i’ve been loving watching critical role recently if for no other reason than because i get to watch a decent portion of viewers actively falling for cult tactics lmao
a forbes article describes cult tactics as when cult leaders “censor dissenting viewpoints, promote a distorted narrative and use relentless repetition and peer pressure”
ludinus needing to monologue at everyone he meets. cherry picking what information to let people know (ie the orb). showing popular world leaders (gods?) at their absolute worst as a means to win over the vulnerable. creating dissent between cult prospects and the people who they’re close to outside the cult. doesn’t take no for an answer. repeating his points over and over, in whatever context he thinks will be most persuasive. targeting people who’ve lost everything. convincing people that they’re special
matt is a genius.
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you come out of the shower and look for dazai only to find him napping on the floor of your living room in a patch of sunlight like an actual cat. he's on his back with a hand under his head and a faint smile on his lips and when you ask him why didn't he just go to the couch instead, he simply cracks open his eye and extends his hand to you, silently asking for you to join him. and you do.
you curl into his side without another complaint, used to his silly antics, before resting your head on his chest. he's warm, so very warm and it's hard to see why you were questioning him in the first place. dazai's fingers sink into your hair, mindlessly twirling a strand between the digits while humming quietly. it's like a spell, the way your eyes start to feel heavy in a matter of minutes, seconds even, as he holds you close under the sun.
you don't see the way his smile stretches wider and wider with every soft breath you take, your slowing heartrate telling him that you're fast asleep. he feels giddy. he feels proud. he feels happy.
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vampire au where they can only drink the blood type they were before they were turned. other blood has an almost poisonous effect, burning them from within like acid and drinking too much of it can kill them
in the old days, before the knowledge of blood types, it made humans they could feed on absolutely precious. they're kept safe, pampered and doted on; a vampire’s most prized possession
attacking another vampire's human is seen as the highest insult; not only is it a slight against them, it also carries the implication of "i want you to starve"
it's also used as the cruelest of punishments; starving a vampire for months, until they're feral with hunger just for their torturer to throw in a random human, watching them desperately suck down poison, their instincts begging them to keep drinking even as it kills them
ghost is one of the few who survived it; thrown in a pit so deep, he saw stars in the middle of the day, left with nothing but the dried bodies of the humans roba drained without care, others with their throats slit, blood he can't drink spilled out around them
a taunt of the one thing he needs but will never get
but ghost hasn't survived this long just to give up here
he refuses to die in this stinking, rotted pit
ghost is a force of nature as he descends over roba's manor; killing any who wander into his path until the halls run red. until he gets his hands on roba and tells him a secret:
vampires can feed on the blood of any vampire, regardless of blood type
it becomes a legend in vampire high society; if you starve another, you'd best make sure they actually die
otherwise you might end up piled in a dining room, the vampire you left for dead lounging on a throne of corpses with his fangs lodged in your throat
ghost decimates roba's empire, burning it to the ground until no one dares to speak his name in fear of incurring his wrath. it's incredibly taboo for a vampire to feed off another but ghost's too powerful for anyone to challenge him and the other vampires are too scared to try. scared of what he's willing to do, the lengths he'll go to; not that they'll ever admit it
soap is the first human he ever brings to court; delicately bathed in the finest silks and jewels, his throat always bare so he can show off ghost's ownership, his bite framed in lace
he's not like the delicate waifs the other vampires show off; he doesn't cling to his master, demure and submissive. he shows off his teeth as often as any vampire, fully willing to rip out the throats of any who insult him or ghost
a feral master needs a just as feral pet
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Thinking about clingy Wriothesley being hesitant to let you go on a one-week work trip.
He helps you with your luggage from packing to pickup, asking if you're sure you've packed the essentials every five minutes. He asks "what else can I fetch you?" again and again so you don't have to go back and forth between your closet and your suitcase.
And when it's time for you to depart the Fortress, he follows you to the aquabus station, his bigger hand squeezing yours tight, his thumb absentmindedly fiddling with your knuckles. You turn to face him before getting on the carriage, cupping his face in your hands while your thumbs caress the soft skin of his cheeks.
"Relax, love. I'll be fine," you say with a smile. The corners of his icy blue eyes crinkle, and his hold on your waist tightens.
"Of course you'll be fine," he says with a smug grin that seems just a little bit off with worry, "you're my beloved, after all."
You chuckle at his attempt to look cool in front of you. He presses his lips against yours in a sweet kiss with his right hand behind your head and his left arm snaking around your waist, pressing your body against his.
"Mm... I love you," he mutters breathlessly when he finally pulls back. "Come back soon, yeah?" he whispers, pressing his forehead against yours.
"I love you, too. Now let me go, my beloved Sir Duke. The aquabus is leaving," you reply playfully.
He plants one more kiss on your lips before letting you go. You wave him goodbye as the aquabus leaves, his tall, familiar figure becoming smaller with each passing second. A pang of pain pierces your chest as a quiet whisper escapes your lips.
"I miss you already, my love."
© @risustravelogue 2023 • no to reposting, yes to reblogging. feel free to send an ask to suggest, chat, etc. :)
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one thing I really really appreciate abt riz gukgak as a character is that he is un-self-aware to the max. he inhabits his body so completely. the arc that would usually be run as "I'm different and unable to connect with my friends in this way that everyone seems to be able to do and so something's wrong with me and I don't like myself" when it comes to riz is actually like no! I have literally no problems or praises for myself personally. I don't stand outside of my own self and judge it. it's phrased as "other people will eventually find someone more important to them than you" rather than centering it on his self-perception. he doesn't know why he doesn't have the best social life on earth even though he's not afraid at all to talk to other people. every time he sees himself in someone else's actions or behaviour he gets startled by it. his latest epilogue is realizing seemingly for the first time that he's not just an agent of causes but an actual character. he's my hero and I want to be him when I grow up
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