#they always accidentally get into shit

[caitlynmeow]

Modern AU

Alcina doesn’t worry about Bela or Daniela going out with their friends but she is more cautious with Cassandra as in she has to know who she’s going out with where they’re going and what they’re doing because Cassandra and her friends can get into all sorts of trouble that often makes Alcina and the other two wonder how she ends up in these situations.

“We were hiking in the forest and we almost encountered skinwalkers. The sound kept getting closer and closer and we ran like crazy back to the car and drove off,”

“We accidentally got invited to a party that turned out to be a drug dealing hotspot. Like, people were dealing while getting a drink,”

“Elise tried to drive a manual car and we almost drove off of a cliff,”

“We had to hitchhike because we were stranded in the middle of nowhere with two dead phones and no signal,”

[treasureplcnet]

inverness here they come!!!!

[avocado62524]

[shizunitis]

Luo Binghe & Tianlang-Jun: Origins. And a Bit of Projection.

Disclaimer: This is basically just a collection of quotes from The Scum Villain's Self-Saving System, Volume 3, accompanied by (adjective) thoughts, and then even more relevant quotes listed at the end. If I could, I’d paste the entirety of Chapter 18.

“As expected, I can’t bring myself to hate humans.” — Vol. 3, Chapter 21: Always Together

I will always be conflicted on the topic of Tianlang-jun, and it annoys me. There is so much I could say about him, and so little I can successfully articulate. He is, to me, more confounding, complex and tragic than Shen Jiu.

He’s pitiful and awe-inspiring, wicked and affable, cunning and wide-eyed in his curiousity. He is a compelling, heartbreaking character. He alternates between emotionless wisdom and mournful apathy. I admire how his knees don’t buckle under the weight of his grief, but how he crumbles at the barest hint of hope. How rage claws at him and, still, he can’t figure out how to make it stick.

I empathise with him. I understand him.

But then, in the distance, Luo Binghe's indifferent voice disturbs the silence, causing me to drop my drink onto the floor and this post onto your screen:

“He’s not my father.”

It’s an interesting exercise, exploring their relationship in reconciliation fics. To see them interact (semi-)honestly, watch them take turns filling up the chasm between them. It’s wonderful. Every fic I’ve read centred around them was a delightful read that I still think about.

However. I cannot see Tianlang-Jun, as I understand him, as Luo Binghe’s father. And not just because of the 3rd Novel’s events.

But because Binghe had hoped for something; he did have that wide-eyed wonder. He did hold one last window open, for the sake of an improbability he couldn’t quite, just yet, dismiss.

It’s what (most) orphaned and/or adopted childred do.

Though Luo Binghe had never said a word about it before, Shen Qingqiu knew that he harbored some fantasies about his birth parents. […] In fact, he’d always secretly fantasized about whether his parents might still be alive, and how well they’d treat him, and how they’d never let him suffer the mildest slight. — Vol. 3, Chapter 17: Tianlang

It is the most human thing; to want to be helped, accepted, invited by those given to you. A family is given to you. Whether you believe it an act of the divine, of nature, of coincidence, it isn’t something you fight for. It’s the first and, arguably, only thing you don’t have to fight for in life.

Depending on a multitude of factors, that can be a blessing or a curse; but where there is room for interpretation, questions left unanswered, most childred—Binghe included—will turn to their imagination, and try to make sense of it. Usually, to comfort themselves, to reassure themselves that surely, if their family could, they would have.

And, yeah. Most likely, if the Palace Master had gotten punted into the Sun like he fucking deserved, they would have. But does it matter?

In the face of a bleak reality, what comfort is a could-have-been?

He liked to call Luo Binghe “that son of mine,” but he didn’t seem to possess any concept of fatherly affection. […] Luo Binghe was in fact…someone who was unloved by even his own parents. — Vol. 3, Chapter 15: Holy Mausoleum

What use are good intentions to an abandoned child? What consolation is it, to say, They gave birth to you, when that child has seen no evidence of their care? Does it dry their tears, that their mother can’t be here, but she surely would have wished to be? That their father would protect them, if only he knew of them?

(And don’t make me tell you about the visceral horror I felt reading the Origins chapter. I’ve yet to make my peace with it. MXTX, Airplane, whoever: you’ve ruined me.)

The washerwoman was and continues to be, to Binghe, his only mother. And I would argue, that’s healthy. Even independent of his other traumas (Abyss, Shizun’s betrayal, Xin Mo’s influence, living on the streets, etc, holy shit Binghe) Luo Binghe will not accept anyone else as his mother.

“Who is this Su Xiyan?” Luo Binghe asked coldly. “My mother was a mere washerwoman.” — Vol. 3, Chapter 18: Origins.

It may seem callous. It probably even is! But it is a healthy line he’d drawn by his own initiative. It’s what helps him, what he feels he needs to do in order to do right by his mother, and his own heart.

And! Tianlang-Jun doesn’t seem to give much of a shit, either!

Won’t, probably, even in the future, once the dust will have settled. He is exhausted, weary with carrying the corpse of his love, the loss of his nephew. Whatever goodwill he shows, it’s a perfunctory sort, because he can’t afford more.

So. Uhh.

Tianlang-Jun is not a character I can love, nor one I can hate. Usually, I can’t help but be inclined to love complex characters. Like them, too—though that’s more of an action-based thing rather than just said character’s personality.

But with Tianlang-Jun, I’m stuck whichever way I turn. If I want to love/like him, I’m drawn back by Binghe’s pain and disappointment. If I try to hate/dislike him, I’m drawn back by his own history and grief.

In conclusion:

I don't know! I'm not really trying to, like, prove anything. I still love the aforementioned TLJ & LBH fics, I still love their dynamic. I started walking and ended up exactly in the same space. This, perhaps, could be considered a Heavenly Demon Family Mobius Strip!

I'm not really trying to say anything. It just… makes me feel conflicted, and angry, and whenever I allow myself to think about it a bit more, sad.

But.

However!

Alas.

Nonetheless, even.

As a reader and—on my better days—a writer, all I can say is:

As promised/threatened: some selected passages, for your reading pleasure:

So, it looked like neither the father nor the cousin had any intention of acknowledging Luo Binghe. — Chapter 15: Holy Mausoleum

He liked to call Luo Binghe “that son of mine,” but he didn’t seem to possess any concept of fatherly affection. — Chapter 15: Holy Mausoleum

Tianlang-Jun lifted his hand, took a look at Luo Binghe’s snow-pale face, and commented indifferently, “He looks like his mother.” “His eyes look like yours,” came a chill voice from the side. — Chapter 15: Holy Mausoleum

The faint hopes and dreams Luo Binghe had held in his heart for many years had been mercilessly pulverized into so much dust. […] [Tianlang-Jun] refused to speak a single word of their relationship and had been utterly ruthless back in the Holy Mausoleum. […] To his parents, Luo Binghe was an unwanted child. — Chapter 18: Origins

“If he was my father, why didn’t he bring it up earlier? Why not tell me?” The most Tianlang-Jun had said was that single line he offered while beating up Luo Binghe, devoid of either praise or criticism: “He looks like his mother.” He looks like his mother. What of it? But that was all. There was nothing more. — Chapter 18: Origins

Luo Binghe was indifferent. “He’s not my father.” […] Luo Binghe shook his head. It was unclear what he was stubbornly clinging to, but he repeated, “He’s not my father.” — Chapter 18: Origins

Luo Binghe raised his smiling face, his eyes shining brightly. “Mother was the kindest person in all the world to me.” — Chapter 19: Shen Jiu

[scorpiusmalfoylovesoscarwilde]

albus severus is the human embodiment of be gay do crime, in this essay I will-

[hellonerf]

i love crazy contrasting 1p2p in every way(not every way). so i always subconsciously have 2P rusame be friends. unlikely friends etc. in whatever weird school au theyre friends. meri was probably bullied until he started hissing at other kids or something while rus2 was just like huhh okay yeah okay what fine. rus2 found him in a broom closet and it was as awkward as it sounds. in the weird stuckin1Pcoldwar au i have theyre friends also in the torturous existence. 1P rusame is too weird life is too short lets tomodachi✌️

[shehsart]

LoV if they met a little earlier.

THEY'RE HER BIG BROTHERS.

[unma]

Cats

What's not to love about these lovely creatures? Honestly, growing up I was always a dog person (even despite the fact that I was attacked by one when I was young). But then I realized I wouldn't be able to take care of a dog for, well, a buncha reasons, thought about how it would be to have a cat, and thought, yeah, it would be nice to have one. For so many reasons. The eternally lethargic me could never take care of a dog properly. A cat, though? I probably could.

[djevelbl]

Storytime bc I can NOT keep this shit to just myself oh my god this is HILARIOUS

Ok so me my mum & dad we're talking about how children are different regardless of where they came from, right? and so my mum launches into a story (you know it's good when my mum, the beacon of memory in our household [seriously that woman forgets NOTHING] launches into a story):

She says as a set-up that my brother had one (1) temper-tantrum when he was preschool age and my father spanked him twice — he never had one ever again.

Then, it was my turn.

One day in preschool I, apparently, didn't wanna go home for whatever reason preschool-aged me thought was adequate for the occasion, and so I proceeded to have a temper-tantrum.

Quick context, I have a shitty ass memory and all I remember from things like preschool are like. two things and everything else I've been told — for example, I've been told many many times how I apparently had a deep seated hatred for this one little plasticy backpack/suitcase type combo that every time I had a temper-tantrum and I happened to bring it to school, bitch wouldn't leave the classroom without being banged against a couple walls at least.

So anyway, it's time to leave and I'm probably making my best impression of a radiation nuke alert going off; my dad's not having it tho — he tells me we're going home. I just wail harder.

Ofc, because he's himself and raised on a different mentality (not an excuse, just an explanation; don't lay harming hands on your kids ppl) he spanks me.

My answer?? I ran beneath the fucking school bus.

NOBODY could get me from beneath that bitch — my dad moved around that thing and I just scurried to the other side like an overzealous lizard, or maybe a rabid and feral raccoon; my grandma didn't even dare intervene, she knew this was a hopeless endeavor.

It took my mom noticing from her at-the-time job — which was close-by so she could sort-of see what was happening — to start leaving and think huh, the school bus ain't going home yet. wonder what's happening to get my havoc-wrecking ass hauled back home.

As my mom oh-so-eloquently put it: "she didn't even wanna go home with (dad), she had a murderous look every time the idea was brought up."

I was apparently basically UNINTELLIGIBLE when explaining the situation STILL FROM BENEATH THE FUCKING SCHOOL BUS, so the convo was something like:

Mom: what happened? Why are you beneath the school bus sweety??

Me: little child rabid noises, crying and screeching, it vaguely sounds like a velociraptor screaming actually

Mom: ok, and what did daddy do?

Me: even more unintelligible screeching oh my god is that even a language???

So yea, I was a rabid little preschooler huh

[preggydump]

[mindmxtters]

hearing the news abt coyote vs. acme this fine afternoon got me like

[spocksgotemotions]

lately all I wanna do is just text my friend about the lovely life we’re gonna have and how much I love them. But I don’t do that cause I don’t wanna be Weird. And also I think I’m gonna be afraid that they don’t actually wanna live with me until we like actually live together. Honestly probably after that too

[whiskeyswifty]

i still think it's incredibly funny that taylor swift made a whole song called "lavender haze" waxing poetic about breaking 50's gender norms and being "damned" if she cares what people say when the word, and color, are so deeply associated with not only the lgbt community's oppression and fight for equality in the 20th century, (the lavender scare in the 80s, having a "lavender" streak, etc) but eventually became synonymous with lesbians and wlw specifically, to the point where "lavender menace" was the name coined for the lesbian/wlw inclusion political group, a phrase that is so prolific in lgbt spaces even wearing a lavender menace shirt is shorthand for "i'm a lesbian." only for her to get on the horn and say "it's a phrase from Mad Men about being in love 😌" like...... mad men?? MAD MEN??? i totally understand how lavender might mean absolutely nothing to non-lgbt people, lgbt history has gone mostly unrecorded yeah yeah, but..... i've rewatched mad men THREE TIMES in my life at this point and when she said that i could not for the life of me remember that phrase. which was used ONCE in season ONE. and i just find it so funny she was like "that sounds nice. i'll write a song using that. people will get the mad men reference, right?" while it like.... just so happened to be the single color most synonymous with gay activity going back to fucking sappho ladkfjkdsfjdsk cool cool sure yeah a line from fucking Mad Men sure why not!!

[lindwur-fr]

Subclans that I have in my head but just haven't made yet because I need like three lair expansions first:

-A subclan of Beastclan and Dragons that do horse races. The Beastclans are the Jockeys and the Dragons are the mounts. The dragons don't mind this because they're paid really handsomely. There's a whole bunch of different types of races (Based on size, flight ability, average speed, fighting allowed/disallowed, etc). They race all around Sornieth and the dragons have really hilarious racing names that are agreed upon with their Beastclan partner. (Taking from the PEI racer's names I witnessed recently, things like "Somewhere Fancy", "Proven Lover", "The Rev", "My Man Charley", and "Roll Withitharry"). Horse Girl drama, but it's with dragons and Beastclan! Saucy!

-The Subclan lead by a personal dragon called Ram-O-Tan. He's named after the family ship! (We had a family ship back in the day when my family was bringing bread back and forth to PEI from the mainland). A bunch of mysterious sea-going dragons that take from various ocean-related mythos and a lil mix of family history. I have two right now- Navigator and Ram-O-Tan himself! But I have many stories from my family ranging from rumrunning during prohibition to more benign things like shipping food to an otherwise-isolated PEI in the winter before the bridge was finished

[xfand0mfr34kx]

AU doodles idk I'm sleepy

[recallback-art]

Can't believe I almost forgot to post this cause it's honestly one of my favourite pieces I've done in forever. It's just such a good design that I 100% wanna draw more.

Byeah, fun little bw piece with a JJK AU design of Oren! I love brainstorming au's, the only downside is I end up with baller designs I have little excuse to draw.

Just for funsies, here's the full sketch-page of Oren's curse evolution. It says I couldn't justify a special grade label, but the council later decided that human-level intelligence itself is a special grade trait. His design is based on the life cycle of a salamander :)