#unless i success to convince him to give it to me for once in a while

[toxycodone]

The way i need kabru to teach me the anatomy of the human body by using himself as a model and he’s explaining how all the vital points are laid out but he’s struggling because my hands are dipping a little too low below his belt and squeezing his neck a bit too firmly

vital points (kabru of utaya x reader)

wc. 1.5k

cw. romantic/sexual tension, nothing explicit

No one in Kabru's party is a particularly skilled dungeon crawler. Despite all efforts it seems his party is always taken out before they can do any true exploring of the dungeon's secrets.

Therefore, being the excellent leader that he is, Kabru has decided to take it upon himself to give out combat lessons. And it's only logical he starts with you first. Mickbell has his own specialties--poison darts and all. Kabru's not sure if he'd even be interested in lessons. And even if he was, would he even pay attention? It's probably not worth the trouble. Kuro is well, Kuro. What part of that demihuman's body isn't a weapon? His sharp senses make him one of, if not the most well-equipped members of his team. It's the main reason Kabru keeps a demi-human, one partly monster, like him around. Aside from the fact he's a package deal with the half-foot. Kabru's sure Kuro could make it throigh the dungeon on his own.

Daya is the second best. Strong. Capable. A weapons expert. She can take a hit and throw it back with ease. Rin and Holm are the magic users. Combat would likely be wasted on them. Rin's frail, but she already has similar knowledge to Kabru as she grew up with the same foster mom. And Holm...likely wouldn't agree to lessons. He's maintained a commitment to do no harm to others unless absolutely necessary. Kabru's not going to try to convince him to learn his way around a weapon and how to maim unless it's completely critical.

However. That leaves you.

You're different. Not entirely useless, but not entirely skilled on the other hand. Kabru's still trying to figure you out. Quite the enigma you are to him. He's come to the conclusion you're a jack-of-all-trades type of figure. For now, at least. You don't exactly take away from the party. But you're not hindering their descent, either. It's intriguing from an anthropological standpoint, yet infuriating from his stance as leader of his party.

But again, he wonders what skills you do possess, exactly. Everyone has their specialties, be it what it may. He wonders if combat might be something he can help you succeed--no, excel--in. He'll bring out the best in you via this method, and come to learn more about you in the process. Two birds with one stone. In the back of Kabru's mind, his own desire rears its head. The desire to be close to you. He's not exactly sure why or where this desire stems from. However...it can be satiated via a combat lesson. Three birds, he muses. You pique his interest in a variety of ways.

When it first comes to combat, jumping right in is never ideal. The first means of success comes from mapping out vital points. The human anatomy is a good start. Dungeons are full of demi-human and human adversaries alike. It's important to know them for one to defend themselves, unarmed or not. And these vitals seem to remain uniform among all creatures.

Head. Neck. Abdomen. Groin.

The four major sensitive groups one should know. He's starting small for now. Too much information could be overwhelming. It wouldn't be worth to teach you so much at once that

You're in front of him now, bright eyed and bushy tailed. Not in a literal sense. A metaphorical one. Well, your eyes are bright. He's always liked them. Not that it matters. Why is he thinking of this?

Kabru shakes his head a little, trying to steady his thoughts. Back to business.

"The first lesson in defense is understanding anatomy." Kabru muses, looking through his notes. There's no real time to fetch a book at this point. Or a model. Kabru's not necessarily gifted at art either. Not that a simple drawing would do.

He can serve in its place, as an example. A physical specimen would be the most insightful. You're probably a hands on learner, he decides. It's definitely not as an excuse to have you close to him. Definitely not. Not that he's entirely against that, though.

"Starting with the head. There's plenty of areas you can exploit there," Kabru points to his eyes. You follow suit. They're such a striking blue. Hypnotic. Mesmerizing.

"Eyes are the easiest to access. They're the first thing humans notice. You can predict someone's movements by figuring out where they're looking towards. It'll likely show you where they intend to attack." Kabru leans forward absentmindedly. "They're also sensitive. Even a simple move can distract or blind an opponent. Don't be afraid to strike there. Even though Mickbell might tease you for fighting dirty. All's fair in dungeon combat."

You chuckle and agree. Kabru's pleased his attempt at humor landed. It seems to lighten the air around you two.

"Next, the neck. There's two main points here you want to recognize." Kabru takes your hand, offering a reassuring smile as he does so, then presses it to the underside of his neck. They're a little cold, you note. And almost dainty. His hands aren't particularly calloused. He must take good care of them.

He guides your index finger to the skin on the outside of his neck. His skin carries a hint of heat to it.

"This is where the external jugular is located. It's one of the most important veins in the body. It carries blood to the head and neck area. Just a simple cut can slice through it. A simple turn of the head is enough to expose it."

He moves your hand more inward, now pressing slightly into the divot close to his trachea. His chest rises slowly, then falls. There's a faint beating under the skin now. Kabru's pulse.

"The internal jugular is here. If you can land a hit here, do it. You'll have to go deep and make sure you slice clean through the skin. It can disable a foe in seconds."

You try to keep your mind on the lesson. But his skin is remarkably soft. And smooth. You're close enough now to count his stubble. Well, you would if there was any to count. How does Kabru manage to keep himself so well groomed on dungeon excursions. Maybe you could count those thick, lovely eyelashes inste--

A simple call of your name breaks your thoughts. Not only were you not paying attention, but your fingerpads dig slightly into his skin. You struggle to find an explanation for your absentmindedness, then decide to pin it on you being hyperfocused.

Kabru, ever so forgiving, decides to move on without further question. Internally, you thank him for preserving your dignity. What's left of it. You're almost certain he's caught onto the fact your no longer solely doing this for the sake of combat knowledge.

"The abdomen hosts a majority of the body's necessary organs. The lung's can be pierced easily through the ribcage." Deft fingers lead you across the expanse of his chest. You're a bit shocked. Without his armor, Kabru's a lot smaller. Being revived time and time again has left its mark on his body. There's still power to him though. His muscle isn't all gone. You can surmise your leader has quite the lithe build.

Kabru continues to go on, despite you not listening. He likes to talk about anatomy, for one. But he's also trying to hide his own amusement at your reaction to touching him. You're admiring him in your own way. Which means you may harbor similar feelings towards him that he has towards you. Interesting. He takes note of this as your hands are guided lower.

Stomach. Liver. Kidneys.

And last is the groin.

Kabru's puzzled. He didn't really consider how this would play out in his hands-on anatomy lesson. Desire clouded his mind earlier, but now that he can peek through it...the realization of the situation sets in. How should he proceed? He can tell by your reactions you're fascinated by the lesson at the least. Kabru's sure you need this lesson. The groin is probably the most effective place to punch, kick, or slice in a pinch. As inappropriate as it is, in general and a workplace sense, he still wants you to keep touching him.

His hands leave yours. He's leaving it up to you, now. Whether you choose to continue or not will tell him what he wants to know--if he's been going too far or not.

"The groin is the last area you should become familiar with. I'm sure you're aware, but it's particularly sensitive." Kabru's not sure whether to look at you or your hands. He goes for the latter when your fingers trail over his belt, threatening to move towards the linen of his pants below.

"The genital area, more specifically. No matter the sex. A swift punch, kick. Even just grasping it. You can get an advantage in combat. Either as a distraction, or...."

Your fingers keep going lower. He's sure you aren't paying attention, now far too invested in your personal lesson on anatomy. There's a slight bulge in his pants. It's stiffens when you ghost over it.

Kabru's breath stifles. He swallows his spit like it's cement.

"A-and that's the gist of it."

Kabru stutters for the first time ever, you think. Your curious hands flee his body as a result, now returning to your sides. That was...exhilirating. So simple, yet...you can tell the two of you are craving more.

"Uh," You're first to break the awkward tension. "Thank you, Kabru. For the lesson. It was very informative." A certain tone lingers on the last word. Kabru can practically see the air quotations around it. His dark skin deepens with color. For once in your span of knowing him, Kabru's eyes don't tear into you.

"Right. It's my duty as your leader, after all. Thank you for listening. We can go back to the others now."

Kabru is known for his penchant for understanding others. Almost being able to predict their next moves with ease. However, your next move is wildly unpredictable, tossing out everything he once assumed about your attitude and demeanor.

You ask when the next lesson is. You'd like to study anatomy-perhaps his anatomy, more thoroughly.

And what he also doesn't expect is his eagerness to respond. The next lesson can't come soon enough.

[autistichalsin]

If you're curious, this is what Halsin's letter says in the epilogue if you fail to break the Shadow Curse:

My friend, I was truly heartened to learn of your success in the fight against the Absolute- the whole of the Sword Coast and beyond owes you a debt that can never be repaid. I dearly wish I could have joined in your moment of celebration, but the Shadow Curse remains, and so my vigil must continue. Perhaps I shall yet discover a way to restore light to this place, but until then, the memories of my time traveling with you shall sustain me through all manner of hardships. If the Oak Father is kind, one day I shall feel the warmth of the sun and know the joys of your company once again. Yours until the end, Halsin

So... there is a LOT going on here. A lot. One, obviously, the heartbreak of Halsin resigning himself this way. "If the Oak Father is kind," he'll feel the warmth of the sun again?

The way he sees the player's company as something he longs for just as much as the sun. While confining himself to darkness and despair, what he longs for most- even more than nature itself- is sunlight and the player.

Which brings me to... you can feel the pining here. This letter was what finally cemented it for me: Halsin is, canonically, in all "good runs", in love with the player. Not "holds a lot of affection for the player that may or may not become romantic" like the others. This was what finally made me decide, beyond a doubt, he is ALWAYS in love with the player so long as they don't raid the Grove. This is just too much pining, too heavy of a romantic coding, too much he sees in the player, to be anything else.

He puts the player on par with sunlight. The thing he uses as a metaphor time and time again to explain as a basic need, something no life can live without. Something whose absence chokes the nature he loves so much into nothing. A need. That's what he considers the player.

And that's not even getting to "yours until the end," which is so obvious, I think it speaks for itself. With all the "I'm glad to be had"s and the "I am your servant, my love"s, Halsin is someone who- despite loving to be "unbound in nature"- considers a form of "being had" to be something of a love language. And here, knowing he will very possibly never see the player again unless a miracle happens or the player goes on a borderline suicide mission just to visit him, he still calls himself "yours". Even when he devotes himself to the land he couldn't heal, he still sees his heart as belonging with you, first and foremost.

And that's the happier explanation. The sadder explanation is that he's so tormented by the shadows and everything else that he's making up a fantasy in his head, of the player being his tragic, could-have-been love, just to cope. Just to convince himself there's something, someone, waiting for him should the curse ever be broken, so that he can imagine better is waiting for him, to give himself enough strength to endure the shadows for however long it takes, because the alternative is surrendering. And he can't let himself do that as long as he's needed. So, as he has done before, like when he convinced himself he liked being a sex slave to survive being a prisoner in the Underdark, he indulges in fantasy to survive- but instead of enslavement, it's solitary confinement.

Both are HEARTBREAKING options, in a scenario that was already beyond heartbreaking just before the epilogue.

[everydayyoulovemeless]

sequel to that no nut november post where instead it's destroy dick december?😭

FNV Companions (+Yes Man, Victor, and Benny) Responses to Destroy Dick December

➼ Word Count » 0.7k ➼ Warnings » MDNI ➼ Genre » NSFW, Romantic ➼ A/N » what a title

Boone outright refuses. He knows he's not gonna be successful and decides he's not even going to try. He's not even supportive about it. Anytime he sees you walk toward the bathroom he'll look at you with disgust and tell you to be smart about what you're gonna do because you both have to hit the road again soon, whether you're tired or not. 0/10, he's an awful partner to do this challenge with, don't even bother asking.

"Does it feel good anymore?"

Arcade will run stressed hands down his face. He made it all the way through November only for you to bring up something he finds to be way harder than the last. He'll try, but he's not making it anywhere past the tenth day. He likes being overstimulated, but damn. 3/10, he tries but doesn't quite have the stamina to pull it off.

"uh uh, I'm done, I have things I need to do around Freeside."

Raul hits you with that 1000-mile stare. Have you seen how decrepit he is? He has a difficult trying to get his thing up as it is, and you want to see him cum 31 times in one day? No, thank you. 2/10, he does actually try because he's curious about how far he can take himself, but it's nothing to write home about. He'll make it to day 3 if he's lucky.

"I'm over 200, boss... I don't think I can."

Cass is a champion at this. She can cum 31 times a day any day of the week. The biggest problem with her is that she makes sure to include you. You're knees are going to be weak and wobbly by the end of the month, it's her only goal since she passes the challenge with ease every year. 11/10, it's her favorite month by far.

"C'mon~ You can last longer than that!"

Veronica's quite determined to pass, even if she knows she's going to struggle once she hits the double digits. She'll try to mix all sorts of new things into your sex life to try and keep the challenge fresh and interesting. She'll find all sorts of sex toys and new positions to try in an attempt to keep you both at it for longer. 7/10, she makes it to day 15, but at least she's creative.

"Hear me out... I got us working vibrators!"

Yes Man makes it his life's mission to ensure you make it through the month. He'll lock you away in the Lucky 38 and personally make sure you get to the correct number every day. The day you told him you were interested in doing it was the day he pledged to himself that he'd actually get you through this challenge. He didn't do as well last month, but he'll make sure this time is different. He'll even tie you to the bed if he has to. 10/10, not only are you passing, but he will too!

"Aww, quite squirming! We've almost hit the number for today!"

Victor just shrugs and tells you that he thinks it'd be fun. He's not the horniest person alive, but he'd be lying if he said he didn't have stamina. He's fairly competitive and would like to win the challenge with you, but it relies heavily on how far you're willing to take it. 5/10, he could go for however long, but he'll stop going at it when you do.

"How're you holdin' up? Wanna go another round?"

Benny was really on board with it until the sixth day when he realized how exhausting this actually is. He's an old man, he's not built for this. But he wants to keep that pimp-like persona going for as long as he can. He'll be whimpering most nights from the overstimulation but he doesn't give up unless you specifically ask him about it. 8/10, he plays a very convincing performance, but how long can he push it?

"Sure, baby! We can go... again..."

[7-wonders]

Between Wrath and Mercy

Sith!Ankain Skywalker x Rebel!reader (gender-neutral)

Summary: Finding yourself in a fight with Darth Maul, you quickly realize that you're way out of your depth. Unfortunately, no one's coming to save you. Aha, unless?

Word Count: 2.0k

A note from the author: Remember how I was like, "I'm having a lot of trouble writing the words aren't coming like they used to"? I think this helped to unclog a bit of the writer's block I've had. Maybe I just need to write for a different fandom for a bit. This takes place in my Rebel!reader fic-verse (gender-neutral reader!), but before What You Stand to Lose. As always, likes, comments, and reblogs make my world go round (especially the latter two), and I hope you enjoy!

How do I keep ending up in situations like this? you wonder as you dodge yet another Sith Lord’s lightsaber strike and immediately counter it with your own.

That’s a stupid question, because you know how. You decided to join the Rebel Alliance, to fight for a noble cause, and now your life is pretty consistently put in mortal danger. Still, when a mission to try and convince the head of Crimson Dawn that you were all fighting for the same goal was proposed, you were the first to volunteer. Maybe it’s a desperation to prove yourself as useful that made you do it, or maybe you need to remind yourself that you’re working for something good. Regardless, you had been stupid and self-assured, enough so that General Kessyk had given you a small team to command and sent you on your way to Corellia.

Said small team is now incapacitated, rendered useless almost the moment you had ambushed the Crimson Dawn leader who had turned out to be none other than Darth Maul—a surprise to you all, since Dryden Voss is the public face of the syndicate. This revelation completely turned your game plan on its head, as you’re now left to face his wrath alone.

And he has a lot of wrath.

“Look, if you would just listen for a moment,” you yell at him over the sound of electricity humming, “I think you would see that we all want the same thing!”

“And what thing is that?” Darth Maul snarls, raising his blade above his head and attempting to crash it down on top of you.

You meet it with your own, gritting your teeth under the strain as you attempt to hold him back. “The end of the Galactic Empire!”

He bears down harder in response, and your arms begin to shake. Knowing when to give up some yield is half the success in battle, so you adjust your strategy and drop to your knees, doing a quick roll to get some space in between you. He turns to face you once more, his yellow eyes so filled with hatred that it makes a frightened whimper get stuck in your throat.

“Please, we only came to talk. We can be allies!” you plead.

“What happens after the Empire is defeated? We part on good terms and go our separate ways?” Maul shakes his head, twirling his saber and stalking towards you. “No. At the end of the day, the Sith will always be an enemy. I will always be an enemy.”

“I’m sure that—woah!” He renews his attacks with vigor, clearly done talking. Unfortunately for him, you’re not done. “I’m sure that the Rebel Alliance would be happy to negotiate some sort of treaty.”

“I have had enough of arrogant little Force users thinking that they can change the galaxy with ‘the power of goodness,’” he mocks. “You are not the first to approach me with your misguided ideals.”

Maul kicks the center of your chest and sends you falling to the ground, a position you never want to find yourself in when fighting for your life. Attempting to scramble backward is made extra difficult with the lightsaber in your hand, and it’s only delaying the inevitable as Maul follows you slowly, a predator stalking his prey. With a firm smack, your saber goes flying out of your reach.

He holds his lightsaber to your chest and smirks down at you as it burns a hole through the fabric of your shirt. “But you will be the last.”

You raise both hands up in a last-ditch plea, though you know it’s for naught. This is it. You’ve lost. You’ll become just another name on the long list of lives lost as sacrifices for the fight for a better tomorrow.

Though you’d like to say that a sense of peace comes over you as you stare your impending death in the eyes, that’s not the case. You’re scared out of your mind, actually, and the only thing comforting you is the fact that it’ll be a quick death. With that in mind, you close your eyes and await the inevitable.

But the inevitable never comes. Where you were expecting pain and darkness, there’s simply darkness from screwing your eyes shut. After a couple of long moments, you hesitantly open your eyes. Darth Maul no longer looms over you. Instead, he’s a few feet away, engaged in battle with someone else.

“It was foolish of me to believe that Kenobi could actually finish the job and successfully kill somebody for once,” he spits, twirling his saber in his hand as another red saber clashes with his.

“You said it, not me!”

Belatedly, you realize that you know that cocky, annoying voice. Sure enough, Darth Vader is now Darth Maul’s opponent, and he’s faring much better than you had. His helmet is off, allowing you to see the arrogant grin he’s sporting, and his blond curls fly around his face as he swings his lightsaber through the air.

“Vader?” you call, still feeling like your eyes are deceiving you. 

He looks over at you, his grin somehow getting bigger. “C’mon, get up and help me out!”

You stumble to your feet and call your lightsaber back to your hand using the Force, but remain back. Vader doesn’t need your help, because he’s very clearly winning. You would only be a hindrance if you were to join, so instead, you watch.

Even if you didn’t know that the two Sith lords had been trained for a very long time, their fighting styles would make it obvious. The way that they move, so fluidly and deadly, is an art form. It almost looks like a dance, if a dance could end in somebody’s death.

“Darth Sidious won’t be pleased when he finds out you’re helping out the Rebel Alliance,” Darth Maul taunts, bending over backward to avoid a swing.

Darth Vader curses at the near-miss. “Oh, but I’m not.”

“Then what do you call this?”

He looks over his shoulder and winks at you. “Helping the one particular Rebel that I have a vested interest in.”

“Pathetic!” Darth Maul spits.

Vader’s lightsaber makes contact with the palm of Maul’s hand, and he yells out in pain. He catches his saber with his other hand before it can fall to the ground, but he’s unable to grip it with both hands now. Though he could fight one-handed, against somebody as talented as Darth Vader, he wouldn’t be very successful. The light from his saber disappears as he extinguishes it, giving one curt nod before he backs off.

“This is not the end,” he promises.

“No, I don’t believe it is.”

Though Vader could very easily finish him, there are rules to a battle. When one willingly concedes, the fight is over, no matter how much the other wishes that it wasn’t. You and Vader both watch as Maul makes it to his ship and escapes, flying high above your heads and away from Corellia.

Vader turns his attention to you, wrapping his large hands around your upper arms and looking you up and down. “Are you alright?”

“Shouldn’t I be asking you that?”

“You were the one about to die.”

“I had it under control,” you claim, even though you very much did not have it under control. “And I didn’t need you to save me.”

“Oh, you didn’t? That’s not what it looked like to me.” 

His fingers move to the open hole in your shirt left by Maul’s lightsaber above your heart. The skin there is shiny from a light burn—it’s nothing that will hinder you in the long run, but it does sting a bit, especially when Vader lightly touches this wound. You hiss through your teeth, but he doesn’t move.

“Your heart is beating so fast,” he notes, his voice soft from concentration.

Your cheeks burn at this because you know there are a couple of reasons for your racing heart, and only one of them is from the exertion of battle. Wiggling your hands up, you get enough of a space that you can lightly push yourself away from Vader.

“What are you—how did you know that I would be here?” you demand, having been under the assumption that everybody had done very well in making sure this was a top-secret mission.

“We received some intel that the Rebel Alliance would be making a rather stupid attempt at reaching out to Crimson Dawn. I was going to just let Maul have at it, but then I thought, ‘What are the odds that my Rebel would be involved in this?’”

“I am not your Rebel.” The way that he looks at you, like you mean something to him, makes your heart clench in a way that you don’t want to consider right now. Onto the next subject, then. “Why did you help me in the first place? You could have let him kill me. You should have let him kill me, actually. Would have saved you a lot of trouble.”

“I don’t want you dead.”

You roll your eyes. “Of course, you just want me to join you and go against every one of my morals.”

“I still have morals, Rebel. If you were willing to listen, to be open-minded, I think you’d find that the Dark Side is not evil. Where the Light Side wanted their Jedi to shirk all of their emotions and attachments, the Dark Side encourages those emotions. Anger, sadness, passion…love. Sith believe in a world where we’re all free to feel what we want, to allow that which scares us to be out in the open so that we may overpower it. You can’t tell me that this sounds evil.”

You remain silent, because you don’t know what to think. With how Vader puts it, the Dark Side doesn’t sound all evil. Actions speak louder than words, however, and you’ve seen the terror and devastation that the Empire and the Dark Side have unleashed on the galaxy. You’re not willing to dwell on it right now (or ever, really; just thinking about the possibility of Vader’s words having some validity makes you feel like you’re betraying the Rebel Alliance), so you force it to the back of your mind and refuse to think about it any longer.

“Well, I think my work here is done,” Vader declares with a sigh, clipping his saber back onto his belt.

You look at him in confusion. “Wait, you’re not…going to force me to be your apprentice? I mean, now’s kind of the perfect time.” You don’t want him to do so, but you were sure you knew what his end goal was, since he’s made it clear every other time you’ve encountered him.

“It is,” he agrees. “But I’ve decided that it does no good to have you join me against your will. When the time comes, you’ll give yourself to me—to the Dark Side willingly.”

He sounds so sure of this, like it’s a foregone conclusion. You’re about to argue, to insist once more that you’ll never join him, when you hear groaning behind you.

“Looks like your crew is starting to come to,” Vader notes. “I’ll see you soon.”

You don’t doubt that, but you won’t let him know that. “I sure hope not.”

He laughs, already walking to his own ship. “Make sure to get that burn checked out so that it doesn’t get infected!” he yells to you.

The groaning gets louder before you can tell him to not tell you what to do, and somebody calls your name sluggishly. Your pilot is trying to roll over onto his hands and knees, and the others aren’t far behind him in waking up. You get ready to help, as all good Rebels do—because that’s what you are, someone good and helpful and nothing at all like the Sith Lord that increasingly occupies your thoughts as of late.

You’re not like him, you tell yourself, and you’ll do everything in your power to ensure that you won’t ever be like him.

[sokkastyles]

since you have spoken out of turn ONCE AGAIN I, “the stupid Stan” must educate you, the actually stupid Stan

This is one of the more depressing lines in ATLA, because Azula tried to peacefully coexist with Zuko earlier, because she tried to give everything he ever wanted and acted on the premise that it was possible for both siblings to be happy, successful, and equal.  

But as a result Zuko’s actions she’s come to accept the toxic paradigm of sibling competition created by Ozai and accepted by Zuko where the rise of one sibling inevitably means the fall of another, where it is impossible for her to coexist with her brother unless(at the very least) one of them has been violently forced into submission by the other(if it is possible to coexist at all).

You know, Katara runs out into the arena at the Agni Kai just when Zuko is beginning to taunt Azula about lightning. I have zero idea of what was going through her mind.

You know, ever time I think about the final Agni Kai, I’m reminded why I’m terrified that Zuko having Azula under his control post-canon would lead to him abusing her.  I like to think and hope that he’s better than that, but it would absolutely be keeping with the dynamics between the siblings.  Azula shouldn’t have power over Zuko, and Zuko shouldn’t have power over Azula; otherwise things will end poorly

#zuzu stans are retarded

I "spoke out of turn"? You came into my inbox, numbnuts.

Also, poor choice of words unless you're trying to mimic Ozai, which does seem the case considering everything else you've said.

At least you're not making any pretense that this is about protecting disabled people, since you feel very comfortable using an ableist slur, or about feminism, given the other asks you sent me calling me a "stupid bitch." I shouldn't bother with your nonsense but this one is actually really dangerous for the myths about abuse it puts out.

I like to think and hope that he's better than that

Don't lie. You are VERY willing to demonize Zuko and twist the narrative to make it look like he's the abuser. You just aren't very good at it.

Azula DID NOT try to "peacefully coexist" with Zuko, and that claim in and of itself is abuse apologism. Because there is no peaceful coexistence while Zuko is living with Ozai, and Azula not only brought him back there, she would have brought him back there as a prisoner if he hadn't sided with her.

She's not doing him a favor by bringing him back as an ally because she is the reason he was a prisoner in the first place. She's not doing him a favor by telling him to stay away from Iroh because she is also the reason that Iroh is a prisoner. But abusers are actually very invested in creating problems just to convince you that they can provide the only solution. It is literally an abuse tactic. That is what Azula does when she tries to "peacefully coexist" with Zuko. None of this is for Zuko's benefit, but it benefits Azula for Zuko to think it is.

It also benefits Ozai, since Ozai wants Azula to be his golden child and Zuko to take the blame for everything Ozai doesn't approve of. Ozai did not encourage them to fight each other, and he certainly didn't encourage them to compete. It makes no sense that he would, because he does not want Zuko, his scapegoat, to be able to or even think he could compete with his golden child. He doesn't want them to fight each other. He wants Azula to fight Zuko. And Azula wants that, too.

You say that Azula should not have power over Zuko but fail to acknowledge that Azula did have power over Zuko, which is why when she brings him back to his abuser with a heavy dose of "prove you're not a traitor" and the knowledge that if he didn't, he'd be thrown in prison, plus being separated from the one adult who actually cares about his well-being, it isn't a peaceful coexistence. Zuko is not peacefully coexisting, he shows telltale traits of being abused and gaslit, and describes how he feels like he's not himself, feels like he's losing his mind, is angry all the time but can't articulate why. It's because he's being abused.

Azula also has power over Zuko by virtue of being Ozai's golden child who Ozai allowed and encouraged to treat her brother badly. That's another big reason why there is no peaceful coexistence under Ozai's roof. Not because of some general idea that they're in competition or are mutually toxic to each other. That's actually a myth that abusers use to try and control their victims and obfuscate their own culpability.

Oh, there's also the fact that Azula tried to kill Zuko numerous times.

Azula should not be allowed to have power in any capacity and she's shown that she's very capable of manipulating Zuko and others even from the diminished position she is in in the comics, and that is because he wants to help her and makes the mistake of trusting her. Interpreting this as him somehow abusing his power over her is a very deliberate attempt to make the victim seem like the perpetrator.

Also lol at the victim blaming of Katara that is casually thrown in there. Really doesn't help your argument!

[yarameijer]

Hi, miss Yara! How are you doing? Good things, I hope! I wanted to ask you about something if you don't mind sharing? I'm really curious about your unpublished Tenma-centric fic where he's the only human and everyone is a supernatural. It reminds me so much of 'Welcome to Demon School, Iruma-kun!' and the similar concept is really interesting! I was hoping if you could share some things about it? If you don't mind, of course! You can ignore this if you'd like. Stay safe!

I'm good I'm good, just super busy once more, but alas that's life.

Ooh, the Supernatural AU, I haven't worked on that one in ages but I do love the concept of it still. I don't have a lot for it but I can give you some info on what I had in mind:

There's basically this societal hierarchy of creatures, and humans are firmly at the very bottom. While there used to be a very clear divide historically, for all species except humans that's been decreasing in modern times.

Racism towards humans is insane. Think of not being allowed into stores or cafés, working the least-paying jobs, certain areas of the city they're not allowed to be in unless they had the necessary paperwork. It's definitely supposed to be extreme, and based on historical examples of racism. They'd only be allowed to live in designated neighborhoods, which I was considering might have some actual fence or barrier around it - including a curfew. Again, I haven't figured out how bad it would actually be, since it's a sensitive topic and it depends on how well it would fit the plot, but there's definitely racism.

Raimon is one of the few ''all-inclusive'' schools, where all species are welcomed - they are distinguished by the colors of their uniform, though. Specifically the lightning bolts.

Some schools are more like private schools for one specific species (this is also usually the case for humans).

While Raimon does allow humans, tuition is very expensive, so there's only a handful of humans actually attending. Tenma is one of them.

Tenma is actually luckier than most, and there's one simple reason for it; Aki. They're still related, but she's not human, while he is (tbh it really depends on how much human or other blood you have that impacts what you actually are). She's as much as a sweetheart as she is in the anime and doesn't care that Tenma is human; he still lives with her instead of the human neighborhoods, and there's enough money to send him to Raimon.

While it's not against the school's rules, no humans are really part of any clubs. It's just not done.

At least, not until Tenma accidentally shows off his soccer skills in front of the team and Endou decides he's got to have this kid on his team. He tries to convince Tenma to join the team without much success, but eventually wears him down - also because Tenma being part of the team would sort of give him this protection at school? Anyway, eventually Tenma agrees to join.

The rest of Raimon does not agree with this. They give Tenma a very hard time; some of them aren't so bad (Shinsuke and Aoi) but others are pretty horrible to him.

I had this idea for a scene where multiple teams are actually present; maybe during the starting ceremony of the Holy Road, or a training weekend? Yeah, the other teams are also pretty dismissive towards him (and also make fun of Raimon,  they've basically become a laughing stock for having a human on the team and that's only more reason for them to dislike him) and there would be some physical altercation where I can just imagine some of Raimon's worse players being present and just, uh, letting it happen.

ANYWAY. Over time and through forced exposure, the team slowly realizes Tenma isn't so bad.

I actually had an idea for another scene where, just before a match, Tenma gets attacked by some opponents of theirs when he's alone and proceeds to not tell anyone about this because they've already got enough to complain about when it comes to him, and being so obviously weak would make it worse. He ends up playing in the match and Shindou would find out because their opponents mock them; he confronts Tenma, pretty pissed off, and Tenma snaps back. That's the moment Shindou begins to realize he might have been wrong, and also the turning point for the team.

In the end Raimon becomes a damn good team and Tenma gains really great friends; whenever anyone tries anything, Raimon is ready to defend him.

I had this vague idea that humans that work as servants for a non-human and are given this sort of, insignia or badge that is basically a sign that this human is protected or works for someone, that's infused with protective magic and whoever they work for has an insignia connected to it, for example to show location. It's uh, sometimes a good thing, and sometimes it's kind of like how you'd treat a pet? Like, this human is under my protection and therefore it would piss me off if someone else did something to them. Anyway, Raimon eventually custom ordering a lightning-shaped pendant and each of them having a bracelet connected to it that Tenma can basically use as an alarm button if someone bothers him, and Raimon will come running. It's also got some pretty nasty protective spells built into it.

More and more people, like the Earth Eleven, get on board with this idea and request a bracelet too. So basically if Tenma is ever in trouble he'll be able to alert like, 40 people at once who will all come running to help him. He's got a network.

He does use it, at some point, and ooh boy. No one dares to try anything for a long time after that.

Oh, Tenma still ends up as captain in this AU!

I've got less of an idea for the plot (except the start), but more individual scenes and the worldbuilding. Might get around to it again someday, because it still sounds like a fun idea to me. Hope this answered some of your questions!

[hotshotsxyz]

walking around with your heart

(buddie) (1.4k words) (spoilers for 6x04)

It fucking hurts. 

It fucking hurts, and maybe Hen was right, maybe it would’ve hurt either way, but this is worse, Buck thinks. He drops his phone to the counter top and buries his head in his arms. 

Spare parts. Defective spare parts, as it were. 

All Buck’s ever wanted to do is help, but he was cursed from the start. 

…family history bars you from participating in the donor program…

Buck’s phone rings on the counter. 

He ignores it. 

Then three texts come through in rapid succession. 

Hey Buck, give us a call?

We just heard from the facility

Think we need to talk

Buck picks the phone up and turns it over in his hand. Over and over, until he’s accidentally opened the camera and he’s staring at his own face. 

When Buck was a kid, adults always used to think he was hurt. They’d fuss, right up until they realized it was just his birthmark, and then they’d go back to doing whatever it was adults did. He never thought much of it, not really. Forgot it was there, most of the time, unless someone asked him about it. 

For a while, after the shooting, any time he caught a glimpse of himself in the mirror he’d mistake it for blood. Eddie’s. 

Maddie told him once that it was an angel’s kiss. He always liked the thought of that. 

Now, though, as he stares at it on the screen of his phone, he wonders if it wasn’t a defective stamp, meant to differentiate him from all the perfect babies born at the hospital that day. A bright red mark that, from the beginning, was meant to say, “throw me away! I’m no good!”

His phone rings again. 

This time it’s Eddie. 

Buck answers the call before he has time to think better of it. 

“Hey Eds,” he says, quiet and subdued. 

“Uh-oh,” Eddie replies, sounding distant and tinny. “I know that voice. What’s wrong?”

Buck rolls his shoulders and forces a smile to his face. “Nothing, I’m fine.”

Eddie hums disbelievingly. “Convincing, Buckley,” he says sarcastically. 

Despite himself, Buck’s fake smile morphs into something softer and a little more real. “Seriously, Eds, I’m fine.”

“I’ll believe it when I see it,” Eddie replies. “Which is an excellent segue, because Mr. Independent has decided he’s going to sleep over at Benny’s after the movie tonight, and I’m going stir crazy.”

“And what, you think I’m just going to drop everything and come over?” Buck asks, grinning a little wider. 

“Nope,” Eddie says. “I am hoping you’ll open the door, though.”

Buck snorts and stands, crossing the short distance to the door and pulling it open. 

“Surprise,” Eddie says, holding up a case of beer, a paper grocery bag, and what honest-to-god looks like a blow up mattress. 

“You have keys,” Buck says, stepping back to let Eddie inside. 

“And I’d be very appreciative if you grabbed them for me.”

For a fleeting moment, Buck entertains the idea of sticking his hand in Eddie’s pocket and fishing around for keys. Then Eddie nods at the entryway, Buck spots them on the ground, and the illusion is shattered. 

“You know,” Buck says as he bends to scoop them, “I might have plans.”

“Do you?” Eddie asks, settling his load on the counter. 

Buck presses his lips together and mock glares at Eddie.

“Great,” Eddie grins. “In that case, we’re playing drunk Mario Kart until we can’t see straight.”

“And the air mattress?” Buck asks, prodding it with a finger. 

“You,” Eddie says, pointing at him, “don’t have a couch. And we’re too old to sit on the floor.”

Buck snorts out a laugh and ducks his head. “Fine,” he says. “You blow up the ‘couch’ and I’ll make popcorn.”

Eddie bumps against his shoulder. “Knew I could count on you.”

At least someone can, Buck thinks. 

…

“So,” Eddie says when they’re settled on the mattress, a bowl of popcorn between them, “you gonna tell me what’s wrong?”

“Nothing–” Buck begins to answer, before Eddie fixes him with that don’t-bullshit-me look he’s way too good at. Buck sighs. “It’s a long story.”

“We’ve got time,” Eddie says. 

Buck leans back and closes his eyes. “I ever tell you about my old roommate, Connor?”

“You’ve said his name, but I don’t think you’ve ever told me anything about him.”

Buck sighs. “He got married a few years back. His wife– she’s sweet. They’re a good match.” He pauses, but Eddie doesn’t interrupt him. “They want kids. But uh– Connor– he can’t, um. So they… asked me?” Buck cracks one eye open and looks at Eddie. 

He hums thoughtfully. “So that’s what’s got you in knots? You’re not sure how to turn them down?”

Buck chuckles mirthlessly. “No need, apparently. Did you know that a family history of childhood leukemia disqualifies you from making a sperm donation through a bank?”

“No, I– Buck,” Eddie says. 

“I said yes,” Buck says quietly. “A few weeks ago.”

“And you didn’t tell anyone?”

Buck bites his lip and looks away. “I told Hen.”

“Oh,” Eddie says quietly. 

“I just– they wanted their kid to be someone like me, Eds. I thought… I wanted to help.”

“But you can’t,” Eddie puts together. 

“No,” Buck says, “I fucking can’t.”

Eddie’s quiet for a long moment. “Is it really what you wanted?” he asks finally. 

“I—I’ve wanted kids my whole life,” Buck says. “And I know this wouldn’t have been the same, but if I could help someone else have it then maybe… maybe I…”

“Maybe you’d what?” Eddie asks, looking him in the eye. “Deserve to have it too?”

Buck swallows and ducks away from Eddie’s gaze. “Something like that,” he says quietly. 

“You know that’s not how it works, right?” Eddie asks gently. 

“Kind of seems like it does,” Buck mutters. 

Several seconds pass in contemplative silence. Eventually, Eddie breaks it. 

“You want to know what I think?” he asks. 

“Am I allowed to say no?” Buck jokes weakly. 

Eddie slaps his bicep lightly but allows his hand to linger. “I think you would have been miserable, knowing there was a kid out there with your eyes and heart and mind that you couldn’t call your own. I think you’d feel guilty every time you thought about him, and I think you’d be wondering, constantly, what it’d be like if he was yours. And I think you’d feel even more guilty about that, because I know you wouldn’t have considered it if you didn’t think your friends were going to be good parents.”

Buck allows his eyes to slip closed and focuses on Eddie’s hand as it slowly slides to his wrist. 

“I think you’re an incredible dad, and it would kill you to have a kid whose life you weren’t a part of.”

“M’not a dad, Eds, that’s the whole point,” Buck says, without opening his eyes. 

Eddie’s hand tightens around his wrist. “I don’t think that’s true,” he says softly. 

Buck furrows his eyebrows and blinks his eyes open. “What, you think I have a secret kid out there?”

Eddie snorts a laugh. “No, Buck. I think you made dinner last night, and went to the science fair the night before that. I think you went to the beach last weekend and spent the entire day chasing Christopher around with a bottle of sunscreen. I think I put you in my will for a reason. You’re a good dad, Buck. Whatever it is you think you have to do to deserve it, you’ve already done it.”

“Eddie,” Buck breathes. “I’m not—” 

“We’ve got more than one friend I’m pretty sure you’d offend if you finished that sentence,” Eddie says gently. 

A tear pricks at the corner of Buck’s eye. “You really think…”

“Yeah, Buck,” Eddie says, rubbing his thumb across the inside of his wrist. “Maybe it’s selfish of me, but I’m kind of glad you’ve only got the one kid running around.”

Buck sniffs and scrubs a hand across his face. “Yeah, well, that kid’s going to destroy us both the next time we play if we don’t practice.”

“Destroy you, maybe,” Eddie says softly. He clearly recognizes the deflection for what it is, but he lets go of Buck’s wrist anyway. He picks up his controller. “Ready whenever you are, Evan.”

Buck’s heart gives a hard thump, and he grabs his controller too. “You’re on, Diaz.”

(And in the morning, when they wake up tangled together on a half-deflated air mattress and Buck’s heart gives another heavy thump, he’ll shoves it in the same box as everything else he’s too afraid to look at.)

[taralen]

Thoughts in Reflection

A prequel to an INBOX Story idea proposed by @clowny-rolls (Thanks for the idea!!!)

NOTE: This story won't make as much sense unless you read the stuff I wrote here for better context: Click Me.

The illustration is inspired by a drawing a friend of mine did of Spamton, but it's currently not uploaded anywhere. Sorry guys. 😭

The year was 1994.

Spamton G. Spamton, a former Addison and a now esteemed entrepreneurial businessman who founded BIG SHOT AUTOS was one day asked, "Mr. Spamton, are you seeing anyone?"

Much to Spamton's chagrin, the one asking was his close friend Bant, a Blue Addison who was the only one of his former friends and coworkers with whom he stayed in contact. He leaned against the wall, waiting for any chance to talk to Spamton once he was off the phone.

Spamton rolled his eyes. "Why are you asking?"

"You haven't seen any ladies, have you? I figured with your newfound success, the women would be flocking to you." Bant chuckled.

Spamton raised his hand and dismissed this with a gesture. "I'm too busy."

"Not too busy for me, though." Bant smirked.

Spamton froze and his cheeks flushed pink.

Bant tilted his head, flashing that iconic closed-eye Addison grin. "Hey, if you're interested, one of the restaurants Sen's been running fliers for is setting up blind dates. I've been the one coordinating things to bring people together. The restaurant has had a nice uptick in business since! The campaign is running for another week. It might be kind of fun to try it out. I can set you up with a cute girl, exactly your type!"

Spamton narrowed his eyes at the mention of Sen, or Yahoosen, the Yellow Addison he once worked so closely with but did not believe in his vision. Hearing Bant's involvement softened his expression but not his demeanor. "That sounds stupid. How will this benefit me at all?"

"If you have a good time, you could leave them a good review, and then I can convince the owner to vouch for your shop whenever they need a new car or some fixing. What do you think?" Bant's smile widened.

Spamton raised a brow. "Uh, give me a moment. Step out of my office for a bit."

Bant sighed. "What for?"

"I need to make a call, obviously!" Spamton said as he sat down at his desk with his finger already on the dial.

Bant huffed and pushed off the wall. "Fine. Let me know when you're done." He slipped out, closed the door behind him, and paced the hall. Although he was just outside the office, he could not hear what Spamton was talking about. Thankfully, the call was brief, and only a few moments later, Spamton opened the door, looking up at Bant. "OKAY. I will do it!" He adjusted his collar and flashed a handsome, toothy smile.

Bant blinked. "Huh? Really? Did whoever you were talking to on the phone tell you it was a good idea?" He laughed a little awkwardly.

"Huh?! Why would I ask my esteemed business partner about something so silly?" Spamton laughed, dismissively waving his hand. "Go on! Set me up with this blind date! I trust you know my tastes in women well."

Bant furrowed his brows. Having known Spamton for years, he knew when he wasn't totally genuine, and this seemed to be one of those moments, but he smiled anyway. "Okay, I will. I'm sure not to disappoint you!" ☎️☎️☎️

Waiting in a hallway near the restrooms was a small lady, a White Addison. She wore a silken pink dress far too expensive for her salary and tied her hair up in a matching pink bow. People passing by stared at her, whispering words she did not want to hear.

Bant approached her. "Ah, Ms. Thetalan, you look quite lovely. That dress Orvar loaned you fits you nicely!"

Orvar, short for Orvarstok, was an Orange Addison who worked with Bant. He advertised clothing curated by Queen herself, ranging from everyday wear to fine garments. Through their established trust, Bant easily convinced him to loan a dress on the promise he'd foot the dry-cleaning bills afterward.

She turned to the Blue Addison and smiled meekly. "You think so? I hope he likes it, too."

"He definitely will. You are exactly his type." Bant winked. "He is an esteemed businessman, so he has fine tastes. He should be here within the next five to ten minutes. Just wait here for now."

"Fine tastes?" She blushed. "Okay. I will wait right here," she answered meekly. She watched him disappear down the corner. She was certain this guy was the same Blue Addison she saw with that man she fell in love with a year ago—a man who appeared to be a White Addison like her but with black hair. She etched his name into her heart: Spamton G. Spamton.

Despite her suspicions, Thetalan didn't dare pry too much about the Blue Addison's possible relations. He approached her directly while she was walking down the street and asked if she would like to participate in a blind date with all the expenses paid to support a local restaurant. Usually, she'd be wary of such things, but because of his familiarity, her intuition told her to trust him and take on this offer. She told him about the kind of man she wanted to meet, and he said, "Ah, perfect. I know just the guy for you! He is a handsome businessman and not too unlike an Addison." He raised his head and pointed at his own nose. "What, with one of these just like us!"

Few Darkners chose to court Addisons outside of work-related reasons, but this Blue Addison described someone so specific that she could only think of one person, and it was him. To have this opportunity of seeing Spamton again... It made her tremble with excitement.

With bated breath, she gazed into the nearby mirror, trying to collect herself. Though she was excited, anxiety swarmed her entire being. She hadn't seen this man since last year and wondered if he remembered her. He occupied her mind constantly, and as she stared into her beautified reflection, her hands wringing restlessly, she thought, "He has no idea how much I wish he could see me."

(To be continued...)

[self-loving-vampire]

While on that subject, one of the stories about abuse that resonated the most with me (besides Tsukihime, which is also about a ton of other things) is the short manga titled May My Father Die Soon.

Part of this is that it avoids the "perfect victim" narrative I complained about the other night (although not to the same extent as some other characters I know).

Spoilers and discussions of child abuse (including a couple of personal things) below the cut.

Asuka is obviously the sympathetic party, but the abuse coming her way is not depicted as just random outbursts with no rhyme or reason like in some other stories. Abusers like that do exist, to be clear, but my experience was more with violence as a tool to coerce and attempt to shape behavior.

The abuser often has some kind of excuse for what they're doing. Something that helps them convince themselves that what they are doing is right and proper, maybe even necessary. It doesn't mean their behavior is good, but it means there's a logic to it that the victim comes to understand and navigate.

The first time we really witness what Asuka's home situation is like is when she neglects her chores to play video games with her sister.

Hitting children for not doing the laundry is wrong, but it is something that a lot of abusive parents would find to be justified. They think they are teaching their children discipline and virtuous behavior when they do that. They think they are preventing their children from becoming spoiled and lazy.

Sometimes people are even abused after doing things that are legitimately wrong, but this does not justify the abuse. It's a type of nuance that is missing from depictions in which the abuser is just a gleeful sadist who just hates their victim and enjoys hurting them.

A lot of these parents think they are doing the right thing and use violence as a means rather than an end. After stomping on his own daughter he refers to what he just did as "discipline" and acts as if it's just a burdensome duty he has to deal with rather than an act of violence he inflicted on an actual human being.

He is also quick to pull out the "I give you food and shelter so be eternally grateful and always obey me" card.

Which is, again, something I have heard expressed by multiple authoritarian parents both in my personal life and online. "I pay the bills so they must do everything I say" or "I am a good parent because I do the legal minimum to provide for them".

I also like how Asuka does not react to her abuse in a perfectly meek and submissive way like the "perfect victim" archetype usually does. She not only eventually contemplates patricide out of desperation but also shares her sister's anger even if she tries to put on a more "role model-like" front about it.

She hates how she's being treated, and she even lashes out against her sister and feels disgusted with herself afterwards. It's very different from the depictions where the victim only has "nice" and endearing symptoms like low self-esteem.

The scene in which she tries to get help from the law only for her to be dismissed (her father is a respected and influential person) and punished for it also carries a sort of despair that I'm very familiar with.

One of the times my mother came to sleep in my room because my father was being violent (I used to protect her from him) I naively suggested calling the police. She said it would only provoke him into potentially lethal escalation and that the police would not act unless he did something extreme, like killing or hospitalizing someone. Hearing that from an experienced lawyer would have been pretty chilling if I had not already been dissociating for years at that point, but the information and its implications sank in regardless of how I felt about it.

He was a rich business administrator and CEO considered a good and successful person in the adult world. He once even mockingly dared me to call the police on him, knowing nothing would come out of it.

The only reason I still bothered to fight back against him physically is because I did not care about myself enough not to at that time. Might as well inconvenience and hurt him if I'm fucked either way.

Her father then proceeds to draft her into his company (hey that seems like a very specific and unusual thing but it also happened to me!) in a way that further highlights the way in which his behavior is actually in accord with authoritarian parenting norms.

His reasoning is that he's not going to just give her handouts. She needs to work for a living. This sounds reasonable to a lot of people, who worry about "spoiling" their children by being too generous in providing for them without demanding effort, but here we can see the ways in which it tightens the leash.

She can't decide on her own future and is impeded in independently financing her escape because her finances are going to be dependent on him and his approval.

This is something that a lot of people actually miss when thinking about the children of abusive but wealthy parents. You don't actually have free access to your parents' resources. You have purely conditional access that relies on pleasing them and conforming to their wishes. Meanwhile, they have an increased level of reach, resources, and respectability to prevent you from escaping.

Another heartbreaking bit is how the abuse has become so life-defining for her that she doesn't really know what she wants to do with herself. The one wish she can think of is just not being abused anymore.

She is eventually forbidden from freely leaving the house entirely, and while sexually abusing her again he once again makes it explicit that he considers her property...

And when the subject of Hotaru (Asuka's younger sister) comes up, he goes on a monologue that those of us who defied authoritarian parents may be familiar with.

The whole "I have been too nice but it only made you spoiled (as proven by your defiance) so from now on I'm going to hurt and control you more" thing.

And he also drops this line.

To an authoritarian parent, disobedience of any kind to any degree is a deadly sin that must be beaten out of children as if they were dogs in training. If you read conservative parenting "experts" like James Dobson you can even find them saying this kind of thing explicitly.

I also like that Hotaru provides a different, also resonant exploration of how someone might react to abuse in addition to Asuka. Even after being hit to the point of bleeding by her father, she remains willful and tries to hold on to her own independence even if obedience would hurt less.

And, like Asuka, she's not a Perfect Victim either. She is the one who helps finish her own father off after all (after being given a lecture on rehabilitation no less). The conversation she has with her sister regarding worker ants also shows she is interested in her own autonomy and leisure to a degree that would be considered "spoiled" by a lot of people. She should aspire to be a hard worker who pleases others at the cost of her own happiness like her older sister was raised to do, right?

I especially like that she's wearing an "I love myself <3" T-shirt during the scene in which she rejects the efforts to beat her into submission as well as Asuka's recommendation to give in and obey. Kind of heavy-handed, but cute.

I also like the flashback that shows that there was once a time Asuka's parents were kind to her and she sincerely loved them.

Children are in a situation where they are strongly predisposed towards loving their parents by default and need to be loved back. It often takes a lot to change that. Some people, like Hotaru, change pretty early on while others try to cling to this need for a lot longer.

This is complicated by the fact that the parents may start out "kind" until their children start disobeying them, at which point they turn increasingly violent and controlling.

Asuka eventually realizes that she will never be truly happy if her life revolves around being her father's property. That even if she was to hollow herself out into exactly the kind of obedient doll he wants her to be she will be miserable. With no options left to escape, she becomes suicidal.

This leads to a panel that is like... pretty much straight-up an exact conversation I have had before.

"I provide. I have money that you benefit from. Your life is way better than that of poor people. You should be grateful and do everything I say." again.

Like paying the bills mean they own you and can do as they please.

It really feels like a good understanding of not just the victims involved but also of this type of abuser as well, and even now I get the impression that if I had failed to think of a plan for how to escape them my own situation could have also ended up with a murder, a suicide, or both even though I'm not a violent person at all. The desperation as all of your peaceful options are cut off is very real.

I'm really happy it did not come to that in my case, but I still did many things that a "perfect victim" would not be allowed to, like becoming manipulative and deceiving my parents for the sake of escaping. I don't feel guilty about it either, and eventually lost much of my sense of empathy (oddly, this happened after I had already gotten away).

So even though I did not actually kill my abuser I still relate to characters who end up doing that, because to me it feels like a bad ending I was this close to getting despite not really wanting that to happen.

Anyway, I feel really seen and understood by this story to a much greater degree than I do in more sanitized, black and white stories about abuse in which the victims never do anything remotely bad and the abusers are moral aberrations who just enjoy hurting people for fun.

[savvythepirate]

Lost puppy

Pairing: Jack Sparrow x reader

Warnings: None

Requested by: @hahajkjkmfs

The Request:

Hello! I wonder if I could request something where Jack does something that reminds the reader of a puppy. The reader brings up the thought with Jack and he denies it. Later they stop somewhere to gather more supplies and they find an actual puppy. Reader is like ”Look its you :D” and he denies it once again. Reader insists on taking the puppy on the ship with them. Later the reader is looking for the puppy and finds it and Jack hanging out & getting along really well completely proving the readers point.

***

“Sometimes you just remind me of something a dog might do.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?” Jack asks, but with a hint of defense mode on.

“I mean, don’t take this the wrong way, but just from the way you sometimes follow me around or give me those puppy dog eyes when you need something from me that can be real convincing, it just reminds me of young pups who are just getting started in exploring their new world.”

Jack Sparrow couldn’t believe he was feeling like you were comparing him to a dog of all things, and it didn’t make sense to him even after you had just explained it.

Looking over to him, you see him scoffing as he shakes his head in denial. A little later on that same day, you had made a rest stop with your crew to pick up more supplies that are necessary for survival. Jack Sparrow always makes certain that you’re with him, or if not by him, at least kept it so you’re in his sights which gives him a peace of mind while taking care of business. As you follow Jack Sparrow in wandering around, you don’t realize you had wandered off until you run into something completely unexpected. What you had run into shattered your heart, you had a super soft spot for animals, stray animals, but especially with dogs. For a split second, you thought about sneaking the poor pooch onboard without Jack’s consent, but then you decided otherwise and waited for Jack to find you.

You weren’t very far at all, but that wouldn’t make Jack feel any better about having a scare from not being able to spot you immediately. Upon waiting for Jack to find you, you got side tracked, finding yourself coaxing the poor pooch to come to you, and you were almost successful when Jack Sparrow appeared. While you stumbled among the puppy, it looked to you that he couldn’t be any much older then five months old and you knew then that you were to be his home.

Despite of how close you were, Jack couldn’t help but feel a little pissed off at you, and he had a whole speech on your behalf that was never ending scolding prepared to throw right at you. All of that seemed to wash away and he saw what you were doing, you trying to comfort the stray. When Jack Sparrow made his appearance, the puppy had run back to the same spot you found him in. Now knowing how you felt about animals, stray animals, specifically dogs, he felt bad for ruining the moment and tried to make up for it by coaxing with you after having to start over.

“Hey, Buddy…” Jack whispers.

You watch as Jack offers his hand for the puppy to slowly come and sniff.

Neither of you kept track of time or noticed how late it was getting until Jack Sparrow had realized it, having to be the first to say something about it, suggesting it was time to retreat back to the Pearl and rest of the crew left behind. Right then, you begin to insist on taking the puppy along with you, telling Jack Sparrow you weren’t going anywhere unless he agreed to letting you bring him back onboard. Jack thoughtfully agreed, but played it out as tough, using the toughness as a front, you had no problem playing along.

“Who’s going to look after and monitor him?”

“I will.”

“Okay… as long as you keep an eye on him and keep track, he can come along.”

“Deal!”

“What are you going to call him?”

“Rookie.”

“Welcome to the crew, Rookie.” Jack says.

You then pick Rookie up and brought him back onboard the Pearl with you.

You were his new home, after all.

***

Requests: OPEN

Tags: @savvythepirate @princessofthornsandroses @justafairytailofinnocence

[fwoosheye]

papyrus in hyrule :>?

Oh ho ho Nyeh heh heh! This gives me tons of ideas! Get ready for my special attack! (Text wall)

Some TotK spoilers at the end — only stuff one sees in tutorial area and one (1) detail from later in the game that I tried to keep vague. That detail will be written with small letters like this but in blue! I'm gonna try putting the spoilers under a readmore but I've noticed tumblr sometimes show it anyway and I don't know why.

Anyway!

First of all, regardless of where or when in Hyrule he ends up, Papyrus would be initially mistaken for a Stalfos. If he were to appear in a spot with hylians they would probably scream and run away (like they do in TP Castle Town for Wolf Link) and Papyrus would assume they're screaming because they're his fans and running away because they're shy. If he were to appear in an area with monsters the monsters would probably be curious but otherwise mostly leave him alone. Papyrus would probably try to teach them how to fight properly (as in the UT style) and have them perfect not killing their opponent just like him, and have a pretty good success rate on that. He would also try to teach them how to make and solve puzzles, with less success. If he were to end up in a dungeon he would have fun solving all the puzzles, sometimes with accidental cheese because the laws of physics is merely a suggestion to Papyrus.

I'd like to imagine that when Link encounters him he is a little thrown off by a monster talking (unless ofc it's the Link from the Oracle games cause he knows plenty of talking skeletons, or OoT Link if it's after Majora's Mask because of the whole Captain Keeta quest, but most other Links only knows 1-2 talking monsters if any), but mostly because the monster is encouraging him and saying how the Great Papyrus will teach him how to be good etc, and then he'd probably be a bit thrown off by the different style of fighting. If it's early on in Link's quest he might even lose fight and wake up in a cage where the bars are far too wide apart to make it useful.

Perhaps Link have already heard from locals about the Nearby Friendly Stalfos that will treat your injuries and then "spare" you if you lose to it three times. Perhaps they have also heard Papyrus talking about wanting to be a part of the Royal Guards, and think it's a recruit who have risen from the dead with the goal to fulfill its final wish or something. The local kids probably adore him once the locals have stopped fearing him and goes around saying Nyeh heh heh. So I imagine Link would befriend him and have various side quests related to him, like finding/making a Royal Guard uniform for him (ST-style or BotW-style or other), helping with puzzles, and depending on which Hyrule it is he might help with "training" "Papyrus' fans" that have flags with his face on but not acting like a proper Royal Guard (basically, take down pirate bases but without killing the enemies). This could also result in a hilarious conversation between Papyrus and Tetra, even if her flag doesn't have a skull on iirc.

Speaking of Tetra, the moment Papyrus realizes the Zelda he is talking to is a Princess he would probably beg to be a part of their Royal Guard. Tetra would say no because she doesn't see herself as a Royal, but she would probably accept him into his crew (and if he could manage to convince her to add a skull to their flag, future pirate flags would indeed be based on his face which is hilarious imo). Most other Zeldas would probably accept him into the Guard after a bit of hesitation — probably less so from the younger Zeldas.

... Ganondorf would just kill him. No mercy there.

Moving on to side characters/races.

Ravio would probably faint by having a loud skeleton appear in his shop. Papyrus would bemoan how it's a bad habit to take a nap when standing and then tuck Ravio in in a bed, maybe scold him for not listening to his body (because why else would you faint take a nap if it isn't due to being overworked?) and then maybe read fluffy bunny to him too. Papyrus would probably keep an eye socket on Sheerow though because he is small, white and might be the bird version of the Annoying Dog. Papyrus would still befriend them pretty fast, though Ravio would not be as fast because he is terrified for a long while even after Papyrus have declared them friends.

The various versions of Impa would probably be both impressed by his battle skills and exasperated by his naivety.

The Yiga would be horrified by his attempts to make banana spaghetti (because he tried to teach them to be good by using cooking lessons like Undyne did to him. Sorta). They have sworn to stay out of his way because it is not worth the risk of being forced into a "cooking lesson" since none of them can take him on.

Malon would be scared at first and then accept him with open arms. She would teach him a lot about farming and that milk is good for the bones. She might even successfully teach him simpler cooking and/or how to make cheese and butter. Papyrus will be a walking Milk promoter afterwards.

He would totally join the Postman/Running Man on his runs. And have him holler about how great they are while they're at it.

He would probably be sad that Stalhorses disappear at dawn and decide to make his own that doesn't. It doesn't quite look like a horse though (more like a mix between a stalhorse and a small wingless version of his Gaster Blaster in Unexpected Guests by @/undertalethingems) and it tends to act more like a puppy. One who will fall over and ask for belly rubs the moment you touch it, unless it wants to play. He would probably not be permitted to register it in ba stable (if it's the BotW-verse) until Link and/or Zelda stared the Stable owners down so they would make an exception. Not that it would really matter because he wouldn't board it or leave it alone out in nowhere so the stable have to fetch it like Link does, but still.

He would absolutely call the Zoras "Undyne's relatives". And he would probably try to feed Gorons sprinkles because that's what Sans' pet rock ate. Not sure how he would react to the Rito or other non-human races in Hyrule, all I know is that he would be a cool dude about all of them.

He would be shut out from Gerudo Town at first, but he would either get in a technically ("Are you a vai or a voe?" "I'm a skeleton! Nyeh heh heh!"). Or, he would earn a membership card like in OoT because of his fight prowess and/or through hard work and obvious lack of ulterior motives. Heck he might even accidentally help keep creeps away because he "convinces" them to do annoying dumb endless tasks when they get too close (eg sweeping sand away from the road between the town and the bazaar).

Here comes the spoilers if tumblr is silly and skips the readmore:

If he were to end up in Hyrule's founding times, he might think the Zonai are related to Asgore — or Asgore-clones that used dye.

He'd might consider the constructs bad Mettaton copies, but he likes the Construct Stewards because they aren't trying to be copies and have a good work ethic.

Big spoiler tried to be made vague comming up now!

My HC is that Papyrus does know a bit of healing, so to have a bit of angst it could be interesting if Papyrus was nearby when a certain character dies, and when he realises he can't heal it on his own he absorbs their SOUL (only with the intention of it being temporarily though) and tries to heal the damage with the boosted power.

[memethebum]

Here’s the next chapter of It Takes 4 Idiots to Confess !!

This one is a lil more fake dating shenanigans and a shit ton of deathstar pining lol

————————————————————————-

“Hey babe!!” Liz sang while watching Patty skip a few steps in front of her on the sidewalk.

“I’m guessing you had fun messing with Kid and Soul?” Tsubaki giggled from the other end of the call.

“Pretty much! I may or may not have convinced Soul to do something really stupid during prom too,” Liz snorted before her sister looked back at her with an amused grin.

“Well, you’ll just have to tell me everything once you finally get here. You‘ve got all their measurements written down, right?” Tsubaki hummed back.

“All good to go my girlfriend-in-crime. Death, I can’t wait to see their faces once they realize,” Liz added just as she turned past a corner and peered at the boutique Tsubaki was waiting inside.

“This is what they get for thinking we’d just go along with such a silly idea,” the other woman replied while giggling at her from behind the display window.

——————————————————————

“I just got off the phone with Tsubaki and she said Black*Star and Maka are at the park,” Liz explained as she walked back into the room.

“Well, I suppose we’d better head there ourselves,” Kid replied while watching Soul grumble at the plan Liz had made in hopes of averting any issues during prom night .

“Wait, you said Maka would be there?” Soul then questioned, eliciting Kid and Liz to let out a laugh in unison.

“Yea, but you won’t be able to make any moves on her unless you and Kiddo act like you’re head over heels for each other. So, go out there and win this dumbass game for all of us, alright?” Liz exclaimed as both men shook their heads in agreement.

————————————————————

This is going to be much harder than I anticipated Kid mentally noted before attempting to avert his eyes from the way Maka was perched on top of Black*Star’s lap while they shared a large snowcone.

He then looked over to the side and noticed how Soul also seemed to be completely fixated on the pair, which only caused his motivation to plummet even further.

I shouldn’t have dragged my friends into this mess the reaper sighed in the midst of battling against a wave of envy at how the Deathscythe could keep an impenitent devotion for Maka while his own feelings for Black*Star always seemed to be muddled with doubts of breaking some form of “bro-code” or being completely unreciprocated.

“Hi, um sorry if we’re ruining your moment…but we just couldn’t help telling you two how nice of a couple you make!” Kid then heard a voice murmur before quickly looking up and noticing two underclassmen girls flashing him and Soul a large grin.

“Thanks, it’s-uh nice to hear that from someone else,” Soul coughed out while stiffly resting his head against Kid’s shoulder, causing the girls to let out a squeal in delight.

“I mean, you’re both really good looking and are graduating at the top of your class, so it was basically meant to be. You wouldn’t believe how many people thought you’d settle for Maka,” one of the girls elaborated while batting her eyelashes at Soul.

Kid could instantly tell how the statement affected the Deathscythe, as he began to sit back up again and bare his razor-sharp teeth at the two girls.

However, being able to also notice the way Soul’s eyes drifted towards Maka while his body swayed in a silent rage had allowed the reaper to discern that his friend was desperately trying not to give both girls the treatment they deserved in hopes of preserving their fake relationship.

“That’s a rather nasty way of looking at a relationship,” Kid exclaimed, eliciting the group to focus their attention on him.

“Maka is one of our closest friends and a very successful meister, so I’d say you two need to reconsider what it means for someone to settle for less . And our relationship isn’t some sort of competition…please don’t go around acting like it is,” the reaper then finished before lacing his fingers with Soul’s and pulling them to their feet.

“OHH WE’RE SO SORRY, we didn’t mean-“ the girls yelped, only for Kid to become too engrossed in his own thoughts and completely disregard what else they had to say.

What if Black*Star thinks he’d be settling for less with me!? Maybe he had feelings for me at first but thinks I’m not good enough for him and decided to date Maka instead? Liz said that he’s trying to get me to confess but what if this is just a way of letting me down slowly-

“Let’s go Kid,” Soul murmured over Kid’s thoughts, probing him to flinch in suprise while looking back and noticing how Black*Star had gently circled his arms around Maka.

———————————————————————

Black*Star let out a low sigh while fidgeting against Maka’s rooted figure. He could tell she’d completely stopped paying attention to him right when Soul and Kid placed their picnic blanket a few feet away from them in order to even the scores for their ongoing charade.

“Ugh, Soul,” Maka snapped as Black*Star placed a spoonful of ice slush against her lips, causing the blue-haired meister to release a low chuckle.

“Ohh, so you feed each other even when one of you isn’t injured?” Black*Star taunted while his childhood friend struck a fist against one of his broad shoulders.

He continued to let out a flurry of snorts and giggles before noticing the way Maka had gone completely still once again.

Black*Star then looked up and noticed how she was solemnly gazing at the two girls who were now conversing with Soul and Kid.

“Have those two ever…given you a hard time?” Black*Star questioned before allowing himself to sort through his thoughts.

He then arched an eyebrow once Maka shifted her dilated pupils towards him and sighed.

“Not directly. Those two and all of the other girls like them just kind of…give me this look. It’s not that big of a deal though, since I’ve made my peace with it,” his childhood friend added with a shrug as Black*Star’s mouth gaped open at her honesty.

“Aw…c’mere Maks,” he slowly whispered before tugging on one of Maka’s arms and pulling her into a tight embrace.

Black*Star could feel the other meister let out a startled gasp at the sudden sense of affection, only for her to melt into his touch like she used to back when they were kids who’d comfort one another over trivial issues .

Looks like she’ll always be a little sis to me, no matter how much we grow up Black*Star thought while watching Soul get up from his spot on the ground and start folding up Kid’s picnic blanket.

The blue-haired meister then felt a pang of guilt tighten within his chest over how detrimental his idea could be for two of the closest people in his life.

I might’ve come off as a douche to Kid too Black*Star noted before mulling over how heartbroken he currently felt as Kid slid his hand into Soul’s outstretched one and looked back at him and Maka with a expression that completely dwarfed his own sense of despair.

[rheagodlywrites]

Those Cowards…

The gods had always been like this. They would send children and teenagers or even young adults to fight their battles. They would watch as each vessel would die to the one that they were forced to fight. Eventually..after so much death, the villain will decide to finally turn the vessels against those gods

Villain!Technoblade

“Rest now…you were never meant to win. You were sent into a battle that was never yours so I gave you a mercy. Please, give into the darkness. My friend death is very kind and forgiving.” Technoblade held the head of a child as they bled onto the hard floor. The child cried as they shut their eyes.

“Thank you..you aren’t so bad..” They whispered to him. With that they drew their last breath. His voices were quiet and so he lifted the child to his grave. Once the child was buried, Techno was tired. Tired of seeing children, teenagers and even young adults give up their lives for a cause they would never succeed in. His voices told him they wanted revenge on the very gods that casted him out. Not for throwing him out as he drifted from their beliefs but for sending those with so much to live for to attempt to kill him.

Technoblade admitted he needed a plan. There was no way he’d get through to one of the god’s vessels unless he could prove that fighting him wasn’t worth it. An idea came to his voices as they told him to prove with his godhood. So for once in a lifetime, Techno listened to his voices. They helped him plan for months how to take down the gods but it only needed one vessel. Just one person to flip so that he can come back to get at the gods.

A year had passed and soon he’d gotten another challenger. A young teen boy with blonde hair and blue eyes. He had god’s mark on him as he held his sword up to Techno.

“You’re going down,bitch!” He had a certain cockyness about him but Techno could look past that.

Just convince him!

Talk to him!

Don’t mess up!

He gonna fuck it up.

He’s bad with people!

Kill him!

E.

E.

Blood for the blood god!

Techno tuned out his voices and stood near his broken throne. He liked his seat as it represented his downfall as a god and his success as a villain.

“Do you really think fighting me will change anything?” Techno starts. The boy twisted his face in confusion as he keeps his sword pointed at him.

“What are you rambling about,Demon?” The boy questioned. Techno put a hand on his face feeling the features of his face. He put his hand under his nose and dragged it across thinking. He then spoke under his hand.

“What have they told you exactly?” He questions. The young boy gave him a more serious look as he held his sword with an intense grip.

“To kill you. They said only I can kill you as only I have the skill and brain to do it.” Techno frowned at the familiar words.

“I see..you may have different skills but do you really think that you’re the only one?” Techno wondered. His voice sounded threatening but there was a hint of sadness in his voice. The boy heard the sadness more than the threat.

“What are you talking about?” He asked. Technoblade gestures for the so called hero to follow him. The boy listens,telling himself that it’s for his own peace of mind.

The mounds of dirt with crosses were everywhere. So many..hundreds..maybe even thousands.

“W-Why?” The boy croaked out.

“Because they were told the same thing as you.” Techno frowned as he got to his knees and gave the dead his respect. He looked to the young boy and frowned.

“They told you..‘You’ve been chosen by the gods. Only you may stop the threat of the villainous Blood God. Only you and your set of skills.’ Am I close?” The boy had a morbid look on his face as he dropped his sword.

“Why do you want me of all people to know?! I-I could kill you! You fucker!” He yelled. Techno stood up and looked down to the fearful child.

“I want you to help me. I know you can open a portal to the clouds with training. It only takes one to cause the fall of many.” The boy furrows his eyebrows thinking..he then suddenly put a hand out.

“I’m Tommy!” He introduced.

Techno smiles and takes the small hand in his.

“Technoblade.”

[czigonas]

Everyone's heard about any number of WWII badasses, but I was reminded of one in particular that made me think to myself, "this is the kind of person Johnny "Soap" MacTavish would absolutely know about and try to model himself after."

So I figured I'd give a little history lesson and tell other people about this guy too. Please meet:

Colonel Sir Ronald Thomas Stewart Macpherson, aka Tommy Macpherson, aka The Kilted Killer

So, first of all, this dude was Scottish, born in Edinburgh. He was commissioned in the Territorial Army in 1939 and served as a commando from 1940 until being taken prisoner in Libya by Italians after a failed exfil attempt on a recon mission in late 1941. He actually managed to escape (by holding up his 10-man arresting party with the gun they gave back to him!) but was recaptured and placed in solitary confinement. He attempted to escape again anyway before they moved him to a camp in Spain, where he tried again to escape (and made it pretty far but couldn't breach the outer wall). By mid 1942, they had moved him to a camp in Italy.

Mid 1943, the Germans took over the Italian camps and the prisoners were to be moved to Austria. Macpherson escaped again, but didn't get far before being recaptured. He was taken to a camp in Austria where he managed yet another escape, this time with two other men. They got recaptured in Italy on their way to Yugoslavia only because their rations gave them away as not being the Italian officers Macpherson had almost convinced the arresting patrol they were. Instead of being sent back to Austria, they were sent to a camp in Poland, where they escaped again (with two others this time), and made it into Sweden, from where they could fly home to Scotland.

So, let's count that up: In his first three years of being in the army, he was a prisoner of war for two of them and attempted escape five times from four different camps (well, three camps and once en-route to a camp) before finally making a sixth - successful! - escape.

During all of that, Macpherson held the rank of only a Second Lieutenant, though by the time he escaped the final time, he was considered an Acting Captain.

Despite his ordeal, or probably because of it and his general badassery, Macpherson was selected to Spec Ops within days of returning to Scotland. They trained until early 1944, after which he was promoted to Major (after only four years!!), and then parachuted into France in full battle dress which included a kilt.

The night after arriving, he blew up a bridge with the help of the local resistance. The night after that, they set mines in the road and surrounding forests leading towards Normandy and significantly hindered a Panzer Division attempting to reinforce German forces during the Allied Operation Overlord.

He and his two-man team, along with the resistance, then proceeded to spend the next three months blowing up bridges and disrupting road and rail traffic all throughout southwestern France. The Germans got so mad they put out a 300,000 franc bounty on his head.

He modified his machine guns to sound as though they were larger caliber than they were, causing the Germans to believe they were coming up against superior forces.

He booby-trapped a rail crossing guard to decapitate a German officer and his driver.

He cemented the surrender of 23,000 German troops at once - including a Major General! - by being driven unarmed (in his full battle dress with kilt!) and under fire into the village the Major General was commanding from and bluffing about being able to call down heavy artillery and a massive RAF strike.

He also did a lot more during the war, mostly in small-man teams and with local resistance fighters, including negotiating more axis-force surrenders and capturing or killing significant numbers of German troops.

Now, post-war, he had his rank reverted to Lieutenant (which is a thing that can happen, but not often out of wartime unless you're naughty). This wasn't a slight on his fighting or tactical prowess, but holding the rank of Major after only five years of service is insane and, frankly, he probably didn't have the education or experience to support such a rank. Especially as much of his fighting prowess came in what was, essentially, guerilla warfare, he likely had little to no practical ability to lead conventional troops and needed to learn that.

Additionally, the version of Spec Ops he had been recruited into in 1943 was not the SAS, but something called the SOE. Post-WWII, the SOE got disbanded and a number of operatives returned to their pre-war jobs while a good chunk was folded into MI6. Macpherson returned to the regular army, though he did do work with a regiment from the SAS while he was a Captain. Eventually he rose through the ranks to retire (into the Reserves) as a Colonel in 1967 and got knighted by the Queen in 1992.

Macpherson's autobiography came out in 2010, and I suspect it was of great interest to a number of Scottish soldiers enlisted at the time. I also suspect that Soap would take a particular interest in his demolitions work and the sheer infrastructure damage he managed to accomplish on his deployment. If Soap were to want to switch to Officer track (which, as I pointed out before, is unlikely), he could certainly find worse role models than Macpherson in that manner as well.

[dukerin0]

Vicious Princes Mechanics: EXPRESSION

Yeah fuck it let's talk about mechanics. Starting with EXPRESSION in The Devil City & Its 77 Vicious Princes. The first in what I'll hope to be a series of commentaries on the way the game works.

Social mechanics in games can be a tricky subject. My impulse has always been to play out full conversations in lieu of calling for anything like a persuasion or deception roll. We've all had conversations and told lies, after all. It's much more straightforward a thing to arbitrate than say a swordfight. Unless you're one of those HEMA guys. The fundamental makeup of most TTRPGs is conversation.

The flipside of this impulse: what about people who want to play as a silvertongued Casanova, but aren't big talkers in real life? That's leaving them in the lurch. Plus if you're playing a game like 5e, where there are stats and character options related to that sort of thing, you've wasted a skill point or a feat or whatever.

It's tricky!!!!

The Expression Aspect is how I've tried to reconcile this in DC77VP.

Every NPC in DC77VP has a set of beliefs that influence their actions. It's one of the most important parts of creating them. Beliefs are wide-lens, things like:

The Prince of Sand truly loves me.

The city’s laws are unjust.

My stepsisters are not to be trusted.

If you're trying to deceive, distract, or convince an NPC, you just do it. Describe how or what you say. If it takes advantage of the NPC's beliefs, they're likely convinced.

Successful Expression messes directly with those beliefs--an expression roll lets you add a new belief or, on a particularly lucky roll, modify or delete an existing one.

In my experience, fundamentally changing someone is HARD. How often have you had a long conversation with someone, forcing them to finally concede a point, only to later see them reverting back to the same flaws you thought you'd alerted them to? It takes something really impactful to make us truly change. I wanted to give that power to my PCs.

If you don't have an expression trait or a roll, you can still do the normal talky nonmechanical procedure I detailed above. But if you DO, you now have the power to really influence NPCs semipermanently.

Here's why I think expression is neat:

It encourages problem-solving NPCs, and I love problem solving. In DC77VP a lot of time is spent talking--scheming, seduction, shady deals, that's the meat of the game. By giving each NPC a list of beliefs (and suggesting to the GM that they wear these beliefs on their sleeve) you can turn each one into a little puzzle. What beliefs of the Dauphin can I use here? How can I twist them so that he'll serve my interest, without having to resort to a roll in the first place? Or, failing that…

It's powerful. An NPC, once Expressed upon, keeps that belief. Their long-term perspective is permanently modified. A player whose character is a better talker than they are can play out that influential fantasy--but they still have to make some active choices and decisions, because…

It's consequetial. A belief that helps you out now (Now the Dauphin thinks violence is wrong!) can come back to bite you (Now we need him to lend us funds for a mercenary force, but he's saying no!). My hope is that players will think carefully when Expression comes up. The minigame here is finding a belief that will help you in the long term. It's a ton of fun to find ways to twist newly inculcated beliefs around on the Princes who planted it (just don't go TOO overboard with it).

It's suited specifically to the game. Expression in its current form arose somewhat organically out of my playtests. DC77VP is played in the wider time unit of days, and in the single-city constraint characters stick around, showing up repeatedly. I dig that kind of setting-mechanic marriage.

OK wow that's a lot of words. I hope it's somewhat interesting--it helped me, anyway. Next up I'll cover violence.

[wildfernflower]

I think Sam is gay

His personal life is devoid of women completely seriously..

I guess this is your conclusion after you have watched the WWHL show. I'm convinced nothing what Sam said can be taken seriously. He did it for fun, laugh and promo, to sell and promote himself, the shows he’s acting in, his ventures, whatever …  He adjusted his answers to the low format of this sleazy talk show as well as to the low tastes and same expectations of the coarse audience. No way he would openly reveal any “spicy details" as we know he never says a word about his private life.

The questions were strictly sexual, provocative and intrusive, for me unacceptable. I think nobody being asked these type of questions would give true answers and everybody would deflect – what might be difficult, however, since the way the questions are structured and the interviewer himself require fast and direct answers, no room for hesitation, what surely makes the guests feel uncomfortable and under pressure. Moreover, whatever the answer is, one may feel publicly exposed unless they are thick-skinned and resistive to public humiliation. Perhaps Sam regrets accepting the invitation to this talk show: he had to force himself to play someone he is not and he overestimated his “survival skills”. However, he’s not innocent either, he knew the interviewer and his nosiness, knew approximately what awaited him in the show, he could have tried to handle the questions better but he chose otherwise. I’m sorry to say but obviously he doesn’t care that this (false) gross image of an attractive, frivolous eternal “fuck boy” deprives him of dignity and so much contradicts the image he aspires to: a serious actor and businessman. His goal was to entertain and please the audience, and gain more popularity, and this image surely appeals the best to the average, not demanding fans. If Sam’s goal was to distract from what his real life really is by purposedly creating a totally opposite image, the option he has chosen is risky. It may permanently put many people off. He should be more careful, once he crosses a line there’s no way back.

I think with his controversial answer to the question “Are you single?” Sam alluded to the interviewer’s sexual orientation and played a spontaneous joke on it. But it may turn against him. Sam was dispelling the gay gossip some time ago, and now, because of one ill-considered answer and so to speak - on his own request, unwanted rumors will be revived.

Sam’s elevated mood was feigned imo (or he was drunk, as some say), he responded with exaggerated gaiety and excessive frivolity. Was this his way of getting through to the end of this cringe worthy show and shallow questions? Or did he have in front of his eyes the image of a stereotypical American actor/celebrity, who achieves popularity and success by selling their fabricated or souped up privacy to the talk shows and tabloids, who is considered cool when - in a goofy way - gives away fabricated spicy secrets about his dating habits? Anyway, Sam did his best to follow that cliché.

And what a contrast! He’s promoting a rom com, has said he’s romantic, likes flowers (no matter if true or not) and today he openly plays a womanizer card: ghosting after one date, sex on first date, sending nudes to your partner, staying close to your ex when in new relationship … or even implying he might be gay … I felt disgusted.

I don’t know what is happening to Sam, he has lost his way, where is that happy, spontaneous, charming man he was 10 years ago? Does he still recognize himself?

I am having hard time to deal with that all.