#that you'll ever understand!

[laski-and-sage]

Alucard: OH MY GOD I'm in love- I'm so fucking in love!

TJ: Is it a couple of thighs.

Alucard: I'm... in... *clears throat* uhm what?

TJ: Is it... a pair of thighs which are attached to... Anderson?

Alucard:

Alucard: Nnnnnnn...Nnnnooooo?

TJ: It is, isn't it?

Alucard: I wanna be sandwiched between them, okay?!

TJ: Your horniness is spoiling my instant ramen, the noodles retreat in disgust...

Alucard: Sorry-

TJ: Spill the tea later, lemme eat!

Alucard: YES!

[lazylittledragon]

i refuse to believe that boycotting is hard. my favourite thing in the world is ordering maccies after a late night at work/a concert/getting drunk. yes i do miss it sometimes. but the other night i ordered from a small place near my house instead and it was the most orgasmic burger i've ever had in my life. i very rarely say this but fucking suck it up people are DEAD

[wispforever]

[shadebloopnik]

There's just something about Floyd being unhinged in fics that just gets me.

Like yes he gets portrayed as a sweet frail uwu boi most of the time, which is also niceee and all, and would also suit his sensitive title. But then there are fics where Floyd is absolutely off the rails at times; where Floyd is nearing losing his voice being the loudest in a shouting match, where Floyd nearly bites someone's head off in anger, where Floyd tries to sneak out of his room multiple times even when his body still very much recovering from greeting his grandma, where Floyd wrestles with his brother on the floor because he's about to do impulsive sht for the people he cares about, fics where Floyd absolutely LOSES HIS SHIT

And the best part is that none of it is out of character for him at all. In fact, it'd cement his title as the sensitive one even more. Being sensitive isn't just about sad and mopey. Sometimes its about being nuts, and paranoid, and being impulsive when your loved ones are in danger and being so so angry that you'd yell and cry from the frustration. Not that he's always feral and wild- because he's def the one to mediate most of the time, but in situations where his loved ones are in danger, I just love when he's unapologetically emotional in every aspect about it, when he's sobbing and yelling without abandon.

There's something about Floyd in fics letting his emotions speak in such a powerful, feral way that gets me.

[elodee]

HERMIT A DAY MAY - DAY 30

SmallishBeans x Mononoke

For Joel I chose the gorgeous anime mini series, Mononoke!

I chose this for Joel because Mononoke is the most beautiful anime I have ever seen. Others have come close, but Mononoke is number one for me. The bright colors, detail, and texture variation remind me a lot of Joel's base.

The show is animated with a paper texture and looks like a moving Edo era ukiyo-e woodblock print. Still images don't do the show justice, so please go watch it.

Do note, however, that the show is technically horror. The series is beautiful but very eerie and touches on dark topics. It also has a lot of surreal imagery that could be upsetting to some people, so discretion is advised.

To learn more about Mononoke and see my style references, go below the cut.

@hermitadaymay

(Gamers Outreach fundraiser)

Mononoke is the story of a nameless person known only as the Medicine Seller who wanders Edo era Japan. The enigmatic figure seeks out restless spirits called mononoke who bind themselves to negative emotion and haunt the living. The Medicine Seller finds ways to get close to the spirits and learns their purpose for lingering in the human world, then attempts to exorcise them. Every two to three episodes follows the story of an new exorcism.

The draw of the show, in addition to its beauty, comes from unravelling the mystery behind each mononoke, since the Medicine Seller can't perform an exorcism until he understands what happened to cause the spirit to become attached to a specific place or person.

The show feels almost like a detective story, but a really creepy one where you're not really sure what's going on half the time. Mononoke is unique, and definitely not everyone's cup of tea. However, even if the genre isn't your vibe, it's definitely worth watching at least some of it for the visuals alone.

Style references:

The show has a papery texture behind the animation, making even very simple shots look really detailed and beautiful.

Some episodes reach hyperpop levels of colors and patterns, though still using paper-like texture throughout. The results are stunning - I remember pausing episodes on my very first viewing just to take in some beautiful scenes.

The title design in a piece of art for Mononoke.

[reeveskryze]

You know what I love even more about the whole The TARDIS has ramp access now? It has the grip tape.....like its not just a ramp, its a ramp with grip tape. Its a ramp that's not excessively steep. AND IT HAS GRIP TAPE. Grip tape. Not only is the TARDIS now accessible, it's easily accessible and not just for wheelchairs. Walking sticks and walkers can use it too (these are the aids I have experience with so I can't comment on others)

[serenpedac]

I will admit, aside from the whole emotional arc for the polymance, I can't help but have thoughts about.. some other things as well.

nsft below the cut, minors dni

First of all, this fic has been on my mind, no surprise there, I suppose, haha! It's so good!

Apart from that, I'm also thinking about N's exhibitionists tendencies and how pleased they are after, for example, the b3 sexy scene outside. They revel in seeing what they can do to their LI and from there, it's only a small step to thinking about how they might also enjoy someone else seeing how they can unravel their LI.

That led to a WIP:

"You're beautiful like this," Nate whispers into her ear, one arm across her body to hold her to his chest. "Flustered and wanting and wet." The words are followed by a kiss at the hinge of her jaw, and his fingers tease a nipple, sending sparks straight to her core.

It's only when she meets Adam's gaze, wide-eyed and burning, that she realises what Nate is doing: he's showing her off.

(...)

Nate's voice is hoarse and breathless when he says, "Let him see you come."

[bonefall]

The recent post really made me realize just how much I love your version of Clearsky.

Dude was super religious while at the same time basically being in a pissing contest with it.

They gave him the most on the nose lesson on humility possible, and he doubles down on everything in an act of stubbornness that's almost admirable in how awful and stupid it is.

And out of all the BB villains bar Mapleshade, he wins. He is such a fucking menace that he forces his own religion to bribe him and then becomes a patron deity of said religion, and irreversibly changes his entire society for the worse through sheer force of will.

He believes that the world revolves around him and only him, and to be honest, I kinda see why he thinks that

Thistleclaw and Tigerstar wish they were half as successful as Clearsky, and he didn't do it through plotting or magic, but by refusing to learn his god damn lesson no matter how many times it came back to bite him.

I feel like, especially in the Current Day with the Events That Occur around us irl, it's a shame that we never get villains who win through SHEER force of will. It's so, so rare in fiction.

BB!Skystar isn't scheming, he doesn't have a master plan, he doesn't even really have an end goal at the height of his power. He just lives in his own head and does whatever the hell he wants.

That's it! So simple! No self-reflection, absolutely incapable of taking criticism, refuses to grow and change. He has a beautifully simple mind. And it is that very lack of conscious that leads to his strength. You can't shame the shameless. You can't convince him to amend his ways.

There's one way to overcome him; to defeat him, physically. To remove his power. Nothing else will work; he will keep coming back until he is stripped of it. In BB he is the first leader to die, because of that.

Even after Thunderstar refuses to kill a helpless opponent, Skystar took his last chance and went right back to war with it.

And he'll deliver a speech about everyone having one life to give, and about the goodness and righteousness of dying for a cause, but that's all just his rationalization. He can't confront the truth, so he never will. If he did think about it for more than a second... he would be the bad guy.

But he can't. He can't be the bad guy. Because then he would be wrong. So he will simply never think about it.

In the end, what does him in is the fact he got out-bullied by a bigger tyrant. He realized that his power would be threatened by there being less warfare, and he flinched first. His invulnerability was compromised, in that last moment, because it was the ONLY moment where he entertained self-doubt.

I just think he's neat

[taegularities]

some men are textbook villains fr

[strqyr]

i don't want to be me anymore + i love you just the way you are -> ruby comes back as herself [knowing what it is to feel loved].

i don't want to be me anymore + the truth is no one's ever loved you -> whatever cinder has going on with mimicking those she considers powerful.

[i've connected the dots.jpeg]

[smol-blue-bird]

today in insane anti-intellectualism: I just saw a post about how aspiring healthcare practitioners shouldn't take classes in biology and chemistry because those subjects are useless and bad. ????

[agriocnemis]

say what you want about the honkai star rail community, but honestly the best thing to come out of it is just straight up Argenti and his fan base.

like, originally I mained him because he is useful for physical damage and his ult is very fun to use.... but man does he speak like some medieval knight who is so excited about the modern era he's in instead of being freaked the fuck out.

also mostly because of this one meme I have realized how much he literally just acts like this:

I can never see him in a bad light than being far too willing to 1v1 people needlessly. he's just oddly chill and helpful once you convince him of something.

[pickletrip]

Foreshadowing much

Really now? Are you sure about that?

Yes boss. You'll be her favourite and he'll be her new favourite. Not them arguing over this wonderful grandmother. I swear if anything happens to her during this show I'll lose my mind. She's the sweetest, bestest and most humble person I've seen. She cares and she understands way more than her grandson. I just love her.

[toasteaa]

😅 and 🫂 PLEASE !

Pining stage asks💙

😅 did anyone ever mistake you two for a couple? how did you both react?

Who HASN'T mistaken Eclair and Neuvillette for a couple, let's be real. The gestionnaires (most of them), the Melusines; hell, their Archon has mistaken them for being a couple before. But it's subtle. Indirect. A little cloud of gossip about them when they're not around. It's not THE talk of the nation, just a bit of afternoon gossip fodder for the gestionnaires since they're the ones that see Eclair and Neuvillette the most.

But being mistaken for a couple directly? Having someone, perhaps a sweet mannered old woman, call them a lovely couple while on post work evening stroll?

Eclair is shocked, to say the least. Schools her expression in almost immediately and tries to think of a response. Everyone in Fontaine knows Neuvillette. Everyone knows Neuvillette does not get into relationships. He doesn't even say he has friends. But...she's silently flattered that they were mistaken for a couple. It flutters around quietly in her chest and slowly brings some color to her cheeks. A feeling that she's also silently stamping back into place because she is not in a relationship with Neuvillette. Even though the thought is extremely nice.

Even if she tries to deny it, she's not able to get it out once the old woman takes Eclair’s hands in hers; showering her with those same sweet comments little old ladies she's helped before always seem to give her. Only now it's peppered in-between stories of never having seen the Iudex as much as she has these past few years and how much happier and more relaxed he seems now.

"Th-thank you, mémé;" stammering? The detective that can stare a gun down its barrel without flinching is stammering at the thought of being mistaken for Neuvillette's partner? "But the Chief Justice and I simply work together. We aren't a couple."

But it's like she's said nothing at all. The old woman just smiles warmly. Knowingly. You can't lie to grandma, don't you know?

Neuvillette's reaction on the other hand, could be considered a non-reaction to most. But that's because he goes to his mind first. Wonders what they see that could warrant such a reaction. From what he knows, humans only say these kind of things after seeing a romantic interaction between two people. In that case, have his advances been noticeable? Has Eclair accepted them in some way that he's missing? He would like to be sure before making any assumptions, but finding time to ask Eclair in between the times where they're both busy and inundated with work is...difficult.

"I'm sorry for the misunderstanding, but any relationship I have with Detective Dumont is professional and entirely work related. She is my coworker, first and foremost, and a...colleague." It's not a lie, but it's not necessarily the entire truth. But...well, if there's anything he's learned, it's that sometimes withholding parts of the truth is necessary. For others and for himself.

🫂 what's one significant moment of physical contact you had during the pining stage?

Oh...there's something to be said about Neuvillette and, well, anything physical. He seems untouchable because he is untouchable. As the Chief Justice, there is an image of unobtainability about him. As a being that has persisted for 500 years, he holds a certain unknowability in his hands. No one can get close to Neuvillette because no one really knows Neuvillette. Whether that's because they haven't really tried to get to know him or because he is the Iudex. And they see him exclusively as the Iudex. Of course, he has put up boundaries between himself and others as well; justifying it as being a necessary and needed barrier in order for him to remain a stalwart servant to the will of his Nation.

That, however, has not made his existence any less...lonely.

Nevertheless, Neuvillette has a station to maintain and cannot allow idle thoughts of melancholy to seep in whilst he's in the middle of his work. A trial will not be held at bay while he wrangles in his rarely expressed emotions, struggles frustratingly to find the correct files that were misplaced days ago, and -

And Eclair is there. Her hand careful and grounding against his. He hadn't heard her come in, far too busy rushing to have his attention split. And the file...it's there, in her other hand. He hadn't misplaced the file; there were extra reports that she was finishing. He knew this. She says as much, but he isn't listening. He only...feels. Feels the reassurance of her tone, the lilt of it bringing a kind of...peace to him. Her hand has moved away from his, but he can still feel the weight of it. The warmth of it. She's still speaking, but her touch has moved - adjusting his robes lightly where they've creased, straightening his jabot and making sure it's pinned neatly, before smoothing down the panels of his mantle against his chest. It's an...odd feeling. An action he's observed being done, but never had it done to himself. Never imagined it would be done to him. No one gets this close to him. He doesn't let anyone get this close to him. And yet...this touch is not unwelcomed. No, it's...it's calming. Soothing. Grounding.

Is this what the touch of another person feels like?

She's looking at him, he realizes, with that critical eye. Searching for something like she always is. He wonders, vaguely, what she sees. Notices the gleam of something...softer in her gaze. He wishes he knew what it was. He wishes he could understand why her hand against his chest has done this to him. Made the flow of Hydro swirl beneath his skin. Made his senses a little sharper. Yet the only thing he can do is thank her for her assistance. Feel something within him stir again at her smile. And want to -

The hour's chime breaks the bubble of reverie; he will be late if he does not leave immediately. The Iudex is never late to a trial. Another brief (yet appreciative) thanks before he's excusing himself and striding out of his office. The station of the Iudex is one that must be meticulously maintained. And yet...

He cannot help but feel the lingering weight of Eclair's touch and distantly wonder if he would ever allow himself to feel it so intimately again.

[raziraphale]

I'm really tired of situations where asexuality is mentioned like, casually in a way that kind of flattens the definition a bit for simplicity's sake (like just implying asexuality = no sexual interest) and someone feels like they have to jump in to remind us all that some asexuals can still have sex. like cool sure that's a true statement but it rarely comes across as adding nuance and instead sounds like you're saying "remember that some of us are normal just like you". well most of us aren't "normal" so maybe let people sit with their discomfort with that fact for five minutes before reassuring them that asexuals can be just like everyone else

[themthistles]

something about the way guilt is portrayed in beyond evil. guilt as a state, guilt as a place you're condemned to. 'i will go to hell' 'life is hell' 'you shouldn't even set foot in that hell' but it's not really the hell we think of, not in the traditional sense. hell is where you're supposed to be sent to suffer and repent forever but all of them go there willingly. (that's why han kihwan will never end up there as juwon wants because he feels no remorse over his actions) they choose to stay and let it scorch the life out of them until all that's left is someone hollow and brittle, real person buried beneath the surface in a grave they themselves dug. in that way it's not lee changjin or the water that killed nam sangbae. it's guilt. that's what doomed him in the end. that hell of his own making he never managed to escape. and as he drowned, he probably thought he deserved that too. jeongje's still there until the end but so much of him died long ago. he's a ghost haunting himself. he tells juwon 'if you don't get out quickly, every breath, every moment of your life becomes a nightmare' if you stay that hell alone long enough, that's what happens. at a certain point you can't wake up anymore. you forget how to leave