#just fucking. re-localized the localization and SO much is wrong. so much.

[okitanoniisan]

new rgg fans will never know what they missed back in ye olden days of the fandom (like, 2019), doubly so now that scott strichart's deleted his twitter and jon riesenbach's privated. twitter was so fucking fun and then whatever-the-hell at sega of america happened and caused a fucking snowball effect and now we have shitass localization and resulting discourse that makes every release nigh unbearable, misinformation, confusion, people complaining about "bad writing/mischaracterization" not realizing it's because of the shitass english loc, i'm sitting here like jesus christ these loc bitches massacred saejima's character voice, people will never see him as he was intended, as original yakuza 5 localization Correctly painted him, and now they're coming for kiryu. god help us. we used to be a proper fandom. before everyone was subjected to the remastered localizations and shaky eng characterization. no one had even played yakuza 3-5, people still called morning glory "sunshine" orphanage, kiryu was our only protagonist and people still called him "boring", it was beautiful...

anyway gaiden uses affective instead of effective because the current localization team is full of careless dumbasses who don't give a fuck about ensuring they're using correct english grammar and this is not an isolated incident

[exhaslo]

I love your stories it feels like I'm actually in it, I mostly like Mafia Miguel x shy reader.... But anyway if you seen Jennifer's body i can see Miguel being Jennifer and the reader being his friend. If you're taking requests may I have Jennifer's body au with Miguel O'Hara x reader? Thank you. 🥰😍 The ending ended up being together can add smut as well to it?

I actually never seen that movie because I am a wimp when it comes to anything horror, except animal horror. Place Jaws in front of me anyway and I'm down. But, I read a quick summary of the movie and I will make some small changes, you know, to sastify our needs haha.

Also, so sorry this was late. I'm still catching up to last month's requests!!

Warning: MINORS DNI, smut, p in v, murder, blood, possession, shower sex, oral (f recieving)

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You knew something was wrong.

You knew that something had changed.

But, what were you supposed to do? Miguel was your best friend and he meant everything. He was your world. The two of you had been together since you were young, to leave him as he was now, would be the worst thing ever.

Rewind a few weeks ago. You and Miguel were just chilling after work at a local bar. Your cheeks were flushed as Miguel kept buying the two of you drinks. It was frustrating how much you loved your best friend. He was just so perfect, both at work and outside.

Hearing a local band start to play, you leaned against Miguel, complaining to him about work. The night was pretty vague after that, but you did recall a fire and Miguel bringing you home. After that he disappeared for the night.

When you awoke the next day, you found Miguel passed out on the couch with what looked like blood on his clothes. You thought nothing of it since Miguel would never do something drastic or crazy like murdering someone. So, you assumed it was ketchup and proceeded to help Miguel out of his clothes.

"What would I do without you?" Miguel mumbled under his breathe as you took his shirt off.

"I don't know, stay in gross clothes?" You said with a chuckle and fixed his hair, "Go wash up. The girls at work will go crazy over this bed hair of yours."

Miguel grunted and playfully used you to stand. You laughed and whined towards him, finishing up for work. The two of you shared a place only to help you with you rent. Miguel was perfectly fine with his own place, he was just helping you.

You first noticed something was off when you arrived at work that same day. Miguel was normal with you, but he had started to get flirty with some of your female coworkers. Miguel never payed any mind to any of them, so it kind of hurt to watch.

As the days went by, you couldn't help but notice some of your coworkers going missing. You tried to ask Miguel about it, but he just shrugged and reassured you that it was probably nothing. Of course, you wanted to believe him...but each of those girls who went missing were ones that Miguel flirted with.

"Miguel?" You called out, entering his lab. Miguel glanced towards you, his smile widening,

"(Y/N), climbed out of the library to see me?" He teased. You plopped yourself over Miguel, sighing heavily,

"Lemme vent for two minutes!" You whined, throwing your arms over his shoulders, "That jerk over in IT had the gal to ask me out on a date, Miggy! After he insulted my 'tiny' brain last week!" You huffed. Miguel felt his eye twitch as he pulled you onto his lap,

"Did you tell him no?" He asked, his tone getting a little harsher. You leaned against Miguel, pouting,

"Of course I said no..." You whimpered and crossed your arms, "He called me a dumb bitch after that...That all I do is..."

"Is what?" Miguel fixed you on his lap, wanting to hear the rest.

"Is...be your fuck toy..." You mumbled lowly.

Miguel felt his lips twitch into a smirk before pulling you into a hug. His warm embrace relaxing you while his mind started to race. Tonight was going to have a bitter taste compared to the rest. Once you were calmed down, Miguel stroked your cheeks,

"Don't pay any mind to him. Go home and order whatever you want with my card. I'll be there late."

"Miggy, you don't-"

"I want too," Miguel rested his forehead against yours, "We're best friends. Let me take care of you," He whispered.

--------

You should have known something was wrong. Miguel always had his barriers and lines, but he was willingly crossing all of them. It felt like you were getting closer to Miguel in a different light, and you weren't sure how to feel about it.

Waiting for Miguel to return home, you started to put away some of the food and clean. He did say that he was going to be late, but it was reaching midnight. It was nerve racking having to wait for him to return home.

"Ugh,"

You gasped upon hearing the door. Rushing over, you saw Miguel leaning over the counter, coughing into the sink. Grabbing a bottle of water, you hurried to Miguel's side and gasped at the sight. He was covered in blood and throwing up something black and icky.

"Miguel?! Are you alright?! Did you get hurt?!" You panicked, fixing his hair and checking his body. Miguel wavered in place and wrapped his arms around you,

"I'm fine...(Y/N)...Don't worry about me," He mumbled into your neck. You frowned, leading him to the bathroom,

"I have to worry about you, who else will?" You told him, setting the water, "What happened?"

"Nothing,"

"Please, Miguel. Let me be here for you," You nearly cried, using a soft wet rag to clean the blood around his face, "Please," You sobbed.

Miguel sighed heavily as he brought you against his chest. His breathing was staggered and heavy against your ear, using you as a sort of comfort. His grip tighten ever so slightly around your waist.

"I fucked up, (Y/N). I fucked up so bad," He whispered. You frowned and fixed his hair, "That night of the fire...I went after the assholes since you almost got hurt. I followed them into this alley and I don't know what the hell they were trying to do but...I ended up getting possessed by...something."

"Possessed?" You questioned. Miguel closed his eyes and nuzzled his head into the crook of your neck,

"I guess I was supposed to be a sacrifice or something? But, I didn't met the criteria and this demon took over. I'm always hungry, (Y/N), always." You felt a sudden chill run down your spine as Miguel's hands crawled up your back, "I can't stop...but when I'm with you, I can feel it relax."

"The demon?" You questioned. Miguel leaned back, fangs poking out of his teeth,

"I won't ever hurt you, (Y/N). I'll always protect you."

"Same, Miggy, but if you're in trouble...Please let me help you," You begged him once more.

Miguel inhaled deeply as you stroked his face once more. He lazily glanced towards you, leaning forward to kiss your lips. You made a small squeak as his hands kept you in place. Miguel grunted as he forced his tongue into your mouth, hungrily.

But not for flesh.

Lifting you up with ease, Miguel pressed you back against the shower wall, ignoring the running water. His groan rumbled against his throat as he started to feel your body lean into his. Miguel was hungry for you. You tasted so sweet against him.

"Miguel," You whispered, breaking the kiss. Miguel rested his forehead against yours, letting the water run down your soaked clothes,

"When I'm with you, I don't hunger for flesh," He whispered, wrapping your legs around his waist, "I want you...maybe...Just maybe, I won't have to suffer like this...if you let me have you."

You furrowed your brows with concern as Miguel spoke. Flesh? Right when you were going to ask him, Miguel captured your lips into another, rougher kiss. His hands pulling your shirt up, exposing your breasts underneath.

"Let me have you, (Y/N)," Miguel begged, kissing and sucking against your neck.

You felt your mind grow hazy as Miguel kept his antics. This was something you had always dreamed of. You tried to reply to Miguel, but moaned instead as he started to nipple and play with your breasts. You needed to ask him more about his demon.

"Mig-" You shivered as he started to rut into you, grunting and moaning with each grind.

"(Y/N), you're mine. Mine, only. I'll eat anyone who dares try to take you away from me," Miguel hissed, taking off your pajama pants.

"Miguel, w-what do you mean b-by eat?" You finally asked. Miguel glanced towards you once more, lifting your hips to his face, "W-Wait-"

You gasped and moaned loudly as Miguel's tongue started to swirl around your clit and pussy. Your hands gripped his hair as you arched your back, crying out in pleasure. Miguel's tongue was lapping up your juices hungrily, holding your hips in place.

You felt your core burn as you slowly moved your hips to Miguel's movements. Trembling as you felt his tongue enter your cunt, you cried out as you felt your orgasm approaching fast. Miguel hummed in response, slowly pulling away from your dripping pussy,

"This taste much better," He said with a groan before going back to suck on your clit.

"Ah~ Miguel~!" You cried out. Miguel watched you contort your face in pleasure, crying out his name,

"(Y/N), if I eat you like this everyday..." Miguel groaned as he lowered you, pressing your face against the shower wall, "Then I won't have to feast on others. I can feel it...the demon enjoying this too."

"M-Miggy," You whimpered softly.

"Let me devour you,"

You gasped and moaned as you felt Miguel shove his cock into you deeply. Tears began to roll down your cheeks from the sudden intrusion as he filled you to the brim. Your pussy convulsed around his dick, sucking him in as you cam heavily.

You tried to grip onto the shower wall, but it was no use. Miguel held your hips, pounding into your poor fleshy cunt. Your moans grew louder with each slap of his hips, feeling pure pleasure. The size of his dick was stretching you out, kissing every part of your pussy.

"(Y/N), you feel so good," Miguel grunted, slapping his balls against your clit with each thrust, "Thank you for this meal, I'll make sure to fill you up too," He said with a grunt.

You cried and moan as you cam against Miguel's dick. Your vision blurring as the shower water poured against your skin. Miguel's grunts and moans turning you on even more. You gasped as Miguel lifted you up, inserting himself again as he kissed you.

"Mhm~ Miguel~!" You cried, wrapping your arms around his neck. Miguel held you close, inhaling your scent as he fucked you stupid,

"I won't ever hurt you, (Y/N). Never," He repeated, watching you cream against his cock once more, "We're best friends, forever, right?"

"Yes! Yes!" You cried, trembling as you felt Miguel fill you with his cum, "Ah~ I-I help...c-control this..."

"Thank you, (Y/N)." Miguel hummed, kissing you in response.

By the time you recovered from the rapid sex session, Miguel went into more detail about what happened with him. You were terrified at first since now you knew that it was Miguel who killed your coworkers, but you also understood.

There was no curing Miguel. At least the two of you found out how to control the demon possessing him. Miguel didn't need to eat flesh anymore, all he needed was you.

"Fuck, more (Y/N), just once more." Miguel grunted as he fucked your pussy from behind, "I can't stand seeing another man get near you."

"Miguel~ Miguel~" You cried into the pillow, gripping the bedsheets under your. Miguel hissed lowly as he gripped your hips tighter, pounding your pussy a bit more harshly,

"Mine! Mine! Mine! If I can't fuck some sense into you, then I'll eat them," He hissed lowly. You cried out, cumming against his dick once more, milking him dry for his cum,

"I understand, Miggy~ Hah~ Hah~ O-Only I can ease your hunger," You whimpered lowly. Miguel kissed your back, giving you soft, gentle thrusts,

"I know, (Y/N). I know, don't mind me," He whispered, apologizing for his tone, "Thank you for the meal...now and forever."

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Like I said, never watched Jennifer's Body, but hopefully this was okay and somewhat...what the movie wanted? Idk man, maybe one day I'll grow a pair and watch some horror movies.

Hope you enjoyed!!

[twopoppies]

Hi Gina! So, without mentioning the classics like Never Be,Unvelibers, Walk that mile, or Empty skies, I have two fics that I love to re-read. One is Giving a Chance, a cannon fic that I'm obsessed with it; it's exes to enemies to friends to lovers, always leaves me with a warm fuzzy feeling (Louis inner voice is the best!) . The other one, shorter but equally awesome, is Flash back to Me. I've read it so many times I lost count. It's an amnesia fic, but unlike the usual ones out there. Every time you read it, you can't help but have a smile on your face.

Bye! 👋

Hi, sugar. I think you might mean this one:

Given a Chance by Fabby (E, 173K)

Five years after One Direction took their last tour, the last thing Louis Tomlinson ever expected to happen while on a tea run at the local Piggly Wiggly was to run into his ex-boyfriend and ex-bandmate Harry Styles.

The odds of them ever running into each other again had to be super slim, right?

Wrong.

What happens when you mix ex-boyfriends with a large serving of Small Town America? Will Louis and Harry be able to set aside their differences, or will Louis be able to stay breezy as fuck in the wake of Harry’s arrival?

(or, the one where Louis and Harry run into each other five years after One Direction ends and learn how to love each other again. Featuring: Reggie as the overweight labrador, Niall as Louis’ last grip on reality, and Nowheresville, North Carolina as the setting for Louis’ worst nightmare to come true.)

And this one:

Flash Back to Me by akatomlinson (E, 73K)

Louis narrows his eyes, wanting more than anything to tell Liam to go fuck himself, but he can’t be sure, is the thing. As much as he knows for a fact that he would never date someone like Harry Styles, he has months missing from his memory. And it’s scary to think that, in that time, everything he’s come to know about himself could have changed so drastically.

Or the one where Louis loses his memory and Harry just about loses his mind trying to win him back (or something)

Thank you!!

[isekai-crow]

2024 Winter Anime Lineup (Master Post?)

First post for a new blog where I'm going to try and record my opinions, break downs, comparisons, and various degrees of squees about anime!

The lineup for this year's Winter isn't as packed as the 2023 Fall season was, but that's always the case. It sure is still causing my To Watch List to keep getting longer... but more importantly because it's so lacking in big name shows one of my most anticipated shows gets to shine...

SOLO LEVELING

俺だけレベルアップな件

LET'S GOOOOOOOO!!!

I'M SO EXCITED FOR MY SHADOW BOY TO FINALLY ARRIVE!!!

also, holy CRAP look at all this TRADITIONAL FANTASY!!! There is even a decent selection of non harem Isekai this round too! And a lot of awesome sequels/continuations!

Anyways, here's what's on my to watch list for this season! I'll be posting about them in their own or other threads as I figure out how I want to set this blog up. My reasons for WHY I'm watching what I'm watching

Definitely Will Watch!

Solo Leveling / 俺だけレベルアップな件

Apothecary Diaries /薬屋のひとりごと(Continued)

Delicious in Dungeon (Dungeon Meshi) / ダンジョン飯

The Villains Day Off / 休日のわるものさん

Undead Unluck / アンデッドアンラック(Continued)

Fire Hunter (Hikari no Ou) 2nd Season / 火狩りの王

High Hopes / Might Drop / Taking My Time

Sasaki and Peeps / 佐々木とぴーちゃん

The Witch and the Beast / 魔女と野獣

Doctor Elise / 外科医エリゼ

Cherry Magic (THIS ENGLISH TITLE LMAO) / 30歳まで童貞だと魔法使いになれるらしい (DEF WATCHING THIS ONE NOW)

Shangri-La Frontier / シャングリラフロンティア　(Continued)

Beyond Journey's End / 葬送のフリーレン (Continued)

Gonna Give Them A Few Episodes

Mashle Season 2

Fluffy Paradise / Isekai de Mofumofu Nadenade Suru Tame ni, Ganbattemasu (I'm doing my best in another world to pet fluffy creatures)

Ishura

The Wrong Way to Use Healing Magic / 治癒魔法の間違った使い方

Blue Exorcist / Ao no Exorcist (OUT OF LEFT FIELD THIS ONE)

Delusional Monthly Magazine / Gekkan Mousou Kagaku

This is already insanely long, so the second half of this essay about what I think is below ↓↓↓↓

DEFINITE WATCH LIST

SOLO LEVELING - I've been waiting for the solo leveling anime since BEFORE the anime was ever announced, re-reading the webcomic/manhwa multiple times and just HOPING someone would animate these gorgeous shadows. It is a very well done power fantasy with only squints of romance, and while I'm sad it's been localized to Japan (and all the fuckery that comes with of Korean erasure), I got to see the first two episodes at the World Premiere and I. Am. So. Hype.

APOTHECARY DIARIES existed completely outside of my head space, and my initial response at the premise was, Raven of the Inner Palace? I wasn't actually expecting much from it and then the first few episodes BLEW ME OUT OF THE WATER and now I'm obsessed.

DUNGEON MESHI is one of those manga I've heard about, but tried reading and it was too slow paced for me (I say, currently slogging through The Boat Arc (TM) of Hunter x Hunter), but the anime gives it life and I think I'll enjoy this alot. I love cooking anime and fantasy, so this will be fun!

KYUJITSU NO WARUMONOSAN is just straight up Crow Bait. That curly bowl cut, the gap moe of a villain who loves cute things, and voiced by fricken Shintarou Asanuma!!! (I know him as Samatoki from HypMic, other's will know him from the "Fucking Bullshit" song from Carole and Tuesday, and a host of other roles) Also, all the pretty sentei / power ranger boys!!! I'm so hype, in the most relaxed chill way for this.

UNDEAD UNLUCK is so weird in that it involves a lot of random sexualization, but it doesn't make me uncomfortable like Seven Deadly Sin's random gropping did, maybe because there is actual implied consent involved. Fuuko and Andy are Poly and I love them for it. And the world building is TOP NOTCH.

FIRE HUNTER - If you haven't seen season one, you are missing out. A darkly beautiful post-post apocolyptic alternate Japan-esque world, from the POV of a young girl, and a young genius boy having to let himself be manipulated by capitalism to survive, and gods? a magic system? but so soft that it's barely there even while being a full on fantasy story.

High Hopes or Taking My Time

SASAKI AND PEEPS- What a weird little show that has the weirdest combination of isekai, the most "this is fine." salaryman, and a fricken' CHUNIBYO BIRB. I've already watched the first episode and it feels like there are two magic systems going on and its a bit confusing, so we will see how this plays out!

WITCH AND BEAST - I keep wanting to call this Beauty and the Beast, because the beast is a rad bad ass looking lady, and the witch is certainly one of the most beautiful undertakers I've ever seen. I think he carries his boyfriend around in his coffin backpack, so I'm hype to see WTF is up with that >o>

DOCTOR ELISE - Why do manhwa I read keep randomly popping up as anime??? This is a vilainess turned good story, and supposedly the market is full of these, but none of them are the good ones I've read, so I did a double take of happiness when I saw this. THIS ONE IS GOOD. An spoiled princess gets killed, is reborn in Korea and becomes a doctor, only to be killed by Airplane-kun, and winds up back in her old body where she decides to become a doctor again! The prince is even not your typical icy asshole! (although maybe he is a little at the beginning..)

CHERRY MAGIC - THIS FRICKEN ENGLISH TITLE GOOD LORDS ABOVE. I'm dying. I'm also excited to see this one play out and I'll be hiding behind a pillow giggling like a mad lad while I do. It's been a while since there's been a good BL that's not SAD (looking at YOU Given and Banana Fish, but avoids eye contact with Sasaki and Miyano) so hopefully it doesn't dip into that territory. Going into this one mostly blind as to the premise apart from the obvious Gap-Moe with the love interest.

SHANGRI-LA - I started watching this on a whim as the Fall season started to wind down, and found it to be a good potato chip to have on in the background. I'll probably continue watching it, but not weekly.

FRIEREN - This is what I watch when Jujutsu Kaisen hurts too much to keep going. I'm only a few episodes in, so it'll be slow going, but I think it's about to pick up it's pacing a little where I'm at, and it'll be good comfort food to have.

MAYBES

Mashle Season 2 - The pacing was SUPER WEIRD in the first season that despite all of it's shitting on the properties of she-who-shall-not-be-named, the end of the season kind of fell flat. I wanted to like it more, so I'm hoping Season 2 does that for me.

Fluffy Paradise - I love isekais with an adult in a child's body pretending to be just super smart, and this doesn't feel like it's going to do that, but still looks cute none the less. I'll give it a few episodes, but will quickly drop it if my watch list is too long.

Ishura - Is this what life is like for D&D Characters when they hit level 20? I HOPE SO. I LOVED the Legend of Vox Machina, and hope this has the same sort of vibes, but I'm going in blind!

The Wrong Way to Use Healing Magic - Love me some fucked up healing magic. Please DO NOT let this be ANYTHING like Redo Healer. I refuse to watch that even those FUCKED UP HEALING MAGIC IS FUN. But this. This I want to see. Please let this also not be a harem. I'm fine with ~vibes~ but please no actual harem that's not actually Poly.

Blue Exorcist - THIS IS TOTALLY OUT OF NOWHERE. HOW LONG HAS IT BEEN?????? I remember the last season feeling like a disappointment? But can't remember why? Gonna see if this is worth re-watching the seasons from like... a decade ago.

Delusional Monthly Magazine - I watched the PV and had no fucking clue what was happening. Therefore, I will be watching a few episodes to sate my curiosity about WTF OR possibly just get myself even more confused and rage quit. lmao

I've watched the first few episodes of a couple of these, and will be watching a few more tomorrow, so Next Goal: Post a write up or three about what I think!

[tanoraqui]

I think the Silmarillion fandom is very inclined toward hindsight bias re: the homicidality and moreover the perceived homicidality of First Age Fëanorians. To be fair so is the text of The Silmarillion! But I do think it’s important, when considering political and social dynamics of Beleriand, to remember that:

the majority of kinslaying was 85% of the way through the First Age or later, AFTER everything else had gone to firmly hell first

for that matter, Celegorm & Curufin’s attempted coup of Nargothrond was 80% of the way through, when everything had gone halfway to hell first

the Doom mentioned the House of Fëanor specifically, and of course there’s the Oath, but the Doom very much included “and everyone who follows them” and nobody knew exactly what the Oath would lead to (see: point 1)

exactly 2 people are named in conjunction to the Kinslaying at Alqualondë. One is Fëanor, starting it. The other is Fingon, the Valiant, rescuer of kings and foiler of dragons and High Prince then King of the Noldor, ending it with “the foremost of the host of Fingolfin.”

With that in mind, I think a highly likely summary of Beleriand social/political dynamics is,

Fëanorians, on average: Fuck you all, we did what we did and we’re doing what we’re doing!! (But we did not mean to kill (so many) people to get here, and we’re even kinda glad Fingolfin & co are here for backup, because we may have bitten off more than we can chew. (Wasn’t it generous of King Maedhros to let him wear the crown for now?)

About 1/3 Fingolfin’s people: @Feanorians you bastards led us into kinslaying and Doom and then you burned the ships and LEFT US to suffer on the Ice. You TRAITORS.

About 2/3 Fingolfin’s host, especially those who ended up in Nargothrond and Gondolin: @Fëanorians you bastards led our people into kinslaying and Doom and then you burned the ships and left us to suffer on the Ice. You TRAITORS. / @the ‘foremost’ of Fingolfin’s host: Why the FUCK did you run in and start killing people; what the FUCK is wrong with you

Beleriand locals, led by Thingol: You’re ALL a bunch of lying kinslayers, some more duplicitous than the others I guess—except you, Finrod, you’re an angel and we’re delighted you’re here. Your followers are…alright. Have a third of the continent <3

A number of locals significantly less affiliated with Thingol and Doriath: …okay kinslaying is BAD, obviously, and ship-burning and abandonment…also bad, but less so. Definitely wasteful, definitely a dick move. Your royal family has weird internal feuds. But thank fuck someone is here with better weapons to aim at the Enemy so I can keep living on my farm rather than die or move to Doriath!

That said I can easily believe Fingolfin took general responsibility his people’s part in the Kinslaying, and even when apologizing, specific names of which of them took part, up to and including Fingon, were deliberately left out of the commonly known narrative. Better to have any given individual plausibly innocent (while potentially guilty) rather than some definitely guilty and the rest assumed still potentially guilty and lying about it! But I’m equally sure that detailed gossip from Noldorin infighting slipped through, albeit garbled. Just how much might’ve depended a great deal on specifically how Finarfin’s kids were all feeling about their eldest (full) cousin.

Tldr: for most of the First Age, if someone was side-eyeing the Fëanorians really hard over Alqualondë, they were almost certainly side-eyeing the Fingolfinians for the same reason, and if they were side-eyeing the Fëanorians over treachery/abandonment, it was equally based on hearsay and obvious old grudges, rather than anything they had done in sight in Beleriand.

[odinsblog]

are you disappointed that bree newsome wants trump reclected?

Bree Newsome is a prolific tweeter and I’ve looked, but I haven’t seen anywhere where she said that she wants Trump to be re-elected. Please send me the link to the specific tweet if I’m wrong.

I understand and agree with much of what Bree has been saying on Twitter though. I mean, I dO get it. I think her major concern is that 1) in some important ways, the difference between Trump’s policies and some of Biden’s policies has not been all that great, and 2) if Biden should win (definitely not a guarantee) liberals will go right back to brunch and act as if the problem is gone and everything is “okay” again.

As far as the first point goes, you don’t need to look any further than Biden’s Title 42; or how the Biden administration literally sued to keep using Trump’s previous racist immigration policies. Not a good look. And now, you’ve got Democrats trying to out-Republican Republicans by showing how tough cruel they can be to refugees who are legally seeking asylum at the Southern border. Bottom line, the immigration policies are white supremacy-lite, and some of the changes Biden is proposing—like forcing asylum seekers to wait in another country while the government takes its sweet time with endless immigration red tape—these changes will fundamentally change America’s immigration system, for the worse.

And that’s without me even touching on how badly Biden is fucking up with Palestine.

And as for the second point, conservative Democrats have gone back to brunch once orange man gone. Remember how hard Democrats came down on the Trump administration for their poor Coronavirus response? Yet now we have the CDC basically telling people to stay their asses at work even if they’ve tested positive for COVID. WTF?? Did I mention that measles are making a comeback?? And Biden isn’t saying anything, and neither are his surrogates. And so it is perhaps this tendency towards inaction(?) that is the most significantly damaging and damning aspect that creates disaffected voters who should be motivated to get rid of Trump and Republicans writ large —in a lot of ways that matter, disaffected voters don’t see any significant differences. Sure, the stock market is doing great, but people are getting their asses kicked on a lot of day-to-day, kitchen table issues. Unemployment is down, but a lot of people still have to work multiple jobs to make ends meet.

So yeah, I won’t be dismissive or derisive about Bree Newsome. She’s making some really valid points for anyone who is willing to actually listen.

Now that all said, I think that there is something fundamentally wrong that people are missing when they say misguided things like, “We survived one Trump administration, and we can survive another one.” A lot of marginalized groups and oppressed people won’t survive a second Trump administration. They just won’t.

Because if you thought it was bad the last time, I promise you the next Trump administration won’t be anything like the last one. Last time Trump was unprepared and didn’t even expect to win, so they made rookie mistakes. That won’t happen next time. The next Trump administration will be stacked from top to bottom with diehard Trump loyalists who will ruthlessly execute his most racist policies, foreign and domestic. (See also: Project 2025).

And yes, Biden is 100% for shit on his policy of standing by Israel no matter what. People who agree with Bree think that we will, more or less, have the same kind of problems under Trump that we’re having under Biden now. Those people are what I like to call deadass wrong.

Literally EVERYTHING will become exponentially worse in a second Trump term. For everyone who isn’t a wealthy, cisgender heterosexual white male.

Just imagine America with a Republican controlled House and Senate. Goodbye Medicare and Social Security. Goodbye labor laws. So long minimum wages. See ya, state local and federal courts not totally stacked with Federalist Society judges. It was nice knowing you, “shithole” countries full of people who I love and care about.

Look, I finally figured out something that used to bother me when I first became politically aware: it bugged tf out of me whenever I heard someone say, “THIS is the most important election everrrr!! Because THIS time, democracy itself is on the line!” Pfft. I was like a lot of people I see now, saying “But that’s what you said about the last election.” The truth is, every election is pretty much life or death. Every single one. Because elections aren’t like something you do once, and then afterwards everything is all good forever and ever. Maybe it should be, but you got assholes like Mitch McConnell and Ron DeSantis and Trump and whoever comes after them, you got people who will always be trying their hardest to constantly make shit worse for everyone who isn’t wealthy and white. They aren’t going away. So we can’t go away either. Because the moment we checkout and go back to brunch, they get right back to working on their usual transphobic, homophobic, misogynistic, racist, bullshit culture wars.

So as long as Republicans, Libertarians and conservative “Democrats” keep punching in, we gotta punch in too.

I wanna be really clear about something here: Joe Biden has done some very good things (like capping the cost of insulin), but he has also been, in many ways (not all), a terrible “Democratic” president. Biden is far too enamored of “bipartisanship,” and reaching across the aisle (to people who do not want to compromise), and Biden is far far too enamored of the non-existent good old days™ when Republicans weren’t the evil pieces of shit that they are now, and he takes far too long to change his position on important issues. Like Palestine.

But yeah, (can’t believe I’M saying this) he’s definitely better than a second Trump term will be. And even if he’s slow to change positions, at least he can be persuaded. Trump can’t.

I’m not white and I’m not rich. I am terrified of a second Trump term. I’m basically a single issue voter now, and my issue is keeping Trump out of office and HOPEFULLY making him pay for every single law he’s broken.

[hotjaneaustenmenpoll]

95 Willoughby propgaganda time! (sort of)

First of, let's state the obvious because in a 'who's physically hottest' contest, there's no way he should lose to this Capt. Wentworth.

BUT! As much as he's a villain we all love to hate and hate to love, he's also more than that. Out of all of Austen's antagonists, he is probably the most troubled soul.

He's a man who's madly in love with Marianne, but burdened by the responsibility and expectations of his family (estate and legacy). Did he do Marianne wrong? Absolutely. Is he a villain without nuance? Absolutely not.

Re: Marianne's letters and visits: yes, he acted like a dick when she confronted him, but she was the one who sent the letters, despite knowing how scandalous it was for unmarried women to write to unrelated men. She put him in an impossible situation with her public confrontion and there really was no way that would ever not end ugly, plus it had the potential to utterly ruin them both (and Elinor to boot).

Re: Miss Grey: imagine yourself in his shoes, with all the responsibilities and trappings of the society in which you were raised. You have a home that is in dire need of (costly) maintenance, a demanding aunt you depend on, and a responsibility to take care of your family's estate, including providing work for your local community. Do you marry the wild and dramatic Marianne, who's dirt poor and, for as much as she'll give you emotionally, will only strain the finances further (and lose you your inheritance)? Or do you go for Miss Grey with her £50.000 (£5.2mil today!) dowry, who will provide stability and security so you can keep living how you've been raised to expect? I'm not saying I agree with his choices or that he handled things well, but I can understand why he did what he did when looking at it within the context of that era.

Re: Miss Eliza: yeah, he fucked up. Both he and Eliza made some bad choices and she was left with the consequences. There's not much I can or want to say in his (or her) defence there 🤷🏻‍♀️.

So, in conclusion, Willoughby is a masterfully written portrayal of a complex young man. He did some bad things and made some wrong decisions, and he spent the rest of his life regretting not chosing Marianne. I don't think he's a good man like Wentworth is, but neither do I believe him to be the villain he's often painted as.

Anyone who's not a diehard Wentworth fan should consider Willoughby's context before voting for either man. (And he is the hotter one, just saying...;)

Willoughby (1995) Vs Captain Wentworth (1995)

[aerodaltonimperial]

that spooky lighthouse au epilogue

(idk man i re-read this fic and was like oh, i love that universe still, that was so much fun to write, maybe i should write a little ending? so here you go.)

Darby wakes before the sun.

At this point of the season, not that much before, but enough that the glow coming in through the blinds is still a muted, reddish hue. It’s learned behavior, really; he was always woken up when something went wrong, or when the lighthouse turned itself on, and now, the instincts are slow to fade. Except that now he wakes up and stares up at the textured ceiling tiles of a just off campus apartment that’s far too small for the amount of people currently living in it.

There’d been a nightmare at some point last night, the kind that worms its way down into his bones. He runs a hand over his face and sighs. Then he rolls over to slide his arm across Jack’s waist. Jack is an indulgent sleeper—he never fails to curl around Darby’s hold, scooching back against him without waking up. He’s the sort of person who has never had to worry about his well-being while he slept, never had fear tickling the back of his neck even in his dreams.

Darby envies him, but more than that, he’s determined to make sure that stays true. He curves himself along Jack’s spine, slotting his knees behind the other’s. Presses a kiss to Jack’s shoulder, the little bit of skin peeking out from beneath his shirt collar. Sometimes, Darby can fall back asleep and catch another hour or two. This morning is not one of those times.

When it’s obvious he won’t be able to get any more rest, Darby slides out of Jack’s grasp and creeps quietly out of the room. There’s only one main room, separated into the living room and the kitchen; counter space is severely lacking, but neither Hook nor Jack seem to be much for cooking. The coffee maker holds a space of honor in the corner. The timer hasn’t switched on yet, so Darby flips it manually.

He’s sitting on one of the unpainted kitchen chairs, staring out the sliding glass door, when the door to the other bedroom opens. Hook makes it halfway out before he realizes Darby is there. Then he frowns, blinks, and sets his phone on the counter. “You’re up early.”

“So are you,” Darby returns.

Hook shrugs. He’s dressed in shorts and a tank. “Going to the gym. Can’t sleep?”

“Happens sometimes.”

Hook nods. He goes to the fridge and pulls out a bottle filled with an obnoxious green smoothie, one of those ridiculously expensive things both of them tend to buy without even thinking. He seems as though he’s getting ready to leave, but pauses before he hits the door.

“Hey,” he says, to get Darby’s attention. “I know you saved his life. So...thanks.”

“Thanks?”

“He’s annoying as fuck, and I swear he doesn’t have an ounce of sense in his head, but he’s my best friend,” Hook says. “I don’t know where I’d be without him. So. Yeah. Thanks.”

Darby nods once, slow. “You’re welcome.”

“You’re still an ass,” Hook tells him.

“Feelings mutual.” Darby jerks his head back towards the bedroom door. “He up yet?”

“Nah. He’s pretty lazy sometimes.” Hook doesn’t bother to wave when he leaves, just grabs his keys from the holder nailed to the wall. But the coffee is done, so Darby gets a cup. It’s some organic brand; the bag boasts that it was grown, like, beneath only blue lights that had been locally sourced in dirt flown in from a tiny island in the Pacific or some shit. Darby doesn’t know where the hell they buy this crap. Tastes good, though, so maybe he shouldn’t complain.

Halfway through the cup, Danhausen wanders out from the room. He squints blearily at Darby for a moment before waving a hand. “Ah. Good morning.”

“For an all-powerful entity, you sure would be easy to kill in the mornings,” Darby says.

Danhausen grumbles out something unintelligible when he goes to the counter to hunt down a clean coffee mug. “Yes, yes. Be sure to put a big neon light up when you invite things in. Danhausen will hardly be the most interesting specimen in the apartment.”

When Darby makes a face, Danhausen offers a wide smile. “Darby has been touched by an otherworldly. He is considered a delicacy in some realms now.”

“So has Jack.” Darby frowns.

“Huh,” Danhausen replies, with overly false surprise. “An added bonus.”

That makes Darby think a little. He takes another sip. “You keeping everything away?”

“Perhaps,” Danhausen says. “But it is not a full-time job. We are not very high on anyone’s lists. And right now, Danhausen will go shower, so that we remain that way: unnoticeable.”

Darby doesn’t really know what a shower has to do with not being noticed by dangerous entities from other worlds, but whatever. He finishes his coffee, pours another cup, and goes out onto the balcony. Dawn has broken, painting the sky red. Here, they are far enough from the coast that the smell of the sea is hard to pick up, but Darby lived his life by the brine, and he’d know it anywhere. It’s strange to be looking out over the morning and not hear the roar of the waves or the screams of the gulls.

Eventually, the door slides open behind him, and Jack pads out onto the metal. “Hey. When did you wake up?”

“Not that long ago,” Darby replies.

“I’ve only got Lit and Calc today, so I’ll be back early.” Jack leans over the railing, both elbows propped up against it. “Wanna hit somewhere near the beach for dinner?”

“Sure.”

Jack studies him, chewing on his bottom lip. “You okay?”

Darby turns, back hitting the rail. He loops an arm around Jack’s shoulders, mostly so he can pull the other in closer, press his face against Jack’s hair pulled back in a messy bun. The coconut scent of his shampoo is strangely grounding. His t-shirt covers none of his arm, the tattoo that’s still healing to hide the shadowy marks that will never go away: overlapping ocean waves against the rocks.

Against his better judgment, Darby misses those rocks.

But he’s here, standing on a balcony overlooking the sprawling student apartments that carry far too high a rent, drinking overpriced coffee that Hook will bitch about having to buy more often with more people drinking. Darby drops a kiss against Jack’s temple as Jack curls in closer, fingers sliding up beneath the hem of Darby’s shirt.

“Yeah,” Darby murmurs. “I’m okay.”

And for the first time in maybe forever, he really means it.

[broken--stardust]

let me take care of you - j.t.k.

a/n: this is a fic requested from an ask about self-harm. i am placing the cut before the warnings, because i will be detailed with them. i am understanding that this is a triggering topic, and i was explicit in my writing. please, please understand that you do not have to read this just because it's a jake fic! i do not want this to bring you any negative energy in any way. also, this is written with a very gender neutral reader. love you all so much!

summary: this is a request from this sweet ask; Ok you do not have to write this, but I was thinking about a Jake fic where he finds out the reader has been self harming and he helps her through it? Again you don’t have to write this, I’ve just struggled a lot with self harm and it makes me feel seen when I read it in stories.

pairing: jake x gn reader

word count: 2.3k

warnings: GRAPHIC, EXPLICIT DECRIPTIONS OF SELF-HARM, angst, depression, poor mental health, poor self-care (PLEASE take care of yourself and your wounds if you self-harm. you need to prevent infection and what the reader does by ignoring it is NOT good) descriptions of blood and wounds, racing thoughts, anxiety, poor self-image, cussing, let me know if there are any others i should add.

"Fuck" you sighed under your breath as you took your first step after putting jeans on. As soon as your thighs rubbed together you could feel the after-effects of what you wrote off as "a moment of weakness" from the night before. The wounds were still raw, and you’d have much rather simply gone without pants, but seeing as you had previously committed to your boyfriend to meeting up with some friends and his brothers at a local bar, forgoing bottoms wasn’t really an option.

“Babe?” the door swung open at the sound of Jake’s voice. He smiled at the sight of you in your outfit, something that at its core was truly very simple, but very you. He was in front of you in one stride and placed a peck on your nose. “Are you almost ready?”

You smiled as well as you could through the pain, taking everything in you not to let on that anything was amiss. “Yeah, I’m ready.” You took his hand as he led you out to the car.

As the night went on, you tried to ignore how you were feeling. The nagging guilt, shame, embarrassment, and the sting every time you shifted your legs the wrong way plagued you as the night went on. As your company would ask you questions in an attempt to include you in their conversations, you’d hide your grimace with a grin. You should have known your ever-the-attentive boyfriend would see right through you, though.

He squeezed your forearm and you turned to face him. “Hey, everything okay?” he whispered in a tone only you could hear, his eyes filled with concern. “Yes, fine, I just need to go to the bathroom” you answered as you slid out of the booth. Once in the stall, you pushed your jeans down to your ankles, and saw red droplets staining the inside where your thighs met the fabric. You spread your legs and saw the wounds had reopened. Fuck. Why the fuck didn’t I cover these? Now that your brain was a bit more clear, thinking rationally, the weight of what you had done again, crashed down upon you, right there in the dingy, dimly-lit stall of the bar bathroom.

[explicit, graphic details in following italics]

The previous evening had been a mostly uneventful one. Jake had informed you he would be home late from the studio, late enough that you needn’t wait up. He didn’t have any idea how anxious and lonely you had been feeling all day, and that the last thing you wanted was to sleep alone. But, I can do this. I am an adult, I don’t need my boyfriend every minute, especially not to fall asleep, is what you told yourself. But, God, the way you felt was almost indescribable. You had so much negative energy built-up inside, you wouldn’t be surprised if you could see it radiating from your fingertips. The thoughts of self-hatred, anxiety, loneliness, and utter depression were cyclical, almost like a bunch of little voices repeating everything that was wrong with you. And then came the worst thought of all, no one deserves to have to deal with someone like me. Fuck, that hurt. Being a constant burden to the people you love and being completely undeserving of the love they shower you with in return. You didn’t even realize that auto-pilot has taken over your actions, and you were sitting on the side of the bathtub, skirt hiked up over your thighs, and blade in hand. What the fuck am I doing? Was all you could think, but as each tear left your eyes and hit the floor, a red droplet fell to match it. Your brain was suddenly a barren wasteland, as your body seemed to function on its own accord. After a few minutes, with no other thoughts behind your eyes, you quickly rinsed off in the shower, hid the blade, slipped on some sleep shorts, and fell into a deep, dreamless sleep.

You barely awoke as you felt a warm body press up against your back. Jake placed a kiss to your hair and slung an arm over your shoulder. The only indication you gave him of your semi-conscious state, was grabbing his hand firmly with your own and bringing your intertwined fingers to your chest. Jake thought this was an involuntary reaction, a result of being in a state between dreaming and awake, but really it was a result of the guilt and shame you felt as tears slowly crept down your cheeks as you remembered your earlier actions, hidden from his view as he spooned you.

Now, you were sobbing in a bar bathroom. As the coughs and hiccups overtook you, you didn’t hear the door swing open, or the voice alerting you of someone’s presence. No, you didn’t realize you were no longer alone until you saw a familiar pair of slip-on white vans peeking out from under the stall door. You hurriedly tried to quiet yourself, though you knew the actions were in vain as he clearly heard you.

“Baby, shhh, it’s okay, it’s me. Can you please open the door?” his soothing, deep voice failed to have it’s normal calming effect on you, as anxiety began to overtake your body at the thought of him discovering what you had done. You knew it was inevitable, he’d find out eventually, but you thought perhaps you could keep it from him until the wounds were merely scars. “Babe, please?”

You coughed out a quick, “no.”

“Okay, baby, that’s fine. Can you at least talk to me? What’s wrong?”

“Nothing, everything is fine.” Of course, you knew he would know that wasn’t true, but perhaps you could play dumb long enough to clean up the blood on your thighs before he was the wiser.

“Honey. Please.” He pleaded as you scrambled to rub toilet paper over the cuts. It hurt, and the paper just tore and got stuck to the wet parts.

“It’s really fine, I’m fine” you repeated as your voice cracked and shook, riddled with anxiety.

“Y/N, I will just crawl under this stall door if you don’t open up. You’re worrying me.” You were out of time. You yanked your jeans up from your ankles and buttoned them hurriedly.

You let out a quiet sob and took a shaky breath as you opened the door. He took in your tear-stained cheeks and bloodshot eyes and enveloped you in a tight embrace. You held your breath to try to keep the sobs at bay as they threatened you from your throat.

He had his eyes open as he held you in his arms and took in the bloody toilet paper in the toilet bowl. “Baby,” he began, “did you start your period?” You shook your head against his shoulder. “Did you get hurt?”

He didn’t realize the weight that question carried. He knew of your self-harming habits you had dealt with since middle school. However, you and he had been dating for three years, and in that time, you hadn’t had a relapse. You waited a few moments. “Kinda,” you answered shakily.

“Baby,” he said slowly, beginning to realize. “Did you hurt yourself?” when you didn’t answer, he pulled away from you and placed his hands on either side of your face and took in the tears silently streaming down.

“Please don’t be mad.” You whispered. He began to tear up too, at that. He didn’t say anything, he just held you close to his chest again.

“Let’s get you home, okay?” he said after a few moments.

“No, no, your brothers are out there-“

“Shhh it’s okay, there’s a side door right outside the bathroom and I’ll just text Josh and tell him I’m feeling sick.” He left the stall first, and you began to follow, but the stinging between your legs made you grimace again.

“Honey, does it hurt to walk?” he questioned, his voice laced with concern. You shook your head vigorously, but the look in your eyes said everything he needed to know. He picked you up bridal style and held you close, your face nuzzled into his neck and arms tightly clinging to him.

The ride home was quiet, but he never let go of your hand, occasionally bringing it to his lips and kissing your knuckles gently.

He carried you into your shared home, and to your bathroom, and gently set you down on the sink. He stared into your eyes for a few moments before taking a deep breath.

“I love you, Y/N. So much. You said something at the bar, and I thought about it the whole way home. I could never be mad at you for this. Not ever. It hurts me, yes, but I would never be mad at you for getting to the point that this is the only way you felt like you could find comfort. I can’t even begin to understand what must be going through your brain to make you feel like this is the only answer, but I just wanna help you any way I can. Is that okay with you? If I help you?” You nodded in response, too worried you would cry again if you spoke. “Okay, can I take off your pants?” You nodded again.

He kissed the tip of your nose and began slipping your jeans down and off your ankles. You quickly pushed your thighs together out of habit, hiding your wounds from him. “Baby. It’s okay. It’s just me.” He placed a chaste kiss on each of your knees as he knelt down in front of you. You slowly spread your legs for him, feeling the most vulnerable and exposed in front of him you ever have. Of course, he had seen everything down there countless times, but never marred by your own hand this way. You heard him take a deep breath, as you tilted your head towards the ceiling in an effort to keep the tears from spilling down your cheeks.

You felt his hand graze yours before he grabbed it. “Hey,” he began, causing you to look down to him. A couple of tears escaped from the corners of your eyes then, your face red with embarrassment. He smiled softly at you. “It’s okay, baby. It’s alright. Just let me take care of you, okay?” You nodded at him and he kissed your forehead as he stood up from the floor. “I’ll be right back, okay?”

He returned with a clean washcloth from the linen closet, some bandages, antiseptic spray, and a jar of something you couldn’t see. He wet the washcloth in the sink next to you and knelt back down in front of you. He began cleaning and dressing the wounds, using the lightest and gentlest touches possible. When he used the antiseptic spray, he instantly blew on the wounds where he sprayed to relieve some of the stinging he knew you would feel. Once the bandages were placed, he grabbed the jar.

“I got out some cocoa butter. I know it’s good for scars. So, when these start to heal and they aren’t open anymore, I’ll rub this on the scars for you, okay?” He was looking up into your eyes, his own full of so much care and adoration. It brought tears to your eyes again, having never been loved in this way.

You could only nod again, but you reached forward and caressed his cheek. He smiled into your touch, and turned to place a kiss to your palm as he stood.

“Jake,” you began, but it was all you could get out before you started to cry, throwing your arms around his waist and pulling him to you. He held you tightly to his chest, letting you cry it all out.

After several moments, your sobs had much lessened, you pulled away from his chest and looked up into his face. You could see the remnants of some of his own tears. “Thank you, Jake. So much. I’m so sorry.”

“Hey, no, do not be sorry. This is how you coped last night. As much as I don’t understand it, I love you and I’m here to help you through this, if you let me. People relapse. It’s okay, it happens. But if you’re okay with it, I wanna help you find other outlets, okay?”

You nodded. “Thank you, Jake. I love you so much.”

“I love you too, baby. Let’s watch something and go to bed, does that sound okay with you?”

He knew you could walk now, with the wounds no longer exposed, but that didn’t stop him from picking you up from the counter and carrying you to your shared bed.

Once you were sat atop the covers, he brought you some of your favorite fuzzy pajama pants and one of his tshirts, and leaned you back to pull the pants on for you. When you were changed, he undressed to his boxers and pulled back the sheets to enter the bed. You quickly curled up to him and laid your head on his chest. He turned on a show you both knew you’d fall asleep before you’d finish, and he began tangling his fingers through your hair and playing with it. He absolutely radiated love and comfort.

Before you could drift off to sleep, you placed a quick kiss to his cheek. “Thank you again, Jakey. I love you so much.”

He laced his free hand with yours that was on his chest. “I love you so much, baby. So so much.” -fin.

[unohanabbygirl]

Re; my last ask

Aemond not having any romantic partners pre or post Luke so when Luke randomly drops “oh my ex boyfriend (not Owen) used to steal my socks all the time drove me crazy” “me and this girl I dated once did a readathon for the local charity at my foster organisation”. Just little things for Aemond to be like 💔💔 because these little interactions really would’ve been heartbreaking to Aemond who really wants their little inside jokes and domesticity back. Those little moments he treasured more than anything.

Aemond hating horror movies but pretending to love them to get involved in Luke’s new hobbies. 🥺👉🏻👈🏻

Also when Luke casually drops on them at dinner he fucking hates romance books/movies (maybe his life disillusioned them to him and made them painful?? Or the less traumatic he grew out of them and prefers mysteries and thrillers and fantasy (which happened to me from like 14-22 lol) ) everyone just stops really eerily and Rhaenyra starts crying

Luke’s like

Aemond is stuck in a horrible place between being slightly jealous/heartbroken that he’s no longer the only love Luke’s experienced just as Luke is the only love he’s experienced, yet completely understanding because he knows how much of a privilege it is to be loved by someone like Luke. I can almost picture how much he wants to fall back into that domestic routine that he’s waited years to relive once again but being unable because it’s something that has to be built from the ground up all over again. Though its very bittersweet because though he misses their old way of life as husbands.

They end up creating a new routine with one another whether Luke has truly caught on or not. Its not until they both realize they have a sort of inside joke going on about something silly or embarrassing one of them did and now Aemond can’t help but truly feel at home 🥹

Aemond showing major interest in whatever Luke enjoys even though he may not like it much himself is just so beautiful. Especially when you realize Luke can easily catch on when someone isn’t that big of a fan of his favorite media so he suggests they find hobbies that they both enjoy, just the two of them.

Ugh, these two who are literally in their prime partying years and spending their Saturday nights crocheting on the couch together. Aemond is so terrible at it that Luke is beginning to wonder why the guy seems to enjoy it so much. Little does he know they used to do the same thing in the later years of their marriage all the time. Old and gray, Aemond watching Luke through his single eye lens since his sight slightly worsened once he hit his 60’s. Helping Luke with all the gentleness in the world as he fiddled with the embroidery needle because his hands were beginning to shake from arthritis and writing his journal entries were causing him horrible pain more often then not. I cry…

No, but why is Luke slowly but surely loosing his love for romance media as he grows and learns that real love is nothing like the novels a canon event!!!?

His announcement is such a shock to everyone because they all remember how deeply he loved those books. Especially Rhaenyra since she was the main person who made sure to get her baby a new novel every other week. Luke is supposed to be a hopeless romantic and now he’s going on about how such media paints an image of love that he isn’t too fond of.

Now Harwin, Laena, Laenor and Daemon are all trying to hush her tears and Luke is just looking towards to Jace for some help like “did I…say something wrong?”

[robotnik-mun]

I’ve been binge watching the old ‘03 TMNT series, and you know what I’ve realized?

Same As It Never Was is hilarious.

Oh, don’t get me wrong- the episode itself isn’t hilarious. It’s a sombre, heartbreaking and nightmarish story, and easily one of the best of the ‘03 series. You just feel so, so bad for Donnie that he’s been put into this scenario and has to see and experience what he does.

But what makes it hilarious is when you compare it to what the rest of his brothers were going through when Ultimate Drako sent them across time and space.

Michelangelo gets to live out a dream scenario by going to a world where he and his brothers are superheroes in a world built upon Superhero Comic Tropes and teaming up with said Super Turtles.

Raphael gets to cut loose and become a racing champion, and gets the opportunity to lead a dangerous and morally broken planet into a new, better phase simply by giving them a better example to follow. In this way, he gets to be a hero.

And Leo? Leo gets to re-unite with his good friend Miyamoto Usagi, fighting alongside him and aiding his friends against the machinations of Lord Hebi, enjoying adventure and heroism in a version of Feudal Japan where he is normal rather than a freak.

And what does Donnie get?

He gets to experience a dystopian hellworld where Shredder reigns supreme, Splinter is dead and his brothers have viciously fallen out with one another over said death, Casey Jones also dead, the local resistance is so desperate that it uses children in its fight against the Shredder, and pretty much everyone he knows has been completely fucked over by what’s happened... and even though the Future Shredder is defeated, it comes at the cost of the other turtles lives, and Donnie is left with a pyrrhic victory and emptiness over what it cost to take Shredder down once and for all.

Like, holy shit. Can you imagine what must have gone through his head when the others talked about where they went and what they did? What the hell did DONNIE do to deserve this???

And to be clear- what Leo, Raph and Mikey went through wasn’t a picnic or a vacation, they were all in very real danger. But while they were put into situations that were tailor made for them to thrive in, it seems like Donnie was singled out to be put in a place that was custom-made to torture and traumatize him in the worst ways imaginable.

It’s just so insanely, psychotically lopsided, it’s hilarious.

[densitywell]

ludinus and ranni are similar in that they both want to use the moon to kill god out of grief and a need for vengeance. But they’re also cunning and cruel and I’ve seen people reduce them to one dimensional villains who want power for the sake of power.

THIS RESLLYNIS SO... anon your mind is wide open. use the moon to kill god (or is the moon using them 🤔?????)

i ended up having A LOT of thoughts about the parallels between the two and their ideology and their methods and the like, crazy amount of comparisons that can be drawn between Exandria and The Lands Between as post-post-apocalyptic worlds, so. I'm putting those under a read more.

responding to your broader point re: fandom interpretations of them, yeah. a lot of people seem far more comfortable with a villain being motivated by power for power's sake than having legitimate grievances about the way things are or even just like, anything sympathetic at all. bc moral complexity and detatching action from ideology is still very difficult and hard, and even people who claim to be above that kind of shallow reading fall into that pitfall from time to time (which is part of the reason i find a lot of Media Understander posting very unserious and more like a psychic's cold reading than an actual indication of someone's skill in that regard).

okay here's the long part.

the thing is, Ludinus and Ranni both- okay. i'll say it, the thing that discoursers love to treat as equivalent to thinking the vanguard have done nothing wrong and should win - Ludinus Does Have A Point. here, so people can screenshot me out of context-

"Ludinus does have a point." - Hecate Densitywell, 2024

both Exandria and the world of Elden Ring have recorded histories of colonialism and slaughter enacted by and in the name of their gods, against the Primordials and the Giants, the Aeorians and the Great Caravan of the nomadic merchants. The Shattering and the Calamity. Caelid and the Shattered Teeth.

Ludinus is much more interested and motivated by these histories than Ranni, who cares about the larger suffering of the world due to the Greater Will purely as an extension of her ideology. But in both cases it supports their overall argument against their gods, one in favor of free will, of separation from fate and the gods putting a finger - or slamming a hand down - on the scales.

it's a point completely betrayed by the methods Ludinus employs - the same kind of conquest and cruelty and control he rails against when it comes to the gods- but that is a condemnation of the actions and their perpetrator, not the ideas themselves. and while Ranni is shameless regarding the harm, both direct and indirect, that has occurred to achieve her goal, that harm more often has occurred in tandem with the actions of the gods and demigods vs in opposition to them.

they both also have personal, emotional motivations (and while i don't disagree with you, "Ranni killed god and recreated the world entirely bc her parents got divorced" is. so fucking funny when you put it like that.), but this is really true of anything anyone does, and it especially cannot be removed completely from issues concerning oppression, justice, the structure of our very society, etc.

and it's so fascinating in both cases, and in Elden Ring I honestly think Ranni's ending is the closest/most promising as a "good" ending, partially bc of all mentioned above, and bc the scope of the game means that the worst consequences (The Shattering) have already happened and cannot be changed, and there are only so many available endings overall. i do not think the same is true for Ludinus. the Exandrian gods are much more similar to mortals as opposed to say, the Elden Beast, and there's a chance they can be negotiated with or compelled to compromise into a more fair, equal way of using their power for good. and regardless, obviously Ludinus and friends should not be put in charge of fucking anything. not even a local craft store.

idk how to end this post. but damn this is all pretty crazy right

[high-voltage-rat]

Welp, with the encouragement of my dear sweet enablers, I've done it. I posted what I had sitting in my docs of the RvB university AU onto AO3.

The basic gist: Blood Gulch Hall is a student residence of the local university. It has a red hall of students, a blue hall of students, and a purple hall meant for the Residence Assistants. Sarge, of course, is one RA- convinced the two halls of students are separate and rivals- and so he's moved himself in amongst the students there. Flowers was the other RA until he suddenly died, leaving the blue hall with no real oversight.

After a prank gone wrong, the university decides a new RA needs to be assigned. Wash, a student who's distinguished himself to the school through the Project Freelancer student research placements, is given the job- much to his relief, as it's a sweet deal that saves him from his crushing student debt. Naturally, the local residents do not take kindly to his attempts at enforcing rules, and tomfoolery ensues.

Church is a history major finishing his final year of undergrad. As the member of Blood Gulch Hall that's been there the longest, he's especially tired of everyone's shit, but knows exactly how everyone seems to operate. He's also the son of the Director of the university, and has one of the biggest grudges against him and the school. In general, he's jaded and cynical, but likes fucking with the other residents and shooting the shit with Tucker.

Tucker is a political science major- after going on a student exchange program in high school with the intent of just getting away for a while so he could slack off and "pick up chicks who think foreigners are hot", he ended up accidentally adopting a role as an unofficial ambassador of his home country-and decided to try and pursue it as a career. He also minors in human sexuality- which he thought was going to teach him about how to be a sex god, but actually ended up making him re-evaluate himself and realize his constant talking about chicks was covering up his insecurity about his bisexuality.

Caboose is a mechanical engineering student in his third year. Though no one knows it, he's actually only been at the school for two years- he overloaded courses and passed them with surprisingly strong grades. He doesn't spell very well, which is mostly me leaning into the classic "engineers can't spell" joke, but he's extremely gifted in math and robotics, thinking in numbers and spacial reasoning- baffling his professors and classmates alike. Caboose is accustomed to a large family, which naturally comes with a lot of bickering. He views the group at Blood Gulch Hall like a surrogate family that way- and is happy to just smile and nod when they argue amongst themselves, more concerned with his latest robotics projects.

Kai is a business major- she's been running side hustles most of her life, it seemed natural for her to take it to the next level using the savings she'd made. She knows people don't typically view her as smart, that they look at her as a bimbo- and doesn't care. She sometimes even leans into the role if it means she can turn people underestimating her to her advantage. She throws awesome parties, knows all the cool people on campus, and has all the best self-care tips and tricks. She also delights in embarrassing her older brother at every opportunity.

Grif is a chemical engineering student- at the time, it seemed like a good idea. He had a dream, you see, to develop a banana flavouring that actually tasted like bananas, a grape flavouring that actually tasted like grapes. By the time he realized it would be a lot more complicated than that, it was too late- he was committed. He now spends his time suffering through and scraping by in all the core engineering classes, learning about motors and thermodynamics and waiting for the light in the tunnel. He passes his free time by developing a tier list of all the pizza joints across campus, and perfecting his own brownie recipe (with and without weed).

Simmons is an electrical and computer engineering student. He was always a nerd, but until he gained a bionic arm, he'd been leaning more towards the theoretical side of the sciences. After that, though, he was constantly studying in his own time, learning how to tinker with it and improve its performance- which naturally brought him to engineering. He's the kind of keener who does all the readings well in advance, visits every office hour even when he doesn't need help just in case there's interesting discussion, and stays after class to chat with professors. He pretends to be tired of Grif leaning on his to study for the things he doesn't find interesting, but he secretly enjoys being the smart one who can lecture his friend on a topic.

Donut is a vet sciences student- he grew up on a farm, surrounded by and caring for a myriad of animals, and kept the passion for it throughout his whole life. He plans on specializing in bovine and equine medicine, which means he doesn't get grossed out by much anymore. It throws people off when he cheerfully discusses sticking his arm inside a cow's ass- but he's so desensitized he doesn't even consider it, much to the dismay of Grif and Simmons. He and Kai are the residence's biggest supporters of self-care regimens, regularly getting together to discuss skin care while they give each other manipedis. He also enjoys wearing novelty themed earrings... when there isn't a concern of a patient biting them.

Sarge is the RA for the red team... and while very few people know it, that's actually the umbrella term over his true role as Faculty in Residence. He's a member of the engineering faculty, specializing in combustion modelling. After developing the Stagnation And Radiation Generalizing Equations method of computation and modelling (SARGE method for short), he was granted tenure and celebrated as a pioneer in his field. However, over time, he was left in the dust as the field was largely dropped in favour of more environmentally friendly things like electric vehicles. Very few people remember his contributions to the field now, and he's never really asked to teach classes, so he was appointed RA so the pay wasn't going to waste... and he's thrown himself quite cheerfully and passionately into his work.

Wash is a walking disaster- and by that, I mean he's in his third year, has no declared major, and is still trying to figure out what he wants to do with himself. Formerly part of the university's Project Freelancer, a research placement that recruits undergrads into a high-pressure work environment for very little pay, he's found himself burnt-out and exhausted. Being given a work-study position as the peer mentor RA of Blood Gulch Hall is a relief- it doesn't pay, but it's free housing and a waived tuition fee for the year that gives him time to figure his shit out. Unfortunately, his reliance on the job ends up becoming another source of stress... and it's a while before he learns the motions of living and working with his fellow residents.

...Obviously there's way more to it, more characters, more lore tidbits that I've yet to sprinkle in, et cetera. But this post is already long enough, so if there's interest, I'll probably post that another time.

[jvstheworld]

The Buffy Re-watch: S1E9 (part 1)

What's my Line?: Part 1

Career fairs. We had one at my school, never went to it. Those tests weren't a part of it though, from what I know. More just stalls and people chatting.

Even here Buffy does not think she would have have a life beyond slaying and an early death.

Spike has a Latin translation book. Yet he wasn't thrilled at getting a Italian phrase book from his trip in season 5 in Angel.

Spike immediately apologises to Dru for being angry and rushes to help her when she is struggling. He's supposed to be evil but he's a sweetheart really.

He's obsessed with Buffy, we know it even now.

Ermm... Can I be kissed like that? Because that was hot. And then he picks Dru and dances with her. Again, evil but romantic.

Angel just casually hanging out in Buffy's room, cuddling Mr Gordo. The hanging out in Buffy's room is weird, like why not wait on the bench on the porch? But the cuddling the pig was cute.

So in my last post I said that I would make a very long point. It will get a bit personal, so here it is: I hate how schools and parents try to make you have an idea about your future at 16. it's stupid and puts unwanted pressure on teenagers. Let's face it, no one, especially nowadays, knows what the fuck they are going to do with the rest of their lives. I was one of those people that never knew at that age and that was 11 years ago. I've only recently figured it out, which is why I write these posts. Not because it's fun (it is but that's not the main reason) but because I am practicing to hopefully do this as a career. But, with the advent of AI journalism and writing, there might not be much of a job for me, and that's terrifying. It's why I support the WGA and SAG-AFTRA strikes, not just because they deserve to be paid, residuals and have all the safety protocols they need, but for the job security that AI can take away. You should not be able to replace humans with algorithms that churn out mis-mashed, stolen work. Kids and teenagers are still learning about their place in the world, some might have a clear idea of what they want to do, and they should be helped to achieve it. For people like Buffy and myself, we need more time. We need to believe that we might have a future before we can plan for one. I know that Buffy does eventually get a future and a job she is proud to do in the comics, but it is an extremely long road for her to get there. Struggling and finding your place in the world is normal, more so in recent years. I don't know how many times I have listened to my dad talk about how he knew at 18 that he wanted to join the RAF. He signed up when he could after being turned down for working at the local coal mine (this was in the 80s). He knew what he wanted to do and did it. However, I can not ever seem to make it clear to him that I struggle with this and I don't think he approves of my choice to do this sort work because he doesn't understand the interest I have in films and TV. Some of my favourite YouTube channels are Cinema Therapy, Cinema Wins and Dead Meat because they get it. They have that passion for film and TV and that interest into how it's all made. Now if I had the confidence to create and run my own YouTube channel, I would. Unfortunately due to my anxiety, depression and chronic health issues that like to cause me problems I have to stick to just this. But there is nothing wrong with not knowing what you want to do when you're 16 or older. You can work it out as you go, it might just take some time and maybe better circumstances . Just focus on getting through school and go from there. Don't let anyone pressure you into making decisions about your life if you're not ready for it.

If that made no sense, sorry. If it did, yay. I wrote it in my notes as almost one long stream of consciousness. This happens on occasion.

Back to regular scheduled programming tomorrow.

[imsfire2]

WIP whenever meme

I'd not come across this one before and don't know the rules, so apologies if I'm doing it wrong! Tagged by the lovely @captastra and I am assuming from the name that this is about posting a piece of a WIP at some stage in its development at some point.

So, hoping I've got that right, and thanks for the tag!! and here's the opening of my long-half-finished summer cricket league story.

Setting is in the Guau-guau 'verse, which features the Rogue One crew as everyday people in west London. This is for @thenewleeland by the way; long-promised, maybe one day soon to be delivered!

The cricket match

In Re. yr. interest in local club league, the email was titled.  Bodhi blinked at his phone screen.  In Re. yr.  He tried to remember when he’d last seen a wording like that.  Informal in a way, but the informality of – what – his grandparents’ generation?  It made him weirdly uncomfortable.

As he opened the email, Luke came into the sitting room of their flat carrying the tea tray and Jyn began hastily sweeping papers and books off the table.  Bodhi read quickly and started to swear under his breath, and they both looked round.

“What the - Bo, are you okay?” Luke sounded completely taken aback by the strong language. “Is something wrong?”

“Oh fuck, fuck,” Bodhi said again. “I’ve made a total cock-up.” He rubbed the back of his neck, wishing he could undo the impulsive action of a few days ago that had led to this.

“Why, what’s going on?” Jyn asked. “Is something wrong at flight school?”

“What?  Oh no, nothing like that.  It’s about cricket.”

“You’re dropping f-bombs over the cricket?” Luke smiled. “Aww, honey, it’s just a game.”

“It’s about our little team.  I think I – I think I may have got us in deep shit.”

His fiancé and sister exchanged a glance and blinked at one another, like actors in a comedy, before Jyn came over and sat down beside him on the sofa. “Talk to me, Bodhi.  Is it Ealing council?  If we’re in trouble for paying ball games in the park or something, remember that’s on all of us, not just you.  No-one told us it was against the rules.”

“We didn’t ask,” Luke pointed out.

“Yeah, well, everyone plays sports there all the time so I don’t see why we should have to ask when—"

“It’s not the council,” Bodhi interrupted. “It’s – it’s all my fault.  Remember we were talking about if we could maybe join the local club league next year, if we could get a full team together?  I – I contacted them.  Just to ask.  It’s about that.  It’s a formal invitation.  From the captain of the current title holders.  To a, to a, like, a challenge match, to test if we’re good enough.”

“Blimey,” Jyn said. “A challenge?  Straight off the bat, if you’ll pardon the phrase?  That’s a bit over the top, isn’t it?”

“He suggests we have a friendly limited-over match one weekend.  And then he goes into all the details about requirements and allocated drinks breaks and whatnot and it all gets terribly formal and oh shit, it’s just - I’ve really fucked up so badly.  I should never have asked.”

He handed her the phone and she read while Luke poured him tea, and opened the biscuits.

“So,” Jyn said, accepting a mug and then a hobnob “this WH Tarkin brackets Captain close brackets wants to have a 40-over match one Saturday between his team from – Empire Gyms, hah! – and us.  The sides to provide one umpire each and tea to be at Empire Gyms’ expense as being the senior team.  Crikey, how ridiculously formal.  He makes it sound like a duel.  Okay, who’re we going to field then?  Bags I bat at number four.”

“Jyn, come on, we’re no way ready to play a formal match, we’ve just been knocking a ball about and having a laugh.”

“We’ve been challenged,” Jyn retorted. “By some pompous old buffer who thinks the local club league is his baby.  Talk about a big fish in a small pond.  He sounds so smug.  Someone should show him the little folks can play too, thank you very much Mr Tarkin.”

“Jyn, no…” 

“Jyn yes.  Seriously.  We can’t just get all British and embarrassed and say we didn’t mean it.  We’ve been challenged to a fight, we have to turn up at least.  Bodhi, come on!”

“Tell her she’s nuts,” Bodhi implored; but Luke was grinning at his future sister-in-law’s excitement.

“If we don’t even show up, then for sure, we’ll never get into the league,” Jyn went on. “If we give it a bash then at least we’ve taken a chance and had a go.”

She passed the phone to Luke. “Read it.  Tell me I’m not over-reacting.  This bloke sounds so bloody old-school, and really possessive.  It’s like all local cricket is his domain and none shall enter the realm without his say-so.  I want to punch his nose already and I haven’t even met him.”

[gayemeralds]

hi! ive liked the project shadow is sonic theory for a while, (mostly bc of your posts) not necessarily believing in it but i DO think its interesting but one things been bugging me about it is shadows memory of marias wish/promise (localization errors.). because like. i dont think gerald wouldve given him that memory? it has no benefit to him, it actively undermines his goal and i dont think shadows brain would just make it up. while hes dead set on revenge. do you hacve an explanation for it?

disclaimer: i don’t think they ever intended for “project shadow” to be sonic’s actual backstory other than maybe a fun “what if?” and i wouldn’t ever want it canonized but i think about it so much

okie dokie ive got three theories here bc this is also something i wonder about.

gerald wasn’t originally going to make shadow a weapon: gerald was going to re-create project shadow under g.u.n., with the same intention of helping the world and being a good guy, until he saw the list of people killed in the raid and found maria amongst them. gerald, who had already given shadow his memories and maria’s soul (a la sonic battle), then altered them to fit his decent into madness, which is why shadow was able to remember

shadow was given maria’s soul/however sonic battle explains it: this innate connection allowed him to remember marias true wish, just as it keeps emerl good, until the very end.

shadow just has a fucking breakdown: shadow didn’t agree with destroying the planet, but that’s what his memories tell him to do, that’s the purpose gerald gives him, so shadow goes through with it. but the worlds about to end and the ark is about to crash into the planet and shadow doesn’t WANT that to happen- he doesn’t really want to destroy the world, despite it all, because gerald still made him a living, conscious, human person despite also being a wmd. so shadow’s brain configured a new memory- to justify his actions of saving the world.

im partial to the first- that g.u.n. lied to gerald about the events of the ark, that maria was held somewhere, perhaps as a hostage to keep him going, so gerald decides to make the second ultimate lifeform prorotype similar to sonic- hoping to create a hero to right his wrongs. but then gerald finds a list of those killed, and his hate for humanity takes hold, and gerald gives shadow black arms dna and alters his memory until he creates the shadow we know today. and instead of righting gerald’s wrongs… he’s going to right all of humanity’s wrongs, by acting as judge, jury, and executioner.