#if i have learned anything from my grandparents parents uncles and aunts it's how not to treat children and spouses

[im2tired4usernames]

I hate that I literally just do not trust any of the older folks in my family to do right by anyone

[v-gersix]

sigh

[soapskneebrace]

For the gaz request thing, how about a latina! Reader whose teaching him how to dance but hes failing miserably (the reader is supportive and patient but also cant help but tease him little) and hes getting flustered over all the spanish petnames the reader calls him (amor, corazón, precioso, principe)

Maybe gaz wanted to learn how to dance so he can make a good impression on the reader parents and family on Next week's family bbq/get toghether. And maybe hes feeling a little bit bad and ashamed that he cant get the steps right (he does eventually!)

Thanks in advance!

You are not worried in the slightest about this weekend, but Gaz is worrying enough for the both of you.

“Come on, just show me the steps again,” he says, shoulders sloped, annoyed as you grin at him.

All it is is an uncle’s birthday, and not even a special one. Sure, your family doesn’t know how to celebrate anything quietly, and sure, your great aunt may or may not have a band on speed dial, but that was no reason for Kyle to be so nervous.

“You know you’re not gonna get banned from the family just because you can’t dance, right?” you say. “My mom likes you too much, guapo.”

He holds out his hands. “Still.”

You step into position, guiding his hands to the right place. “Baby, no one’s gonna blame you if you can’t salsa like a pro.”

“Doesn’t your cousin compete?” asks Gaz, leading you a little clumsily into the first three steps. He gets the spin right—it’s his favorite part, he’s told you—but somewhere after it he loses the rhythm, and you have to lead him back to it.

“He doesn’t win,” you answer. “Besides, the dancing doesn’t start until after drinks. I promise you’re not gonna embarrass yourself.”

Almost on cue, Gaz nearly trips on his own feet.

You keep a tight grip on his hand so he can’t pull away from you in frustration, and catch his gaze as he tries to stare down at his own feet as you start again.

“Listen, this is how it’s gonna go,” you say. Your feet find the steps easily. “Dad will make way too much food, and mom will try to feed you until you explode. My grandparents will try to ask you too many questions about work.”

He spins you, and this time he doesn’t trip over himself. When you meet his eyes again, they’re fixed on you, gorgeously dark and still filled with anxiety. You smile, and let the music carry you along as you put a hand on his cheek.

“My cousins will try to pour you too many drinks. Don’t drink Alberto’s tequila, it’s awful. Tio Miguel will want to cut the cake early, so we will, and then Alma will get the music started because she doesn’t know how to sit still.”

You can feel it when Gaz starts to step to the rhythm—one, two three, pause, one, two, three. All of his attention is on you, and the nervous energy that has suffused him all evening is visibly dissipating.

You pull him into a turn. “And then, as long as we’re dancing, I’ll get to have you all to myself.”

The furrowed line of his brow softens. “You always have me.”

You lean in to flick the tip of your nose with his—something that had happened on accident, the first time he kissed you, that had sent you both into nervous giggles. The last of the tension keeping Kyle’s spine unusually straight leaves his body, and he kneads his fingers into your back.

“And since I know you can do it now,” you say, as the two of you make it back to the dance’s beginning, “I won’t be afraid of getting stepped on.”

Kyle’s brows lift. “Oh!” He looks down at his feet, then back at you. “Oh. Huh.”

You grin. “Next thing you know, we’ll be sweeping competition season.”

“Wouldn’t go that far, doll.”

[leclerced]

Okay so I thought about boys and the girlfriend’s family. And I came up with:

Lando who everyone knows how he is. Goofy, sassy, playful, sometimes mean, he has his strengths and faults. But not with his girl’s family. He just wants then to see him as the perfect match for her so he’s always on his best behaviour and actually loves spending time with them because he knows how important it is for her. He charms the mom and even learns the language (sorry but I thought about someone that’s from not-English speaking country) so he can communicate with them and it makes his girl’s heart melt because it’s the sweetest thing ever.

Oscar is just a cutie pie with the family. Everyone loves him and loves to dote on him. He’s always a gentleman and wants to help the best he can. (This will be self indulgent) I think my mom would absolutely adore him and I can totally see her wanting to feed him and then when he says (with the saddest eyes ever) he can’t eat sth because of his diet she’d find the best recipes he can eat and make his faves for him😭✋

I don’t think I write Max well so I’m gonna leave him to you sweetie

Charles would be so nervous for the first time but he’d win everyone’s hearts right away. Because how can you not love Charles’s mess of a hair, French accent and squishy cheeks. Also he would always come with gifts (no matter how long he’d know the family) because he thinks it’s rude to come with bare hands.

hi im working so this is super rushed and messy im sorry

lando is definitely on his best behavior when he’s around his girl’s family. he learns her language as soon as they get together because he knows he wants to be with her forever, so he’s downloading duolingo and trying to do it in secret to surprise her with it until she somehow catches him and starts teaching him instead. he brings gifts for everyone, and greets them in their native language which surprises them alll so much, especially the grandparents who don’t speak english.

i think oscar would break his diet for his girl’s fam. i think he likes food and one meal isn’t gonna throw him off. im gonna be self indulgent because i love to bake and cook, and when my family gets together there is soooo much food. it’s different on my mom and dad’s side bc i have separated parents. my mom’s side are all country folk who hang out in the shop, the men drink beer and watch nascar or football, whatever is on the tv, and the ladies gossip. they fry foods in the shop or grill outside the shop, and it’s fish they caught or game they hunted, which i feel like would make some drivers wary, i think they’re used to fancy dinners in expensive cities, not something that was shot and processed by the people cooking and eating it. but oscar is up for trying new things and even though he’s never really had deer, he likes the gamey taste it has. the women would love him bc he does everything for his girl, always getting her drinks or just massaging her shoulders for her and little things like that.

i think max is so good natured he’d fit in anywhere, he’s very smart and knows how to talk to people. i think it’s hard not to like him. my family all have adhd and will listen to people talk about anything. my uncle loves to indulge people and bullshit, so like over thanksgiving my sister in law was talking about her family’s business and my uncle pretended to go onto their website and order twenty thousand dollars worth of leather. she was freaking out while everyone else is laughing because we knew it was a joke, until my aunt was like “excuse my husband, he’s a liar.” and i can imagine my family doing that with max but he’d bullshit back and egg them on. he’d get along really well with the men simplyn because they can bond over cars if nothing else. he’d get along well w all of them we’re all very laid back tbh. i think he’d never been happier as when he plays tag or hide and seek with all the little ones. he’d eventually make his way back over to his girlfriend when he needs a drink or to catch his breath after being it, but it’s never long before one of the kiddos is finding him and pulling him away again.

charles brings immaculate personalized gifts and a dessert he had flown in from some fancy bakery he’s obsessed with just to impress them. he shows up with a suitcase full of gifts, he would have memorized everything she mentioned about her family so he could get everyone a perfectly tailored gift. the first time they meet him they tease about him trying to buy their love and gf is just like “no, he just does this. he will do this every time.” and he totally does. they love him so much he’s their baby boy by the time the first meeting is over, her mom is telling him to call him maman and he’s on a first name basis with her dad.

[parkduris]

HELLO! ! ! anth here, coming at you live, from your area! i come from the eastern timezone, he/him pronouns, and am currently twenty-six years old! i'm here to introduce you to one of my favorite people in the entire world, my son, the light of my life, park duri! he's better known simply as duri when it comes to the entertainment industry. he's a singer, songwriter-producer, model, & television personality! he's your friendly neighborhood puppy, big ol' sunshine, and much like a teddy bear. without further ado, on with the show! please like this post if you'd like to plot!

as just a friendly reminder, there will be mentions of a car accident, parental death, injury, post-traumatic stress disorder, and a few other things. however, everything will be properly tagged if you'd like to skip those parts!

duri is born on december 25th, 2000 at 9:48pm in seoul, south korea! his parents were both unmarried college students at the time of his birth, something that was completely out of the norm. but, the park and oh families never quite seemed to be normal, in some sense. they were responsible, however, and very much in love. he comes from the itaewon neighborhood of seoul.

spends a lot of time with his grandparents and family when he's really young, simply because bongju and aeri are very busy with college, and they often took the reigns of raising him in the evening and on the weekends - while doing their education and jobs, just to make sure they could fully take care of their son.

after they graduate, they wed in 2004 when duri is three years old. it's a spring wedding, right at the peak of the cherry blossom season. a time full of happiness and duri not really knowing what was going on, but he enjoyed every moment of it because he was with his parents for the majority of the ceremony. it's a nice memory, sweet for everyone in attendance.

CAR ACCIDENT TW, PARENTAL DEATH TW, INJURY TW // it's 2006, duri's five, and he's on the way to school, in the car, with his parents. it's like any spring morning, though it's a cold day like spring mornings tend to be with the winter chill still working its way out - but, it was a normal, usual morning for the park family... until it wasn't. they're struck by another car that morning and it ends up being pretty bad - taking the lives of both of his parents, duri would injure his leg, and he was the only one essentially able to be saved by a college student and other bystanders that saw it happen. // END TW.

following this, his uncle, bongki, and aunt, choa, would ultimately end up taking responsibility for duri, becoming his legal guardians. they didn't want bongju and bongki's parents or aeri's parents to have to worry about taking care of the young boy; especially with the fact that he was a handful now (more in the sense of mental and physical state.) between running the successful café and things of that nature, they would be able to care for duri, and give him the care he would so desperately need for a while.

they would make his room in that apartment above the successful café, heart and seoul, really nice, and comfortable, and give him the things that he wants; he needs. it's somewhere that becomes a safe haven, even if sometimes at night, it felt like it was anything but. but, he'll always be fond of his childhood bedroom in that apartment because of how much love his uncle and aunt had put into it.

PTSD TW, INJURY TW, ANXIETY TW // duri was a bit of a handful following the accident, simply because they couldn’t fully tell what was wrong with him, besides for the leg injury that was being cared for with physical therapy. they would soon learn that he suffers from post-traumatic stress disorder and anxiety from the accident, causing him to have to go into therapy, as well as grief counseling to help him to process everything and get better. duri, would attend therapy for many years to really help him out. though, he still has a lot of synonyms to this day of both ptsd and anxiety that seemingly won’t go away. // END TW.

INJURY TW // the injury that duri received to his leg was something that would be a bit bothersome every now and then, especially when he would overwork the leg. but, he would say it isn’t too, too bad, truth be told - he can deal with it, even though it can be really bothersome. he’s kind of just… ignored it, but physical therapy had helped and later, working out would help pretty often too. but, it’s still something that’s bothersome and he should really look after it, but he tends to just work through it, truth be told. // END TW.

when he's young, he gets super into music. it's almost out of nowhere, but he was always someone that just really liked music. so, bongki and choa - as well as the rest of the family - decided to really curate this interest of duri's. instead of going to cram school, he was going to a music and vocal academy - he'd learn piano, violin, and guitar, as well as take vocal classes. he loves it, it's all he wants to do, truth be told, it was clear he was meant to do this.

he was good at school, truth be told; he was always studying, relying on himself to do so because he wasn't attending cram school or any type of academic academies, considering he traded it for music and vocal. he was always known as the rather friendly, sweet, kind, and nice kid in school, he was friends with every person. this was something that caused duri to always be the class representative each year in school because of the fact that he got good grades, and he was friends with everyone. though, a lot of the time he was kind of walked over and used because the teachers really liked duri, so students easily got things.

duri surprises a lot of people at school, too, during a talent show when the big voice comes out of the kid who's always doing his work, the nice kid, the reliable, diligent kid. he's scouted here at the talent show, but he doesn't actually believe anyone is who they actually say they are; so, he never does anything with the scouts information.

at age fourteen, in 2015, duri opens up a youtube channel, duri's record shop. he had just gotten equipment to do this a month prior and he was really excited. he uses this channel to upload song covers, since he's just always really loves to sing, this was an outlet outside of talent shows and vocal classes. he gets channel subs and views; as well as a decent amount of comments that he answers. but, duri isn't an influencer or anything of that nature because he didn't have a consistent upload schedule.

as a teenager, he's kind of really ambitious, truth be told; he was already doing a lot. but, as a teenager is when duri gets about 6 certifications to his name. he gets level 10 certifications in piano, violin, and guitar. he achieves level 5 certifications in english and japanese as well, two languages he had been learning since he was young. as a teenager, as well, he also gets his hands on a vocal teaching certification. so, as you can see, duri's kind of always liked the adventure of learning and diving head first in those kinds of things. ambitious in some sort of sense, but he really just loved those things and he was constantly just learning them; especially when he couldn't sleep.

in october of 2017, duri uploads a brand new cover to his youtube channel. he decides to cover his all-time favorite, i will always love you by whitney houston. he did the same routine he always did, recording the song in the corner of his birthday, before editing the video on his bed on his laptop, and then uploading it. he thinks nothing of it, as he usually does, and then a week later... all of a sudden, it had blown up. he gets a bunch of comments, views, subs, and everything in between. he does his best to respond to as much as he can.

this viral hit is something that causes duri to receive a lot of people trying to scout him, love calls if you will. though he ends up accepting secret garden's offer due to the promise of debut.

he attends somewhat of a private audition with his uncle and aunt soon after accepting their offer, going through all the ropes, before signing upon the dotted line.

he's thrust into preparations for a debut as a soloist. in truth, he kind of always thought he was going to be a group member when he dreamed of this life. but, he's more than okay with being a soloist because of the type of music he'll be doing. not to mention, it's clear secret garden wanted to utilize the vocals that he holds. he debuts on january 1st, 2018 with the mini album, at gwanghwamun.

duri writes, composes, and produces all of his tracks. only about two of them are composed and produced by him, rather than written, and those are the ones that are covers of songs, rather than originals.

he's a rather strong vocalist; he's got a voice that's really made for ballads and really just power vocal songs. which is all of the songs that duri really tends to do, they stay in that realm of using his incredible vocals; which he's really happy because duri just loves to sing, and loves to really show off his voice. honestly it just really makes him happy??

luckily, with the type of music duri does as a soloist, he doesn't have to dance. which he's kind of really thankful for because he's almost kind of insecure about it? plus, he'd rather not have his leg really flare up from such movement. though, he does know a good amount of dancing and you could get him in on the tiktok challenges. but, there's really only a few times he'll actually be a dancer and all that.

duri's a very sweet guy. he's super kind, rather friendly, and can be a bit talkative. he's super bubbly, someone who kind of just giggles a lot because it's almost like it needs to get out. he's definitely charming in those type of ways; the way he's super kind, sweet, bubbly, friendly, reliable, helpful, and all that stuff. he's everything sugar, to put it simply. honestly, he's really just a soft guy!!

a bit of a crier like a lot of his emotions just come out as crying. though it's also because there's just that part of him that's a bit gloomy because of the trauma, that's neither here nor there. he definitely cried big time on every single award and stuff that he's won.

he's a happy boy, even though sometimes he has a hard time with his mental health. in a sense, he kind of masks his bad days with how he usually is, especially because he doesn't want to burden anyone with his own things.

holds the energy of a puppy, but also is the sun that's shining down. he's a super bright person. honestly, there's not one mean bone in his body, he doesn't even know the definition of being mean.

will 100% try to be your friend, not even gonna lie. he's just a real friendly guy, probably believes you're friends with him after one conversation!

his image is definitely just his own personality, truth be told. there's really no other way for duri to be. on top of being known as the sweet, bubbly, friendly, nice guy to the public - he also holds an approachability image, a born to be an idol image, as well as a good leader image.

duri lives by himself in what could probably be considered a humble apartment? it's an apartment with a loft that has one bedroom (though, it's probably in a more luxury apartment building in a sense.) however, duri's designed it to have his bedroom on the loft and he uses the bedroom as more of like an office/library and where his music stuff is. he's lived in the apartment for 5 years, and his family had paid for the apartment until he started making his own profit. he could probably get a much bigger apartment, but he's very much into his current apartment.

big time collector of cute things, he really likes cute things. so, he's got a lot of plushies and stuff like that, considering they're really just his favorite.

he's a big-time plant and flower person, so he's got a lot of plants around because he feels it brings life and greenery to a place. they make him happy.

big time book reader as well, so he's got a lot of books, and you can probably often see him reading books as well at random times. sometimes, he really just likes the quiet time and escaping into books, in some sense of it.

duri really likes playing video games that are labeled as "cozy" truth be told. so, things like animal crossing, stardew valley, etcetera. anything that's kind of relaxing, in some sense, duri is all about. that's really the only video games that he tends to know, truth be told. though, he can also really come through on fifa games as well.

he's 100% a shower singer. has full on whitney houston, beyoncé, kelly clarkson, mariah carey, celine dion, anyone who's released taeyeon songs, little mix, angelic songs, eternal songs, and various ballad concerts (of course among other songs) in the shower.

has an alcohol allergy. so, he tends to avoid anything with alcohol because of it. meaning alcohol itself (which is fine because duri is not big on nightlife at all), medication containing it, and a lot of stuff. it kills him that he has to avoid things that contain gochujang paste due to the meju-garu - aka, anything fermented is a no-go.

duri is really, really big on cooking. it's one of his favorite things to do, something that he's pretty good at. when he can, he's often just the one who cooks meals because he prefers to do something of that nature. though, of course, he doesn't get to do it as often with how busy schedules are. but, he does often crave a home-cooked meal.

one thing to note is that duri has some pretty bad claustrophobia. so, if you take an elevator with him, you might notice that he has a bit of a habit where he stands in the back corner, closing his eyes, and sings to himself when the doors close; placing his mind elsewhere to pretend he's not inside the elevator. it's probably a bit odd, but it helps.

very very gay. that's it, that's the tweet.

duri has gotten lucky with secret garden, to be honest. he's written, produced, and composed every single solo song that he's released. getting the chance to do something like this has really meant a lot to him, especially in a company like secret garden; but, he's glad he has a good relationship with the company and they've entrusted him to do. would really like to write songs for others as well in the future.

duri's done a lot of different things in his career. of course, he has his career as a soloist that's pretty successful. though, he sits at 4 in fame currently and a 2 in fandom - simply because his fandom is kind of mainly old people (whom are dedicated and spending money) and a few of the people around his age who just like his music + the variety shows he appears on. his fame kind of is really on the hands of the general public who likes his music and will watch his shows.

he's had a few osts, such as "told you so" from where stars land, "but, it's destiny" from crash landing on you, "start over" from itaewon class, and "breath" from doctor cha.

duri's also made his japanese debut in december of 2022! he wrote, composed, and produced all of the songs on the album, human (by max changmin), the cover of put your records on, he's completely composed and produced himself.

has had a few different main castings as well and some other great feats, like winning 6 times in a row on king of masked singer.

anyways, he's a good boy <3 i really, really love park duri and i love writing him sm i'm so excited :") this got way too long i'm so sorry!! but, thank you for reading this far!

[solar-siren]

Angstpril Day Six: Abandoned

Alan is exhausted. 

He’s been going nonstop since Flynn disappeared. Between the board breathing down his neck and reporters accosting him everywhere he goes, it sometimes feels as if the world is conspiring to kill him. He’s not sure how much more he can take.

More than anything, he wants to collapse next to Lora and go to sleep. The TV is on when he finally gets home, stuttering light through the darkness of the living room, so that’s where he assumes she is.

Until he hears what the television is saying. 

“ —successful, but I’m not sure you could say he was happy. And either way, he’s already been gone for five days. It’s less and less likely that he’s coming ba—”

The screen winks to black as Alan fumbles with the remote. It’s too little too late though—the damage is already done.

Sam heard everything. 

For about the hundredth time this week, Alan feels half sick with guilt. 

He and Lora offered to watch Sam for the night so that Flynn’s parents could have some time and space to process. But Sam hasn’t been sleeping well, and Lora is as run down as Alan himself. He can only guess that Sam got up after Lora put him to bed, after she’d gone to bed herself. He’d probably turned on the TV, looking for something to watch, and stumbled across the news.

Now he’s sitting there alone, crying.

Damn those reporters.

“Did he—leave?” Sam falls apart as soon as the words are out, and Alan is beside him in an instant, wrapping him in a hug. It’s not enough to stop the rest from tumbling out. “The people on TV said that Dad left because of me. Because he has to take care of me by himself since Mom is gone, and he has the company— Are they right? Did he leave? Is it my fault he’s gone?” 

“No,” Alan says. He’s furious, but he tries to keep it from his voice. “Those people don’t know what they’re talking about, Sam. You’re your dad’s whole world. He would never leave you, or do anything to hurt you.”

“Then where did he go?” Sam sobs, heartbroken. Alan has to blink back his own tears.

“I don’t know,” he answers honestly. “But a lot of people are looking for him. We have to trust that we’ll find him eventually. And I’m sure he misses us just as much as we miss him.”

“What if—what if he doesn’t come back?”

That’s a question Alan has already asked himself—one he doesn’t know how to face.

“I don’t think we’re there yet,” he says gently. “But if that happens you’ll still have us. Your Aunt Lora and Uncle Roy and I, and your grandparents. We’re not going anywhere. We’ll always be here whenever you need us.” 

Sam pulls back a little, rubbing at his eyes. “Do you promise?”

“I promise,” Alan says.

He’d promised Flynn, a long time ago. He’d been worried about contingencies after Jordan’s death. Even if Alan never learns Flynn’s fate, he refuses to let anything happen to Sam. 

After a while the boy settles, leaning more heavily into Alan’s side. He must be tired too.

“I was trying to find Star Trek,” Sam sniffs. “Dad and I always watch it together.”

 That, at least, Alan can manage.

[parkduri]

hello everyone!! it's a-me, anth! (26, he/him, est), and i'm back with my child, the one i love the most, the light of my life, park duri! he's back in his original form because i've missed him a lot and i've realized, this is the duri i have the most muse for. nonetheless, he's the maknae and main vocalist of eternal - while also being a soloist, songwriter-producer, model, and somewhat of a tv personality! he’s your friendly neighborhood puppy, big ol’ sunshine, and much like a teddy bear. without further ado, on with the show! please like this post if you’d like to plot!

as just a friendly reminder, there will be mentions of a car accident, parental death, injury, post-traumatic stress disorder, and a few other things. however, everything will be properly tagged if you’d like to skip those parts!

duri's born on december 25th at two in the morning in seoul, south korea. his parents were both unmarried college students at the time of his birth, something that was completely out of the norm. but, the park and oh families never quite seemed to be normal, in some sense. they were responsible, however, and very much in love. he comes from the hongdae neighborhood of seoul.

spends a lot of time with his grandparents and family when he’s really young, simply because bongju and aeri are very busy with college, and they often took the reigns of raising him in the evening and on the weekends - while doing their education and jobs, just to make sure they could fully take care of their son.

after they graduate, they wed in 1998 when duri is three years old. it’s a spring wedding, right at the peak of the cherry blossom season. a time full of happiness and duri not really knowing what was going on, but he enjoyed every moment of it because he was with his parents for the majority of the ceremony. it’s a nice memory, sweet for everyone in attendance.

CAR ACCIDENT TW, PARENTAL DEATH TW, INJURY TW // it’s 2000, duri’s five, and he’s on the way to school, in the car, with his parents. it’s like any spring morning, though it’s a cold day like spring mornings tend to be with the winter chill still working its way out - but, it was a normal, usual morning for the park family… until it wasn’t. they’re struck by another car that morning and it ends up being pretty bad - taking the lives of both of his parents, duri would injure his leg, and he was the only one essentially able to be saved by a college student and other bystanders that saw it happen. // END TW.

following this, his uncle, bongki, and aunt, choa, would ultimately end up taking responsibility for duri, becoming his legal guardians. they didn’t want bongju and bongki’s parents or aeri’s parents to have to worry about taking care of the young boy; especially with the fact that he was a handful now (more in the sense of mental and physical state.) between running the successful café and things of that nature, they would be able to care for duri, and give him the care he would so desperately need for a while.

they would make his room in that apartment above the successful café, heart and seoul, really nice, and comfortable, and give him the things that he wants; he needs. it’s somewhere that becomes a safe haven, even if sometimes at night, it felt like it was anything but. but, he’ll always be fond of his childhood bedroom in that apartment because of how much love his uncle and aunt had put into it.

PTSD TW, INJURY TW, ANXIETY TW // duri was a bit of a handful following the accident, simply because they couldn’t fully tell what was wrong with him, besides for the leg injury that was being cared for with physical therapy. they would soon learn that he suffers from post-traumatic stress disorder and anxiety from the accident, causing him to have to go into therapy, as well as grief counseling to help him to process everything and get better. duri, would attend therapy for many years to really help him out. though, he still has a lot of synonyms to this day of both ptsd and anxiety that seemingly won’t go away. // END TW.

INJURY TW // the injury that duri received to his leg was something that would be a bit bothersome every now and then, especially when he would overwork the leg. but, he would say it isn’t too, too bad, truth be told - he can deal with it, even though it can be really bothersome. he’s kind of just… ignored it, but physical therapy had helped and later, working out would help pretty often too. but, it’s still something that’s bothersome and he should really look after it, but he tends to just work through it, truth be told. // END TW.

when he’s young, he gets super into music. it’s almost out of nowhere, but he was always someone that just really liked music. so, bongki and choa - as well as the rest of the family - decided to really curate this interest of duri’s. instead of going to cram school, he was going to a music and vocal academy - he’d learn piano, violin, and guitar, as well as take vocal classes. he loves it, it’s all he wants to do, truth be told, it was clear he was meant to do this.

he was good at school, truth be told; he was always studying, relying on himself to do so because he wasn’t attending cram school or any type of academic academies, considering he traded it for music and vocal. he was always known as the rather friendly, sweet, kind, and nice kid in school, he was friends with every person. this was something that caused duri to always be the class representative each year in school because of the fact that he got good grades, and he was friends with everyone. though, a lot of the time he was kind of walked over and used because the teachers really liked duri, so students easily got things.

duri surprises a lot of people at school, too, during a talent show when the big voice comes out of the kid who’s always doing his work, the nice kid, the reliable, diligent kid. he’s scouted here at the talent show, but he doesn’t actually believe anyone is who they actually say they are; so, he never does anything with the scouts information.

duri's fourteen in 2009 when he decides to audition for the first season of superstar k. his uncle and aunt, luckily, agreed to let him audition for the show. he gets through, week after week, and on the finale, duri's name is called as the winner. he 100% cried when it happened, but you know that's just duri.

he signed with everlast entertainment, where he debuts as a soloist in february of 2010 at 15. he releases the single "shake it up", which actually does pretty well, and really showed that he still holds popularity.

however, in the summer of 2010, duri disappears from the public eye until december of 2010, where he's revealed as a member of everlast's next boy group, eternal.

he had gone back on his soloist contract because frankly, he wasn't a fan of being a soloist at the time, and it had always been a dream of his to be in a boy group. he got lucky with everlast agreeing to allow this and planning for him to be in the next boy group.

he debuts as the maknae and main vocalist of eternal in january of 2011.

he has a really great time! he really loves being a member of eternal and everything in between.

has a few writing credits in eternal under his name - the chaser, destiny, my house, monster, & lotto. he wrote "mr. chu" for angelic - his greatest achievement.

he kind of gets thrown into modeling kind of right off the bat, and it's something that he continues for a while, the only solo schedule that he really gets. but, he gets some pretty serious brand deals and some magazine covers. finally gets an ost, "the only person" from pinocchio.

in 2015, he redebuts on the same date that he debuted on five years prior to his original solo debut. he releases his first mini album, "at gwanghwamun." he writes, composes, and produces the whole album himself (there's like two songs in his discography that he didn't write, due to being a cover and also one is in spanish) - a trend that will occur over everything that he releases on his own.

his album releases are: at gwanghwamun (2015), fall, once again (2016), april, and a flower (2020), dear my dear (2021), city lights (2022), and empathy (2023).

his single releases are: shake it up (2010), all of my life (2017), me after you (2018), & my christmas wish (2020).

he's released two osts: the only person (from pinocchio) & start over (from itaewon class).

he's decorated with a lot of awards and various music show wins, he's really proud of himself, to be quite honest.

duri went viral in 2015 for a fancam of my house - think of junho's viral fancam, the focus on his butt... yeah <3

in 2020, duri went onto king of masked singer, where he won 8 times, making him the king with the second most wins on the show. in 2022, he competes on and wins masterchef korea celebrity.

he's been main cast on two variety shows - both happening in 2021: idol dictation contest & new world (he won best new entertainer for this one.) he's really hoping to be on more variety shows in the future, truth be told.

he used to have a really bad saesang problem and it was really uncomforting? he felt like he was being watched and followed all the time, sometimes getting items stolen from him, and things of that nature. he knows he's definitely lucky though, cause everlast stopped it when he had brought the issue him.

in 2018, duri resigned with everlast due to the fact that they give him a lot to do, and he just really loves eternal, so he wanted to stay with the company. he knows, though, that he's lucky and not a lot of people really have that relationship with the company that he has. probably often accused of being the golden boy and stuff. but, you know!

also attended his military enlistment from summer of 2018 till about spring of 2020. he was a public servant, working in a preschool, during his time. when it was announced, however, it caused quite the stir and a lot of stuff got dug up (the accident, his injury, etc etc). both everlast and duri made separate statements on the matter. some fans were upset, others were rather nice about it. you win some, you lose some.

he’s a rather strong vocalist; he’s got a voice that’s really made for ballads and really just power vocal songs. which is all of the songs that duri really tends to do, they stay in that realm of using his incredible vocals; which he’s really happy because duri just loves to sing, and loves to really show off his voice. honestly it just really makes him happy?? he's kind of in his era of doing ballads of different genres in some retrospect.

a bit of a crier like a lot of his emotions just come out as crying. though it’s also because there’s just that part of him that’s a bit gloomy because of the trauma, that’s neither here nor there. he definitely cried big time on every single award and stuff that he’s won.

he’s a happy boy, even though sometimes he has a hard time with his mental health. in a sense, he kind of masks his bad days with how he usually is, especially because he doesn’t want to burden anyone with his own things.

holds the energy of a puppy, but also is the sun that’s shining down. he’s a super bright person. honestly, there’s not one mean bone in his body, he doesn’t even know the definition of being mean.

will 100% try to be your friend, not even gonna lie. he’s just a real friendly guy, probably believes you’re friends with him after one conversation!

his image is definitely just his own personality, truth be told. there’s really no other way for duri to be. on top of being known as the sweet, bubbly, friendly, nice guy to the public - he also holds an approachability image, a born to be an idol image, as well as a good leader image.

he now lives in his parents dream home, something that he always wanted to do because they never got the chance to live in it. the knowledge of where he lives and stuff isn't known, and he's got a high-tech security system, simply because of that problem that he once had. but, he really just loves it, and he's really proud of himself for being able to achieve it.

big time collector of cute things, he really likes cute things. so, he’s got a lot of plushies and stuff like that, considering they’re really just his favorite.

he’s a big-time plant and flower person, so he’s got a lot of plants around because he feels it brings life and greenery to a place. they make him happy.

big time book reader as well, so he’s got a lot of books, and you can probably often see him reading books as well at random times. sometimes, he really just likes the quiet time and escaping into books, in some sense of it.

duri really likes playing video games that are labeled as “cozy” truth be told. so, things like animal crossing, stardew valley, etcetera. anything that’s kind of relaxing, in some sense, duri is all about. that’s really the only video games that he tends to know, truth be told. though, he can also really come through on fifa games as well.

he’s 100% a shower singer. 

duri holds a few different certifications: he holds his certification in vocal training. he holds level ten certificates in piano & violin. he also holds level 5 certificates in english & japanese. an accomplished man.

has an alcohol allergy. so, he tends to avoid anything with alcohol because of it. meaning alcohol itself (which is fine because duri is not big on nightlife at all), medication containing it, and a lot of stuff. it kills him that he has to avoid things that contain gochujang paste due to the meju-garu - aka, anything fermented is a no-go.

duri is really, really big on cooking. it’s one of his favorite things to do, something that he’s pretty good at. when he can, he’s often just the one who cooks meals because he prefers to do something of that nature. though, of course, he doesn’t get to do it as often with how busy schedules are. but, he does often crave a home-cooked meal.

one thing to note is that duri has some pretty bad claustrophobia. so, if you take an elevator with him, you might notice that he has a bit of a habit where he stands in the back corner, closing his eyes, and sings to himself when the doors close; placing his mind elsewhere to pretend he’s not inside the elevator. it’s probably a bit odd, but it helps.

very very gay. that’s it, that’s the tweet.

this got so long, i'm sorry. i love this man thank you.

[em-writes-stuff-sometimes]

Okay, this is a little dumb, but with old Valyrian using mother and mothers sister as the same, I'd like to point out that languages tell you a lot about culture.

For example, in English, we only have one word for "sibling of your parent"-aunt or uncle. We also have only one word for sibling, etc. but in other languages, ones that are more hierarchical, there are more words than that to denote relationship. For example, Japanese has different words for "older sibling" and "younger sibling" because that is important in the culture-they're more aware of it. Mandarin has different words for familial relationships depending on family side, and heirarchical status. For example, an uncle on your mothers side is a different words from an uncle on your fathers side. That stems from the culture, but it affects it, too-it forces you to be more cognizant of your relationship to the family member whenever talking about them.

There was a really interesting study done about this-and one of the things noticed came from aboriginal Australian, where they talk about directions positionally-for example, something isn't "to your right" it's "to the southwest". So in the study, when speaking, they always knew which cardinal direction they were facing and/or talking about-because the language taught them how and required them to. Meanwhile English speakers either didn't know or took time to figure it out.

Anyway-it just makes me think. What does that say about Valyrian culture? Is father's brother the same word because fundamentally, you have the same relationship-protected, guided, etc? Is it the same because in Valyrian culture, familial bonds are less important? What does Valyrian language focus its sights on-dragons? War? Power? Or is it the same because George R R Martin didn't want to have to make too many words?

This is awesome; I barely know anything about languages or linguistics, so thanks for the amazing food for thought! The creator of the show’s languages, David J. Peterson, describes Valyrian familial culture as being Iroquois in type of kinship system - there are six kinship systems in total.

Here’s a fun diagram he sourced when explaining it here:

Iroquois is top right. And for those who like seeing how the family ties work in High Valyrian:

There are no grandparents - you would simply say ‘father’s father’ etc. to describe which family member you are talking about, which has the fun benefit of delineating lineage in a way that ‘grandpa’ and ‘grandma’ don’t.

Your last paragraph poses some interesting questions about the role of family in Valyrian culture; I like to think that maybe we can assume, based on their preoccupation with closing ranks and keeping their bloodline pure, that family’s important to them. Certainly, it was important enough for Visenya and Rhaenys to take an active role in Aegon’s Conquest; and, more pertinent to our context perhaps, important enough for Viserys to name his daughter heir over his son. Thus, the designation of Daemon as being in a similar role to that of Viserys (with Rhaenyra in canon, Reader in my fic series) makes for some great background that actually adds a whole lot to my decision-making process. Honestly, I was leaning into the incest vibes because ew, but it’s fun and way too convenient to have this fall into my lap as justification for my gross narrative choices.

If anyone’s mega-interested in learning High Valyrian straight from the source (David J. Peterson), you should definitely go here to check out his High Valyrian dictionary; it features some really great notes on structuring HV phrases and sentences, as it works similar to Latin in that nouns/noun phrases place at the beginning of a sentence. I’ve used this dictionary to manually craft and translate my High Valyrian. Be warned that it takes a fair bit to wrap your head around if you’re new to conlangs and linguistics - I had to learn a WHOLE new subset of skills just to understand what was going on here.

Thanks so much for the brain food!

[hypegirl1]

May the Evil rise again (Part 2)

Part 1 here

Summary:After Aurora finds out about her family,she's looking for real answers from them,but things don't go out as planned

Word count:1534

"Mom...destroyed the magic?"

"Oh she did,and your grandma and aunt helped her,and your mom was going to be the next queen of Mewni,but turns out that it wasn't as they expected"

"How do you know all this..."

"Aurora!"

I could hear my mom screaming in the background,I don't know where she was or how they found out I was here,but now I was in problems,and it wasn't good.I panicked and started running to some stairs that led to a big hall upstairs,but it was too late,my parents already found me.

"Aurora,we need to leave,this place is dangerous"

"No!I want answers!What was that woman talking about?You destroyed the magic?!And you were part of a royal family?!What were all those paintings?!"

"Aurora listen,we'll explain it to you outside,it's dangerous to stay here"

"But dad,I-"

I didn't knew what to say at this point,I exited the building with my parents and went home,the whole way back was very quiet,I was in very big trouble.When we arrived my parents made me sit on the couch,oh no,no no no.

"Aurora,we need to talk"

"Yes mom,I escaped to see the castle and scared you,grounded for 1 month?2 months?"

"What?No Aurora you´re not grounded"

"Oh"

"We...want to talk about what you saw there.Yes,we were part of the royal family,the Butterfly´s,I was the princess back then,and your grandparents were the king and queen of Mewni,then,Mina,one of Mewni´s biggest warriors kinda lost herself and decided that she wanted to destroy Eclipsa"

"Well not kinda,she was determined to destroy her at all costs and leave your grandma as the queen"

"She-she wanted to destroy aunt Eclipsa?why?"

"When your aunt became queen,she learned dark magic,and for everyone that was seen as evil and dangerous,even though she never commited any kind of crimes.Well maybe also the part that she fell in love with your uncle Globgor when she was supposed to be with Shastacan"

"I understand,so why did you destroyed the magic?"

"Because it was too powerful,we couldn´t destroy Mina with magic,so destroying the magic was the best choice"

"But- I´m sure there could have been a better choice! You´re telling me that if nothing like that ever happened,I would be a princess now,and you and dad would be the king and queen,and I could do magic and-"

"Aurora,no,I don´t want to hear anything about magic again,we almost died with it.Your aunt is now the queen,the crown is hers now"

"Marco,without magic we wouldn´t have met,do you remember?"

"Star! Aurora literally escaped the house and went to the castle,and now you´re saying that?"

"Sorry sorry,you´re so cute when you get mad"

Uhh,well,the situation was definitely scalating quickly.

"Fine,sorry for escaping,I just wanted answers,why did you hid this from me?"

"Because we wanted you to grow safe and sound,we didn´t wanted you to get hurt if you discovered all of this"

"But I´m safe,I´m mad that you hid our family history and the whole story about the magic!"

"Aurora,you have to understand that we did it for your own good"

Well,maybe they were right?But if aunt Eclipsa could do dark magic and also mom and grandma,what was the problem?

"I understand...sorry for escaping"

"Apologies accepted,but you´re grounded for 1 month"

"What?!"

"Marco!Don´t punish her,she just wanted answers,leave it for today"

"Alright...why do you have to be such a good person?"

"Let´s just forget this and continue with our lives,alright sweetie?Go to bed now,it´s late"

No,I wasn´t going to bed,I had to do something about it,they destroyed the magic because of some crazy girl? That´s stupid! There must be a way of bringing the magic back,but I don´t know it...

"If they destroyed the magic,it must have been with a spell?"

That´s when I had an idea,in mom and dad´s room there is a hidden compartiment in the closet that mom always told me to not open,maybe there is something related to the magic there...maybe she didn´t destroyed all the magic and saved a bit?But I couldn´t do nothing now,they both were asleep,I had to wait til next morning.

When I woke up next morning,it was 12 am,wow,how come I slept so much? I got out of bed and put one of my favorite dresses on,brushed my hair and went downstairs,my dad was on the kitchen table reading something

"Dad!Can I ask you something?"

"Don´t you say good morning to me now?"

"Sorry,good morning"

"Good,what did you wanted to ask?"

"Well,now that I know almost everything,there is no reason to hide the rest of the secrets right?"

"I guess you´re right...what do you want to know?"

"How did mom,grandma and auntie destroyed the magic?"

"I don´t know the details 100%,why don´t you go ask your auntie?Your mom is bussy"

"Alright,thank you I love you!"

"I love you too"

I went outside to find my mom doing some gardening

"Mom,uhm,can I ask you something quick?"

"Sure,what is it?"

"I´m going to auntie's Eclipsa´s place to ask her about how you destroyed the magic,can I?"

"Aurora I- sigh* yes,go ahead,maybe we went a little too far hiding this to you,you have all the rights to know about your family and their past,go honey,I´m sorry for what we´ve done"

"No mom don't say that,you just wanted to protect me,I understand,maybe I also went a little too far yesterday night"

"It´s alright,I´m glad you´re okay,go ahead,your auntie will ve bery happy to see you,tell her I said hi"

"Thank you mom,I love you,bye!"

I hugged my mom and went running to my aunt´s castle,there were a few guards around,but they knew me

"Hi Aurora!"

"Hi!"

I knocked on their door and waited for an answer,that´s when uncle Globgor opened the door

"Yes?Oh Aurora! Hi honey,what are you doing here alone?"

"I came for a visit and to ask auntie Eclipsa something,is she busy?"

"No,you can come in,I´m happy you always visit us"

"Yeah me too,I mean we live very close"

My uncle guided me through some rooms to my auntie´s garden,where she was resting

"Eclipsa,we have visitors"

"Oh? Aurora my baby! How are you doing? How come you came alone? Where are your parents?"

"They are at home,I came to visit you and to ask you something,can I?"

"Sure honey,anything"

"I´ll leave you girls alone then"

Uncle Globgor left the room,leaving me and auntie Eclipsa sitting on the soft grass

"What is it?"

"Well,uhm,yesterday I found out our family history and the past..."

"Oh...I´m sorry honey,we all thought it was better for the new generations to hide it..."

"No no it´s alright,I understand,but I wanted to ask,mom said you helped her and grandma Moon to destroy the magic,how did you do that?"

"Well,we casted a spell called The Whispering Spell in the magic dimenssion,it destroyed all the magic forever"

"Mhm,and what was the spell like?"

"I think it was something like break the bond,tear the fabric,cleave the stone,stop the magic,it was many years ago so maybe I´m wrong"

"Wow,that sounds very cool"

"It wasn´t cool at all..."

"Oh,sorry..."

"No it´s fine honey"

"And...how do you go to the magic dimenssion?"

"You had to enter through one of the waterfalls that were at the sanctuary"

"And where was the sanctuary?"

"Wow,you can tell that you´re Star´s daughter haha,it was close to the forest of certain death I think?The magic came from the magic dimenssion and to the sanctuary,I don´t remember very well Aurora sorry"

"No it´s fine!Thank you so much"

"You´re welcome sweetie,do you want to stay for lunch?"

"Sure!"

I stayed with my family for lunch,were me,uncle Globgor,auntie Eclipsa,and my cousin Meteora had a lot of fun.When I got back home I knew there would be something I had to do.

"Hi I´m back"

I entered the house running upstairs,I had no time,I had to search that sanctuary,I had to bring the magic back

Part 3 coming soon...

[myloveforhergoeson]

👨‍👩‍👧‍👧 iirc u wrote carlos with older sisters and i wanna know what u think of the other characters ! are they only children? do they have any cousins their age they hung out with before hollywood? how close are they? did they keep in contact? or were their only peers from school?

theres soooo much about family i'd love to know like relationship with parents and extended family, but even just siblings i feel like theres already so much to talk about, esp with so many characters

personally i hc jo as only girl with older & younger brothers, camille either only child or youngest child with a huge gap, and the other 3 btr members as only children. but i wanna know what u think!

👨‍👩‍👧‍👦 FAMILY WITH MOTHER, FATHER, SON AND DAUGHTER — how many people are in your oc's immediate family? how many people are in your oc's extended family? do they have aunts, uncles, cousins, grandparents, etc? who in their family are they closest with? are they close with their birth family, or do they have a found family?

YES OH MY GOD I'VE BEEN WAITING TO EXPAND ON THIS i just couldn't figure out how to work it into my story (though, there's a little bit in my original chapter!!). i'm gonna go through roxy, the boys, jo, and camille for this one and its SO LONG but i hope you enjoy bc i had so much fun writing it

please find everything under the cut!

Roxy:

How many people are in her immediate family? - The only person in Roxy's immediate family is her father, Declan Somerset. How many people are in her extended family?/Does she have aunts, uncles, cousins, grandparents, etc? - Roxy has no idea how many people are in her extended! As far as she's aware, her father has his parents who she's never met and probably never will meet. Her father is the only person who she has ever considered her family, and that's just fine by her. - Information from the author wise, this is just flavor and will probably never come up in the actual story, Declan is an only child, but his parents had many siblings, leaving him with a shit ton of cousins. However, his father and mother both had large age gaps between them and their closest in age sibling so all of his cousins are 10+ years older than him. In combination with leaving home at 17 after falling out with his parents and his family members being far older than he is, he's never felt the need to ever reconnect with anyone blood related to him after moving from Texas to Minnesota. By extension, Roxy has never met or learned about anyone in her family beyond her own father. Who in her family is she closest with? - This may come as a shock: Her father. Is she close with her birth family, or does she have a found family? - Roxy is not close with her bio mom, and Declan being her biological dad would make her technically close with her birth family I guess! - Another fun author fact: In the original draft of this story, Roxy's mother played a big role in her connection to the arts and music and had recently passed away, severing her ties to anything music related. Her father, after seeing this, pushed her to go audition at the pop star search and that's how she ended up meeting the guys etc, etc. but i realized that's almost exactly the same as the plot to one of my favorite shows, Julie and the Phantoms, and i completely wrote her mom out of the story and am now trying to achieve the "Kendall and Katie's dad effect" where she's just never mentioned. She truly matters so little I never even named her lmaooo - In the published version (more flavor text tbh), her mom moved from Texas back to her hometown of Duluth to have Roxy, dumped her on Declan, dipped, and they never heard from her again. I imagine that she was just flirting around the Texas punk scene hoping to get with someone who was going to be famous and accidentally ended up pregnant - when Declan was like 'damn i'm gonna have a kid guess i need a real job now' and left his band to move to Duluth with her, she left him. - Slowly but surely, Roxy's finding Mrs. Knight as a maternal figure, though she's not actively searching for someone to fill that role! - Carlos, Logan, Kendall, and James are also something special to her, though, not quite found family... - Camille and Jo on the other hand... If she imagined having sisters, she thinks it would be a lot like being around them are they only children?/do they have any cousins their age they hung out with before hollywood?/how close are they/did they keep in contact? - yes/no/not/no or were there only peers from school? - High school friends, Mag and Dani, have been mentioned in the story already a few times! Mag, roped Roxy into joining his band during the first week of her freshman year at her first high school. Dani, the drummer, though mostly keeping to themself eventually came around to both her and Mag enough to join as well. The three of them were mostly just a shitty cover band, but as Roxy started to grow into her own (and into her feelings for Mag) she became comfortable enough to begin sharing her songs with her friends. when this backfired, she was so depressed over everything that had happened with them her father literally made her change schools between freshman and sophomore year so she'd hopefully never see them again. two weeks after the switch, she goes to the audition and her life is forever changed!

2. Carlos

How many people are in his immediate family? - His mother (Sylvia), father (Erik), and three older sisters (Maria, Lupe, and Alena). - Along with these six living under one roof, his grandparents (unnamed, mom's side) live in one of those duplex houses with them How many people are in his extended family?/Does he have aunts, uncles, cousins, grandparents, etc? - Carlos just has the biggest fucking family on the planet, he couldn't name everyone even if he tried. he and his sisters combined couldn't name everyone if they tried! they all meet once every few years to check up on each other, but rarely hear from them outside of that. since they're so large of a family, they're spread out across the US, though he's the first Garcia to settle in California! Who in his family is he closest with? - His dad! If not evidenced from chapter 8, he and his father get along the best. they match each other completely in energy and ideas, and having four girls living with them meant they often had to band together when they ganged up on each other. Is he close with his birth family, or does he have a found family? - Why have one when we can have BOTH! He's close with his immediate family, and sees Logan, James, and Kendall as an extension of this. They're his brothers!!!! Forever!!! Always!!!! are they only children?/do they have any cousins their age they hung out with before hollywood?/how close are they/did they keep in contact? - no/yes/not/no or were there only peers from school? - Carlos is just such a sweetheart he's got so many friends from school because everyone loves him! While he never got as close to anyone as he did Logan, James, and Kendall, he did value the friendships he made in Minnesota and I imagine he texts his other friends randomly like "had some caramel coffee today, your favorite! miss you!" and "i'll guest list you for the duluth show, let me know if you can make it"

3. Kendall

How many people are in his immediate family? - I see his situation nearly identical to Roxy's with the addition of a sister! - Jennifer and Katie are the only members of his immediate family. How many people are in his extended family?/Does he have aunts, uncles, cousins, grandparents, etc? - 0... I think Jennifer lost her parents at a pretty young age and went through the foster care system which is why she's so overprotective and doting on her own children. She knew what it was like to love and lose, and really wanted a family of her own so her own children would never have to feel the same way. Who in his family is he closest with? - Katie! From the minute he could teach her to scheme, they've been thick as thieves. They know each other so well they might as well be able to communicate via telepathy at this point. Is he close with his birth family, or does he have a found family? - Re: Carlos are they only children?/do they have any cousins their age they hung out with before hollywood?/how close are they/did they keep in contact? - no/no/not/no or were there only peers from school? - The hockey team! Like he grew up playing with Logan, James, and Carlos I think he's been around those guys for so long they're really good friends of his. I don't think they really keep in contact all that much, but he can see what they're up to on ScuttleButter and will comment on posts etc

4. Logan

How many people are in his immediate family? - His moms, Joanna and Sabina, are the only members of his immediate family. - Another fun fact: In the original draft, Logan had a little brother named Percy! I tried to work him into the story but then it got way too Logan-centric and eventually I just forgot Percy existed at all a la Tina from That 70s Show, so I just took him out entirely. How many people are in his extended family?/Does he have aunts, uncles, cousins, grandparents, etc? - I think Joanna's family keeps in contact and she has both her parents and a few siblings with one or two kids around Logan's age! They're not Duluth local, but they see each other a few times throughout the year and Logan does his best to keep in contact with them, even if they are on the jerky side of the jock spectrum. I think they all play hockey too :) -Sabina's family didn't keep in contact after she came out :( but she was gladly accepted into Joanna's family, so that counts for her extended family! Who in his family is he closest with? - Sabina... She's a pediatric doctor! Through their shared love of medicine, she inspired him to want to pursue his own career in medicine! Though, I'd say he's just as close with Joanna, too, because she's a hockey head! I can't decide lol :) Is he close with his birth family, or does he have a found family? - Logan, while not their bio son, was adopted practically the second he was born and his bio mom needed to put him up for adoption, so he considers his moms his birth family. As seen, they're very close. Also re: Carlos and Kendall on found family <3 are they only children?/do they have any cousins their age they hung out with before hollywood?/how close are they/did they keep in contact? - yes/yes/moderately/yes or were there only peers from school? - re: Kendall, though I imagine Logan is the kinda guy to be in like 40 different clubs too - he's got friends from chess club to AV club to DnD club... Popular guy!

5. James

How many people are in his immediate family? - From what he considers, his mother, Brooke, even if they don't really get along. His dad, Blake, and his girlfriend, Penny, are just... There. And he has to stay with them sometimes. How many people are in his extended family?/Does he have aunts, uncles, cousins, grandparents, etc? - Brooke cut her parents off once she became a successful business owner and moved to the mid-west. He has family somewhere on the east coast, but he wouldn't know how to go about contacting them... He also doesn't really care. - Wanting as little to do with Blake as possible, James tends to avoid family gatherings on that side, but he has two grandparents over there. Penny also has her parents and a sister, but he hates seeing them too. Anything relating in anyway back to his father is something he tries to ignore. Who in his family is he closest with? - By default, Brooke, but only because he doesn't have other options. Is he close with his birth family, or does he have a found family? -Found family all the way. Kendall, Carlos, Logan, Jennifer, and Katie mean the world to him! And of course, the new girl who followed him across the country to help his dreams come true does too... though, he doesn't consider her to be family... - Don't get it wrong, he loves his mom, just... He'd rather be around his friends... are they only children?/do they have any cousins their age they hung out with before hollywood?/how close are they/did they keep in contact? - yes/no/not/no or were there only peers from school? - In a similar vein to Carlos, James is just so charismatic he draws other people to him unintentionally. He's hot, he's popular, he's rich... People want to be around him, so he knows everybody who is somebody from school. And of course, Re: Kendall

6. Jo

How many people are in her immediate family? - Her father... She's also a child of divorce to me, so her mother and older sister are in the picture... Just... Also not because her parents separated when they were practically babies. It's where her jealousy issues come from... Her mom cheated on her dad so he split and got Jo in the custody battle and her mom got her sister and moved away from North Carolina. That's why it was so easy for them to up and leave their home state and start a new life in Los Angeles + it was better for his government job. How many people are in her extended family?/Does she have aunts, uncles, cousins, grandparents, etc? - She's got grandparents, two uncles, and a few cousins! They helped her dad through the divorce, and Jo is much closer with them than she is her mom and sister. Who in her family is she closest with? - By default, now, her father, though before she left NC, her grandmother! She taught theater at her local high school and inspired Jo to move out to LA to chase her dream <3 They still talk almost every day, too. - Now I'm retconning my own story and saying she's on the phone with her grandma in the chapter where Kendall is trying to woo her LMAO Is she close with her birth family, or does she have a found family? - Birth family for sure, just her dad's side! - Though, as time goes on, Camille and Roxy are starting to feel like sisters! (Good sisters, that is, not shitty older sisters who only call on her birthday) are they only children?/do they have any cousins their age they hung out with before hollywood?/how close are they/did they keep in contact? - no/yes/moderately/if she remembers to call them on holidays or were there only peers from school? - I imagine Jo was moderately popular in school and had a good lot of friends, similar to Carlos' situation at his school. She got along with everyone, but was never really close to anyone enough to keep talking to them once she moved.

7. Camille

How many people are in her immediate family? - Her mom and dad, and her FIVE older brothers. Yeah. - I never gave her parents names, but her brothers (from oldest to youngest) are Gabriel, Jean-Luc, Elliot, Claude, and Jules How many people are in her extended family?/Does she have aunts, uncles, cousins, grandparents, etc? - She has no clue, considering it was such a hassle to travel with six children her parents just never did, outside of their annual camping trip. So, she's never met all of her family, but she knows she has grandparents, a few aunts and uncles, and a small army of cousins. Who in her family is she closest with? Her closest in age brother, Jules! Before she and her dad moved to Hollywood in her pre-teen years, he was the last remaining brother living in her childhood house before moving out when she was 11. Though their primary mode of communication is through the phone, they talk pretty regularly and are able to match each other's energies well. When she get's all crazy, he always knows what to say to calm her down. Plus, he loves Logan... Can't wait to meet the guy... So Camille loves talking to him! Is she close with her birth family, or does she have a found family? - She's close with her birth family, but since she moved away from them as a young girl, she doesn't really feel all that connected to them. They feel more like extended relatives than immediate relatives, but it doesn't bother her! Everyone in her family loves her, even if they do think she can be a bit over the top sometimes. - Before going to her family about important things, however, Camille finds herself rushing to Jo and Roxy <3 are they only children?/do they have any cousins their age they hung out with before hollywood?/how close are they/did they keep in contact? - no/yes/not/no or were there only peers from school? - She's got her friends from the Palm Woods school, considering she practically grew up with most of the kids in that classroom, but she's never felt closer to anyone than she has Jo, Roxy, Logan, Kendall, Carlos, and James.

PHEW! If you're reading this, I hope that answers all your questions. I'm more than happy to expand, clarify, or explain anything I wrote in this post. Thank you so much for asking :P I'm not sure even most of this will show up in my fic, but it was really cool to think about and actually put the ideas I had about it onto paper.

[carlosreyesazwhump]

J - Joint

 J - Joint

It took a few seconds for the pain to reach his brain. It had been a very silly fall, a slip. He hadn't seen the ball, had stepped on it and fallen to the ground. The children had laughed and so had he.

He had laughed for a few seconds until little by little the intense pain of having dislocated his knee took over.

It didn't seem so serious at first, it wasn't the first time he had hurt himself, as a policeman or just training, many times he had suffered stupid injuries. At least not at first but when he felt the knee pop back out of place a second later, he had to bite his lip on the inside to keep from screaming.

"Kids, can you go to the freezer and get me some ice?" he said as he massaged his leg with a shaking hand and took advantage of the moment alone to let out a groan of pain.

It was his first afternoon of playtime with his children in a long time. He was having a good time, he had played everything they had wanted. He'd learned the new gym moves with Gwyn; he'd let Tomi teach him all the new things he'd learned at school, and then he'd done a bit of arts and crafts, which weren't his strong point, with Gabi.

Then they had a snack and when he was waiting for the kids to be tired, they asked him to play with the ball. A few kicks here and there, laughter and somersaults until one of the balls they were playing with appeared in front of his feet.

He stepped on it and everything happened in slow motion, his leg slid to one side, his body to the other. A crunch, little white balls in front of his eyes before the pain came, and once on the ground, he was barely able to think straight.

"I told the twins to go to the medicine cabinet and see if we have any non-adhesive bandages," Tomi said.

"What do we need non-adhesive bandages for?" Carlos asked, trying to sound calm.

"Nothing, but I don't want them to worry."

Carlos smiled and squeezed his hands together so it wouldn't show how much his hands were shaking from the pain he was trying so hard to hide by any means possible.

"Always taking care of your sisters, huh?"

"When you're not at home, it's my big brother's job to look after them until the grandparents or uncles arrive."

Tomi was only two years older than the twins, but from a very early age, Tomi had become protective of his sisters. Everyone said it couldn't be any other way with the parents he had.

Carlos stroked her hair, grunted and moderated his lip again to mask the pain that was becoming more and more pressing. "I need you to get my cell phone and call 911. Ask for Aunt Grace."

"911? That number is for when really bad things happen right?"

Carlos nodded and stared into his son's eyes. They had great comprehension so it didn't make it necessary for him to say anything else for Tomi to do as he had asked. He was back before his sisters arrived, who were still looking for the non-adherent bandages.

He dialed 911 and handed it to Carlos. First of all, he wanted to put Grace on the record and incidentally take some of the heat off the matter so Tomi wouldn't freak out too much.

"911, what is your emergency?"

Carlos recognized the voice, it wasn't Grace but one of her coworkers. "Can I speak to Grace Ryder please? Tell her it's Carlos."

He was put through in less than two seconds and soon heard his friend's voice. "Carlos, is everything okay?"

"Relatively. I'm going to put Tomi on so you can explain to him what to do to help me."

"You sound... Are you hurt? Did something happen to you?"

"I fell and may have hurt my knee a little. I heard a pop and..."

"Tomi's there with you, isn't he?"

"Yes, so are the twins, they're looking for something but they'll be right back, can you give him a hand so he knows what to do and in the meantime let TK know."

"Of course I'll pass the message right now to his ambulance and while they arrive, between Tomi and I, we'll take care of you. Can you pass him on to me?"

Keep reading on AO3

[happysadyoyo]

mmmm complicated feelings about my thesis comic and judaism under the cut

When I started writing Edith, I knew I wanted to make the primary protagonist not be steeped in cultural Christianity. I knew I wanted them to not be particularly religious, but sorta kinda in the way you are around your religious grandparents or aunts and uncles.

So I made Edith Jewish, matriarchilly (I refuse to believe that's a word but spellcheck says it is) so, with her father being a lapsed Baptist. She goes to a private Catholic middle school for the learning, but she is Jewish, has a family that leans to Jewish traditions, is the great granddaughter of a Holocaust survivor.

And I'm nervous about it. Like, yeah, okay, I'm not doing myself any favors because I decided my first story I'm going to rub in everyone's face that Edith is JEWISH and while she has been shielded and safe, Jewish people are still under attack and this isn't okay and she isn't okay with this or with being lied to by her well meaning ignoramous parents (somehow that's not a word okay).

Like, I already knew as an agnostic atheist that I needed to do my research and be careful not to tread on ground I don't belong but I was feeling pretty okay about it. I'm proud of the story so far, even though it's blatantly telling children to challenge the adults in your life when you discover misinformation through very very heavy topics.

But then this current situation happened and now I find myself freezing up a little more.

It doesn't even have anything to do with Israel. Other than the war and the Holocaust, I've only referenced the Pittsburgh shootings from 2018. But I tripped myself up a bit wanting to show how the people Edith talks to (in this case off screen) rubs off on her. By her calling the Holocaust Shoah. I went to double check if I'd used Holocaust anywhere else, and I hadn't. So the only time it's named is when it's being referred to in Hebrew, from a descendent who was born before her great-grandmother died and

idk I am suddenly uncertain if I'm doing the right thing. I have this place of privilege, regardless of all the bad things that's happened lately. And I want to use it to turn my art into something to push for systemic, lasting change. But I've tripped myself up.

I'm writing about a queer, Jewish trans boy reconciling with his family tree being covered in blood, and the tragedy looming over their heads, always in the background, is only referred to in Hebrew. Am I stepping out of my lane here?

[followthemuse]

Ode to 2020

The year 2020 was a complete shitshow for the entire world. We had a global pandemic that almost destroyed the world. Everyone was stuck inside. Mothers, brothers, sisters, wives, husbands, fathers, grandparents, cousins, aunts, uncles. . . everyone was dying. So many people lost their lives due to the virus.

What were you doing during lockdown? Were you learning to bake bread, or maybe learning how to paint? Were you binge watching Netflix, or Hulu, or maybe Disney+? Were you video chatting your parents every day, making sure they were still alive? Or, perhaps, you were on of the ones on the frontlines who was risking your life to make sure everyone else was safe and healthy.

I feel like my 2020 was a bit different. See, that January, I had gone through a pretty rough breakup, lost every single one of my friends, got diagnosed with Borderline Personality Disorder, and had started medication. I met someone that February, and traveled halfway across the country to meet him in person. This was all pre-pandemic.

While I was in Nebraska, we got hit with lockdown. I was stuck 1500 miles away from my family, because I felt unsafe to travel back home to Tennessee via public transportation. His family was nice enough to let me stay with them until lockdown ended.

While so many peoples' lives were being destroyed by the virus, I had new love blooming within a heart that I thought was broken for good. The relationship that I had gotten out of previously was toxic and borderline abusive, just like the one before that, and the one before that. This relationship was different though. It felt different.

During lockdown, we would lay in his bed and cuddle, or we would listen to music, or watch Harry Potter. With him, I didn't feel scared. I had finally found the person who understood everything about me and loved me for who I was, instead of trying to make me fit into a teeny tiny box.

I remember being in the basement bathroom, getting out of the shower, getting dressed, and he came down to check on me. I had been listening to music, and a song that we both liked came on. We spent the entire song, singing to each other and looking in each other's eyes.

I would call or video call my parents almost every single day, making sure they were safe, making sure my niece was safe, etc. I missed them so much, but I still didn't want to risk travelling. At this point, most public transportation was shut down due to safety concerns.

We would hang out with his family in the garage, all just having a good time. His family accepted me for who I was. They had absolutely no issue with the fact that I'm nonbinary, like most of the people I had encountered before. This was new, refreshing, and eye opening.

When it became safe to travel again, he and I both went back to my home state, and moved in together. We stayed at my parents' house for about a week, until my house was safe to move into again. After the previous breakup, it took me a long time to be able to stay in my own house because of all the memories from that relationship. But with him by my side, I could do anything.

It's 2023 now, and we've been together for a little over three years. He's asked me to marry him, and we had a handfasting ceremony with our old coven last year on Samhain, in the full moon. It was the most magical night of my life, and although there are some things that I would change about that night, I definitely would not change the man I was with. We're planning on getting legally married sometime in the next couple of years, with no concrete date set yet.

Throughout those three years, he has never left me while I was in a low place. There have hardly been any bad times. He is the sweetest man I've ever been with, and I am so thankful for this relationship. For once in my life, I feel safe with a significant other. I feel like I can be myself and not be judged. I feel like I can unmask. I feel free.

So. . . Thank you 2020 for bring my future husband and me together. If not for the lockdown, I'm not sure how the relationship would have progressed, especially with us being long distance. I feel as if the lockdown helped us bond in a way that wouldn't have happened otherwise.

Koty, if you read this, I love you so much and I'm really grateful that I have you in my life. You are the most amazing man that I have ever met. Thank you for being unapologetically you, and allowing me to be unapologetically me. Thank you for all of the stuff that you've introduced me to. Thank you for being there for me through the ups and downs, even though the downs can get really bad and really scary. Thank you for believing in me when no one else did.

[xtrablak674]

Let's Discuss My Role

Not the parent, guardian or grandparent, from a legal standpoint aunts and uncles have no standing. Priority is given to grandparents and even great grandparents. Unless we have fostered or adopted the child, we might as well be a stranger on the street in the eyes of the law.

Culturally, we are supposed to fill the cracks where your mom and dad cannot. It takes a village to raise a child, this is culturally very relevant to Black folks, and the points of this is to have divergent perspectives. These many different points of view allow the children to see there isn't just one way to get to their final destination, adulthood.

Uncle, aunts, older cousins and other extended family are neutral parties, contrary to what you may or may not have been taught we are not here to take sides, we are here to support and encourage the wishes of your parents. Ultimately we are here to reinforce and encourage the children to be the fullest, educated, empathic, cultured and best human being they can be. This can come from exposure to our failures and successes and all the things in between. Hopefully our experiences will help to colour your own, and inevitably remove the risk for you trying the same, learning from our errors.

The only bank I am supposed to be is a bank of knowledge and understanding, that you can pick and choose which items you would like to imbibe. I am also, 'not your little friend'. I can be friendly with you, and we can kiki and joke, but ultimately my role as elder or griot is to assess where you are, how you're doing, and do my best to try to provide the tools for you to get to where you need to. With the understanding that you have your own agency, and ultimately will be the one to choose the path your life will take. So it's your choice if you wish to partake of what I have to offer. I am not here to judge either way.

With age hopefully comes wisdom, but obviously not in all instances. I think I have the emotional maturity and wisdom of hard earned life-experiences that have a unique take based on the intersectionalities of my personality and identities. I will do my best to point out family history and affirm doubts you may have about yourself, but also guide against falling in the same path that your ancestors may have transgressed before you.

Once again with the mind to respect any boundaries and wishes of your parents or guardians, I am an additional resource or tool to assist you in navigating the very perilous path that is called life. It behooves you to not attempt to game me, because I have seen most of the games from people your age, and recall the same games I tried to play at that time of my life. Keeping in mind that I have a plethora of nieces, niblings and nephews and the trick you think you're trying to play may have been just played last week, and I may have been born yesterday, but not last night.

More than anything I want you to know I am here to love you without reservations or obligations. I am not here to co-sign behavior I do not approve of, I will generally try to give you a wide berth to figure out what it is you're doing that isn't good for you, but as I said you have your own agency, and sometimes the best way for us to learn is by falling flat on our faces. I will here to help you back onto your feet if you allow me.

With the passing of your father and the closing of that door, a window has opened that has allowed you entry into your dad's family a place that with all due respect should have never been denied you. because it was a bounty that was always your heritage.

[Photo by Sadie Brown]

[hymnblood]

Zagreus when your father mentions his and his siblings war against their parents your reaction seems a bit, odd. What is your opinion on the Titanomachy? I get you’re rather optimistic about working out familial issues but at times it seems as though you don’t quite grasp how monstrous they were!

❝ tact isn't something you're capable of, it seems. you should learn a few things on the concept before assuming anything about me or my thoughts on a matter, no less my family. ❞ zagreus knew, has learned of the horrors his family had gone through on the matter of his grandparents. the titanomachy was a terror in of itself and he knows deep down the matter of them differs from the matter of his aunts, uncles, and cousins on olympus. ❝ to compare my stance on my family and what i believe could happen is far different than the horrors my aunts and uncles have endured from the titans. what they endured is far more cruel and traumatizing than even what i have dealt with under hades' care. ❞

[bound2happin-blog]

My Legal Battle with my Family and their Co-horts / Co-conspirators (90)(cont’d d)

The fifth individual I would like to talk about is my my mother, Gloria Sumter’s, sister Pamela McKay (my aunt). Although she’s not dead, they did seriously mentally/psychologically abuse and torcher her.

This occurred when I was about fourteen (14) years old and lasted for about two (2) years until they were able to force my aunt to conform to their wishes and help them in their nefarious and disgusting ways. This of course was not before they managed to get her to stop going to church, up until this very day, turn her into an alcoholic and a drug addict.

Just prior to my mother, my sister and the rest of my family ostracizing my aunt Pam and forbidding her from being a part of the family, attending family holidays or get togethers and everyone completely refusing to communicate with her in any way, my aunt’s husband, Gene McKay, would regularly go camping and hunting with my grandfather, Maurice Champagne. This was mother’s father. He spent a lot of time with me growing up, hunting and fishing. He was very good to me and never treated me any different despite the fact that I was gay or “different.”

When I was in middle school and only 12 and 13 years old my mother began constantly bad-mouthing my grandfather (her father) to me. It was like she was trying to turn me against him by making up lies about he and my grandmother and also trying to manipulate my emotions and the fact that I cared about her to make me mad at him. My mother would tell me that my grandfather would play board games with her when she was young and that he would cheat in order to win. She would then tell me that he and my grandmother had all kinds of money problems when she was a child and that my grandfather would make her answer the phone when creditors would call and to say that he was not there.

Well, when she would say stuff like this to me I would wonder why she saying all of this to me. None of this was anything I knew of my grandfather and she knew he and I had a good relationship so even if it were true, why would she tell me all of this? Why would she try and turn me against him or to make me not like him? Well, it didn’t work. I honestly though she was crazy. I loved my grandfather very much and he was really the only person in my family who would spend time with me.

I learned over the years though that:

1. My mother had always been completely obsessed with me;

2. This, her obsession, is probably what led her to sexually molest me;

3. She didn’t like anyone who liked me, spent time with me or helped me in anyway;

4. She would use guilt trips to keep me from visiting or seeing high school friends when I would come home to visit when I was in college, lived in New Orleans and lived in Atlanta;

5. She made up all kinds of rumors about me and other people to prevent me from having friendships or romantic relationships;

6. She also always seemed very jealous of any friends I had or even casual romantic relationships (especially ones of a sexual nature or ones that might lead to long-term or partner/permanent)

Well, when my aunt’s husband, Gene McKay, would go camping with my grandfather, they obviously developed a good friendship.  I’m not exactly sure how it happened but at some point my grandfather worked a reciprocal agreement with my uncle Gene where he and my aunt would pay my grandfather and grandmother’s mortgage until they both passed away and my grandfather would leave his house, tools, boat, cars etc. to my aunt Pam and uncle Gene.  This came from my own mother’s mouth, she is the one that told me back when I was approximately fifteen (15) years old.  She was so mad about it but for what reason I had no idea at the time.  She and my father didn’t need any money and my mother’s other sister own’s a global adhesives and sealants company based out of Chicago.  In fact, my parents and my mother’s  two sisters had been splitting three ways my grandparents’ health insurance premium each month for as long as I can remember (I think since at least 1989 or may be even longer).  However, despite my parents offering to do this, they would bad mouth my grandparents behind their back accusing my grandparents of taking advantage of them.  My mom’s other two sisters never said anything negative about them all paying my grandparents health insurance.  My mother even told me the reason she and my father were doing this was because they wanted my grandparents to “enjoy what little money they had left.”  You should also understand that my grandfather built my parents’ house for them, cleared the land, and supervised the contractors and literally built their house for them.  All free of charge.  My parents did end up giving my grandfather a few thousand dollars but he never asked for it.  Also, my grandparents owned two houses located on the same piece of property and the entire time my parents’ house was being built, by my grandfather, he and my grandmother let my parents, my sister and I all live in their 2nd house completely free of charge (for about 3-4 months).  Also, one other thing comes to mind.  When my family (mom, dad, sister, and I) lived in Louisville, Kentucky (from 1986-1989), my grandfather came all the way up to our house in Louisville by himself and built a huge deck for my parents.  He had been a contractor for many years and knew a lot about building.  I mean my parents, and even I helped to nail nails into the deck but it was my grandfather and his knowledge that built the deck.

So, back to my aunt Pam.  So, every Christmas Eve my aunt Pamela McKay would host a little get together at her house for my grandmother’s birthday.  This is my mother’s mother, Mae Champagne.  So after my family had psychologically and mentally abused my aunt Pam and she quit going to church and became an alcoholic and drug addict (she became addicted to Xanax) and she would host these Christmas Eve get togethers, she would be drunk and stumble over floor pillows and fall.  She was so depressed and hurting.  Well, my sister, Shalene Sumter, and her then husband, John Ryall, and my mother, Gloria Sumter, would just sit there and laugh at my aunt and make fun of her.  All while they sat and ate all the nice food my aunt had spent all day making and drinking her wine and liquor.  It was horrible.  I am not the type of person that can do that, and I can’t stand to be around others that are either.

This of course was after about two (2) years or so of absolutely no family get togethers because my mom, dad, and sister wouldn’t have anything to do with my aunt Pam McKay (my mom’s sister) and they would do nothing but badmouth her.  The whole time my family wouldn’t talk to my aunt and were nothing but cruel to her, I would always try to talk to my mom trying to explain that I’m sure my aunt Pam didn’t mean to do anything deceitful or underhanded.  I kept telling my mom that all they were doing was hurting her and tearing our family apart and that they should talk to my aunt and move on so we could have family get togethers again and try to all be a family.  For some reason my mom and my sister love to sew discord and to talk negatively about people and to start rumors.  It’s like they have nothing better to do.

Well, all of these rumors and sewing discord comes back to the fact that I was sexually molested by my parents and they want to make sure that there was no one to help me in anyway when they started to do things to me.  The reason my mom, dad, and sister were so mad about my aunt Pam and uncle Gene agreeing to pay my grandparents’ mortgage and in turn my grandparents leaving their house to them was because my parents wanted to be able to take what my grandparents had and to use it to finance their hate crimes.  I only know this to be fact with some of my grandparents’ stuff and/or money and the reason I know is because one of the people they paid showed me all of my grandfathers’ tools that my parents had given him.  They are very distinct Craftsman tools from (maybe the 70′s or 80′s) they are solid grey with the rectangular red Craftsman logo.  They also used the selling of my grandparents’ house as payment to a female I went to highschool with as she is a realtor in Mississippi.  Then my sister, Shalene Sumter, and her then husband, John Ryall, also had this same female sell their house in Vancleave for them also.  Now, none of my family even knew this girl except for me knowing her in highschool and they all talked bad about her then.  But, I guess some people have no integrity and will do just about anything for money as did this girl I went to highscool with.