautiful cereal bowls and delicate tiny ring bowls that she sells at her little stall at the local farmer’s market.

But she also makes big pieces, gorgeous tall bottles and teapots and vases and she’s sold a couple to galleries but a lot she just makes for herself.

And she definitely does like, service and maybe that’s her little superpower, she’s connected with a bunch of local art therapists and charities and she does classes to raise money and donates her larger works to charity auctions sometimes and occasionally does low-cost or sliding-scale lessons because art should be for everybody.

And there are a couple of ways that this could go.

Because like, you could take this in a Supercorp direction for sure and maybe if you go this way, Lena is taking this class as Corporate Business Human Lena Luthor (a stretch, I know).

But like, her assistant booked her for this class because Lena was told that perhaps she needed to destress just a tad bit and whatever, art is good for stress, right.

So she shows up in jeans and a button-down and it should be casual but somehow she still looks way too put together for the art class, even with the dusty, clay-spattered studio apron overtop. And pottery makes her so angry like she cannot believe. This stupid art that’s supposed to be relaxing but everything she makes is off-center and droopy and a little wonky and Kara keeps trying to teach her about letting go of control and seeing what her hands want to make and Lena’s head is going to explode, she hates this stupid art she has an engineering degree she is going to make a stupid bowl if it kills her.

Kara who ends up staying late with Lena after class a few sessions to give her some extra help, because Lena really could be good at this if she was patient and also look Kara’s not made of stone, Lena’s pretty pretty.

Lena throws her first piece, finally, a teacup that’s still got weird uneven sides but at least it stands up on its own and she’s so proud of herself she makes a joke, oh i could just kiss you and Kara’s right across the wheel from her grinning and suddenly she just gets this face like, oh, that would be alright.

Spoiler: they kiss, later. A lot.

But also LOOK you could take this in a different direction, and maybe in this version of the universe Kara meets Imra, an artist who works in a different studio in the same complex as Kara. And maybe she dabbles a bit in ceramics but she also does metalsmithing and jewelry and she’s teaching some classes on precious metal clay in the same space that Kara works and that’s how they meet.

Kara and Imra who kind of butt heads at first and Kara doesn’t know why, because Imra’s beautiful and so kind and sweet and polite to everyone but there’s something inside Kara that sort of itches whenever Imra’s nearby.

It takes her five weeks and an entire session of classes run in adjoining rooms before she looks up one day to see Imra through the window, her hair in a messy bun on top of her head while she’s bent over her work and the light is hitting her in this really nice way and that weird feeling blooms into something else and oh, of course: Kara’s got a crush.

She doesn’t say anything about it at all. Of course not. Imra’s beautiful and she’s probably got some dumb hot boyfriend anyway and she’s too cool and confident for Kara there’s no way.

But maybe Imra asks for some private lessons and Kara agrees and they end up doing a little art swap. Kara gives Imra a little mug, and Imra gives Kara a pinky ring shaped like a big leaf curled around her finger. Kara wears the pinky ring literally everywhere, and Imra keeps the cup at her studio to use for her endless cups of tea and whenever Kara sees her using it she blushes.

And slowly the little art swaps and collaborations get more intense.

Until one night they’re working late in Kara’s studio and they’re both messy and a little tired and Imra puts her head on Kara’s shoulder and without thinking Kara just leans down and kisses the side of her head and oh. Oh.

(And probably it takes them a little longer to date-date, but not that long)

(They fall in love over pizza, eaten on the floor of Imra’s studio space, late at night.)

(It’s probably the way things between them were always supposed to be.)

IN CONCLUSION: YES I HAVE A FEW FEELINGS ON CERAMIC ARTIST KARA I’VE ALSO MADE A MOOD BOARD.

[silver-leaf-girl]

so I read Record of a Spaceborn Few

so, I just finished the audiobook of Becky Chambers Record of Spaceborn Few last night, and haha do I have some feelings. it is a beautiful, and lovely book?

mild spoilers, and initial review-y thoughts below?

I think a lot of my friends will be familiar with Becky Chambers’ stuff, but for context (since context is such a theme in this book) - they’re queer-positive, fairly soft sci fi, focusing on the relationships (shipmates, romantic, rivalries, friendships) between individuals in the world, rather than colossal Events of Galactic Significance (esp. compared to stuff like Ann Leckie, who I also like a lot). they’re also focused on humans (and their creations, <3 Lovelace in Book 2) as a kind of marginal and hardscrabble recently discovered species that’s not up to much, rather than casting us as the kind of ‘Humanity F- Yeah!‘/humans are special/have a unique manifest destiny that a fair amount of other sci fi does (a lot of people compare Chambers with the Mass Effect universe, which I genuinely don’t like because of this).

RoSF is very much in the tradition of this kind of small-scale ‘cosy’ sci-fi, dealing with the Exodan Fleet and its inhabitants who fled an environmentally devastated Earth, and who are under the three strains of the loss of one of their Generation Ships to metal fatigue, the visit of a well-meaning but intrusive alien anthropologist (whose broadcasts back home to her wealthy alien planet are really well-captured), and the issue of emigration/immigration/decline (?) of the Fleet. It follows a variety of plot lines - a fleet archivist, a recent immigrant, a restless teen guy, a caretaker (a kind of priest/funerary worker, really interesting), and a harried mum who’s considering leaving the fleet. It really inhabits their everyday lives and concerns; it indirectly tells a bigger story about uncertain cultural identity, but is focused on these small intimate stories.

The big through-line in the book is a sense of community, shared history, and what we owe to the past. The ships of the Exodan Fleet are maintained and patched together from their own scraps; people carry on identities, meanings and (as is discussed in one rather haunting bit towards the end) even bodies and ways of living as relics from a planet they will never set foot on; and (a really key theme) the nutrients of the bodies of the dead are recycled in a really emotive and heartfelt funereal ritual. How different people struggle with the past - rejecting it, chafing against it, seeking it out to fill holes in themselves, finding meaning in it, preserving it, making it - is so key throughout the book, both in the fiction, in the language, and the structure (bookended by two naming ceremonies, using a form of words that is so beautiful I feel I have to put it in a reblog), and it puts together a beautiful picture of a changing society where people are trying to preserve the values they built it on. The notion of recognising the fleet/the fleet you grew up in - is really powerful, and honestly a bit heart-in-throat.

But the notion of keeping shared history for its own sake isn’t enough - what’s worth preserving? Politically, it’s v. interesting too - there’s quite a lot of (well-blended-in) exposition and description of how the Fleet operates, and it’s ... well, if not Post Scarcity Fully Automated Luxury Gay Pacifist Space Communism, then at least Low Scarcity Labour-Egalitarian Lib Fem Space Anarcho-Socialism. The way that humans live and coexist alongside each other - where people come together, and where the faultlines between them are - is really well-illustrated without becoming didactic, and the idea of the fleet as this utopian, half-realised, desperate-but-now-slightly adrift project is really beautiful and well-evoked. The book is hopeful and convincing about the liberatory potential of this project (there’s a beautiful bit towards the end about even people leaving the fleet still being part of it and embodying what it values and means, but is ultimately clear-eyed about the fact that it’s the marginalised, minority part of a species that is nothing special on the galactic field and is surrounded by wealthy and powerful neighbours. It’s clear about the lingering crud of human social structures, about being undercut by intense, tragic disaster, by unequal external trade and internal corruption, and about the dubious appeals of the austere space-borne (and spaceborn) life compared to what the capitalist world beyond offers - but it’s hopeful nonetheless that people can make something of it, and that the fleet can carry on.

In terms of ~queer content~, it’s not quite as rich a vein as some of the previous books (first one had a lot more queer aliens and relationship structures, second had an incredibly strong trans metaphor as a through-line with an AI working out embodiment), but it’s got a lot of stuff that works with this too? Isabel, one of the main characters, is in a beautifully described and lovely wlw relationship, and her date with her wife where they’re remembering how they met is one of the most lovely bits of the book? Sometimes it’s OK not to have difficult queer feelings be an important part of the book. Sometimes just happy elderly lesbians is all you want/need! There’s also some interesting stuff with Sunny - a sex worker - and his relationship with Eyas, a funerary worker/caretaker - about the concept of ‘caring for bodies’, and the emotional labour that goes into that?

In terms of writing, it’s beautiful and lovely, just as much a warm hug and cup of hot chocolate as any of the other books in the series - it’s not super-lyrical or evocative in its use of language, but that’s not the point - it’s heartfelt and evokes real, flawed-but-good people in messy but fixable situations. The narration by Patricia Rodriguez on the audiobook version that I listened to is fantastic - I particularly like the way that she subtly changes language and accent on the different viewpoint characters to evoke the way different cultural perspectives and denaturalising the protagonists’ narrative voice.

So yes - it’s a small, beautiful, character-focused book with an extremely evocative sense of community and history. I cried a few times listening to it.

I’d definitely recommend it - probably on its own, but ideally in the context of the other two books before it, to flesh and round out the world(s) it evokes.

[exostrangers]

what do you love the most about vauseman as a couple?

well god where do I even start.

I guess, thinking about it, one of my favorite things about them is that they’re really messy? they’re just… flawed… & I really like that a lot? like both as individual characters & as a couple. I like that they started in one place & ended up somewhere so different. I like that their love has been presented as both selfish & selfless. I like that it’s been presented through this threading of interwoven intense love & intense hatred. I like that… they’re allowed to be shown in a way that can come off as toxic at first glance but is actually fueled by something so much deeper when you strip all the petty shallow layers away?

I think honestly one of the reasons they’ve kept my attention so long is the journey their relationship & character arcs have gone on? I like that they started out as like… these two stupid kids. I love cocky Alex who thought she was untouchable, & I love naive Piper who just couldn’t see the danger in their world because she was so blinded by Alex. & I love that their relationship imploded because of that. I love that they honestly kind of HAD to separate from each other in order to be able to become people who could be together. & I love that they were always at the back of each other’s minds as they were becoming these new people. like, despite the fact that the breakup was messy & they both sort of acknowledged they’d never really see each other again, they also never really… let go of it? I love that they never falter on the fact that they’re the love of each other’s lives. I love that Alex can sit in a bar how many years later & still confess to loving Piper, & I love that Piper can sit in a courtroom how many years later & still acknowledge Alex as the love of her life. & I love the people they became BECAUSE of all this.

I just like that they’ve come so far? I like getting to see so many different sides of them. again both as a couple & as individual characters. & while I was definitely more into their darker shit in the first few seasons than I am into their domestic fluff in these later seasons, I do still love the domestic shit, even if it’s not as interesting to me. I’m like… beyond thrilled about the marriage proposal. I’ve always sort of gone back & forth on if they’d ever go there, but I definitely never thought it’d be something we’d actually get to see on the show. I just. I love how much their relationship has evolved while all (or mostly. because. season three.) feeling so… natural? & like… good. I love that they can present the relationship to us one way one season & then completely flip in on it’s head in the next, or completely swap Piper & Alex’s roles in it around in the next. idk. I just think it’s really well written. it’s not the sort of relationship you get to see a lot on tv, & it’s ESPECIALLY not the kind of relationship (or characterization) you get to see between women on tv. like say what you will about orange, or vauseman, or piper & alex individually, but we are so lucky to have female wlw characters like them. THAT’S what I like about them. they’re imperfect. & they’re a mess. & it’s something that’s so rare to see in this capacity. & I’m just so grateful for & enamored by it??

[laystudio]

tell me your all time fave ships, like aaaaaalllll time from anything

hey there! u know this ask is pretty timely since i’m making this pairing + romance tropes gifset thing which i’m not sure i’ll be able to finish in time but lmao at least this would help me sort my shit out. hmm… but well, i don’t really have an ultimate ship™ since i jump fandoms pretty quick and in typical me fashion, i forget the pairings i ship once i leave. dare i say commitment issues? but for real tho i do have some but i don’t ship them in the same intensity as before.

but since u asked, i will try and deliver. so my ships in order of Relevance To Me At The Moment:

superbat ⏤ damn this hits the spot u have no idea. just… this big giant ball of sunshine and a dark brooding mastermind falling in love? sign me the fuck up. u know the fuck? sign me. their chemistry is undeniable i can go on and on. through love anything is possible so jot that down. i mean superman and batman invented best friends to lovers???? i rest my case.

timkon ⏤ ok i lied these two invented best friends to lovers. i mean tim and kon are soulmates at this point @dc are u seeing this!!!! they’re like superbat lite lmao i’m kidding but y’all can see a pattern here. on the one hand u have this messy bitch who loves micromanaging tf out of everything and on another u’ve got a super strong clone who gets an existential/identity crisis every two seconds. what’s not to love?

bruharvey ⏤ don’t even try me. this is my guilty pleasure and u can pry this pairing from my cold dead hands. again… with the…. best friends to lovers…. thing… ok i can try enemies to lovers and even best friends to enemies to lovers with this one. these two are such a wild ride i love it. the danger, the excitement. admittedly this is the only pairing i’ve written fanfics for but they will never see the light of day ever. no way, no how.

basically every superbat-esque ship holds a special place in my heart ⏤ midpollo, hernankirk, supergirl/batgirl, powergirl/huntress

i never actually thought this far like… those three ships are the ones i fixate on rn so anything else is kinda up in the air for me. but here are some other dc pairings i’m cool with, in no particular order: (faves are italicized)

stephcass, dickkory, clois, dicktiger, jayroy, batcat, halbarry, bluepulse, boostle, harleyivy, wondertrev, wondercheetah, olliedinah, dickwally, arrowbat or whatever, arthurmera, jason/happiness, and a bunch of other stuff that i can’t remember but yeah

*honorable mention:

somebody made me ship clex and it actually worked. but only if it’s smallville!clark and lex tho

since those are mostly dc here’s a few from other ends:

sirius/remus ⏤ 6th grade me was shookt

billyteddy ⏤ timkon 2.0 except they actually happened lmao tbh i actually shipped them before i even knew what a tim drake or a kon-el was

amyrosa ⏤ they’re bi and they’re mine now

jakeamy ⏤ bitch!!!! these two heteros i swear

nozaki/sakura ⏤ speaking of heteros, this is my ult anime pairing like….

spideypool ⏤ probs the only marvel comic i read in any sense of consistency rn is the spiderman/deadpool title

amerikate ⏤ literally what i want in life, hashtag goals hashtag mood

john legend/chrissy teigen ⏤ heteros who stay on top of That, also my actual parents

cherik ⏤ old married couple down the block

every wlw in hayley kiyoko’s music videos

this got really long but i’m pretty sure i still missed a lot anyway. so there u have it anon! all the things i care abt in one post. thanks for the ask!