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lukewarmkraftsingle · 1 year

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hi can you elaborate on divorced au mp100. i saw your video and i just went fucking nuts sitting in bed. in my brain. i need to know is it /j or /srs i need to know. im really obsessed. i think it would be really good

[the post. for context]

8:44 AM

thanks for the question! i woke up the morning of January 1st, this lovely, beautiful morning, with some animal crossing song stuck in my head. i know it's from new leaf because it has the theme for that game in it, but i cannot for the life of me remember what track it was. it can't be any of the new year's ones, i know how the new year's ones sound. i have an excellent memory for music and not much else, you see. the song is in very vivid detail in my mind, but i just cannot put the face to the name. or whatever. i'm listening to the whole ost right now to see which one it is. but after my eyes were open and whatever, i opened my phone to see what time it was, about 8 am, which is fine. i didn't stay up until midnight last night anyway. i fell asleep much earlier, passed out sideways on my bed, until the fireworks they do nearby every year kicked up right at midnight and woke me up. but i did get back to sleep. had weird dreams.

back to this morning, then. after checking my messages and all, i opted to look at my tumblr, because why not, sure, i have been known to do that sometimes. i scroll through any new posts, then i see something in my inbox, i open this message, read it quickly, still only half awake, immediately started cackling. there is no better way to describe the sound i made.

the animal crossing ost is on the hourly music now. i know it's not any of that either. but i like the hourly music. i'll let some of em play out. whatever.

but this message intrigues me. i thought about it while i got out of bed and took a shower. the animal crossing song was still trucking along at this point. i cleared out my shower drain the other day, so it was nice and in full functioning order to start off the year. lovely. but i also washed my shower curtains and completely forgot to put them back, but it was too late by the time i realized that i needed to do that. i was already determined to go through with the shower. maybe this is some kind of metaphor. for the new year i mean. mayhaps i will have the strength to take on whatever sort of stress that the year will throw at me, as the shower drain did, but it will be done with a sort of messy transparency, as the shower curtain-less experience offered. maybe this is the only way we can properly take on our greatest challenges. insert reigen quote. whatever. the floor is dry now, it's fine.

anyway. i think i can offer you the initial discussion that led to me making that video. much like a weed-adjacent post i made a while back, this is a discussion between me and The wife. i will offer brief commentary and context as needed below each image. or as not needed. none of this commentary has been needed. i will keep up the trend.

i take a lot of screenshots when i'm going out and about on the internet. just of little things that i find entertaining. or intriguing. i find it to be a much more reliable method than just liking the post or putting it in twitter bookmarks or whatever. much less likely to get deleted, or buried, or whatever. said reigen folder does not really exist. i do have a collection of snippets of posts like that, but there is no dedicated folder. it's with all the other mob psycho ones. there are currently 150 screenshots in that folder. do with that information what you will. i may be interested in posting those reigen ones, though. i'll think about it.

oh. it's on the rainy versions now. i think i'll just skip over those ones. about the same, just less instruments. same for the snow ones. this playlist is thorough.

this is one of the major issues with the divorced au: is it a mischaracterization of reigen? there are concerns that no woman would ever want to be within twenty feet of him. gf has expressed such sentiments previously, and i am partially inclined to agree. but i cannot say much, as anyone can see my post history on here. and you can see my reigen profile picture in these messages. while my picture was not that exact reigen image in november of 2022, it was still a reigen image. i will provide below for full immersive experience.

i am not taking questions at this time. anyway. back to the important discussion.

this is the one part of the au that i provided myself at that time that is not included in the actual post, and the main catalyst of the divorce, perhaps. i have seen other proposals in the tags, yes, but i am refraining from bringing those up. this is the initial discussion, yes? i'm keeping it disconnected from anything outside of this initial conversation.

all of the creation of the picture in the video was done in paint, with it only being moved to photoshop later so i could better flip the image. this is relevant later. i feel the need to specify, i ultimately did not end up tracing a photo. much too difficult to do in paint, and it wouldn't provide a very good look for what i was going for anyway. i did, however, heavily reference another better stock photo i found. surely said photo is not very difficult to find, which is good, because i do not have it on hand either. sad!

and here is the reason why the drawing was turned into a video. for whatever reason, i was possessed to flip the small drawing of mob (psycho 100), and i discovered that it was, perhaps, the greatest activity i could have possibly chosen to partake in. it was mesmerizing. this message was sent after the video was made, but i feel as though it is much more clear than the message i sent before making the video, which was simply a crazed declaration of it "flip[ping] so good," followed by a complaint about the lack of a flip shortcut in paint. if anyone knows of a "flip selection" shortcut in paint, please let me know. i could not find one, even though i searched very carefully for one.

OHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH

the animal crossing song was not the new year's one. it was the fireworks festival music. from new leaf.

youtube

listen to it. it's one of my favorites. i can't believe i forgot when it plays. very sorry! and to all of my one-earbud user friends out there, use both for this one. as you should for all animal crossing music. or turn your sound onto mono i don't know.

anyway. i suppose i should offer a brief summary of where we've gotten: reigen arataka, greatest psychic of the 21st century, had a wife at some point, and he no longer has a wife, due to a divorce, presumed at least a bit messy. questionably canon. it could certainly be inserted into canon fine enough. he is gay.

let's take some questions from the audience, then!

there are a couple of tags along these lines, i believe, but this provides a degree of severity to any sorts of divorce theorizing. it's a bit of a spectrum in my mind. i like the percentages. really meshes well with the rest of the series. 100% divorced. y'know?

not me creating lore for this. i think this one offers an interesting perspective on all of it. i suppose that my depiction does offer a sort of swapping of their usual dynamic. when i first saw these tags, it brought to mind an alternate approach to the usual depictions of the standard "age swap" au, in which i feel, in my heart, pushing 30 mob is at least 16% divorced. the dynamic in the video, when taken at face value i think, would be more descriptive of overly enthusiastic younger reigen and some degree of "divorced in vibes" mob. surely most are familiar with such au shenanigans, and surely you are too, dearest anonymous person, if you have read this far. you seem to have some interest in alternatives to canon. if not, it is certainly not hard to come across. i have no other constructive comments on age swapping. someone else go and do that. i don't know.

but i suppose i should be speaking with slightly more relevance. i do have some purpose in drawing them in this manner. i see the show as a bit more lighthearted, generally. this is absolutely not to downplay the themes it tackles. but the average episode is generally more playful. and with reigen often being the cause of that. uh. m. i feel like i was going somewhere with this. but uhh. such shenanigans in the drawing are for the purpose of exaggerating the uh. the abnormality. yeah. sure. definitely did it with Grand Purpose and not just because i thought the mob looked funny.

and now we come to some constructive criticism! i love receiving constructive criticism.

uh. yes. but this is divorced au. anything is possible. the fabric of reality is tearing apart as we speak.

and now, the question we've all been waiting for: who was he married to? there are certainly some possibilities. as i currently have none, i am turning to my notes again.

i believe this tag presents an interesting possibility. this is not a marriage of romance. i was not actually familiar with the term "lavender wedding," but i am certainly familiar with the concept. two people going into a heterosexual marriage to conceal their true attractions, yes? this does go against my suggestion that the divorce is caused because reigen is gay, but it does resolve the constructive criticism presented above. i find this concept incredibly entertaining the more i think about it, however. imagine being so desperate to try to conform to societal norms that you marry Reigen Arataka. imagine coming to find the concept of having to pretend to be in love with reigen so aggressively unappealing that you are willing to forgo the social acceptance you've gained for yourself and divorce him, which depending on what kinda situation you're in, that's no good either. and after all the work you've had to put in to pull this off. imagine. incredible. does he fight for it? does he go deeper into the act?? do you start getting convinced that he was straight and in love with you the entire time?? actually maybe not that far. whatever. entertaining concept. love that.

and now we get into something a little bit funky. !!!!!!!!!!! and this section is a tad bit spoilery if you haven't read the reigen manga yet this is your first and final warning !!!!!!!!!!!

!!!!!! and also go read it it's not that long and. i think you should !!!!!!!

i'm not sure how that timeline would work. they knew each other before the manga? imagine the drama though. a whole new way to read the spinoff. reigen's ex-husband (wife???????) comes across his goofy little psychic business, and reigen immediately starts trying to one-up him with spiritual level bs. and both fake psychics, they're soulmates <3 until they got divorced. whatever.

OK I'M DONE WITH MINOR SPOILERS YOU CAN COME BACK NOW

and finally, i uh

uhh. um. well. i sure hope not.

but i suppose as the arbiter of mp100 divorced au, i should offer my own thoughts on who his ex-wife is. uh. i don't particularly have any. it could be literally anyone. maybe they don't even need to be named. but i suppose if someone really needs to be his ex-wife, it's whoever you think is funniest, dearest anonymous asker person. whoever you feel is his ex-wife in your heart. i am only here to present a handful of possibilities. the truth that you seek lies within you. as long as his ex-wife isn't me. god i hope it's not me.

i guess i could consult gf about this hold on

HHHHHHHHHHHhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh i can't do this

you don't have to listen to them. ok. you don't. it's not true.

anyway. just a few things to tie this up nicely at the end.

much appreciation to everyone who put keysmashes in the tags. i am honored. and everyone else too! i like reading my notes. fun times. you're all cool. i tried to keep the tags i put here focused on the task at hand, but every tag has been thoroughly appreciated, do not worry.

i am also honored to present the award for Tag That Made Me Absolutely Lose It When I Read It to this one:

thank you for being significantly funnier than i could ever dream of being.

and finally, to send all of you off, one last thing tossed together and heavily inspired by a couple of the tags, which i am upset that i did not think of myself:

is this all /j? is this /srs? i want to say it's /j, but i've put too much time into this now. very sorry dearest anonymous person. you have sent me into a sort of crisis. i suppose i put too much effort into everything that should remain as 5 minutes max /j Content. well.

hope that answers your question!

4:20 PM

#mp100 divorced au #proud to be the second post on the tag #mp100 #mob psycho 100 #sincerest apologies for this one #my stuff #terribly sorry posted left didn't even add a keep reading thing on it this thing is very long #a protein bar is my meal. main course. it isn't very good

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pettyprocrastination · 1 year

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hiiii congrats on ur story being accepted to a lit journal!! ur writing is rlly gorgeous and hope more good things come to you 💌🫀!!

+ i guess i did have a question lol (and feel free to ignore or not answer!!) how did u find lit journals to submit to i guess? like what was your criteria for looking / how did u know how to go about looking lol. again! if you don’t want to answer totally fine :))) hope u have a great day !!

thank you so much love! And I'm happy to answer your questions!

one of my biggest pieces of advice is to look at small journals! I know personally it'd be nice to be able to get into a big journal on the first try but sadly for many (or at least myself lol) that usually isn't the case. My acceptance was from a very small run journal with a following of only about 100-130. It isn't to say that you don't have the talent to get into bigger literary journals- but there going to be much more competitive because they'll most likely have a lot more submissions to go through as well.

there are lots of small-run journals I've found through looking on instagram and twitter: often times when you find one you like their following list will be similarly themed/subject literary journals of the same vein or will have posts recommending fellow journals that you'll also find as good fits for your work!

Use submittable! It's a wonderful website that lets you filter through calls for submissions for art, essays, poetry, short stories, and media pieces of the like for contests and journals around the world for free as a writer/artist. It also allows you to keep track of your submissions and withdraw them easier than just doing so through plain email. (screenshot of website featured below)

Don't feel any pressure to submit to journals that require a submission fee- there are plenty of amazing journals both big and small that you can submit to for free

Now I will say that some literary journals you may find won't use submittable (because a subscription to it as a literary journal is quite expensive) which is also fine! That just means you'll have to be more content with checking your email more often for responses

I know personally I had to look for journals that allowed more "outside of the box" writing/subject matter simply because my story featured cannibalism quite heavily and things like that can be a big no-no for other journals because it may not fit the general theme of their issue/clash with the stories they had already accepted for that time slot. So look for ones that best fit to your style! My professor had told me it's best to look for literary journals that don't worry about genre but it can be hard if you write for genres that are often hard sells (ie horror) for others.

i'd say the biggest thing personally was submitting to a lot of places. Many journals allow simultaneous submissions (submitting one story to multiple journals at once) but it's best to let them know initially and then withdraw as soon as you get accepted somewhere else. Sometimes it really is a numbers game of "if i submit this story to five places I'm more likely to get an acceptance from at least one of them" but keep in mind that 1. Not all journals allow simultaneous submissions and 2. If there's one journal in particular that you really really want to be featured in I'd recommend submitting your piece to only that one so you don't get jinxed and get accepted somewhere else before they have a chance to respond.

I know it may sound moot but keep an ongoing list of the journals you like and plan to submit to!! If you aren't using submittable, it can be very easy to lose track of the journals you want to submit to without anyway of definitely remembering them so I've started by making a google docs full of journals I come across that I want to one day be accepted in + their next submission deadline because once you look at so many its definitely easy for the titles and dates to slip your mind without thinking

And finally my biggest piece of advice is to be patient and take rejections with grace. Coming from somebody who has had her stories rejected multiple times and is currently on staff for a literary journal: rejections don't mean your story is bad. It can mean they already accepted too many of the same theme/subject, the story doesn't match the theme of their current issue or many other topics. You're a talented writer and you can't let rejections pull you away from submitting! As frustrating as it is, publication for a lot of us is a small group of fish in a very big pond of rejections, as is the way of writing!

Anyways- be patient, be confident, and have fun!

#ask #asks #i feel so professional answering this lol #writing reference #writing advice #im still learning the ups and down of publishing+submitting as I go so im more than happy to answer any questions about the process!!!!

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your-lavender-dreams · 1 year

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*random rumbling*

Ohhhh what a week. That’s me currently trying to get out of the Twitter hell

and finally crawling back to the safe and peaceful place that Tumblr is for me.

I’m generally trying to avoid Twitter at all costs (coz it’s too toxic for me), and especially any drama, but somehow I was hanging out there and the huge scandal in another fandom evolved right before my eyes, wow, what an experience. I didn’t want to get involved at all, but the whole situation seemed so unfair to me that I just couldn’t stay silent and wanted to do anything.

Maybe I would’ve talked about this with someone here, but I went through some tags and it seems like people from here didn’t really get the scale of it all. And I definitely can’t blame them because no sane person would’ve been able to keep up with all the shit that appeared on Twitter during this past week. I made a mistake by diving into all of that and I’m suffering the consequences now *sigh*

This post is so random and vague and I won’t get into any detail because it’s too much. I know I’m supporting the unpopular opinion in the fandom, but I made up my mind and today I was finally able to hear the other side of the conflict, and now I am even more confident in my decision. If the court results prove I’m wrong, I’ll gladly accept it. But at least I can say for sure I’m right about all this scandal being far beyond personal, and while many don’t understand why people expect the company to get involved… well, the company wouldn’t have lost over 70k followers in 12 hours if it was just a personal issue.

This post is so random and vague, but I guess I can still make use of it and say this:

If you decide to support one side in a controversial issue after only hearing their side — it’s your decision. It’s logical to wait for both sides to speak up, it’s even more logical to wait for the legal proceedings to be over, but I understand it feels unbearable at times to wander somewhere in the middle. Of course, no one can stop you from supporting the side that seems more truthful to you, but PLEASE don’t harass the other side, don’t throw death threats and make up even more accusations out of the blue, especially when NOTHING is confirmed.

Tweets with vague stories, cropped screenshots that can be pulled completely out of context are not legit evidence. Someone’s cute and nice appearance is not evidence as well.

While it may seem like a show to you, those social media dramas involve REAL PEOPLE and yeah, you can feel shitty for supporting the wrong person in the aftermath. But how will you feel about throwing death wishes at someone who turns out to be innocent in the end? Did they not suffer enough? How will you feel if they follow your wish?

But yeah, I feel like I did everything possible and now I finally feel better and am able to focus on writing. I’m awfully late with the next update, but January has been so full of unpleasant twists and turns and it’s not even over yet 😭

#so sorry for anyone who decides to read this nonsense #just rumbling about stuff #it’s the issue in Thai industry but really better save your sanity and not even check on that

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teememdee · 1 year

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2022 Art Summary!!! I'm extremely proud of both how much I've made and how much I've improved this year :D and because I love talking about my work I wanna go through each month under the cut because I didn't put some things on here but I feel they're important

JANUARY

After two years of it being the same picture, I decided to start the year update my twitter pfp, and I think I'll keep up the tradition this year, because not only has my art style evolved, I'm now over 4 months on T so I want to reflect that. Other than this piece I started work on another late in the month, but wouldn't finish until February.

FEBRUARY

And there's the big piece. Based on my own fanfiction would your heart know, I had been wanting to draw this scene for a long time. Ahri and Kai'Sa's Runeterra designs take forever to draw and I spent ages on Kai'Sa's expression. Fun fact, for the background, I painted over a Breath of the Wild screenshot for reference, and Link is crouching behind Kai'Sa if you turn her layers off. I like this piece still, and I'm glad I made it, but I like the other piece from this month more. I love drawing characters from games I don't play! I love Yae Miko's design and love making myself suffer with small details, so this happened. I can't remember the exact number but each piece of jewelry is an absurd amount of layers. This piece helped me improve both my hair and metal rendering, plus I just love the colors. ALSO: published the first chapter of my Kahri Proposal fic, the stars align for you and i!

MARCH

One piece this month, as this time of year is always the worst, both mental health wise and school-wise. Still, I wanted to make art for Kai'Sa's birthday on the 7th. To be honest I don't really like this piece that much, I could sit here and nitpick it but no one wants to read that. People on Twitter liked it though!

APRIL

I don't think I was as miserable in April but I didn't draw / finish anything (I definitely did stuff for my art classes, but nothing fanart related + I was still writing fic at the time) until the 24th. I did this in one night after the "Hollow Mind" episode of The Owl House. A fantastic episode from a fantastic show. This piece gave me the confidence that I could make simpler yet still really good pieces in less time.

MAY

Evidently, I was much happier in May. Kujou Sara was another "I just think they're neat" piece that turned into me teaching myself how to render hair and skin way better, and about gradient maps. I did the whole piece (minus the mask) in greyscale and then basically just fucked around. I'm still really happy with how it looks. Then I finally drew a kiss I liked. This is another piece I could now sit here and nitpick but generally I still like it, especially the hand. THEN THE RELEASE OF BEL'VETH RUINED MY LIFE. The color story Pinwheel WRECKED me. I drew the "You, and your father" piece the same day it came out. Not only did this teach me more about expressions and ESPECIALLY environment lighting, the author of the story liked it on Twitter!!!! I was already obsessed, but Pinwheel threw me into the depths of brainrot regarding Kassadin and his family (Kassfam). Due to a distinct lack of canon material, I have a boat load of headcanons that I won't get into here, but the family portrait is set in K/DA-verse when Kai'Sa is two years old, not long before her mother dies. TL;DR the Void won't leave this family alone and I'm obsessed with them. Then, a piece that was in my head for a really long time, I couldn't stop thinking about how Kai'Sa was only ten years old in Runeterra when she falls into the Void. I adore this piece, wish it got more attention on Twitter but oh well haha ALSO: published the second chapter of the stars align for you and i!

JUNE

My birthday month!!! The first piece was a gift to myself, and I love it so so so so much. It's so cute. I love them. I'm so proud of how Kai'Sa's second skin looks and both of their expressions. This piece was also my first steps into getting better and rendering Ahri's tail + hair. I love it. It's one of my favorites from the year. Then Star Guardian 2022 started!!! I finished this piece the day after SG Kai'Sa's voicelines dropped, and because I'm a firm believer in Kahri being soulmates, I went wild over this line. I really love how Ahri looks, she's so cute. This piece taught me how to cope with my ship being so, extremely not canon LMAOO

JULY

More Star Guardian!!! The big Kahri piece is approximately one billion layers (200+) and took five years off my life. I'm very VERY proud of it, but I'm never drawing full body pieces of those designs again. KAI'SA MENTIONING HER MOTHER IN ANOTHER SKY WAS FOR ME PERSONALLY. I'm the only person obsessed with her. I love this piece it's so cute. I hope one day DeadWife gets a canon design but for now I love her like this. And then a big smooch!!! This started as a sketch I was doing bc I was miserable + found a good reference and then it turned into my most popular piece of the year, and I adore it. Definitely a step forward in regards to rendering Ahri's hair and showing motion + emotion.

AUGUST

Just one piece because I was busy, but good practice. I love Sarah Fortune and wanted to make her Star Guardian version look more like how she does in Runeterra. Love her expression and nose shape especially. ALSO: published the first chapter of my copium Star Guardian Kahri fic, be the light to carry me!

SEPTEMBER

Simple pieces I knocked out in one day each. The Runeterra kiss is my favorite, I want to say it's the best rendering I did all year. Admittedly I don't have much to say about the Star Guardian piece. Could have been better but it's good! Twitter loved both of these :)

OCTOBER

I've always wanted to draw Seraphine because I love her, then her Legends of Runeterra design came out and I knew it was time. I LOVE her hair. I love Seraphine. She's my bestie. Then my favorite piece of the year!! No reference, just brainrot. They're so cute. They love each other so much. They're married. I adore them. That's all. And next I wanted to practice gradient maps again, so I did this one night and am so, so proud of it. Another contender for favorite piece of the year. Kai'Sa is such a tragic character and I feel like this really shows just how sad she is. I love her. ALSO: published the second chapter of be the light to carry me!

NOVEMBER

And of course I made an Ahri companion piece. Same deal, done in greyscale then I messed around with a gradient map. I especially love the background here. Can you tell I love Runeterra Kahri. I wanted to update my Twitter banner because it was an old piece, and so this happened. Again, their designs are so much, but the effort is always worth it. Notably this piece taught me more about environment lighting. I just love how they're holding each other. Noticed after this I've been coloring Ahri's shoulder armor wrong, but oh well. I love this so much.

DECEMBER

And here we are at the end of the year!!! Ahri's birthday means she gets art, and I love all the photos she has in an album in that official Spotify playlist cover art, and always wanted to make something involving that. This piece started off with a different sketch but I didn't like how static it felt, this is much much better. Super proud of the expressions here. I tried to get the handwriting at the bottom as similar to Ahri's canon handwriting (it's in a photo Seraphine posted), and writing out Kai'Sa's name in her handwriting made me stupid emotional. Lastly, for the past two years of brainrot, I've drawn a piece of Kahri in some winter scene, and WOW is this an improvement since last year. I also finally figured out how to do drapery in my style, I think. I literally finished this piece today, and I adore it. I just love this ship so so much and I'm not sorry.

IN CONCLUSION:

I made a lot of art and got much better at it!! I mostly wrote all of this for me, but if you read all of it, thank you so much! This was also the year I joined tumblr because my home base Twitter is. yeah. but I had wanted to make an account for a long time and have lurked for even longer. Glad to be here and glad that you are too!! Happy New Year!!! May you all have a good 2023 :D

#2022 art review #long post #yeah this got out of hand lmao I just love talking about my work and also mostly wrote it for me #tanner art #tanner talks

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popopretty · 2 years

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The Day I Picked Up Dazai - Side A (1)

I translated the first few pages of the new Dazai novel, which was given out as free bonus for those who come to the cinema to watch the BEAST live action movie in Japan.

Please carefully read the notes below before progressing.

- This post contains spoilers. It is not a summary, but a full translation of the first few pages of novel. So if you plan to read the novel later yourself and think this would ruin your expectation, please stop here.

· I tried to keep the translation as accurate as possible, but as I don't speak English or Japanese as my native language, I may make some mistakes or use weird words etc. This translation might not be final. I may come back and fix it later if I find any mistakes.

· This is a moviegoers-only benefit, so please be extra careful when discussing it about on Twitter. Use a #spoiler tag on your tweets or your fanarts. You can share the links to this post but don't take many screenshots.

· Don’t retranslate it. [UPDATE MAY 9, 2023] You can retranslate it but please keep in mind that my translation is not perfect and some meanings will be lost through re-translation. If you are not sure about the meaning at any part, please let me know! Don’t repost this translation anywhere else out of Tumblr.

· DON’T GO TO THE AUTHORS’ OR OFFICIAL TWITTERS TO COMMENT ABOUT THE CONTENTS OF IT.

I'm sorry if that's too much but honestly all I want is for everyone to have a good experience, for those who wants to read the novels to be able to read the novels, and for those who don't want to be spoiled, to be safe from it as much as possible.

If you have read and are okay with all the above, please continue to move forward and enjoy the novel. Have a good day!

A bloody corpse of a young man is lying on my front porch.

I look down at the corpse, then at the front of the house. It is a quiet morning. The apartment across the street is casting a long black shadow on the pavement in front of me. The trumpet vines planted in the hedge are rustling in the breeze, and whispering to each other in a way that human cannot decipher. Somewhere in the distance, I can hear the sound of the long-distance trucks scraping against the road surface. And there is a corpse in the middle of the stairs in front of me.

In any case, to our eyes, a corpse is always a strangely exaggerated presence. But this time it is different. This corpse blends in with the landscape, becoming one with the everyday peaceful morning scenery. After a while, I realize the reason. The corpse’s chest is moving up and down faintly. It is not a corpse, it is alive.

I look at the young man. He is all black. A high-collar black cloak, a three-piece suit, a black tie. The things that are not black are his button-down shirt, and the bandages around his head. This one is a mottled color of white and red. This color pattern reminds me of some ominous Chinese prophetic characters. The place he is lying, is the middle of the stairs that leads to the front porch. The blood stains continuing down the cracked concrete stairs looks like he has been crawling.

Question. What should I do with this nearly-corpse in front of my eyes?

The answer is simple. If I touch him with the tip of my toes and put some weight on him, he will just roll down to the ground below. If I do so, then he will not be on my premise anymore. He will be on a public road. The country’s territory. All those who are in trouble within the territory of the country should be saved by the mercy of the country. An ordinary postman like me should go home and have breakfast.

I am not doing that because I am a cold and heartless person. I am doing that because it is a survival necessity. The young man’s wounds are clearly from gunshots. He has been shot multiple times. There are probably more holes in his body than I can see from here. And to top it all off, he is holding a bunch of new notes in his left hand.

What can this mean? Nothing. It means nothing, except that his existence is a huge trouble, and that nothing good will come out of getting involved with him. In other words, he is clearly not someone that an average citizen should get involved with. A normal person in his right mind should have fled to the next city at the sight of him. Just like Jonah in the Bible would do the second time he runs into a giant fish in a stormy sea.

I look at the young man, at the road, and the sky, and at him again.

And then I start to act. First, I approach the guy and lift him up by his sides. Then I drag him by his heels into the house and lay him down on the wall-mounted bed. He is much lighter than he looks. Carrying him alone is not that much of a trouble. I check his wounds. There are many deep wounds, and the bleeding is not usual, but if he receives immediate proper treatment, it is not like he will die.

I take out my medical kit box from the back of the closet, and give him some simple first aid treatments. I put a towel under his upper body, cut his clothes with a pair of scissors to expose the wounds, and check if there is any bullet left inside. In order to stop the blood flow, I apply pressure on the pressure points: below the armpits, inner elbows, ankles, backs of knees, and tie them tightly with a clean cloth. Then I put disinfected tourniquets to the wounds to stop the bleeding. Fortunately for him, I can do this kind of first aid even with my eyes closed.

After I am done with the treatments, I look down at the young man and cross my arms. His breathing has stabilized. His respiratory system and bones seem to be intact. But he does not seem to be waking up. “It’s fine already, just kick him out.” I can hear the voice in my head. There is nothing more stupid than treating a suspicious guy like this. I guess I should listen to that voice. That is what a wise man would do.

Before following the angel’s advice, I take another look at the young man. I don’t recognize his face. Probably not someone I know. I say probably, because the bandages covering half of his face makes it almost impossible to make out his features. But he is much younger than what I first thought. He is probably young enough to pass as a “boy”.

Then I remember the wad of cash he was holding. He is still holding them. If it is actually as much as it looks, it must be a fortune for someone with a miserably cheap wage like me. In this situation, it should be okay to have some of them gently transferred to my pocket as a thank for saving his life, right? Thinking so, I pick up the wad of notes. And now I finally realize that I am the biggest idiot in this town.

I feel a bitter taste spreading inside my mouth.

That is an unused bundle of notes. There is some blood on them, but the paper strap, the proof that they are new, is there. There is no bank’s name printed on the strap. There is no printing of any kind. And the notes are neatly lined up by serial numbers in ascending order.

I feel like someone just punched me in the stomach.

There are two possibilities that I can think of. First, this bundle of notes has been taken out of the Reserve Bank of Japan Mint, before it hits the market. That would mean this man is a plague. There is no chance that an ordinary person could get his hands on such a thing. The notes printed at Japan Mint are first sent to the Ministry of Finance, where their serial numbers are scanned to become usable notes. Then they will be sent in cash transport vehicles to branches of the Reserve Bank. From there, they continue to be subdivided and distributed to city banks. At that point, the straps will be switched with those of the city banks.

However, there is no printing on his trap at all. The only way to be able to carry out a wad of notes in that state is to steal it from the Reserve Bank. The most likely way is to attack a cash transport car. Could it be that he just returned from a raid like that?

But if so, I will just stroke my chest in relief, and go back to making coffee in my kitchen. The cash car robbers are violent guys, but only violent. Violence alone cannot make a storm.

There is another possibility.

These are counterfeit notes. I take out a magnifying glass from the back of the room, and carefully examine the wad of notes in my hand. I become completely chilled that my fingers are tingling. I try comparing them with the notes in my own wallet. I can’t tell the difference at all.

A supernote.

I feel dizzy.

If that is the case, the thing in my hand right now has become as dangerous as a small nuclear warhead. Counterfeit currency is a tool of warfare that has been used way before bows and arrows. If one can bring an amount of well-made false currency into an enemy country, the value of that currency will drop due to the increase amount of money in circulation, leading to inflation. A country is, in a sense, its own currency. By skillfully fueling distrust in a country’s currency, it is possible to destroy the economy and bring down a whole nation. For that reason, the National Security Agency is always on the lookout for counterfeit notes. If this level of a note is to be brought into the market, it would not be the city police’s business. It is much higher. The National Security Agency, or the Military.

I put the wad of notes on my desk as if I am throwing them away. I don’t want to leave my fingerprints on them anymore. I head to the phone. If I report the incident right away, I might be able to argue for some extenuating circumstances with the authorities. There is no time to waste.

When I pick up the receiver, I hear a faint voice. It isn’t coming from the phone.

“Put the phone down.”

I turn to the direction where the voice came from. Before I knew it, the young man has opened his eyes and is looking at me with those eyes. I look at the receiver and the youth in turn. Then I say, “What if I don’t?”

“I kill you.”

Those words are as mediocre as the unsold leftover packs lining up in a deli, at least to this young man. I can tell from looking at his eyes. When he utters the word “kill”, it is nothing more than an ordinary, everyday word for him. Just like cutting your nails, or going out to buy more cigarettes, those kinds of words.

“How?” I put down the receiver, but I have not returned it to the base station. Then I say, “You’ve got holes all over your body. You can’t move anything. You’re dying everywhere. You don’t even have a gun. To kill me in that condition, it would take two hundred of you.”

“I don’t need that much.” He says with a chilled voice. “I’m Port Mafia.”

Those words only are enough.

“Port Mafia”, I carefully choose my words before saying “Then I have no choice but to obey.” Then I take my time and quietly put the receiver down.

“That’s good,” he chuckles.

If he really is from Port Mafia, I would have to be careful even about lifting or lowering a spoon in front of him. When the opponent is the Port Mafia, the synonym of darkness and violence, even if I report this and manage to escape today, there is no telling what will come later. A human being has a total of about two hundred bones. But it would not be strange if I will be shredded into just as many pieces of flesh.

I stare at him for about three seconds. Then I go to the kitchen. I keep the door open so that I can watch him from there. I start making coffee in the kitchen. I put the kettle on the fire and wet the rod with some water. I add the coffee powder, and pour boiling water in.

“If I’m not allowed to call the police, what about the doctors?” I say, keeping my eyes on the water.

“What I’ve done is just emergency first aids at best. If you don’t get checked by a proper doctor, you will die soon.”

“No need to worry.” The young man speaks with a slightly stretched out voice. “This much is no big deal. I’m used to injuries.”

“Is that so? Then I will obey.” I stir the coffee and set a timer. “In any case, there is no way a normal postman like me can go against the Port Mafia demons.”

“Being obedient is good. So next…”

Suddenly, the young man starts coughing and vomiting blood. I quickly run up to him and turn his head to the side so that he will not choke on his own blood. I check inside his mouth. I can’t tell where the bleeding is from in this situation. It could be just a cut inside his mouth, or it could be an internal injury. I don’t know.

“Go to the hospital. Get treatments. You are really going to die.” I state.

“It’s perfect then.” he speaks like whispering. “Just let me die like this.”

I feel a chilled wind passing through me.

I look at the young man. He is just staring at the ceiling. No emotions, no intents. Just a flat expression, like one who is just telling his age. I cannot believe my own eyes. I don’t even feel like there is a human there. If it was late night instead of a refreshing early morning, I would think that he was a ghost or a hallucination.

Crazy things keep happening today. My life is about to get screwed up it seems.

“Fine then.” I say. “If you want to die, just die. It’s your own life. I won’t stop you. But I will be in trouble if you die here. If you die here, no one will be able to testify that I am not the one who caused your injuries. I might be arrested.”

“To be arrested, or to be killed by Port Mafia later, which one is better?’

I stare at him while saying, “That’s a hard question.”

I go back to the kitchen, wait for the timer and turn off the fire. I then take out the cream can and ask, “You want some coffee?”

No answer.

“How did you collapse in front of my house?”

Still no answer.

“What the heck are those notes in your hand?”

No answer for this one of course.

I feel as if I’m talking to a wind fairy. A character from a picture book who suddenly came to my house on a peaceful morning. Just that he is covered in blood, and he wants to die.

I pour coffee into two cups and add in the cream. I watch the steam, wait for some time and start stirring. Then I notice that I can’t feel the sign of anyone in the next room anymore. I can’t even hear him breathing. No hint of death drifting either.

I poke my head out of the door, the cups still in my hand. The young man is crawling towards the front door. If he could move his legs, he would just walk out. But it looks like he hasn’t got that much strength back, so he just has his arms hooked on the floor and slowly creeping forward. Just like a prisoner escaping from cell in those old war movies.

He notices my gaze, and then as if he has given up, a mocking smile appears on his face.

“You don’t want me to die in this house, do you? Then if I leave, you’ll have nothing to do with it. No need to help me. No need to ponder anything. Just stay there and watch.”

I ask him, still holding the coffee, “Do you want to die that much?”

“Of course I do. I joined the Port Mafia, but there was still nothing.” replies the young man in a voice that sounds like a soul-deprived gasp. “The only thing I want now, is death.”

Then he starts crawling again.

I take a sip of my coffee while watching that. His progress is pathetically slow. I take another sip. He keeps moving without a rest. He has no intent to look back at me anymore.

There is only one thing to do.

“It’s no use to stop me.” The young man seems to notice my movement. He says with his eyes looking forward, “No one can go against the Port Mafia. And no one in the Port Mafia can go against me. In other words, no one can whaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa!!??”

He is pulled backward.

I wrap him with a bed sheet and lift him up. I then twist the two ends to close it. Like a candy wrapping paper. Then I turn him upside down and carry him back.

“It hurts it hurts it hurts! My wounds are opening! What the hell are you doing, you blockhead. You want to be killed?”

“I don’t want to be killed. But I don’t want to let you die either. If you go out in this state, you will definitely die. Just make up a death story without me in it when you get better.”

As it looks like he is going to let out more complaint, I shake the lump of cloth.

“Ouch ouch! Stop it! I hate pains!!”

“Then will you give up?”

“No!”

I try to come up with a way to deal with it and I get one. Let’s tie him to the bed.

I put him down on the bed and open the pack. I bring in a big towel and wrap it around his arms, which are crossed in front of his chest, altogether with his torso. I take the decorative cord from the door way to bind his legs together and tie the ends to the metal fittings of the bed. I raise the pillows, change the blanket into a new one, and open the window to let the fresh air in.

“For the time being, until your wounds have healed, I will have you stay like that.” I look down to the young man and say “Is there anything you want?”

“My nose is itching.” He looks at me resentfully while wriggling his two arms that are no longer free.

“Poor you.” I go back to the coffee in the kitchen.

The young man’s insults are echoing behind my back. But this neighborhood is sparsely populated, so there is no need to worry about disturbing the neighbors. I enjoy my morning coffee.

And so begins the strange and short communal life of me and Dazai together.

...

#bsd #bungou stray dogs #spoiler #spoilers #bsd spoilers #side A spoilers #dazai osamu #oda sakunosuke

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obviouslygenuinely · 3 years

Text

Babygate Analysis/Conclusions: A Non-Larry Perspective

(Image Credit: Hollywood Life)

I'm prefacing this post with a few disclaimers:

After some consideration, I chose to write this without factoring in Larry whatsoever. No Larry-related points, proof, or speculation in any way. This is solely analyzing babygate from an unbiased perspective.

I don't claim to know the entire truth. It is impossible for any of us to know. What I conclude is based on direct evidence, circumstantial evidence, research, and analysis.

I am willing to discuss opposing views. I’m happy to talk about the topic in a civil, kind, and mature matter. I will dismiss any discourse that is aggressive, immature, and so on.

I did not include every single opinion/conclusion/piece of evidence I found. I condensed my thoughts as much as possible (and this is still a novel-length post). There are so many more points I can think of. However, babygate masterposts cover all of that; I’ll link to some of those at the end.

The conclusion points aren't in a very specific order. I aimed to list related points one after another. Aside from that, it's not in order of "hardest to weakest" evidence.

Please read “Author’s Notes” for additional clarity/input. They interject thoughts/etc. that I feel are necessary to include.

Lastly, I included links to every source I cited in this post. However, I did not tag the Tumblr users. I’m not sure if they are comfortable with having Babygate questions/comments directed to their blogs. If you are a linked source and want to be tagged, please let me know!

My Initial Reaction To Babygate

In February of 2020, I received several messages on LateToLarry requesting that I analyze something called “babygate”. I had no idea what babygate meant at the time.

I learned what it meant, and prior to any research I felt the theory was so absurd. I also felt uncomfortable analyzing it because I believed I’d feel bias as a single mom. The idea of discussing a random child in depth initially bothered me, too. I declined to analyze it last year.

However, I did a LOT of research over time. My opinion has changed significantly. Below, I’ve shared my main conclusions and analysis about babygate. Thank you for reading and I hope you enjoy my post!

1. No Paternity Test Was Performed Prior To The Pregnancy Announcement

Louis was/is a prominent celebrity and has a current net worth of $70 million. From legal, financial, and practical standpoints, it makes no sense for him to choose not to get a test.

It’s unheard of in Hollywood and the entertainment industry. Any sensible team -lawyers, PR reps, managers, advisors, etc. - would not just go along with it. They are employed to protect his career and image.

The Opposing Views

A. “Briana/Louis didn’t want to risk miscarriage with prenatal testing.”

Non-invasive testing is completely safe for fetuses and pregnant women, so there’s no medical reason for the lack of testing.

B. “Louis chose not to get the test done because he wanted to be a father and was invested in the pregnancy/parenting.”

Time has shown that this is not true. Louis does not have custody; there was a brief custody case in 2016 that led nowhere. He does not have a consistent or prominent role in the child’s life.

Conclusion

There is no logical reason for the lack of paternity testing prior to the announcement unless Louis knew he was not the father and all parties knew this to be true.

2. There Was No Confirmation Of A Paternity Test After The Birth

I’ll keep this section fairly short. A quick Google search returns dozens of conflicting reports. Many of them state that Louis demanded a paternity test shortly after birth. Other reports state that he has never pursued a paternity test.

Here are a few examples:

“Louis Tomlinson not interested in paternity test” - Business Standard

“EXCLUSIVE: Louis Tomlinson Demanded a DNA Test “As Soon as the Baby Was Born”” - InTouch Weekly

“Louis Tomlinson: No DNA Test Needed ... Positive Freddie's His Son” -TMZ

“Louis Tomlinson & Briana Jungwirth: WhyHe Had DNA Test Done on His Newborn Son” - Hollywood Life

This Twitter thread discusses TMZ reports that - as of 2020 - no DNA test was done.

Conclusion

There is no reliable confirmation that Louis pursued a paternity test. The media cannot come to a general/factual consensus.

Again, there is no reasonable explanation for the lack of paternity testing unless Louis knows he is not the father of the child.

3. The Conception-To-Birth Timeline Is Inconsistent/Unreliable

Pregnancy and conception as a whole can be rather confusing; timelines from conception to birth are unique to each person. Having said that, Briana’s timeline is full of glaring inconsistencies that don’t add up.

I’ll begin with this timeline based on bulletprooflarry’s post and my own research. Dates I’ve added myself include linked sources:

May 5th, 2015 - Louis and Briana were first seen together in public.

May 6th to May 31st, 2015 - Briana and her mom followed baby-related social medial accounts.

May 12th, 2015 - Louis and Briana were pictured together in public.

July 3rd, 2015 - Louis is seen with Briana’s brother in Hollywood.

July 14th, 2015 - The first pregnancy report is published.

August 4th, 2015 - Louis confirms pregnancy on GMA.

January 21st, 2016 - The child is reportedly born.

Based on the dates above, these are the possible dates/milestones for her pregnancy:

Scenario A - If conception occurred on May 5th, Briana was 37 weeks and 2 days pregnant on January 21st, 2016. This is considered an early-term birth and about 26% of births occur at 37 weeks.

Scenario B - If conception occurred on May 12th, Briana was 36 weeks and 2 days pregnant on January 21st. This is considered a late-term or late premature birth and about 10% of births occur at 36 weeks.

These dates matter because Briana’s alleged hospital stay was not consistent with a premature or early-term birth. She was pictured in public - healthy and holding a baby carrier - within one week of giving birth.

(Image Credit: Daily Mail)

(Image Credit: larrysbbrbb28)

If she gave birth based on the dates above, it’s extremely unlikely that she or the baby would be out in public so soon.

Below are screenshots of an additional timeline from an archived Tumblr post. It provides excellent points about more timeline inconsistencies:

The main inconsistencies and red flags are bolded in the post. It supports the unreliable conception timeline, and it also mentions my next point - the official pregnancy announcement.

The post above mentions that the Jungwirth family followed baby-related accounts before Briana could possibly know she was pregnant. Here’s one screenshot from skepticallarrie proving it:

I’ve also seen several posts that show inconsistencies with the size of Briana’s baby bump. Unfortunately, the most reliable post no longer exists. You can view a web archive of Briana’s pregnancy photos, but most of the image links are broke.

The only post I have saved is a web archive of a long babygate post. The beginning of the post contains photos showing discrepancies in the size of Briana’s baby bump.

The Opposing Views

“Pregnancy looks different on everybody, everyone recovers differently, etc.”

Yes, this is true and a valid point! As a woman who has gone through multiple pregnancies and two live births, I truly understand this argument.

However, the sheer amount of inconsistencies are what make this a red flag. There are too many unreliable and contradicting points to brush this off. It goes beyond the point of “well, each person has a different experience”.

Conclusion

There are a few conclusions/scenarios I believe you can draw from the information above:

Briana was pregnant prior to meeting Louis.

Briana was never pregnant in the first place.

Both are valid to consider, but I personally believe she was never pregnant.

(Author’s note: My calculation for dates are based on the date of alleged conception. Most due date calculators, by default, use the date of a woman’s last mentrual period - LMP - to provide estimations.

I also used Date Duration Calendar for my calculations. Accessible due date calculators only allowed me to input dates from 2019/2020. Depending on the tools and dates you use, your mileage may vary.)

4. The Announcement Itself Was Highly Unusual

This point ties into the first and third points. I don’t consider it a major piece of evidence, but it’s noteworthy due to the other points.

So, there are a few reasons why the Good Morning America announcement stands out.

A. If Briana got pregnant on May 5th, then she was approximately 10 weeks pregnant when the first pregnancy report was published. This also means she was approximately 13 weeks pregnant at the time of the GMA announcement.

If Briana got pregnant on May 12th, she was approximately nine weeks pregnant at the time of the first report and approximately 12 weeks pregnant at the time of the GMA announcement.

B. The public announcement on Good Morning America raises a lot of questions. I’ve had multiple issues embedding the video; the bolded link takes you to the GMA announcement on YouTube.

Anyways, these questions/thoughts - disregarding any Larry theories - come to mind when watching the video:

This is a segment for promoting/discussing their album/music.

The baby announcement is the sole non-album/music related topic that is mentioned during the segment.

The announcement is not organically worked into the segment as a natural talking point.

Louis’ reactions - such as bringing the microphone to his lips and not talking - is very unlike his standard interview demeanor.

The male interviewer and the band members have noticeable facial expressions and body language that suggest discomfort, stress, or awkwardness.

A post by skepticalarrie draws similar conclusions. Her post is much more detailed than mine, and I highly recommend reading/viewing it.

(Author’s Note: I’ve touched upon this on LateToLarry and will make a post here eventually, but body language and facial expressions are valid. They’re valid to the point that they are used in court cases.)

Conclusion

My conclusions here are twofold. One is that:

Announcing a pregnancy - especially a celebrity-related pregnancy - this early is extremely uncommon and unlikely.

The announcement itself seems out of place and very forced.

This particular point, to me, is not extremely strong evidence. I still think it’s worth keeping in mind and is relevant to other points here. So, I’ve included it either way.

5. Briana Posted Stolen Pregnancy/Baby Photos On Social Media

(EDIT: I wrote this piece before the recent release of Briana’s alleged ultrasound and don’t have time to add it. It’s pretty strong proof and can easily be found in recent babygate posts.)

Babygate posts often point out that Briana and the Jungwirth family used stolen/fake pregnancy and baby photos on social media. It’s a well-known topic that’s often discussed.

I’m condensing this section to a few examples. I encourage additional research if you’d like to see more.

A. This Tumblr post shows stolen baby bump photos that Briana’s cousin Ashley posted on Twitter:

B. This Tumblr post and Twitter post show a stolen baby photo that Briana posted on Instagram:

(Author’s Note: Since I was not active in the fandom at the time, I am relying on information from other blogs and social media posts. I vetted my sources pretty well, but any false information is my own mistake.)

Conclusions

The only word that sums this up is “suspicious”. Using stolen photos of a pregnant woman/baby is not necessary if you are legitimately pregnant. That’s really what it boils down to. It lends to the conclusion that Briana was never pregnant.

6. Photos And Videos Of The Child Are Heavily Altered And Manipulated

It is indisputable that many photos and videos of the child are heavily manipulated to alter his appearance. This goes beyond filters, lighting, and angles.

Several detailed posts show the manipulations; here are some examples:

A web archive of all Photoshop evidence from tellmethisisnotlove

An in-depth post from genuineconspiracy that includes detailed photo evidence.

A video post from freefreddiereign that shows Photoshop evidence based on photos the child.

There is no doubt that his facial features are frequently altered. This is easy to conclude using any free software that detects Photoshop. As a photographer myself, I can easily spot the manipulations.

(Author’s Note: I know that directly discussing the child is controversial. When I first heard of babygate, my initial reaction was discomfort about analyzing a child.

I quickly learned/concluded that his family members are responsible for heavily putting him in the public eye. All content I’ve used for research is based on the family’s posts.

Still, I have personally chosen not post pictures of the child, but the links I am sharing contain photos/videos of him.

Additionally, I used FotoForensics on photos of myself prior to writing this. It was important to me to feel absolutely certain about this point. I’m fine with sharing my own FotoForensics images if anyone is curious.)

The Opposing Views

A. “Freddie looks like Louis in pictures that aren’t Photoshopped.”

Parentage cannot be based on whether or not a child looks like his mother/father. I understand the viewpoint, but it’s simply not evidence. Additionally, thinking the child looks like Louis is a matter of opinion.

There’s also the fact that appearance means nothing overall. Science backs up this statement very well. Examples and references:

“How can children from the same parents look so different?” by HowStuffWorks

“My Baby Looks Nothing Like Me: A Genetic Explanation” by FamilyEducation

Additionally, here is a personal anecdote. I have two sons close to Freddie’s age. One of them looks exactly like his father and nothing like me. The other looks exactly like me and nothing like his father. Despite how they look, they are both of them are our biological children.

Conclusion

There is no reasonable explanation for altering the child’s appearance - particularly to make him look more similar to Louis.

I cannot think of a single argument as to why the Jungwirth family would do this unless they need/want the child to look a specific way.

7. Johannah Deakin’s Official Obituary Does Not Mention The Child

When looking into babygate, I read the argument that the child is legitimately Louis’ son because he is listed as her grandchild in Internet-based obituaries and announcements.

I also read the counter-argument that Louis’ mother’s official newspaper/print obituary does not mention the child. I recall seeing proof, but I did not save it at the time. I did some research and this appears to be true.

The Doncaster Free Press is a local weekly newspaper in Doncaster, and it published an article about the funeral. The article is NOT an obituary itself, but it does list her obituary details. The publication does not list the child among the surviving family members.

If a mistake is made regarding these details, it’s typical for newspapers to post a correction addressing a misprint. Upon further research, the Doncaster Free Press did not issue a correction at any time.

(Author’s Note: I lost my own mother and am personally familiar with how local obituaries are written. Immediate family members - i.e. spouses and adult children - provide information regarding surviving family members.)

Conclusion

The conclusion here is straightforward. Louis and his family chose not to include the child in his mother’s official obituary. This strongly suggests that he is not legitimately related to Louis.

My Opinion-Based Conclusions

Update: After some consideration, I am saving my opinion-based conclusions for a separate post. I originally intended to include them here; transparency is important to me.

Unfortunately, the section became rather long and took away from the main post points. So, I’ll be working on a post that’s just my opinion-based conclusions. In the meantime, feel free to message me with any questions.

Final Thoughts

If you’ve made it this far, thank you for taking the time to read my post! I appreciate the interest expressed for it, and I hope it lives up to expectations.

Again, I want to reiterate this is:

Not an all-inclusive post; I narrowed down my findings to seven points.

Not a masterpost on babygate.

Purposely omitting any potential Larry-related points to remove bias.

I’ve reread this quite a few times, and it’s as error-free as possible. If you spot any mistakes/errors, I’m completely open to making corrections. Just kindly let me know.

This list contains references/research about babygate that I consider the most reliable. It includes Larry and non-Larry related Babygate content.

Tumblr posts tagged with babygate by Tumblr use genuineconspiracy.

A web archive of babygate posts by Tumblr user tellmethisisnotlove (her account was deactivated by staff).

Tumblr posts tagged with babygate by darkrainbowlouis.

Tumblr posts tagged with babygate by skepticalarrie.

Lastly, if there’s interest in an opinion-related post or Larry-related post, I’ll consider writing them. Feel free to let me know as you all did with this post.

Thanks!

Amy (obviouslygenuinely/latetolarry)

#babygate #bg #louis tomlinson #briana jungwirth #freddie Tomlinson #baby tomlinson #end it #larry #larry stylinson #analysis

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scandalsavagefanfic · 3 years

Note

Hello! I am a huge fan of ur writing. I've loved everything I've read of yours. I've read alot of what you've posted, except for a couple of the tags that are squicky for me (so I'm very thankful you tag very thoroughly). No judgement for the squick, it's just not for me. & when I'm having a bad day, I usually just go thru ur ao3 and find something to reread. I think about Therapy's Bruce & Jason every damn day. While I obvs appreciate ur darker more "problematic" content (I really vibe with some of the themes you write about bc of my own trauma, & so it's very cathartic to read about in a fictional setting), I am truly a sucker for ur more happy content. The Happily Ever After verse also lives in my head rent free. Idk more wholesome stuff just seems more special when you write it. Anyways. I would die for you. But the point of this ask is cause I'm curious as to why you don't like Urban Legends? I'm sorry if you already talked about it here or on twitter and I missed it. I was just wondering because I really enjoy your take on things and would love to hear why you dislike it. I've been enjoying it so far personally, but I am always open to DC comics criticism.

Aw thank you so much! I'm so flattered by everything you just said. You're so sweet ❤❤❤❤❤

I haven't talked about Urban Legends here or twitter (I haven't been very active in either place lately. Just a lot going on and no energy 😔) but I'm happy to do it here.

Before I start though, I just want to add a standard disclaimer and make it clear that if you like it, there's nothing wrong with that and you don't have to let me ruin it for you lol. Like what you like.

That said, since you asked...

I said this when I was talking about it on discord, that there is a difference between hope and expectation. I always hope that a new story centered on Jason (or anyone really, but things have been especially egregious for Jay for 15 years) will be good or at least treat the character with a minimal level of respect (to be honest, the bar is super fucking low). But my expectations always temper my hope, to keep it from getting unrealistic. Because my expectations are based on experience.

The long history of Jason Todd, since even before his resurrection, has been one of retroactively trying to make him "a bad seed" in order to absolve Bruce of any responsibility in his death.

I don't even expect DC or their writers to start honoring the fact that Jason was not an angry, reckless Robin (and less of the later than Dick or Tim and definitely Damian). There plenty of ways that retcon can be folded into his history and be compelling and sympathetic. And if they're going to stick with that retcon, I'm only asking that they do it in one of those compelling and sympathetic ways because Jason was 15 when he died, heroically, in one of the most selfless acts in comics, to save a woman who literally handed him over to be brutally murdered. He was 12 when Bruce plucked him off the streets, he'd been homeless and fending for himself for at least two years. I personally think that Jason's story hits harder for him and Bruce if their original, canon relationship, of Jason as starry-eyed and eager to learn and absolutely devoted to Bruce and Bruce to Jason, is preserved. But Jason's origins does leave room for a meaningful interpretation of him as angry and frustrated at the lack of meaningful results of Bruce's methods.

And that's really where my irritation at stories like Batman: Urban Legends, Cheer and Batman The Adventure Continues has it's roots.

Every time one of these stories comes out, I think (or hope, rather) that this will be the one that remembers and respects the origins of the Jason and the Red Hood, that takes into account the changed sensibilities of comics readers in the 30 years since Jason's death and the subtle, 20 year, retroactive campaign to make him the "bad Robin". The "born bad" trope is played out and literally no one likes the message it implies. That some kids are just bad eggs and there's nothing parents or the adults around them can do. Especially when it's played as the kid's fault. If Jason's time as Robin is going to be characterized by anger, then it should be rooted in anger at the social injustices he witnessed as he grew up in an impoverished, crime-ridden, area and the horrors he faced raising himself when every day was a battle for survival. There are topical, meaningful, stories to tell with that backdrop.

But those are never the stories we get.

⚠⚠ Spoilers for Batman: Urban Legends, Cheer ⚠⚠

I'm particularly disappointed in Urban Legends because for the first issue, it looked like that was the kind of story we were going to get. I was put off by the first flashback of Jason being mesmerized by Bruce's guns, and I got that feeling in my gut that it was a bad sign. Jason depicted as impatient and overconfident and the scene with the guns is heavy-handed foreshadowing that got my spidey-sense tingling. I had a inkling then (in the first three pages) of how this story was going to play out, but it was early and I could still see many narrative paths that could lead to a satisfying story. My concerns were soothed somewhat and the little flame of my hope fanned, with the flashback of Alfred scolding Bruce, with Barbara's concern for Jason. A bit of worry returned with the way Jason ruthlessly pursued an addict who didn't appear to be a dealer and with the ending of the issue. The stuff with the addict sat wrong with me but the ending was tempered some by how despicable Tyler's dad was written. The scene was clearly set so that the reader could sympathize with Jason's decision and the scene with the addict could be brushed aside as a side-effect of comics over-the-top need for constant action, so I still held hope.

Issue 2 made me uncomfortable and it's where my hope starts to take a backseat to my expectations. I can dismiss Jason's self-deprecating internal monologue as unreliable narration, except that the flashback reinforces his thought process to explicitly show that it's not unreliable narration, and should be taken at face value. Jason faces physical abuse at the hands of his mother's drug dealer and when the flashback continues later, Jason kills the drug dealer. To be clear, this is a pre-Bruce Jason. His mom is still alive. He's like... 10. He kills this guy for shoving his head into a wall and implying Jason's mother paid for her drugs with sex. This is a scene that serves a single purpose. To show that Jason has always been prone to violence.

In the spirit of full disclosure, there is the small chance the drug dealer might not be dead. But the story obviously wants the reader to think he is, and it hasn't done anything to change that yet.

Starlin already did this story with The Diplomat’s Son in 1988 and he did it infinitely better. AND that’s still technically canon. So now I’m supposed to believe that Jason lost his cool bad enough to kill two douche bags before his sweet 16? Like it’s totally normal for abused kids raised in poverty, who’ve led hard and heartbreaking lives to just... haul off and kill people? That’s bullshit, and when taken with the Jason in the third issue, who is little more than an idiot thug, this story is really doubling down on some fucked up stereotypes.

Which brings us to the most recent issue. I went into this installment with very low expectations. I thought this story was going to be about Jason, through this experience with Tyler, a young boy with a similar background to Jason's, coming to the realization that Bruce's way is the best way and that Bruce did his best by Jason.

That would be annoying (in no small part because it takes increasingly absurd levels of plot armor to keep Bruce's no kill rule relevant, let alone irrefutably right). But I can probably live with that, if only because maybe if Jason officially falls back into line with the Bats crusade, maybe I'll get stories that treat him with respect, stories that don't relegate him to comic relief, dumb brute, or a background body with no lines in a story about the Joker burning Gotham (like Jason would just fucking stand there quietly for that).

And that may still be where the story is going, Jason realizing Bruce is right.

But holy shit do I not have the right words to describe how fucking insulting and gross issue three is.

From start to finish--including the flashback--Jason is written as cruel and fucking stupid. Like straight up dumb.

The entire issue is Bruce explaining the fucking basics to Jason like it's his first day. And Jason flies off the fucking handle and terrorizes a doctor he knows isn't a part of making the Cheerdrops, beats the shit out of some random addicts, and finally, when he can't accomplish anything on his own because he's a dumb brute he calls Barbara for help and rushes in with no information where he's promptly incapacitated and must now wait to be rescued by Batman.

This panel is the least of the issues sins but I can’t screenshot the entire story but it’s representative of the tone for the whole issue (and retroactively tainted the prior two issues).

This is beyond insulting. The only conclusions Jason comes to in this issue are the ones Bruce leads him to by talking to him like he can’t make the simplest connections. And like... in this story Jason can’t make the simplest connections.

This (and the Jason throughout the entirety of this issue) is a far cry from the Jason we fell in love with in Under the Red Hood, who was competent and strategic and intelligent enough to seize control of Gotham’s underworld from Black Mask (who’s no fucking slouch, he’s the first and only person to unify organized crime in Gotham) AND elude and manipulate Bruce until the time and place of his choosing.

This is a far cry from even the Red Hood and the Outlaws Jason who is competent enough to fight the League of Shadows and Ra’s al Ghul (among very dangerous and skilled others) and smart enough to create antidotes for mind control nanotech viruses.

As he should be, by the way. Jason Todd is one of the best, most comprehensively trained fighters in DC’s stable of non powered vigilantes. He’s not irrational or hot headed. He’s pragmatic, tactically minded, and patient. He’s a detective. Right now. Has been since he was 12. Bruce doesn’t have to make him one because he already is.

Jason is not a stupid thug who uses his fists because his brain doesn’t work. And I can’t tell you how so very exhausted I am by this narrative.

This is actually the most egregious example of Jason’s skills and intelligence being not just undermined but dismissed entirely. Even Morrison’s Jason had some degree of competency.

The one, single redeeming factor of this story is the art. It’s beautiful. And Marcus To is a godsend he seems to be one of only a couple of artists who remember that Jason was a child when he was Robin and I’m literally only buying this book because of him.

Anyway, I’m sorry. I didn’t want that to come out so... um... passionately lol. I’m just very very tired. My intention with this isn’t to ruin it for you, if you like it, that’s fine.

But this issue shot this story to the top of my "Vehemently Despise” list. 1) Batman: Urban Legends (Cheer), 2) Battle for the Cowl/Morrison’s Batman and Robin, 3) Batman The Adventure Continues.

I hope the next issues somehow salvage this dumpster fire. But I’m not expecting it.

(Damnit. That sounded harsh again. To reiterate, I’m not trying to judge anyone who enjoys it, I just personally hate it and you asked me why lol 😅)

#Batman #red hood #batman: urban legends #nice art #shit story #or at least shit characterization #jason todd deserves better #this response got long and I didn't edit it #please forgive any errors #and/or unclear spots #spoilers

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blindbeta · 3 years

Text

Your Content and Accessibility For the Blind

Hello everyone! I was thinking about accessibility and wanted to make a post to help creators. This is going to cover general accessibility for blind people interacting with your content. Some of it may be obvious to some and this is by no means comprehensive, so feel free to add anything you think of that is helpful. Also, I wanted to include some ideas for DeafBlind people, but I am not DeafBlind or D/deaf, so I simply listed some general accessibility ideas. If anyone has any other tips or things to consider, please add them in a comment or message and I’ll include it here.

Remember, blindness exists on a spectrum. This post will focus on making things accessible for totally blind people, although these tips can also be beneficial for people with residual vision who use screen readers to reduce eye strain, for small text, for clarity, etc. D/deafness and DeafBlindness are also on spectrums. Some DeafBlind people have some hearing, some vision, a little of both, or none of either. If someone asks you for better or different accessibility services for your content, listen and try to accommodate them as best you can. I have provided some links and resources here to attempt to explain accessibility for blind people, which will include blind people who are DeafBlind. The point is accessibility issues can come from both sides whether it be the audio or visual sides.

Some general helpful links:

AFB’s Advice for image descriptions here

Screen-readers here

Improving Accessibility for the DeafBlind community here

How DeafBlind People Use Technology and The Importance of Braille and Transcripts: Understanding Assistive Technology

Online Content:

GIFs, Pictures, Fan-art, PSA and info posts, Memes, Screenshots of Text Posts or Screenshots of Twitter Threads- Provide an image description on your original post! This is the best option, as you probably know your content best and what you wish to draw attention to. More importantly, every reblog will include an image description, which means the blind person doesn’t need to hunt for an image description in the reblogs! If you know more than one language, include image descriptions in those languages.

Note: Always include descriptions when you post images with or about blind people or characters. Particularly fan-art you made of blind characters. If you don’t, consider why and think about how it would feel to be shut out of something about yourself.

What should you include?

Write Image Description in brackets and include End of Image Description at the end for clarification. As for what you should describe, it depends on what the picture is. Include where it is from. For example, “a screenshot of a Twitter thread by BlindBetaIsAwesome”. Include the text and describe any GIFs or images it includes. Write everything out as they appear. Describe emojis as well. When writing out screen names or hashtags, capitalize the first letter of each word. Otherwise screen-readers read it oddly. For example instead of #accessibilityfortheblind try #AccessibilityForTheBlind. If you think someone will want to search a name, include a link.

You should describe what is important in the image, especially for conveying information or humor. General ideas include: image origin, who is in the image, what they’re doing, any relevant colors or clothing, objects they’re holding, their facial expression, any emojis, and any text in the image. Blind people do like to know about color. For NSFW stuff, include ‘NSFW’ at the start, but other than that, yes, blind people also generally like NSFW things described.

Fanfiction:

Generally, fanfic is very accessible to screen-readers and Braille Displays. However, there are a few ways you can make it more accessible.

Pictures: Include alt-text for any images you post such as artwork or character social media posts. Describe it like you would any other image. Alt-text is different from an image description because instead of a screen-reader saying “image” when it finds an image, it will describe the image. An image description is the text included beneath the picture that everyone can see. Including some kind of description, especially for plot-relevant images, can allow all blind readers to experience the fic.

Chat conversations: Again, for hashtags and screen names, capitalize the first letter of each word for the ease of screen-readers. For characters who don’t use capitalization much, you can add a hyphen between each word to make it easier to read like this: blind-beta-likes-fanfic-too.

Emojis: Screen readers can’t fully read emojis like this one that uses keyboard slashes and symbols to create an image ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ (image description: emoji of a person shrugging with both palms lifted upwards. End description.) However, they can read emojis that come on a phone such as 🧁which screen readers read as “cupcake”.

Podfics are also good for hearing people with no vision or reduced vision. Having a podfic with good quality (maybe one that can describe images found in the story) will reduce some of the issues listed here and give blind people another, fun way to interact with content. However, I would try to keep in mind the things I mentioned above for the sake of screen-readers and Braille Displays, which are particularly important for some DeafBlind people who may want to read your fanfic and may not be able to hear well enough to use a screen-reader.

Lastly, keep in mind that any kind of comic may be inaccessible to some blind people. Write with them in mind. Include a message at the start of the story, maybe that it contains material from the comic, graphic novel, or print cartoon. If you know of a comic dub, link to it. If there is none, include details in the story so that a non-manga or non-comic reader would be able to understand.

Web-Comics/Web-Graphic-Novels:

First, I did research and found a comic book store for the blind called Comics Empower. Unfortunately, when I click the link provided on Twitter and the articles I read, the site seems to be down.

However, this is about you all and sharing your comics with blind readers. You have a few options:

Alt-text. This is descriptions directly ‘inside’ the image, which is not visible to everyone. You can read about alt-text for comics specially here and you can read general info for alt-text for screen-readers and Braille Displays here.

Image descriptions. These are descriptions of each comic page (hopefully with a paragraph for each panel) that can be visible to anyone. You can describe your comic, who is in it, what they’re doing, and what they’re saying, probably beneath the image.

Comic Audio Performances. These are accessible to both blind and sighted audiences. These are videos using actors for the dialogue, sound effects, and moving comic panels. Pros for this style include increased viewership, increased accessibility for the blind, and perhaps more revenue if you have a way to monetize the content. Cons include that it is more work, could potentially cost money when hiring actors initially, may not be accessible to anyone with hearing loss, and may still require a bit of audio description for some panels that are hard to follow with only sound effects.

What can you do?

A few ideas I had were to use a combination of image descriptions and audio performances to make the comics accessible to a number of people who may be blind, or DeafBlind. Having options is helpful. For ther issue of some panels needing extra description in order to make sense, I thought of including time-stamps and descriptions in the description section, labeling it as image descriptions for the blind. Include dialogue for reference. Or an audio description could be added such as:

Audio narration: “Bee sits on a couch writing.”

Sound Effect of a purring cat.

Audio narration: “Blind Beta picks up an orange cat and puts him on the couch next to them.”

Dialogue: “I’m so glad I have a cat to cuddle with!”

I will touch on this in the video section, but while it is sadly not possible to add audio descriptions onto YouTube as of 2021, you can add them manually through websites you like YouDescribe. For your comics, I suggest, reading about YouDescribe, downloading the app, creating a narration transcript for your web comic performance, and posting the described audio performance onto YouDescribe. Post both versions as close to the same time as you can, and include a link to the described version in the YouTube description. A glance at YouDescribe will tell you not all videos are available with descriptions and not all blind people are aware of this service. Not all videos are searchable in their library either. However, it is an option I wanted to include.

You could also simply include the audio narration in your main YouTube video if you would like. Or any combination of my suggestions you feel comfortable with.

YouTube Videos/Video Clips:

I wanted to cover YouTube videos and video clips shared on websites like tumblr. For small clips, image descriptions and transcripts could probably be listed together. I have seen this done and it seems to help people.

Again, the original poster should post the description with the video. This is because they know the most important parts and because all reblogs of the post will include the description, so no one will have to hunt down a description that may not exist.

For the clip or clip compilation, mention where the clips come from, who is in them, and what they are doing. You could probably have a separate paragraph for each clip and include times-stamps if possible.

For videos you post on YouTube, descriptions can be very helpful! Unfortunately, YouTube does not support adding an audio description track at this time. Ideally, YouTube would have a description track one could turn on and off such as with subtitles. Until then, if you want to add a description, you should add one yourself when you post the video onto YouTube or any other website.

Before I get into how, let’s go over something else.

What videos need descriptions?

-Recipe videos - especially ones with only text. Ingredients, steps, measures, methods, any flourishes or special scenery (such as when shopping for ingredients) should be described. Blind people don’t just want you to read the recipe to them. They want to know what is happening in the video and how it is being done.

-Tutorials - These often contain a voice-over and accompanying images to demonstrate. A creator can opt to simply include more visual description along with the other information in the voice-over or add extra narration later (see the “How?” section below). For these videos, make sure to avoid or expand on any visually dependent parts such as “click here” or “fold here” or “when you finish, it should look like this”. Videos that contain only text and demonstration, however, will need a more traditional audio description the same as any other video.

-Silent aesthetic videos - Sometimes containing music or focusing on natural noise, these videos are usually vlogs with soothing activities or daily routines. They often show scenery, pretty things, or tours. Because these videos are silent, sometimes containing only text, they are not accessible. However, they can be easy to describe, perhaps in a soothing or educational fashion.

-Music videos - Because these videos are by nature visual, they may not be accessible. They may also have inconsistent, poor, or changing lighting for aesthetic purposes or set changes. This means audio descriptions would be helpful.

-Text-based videos - Obviously these are not accessible or may be difficult to read depending on font size, style, or background. For these, putting the text in the description may suffice. Label it so that blind people are aware they are getting the same material. If the text includes pictures or short clips, you could also simply include your own narration on the video itself or see the “How?” section below for another alternative.

-Game Play-Throughs - Games can sometimes be completely inaccessible pe very difficult depending on the person’s level of site. A lot of video games a not accessible or difficult to play, with quick-moving graphics, perhaps small text, or other difficulties. Because of this, blind people may enjoy game plays on YouTube for video games and mobile games.

-Skits or other performances - Think of these as Netflix shows with audio description tracks. Blind people may miss out on some visual humor, plot elements, or other fun visual aspects like costumes.

-Original Films, Animation, Clips From Shows - Again, think of it as any TV show that needs to description to cover visual aspects of what is happening. Scenery, characters, what they’re doing, any text, facial expressions, etc.

Pet videos- Because pets are cute and they should be described! Especially because these videos are sometimes hard to follow, such as a pet doing a trick.

How? How Do We Provide This?

There is always the option to add your own audio descriptions. However, that way confuse already-existing narration or may not be possible for already-published videos. You may also have trouble speaking and wish for someone else to provide audio descriptions. The video may be a music video or one you want to remain silent for the aesthetic. You may want to add a description to a video you enjoy that is not one you uploaded personally.

A free website and mobile app called YouDescribe can help with that. It allows people to add audio descriptions to videos on YouTube. You can even describe videos on a wishlist. Find out more here.

If you describe your video or have it described, be sure to link to the YouDescribe video in the description of your YouTube version so that people can find it easily, or note that it is available on YouDescribe.

Here is a link to the website

And a link to the app.

This site may be a bit too niche, but I figure if it helps one person, I’ll be happy. My entire blog is niche, when you think about it- targeting writers who specifically want to write and read about blind characters. It’ll be fine.

Keep in mind that audio descriptions may not be accessible to all DeafBlind people. An inclusive option could be to include a description under your video so people with Braille Displays can read it.

Print Books, Audiobooks, Large Print Books, or Braille Books?

Let’s get into something you writers might be interested in. Books! Let’s say you wrote a book with a blind character. How do you make sure it can be accessed by blind readers? You want to have a few options.

Print books - These are accessible to people with reduced vision. It is also possible to scan print books to read with voiceover, but I can’t imagine many people buying books simply to scan unless they borrowed/found it. So it could be an option, I suppose. Scanning books also takes time because you need to do each individual page.

Audiobooks - Audiobooks are great. They are accessible to blind people who can hear. They are cheaper to produce than Braille books, take up less space, and are better for the environment. They can be expensive when you buy them. Libraries have extensive collections now, however, because libraries don’t usually have any Braille books and very few large print books, not all blind people use them, even for digital access. However,many blind people love audiobooks so it a good way to make sure your content is accessible.

As of now, my library app is accessible with a screenreader, so reading audiobooks is possible. E-books are not currently accessible with a screen-reader on this particular app.

Make sure to release your print books and audiobooks at the same time or as soon as possible. It isn’t fair for blind people to have to wait, although there are cases where not having an audiobook is understandable. Keep in mind that the less options you have, the less accessible your content will be.

Large Print Books - I used to get large print books myself. I would say it is less likely publishers will want to publish large print books because they are, of course, larger and take up more space. (Not as much as Braille books, but we’ll get into that.) As you may assume, they are also less popular with readers. Publishers make exceptions for textbooks, so if you are making a textbook or an educational book, particularly one with drawings, publishers might allow it. They also might consider making large print editions of children’s books. Large print books can sometimes be found at libraries, although they are usually crammed into their own limited section. That shows how rare it is for large print books to be printed compared to regular-sized books. I have an extra note about this in the children’s book section, but for the most part, I think you can get away with not having a large print edition of your book.

Braille Books - I should you one doesn’t just make a Braille book. Feelings toward them are generally complicated. They can wear down over time, cost a lot, and take up a lot of space. One volume of a book is several volumes of Braille books. Libraries don’t generally have them- you have to request them from various places like The National Library Service for the Blind (NLS). For more information about obtaining or borrowing Braille books, look here.

Braille Books have largely been replaced by refreshable Braille displays and audiobooks. However, they are still important. They can also help DeafBlind people, if a book cannot be read on a Braille display (see the section on e-books below). My suggestion would be to skip Braille books unless you are writing for children (see the Children’s Books section) or your book contains many diagrams that need to be embossed.

Children’s Books -

I wanted to briefly discuss children’s books. With children’s books, you will, of course, want to have a print book and an audiobook available, perhaps even someone reading the book on YouTube. If the book has pictures, descriptions of the pictures would be nice. This is also where I think large print and Braille books may be not only possible or more likely, but important. Children are just learning to read and will continue to explore a love for reading. Therefore, a lack of reading material can be challenging.

If possible, you may want to consider asking your publisher if large print or Braille versions are possible. While websites are available so that children can get books, you may want to ask for your book to be published in these formats if your story has a blind MC.

Braille literacy is declining in the blind community, with children (and frankly many others) choosing to use VoiceOver and audiobooks to read rather than Braille. Being able to read helps reinforce spelling, grammar, meaning in ways that are not possible with having things read to you. That said, children should also be encouraged to learn technology and use audiobooks when they feel comfortable.

If you are publishing a children’s book, particularly with a blind MC, consider what your options are for increasing accessibility.

E-Books:

This is one of the more accessible options, as it can be read with a screen-reader or Braille display. E-books are also common enough that they are released at the same time as print books. The text can usually be adjusted and readers usually have a Search feature. However, accessibility is still a problem with e-books. While authors cannot fix this, they should be aware of it. You can read about accessibility issues here.

I hope all this helped somewhat. I provide sensitivity reading for blind characters for anyone who is interested.

#blind #accessibility for the blind #blindbeta #writing #books #disability

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fanfics-with-coffee · 4 years

Text

The simple pleasures

Your friend had so kindly set you up on a date with Kuroo Tetsurou, her classmate. And it’s been going great! But after your third date, another friend alerts you to the fact that you may want to check out his twitter... where he advertises his onlyfans. Of course you had to see what was hidden behind the paywall.

Genre: Smut, smut, oh and did i mention smut? Pairing: Kuroo x reader Kinks: Could probably consider this some voyeurism, mastrubation, oral (both ways), little bit of orgasm denial, little bit of choking, mastrubation instructions for females. Words: 6000

“This was your place right?” The car slowly comes to a stop in front of your house, right between two streetlights. They dimly light up the inside of his car making it easier to see him as he turns his head to look at you, one hand still on the wheel. You couldn’t help but notice the other was placed on his upper leg, leading your eyes to his obviously thick thighs.

“Yeah, this is still the place! Thanks again, Kuroo.” You quickly look up at his face again while smiling. Even in this light you can see his bright, cat like eyes watching your every move with slight amusement. It made the hairs on the back of your neck stand but you don’t want to make that apparent. You know that showing any sign of weakness would just make his teasing even worse.

He hums and nods his head, unbuckling his belt in one smooth move as he left his own car. You mimic him, climbing out from the warm car and out into the chilly evening air. Leaning back in, you grab your jacket before slamming the door closed. On the other side of the car, Kuroo is rummaging through his backseat, soon emerging with the giant cat plushie he had managed to win you earlier in the evening. You giggle while watching the grin on his face, still surprised by the comical size of the thing. Putting on your jacket while walking, you approach him and are about to take it out of his arms so you could carry it home by yourself. But before you could grab it, he moves it further away from you.

“Eh? You know, I’m not sure I’m ready to leave this guy with you…” He looks at the kitty plushie with a clearly fake sadness, hugging it closer to him. You just cross your arms over your chest and stare at him, a small smile tugging at your lips. Looking back at you, you see him melting a little. “Lemme walk you two to the door at least. So I can say goodbye to him properly.”

As much as you had rolled your eyes at him, you happily have him follow you to the door. He radiates warmth despite having ditched his leather jacket in the car so you couldn’t help but drift closer to him. Absorbing his warmth before he could leave for today. This had been your third date with the man and each time it was over, you had missed him just a little more. This time had been especially fun since you hung out at the amusement park until just minutes before closing. The plushie had just been the cherry on top of a great day with an amazing guy.

“Well this is it.” You walk up to your door, fishing for your keys in your pocket. Before unlocking it though, you turn on your heel to face him, intending on grabbing Mr. Kitty. He comes strolling up to you, taking his sweet time and not so subtly soaking in your figure all the while. When he comes face to face with you you’re forced to tilt your head back a little so you could get a clear look at him.

“I guess so.” He does his signature smirk while handing you the oversized plushie, watching you lean back before getting a good grip on it. With two hands now freed, he places one on your hip softly and slowly, keeping an eye on you in case you don’t accept his advances. You don’t shy away from his touch, having gotten used to his hands innocently touching your body throughout the day. What makes you surprised is when he brings his other hand up to cup your cheek. You feel yourself do a sharp inhale, staring into his half lidded eyes. But as he leans in, you do the same, closing your eyes.

The kiss is soft and lasts only a second before he pulls away again. Though it was quick, your whole belly was filled with butterflies fluttering around like crazy. You don’t realize you’re giving him big doe eyes until he has to cover his mouth with the side of his fist to contain a laugh. That’s when you snap out of your awed daze and lightly slap his chest.

“Sorry, sorry. You just looked so cute like that.” He has a shit eating grin while he speaks but does take a small step away from you. “I’ll text you later though so don’t ignore me. Oh and I’ll miss you.” You’re about to start blushing again at his last words until he softly grabs the back of your plushies head and kisses it's forehead. You let out an offended gasp until he laughs and does the same action to you.

“There we go. Now you can leave.” You give him a teasing grin and he just softly shakes his head, turning to leave you. But not before he gives you a small wave, placing his other hand in his pocket. You watch him walk towards his black car, his silhouette lit up by the car's lights when he unlocks it. Even from this distance you can hear his cheery whistling. Satisfied, you turn around and finally unlock your door.

As soon as your foot hits the floor inside your home, you feel your shoulders relax and you let out a breath. As if in a trance you take off your shoes and jacket, throwing your handbag to the hallway floor with no need for it anymore. Carrying your new plushie with you, you move into your living room and throw it on the couch, your own body following soon after in the darkness.

You cuddle up to your new found friend, his size perfect to lean on. And having been carried around by Kuroo since he won it, his scent had been rubbed off onto it. That simple fact made you smile like an idiot. You reminded yourself that you had your friend to thank for this since she had been the one to set you two up the first time. So while you move to pull up your phone, you took the time to light one of the floor lamps next to the couch and turn on the TV to fill the silence in the room. And then you sitt there, phone in hand, ready to tell your closest friends about the day you had just had.

You can barely believe your eyes as you read through the screenshot. While you had seen people sharing their onlyfans link you didn’t think anyone you knew would have one. But you shouldn’t judge it too quickly, you knew onlyfans advertised to a wide variety of people, one of them being professional trainers. Kuroo talked about his love for training… so maybe?

Now that your curiosity has been piqued you couldn’t just let it go. Sitting up properly, you type the link into your phone. Onlyfans.com/… domkuroo… That training theory didn’t sound as likely anymore. But you continue, met with the login screen. You go ahead and download the app and create your account, heart in your throat. You only pause when his subscription page popped up, your whole face lighting up by your bright screen.

$15 per month.

It wasn’t a meekly sum but was it worth it to realize what was going? Of course it was.

Minutes later you’re allowed onto his page and you can physically feel the blood rush to your face. He certainly wasn’t a professional trainer even though you can clearly see he got the body of one. Your eyes are drawn to his profile picture even though it lacks his face. A slanted shot with just his abdomen shown thanks to him raising his black t-shirt. You can see a hint of a grin peeking out from the edge of the picture. Simple but effective. His banner was in similar spirit, three pictures of him shirtless next to each other. Two from the front and one showing off his defined back muscles, all of them with teasing or joking facial expressions. Your eyes were roaming over his pictures, eyes wide open. Three dates and you hadn’t even seen a peek of these swatches of skin but now you kinda felt like you couldn’t wait for it.

Your phone had already buzzed a couple times, your friends messages popping up as notifications above your screen but you don’t pay them any mind. Already too absorbed in the new found treasure chest of content from one of the hottest men you’ve ever met.

Shifting in your seat, you use a shaky finger to scroll down to the first post. The content was similar to the first pictures you’d seen. Him, shirtless, in what looks to be his bathroom mirror, doing a peace sign and sticking out his tongue. The caption simply read “Don’t wanna go to class tomorrow but alas. But you guys can have a little something before I go to bed early”. Cute…

The small smile that adorns your face fell quickly when you scrolled onto the next post. Another picture but this time he wasn’t using it to show off his abs. Instead you came face to face with his bulge as it pushed against his pants, the same pants he had worn just earlier today. He used his hand to accentuate it, letting it tent between his fingers. You couldn’t help but stare, not just at the bulge but his hands. You had never gotten such a good look at them before, the long fingers with their prominent knuckles and the veins which softly protruded from his skin. You remember how they had felt against your cheek but now you imagined how they’d feel dragging across other parts of your skin. How his softly calloused hand would feel gripping your thigh, slowly and gently dragging further up and inwards… How they’d push down on your hips while his damned teasing tongue was put to better wor—

You caught your own mind wandering and how you had unconsciously pressed your thighs together in anticipation which would ultimately lead nowhere. You lick your dry lips and take a deep breath before looking at the caption.

“Hate when this happens, any cute kitten willing to help out?”

It was aloof, casual even. It was infuriating in the best way. You could see the amount of people who had left comments and just shook your head. You had been afraid you’d get discouraged by the whole thing, the thought of Kuroo sharing more than just… his face… had you worried. But now you just felt a sense of pride welling up in you. The way he treats you was much more intimate so there was no doubt in your mind that this little side business wouldn’t have an impact on your romantic relationship. But that also meant that you don’t have a problem enjoying this side of him as well.

With this newfound confidence you scroll down even further, the sound of the tv just a white noise by now. It was a new format on your screen, a video. It was like a new step, a new hurdle to cross. But unlike earlier, you aren’t as hesitant. Throwing your phone on your couch, face up as you scramble to find a pair of headphones. Luckily it was just to reach over to your table, a pair of flimsy earphones haphazardly laid there. Plugging them in and putting them on, you sit down on your couch again, pulling your plushie closer as you pressed the play button, your teeth chewing softly on your lower lip.

Immersed in the video, you first heard Kuroo’s soft breathing against your ears. The camera was clumsily adjusted until his whole face was in view and he smiled, seemingly looking so it recorded properly. When he had assured himself of that, he laughed quietly and posed, letting his tongue slip past two fingers in a suggestive manner, giving the camera a wink. Your cheeks heat up again at his teasing mannerisms.

The camera shook a little and suddenly the view switch and you almost gasp. You should’ve suspected it yet when you were face to face with his cock, it still surprised you. In the background you could see glimpses of his laptop, set up with a paused video of it of what must’ve helped him get ready. But you don’t really pay it any mind, much more focused on the center of the screen. His dick was lean and rather big, that’s your guess anyways, based on what could be seen. A vein or two decorated the shaft and a neat tuft of hair was at its base. His hand finally appeared, wasting no time in grasping his own dick. And as his thumb swiped over the tip he let out a shuddering sigh which made you tense up.

“I remember how much you cuties liked that last video… So I’ll try to remember to talk more.” His voice filled your ears, a light growl in his voice thanks to how quietly he was speaking. “Since my voice obviously made you so horny.” It went down another octave when he spoke this time and he spoke even closer to the mic. He started to get into it, slowly jerking himself off with a steady hand. You couldn’t possibly break away from watching him now, you were too invested at this point. Your own hand had even moved down your bare thigh.

“Hah… Now if you’re gonna jerk someone off like this… Start slow. No— mgh… No stress.” —he moved his thumb over the head, you could clearly hear his voice catch in his throat— “but when you’re alone like this, it’s hard not to get impatient.” The chuckle he had started with unraveled into a throaty groan as he started to speed up his own movements. Pulling on his own member, his breathing sped up and droplets of pre-cum was forming on the tip.

“I’m not going to try and… pull something fancy this time… fuck… Sometimes just a good ol’ handy is enough, you know?” The fact that he could still joke under all this made you kinda impressed. You knew yourself that had you been in a similar position, you wouldn’t be able to make any sense. If he had you against a wall, his fingers playing with your clit as he towered over you. His other hand holding onto your wrists to force you to rely on him for pleasure. No matter how many times he’d ask what you wanted from him, you doubt you would be able to give him a reply that would satisfy. “You’d look so pretty, you know?”

Kuroo’s voice brought you back to reality and back to the video.

“I would’ve loved to have you here, your cute… pink lips… wrapped around my cock. You’d eagerly suck it, wouldn’t you? Kitten? Ah fuck—” he slowed himself down to a crawl again. His breathing had developed into panting to the point where you could see his abdomen rising and falling. And just below the skin you could see his muscles tens and relax, trying to prolong the inevitable end. He shuddered before speaking again. “Your eyes would just beg me to fuck your face. Ask me to destroy you, use you for my own pleasures. ‘Cus you know I’d happily do the same in return.”

He picked up his own pace again and you had unconsciously let your hand move to the button on your shorts, playing with it.

“But right now I’d love nothing more than to thread my fingers through your hair and grab it. Hold you right there as I buck my hips into that filthy fucking mouth of yours. Just imagining the sounds are getting me so… fucking close…” The way he said it went straight to your core. He was rambling and it was obvious he was going to cum any second now. You couldn’t help but hold your breath. “You’d be such a good girl and just take it—” With a sudden gasp you saw cum start to shoot from his cock but it only lasted a second until he turned the camera again.

He had thrown his head back, the camera shaking slightly from his orgasm. His back had clearly arched off whatever he was sitting on and sweat had formed on his exposed chest and collarbone. You could even see how he jerked and twitched as his orgasm overtook him. The scene was almost hotter than the whole process of getting to it. But it didn’t last nearly as long as you had hoped it would. Catching his breath, he let his head fall to the side with a lazy, smug grin. He looked into the camera with half lidded eyes. And then the video ended.

You could barely stand this anymore. What began as a curious look into a side of a date you had never seen is ending up making you more horny than you have been in a long time. Yet you knew you couldn’t stop now just as much as you know you need to take care of yourself.

Thinking it over for just a moment, you decide that it was worth the embarrassment of facing him again after this. You turn off your phone and place it besides you on the couch before jumping up from the couch. It takes you mere seconds to pull off your top and shorts, you even take off your bra for good measure. The soft light from the lamp bounces off your skin and the sudden chill from the loss of clothes makes goosebumps appear up your thighs and arms. But your blood rush soon catches up to you and you feel comfortably warm when you sit back down on your couch. You grab your phone and in one swift motion you throw up your feet on the plush seat next to you. You positioned your gigantic cat to act as a backrest. A pleasant surprise in reaction to this was how Kuroo’s intoxicating smell now enveloped you even further.

You push your knees together while turning on your phone again, this time fully aware of what to expect when you put in your earphones again. And you aren’t disappointed when you scroll down further, past a couple more pictures in similar fashion to the earlier content. You only stop when you see another play button on your screen. You look at the caption.

“This little thing has been highly requested so since I got some time over and I’m in dire need to release some steam I thought why not? ft. my favorite toy” Well now you have to play it.

“So here’s a little treat for all you lovely ladies.” The video started with a shot of his face and parts of his, once again, bare upper body. He was sitting in the same seat as last time, leaning back and resting his cheek on his fist. “I’ll be honest and say that is the first time I’ve instructed anyone on how to touch themsleves— Mh, wait no,”—he smiled to himself—”it’s the first time I’ve planned out the instructions ahead of time. So if you aren’t satisfied with this video, you’re very welcome to come up with a fitting punishment down in the comments. Sounds fair? ...Good. With that out of the way…”

“Let’s play.”

Your heart catches in your throat, the daring tone in his voice making you fidgety. But it caught your attention and you were just about ready to do anything this man told you to do, as long as he did it in that deep voice of his. The screen changes and this time he was wearing a pair of black dress pants and his bright red underwear was peeking out from underneath. While restricted, you could still see that he was hard underneath the layers.

“Now I hope you’re prepared yourself, babygirl, because I’m not going to be waiting for you to get undressed. You should know what you were going to end up doing if you’re listening to me right now. So lay back… and spread your legs for me.” You sink down even further in your seat, almost laying down while letting your legs fall open without any resistance. One of your legs hit the couch back but it doesn’t bother you, you know you still have full access to everything you need. He shifted his legs a little, spreading them even more. While doing so, he managed to unbutton his pants and slowly pull the zipper down.

“Good girl. Now use one of your hands and just let it slowly move down your soft belly.” You obediently do as you are told, watching him as he hooked his thumb in his underwear. He probably knew anyone watching would be anticipating this moment so he made sure to take his sweet time pulling them down. You even caught yourself licking your lower lip without thinking when you finally saw the swollen head of his cock. It is almost embarrassing how much he affects you but you are shameless right now. And as his whole length sprung free, bouncing up thanks to it's new found freedom, your eyes follow it. But you aren’t the only one affected by this move, Kuroo groaned quietly when the fabric rubbed against his crotch. He didn’t care enough to take off his garments and instead pulled them down just enough for them to get out of the way.

“When you get to your sweet spot I want you to just lightly tease your slit with one finger. Don’t press too hard or you’re gonna ruin the whole fun here. And we’re here to have fun aren’t we?” The smile on his face could be heard through his voice. He reached his hand somewhere off screen and when it came back in frame, you could see something liquid and shiny on his fingers. It became obvious what it was when he carefully smeared it over his shaft. He took a sharp intake of air through his teeth before relaxing and letting it out again. “Ah crap… So cold… You girls have it way easier, you get so damn wet on your own.”

“Speaking of wet, why don’t you finally dip a finger into yourself? And maybe even a second one. Rub them on either side of your clit and that little hole of yours. Don’t touch them though, got it?”—he pauses for a second—”It’s almost funny how quickly you melt for me. How easily you’re following my instructions.” He was calling you out. But you couldn’t help but do as he said, your fingers slipping under your underwear almost too easily. He had begun slowly stroking his own dick in a steady pace while he was talking, once in a while teasing the head like he had done in the earlier video.

“It’s so cute… I love when you listen to me like this. When you trust me enough to let me do this to you. It makes me want to push you down a little, see how much you can take. How much you’ll let me use and abuse you. So rub your clit for me, kitten. Slow circles. Don’t get impatient, I’m not there to stop you today. But maybe that’s good, I could probably keep you in that limbo until you’re crying and begging me to fuck you.” The chuckle he made after was tethering on being evil, as if the thought of your desperate cries was amusing to him. It was kinda hot.

The comment bounces around in your head, the thought of him pushing you to the edge like that. Maybe he’d do it in the back of his car, the one he took you home in. Parked just outside your house after a date, you two would be crammed into the back. He lifted your legs over his shoulders, the blood rushing to your head from the angle he was holding them up at. Your hands were pushing against the door from the inside, stuck staring at him as he ate you out. Slowly and calculating. He was taking his sweet time with you, his tongue gently circling your bundle of nerves. He was doing it hard enough to make your hips twitch and your mouth whine but not enough to rile you up further than that. If you were starting to zone out too far he’d introduce his fingers to you again. Pushing two inside with ease and fucking you with them until you were raising your hips even further and about to cum. Then he’d pull away fully, leaving you to fall from your high in the matter of seconds. All because he wanted you to watch him properly as he made it all start over again.

“Rub faster now. I want to see you unravel before me... Now I should probably tell you that I expect that you wait for my permission to cum. It’s important that you do so or I’ll end up having to make a punishment video for you as well. Or maybe that’s more your style.” He could barely even laugh at his own comments anymore. He had been increasing his own pace along with you and the heavy breathing had just kicked into full effect. “Maybe you’re the type to smile while I tie you up. Get excited at the thought of cum denial and pain. At being gagged and fucked raw until you’re sore.”

He spent another moment just jerking off, letting you take care of yourself. All the while he was letting out quiet groans and pleasured sighs which were all clearly picked up by his microphone.

“And stop.” —He quite suddenly, and almost hesitantly, let go of his own cock— “I told you not to get impatient didn’t I? Now take a deep breath and let’s try that again.” You mindlessly followed, removing your hand from your pussy, a trail of your own wetness connecting your fingers to your pussy lips. But you aren’t happy, you may have listened but you frown at his sudden demand.

While you were busy pouting, he had reached over to somewhere off screen again. Once you had gotten over your own annoyance you realize what he was holding when his hand came back into frame. You haven’t seen any in real life but you knew what the toy he had mentioned in his caption was now. A translucent pocket pussy. The obscene nature of it would make you blush if you weren't already burning up.

“Let’s finish this, eh?”—he cleared his throat before speaking again—”Take a finger and slowly start fucking yourself with it. Use two if one doesn’t suffice. And well if you have a dildo, I’m sure you know what to do with it. Oh but please... don’t imagine it’s me fucking you.” The sarcasm dripping from his voice would’ve annoyed you if you weren’t in the position you were in now. Because right now, you would love nothing more than for him to fuck your brains out. But like he told you to, you can only do it slowly for now. He seemed to keep that in mind as well when he pushed his dick into the toy, slowly letting it take him to the hilt.

“Because I’m certainly not imagining that this is you right now. Slowly pushing yourself down onto my cock, moaning like a bitch in heat. And then back up again just to let yourself slide back down. Over… and over… getting faster each time. Hah...I’d help you of course, I’d grab your ass and set the pace.” He was quickening his own pace in time with his talking and you followed suit without being instructed to do so. You are getting too invested in the fantasy, his words turning into vivid images in your head.

You could almost feel his dick pounding into you, filling you. And how his big hands fit on your hips. You could remember how it felt when he did so earlier while he kissed you. But the kiss you were imagining now was much more sinful. Tongues intertwined in open mouth kisses, only broken by your own moans. The sound of skin hitting skin was clear in your head, the pacing matching your own fingers thrust. He wasn’t soft or careful like he had been with you during the day, behind closed doors he was rough and raw. No longer afraid to leave marks of his fingers on your hips or a red handprint on your ass. It exhilarated you, how calculated yet reckless each move he made on you was.

“Fuck yourself, just like you— F-fuck… like you think I’d fuck you. And now a little faster than that, I don’t think you really understand just how badly I need you right now, kitten.” You can barely even think for yourself anymore, you don’t need to. You have a faraway look in your eyes while staring at the screen, watching him pump himself with the toy. Strings of lube connecting his skin and the silicone together with each thrust, the sound perfectly mimicking that of skin against skin. Even the clothes he had pulled down didn’t go unstained, making the scene even more pornographic.

His erratic thrusts were a clear indication of how close he was getting again. The grip on his toy was growing tighter too and you wish you could feel how desperate he was. He would grab a fistful of your hair close to your scalp and pull, forcing your head back and breaking your open mouthed kisses. His need to claim you as his too great, manifesting in the licks and bites he made along your neck and collarbone. The sweet pain of creating a hickey mixed with his powerful thrusts into you was overwhelming.

“I’m s-so close…” You told him in your head, your hands mentally grabbing at his shoulders to keep yourself steady.

“I… Hah… mgh-!..I know you’re getting there, babygirl. Let me count you down… I don’t care how you fucking do it, but I need you to cum on 5. Can you do that for me?” He asked and you nodded vigorously, your back arching off the couch. You didn’t care that he couldn’t hear you, you replied like a good girl should. “G-good.”

“5”

You closed your eyes, too overwhelmed by his, or rather your own, actions. But in your mind he was counting you down, a dangerous grin on his face when he looked up at you above him. He had purposely slowed himself down to make sure you could last the whole time without cumming.

“4”

He let go of your hair, instead moving his hand to hold it around your throat loosely. Meeting his eyes it was as if they were glowing in the low light, watching your rapidly rising and falling chest. His other hand was firmly placed on your hip, helping you bounce on his dick. Your hands holding his shoulders were grabbing on harder.

“3”

The number left his lips and he started to speed up your movements, the wet slapping sound getting louder. Your moaning was starting to match those you hear in pornos, sweet and needy. His own voice sounds strained when he speaks again.

“2, you’re doing so well, pretty girl”

There was a small smile on your lips at his words but it was interrupted by his thumb pressing down on your clit. It started rubbing the nerves frantically, no longer concerned by how long you were supposed to last. He trusted that you could hold yourself.

“1”

You were chasing your release, eagerly fucking yourself on his dick. He sped up his thumb as it was working on you while he happily watched yourself lose your mind thanks to purely his voice and your own need to please him.

“Fuck! Cum for me—!”

You can’t see him cum, but you swear you can feel it. And as you do, your own orgasm comes washing over you like a tidal wave, hitting your hard and fast. Your whole body tensed up and you pushed your thighs together, curling up instinctively. The whole room was warm and your panting mixed in with the murmurs of the people on the TV. You rubbed your clit slowly, riding out your own high in a daze, lips parted while you twitch.

Kuroo’s heavy breathing finally registers in your brain and you focus on the video again. He had flipped the camera to his face again and you were glad he did. He looked pretty fucked up himself, a similarly dazed look in his eyes while he recouped. But when he wetted his own lips, he seemed to regain control and energy enough to laugh at himself.

“Ho-o-oly crap, well that wasn’t too bad. I wasn’t sure how much I would enjoy that but I’m not gonna lie, that was really good.” —he stretched his neck muscles, tilting his head from side to side—”I’m gonna need to go lie down a bit and drink some water… You do the same, stay hydrated. And uh, right, comment underneath if you enjoyed this or if I need to make a… punishment video. But anyways, I’ll catch you guys later. Heh..”

With a final smile, the video ends and you are left alone in your home. But you don’t feel alone, you are honestly still exhilarated. Maybe it was because you just came but maybe it was because you now had a hint of what to expect if you and Kuroo got serious and you loved it. The fact that you so easily obeyed everything a guy who didn’t even know you were watching said to you was a sign of the confidence he had with every command he told you to follow. And you loved that about him.

But what now? You knew of this side of him, should you bring it up? Or act like nothing had happened, as hard as that would be.

You let the thought simmer in your head as you get up, grabbing your clothes from the floor on the way to clean yourself up in the bathroom. You make quick work of it, tired from the whole experience. But as you splash some water in your face, you hear a notification go off on your phone. Curious, you look at the locked screen.

“Onlyfans: Domkuroo just posted something! Be the first to check it out!”

Your stomach does a flip as you read the banner and without thinking, you unlock your phone to check the new post.

Another picture post, this time he was in his car. The lights were turned on in it which lit up the photo, giving it a yellow tint. It was of his crotch, the zipper of his black pants pulled down and his white boxer briefs were clearly tented and pushing against the fabric. It couldn’t be anything other than a hard on being displayed.

It made your breath catch in your throat as you realize the implications of the post. Your suspicions were confirmed once you read the caption.

“I blame her and her soft lips for this. Can’t get it outta my head.”

You can’t ignore this. It took you mere seconds to find his number in your phone and while still riding your confidence high, you call him. It beeps twice before you hear him pick up.

“Hey, y/n. Isn’t it a bit late, what’s up?” His voice was breathy and a little quiet, it reminds you of the way he sounds in his videos. Maybe you interrupted him while he was—? No… But the thought makes you blush.

You had to take a deep breath before you responded to him, going over what you wanted to say once more in your head before speaking.

“I’ll happily take the blame for your situation, Kuroo.” You feigned confidence but your heart feels like it was going to beat out your chest. Now he just needs to understand what you meant, but you doubted you had to worry.

“Huh—? Oh.”—His voice went down an octave when he spoke again—”Oh, is that so? Well why don’t I come pick you up again so you can take responsibility for this, kitten?” Despite how teasing he sounds, you can see a grin form on your own face in the mirror at the suggestion.

“Pick me up in 30.”

“Got it.”

586 notes · View notes

mrsblackruby · 3 years

Text

Hey👋🏿 hope you’re having a nice day 😊

Sorry for cross tagging but the harassment is getting out of hand. Okay I’m a Billy Hargrove fan willing to make a cross tag post [which turned into a 5 part series ] discussing how to treat and respect fans in the strangers things community. I’m hoping to showcase behavior we shouldn’t engage in when we see someone who likes a character who we dislike. I’m also hoping to start a respectful discussion to help anyone on tumblr who doesn’t understand Billy fans but wants to understand them.Let’s hope this doesn’t become overwhelming 😳

I’m open to fair criticism. Let me know if you interpret a post differently than me if you want. Please let me know your opinions if you have them.

Don’t worry I also want to be respectful to those who don’t like Billy because you have ur reasons to not like his character and connect to fiction however you want to connect to fiction. I want to make things clear I’m not trying to make a moral condemnation of anyone who has engaged in the behavior I critic in this post. There are much bigger problems in the world but I’m so passionate about this one because I’m a person of color who connects to Billy’s story arc and the way some antis treat Billy fans is just cruel. Billy fans are real people who exist and their stories have real life consequences. Online harassment in fandom is not excusable because it is still harassment.

This post is long as FUCK and will have different parts but even tho it’s long I find the conversation to still be interesting so keep that in mind if you read I’ll try to reblog it and pinned it on my blog for ease. There’s a lot to discuss and this conversation should be dealt with care. I will also have the different parts linked at the end of each post. ( I’m also a stupid teenager pls be kind)

I worked so hard on this.

Please share this if you want because I believe our fandom can combat the environment of harassment online we see. Nobody deserve this type of treatment for hyper-fixating on a fictional character that gives them comfort!

Tw for all parts// harassment, racism, discussion of abuse, and abuse apologia, death threats, spoilers for strangers things season 1-3

Tw for this part// harassment, racism, fictional suicide mentioned

I have taken screenshots to reference and prove the behavior I critic but I have gotten rid of all identifying content as to avoid further harassment. Please don’t go out looking to harass anyone. Let me know if I need to add any warnings. this is a somewhat serious, heavy, and layered discussion. We are talking about how humans connect to fiction here so it’s bound to be complex.

[important Note for entire series] All these posts are recent by the way just to show case the harassment is still and ongoing issue even tho Billy has been “ dead” for quite a while now. He might have killed him self but Billy is still my rat man. let me love 😍him.

The Harassment of Billy Hargrove Fans #1

“Okay let’s get started”

Assumptions and cruel judgments of Billy fans

In this Twitter post someone makes the assertion that being a Billy Hargrove fan is a red flag. I’m aware that this is not a tumblr user but I have seen some of this sentiment on tumblr. I will begin by criticizing this post because someone being a fan of a fictional character doesn’t make them and inherent threat to anybody’s personhood. I get that the person who posted this may even agree with what I just argued, that Billy fans aren’t a real life threat, but that’s not what is being communicated at all when someone reads this especially when a fan of Billy reads this. And if someone out there does believe this for one reason or another I’m going to continue to dispute your claim. Some Billy fans might engage in problematic behavior but to hold a layer of apprehension towards all fans of a character because of this might be something you need to reevaluate. Making a moral judgment on real human beings because they like a character is not okay especially if you don’t even know the reasoning.

Just because someone likes a character that might be a mass murderer in fiction doesn’t mean that now they support massacres, correct? Same logic applies here if someone does interpret Billy as racist but still likes his character that does not mean they think racism in the real world is okay ( or bullying, harassment, or anti feminism either) and that does not mean they can’t organize against real world problems effectively.

This is a crude assumption

First things first not every who likes Billy ships Harringrove

As a Harringrove shipper I can only speak for myself and say I could give less of a fuck if Billy is “good” or “bad”. That’s doesn’t mean he doesn’t want to smash king Steve. That’s also doesn’t mean he can’t be queer and it doesn’t mean I can’t like the ship. And it doesn’t mean that I can’t connect to Billy on a disastrously queer level ( got that phrasing from a grade A post on this hell site)

Believing Billy can see the errors in his ways and can heal and become a “good” person… doesn’t have to be a byproduct of being a shipper. it can just be a read someone has of a character so “anon” no disrespect to ya but your thinking is wrong.

Okay this is gonna be lengthy

Fine some Billy fans ignore the shit he did… but that’s not inherently bad. Fans can headcannon Billy into a completely different portrayal than what we see on screen and love him I don’t see a problem with that especially when they aren’t excusing any abuse.

The Duffers brothers failed at exploring racism in their show if that was their intention. Point blank period since this is a form of art it can be interpreted in many different perspectives. Especially if it is not tied to any explicit themes on racism in the text. I interpret Billy’s actions as racist but no one has to do so if they connect to the story in a different manner. I felt the weight of Billy’s “ certain type of people” comment. However it was only and implication not a confirmation. Stop being mad at people for not interpreting something left up to interpretation.The writers didn’t explicitly tackle the issue they wanted to tackle.

This might be helpful 2 know …I interpret Billy as racist, I’m also black, I also Stan Billy Hargrove.

Okay here we go… no-one has to interpret Billy’s actions as being racist so why assume that if someone likes Billy it’s because they’re racist just like him… if they don’t even think he’s racist. I hope that makes sense

I think Billy is racist 4 sure the story flows better for me that way and it makes a lot of sense to me. Now let’s talk about racism in the real world … racism is something that is taught. Racism is a big large system we are all conditioned into. Racism is something we must all unlearn in the real world. So in the fictional world I think there is an entertaining plot line that Billy can go down and unlearn his racism +stop beating up on children Billy 🤦🏿‍♀️. Because I see that potential growth that is why I like his character. Oh and no one ever talks about this but I head cannon Billy as fat phobic because of the “lard- ass” comment so my version of Billy is working through that as well.

I don’t wanna sound all high and mighty I can understand why someone might express this sentiment. I’m not gonna demonize someone who is black like me (black people have dealt with that enough). I also get why you would not even like Billy if you interpret him as racist. [Someone could have the same analysis of Billy as me and still not like him because how we connect to fiction is somewhat irrational.] I would just ask that we don’t jump to conclusions about anyone’s politics because of how they like a fictional character. That we treat other members in our fandom with respect.

I can never and will never excuse racism because if I do I would be turning a blind eye on a system that kills my loved ones. Your allowed to not like Billy Hargrove honestly I don’t see any Billy fans who care? Stop making crude assumptions about people who do Stan Billy Hargrove ur “ joke” is a hurtful misrepresentation.

Lol like #notallbillyfans am I right guys 👉🏿

*crickets sounds and booing*

okay sorry let’s move on…

The problem I hope i highlighted is that you can not make inherent claims to thy morals of a human being because they like a fictional character.😂

Stand alone post: Me reading to much into the politics of Billy Hargrove/ Harringrove

THE 5 PART SERIES ON HARASSMENT:

#2 #3 #4 #5

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iaintyourbro · 4 years

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The New Red Herrings: Biggs and Zack and How Avalanche Tells Us the LTD is Dead

Biggs and Zack are seemingly alive at the end of FFVII Remake Part 1 - so what does that mean? Will they live throughout the story? Maybe they’ll be like Wedge and escape death initially, only to be forced to face it shortly after?

There’s also interesting similarities on the death scenes of Biggs and Zack, A while ago I took screenshots of the “death” scene of Biggs and thought it was interesting how they had Biggs touch Cloud’s head and also made him promise something.

And how are all these things connected to the LTD?

Now, clearly, neither Biggs or Jessie had as dramatic of a death as Zack or Aerith. We actually see the initial injury or incident that causes each of them to die. Cloud comes upon Biggs while he’s already sitting down injured. Cloud and Tifa come to Jessie after she’s under the rubble and try to save her.

We know Cloud pretty much loses it when Zack dies. He collapses mentally. He’s already been through enough shit to fill a lifetime, and now his only friend, his best friend, and the guy who saved his life, dies trying to get them back to Midgar.

Why Zack is Important to Cloud

Relationship wise, Cloud obviously had a much deeper connection to Zack. At the point that Biggs dies, he doesn’t know any of that, but I think his death definitely triggers something in him. Biggs saw through Cloud’s front. We know Biggs dealt with the kids at the Leaf House, and most likely acted like a volunteer in the Big Brother program. He tells Cloud he’s got a lot in common with the kids at the Leaf House.

Zack had Cloud take on the responsibility to be his living legacy. Of course we all know he shuts down about five minutes later. Biggs had Cloud promise that this wouldn’t all be for nothing. In both cases, it doesn’t work out. He forgets what Zack told him and the Sector 7 plate still falls.

Zack’s death has a major impact on Cloud - it’s ultimately what breaks him. It also gives us these really sad moments of somebody who’s already been through so much and is breaking now.

Cloud is upset about Biggs. He was becoming his friend. The three Avalanche members really did accept Cloud and tried to be his friend. He was included with them - in most cases. Of course there’s the Avalanche party that he’s kicked out of (mind you - he does this to himself by acting like an ass to Barret and them) and then during Chapter 4, he’s separated to go steal Jessie’s dad’s ID.

Ultimately, though, we know that Biggs, Wedge, and Jessie all like Cloud. They seem to see through the hard exterior pretty easily. So Cloud loses another person in his life.

The ending of FFVII Remake takes an interesting turn. Anybody who played OG or CC knows what is supposed to happen to Biggs and Zack.

But, Remake’s ending seems to imply that they survive the event that was supposed to take them out.

Did Zack survive the last stand? Is this a case of the Last Stand in CC being combined with OG where as they walk away, Zack ends up getting shot anyway?

So we also see Biggs.... wait, wrong picture.

That’s the right one. We get a shot of Charlie Sheen Biggs waking up in a bed in what looks like some type of either infirmary or large room. In OG, we know that all three of the Avalanche members die during the Sector 7 plate fall. In Remake, the only one we get confirmation on is Jessie, and that’s only in the Chapter description.

Wedge we know survives until the Shinra building, where the Whispers ultimately take him out since he defied fate.

So, what will happen to Biggs?

The biggest thing talked about seems to be the ending. Zack surviving created a lot of buzz. Is there a second timeline? Is he going to just simply walk another 10 feet and get shot in the back? Did her survive in the first place? Why does Stamp look different on that bootleg chip bag?

Will we have a beautiful Zerith reunion?

In the OG, the Love Triangle illusion was the red herring. This was mostly to trick and distract the player to focus on something, so later they can destroy you with major twists. It also was used to get the player to like Aerith so her death would be more impactful. In addition, it makes the whole Northern Crater confession from Cloud about Tifa’s opinion being the only one that matters a slam in your face of holy shit what is going on?!

At this point, everybody and their mother knows Aerith dies. It’s not something that was kept a secret. It’s referenced in various materials. The one thing not openly referenced is what’s going on with Cloud. They never reference the Lifestream, the fake persona, or anything outside of the OG and Ultimanias. I think this is a shame since it’s such an important part of his character arc, but I get that they want to try and leave the element of surprise in play.

I think everybody would agree that the moment you find out Cloud was just a grunt that was WITH Zack during the Nibelheim incident is super powerful. I still get chills all these years later. Letting this be a well known thing would take away the element of surprise from new fans. Of course, people can go online and read blogs like this one and know all of this, but for somebody - especially future generations - who may just be looking for a new game to play, you’d want this element of surprise to stay in tact.

We can’t use Aerith as the only red herring anymore, and we can’t use the love triangle. For many reasons. Everybody knows about it and the love triangle was a poor choice for something like this because some people missed the point completely.

Now, FFVII Twitter is always on fire.

Also, even though the Lifestream and Cloud’s true identity are pretty well kept secrets in terms of printed media, most of the people who played FFVII Remake played the original game, they know what happens. People who were new and played Remake first most likely went and bought OG and played it. So now they know what happens.

They knew this, or they probably wouldn’t have shown Cloud in this state, but even for those who don’t, the alternate timeline theory is born. Biggs enhances this theory because he’s alive too. How can Cloud walk past them AND be carried by Zack in some catatonic state?

It keeps us distracted. They want us to think that fate can be changed. In the case of Zack, they’re even saying that the past can be changed.

Ultimately, whatever they do, it’ll be shocking to most players. I do trust that the devs aren’t being deceitful when they say they are going to keep the major plot points the same and FFVII will be FFVII going forward. Part 1 keeps major plot points but adds substance to a lot of things. They took out unnecessary parts and enhanced others. They also removed a lot of the love triangle stuff.

Another striking thing with all of this is the Jessie factor. The Chapter screen tells us she died - it only says Biggs was seriously injured. That hasn’t stopped speculation.

The ending shows gloves on the table next to Biggs’ bed and a lot people said oh it’s Jessie’s left glove! And it does appear that it is. There’s only one glove. To me, this seems like they recovered her body and were able to pull of some personal affects of hers to leave with Biggs. Both articles look damaged or faded.

Faded could mean they’ve been sitting in the sun for a while. The incident happened a few days ago, though we don’t have a definitive time on when we’re shown Biggs. This could be a future look.

They also could simply be damaged and full of dust from the plate collapse.

It is implied in Chapter 4 if you listen to the conversation between Jessie’s mom and the gang that Biggs and Jessie have a different relationship than Wedge and Jessie.

I have some thoughts on what this may mean:

Biggs is Jessie’s BFF and her mom likes him.

Jessie and Biggs dated at one point and decided to not tell her mom that they no longer are or that its casual.

Jessie’s mom was hounding Jessie about finding a man so she picked Biggs to be her pretend boyfriend and he agreed.

Biggs and Jessie are secretly dating and only her mom knows.

Which one do I think it is? Well, knowing Jessie, I can definitely see her doing #3. I can absolutely see her acting like Biggs is her boyfriend to get her mom off her back. I think #1 and #2 are also huge possibilities. #4 is far fetched, but they could cover it up by having Jessie flirt relentlessly with Cloud and appear to be single.

Some people think that Jessie will end up at the Gold Saucer singing. Personally, I really hope not. If they keep a bunch of people alive (even if it’s for a short amount of time), it really takes away one of the major themes of FFVII which is death and moving on. In addition, I think it’s too many people they’d need to kill off later. Jessie is a very popular character, so I hope they don’t take that as an incentive to change that aspect of the story.

Aerith’s funeral and Jessie’s death are similar as well, so I think it is foreshadowing some things.

We get a princess style carry here. Aerith and Jessie both get these in Remake. Jessie’s second one ends in her death. Will Aerith get a second princess carry by Cloud? Will it be to take her to her final resting place?

Maybe she won’t even go to the lake - maybe to the sky?

We know Tifa was super upset in OG, and they really don’t touch on it much. We only see her run away crying after this moment. You learn in Case of Tifa that she’s really upset about, but a lot of people don’t read Case of Tifa, so they only know this scene.

We know that she gets very upset over Jessie’s death.

I think Aerith’s death will be much worse.

It seems Jessie’s death is a reference to how Aerith’s death was handled in the OG.

Will it be handled the same? Maybe. I think they’re going to make it seem like she’s going to be okay, and then boom.

So the ending gives us hope that we have two friends that are alive. It makes us think that we can save Aerith. I do think Wedge’s death towards the end and comments that Red XIII made in Chapter 17 may also be hinting towards the fact that you cannot change the past and you cannot change fate.

Over on Discord, @anesuna brought up a good point about Wedge’s cats. Biggums survives the plate collapse along with Wedge. The other two cats - Reggie and Smalls - sadly perish (::cries a lot::). This could also be a reference that Biggs survived while Jessie and Wedge do not.

So what about the LTD?

I think this is a heavy reference to the old OG love triangle. Don’t fall for it! They’re warning players now instead of wanting them to fall for it.

Why do I say this? Aerith seemed to think the love triangle was fun. Thing is, Cloud wasn’t all there at this point, so it was just an illusion. Since players didn’t seem to get that the first time, they’re going to make it clear now. There were a lot of aspects they seemed to take from Aerith and give to Jessie. Overly flirty (with Jessie they added thirsty) and being overly childish at times. Aerith in remake is still somewhat childish, but not completely.

Oblivious Cloud is Oblivious. Yeah, he was oblivious in OG that Aerith and Tifa had feelings for him. He has no idea what Wedge is talking about now. Earlier in this same conversation he thinks that Wedge is telling him not to come around because people will gossip about Jessie being in Avalanche, but the player knows really what he’s referring to...

I think this is probably a reference to the Gold Saucer date because of the stage part. I take things at face value and don’t really dig too deep, but I think this exchange with Wedge is supposed to tell the player not to fall for these false loves early in the game.

It’s brought up again during Aerith’s resolution scene.

Earlier Wedge said not to fall for Jessie’s trick, because it was a game to her. It wasn’t real love. Aerith is now telling her that if Cloud thinks he falls in love with her, it’s not real.

We have two separate instances in the game where they’re telling you to beware of the false love. It’s two times the word love is used.

After all of this, the ending presents us with two guys who should be dead that appear to be alive. One of them is directly connected to Aerith.

This was their way of trying to shut down the LTD and replace it with different red herrings. Will it work as well as the LTD? Well, it seems that the majority of FFVII Remake fans have talked about the ending.

Yes, a lot of people talk about the LTD, but I think the majority of players are more interested overall in what happens next and what’s up with Zack. I think the majority of the fandom is also ready for the LTD to officially be dead so we can actually focus on everything else and stop the madness.

It’ll never fully stop, but at least it’ll be clear for anybody who plays the game and alleviate the bulk of the chaos.

Say hello to your new red herrings: Biggs and Zack.

Say bye to the LTD.

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