#no matter how polite or civil you're being

[everything-is-crab]

Straight/bi women literally don't see lesbians as women due to their lack of attraction to men.

Sex is the division of reproductive labor that men choose to exploit. Gender is the social construct to support and facilitate the exploitation and homophobia is literally a product of that system. Don't wanna use the word "comphet" because the word is quite debated, but people are expected to choose a partner of the opposite sex. It's not like lesbians are just liberated. If you don't wanna admit lesbians are also exploited on the basis of their reproductive ability means that you don't think they're women.

Idk why some people like to argue that just because *some* lesbians in more liberal countries are able to live a life without pregnancy that means lesbians as a class are unempathetic to women of other sexualities in matters of reproductive exploitation. I live in India and I cannot imagine making that statement as a bisexual woman. The way lesbians here are forced into marriage and to give kids to their family. Corrective rape is a thing here. If you're going to use your race as an argument against lesbians then also have the guts to think from the pov of lesbians from your race (she is mixed white-Indian). This is the lived reality of most lesbians in the world. They're not less impacted by any form of misogyny. This is why radfems must introspect and criticize their own work first before blindly worshipping authors like Simone de Beauvoir, whose ideas you have internalized. Just like lesbophobes today, she was bitter against lesbians, thought they hindered feminist movement cause she thought they were some class of "liberated" women. The sentiment is still very alive today.

I highly doubt that she (if yk who I am talking about then yk) and other women who agreed with her have given birth themselves, or plan to anytime soon. In my opinion, a country that's less homophobic is also relatively less misogynistic. So lesbians there aren't more liberated anymore than het or bi women. Just like them, you have as much choice to remain childfree and never be pregnant. The social pressure, retaliation etc is something lesbians do share with us.

Straight women think and say the worst things about each other. Give each other advice on how to lose weight after pregnancy and to look attractive again to their husbands again. Give advice to stitch to be "tight" again. Disapprove certain style of dressing while on or after pregnancy.

However, all such behaviors these women inflict on each other is called internalized misogyny. In case of lesbians tho, they're accused of "behaving like men" when lesbians have no power, no social institution to force straight women into pregnancy or any of the things related to it. When lesbians are themselves forced in het marriages and childbirth. You cannot claim they're like "men". This is such an insult to the lesbian and bi women activists in my country who have made female only orgs within LGBT cause neither male members of LGBT nor het women understand the unique position of wlw community in society.

[feirceangel]

Okay so you’ve written protective/possessive Feyd—what about protective Paul seeing his wife badly hurt or narrowly escaping an attack? I live for the “who did this to you” trope, got me weak at the knees 🥹

I sorta missed the whole wife part, whoops! But I hope you still like it!!

Imagine | Beloved (Paul Atreides)

Word Count: 1,820

Warnings: reader is harassed, I invented an OC to be the antagonist, protective! Paul, hurt/comfort

The halls of Castle Caladan are cold tonight.

Goosebumps are already forming on your arms as you walk through the dark.

Perhaps going for a late night stroll wasn't the best idea, but you just couldn't sleep tonight.

So you stroll instead, peering out of the windows to observe the rain clouds forming.

Castle Caladan has been your home for ages, even though you are not an Atreides. You've lived alongside House Caladan, having come from one of the lesser houses in an attempt to give you a better standing in society.

You're not angry about it.

In fact, you're grateful to live on this oceanic planet. And, you're happy to be alongside your best friend, Paul Atreides.

There weren't any others your age in Castle Caladan, so naturally you sought each other out early on.

Being friends came easily.

Paul has always been sweet, adventurous, friendly - and you are much the same.

Of course, you both had different teachings and priorities, but you always found each other whenever possible.

There was no greater joy than racing through the castle and playing near the waves alongside the boy with dark hair.

And now you're both older.

Life has intruded upon those times of peaceful play and brought forth more schoolings and politics that the young aren't susceptible to.

Although he has a higher standing in society, Paul always manages to remember you, make time for you. He vowed to never abandon you.

And you believe him.

But the subtle glares that Lady Jessica sends your way are not easy to ignore, nor are the signs that others in the castle are uncomfortable with the situation.

You try not to dwell on those things. Because the only thing that matters is being there for Paul. He deserves to have a friend that isn't a mentor or a parental figure.

As you walk though the sleeping palace, your find your mind troubled. Maybe that's why you can't sleep tonight.

Footsteps silent on the stone floor, you arrive before Paul's chambers. You hadn't realized you were walking here. Unconsciously, you sought him out in your time of uncertainty.

Resting your palm on the door, you close your eyes and sigh. You wouldn't disturb him at this hour- you know how bad it would look.

Before you can continue on your way, a voice calls out from the shadows.

"What are you doing here at this hour?"

It's a male's voice, one that you wish was unfamiliar.

"I didn't realize I couldn't roam as I please, Aric," you reply comply to the guard who walks closer.

His grin is wolffish, "I didn't realize you were stupid enough to come to him after dark."

"I was not going to disturb him."

"Oh no, I imagine he'd be excited to see you at this late hour."

"I don't like what you're insinuating," you start to walk away, hearing him continue after you.

He is right beside you, “I meant no insult, I assure you.”

“Your assurances are as empty as your head,” you retort, not even giving him a glance.

You’ve never liked Aric, so you see no reason to be civil with him. He’s always been an ass to you, finding any reason to make your life a bit more miserable.

“That was uncalled for,” he growls, grabbing your arm to stop you from walking away.

You fix him with an unimpressed stare.

“What do you want, Aric? It seems like you’re always following me,” you say calmly as he releases you.

He regains his composure, “I want you.”

You blink at him.

“I’m serious, I want you to stop fawning over Paul and turn to me instead,” his whisper is harsh and grating to your ears. “Be my wife. You’re of age now and I know you have no other offers.”

You can’t help but scoff. Stepping back from him, you cross your arms, “I do not fawn over Paul, and I am certainly not fond of you. I will do is both a favour and pretend you never asked.”

Rage lights up his features, his hand forming a fist at his side.

“I could give you everything you could ask for.”

“And you would take everything from me in the meantime. I know you, Aric. You are not kind,” you hiss, stepping back while he steps forward.

“Kindness gets you nowhere in this life.”

You shake your head, “Your actions in this life determine the outcome. And so far your actions are untoward. Cornering me at this time of night?”

“Paul will never marry you, you know,” he changes tactics.

You roll your eyes, “Admit defeat, Aric. I will never be yours.”

Suddenly, he is right in your face, sneering down at you, “I can take what I want. Like you said, it’s late, no one is here.”

“I will not let you.”

He laughs, grabbing your arm in a bruising grip once again. He wrenches you forward but you twist out of his grip and shove him into the wall.

He groans and recovers quickly, shoving you violently. You hit a corner and collapse on the ground, your arm dripping crimson.

Infuriated, you stand and glare at the smug bastard.

“Leave now,” you command him, using the Voice. You’re not a master at it, by any means, but you’re trained enough to get this brute to back down.

He leaves without a word, and you realize that you should have done that right away.

You grasp your arm and walk back to your chambers. Luckily, the wound isn’t deep and you’re finally able to sleep.

~~~

The next day commences as normal.

That is, until Paul appears next to you as you walk down the beach.

“I was looking for you,” he grins as he approaches.

His smile could brighten the darkest corner of space. His eyes are piercing and perceptive, you fear you could drown in their depths.

You smile back at him, “You found me.”

“I haven’t seen you in a few days, has everything been alright?”

That’s Paul, always so considerate of you and your wellbeing. The reminder of his care brings a softer smile to your face.

“I’m fine, just been tired lately.”

“Why?”

“Sleep’s been evading me,” you chuckle, bending to pick up a stone near your feet. “I’ll catch it eventually.”

A sudden tension fills the air, bringing you upright immediately. You look at Paul and see his gaze fixed on your bandaged arm.

“What happened?” He asks, concern dripping from his words like rain.

You move your arm from his direct view, “Nothing, it was an accident.”

His eyes flicker up to yours.

“You’re lying.”

You curse his Bene Gesserit training which makes it so easy for him to read you.

“I told you it’s nothing.”

“If it was nothing, you would’ve already launched into how it happened,” he points out. “Like that time you scraped your knee when you tripped down the stairs.”

You groan at the reminder, “You said you wouldn’t bring that up again!”

“Tell me what happened,” he reaches out to gently take your arm in his hands.

He examines the clean bandage before beginning to unwrap it. You shake your head but his eyes are pleading.

“Please.”

You sigh, unable to resist. He doesn’t even need to use the Voice on you, he controls you with his words, his eyes, his hands. You would give him everything if he simply asked for it.

He’d do the same for you.

“It was Aric,” you say, as Paul stares at the small cut on your bruised arm. “He got angry that I would never marry him in a million years.”

Paul’s expression goes dark, any mirth he might have had leaving him in an instant.

“Aric asked you to wed him?”

You nod.

“Then he did this?”

“Pushed me into the wall,” you confess. “I had ti use the Voice to get him to leave.”

You watch as Paul tenderly presses his lips to your arm, the contact warm and sweet.

“I’m sorry I wasn’t there.”

“You can’t be with me all the time, silly.”

He shakes his dark hair, “I promise, he won’t do this to you ever again.”

“How-“

Paul turns in a flurry, stalking back towards the castle. You race after him, suddenly unsure.

You knew you shouldn’t have told him what happened. This isn’t the Paul you know, this is someone else.

“Paul!” You shout as you run after him.

He’s too fast, storming to where Aric stands in the hall. Before Aric even notices his presence, Paul has punched him clear across the face.

Stunned, Aric stumbles back with a curse.

Paul doesn’t give him time to recover, kneeing him in the stomach so that he bends over in pain. You watch as Paul kicks him down to the ground, standing over him with a furious expression.

“I heard what you did last night, Aric.”

Aric groans in response.

Paul continues, “I know you tried to harm my beloved, tried to belittle her. Did you think you wouldn’t be punished?”

“Paul, I think he’s learnt his lesson,” you try to calm him.

“No, no he hasn’t.”

Paul watches as Aric rises to his feet, mouth bloodied.

“I should’ve known that whore would snitch.”

You wince, not at the intended insult, but at the fury blazing in Paul’s eyes. This isn’t going to end well.

“Stop talking,” Paul uses the Voice, before punching him once again.

“Get on your knees.”

You watch as Aric drops to the floor.

“Beg for her forgiveness and I’ll let you walk away,” Paul says casually. “If you don’t, I think you know what’ll happen.”

Watching with a flicker of amusement, you incline your head, “Go on.”

Aric grits his teeth, “I’m sorry.”

“That wasn’t good enough,” Paul seethes, “Do it better!”

Aric slams his head on the floor, “Please, please, don’t let him kill me. I won’t ever speak to you again!”

“I know you won’t,” you nod at Paul. “I think all is well now.”

“Get up Aric,” Paul commands. “I don’t want to see your face again, you hear me?”

Aric nods and retreats with a burning face.

You turn to Paul, crossing your arms, “Beloved, huh?”

He rubs the back of his neck, averting his gaze, “I hope you don’t mind.”

“Paul, hearing you call me that fills my heart to the brim. Your my beloved as well, you know.”

Paul bridges the space between you, clasping the back of your head and pressing his forehead against yours.

“I don’t think I could ever be without you. Even the thought of someone trying to take you from me, turn you against me…”

“Don’t worry, Paul,” you ghost your lips across his. “That will never happen, not as long as I have breath in my lungs.”

He wraps his arms around you, “I’ll cherish you always, protect you always.”

“I know.”

[A/n - It’s my first time writing Paul so I hope I did ok!]

[sunny-day-jack-official]

URGENT! Stop KOSA!

Hey all, this is BáiYù and Sauce here with something that isn't necessarily SnaccPop related, but it's important nonetheless. For those of you who follow US politics, The Kids Online Safety Act passed the Senate yesterday and is moving forward.

This is bad news for everyone on the internet, even outside of the USA.

What is KOSA?

While it's officially known as "The Kids Online Safety Act," KOSA is an internet censorship masquerading as another "protect the children" bill, much in the same way SESTA/FOSTA claimed that it would stop illegal sex trafficking but instead hurt sex workers and their safety. KOSA was originally introduced by Sen. Edward Markey, D-Mass. and Bill Cassidy, R-La. as a way to update the 1998 Children’s Online Privacy Act, raising the age of consent for data collection to 16 among other things. You can read the original press release of KOSA here, while you can read the full updated text of the bill on the official USA Congress website.

You can read the following articles about KOSA here:

EFF: The Kids Online Safety Act is Still A Huge Danger to Our Rights Online

CyberScoop: Children’s online safety bills clear Senate hurdle despite strong civil liberties pushback

TeenVogue: The Kids Online Safety Act Would Harm LGBTQ+ Youth, Restrict Access to Information and Community

The quick TL;DR:

KOSA authorizes an individual state attorneys general to decide what might harm minors

Websites will likely preemptively remove and ban content to avoid upsetting state attorneys generals (this will likely be topics such as abortion, queerness, feminism, sexual content, and others)

In order for a platform to know which users are minors, they'll require a more invasive age and personal data verification method

Parents will be granted more surveillance tools to see what their children are doing on the web

KOSA is supported by Christofascists and those seeking to harm the LGBTQ+ community

If a website holding personally identifying information and government documents is hacked, that's a major cybersecurity breach waiting to happen

What Does This Mean?

You don't have to look far to see or hear about the violence being done to the neurodivergent and LGBTQ+ communities worldwide, who are oftentimes one and the same. Social media sites censoring discussion of these topics would stand to do even further harm to folks who lack access to local resources to understand themselves and the hardships they face; in addition, the fact that websites would likely store personally identifying information and government documents means the death of any notion of privacy.

Sex workers and those living in certain countries already are at risk of losing their ways of life, living in a reality where their online activities are closely surveilled; if KOSA officially becomes law, this will become a reality for many more people and endanger those at the fringes of society even worse than it already is.

Why This Matters Outside of The USA

I previously mentioned SESTA/FOSTA, which passed and became US law in 2018. This bill enabled many of the anti-adult content attitudes that many popular websites are taking these days as well as the tightening of restrictions laid down by payment processors. Companies and sites hosted in the USA have to follow US laws even if they're accessible worldwide, meaning that folks overseas suffer as well.

What Can You Do?

If you're a US citizen, contact your Senators and tell them that you oppose KOSA. This can be as an email, letter, or phone call that you make to your state Senator.

For resources on how to do so, view the following links:

https://www.badinternetbills.com/#kosa

https://www.stopkosa.com/

https://linktr.ee/stopkosa

If you live outside of the US or cannot vote, the best thing you can do is sign the petition at the Stop KOSA website, alert your US friends about what's happening, and raise some noise.

Above all else, don’t panic. By staying informed by what’s going on, you can prepare for the legal battles ahead.

[carionto]

What Humans call the "Thousand Yard Stare"

As more and more Humans interact with and integrate within Coalition stations, reports, closer to hushed whispers really, began to circulate of some Humans being... discomforting... to be around.

Initially we thought it was just rudeness or passive aggressive behavior or any number of subtle actions or choice of words, no matter how advanced or civilized there will always be some assholes.

However, when some of these "offenders" were presented to us peacekeepers, we found them to be perfectly polite and reasonable. As our conversation continued and shifted topics, whenever there was a lull or the focus was on another speaker for a longer time, the Human's gaze drifted somewhat.

Sometimes she would look to the side and it was harder to tell what her exact expression was, but every so often she would be looking at one of us, but... not. It was as if she was staring at something behind us, through us even. Beyond the walls of the station, it even felt as though beyond space and time itself.

It was one of the most unnerving and chitin-chilling feelings we've ever felt, but then the Human seemed to notice our change and became that friendly and cheerful person once again:

"Sorry, my mind drifted there for a bit. What were you saying?"

And the conversation continued as if nothing was out of the ordinary for the Human.

Upon our return to our office, one of the Human peacekeepers heard about our impromptu assignment and offered this explanation after we told him what happened:

"Oh yeah, I think that person was a retired firefighter or rescue worker of some kind. Professions like that can be dangerous and you'll eventually encounter something horrible at a disaster site or crime scene. Probably saw someone die, or a person they rescued later didn't make it, or it was a kid... It's the toughest when you're the last one a child sees before..."

There it is again. That look, but with a tinge of sadness this time. We didn't know he was carrying such memories. The untimely death of anyone is a difficult time for those that survive, especially when it is the young whose life was still just starting. It seems Humans with their heightened senses and sensitivity to the feelings of others these kind of experiences imprint a far stronger memory than for most.

"Anyway, we've got a bunch of names for such things, but typically we call it the thousand yard stare. It's an old measurement unit, don't worry about it. I think the meaning may have changed a bit over the years, but basically some people go through traumatic stuff and they decide, consciously or not, to sort of... detach themselves from reality. It's a coping mechanism.

A few people thrive on horrible things, but they're the exception. Most of us would go crazy or depressed or any other infinite bad possibilities our brains can go in if we don't find a way to separate ourselves from certain realities. It can get real bad otherwise. It's rare, but a few go truly nuts and try to inflict their pain unto others. Most end up suffering alone for a long time. And some can't take it anymore and decide to end it themselves.

Thankfully therapists and support options are widely available, so those kind of scenarios are really rare, like... suicide accounts for about three out of a hundred thousand deaths last time I saw those charts. Plus drones and automation take care of most of the dangerous tasks, leaving the vast majority of cases to be caused by interpersonal relations actually. A broken heart is one of those traumas we'll never get rid of it seems. That's just life, I guess."

[sweatermuppet]

What is it like being trans in New Hampshire? I'm trans in Maine and generally consider NH the black sheep of New England when it comes to queer politics. Some of my trans friends consider it a no-stop zone on our roadtrips.

uh it's pretty fine for me. i get kinda sad when people say NH isnt trans friendly (a sentiment ive seen a lot lately). i had an openly transitioning teacher in high school. i had many gay teachers in high school. i was one of the first kids to transition openly at my school & there were a lot of struggles but it was also 6+ years ago & mostly teachers were under-educated & didn't know how to protect me. i got in a fight & suspended over a kid who was transphobic toward me, but i was allowed to use the boy's bathroom & locker room & all of my core teachers were pretty good about using my name & pronouns

i have multiple trans friends, just locally, & know other trans people a little further out in NH from following them on IG. some pretty decent art scenes in various towns & those are LGBT-dense. one of my trans friends started estrogen yesterday (prescription thru informed consent). i will say in my experience, NH healthcare is lacking for transsexuals—it's been easier for me to go thru Massachusetts or NH planned parenthoods, but ive been able to receive treatment fairly easily (cost being one of the only major negative factors)

as for people, a lot of folks kind of don't care? there are of course republicans & conservatives & a disheartening amount of libertarians, but in my day to day, it's mostly "live free or die" & if you're not hurting anyone, it's not too big of a deal. some of the republicans in my life (like friends' dads) have the attitude of "well i don't get it" but they still call me silas & are generally alright with me, aren't hostile towards me

i see trans flags pretty often. i saw a bumper sticker last month that was the shape of NH completely colored in with the trans flag. there are a bunch of coffee shops & bookstores & artsy places nearby i can think of that employ trans people, house trans art, etc

recently, anti-trans & anti-LGBT bills have been introduced & passed in NH. two passed last month, which can be read about here. i saw some pretty disgusting sentiments shared about those bills on twitter when they were introduced. those make it harder to exist here, but it's not impossible & it does not immediately make all residents hostile toward transsexuals. i don't want people to abandon NH because they think it's too far gone or too hopeless. trans people will always exist in every state & every country & every corner, no matter how hostile those places become

people here love me, regardless of how political parties view me. people here fight for me. there are trans people & Black people & disabled people here who are more vulnerable than me who i want to stay & fight for & protect. if you'd like to learn more about diversity in NH & how to protect various human rights, here are some orgs i am familiar with:

NH PANTHERS (anti-racism advocacy & education)

Queer-Lective (art, education, & connection)

Black Lives Matter NH

GLSEN NH (LGBT resources & education for schools/teachers/students)

Reproductive Freedom Fund of NH (abortion fund, sex ed, LGBT advocacy)

603 Equality (LGBT advocacy & education)

Lovering Health Center (reproductive care, LGBT education, gender affirming care for NH, MA, & ME)

Black Heritage Trail of NH (Black history)

ACLUNH (civil liberties + human rights)

[olderthannetfic]

Okay so this is going to be kind of rant-y, sorry about that.

So I've seen everywhere on tumblr that "AO3 is not safe anymore because the admins are 'zionist fuckers', let's boycott it!!!!!🍉🍉🍉🍉" And for the love of god a lot of people didn't provide any proof, just threw a tantrum. Finally found the link to the closed reddit post, and could finally see what this ruckus is. And... am I the only one who thinks this "boycott" is for nothing?

Like this is the same like "why donate to AO3 when [insert event] happens?" AO3 puts all the money they got from donations into maintaining the site, nothing will change. The funny thing is that that mod who started this ruckus could have just write "I stand with palestine" in their status, and that would have been fine. At least that's what I've seen from the second screenshot:

https://www.reddit.com/r/AO3/comments/186iepg/what_are_you_guys_thoughts_on_this/

Also the link to that mod's post here:

https://www.tumblr.com/just-antithings/741760056082808832/the-otw-being-actively-chockfull-of-zionists-who?source=share

And I also hate this whole emotional abuse tactic these political people use. "If you don't reblog at least one post about palestine and mutilated bodies you don't even care about the war. It doesn't matter if your blog is only fandom related, share it or you're a disgusting zionist!!!!!!" And I fucking hate this. I won't post about this because Ao3 and Tumblr are fandom spaces for me. I come here and there to escape from the cruel real world. So fuck these entitled assholes, I won't post those things. I donate to civil organisations who help the civils in war, and that's it. I go on with my life.

--

My feeling was and remains that a lot of people volunteering for AO3/OTW seem to be unaware that it is very, very normal for workplaces to ban all off-topic contentious conversation no matter how justified, true, etc.

I've mostly not been posting asks that mention I-P stuff because it just blows up and is depressing. It's not a shock that OTW wasn't interested in hosting that conversation in their space for planning actual OTW work.

[apostacism]

Full respect to Trick Weekes but I don't entirely fuck with the "Solas mirrors" thing. Like that may be the intention behind the writing but from a game execution standpoint, it's just not possible to fully realize. You can be perfectly respectful to him and still have him come at you with "you're the stupidest bitch who ever lived thank you for proving to me how worthless your world is" just by 1) making decisions he hates and 2) not interacting with him very much.

Let's put aside the issue of whether he's right to hate the decisions he hates, because it doesn't matter. From a "ego and pride" standpoint, which is supposedly what Solas is reacting to vs humility, all of the Inquisitor's decisions should be weighted equally. At the end of the day they're making huge decisions on behalf of other people, and there's responsibility in that no matter what those decisions are. There's always some ego involved in saying "I know this is right and so that's what I'm choosing."

So not interacting with him very much. There is nothing inherently prideful or egotistic about not seeking out conversation with Solas or taking him around with you. He clearly has more knowledge about the Breach than anyone else, but there's no particular reason to ask him about elves (particularly if the Inquisitor is one), Corypheus, or himself, for an Inquisitor who doesn't want to get to know him. And not wanting to get to know him is not an unequivocal symptom of ego. Sometimes you don't like a coworker very much and so you nod when you pass them in the halls and are civil in conversation but don't seek them out socially. As far as asking about the Breach goes, you get a Slightly Approves for it, which can be easily outweighed by lots of Greatly Disapproves decisions.

It is easy and very possible to rack up 7 or so Slightly Approves by being polite and humble towards Solas and in general in early cutscenes/conversation, wipe them out by allying with the Templars, and then free-wheel joyfully down into Bitch He Hates by declaring the Inquisition for faith and allying with the Gray Wardens without ever approaching him in a spirit of pride or ego. Solas can easily be the aggressive and argumentative one in that relationship, prompted only by an Inquisitor politely and with great uncertainty making choices he thinks are wrong.

To be clear, I don't think that's wrong or that it makes Solas bad. I think it's perfectly fair to judge someone on the merits of their choices, and that when someone again and again makes choices you think are short-sighted and unworthy of respect to dislike them for that. I think Solas is a thoughtful and compassionate person and I by and large agree with his opinions on most situations. I think there's value in becoming upset with someone who repeatedly acts against your own values, regardless of how nicely they present themselves. But that simply isn't mirroring. That is Solas having a perspective and responding to his own perspective, not Solas responding to the Inquisitor's behavior.

And it goes the other way! I have also played a determined, confident Inquisitor hated by Cassandra for his unshakeable commitment to his path and total lack of regard for her and her opinions who was Solas' best friend because he and Solas always agreed about the right thing to do. It's not about pride and it's not about humility, it's about Greatly Disapproves and Greatly Approves.

And that's just... how approval mechanics work. It's a video game. It would certainly be possible to create convoluted approval mechanics which also interact with your characters' attitude in other conversations, but those are not the approval mechanics that DAI has. It's fanfiction to say that Solas' attitude towards the Inquisitor is a reflection of their attitude towards him. It may be more likely that an Inquisitor who is a self-important dick to Solas also makes choices he hates... it may not. I have no data on how other people play DAI and I could not possibly say. I certainly believe that's what Trick Weekes wanted. But Trick Weekes' intentions are not the reality of the game, and in the reality of the game that premise just doesn't hold up.

[anghraine]

Speaking of GW1 and GW2 ... I've had plenty of complaints over the years about how GW2 has chosen to handle and retcon human-centric GW1 lore, the framing of the human gods, etc. That said, I've recently been appreciating that GW2 has retained a particular element of GW1's treatment of humanity and their gods that I've always really liked.

Humans in the GW universe are not really generic everymen, as humans so often are in fantasy settings. Nor are they so wildly varying and unpredictable that there's no sense of humanity having its own distinct flavor like the other playable species do. In many ways, they occupy a vaguely "elvish" position in the world—they've been on this world for a very long time and used to be a major power, or rather, made up many major powers with various warring factions that sometimes found common cause.

But in more recent eras, many of the ancient human civilizations have dwindled and/or suffered various atrocities and/or lost their minds. And culturally, humans tend to have a strong affinity for the mystical and even more for the divinely mystical, which their political power in previous eras was directly tied to. The vast majority of humans in this world are faithful worshippers of a human pantheon of six gods (formerly five).

Not all humans are magical or religious, to be sure, but a lot of them are, to the point that this seems their most distinctive cultural quality. Minor NPCs tend to have background dialogue invoking the gods ("By the Six!"), or referencing one of the gods (often but not only the goddess Dwayna, leader of the Six). The main human NPC of the core game, Logan Thackeray, continually references the gods, as do most of his military fellows.

Most interestingly, though, if you choose to play a human, you will automatically be a devout adherent of the faith of the Six regardless of any other choices you make. In addition, human PCs are blessed by one specific god among the Six whom you choose at character creation.

This mostly has minor flavor effects in practice. A priest of the god you chose permanently hangs out in your home district, and sometimes other priests of your god can perceive some mark of their deity's favor when they look at you.

Howeverrrrr, when I say "their deity," I don't mean that they exclusively worship the god they've dedicated their lives to, or that "your god"—the god whose favor you enjoy as a human PC—is your god in any remotely monotheistic way. Humans faithful to the Six are faithful to all the Six until one of the gods falls to evil. And when that god becomes the villain of the second GW2 expansion, various human NPCs are shown going through a crisis of the soul regardless of whether he was their particular patron or not. Having a more specific personal tie to one of the gods, or being particularly blessed by one of them, or being specifically devoted to a life of service to one of them, does not in any way prevent humans from devotion to the rest of the pantheon.

Mechanically, this means that no matter which deity you choose as your particular patron, your human PC starts the game with the ability to pray to Dwayna, goddess of life and air and healing. When you pray to her, a blue image of Dwayna materializes, heals you, and vanishes. As you level up, your human-based skills will extend to prayers to the other gods.

Praying to Lyssa, goddess of illusion/chaos magic and water and beauty, confounds foes by inflicting random conditions on them and random blessings on you. Praying to Kormir, goddess of spirit, order, and truth, will free you from negative effects like immobilization. The final prayer you can use, iirc, and the most powerful, is the prayer to Balthazar, the god of fire and war who ends up going super evil. If you're playing a fragile class like an elementalist or mesmer, praying to him is actually great, because he blesses you with two fierce hounds made of flame who fight alongside you and soak up damage. (Praying to Balthazar does feel a lot weirder in retrospect, I'll admit.)

In any case, the point is that you can pray to ANY human god and receive a brief visitation from that god, because the entire human pantheon are your gods even if you're only special to one of them. A similar dynamic is at work for NPCs as well. A recurring NPC in the core GW2 story, for instance, is Rhie, a priestess of Grenth, god of cold, darkness, judgment, and death (he's not evil, just goth). Even by priest of Grenth standards, Rhie is greatly favored by him, and as a result is able to perform powerful rituals dealing with the boundaries between life and death. But there's no expectation that this means she should abjure the other gods in any way, and she certainly does not (in fact, she provides a Human Religion 101 rundown about the gods in general in her first appearance in the human storyline).

And it's so common in fantasy, I feel, that polytheistic cultures are conceptualized as giving adherents a wider choice of gods to be the one they actually worship for real, often with the implication that worshipping one god in the pantheon naturally translates into hostility or apathy towards other gods in the same pantheon. And so I do enjoy playing a religiously devout character who has a special patron deity blessing her and who is emphatically polytheistic throughout her entire original storyline.

[fictionadventurer]

The more I learn about Civil War politics, the more I'm convinced that Lincoln's most impressive and useful leadership trait was that he never let his pride get in the way of doing his job.

Other people in Lincoln's position would have come to Washington with something to prove. They'd have resented the insults and tried to disprove them. They'd have tried to seize power and credit, rejected help, spent a lot of time trying to reach a certain level of respect.

Lincoln's response to, "You're just a backwoods lawyer with no executive experience who makes too many dumb jokes," was pretty much always, "Yeah. And?" He had no interest in petty personal power plays. He had a country to run. There was a war on. It didn't matter what people thought of him so long as the job got done.

He was aware of his personal shortcomings and was always willing to accept advice and help from people who had more knowledge and experience in certain areas. He presided over a chaotic Cabinet full of abrasive personalities who thought they were better and smarter than him, but he kept working with them because they could get the job done. For example: Stanton was absolutely horrible to him when they were both working as lawyers. Just incredibly mean on a personal level. But when Lincoln needed someone to replace Cameron, he swallowed his pride and appointed Stanton as Secretary of War, where Stanton proceeded to be mean to everyone in the world, but he whipped that department into shape and kept it running efficiently through a very chaotic war. Pretty much no one except Lincoln would have been able to put up with that. He could put up with people who were personally difficult if they could do the job he needed them to do--which he was only able to do because his own ego didn't get in the way.

Lincoln's example is a prime demonstration of how humility isn't underrating yourself--it's being so secure in your own abilities and identity that you don't need to attack anyone or defend yourself to prove your worth. He knew his shortcomings, but he also knew his strengths. He was willing to give other people credit for successes and take blame upon himself for failures if it kept things running smoothly. He was secure enough in his own power that he could deal generously--but firmly--with people who tried to undermine him. In a city full of huge egos, in a profession that rewards puffed-up pride, that levelheaded humility is an extremely rare trait--which is what made it so impressive and effective.

[infamousbrad]

Alex Garland's Civil War is my perfect movie. I'm not sure who else's, though.

There's a thing I've said about lots of art: if you have to read the artist's statement to get the point, the artist's statement is the art. I read multiple interviews with Garland, went in prepared for the movie he was trying to make, and I loved it, a lot. I don't know if I can say that I enjoyed it, because it's super-emotional, especially super-tense. But I'm very very glad I saw it, and if somebody invited me to go with them, I'd probably watch it again, and I may well buy the blu-ray when it comes out. That being said? I'm not sure who else, other than a few weirdos like me and a few academic cinephiles this movie is for.

Remember the movie Pleasantville, if you even saw it? The trailer mislead a lot of people into expecting a jokey comedy about how dumb "Return to Normalcy" era sitcoms were, and nearly everybody who went in with those expectations hated Pleasantville, because what they got was a deep philosophical meditation on how you can't actually solve a social problem without losing your innocence, and loss of innocence, no matter how necessary, hurts. So almost nobody loved Pleasantville but a few people like me, who wanted it injected straight into our veins.

So let me lay this straight out before you buy your ticket to Civil War:

First of all, at no point in Garland's Civil War do they tell you the politics of any of the three sides in the near-future second American Civil War. Nor are you expected to figure them out. The war started four or five years before the first scene of the movie, and none of the people in this movie are still interested in debating why the war. There are three sides, and while there are people who say that the Western Forces are Democrats and the Florida Alliance are Republicans and the Federal Army are Trumpist, they are reading their own prejudices into way too few background clues and ignoring the other background clues that contradict that theory.

I know that every American who sees this movie is watching to find out which army is "on my side," which one they're supposed to be rooting for, and that is not a movie that Alex Garland wanted to make. You are supposed to be rooting for the war to just be over and elections to resume. Because that's what every civilian and every soldier wants, and nearly all the unlawful combatants. And also ...

This is not a war movie. If you want the (somehow, to you anyway) relaxing catharsis of cheering while lots of military hardware gets used? You are going to hate Civil War because this movie is, to borrow an older metaphor, Tomorrowland to your Mad Max: Glory Road. Garland made this movie to shame you particularly if you like war movies. The total amount of combat footage in this movie probably doesn't reach 20 minutes, and our main viewpoint character for the final battle sequence is a traumatized civilian.

One last thing I can say before diving behind a spoiler warning, though: it is an amazing technical movie, this thing should win all the technical Oscars next year. In particular, the principal photography is the best I've ever seen and the way it mixes (and sometimes un-mixes!) the separate audio tracks perfectly manipulates the tension level. And all four lead actors put their whole selves into these parts and held nothing back.

So what is this movie if it's not a political movie or a war movie? I can't tell you that without diving at least partway into spoiler territory, so ...

Alex Garland wants to prove two things in this movie:

Life in a failed state sucks ass. Yes, even if you're nowhere near the combat zone. And ...

War correspondents and combat photographers themselves wonder if what they're doing is making any difference, but they're heroes for trying.

The journalists themselves can't point to a single time what they do prevented or stopped a war, and they very much wonder if they're just adrenaline-addicted glory-hogs. But even not even knowing if what they're doing will ever save a single life, they are absolute fucking heroes. They put themselves at insane risk because this is the only thing that they know how to do and if it has any chance of saving lives, of preventing or stopping war, it has to be tried.

Our main cast are four journalists: an elderly war correspondent, a middle aged war correspondent, a middle aged combat photographer, and a (too) young combat photographer on a mission:

They start in Federally occupied NYC, reporting on anti-regime protests and terrorist attacks. They've heard rumors about the actual war. Right now the front line is a three-way battle for control of Charleston, South Carolina. They've heard that the Westerners and the Floridians are going to fight each other to the death as soon as they push the Federals out of the Carolinas, and then on July 4th, just a week away or so, the likely winners, the Westerners, are nearly certain to seize the capitol. They think the 5 year war is almost over, and are trying to figure out how to cover the end. This is, like, literally the whole of the first two scenes.

The old guy wants to cover the battle of Charleston "for whatever is left of the New York Times" and then retire. The three younger journalists have an even crazier idea: skip the battle of Charleston and use the last remaining highway into/out of DC to outrun the Western Forces and cover the fall of the White House.

So the overwhelming majority of the movie is a several day, many hundred mile road trip in an armored car marked PRESS. This involves driving west to Pittsburgh and then back east to Charleston, to get around the combat zone, which results in the real main part of the movie:

The road trip is intended to show you how much the combination of anarchy, localized paranoia, and fear of looters is driving various levels of savagery far from the war zone, which the reporters and photographers keep stopping to document.

It ends with the race to keep up with the Western forces so they can cover the fall of the White House, which is the only long combat scene in the movie, and it is incredibly intense, and very loud and scary, and nobody except maybe the kid photographer covers themselves in glory.

And every scene of it tells the same didactic message, told in about a dozen different ways: when the war is over, whether or not you were "on the right side" is going to matter a lot less than the horror you lived through, and wartime journalists put themselves through hell to try to prove that to you before it's too late.

[creedslove]

omg I had this dream of Marcus Pike where he and me were very good friends and I started to develop feelings for him but all of a sudden Teresa appeared and gave me a speech that caused me to wake up in tears.

I wish he was with me in real life and brought me to his arms and kissed my forehead. I was so heartbroken after I woke up and for what? 😭

ps. I hope you have a good day, Mari. I love your works and the effort you put to make them. you're literally my favorite person on this planet <3

Marcus Pike x f!reader

A/N: Omg I love your dream even if it's sad, it's still a great dream baby because I love dreaming of Pedro boys, in fact, I dreamed of Dave last night that I was pretending I was gonna kill myself because he was with Carol and his girls and then this afternoon I took a nap and dreamed I was BEGGING Joel to fuck me and he ignored me lmaof

• the hardest part of being close to Marcus was not loving him, in fact, for you, it wasn't just the hardest part, it was impossible

• but it wasn't really your fault, not when marcus in addition to being around, he was just the whole package: he was handsome, successful, kind, intelligent and the worst part was that he seemed not to be able to see that, one failure marriage wasn't a declaration of being a bad partner but somehow Marcus couldn't understand that

• he just fell in love hard and fast and very often with the wrong woman, because even if you didn't want to come off as obsessive and jealous, you could feel they wouldn't be able to love and treat him the way you did

• so it wasn't that surprising when he came to you looking so excited and happy to know he'd met another agent called Teresa and they seemed to really hit off; they'd been out for pancakes and on a couple of dates too and you felt your heart sink

• Marcus went out and found someone else, someone who wasn't you, and yet he was still the sweetest and most loving friend you'd ever had

• your opinion, companionship and presence were so important to him, so of course he would introduce you to Teresa and even if you were hurt and upset, you went there with an open heart, wanting to at least get along with the woman who was with the man who mattered the most to you

• but of course the antipathy between the two of you was immediate and there was nothing that could change that; you and Teresa managed to be civil and polite around Marcus, but she stared at you with the same despise as you watched her, she felt uncomfortable with your presence as much as you felt it with hers and so on

• what bothered you the most was how indifferent she seemed to be, it was always as if she wasn't really there or wasn't really paying attention to what Marcus said; overall, it was always as if Marcus was way more into her than she was into him and it bothered you, because you knew he was bound to get hurt

• when you found out about his promotion, you felt you could explode into a million pieces out of excitement and pride in him, he'd worked so hard for it, he deserved every single acknowledgement he got, but at the same time you were happy for him, it pained you to know he'd asked her to go with him and not only that, he proposed to her as well

• it hurt you to see how she hesitated every time he mentioned moving to DC or getting married at all, because you would've said yes to him in a heartbeat, you would've dropped everything in order to go with him, because unlike her, you loved and cared for Marcus

• everytime you saw him, it was a reminder of how Marcus would move on without you, he didn't love you the same way you did but you still decided to stay and help him with all the details; you helped him pack his bags, you helped him pick an apartment, always daydreaming about a life that wouldn't be yours after all

• and even if Teresa wasn't so sure about her future with Marcus, it bothered her you were around all the time, it bothered her how you looked at him with heart eyes and perhaps it bothered her that you could see right through her hesitation and lack of passion, so she had enough, thinking it was about time she put a stop on it

• when she got to Marcus' place to have dinner with him but found you instead, she frowned annoyed

"what the hell are you doing here?!"

"I came to help Marcus finish his bags just like he asked me to... He asked me to keep his base until he settled in DC and I could send it over"

"you don't get, do you?! I am Marcus' girlfriend, in fact, I'm his fiancee, not you! Why can't you see that? Why do you pretend you don't see he doesn't love you? He doesn't care about you the way you want! Marcus loves me! I'm gonna marry him, be his wife and maybe we will even have a family. Quit living this childish dream of thinking he is your prince charming, if he wanted you, you would be together by now!"

"Teresa?!"

• Marcus' voice interrupted her speech, and you watched at the two of them in horror to realize he had just stepped in in time to hear everything Teresa had said, you didn't have words to argue back, it killed you to know that there was a large chance she was right

• you swallowed hard and tried not letting them see the tears flooding in your eyes, but it was too late. Even if Marcus called your name and tried going after you, you couldn't stay and face him, you felt so embarrassed at that moment

• Teresa prevented Marcus from going after you, she was glad that at least now you would leave them alone and Marcus just hoped he had made the right choice by not going after you

____

[sydsaint]

Hello fellow writer, I was wondering if you could prompt 9. on the random dialogue with MJF. No pressure. Hope your doing well, Love you♥

Love you too, bestie <3 So have some good ol' angst.

Summary: The reader is Wardlow's younger sister who can't seem to stay away from Max. Despite his jaded history with her brother. And Max can't seem to bring himself to hate the reader the way he knows he should.

"Why'd you even come if all you're going to do is complain?" Wardlow narrows his eyes down at you as you walk through the parking lot with him.

"It's not my fault that I messed up my knee." You frown. "And what do you expect me to do? Sit at the hotel alone and waste away?" You add dramatically.

Wardlow huffs and rolls his eyes at you. You hobble after him, your knee brace impairing your movement slightly. The two of you make it into the building and you head for the women's locker room to catch up with some friends while Wardlow heads for the Undisputed Kingdom locker room.

You are making your way to down to visit Skye and Julia before they're in action later when you happen to run into Max hanging around backstage despite his own leg injury.

"Max, hey." You offer the former champion a small wave.

"YN?" Max looks up from his phone with a surprised expression. "I thought you were out on injury after that ladder match with Red Velvet?" He asks you.

You nod and point to the brace on your knee. "I am. But since I am unfortunately associated with my brother's new group with Adam I've got to travel for promos and shows." Yo explain. "Hey, I'm sorry about all that by the way." You add.

Max narrows his eyes at you, skeptical of your sympathetic smile. Anyone associated with Undisputed Kingdom can't be trusted in his eyes. Not even Wardlow's cheerful sister.

"Yeah, whatever." Max grumbles out a reply and turns away from you.

"Again, sorry." You cough and take the hint. "Take care, Max." You add before you continue on your journey to find Julia and Skye.

Max turns back around when he hears you walk off. He watches you hobble off down the hall and a small part of him feels guilty for snapping at you like that. You've always been nothing but polite when it comes to Max. Even after he stabbed Wardlow in the back, you somehow remained civil with him. And it drives Max nuts. Why can't you be angry with him? Why don't you seem to hate him like everyone else does?

You make it to the women's locker room and find Julia and Skye hanging around. Both girls greet you with hugs and you sit and chat with them.

"So, how are you and Dante?" You ask Skye. "And you and Lee, Julia?" You ask her as well.

"We're good right now." Skye smiles to herself.

Julia matches Skye's smile and nods. "Yeah, us too." She agrees.

"Right. Good." You offer them both a smile. "And I'm stuck being single and injured." You joke. "Yay me!"

"Awe, sorry, YN." Skye frowns and hugs you.

You hug Skye and shrug it off, reminding her that you were just joking. Julia lists off a new names of single guys on the roster that you might be into. But none of them seem to catch your attention.

"Maybe she should try and get with Max." Skye jokes with a snort.

"Yeah right!" Julia laughs with her. "YN hates Max. Right, YN?" She looks to you for an answer.

You bite the inside of your cheek when Julia and Skye both look at you. "Well...I don't know about hate." You admit sheepishly. "I used to kind of have a crush on him back when Wardlow was first hanging out with him." You explain.

"Yeah, but that was forever ago." Julia replies. "Really, YN? After all the crap he pulled with your brother?" She asks you. "And you don't hate the guys guts?"

"I don't know." You shrug. "I guess I don't. Yeah, I'd like too hate him I guess. But I just don't think it's worth the effort. Not that it matters anyway." You add. "Pretty sure that Max hates my guts so." You shrug.

Julia and Skye both nod and the subject changes to something else. You catch up with the girls for a while before you decide to head out and catch up with your brother. Even if that means putting yourself in the crosshairs of Matt Taven and his ridiculous attempts to hit on you.

You make your way through the backstage area and run into Jay White and the Gunn brothers. Jay doesn't pay much attention to you. But the Gunn brothers immediately lock onto you as easy prey and saunter over.

"YN! What's going on pretty lady?" Austin steps up to the plate first and takes a swing at you. "Where are you headed looking that pretty all alone?" He asks you.

"To find my brother." You reply dryly. "You know, my brother? Wardlow?" You remind him of your relation. "Tosses losers like you around in the ring for a living?"

Austin scoffs and it's Colten's turn to take a swing. "Awe, come on, YN. You don't have to be like that." He grins at you.

You close your eyes and take a deep breath. Normally you'd have your brother here to start tossing bodies around. But this time around not only is Wardlow not here to play protective older brother, but you're playing with one good leg.

"Come on guys, I'm really not in the mood." You plead with the brothers to just leave you alone. But you should know better.

"Why don't you come hang with us for a while, baby?" Austin suggests. "We could use some arm candy for the night. Right, Jay?" He turns to Jay watching this whole spectacle from a few feet away.

Jay grins and shrugs. "Well, she is pretty to look at, ain't she?" He chuckles.

You find yourself trapped and without many options for escape when suddenly someone comes up from behind Austin and shoves him hard into Colten. You take a step back and watch Max of all people shove the brothers to the floor and start kicking, despite his known leg injury.

"Well? What are you waiting for?" Max stops his assault for a second to look up at you. "Get out of here!" He shoos you away.

You nod and take off to find Wardlow. You find your brother in the Undisputed Kingdom locker room and explain the situation with the Gunn kids and Jay. Furious, Wardlow rallies the troops and takes off to find the idiots. You intentionally leave out the part with Max coming to your rescue and head off to find him.

"Max? Hey, can we talk?" You find Max a few minutes later loitering around backstage again.

"YN? What are you doing back here again?" Max stares at you.

You flinch at Max's harsh words but you know that you've got to thank him. It's the right thing to do, after all. Even if he doesn't want to hear it.

"Look, I know that you don't want anything to do with me." You sigh. "But I don't care. I had to say thank you for helping with the Gunn kids, okay?" You explain. "You know? Everyone here loves to think of you as some evil person that only cares about himself, right? And yeah, you might have one hell of a damn ego, Max. But you aren't evil. I know that. And deep down, you know it as well."

Max's eyes widen at your outburst. He stares at you in silence as you fire off a long-winded speech about how somehow, you don't hate him.

"And yeah, I know that you probably hate me. You've got every right to do so. But I don't hate you, okay? I should. And maybe a part of me wants to. But I don't." You finish up your speech and go to hobble off back to the locker room.

You take about two steps away from Max before he grabs your arm and whirls you back around to face him. "Fuck, YN." Max holds both your arms. "I hate how impossible you make it to hate you." He confesses. "I don't hate you either, you know?" He takes a chance and pulls you into him for a hug. "And you're welcome for Gunn's kids by the way. Even though I'm sure Wardlow is doing a much better job at kicking their ass's right now."

You hug Max back tightly and nod. Once you've felt like the hug has lasted long enough you let go and take a step back. "You know, in another scenario we would have made a good couple." You joke. "But I guess it's too late for us now, huh?" You ask him.

"Awe, don't count me out yet, sweetheart." Max grins and lifts your chin playfully with a finger. "I've been known for making decisions that get my ass beat all my life."

[lipringlrh]

just being polite - cth

summary: you and calum broke up, but you decide to call him again to tell him you love him.

pairing: calum hood x genderneutral!reader

an: in honour of his birthday:)

word count: ~1250

requested: yes

warnings: phone call, bit of angst, pet names, bit of a cliffhanger

feedback appreciated!!

...

It'd only been two months since your breakup with Calum and somehow you still managed to miss him more and more each day.

You were still led in bed - even though it was mid-afternoon. You had just finished crying over your third film of the day, each one somehow reminding you more and more of him.

You decided you were going to call him. You missed him too much. Each day you regretted the break up but, after many romantic films, you decided you were going to have you own romance movie and get your happy ending. And you couldn't think of anyone other than Calum.

The break up, per se, wasn't horrible; it was the seeing each other again and again, starting new fights, that was the most painful. It seemed more and more impossible to fall out of love with him. Every time you tried, you heard his voice in the back of your mind, "baby, I am so sorry.”

His voice seemed to just nag you, telling you over and over again he wanted you back. Whether it was true or not, you didn't know, but what you did know was that you wanted Calum back in your life, no matter the circumstances.

And now here you were, deciding to to call him, dialling in his number, which you shamelessly knew off by heart, even planning to lose all your dignity in the process, and beg for him back. Except, maybe without the begging. If he agreed straight away it would be a little less time consuming.

By the third ring, you had always considered hanging up. What if he didn't want you? What if he moved on already? You couldn't bare that thought. It would prove to you how much less he cared about you than he made you believe. You couldn't fathom how he could've possibly got over you in such short time if he really loved you as much as he promised.

However, Calum had seen the call. He'd noticed from the very first ring. He had stared at your name - a little shocked - debating how long to wait until he could answer without seeming desperate.

Calum missed you. More than he ever imagined was possible. He was never told how to get over a true love so had spent his time similarly to you, convinced it was impossible to ever move on.

As much as he missed you, he was a coward, admittedly so, and wouldn't call you. He couldn't handle a bad response. He had never been hurt this badly and hearing you say you didn't want him would break him far from recovery.

He'd never admit it, but scrolling through social media, he found a video explaining how to get someone back thorough manifestation, which he tried with you, and if this call went the way he wanted, it would have successfully worked.

Calum couldn't wait anymore and answered the phone, immediately pulling up to his ear and mumbling a, "hello?"

He heard a sigh of relief from the other end of the phone before hearing a small, "hi," greeted back to him.

The line was silent for a little while before you heard Calum murmur, “why'd you call?"

You could tell he was apprehensive. You were too.

"Just- I wanted to ask how you are?" It came out more as a question. Your hands were getting more sweaty as you were trying not to anticipate the worse response. You were contemplating backing out entirely but a good result was too heavenly.

"You want to ask how I am? That's- that's it?" He scoffed. "The last time you saw me, we were screaming at each other and now you're asking how i am?"

“| was just being polite," you objected, "was trying not to get anyone annoyed." It was like you could feel Calum roll his eyes. All you wanted was a civil conversation and a love confession but seemingly, you'd already failed at one.

You both went silent again, neither knowing what to say. Calum didn't know why he was getting so annoyed. He figured he just needed another way of getting out his emotions other than crying. He knew he'd started off rough, maybe altering the tone of the rest of the conversation, but he was too stubborn to apologise now, especially without knowing the real reason you called.

"Is that all you wanted because I think we're done now.” He spoke, the malice leaving his body the second he finished. His head fell down in regret. He didn't want to finish talking to you; he never wanted to. The thought that he may of just ruined his chances with you, again, sprung back in his mind. Recurring and repeating every second.

"You never actually answered," you responded, "I'm waiting.” You sounded tired. You didn't know if you could handle another conversation like this: tense and argumentative. You just wanted your boyfriend back.

Calum seemed to notice. When he answered, he spoke much more calmly with a hint of sadness in his voice, "I'm fine."

He wasn't fine. If there's anything you learnt from your time together, it was how to tell his emotions. As sick as it sounded, you wanted him to have missed you like you missed him. You'd never want to see him hurt but you wanted him to miss you, to come back and tell you he loved you.

Everything fell silent again..

“I don't want to go," you faltered.

He was quiet; he didn’t know what to say. He knew what he wanted to say but didn’t know if he could admit it to you. Neither of you wanted to be in a vulnerable position. You both felt the love you held for each other but you both couldn’t tell what the other thought was best to do.

“I don’t want you to go either,” he admitted.

Everything fell silent again, you wanted to tell him you loved him but the words felt like sick in your mouth. You didn’t want lose him more than you had - if that was even possible.

“I miss you, Cal,” you paused again, letting everything go quiet. When Calum was about to reply, you interrupted him. You needed to get everything across to him before he had the chance to disagree.

“I miss you so much, Cal. I know we broke up and I know there was so many reasons but none of them matter anymore. I want you, Cal, over everything, and I want us back, please. I lo-“

“Save that for when I see you again, okay baby?” Your stomach fluttered at the nickname. “I miss you too.”

“Where are you at the moment? I want to see you soon.” you whispered, like a secret. You didn’t want to complicate things, you wanted Calum to be comfortable and not rush anything.

“M‘near you. I know it’s late but could i maybe come over? We can talk, try to sort this out properly?” You hummed back as a reply, adding a “please do” to the end.

“I’ll see you in maybe half an hour, that okay?” You nodded before realising then muttered out a yes, walking into your bathroom to see how you look.

“Okay, see you soon baby.”

requests are open, feedback is appreciated!

[jymwahuwu]

Lanii I based on the Jingrenheng and unconventional darlings ask I imagine that weapon!darling is the cutest with either Blade or Dan Heng because both of them explores the universe, so you'll be exploring with them and they feel bad about isolating you because you were considered as a government's property fully under their control. They don't have the heart to act controlling yk. To them you're babey even if you're well...dangerous.

On the other hand, you're a struggle for Jingyuan and Dan Feng because they're in high ranking positions of the Luofu, and snatching you away means making enemies of your powerful planet. Secondly you're considered as a weapon fully under the government's control so there's no such thing as a political marriage, it's like giving away your best asset to another country. At least Jingyuan has his social skills and smile so he can at least interact with you, but Dan Feng? He's cold. Reminds you of all those people who wants to control you, don't like him :(

This points out the difference between the two groups! Indeed, Blade and Dan Heng - No matter how dangerous your abilities are, how far you go on the path of "destruction", you are still lovable and exploitable. Blade can empathize with your pain… and for Dan Heng, accepting a new family member is a natural thing.

For Jing Yuan and Dan Feng, they may prefer "trade" because this is the only way a powerful space civilization can agree to transfer you. They didn't feel comfortable with this plan, especially since you were forced into a coma before being transferred to Luofu. They can't help but think about what kind of fate you suffered in the past…

Still, Dan Feng just scares you at first 😹 He orders you to relax and have fun as seriously as he orders you to fight. You suspect that he will reveal his true colors soon… Jing Yuan will take advantage of this because obviously you like his charm better (in his own opinion) :3

[9800sblog]

wooyoung tarot reading

public persona vs real personality

do I have his energy permission to do and share this reading? queen of wands

in public

hypnotizing is the word to describe what wooyoung goes for; childlike (childish), immature, hard to ignore, messy - fun, entertaining, funny, never a dull moment, makes you wanna re-watch his content multiple times. bad, dangerous - sexy, captivating, impressive, killer moments (literally the 10 of swords), he wants to kill with looks, and skills (dance, modeling, body, literally his eyes, etc). out of all ateez members tho, he seems to be the one to try to look most unavailable (the devil reversed), he acts rude, sassy and sometimes distant, because he is the dangerous dude, the bad boy. but never actually too harmful, he's approachable, more like a best friend you're secretely in love with, that you're so close he doesn't even care what he does around you, he's a menace and if you try hard enough you can actually turn your feelings into reality (lmaaaaao). he tries to look super inner confident, like others’s opinions really don't matter to him, he just doesn't listen and they can never get to him, you can't force wooyoung to be or do anything he doesn't genuinely wants to, he's wooyoung, he's the synonym of self control. if he gets bothered, you'll get sliced, he's dangerous and you guys are close enough that he can just show it when he's uncomfortable. big party, big social life, a man of the night, trendy and cool, in with the kids

in privacy

dude's so chill and casual, familiar, literally giving the vibes of a big family that lives nearby each other. he's like so much more introverted, not only did I get the hermit but the 4 of cups at the same time. you see wooyoung quiet in the back during interviews? that's genuinely how he is casually, just vibing in his own head, in his own world. he doesn't move much, he likes things to stay the same forever and ever, if possible, he likes what he already knows. he's a very polite dude, "excuse me, please and thank you" seem to be natural part of his vocabulary, he treats people fairly like how they treat others, actually. very protective of his kind, would kill for those he loves, big big heart. he's not as flashy with his money or physical appearance, like how his style is mostly casual and comfortable gym clothes or how he spent years with that old ass iPhone 5 just because it still worked 😭😭😭☝️I don't think he keeps a lot to himself, he seems to give away his stuff to family and really really close friends, he doesn't care that much about being socially powerful, he likes genuine connections with those that are similar to him (example, moving from a company with a big name to follow a friend because he's genuinely happy with little things and moments). I think he's pretty quiet and private in general and very traditional for SURE, like "there's a proper way to treat people and exist in civilization". hobbies would include quality time with friends and family, arts like pictures, drawing, paintings, cooking, games. he loves company.

[anamericangirl]

1. You're delusional. No one is forcing kids to be LGBTQ

2. The party switch was a real thing that did happen. In the 1960s, the parties switched on the issue of civil rights. This is evident from that fact that republicans gained political control of the south, the kkk becoming majority republican, the kkk support every republican presidential candidate in every election since 1960, and the lost cause ideology being purported and repeated by southern republicans.

Wow so basically you just believe whatever you’re told to believe regardless of what reality is. Unfortunately for you it takes more than “that’s not true” to convince me of something but I know that’s the strongest argument you’ve got because you know you’re wrong.

The big switch didn’t happen and if you actually looked at history and didn’t just believe whatever the tv tells you then you would know that.

Voter base changed, platforms and values did not.

The democrats have always been the racist party. They were at their founding and they remain so today. Every racist policy and law you’ve ever heard of was a democrat policy and you can’t erase that by pretending the parties just swapped sides and now everything the democrats did is the republicans fault. I know a lot of people like to say that happened but looking at history proves it wrong.

So stop trying to excuse racism and blame it on the party that isn’t responsible for it.

But I do love how you tried to prove the big switch by only having the KKK as an example as if they are a prominent group in the US and how they vote and their history is all that matters when talking about the history of the two party system lol.