#obviously no offense to thomas and the team

[spooky-scary-virgil]

the true question is; will we still get trending when the season finale drops?

[footballandfiasco]

Can't believe TODAY is the day! Hansi announces the squad! And they meet on monday. Insane.

oh, i didn't know!!! i'm not good at keeping up with information lmao

actually, i'm not that stressed about it, tbh. my favourites are pretty save, i think? he better bring kevin & robin, though, if not i will riot!

also, very curious whether he brings götze or/and füllkrug.

[hugintheraven]

The Undersiders and their Overwatch mains

(This will use OW1's 2/2/2 comp because that's what makes sense and will ignore any chars introduced after the point where that ceased to be relevant) (Obviously this team is initially sponsored by Thomas Calvert/Coil).

Grue: Reinhardt. He protects others, he likes how tactical Rein vs Rein can be, he's big and hits stuff, but it's not overly complicated or focused on accuracy. Brian can and does learn the other main tanks, and later on his Sigma is disgusting, but he was really happiest when it was just him and a shield trying to out-time some other guy with a shield, with the entire team on the line if either screwed up.

Hellhound: Off-Tanks. She doesn't have a main, preferring to pick a char depending on the situation(even going Mei/Brig/Winston if off-tanks are bad in the current patch), but "get in front of the enemy, get hit, hit back harder" are general themes. Was accused of cheating a few times because she runs a custom HUD mod that replaces all text with icons and all numbers with partially-filled bars; this was EVENTUALLY ruled to be assistive mode similar to colorblind mode and officially patched into the game, but she still receives online hate for it regularly(as she doesn't read and exclusively uses social media to post and look at pictures of puppies, she is able to ignore this, giving her the single healthiest relationship with social media possible for a streamer.)

Imp: Offensive flankers. She has a Sombra icon on most social media, has cosplayed as her, and many people call her a Sombra main, but Brian got the game because Aisha saw Tracer in the early advertisements and went "I want that". She does not consider it a win if her team wins. She considers it a win if the opposing team's Mercy or Widowmaker DCs, and will play any char that can accomplish that.

Skitter: Widowmaker, other snipers. Officially flex DPS, any time the Undersiders need someone to play an unusual hero in a new broken team comp, Taylor can pick them up quickly and well, but she's at her best clicking on heads and 180ing to take out Genjis and Sombras who thought no one had seen them coming up behind. Taylor is just very very good at noticing who's absent from the battle and knowing which route is easiest for them to take to get behind the team. Was laddering as Mercy/Ana with Emma's group of friends when she got scouted by Lisa. When solo-queueing she will literally play anyone to keep from getting bored.

Tattletale: Main support, heavily Ana. Shotcaller for the team, good at knowing who's high and who's low on health. Tends to tunnel vision on the fight and get taken out by flankers, but so good at keeping everyone else alive and getting her grenade onto key targets that it doesn't matter much. Lost a 1vs1 as Lucio to Taylor's Battle Mercy and sent her a friend request immediately.

Regent: Zenyatta, maybe Lucio if he's in a good mood or Brian asks nicely. Because:

The Heartbreakers are Canada's premier esports team, coached by former competitive Half-Life 1 player/asshole, Nikos Vasil. Several of his kids have shown up amongst its roster. People complain about nepotism, but the kids are actually mostly very good. Hijack and Cherish were standouts in the early days of Overwatch, with his Hanzo and her Genji working extremely well together, even if they hated everything about it. He eventually ran away and deleted all accounts, but his savings ran out and his attitude was not well-suited for a real job. So he went back to streaming with stolen wifi and his old gaming laptop. After all, if he didn't play Hanzo, no one would notice, right? Lisa spotted him in under a week and promised cash if he'd try out. His rule: No DPS. So now he's their secondary support, with a Zen that out-damages most Soldiers when he tries and at least keeps his healing orb out when he doesn't, and Alec shows up to competitions/conventions in a mask.

Other people:

Glory Girl is an obvious Pharah main, and Pancea learned to play by picking Mercy and jamming her staff directly up Pharah's butt. Amy ends up with more hours logged on AO3 than actual Overwatch despite eventually becoming extremely good as a support player/shotcaller(after leaving New Wave).

Cherish also leaves the Heartbreakers and gets picked up by Slaughterhouse, an extremely aggressive team coached by also-asshole Jacob Black(Jack / ). They peaked during dive comp. She continues to play Genji, and is still miserable.

Scion is Bobby Kotick.

[bongaboi]

Utah: 2022 Pac-12 Football Champions

LAS VEGAS -- The only blemish in USC's 11-win regular season had been a one-point loss to Utah in October. Thanks to the Pac-12's decision to turn its championship game into a matchup between its two best teams instead of division winners, the Trojans had an opportunity to make that loss moot and advance to their first College Football Playoff appearance in Lincoln Riley's first season as head coach.

But one blemish turned into two on Friday night, as No. 11 Utah played spoiler and proved it has USC's number this season.

The Utes scored 24 straight points at one point and went on to dominate No. 4 USC 47-24 to win their second straight Pac-12 title and likely keep the Trojans out of the fourth playoff spot.

"You come as far as this team has come and this program has come in the last 12 months, and obviously to not get it done, it's a tough pill to swallow," Riley said after the game. "They were definitely the better team tonight. They deserved it."

"Our players never stopped believing," Utes head coach Kyle Whittingham said. "We had a chip on our shoulder. We got the message loud and clear that people were underestimating us."

In what felt like a tangential version of the matchup between the teams earlier this season, the Utes' slow start did not hold them back. USC dominated the first quarter and raced to a 17-3 lead early thanks to a few more Heisman-worthy plays by quarterback Caleb Williams, who finished the game with 363 passing yards, 21 rushing yards, three touchdowns and one interception.

But it all unraveled in a hurry for USC. After pulling off a miraculous 59-yard run that had him gasping for air and walking gingerly, Williams never quite looked the same.

Afterward, Riley said that Williams "popped" his hamstring on that long first-quarter run.

"I asked him at one point, I was like, 'Are you 50 percent?'" Riley said. "And I mean, he was not even close to 50 percent. I definitely thought about taking him out. … He wouldn't have let me. He wouldn't even let me take him out at the end."

Riley called the performance one of the gutsiest he has witnessed. Williams, meanwhile, described the feeling of his injury as that of an old rubber band.

"The rest of the game I felt it," Williams said. "But a person that I admire is Kobe [Bryant], and he always said the game is bigger than what you're feeling."

As Williams was nursing the injury, Utah was settling in. During the second quarter, quarterback Cameron Rising put together two touchdown drives at the end of the half to tie the score at 17.

In the second half, it became clear Williams was hurt. He favored his left side and was visibly limping. He showed some hesitation as he dropped back, and when the USC defense was on the field, he rode the stationary bike on the sideline to stay loose. At one point, backup quarterback Miller Moss grabbed his helmet and appeared to warm up, but Williams remained under center.

Though Williams stayed in the game, he was no longer the player that spearheaded one of the most explosive offenses in the nation. Having been unable to establish the run early, a hobbled Williams looked frozen in the pocket, and it all but sapped USC's scoring prowess. Williams was uncharacteristically sacked four times, and his throws lacked the pinpoint accuracy and strength they have had all season.

The Utes took advantage. Whittingham said postgame that Utah "smelled blood in the water" when the team noticed Williams was hurt in the third quarter and made a concerted effort to bring more pressure.

Utah not only pressured Williams plenty, but on offense it went back to its most reliable option against the USC defense: tight ends. Dalton Kincaid and Thomas Yassmin combined for 121 yards, including a 60-yard touchdown pass from Rising to Yassmin that pushed the lead back to 10 after USC had cut it to three in the fourth quarter.

By the time running back Ja'Quinden Jackson broke off a 53-yard touchdown run to put the Utes up by 16, the result was all but set in stone.

"I felt we took it a little personal," Rising said. "We saw all that as disrespect. We wanted to go out and prove a point."

Rising, a senior, finished with 310 yards passing to six receivers and three touchdowns. He continued to have success against USC and was selected the game's most valuable player postgame as the Utes once again did what no other team could all season: outscore and outgain the Trojans. Utah finished with 533 total yards to USC's 411. The Utes also finished with a title that Rising leaned into during the postgame ceremony: "Trojan killers."

The win sends the Utes back to the Rose Bowl. The Trojans, meanwhile, were left with not just two losses to the same team, but a hurt quarterback and no title to show for their turnaround season.

"We're not going to walk around like this is some funeral. We made a lot of progress to get to this point," Riley said. "Part of it is when you get to these moments, these big games, is groups that have been there before. [Utah] certainly have. A lot of our team has not."

The prevailing sentiment from Riley after the game was that the Trojans had run into a team that not only outplayed them, but also had more experience. The Utes indeed provide a stark contrast to USC's roster makeup. The transfer portal has defined Riley's first year at USC, and it's evident that Utah's continuity is its strength.

Yet as Riley debriefed on the loss and talked about preparing for USC's bowl game, he was sure to look ahead toward next season, when the Trojans might have some continuity but won't shy away from using change to gain an edge.

"There's going to be a lot of changes. That's college football in this day and age," Riley said. "We know what our mission is -- to be in that same locker room and feeling a whole helluva lot different than we do right now. We'll bring in a couple pieces who will help us on that journey."

[socalpiner]

Cam newton team

#Cam newton team upgrade#

#Cam newton team free#

It’s not a perfect mix, but it’s the best Cam may end up having. Overall, the offensive approach and old connections breed a great amount of familiarity. While he would be going back to the man who (sorta kinda) ran him into the ground through multiple injuries, Newton could have himself a handful of potent weapons to work with in receivers Terry McLaurin and Curtis Samuel, tight end Logan Thomas and running back Antonio Gibson. He’d also be the veteran presence Rivera has recently advocated for, as Washington seems unlikely to draft and start a rookie passer in 2022. Obviously, Cam can be Cam under head coach Ron Rivera-whom he started and ended his successful nine-year tenure in Carolina with. But is there a situation that would be more accommodating otherwise? Like the Colts, the Commanders have some work to do to become a serious threat. Although he still has some juice left in his arm, does Cam have the ability to consistently push the ball downfield at a high output? The only harsh perception that may be tested is Newton’s potential fit in Arians’ offense. But that, of course, would imply that Newton’s would be a distraction-which it never actually has been despite popular belief.

#Cam newton team free#

Although their offensive line may eat two key losses in free agent center Ryan Jensen and retiring guard Ali Marpet-bringing back wideout Chris Godwin and tight end Rob Gronkowski (to keep alongside Mike Evans) seem like distinct possibilities at the moment.Īnd, surely, an organization that was willing to put up with Antonio Brown for as long as they did would be welcoming of any and all personalities. Save for “The G.O.A.T.,” the band should largely be back together. So if they can’t connect on a trade for a proven veteran such as Deshaun Watson or Russell Wilson, Newton can suddenly becoming an intriguing option. Their ground-heavy brand, led by running back Jonathan Taylor and a talented front line, would absolutely gel with the game’s greatest rushing quarterback.Įven with Tom Brady hanging up his cleats (for now), Bruce Arians and the Buccaneers aren’t ready to close their window of contention. Newton’s style also meshes well with what the Colts do on offense. And while Indy may not be the ideal market for Cam, it’s a place where he can easily take over given the seemingly inevitable exit of Carson Wentz. They’re not a Super Bowl contender right now, but finishing at respectable 9-8 with numerous injuries and quarterback woes is nothing to overlook. Indianapolis may present a relatively safe landing spot for Newton.

#Cam newton team upgrade#

Funnily enough, they are also one of the few organizations who couldn’t really find an upgrade at the position if they tried.īut if it’s about winning and going somewhere that’ll embrace Newton’s personality, that fun-loving mafia up north may help make for a destination that’s second to none. The Bills, conversely, are all set at quarterback with Josh Allen. It also doesn’t hurt that Newton is well-acquainted with head coach Sean McDermott, who was Carolina’s defensive coordinator from 2011 to 2016. Given that Buffalo is trending towards finally becoming a Super Bowl team-there are very few, if any, organizations that can offer Cam a chance to win like this AFC powerhouse. But that, of course, is a long shot of a possibility. Plus-with the very, very outside chance Murray is shipped out amidst the odd conflict he’s gone through this offseason-Cam might even find himself under center at some point. They’re an ascending playoff team, they may be out of their second-stringer in free agent Colt McCoy and they’re apparently yearning for some leadership on offense-something Newton could help bring out in Kyler Murray. 10, implied he’d be willing to take a backup gig if it meant winning.Īrizona could fit that bill. But Cam’s most recent comments, specifically from his exit interview two months later on Jan. 11, when the Panthers were desperate in giving him the reins to save their sinking ship of a season. While Newton did say he wanted a chance to become the starter, his outlook has since changed. So, if Newton isn’t brought back by the Panthers in free agency, where would his next best fit be? Using Newton’s very own system, we ranked the top six possible destinations for Cam in 2022. He wanted to go to a situation that allowed him to compete for the starting job. He wanted to go to a situation that allowed him to be himself. When Cam Newton weighed his decision to return to the Carolina Panthers this past season, he did so with distinct criteria:

[ifmains]

Green bay packer news

GREEN BAY PACKER NEWS MOVIE

Signed: TE JP Holtz, LB Drew Desjarlais, DL Christian Ringo.Signed: QB David Blough, CB Tay Gowan, WR Travis Toivonen.Signed: CB Kalon Barnes, OT Larnel Coleman, WR River Cracraft, OL James Empey, LB Cameron Goode, LB Porter Gustin, S Verone McKinley III, WR Braylon Sanders, DT Niles Scott, DT Ben Stille, WR Freddie Swain, RB ZaQuandre White.Signed: G Arlington Hambright, LB Segun Olubi.Signed: TE Shaun Beyer, CB Benjie Franklin, WR Juwann Winfree.Signed: RB Qadree Ollison, C Dakoda Shepley.Signed: OL Kellen Diesch, LB Joe Thomas.Signed: QB Zach Davidson, DB Kyler McMichael, OL Ryan Van Demark.Signed: TE Anthony Firkser, TE Tucker Fisk, CB Ka’Dar Hollman.Signed: LB Devon Kennard, S Steven Parker, S Josh Thomas, OL Badara Traore.But an already slim reality where he leaves Green Bay just got slimmer and Packers fans can walk away from the Friday trade chaos with a little bit more peace of mind. There will still be rumors though, as the Rodgers stuff is fun to talk about. So with the Niners in a position to draft a top young quarterback and the Patriots now in a position to possibly re-acquire Garoppolo, two of the biggest potential suitors for Rodgers are out of the game. Bill Belichick getting back his prized Tom Brady replacement, though, seems to be just as appealing to the Patriots and is likely going to be much easier (and see also: practical) than putting any eggs into the Rodgers basket. Specifically, it puts a very attainable quarterback into the mix which is even better.Īfter the 49ers, the New England Patriots were a rumored landing spot for Rodgers. This puts another quarterback into the mix, which is very good news for Packers fans. “49ers now square in the QB mix, but are holding on to Jimmy Garoppolo and have no plans to trade him, per sources,” Schefter reported after the trade went through. The next big piece is the Jimmy Garoppolo element.Īccording to reports, the Niners aren’t planning on trading Jimmy G despite trading three first-rounders to move up and draft his replacement. Not only does Rodgers have deep personal ties with the 49ers, but the situation is absolutely ideal for him to fulfill his Super Bowl destiny.Īaron Rodgers in a Kyle Shanahan offense is how many sold the hiring of Matt LaFleur, so just imagine the real thing. Of the teams rumored to be landing spots for Rodgers, the Niners were the most worrisome. The biggest pillar to be smashed is in San Francisco. They still emerged as perhaps the biggest winners if for no other reason than it lends some clarity to the ongoing Aaron Rodgers rumors we can’t get enough of. Obviously, the Packers had nothing to do with the trades that went down on Friday. Green Bay Packers were biggest winners of 49ers-Dolphins trade The noise of Friday’s trade chaos also didn’t involve the Packers either, yet it helped provide some clarity - or peace of mind - for Packers fans hoping the Rodgers rumors get tuned out. Hilton, Will Fuller, JuJu Smith-Schuster, or any of the top receivers who hit the market and likely would have taken a discount to play a year with Rodgers. The fact that they seem so outrageous is only adding to the frustration fans feel every time they see something new about them pop up.įor what it’s worth, the Packers are doing themselves no favors in refusing to commit to Rodgers long term nor add win-now pieces to the offense.įree agency produced no additions to the offense outside of Aaron Jones returning. Packers fans would like nothing more than the Aaron Rodgers rumors to get off their lawn so they can enjoy some peace and quiet.īut the rumors aren’t going anywhere.

GREEN BAY PACKER NEWS MOVIE

Even Thanos, one of the most brutal villains in movie history, was motivated to murder billions of living creatures just so he could relax in his garden. Most movies revolve around that being the reward a character seeks. Despite not being involved in the 49ers-Dolphins-Eagles trade chaos, the Green Bay Packers came out the biggest winners.Īll we really want in life is a little peace and quite.

[xhopelesslyromanticx]

Opponents - Mason Mount x Reader

Masterlist

Warnings: alcohol and mentions of passing out

summary: In which the reader who works at Liverpool and Mason realize that private life and work shouldn’t be mixed.

There was nothing you could have ever done about it. All tough Mason didn’t believe you, it was the truth.

You watched him run across the field, clearly super frustrated. Thomas Tuchel yelling at his struggling guys on the field with crossed arms while you stood there, showing Klopp some statistics on the IPad.

Chelsea was currently losing 3:0 against Liverpool.

It was a dark cloudy day and it was pouring rain. The audience was going absolutely crazy on both sides and the opponent was an absolute mess.It was like they were playing against each other.

Your job as Klopps adviser was of course not easy today considering that your boyfriend played for Chelsea But this was your job and your team and you had to be professional. After all this win meant a lot to Liverpool.

„Okay Trent.“ you walked over to the bench, your rain jacket absoluetly soaked „You ready to go in?“

Trent nodded, taking of his jacket and walking up to the line with you. He did a couple of warm ups before waiting next to Klopp and you.

„So just do what you do best.“ Klopp told him, covering his mouth so cameras wouldn’t see „But also attack. They are weak in their defense today.“

„I think they are weak in the offense as well.“ Trent chuckled and you just shook your head.

„No jokes till we win Trent.“ you giggled, hitting his shoulder in a joking manner.

„Ouch.“ Trent squealed, grabbng his arm in an overdramatic way.

In the middle of your goofing around you didn’t even notice that the switch was already on. All the players grabbed something to drink or took a second to catch a breath.

You could hear Kai yell something towards Mason, who was currently throwing daggers at Trent and you. You tried to shrug it off, uncomfortable with the tension as you patted Trent on the back.

„Okay you go Trent.“ you signaled him as he ran on the field, clapping his teammate off on his way.

Trent ran into his position and soon enough the game went on. It went on rather quiet for some minutes. Chelsea was just kind of passing the ball around looking for a way to score or at least get through.

Then, sixty minutes down. Trent was passed a beautiful ball by Virgil and as he carried himself and the ball over the field effortlessly it happened. You only remembered hearing Trent scream in pain as he fell to the ground. Holding his leg in agony as the referee immediately blew the whistle.

It was Mason who had tackled Trent in an absoluetly horrific way.

„Oh fuck off!“ the number 19 yelled when he saw Trent lay on the ground and what he did next shocked you even more.

Instead of walking over to Trent and apologizing, he bent down to him and grabbed him by the collar. Mason cursed something you couldn’t make out as he aggressively shook Trents body, causing uproar from all the Liverpool fans.

Trent looked super shocked to say the least. He didn’t understand what the hell had gotten into the Chelsea player. Soon enough all the guys had gathered. Obviously the Liverpool players immediately rushed to Trents defense as he was being held back by his own teammates. There was a bunch of pushing around and you could only watch the whole thing, covering your mouth in disbelief. Seeing Mason literally flip out as the medics rushed over to Trent.

The referee obviously pulled out a red card and everyone knew; he deserved it.

Well, everyone expect Mason, who left the field while still cursing. You watched him pass Tuchel, who looked plenty mad, without looking up once. What had gotten into him?

But right now that wasn’t your focus. Your focus was the fact that Trent was being carried off field. Tears streaming down his face as his hand covered it, trying to avoid the cameras.

„This god damn idiot!“ Klopp cursed next to you, he had been doing so this whole time but you just had phased it out „This is absolutely unacceptable behavior."

„I know.“ is all you could say as you felt like your whole world just stopped.

How were you gonna fix this?

You strutted down the tunnel with only one thing in mind. Still dripping wet as you ignored the security's uproar when entering the locker room.To say that you were fuming with anger was an understatement.

Pushing open the door with a forceful swing, Mason immediately jumped up. Checking who it was that came to yell at him. When he saw you he was rather suprised. You weren’t even allowed in here. Plus people didn’t know about the two of you yet.

„You!“ you yelled, walking up to your boyfriend, who was still wearing his dirty jersey. His hair sticking to his forehead as he looked at you completely out of breath.

„What the fuck Mason!“ you yelled, now only inches away from him „What the fuck has gotten into you!“

Mason looked at you and you could see he was trying to search for the right thing to say. But there was nothing he could say or do that could ever make this better.

„Seriously Mason!“ you shook your head in dissapointment „You really are a sore loser. You can’t just let your emotions take over like that, its totally irresponsible. I truly pray that Trent is gonna be fine or else you’re in serious trouble…“

„You’re only saying this because he plays for your team!“ Mason now spat out, pressing his lips together and crossing his arms.

„What?“

„The way that your players and fans provoked us you don’t even see!“ he hissed, crossing his arms as he looked down at you.

You couldn’t believe your ears. Was he actually saying this bullshit. Did he hear himself?

„That’s not true Mason!“ you took a deep breath in, trying to handle this maturely „You know how hard it is for me to go up against you. But this is my job okay? I would have accepted the result either way. God, I’d even be happy for you Mason! But you don’t seem to be able to be happy for me!“

„It wasn’t even about the result god damn it!“ Mason now yelled, punching his fist into the locker. You jumped at the sudden outburst as you took a step back „It was the fact that you were flirting around with that douchebag all happy and smiley while I was losing on the field. That’s not fairplay either Y/N! That’s just spitefullness!“

„You really think I would ever do something like that?“ you looked Mason in the eyes as he immediately looked like he regretted his choice of words.

There was a moment of silence and neither of said anything. So you just like that you turned around and walked away, leaving behind a crushed Mason.

That same evening you checked into the Clubs hotel, despite having promised Mason you’d stay with him. You had even already dropped off all your belongings at his place but there was no way you’d ever wanna face him again. At least not for a little while.

You knew, in order to face Mase and actually solve this problem you’d have to calm down. Knowing Mason, he was probably trying to do the same. You knew he had just gotten caught in the heat of the moment, saying things he didn’t mean but he still had to carry responsibility.

He needed to know that his words had meaning and weight, he couldn’t just throw them around carelessly. You one the other hand had to learn to be more confident in yourself and your job.

„I mean he just does these things…“ you carry in Trents bags into his hotel room, tossing his keycard onto the desk under the small tv „And I can’t let him get away with it this time.He needs to know that his behavior has consequences.“

„Oh, Y/N….“ Trent sighed, closing the door before limping to the bed and carefully sitting down „It sounds like your talking about a child.“

You watch Trent try to get comfortable as he rearranged the pillows, leaning himself onto the headboard of his bed .

You had picked him up straight from the hospital where they had run a bunch of medical check ups on his legs. Luckily he hadn’t been hurt severely but he’d still miss at least the next game.

Trent knew about Mason and you since basically day one. He was your best friend on the team and you told him everything.

„Because he basically is!“ you sighed, resting your arms on your hips „I mean what am I supposed to do now? Wait till Klopp finds out that I’m at fault for your injury…“

„What?“ Trent interrupted you, furrowing his brows as he tried to make sense of your words „Y/n this for sure isn’t your fault. This is just football? Okay? These things happen all the time.“

You bit your lip, taking a deep breath. You knew what Trent was saying and it made sense. Of course sometimes when football was mixed with emotions fairplay left the room. But there was still one thing that was bugging you.

„I know these things happen. Okay? They just don’t happen with Mason.“

Being that you had to stay in London for the game against Arsenal anyways, you spent the next day sleeping and laying in bed. It was your day off, so you tried to clear your mind and concentrate on the upcoming game.

It was just kind of hard when the whole internet was talking about your boyfriend. Ever since the game yesterday people had started to speculate what was going on with Mason. There had already been rumors about the two of you before. So this was just adding fuel to the fire.

It was all bullshit but one thing everyone seemed to agree on was; who was to blame. Apparently everyone thought that Mason was totally out of place, some even calling him an embarrassment for someone like you and that you’d never date a Chelsea player. Well, that was mostly Liverpool fans.

Chelsea fans all were keen on standing with Mason no matter what, all though they didn’t agree with his irresponsible actions as it affected their already small chance to win the League cup heavily.

„Tomorrow we will see Chelsea go up against Tottenham at Stamford bridge.“ you turned up the volume in your car, listening to the sports broadcast as you headed to training „With Mason Mount being banned because of the Red Card he recieved for his tackle against Liverpool on Sunday, the team is of course missing a significant player. They are still discussing the length of the suspension. All though we were told that Mount will support his team from home.“

The tension in the team was high during the next couple of days. You could tell that people were whispering things behind your back and you could even feel some of the players act different towards you. You felt silly and belittled by it.

„The internet truly sucks.“ Trent sighed, sitting on the bench next to you as he scrolled through his instagram comments. You buried your face into your jacket, trying to escape the cold air as you watched the guys train.

„Yeah, I know…“ you sighed, looking over at Trent who was resting his injured leg on the seat in front of him.

„I mean all this fuss about basically nothing.“ he shook his head, putting away his phone into his pocket.

You gave him a weak smile, shrugging „That’s just how it is.“

Trent gave you an apologetic smile in return „Have you talked to him Y/N?“

„No…“ you shook your head, looking at the ground with raised eyebrows „Not after what happened in the locker room. I just… I don’t know if we can work this out Trent.“

„Hey…“ Trent sighed, putting his hand on your knee in a friendly manner „Don’t say that. I’d hate for this to be the reason that you guys break up. You can work this out and you love him, right?“

„Yes I do.“ you nodded, feeling sad when even thinking about it. As you stared at your team playing on the field „But I also love this club Trent. I don’t want to let any of you down more than I already did. That’s the problem.“

The next thing that went totally not according to plan was that just after you got home from training your phone was blowing up with messages from family and friends asking if there was anything going on between you and Trent.

You soon realized that your little interaction with him had made it into Liverpools instagram story. All though you were only seen in the background you could clearly see his hand on your knee and the two of you looking rather close. You sighed, worried that this might cause yet another uproar in the internet. You really couldn’t use another headline right now.

It also caught you totally by surprise when you watched Chelsea totally destroy Tottenham in the League cup that same evening. After all they were missing quite a lot of their players.

So you watched the match, scrolled through your instagram for a little bit before deciding to get ready for bed. It was already almost midnight after all. You were kinda sad that it had been three whole days since your fight with Mason and he had not texted or called you once. But then again neither did you.

At around one in the morning you were woken up by your phone ringing. It was some random number so you decided to just leave it be but after it called you for the third time you thought it was maybe important.

„Hello?“ you yawned into the phone, turning on the light on your nightable.

„Y/N?“ a voice yelled on the other end of the line.

„Yes, who is this?“ you sat up in your bed as you tried to make out the voice.

„This is Kai.“ the guy yelled and you could hear the sound of music blaring through the phone. He was clearly out somewhere „I’m calling because of Mason.“

You swallowed, staring at the wall. Did Kai know about you and Mason?

„What?“ you asked, acting as nonchalant as possible.

„Well Mason joined us in the club after the win, to celebrate and stuff...“ Kai yelled and you were trying to figure out where the german guy was heading with this „And well he’s just got really drunk and started going around telling people that you cheated on him with Trent.“

You walked into the night club as "Love Tonight" was blaring through the speakers, dressed in freaking joggers and a coat. People pressing on you from left and right dancing and drinking, having the time of their lives. You wanted to scream as you pushed your way through the crowd. God you hated Londons night life.

You tried your best to understand Kais voice on the phone as he guided you to where they were. Mason had apparently had one to many drinks and now you were there to pick him up so he wouldn’t go around ruining your and his reputation.

„We are in the hallways right by the toilets. There’s a big sign…“ Kai yelled when you finally could spot him.

„It’s alright Kai.“ you yelled, holding your hand over your ear „I think I see you.“

You hung up the phone as you walked down the hallway. There were less people here and it was much more relaxed . The yellow lights flickering, giving it a rather sluggish look.

Only all the way back in the corner you could see Kai, Timo and Jorginho hover over someone sitting on the floor. You immediately knew it was Mason, seeing his sneakers stick out.

„Y/n!“ Kai said as he jogged over to you „Thank you for coming. We didn’t know what else we could do. He’s basically passed out.“

You walked over to where the rest of the guys were with Kai. Giving all of them a short and awkward grin. Finally there you could see Mason leaned up against the wall,Jorginho holding his head up as Timo was freaking out while pacing up and down next to them.

„Jesus Christ.“ you yelled, seeing the state Mason was in „Mason!“

You kneeled down next to your boyfriend who reeked of alcohol. He was as pale as a ghost and his hair was sticking to his forehead. Judging from the vomit on his black hoodie, you could tell he had already thrown up.

„Mason can you hear me?“ you asked grabbing both sides of his face as his eyes fluttered.

Mason tried to say something but you could tell he was struggling.

„Should we call an ambulance?“ Jorginho sighed, looking at you worriedly.

„Has he thrown up already?“ you asked the Italian guy next to you .

„Yeah, plenty.“ Timo answered, looking disgusted as he still shifted around nervously.

„I don’t think we need an ambulance.“ you stated trying to open Mason eyes and check if he was responsive „As long as it’s out of his system we’re fine.“

The guys all sighed in relief. They knew if this ever got out they’d have some serious problems.

„Y/n?“ Mason now slurred and all eyes fell on him. He clearly knew you were here.

„Yes it’s me Mason.“ you responded caressing his cheeks as he still had his eyes closed.

„Oh god.“ Mason mumbled, wrapping his arms around you like he was trying to hug you. Only they felt lifeless and limp „I’m so glad you’re here.“

You sighed, tossing your car key to Kai „You’re sober right?“

„Yes.“ Kai responded, catching them mid air.

„Okay, go get my car. We have to get him out of here without anyone noticing.“

You were sitting in the backseat of your car with Masons head in your lap. Kai and Jorginho in the front seat as you had sent Timo home in a taxi, the guy was so anxious it wasn't helpful at all.

Mason, who was still not really conscious, was mumbling some weird stuff the whole drive to his house.

„Mase are you okay mate?“ Jorginho asked from the front seat as he chuckled after Mason had told some story about a goldfish.

You also had managed to laugh alittle through all of this. Mason was really on another planet at the moment. It made you forget you were actually pissed at him for a second.

„Nooo I’m not.“ Mason whined as you caressed his hair, feeling his cheek against your leg. You hated seeing him like this.

„Why not? What happened? Did your goldfish die?“ Kai chuckled, focusing on the street as he drove out of London.

„Nooo…“ Mason groaned, rubbing his eyes „That fucking Trent is fucking my fucking girlfriend.“

You immediately stiffened as the guys laughter stopped. God, they probably even thought this was true. After all they didn't even really know you.

„And I fucking hate him.“ Mason stuttered, as you wanted to disappear into the car seat „With his stupid smile and his du... dumb hair and his horrible accent. Plus he plays for Liverpool. They suck.“

This now made you chuckle, he clearly had no idea you were sitting right behind him.

„Oh, really?“ you know gasped, you knew he was drunk but that was just way over the line „That’s- Bullocks!“

„Bullocks?“ Mason started laughing and you wanted nothing more than to slap him.

„Yes! It’s bullocks.“ you hissed, crossing your arms „Liverpool is a great team.“

„No they’re not they suck!“ Mason spat out.

„They are great.“

„They are mediocore.“ Mason groaned, rearranging himself in your lap so he could look up at you.

You stared down with him with raised eyebrows „What?“

„You look like my girlfriend.“ he gasped and Jorginho and Kai couldn’t help but burst out into laughter.

„Oh, really?“ you chuckled, shaking your head „Which one?“

„I only have one.“ he scrunched his noce as he looked at you confused making you have to cover your mouth so you wouldn’t burst out into laughter as well „She works at Liverpool. She’s the only good part about them.“

„Oh, that’s nice.“ you giggled, running your finger through Masons hair but his hand immediately grabbed yours stopping you „What?“

„I told you I have a girlfriend.“ he gasped and by now you couldn’t help but laugh out loud.

„Well isn’t she cheating on you anyways?“ you rolled your eyes, obviously being sarcastic.

„Yes. But I still love her.“

Jorginho and Kai helped you carry Mason into the house and into his bed. You thanked them and you all agreed that this would stay between the three of you as Mason probably would forget about it anyways. Then they left as you went to check on Mason one last time but by that time he was already fast asleep.

„No he’s still asleep but I promise I’ll be there in time for your check up.“ you said to Trent, who had face timed you this morning after you hadn’t showed up for breakfast at the hotel.

„Alright.“ Trent yawned, putting on his hoodie „What are you even cooking?“

„Eggs and Toast.“ you said, showing it to Trent with a smile „It’s the only two edible thing that Mason owns.“

Trent chuckled as he started brushing his teeth. Limping to the bathroom as he cursed silently.

„Still hurts that bad?“ you sighed, feeling bad for the guy.

„Yeah, no it’s fine.“ he smiled and just when he wanted to add something you heard a voice behind you.

„Good morning.“

You turned around, ladle in hand to see a freshly showered Mason stand there. His hair still a little wet as he looked at you, awkwardly shifting around his feet.

„Trent.“ you grabbed your phone „I have to go, see you later.“

Without Trent being able to say another word you hung up the phone. Putting it down on the kitchen counter before turning around again.

„Hey.“ you mumbled, looking at Mason that was still just standing there „How are you?“

„Well, hungover…“ he shrugged, pressing his lips together.

„Alright.“ you said, biting your lip and thinking of what to say „I made breakfast.“

„Y/n…“ Mason sighed, shaking his head before sitting down at the table in front of him. You walked over to him, taking place opposite him.

„What is it Mason?“ you asked as he buried his face into his hands.

„I just don’t understand why you stayed after that.“ he groaned, looking super frustrated with himself.

„You needed my help. That’s why I stayed.“ you answered, looking him into the eyes.

„Yes… I know.“ he sighed and you could tell he was on the verge of crying „But I still acted like a dick. I’m sorry.“

„It’s fine. I forgive you.“ you mumbled, giving Mason a weak smile.

„I might have told a few people about us.“ he now said, raising his eyebrows as he tried to remember what exactly happened last night.

„I know.“ you chuckled, leaning over the table „You also told them that I was cheating on you with…“

„Trent?“ he groaned, realizing just how embarassing he had been.

„Yes.“ you laughed, nodding your head „I’m not by the way.“

„I know that.“ he sighed, truly done with himself „God I’m never gonna drink again.“

„Good.“ you chuckled, leaning over to him „Can I kiss you?“

„Of course.“ Mason said, before crashing his lips onto yours. You sighed into the kiss having missed the feeling.

„You also said…“ you mumbled pulling away „That Liverpool sucks.“

„Well…“ he furrowed his eyebrows „That is kinda true.“

„Hey!“ you gasped, knowing he was only joking „That’s-“

„Bullocks?“

[newtedison]

my thoughts on the crank palace

i touched about this a bit on twitter (@newtedison_) but i figured i would Try and touch on my points more here (spoilers obv) again, its sort of lengthy

1. im gonna start with talking about the ending because i need to get it out of the way. either i havent read the books in a while and i forgot some canon (which could very well be true, i literally forgot that Bliss was a thing) or this ending makes no sense and is (somehow) setting up for a tdc sequel? so first off, newt was shot in the Head with a Bullet and somehow didnt immediately die? i know that that can happen in real life but it just seems so unlikely that not only would he not die, but he would survive long enough for someone from WCKD to transport him back to their labs and try to revive him. and who the fuck was he talking to? did thomas get newt’s journal at some point and i just dont remember? like i said, either im forgetting stuff or this ending doesnt make sense and is setting up a sequel which...i’ll get to later

2. why was this written? like, what was the point? i understand that this wasnt going to be all sunshine and rainbows but i feel like i was reading torture porn. like, literally all that happens is newt gets tortured (which is described in detail) by WCKD soldiers, has bouts of insane-fueled rage where he KILLS MULTIPLE PEOPLE, and then he dies. ??? what did this contribute to the canon? what was this trying to accomplish? truthfully, i never really wanted a newt-POV...well, anything except for maybe those little nuggets he wrote some time ago. but even if i HAD wanted a newt-POV novella, this is not what i would have wanted. he KNOWS that newt is almost universally the most loved character in this franchise. you can tell because he constantly uses him as a way to get fans in his good graces again. so why on earth would he take that character that so many people love and write a novella where its torture porn and a descent into madness before death? i am not interested in that At All. i’ve read fics (and even written a drabble) where newt is a Crank, and those were more respectful and easier to read than tcp. the parts where newt is having bouts of the Flare were literally exhausting to read; it was described in such vivid and torturous detail that it made me sick reading it. and it didnt help that newt is a character i care a lot about. i didn’t need to know what becoming a Crank felt like. the way it was described in the other books (and even the movies) told me everything i needed to know. the way thomas and everyone found newt at the crank palace in tdc and hes described as obviously not well, but not knowing what exactly happened to him...thats good enough on its own. the mystery of what exactly newt had to endure is part of what gives his journey more emotional depth. not everything needs to be written out and explained. not every gap needs to be filled in. 

3. me saying “the characterization felt off” is going to make some people roll their eyes because ‘duh, sami, the characterization will be off because he’s going insane’ to which i say...exactly. we weren’t really reading a newt-POV novella, were we? even if he isn’t past the Gone in the beginning, hes clearly not the same person we knew him as. the whole novella felt like an uncanny valley situation; i knew i was supposed to be reading about newt, but it felt like i was reading about someone else who looked like him. and that is part of what made this such a disconnect and made me lose interest at parts. not only that, but the world building and lore is inconsistent. newt makes a comment about how it used to rain in the glade, and apparently (as ive been told) that is simply not true. keisha having somehow working cell phone that magically connects her to her family also doesnt make sense. how would they have each others’ numbers? what are the odds that they BOTH found working cell phones in an apocalypse? i get that its a novella but you cant just throw something that crazy in there as a plot convenience. actually work on your plot and world building in a cohesive way, please. and another thing that doesnt make sense...

4. ...is newt finding out that sonya is his sister. if there was anything i would have wanted from a newt-pov novella, it would have been this. him finding out that not only is sonya his sister, but he already knows her post-WCKD. something that would have made this novella actually captivating, contributing something worthwhile to the canon that i would actually want to read, is if newt found out while in the crank palace that sonya was his sister; the Flare would remove that part of the Slice in his brain, and he would realize it was her. then, knowing that he couldnt go past the Gone before seeing her, he would try to find a way to get back to her. he could learn this after thomas and everyone originally see him, so it could match up with the canon. and then, by the time 250 comes along, hes lost all hope of that actually happening, and lashes out to thomas in a fit of rage. the journey of him trying to find his ACTUAL sister would have meant more to me than the story of keisha and dante. trust me, i love a found family trope as much as the next girl. but this series is FULL of the found family trope. it pretty much is the backbone of the franchise. so to see a blood family dynamic would have been a refreshing change of pace that i actually would have been interested in reading. also, the way that newt DOES find out about sonya is...underwhelming. he just randomly says “you remind me of my sister, sonya” to keisha in the WCKD truck. first of all, sonya is not the name you would actually know her by. you would know her by her birth name (which is lizzy? elizabeth?). second, why does he act like he didnt already meet her in the series? when the WCKD doctor tells him sonya is his sister and is alive, hes so surprised. wouldn’t he have known that already? why is there not more emphasis on the fact he already met her? that would have been a really interesting dynamic to explore, and im sad they didnt

5. the pacing and dialogue of tcp is so dragged out. i remember specifically there was a section where newt goes to talk to keisha after she starts abandoning dante, and i swear to god there was a page and a half of text before anything ACTUALLY happened or anyone ACTUALLY said anything. dashner described a launcher at one point as “the energy dependent electric firing projectile device.” that’s SIX words to describe a stun gun. a fucking stun gun! we know what it is! why did you have to use six words??? it just felt like everything was dragged and stretched to the longest it could possibly be and it added to the exhaustion i felt while reading it

6. okay i cant end it without talking about newtmas. its very obvious by now that newtmas is a VERY large part of this fanbase. its clearly the most popular ship and what keeps a lot of people interested in this series. even the marketing team for the MOVIES used newtmas as a advertising tactic (i.e.; using thomas and newt standing face to face as a thumbnail for the trailer, emphasizing newtmas based questions in interviews, even making a fucking facebook memories video for them. yes that last one is real). not only does dashner use newt as a way to lure fans in; he also uses newtmas. the parts that were sprinkled into this were so obvious that it didnt feel authentic. i cant speak for the original trilogy; i dont know the culture around ships back then, and i dont know how much it influenced his writing at the time. but the scenes in those books felt more genuine than tcp. by genuine i mean; he wrote scenes without a relationship in mind, but the chemistry had noticeable subtext that, while unintentional, was largely agreed upon by the larger audience. the parts of newtmas he added into tcp felt artificial and forced, likely as a way for people to take snippets of and use as a free marketing tool for him. one example you might have already seen; “he had already gotten used to his post-thomas, post-WCKD life.” the fact that dashner SPECIFICALLY used the phrase “post-thomas” rather than “post-his friends” or something similar shows that he is using newtmas as a hook on purpose. not only that, but to make newt’s last thoughts as he died “tommy. tommy will understand...” is...wow. first of all, i never wanted to know what newt’s dying thoughts were, but thanks, i guess? and second, when we all initially thought newt died underneath thomas with a gun to his head, i was pretty much inferred that newts last thoughts would probably be about thomas; they would sort of have to be, given the circumstances. so adding that in gives me the same feeling that “i’m coming for you, newt” at the end of the fever code gave me. not as offensive, but written very much on purpose. and the ending is implying that there will somehow be a sequel where thomas gets newt’s journal from...someone. at this point, i can only think that this sequel will retroactively make newtmas canon somehow. now that newt has been confirmed as gay, it could happen. which brings me to my last point...

7. hearing dashner confirm newt is gay was already mind-boggling before. now that i’ve read the crank palace...im angry. im very angry. i think its safe to say that newt is the character that suffers the most in this series. you can argue with me but hes definitely high on the list, if not #1. so; you take this character. you give him a horribly sad arc in the original trilogy, then decide to expand upon it and tell us, your largely QUEER fanbase, exactly how painful and torturous his last days were, in detail. and then you tell us he’s gay. something that is never mentioned in the canon, only in an offhanded reply to a tweet of someone calling you out. on a base level, i can understand why people would be happy. representation (i guess), seeing themselves in the character, having their headcanons be confirmed. great. but what i see is you telling your largely queer fanbase “hey, you see the only confirmed gay character? im going to literally write torture porn about him before killing him off and offer it to you like im providing a service to your community.” how fucked up is that? “hey, kids, if youre gay, you WILL be violently tortured and become violent and a danger to the ones you love. then you will die and your love will never be reciprocated.” what a message! and if he DOES end up retroactively making newtmas “canon” in some weird sequel...i will start foaming at the mouth. THIS is an example of how not all queer representation is good or genuine.

i’ve definitely forgotten some points but this is long enough already. let me know if you agree or if theres anything else you want to add! im interested in what you guys think

(8. I JUST REMEMBERED!!! if WCKD needed to study newt so bad bc sonya is his sister and is immune while he isnt, why did they let him run around the crank palace in the first place??? you cant test his vitals or anything you’re literally just watching him. what is the point????)

[spilledreality]

Sporting vs Herding

i.

I wanna talk about two blogposts, Seph's "War Over Being Nice” and Alastair's "Of Triggering & the Triggered." Each lays out the same erisological idea: that there are two distinct modes or cultures of running discourse these days, and understanding the difference is crucial to understanding the content of conversation as much as its form. Let's go.

One style, Alastair writes, is indebted to the Greco-Roman rhetorical and 19th C British sporting traditions. A debate takes place in a "heterotopic" arena which is governed by an ethos of adversarial collaboration and sportsmanship. It is waged in a detached and impersonal manner, e.g. in American debate club, which inherits from these older traditions, you are assigned a side to argue; your position is not some "authentic" expression of self. Alastair:

This form of discourse typically involves a degree of ‘heterotopy’, occurring in a ‘space’ distinct from that of personal interactions.

This heterotopic space is characterized by a sort of playfulness, ritual combativeness, and histrionics. This ‘space’ is akin to that of the playing field, upon which opposing teams give their rivals no quarter, but which is held distinct to some degree from relations between the parties that exist off the field. The handshake between competitors as they leave the field is a typical sign of this demarcation.

All in all, it is a mark against one in these debates to take an argument personally, to allow arguments that happen "in the arena" to leave the arena. This mode of discourse I see exemplified in LessWrong culture, and is, I think, one of the primary attractors to the site.In the second mode of discourse, inoffensiveness, agreement, and inclusivity are emphasized, and positions are seen as closely associated with their proponents.  Alastair speculates it originates in an educational setting which values cooperation, empathy, equality, non-competitiveness, affirmation, and subordination; this may be true, but I feel less confident in it than I am the larger claim about discursive modes. Provocatively, the two modes are dubbed "sporting" and "herding," with all the implications of, on the one hand, individual agents engaged in ritualized, healthy simulations of combat, and on the other, of quasi-non-agents shepherded in a coordinated, bounded, highly constrained and circumscribed epistemic landscape. Recall, if you are tempted to blame this all on the postmodernists, that this is exactly the opposite of their emphasis toward the "adult" realities of relativism, nebulosity, flux. Queer Theory has long advocated for the dissolution of gendered and racial identity, not the reification of identitarian handles we see now, which is QT's bastardization. We might believe these positions were taken too far, but they are ultimately about complicating the world and removing the structuralist comforts of certainty and dichotomy. (Structureless worlds are inherently hostile to rear children in, and also for most human life; see also the Kegan stages for a similar idea.)  

In the erisological vein, Alastair provides a portrait of the collision between the sporting and herding modes. Arguments that fly in one discursive style (taking offence, emotional injury, legitimation-by-feeling) absolutely do not fly in the other:

When these two forms of discourse collide they are frequently unable to understand each other and tend to bring out the worst in each other. The first [new, sensitive] form of discourse seems lacking in rationality and ideological challenge to the second; the second [old, sporting] can appear cruel and devoid of sensitivity to the first. To those accustomed to the second mode of discourse, the cries of protest at supposedly offensive statements may appear to be little more than a dirty and underhand ploy intentionally adopted to derail the discussion by those whose ideological position can’t sustain critical challenge.

ii.

Seph stumbles upon a similar division, though it is less about discursive and argumentative modes, and more about social norms for emotional regulation and responsibility. He calls them Culture A and Culture B, mirroring sporting and herding styles, respectively.

In culture A, everyone is responsible for their own feelings. People say mean stuff all the time—teasing and jostling each other for fun and to get a rise. Occasionally someone gets upset. When that happens, there's usually no repercussions for the perpetrator. If someone gets consistently upset when the same topic is brought up, they will either eventually stop getting upset or the people around them will learn to avoid that topic. Verbally expressing anger at someone is tolerated. It is better to be honest than polite.

In such a culture, respect and status typically comes from performance; Seph quotes the maxim "If you can't sell shit, you are shit." We can see a commonality with sporting in that there is some shared goal which is attained specifically through adversarial play, such that some degree of interpersonal hostility is tolerated or even sought. Conflict is settled openly and explicitly.

In culture B, everyone is responsible for the feelings of others. At social gatherings everyone should feel safe and comfortable. After all, part of the point of having a community is to collectively care for the emotional wellbeing of the community's members. For this reason its seen as an act of violence against the community for your actions or speech to result in someone becoming upset, or if you make people feel uncomfortable or anxious. This comes with strong repercussions—the perpetrator is expected to make things right. An apology isn't necessarily good enough here—to heal the wound, the perpetrator needs to make group participants once again feel nurtured and safe in the group. If they don't do that, they are a toxic element to the group's cohesion and may no longer be welcome in the group. It is better to be polite than honest. As the saying goes, if you can't say something nice, it is better to say nothing at all.

In such a culture, status and respect come from your contribution to group cohesion and safety; Seph cites the maxim "Be someone your coworkers enjoy working with." But Seph's argument pushes back, fruitfully, on descriptions of Culture B as collaborative (which involve high self-assertion); rather, he writes, they are accommodating in the Thomas-Kilmann modes of conflict sense:

iii.

Seph and Alastair both gesture toward the way these modes feel gendered, with Culture A more "masculinized" and Culture B more "feminized."[1] While this seems important to note, given that a massive, historically unprecedented labor shift toward coed co-working has recently occured in the Western world, I don't see much point in hashing out a nature vs. nurture, gender essentialism debate here, so you can pick your side and project it. This is also perhaps interesting from the frame of American feminist history: early waves of feminism were very much about escaping the domestic sphere and entering the public sphere; there is an argument to be made that contemporary feminisms, now that they have successfully entered it, are dedicated to domesticating the public sphere into a more comfortable zone. Culture B, for instance, might well be wholly appropriate to the social setting of a living room, among acquaintances who don't know each other well; indeed, it feels much like the kind of aristocratic parlor culture of the same 19th C Britain that the sporting mode also thrived in, side-by-side. And to some extent, Culture A is often what gets called toxic masculinity; see Mad Men for a depiction.

(On the topic of domestication of the workplace: We've seen an increased blurring of the work-life separation; the mantra "lean-in" has been outcompeted by "decrease office hostility"; business attire has slid into informality, etiquette has been subsumed into ethics, dogs are allowed in the workplace. Obviously these changes are not driven by women's entrance into the workplace alone; the tech sector has had an enormous role in killing both business attire and the home-office divide, despite being almost entirely male in composition. And equally obvious, there is an enormous amount of inter- and intra-business competition in tech, which is both consistently cited by exiting employees as a hostile work environment, and has also managed to drive an outsized portion of global innovation the past few decades—thus cultural domestication is not at all perfectly correlated with a switch from Culture A to B. Draw from these speculations what you will.)

There are other origins for the kind of distinctions Seph and Alastair draw; one worthwhile comparison might be Nietzsche's master and slave moralities. The former mode emphasizes power and achievement, the other empathy, cooperation, and compassion. (Capitalism and communitarianism fall under some of the same, higher-level ideological patterns.) There are differences of course: the master moralist is "beyond" good and evil, or suffering and flourishing, whereas Culture A and B might both see themselves as dealing with questions of suffering but in very different ways. But the "slave revolt in morality" overwrote an aristocratic detachment or "aboveness" that we today might see as deeply immoral or inhuman; it is neither surprising nor damning that a revolting proletariat—the class which suffered most of the evils of the world—would speak from a place of one-to-one, attached self-advocacy. One can switch "sides" or "baskets" of the arena each half or quarter because they are impersonal targets in a public commons; one cannot so easily hold the same attitude toward defending one's home. This alone may indicate we should be more sympathetic to the communitarian mode than we might be inclined to be; certainly, those who advocate and embody this mode make plausible claims to being a similar, embattled and embittered class. A friend who I discussed these texts with argued that one failure mode of the rationalist community is an "unmooring" from the real concerns of human beings, slipping into an idealized, logical world modeled on self-similarity (i.e. highly Culture A, thinking over feeling in the Big 5 vocabulary), in a way that is blind to the realities of the larger population.

But there are also grave problems for such a discursive mode, especially when it becomes dominant. Because while on the surface, discursive battles in the sporting mode can appear to be battles between people, they are in reality battles between ideas.

iv.

As Mill argued in On Liberty, free discourse is crucial because it acts as a social steering mechanism: should we make a mistake in our course, freedom of discourse is the instrument for correcting it. But the mistake of losing free discourse is very hard to come back from; it must be fought for again, before other ideals can be pursued. 

Moreover, freedom of discourse is the means of rigorizing ideas before they are implemented, such as to avoid catastrophe. Anyone familiar with James Scott's Seeing Like A State, or Hayek's arguments for decentralized market intelligence, or a million other arguments against overhaulism, knows how difficult it is to engineer a social intervention that works as intended: the unforeseen, second-order effects; our inability to model complex systems and human psychology. Good intent is not remotely enough, and the herding approach cannot help but lower the standard of thinking and discourse emerging from such communities, which become more demographically powerful even as their ideas become worse (the two are tied up inextricably).

The fear of conflict and the inability to deal with disagreement lies at the heart of sensitivity-driven discourses. However, ideological conflict is the crucible of the sharpest thought. Ideological conflict forces our arguments to undergo a rigorous and ruthless process through which bad arguments are broken down, good arguments are honed and developed, and the relative strengths and weaknesses of different positions emerge. The best thinking emerges from contexts where interlocutors mercilessly probe and attack our arguments’ weaknesses and our own weaknesses as their defenders. They expose the blindspots in our vision, the cracks in our theories, the inconsistencies in our logic, the inaptness of our framing, the problems in our rhetoric. We are constantly forced to return to the drawing board, to produce better arguments.

And on the strength of sporting approaches in rigorizing discourse:

The truth is not located in the single voice, but emerges from the conversation as a whole. Within this form of heterotopic discourse, one can play devil’s advocate, have one’s tongue in one’s cheek, purposefully overstate one’s case, or attack positions that one agrees with. The point of the discourse is to expose the strengths and weaknesses of various positions through rigorous challenge, not to provide a balanced position in a single monologue

Thus those who wish us to accept their conceptual carvings or political advocacies without question or challenge are avoiding short-term emotional discomfort at the price of their own long-term flourishing, at the cost of finding working and stable social solutions to problems. Standpoint epistemology correctly holds that individuals possess privileged knowledge as to what it's like (in the Nagel sense) to hold their social identities. But it is often wrongly extended, in the popular game of informational corruption called "Telephone" or "Chinese Whispers," as arguing that such individuals also possess unassailable and unchallengeable insight into the proper societal solutions to their grievances. We can imagine a patient walking into the doctor's office; the doctor cannot plausibly tell him there is no pain in his leg, if he claims there is, but the same doctor can recommend treatment, or provide evidence as to whether the pain is physical or psychosomatic.A lack of discursive rigour would not be a problem, Alastair writes, "were it not for the fact that these groups frequently expect us to fly in a society formed according to their ideas, ideas that never received any rigorous stress testing."

v.

As for myself, it was not too long ago I graduated from a university in which a conflict between these modes is ongoing. We had a required course called

Contemporary Civilization

, founded in the wake of World War I, which focused on the last 2,000 years of philosophy, seminar-style: a little bit of introductory lecture, but most of the 2 x 2-hour sessions each week were filled by students arguing with one other. In other words, its founding ethos was of sporting and adversarial collaboration.We also had a number of breakdowns where several students simply could not handle this mode: they would begin crying, or say they couldn't deal with the [insert atmosphere adjective] in the room, and would either transfer out or speak to the professor. While they were not largely representative, they required catering to, and no one wished to upset these students. I have heard we were a fortunate class insofar as we had a small handful of students willing to engage sporting-style, or skeptical a priori of the dominant political ideology at the school. When, in one session, a socialist son of a Saudi billionaire, wearing a $10,000 watch and a camel-hair cashmere sweater, pontificated about "burning the money, reverting to a barter system, and killing the bosses," folks in class would mention that true barter systems were virtually unprecedented in post-agricultural societies, and basically unworkable at scale. In other classes, though, when arguments like these were made—which, taken literally, are logically irrational, but instead justify themselves through sentiment, a legitimation of driving emotion rather than explicit content, in the Culture B sense—other students apparently nodded sagely from the back of the room, "yes, and-ing" one another til their noses ran. Well, I wanted to lay out the styles with some neutrality, but I suppose it's clear now where my sympathies stand.

[1] It should go without saying, but to cover my bases, these modes feeling "feminized" or "masculinized" does not imply that all women, or women inherently, engage in one mode while all men inherently engage in another. Seph cites Camille Paglia as an archetypal example of a Culture A woman, and while she may fall to the extreme side of the Culture A mode, I'd argue most female intellectuals of the 20th C (at least those operated outside the sphere of feminist discourse) were strongly sporting-types: Sontag, for instance, was vociferous and unrelenting. 

[miracalicethebookgirl]

The Phony and the Famous Pt. 5

AO3 

Pt 1. Pt 2. Pt 3. Pt 4. 

Summary: Lila spreads lies about being famous with worldwide connections to increase her local popularity. She’s confident that Marinette will never be able to prove otherwise. What she, and even Marinette herself, don’t realize is that Marinette won’t have to do any of that to come out on top. - A story in which everything Lila lies about, Marinette turns into reality for herself, usually unknowingly (our girl is quite the lucky one, after all).

A brief explanation: The last chapter was a bit confusing as to how Mister Bug appeared. When people turned into animals, all their clothing and accessories were left behind. When Marinette turned into a hamster her earrings fell off, so Tikki took them to Chat. Adrien switched out his Miraculous since it’s still unknown if something happens by wearing both the Ladybug and Cat Miraculous (not sure if Gamer 2.0 counts). After the fight he switched back and Tikki returned the earrings to Marinette. 

… 

“I'm good friends with the best manga publisher in Japan, you know. I can talk to them about your comic book project if you like.” 

Season 3, “Ladybug” 

… 

“Name?” 

“Oh! Uh, Astruc, Thomas.” 

The girl hummed thoughtfully as she shuffled through the festival passes on the table. “That name sounds familiar. Did you work on a recent film or something?” 

“Yes, actually! I was the director of The Adventures of Lady—” 

“Here it is!” the girl exclaimed, pulling out the lanyard pass from the stack and adding some pamphlets to her hand. “Keep your pass on you at all times. The first pamphlet will provide you with a general map of the Champs-Élysées. The area is split up by genre and your second pamphlet will tell you which film categories will be playing on which day. If you have any questions just ask a volunteer. Welcome to the Young Artists Film Festival!” 

With that, Thomas Astruc was ushered along to allow the next person to check in. 

He was a little put out that he was yet again dismissed despite his role in the production of a movie that was widely popular in France. But what could he do besides shake his head and accept it? He could brag all he wanted about it but unless he made as big a name as Steven Basielberg, people would simply continue to shrug and dismiss him. 

Rather than spoil his mood with such thoughts, Thomas figured he’d keep a low profile and just enjoy the festivities. It always intrigued him to see what new edgy or comedic or introspective pieces the young minds of France could create. So he spent an hour watching several animated shorts created by students and noted interesting stylistic choices and the most popular narratives. He debated going to see one of the feature length films that were highlighted for the day when he heard someone excitedly call out his name. 

“Oh my gosh, Monsieur Astruc! Monsieur Astruc!” 

He turned and saw a pigtailed teenage girl wave and run up to him, followed by—he blinked owlishly—Adrien Agreste, who had another girl latched to his arm. He looked back at the girl who called to him. 

“You look a bit familiar to me. Have we met before?” 

The girl didn’t seem bothered by his question. “It was only briefly, but we met at the Ladybug and Chat Noir movie premiere a few months back. I was the person you gave up your seat to. I’m still so thankful that you did that for me! Aside from the akuma—no offense—and a couple other people…the premiere was actually kind of fun.” 

The other two teens finally reached them. The girl on Adrien’s arm gave a small gasp. 

“Oh, Marinette, you were at the Ladybug movie premiere? I heard you went as one of the waitresses. I would have been there too, but I told the movie director that I had another movie project lined up. You see, being Ladybug’s best friend, I had a big say in how the heroes in the movie were portrayed so they could be as accurate as possible.” 

The other three stood silent for a moment. One in confusion and the other two in exasperation. 

“Who did you say you were again?” Thomas asked, wondering if he really did forget such a person. 

“Oh, silly me,” the girl tittered, “where are my manners? I’m Lila Rossi, sort of an expert in all things Ladybug. And in case you also didn’t know,” she pulled Adrien closer to herself, “this is Adrien Agreste. He voiced Chat Noir in the movie but he’s also a model for Gabriel. We actually model together.” 

Adrien brought a fist to his mouth and gave a small cough. 

Is he covering a smile? Thomas thought to himself. Well, he couldn’t blame the boy. This girl obviously didn’t know whose company she was in. Thomas would have also laughed if the thought didn’t make him feel so dejected. 

“Um, Lila,” Adrien politely began, “let me introduce you to Thomas Astruc. Monsieur Astruc is the artistic director of The Adventures of Ladybug and Chat Noir.” He paused. “The Movie.”

As they all watched the emotions play across Lila’s face, it was the other girl, Marinette’s, turn to try and smother a giggle. She wasn’t as successful as Adrien but at the fury that passed across Lila’s face, she quickly brought the conversation elsewhere. 

“Sir, I never did get to introduce myself to you, which I guess was a little rude at the time. My name is Marinette Dupain-Cheng. I admit, I was a little skeptical when I first watched the trailer because Ladybug and Chat Noir didn’t sound anything like the real heroes. But once I watched the movie, it was actually really good!” 

Thomas laughed good-naturedly. “That’s quite alright. I knew some people would be disappointed that the movie wasn’t an account of true events. That was the point of the disclaimer ‘based on Ladybug and Chat Noir.’” He took a moment to discreetly eye Lila. “The script writers and I didn’t want to confine ourselves to real life. We took our artistic license and ran with it, if you will. Especially since we don’t know everything there is to know about the Miraculous or the identities of the main players. Can you imagine Ladybug being scared of cats? Or if Hawkmoth were actually Chat Noir’s dad?” 

Marinette laughed with him at those hypotheticals. Adrien chuckled along a bit more nervously, though Thomas figured the young man was just trying to imagine Gabriel Agreste as a supervillain, considering Adrien voiced the aforementioned hero. Lila had taken on a stoic face, and he guiltily hoped she learned some humility from her embarrassment. 

Then something from earlier clicked in his mind. 

“Did you say your name was Marinette Dupain-Cheng?” 

Marinette stopped laughing and looked at him questioningly. “Yeah, I did.” 

Thomas’s eyes lit up. “So you’re the Marinette Dupain-Cheng whose designs are sought after by several celebrities and whose talents caught the attention of one of the biggest film studios in Europe?!” 

Face turning red at the acknowledgement, Marinette nodded timidly. Adrien reached out and put a hand on her shoulder as he smiled proudly. “And those are only some of her accomplishments. I bet she’ll go even further in whatever she does.” His eyes twitched a little when Lila gave a small noise of derision. 

Thomas agreed with the boy. Miss Dupain-Cheng may be a relatively new name running in Parisian circles, especially with the crocodile debacle and zoo fundraiser, but she was proving to be more than just a flash in the pan. If anything, she was gaining more momentum in her fame as time passed, due in part by the recently confirmed rumors of her association with Graham Films. Thomas thought hard. 

The animation studio he previously worked with for the Ladybug movie was offering him a contract for a new animated film. The studio anticipated that the project wouldn’t receive as much attention as the Ladybug movie did, but Thomas acknowledged that it was a given. However, if he could attach some big names to the film, that might be even better promotion than the simple “from the producers of the hit film Ladybug!” tagline could provide. Bringing Marinette on board would be a more than stellar start. 

“What is the project that you and Graham Films working on right now?” he questioned, genuinely curious. “And when is post-production? If you don’t have any other film projects lined up, I happen to be gathering a team right now for an original animated film and we would love to work with someone of your talents!” 

Thomas was disappointed to see her shake her head apologetically. 

“I’m sorry, Monsieur Astruc. The movie with Graham Films is a one-time thing since I’m hoping for more fashion-centered work.” Her tone then turned thoughtful. “What kind of movie is yours going to be?” 

“It’ll be a new superhero movie. I’m considering integrating it into the same universe as the Ladybug and Chat Noir movie.” 

Adrien’s eyes lit up. “That sounds really cool! I hope you’ll let me voice Chat Noir again if he and Ladybug make a cameo or maybe even have a sequel!” 

Thomas laughed, appreciative of the boy’s eagerness. The cameo bit wasn’t a bad idea at all. 

“Monsieur Astruc,” Marinette began tentatively, “would you be opposed to taking on other young talent since I won’t be able to?” 

He blinked. “Unless they have an exceptional portfolio and prior experience, I don’t think it would be very likely that they’d be hired. But,” he added when he saw the girl slump, “I’m very open to bringing some interns to the team.” 

Thomas noticed Adrien perk up, looking like he knew exactly what his friend was leading up to. Lila merely turned her head away, seeming to be ignoring the rest of the conversation. 

“I know some people who would love that!” Marinette exclaimed. “And I can speak for their talent in both writing and drawing about superheroes.” 

Intrigued, he figured it wouldn’t hurt to hear her out. 

… 

A week later at the studio, Thomas and his production team stood up from their chairs to shake hands with the young men who they would be taking under their wings as interns. 

“I look forward to working with you two gentlemen,” he said to them. “Your ideas are great and hopefully this internship and stories of my own journey from character doodling to filmmaking can help you get your own comics off the ground.” 

Marc Anciel blushed. Nathaniel Kurtzberg beamed and replied, “I can’t wait to tell Marinette about this. I can’t believe she thought of us when you originally wanted her. I heard she couldn’t accept anyway, but still!” 

“Marinette is always looking out for her friends,” Marc added softly. 

When Thomas formally met Marinette, he recognized her for her fame and her talents. Since then, he began to realize just what a remarkable person she was. And so young too… He briefly pondered how old Ladybug and Chat Noir were. Surely not as young as his movie made them? 

“People like that are hard to find but they do exist. Hold on tight to friendships like this. And remember that even though Marinette might seem amazing all on her own, being her friend means helping her out too.” 

The boys seemed oddly sad (ashamed, in Nathaniel’s case?) for a moment, but Thomas only had a second to wonder about it before they smiled and nodded in agreement. 

[illogicallyinclined]

Sorry to bother you, and if you don’t want to explain no worries, but I love your hockey au! Only problem is I know nothing about hockey and google is Big Confusing. Any way you could give me a quick description of the players/what they do/who they are? - A Confused But Grateful Fan

no worries at all; i’m always ready to lay down some Hockey Facts

so, i think that the best way to start this would be with the definition of a “line.” in hockey, a “line” is the combination of three players that, on the ice, take offensive positions: the left winger (like patton), the center (like roman), and the right winger (like remus). all three of these players carry out functionally similar roles -- they do a brunt of the goalscoring, setting up plays and attempting to get the puck into the net. the positions (left vs right vs center) just specify where the skaters spend a majority of their time; the left winger skates (MOSTLY) along the left side of the rink and so on. 

lines can change within a game. for instance, say coach thomas originally had patton, roman and a player named jared playing together in a “line”. if he realizes that this combination isn’t working well for the evening, he may opt to mix things up; he could, for instance, swap jared out for another right winger, swap roman out for another center, etc.

(note: there are usually 4 lines, or about 12 offenseman per team. the lines are constantly changing, with players entering and exiting the bench after short shifts out on the ice. honestly, players only really spend about 2 minutes MAX on the ice before a line change occurs. then, they wait for their line to be called up again) 

next, there are the defensemen. their main job is to keep the puck as far away from their net as possible. they can score as well, obviously, but it isn’t as much of a priority as making sure that the opponents Don’t Score. defensemen, unlike the forwards, are usually paired off in groups of two: D and virgil are a prime example of a Defensive Pair. defensive pairs, like lines, can change over the evening, meaning that virgil COULD play with emile instead if need be. hockey’s an adaptable sport, after all.

(note: there are usually about 3 defensive pairs, or 6 defensemen per team.)

a single line and a defensive pair are usually on the ice at the same time; in other words, your team will typically have 5 skaters on the ice at any given moment. it’s possible to pull your goaltender out of the net to add on a sixth skater, but this leaves your net wide open, so it really only happens in Desperate Situations. 

your goaltender is the last line of defense, and they, like the defensemen, work to stop the puck from entering the net. in college, a goaltender can usually make or break a team given how vital their role is. 

[sides-of-demigods]

The Forest Incident Pt. 1

Word Count: 1482

Warnings: There’s some cursing but I don’t think there’s anything else.

Author's Note: Just letting you know now, the whole mythology with the serket is a bunch of bullshit. It was inspired by the giant scorpions in Battle of the Labyrinth, but the rest is all me.

Part 2, Part 3, Part 4

Virgil just wanted to hang out with Patton and lay there with his headphones on while Patton made flower crowns and such.

But NO

Instead Thomas sent a fellow son of Phobos, Virgil’s little brother Skylar to find Virgil and have him head to the Rec Room. AKA the War Room.

Virgil walks in and sits next to Patton. Logan is across from Patton and next walks in...Roman Prince?

You see, Roman and Virgil did not have the greatest relationship at this point. You know the boys as friends, and maybe on their way to becoming something more. But that's when they are 16.

This is 2 years ago, with the boys at 14 years old.

And they hate each other.

Roman thinks that Virgil is bad because his father is an “evil’ god, but tolerates him for Patton’s sake.

Meanwhile, Virgil thinks Roman is a stuck-up, entitled, judgemental asshole. The only reason they haven’t killed each other yet is Patton.

So Virgil was not happy when His Highness walked in, but whatever, he’d see what Thomas wanted.

Thomas came in just as Roman sat next to Logan and therefore across from Virgil.

The son of Iris’s face was unusually grave, silencing whatever remark Roman had been opening his mouth to make.

“I don’t know about the others but I was pulled directly out of training for this,” Logan spoke up. “You know this considering you organized the training schedules yourself. And, what with how adamant you are we be prepared for anything, I know you wouldn’t have done that unless this was important. So tell us, Thomas, what is this about?”

Thomas sighed and ran his hand through his hair. Virgil could tell now how stressed Thomas seemed. He had dark circles under his eyes from lost sleep, and he wasn’t even trying to be his chipper self.

“Well, campers have been hearing sounds coming from the general direction of the Eris cabin,” Thomas began, sitting at the head of the table. “Me, Chiron, and the counselors didn’t really think anything of it because, well, there are always sounds coming from over there. And then they stopped, so it didn’t look like it needed to be a concern.”

Virgil knew the sounds he was talking about, as his cabin was in the same area. Intentionally or not, when they added the cabins for the gods who weren’t exactly...well-loved, they all ended up in one area. Hades, Nemesis, Apate, Phobos, Eris, etc.

But this time it seemed like there was a lot more clattering and something almost like scuttling. Virgil had just assumed that a Hades kid had summoned a few skeletons for something, but now he wasn’t so sure.

“I get the feeling something changed?” Roman said.

“The noises started up again, but this time from the forest,” Thomas told the group.

“Wait, is that why Capture the Flag has been canceled the last few weeks?” Virgil asked. Thomas nodded.

“You all remember that kid who was attacked by a monster in the last round of Capture the Flag?” Thomas waited for their various forms of agreement before continuing. “Thanks to them, we figured out that those sounds were coming from a monster, and that monster had been released into the woods, attacking that camper when they came across it.”

“I’m starting to get kind of worried about where we fit into this,” Virgil muttered, slumping a bit more in his chair.

“I want you guys to go find and kill it, or them,” Thomas put his hands up in surrender with a sigh. “I know, but you four are our best, and you are handpicked based on how you work together, your powers, and your skills.”

“Logan you’re the best strategist at camp and know more about various monsters and myths than anyone else.”

“Roman your sword gives you access to multiple weapons and you’re an expert with all of them.”

“Patton your powers are a good fail-safe obviously, but your skills as a healer are what I’m really looking for here.”

“And Virgil, if you get overwhelmed your powers can drive things away or keep other monsters from attacking you, not to mention you are just as good a fighter as Roman.”

“You know Thomas, I can’t help but notice,” Patton hesitates, but continues on with a nudge from Virgil. “You kinda seem like you’re glossing over what exactly these monsters are?”

“Guilty as charged,” Thomas admitted. “The monster you’ll be fighting is a herd of serkets.”

“Wait, WHAT?” Roman exclaimed, leaping to his feet. “And you’re only sending four of us?”

“Kinda impressed you even knew what that was, Fault Disney,” Virgil snickered.

“I'll have you know, Tall Dark and Gruesome,” Roman whirled to face Virgil. “That I may not be a nerd, but I have read my fair share of mythology. I have been here since I was six years old, and am very passionate about being a hero. That involves more than just swinging a sword around like a brainless troll!”

Virgil blinked in surprise. He had expected a snide comment, not full-on anger. It felt wrong. Thankfully, Patton stepped in before things could escalate.

“Boys, let's all calm down,” Patton suggested before turning to Logan. “Loganberry, do you mind filling in me and Virgil on what exactly a circuit is?”

“Ser-ket, dear,” Logan corrected him before clearing his throat. “The serket is an extremely large scorpion, the smallest being the size of a human.”

“They have tough armor that isn't impenetrable but still harder to get through.”

“Not to mention the pincers that are sharp and strong enough to snap you in half.”

“But most worrisome is the tail. It's fast and strong and the stinger at the top is razor-sharp. Even worse is that the poison, according to my calculations, that the poison from the stinger’s first strike has a 96% fatality rate. After a first strike, the poison is gone, but the stinger is still deadly.”

Virgil was NOT ready for this.

“And of course the fact that they often travel in herds,” Logan pointed out.

“Of course they do,” Virgil sighed, letting his forehead hit the table and he just sat there. “I don't suppose we have any sort of plan?”

“Actually, you do,” Thomas jumped back into the conversation. “Also you all are going to hate this, but hear me out, okay? You're going to split up.”

“WHAT?” Patton exclaimed. “All this stuff that could kill us and your sending only one medic, and then splitting us up?”

“I know Patton, and believe me I wouldn't do this if there was any other choice,” Thomas said, trying desperately to placate the son of Hebe. “But we have no idea where they could be, and we need to take care of these as soon as possible. For all we know they could decide to attack the camp while we're unprepared. That would be a massacre.”

Patton took a breath. He did not seem satisfied but he pulled forward anyway.

“Fine, alright, what are the teams?” Patton relented.

Virgil already had his expectations. Roman got along best with Patton, and Virgil and Logan got along well. It made sense to him.

“Logan and Patton, you'll be in the west woods,” Thomas sighed, almost as if preparing for a fight. “The east will be Roman and Virgil.”

The room was silent.

Too silent.

Like all five men were holding their breath.

And then….

“HIM?!” Virgil and Roman exclaimed in unison, glaring at each other.

Thomas had been ready for this though.

“Yes, you two. I thought this through too. You too are the best fighters of the group. So the with the two of you together you're less likely to need a medic. No offense, Logan.”

“None taken.”

“Besides those are the teams that work well together. Logan and Patton are practically soulmates so that's obvious. Plus a melee and ranged fighter is strategy 101.”

Roman scoffs. “And what, now you're going to say that Jack Smellington and I are soulmates too?”

Thomas smiled innocently. “No. But don't you two train together, just the two of you, three times a week? If anyone would know each other's strengths, weaknesses, and style wouldn't it be you two?”

“I don't think I've ever heard Roman Prince speechless before,” Logan commented, smirking at the expressions on the two boys. They looked like they had just gotten smacked in the face. “It is a moment I will truly savor.”

“If that’s everything I think you guys should head back to your cabins,” Thomas suggested, standing from his chair. “You’ll want to get ready tonight. You leave at dawn.”

[transienturl]

Q: How much do I know about sports off the top of my head? I’m bored, so let’s find out.

NFL:

NFC West (one of the strongest divisions ever):

Seattle Seahawks. Key (and less-key) players: Russell Wilson (QB), DK Metcalf (WR), Tyler Lockett (WR), Freddie Swain (WR), Greg Olsen (TE), Colby Parkinson (TE), Damien Lewis (G), Duane Brown (T), Ethan Pocic (C, I think?), Chris Carson (RB), Rashaad Penny (RB), Travis Homer (RB), Michael Dickson (P), help what’s the kicker’s name, Jamal Adams (S), Quandre Diggs (S), Bobby Wagner (LB), KJ Wright (LB), Jordyn Brooks (LB), Poona Ford (DI), Jarran Reed (defensive... line somewhere), Shaquill Griffon (CB), Quinton Jefferson (CB), Tre Flowers (CB), Benson Mayowa (DE), Carlos Dunlap (DE), Alton Robinson (DE), Shaquem Griffon (DE), god I can’t remember the new slot corner but he’s pretty good I think. Coach: Pete Carroll. OC: Brian Schottenheimer. DC: Ken Norton, Jr. GM: John Schneider. Owner: Jody Allen. Notes: Every game is close. Used to always run, but this year always throws. Quarterback is basically magic. Defense is severely lacking. My home team, obviously.

San Francisco 49ers. Key players: Jimmy Garoppolo (QB), George Kittle (TE), many fast running backs, Raheem Mostert is one of them, Trent Williams (T), Richard Sherman (CB), Nick Bosa (DE). Coach: Kyle Shanahan. Notes: Running game scheme is a work of staggering genius. Best player is a tight end for some reason. Went to the Super Bowl last year.

Arizona Cardinals. Key players: Kyler Murray (QB), Larry Fitzgerald (WR), DeAndre Hopkins (WR), Christian Kirk (WR), Budda Baker (S), Patrick Peterson (CB). Coach: Kliff Kingsbury. Notes: Runs many wide receivers, in scheme Kingsbury got from coaching college. Used to be bad, but getting better each year. Kyler is very small.

Los Angeles Rams. Key players: Jared Goff (QB), Cooper Kupp (WR), Andrew Whitworth (T), Darrell Henderson (RB), Aaron Donald (DI), Johnny Hekker (P). Coach: Sean McVay. DC: Used to be Wade Phillips, but not anymore. Notes: Runs a lot of plays from the same formation. Coach is very smart. Made the Super Bowl two years ago. Best player is a defensive tackle, for some reason.

NFC East (the worst division in NFL history):

New York Giants. Key players: Daniel Jones (QB), Saquon Barkley (RB). Coach: Joe, uh... Douglas. GM: Dave Gettleman. Notes: Spent a huge amount of draft capital on players the numbers said weren’t worth it. Seems accurate.

Philadelphia Eagles. Key players: Carson Wentz (QB), Jalen Hurts (backup QB), literally everyone else is injured. Oh, Jason Peters (T). Coach: Doug Peterson. GM: Howie Roseman. Notes: Everyone is injured. Everyone. Went to the Super Bowl 3 years ago and won with their backup QB.

Dallas Cowboys. Key players: Dak Prescott (QB, injured), Andy Dalton (backup QB, injured), No one of note (third-string QB), Amari Cooper (WR), CeeDee Lamb (WR), Ezekiel Elliott (RB), Leighton Vander Esch (LB), Greg Zuerlein (K), I could probably name more if I tried hard enough. Coach: Mike McCarthy. GM: Jerry Jones. Owner: Also Jerry Jones. Notes: Every year they have good players and lose anyway. Paid their running back instead of their quarterback. Also, now they have no healthy quarterback.

Washington [used to have a racist name]. Key players: Dwayne Haskins (benched QB), Alex Smith (QB... whose leg does not work), Kyle Allen (QB), Terry McLaurin (WR), Chase Young (DE), Montez Sweat (DE). Coach: Ron Rivera. Owner: Dan Snyder, who is the worst human being in the NFL, and that is saying a lot. Notes: No one cares about the football, Dan Snyder should be in jail. Also, Ron Rivera has cancer and Alex Smith’s leg injury almost killed him, so those guys deserve better.

NFC North:

Detroit Lions. Key Players: Matthew Stafford (QB), um, I should remember some more. Jeff Okudah (CB). Coach: Matt Patricia. Notes: Stafford deserves better. Patricia keeps signing ex-Patriots players, and it doesn’t work, presumably because the good ones are current-Patriots-players.

Minnesota Vikings. Key players: Kirk Cousins (QB), Adam Thielen (WR), Justin Jefferson (WR), Dalvin Cook (RB), many good defensive players whose names I don’t know. Coach: Mike Zimmer. Notes: Historically a good defense and just missing a competent QB. Paid a lot for an average QB; defense sucks now for some reason. Also, runs a lot.

Chicago Bears. Key Players: Mitchell Trubisky (QB), Nick Foles (QB), Allen Robinson (WR), Khalil Mack (DE). Coach: Matt Nagy. Notes: Has been wasting great defensive performances with poor to average quarterback play since World War II.

Green Bay Packers. Key Players: Aaron Rodgers (QB), Davante Adams (WR), Allan Lazard (WR), Aaron Jones (RB), Jamaal Williams (RB), Robert Tonyan (TE), David Bakhtiari (T), Za’Darius Smith (DE), Preston Smith (DE). Coach: Matt LaFleur. GM: Brian Gutekunst. Owner: “The fans.” Notes: Has started a hall-of-famer at quarterback every season since before you were born. Winning big but the analytics say they’re getting a bit lucky lately.

NFC South:

Atlanta Falcons. Key players: Matt Ryan (QB), Julio Jones (WR), I forgot the new WR’s name but he looks legit, Todd Gurley (RB). Coach that was recently fired: Dan Quinn. Notes: Have become known for inexplicably blowing enormous leads late in games. It’s quite funny, at this point.

New Orleans Saints. Key players: Drew Brees (QB), Michael Thomas (WR), Alvin Kamara (RB), Taysom Hill (listed as backup QB but just kinda does weird shit on offense), Jameis Winston (backup QB), Cam Jordan (DE), I should remember the cornerback’s name. Coach: Sean Payton. Notes: Known for having tons of talent every year, salary cap be damned, and then losing in heartbreaking fashion in the playoffs. Brees is getting old.

Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Key players: Tom Brady (QB), Mike Evans (WR), Chris Godwin (WR), this one WR who can go eat shit, Rob Gronkowski (TE), Antoine Winfield Jr (S), Vita Vea (DI). Coach: Bruce Arians. Notes: Signed Tom Brady. It’s working pretty well. Defense is top-tier. The most balanced team.

god, who is the other NFC south team, uh...  hold on, lemme get back to you.

AFC North:

Baltimore Ravens

Pittsburgh Steelers

Cleveland Browns

um... Cincinnati Bengals? Maybe?

AFC East:

New York Jets

New England Patriots

Miami Dolphins

Buffalo Bills

AFC South:

Houston Texans

Jacksonville Jaguars

Tennessee Titans

uhh... Indianapolis Colts.

AFC West:

Denver Broncos

Kansas City (I think this name should be changed too, honestly)

Las Vegas Raiders

I guess this must be the Los Angeles Chargers?

Oh, so the other NFC South team is the Carolina Panthers. Of course. Key players: Teddy Bridgewater (QB), Christian McCaffrey (RB and also arguably their best receiver), Yetur Gross-Matos (DE). Coach: Matt Rhule. Notes: Rebuilding their team this year, but quietly doing pretty well, considering.

Alright, I’m gonna stop there. Didn’t even get to the other half of the NFL, let alone started to try and list NBA/MLB/NHL teams, which would have gone extremely poorly. Story for another day.

Also, uh, yeah, this is a normal amount to know about football as someone who doesn’t watch football, oooobviously...

[thebenedicttwinsfuck]

Dear Consent Issues Writer,

Thank you for checking out my letter! I can’t promise this will be short but I will do my best to make it understandable! I’m going to list everything under a cut, just to be safe, and I look forward to seeing what you come up with!

As previously stated in the sign-up, my DNW’s are as follows:

- First Person POV - Gore inflicted on the victim - Permanent Marks (scarring, branding, etc.) - Blood Play - Breath Play - Vore - Torture Porn - Major Character Death - Castration - Ingestion of bodily wastes - Any injury causing brain damage - Vomit - Needles - Animal Cruelty - PiV sex

However, I also have a fair amount of likes as well. These are probably too long to compile all into one list, but here’s a short list of kinks and fetishes I will never say “No” to:

- Ageplay/ABDL/Infantilism - Watersports - Scat - Mind break - Humiliation/Degredation - Medical Play (Without needles, see DNWs) - Begging/Crying - Dollification - Feminization/Sissification

Specific Prompts Per Fandom:

The Two Princes -

Joan & Cecily xcon Rupert & Amir

I love this prompt for the potential. Joan and Cecily training Rupert and Amir to be their perfect babies, wanting nothing but to fuck their mommies, have their mommies fuck them, or (potentially, if you’re feeling saucy) instruct the boys to fuck each other.

Amir xcons Rupert/Rupert xcons Amir

Similar concept to the top, only with one person in each party. If you don’t want age play to be involved, you could also do feminization or dollification for these two, I’m not particularly picky with these pairings.

Amir & Rupert mxcon/Joan & Cecily mxcon

This is something I see working best with intoxication or sex pollen, where both parties are affected and are pining after each other, or are simply needing to get off fast and the other person is the only one around for miles that can help them. Get creative with why they’re horny messes.

Sanders Sides -

Patton Sanders xcons Any/Virgil Sanders xcons Any

I love a good reason to hate Patton and/or Virgil. If it’s not on my DNWs list, by all means, give me all the unsympathetic content with these two fucking around as they please. Bonus points if they’re in a relationship and the non/dub-con is done with someone not in the relationship.

Remus "The Duke" Sanders & Janus Sanders xcon Logan Sanders

What’s sexier than Intruloceit? Two of them ganging up on one to have them however they please. I love the concept of these two being all soft on Logan, showering him with praises and telling him how good he is even as he’s struggling to get away.

Patton Sanders forces Remus "The Duke" Sanders & Roman Sanders mxcon

This is one very specific scenario that I’d love to see. Roman gets a little too close to Remus for Patton’s liking, and in order for Patton to cast them both out from Thomas’ “light” side of the mind, he has them fuck each other. Spicy.

Remus “The Duke” Sanders & Logan Sanders mxcon

Very similar to the mxcon from TTP, I see aphrodisiacs or sex pollen being the reason for this situation. Have fun with why they’re horny and how they get off.

Original Other -

Sex Pollen Plant xcons Male Hiker OR Non-Binary Hiker

Give me all the sex pollen driving these hikers mad until they’re desperate to get off and the sex plant is the only thing that can satisfy them. Give me multiple rounds of fucking because it’s just not enough. Give me anything short my DNWs.

Non-Binary Master xcons Male Slave OR Non-Binary Slave

This one is fun to me to play with the roles. The slave of course can’t say no to their master, but what is their master asking them to do? How far do they need to go to please their partner?

Aliens xcon Male Astronomer OR Female Astronomer

Similar to the sex pollen plant, I’d love to see first contact with aliens who have xeno anatomy, or make the astonomer impossibly horny and “probe” them however you see fit short my DNWs.

Non-Binary Werewolf xcons Male Cryptid Hunter/Non-Binary Cryptid Hunter xcons Male Werewolf

Bit of a crack idea, but fun to watch nonetheless. Cryptid hunter finds the cryptid they’re looking for, but do they catch the xcon on film? Would they even want to share their discovery with the world now?

Werewolf & Bigfoot mxcon

You can also play into the crack here. I’m imagining very passionate hate sex for whatever reason you choose.

Evil Sorceress xcons Non-Binary Servant

I imagine the servant isn’t very good at their job in this situation, and the Sorceress uses magic to get the servant to do whatever she wants in bed. Again, play around a bit if you want.

Original M/M -

Male Werewolf xcons Male Cryptid Hunter

See the Original Other for the scenario here, just change the pronouns.

Male Cryptid Hunter xcons Male Werewolf

See the Original Other for the scenario here, just change the pronouns.

Evil Warlock xcons Delinquent Servant (M/M)

See the Original Other for the scenario here, just change the pronouns.

Master xcons Slave Who Attempted Escape (M/M)

This one, I see as a punishment for the slave who attempted to escape, obviously. How far did the slave get? What does the Master require in terms of a pound of flesh to get even? Feel free to have fun.

Slave xcons Master (M/M)

This is another one where you can play with the roles. Why does the slave xcon his master? For revenge for past xcon? For something else? Why is he so desperate to get even? Play around and see what feels right.

Male Frat Boy xcons Trans Male College Student

This one would probably involve transphobia of some sort. Trans man is doing his thing, maybe gets a little drunk, and the frat boy gets him to a point where he can’t say “no.” Morning-after regret or morning-after shock and rage depending on the POV party is a plus.

Male Army Cadet xcons Trans Male College Student

This one hits extremely close to home for me, because this is what I dealt with. It took me a long time to feel safe, but reading xcon and knowing that I could stop when I wanted to helped me recover, so I’m offering the situation in hopes that if someone does do it, I can heal a little. Trans man doesn’t want to have sex. The Army Cadet would push, and push, and maybe tease the trans man, touching him without his consent until the trans man is begging to stop or have sex so he can get off. And of course, the Cadet would go the sex route. If you want to punish the Cadet that gets you very high marks in my books. But if this is too niche an offer or you don’t think you can handle it, I have so many options for a reason. Seriously, I take no offense if you don’t do this one.

Male Army Cadet & Male Navy Cadet mxcon

Crack hate sex. I live for it.

NCIS -

Nick Torres xcons Timothy McGee

Feel free to make Nick unapologetically the bad guy. I especially think that after “Philly” in Season 14, Nick would try to bed Tim and not necessarily take no for an answer.

Jethro Gibbs xcons Anthony DiNozzo OR Timothy McGee

I can see Gibbs taking advantage of the whole “newbie wanting to fit in” mentality here. Play it straight, play it crack, play it angst, it’s all good.

Jethro Gibbs xcons Anthony DiNozzo & Timothy McGee

Tony and Tim comraderie. Maybe Tony warns Tim to not join the team over knowing what Gibbs would do to him. Either way, I want the strong BrOTP here.

Nick Torres xcons Ellie Bishop

Full disclosure, I’ve never been a fan of Torres/Bishop. But I love the thought of Nick doing something like this that would make them break up. Established relationship, Nick takes advantage of her, showing his true colors, and she leaves. Maybe she gets together with someone else? Who knows.

Jacqueline "Jack" Sloane xcons Ellie Bishop

I really like making Bishop the victim, but unlike Torres/Bishop, I do genuinely ship this. Feel free to make it a mind game to Jack, trying to figure out how to break Ellie, either period or break her in, so she can have a sex slave for whatever she pleases. I love dark!Jack.

Ziva David xcons Anthony DiNozzo OR Timothy McGee

I see this happening when DiNozzo goes to find Ziva. Or maybe McGee goes in his stead. Either way, Tali comes from a rape, and the man xconned in question has to deal with the aftermath.

Eli David xcons Ziva David

An explanation for Ziva’s prevalent Daddy Issues. Maybe he xconned her from when she was a young girl, maybe he only started after she became a woman (either 18 or 13, depending on your interpretation/the whole religious thing). I don’t have a lot of expectations for this one, so run wild.

[punkscowardschampions]

Ali & Tommy

Ali: [Let us assume he has gone back to school now and this was a weekend affair] Ali: You forgot your 🕯 Ali: expect it in the post, minus the disappointed note from Ro I've taken out Ali: ✈️ trips not guilt trips, welcome Tommy: leave it in, LOVE to hear what she's gotta say about why I'M the one being a holy show Ali: You aren't respecting the sanctity of her offering, is very much the point and gist Ali: she put more letters to it, as standard Tommy: 'course she did Ali: It does mean a lot to her Ali: but yeah, nice to have my 📅 to myself again, can't lie Tommy: meant so much she fucked off soon as the 🎂 candles were out Ali: You know she isn't the party 'til dawn sort Ali: anyway, they'd be coming in for morning service 😅 Tommy: I know it's her party & she can 😭 if she wants to Ali: If I'd known that was the theme, could've made party bags with 🧅 & 🧻 Ali: well, at least you were in your element 🕺 and you kept Meena and Carly entertained Ali: the hostess not being overly concerned herself, like Tommy: this family's hostess with the mostest has & always will be me, honey Tommy: what else do they teach me at this school, like? Ali: I had no idea you were at finishing school, my apologies Ali: how's things with keeping a man then, Holly Housewife? Tommy: Why stop at strutting with 📚 on our heads when we could do it in 🩰 perfectly en pointe, carrying a sulky ballerina all the while? Basically a Latin motto Tommy: & yet I still can't keep a man, cheers for the reminder Ali: Maybe now you're of age they introduce the final string to your bow Ali: quadruple threat = 🎤🕺🎭🍆 Tommy: 😂🤞🙏 Tommy: stole your girl regardless, tell her to call me when she's slept off the festivities Ali: No doubt she will when she's between the next couple of parties 😜 Ali: your girl is here actually, helping Ro 'organise' her presents Ali: dunno where she parked her 🎃 Tommy: I'll join Fraze in the red corner 😍💋💔🤬🎯👿🥤🤡🥵🛑💘 Tommy: those dolls do go walk abouts if you don't keep a 👀 but obviously she was 🤞🙏 I was still there Ali: He might misconstrue that and come to fight for her honour Ali: 🤞🙏 she's in LDN too, naturally Ali: lots of them are haunted, but that last part of your sentence there is the MOST 😱 ever Ali: it's weird when you approach anything fuck boy like Tommy: miscommunication is his thing™ no hard feels or feelings full stop, 'course 💪🚫😭🚫😍 Tommy: what can I say? being back DOES things to me Tommy: it's all the positive masculine role models this family has Ali: Guess it beats a total lack of @Joseph Ali: though he sent her some book about musical theory so he still manages to be the favourite somehow 🤷 Ali: and hey, dad is the best Tommy: v catty & then cuddly of you, Kit Tommy: he doesn't respond to MY efforts at being a daddy's girl exactly the same way somehow 🤷 Ali: we're both living up to what's expected then 😼 Ali: could just be I'm better at it than you though Ali: if your ego will allow it Tommy: can't let our sister fly that flag alone, like Tommy: as for who's better at kissing the arse of authority figures, don't need to dignify that with an answer 'cause my school report will Tommy: you ain't never been a pleasure to have in class Ali: I might genuinely have to shoot myself if anyone ever said anything so asinine about me so you're right Ali: that would be such a waste of potential, not until I've lead a more scandal-filled existence Tommy: you could respect the hustle Tommy: it's getting me 🩰 perks Tommy: disciplined is the head that wears the 👑 hoe Ali: I know all about discipline, trust me Tommy: we've all read 50 shades, you can't take it as gospel Tommy: Ro could write a better bdsm bibe when she's done at church Tommy: bible* Ali: It's all fun and games 'til I walk in on her flagellating herself Ali: how are we explaining that to the shrinks Tommy: that she misunderstood a more sexy f word? Ali: we don't want to look like we're trying to lock her up for that Ali: way too retro, bro Tommy: She wants to be catholic Tommy: I didn't make the rules Ali: No, then da really would hate you Ali: she's got worse Tommy: Yeah Tommy: I know, no amount of drama from the golden couple could detract Ali: not that I haven't heard enough about that though Ali: guess there's too much to put in a passive-aggressive note Tommy: 🙄🥱😴 Tommy: She wasn't even THAT late & tbh I wouldn't have blamed her for doing a Joe no show Ali: I would've understood if she was upset when she wasn't coming Ali: I am when Joe doesn't, whatever Ali: but I think she was actually MORE upset that she did come in the end, and not just because she was messy, but because Ro thought she wouldn't Ali: I don't get it, they're complicated, always have been but ??? Tommy: she can't hold being a good sister over her, like you can't me being the most fabulous brother in existence 🏆 Tommy: the fuck ups are more fun to bring to a 🥊 Ali: I guess that's more likely than them being all 💕💞 Ali: but fucking hell, does it hurt to hope Tommy: it's hurting you 😿 Tommy: she'll be too hangry to hope Ali: I have no hope or agenda for your 🏆 or 👑 dear brother Ali: but seriously Ali: what does she want Tommy: like you said ???? Tommy: there's every chance I'm bringing too much McKenna magic to the motives & she don't wanna bear a grudge til the end of her days Ali: because it doesn't sound like her at all Ali: if you can't be honest in the DMs where can you, eh, to quote that romcom Ali: fucked if I know what to do about it right now though Ali: maybe I need to sleep off the festivities, or get something to eat Tommy: long as you're not so hysterical you run into the path of an oncoming car, to recall another faithful role of hers Ali: have you adapted that for the stage? Ali: get 5 of you to be the 🚗 Tommy: dibs 'cause I can't do the accent Tommy: not that loads of 'em posh kids can either Ali: they'll have spent enough time gentrifying the east end to have it down, offensively so but all adds to the hysterics Tommy: I'll pitch it then 💡 Tommy: go down better than her 🎤🎵 Ali: better than her when she got hit by the car, like Ali: give me credit or I'll turn up and make a SCENE Tommy: like I wouldn't be LIVING for that Tommy: if we are being honest in the DMS Ali: I'll work on my RICKKAAAAAAAAAAAY Ali: maybe can convince Ro to be Sharon Tommy: hang around your ma in law & you'll ace it in no time Ali: Ha Ali: she'd accept Peggy, not Pat Tommy: fair, Laoise's ma's the one more likely to express herself with big earrings & animal prints Tommy: but I don't know if Sam Mitchell is a favourable role for Carls, what did she ever even do? Ali: Are you trying to tell me it's NOT a look? 🤔 Ali: or that you rate Laoise's mum? Ali: The character, nothing, the OG actress lost her nose so we're all agreed that's a no Tommy: I'd rate seeing her da on the doorstep in nothing but a bow tie for how mortified she'd be when I uploaded it Tommy: Grant's also no, he knocked Martine on her arse way before that car Tommy: but if she's Phil, you're Sharon so that's a yeah from me, like Ali: Don't, her dad always gave me those vibes Ali: and you ain't actually on the street still to have to witness that 🤮 Ali: I don't know how she'll feel about going bald, I'll float it gently before getting out the clippers Tommy: Do Rock's while you're there, he looks feral Tommy: even that nonce wouldn't have him Ali: You know his ears would get chapped Ali: hair is essential or he'll fly away on the breeze Ali: and we'd all be devastated, obvs Tommy: don't start me thinking about that scene in Dumbo, cheers very much Tommy: 😭😭😭😭😭😭 Ali: Such a depressing film Ali: disney gives me bad vibes Tommy: the park is creepy & you won't catch me there Tommy: whether or not Walt was a Nazi it's still a nah from me Ali: Wee bit concerning that emotional manipulation and forced fun trumps facism/literal Nazis for you but we'll 🤐 Ali: ma is in enough of a mood and she'll only direct it at me so nah Tommy: well his racism is disputed depending whether you're in camp 😇 saint him 🙏 or camp cast him into the hellfire 👿 Tommy: the forced fun & emotional manipulation is just facts Ali: 👿 advocate Tommy: I'm gonna go to hell 🤞 he's an ally Ali: 😬 Ali: it's a punishment, not a holiday Tommy: it'll be a grand hol for my pores Tommy: love a sauna sesh Ali: that London smog is not it Ali: how black is your snot? Tommy: as Ro's soul 💀 Ali: Thomas Tommy: Alison Ali: 🛑 it Tommy: she'd 🖤 to hear it but FINE Ali: you're an enabler, it is known Ali: not the kind of encouragement I'm after tah Tommy: enabling you & your lady love to have a good time, yeah 🕺💃 Tommy: & I fully expected her to turn up with a pet raven is all I'm saying Ali: the best was made of it by all, despite it all Ali: even her, in her way Tommy: despite Kayne appearing 🤵🥀 & all in her case Ali: yeah Ali: ugh Ali: he's harmless enough, bless him Tommy: she'd beg to differ right now Tommy: you're gonna wanna hide the 🍄🍄💀 til she calms down Ali: You don't need to tell me Ali: I think he's just really oblivious Ali: like all lads Ali: it wasn't you know...assaulty Tommy: It's not his fault she's team true love's kiss & he AIN'T it Tommy: who could EVER measure up to the 💭💞 Ali: standards, cool Ali: unrealistic expectations, less so Ali: but I can't really advocate for reality at this point in the game Tommy: You don't need to tell me, sis Ali: you're team turn-a-stage-kiss-real, yeah Ali: it's more realistic than fairytales, anyway, look at strictly Tommy: I'm team when's my life been a shitty made for netflix flick never mind a 🐸🤴📖 Tommy: crushing realism ftw Ali: 💔 Ali: If you didn't have a tragic love-life to complain about, you'd be too insufferable 🤴💩 Tommy: comforting Tommy: I'd HATE to morph into Fraze of a few years back Ali: I'll let you know if you start getting freckles Tommy: I'd know if I woke up with those brows Tommy: nowhere to hide, like Ali: 👺 Tommy: 😂 Ali: What are you getting ma for her bday/have you got already (suckup) Tommy: I left it there if you wanna find & shake the 🎁 Ali: Wow, you really didn't wanna pay postage that bad huh Ali: I'll see if I can 🔮 Tommy: with what? I'm skint after buying hers & Ro's Tommy: & it'll be 🎅🎄🎁 before too long Ali: that's what people really mean when they say dance don't pay Ali: gifting an interpretive dance is nothing but pretentious and unwelcome Ali: I can bodge together however many crafts I need and save my dolla Tommy: been there, tried that one Tommy: so much for your so called genius Tommy: ain't even thought of earning any by busting out the 🎅🎄🎵 classics for a busking sesh, works with 🩰 too I'll have you know Ali: 'til you knock over an old lady and have to leg it, like Ali: and if you hadn't noticed, I've been a little busy making a replica Ro, tah Ali: my creative juices are juiced right now Tommy: I'll make it look like part of the show & have the punters eating out of my palm when I catch & twirl any 👵 before they touch ground Tommy: yeah well you've got time from now, fair game on all things yule from Nov 1st Ali: 👌👌 clearly the LDN ones are more receptive because they're vicious 'round here with their 👜s and I'm only trying to give them the tea they ordered Ali: if ANYONE should advocate for Christmas not dragging, like Tommy: it's Irish dancing or fuck all back there, 365 🌧 or ⛅ Tommy: little girls scam every bit of that trade Ali: ironic when it's catch these hands in every other aspect Ali: so you'll fit right in, eh Ali: feel traumatised yet? Tommy: I'll do my best, as ever Ali: 🤴 Ali: meanwhile ma will have to make do with whatever IOU present I can knock up Ali: maybe I'll babysit, that's never not gonna work Tommy: she was on about going out 🍽 wasn't she? Tommy: Carls will never not be down either Ali: get him to make her a cake Ali: sorted Ali: providing he washes his hands...a full hose down may be necessary actually Tommy: she's survived the 🧁 he brings back from school & we've all seen the state of him at day's end Ali: yeah, cheers for the immunity boost little 🦠 Ali: fair, I'm pretty sure we put some weird and wonderful things into our bakes at his age and no one died Ali: Laoise nearly but you know Tommy: close but no 🚬 Tommy: typical of that bitch Ali: sure a 🙏 was said to finish the job at mass Tommy: if you see her ma mascara running in an lbd, I demand to be the first to know Ali: I'll pap her in her time of distress, it's fine Ali: I can hide up trees for HOURS if needs must Tommy: I'm not above piggybacking on the 'tragedy' to get better grades or a hol Tommy: do your part, like Ali: she won't fall for 🍄 again Ali: her brother might if Ro puts 'em in her gob Tommy: 💞 Ali: more of a mood than without Ali: add a little danger Tommy: she'd appreciate the drama more than anything he could ever do Ali: 💔 Tommy: nah, we're not shipping that Tommy: not today Ali: You gotta make some bad decisions before you make the right ones Tommy: a bad decision was the colour of her 👗 Tommy: the last thing that girl needs is a boy right now Ali: Okay you can't come for anyone vis a vis colour, boy Ali: even if I still see it when I close my eyes after however many weeks sewing Ali: but you may have a point re. a boy Ali: just, some socialisation wouldn't hurt Ali: and as far as they go, he's harmless Tommy: 'Course I do, she can barely exist in front of us Tommy: if they went on a date, what's she gonna do, order a glass of water? Ali: like you haven't seen her fake eat a plate of food Ali: it's only noticeable to all us that she's not actually putting any in her mouth Tommy: 🔮✨ Tommy: if he's TRULY harmless he don't deserve to be harmed by her attitude Tommy: which anyone else not bound by family love & loyalty would call something loads harsher Ali: Don't Ali: I feel bad enough for Meena sometimes Tommy: @ Carly too & we all know it Ali: Yeah, Carly can handle it though, she's mostly unphased even if it is a total thing 🙄 Tommy: She's a 👸😇 I doubt Kayne is that pure of ❤️ or intentions tbh Tommy: & Meena can handle anything so Ali: he's deffo a virgin though Ali: which yes, makes for more desperation, but he can't be that forceful if he dunno what he wants, you know Ali: yeah but God knows why she wants to come 'round here and get more of it at times Tommy: No shit, Kit but everyone's seen a porno, it's not the 70s Tommy: dress for it all you like Tommy: maybe she wants to get out of her own 🏡 Ali: everyone also knows it's bullshit Ali: whatever else she's got that much about her Tommy: does he though? Tommy: all I'm saying Ali: either way, it isn't like she's going to have a miraculous change of heart Ali: we all saw how well it went Tommy: Yeah but what if it makes her heart set on finding someone else to play 🤴 Tommy: you'd know better than me what goes on in her head Ali: She's 15, I don't see how any of us can say or do anything to stop her if that's what she does want Tommy: 15 technically Tommy: 🤷 Ali: If we can't make her eat, you know Ali: what hope do we have for anything beyond that Tommy: 0 Tommy: & it's fucked Ali: Yep Ali: but it's not as if that bombshell has only just been dropped, I guess Ali: we'll carry on doing what we can Tommy: 🔮✨ Ali: ✌💚

[mariogoetze]

/update

Hey everyone,

I’ve been absent for some time now. There were a few reasons why I took a break, I wanted one, I needed one. The last few weeks hasn’t been really enjoyable for me tbh. I‌ try to avoid weird stuff which sometimes happens on tumblr but my Club is making it not easier.

BVB has been doing very poor lately as you may have noticed and I haven’t been in any mood to post anything related to them and that has several reasons. When‌ I‌ was a kid and grew up, BVB stood for so many things. They always fought, their will to try and win any game against any important was so inspiring, not only as a football fan, but as an human being itself. We were beasts when it came to pressing and tackles we would give out all and you could see basically the spirit of each player glowing and screaming at the same, you just felt it, that the Team gave their all, nowadays I‌ don’t see nor feel it. Also the way they played football was so attractive, like they just played forward. Nowadays they hold the ball for way too long, it’s a play style which doesn’t suit them at all. Even under Thomas Tuchel who started this whole ‘ball possession’ project we were only dangerous when we added speed into our game, it’s just Dortmunds DNA to play fast forward with lots of pace and combinations, but the more months are passing and the years following we are not really being THAT Dortmund at all anymore and it’s sad to witness it’s really annoying. We are passing the ball way too much, we are less dangerous and we are shooting less which just makes me yawn and sigh at the same time bc it’s unattractive and boring.

Sometimes I watch older videos of how we used to play and it’s making me sad to realize how far away we are to get back to that level. I‌ mean we have the quality but with our latest coaches and especially our current one (Favre) we are not going that road to play that football again. We have quality players and we could be doing so much better I see other clubs playing offensive with certain tactics and line-ups while we just play the same 4-2-3-1 all over, it’s supposed to bring us stability compared to other teams using 4-3-3 for example, but it’s funny how we still concede more goals than other teams do.

Simply bc we are lacking of too many things. Our team looks so fragile like as soon as something doesn’t seem to work out during the game they start to literally sweat and it’s like if we are a tower which tempts to fall apart. I just don’t understand it tbh like how??‌ why??‌ Too many questions and yet 0 answers. I think the players are tired of Favre it’s the same with Kovac and Bayern. Look how successful they are. They won their last 4 games with 16-0 Goals scored and 0 conceded. If that isn’t the proof how tired the Bayern players were of Kovac and basically doing sabotage to get him sacked (playing bad) then idk what else it is.

For me the Team is tired of Favre and it’s understandable. I mean I was probably one of the first People who started the whole #FavreOUT thing and seeing how it developed is no surprise for me. He’s a solid Coach but that’s about it. He does way too many mistakes and lacks of too many things as well it’s no wonder why he hasn’t one really any major trophy (no offense).

I hope that Dortmund will sack him soon and get a new coach. I think our Players would be exactly be like the ones of Bayern, they would be motivated again and they wouldn’t be mind blocked by Favre’s 91882831 tactics. In football it’s important to feel free and not strangled or tied up. For me the players are only getting worse under Favre, while last year a lot of players had improved, I rather saw it as a one-hit-wonder season bc Favre had the momentum of surprise in back when he arrived and the league wasn’t prepared for him, 6 months later tho the league was, hell not even 6, I think earlier and then we started to drop more and more points.

So back to tumblr, For me as a blogger it’s important to enjoy what I do. Dortmund has been a shadow of they used to be, obviously it ruins my mood, which results to blogging being less fun. Then there is Favre who is even worse and makes me roll my eyes. There also some people on Tumblr who are let’s say strange and make my eyebrows move. I try to avoid it like I said above but sometimes it makes me think about why would someone say or think that, but then again everyone can have their own opinion and I respect that.

Overall tumblr is changing for me, a lot of the people I knew left. When I‌ joined this site I felt like a feather and in general felt easy. I could post what I wanted basically, about OTP’s about football and people would be the same. It was like you could be careless basically. Nowadays you get judged for anything, people who bash someone, there will be hate spread. I think it’s good that you need to take care of yourself more now, bc in life you should do that as well, but hey on tumblr?‌ Things have changed, became more difficult. I think on tumblr you could be criticized for anything and that it gives the vibe of living with a fear that not someone will attack you or in general interact with your posts which leads to hate or other stuff is alarming. I sometimes witness stumbling through tumblr those situations when I check out certain blogs or tags that some people shoot at one another and it’s just unnecessarily, but then again, on tumblr everything seems to be normal to do that.

Sometimes people like my older posts and I look at these posts and realize:‌‌ I’m not that blogger anymore. Nor will I‌ ever be that blogger anymore. Time changed, People changed. We move on, We evolve.

Over the years people left, the vibe around tumbr changed and people did as well. Don’t get me wrong I met incredible nice people over the years and I enjoy seeing them on my dash and interacting with them. But overall there is a weird vibe going around tumblr. Too much toxicity, too much hate. I will never understand why people won’t mind their own business. There’s so much drama. I’ve been off tumblr and life has been good. Sometimes I‌ would see stuff on here and it made me question certain things.

I start to ask if this site is still made for me. Seeing that more and more weird things are happening on this site makes me wonder if more people will become like this or that, if more people in general will join this site and will be like that or this. Not gonna give examples, everyone needs to have their own opinion on this site. I don’t know the answer to that tbh but I will once eventually but yeah it’s hard. I’m a person who doesn’t let someone else ruin my fun, but then again which fun? Like in life we sometimes deal with problem and we can solve them but on tumblr?‌ That’s not the case. That’s why on tumblr is hard to keep going. I never understood back then why all the people I used to look up to left, but after a certain moment I‌ understood why.

Coming back to tumblr, I joined this site back then bc of two major reasons and that’s bc I wanted to support my club and my favorite player. My Club like previous mentioned is nothing but a shadow of what they used to be. It’s not for me about winning constantly, don’t think of me like that, it’s like I mentioned, the will to pull of a good fight the desire to win this game at any cost and play their best football, that’s not there. My favorite player?‌ I wonder he can still smile after being benched all over again. He’s such a inspiring person I’m not even kidding, he got benched 6 games in a row and then when he finally started he scored a header (he’s 176 cm)‌ and became Man of the Match during that game. Could you ask for more?‌‌‌ Probably not.

Favre. That’s not only the whole’s Team problem but also Mario’s. Favre is probably the most ungrateful person‌‌ I know. When Marco and Paco where injured last season MARIO was there. He played, he showed off and delivered. When we lost to Bayern 5-0 and he didn’t start Mario he shamelessly admitted in the presse conference afterwards that it was a mistake to not let Mario play. Mario has done so much, fought his way back, but Favre?‌ Favre never trusted Mario. He could have played the game of his life and that would’t have changed anything. Favre just doesn’t trusts Mario and it hurts. Like I could understand if he would does shitty but that’s not the case. Favre gives no no wait, he handles out more opportunities to any other player in the squad when they bottle something up but Mario?‌ He doesn’t do anything wrong and yet he gets always outlined. Favre will always be for me a piece of shit. The fact that he’s so ungrateful makes me explode. Mario Götze did more in 5 minutes in Barcelona than some other players who played nearly or the whole game, enough said.

So yes, Dortmund has been nothing but annoying lately, Favre has gotten me even worse, My favorite player gets treated like a poor dog and Tumblr itself is getting weird, the vibe changes often sometimes it’s fun sometimes it’s not.

Excuse me for my disappearing and my rant. Sometimes certain things are needed to be done.