#so i focused on their interactions here first and foremost

[sunxstreaker]

i don't really get simpatico but i would love to understand it more bc its such a big part of transformers now. if you're willing, you can do that big post on simpatico here?? if you wanna??? i'd really appreciate the help 🥺👉👈

The thing with Simpatico is that i didn't exactly Get it at first too, most of my exposure was through fan content and reading the thing i was just Yeah it Makes Sense people ship this, but then it kind of bestowed on me more how these two people are just two parts fitting together perfectly in a way they wouldn't with others, and it's not even inherently Romantic to me, even if i see them as very much in love and conjunxed post MTMTE/LL story.

Their relationship is quite silly in the context at first. Brainstorm's profile calls him a conflicted Perceptor fanboy. The only thing we get, up to this point, is his Annoyance with how his genius is overshadowed by Perceptor. While Perceptor doesn't seem to give him his time of day at all, more concerned with his work and what Rodimus wants from him than what Brainstorm is up to.

It's honestly just my personal interpretation of either characters, but Perceptor is finally allowed to fullly get back to science again, he's not expected to be holding his sniper rifle (even though he was never expected to! He had himself believe that holding a weapon will make him of more value!), while Brainstorm is there with his own super secret super important agenda.

Brainstorm is, apparently, an MTO, while we don't know what for, but MTOs have a very sad track record and usually have a lot of baggage as they're usually "born" and then kicked into the heat of battle, barely having any chance to learn who they are, just what they're for. Yet Brainstorm has never killed anyone - and despite that, he's still LIED about being an MTO.

Here they're talking about the concept of Constructed Cold, but there were TWO waves of them - pre-war and post-war. What Brainstorm is talking about he was not even born to witness yet.

They're both people who, one way or the other, "defying" what they are. It's a common theme with tf ships for me, but in case with this, it's Perceptor believing that he has to be more, and at the point of MTMTE, perhaps, not feeling entirely whole, and Brainstorm WANTING to be someone He actually Wants to Be.

Brainstorm feels threatened when his intellect is belittled by people calling Perceptor the genius. Brainstorm is quite egotistical and selfish, but it all ends up being just a facade, just as much Perceptor's cold and perfect exterior he cultivated throughout years during the war, of someone he thought his side needed.

Up until Brainstorm's time travel shenanigans, we saw them interacting sometimes, and a lot of the time, it was Brainstorm trying to impress Perceptor somehow, or just being himself that draws attention of Percy nevertheless.

And then we see Percy smiling the most he's ever smiled throughout the comic, calling Brainstorm a genius himself, impressed by the intricate work of Brainstorm.

Perceptor gets up to clap for Brainstorm at his trial, and i think it's the moment that sold Perceptor for his respect to Brainstorm. Everything he ever knew about Brainstorm - the careless egotistical and cowardly scientist - turned out to be nothing but means to an end, making way to a dedicated, caring, kind and brilliant person into his mind.

I think their finale just says it all regarding these two, honestly.

"I always wanted recognition for what I am."

"Me too."

Brainstorm spent his life on science and to be recognized. He didn't hide the fact he's an MTO just because. He wants to be seen for his achievements. Perceptor's war trauma had him feel useless to his comrades, who's "purpose", who's Genius, was ultimately the thing people saw in him, brushing off his personal achievements, maybe even the fact he could be more, his person, the way he feels Brainstorm could understand, too.

They're simpatico for a reason, and its just one of them, but pretty crucial and at the very core of why they're so compatible.

While i understand simply thinking of them as "science duo" they're so so much more than that.

[sugar-grigri]

Let's make the revolution, but let's make it right s’il vous plaît…

Yes I need to take a break but I'm not only tired but I'm fucking autistic so let me say two quick words

I think Haruka is a character worth exploring, and that he's deeper than the comic relief he seems to be, because I think he's a very good representation of adolescence.

Yoshida doesn't live his adolescence as a public hunter, Asa almost rejects the experiences because of her social isolation and emotional problems, which implies that they are teenagers but want to carry the weight of suffering like adults.

And what is Haruka? The perfect example of the mix between childhood and coming-of-age.

Denji is unable to experience adolescence because he has been deprived of his childhood, or even his humanity, and his interactions lead inexorably to rejection and suffering.

Haruka, on the other hand, is a useful standard by which to compare the other characters' failings in exploring their own adolescence.

Haruka is portrayed as arrogant, but not as negatively pretentious, but as an over-confident teenager, following a role model to the point of pretending to be him, of having a false cable across his chest.

He's also hard on the others, representing those teenagers who never minced their words when pressing Asa's failures, just as he remains deeply human, panicking, relying on his role model to save him.

Above all, his typical teenage behavior and funny yet profoundly candid personality are at odds with what adolescence is all about: realizing the world we live in.

If Chainsaw Man is so popular with teenagers, it's first and foremost because he remains anonymous, so everyone can see what they want in his face, but he's also an element of confrontation with the established order.

When I say that Chainsaw Man is a fairly mathematical manga, it's because everything fits together perfectly: if teenagers can make Chainsaw Man an object of protest, or even make it their own design, it's precisely because they don't see Denji behind Chainsaw Man.

If everything finds its balance, it's because the teenagers see in Chainsaw Man something superior, to the point of making him a model, an ideology, while Denji, the boy behind the mask, puts himself in the position of standing outside normality.

Denji can't belong to normality, since Chainsaw Man's interest is in disrupting the established order, whether it's the dominance of demons or what parents think.

So he's in a position of literal support, since his only point of interaction is to be acclaimed without being recognized.

It's interesting that Haruka's here, because he's a Chainsaw Man fan.

Denji has been a figure in the shadows, supporting a teenager in need of guidance in spite of himself.

He was the savior of a humanity prey to demons in spite of himself

But from a more symbolic point of view, Denji is literally dismembered, because carrying this on his shoulders as a teenager, even though his rank is denied, leads not only to exhaustion and withdrawal, but also to a literal breakdown.

It's as if the chair has just cracked... then the adolescence that stood over it also collapses...

People love Denji with difficulty, while he loves them with ease

People adore Chainsaw Man and completely ignore Denji's plight

Teenagers need to see Denji, to see his state of dismemberment, to see every last part of his being instrumentalized.

Because that's what he is, an image from which everyone can pick and choose to see what's missing.

That's why Asa has a missing arm, because she's in the position of a savior who doesn't wallow in her lack and compensate for it with Chainsaw Man, but focuses on the mission of putting him back together.

We repeat: the teenagers have projected themselves into Chainsaw Man as a means of fighting against the established order.

But isn't projecting oneself and being saved by Chainsaw Man precisely what the established order is all about?

Wouldn't it be revolutionary to save a savior who has always asked to be saved? Just as the suffering of the people has been ignored has needed saving

Revolution... represented by what?

Guillotine.

And that's precisely where I find it all interesting, because Haruka effectively compensates with Chainsaw Man in everything he lacks, when he was portrayed completely panicked during the aquarium arc, Denji was serene. Haruka may have a cable on his chest, but he'll never dare pull it.

This absence of fear is what keeps Chainsaw Man a machine. Denji has no self-worth, not a little arrogance like Haruka, so he's not afraid of danger. Whereas what constitutes adolescence is precisely the fact of becoming attached, of having things you value and are not afraid of being deprived of.

Above all, being an adolescent gives you a protective status, protected by society. So Haruka experiences what Denji experienced: being deprived. Deprived of what he holds dear. Deprived of his status as a child protected to be a terrorist. Haruka is a teenager who needs to be protected, but is now seen as a terrorist, a threat to order.

To be a threat to the established order, while at the same time being guaranteed by it, is the exact ambivalence of what Chainsaw Man is, and what Haruka is experiencing, being in the shoes of his savior in an attempt to save him.

The guillotine demon has an interesting design, a huge bird as a kind of almost inanimate ornament, to emphasize its interior, a piece of skeleton hanging headless. How does it feel to be close to decapitation? We suffer in anticipation of what we're going to miss: our head, death, the skeleton, and what we're going to leave the world, a body that's missing something.

Just as others must learn to compensate for their own insecurities, Denji must allow himself to feel his own, and instead of accepting suffering, to compensate for it like a human being with his nearest and dearest, his entourage, his family.

Because the right behavior is not to artificially complete oneself by rejecting one's fear and accepting one's suffering, but to accept one's incompleteness in order to be better influenced and completed by others. That's why Denji's loved ones are there to help him, even though he's been cut into pieces. Just as the teenagers saw in Fami, whom they reject, this guillotine, both reversing the order and focusing on what they lack, poor children in identity crisis.

We're in a bit of a pre-French Revolution mood, which I like, so let's embrace it completely by concluding with a quote from one of France's bloodiest revolutionaries, Robespierre:

"First of all, you should know that I am not the defender of the people; I have never claimed that lavish title; I am one of the people, that's all I've ever been, and that's all I want to be; I despise anyone who pretends to be anything more."

To make a revolution not to overthrow the order, but to be a simple, incomplete, imperfect teenager.

[danses-with-dogmeat]

C is for -- Charon

Oh, Charon 🥺

I just adore this guy, and still, I cannot believe how close it was between him and Boone on this poll. But either way is a win in my book, really😅

And here is the 2k event masterlist, for your browsing pleasure!

But I hope y'all love this! Just make sure to check out the rating 😉

--

Pair: Charon x F!Lone

Dialogue Prompt: “Can you just hold me for a moment?”

Word: Care

Rating: NSFW

Category: Fluff

Word Count: 1.6k

NSFW below, minors, please do not interact!

“Charon–”

Lone’s strained voice sent another shock down the ghoul’s searing spine. He gritted his teeth, his strong fingers clenching her thigh tightly where he held her legs open for him, where his broad hips slotted between them with every forceful thrust.

“Say it again.” He growled, his grip like iron, his expression focused on staving off that great feeling of release, in favor of tipping his partner over the edge first and foremost. 

“Charon, fuck,” She breathed out heavily, her mesmerizing chest rising and falling rapidly with his jostling, with her own jerky movements, the bucking of her hips pushing him deeper into her, and following him still as he pulled back. 

Close. She’s so close. 

Charon's eyes closed briefly, as he allowed his head to fall back, to soak in the mere feeling of her body beneath his. The warmth of her thighs and her ass, pressed flush against him, the softness of her smooth skin against his own rugged planes of flesh, his firm, calloused hands pressing divots into her yielding plushness.

The small, stone room within the abandoned house reeked of their lewd activities, and in it, he felt the slickness of her sweat, he reveled in the sweet sound of her keening moans, and the way her walls gripped him… Like she never wanted him to leave her. 

It took effort to haul himself in and out of her tightness, but the way she reacted when he hit that sweet spot deep inside her, when the roughness of his skin rubbed her just right, he couldn’t take it. 

Charon’s eyes sprang open again, his grip on her thigh tightened to the point of bruising, and he brought his free hand to her center. Expertly, his fingers delved between her lower lips, and began to press firm circles over the sensitive nub he found there. 

He braced himself again, as Lone’s hips flew up off the old, creaky mattress, her own fingers tightening against the fabric until they paled, her eyes rolling back as lightning seemed to explode up her spine. 

Charon groaned at the way her heat pulsed around him, as she came undone with the press of his fingers. He held onto her tightly as she rode out her pleasure, his stark eyes unblinking as he absorbed the rapturous sight beneath him. He usually made it a point not to ogle his employer– his partner. 

Right.

‘Were together now,’ she’d told him. Almost a month ago; still, for one as old as him, one who was as set in his ways as a person could be, it took Charon some getting used to. 

But he respected the hell out of her, no matter the nature of her personal relation to him. He’d seen enough of the way the other wasteland assholes treat young women, he’d ended enough of those interactions himself… He wouldn’t be a part of that problem, not like others had sometimes forced him to be. And yet… There were certain special times, where he let his eyes linger on her seemingly just as disrespectfully, where he let those feelings surrounding her engulf him, he let the sensations flow through his body and become evidence of the attraction he felt for her. 

But therein lay the difference between him and them. He'd never disrespect her, beyond a bit of a gawking look, that is. But beyond that? Charon would give his life for Lone, and not just because of that scrap of paper she held. He would do or be whatever she needed most, any time that she asked, simply because she was Lone, and the way she allowed him to be this?

To show her how he felt, truthfully?

She was the first smoothskin– or person Charon felt this sort of affection for in… who the hell knows how long?

Now was one of those times, though. When-- despite his respect, his affection, the rareness, the novelty of being with her in the first place-- he let himself really look at her. The way her breasts heaved, glossy and picturesque with sweat, the way her delicate brows furrowed and shielded her eyes from him, the way her mouth hung open, releasing wanton gasps that, when they met Charon's ears, left his stomach tightening and his cock throbbing with need. Need to tip over his own threshold and into the same such pleasure he saw her enveloped in. 

“Lone…” Charon’s low voice sounded from his chest, and he felt another shudder pass through her body and into his. Felt that heavenly gush of slick around him, felt the way she constricted him again, before her body fell, lax and tingling, back against the mattress. 

Her eyes blinked open, dark and sensual with the way her pupils were blown out with the pleasure he’d just wrought from her. 

“Hm?” She hummed, almost absently. 

“Where?” His bright, intense eyes stayed locked to her glossy ones as he began to thrust into her relaxed body once again, with a renewed vigor. Lone grimaced slightly as she felt his cock drag along her walls, feeling every rough sensation amplified by her own recent release. 

“A-anywhere, just– ah, just not inside.” 

He gave a gruff nod, before setting his grip upon her hips, and pulled her forward into him, instantly picking up his pace as she gripped onto the mattress for dear life. 

“God, Charon. Fuck, not too–” 

“Almost. There.” He grunted, feeling his member swelling further with each harsh thrust, each blissful drag of her hot, tight walls around him. 

He slammed in, one more time, before fully wrenching his cock out of her, just in time to spill his release onto the foot of the mattress. 

Charon continued kneeling, allowing himself just a moment to breathe, to let that feeling of relief wash over him as one hand gripped his throbbing member, giving it a couple final jerks, until he was fully spent. His eyes darted to Lone, noting the way small tremors still ran through her body, and damn-near smirking at that blissed out look upon her face. 

She’d closed her eyes, he noticed, as he stood up and gathered his clothes, already beginning to dress and prepare to take watch while his partner slept soundly behind him. 

He’d only managed to haul his pants up over his hip bones, when he heard a small voice sound through the dim. 

“Charon?” 

“Hm?” He stepped over to the mattress, his brow furrowed as he looked down at her. 

Lone’s hair was mussed, her eyes tired, her voice almost as raspy as his own. 

She needs to rest, after all that. 

He had to stop himself from looking visibly pleased at the thought.

“Do you… do you have to go on watch right now?” 

Charon knelt down, as she sat up on the mattress. Meeting one another in the middle.

Distractedly, the ghoul found his hand moving to her arm, rubbing over a healing mark there. Maybe from some scuffle with raiders or mirelurks, maybe from him, he didn’t know. 

Have to be more careful… He recalled his grip on her thigh earlier, and on her hips. She’ll bruise from that, too. 

“Charon?” 

Her voice hit him, and he looked back up to her with a shrug. 

He should go on watch. It’s what he was supposed to do, if he was going to protect her. But the terms of their agreement had changed so much over the months… 

“Well… Instead of that, do you think you could, um…” 

She was always so strong, outspoken, usually so direct. It had surprised him in the beginning, knowing the soft vault life she’d come from. But he’d always admired it. 

This behavior though… It was strange. 

“Is something wrong?” He heard himself ask, even as one rough hand continued to stroke over her skin. 

“N-no, I just… Can you just hold me? For a moment? It doesn’t have to be long, but…” 

“Yes.” He stopped her. It sounded as though she were going to explain herself, try and justify this request, that to any other partner should be more than reasonable. It was expected, he was sure. 

But with me… 

Not for the first time in their relationship, not even for the first time that night, Charon found himself wondering what she saw in him. What she wanted from him. 

But this… in a way, it helped him understand. 

She truly sees me as her partner. Not an asset, not a bodyguard or a beast of burden, not a weapon, not a means to an end.

But an equal. 

It was something that was going to take some getting used to. 

“I don’t want to make you uncomfortable, or anything. I know we’re never mushy like this, really, but I don’t know, tonight, I just…” 

“It’s alright.” 

Lone moved over a bit on the mattress, making room for his bulk as Charon settled, albeit a bit uncomfortably, beside her. The mattress stopped supporting him almost as high as his knees, but Charon tried not to pay mind to it. 

No, like he had earlier, he tried to ground himself in her. 

Lone moved closer to him as he settled, and Charon’s arm snaked around her shoulders as her hands seamlessly wound about his bare waist. Her puffy cheek pressed into the firmness of his chest, and he felt the soft puffs of breath over his ruined skin lulling him into a blissful state of quietude. 

A heavy sigh escaped her, and he felt any stiffness left in her body vacate, as she melted into his shared contact. 

It was something he never knew he might come to enjoy. Never dared to want, not with the people he usually found himself close to. But this… Charon felt that he may just be able to get used to it.

[anwn]

Shadow is aplatonic: an argument.

"Friends? I'm only temporarily working with you to achieve a goal. Don't get the wrong idea."

from Puyo Puyo Quest's 25th Anniversary event

@apl-swag-bracket

What is aplatonicism?

Here is a quick definition to catch you up.

The aplatonic spectrum, otherwise known as the aplatonic umbrella, is a group of platonic orientations that fall under the umbrella term of aplatonic. Those on the aplatonic spectrum may lack platonic attraction or feel it so little that they relate more to aplatonic experiences. The common link between those on the aplatonic spectrum is that they do not feel the "standard" amount of platonic attraction or they don't feel it in the "standard" way, that alloplatonic individuals do.

Here is some more reading you can do on the topic.

Resources about aplatonicism are scarce and anyway, this is meant to focus on character analysis first and foremost, so forgive me if I cut this section short. Anyway, I believe I have given enough context, so let's get into the meat of this post.

Is Shadow aplatonic?

As stated outright in the Sonic Ultimate Character Guide, Shadow is a loner who relies on himself first and foremost.

from Sonic Ultimate Character Guide (2016)

He is extremely individualistic and doesn't compromise for the sake of others. He prefers to act alone rather than as a team, believing the latter to be futile, and will even choose violence over cooperation to get his way.

from "Team Sonic Racing Racers!" Interview (2019), IDW Sonic the Hedgehog (issue #09), Sonic the Hedgehog (2006) and Sonic Rivals 2 (2007) respectively

If he teams up with others with cooperation in mind, it's always in the interest of a higher purpose. He'll actively ditch crowds and avoid gatherings once the action is over.

from IDW Sonic the Hedgehog (issue #11 and #31 respectively)

Most of his interactions with the rest of the cast follow this pattern, however there is some nuance to be considered when looking at his dynamic with a select few characters.

Rouge and E123 Omega are two characters Shadow has often been partnered with. Although the word "allies" would be more appropriate to describe their relationship, they're easily the ones Shadow is closest to out of everyone else. In the case of Omega, Shadow even displays bouts of camaraderie, likely due to the fact they share a similar mindset.

from Sonic Heroes (2003)

from Sonic Chronicles: The Dark Brotherhood (2008)

from "Team Sonic Racing Racers!" Interview (2019)

Another notable dynamic that stands out is that between Shadow and Sonic. Shadow's attitude towards him could be much the same as with everyone else if it weren't for their rivalry. Although Shadow is always focused on his goals above all else, Sonic's presence brings out a competitive side that distracts him and pushes him to act recklessly.

from "Team Sonic Racing Racers!" Interview (2019)

from Team Sonic Racing (2019)

Shadow doesn't see Sonic as his friend, but considers him an important part of his life despite himself.

and lastly,

from Sonic Channel's Shadow character bio

Conclusion

Shadow doesn't feel the need for companionship and doesn't seek to bond with others if he doesn't have an ulterior motive. He's a loner and a misanthropic, and would rather work alone to achieve his goals in the most efficient way. Because of his standoffish personality, the few close/intense relationships he has are with people who are "like" him in some way, given the impression of an unconventional connection in a very tangible and grounded manner, and not so much driven by feelings of affection or love. Hence why I think Shadow is aplatonic or is on the aplatonic spectrum... I rest my case.

(I would have liked to give more examples, but the 10 image limit makes this very difficult haha)

Here's where you can read the translated version of the TSR Interview (which I referenced a few times) in its entirety.

Here is Shadow's official character bio.

[countrymusiclover]

3 - A Sloan Date

Part 4

Feisty Coffee Girl

Running my fingers through my hair I chuckled nervously feeling my face turn red with the interns watching our interaction. “I guess I’m meeting you for the second time, Mark Sloan.”

My entire body had frozen at that moment. I reached into my pocket of my coat drawing out my phone. Scanning through my phone contacts I saw that the number had called me when I had picked up my daughter from school. “You've been blowing up my phone for almost two weeks.”

“I thought you would have called me back by now if you were interested and most people I’m with are typically interested when we first meet.” Mark responded to me shoving his hands inside his coat pockets.

Christina spoke up first behind us. “You know the Mark Sloan.”

“Not really. We only met one time when I worked at the coffee shop.” I corrected her statement before she assumed we had a long past together when we didn't.

Meredith raised a brow. “So how did you two meet?”

“He wanted a coffee and I gave him a scone recommendation. That was basically all.” I looked at the girl.

Izzie finally rounded the nurse desk grabbing me by the back of my jacket pushing me away from the coffee guy. “You listen here Mr. You stay away from her. She doesn't want anything to do with you!”

“Woah Iz dial it down a bit would ya. Nothing happened.” I pushed my way around her, not clear on what she was so pushy about. He was a guy that we were meeting for the first time. He couldn't wrong me from our first meeting.

Mark smiled at me, sending me a wink. “Don’t worry she'd have to let me take her on first before we could ever get serious.”

I felt my face turning red at his words and it only got deeper when our gaze locked onto the other. I didn't feel up to dating at the moment. I had my daughter to think about first and foremost before anybody else. “Mark, I'll at least take you up on your offer to buy me a drink.” I finally spoke towards the plastics surgeon.

“Y/n!” Izzie gasped in disgust.

Waving my hand at her I focused on Mark. “What time were you thinking or what time do you get off of work?”

“How about a quarter to never.” Izzir growled behind me.

Mark put his hands in the pockets of his dark pants. “I'd say around 7. Does that work for you?”

“That’s fine with me.” I replied back.

Someone cleared their throat behind him and we saw an older black guy standing before us. “Dr. Sloan can I see you in my office?”

“Sure chief. I'll see you tonight, feisty coffee girl.” Mark sent me a wink following him to his office on the next floor of the hospital.

Another doctor walks over to our group that had styled black hair and soft eyes that met in Meredith’s direction but says nothing for a few minutes. The man finally did say something to the group though. “So. Who’s the feisty coffee girl?”

“That would be me.” I raised my hand moving away from Izzie, extending my hand to the guy. “Y/n, Y/n Stevens .”

“Derek Shepherd. Nice to meet you. Uh I'm sorry but do you know the kid driving the wheelchair through the hospital?” Derek introduced himself before my eyes went wide, turning around on my feet.

I jumped backwards away from him when a wheelchair came running past us and I instantly saw my daughter being the one driving it through the hospital area. “Uh sorry but I have to go. I’ll see you later, Izzie. Eve!” Chasing after her it took me a good few minutes before I had caught up with her and we made our way home since I had to get ready for my date with a doctor.

“Why can’t I come with you?” Everly asked me eating her chicken bites that I had made for her in the oven.

Slipping on my tenna shoes I was standing in my bedroom with the door open so we could still talk. “Because where mommy is going tonight isn't a place for kids. Don't worry we will spend the whole day together tomorrow to make up for it.” I told my young child looking at myself in the mirror. I hadn’t been on a date in forever.

“I'll get it!” The doorbell rang with Everly opening it revealing Caroline who closed it behind her.

She sat her bag down searching for me. “Y/n, I want to see your outfit before the date tonight!”

“Does this look too simple? It feels too simple but we're just supposed to go out for drinks. I mean it isn't helping this is my first date since I had Eve basically but-” I was cut off with my best friend raising a hand.

She eyed my outfit, which was some ripped blue jeans and a light orange lace shirt that was short sleeved. I left my hair down where I had curled the ends of it to look slightly cuter. “You look cute and he clearly found you attractive in your work uniform so you shouldn’t have to worry.”

“Okay I’ll choose to believe you.” I smiled, calling my daughter over. “Everly!”

She ran over to me when I lowered myself down to a knee hugging her before I left for the evening. “Promise me that you will be super good for Caroline while I am gone.” She looped her pinky with mine and I did the same making our promise. The bar that we were meeting at was near my apartment building so I could just walk down there. Walking down a few different streets I entered the bar seeing Mark sitting at one of the bar tables.

“There’s my feisty coffee girl.” Mark smirked when I sat down on the barstool across from him sitting my bag on the edge of the table. His eyes scanned over me not dropping the smirk. “You look cuter than you did in your work uniform.”

I blushed, snorting out a laugh. “I would hope so, Dr. Sloan.”

“Dr. Sloan, you don’t gotta call me that when we aren’t in the hospital. We’re on a first name basis aren’t we?” Mark smiled with a waitress bringing over two shots of tequila.

Picking up the glass I corrected my last statement. “My bad, Mark. But if we’re on a first name basis, call me Y/n.” We both raised our shot glasses and downed the drink yet I scrunch my nose at the bitter taste not used to doing strong alcohol.

“You okay, Y/n?” Mark asked, seeing the reaction on my face.

Covering my face with my freehand sitting my glass down on the table. When I got pregnant with Eve I didn’t have my first real drink until the day she went to elementary school. “Sorry tequila ain’t my thing.”

“We can go for something lighter. I ain’t picky especially if we can meet up again.” He met my gaze, waving the waiter over to get some different shots for us. We had done about four or five different shots just talking about his job and my job.

I wasn’t sure if I could tell him about my daughter yet. Most of the time when I did guys pretty much didn’t call me back after the date or just left during the date. If it was just me and Eve for a few more years I’d be somewhat okay with that. “You really want a second date. I didn’t think a simple coffee shop girl would impress a plastic surgeon.”

“You’re not a simple coffee girl, Y/n.” Mark sat his glass down reaching for my freehand laying on the table intertwining his with mine. “There’s something about you that interests me.”

I blurted out the question feeling embarrassed the second I said it. “You aren’t just saying that so I’ll sleep with you?”

“I’ll prove it.” He responded quickly back.

A curious look crossed my face. “How ya gonna do that?”

“While we keep going out I won’t sleep with anyone else. I won’t even mention it unless you want me too. Does that seem fair?” Mark squeezing my hand waiting for my response.

Squeezing his hand in mine I agreed to the offer not knowing what I was getting myself and my daughter at some point into. “Sounds like an interesting challenge. I accept it.” The night ended with him walking me back to my building and nothing more.

Comments really appreciated ❤️

[dreambunnynotes]

things to keep in mind before reading my blog:

1.) self-improvement is not a "one size fits all" experience. my strengths, barriers, methods, and goals are going to be very different from everyone else's, and the methods, routines, and lists i post might not always apply to your life and might not be relevant to your experience at all. i am in no way claiming that my way is the only way; self-improvement is a very personal journey and it is through self-discovery that we learn what works best for us, which i encourage everyone to seek on this beautiful journey! ❤︎

2.) on this same note, this blog is a personal blog which means that i am posting my own unique-to-me self-improvement experience and not necessarily posting with anyone else in mind. please use discernment and only take what inspires you, leaving behind what doesn't. i ask that you do not attack me for posting what i am currently working on in my own journey, unless i am being harmful and need criticism. i am trying to not worry about what other people think of me and focus on my own self-improvement and i encourage you to do the same; keep your body and mind healthy and safe first and foremost, always!

3.) i am very aware of how detrimental the toxic positivity and productivity culture are, especially in north america where i am from, and i try to walk a fine line between discipline and play. my current journey is primarily focused on building up tolerance to discipline and hard work. if you are at a point in your journey where rest and recovery from over-working are integral to your growth, my posts might not be applicable to you and that is totally okay! i respect and support your journey, and please know that my need to focus on hard work at this moment is not in any way an attack on where you are at in yours.

4.) it is very important to me that the health and beauty related information i share is scientifically accurate and is not cultural appropriation. if i post something that is incorrect, insensitive, or harmful, please let me know and i will make sure to edit or take down the post and learn from my mistakes! accountability is important to me and i am always open to learning more.

5.) i do not follow people under the age of 18. it is nothing personal against you if you are a minor, it's just that it is important for me to follow people who are at a similar place in life as me and to make sure that the friends i make are within my appropriate age range. however, all people are welcome on my blog and it will ALWAYS be sfw! when i was a minor on tumblr, it was very important for me to follow adults that i looked up to and who were safe and treated me with respect so that i could grow and learn; you are welcome here, and i will always try to treat you and everyone i interact with with the utmost care and respect!

with love, bunny ❤︎

[ruthlesslistener]

all the recent lurien/hegemol shipping is hilarious to me because i have a post somewhere on my hk blog that's like "lurien is the type of guy to resign himself to courtly pining forever (palewatcher) and get horribly embarrassed he actually likes his betrothed" and that's just. lurimol. pk (guy who arranged the marriage) giving an oblivious thumbsup in the bg as lurien realizes he'll never be able to explain the situation his ridiculous pining ass got in (at least he stops pining)

OH NO MY WEAKNESS: ARRANGED MARRIAGES

(Seriously I think they're so underappreciated in fiction. I'm not even like the 'got into arranged marriage and fell in love' thing, I just like the idea of the married couple forming some sort of partnership be it friends with benefits, actual love, tax evasion/political boosts, or 'yeah this is just easier and more secure, date who you want', though I'm especially partial to political fwbs)

Arranged marriage Lurimol is an interesting one though, because I feel like it would be less arranged and more...encouraged? If that makes sense? Given that Lurien is like the third most powerful bug in Hallownest after the King and Queen themselves, and Hegemol is one of the Great Five. I can totally see WL doing the encouraging too, as I headcanon her being an ambiguously defined 'Root' to mean that she represents the mutalistic connections between fungal mycellium and plants, so she has less of an individualistic view and more of a communal one. Lurien's wilting away in his tower? Perhaps he needs a supplement. What is a very effective supplement to the lives of her people? Long-term partnerships. These can be familial or friendly, but since Lurien has no living family and is too socially isolated to easily make friends, a mateship will work. At the very least, it would improve his health during breeding season, provided that he actually interacts enough with the outside world to come into cycle (which is part of the problem-he doesn't). And since Lurien is one of her beloved's favored, he is set to age extremely slowly, and thus has limited options to choose from. What are those options? Well, there's Monomon, who is technically immortal in her own right, but is also very strange and never showed much inclination to form partnerships in the way Lurien would desire- and, of course, she is a woman. There are the Five, but three of them are also women, and also taken themselves. That leaves Hegemol and Ogrim- but both are beetles, and beetles do not like to share. So, Hegemol it is. A talk with her hudband about the benefits vs the potential political costs (of which there are none) would ensue, and then she would bring up the idea to Lurien.

(Let's also assume here that WL is unaware of the fact that the source of Lurien's pining was PK, for if she'd known she would have urged her husband to do something about it. She is actually quite fond of Lurien, after all.)

As for Lurien's side of things, I'm not sure if he'd be too keen on it at first- his loyalty is to Hallownest first and foremost, and he doesn't know Hegemol very well at all, which is an intimidating thought. But I can also see him caving into his queen's request that he at least comes to watch one of the sparring competitions that the Great Knights show in as a means of boosting morale to the public and having a bit of fun, during which he notices that hmm, Hegemol *is* quite a magnificent fighter, and he *does* have a humble charm outside of battle that appeals to him quite well, as well as a handsome and kindly air. Fierce on the battlefield, focused and strong-willed, but gentle at hand- that *is* what he tends to find quite attractive in men. And since Hegemol *is* a knight, there likely won't be political banter that he has to deal with, no secrets or ulterior motives that he has to navigate, so talking to him shouldn't be too hard. Knights tend to be straightforward folk. And he's beloved by and close to the King, so Lurien's...eccentricities likely wouldn't phase him. Not a dangerous gamble. Just an uncertain one, for a person who spent all his life pining and shelving away his desires to focus his attention on other things

As for Hegemol himself...WL wouldn't have told him, as she would have liked to see how him and Lurien got along naturally, but PK would have been very blunt about it, so he'd give it a shot. The Watcher is an engmatic figure, after all, but he knows that he is dedicated to the City and the King and is kind at heart, for he and Ogrim trained the Watcher Knights, and he knows Lurien treats them quite well. What's the risk, especially since he's gone so long since his last true partnership (perhaps even before his knighting)? He could flirt with the spectre of the spire for a bit. And that sort of thinking is how he ends up learning that despite Lurien being a pragmatic political mastermind, he's really quite unsure about how people work behind closed doors, and hasn't had an actual romantic relationship like...ever. Which seems a bit confusing, given that he is a classy bug with an eye for fine art, but then again, Lurien was beloved by the King, and the King was a bit of an odd one. I think he would find Lurien's artificially calm, soft-natured means of speaking contrasted with his hard, unyielding resolve to do best by Hallownest quite appealing, especially given that it comes from a deep love for the City and its people, just like Hegemol. They're both warriors- Lurien just fights with words in unseen corridors behind lush velvet curtains, while Hegemol slogs through the earth with his armour heavy on his carapace and his mace firm in his hands. Different methods, same results. Same heart. They'd be a good match.

(As for PK's thoughts on this...they'd basically boil down to 'is Lurien content? Good. Then I have done my duty.' Dude's love language is acts of service, though he'd never admit to it nor try to linger on what Lurien, Monomon, or the Five meant to him. Too many feelings. Too much uncertainty, and a king should never be uncertain.)

[areislol]

𝟐𝐤 𝐄𝐕𝐄𝐍𝐓 — "𝐖𝐇𝐀𝐓 𝐃𝐈𝐃 𝐘𝐎𝐔 𝐒𝐀𝐘, 𝐋𝐎𝐕𝐄?"

first and foremost. i just want to thank ALL of you guys, even if you supported me from day one or even if it was just a few months, weeks, or days ago! your support and love keeps me going and i really appreciate it!

and 2k is quite a number, again, i am so so so thankful for each and every one of you guys. i decided that i wouldn't do a 1k event – even if i wanted to – because i would do a 2k one (an even bigger event!!)

i hope you enjoy this event and hopefully you will always when i do a milestone event.

𝐖𝐇𝐀𝐓 𝐈𝐒 𝐓𝐇𝐈𝐒 𝐄𝐕𝐄𝐍𝐓?

to celebrate hitting 2k+ followers.. i decided to do an event which includes multiple things! i feel that only focusing and doing one thing is quite boring, for me.

there will be two parts of this event! one of them would be an interactive character event. the other would be a letter from your favourite character addressed to you.

i will explain all of this down below.

happy event and requesting! ♡

𝟎𝟎𝟏. 𝐈𝐍𝐓𝐄𝐑𝐀𝐂𝐓 𝐖𝐈𝐓𝐇 𝐘𝐎𝐔𝐑 𝐅𝐀𝐕𝐎𝐔𝐑𝐈𝐓𝐄 𝐂𝐇𝐀𝐑𝐀𝐂𝐓𝐄𝐑 — "𝐘/𝐍! 𝐌𝐘 𝐋𝐎𝐕𝐄"

soo.... what is this part all about? basically, you're just interacting with your favourite characters!

𝐑𝐔𝐋𝐄𝐒

can request multiple characters from different fandoms, but characters from the same fandom would be preferred.

sfw and nsfw (minus minors) are allowed (along with suggestive themes/actions), but in my opinion, sfw is wayyy better, but it's up to you!

anons are allowed

𝐇𝐎𝐖 𝐃𝐎 𝐘𝐎𝐔 𝐑𝐄𝐐𝐔𝐄𝐒𝐓?

all you have to do is send an ask with an action and/or (with) words along with the character(s) you want them to react to!

you don't have to mention the character(s) you want to do if you already added their name in the sentence/action.

if you are doing multiple characters, it's okay to do an action/sentence for each of them. if not you can do one interactive comment for them all.

sfw and nsfw are allowed!

(since there are two parts to this event, make sure you specify that you're requesting for "lilies" for this (001) and "daisies" for the other one (002) )

an example: (I DO NOT TAKE AVATAR REQUESTS, IT'S JUST AN EXAMPLE!)

Hi! I'd like to request for the 2k event, lilies, "Hey, Lo'ak! What do you think... going to the forbidden shack?"

here (^), they already mentioned the character's name which is lo'ak and they added an interactive action/sentence which is them inviting lo'ak to going to the forbidden shack. i would then reply to their ask with:

"Huh? ..... oh shit, HELL YEAH, DOWN FOR IT!! Should I call Kiri? Or Tuk? Spider?" lo'ak says with a bashful smile, already dashing away to ask any of his siblings or spider if they wanted to come. While running, lo'ak had a giddy smile on his face and his heart was pumping against his chest.

okay actually that wasn't very fun to write, here's another example:

may i req for the 2k event w neteyam, lilies, - "Hey Neteyam? I love you."

"Oh– Really, y/n? Well, yawne, i love you more.. i think you know that." he says smoothly, brightly smiling. You roll your eyes playfully as he pokes your side. "Hey? Heyyy, syulang... my love..?" neteyam scoots closer to you and places his face in the crook of your neck.

soft giggles escape your mouth as your hand lays on his head, "'teyam! Oh, well, this is nice". silence passes by when you abruptly feel the rumbles on your neck as he speaks. "i can't hear you.", upon your words his head suddenly pops out, "i said, you know i love you more than you love me, right?"

the same can go for just actions! example: *lays head on his lap*, how would zhongli, childe, ganyu and kazuha react?

𝟎𝟎𝟐. 𝐋𝐄𝐓𝐓𝐄𝐑𝐒 𝐀𝐃𝐃𝐑𝐄𝐒𝐒𝐄𝐃 𝐓𝐎 𝐘𝐎𝐔 — "𝐃𝐄𝐀𝐑, 𝐘/𝐍..."

how would you like it to have a letter from your favourite/comfort character addressed to you? well, you could find out by just requesting for this!

𝐑𝐔𝐋𝐄𝐒

can request multiple characters!! you get to request three time!!

only sfw.

please chose whether you want it to be fluff, angst, comfort or any other genre!

and make sure to mention the characters as well!!

and what you want the message to be about, or if you want it to be a surprise, just tell me!

it can be a letter sent from the character(s) or a letter replied to yours.

or if you want to be comforted by them, i got you!

𝐇𝐎𝐖 𝐃𝐎 𝐘𝐎𝐔 𝐑𝐄𝐐𝐔𝐄𝐒𝐓?

all you have to do is send an ask with the rules above (^) and the character(s) you wish to see!

it's simple, an example:

and i reply to your ask, like how they would!

(since there are two parts to this event, make sure you specify that you're requesting for "lilies" for the other one (001) and "daisies" for this one (002) )

Could I request maybe zhongli, ei, xiao and kaeya (daisies) where reader just sends them (letter with) a smiley face? Like nothing else, just a ":)"

or

daisies!! xiao, venti, heizou and itto sending reader a letter during their mission, they miss them so much and just wants to talk to them again. fluff/comfort pls!

or

daisies, xiao, i don't feel right. i dont feel okay today, i don't know why. (so lame ik im sorry)

and i will reply to it like how xiao would! easy.

if you have anymore questions or confused, just pop in an ask!

𝐅𝐀𝐍𝐃𝐎𝐌/𝐖𝐇𝐎 𝐖𝐈𝐋𝐋 𝐈 𝐁𝐄 𝐓𝐀𝐊𝐈𝐍𝐆?

genshin impact and honkai: star rail

liyue — zhongli — ganyu — xiao — shenhe — xingqui — chongyun (platonic) — ningguang — keqing — hu tao — xiangling (platonic) — xinyan (platonic) — beidou — yanfei — childe — yelan — aether inazuma — kazuha — raiden — kokomi — gorou — sara — yae — thoma — ayaka — ayato — yoimiya — heizou — kuki — itto — scaramouche — aether mondstadt — venti — jean — kaeya — eula — rosaria — lisa — noelle — amber — razor — barbara — sucrose — fischl — albedo — diluc — mona — bennett — aether

sumeru

— cyno — tighnari — alhaitham — kaveh — collei (platonic)

honkai: star rail

— jing yuan — blade — welt — sampo — yanqing (platonic) — luocha — dan heng — kafka — seele — tingyun — yukong — stelle — caelus

for both lilies and daises, sagau (self aware genshin au) would be greatly appreciated!

𝐇𝐎𝐖 𝐋𝐎𝐍𝐆 𝐖𝐈𝐋𝐋 𝐓𝐇𝐈𝐒 𝐄𝐕𝐄𝐍𝐓 𝐋𝐀𝐒𝐓?

well, to simply put it, im not sure. i dont have an exact date when this will end but if i had to guess, probably one-two (1-2) months?

so, dd/mm/yy - dd/mm/yy

well, that's this! happy requesting and thanks again.

[autumnalwalker]

Writeblr Intro v3

Updating the pinned intro now that it's been a year and my (now previously) main WIP is complete as it's going to be.

Me:

I write as a hobby. It's something I do for fun and first and foremost for myself. But if other people happen to actually like what I write, that's pretty cool too.

I try to keep this main blog primarily writing-focused. I've set up the side-blog @traversedmiscellany for reblogging/posting any other random stuff that happens to catch my interest.

I tend to prefer to keep my online and offline lives separate so I rarely say much about personal details aside from what inevitably winds up leaking into talking about my writing.

I am open to tag games and ask games. Or just general writing-related asks.

If anyone would like to be added to a tag list (whether for WIP updates or tag games), please feel free to send me a message or reply to this post, specifying what you want to be on the tag list for.

My WIPs:

Completed (Is it still a "WIP" at this point? Either way, it's fully online and available to read for free.):

The Archivist's Journal:

A slice-of-life story about waking up on a fantasy tropical island told over the course of a year in the form of daily journal updates. Mostly fairly chill, just living life one day at a time, but with some occasional angst, social anxiety, and supernatural spookiness.

The whole story (just over 330,000 words) is posted on my side blog @thearchivistsjournal. Or if you want to read from the beginning, here's the chronological posting. Or if you prefer to read in a format other than Tumblr posts, it's mirrored over on my ScribbleHub.

Also, here's the post I made when the project was completed for some more meta background on it and what I mean when I call it "complete."

I may eventually make additional scattered journal entries as a sort of periodic epilogue, but Day 380 should be considered the end of the "main story," so to speak.

Ongoing:

Empty Names:

My current main project. Also freely available to read in full as chapters go up.

A bit of an episodic urban fantasy moster-of-the-week sort of deal that's mostly an excuse to have a cast of OCs that I like interact with eachother. The basic premise is a world-hopping adventurer attempts to set up a sword-and-sorcery style adventurer's guild in a modern world where "adventurer" isn't considered a legitimate profession. Has what I suppose one might call "genre-typical violence" with fighting monsters and such, and individual chapters are tagged with more specific content warnings where necessary.

Here's the masterpost for it with links to chapters and to several standalone side stories set in the same world/setting.

I'm much more casual with my update schedule on this project, but it seems to be coming out to posting weekly chapter updates for a month or two at a time and then taking a month or two off from posting while I rebuild my buffer queue for the next batch of chapters.

Also, while it's not exactly a focus, the five characters of the core cast are all some flavor or another of LGBTA+, if that's a selling point for you.

The Witches' Testaments:

A prequel to the currently-hiatused "Solarpunk Witch Story" below that I wrote the loose framework and beginnings of in a sudden fit of inspiration that I may return to sporadically.

The idea was to focus a bit more on the "punk" side of Solarpunk and paint a picture of the effort and rebellion that went into how that world transitioned from Cyberpunk dystopia to Solarpunk... well, not utopia exactly, but something better than it was and striving toward that dream.

And because that sort of thing is bigger than any one person and I had multiple worldbuilding concepts I wanted to touch on, I landed on the idea of writing it in the form of a series of interviews with various characters who lived through that period of change.

Here's the masterpost for it.

Indefinite Hiatus:

Untitled Solarpunk Witch Story:

A project that I absolutely intend to return to one day once Empty Names is finished, but that's going to be a good long while yet.

The story of a freshly-minted "witch" and her AI familiar traveling from town to town in an ecologically-recovering post-capitalism future, providing highly-specialized tech support and environmental consulting wrapped up in enough mysticism and aesthetics to blur the line between what's purely technology and what might possibly be some kind of magic. I only ever wrote a prologue and five chapters worth of an initial arc/town/problem to solve, but I liked what I wrote well enough to share all that online. Ultimately this project going on hold was a matter of it being one project too many for me to handle simultaneously on the time combined with a desire to get more experience at traditional prose writing (as opposed to the epistolary format of The Archivist's Journal) so that I could better do the concept justice when I do one day revisit it.

In the meantime, those initial rough chapter drafts are all up online here: Solarpunk Witch Masterpost

Miscellaneous other writing:

On most Thursdays I'll post small (couple hundred words at most) pieces based on various interesting dreams that I've had. Being based on dreams, the content is a mixed bag. Those are tagged under #my dreams. These now have a compilation Masterpost that I'll do my best to keep updated.

Alternatively, if you just want to browse semi-random excerpts and snippets from the above works, I post a lot of that under #tag game.

Some Standalone Short Stories:

(Stories that were either written to be standalone pieces, or appear within something else but worked well enough by themselves that I gave them their own separate posts.)

The Tale of the Merchant and the Blacksmith's Daughter: A sapphic fairy tale (and, in retrospect after writing, possible trans allegory).

The Melts: An attempt to shift what would normally be body horror into the genre of slice-of-life. "What if your body slowly melting over the course of the day were treated as no more serious than the common cold and you still had to go to work?"

Kindly Basilisk: A human mech pilot who wants to be a machine, an AI who wants to be human, and the relationship they form.

[mask131]

I was listening to a video about bad fandoms and how they ruin media etc etc...

And every time I hear about someone's experience being ruined by a bad fandom I think about one specific thing. How newer and younger generations grew up with the Internet and with social media - and as a result, for them, a social interaction will be first and foremost about the Internet. As such, when they want to enjoy or appreciate a media, they go to the Internet, and seek discussion and aporoval there.

But... As someone who grew up before the Internet was a thing everybody had. As someone who grew up in a household where the Internet was only my mother's work-tool, and definitively not for children, and barely used - as someone whose first connections to the Internet were done in cyber-cafes and by libraries' computers only when I was a teenager...

I remember and lived through a time where all the Internet fandoms DID NOT EXIST. And then, you could enjoy fully a media without worrying about the "fans". Heck, I lived in a time where people sometimes never met other fans of a given piece of media until several decades after discovering it! The invasion of the Internet and the wild colonization of social media in our society tend to make younger generations forget that medias will exist outside of a fando, and can survive a fandom. That the fandom is a byproduct of a media's existence, and is NOT NEEDED to consume, appreciate or dislike a piece of media.

I mean... I can give you dozens of shows I watched as a kid and a pre-teen that I was madly in love with, that I bought merch for, that I did fan-art of. And all that without ever encountering any other fan or hearing anybody else's opinion about the show. I just watched it, enjoyed it, and went on with my life. One CAN enjoy a media ALL ON THEIR OWN and all alone. It was how people did it for CENTURIES before you.

You clearly see how new generations' minds are shaped by the "Share this video" logic and by the "Comment section" structure. They are so used to see everybody sharing their opinion, they are so used to only read or see the most popular opinions, they are so used to see a media being SURROUNDED by fan reactions, that they end up believing in some warped way that they NEED to be part of a fandom, or that a media is equal and interwoven with its fandom. When the truth is that it is not.

There are tons of excellent pieces of media whose fandom died a long time ago, and yet the media is still there ; and same thing with hatedoms. On the other side, there are lots of pieces of media that never even got a fandom to begin with.

The whole "Fandom is everything" logic (that many people live by unconsciously) is only a fragment of a wider "community" phenomenon on the Internet, where everything must be a "community" and there is no individuality anymore. But here is the lesson and the moral to take out of things: If a piece of media is good, you can enjoy it, even if the fanbase or fandom is "bad". When you like a piece of media, you are NOT forced to interact with other fans or to care what the fandom as a whole thinks. You can be a fan, and not feel forced or obliged to be part of any "dom". And if someone "ruins" an experience of a media for you, always try to remember what YOU like about the media, and your singular enjoyment of it, and your own personal relationship with it.

I speak of experience here because when I first started sharing things about Sandman on Tumblr, I got into a bad situation with a crazy, bullying, obsessive fan of Sandman. It was all a pretty pathetic situation on all parts - because I was a young teen who wrote too hastily some posts without thinking about how my words could sound, and the other was a much older person who was hyper-focused on being the ultimate authority on Sandman (this person still tries to be the supreme ruler of the Sandman fandom by controlling Discors servers and making their blog the number one source of information about Sandman). This misunderstanding turned petty feud left me with a nasty and bitter taste that prevented me from sharing anything Sandman related - and did kill a bit of my Sandman joy... But I didn't left that ruin me. I wasn't going to leave one bad, rotten piece of mind make me unlove something I adored before. Because this is a person that exists OUTSIDE of Sandman, outside of the comic, outside of the media, and that I could have never even met if things had taken a different path.

I was bummed out that I couldn't share anything Sandman related anymore, because this person was stalking every Sandman post on this website, but I had to set my mind right because for YEARS and YEARS I did not share anything Sandman related, and it never bummed me out before. I collected Sandman volumes each year, for special occasions and given sasons - I have a whole personal history and experiences with this comic, tied to specific holidays like Christmas or gifts given by people that aren't here anymore. I was certainly NOT going to deny or renounce to a whole part of my life and to a personal relationship I had with a story, just because of some anger-prone person that clearly had a sorry life if they had nothing better to do than jump on the back of any foolish kid that miswrote something and yell at them like some self-righteous so-called teacher. A person I didn't even know, who didn't even knew the real me, and that I would never meet, and that I could easily block since their only presence was virtual.

[I also got a bit better upon seeing that I wasn't the only "victim" that had to suffer this person's slightly unhinged and very obsessive behavior, and that other reasonable person also got attacked - and I admit I laughed my ass off when I saw that this same person got a nickname around that they disliked but that actually described them so well from an outsider's point of view, it put into words everything I had felt and perceived from my few interactions. I won't say it here because I know it apparently hurts this person, and there's no need to answer misery with misery, but that was just something part of the whole crazy story]

Anyway after this very long digression - this is my personal story. For years and years I enjoyed Sandman as a comic, made it a yearly ritual, had personal experiences with it, all of that without meeting anyone else who knew or enjoyed Sandman (most people either being disinterested or laughing it off). And yet, because of this warped Internet logic that screws people minds, because one very present fan very present online was a bad person and attacked me on ground of me being some sort of "fake fan"... I should just threw these years to the bin? Certainly not! I love Sandman and it shaped some special events of my life, and that's something no one else will live, no one else will know, and that no one can "ruin" for me.

So no, I do not understand when people say that a piece of media couldn't be liked because of its fandom. A media exists outside of its fandom, before a fandom is born, and will probably survive said fandom. What truly happens to these people - which is something they do not actually understand, and that they need to realize, the same way I realized it - is that bad fans will ruin one's PERCEPTION of a show, will give a person bad memories of a comic, will ruin things around a movie or even cause trauma related to a cartoon. But when you consider things more carefully you will realize that a bad fandom in itself - that your personal bad experience with a fandom - won't change what the show or cartoon or comic or movie or anime truly is. Think about how you perceived the media before knowing about its fandom or before your bad interactions - and hold on to that, because this is YOURS and YOURS only. Try to imagine how you would have answered to a piece of media if you had no knowledge of its fans. Try to see and perceive a media while omitting all things that do not come from the media itself.

Ultimately, it is a question of not letting others enter in your head. What you do by letting bad fandoms "ruin" your perception of a media, is that you let others infect your life and warp up your mind and smear something you had, with their toxic, venomous, stupid, hateful behavior. It is a form of mind-invasion, similar to things like brainwashing peer pressure, and I think it is something people do not talk enough about.

Be strong. Do not let them win. Try to find back what is YOUR opinion and your feelings, truly your own. Or stand by your position and do not let people's bad behavior cut off yourself from the media. It is not because someone acted badly in a theater play's audience or an opera-house that the play or opera shown in it was bad. I think this is the most impactful metaphor I can come up with. If someone starts insulting everyone within a theater play's audience, will you blame the actors or the playwright for it? Will it forbid you from reading the play's script or from seeing another performance? Will you say to people "No, do not go watch this play, the audience is really bad"?

I hope this post can help

[pinkmoondoll9shihtzu]

hi, im a mutual of yours who is too shy/on&off tumblr to interact, but i do look up to you; and your blog and way of seeing things helped me in the past when i was struggling quite a bit.

Lately I feel as if im lost in life, lost my passions and floating aimlessly without a real goal, detached from the future etc. Do you have any advice? I appreciate ur view on things, hope this isnt overstepping 🌦🌈

hi its ok no pressure too interact w me ona personal level just cus were mutuals i enjoy the ambient bonds that can form on this website its why i stay ^^ and no it's not overstepping at a;ll sorry it took me a lil while to respond i was trying to think of good advice since i often feel lost too---

well firs t n foremost to give credit where credit is due, this bjork reddit AMA response really gets to the bottom of it , ever since i first read this here on tumbr a few years ago it really rly stuck w me:

the way this answer helped me is like, it helped me realize i dont need to be so regimented i dont need to put all this pressure on myself to create..All that does is feed into self inflicted guilt when i cant live up to my own expectations u.u you see for my whole life i've never been able to plan anything. yes i can think about the next steps i want to take, i can assemble a plan, i can see the logical way forward, but my moods. or like, idek. how to explain..

i cant force anything. if im not feeling it, i cant force it. ive STRUGGLED w this like i dont wanna be this way. because my feelings i cant predict. like for example i worked on music all winter because thats what i was feeling. then suddenly in march i just like, wasnt feeling it all of a sudden. As soon as it hit me i was like Fy767*T&UG*** because i didnt know when it was gonna come back. i still dont know!! im just trying to be patient waiting it out..in the mean time i have suddenly become enthused with drawing again after not ~feeling~ drawing for most of 2023. sometimes i go for weeks where i dont take a single photo and then suddenly it starts flowing again.. my website was also left untouched for most of 2023 until recently.

thats just one example of this repeating pattern in my life that i didnt understand for so long. theres years of my 20s where i couldnt feel passion for anything at all, looking back now i believe those times i was meant to be focusing on stuff in my psyche that needed healing to clear out some headspace for art. and this bjork quote put a lot into perspective it showed me how to reformulate my thinking to be more accomodating to my disposition. when i'm patient & kind w myself, take each day as it comes, let go of the imaginary pressure, let go of "the future", stuff starts to come thru easier.

and maube its gonna show up in ways you dont expect but its true that the mundane world offers so many ways to practice being creative & giving u stuff to weave into the art u want to create.. every water fall starts w a single drop its trueits true :] thats my advice i spose i really didnt meant to write this much but im boooored.. actually my nighttime boredom writing is one of those habits i never considered to b creative until very recently. there's so many small & automatic things we do that can lead to a meaningful life & purpose.

thanks for the question anon i hope this helps in some way , this is whats helped me but everyone's process is different. and i still have moments where im like WTFFF is happening but its easier to ride it out now. i wish the same for you just give it time <3 thanks again xPmd9

[chosetherose]

✨Eras Tour Appreciation Post ✨

What. A. Show.

I expected to be amazed yesterday (Foxborough N1) but a few times I looked around the stadium in total awe. The visuals, the lights, the sound, the effects, the dancers, the costumes, the crowd, and TAYLOR.

This was my first time seeing her in concert/real life and I was absolutely stunned by her talent. It’s like I knew it was there, *obviously*, but experiencing it in person gave me a whole new appreciation. She is an incredible performer; every move she makes is designed to give her fans a good time. She floated around the sprawling stage singing terrific vocals, making it look EASY but I know she has put in WORK to be able to do that, physically. She plays up to the audience at the exact right times. Keeps us guessing. Keeps us having fun. In the audience, there’s competing emotions between savoring the moment and excited for what’s next.

I was so lucky to sit in the front row and will keep that experience in my heart forever. Something that really struck me about sitting so close was… well I feel like at other concerts sitting near the stage you can get more interaction with the artist (e.g. Harry Styles). But Taylor’s performance is catering to EVERYONE in the stadium. She glided around near me so many times. 10 feet away? I was RIGHT THERE and I feel like she never even came close to looking at me. What I did feel was she was laser focused on delivering an incredible performance for everyone in the stadium. It was obvious to me that the people in seats the very top were equally as important to her. I felt a lot of respect for her for that.

When fans’ flashlights came on for Marjorie it was chillingly beautiful. I looked all around and it spurred some sort of perspective shift for me. There were so many people there supporting her in that stadium but this wasn’t even a drop in the bucket compared to those that love her around the world. Being there physically gave me more of an appreciation for how delicate it must be trying to merge her public and private lives together to some non-maddening degree.

I could go on and on. I’ll wrap up by saying I took off my analyst hat I love to wear around here and I simply enjoyed the concert. I was jumping, screaming, dancing, having the time of my life. I noticed things here and there 😊 but first and foremost I was having FUN.

💖 CTR

P.S. I knew she was beautiful but my oh my she is a goddess on earth, simply stunning.

P.P.S. My jacket had rhinestones but I must have bought the wrong kind because Taylor’s (that were probably actually crystals) were blinding from across the floor. It made me irrationally happy.

- - -

I have so many videos I want to share with you all! Too many. So I made my favorite close ups that I took into GIFs. Enjoy! ☺️

[femmefatalevibe]

I fucked up my life. Had the opportunity to study yet I didn’t and now I’m working a dead end job otherwise I’ll be homeless while trying to study again. I’m so tired of myself, of my life. Want to do more and be more, and use my femme fatale ways but I am so tired all the time.

Hi love! Regret and ruminating on the past is such an emotionally-draining headspace to live in, so validating how you feel right now <3 

I think a two-part answer to this inquiry would be the most helpful. Here’s my take: 

Try out this mindset reframe: Instead of thinking about this lost opportunity as a finite failure, consider this current life season as a reset button/starting point on a new journey. While it’s important to keep a steady income at times you need it for essentials/financial security, make the prospect of creating your dream life into your creative outlet. This can be done through journaling, shadow work exercises, mood board creation, self-care activities, etc. 

First and foremost, don’t beat yourself up about feeling tired. This rumination will only make you feel more emotionally-drained because you’re using even more energy when amplifying this negative emotion. Think of motivation as a mental muscle. You need to train it for it to get stronger. Endurance and lifting heavy (responsibilities, workload, task complexities, emotional weight, etc.) takes practice and repetition. You’ll need to engage in mental progressive overload to strengthen this motivation to work up the energy and necessary, sustained focus to take on more tasks like studying or pursuing other activities/interests. 

Try to do something for 5 minutes daily for a week or make one minor change to your routine that brings you closer to your goals (e.g. reading a book, writing affirmations, swapping out one unhealthy meal for a more nutritious alternative, walking around the block, remaining confident in one interaction, etc.). Then, increase this exercise to 10 minutes daily the next week, 15-minutes, during the following week, and so on. As time goes on, your mental muscle will strengthen and momentum will take over as you see positive results from your initial focused actions. A positive return on your efforts will compound your energy and motivation to move forward, so you enter the right headspace and have supportive habits in place to help you reach your goals. 

Hope this helps xx 

[bonesandthebees]

Hallo ! I feel like you've probably gotten many questions like this one and I doubt there's a very good way to even answer it but: how do you go about writing family dynamics ? Or father son / sibling relationships... this probably depends on the characters being written but. Ok I'll be honest how does one master the crimeboys sandduo dynamic in writing I'm struggling here

I mean first and foremost when it comes to fanfic, I'd focus on just trying to write the characters and their dynamics accurately, and let the family vibes come through that. like with tommy and wilbur I don't necessarily set out with the intention of "this is how I'm supposed to write two brothers" instead I try to write how wilbur and tommy interact, and because the two of them genuinely do act like siblings it just works. to me, sandduo is similar because in my opinion, c!sandduo have a very great 'complicated father son relationship where neither one truly understands the other but they do genuinely love each other but they keep hurting one another bc of how out of step they are'. like, that just reads very 'father and child' to me, so again it's more about focusing on the canon dynamic and letting the family part of it shine through on its own if that makes sense?

now if you were talking about non-canon family dynamics like the rest of sbi (like how wilbur and techno are not brothers in canon, nor are techno and tommy, and phil is not canonically techno's father nor is he tommy's father) then the advice would be a little different but mostly the same. try to focus on the actual character dynamics first, then think about how to translate it into a familial relationship

I hope that helps at least somewhat!

[xxwritemeastoryxx]

Updates and Announcements

Wow I haven't done one of these in a while so I think it might be best to do one, right?

First and foremost, welcome to the new followers! I haven't had a chance to welcome you guys in some time. But I appreciate you being here! I hope that whatever it was that helped you to decide that I was worth following continues to happen!

Lets talk about a few things. Remember when I said I was going to move all of my 18+ work over to an after dark page? Well that happened forever ago and I NEVER posted on it again. I made pretty banners and everything for my masterlist and nothing came from it. SO after thinking long and hard about it, I will be deleting that blog altogether and moving everything back over here.

But Dom, what about the Minors that follow you? You see, I thought about it. I thought about just deleting the few fics I have and just moving on, but that feels like a lot like book burning and I'd rather not. So while I can put up several warnings and tag the living crap out of that fic, I can't stop them from ignoring all that.

But to ease my conscious a bit, here are some tags that I'll be using for all things of age. #babies not included #18+ #Dom's trash If you are currently under age, I'd greatly appreciate you adding these to your filters! Thanks!

With that being said, fics like Business or Pleasure and What the Future Holds will be added to the Masterlist here. BoP was simply linked to the afterdark page and thankfully I don't have to repost that. Cause I would absolutely hate to lose all those notes. What the Future Holds will need to be reposted since I'll be deleting the blog it's currently attached to.

I'll be adding a legend to my masterlists. That way it's a little easier to figure out what's what before clicking on them. I used to do this in the very beginning but somehow managed to stop. So that will be starting back up again.

Let's talk fics, next! In case you haven't noticed, some fics have a '-discontinued-' notice right next to it. For the time being, I will NOT be completing those fics. Its not that I don't want to finish them-especially with some close to the end-its just i have no motivation to finish them. Maybe one day I will come back to them. ALSO! SEQUELS! Many requests and comments have been about sequels. Second parts don't always get the same attention as the first. I've been so grateful that Phantom has been getting as much interaction as it has been. But that's because of all of the interactions it had been getting. So what I'm getting at is that I won't be continuing a fic if the interaction is low on it. I'm always happy to make a second part of something, so long as its getting notes. So be sure to interact with your favorites if you want to see it get a second part to it.

Interest Posts will be happening at some point again. I of course want you guys to be enjoying the things I post. I know there has been some notice that I've fully been focusing on Phantom a lot more than anything else. It honestly goes back to the interaction it is getting that is fueling my writing muse for it. So again, be sure to interact with the fics you like.

Remember These Violent Delights? As much as I loved Adriana, she didn't seem to be accepted here on tumblr like I hoped she would and I had eventually taken down that series. So now I wanna give that series another shot as a reader insert. I've been working on it a bit behind the scenes and I hope that this fic will have a better comeback as a reader insert than an OC. Posting dates for that will come soon!

Requests are OPEN! So send in those requests! Incase you need a reminder on who and what I write for, here is a quick list!

Fandoms: The Vampire Diaries Universe Marvel Cinematic Universe

Characters I write for: Elijah Mikaelson * Klaus Mikaelson Kol Mikaelson Damon Salvatore Jackson Kenner Tony Stark Loki Steve Rogers Bucky Barnes* I can write for others if the inspiration is there as well! *Indicates most read/requested fics, along with a larger quantity of fics available to read

I believe that is all I have for now. If you stuck around this long, Thank you so much for doing so and I look forward to interacting more with you guys!

[sickbaysaturdays]

[ID: Futuristic font reads “sickbay saturdays” over an image of an empty Star Trek TOS sickbay /ID]

Welcome to Sickbay Saturdays!

What is it?

A weekly(ish) event to explore and celebrate unique possibilities for writing futuristic medicine! Run by @withalittlebitofwhump. Not just for Star Trek!

This is first and foremost a whump and hurt/comfort event, but we’re also here for futuristic medicine, cool leaps in medical science, body-focused SF, and transhumanism in fiction, especially that informed by and inclusive of disabled people.

How does it work?

Tag new posts "#sickbay saturdays”. We’ll reblog a selection of these posts, but this will also let participants find your content, even if we don’t reblog it.

For your older posts, either reblog and tag us, or send submissions or asks.

We’ll mainly post on Saturdays, EST, but there’s no strict cut off for participation! We plan on posting (automated) prompts Friday nights and monitoring tags on Saturdays.

How do I participate?

All formats are welcome! Consider:

Giffing your favorite scenes

Sharing video clips

Recommending favorite on-theme fiction or fanfiction

Posting excerpts and quotes from whumpy books

Sending asks ala TAT

Writing fanfiction 

Posting your own art

Or anything else that doesn’t violate “Tumblr good citizenship” guidelines. (No re-posting, don’t tag us if you know the OP doesn’t want to interact with whump blogs, etc.)

Please make sure to use the tag “#sickbay Saturdays” so that participants can find your content even if we don’t reblog it.

Interested in helping out? Drop us a message!

Focus / restrictions:

We have a futurism/sci-fi focus. Please don’t clog up the tag with unrelated works!

Please tag common triggers and consider putting works with strong/many triggers under a read more. All explicit content should be clearly marked (N/S/F/W, "lemon”, “explicit noncon”, etc are all acceptable) and should either be under a cut or be a teaser linking to the content. Please refer to this post for other things you may want to tag for.

While the focus is on “classic” whump (action adventure / environmental as opposed to captivity/conditioning), anything with appropriate tags / warnings is welcome. To help folks keep track, action adventure / environmental whump will be tagged “purple whump” and captivity / conditioning as “orange whump”, based on OP’s tags. "Orange” and “purple” tags are arbitrary tags we use to help community members that suits their preferences without implying morality.

We’re unable to reblog everything -- we’ll reblog a selection of what’s tagged every week. If we don’t reblog or post what you send, it’s probably because it slipped through the Tumblr cracks, we’re trying to control the amount of posts, etc. You can find the rest in the #sickbay Saturdays tag!

Upcoming Themes:

February 11: Pan-sci-fi warm up week (anything SF-med goes, but Ari will mostly be offline so this blog will run on a queue/a bit late)

February 18: Sickbay [official kick-off!]

February 25: Desert Planet

March 4: Android

March 11: Side effects of space travel

March 18: Healing pod malfunction

March 25: Kidnapping

April 1: Field medicine

April 8 (Genre Focus): Cyberpunk

April 15: Futuristic Drugs

April 22: (no event)

April 29: Cryosleep

May 6 (Fandom Focus): Star Wars

May 13: Field medicine

May 20: Torture

May 27: (Medical focus): Disability in Science Fiction