#instead of occasionally working together for certain projects

[pierswife]

Me: is having a perceived failure cause I didn't do something right the first time

My boss: Hey, it's a learning curve. You were almost there. You did a good job still.

Needless to say I am just

[femdomliterature]

FemLIt 0564 - Forty Qualities of the Perfect Domme

1. Keeps her sub on their toes metaphorically, sometimes literally.

2. Knows that you don’t have to be cold, cruel, or bitchy to be dominant, but may decide to play that role sometimes.

3. Doesn’t need to be wearing black leather and high heels to feel powerful, but might wear them occasionally when the mood strikes.

4. Can be strict and controlling but also sweet and loving, all at the same time.

5. Understands the importance of aftercare, and that includes for herself as well.

6. Is trustworthy, and tries to instill a deep level of trust in her sub. Shows them that safety and preservation of reputation are paramount.

7. Adds intimacy to the relationship by creating a culture of ‘doing things for each other’, instead of just looking out for themselves.

8. Teaches her sub that there is no shame in their submission to her.

9. Uses her words to project power, not the volume of her voice.

10. Knows how to be classy, graceful, and elegant to command respect.

11. Makes her sub feel loved and wanted the most when they’re at their weakest.

12. Doesn’t hesitate to enforce discipline when required, and won’t feel the least bit guilty for doing it.

13. Loves herself and is confident and comfortable about who she is.

14. Understands that Dommes are human too, and she won’t be put off or discouraged by the mistakes she will make while leading the relationship.

15. When she inevitably does make a mistake, she will own up to it once, apologize if needed, learn from it, and move on without dwelling on it further.

16. Knows that Female Led Relationships are about her wants an needs first, but for a relationship to work, both need to be happy and a little compromise is required. She sets aside time where they can meet as equals to voice concerns and negotiate solutions to problems as they arise.

17. Believes in safe-words and safe-gestures and ensures her sub knows how to use them properly.

18. Doesn’t believe in equal relationships and tries to avoid them. To be truly happy, she knows that she needs to be in control and will choose a mate that is amenable.

19. Hunts down and kills the male ego for sport and then teaches him to feel pride in his submission to her.

20. Is introspective of her needs and knows what she wants from a relationship, so when she meets her sub, she is ready to guide them from the beginning.

21. Understands that speech control can be a powerful way to control her sub and uses it to her greatest advantage.

22. Knows her subs deepest, darkest, and dirtiest secrets, kinks and fetishes, but believes in their right to privacy and will take that information with her to the grave.

23. Takes the time and effort to learn what words will humiliate her sub in a good way, and what words to avoid because they will be harmful to her subs state of mind.

24. Prefers to do the driving, in the car, and in the bedroom.

25. Teaches her sub that, in her eyes, one of their greatest strengths is their ability to be weak for her.

26. She can be incredibly selfish with regards to sexual pleasure, but very selfless in her love and devotion for her sub.

27. Makes the rules that will guide them through their life together, and enforces them through discipline.

28. Knows the difference between when her sub wants an orgasm, and when they really need one. She practices orgasm control to regulate them to their greatest benefit.

29. Never threatens her sub, but she may make certain promises they won’t like to hear.

30. May make her sub suffer many humiliations and indignities in private, but ferociously defends their honor in public.

31. Her rules and instructions are always clear, concise and unambiguous, and they never conflict with each other.

32. She knows that calm, calculated words whispered into a subs ear will be more effective than shouting at them hysterically.

33. Her sub may feel unworthy of her but she will often remind them that they are what she wants in her life.

34. Maintains a level of inequality in the relationship to make the dominance and submission more genuine, and has overcome any guilt she may feel about it being unfair to her sub.

35. Knows that her subs favorite kinks and fetishes will be much more enjoyable for them if she forces her sub to experience them, instead of just allowing them to happen.

36. Through tease and denial, uses her subs own lust against them to train them to become obsessed with her.

37  She likes to keeps her sub guessing by withholding certain plans or information and then springing surprises on them.

38. Knows how to motivate her sub to do the most mundane of tasks by creating an erotic atmosphere filled with sexual tension surrounding it.

39. She knows that she doesn’t have to imitate a man to be a powerful force to be reckoned with.

40. Understands the intricacies of a consentual non-consent relationship and knows how to apply it to her own relationship.

[fuckyeahmarkgatiss]

The recent Times article on Mark & Ian

https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/mark-gatiss-and-ian-hallard-i-asked-him-to-marry-me-the-afternoon-we-met-339v55jw2

The article is behind a paywall but I still had some access so here you all are!

Mark Gatiss & Ian Hallard: ‘I proposed on the afternoon we met.’

The League of Gentleman star and his actor husband on dating at the dawn of the internet and coming out to their parents.

Mark

Ian and I met online back in 1999, long before Grindr, when online dating still had a certain stigma attached to it. “Poor you! You can’t find anyone in the real world, so you have to go scrabbling around on the internet.” I didn’t tell my family how we’d met for several years.

You also have to remember that gay men didn’t necessarily go on dates in search of eternal happiness. Dates were fun and exciting. So, when we met in the glamorous surroundings of Finsbury Park Tube station and went back to my flat, I didn’t think it was anything serious. But it was. Ian loves to tell people that I asked him to marry me that afternoon. With hindsight I think I was probably joking, but I certainly had high hopes: “Maybe he’s ‘the one’.”

Having said that, it did take a while to get used to the idea of being a couple. All my previous relationships had sort of … fizzled out. With Ian it was the opposite; we seemed to grow closer and closer. We’ve even collaborated on several projects and I’m directing his first play at the moment [the Abba-inspired The Way Old Friends Do, which Ian wrote and stars in], but there’s never been any sense of rivalry. We get asked if it’s difficult living and working together, but why would it be a problem to spend time with the person you love?

I grew up in a working-class town near Durham, my dad worked at the pit. Telling people you were gay in that situation wasn’t easy. I came out to my friends when I was 15 and there were a few comments at school, but I was never bullied. The real problem for me in the Seventies and early Eighties was that I had no idea what to do about being gay.

Apart from the occasional storyline in [the drama series] Play for Today, the only gay men on TV were John Inman and Larry Grayson. I play Larry in the new TV drama Nolly [about Noele Gordon, a star of the soap Crossroads] and understand why John and Larry were regarded as torchbearers. But some gay activists in the Seventies saw them as the enemy: screamingly gay, but at the same time a sort of neutered Saturday-night camp.

Somehow I managed to put off telling my parents to the point where my mam was the one who brought it up. I was home from university and she simply asked me. It was a huge relief. I said, “Hadn’t we better tell Dad?” Mam looked at me. “Oh no! It’ll kill him.” So we didn’t.

A couple of weeks later I was talking to Mam on the phone and she said, “I told your dad. Ooh, we had some snow overnight.” Initially I thought that had saved me from having to talk to him about it, but it had just been popped at the back of a drawer.

Dad struggled at first, but considering his background it could have been a lot worse. Although it was a bit awkward when he met Ian, we never had “issues”. Sadly we lost him in 2021. The weird thing is that as he got older he became much more tolerant. Even after he lost Mam — his loneliness seemed to soothe his prejudices. He understood that love is where it falls.

It sounds like a complete cliché to say, “We make each other laugh all the time,” but it’s absolutely true. Our shared sense of humour has become the glue that has bonded us. Ian’s definitely more together than me when it comes to admin, and I’m pretty sure he did most of the organising when we had our civil partnership in 2008. The main problem is that, left to our own devices, we can be as bad as each other. We make all these grand plans, then we decide to take Bob [the labrador] for a walk instead.

Ian and I did have a brief period of broodiness, then we quickly realised that neither of us was responsible enough, so we got a dog. The ideal scenario would be that a fully formed, well-educated, extremely polite grown-up knocks on our door and declares that they are the fruit of my overeager teenage loins. We get to be parents without the hard work!

The couple in 1999, the year they met

Ian

Remember when Stelios from easyJet started his internet cafés? Without Stelios I wouldn’t have met Mark. I didn’t have the internet at my flat in London, so I would go to a Stelios café every day to check emails and log on to gay.com. Back then online dating didn’t involve pictures; it was just messages and a phone call. When Mark and I finally clapped eyes on each other, there was that awful moment of tension, trying to decide if we fancied each other. If not, I guess we would have headed off on our separate ways.

Mark was only the second man I’d made contact with online and the first one I’d met. I did sort of recognise him because The League of Gentlemen had been on telly, but I hadn’t actually seen it. That was probably a good thing. Had I been a massive fan, I’m not sure things would have worked out.

Mark’s career has taken a different trajectory to mine. He has been involved in a lot of high-profile projects and around the time of Sherlock [Gatiss was co-creator, co-writer and appeared as Holmes’s brother, Mycroft] things did go a bit crazy. That one-sided success can cause havoc in a relationship, especially with actors — lots of arguments and jealousy. Some relationships seem to thrive on that constant drama. Not us! I’ve never seen Mark have an argument with anyone. He’s unfailingly polite to the point of diffidence.

I hit my teens when TV was full of adverts about Aids — huge icebergs, tombstones. My parents were your typical easy-going, middle-class Brummies. There was no hint of homophobia but, in that climate, you can see why they might be concerned about having a gay son. What kind of future did I have? I was either going to die of Aids or kill myself out of loneliness and depression.

When I eventually told them I’d met someone and talked about bringing him home to meet them, they were very happy. I told them he was in this fantastic programme called The League of Gentlemen and proudly told them it had won a Bafta. Unfortunately they decided to watch it. They saw this collection of psychopaths and monsters and thought, “What’s he got himself involved with? Is it a cult?” Mum rang me up and said, “Please tell me it’s not him who plays that weirdo Mickey.” I paused for a second and then said, “Yes, Mum, that’s the man I’m going to marry.”

The Way Old Friends Do, Lyceum, Sheffield, Tue-Sat; Park Theatre, London N4, Mar 15-Apr 15; and touring until Jun 10; thewayoldfriendsdo.com

Strange habits

Mark on Ian

He’s incapable of keeping his side of the bed tidy. I call his pile of dirty clothes “the Bedroom Monster”

Ian on Mark

He worries about us travelling in the same car in case something happens to us both and Bob becomes an orphan

[veroniquesboutique]

Kinktober Day 12 - Somnophilia

For Kinktober day 12!

Shoko Ieiri x AFAB!Reader

Content warnings: AFAB!reader, female reader, somnophilia, dubcon, oral f-receiving, fingering, best friends to lovers

18+ Minors DNI!

More under the cut...

You imagine that few people have the relationship with their roommate that you do. You had never met Shoko Ieiri before moving into your dorm room freshman year, but the friendship that blossomed felt natural, like it was meant to happen in your youth. You are certain you had known her in a past life, and she uses that special (albeit weird) sixth sense she has to confirm those suspicions without you ever having to ask. Even now, years later, you two still live together, and even as significant others have come and gone, you two have stayed tight knit without even a thought of moving out. 

Lately, your relationship has seemed to click in a new way, surprising you at the newfound sense of being seen and feeling fulfilled even this late into your friendship. You no longer have to ask for things - she shows up next to you with your favorite soda right when you’re wanting it or she brings you the exact right color cardigan you want to wear to dinner before you even realize you want to wear a cardigan - and you don’t even have to speak for her to know what you’re about to say and vice versa - she can guess exactly what movies you want to watch and what your reactions will be to her experiences at work. Weeknights have turned into movie nights cuddled under the same blanket, holding the same bowl of popcorn and occasionally each other’s hands when it gets too cold or too late. Weekends have turned into forty eight straight hours of being in each other’s presence, each going exactly where the other needs to go, trading off chores and tasks and wants and needs until you’re both lying on the floor of your apartment at 2am playing Scrabble for the third time that night because it’s your and her favorite game. 

All this is to say you’re unsurprised, if not a little embarrassed, when Shoko starts showing up in your dreams. And not in the usual way, in the way that people randomly do when you vaguely know them, but in a new way, one where her body is over yours and it makes your toes tingle. It started slow, happening once in a blue moon that made you blush upon waking up alone. You’d tip toe out of your room, through your apartment, clicking her bedroom door open quietly to check in, and you’d always feel stupid when you see her curled under her blankets, soundly asleep. 

Then, after months, it started happening more frequently. Weekly, then more than once a week. By the time it’s happening nightly, you feel like you’re losing your mind, and you’re having trouble looking Shoko in the eye over the dinner table. No matter how real the dreams feel, no matter how good the dreams feel, you just can’t imagine ruining the friendship you have with her to see if real life can feel like your dreams. 

So, instead, you indulge in your dreams. Because if your brain wants it, why not let it?

Continued on AO3...

[amai-no-ura]

Akatsuki no Yona Typing Redone: Yona

Since I just rewatched the anime and I'm rereading the manga. I think I should update the typing. I have learned a lot more after my first sorting. While it's mostly the same, I will give each character more detailed analysis so each character will get one post dedicated to them alone. And other minor characters will be posted together in a 'bonus' post.

Let's start with our titular protagonist - Yona.

Yona

Typing: ENFJ 1w2 sp/so

Sorting: Snake primary (Badger model) and Lion secondary (Badger model)

Our beloved Yona. This is the character I resonated with the most out of all other characters. I totally understand her 'I need to be stronger' and 'I want to protect people dearest to me, even if I have to risk my life' and she is just a breath of fresh air for me. But that's not the point. Yona started off as a naïve, airy-fairy princess ignorant of the world around her. But that was her immaturity (she was raised sheltered, spoiled and never having to do anything in her life). It could be said that her personality starts to really develop after she got driven out of the castle.

She is Fe-dom, her emotions are immediate and upfront. Whenever she feels something, she says it out loud. But she also knows how to say it in a way that's appropriate to the situation. She is an organizer (EJs) but she doesn't do it through systems and logic like Yoon (ESTJ) does. Instead she does it through emotional motivation and finding consensus. Yona bonds herself very readily to the people around her and usually prioritize others feelings first in every single one of her decisions. She rages for them. She fights for them. Their pain is her pain and their grief is her grief. It's Fe that allows her to understand the pain of everyone around her and how she would want it to be better (Fe-Ni + enneagram 1).

She also knows exactly what to say to get under the skin of just about everyone. She knows exactly what to say to Seiryuu villagers and to Sinha. She intuitively knows that Sinha isn't dangerous and there is no reason to fear him. She knows his pain and what he has been through and she knows 'his soul'. All that based on very little information (his hand is warm and Ao loves him). That is very Ni.

Afterward, she knows exactly what Sinha needs to hear the most 'You are not destructive'. That sentence alone addresses all the trauma he has been through. And Yona just casually knows it and says exactly that. Yona is also occasionally heavily symbolic (comparing Sinha to the moon and Zeno to the sun) and keeps bigger picture in mind at all time. She is also very reckless and opportunistic. She shows heavy use of Se a lot but her Se is still pretty weak (doesn't know her limit and needs to be reminded by sensors around her to stop). It's her Ni-Se that allows her to sense that something is happening in Awa (people smiles feel fake - something even Yoon doesn't notice) and later when Li Hazara was about to invade Kouka.

Yona is driven by her very strong moral compass and anger at injustices. But those anger isn't 'pure' anger, it's righteousness. She believes there are certain things that cannot be forgiven and certain action that is honorable. And she will uphold it even if she has to work twice as hard or risk herself because they are the 'right' thing to do. That is healthy enneagram 1w2.

While she has a very strong judgment, she doesn't project it outward to other people. She focuses on bettering herself first to deserve and protect people around her. When something doesn't feel right in her gut (like when she told Gigan Senjou she'll pick Senjusou again because the first time Jaeha helped her) she won't back down on it. She will do it 'right'. She is very firm on her principle and if something isn't right, she'll call on it. But she also has strong 2 wing that lends in helpfulness and softer touch to her enneagram 1. She doesn't shove her beliefs on other people but instead seek to work together with them to get the desired outcome (wing 2 + Fe).

Her sorting is pretty simple. She is Snake primary, her motivation is 'I want to protect people that are dear to me'. This concept is further expanded when she made it her mission to look after the kingdom her father 'loves' so much. Her father was one of the most important people in her circle, so what he loves (his ideal of peace, his kingdom, his people) is also hers to protect as well. Then she starts bonding with people left and right but not in a Badger way. She takes them in and made them hers.

She is willing to do everything to make sure her people is safe. And her biggest fear is to have anyone of her people got hurt or killed. But her Snake primary also made her vulnerable the most when Suwon killed King Il. That betrayal shook her world to the core. But she didn't let it burn her primary, instead she heals through her connections with other people (first in Wind Tribe - Taeyeon, Mundeok and other people in Wind Tribe. Then the dragons and people of Awa). I think Mundeok and the guys in Wind tribe save her from burning - 'everyone in the wind tribe is a family. You are our family now'. I think it's precisely this that saves her from burning.

Her secondary is Lion. She is honest to the fault, react from the gut and stand by her truth. Her strength is in her solid willpower. She pushes on when things get hard. She stands her ground against all adversary. She is a natural leader who inspires everyone around her through the strength of character and sense of righteousness (healthy Lion secondary). She can't stand sitting on the side line doing nothing. She needs to get into actions and react. Doing nothing limits her because she only finds her strength when she faces adversary head on. Like when she rushes out to confront Taejun (I didn't leave Wind Tribe to hide under Hak forever, there is something I must do now).

I doubted it a bit because what she said to Jaeha and Sinha sometimes felt like a deliberate manipulation (saying it's alright if you don't want to come with her, but stick around and suggests it. Saying what they want/need to hear. Presenting herself in a way that they will have to come with her). For a Snake sec like me, that's something I'd say because I know it'll work. But that doesn't align with Yona's character so I go with Lion secondary. That goes to show how different secondary can come up with the same motive and action only with different flavor internally.

But she also values fair play and hard work. Which shows strong Badger secondary model. She is willing to put in hard work (200 arrows a night is a LOT, especially if you've never handled a bow before) and wants to do things fair and square. She never looks for shortcuts. She will do things the right way and put in the efforts until it happens. She's also very caring and helpful in a Badger sec way as well. She knows she isn't strong enough so she has to put in the effort to make herself stronger.

All in all, a very compelling and inspirational character. She reminds me that no matter what is happening to you right now. Only you can tell you who you are and what you can be. You can let them break you, or you can carry it and make sure what happens to you never happen to anyone else. And only you can make that choice to protect what is dear to you and take the responsibility and hard work that comes with it. Only you can make yourself worthy, just like how Yona molds herself into a great leader that she is :)

Next post: Hak

[chirpsythismorning]

For what I've seen, the ST production team has been working all o this time since none of them are part of neither the WGA nor SAG-Aftra. This probably means they've advanced a lot of work. Do you think that once the strikes are over, this will make it easier for them to start filming as soon as possible or even for the filming process to take less time than initially predicted? (Around a year)

It’s possible.

But it’s also worth noting that them needing a full year to film ST5 is for a multitude of reasons.

With all the delays, they now have to rework their entire schedule post-strike, as it won’t look the same as it looked before the strike. They need to be able to fit dozens of cast-members schedules together to ensure that their availability aligns with other cast-members they have scenes with.

While ST does get first dibs more than the casts other projects because of their contract with Netflix, it’s a lot easier to plan a schedule when you get everyone’s schedules, put them all together, and look at what aligns and what doesn’t, to make it easier for everyone.

For example, it made sense that despite certain cast members being unavailable in May to film, there were rumors (multiple statements from Noah himself) that he would start filming in May. And that’s likely because he started school again in the fall, and so it makes sense they looked at his schedule and determined it would be best to squeeze in as much filming for him as possible from May-August before school started in the fall, with him having a good chunk of time throughout the school year to go back to school for tests, etc..

Another example is David Harbour, who said he was going to be filming Thunderbolts in Atlanta simultaneously while he was filming ST5 in Atlanta. This means he would likely have at least 1-2 weeks of filming for ST and then 1-2 weeks of filming Thunderbolts, with days off and on within the mix, in order to accommodate both films schedules and when they need him for certain scenes.

I think a lot of fans assume that 1 year of filming means nonstop filming for each cast member, which is just not the case.

Even if certain actors have a lot of scenes in each episode, there are still scenes without them.

For example, let’s say Millie has 8 scenes total in 5x01 or something. There are still going to be several scenes without her, upwards of over 10 scenes give or take. That's scenes with other characters filming without Millie present because she does not have to be because she is not in any of the shots. Millie does not need to be strictly in Atlanta for those 1-2 weeks that it takes to film the block of scenes that do not include her. If they can make it so actors are able to be gone for 1-2 weeks of time, as opposed to just filming 1-2 scenes and then having to wait 2-3 days for their next scene, they’ll try to. Not saying that won’t happen occasionally, as I'm sure there are times when it's maybe a week on and week off or three weeks on and one off, but still, doing it in larger blocks to make it easier and accommodate everyone, is much more realistic because it just makes it a lot smoother to flesh out the schedule like that with their main (high demand) cast, and then fit side characters (not as high demand aka more wide open availability) around that.

For example, Amybeth only had like 4ish scenes total throughout the entirety of s4, and she lives out of the country, so it wouldn’t make sense to have her stay in Atlanta for upwards of a year. Instead Amybeth was only in Atlanta filming for two weeks total for those scenes featuring her, from mid May-early June 2021. That meant they had to ensure Maya (and Joe lmao) were available during that time Amybeth would be on set bc they had scenes together. Fun fact, if you pay close attention to the shots with Vickie during the pep rally, it's clear that it was filmed on a different day than the rest of the scenes, bc in the wide shots we don't even see the band on the bleachers (TV magic!). This means that only that corner with the band was filled up and the rest of the bleachers were empty when they shot that scene with Amybeth and Maya. No one else needed to be there since it wasn't necessary.

Usually, filming for 1 episode takes about a month. But it’s likely much of ST5’s episodes will be a little over 60 minutes as opposed to like 50 minutes. So giving them about 1-1.5 months to film each episode, 8 total (unless that changes), puts them at approximately 12 months aka a year. While some episodes might take only a month (or maybe even less) to film, the finale is going to be over 2 hours, which means filming for the finale will take closer to 2 months potentially.

This means 12 months is a very good estimate for how long it could take to film ST5 overall. Though to be fair, given the circumstances of them being on hiatus for so long and maybe being more prepared, maybe it’ll take a little bit less than that? But I honesty don’t think it will be by much, as most years they end up underestimating and it takes a little bit longer than anticipated bc of impromptu delays. (This is also assuming the strike ends and filming starts in Oct, only a couple months from now, which isn't guaranteed whatsoever either).

Even if the strike ends and filming is in full swing and they have a plan to finish in 12 months, there’s no way of knowing for certain if something else could impact filming and cause it to take longer. We should know by now with COVID and the strike that nothing is guaranteed until it’s all filmed. Once it’s all filmed, THEN we can actually start theorizing about when it will premiere.

ST5 premiered about 8 months after filming, not only because post-production is time consuming in and of itself, but because they wanted to have it come out in summer as opposed to Spring. Maybe the first few episodes were ready way earlier, but the later ones weren't even close, so holding off for a more suitable release period, Summer, which they prefer for ST releases anyways, makes sense.

A best case scenario rn, that I allow myself to hope for still, despite everything (assuming the studios get their heads out of their asses asap), is ST5 starting filming in October this year and finishing in October 2024. This puts them at a similar roll out period to ST4, with about 8 months of post-production and a premiere in the summer sometime in 2025 between May-August, whether that include two volumes or not. Netflix is a lot more likely to push for a summer release, regardless of them starting/ending filming sooner than October. Hell, even if they finished editing those first 5 eps by like March or something, Netflix would much rather stretch and wait to release those in early summer with the rest in mid/late summer again, bc they’ve never done Spring releases and I don’t think they’re going to start now. Especially bc I think it will be pushing it in terms of the working conditions being way too strenuous for VFX/editors. I'd rather have them push for a summer release and take their time and make it as good as they can, then to rush and make a spring release and have it feel half ass, only to be over forever.

I know people get sad knowing how long it's going to take to come out. But I just can't comprehend wanting it to be out ASAP, and most likely poorly, only to be over forever. Like this is the end for real. Maybe you'll see one of the characters pop up in a spin off, at best, but it wont be any of the mains that is for certain.

ST5 in 2024 is 100% not happening, so unless you want s5 to be edited for a mere 2 months at absolutely shit quality, let it go. If you want to hope for Spring 2025 go ahead, but that release period is already unprecedented with/without the strike, so don't hold your breath. I would try to accept ST5 Summer 2025 and hope that is as far as it goes. TBH if the strike goes past October, Netflix is going to have to come up with a deal because they are risking ST not premiering in the Summer like they want. If they don't make a deal by then, they'll presumably be forced to make a deal asap, otherwise they’d just be fucking themselves over.

[lesbicosmos]

@chrisginnyweek day 2!!

day 2 prompt: music

my interpretation: a fic inspired by a song, so this is entirely based on would that i by hozier

summary: chris and ginny are the only ones left awake camping in the woods with the poets, chris looks back on her past relationships and realises she really has been in love with ginny all along

also on ao3!!

fell in love with the fire long ago

Chris had never been camping before, not even on family vacations as a child. But that all changed when she befriended the boys from Welton, when she started dating Ginny Danburry. The nine of them had all ventured out into the forest together, setting up tents in a circle with a fire pit in the middle. Chris felt out of her comfort zone, but in the best way possible. She’d never been allowed to do things like this before, but now she was doing them anyway. The poets’ personalities seemed to have rubbed off on her, Carpe Diem and all.

It helped that she was with Ginny. Ginny always made her feel more confident than she ever had before, and she would always be grateful that she had her in her life, not only as a girlfriend but as a best friend, too. That was why she leaned even closer to her, sitting by the warmth of the fire. The boys had spent the evening running through the trees chanting poetry at one another so were exhausted and had all gone into their tents to sleep. Chris and Ginny, however, weren’t tired, and were happy with the peace and privacy they were given as a result of the poets’ energetic outburst.

They sat next to the fire, which still seemed to glow with some vigour considering how long it had been lit. The flames caused their surroundings to dance, the branches of the trees creating strange shadows. If it weren’t for the comfort of Ginny’s warm embrace, she might have been scared. But Ginny held her tight, her touch soft. Her wavy dark brown hair seemed to dance in the breeze, occasionally blowing into Chris’s face and tickling her. The pure comfortable silence of the moment gave Chris some time to contemplate a lot of things about her life – her relationships, mostly.

She never did anything like this with her past boyfriends, neither of them set her alight quite like Ginny did. They were more like the forest surrounding her – sure, it was pretty, and fun at times, but it was nothing compared to the blaze of a fervent fire.

Dating Chet seemed like so long ago, and her relationship with him was more for show than anything else. She didn’t think she ever truly felt anything more than friendship for him, and she wouldn’t have been surprised if he didn’t either. It was mostly convenience, a way to ensure her family continued to keep contact with the Danburrys. Looking back on it, Chris was certain that her intrinsic need to keep contact with the family wasn’t anything to do with their jock of a sportsman son, but instead their star daughter, who shone brighter than ever on the stage of a theatre. Chris and Ginny had been friends prior to dating Chet, and she didn’t want to lose that friendship, she couldn’t. She felt oddly drawn to the girl from the beginning, like a moth to a flame – if only it hadn’t taken her as long to figure out why that was.

Chris’s short-lived relationship with Knox was inevitably going to end; it was never intended to be anything serious. They barely knew each other, and their personalities clashed more than they attracted. It was Knox that pursued her first, and she was never really interested. She only went on a few dates with him to stop him from bothering her about it. No, dating Knox was nothing compared to the life she was currently living, sitting under the thick canopy of the forest, cuddled up tight to her beautiful girlfriend, wrapped in a thick green blanket. Chet and Knox both made her feel as though she was in their shadows – Chet was the star of the football team and Knox’s father was a well-known lawyer - she was simply their cheerleader girlfriend. She never felt like that with Ginny. Despite how blinding and bright a person she was, Chris never felt overshadowed by her. They were equals, always.

Now though, Chris would gladly be in Ginny’s shadow. The light from the campfire caused her to glow in the most gorgeous way possible, the flickers of light reflecting on her skin. All of her features were highlighted by the light, all of them perfect to Chris. She looked so pure, so natural, as though the fire was her. Ginny was a flame, burning through Chris’s mind in all the best ways, tearing down the thick trees that were her relationships with Chet and Knox, and making her glow in return. Chris thought that perhaps she’d always been in love with Ginny, from the first day they met. Ever since then, Ginny had been the only person at the forefront of her mind, like a flame distracting her from everyone and everything surrounding them both. She’d heard the concept of twin flames and never believed they could be real until she met Ginny. Now she was sure, maybe not that their flames had always been identical, but that she had inherited the same flame as her, both shining as bright as each other.

Of course, Chris new the dangers of the flame. They couldn’t be together publicly, neither of their families would accept them; barely anyone would. The two girls being together was a risk, a risk of a wildfire that could easily let loose and catch them both in its path of destruction. Still, Chris didn’t think she could care. Their flame was stronger than that wildfire, more powerful. Their relationship was still new, still pure, and that excited Chris more than anything. She couldn’t wait for it to continue, to see where the flame would lead them next.

At the thought, she instinctively moved even closer to her girlfriend, and Ginny held her tight. How could Chris have ever thought anyone else was the one for her when this perfect girl was here, and was so good to her? Ginny Danburry was a roaring fire, and Chris knew she’d fallen in love with her long ago.

[mrfancyfoot]

Raphael x Evie (f!OC) | Rating: E/varied | Chapter 1 on AO3

Chapter 7: If Not Friend, Why Friend Shaped?

While the group is making their way towards the Last Light Inn, Astarion and Evie have a discussion about the devil.

Chapter Rating: M-ish / SFW-ish Word Count: ~1550 Tags: Evie POV, Angst Warnings: A couple references to Evie and Astarion’s current and prior relationship. They’ve slept together at this point but have broken that off and pivoted to something more platonic.

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Story Summary: All’s fair in love and war. Things are bustling in Baldur’s Gate as the city rebuilds. Life is looking up for Evie who has ambitions set on her (re-)inventions and business ventures as she juggles a certain vampire’s budding political career, the unwitting godhood bestowed upon her by a clan of fanatical fish people, and the increasing attentions of a devil who she believes woefully has no other friends. . Story Tags: Tags will update with progress, Fluff and Angst, Domestic Fluff, Humor, Manipulation, Eventual Smut, Modern Girl in Baldur's Gate, Canon-Typical Behavior, Varied Chapter Lengths, Not Canon Compliant, Possessive Behavior, Dubious Morality, Dubious Consent, Worldbuilding, Kuo-toa, She's not stuck with him he's stuck with her, Has plot-legs, Slow Burn, Friends to Lovers, Warning: Raphael, Raphael is obsessed, No sleeping with Haarlep, Girl has her shit together and that’s sexy, Neurodivergent OC, Lawful Evil meets Chaotic Neutral, Marriage Contract, Slice of Life, Pop culture references

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Chapter below cut...

“It worries me how often that devil summons you,” Evie heard her tentmate softly say while he stared at the pages of the book in his hand.

After hours of travelling, the group had opted to set up a temporary camp.  Instead of dragging everything out, she and Astarion had decided to simply share a tent for the ‘night.’  Just two bedrolls…and the wall of pillows between them.

Evie watched the motes of dim light floating above them.  “But what do I even do about it?  I think upsetting him wouldn’t exactly be smart.  We don’t want to needlessly make an enemy of him and he has provided us with good info.”

Astarion scoffed and dropped the book aside, turning to look at her fully.  “Does he have nothing better to do, though?” he complained, his face twisting into a sneer.

She could only shrug.  Though they spoke fairly frequently, she couldn’t pretend to know how Raphael spent the rest of his time.  “I do kinda wonder if he may be planning something else.  Like, this is a lot of his time he seems to be putting into us.”

His expression turned dubious.  “You.  That he is putting into you, dearest.  The devil isn’t whisking away anyone else in the dead of night.”

Honestly…it made her feel better that no-one else was in the same position she was.  With Raphael focusing on her, that kept them safer.  Fewer temptations, fewer distractions.  “I tried confronting him a while back about why he’s so keen on me specifically, and all he said was that my soul has more unique qualities that attract devils.  He’s been pushy about the ‘Hero of Baldur’s Gate’ thing.  Maybe it’s an investment thing?  He’s invested in the outcome and so certain that he’ll get my soul eventually that he’s taken it upon himself to micromanage us?”

“Plausible as any other theory at the moment, I suppose,” Astarion sighed, tracing the frayed decorative stitching on one of the pillows.  “You said he’s had one of his…minions spying on us?” 

“Korilla?  Yeah.  She seems okay.  Minus the…spying…part.”  She remembered the time she first met Korilla when she and Lae’zel confronted her near their camp.  She had occasionally seen the warlock since during her time spent with Raphael.

He sat up straighter and looked down his nose at her.  “Evie, darling, just because someone is nice to you, doesn’t mean you should trust them.”  She couldn’t help how her eyes narrowed on him, the weight of his very recent confession to her that he had spent most of the time he’d known her trying to manipulate her still stung. “Yes, I am a phenomenal example!  Oh, don’t give me that look!  I’m no devil, at least.  Trusting me at all was still stupid and you shouldn’t keep making exceptions.”

She knew this and she knew she didn’t always have the best judgment of character or ability to read others.  It meant others did take advantage of her.  But she still preferred to err on the side of seeing the best in people.  After all, Astarion had told her and promised to do better and focus on introspection and growth.  Would he have gotten to that point if she hadn’t shown him that trust and compassion, that not all the world was bleak?  

“He offered to make me a warlock,” she shared.  “I told him I wasn’t interested, but he must have told her to try to convince me.  She said I was dumb if I didn’t accept.”

“Then that goes doubly so!” he hissed, leaning close.  In a blink, though, his face turned imploring. “You’re not considering it, are you?  I hope you aren’t for my sake, dear.  We can find better ways to deal with Cazador than accepting a deal from - honest to Hells - one of the few people who could turn out to be worse.   There’s no telling how he could really be if he ever owns you.  We want our freedom when we are through with this mess, after all.”

“I guess she’s been secretly helping us out quite a bit at his direction.  Maybe we’re just that awful at all this,” she stifled a slightly worried giggle.  Korilla had been saving her hide specifically a lot, as it turned out.  Astarion would have an absolute conniption if he discovered she was leaving out supper portions for the warlock whenever she cooked if she sensed her nearby.

Chewing her lip, her thumb soothed over the tattooed symbol above her opposite wrist.

Astarion shook his head.  “Don’t let them get in your head.  I know I can be critical at times…but you have improved immensely.  It’s only in their interests that you doubt yourself.”

Her eyes drifted around the bare tent.  “It hasn’t been all bad.  Sometimes it’s even…enjoyable.”  It made her feel guilty just how much she enjoyed talking with Raphael at times.  He was prone to dramatics but that was part of his charm - much like the elf sitting across from her.  “Though I’m starting to feel like I’m having routine meetings with my manager, which I think messes with my head more than anything else.”

“See, that is precisely what worries me!” he bristled again.  “He’s just hoping to butter you up so you’ll sign one of his contracts!”

Evie gripped one of the pillows, contemplating throwing it at him.  “I’m not going to!  And I’m well aware that is most likely his goal.”

Astarion shrank back.  He looked like there was something else he wanted to say but he chewed on it for a bit.  When he finally spoke, his words were uncertain and vague, not aided any by the gesture he made before recrossing his arms, “He’s not making you…you know?”

“Making me what?”  She didn’t catch his meaning.

Astarion sighed with his exasperation.  “Fuck him!  He’s not using you for sex, is he?”

She blinked in disbelief.  “No.”  

Sure, the devil used language meant to entice - quite similarly to how Astarion used to speak to her, actually - but he had never propositioned her like that.  To her knowledge.  Maybe Astarion was seeing similarities to their relationship and that was adding to his worries?

He held his hands up defensively.  “I had to be sure.  You did say the time with him was enjoyable.  And with us not…  I’m not sure I could blame you if you were - he has a certain allure to him.  Maybe he likes the whole sexy fox thing.”

The sound she made was a choked mash of a laugh and a scoff.

“So what do you do during these visits?” he asked.

She thought for a moment.  “Aside from all the garbage going on-  Talk about nerdy shit.”

“You’re joking,” he stated dryly.

“Politics, music, art, theater, books, history, food…”  Was that really that weird?  “He’s really knowledgeable and seems to just like the conversation.”

“You’re making friends with the devil, Evie!” he exclaimed, running his hands down his face.

“Is that a bad thing?”  Before he could answer, she added, “Do you remember when we were on the docks and you said that being friends with a vampire was weird?”

“I think there’s a bit of a difference between a vampire and a devil, my dear,” he argued.

“Why?”  Everyone treated the answer like it was super obvious.  It reminded her of the scaretales of her religious upbringing that she had long since abandoned.  ‘Devils are evil’ held no real meaning to her anymore.  Raphael held himself to a rather strict code of conduct - “Hell has its laws,” he was fond of saying - which was more than could be said of many people she knew who claimed to be better.

He tsk’d in disapproval.  “Well, for one, the moment he decides you’re no longer of any use to him - or worse, if he believes you’ve slighted him in some way or broken some rule - he is significantly more capable of harming you.  Devils see everyone as tools to use at their own convenience and nothing else.  I, for one, would prefer we stayed clear of him but…” the energy behind his words died off.  He couldn’t forget that there was something they did need Raphael’s help for.

“Speaking of-” Evie broached softly.  “I think…you should be the one to approach him about your scars, Asta.  If I bring it up, I kinda worry any deal he’d come up with might be weighted differently than if you were the one to ask him.”  She earnestly added, “Not that I don’t wanna help or anything, because I’ll totally talk to him for you if you want me to!”

He pursed his lips and shook his head.  “No, I agree.  You especially should be wary of making any deals with him and this is my burden to bear.  The less you’re involved in that part, the better.”

A companionable silence lulled between them.

But she was no closer to understanding her questions.

Evie flopped down on her back with a yawn and stretched her arms over her head.

“Do you think…I could have a bit of a late night snack?”

She cracked her eyes open to see crimson pleading down at her.  “Toss me a ration pack from my bag?”

He bolted upright and grabbed for her bag, rooting through it until he found what she asked for.  She caught and tore it open, flopping her arm over the pillows between them.

Thank-you for reading!

[ms-scarletwings]

(っ◔◡◔)っ 𝚆𝚎𝚕𝚌𝚘𝚖𝚎 𝚝𝚘 𝚖𝚢 𝚐𝚊𝚛𝚍𝚎𝚗 𝚘𝚏 𝚠𝚘𝚗𝚍𝚎𝚛 𝚊𝚗𝚍 𝚠𝚘𝚛𝚖𝚜~!

You have reached the main blog of a twenty-something, avid enthusiast of biology, merriment, and several things fiction- Call me Scarlet! The homegrown flowers here bloom in many shades of passion, so feel free to take a stroll.

So yeah, this is mostwhat of a multi-fandom menagerie and dumping ground for the things which rattle around in my brain. It is mainly Queue-fed, and while my top interests are hella diverse and ever-fluctuating, this is the main group/area of media you can expect the most return engagement with from me in the foreseeable future:

• Dredge

• The Sly Cooper Game Series

• Moral Orel

• Making Fiends

• Invader Zim

• A Certain Scientific Accelerator

• The lesser discussed works of David Firth

• Underrated Indie game creators the likes of KHS, Edmund McMillen, Scriptwelder, etc.

I no longer be continuing CFF or MMM one as a formal series, but instead just kind of speak my media brainworms when they choose to strangle me. Always looking for a new springboard to strike from, though 👀

Cont. on for some lists ‘n links.

Tags Guide, Sorta:

+ Scarlet talks about things - I release my worms, i.e. the takes. Pretty much what it says on the tin, a catch all for personal text posts ranging from long winded essays about Blorbo from my shows, infodumping about science, to just sharing something ponging around in my head lately. Usually try to reserve this tag for mid to long form original content.

+ Scarlet rambles about things - same deal, less filter, much more stream of consciousness. Includes short takes. Think of it like a bonus reel.

+ My Memes - self explanatory, ya goof.

+ Masterlists - if you showed up here off of, say, one of my media takes and wanted to know if there’s a highlight reel of mine dedicated to that specific show or series. Right now I’ve only got a couple but would be happy to pile together something else on request if there’s enough material.

Other bits of note:

* Following my interest trends, a lot of psychological and physical horror adjacent stuff is to be in-and-out expected here. Mostly on the level of stuff that wouldn’t get a show kicked off of a prime time children’s slot, but with lenient outliers. I’m also a massive bug enthusiast and it will bleed into the overall vibe and in the occasional real life photos i want to share. I will do my best to tag any potentially triggering content, but discretion be advised for the particularly sensitive. Lovecraftian terror fuel makes me go gaga and we’ll probably get along if it does you as well.

* Suggestions and friendly pokes about my blog content in general are welcomed in anons/asks, but not in my dms, thanks!

* This is user is critically and staunchly 🌈🍖

^ Only bothering to get this litmus test out of the way because I have noticed that some of the fandoms I am interested in are magnets for spicy discourse, and media discussion in today’s climate is a hotbed for this bandaid to get ripped off sooner or later. If you are someone who’s knee-jerk response to that emoji pairing and statement without any further elaboration was one of vitriol, extreme discomfort, and/or aggression, this is not a DNI; however, it is a request for good faith and clarification in whatever engagement you may or may not voluntarily choose with my stuff. It is a stern reminder of the old saying about assumptions. Something-something, makes an ass out of u and me. The less asses in the world, the less shit there will be all around.

* Not only am I quite the fanatic for others’ kinetic aesthetic, I’m something of an animator myself, sometimes! You can check out my Flipnote Studio projects over on my YouTube channel or as well on my art side blog (under-maintained at the current moment but looking to improve on that).

[wouldntyou-liketoknow]

R.D.

If you’ve read my stories, then you probably recognize that name above. She has made cameos here and here, and she’s been mentioned in pretty much every story that involves Caliban. I realize that this is kinda late, but the overthinking part of my brain has been nagging at me to clarify some stuff about this character. 

Where there’s a character inspired by MatPat, there MUST be a character inspired by Stephanie.

Her name is a pun because I can’t be stopped. Caliban is a simple anagram for cannibal, and R.D.’s initials are literally just a play on the phrase Research and Development.

R.D. is NOT a member of The Pentas Family, but she’s definitely an ally. She’s helped them out with information-gathering here and there, but she just doesn’t have the time to be a contract-killer. (She’s also been considered an honorary member ever since she and Caliban got together.)

When it comes to illicit business, she works on the more sciency side; mainly chemical experimentation and cadaver testing. (Note: the team she leads never uses animals as test subjects. And when I say “chemical” I mean taking Chem Lab to another, more dangerous level, not street drugs.) She’s often required to travel long distances to work on certain projects, although she and her team do have a hidden laboratory in the Cove Port Inlets.

R.D. and Caliban met before Azalea and Caliban were discovered by The Pentas Family. At the time, Azalea had just started to consider delving into underground stuff for money. She’d always been fascinated by poisonous/venomous things, but it’d been pure blind luck that she wound up meeting R.D.

Basically, R.D. helped Azalea find her footing, assisting her with purchasing and then caring for deadly plants in exchange for extracted toxins. Inevitably, R.D. bumped into Caliban during one of her and Azalea’s meetings. Both Caliban and Azalea were a bit nervous about this, but by now, Caliban had learned how to handle his cravings. Plus, fittingly enough, those cravings never once acted up toward R.D. It was  awkward at first, but with time, the two of them indeed formed a friendship.

Of course, Azalea and Caliban soon joined The Pentas Family. By now, Azalea was a defacto poison expert, so her and R.D.’s dealings came to an end. Despite this, the two of them still maintained a good friendship and kept occasional contact. Said occasional contact paved the way for R.D. to eventually seek out Azalea for something or other, only to walk in on Caliban completing a hit-job.

Much to Caliban’s surprise, R.D. didn’t react to the sight of him splattered with blood the way most people would. (She’s got a strong stomach thanks to her projects.) Instead, she just casually asked how he and his sister were adjusting to mob-life. From there, R.D. and Caliban started talking more and more often until they decided there was enough trust between them for a romantic relationship.

@sammys-magical-au

[folansstuff]

Illyana/Atticus HC's

Peak alt girl/nerdboy couple.

Atticus has seen Illyana’s evolution from ‘clothes given to her by Piotr’, to Mall Goth to her current style.

Similarly Illyana has seen him go from unfashionable nerd to slightly more fashionable nerd.

Atticus has tons of blankets and medicine for when Illyana gets home from a mission. They’ll spend hours patching her up while talking about their days.

Both are big on cuddling. Illyana is the small spoon, Atticus is the big spoon, though Illyana prefers to lie on top of him than cuddle side on.

Atticus’ belly and hair makes him an ideal for cuddling, tbh, which is why Illyana calls him ’Teddy Bear’ all the time. 

Atticus calls Illyana “Princess”, both as an occasionally sarcastic nickname, but mostly as a term of endearment. It’s the only word that really demonstrates what he sees in her.

They’re big into kisses too, they’ll take any opportunity to press a quick kiss to a cheek or the top of the head or something.

The two flirt constantly. Seriously they will spend every moment laying praise on each other. Dani and Rahne started keeping a tally for every time they made their eyes roll. This does not stop when they’re on missions.

Atticus can and will remind everyone in earshot that his girlfriend is the strongest sorcerer in the multiverse. He even said this to Doctor Strange once, which was definitely a call.

Illyana will steal Atticus’ hoodies, and has also started stealing sweatpants, anything to have his scent on her.

They will get absolutely blitzed at parties and smother each other in front of other people, even when Atticus pretends to be nervous about it.

Illyana adores all of Atticus’ little projects, she still has the sweater he made her back when they were both on Cyclops’ X-Men team and wears it all the time.

The two do argue decently often, mostly about the dangers of being a mutant and an X-Men and all sorts of other things. When they do get genuinely upset at each other Atticus is usually the first person to apologize, since Illyana is more likely to stew for several days instead of being straightforward.

Cuddles and snacks always follow.

They’ve both learnt to deal with each others quirks and flaws. Illyana has worked out how to settle Atti’s nerves, and Atticus has become an expert at soothing Illyana’s traumas.

Illyana tried to teach Atticus magic, but never really got anywhere. The guy just wasn’t set up to do all that studying, and he didn’t have her natural affinity for it.

Concert dates are basically the only dates they go on, even in the Krakoan age, and the collection of band memorabilia could fill a closet. Atticus prefers weirder experimental and rock music, and Illyana prefers industrial and punk. The two both love that certain brand of 2000’s rock.

Their first kiss was at an outdoors Strokes concert, which got rained out. But the band kept performing.

Atticus watched Illyana dance her heart out, and swept her up into a kiss. Only for him to slip on some mud and collapse onto the ground. 

She never lets him forget it.

Used to skip classes at Xavier’s to go hang out, usually at Illyana’s behest.

Illyana would sneak into Atticus’ bedroom when she had nightmares, cuddling up to him and talking through her emotional scars.

The two share teaching tips from their time with Strange Academy and various teaching jobs, and will cover each others classes at Akediemos.

Have developed a routine of sitting on the couch, watching terrible TV and chatting the evening away.  

Have become even closer in the Krakoa era, now that they get to share a home and goals all the time.

Illyana is the only person who could convince Atticus to join teams and do superhero work until after the Gala. Even now he stills needs convincing from her to do much of anything. 

The two have been together for a very long time, and are basically inseparable at this point. Fuck with their partner and you’re gonna get your ass kicked. 

[greatwyrmgold]

I've been reading Bleach recently, after a certain professional shitbag recommended it. I'm only a dozen chapters in, but I have some thoughts.

First: If you've been reading my posts talking about new Shonen Jump series, I am sorry. But also, the thing I keep talking about is pacing. Shonen Jump titles are under a lot of pressure to perform well out of the gate; this means most of them cram as much of their premise and ideas into chapter 1, getting to "the good part" ASAP without having time to lay any groundwork for it.

Bleach isn't like that. Basic story facts are scattered throughout the first volume or so, giving more room for the characters and such to breathe. I dunno if Jump worked differently twenty years ago, or if Tite Kubo was more confident in his writing speaking for itself, or what, but I appreciate it.

Second: Maybe it's just that I binged Mieruko-chan earlier this week, but it feels like Ichigo seeing (normal) ghosts should come up more than it does. There aren't anywhere near as many ghosts around in Ichigo's world as Miko's, and they're a lot nicer (except the Hollows), but still.

Third: I was expecting the fact that Ichigo's physical body stays behind, unconscious, when he astrally projects or whatever to fight Hollows was just a handy plot excuse. A reason for Ichigo's broad-daylight swordfights to not be noticed, that would come up for the occasional gag or when it's convenient to the plot, but mostly be forgotten.

But nope! Characters have reacted to Ichigo going unconscious both times (so far) he's projected while outside his house—nothing plot-altering, but enough to make the characters feel like they notice the weird things he's doing and react to them.

Fourth: When Ichigo finds out Hollows used to be human (um, spoilers for chapter 3/episode 2 of Bleach I guess?), he's mad at Rukia for not telling him this, but doesn't really angst about having to kill ex-humans. He talks at them a normal shonen manga amount, but that's about all he does differently when he learns that his enemies used to be human. That feels like something that most series would give more focus (and angst) than it really deserves.

Fifth: There are a lot of nice little moments. Rukia stealing Ichigo's sisters clothes because she didn't pack anything for her not-so-brief trip to the mortal world. Orihime talking with her ex-brother. Rukia not knowing how juice boxes work. Some random guy getting mad at Ichigo for "copying his look," but nothing really comes of it; it's just a school Ichigo's been going to and has a history at. Rukia failing to comfort the dead kid in a parakeet, this makes sense in context.

Maybe this is just reiterating the pacing thing I started with, but...it's nice that there's space for things that don't really do anything except establish characters and tone. Also, I think Rukia's my favorite character.

Speaking of which, sixth: I kinda wish Rukia kept a bit more of her power. At the moment, it feels like she's basically only useful for spiritual cleanup and occasionally not dying long enough for Ichigo to show up. When she said she could only use a few Kidō spells, I thought that meant she'd use them to back up Ichigo in combat. But no, she's limited to a pretty normal level of physical abilities and some spells that don't do much.

Now, it could be a lot worse. Rukia refuses to be damseled, and the fight scene where she and one of Ichigo's mundane classmates work together to stall the Hollow proves that just because a character isn't as strong as Ichigo doesn't mean they won't get awesome moments. But it's still kinda disappointing.

I'm not saying Rukia should be as strong as Ichigo, mind. Rukia losing almost all her reaper power to Ichigo is the inciting incident, that's fine. I just wish she kept, like, 5% instead of 1%. Enough to keep some cool fight powers.

She's probably getting some power-up sooner or later, probably shouldn't complain too much. Anyways, that's six things I thought about in Bleach that I felt like sharing.

[smartalec121]

Ended up with a alternate opening/prequel/deleted scene for Chapter 15 of the fic linked below, and wanted to post it but wasn't sure where.

All I'll say is that it's part of a series, and that the Tamers and multiverse shenanigans are involved...

“What the hell was that?” Rika called out, simmering but not seething just yet.

There was something familiar about the sensation, yet it had been unrecognizable enough that Jeri couldn't quite place the sense of deja vu she was feeling. Calling the energy that Lopmon emitted a wave might even have been overselling how sudden it was, but Jeri had started tuning out Rika and Suzie's disagreement and the moment had brought her attention back to them.

“I don't know,” Suzie replied, her eyes dropping to the DigiVice and modify card in her hands.

“What do you mean you don't know?” Rika shot back, slightly raising her voice. “You did it!”

Jeri's eyes wandered to the source of the disturbance, finding Renamon kneeling down to help Lopmon stand upright again, the latter having fallen down after releasing whatever energy Suzie had given her. For a brief moment, Jeri fixated on Renamon, eventually it registering that the kitsune had her attention divided, assisting Lopmon while staring across the yard.

Jeri slowly followed Renamon's eyeline, and then immediately started staring herself. A new individual was standing there, or at least trying to with how her legs seemed to be shaking. Her blue dress and loose ponytail threw Jeri off for a moment, but she quickly started putting the pieces together.

“Rika...” Jeri said softly, to no one in particular.

“I just swiped a card!” Suzie continued.

“Which card?” Rika questioned, the both of them still focused on each other.

“Rika!” Jeri shouted, instantaneously causing Rika and Suzie's attention to snap in her direction, and the other Rika to finally lose her balance and fall on her backside.

Their Rika looked Jeri in the eye, a very reluctant understanding passing between them. Rika buried her face in her hands, ironically telegraphing the mix of emotions that were likely going through her head.

“I can't believe this is happening again,” Rika muttered, almost whining.

“Well, it is, so we have to deal with it, right?” Jeri tried to keep her tone even. The situation was already a stressful one, but she needed to be present to deal with it.

“Right...” Rika fished her cellphone out of her pocket, and started walking in the opposite direction. “I'll call the others.”

Jeri didn't give a verbal affirmation, instead looking forward again. Part of her said to just wait, that this was a problem for Henry and Hypnos to solve and that she had nothing to contribute. Looking at the scared girl wearing her friend's face, however, she knew she had to compartmentalize her self-doubts for the time being. This was her job, and she was going to see it through.

Taking a deep breath, Jeri moved across the yard. At first, this Rika only glanced at her, wide and nervous eyes seemingly more interested in her counterpart. In typical Rika fashion, she was quiet, whatever fear or confusion she was feeling only manifesting in subtle body language. While Jeri couldn't be certain if the girl was about to go into shock, she also didn't want things to get that far.

“Hello there.” Jeri drudged up a warm and friendly smile, her “customer service smile” as she occasionally caught herself referring to it as.

“Hi,” Rika replied, finally looking up at her.

“You're a little out of place here, aren't you?” Jeri crouched downward, eventually sitting and criss-crossing her legs so they could be at eye-level. “But don't worry, everything's gonna be okay.”

Rika took another look around. “Am I dead?”

“Why do you automatically jump to the worst case scenario?” Jeri felt a little bad for the disappointment that she knew had come to her face, but again, it was a very Rika thing to do.

“I'm sorry?”

Jeri refocused and smiled again. “No, it's alright. What you've been through is a bit jarring. I even passed out one of the times I made the trip.”

Rika raised an eyebrow. “What kind of trip did I make exactly?”

“Right...” Jeri paused, drumming her fingers against her chin, trying to come up with the best way to explain the situation. “Given our circumstances, can you keep an open mind?”

“I guess...” Rika eyed her cautiously.

“I'll take it!” Jeri gave a quick thumbs up. “Okay, you know how manga and comics like to play around with the idea of parallel realities, alternate timelines, and stuff like that?”

“Uh huh...”

“So, yeah, that's kinda what we're dealing with right now.” Jeri spoke calmly, fully aware of how she probably sounded to an average person. “Not exactly sure on the how just yet, but I think we accidentally pulled you into our dimension.”

Rika stayed quiet at, and then slowly looked past her. “So that's me?”

Jeri turned around, finding her Rika futzing with her cellphone. She was a terrible texter, so the fact that she wasn't just calling Takato or Henry said a bit about how many different places her thoughts must have been in.

“More or less, yeah,” Jeri explained as she turned back around, eyes lingering on the new Rika's dress and her less athletic frame. “Sometimes these alternate realities are a bit like a fun house mirror.”

“Are those Digimon?” Rika asked without a second pause.

Jeri glanced over her other shoulder, noting Suzie had moved to stand near Lopmon and Renamon, and that all three were watching them. Expressions seemed to vary amongst them, and while there did seem to be traces of guilt on Lopmon's face, curiosity seemed to be first and foremost where Suzie and Renamon were concerned.

“Yep,” Jeri answered. “Do you have them in your world?”

“Yeah, just, uh...” Rika hesitated for half a second. “They just typically don't hang around my house.”

“Right...” Jeri considered the statement, being able to gleam quite a bit from it. Not wanting to dwell but also knowing they had to push forward, she extended a hand to her friend's doppelganger. “I'm Jeri, by the way.”

“Yeah, nice to meet you...” While Rika's words weren't necessarily sarcastic, they were a bit deflated as they shook hands.

“You're still scared, aren't you?” Jeri squeezed Rika's hand, not so tightly that she couldn't pull free, but enough to reaffirm her presence.

Rika nodded. “Am I gonna be able to get home?”

Jeri paused just long enough to gather her confidence. “See your counterpart over there? She's a bit prickly, but she's also one of the best friends I've ever had, and on a good day I like to think the feeling is mutual.” Jeri noted Rika tilting her head, following her words but maybe not tracking what the point of them was. “That's just a long-winded way of me asking you to trust me, because I promise we can figure this out.”

Standing herself up, Jeri gently tugged at Rika's arm and helped her back to her feet. Her legs now steady, there was a pause as she looked Jeri over. What she was thinking, Jeri could only guess, but the fact she was calmer made Jeri feel optimistic.

“Alright...” Rika finally said as she pulled her hand free. “Since I haven't ruled out the possibility of this just being me going crazy anyway, why the hell not?”

“Again, I'll take it!” Jeri chirped, the conversation having been easier than she had anticipated. With that thought, though, another poked at the back of her mind. “Oh, real quick: Don't take anything my Rika says too personally. She's just a little...” Jeri paused, trying to dig up the most diplomatic words possible. “Well, I'm sure you'll be fine.”

“Okay?” Rika raised one more eyebrow.

Jeri decided to withhold any further comments, instead leading the girl over to meet the others. She knew this afternoon was far from over, but at least they were taking some small steps forward.

[adelaidedrubman]

✋, 💇, and 👀 for Jenna if you'd like!

THANK YOU BELOVED!! these were fun:3

✋ Are your OC’s hands smooth, rough, or average? Why? How do they keep their nails? Do they bite them, paint them, neatly trim them, et cetera?

jenna’s hands are fairly smooth, although it varies somewhat based on the season and how frequently she’s in the lab, even wearing gloves to keep out the more damaging chemicals her hands still get easily dried out with disinfectants and frequent washing, and the powdery residue from her gloves can stick to her skin and dry it out more. so occasionally her hands are a bit dry even with her efforts to rehydrate, but she takes care of them enough they don’t really ever approach rough — she moisturizes enough the skin never really gets scaly, she doesn’t develop callouses, etc.

she keeps her nails trimmed fairly short, can’t have one tearing a hole in her gloves or getting in the way after all. she does paint them semi regularly, usually neutral tones or clear glosses and occasionally some subtle sparkles.

💇 What is your OC’s hairstyle? How do they maintain their hair? Do they wash it and/or cut it regularly? Have they ever dyed their hair?

jenna usually keeps her hair around shoulder length, styled in her natural curls. tied and pinned back when she’s in the lab, othewise loose. she does wash it regularly, she does a clarifying shampoo probably every week or so, although she rinses, soaks, and conditions to get the chemical smell out and rehydrate closer to every day when its a heavy lab work time of the year. ever the believer in practical applications of chemistry, jenna also mixes her own blend of leave-in styling oils that protect against some of the damage from the fumes in the lab. she also gets regular trims, usually gets a fresh cut towards the end of bliss production season to take care of any damaged ends.

she doesn’t dye her hair in her main timeline, but i’m kind of obsessed with this as a look for new dawn jenna, so. perhaps in the future.

👀 What is the first physical feature people notice when they see your OC? Why?

if they’re paying attention to jenna herself instead of her clothing or style (the lab coat and lack of standard issue peggie clothing marks her as being at a certain level within the cult hierarchy, which is usually the first thing her fellow project members take note of if seeing her for the first time) the first thing most people notice about her is the killer cheekbones, they’re full and sculpted and bring together a lot of the other pretty features of her face. (and if she does has her hair pulled back for the lab, they’re all the more noticeable.) her eyes tend to be what sticks with people once she has their attention though, she tends to purposefully keep her facial expression neutral pleasant unreactive, so a lot of her expressiveness is in her eyes. they’re very gorgeous, dark, reflective, and hold an aura of intelligence and attentive curiosity that is distinctly jenna.

[deadtime-stories]

Dailathi Are F*cked Up (By Human Standards)

AKA: Why Ilsifer And Rhionin Are So Weird

Long reference post.

TLDR: If there’s a kink on AO3, it’s probably a common and normal Dailathi trait.

ORIGINS OF THE DAILATHI

Long ago when the world was new—or at least back when most life was still brewing in the seas—there were gods. And like always happens when there are gods, they made people in their image. The problem with that is sometimes, making people in your image doesn’t work if you have to cut out certain survival mechanisms to get the look right. So, those people died pretty quickly in the great Kentucky Fried Free-For-All that was the early Earth, and the gods delayed their beta launch until a more favorable climate came around.

Except Kartha, who was considered by the rest of the pantheon to be a few lines short of a kilo, probably because she snorted them before presenting the universe with the first of her many works of living Art: the Cambrian Explosion.

Kartha isn’t considered an evil deity in the pantheon so much as a wickedly unpredictable one, the goddess of chaos and bringer of accidental death and dismemberment. Kartha didn’t create people in her image, she created whatever the hell popped into her head after doing copious amounts of the heavenly equivalent of drugs, and she quickly got too bored to stick around and see the results. So while the rest of the gods got together to create humanity as a joint project, Kartha was gluing together spare parts she had to create the deirada.

These were basically surface-dwelling demons. Not the hot kind of demons most of Tumblr wants to bang, but spindly-legged things with lots of sharp teeth and too many eyes and something that kind of looks like fur in places but isn’t. They were also very, very smart, created from whole cloth instead of slowly evolved from already existing animals, which made them more advanced than the early humans they shared a planet with.

As one might imagine, deirada treated early humans the way modern humans treat animals. The main difference was, you could tell when a deirada was into their version of bestiality because crossing a human and a deirada created a hybrid. These hybrids were mostly human in appearance but deirada in diet and behavior. Deirada hated these hybrids because they considered them human, and therefore animals. Humans hated these hybrids because they considered them deirada, and therefore demons.

Deirada kept on banging their human livestock and producing them, though, because…people are like that, I guess.

Eventually, with the help of the other gods, early humans advanced enough to overthrow the deirada and slowly hunt them to extinction. By this time, hybrids had already begun self-exiling from the society that hated them from both ends, creating their own hives and minding their own damn business. They avoided being wiped out simply because humans kind of forgot they existed…until 1606 rolled around and the portals opened, and they realized that as the only Earthlings with magic, they were kind of needed to help get this shit under control.

A NEW SPECIES

Over hundreds of thousands of years of staying away from humans and only reproducing among themselves, the hybrids evolved into their own species and cannot reproduce with humans anymore. They called themselves Dailathi, and settled their hives close enough to human civilization to occasionally go trade, but far enough to be left the fuck alone. They spoke human languages and used human money and followed human technology—it was easier than doing it themselves—but stayed socially separate simply because…well…to Dailathi, humans are freaking weird.

BIOLOGY

Like their demonic forefathers, Dailathi aren’t mammals. They’re hatched from eggs, which are generally laid in clutches of two or three, and the genes controlling their physical appearance have very little to do with the genes controlling their reproductive role. Dailathi have two reproductive sexes: keilir (singular: kael), or “seed”, and teunir (singular: tein), or “water.” Basically, teunir inseminate and keilir give birth.

In modern times, Dailathi have adopted the words “male” and “female” from humans to describe a hive member’s reproductive niche, but do not use “man” and “woman” because they simply don’t fit.

Physical appearance does not correlate with reproductive sex in Dailathi. Traits like breast size, hip size, height, voice pitch, body hair, and hormone balance are as randomly spread as eye color and hair color. Only Dailathi can spot members of the opposite reproductive sex without looking in their pants, by unconscious chemical signaling humans can’t read. Some females look and sound more like human men. Some males look and sound more like human women. Many are a mix of both, and still others surgically and magically change their bodies to better suit their own taste.

Dailathi live, on average, to be about 200 years old. They’re considered “seniors” from about 180 on, and are in their reproductive primes from about 20 years old until about 150 years old.

There are some universal differences between males and females, one main one being that males are omnivores while females are obligate carnivores. Another notable biological factor is that there is naturally only one female born for every twenty to twenty-five males. Dailathi practice harems, with one female having multiple males in their family units.

Female/female romantic couples will each have their own males in their household for reproductive and childcare purposes. Male/male romantic couples will often still join a female if given the chance (usually as a pair).

Whether sexually involved or not, one female to multiple males, all caring for children with no regard for their biological parentage, is the normal Dailathi family unit. Females do not have to be regularly having sex with males to recruit them into their household, and males do not have to be sexually involved with a female to be considered part of the family they’re recruited into. While it’s most common for all the adults in a household to be having sex with each other, whether they do or not is their own business and literally nobody is going to ask.

PHYSIOLOGY

Normal Dailathi heights range from 4’10” to 5’10, with a build that’s slightly curvier than the human average for the same height. Skin colors echo human tones, but with an either blueish or reddish tint, making some appear pale/sickly and some appear richly tanned to the human eye. Dailathi hair is always bi-colored, with a base of either dark brown or nearly white streaked through with a brighter, less “natural” color. Eyes tend to match the color of the hair streaks.

Dailathi can operate just fine around the clock, but are technically nocturnal and are at their peak at night. Their eyes have a nictitating membrane to protect while still allowing visibility; it’s tinted around the edge and more transparent in the middle, giving the appearance of turning the whites black when it slides in place.

Males appear human in every aspect. Females mostly so, except for sharp canine teeth meant for ripping meat. Females are much physically stronger than males, and much physically stronger than humans.

SOCIAL ROLES

Dailathi don’t have gender roles, because they don’t have the concept of genders. They do not have gendered pronouns. Dailathi have a single set of pronouns that apply to all individuals (sei/sar, with ‘set’ for possessive).

What they do have is a social hierarchy based on reproductive success. Most males will never get anywhere close to a female, let alone reproduce, which is why simply being accepted into a female’s household is the height of Dailathi social success for a male. Keilir raise their male children until their mid-teens, then leave them to their fathers until they’re old enough to strike out on their own, and it’s not common for mothers to help their male children find partners. They do remain close with their female children throughout their lives.

Male children who have sisters are as close to hitting the lottery as it gets. Dailathi siblings tend to be extremely close, regardless of age differences, especially if they’re born from the same clutch. If you have a sister to vouch for you, you’re pretty much guaranteed to end up in a family of your own eventually. Most females found their own early households with their brothers under their wing, then switch and trade with other females until they’ve replaced their siblings with suitable partners.

Females, then, have outsized social status in Dailathi hives. Males will often leave Dailathi strongholds to travel human societies, blending in secretly and building their own wealth and influence. Those lucky enough to find their own fortunes will eventually return to their hive during a mating season, just to try their luck and see if they can catch the eye of a polycule looking for a new addition.

Dailathi are not a matriarchal society, though. Neither females nor males control society, economic and legal power is still equally held by both. Nobody is getting abused or controlled or manipulated simply for being male or female, Dailathi are known to look out for each other regardless of family status. Social status, however, definitely leans toward females and their mates.

NSFW

In addition to the general havoc wreaked by the reproductive ratio imbalance, Dailathi have a fairly narrow mating season, lasting about two weeks in autumn. Consequence-free sex the rest of the year means they like to get freaky, a LOT. I think their patron goddess being one of painful death and spite probably already paints a picture of the kind of things the average Dailathi is into, but when autumn rolls around, things get really dangerous.

The mating season is generally when the makeup of a household changes. Underperforming males get dropped, partners that just aren’t meshing well get swapped, and unaffiliated males will try to shoot their shot. This is also when females who don’t yet have any romantic/sexual partners will be receptive to meeting new males, so participating is generally considered worth the risk.

The very, very great risk.

In addition to being carnivores, Dailathi females are many times stronger than males, physically. They also tend to be bloodlusting around this time, so while a male may get laid, there’s a 50/50 chance of being murdered during/after the deed if a female is just out looking for a fun night and not serious about expanding their harem. Being killed by your Tinder date (and possibly at least partially eaten) is the leading cause of death for healthy Dailathi males.

But, they step into that shark tank voluntarily, knowing the odds, and it’s kind of considered a noble death in their society. Plenty of well-adjusted Dailathi males stay away from the Hunger Games-style shit that goes down on the mating grounds, but you’re always going to have your All Star wannabes.

The Guys

Ilsifer is perfectly ordinary and uninteresting by Dailathi standards (except for that possibly being dead thing), but considered transgender by human standards. He doesn’t remember where he’s from, how he got to Seattle, or how he ended up in the Bay, but he knows he’s got parts humans assign “woman” status and he’s got surgical scars from top surgery. His scars are faded enough to be pretty old, and the shape suggests he had it done by human methods rather than Dailathi. He assumes, then, that he grew up in a human city—possibly even Seattle—and does not belong to any particular hive or family group. That in itself is very, very weird, because females do NOT leave Dailathi strongholds.

Also, it’s spring now, but come autumn he’s going to have to leave Seattle for a few weeks…or risk ending up in prison for murder when the wrong person hits on him during the wrong season.

As he’s currently living among humans and within human culture, Ilsifer identifies as a man and uses he/him pronouns.

Rhionin is considered male by both Dailathi reproductive standards and human gender standards. He is on the shorter side, with a higher voice and downier, “femalesque” body hair, but all humans see is a flat chest and a voice somewhat deeper than most women. His hips are wider than the average, but he can either play that up or cover it depending on how he dresses.

As he’s currently living among humans and within human culture, Rhionin identifies as genderfluid with a preference for male. He spends about 75% of the time presenting as a man and using he/him pronouns, and about 25% of the time presenting as a woman and using she/her pronouns.

[dishtothedeath]

i can't see you, the light is in my face || mm.3 || yukari || re: reacts + inigo + man

Once Severin had entered, Yukari makes sure to place her hands on her laps. She watches him from her perch as he approaches her with the same calm smile she wore the day they met in a meeting room that she remembered being too cold. Like then, all she could do is smile through her discomfort and not let it show. Though now she was aided by the AR technology, even if it would occasionally glitch and the corners of her mouth would appear to fall. His fall made it easier to smile though. 

Skull. No. Basile looks at her and she turns her attention to him. Even with half his body held together by duct tape and hot glue, he was such a sight to behold. For closure's sake.

Although she does not look at him, she hears Fergus's request and answers it with a wordless nod. She had said quite a few sorrys over the course of the project to various people with an equally varying degree of sincerity. 

Alfie and Inigo's comments on her appearances do earn more actions from her. She places her hands on her cheeks and swipes the crystal tears off. As soon as they leave her skin they break into sparkling shards that fade. But in the blink of an eye they've returned to her face. Yukari moves to tighten her hand around one of her sleeves and pulls. Without much effort it tears and bursts into feathers that drift away. But before she can fully move her hand, it's back in place. 

"I can continue if you'd like but it would be met with the same results."

Even putting her hair up was a no-go. 

"If you have complaints about the outfit... The person you should address them to is preoccupied at the moment."

She doesn't elaborate any further. Jun'ya speaks of regret of not making sure she was dead but he had carried her to her bed. He had to have felt her light breathing. Maybe he had hoped she'd bleed out. Maybe he didn't actually care enough to kill her at that moment. What was an attempted murder between spuǝᴉɹɟ? 

"You're right, Kamata. The security here is rather dreadful. After all, Ides was the first to die. Had I died, I'm sure they would've taken my notes seriously and made you an offer."

And he'd be too good at it. If Severin was awake to hear that, would he kick himself in regret or play like he meant to do that.

Finally someone speaks who she can look at. Yukari's attention turns to Man.

He'll see something the others can't now that she chooses to directly face him. Even if she spoke to others, she had yet to look at them. Poor, unfortunate Man. 

"It means that I did not think I could handle your personality well. Based on the recordings they had me watch, I found myself zoning out the most when you would speak." 

Even as Castella speaks up, she doesn't look to them. Her attention stays on Man. 

"Earlier Bourbon had requested I speak on certain matters. I..." Well she won't say apologize. Rather she can't. "I think it is time I do so. At the moment, there are few people know of the project closely enough to have an impact on it. I am one of those people. If I were to die a majority of the project would be lost as well since the data I've collected has not given to anyone else."

She never cared for gambling but she understood what it meant to hide your cards and not let anyone see you flinch. 

"I would not be able to make it better, no one would. It is a work in progress, but while we may be able to supply you with physical bodies there are still adjustments, like returning of the senses, to be made. The project would be removed from HDQ Entertainment and given to my company instead. As they have a strict image to hold and do not just give positions away to useless children who were lucky to be born with their last names, Sweethearts would not want to tarnish their reputation by making playthings out of you. They'll reap the reward of appearing as a savior."

Even if she wasn't the only one from her company sitting in on the meeting with Severin. 

"In fact, they're the ones that are on their way now. If you want those that have passed to escape the island then get the idea of revenge out of your head."

She has not stopped staring at Man as she speaks. Her tone polite and professional as Yukari should be. Whatever glitches may happen to her appearances can be easily ignored by those not involved in an almost one-sided conversation she seems to be having with Man.