#semi regular off topic reblog

[druid-for-hire]

Hi. I'm so sorry for bothering you:c but I really need all the help I can get. I have a chronic heart condition that doesn't allow me to work my regular hours. Things got serious pretty fast and suddenly, I wasn't able to pay rent. I got evicted 10 days ago, and I'm trying to raise funds to pay off what I owe to my landlord and avoid getting sued, and hopefully find a little place while I get back on my feet.

You think you could help me reblogging my pinned post to spread the word a bit? Thank you so much in advance. And I'm truly, very sorry for having to recur to this.

For other people's sakes, this is their pinned post. I took a scroll through their blog and they don't appear to be a bot; the blog goes a decent way back and posts semi-regularly.

My kind friend, Tumblr is not a good place to crowdfund. It works sometimes, but not reliably. (EDIT: Redacted a bit about reddit boards. They exist, but they need a lot of prerequisites.) In the event that you haven't been able to go looking yet, there are likely also real life, more local, more direct resources out there to help you hidden out of sight. There's a post on this topic, but I'll cut for you the relevant parts (paging through the notes will also probably be useful):

From @/euphoniousracouter:

GO TO, MESSAGE, OR CALL YOUR LOCAL LIBRARY. Libraries are focusing more and more on community resources, support, and outreach. If you genuinely don’t know something or feel uncertain or are in a new situation, a reference librarian will not only help you sort your thoughts through their reference interview but then help you arm yourself with knowledge from reliable and often local sources. It doesn’t even have to be a question to Ask A Librarian. You can simply say “I’m in this situation now. I don’t know what to do next./I’m not confident I know everything I should or want to know.”

From @/dancinbutterfly:

If you're in America, 211 is your friend. It’s the United Way’s database of social assistance resources. When I was doing resource development for my masters in social work 211 was my holy grail. And there’s things that only workers know about that just calling and asking can reach cuz it sets off the social service phone tree. I will say YOU have to be persistent of you want to access these resources. Most of the ngo agencies are most interested in helping the pro-active clients in my experience. But do use the resources. They’re golden.

From @/macaronsandfries:

Also, if you’re in the US: call your State Rep. Part of their job is to help constituents access and navigate state run programs, such as EBT/SNAP, unemployment, housing assistance, and medicaid.

Not all offices are equally responsive (some try really hard to stay on top of incoming calls but are overwhelmed, and some…are not great at checking messages, tbh). But if you can get through to a person (almost always an aide/staffer), they will talk through the issue with you and do what they can to help.

You don’t need to know what programs are applicable to you, they’ll help connect you with appropriate people (including Federal programs if necessary – those offices are hard to get through to, but if you need something like Federal ID docs changed, see if going through your State Rep helps move things along)

afaik some of these are sadly not as immediate as these emergencies tend to be, but they're out there, and hopefully these help. Crowdfunding is still an answer that you have a right to take. Good luck and be well.

[yuiokami]

idont think youre using tumblr correctly. most people keep their likes hidden and reblog posts they really like. this is also how you get mutuals. just a little bit of friendly advice yk. also pls tag nsfw stuff as such and probably make it so this blog is clearly 18+ in ur bio due to the stuff you tend to post. that's all 👍

1 anyone can use tumblr how they want and I CHOOSE to keep my likes public because I don't mind if people see what I like, I don't feel the need to reblog things all the time, I don't care if I get any mutuals or not I just like content, I don't care about tags at all I don't usually feel the need to use them unless it's for something specific, I also think you misread my Bio because is says NSFW blog in it and has for a while now.

I also have a very specific guide I use for all my content for Sfw,Semi NSFW,and NSFW that goes as follows,

Sfw includes:

Writing: regular type of wording but also includes more frowned upon words such as Shit, Ass, Fuck, asshole, dumbass, mother fucker, bitch, slut, whore, and cunt. I personally am of the belief that unless you are using them in a way that is purposely hurting others or describing others with them and not using them in a professional setting( and even then some professional settings allow language like that all the time) then they are sfw. Along with non detailed descriptions of sexual content when it's in an informative type of situation relative to the topic.

Art: if a small amount of cleavage or showing off curves is present through clothing that is not see through, or an outfit that is acceptable for the event or place then it's not sfw.

Semi NSFW:

Writing: if it's decently described in a sexual way but not enough to be considered erotica or is for an educational perspective then it's semi nsfw.

Art: if most but not all of the body is covered by a very sexy bikini, bra and panties, boxers, lingerie, or see through like material and the breasts, vagina/penis/ are covered, this includes thongs, g-strings, panties that only cover the vagina and have no strings, nipple pasties, and speedos for men. If you can't see nipples (for females) or see the clitorises, folds, vaginal entrance/ tip, shaft, balls, or anus then it's semi nsfw

NSFW:

Writing: Erotica-like descriptions or settings.

Art: full revealed body with no clothing.

(Also not trying to sound rude at all if it does just explaining the way I personally operate things and have since I was about 14)

[ms-hells-bells]

Sorry if this is long but really wanted to ask this and I wanted no room for misunderstanding etc etc........ I’m kinda new to radical feminism and I’ve been wondering about something I’ve seen around here that’s been bothering me for some time ,but I didn’t want to ask with my name attached since I’ve kinda seen this topic brought up and all I saw were mocking answers so here goes: why do some radfems /gender critical feminist reblog porny objecting pictures of women? *cues booing sounds* Now I understand that there’s more nuance to things and people here go on about being annoyed at the policing of others for not being ideological pure and whatnot put I feel like sometimes it just comes across as an excuse to be hypocritical to the very things they advocate against.... like I understand reblogging some random pretty lady in makeup and high heals because most women are photographed and presented that way and you’d be rendered unable to even appreciate any woman again if you stick to being “ ideologically pure”. But, that’s not what I’m referring to, I’m talking about like straight up singular ass shots and women in objectifying poses wearing thongs and high heals, the whole nine yards and it’s not even done in an artsy photography way or shot by a female artist. Like scrolling through blogs of very smart women and them BOOM it’s an ass thong pic god you’d think you could escape but I guess not even here and I can’t describe the disappointment and repulsive feeling I get when I see those images I actually forget I’m on a radfem blog and I end up thinking I’m on your average libfems /misogynistic man’s social media. And I’m trying to think hmm maybe they like the clothes or whatever but some make it obvious it’s to thirst or to acknowledge that the women in the pic is attractive ( and interestingly enough I’ve seen straight , bi and lesbian radfems do this.) And so the excuses and deflection some people have given is that “ some of us are lesbians and we are all not pure sapphics that want to hold hands we like to fuck god you’re so annoying” and the dramatic “so you’re saying lesbians are like predatory males for our innate attraction you’re lesbian-phobic !!!” and also someone compared them reblogging porny pics to straight women thirsting over men ??? ( I guess suggesting that straight women are inherently problematic for even having an innate sexual attraction to men lmao). Like idk how these are good arguments since the problem at hand wasn’t about SSA experiencing sexual attraction and thirsting over other woman but that they did it at the expense at objectifying other woman. I actually think that ALL women have a problem with objectifying woman that no one wants to talk about and everyone has their excuses. Like no I don’t think SSA woman are the equivalent of a predatory males but I do think they are not 100% free from seeing women like objects. I might make some SSA women here mad but some of you guys DO enjoy images of woman being objectified but don’t want to admit it, there’s this prioritizing of you’re own satisfaction over what you actually believe in, and you’ll try you’re best to twist any criticism of this as lesbophobic. As for straight women they also will see other woman as objects even if they don’t desire other woman sexually , probably seeing other women as aesthetically pleasing objects to reblog not minding the obvious objectification since they’re so desensitized anyways. And once again I want to say this isn’t about your typical hot lady post here but porny male gazey type of shit. I tried really hard to brush it off but my visceral reaction to seeing these pics was identical to the feeling of seeing woman plastered as pieces of meat just like in all social media and I didn’t want to ignore that. Anyways so what I wanted to sincerely ask is if there is some kind of perspective that I’m missing in all this?

i have actually criticised this multiple times before, and there is a semi-regular thing i do where i'll come across an image, whether a photo or art, on my dash and it smells of male gaze, and i'll check the artist and confirm it, then reblog with artist info. it proves a point that you CAN almost always tell when nude imagery of women is objectification. the even more offensive stuff is when it's clearly sexualised and you look at the op and they're a porn blog. like, i get not checking everything you reblog, we're not tras, but i feel like naked women in art is like....a good exception to have for checking the artist and/or poster.

as i have said before, i think in our current society, art surrounding women's naked bodies is currently inseparable from the view of women that has been indoctrinated into all of us. even heterosexual women view women in an objectified manner, let alone women who are also sexually attracted to women. of course, our f/f attraction is still very different from men, but to think that it is free of the influence of the collective objectification and hypersexualisation is naive. so, personally i'd rather not share images of naked women at all, unless completely desexualised, made by women, and the focus isn't her body, and even then i often leave it be because why is she naked? why does she need to be naked? i can live without online art of naked women, it's such a small thing that it's ridiculous to argue over and defend, it's like those dudes that conflate masturbation and porn and act like they'll die without porn subreddits or whatever.

in a patriarchy free society, there'd be nothing wrong with naked woman art. but right now it's the zeitgeist, the guerilla girls have stats about this, of how much art is naked women. it's not counterculture, against patriarchy, revolutionary, it is exactly what men make and consume. they don't care what reasons one has for making it as long as it's being made.

of course, there is nuance in this, like i mentioned with the desexualised female made stuff, but it's just easier for me to largely not risk it.

[romijuli]

All the things you reblog about dnd make it seem so cool and fun! But,, I don't have anyone I could play with and have no idea where to start

Have any tips on how to start? And if there's a way to play without meeting up in person?

Hi anon!!! Honestly, finding people to play with is possibly the hardest part of dnd, hehe. That and getting schedules to line up. (I got really lucky with my current campaigns; my bf is always ready for dnd, and some idle discussion about dnd on a discord server led to my other campaign!)

So, uh, I guess these are Chel’s (not-so) Hot Tips For Dnd! Or any ttrpg really cause like. There are SO MANY out there that deserve some love :3 (apologies for potential lack of coherence it is like 11pm where I’m at so I’m SLEEPY)

Okay so for starters we’re answering out of order but: I’ve actually been in only one campaign that met up in person! Most of my dnd experience has been virtual, whether over discord voice chat (several old campaigns) or zoom (my paladin’s campaign) or just a regular old text channel (my bard’s campaign). There are plenty of options for it if you can’t meet in person or just would prefer not to; actually, doing it virtually makes things a LOT easier in terms of getting a party together. Hell, you could even trash the whole “schedules lining up” part of it and just make it a play-by-post situation a la regular old RP. I’ve had a few campaigns that did that! (Rip telecodnd which I think is TECHNICALLY just on a really long hiatus but)

Dnd is becoming semi-cool nowadays—thank you actual play podcasts!—so odds are that any nerd-adjacent community you’re involved with has at least one person with dnd experience and a couple others who would be interested. Other than that, I believe there are discord servers and the like dedicated to helping people find folks interested in a campaign, but I don’t personally have experience with those so I can’t really speak to that.

Hardest or second-hardest aspect of getting a campaign together: figuring out who’s running it, honestly. DMing is hard; I have a little bit of experience with it in dnd and there are so many things to keep track of, but if someone in your potential group has some Cool Story Ideas in mind and the patience to herd three to six players, it might be for them! And if you’re lacking in Cool Story Ideas, god knows there are plenty of adventure modules online that you can run.

Speaking of which, you can find pretty much everything you need online without having to buy a single book. PIRATING IS YOUR FRIEND, REALLY. Wizards of the Coast is owned by hasbro they earn enough.

Talk about expectations and things before you start playing!!!! Stuff like topics you don’t want addressed, preferred roleplay-versus-just-monster-hunting, etc etc. it’ll save you a LOT of problems in the long run.

If you wanna get a feel for how dnd works ahead of time, there are plenty of podcasts available featuring people playing it! Critical Role is pretty well known and has plenty of material to work with, The Adventure Zone is generally sillier but shows off how Fucking Weird you can get with it (note; this is specifically about the Balance arc, I haven’t listened to the rest yet and I know that the second season actually isn’t dnd at all!), and Dimension 20 uses dnd to get REALLY neat with settings and concepts. And there are plenty more out there that I’m not familiar with!

Honestly just mucking around with character concepts ahead of time. Get weird with it!

Anyone who says you’re ‘playing wrong’ is a jerk.

[ply-space-archived]

if you want something done, do it yourself

it occurred to me (@gardeninthevoid) that i would like more acknowledgement for polysexuality. so i made this blog.. even though i have a lot of other things i should be doing. welcome to the

ply space

i vow to be semi regular, to not get off topic too much, and to keep it ✨aesthetic✨ and sfw ✋🏻

this blog is queer and inclusionist as hell. don't drag me into discourse. don't even come here if you're an assimilationist, queerphobe, transphobe, transmed, ace/aro exclusionist, biphobe, panphobe, or if you like to make fun of people for being 'cringe'. i hate that i even have to say this but racists are also super unwelcome.

i have like a bunch of reblogs queued and eventually i'll probably make my own posts. enjoy this mess comrades 💗💚💙

[livebloggingmydescentintomadness]

MomDad I need some advice . When I have a bad brain day ( Don’t know what is going on . Is it trauma due to my past or something else ? Who knows ? Not me ) I am very tired , I don’t speak or only very little ( speaking is very hard and draining during those days ) , and any kind of sound or movement strongly piss me off ( someone breathing loudly or putting a plate on the table ) . How do I deal with it ? I try my hardest to stay calm and polite but it’s obvious I’m angry .

okay so this is just my gut instinct here, but my whatever-the-autistic-version-of-gaydar-is is going off like crazy right now. going nonverbal/semi-verbal under stress and both being very sensitive to sensory input and reacting to sensory overload with the urge to have a meltdown positively screams autism.

as i said, what you’re describing is sensory overload. it’s when everything is Just Too Much and all of the noise and light becomes so overwhelming it fills you with feelings like pain, anger, even panic, and you just can’t cope even though it’s “just” regular sounds. if you had nothing going on but this one thing i might suggest misophonia, which is a condition where you’re extremely sensitive to small but annoying sounds like breathing or tapping or clicking.

but put together with having trouble speaking and having ‘bad brain days’, i really feel like you’re an undiagnosed autistic. 

there is, obviously, a LOT to be said on that topic, and i don’t have to spoons to go over it all, so i’m going to recommend that you please go through my autism tag to read what i’ve previously said and reblogged, which will cover a lot and probably be extremely informative. however, there are a couple things i’d like to say to you directly.

firstly, i really hope that you don’t find this to be devastating or terrible, because despite what many awful people will say, i don’t believe that autism is an inherently bad thing. it’s not a disease, it’s not a mental illness, we simply have brains that run on a different operating system, and that’s okay. yes, it causes us problems, but that doesn’t mean we need to be “cured” and it certainly doesn’t give anyone the right to treat us like shit. we are every bit as human and as valuable as anyone else. it’s a disability, yes, but ‘disability’ isn’t a bad word.

secondly, you are going to run into a lot of stuff and people who will tell you that you “can’t” be autistic, for this or that uninformed reason. there are people who think only little white boys can be autistic, or that people who can speak or hold down a job or have friends “can’t” be autistic. if you don’t have a perfect checklist of stereotypical traits, you may not be able to get an official diagnosis from a allistic (non-autistic) doctor who is working off very outdated information.

however, i and many others don’t believe you need an official diagnosis, not unless it’s important you get one for the sake of getting government accommodations or things like that. you can self-diagnose as autistic and be valid, just go and do your homework first.

please go through my whole autism tag, but this is specifically my autism traits tag, which you can check out to compare yourself to lists of autistic traits that have been put together by real autistic people, not allistic doctors. if i’m right, i think you’ll have the same moment of realization that i did a few years ago when i came across those posts and started putting together the pieces that made my life suddenly make sense.

for me, realizing i’m autistic has been unquestionably a good thing. that doesn’t mean you can’t have some negative feelings about it, that you can’t sometimes just wish you were normal. but we are what we are, and it’s so much better to find pride in that than to feel like something’s wrong with you. nothing is wrong with you, you’re just the way you are, and the way you are makes sense.

going semi-/nonverbal is okay, you don’t need to “fix” that. look into alternative methods of communication, like texting or sign language. look into ways of dealing with sensory overload that help to minimize the negative input, such as earplugs or headphones or sunglasses. stimming can also help you deal with negative feelings.

this is probably a whole lot to throw at you at once, but please think about it, and feel free to ask more questions too. take care, dear. 

[bisexualamy]

Transition Update #58 (1 year post-op top surgery)

(Please don’t re/blog this! I wish I could restrict my updates to my followers, but cannot, so please respect this decision to keep these semi-private.)

That’s right!!! Updates are infrequent but not forgotten. Anyway today is my top surgery ONE YEAR ANNIVERSARY which is so!!! wild!!! Can you guys believe it because I can’t.

Standard warnings/disclaimers from past top surgery updates apply: warnings for discussion of transition, dysphoria, body image, mental health, surgery and its related topics, also there is a photo of my chest under cut. Please do not save it. It’s under cut so I can delete it if necessary, even if people reblog this post against my wishes. I want to keep making these posts as a resource, but not at the expense of my personal boundaries.

This post is also going to assume you read my six month update. If you didn’t, click on the link and skip to the two top surgery sections.

As always, if any of you have any questions/comments, feel free to send me an ask or IM.

ALRIGHT, LET’S GET TO IT!!!

(These photos are always a little worse/darker than my chest actually looks, but that’s a front-facing phone camera for you.)

As you can see, my scars have significantly faded in the last six months. They’re still pretty visible in some parts, but they’ve healed unevenly in a gradient-type deal. They’re whitest towards the middle of my body and get darker as they go out towards the sides. The bits of my scars under my armpits are the darkest, and my right side is darker than my left. This makes sense to me because the scars will heal slower the more the skin is moved, the skin most affected is going to be the skin most connected to my arms, and I’m right-handed. There are parts of my scars, especially on the left side towards the middle, that have already faded to white or near-white, which is super cool to see, and my chest hair also helps make everything look more natural. In general, I healed a lot faster this first year than I anticipated, and expect to keep healing. 

My nipples have also healed more. They’re lighter and they’re poking out even more (I’ve had to keep track of how tight/thin my t-shirts are because there’s a concern they’ll actually poke through my shirt, and I’m not That Guy). As you can see they don’t like “““perfectly cis””” but nipples don’t all look the same and also they look fine “in context” of my chest so, while that used to bother me, at this point I really don’t care. I also think a year of healing helped me like them more, obviously. In general, as I mentioned at six months, I thought the scars and grafts were going to bother me a lot more than they ended up bothering me. The relief I have from binding far surpassed any aesthetic dislikes I have about my chest, and at this point those are all weight related and not surgically related.

I’ve kept my chest out of the sun this whole year. I went swimming without a shirt off once, but it was at an indoor pool. This weekend I’ll be with some friends of mine at a lake, and that’ll be the first time I’ll be shirtless outside in public. I’m excited and nervous. I intend to keep my scars out of the sun 95% of the time still, especially during the summer, since they’re still not completely healed, but swimming with a swim shirt has been pretty difficult (the one I have doesn’t cling to me properly and works to drag me under a bit) so I’ll probably stop swimming with a shirt on, and that’s it. I’ve been shirtless a few times around people, though really just my roommates. I’m no longer self conscious about people seeing my scars, although I think strangers will be a different ballgame. Again, though, that isn’t a trans-specific anxiety. I most frequently have my shirt off when I’m asleep, since sleeping without a shirt on is a beautiful thing and I’m so happy I can do it now and not be uncomfortable or dysphoric.

I have all of my sensation back, save for my nipples (obviously) which can still feel pressure but no actual nerve sensation. My scars DO have nerve sensation though which is wild to me. It’s dulled for sure, but it’s still present. If I run my fingertip along them, I feel nothing but pressure, but if I run my nail along them I do feel a dulled version of what I would feel running my nail along my stomach or arm. I wonder if this will pick up more in the future. I don’t expect to ever get nipple sensation back, but I don’t really mind that. I’m seeing my surgeon for my last post-op in January 2019, so I’ll let you guys know what she says about how I’ve been healing when that appointment arrives.

My scar treatments have been infrequent at best. When I remember I use Charity Pot by LUSH and I love it. I wanted to do it twice a day, but really only do it once a day, and I skip days frequently if I’m tired or forget. I heal much faster when I’m regular with the scar treatments, obviously, but I have been healing while doing nothing but keeping them out of the sun.

You can also see in the photo that I still have some fat in my pecs and some fat pockets where my armpits are. I was heavier when I had top surgery, and I’m still a little heavy now. My surgeon told me some of this would tighten up were I to lose weight. I’ve lost a bit of weight, but the fat around my armpits seems unchanged. It’s not the worst thing, it doesn’t bother me too much (I’ve also not lost as much weight/worked out as much as I’ve wanted to) so I’m going to try and focus on that in the coming year. If, in a few years, they still don’t go away, I know that’s a revision some guys get, but I’ll cross that bridge when I get to it. It’s a really low priority.

For a fuller breakdown of my mental health stuff, I’d refer to my six month update. The big change from then to now is I think less and less about being trans every day. I frequently forget I am trans. I feel less like a liar when people read me as male implicitly. I’m still a little nervous around cis men I don’t know (mostly cishet men, tbh), but that more comes from an insecurity in my own masculinity than me being trans. I pass 24/7, and people are frequently surprised when I mention that I’m trans. I can be stealth wherever I want, and I’m stealth in all new environments until I decide otherwise. 

Top surgery has allowed me to put transition-related things on the back burner of my life. I’ve been thinking more and more about getting a hysto, mostly because that’s where my dysphoria has migrated, but if I found out “hey, you couldn’t get a hysto until a few years from now” it wouldn’t bother me a ton. Right now, I’m more focused on getting my health and weight back to where they were a few years ago, before depression and dysphoria took over my life. I’m cooking my own meals pretty frequently now, I’m eating healthier, and I’m trying to get into a regular schedule of exercising. I’m trying to bike more places, although the heat has been thwarting that, so I’m going to try again when it cools down a bit. I’m trying to just live in my new male-passing body and enjoy it, which is something I didn’t get until I recovered from top surgery.

[dawnfelagund]

Hi there! I’m 16 and studying humanity-arts in junior college rn in India. How exactly do I become a ‘Tolkien scholar’? I hear other countries’ colleges offer a course in fantasy including Tolkien, or a class on Tolkien himself, but in a country where less than half the population speaks English, this isn’t possible. THANK YOU!!

I started using that term to describe myself when I had my first Tolkien studies article published in a peer-reviewed journal. As for how I got there …

I started lurking in the Tolkien fandom, specifically the fanfic community, in 2004. I began posting my own stories and participating in discussion in 2005. I became a Tolkien fan through the LotR films but, like a lot of film fans, didn’t stay movieverse for long: I quickly read all of the major works and began working on the edited collections like UT and HoMe. My study was helped immensely by the fan community to which I belonged. We discussed and debated the texts endlessly, usually in the context of writing fanfic. This was before there were many reliable online sources of information about Tolkien’s world and most people didn’t have access to all of the books, so if you were researching an obscure character or tracing the development of an idea across the legendarium, you often relied on your Tolkien communities to help you, and you in turn helped them. As a result, I became very comfortable with areas of the canon–namely the Years of the Trees and First Age in The Silmarilion–in texts that most “Tolkien scholars” weren’t even working with at the time, like the HoMe.

I was also having regular conversations with other well-read, thoughtful fans via fanfic communities on Yahoo! Groups and LiveJournal. These spaces were at once challenging (due to the caliber of knowledge of the fans there) and safe (due to being semi-public or at least off the radar), so I felt comfortable trying out my relatively knew knowledge there. The worst consequence to being wrong was having that pointed out by someone, often a friend, not having your mistake corrected and reblogged ad infinitum for all the world to see. We were also writing and discussing stories based on what we were learning about the texts, which added another deep layer of understanding about the legendarium.

In the midst of all of this, I decided to return to university to get my teaching certification. Because my Bachelor’s degree was in psychology, I needed some undergrad English coursework in order to be licensed to teach English. I did take a Tolkien studies class at this time; in fact, I chose the university where I did my coursework on the basis of their having that class! It was not a valuable experience. Ironically, it was my only A-, on the basis of an exam where the professor posed a series of SAT-like analogy questions comparing LotR characters to various mythological figures. I overthought my answers and even though the professor admitted my defenses of my answers were correct (and claimed my paper for the class was graduate-level because it *gasp* incorporated The Silmarillion), ultimately refused to accept the answers. I’m still salty over this; I knew more about Tolkien than this guy did even then, and this was ten years ago. I’ll say more on better options for Tolkien studies coursework in a moment.

After a year of undergrad English coursework and two years slogging through graduate-level education coursework to get my teaching license, I decided to go right into a Master’s program in humanities. My university used a “great books” style of programming where we began with the Mesopotamians and marched through history as told through its most important literary works, ending at the Industrial Revolution, with core coursework supplemented with elective courses on topics like cosmology and economics, also studied through important literary works. This gave me a broad if shallow basis in important texts in the world literature canon. Two years before I was due to graduate, I began working on my research for my thesis, which was about the stylistic use of oral-formulaic elements to create a sense of connection to the past in Beowulf. I wanted to produce something publishable in an adjacent field to Tolkien’s own work, not just get a passing grade for the class. My thesis eventually passed with distinction. (I’ve yet to chop it up for publication, but someday …)

Through this, I was still participating in fandom, though much less due to the realities of teaching full-time and going to grad school part-time. I was also auditing coursework at Signum University that I thought would help me with my thesis (e.g., Latin, Old English, and courses on philology and Beowulf taught by Tom Shippey) and sometimes based on personal interest (Tolkien studies). At this time, I also started presenting some of my Tolkien studies research at conferences and had a few things published in edited publications. In late 2016, I finally saw my first Tolkien studies article in print in a peer-reviewed journal.

What I think made my own journey successful:

Being constantly steeped in discussing and writing about the legendarium with other fans who were equally interested in diving deeply with me. I can’t overemphasize the debt I owe my fellow fandom people in getting to where I am. I also can’t overemphasize the respect I have for the knowledge and perspectives of fans versus scholars in Tolkien studies. Having now been to many conferences, I often find that my fandom friends can run circles around many if not most of the presenters. Fandom also has unique ways of reading the texts compared to academia, and those approaches have led me to original approaches in scholarship, like my work with historiography in the texts.

Developing a good formal humanities foundation through my graduate coursework. This lets me see the big picture in a way that I could not have if I’d focused my work entirely on Tolkien studies.

Supplementing that with humanities studies that are particularly relevant to the legendarium. Sometimes this through was personal study–I have shelves full of not only books by and about Tolkien but the texts that he read and that influenced his work. This is also where I make a plug for Signum University. If you want to take a Tolkien studies course, I recommend starting there. (Past courses are also available for purchase with access to lecture recordings and course materials.) They’re challenging and taught by luminaries in the field–Tom Shippey, Verlyn Flieger, and Michael Drout have all taught courses there–and will connect you with a community of other people interested in scholarship related to fantasy and Tolkien studies.

As with getting good at anything, I can’t underestimate hard work and constancy of vision. I did not come from a bookish family–neither of my parents graduated college–nor was I handed the privilege of going to university without having to work my ass off to keep my head above water the entire time (I have friends who describe their undergrad years in the same ways that middle-schoolers describe going to summer camp, as an endless stream of fun and activities), but I never lost sight of what I wanted and tried to edge closer to it every day.

I wish you the best of luck. :)

[hongsside]

temporary closing + hiatus + rant

-

hello hello!

its misty, i want to get straight to the case so... here.

: : t a b l e ☻f c☺n t e n t s : :

- closing

º hiatus

- rant

closing

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so, after a couple of months and progressing through a couple of works and on top of that drafts/drabbles, i have felt bored as well as stressed and just sick of certain things that i'm sure various writers might have experienced at some point (i will be going into detail in the rant part of this post). therefore, i felt as if this account is rather dead and at first i just wanted to experiment with other platforms for my works and this just barely made the cut; later was that i felt that same way as many different writers on my dashboard that have considered deactivating their blogs because of lack of interaction and feedback. this doesn't mean i have decided to deactivate and delete this blog completely; however it does imply that it could become a future possibility. i have decided that it is for the best to temporarily close this account, in a way in which i will not post at all only check interactions, copy my drafts, and check messages. thankfully, i am active on my twitter and still post some taekook aus on there but not regularly (as expected). the blog will close april 9th.

hiatus

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tw: loved one death

as we all know well by now, i am fantastic at going on hiatus and here we are again. i've been on semi-hiatus for about a month and i'm currently in the middle of exams, 9 regular classes, as well as instrument lessons, and unfortunately recently my grandfather has passed away from covid. which i may add, my other [step] grandfather who caused my entire family to get covid but we also own up to it on our behalf for having a gathering, although small, during the climax of the pandemic. so with all this stress and work as well as my personal family problems and repetition with struggling with my mental health i find it incredibly difficult to continue to write, im sorry for that. along with the closing of this blog, i'm going to go on a full hiatus for these next few days until the closing of the blog and maintaining it that way for as long as needed (until end of blog closing approx.). also, please appreciate your writers. which leads me to my next point.

rant

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this past of this post is not related to the closing and hiatus but i'd still appreciate if you would read it. i believe i saw some writer writing about this exact same topic earlier in the year cus one particular moot i really liked reblogged it and i didn't completely relate with what they meant at that time but now as someone who has started to take their writing more seriously, i fully understood why they were outraged by ghost reading and lack of interactions. first, people need to understand that writers work their ASSES off to write the stories you love. seeing people read your work and just simply like it, without giving you any comment or ideas of what they think, or how they feel about, or how the writer can improve is really stressful and just completely useless to a writer. why? because without feedback, a writer can't grow (and can't please their audience for the most part). which is why i'm here to rant. it doesn't take a day to type a short comment on how the story was, in fact, it only takes a few seconds out of your day to help someone progress. this leads to writers permanently closing their accounts because of ghost reading, and what enrages us [writers] more is how the second a writer mentions how they feel like their interactions are low, no one likes their work, and they are considering closing their account everyone rushes to their asks or starts leaving comments in attempt to persuade them to stay when they should have already been trying to appreciate their writer. now, i understand being shy and not wanting to bother a writer but think of it like this:

a stressed writer has 3 ongoing works and they get rather very little interactions, although you are shy you leave a simple comment "loved the update !!💗 " and that on its own shows, how even with the stress the writer has written a good story someone likes.

i understand being afraid a writer might get upset because you are bothering them with a simply notification, but there is no need because most of the time the writer wants to hear their audience and it helps them remain positive. i hate to sound desperate for interactions, but this is not the case since, i and many other writers feel that we need and deserve to be told what you think of the work, whether good or constructive criticism it is still appreciated.

PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE, on the behalf of all writers, unless they have asked to not be giving feedback; PLEASE, give us your thoughts on our works, it keeps us from loosing motivation and continue writing works YOU love. <33

anddddddd no outro, but you can see me yelling and dying over whatever in the tags sooo... also here's my masterlist!!!

[shadowedpetrichor-blog]

PSA: About Censorship, Sin, and Sexuality

I’ll reblog things that can put it into better words than me. I keep seeing the topic posted on my dash, about the responsibility we have as writers and as media consumers to address things like smut and kinks in writing - if it is harmful for it to exist, if there are moral ramifications, if they are corruptive to the youth. I’d like to say a few things. You’re free to add or reblog, I don’t mind.

One, this debate is very western-centric. What we consider sexual norms, or rather - what level we shelter youth, is completely variable to a person’s culture and upbringing.  Especially in the church-hyped and centric USA, a lot of things are put off on the grounds of sin, leaving many without any sort of exposure to sexual media, both positive and negative.  Using “sin” as a tool to condemn a community of writers- which while I haven’t seen done explicitly, does feed into the mindset of “corruption” - is wrong, it impresses your morality and beliefs onto other people.

Do you know what some people also think is sinful? Same sex relationships. LGBT people. Tattoos... Wearing shorts even. Sin isn’t a grounds for judging others, or the actions of their characters.

That isn’t to say some things shouldn’t be recognized as harmful. Child pornography, underage romances, sexual conversations with underage muns, these things need to be watched with care in our community, and the latter a red flag. It’s not about WHAT is out there, but HOW it is used. Us writing something isn’t necessarily going to be taken out of context - but someone else can use it out of context to normalize harmful behaviors. That is on the someone else.

By the way, pedophilia isn’t a kink and it’s a disgusting offense.

Look. On a personal level, I want you to know something.  And again - I give permission for this to be reblogged. It’s easy to be groomed into participating into sexual acts when you are underage and are looking for attention, especially if you aren’t treated well at home.  I was thirteen, fourteen? And what was at first roleplay turned into a very manipulative, toxic online relationship where I drew fetish porn for him on a semi-regular basis, even of myself. Even though I was asexual, I was also lacking in any knowledge that what I was doing was WRONG.  He used me for free art for his friends, told me what to do all the time and shamed me, it was gross. Just to put it all lightly.

I ended it - but I think that sort of behavior is something we as a community need to be aware of. Not what we put out there, but the conversations around it, and with each other. I haven’t noticed anything out of the ordinary online, but I do know that a lot of people here feel like its a competition for attention, to be a good muse, to look attractive with the memes, the self-promos, the graphics.  And I just KNOW that someone can and will take advantage of that cycle of insecurity.

I remember how it feels - trying to explore the concepts of things you don’t have the guts to research otherwise, in a world where sex itself is a taboo and many places have AWFUL sexual education... Why shame the existence of such material when that solves nothing about the actual dangers out there? 

We are a community. We need to support, not shame other people. If there really is concern about the accuracy or health of fictional sex, then maybe you should reblog references.

[aspirant-writer]

Together: chapter 1

Youngbin sat on the chair in front of his boss desk. He blankly stared at his hands on his lap, nervously tapping his feet. What had he done to deserve this? He deserved none of it. He had been a good boy. He went to bed early every night, called his parents every week, always made sure none of the boys accidentally (or willingly) killed each other. What nasty thing had he done to deserve this sick karma? As he was mentally listing all the bad things he had done in his lifetime - which consisted in a list with exact seven topics - the office door was furiosly open interrupting his thinking. Their CEO was now sitting in front of him cursing under his breath.

- What the hell were you… Have you got any idea…- his boss pressed a hand to his forehead looking down at his desk not being able to even finish a sentence.

- I… I’m sorry, sir, I did not… we did not mean to disappoint you - he mumbled sitting up straight.

- But you did! - he shot back looking at the rapper in the eyes - You boys embarrassed yourselves, this company and even me!

Those were harsh words Youngbin never expected to hear from their CEO. He tilted down his head dry swallowing. As the older man kept on going how bad his mistakes had been his mind was clouded with mixed feelings and thoughts. Yes, their last comeback stage had been beyond embarrassing, but did they truly deserve to get scolded like this?

- Maybe it wasn’t that bad - he tried hesitantly, his boss immediately stopped his furious talking, perceiving it as an encouragement to go on he quickly continued - I’m sure there is something we can do to fix things, we’ll work harder…- he gained confidence in his talking -… we’ll do our best, I promise…- but his voice fell silent as he saw the other man reach his jacket pocket for his phone. After a few quick touches the boss started talking once again.

- After a lackluster and amateur looking performance, the new rookie group, SF9, decided to end their comeback stage with a shocking apparently new dance move - Youngbin slammed his eyes shut feeling shivers down his spine as he recognized the lines of one of the many articles written about the catastrophic happening.

A familiar sound echoed in the room, it was one of their songs and it was during their concert. He could hear the fans’ screams. He looked at the phone’s screen that was now almost shoved to his face. Besides little choreography mistakes it was all going fine. Even when one of the boys messed up his lyrics it was still going fine. They could’ve managed it if had been only that. But the video cut to another scene that the rapper remembered so well. He had replayed it in his mind so many times, he had seen that same video countless times. It was Taeyang’s part. Knowing what was about to happen, Youngbin sunk in his seat covering his mouth with one hand.

In exact two seconds the singer accidentally stepped off the stage, lost his balance and fell off the stage. Just like that. Some of the boys went on with the dancing not realising what had just happened, some of them just froze on their places in complete shock. The crowd was now screaming in horror. The young boy squirmed in his chair. The room was silent again.

- It was not that bad? - the CEO growled with arched eyebrows.

- I’m sorry - he faltered letting his gaze fall to his lap.

Putting the phone away the businessman regained his composure. He let out a heavy breth before breaking the silence.

- I have already decided how we’re going to fix this - he firmly stated. Youngbin’s eyes lit up. That meant their boss wasn’t dropping them.

- How?- he avidly asked.

- We have signed a contract with a performance company, you’ll be going under training again - the boy looked at him with brows knitted in a frown - and it’ll be a reality show so everyone can see that you are recovering from that…- he cleared his throat.

- What…? - he blurted out in confusion. Was his mind tricking him? Was this for real? They were going under training? Again? After their debut? He stared at the older man with his mouth hanging open. The man kept his gaze unaffected by the younger’s reaction. He snapped back to reality again - For how long?

- Four months. - he declared resting his back on the chair.

- Four months?! - he leaned foward.

-

Four months. Four. Freaking. Months. Youngbin was too old for this trainee shit. He was too tired for this shit. He had no time or patience for this shit. But still, a week later after the fateful day he had met his manager, he was sitting in a van with half his crew heading to the perfomance company’s studio. There already were cameras filming them and Youngbin couldn’t be feeling more uncomfortable. It felt like d.o.b all over again.The rapper shifted in his seat before taking the courage to break the silence.

- I’m sorry about all of this.

- This is not only our fault - Rowoon reassured from the backseat.

- But it is! How could it not be? I’m the one who got the stage measures wrong and…

- Stop blaming yourself - Chani’s deep voice interrupted him. Youngbin turned his head to look at the boy next to him. He had never interrupted him like that. The youngest member of the group was looking out the car window. Great. Now everyone was upset with him.

-

The nine boys reluctantly stepped in the building. It was luxuriously furnished and clean. Their manager walked in the hallways as if he had been there several time (and that thought felt like a sting on Youngbin’s pride). He stopped at a glass door at the end of the hallways.

- Are you boys ready to meet the crew you’re working with? - he grinned.

Cameras were capturing every moment and the rapper had to fight the unexpected urge to tell them to get off his face. He was so angry. They were being treated like children. But he managed to pretend like he wasn’t totally displeased with the situation. Their CEO opened the door allowing them to get in. It was a big dance studio with two mirror walls and a shinning wooden floor. It looked bright new. At the center there were people sitting in a semi circle. There was a honey skinned girl standing up in front of them. They were casually talking. Until a girl called her attention. The girl turned around offering a bright smile.

- Eva! So pleased to see you again! - their manager stepped past them, she bowed to him and offered her hand. He happily shook hands with her. Yes. He had definitely been there before and he already knew the people who were working with them. Youngbin felt betrayed even though perhaps he had no reason to.

- It’s my pleasure - she smiled letting his hand go turning her look to the boys.

- Boys, introduce yourselves.

They did their regular introduction. Eva bowed and glanced at the people on the floor, that Youngbin now realised were all girls. How convenient.

- I’m Eva and this is my crew - she glanced back again with a wide grin - I’m sorry, we don’t have a cool introduction like you.

Was she flirting with us? No, that’s crazy, get a grip. Youngbin thought to himself. The other boys laughed but the leader had a skeptical frown. He was meet with a questioning gaze by Eva and he quickly faked a smile.

- So…- he turned his head to their boss - Who’s going to be in charge of our training?

The man simply responded by pointing at the young girl standing in front of them. Eva? She was the one in charge? He shot her a look of confusion and she just waved at him. But she was so young? He tried to hide his surprise. Then he remembered this was all being recorded. God damn it. He must be looking stupid right now.

- Good training, I’ll get going now and let you guys work - and he left them. That was it. Youngbin wanted to scream but he had to keep his shit together.

- So we should start by introducing ourselves, shall we? - Eva started.

They started introducing themselves among soft giggles and embarrassed smiles. But the SF9 leader was paying no attention to that. How could this happen to him? He had been a trainee for years, he had worked his ass off to debut and now they were being coached by someone who was at least younger than half his group? Not only that, but everyone and their dog were watching it. He started listing the possible reasons for the universe to have decided to slap him on the face until he was elbowed by someone and snapped back to reality. Everyone was staring at him. And then he remembered he needed to introduce himself.

- Uh, I… I’m Youngbin, SF9 leader - he wanted to slap himself for stuttering. You’re being filmed, idiot.

- Wow, I’ve never seen the leader at loss of words - one of the boys teased. Fuck. I must be looking like a stupid teenager.

- Let’s get to work - he grunted trying his best to pretend he didn’t care.

—

author’s note: get ready cuz this is a slow burn. anyways, let me know what you guys think about it! don’t forget to reblog/like this post, if you guys enjoy it i’ll keep on posting. hope you liked it ♡

[summitsrp]

So, underneath the cut is our second preview -- our species lore! We wanted to get this to you guys before the canon list came out (probably sometime within the next three-ish days) so you could start brainstorming some character ideas. Please keep in mind that our pre-reserve contest is ongoing, so reblog, reblog, reblog!

VAMPIRES

Vampires can be born by two full vampire parents, or bitten and turned. For a human to be turned, all their blood must be drained, and they must immediately be fed the blood of the vampire who has drained them. Hybrids are created when vampires (turned or born) procreate with a human. These hybrids are generally not affected in any particular way by “full vampire” characteristics (ie the need for blood, etc).

Vampires generally live 200 to 600 years (not eternally, as is usually believed by the wizarding community), and require blood to survive. Born vampires can retain their youthful appearance by the amount of blood they consume – the less blood, the older they look, and vice versa. Turned vampires can eat “human” food as easily as regular humans can, but still require a certain amount of blood to live. Born vampires have a much harder time digesting normal food (it’s been likened to eating dirt, or swallowing sawdust), and cannot live on it. How much blood a vampire needs depends on the particular vampire, but the older they are, the less frequently they need to feed. Each vampire has a set of retractable fangs to feed, which may extract when the vampire feels threatened.

Vampires have the natural ability to turn into bats (not to be confused with wizards who are animagi), and cannot see their own reflections. They are particularly good hunters with naturally heightened senses (hearing, vision), a high pain tolerance, and an affinity for healing (especially skin regeneration). They can be kept at bay by garlic, and often have an aversion to pure silver. The older the vampire, the less susceptible they are to these weaknesses, though a vampire can never truly grow out of them. Vampires cannot perform magic as wizards know it (unless they’re a hybrid, or a wizard turned vampire), but they have their own kind of wandless magic. Vampires are particularly good at brewing potions and casting enchantments, over humans and objects alike.

Vampires are naturally nocturnal, and burn under direct sunlight. Younger vampires are more easily affected by the sun’s rays, and if exposed for extended periods of time (generally half an hour under direct rays is extremely dangerous to a younger vampire), they can catch fire. Older vampires can withstand longer periods in the sun, and even survive for hours on particularly cloudy days, though they often walk away with a human-like sunburn. Thankfully, due to their innate healing abilities, this is rarely an issue.

While vampires have technically retained ‘being’ status for as long as anyone from this generation (or, arguably, the last), they’re hardly treated as your common witch or even squib might be. The last 40 or so years have seen a turn as far as the preferred living conditions of vampires are concerned, as we see more and more of them performing and living actively in society, though vampire rights are still an incredibly controversial topic.

HYBRIDS

"Hybrid": A being born from a vampire and a human. Retains some amount of power from their "magical" parent, whether that be the vampire or the witch. While human-vampire hybrids do not possess the need to drink human blood to survive, they’re known for their beauty and flare for flamboyance.

BANSHEES

Banshees are creatures with the appearance of women with cries that are fatal to anyone unfortunate enough to hear them. While often thought to be dark or inherently evil creatures, Banshees can exist among humans if they choose to, though, due to incredible prejudice, many choose the nomadic life. They live on a diet of strictly raw meats, and can perform their own type of wandless magic, similar to goblins. They also have their own language (not able to be learned by humans), though there’s no known word for it in any of the human ones. Due to the lack of Banshee presence in wizarding society, not much about them is known. They are, however, particularly invulnerable to physical acts – when dealing with a banshee, one must fire from a wand in the distance.

Banshees generally have floor-length black hair, a skeletal looking face, and piercing grey-white eyes with green skin. Most banshees use charms to hide these features to better conceal their true nature.

MERMAID HYBRIDS

Where merpeople have rejected ‘being’ status many times over, preferring to distance themselves and keep to their own kind, hybrids, who are forced to spend the majority of their lives on land, have accepted it graciously. Merpeople hybrids are (more often than not) born without any of the essential ‘fish’ parts that would make living underwater possible, but rather with certain physical traits of merpeople. For example, it wouldn’t be rare to find a merfolk hybrid with yellow eyes, and/or blue hair, and/or a skin tone with a hint of blue or purple. They tend to take on the physical traits of their mermaid parent, which typically deviates from those normal of witches & wizards. Some merfolk hybrids also possess the ability to form gills or webbed fingers/feet when submerged completely underwater, making it easier for them to navigate large bodies of water. Still, merfolk hybrids cannot survive completely underwater, and are therefore not generally accepted by the merfolk community. They can perform magic based on the non-mermaid parent, and are often gifted with the powers of witches and wizards.

VEELA HYBRIDS

Veela hybrids are created when a wizard fornicates with a full-fledged veela. Veela offspring are incredibly beautiful, and known for their ability to attract attention with their voices, and unique dance. Unlike mermaid hybrids, veela offspring generally do not respond well to the attention they attract, and the arousing vibe they radiate is almost entirely subconscious. Veela offspring are notorious for having short tempers, and tend to stray towards more ‘explosive’ forms of magic. While they do not possess the ability to turn into a full harpie while angry, it's been recorded by some that they do take on 'inhuman-like' traits in moments of extreme aggression.

GHOSTS

Ghosts are disembodied spirits of deceased humans. Primarily, they float without corporeal form, having little to no physical effect on the real world. When a ghost is without form, they phase through walls, buildings, and otherwise solid things with no lingering effects. Some have even reported an icy sensation when a ghost passes through their body, but not everyone has the same reaction. Contrary to proper belief, recent studies have shown that ghosts with particularly strong emotional ties to the living world can maintain a semi-corporeal form for an extended period of time. The amount of time they can hold this form differs depending on the spirit's willpower and age. That said, no ghost can hold corporeal form consistently and will often flicker in and out of it even while trying.

Ghosts cannot be destroyed, though they can be paralyzed by the gaze of a Basilisk. Most ghosts seem to “haunt” the place that they died, though they are not confined to one space, and free to roam as they please. As ghosts are imprints of souls, they cannot pass through the veil and are forever doomed to a non-life in the world of the living. Ghosts can be created if wrongly murdered, or if they are killed while having unfinished business in the real world.

While it is widely believed that only magical beings can turn into ghosts, recent trials within the department of unspeakables have disproved that theory. Anyone, magical or non-magical, can become a ghost, just as anyone, magical or non-magical, can be become a werewolf or a turned vampire.

HAGS

Hags, like banshees, are a category of being generally regarded with suspicion and prejudice by the wizarding community. These are the so-called witches of Muggle and magical stories alike. In such tales, hags are said to appear as wart-faced, cave-dwelling children-eaters-- the kind of creatures that plague young nightmares. If nothing else, most wizards still consider hags extremely ugly. Over the ages, hags have organized and advocated in defense of their own species-- against this and other common beliefs.

In modern times, many hags are able to coexist with other magical beings, and some have even attended wizarding schools thanks to the use of cosmetic magic. Most choose not to disclose their status. Unlike their peers, these hags are unable to subsist on normal food and drink; instead, they maintain a primarily carnivorous diet. There is, too, certainly some truth in mythology: once a hag has tasted human flesh, they cannot stomach or desire any other sustenance. Understandably, most hags today are careful to watch their diets. Prior to being allowed to wield wands, hags were known to perform a rudimentary, innate magic-- some say this is why they are particularly adept at wandless and voiceless spellwork.

HALF-GIANTS

Giants have, for the most part, secluded themselves from magical society. After being on the losing side of two wizarding wars, they've completely shut themselves off from outsiders, preferring to live in clans that are scattered throughout the hardest to reach parts of most major mountain ranges. However, the rare half-giant still exists, awkwardly straddling the line between two cultures. Half-giants may be anywhere from six to eight feet tall, which is about half the size of your average giant. This makes them outcasts among the giant clans, and usually ostracized entirely. However, as they are taller than any other humanoid creature, they have a hard time fitting into the wizarding community, though some shorter half-giants are able to pass as really tall wizards. Half-giants have the ability to wield wands, and otherwise have the same potential to practice magic as any wizard or witch.

WEREWOLVES

Werewolves are perhaps one of the most widely discussed and feared being among witches and wizards. Any witch or wizard may become a werewolf if bitten and infected with lycanthropy, though not every werewolf bite is guaranteed to infect the victim, whom will know whether or not they are a werewolf based on whether or not they transform during the next full moon. Muggles who are bitten by a werewolf very rarely survive the wounds and will not turn. Wounds inflicted by a werewolf in any state (human or wolf) will leave permanent scars.

During the full moon, werewolves are forced into a painful transformation process, and are nearly identical to regular wolves. They lose the ability to think as a human, which causes them to be extremely dangerous.

Lycanthropy does not have a cure, though the wolfsbane potion is the most common way that werewolves are able to manage their condition. This potion is expensive to purchase, requires rare ingredients, and is very difficult to brew, but will allow the werewolf to maintain a human state of mind during their transformation. However, due to the difficulty of obtaining wolfsbane potion, many werewolves instead form packs in the wild that act as a support system, though they do not necessarily develop the traditional dynamics of other canines instinctually.

To this day, werewolves remain the most regulated being by the Ministry of Magic. All werewolves are required to register themselves with the ministry, but many of the other anti-werewolf laws that were passed in the 90s have since been repealed. Public opinion has begun to shift slightly for werewolves, but misinformation and the potential threat they pose on the full moon have prevented true progress on the matter.

HYBRIDS

Werewolf-human hybrids are possible but a very rare occurrence, with only a few births officially recorded. The offspring of a werewolf and a wizard will not be a full werewolf themselves -- they do not need to worry about the transformation, nor do they leave the same permanent scars when they wound any humans. They instead will mostly take after their wizarding parent (if they have one), though may retain certain wolfish traits such as a preference for rare cooked meats or temperament changes around the full moon.