#what aesthetic does this image even fall under

[yardsards]

little man investigates a lamp

[justporo]

my queen. ur sfw alphabet for astarion....it was so good. so amazingly good. grrrrrRUFF!!! GRAAAAFPBRRRR!!!!!! anyways.....would you....be able.......to make......an nsfw alphabet 👀

Oh my sweet Anon, how could I say no? And you're not alone in wanting the NSFW version so here you go, hope you enjoy! And thank you so so much <3. You know flattery will most likely get you your way with me. Surely a thing Astarion and me share... This is Fem!Tav/Astarion btw.

I used this wonderful template (although I changed C slightly), thanks again to @the-coldest-goodbye.

Smutty headcanons about Astarion and Tav (in alphabetical order)

A = Aftercare (what they’re like after sex)

Astarion is very cuddly and comforting – especially if it was a little rougher. He’s always making sure you’re okay, holding you, kissing you gently, laying around naked afterwards just talking and relaxing. Especially since he’s learnt being comfortable with non-sexual intimacy he also just enjoys being close to you with skin-on-skin contact, feeling your warmth.

B = Body part (their favorite body part of theirs and also their partner’s)

“Just one, love? Don’t make me choose a favourite?” Let’s face it, he knows he has the body and face of a fallen god. He takes pleasure in looking and being beautiful (rightfully so), he likes that he has a body that’s well built and incredible to look that. But not even in that kind of hollow way but it’s just aesthetically pleasing and that’s a source of joy for him (also he loves his hair a lot). That also goes for you: he’s constantly reminded of every single little beautiful detail about you. The way your neck curves in an elegant line, the way your lips open into a smile, the small lines in your irises that are only visible when he’s like an inch away from you, the little dimple above your butt? Ugh – he could get lost in all those little aspects for they’re all infinite spaces of beauty.

C = Coming (switched that one because I liked this more)

Astarion takes an incredible amount of pleasure in keeping you on edge sometimes. The way it’s so very much in his hands to let you fall or not and the way you’re willingly giving yourself to him in that way. He’d never truly make you suffer though – he only does what makes it more exciting for the both of you.

Sometimes it might even be a little bit of teasing who might be able to push the other beyond the point of no return. (Punishable by law and the other will pay!)

D = Dirty secret (pretty self explanatory, a dirty secret of theirs)

It turns Astarion on way too much when you wear his clothing. The way your ass looks when you’re wearing only his shirt, when it’s visible just beyond the hemline. The way your hardened nipples peak through the fabric and the outline of your breasts shows through it – he can never get over that image. Certain way to get him to push you against a wall in three seconds or less.(And it will stay on during the sex, so he can smell you and what the two of you did later on.)

E = Experience (how experienced are they? do they know what they’re doing?)

Do we even need to answer this? He knows every damn trick in the book and he’s very creative and eager to show off and teach you.

But: Doing all this with someone he really loves? With someone he desires so deeply it threatens to melt him from the inside? That’s a whole new plane of existence he never even though existed.

F = Favorite position (this goes without saying)

“Again, darling, you can’t possibly make me pick just one. Because when you’re under me I can see your face when I’m deep inside you. I can watch your eyes roll back and how your lips soundlessly form my name and your legs wrapped around my hips can slowly drive me insane. But when you’re on top of me I feel like you’re a goddess gracing me with your blessing. And when you’re on all fours and I’m above you, I can feel the tension in your whole body, how you desperately use every inch of space to get more friction and look at your pretty little back arch while I grip onto your thighs.”

Enough said, isn’t it?

G = Goofy (are they more serious in the moment? are they humorous? etc.)

He’s probably way too used to putting up the perfect performance in the beginning. But he slowly learns that being intimate means so much more: that it means being so deeply comfortable with each other, each other’s body and mentally, emotionally, that’s not about perfection at all. And that it can be so joyful if someone cracks a joke in the middle of the act because somehow the moan Tav let out sounded like a dying squirrel. Or because Astarion butchered his cheesy line because you’re driving way beyond mad with the way your hips roll.

H = Hair (how well groomed are they? does the carpet match the drapes? etc.)

Elves have little to no body hair so there’s not much to take care of. The little hair that might exist just stays and is neatly groomed just like the whole man.

I = Intimacy (how are they during the moment? the romantic aspect)

Astarion opening up in these moments is one of the most beautiful things. Because he slowly learns to experience real intimacy. He’s slowly fully there with you: it’s not an act anymore. His hands linger now on your soft, warm skin, his kisses become more passionate and never ending, his eyes burn with desire but mostly with love. And he makes sure to tell you: tells you how much he loves you, praises every inch of your body. His heart is so wide open when he gets there, he’s so ready to be loved and to give love – being amplified by the fact that he’d never even dared to believe he’d be allowed to feel something like this.

J = Jack off (masturbation headcanon)

He doesn’t really – because why when he has you at his fingertips. Although if you had to be away for a little while he might find he’s craving you way more than anything else. And when he’s sitting soaking in the tub and he’s reminded of how you look getting out of the tub, streams of water glistening on your body – he finds himself pleasuring himself thinking about how it will be once you’re back with him.

K = Kink (one or more of their kinks)

Hmm yes, the thing with blood. Drinking from you while being in the middle of the act – yeah, you kinda both enjoy that quite a bit.

But also it’s such a massive turn on for him if you give yourself to him completely. The fact that you’re trusting him this much is driving him almost insane.

L = Location (favorite places to do the do)

Oh, it could happen anywhere at any time.

Your enormous bed is your favourite place by far though. After all this safe space of coziness is just where you can completely intimate with each other in any kind of way. But Astarion for sure has to test every surface in the house with you – at least once. Okay, maybe twice for good measure.

M = Motivation (what turns them on, gets them going)

Just you literally doing anything. Once he realises he’s in love with you, he’s fallen and can’t get up. You’re angry at him – woah, the look you throw him takes his breath away. The way you bite your lip when you’re concentrating on something – he wants to put his lips on yours immediately.

And let’s not even talk about when you try to deliberately turn him on. You wearing something naughty just for him? You very purposefully letting your hands wander and linger just a little too much for it to be innocent?

“Love, either you keep these naughty little hands to yourself or you’ll put them right there right now and finish the godsdamned job”, Astarion whispers huskily and grabs one of your hands, deliberately placing it on the growing bulge between his legs.

N = No (something they wouldn’t do, turn offs)

If he ever felt used in that way again he’s been put through for way too long – he will NEVER do that again.

O = Oral (preference in giving or receiving, skill, etc.)

Astarion very much enjoys giving head, because the way your thighs press around his head while he can feel you shiver and the way the pitch of your moans rise – hmm, delicious.

He hasn’t been receiving quite that often so he’s not particularly fond of it, until – it’s you and he realises how wonderful you look with your lips wrapped around him.

P = Pace (are they fast and rough? slow and sensual? etc.)

It really depends on the mood. There’s certainly not just the one way with Astarion. He can be so incredibly sweet and tender, touches like feathers. But another time it might be he has you up against a wall and it’s all about carnal lust – making it rough and quick. But he certainly always makes sure it’s pleasant for the both of you.

Q = Quickie (their opinions on quickies, how often, etc.)

As much as Astarion enjoys spending whole nights (or days) with you under his hands (or the other way around), he wouldn’t say no to just quickly bending you over the kitchen table to give you a sweet little reminder why it is that you can’t get enough of him – ever.

R = Risk (are they game to experiment? do they take risks? etc.)

Experimenting, yes? He likes to show you new things, but he’d never put you in any danger and making sure you’re one hundred percent comfortable with what’s happening is always his top priority.

S = Stamina (how many rounds can they go for? how long do they last?)

No matter what you can’t possibly keep up with him. And he teases you about it (affectionately): “Aww love, I was just getting started. We didn’t even get to the real fun parts.” You just glared him, being too out of breath to put anything you wanted to verbally hurl at him into words.

T = Toys (do they own toys? do they use them? on a partner or themselves?)

The only things he needs really is you and himself. Although something like tying you up against the bed sometimes? Covering your eyes? But for the most part he enjoys completely uninterrupted body contact the most – and that by far doesn’t have too mean it’s always sweet and soft. Those long and elegant fingers have much expertise with sleight of hand and they don’t call it silver tongue for nothing.

U = Unfair (how much they like to tease)

Oh, an awful lot. Astarion is the definition of a tease. But in his defence: he also takes delight in being teased back. It’s no fun if you don’t claw back. And bickering and teasing a lot is definitely your specific kind of foreplay.

V = Volume (how loud they are, what sounds they make, etc.)

Astarion’s quite verbal – especially since he’s discovering new heights of pleasure with his loved one. Groaning and moaning – especially your name or praises for you. Also he does not care if he’s loud – he’ll proudly let the whole world now how much he desires you (much to the displeasure of you and your party members, oops).

W = Wild card (a random headcanon for the character)

It’s Astarion absolute specialty to make you flustered in public. Once he’s found you get these delightful full body blushes he makes it his goals to tease you at the most inappropriate times. You hate him and you love him for it – this smug bastard. He just knows how to push your buttons way too well.

X = X-ray (let’s see what’s going on under those clothes)

He’s hot alright. He most definitely has those muscles for vanity reasons and thankfully vampirism made sure he’s keeping those abs no matter how much of a domestic softie he’s gotten with you.

Y = Yearning (how high is their sex drive?)

High – especially in the beginning. Once he’s free to enjoy his own desires at his own pace there will most definitely be this high-demand honeymoon phase. You’re both not quite sure it will always really end (and you surely hope not).

But: it’s also important for Astarion that he’s getting more confident to maybe just not be in the mood every single time. Just like you aren’t always, too. And that’s completely fine, you assure him time and time again that you’ll never want him to indulge you just because he feels an obligation.

Z = Zzz (how quickly they fall asleep afterwards)

You can sleep when you’re dead. There’s way too much stuff to be done after: maybe another round (or more), cuddle, talk, goof around, down a bottle of wine.

Although slowly drifting into sleep after being fully satisfied and full of love and warmth: that’s definitely the best way to end a night.

[ditizygirl]

Editblr is a breeding ground for idolatry, ableism, racism and so much more all for a community about putting images together.

I've been here for only a year but I feel like I've seen it all, and the excuses oh my god the excuses. You are all 15-19, you should not have the mental capacity of a 8 year old. Your common sense is non existent and almost all of you guys are so fucking stupid it's pissing me off more than any god can understand. You are old enough to have logical thinking skills, you may have a disorder and it may be a reason but not an excuse.

Alot of you have forgotten the saying "Think Before You Talk" and I've sure as hell done alot of thinking. This is my deep dive into editblr.

Ableism

Typing quirks are a way of personal expression but why do so much of you hate to add plain text. I can understand to extent because plain text hates my head because of how long it can be but I'm not gonna act like a little bitch about it. I'm gonna add my typing quirk or even fonts itself to it.

I'm gonna ask someone to help me, or to do it for me. Stopping making excuses for ableism. Alongside with the typing quirks, your psds are ugly and eyestrainy. Psds also fall under racism because I have no idea why you guys are ignoring the fact some make dark skin characters lighter but in the case of ableism most of them are really bright and makes it hard to see.

Orange and brown? Green and yellow? Blue and brown? Why are you putting colours that can be so much eyesore together? And won't even tag as eyestrain and when someone does ask you only do it for one post.

Romanticization

This one is weird as fuck and I see no one mentioning it. Editblr highkey has a ddlg problem, this "little girl" aesthetic you guys have going on borderlines ddlg alot and its icky. The baby talk typing quirk is disgusting, stop it.

I'm not one to judge how someone copes with their trauma but what I DO judge is how you act when majority says its uncomfortable. Now this section I'm a bit unsure how to phrase it, gotta love dyslexia, but that isn't going to stop me.

There's alot of very uncomfortable romanticization of stalking which I've seen so much of alongside abusive relationships and the justification of these things.

Racism

Really can't escape this one unfortunately. Many of you are like kpop idols, you're too dyslexic towards the difference between appropriation and appreciation. Incase you forgot let me remind you.

You can not gift japanese names. Gifting names is a native practice therefore you can only gift native names. Also I've noticed you weirdos befriending people just to use their cultural names. I can't even say it east asian fetishization because its only Japanese.

Also for the love of God can you guys stop saying nonmem and non women especially when referring to sexualities. It's not hard to simply say "queer attraction to women" and "queer attraction to men".

Coming back to the "gifting" names thing, I think it's interesting how all of you conveniently have a Japanese friend who "gifted" you the name of a cute pink anime girl. Maybe I'll do a post later on how much of a bad liar you guys are.

Closed symbols is also another big problem you all have. No matter how much times you're told you can't use something you always cry "but my friend from xyz culture said it was ok!" One person can't speak for a whole culture. You're nothing but a coloinzer in disguise hiding behind the idea of aesthetic. If you want to know if a symbol is closed just use this site.

Goddess Personas

Yea this one is getting a whole section of its own. Like any people I am uncomfortable with goddess personas, especially being someone with biblical sources. Now the idea that a teenager on the internet is making people call them a goddess is strange isn't it?

In my opinion, they're all annoying, copy and paste, and I think not a lot of people talk about how the really bad ones get. You all love to indulge them, make them think they have power over them. You put them on a pedestal and praise them and get surprised when it all goes to their head?

Stop giving 14 years old power, stop indulging in their habits and letting it go their head. Forcing people to refer to you as their goddess? Their Lord and saviour? Their idol? Someone they must listen to? It creates a power inbalance which always leads to the weirdest of manipulation. Also all the engagekiss copiers are so obvious why would you want to copy the identity of a groomer? It says alot of about yourself if that's what you think is ideal.

Callout Posts

Now, personally, I believe that the only reason a callout post happens is because someone was affected, does it not? Very rarely would a callout post would be a fake one, especially if someone has more then one. If you defend someone who has more than one call out post that's on you and you're gonna end up making one some day I can genuine you that. People don't make them for no reason.

This is all I have to say for now. I hope you guys really consider what I have written here, or not, considering the fact you guys have shown multiple times you lack reading comprehension

@starriesse @dollicous @doveinne @firstgf @kiochisato @lamboll @cherryshh @narcbf @lavendergalactic @npditary @sprinkleoverdose @necroangelz @eskeys

[milksuu]

Hii! This is my first time sending a request haha! Well, could you Heartsteel Aphelios with Reader who’s a hardcore Gamer?

(I mean, like ungodly amounts of hours on a multitude of games. Always hitting new high scores. And the classic, eyebags from lack of sleep.)

⌜heartsteel!aphelios x fem!reader⌟ ╰ ❝ YOU CAN'T WIN A GIRLFRIEND IN A 1 V 1 ! ❞

❥ prompt: Aphelios thought there wasn't a single soul in the entire universe stupid enough to challenge him to a 1v1. But apparently, the 'God of Gaming' thought to use their last brain cell to bet their final testament. Little did you know, you'd fall from grace, then forced to play in some idols sick twisted game of pay-back. ❥ content/warnings: enemies to lovers vibe, affectionate bullying, name calling, teasing, fake relationship, fluff (?), 100% emotional dmg ( + crit. bonus on reader)

░꒱♡‿ִ₊˚→ 'GOD OF GAMING'....that's what they call you. An immortal being born to play and dominate the realm of video games in all facets. Sleep's inevitably for the weak and uncommitted. It's a mark of honor to wield dark, heavy under bags beneath your eyes, so long as it meant keeping your rightful place on the throne.

Even in the realm of FPS, no one dares contest your dominance on top of the leaderboard. It's impossible for anyone who even thinks to get more than three hours of daily sleep. Until this night, at the deathly hour of 3 A.M on a Tuesday, an unknown player sweeps in announced. First round on top was a newby flook. You were busy taking a few breaks in game to sip on your energy drink. Second time, the damn bastard is kill stealing from even your weakest team mates. Third time he makes top of the leaderboards...now that's a personal attack on your reputation.

It's not long till various social tweets race like wildfire across all media platforms. Nothing more than constant jabs and reminders of how fickle your place is in this revolving door of a world. It makes you crinkle your fifth can of gamer fuel. There's only one way to respond to this usurper trying to contest your territory.

░꒱♡‿ִ₊˚→ APHELIOS sits back in his chair, tapping a finger on his desk. He narrows his eyes against a blaring screen. Who even was this? He had no clue. All he can recall is playing some random game out of boredom, then a monsoon of social tweets pestering him and some other guy who likes gaming. Maybe a little too much, he suspects.

He does his own social media rummaging, scuffing at his findings. You practically live inside your room, dedicating your whole life to playing video games. Apparently, it's your entire livelihood. He doesn't envy you one bit; pity is the better word that comes to mind. Your entire aesthetic is wearing an oversized hoodie that covers everything (probably your man boobs), and even your face. Except for your eyes. Holy hell, those eyebags were heavier than Sett's banana hammock on a hot summer's day.

Lazily, he opens up his calendar; checking event dates, rehearsal dates, fan meet dates. Tomorrow's his only free day for the week. Luckily for you, that's the one day you demanded from him. And of course some holed-up undesirable would ask another guy to challenge him at a internet cafe. No big deal. He'd set aside a few minutes to put you in your place. Then, completely forget about your entire existence the next day.

Aphelios accepts the challenge and locks in the date. When the day of divine retribution comes, he shows up twenty-minutes before hand. He purposely waits in front of the internet cafe you chose. Only to enjoy the sight of watching some idiot (you) sweating in a hoodie, barely able to catch your breath before you stood at his feet. Oddly enough, something different turns the corner. Eye-catching, even.

"Hey. Looks like you didn't chicken out on me," you comment, brushing away your done up hair from your shoulder. "Guess I'll give you kudos for that."

Aphelios does a double-take, trying to process the image of you online to what's standing in front of him. From his perspective, you look every bit of a model that just stepped out of a photo shoot. Where did those bags go? Man boobs? No, girl boobs? Was being reversed cat-fished a thing?

(Imagine the power of a whole eight hours of sleep and wardrobe change)

You quirk a brow at his silent, mile-long stare. "Um, yeah. Let's make this quick. I have plans to go shopping after this. So I want to get this over with so I can get on with my day. Sound good to you?"

Before he can respond, you brush pass him, slipping through the doors behind. Blinking away his sense of whiplash, Aphelios follows. It's not surprising to find a group of fans swarming and buzzing around the entire place. He's still stun-locked by your unexpected appearance. Observing as you go about in graceful fashion, greeting and hugging those in support of you.

"How about we make a deal before we start," you approach him again, placing your hands hotly on your hips. "I win, and you announce on all your social media platforms that I'm the better player. And your terms?"

Aphelios pauses. He made a hasty assumption. Thinking you were some guy living like a wall rat inside his own apartment. The slight margin of error has his lips curling in the most sadistic fashion. This was going to work out much more in his favor. And there's no intention of letting you off so easily. Being an attractive girl was never a default for mercy. He pulled out his cell, and typed the following:

If I win, you have to be my girlfriend for a month.

░꒱♡‿ִ₊˚→ YOU READ the words out loud, and the whole atmosphere cuts to silence. Your mouth trembles, before you burst with laughter as does the rest of the room. Clutching your cramping stomach, you swat the air in frantic motions. "Y-You can't be serious," you say with attempts to catch your breath. "You think you're going to win? That's so funny. How embarrassing for you. To think you'd even have a single chance to date me." Calming your breaths, you send him one final death glare and spit out the word. "Delusional."

Walking to take your seat, you ignore his unfaltering gaze trailing you. There's a glint in his eyes that tells you he's enjoying whatever hamster wheel is spinning inside his head. You need to add the poor hamster is obviously sick, forced into labour and probably part of a lab experiment.

When the match starts, no one feels the need to invest too much into the game. You were, after all, the 'God of Gaming'. It wasn't going to be a fair match to begin with. Until the game ends before anyone can blink twice; especially you.

The rule to win the round was simple; land the first headshot. Needles to say, you didn't.

Your eyes widen against the screen. Your death screen pops, and your lifeless body collapses. Adding unnecessary amounts of salt in the wound, your scumbag of an opponent crouches over your head. Repeatedly. Your trembling vision shifts away, past your monitor to the opposite side. Slowly, Aphelios leans casually into view, a cocky eyebrow cinched high into his forehead.

You grit your teeth, hand tightening into fists that would mark the inside of you palms. Pestering whispers and scandalous talk rise and echo around you. There's no way to escape the shame. You bow your head in defeat. What else can you do? There wasn't any use in fighting. You have to save whatever drop of class and honor you have left. Anything out of pocket, and your whole reputation could crumble. You push yourself away from the desk, pacing to meet your bastard of an opponent on the other side.

"Good...good game," your voice strangles to leave your tight lips. You try hard not to ruin your face with a scowl. Especially when Aphelios stands pretty damn tall, staring down at you like a child that just had good a spanking. Taking out his phone, he shows you some text:

Sure. Guess you would call it a good game. And now that you're my girlfriend, it's only reasonable to go on a date with me. As my reward and all. Those were the terms. Right?

The blood inside your veins boil. You want nothing more than to slap that phone out of his hands, and crush it beneath your heels. You reserve to grinding your teeth. Aphelios merely smiles through a devilish crinkle in his blood moon eyes. And it's now dawning on you; he's made a full-proof plan to make you suffer.

From what I know, girlfriend's hold onto their boyfriends hands. And also call them 'babe' as a loving pet name. Right?

You want to scream at the top of your lungs right now. Holding your breath, you withhold it from your surrounding scrutiny. When he reaches out his hand, you take it tensely. He chuckles when your manicured nails dig aggressively into the skin of his hand.

It’s cute how badly my girlfriend wants to hold my hand. I’d be careful, though. The harder she squeezes, the more I kind of like it.

You gulp and loosen your grip. Honestly, where the hell does he get off saying stuff like that so casually? How humiliating. And it was just the start of your month of impending doom.

Like any ‘proper’ date, he drags you to one of his usual spots in town for a meal. It's odd to witness him take the lead so naturally; as if you really were his damn girlfriend. When he offers to order and pay for the both of you, you almost hesitate. However, you weren't going to turn down a free meal. Even if it came from your current worst enemy.

“Oh. Um…then I’ll have the burger. No pickles.” Aphelios sends you a yard long stare, and you know he's siphoning you for more. You blush, turning a cheek. “Please, b-babe?”

You can tell he leers underneath his mask, like a cat whose gotten his cream. He leaves you briefly, before returning and setting a tray of food in front of you. For a moment, you stare at the hamburger with warranted skepticism. You raise your pair of squinting eyes at Aphelios, whose already pulled down his mask to quietly enjoy his meal. After a beat, you lower your restraints, and slowly take a bite. You immediately stiffen and gag, spitting up into a napkin. There's definitely pickles—loads of them.

Aphelios almost chokes on his own laugher at your award winning expression of disgust. He slides his phone across the table:

Oh. Sorry. I thought you said extra pickles. ㅋㅋㅋㅋ

Freaking bastard! Before you can smack his phone off the table, he snatches it back to the safety of his pocket. With a growl, you slough off the heaps and slices of fermented food. You're able to de-pickle the patty, but there's little joy in eating something with the faint essence of the nastiest condiment.

And after a not-so-enjoyable lunch, he takes you to a nearby pâtisserie for dessert. While waiting, and you have a half a mind to run out. Or call the local circus so they can come get their evil clown back. You're terrified to see what he's planning to bring you. And when he does, your mouth instantly waters. You stare down at a cute, decorative dessert parfait. It looks perfect with no hidden pickles (don't put it past him though). Your eyes glisten at the extravagant layers of yogurt, fruit compote, and whipped cream. Not to mention, the glazed whole strawberries on top, glittering with snow powder sugar. Giddy with excitement, you almost forget the silent devil sitting next to you. Before you can take the first bite, Aphelios intercepts your hand, brings it to his lips, and claims it for himself.

There's only one spoon, you know. And like any good girlfriend, it only makes sense to hand feed her boyfriend. Down to the very. last. bite.

There's a twitch in your face. You really want to dump the whole dessert pile onto his head. Unfortunately, that would be a major insult to the parfait. Exhaling your fury through your nostrils, you belly the desire to murder him with a plastic spoon. Grumbling, you perform your embarrassing 'girlfriend' duty. Nearing the end of this round of torture, he smiles—all at your expense, of course.

Wow. Am I full. Thanks for that. I'm actually feeling kind of generous from all your devoted attention. Tell you what. I'll let you have the last bite.

"Yeah, right," you snort. "Like I would ever share the same spoon with you, let alone anything you've touched on this Earth—hmph!" Before you can finish your berating monologue, Aphelios flips your hand around and slips the spoon inside your mouth.

ㅉㅉ You shouldn't talk with your mouth full. Silly. You might choke. And I rather not have that on my conscious.

You whine, trying to swallow your way through a verbal tantrum. Who knew it'd be so difficult to argue with delicious yogurt in your mouth? Still, reality settles shortly after the sweetness melts from your tongue. A certain thought springs a bitter aftertaste. For all intents and purposes, you both just shared an indirect kiss.

You smack the spoon on the table, feeling your face heat up. Yet, he's just sitting there, sly with composure. Not bothered by any of it—this sick 'fake dating' sims game. It wasn't fair. Nothing about this was fair! How many times did you have such an experience through your dating visual novel games? Too many to count. Yet, despite all those perfect moments with your various 2-D boyfriends, this fake 3-D imposter, just ruined the whole trope experience for you. There was no way you could replay those scenes and not think about your suffering today. You would damn this man to Hell again, but obviously, he enjoys vacationing there.

It was funny when you thought your gruelling date would conclude after dessert. Aphelios made sure to think of various, and random places to drag you to for no good reason. He's perfecting the art of physically and mentally exhausting you. Stroll in the park? He may or may not have put a caterpillar on your head. Watch you freak out about it, and then relish in having you beg him to help you. Lovely time window shopping at an outdoor mall? He makes sure to slip away and watch you panic trying to find him in the mass of busy bodies. Before you know where your head's at, you blink up against lit downtown buildings, store fronts and street lights.

Well, today's been fun. Just one last thing to make this date perfect. Something my girlfriend will definitely love.

An all too knowing smile creases his mask again. Taking your hand, he leads you away to the next destination in mind. With your eyes half-lidded with fatigue and feet already beaten to a pulp by your heels, you force yourself to stop caring. Like everything else, you'll just go along with it and pray it's over soon.

⌜LUV-U ♡ HOTEL⌟

Your mouth drops at the sight of a pink and flickering neon sign a few steps away. Did he really just drag you to a Love Hotel!? You swallow hard. Nevermind, you did care. You cared a lot! "This has to be a joke, right? You're out of your mind if you think I'm going to let you take me inside—"

You're cut short as you're tugged forward. Nearing the entrance, your heart pounds louder than the surrounding nightlife. Your thoughts are racing. And watching another couple walk out looking rather satisfied with their stay doesn't help your emotions at all. That is, until he casually leads you past the hotel and around the corner, where there's vending machine against the wall. He releases his hold and gestures to it.

What are you talking about? Take you inside where? And no. There's no joke about this being the best vending machine in town for canned coffee. ㅎ_ㅎ

You stare with dumbfounded horror as he purchases two cans, and places one in your stiff hands. You look down at your coffee and contemplate just about everything up till this point. How big of a mistake it was to meet someone like him. Worse yet, be at his mercy over a stupid bet you set in place...and actually lost. How did your life turn out this way? Regret and humiliation well up as tears against your eyes. You pinch your bottom lip between your teeth. With the last of your dignity on the line; you'd rather die at this point than cry in front of him.

░꒱♡‿ִ₊˚→ APHELIOS lowers his drink from his lips, watching you from the side of his lashes. Looks like you were at your limit. Maybe he went a little too far. But every bit of his ego wants to rationalize it was well deserved. A pestering knot tightens like a fist at the base of his sternum. It bothers him enough to turn his neutral expression into a frown. His gaze catches your trembling legs, and traces them all the way down to your heels. His eyes widen by a margin; it's insane to think you hadn't complained about your feet hours ago. Looks like that knot wasn't going away anytime soon.

He tosses away your cans and raises his phone:

Take off your heels.

"What?" You're at a complete loss for words. Was he now going to force you to walk barefoot on the gross streets? You shake your head. "No way. Forget it. If you want me to take them off so bad, then do it yourself—Jerk!"

Aphelios flutters his eyelids in annoyance. More so that, for a split moment, he found himself not entirely hating the insult used against him. Forgetting the stupid interruption of his brain, he bends down and starts unlacing your straps. "H-Hey, wait a second you freaking weirdo. I didn't actually mean it literally."

It doesn't take much effort to hoist you onto his back, wrap your arms around his neck, and press your thighs snug against his waist. He anticipates a spit fire reaction. To his surprise, you simply huff and puff out your cheeks, muttering another possible insult. Honestly, he was sure you would've taken this opportunity to choke him out in a headlock. (He would've done it, but glad you didn't).

With a final adjustment, he hands you his cell phone, open with the map application. It seems it takes you a moment to realize he wants you to put your address so that he can dump you back wherever you live.

"You really plan on carrying me all the way to my house?" He can't see your expression, but by delivery alone, he can hear the blush in your cheeks. After a few taps and a mutter, he gets his phone back. "You better delete my address later. Or your new name's going be 'Stalker'."

Aphelios can't help but scuff. Like he would waste any more of his free time on inflating your already big head. He wonders how you even manage to fit your head through any shirt holes.

For a short while, you don't speak. As he walks through more quieter neighborhood streets, he feels your body condense further into his back.

"Mm, you know, for a being a cold jerk...somehow, you feel super warm," you breathe sleepily against his earlobe.

After a mumble or two, you commit to a terribly sleepy idea. Closing your eyes, you place your lips against his neck. Lingering, your mouth is soft and warm against his skin. Slightly sticky from whatever lip gloss you still have left. After the longest moment of his life, you abandon your spot. But he can feel your sleep drunk smile from how close your lips still are.

"Heh, there..I already kissed you, so...now you can't make me do it later....jerk."

When you finally doze off with light breathes and snores, Aphelios comes to a complete halt. It takes a moment to process. Then, without his consent, his neutral complexion flushes bright pink. The spot where you kissed him feels like it's burning a hole straight through him, down to his thumping pulse. He exhales a hot and heavy breath. It's warm enough to puff in the night air. With a shake of his head, he finds his walking pace, continuing towards your apartment.

He refuses to let you sway him with whatever tricks and flirts you have up your sleeve. He wasn't a swoonful idiot like most. And Aphelios knows he has a whole month worth of you still left. He'd make sure you always knew who you were dealing with. And by the end of it all, he'd make sure you'd never be able to get him off your mind.

A brewing smirk lifts one corner of his lips. This game was going to be more fun than he expected. And just like every other game, he would ultimately win.

Too bad for you, he mused to himself.

an;; ahhh thank you all for all your sweet messages i've been receiving through my hiatus. really appreciate it. trying to get back in the swing of things of answering anon. reqs. and working on my cleaning lady fic as well.

ngl, i swear, i hc so hard the phel can be such a sadistic/vengful bitch hell bent ruining anyone's life. like hes so unbothered by things and keeps to himself, that the minute you try to test him in that department, yeah no, you're officially on his shit list for life. how sweet how my man can hold grudge. &lt;3

[spheciform]

Sad she only got one album out before everything went to shit, but what's a girl to do?

This is a fake album cover for my dnd character, Helvia, and her fake band THREAT DISPLAY!!! Context for this piece and Helvia as a whole under the cut because once I start I can't stop talking about her <3

SO the campaign hasn't started yet, but Helvia is my character for a science fiction campaign. She's robot!!! Well I guess that's obvious now. BUT the basic gist: Helvia was manufactured as an industry-controlled and maintained electronic "punk" singer. When the project ended up making no money, everything related to it (including her), was abandoned. Three years later, she wakes up out of stasis with no clue what happened, an insane debt, and a failing memory. You will look at her !! Her full name is Helvia Cardinalis. This is just a genus of mantis it doesn't have any special meaning I just like bugs <3

-she has generated "background" memories of an entire life, but there's no telling which of those are real. I don't actually know which of them are real. My dm does!!! We'll be finding out together!!

-sometimes she uh. Doesn't know basic information. Whenever something she should reasonably know gets brought up I get to roll a flat d20 to do a "memory check", the checks getting harder the older the memory is. When she fails, she gets to lie or change the topic etc because she would rather DIE than admit anything is wrong with her.

-the album cover is kind of an intentionally really poor introduction of her character. She's more silly than anything? The entire project was meticulously micromanaged by the company that made her. The "novelty" and aesthetic of having a construct as their lead took forefront in its advertisement. There were two other members of THREAT DISPLAY!!! But she has no memory of them because they were considered comparatively SO unimportant to advertising and to her that they have gone... forgotten.

-Helvia herself is. A real character alright!!! Based entirely in what a corporation thinks a "cool alternative girl" is, she's impulsive, selfish, and just. So fucking stupid. She's firmly a "might makes right" type of person who was designed to appear counterculture but still ultimately serve and be fine with the status quo as long as it benefits her. She's going to do anything that grants her immediate satisfaction, and is obsessed with maintaining her image as "cool and above it all", even as her body is actively breaking down. She easily falls for flattery.

Notes about the piece: yeah I downloaded and used splatoon fonts for the nonsense text. I think I typed gay sex like twice I'll be real none of it translates to relevant information. I think there's something in there about how I hope it came across as an adequate parody of machine girl album covers (my main inspiration). The composition of the piece itself is meant to feel kind of skeevy and exploitative because well. It is!! It's drawing the fine line between 'wow this is so cool and counterculture of us wow!!!' and fetishistic? Etc etc missing the chestpiece as an analog for putting a woman topless on the cover. There's actually a separate sketch I did as a canonical "mock up" for the design that originally included the other members, treating them like props because they're so unimportant, before they were scrapped from the final design because they were That Unimportant.

Notes on Helvia's design: I pulled from a few sources for this!! Notably I looked at so many pictures of that band Tramp Stamps. Remember Tramp Stamps? I don't. They're like the direct analog I think to her. I also pulled from vocaloid designs!! Impractical, cool, kind of "anime" feel. This comes across most in her hair I think which is just so beautifully impractical. The yellow gloves are so stupid important to me actually they're kind of ugly but it's the only way her name ended up being important: helvia cardinalis (mantis) is Bright Yellow and raises its 'arms' in its threat display, which I wanted to pull from for potential posing of her!! So. Bright stupid yellow gloves <3 they're an easy way to tell her character apart too & mean I don't have to worry about drawing all the nonsense on her arms. The translucent skirt also comes from the mantis, sort of pulled from its wings!! Original concepts for her included synthetic skin rotting away but her design was already more complicated than I normally go for and we ultimately ended up realizing her being openly and visibly a construct was important for her image in her music career so it worked out well! She is at least missing an eyeball :] doesn't affect vision since the mechanics are still in place but I guess she just gets that fun sans glow socket <3 her outfit is meant to look simultaneously cool, vaguely expensive, but also super super cheap?? Overall I'm happy with the fact that she looks both cool and really stupidly impractical in that classic 2000s deviantart oc way <3 it's important to me! Ultimately:

[deepdreamnights]

A friendly wizard and style reference.

Midjourney has just released both the version 6 of its niji anime engine and the first version of its "style reference" tool.

Functionally this is a variation of the image prompting system (explained here), in which breaks a submitted image down into the 'token language' the AI uses internally and uses that as a supplement to a text prompt. "Style Reference" (or 'sref') lets you do this with up to three images, only with only the tokens associated with 'style' being drawn upon.

This is not to be confused with style transfer, a much older and very different AI art process.

But what is a style in this context? And how does it affect generation?

Prompt: a blue axolotl-anthro wizard in a red-and-yellow swirl-pattern robe, holding a sheleighleigh made of purple wood and a potion full of glowing green energy drink. A blue-and-green ladybug familiar stands near his feet, white background, fullbody image

Settings: --niji 6, --style raw --s 50 --seed 1762468963

Here, I've tested the same seed and prompt with a number of reference images.

My semiorganized ramblings under the fold

The first thing I note is that style reference affects the gen so much that same-seed/different style ref comparisons are kind of pointless. Way too much of pose, composition and content changes for it to matter, so for future style ref tests, I'm probably going to drop the seeds.

The second thing I note is that there are certain limitations. You need to change up your prompt for things like photography, and the system interprets styles using its own criteria, not ours. If image prompting misinterprets something, so will style ref, but perhaps not in the same way.

This is notable for the one prompted with a scan from the Nuremberg Chronicle (first row). It recognizes that its a woodcut and emulates that general vibe nicely, but MJ is highly tuned for aesthetics, and emulating real world jank and clumsiness is a weak area. This is literally the first printed (european at least) book with illustrations. Every example thereafter is building on that skillset, so the dataset for woodcuts is going to be largely of a higher apparent quality.

In short, with Midjourney, additional prompt work is needed to replicate the look of early jank or intentionally 'ugly' art styles, and even as recent as v6 I've had no luck with things like midcentury Hanna-Barbereesque cheap TV animation styles or shitty 1990s CGI.

Style reference can help, I've gotten some pretty good cheap 80s-90s TV animation looking stuff from v6 niji and style ref in my early tests:

Color observations: Absent specific requests in the prompt, SREF will stick pretty close to the palette and lighting conditions of the referenced image. With such instructions, you get blending, so the one referencing the okapi fakemon (second row from bottom), for instance, has a lot of colors the reference image doesn't have, but they're in similar in vibrancy and saturation.

One limitation, however, is it doesn't apply to the aspects of the gen that come from any image prompts, so it will always blend the style of the style reference with the style aspects inherited from the image prompt, and that is very strong compared to the style ref.

Using the dog as the image prompt, and the TFTM reformatting as the style prompt, and the text prompt: "a cute older yorkie dog sitting on a bedspread", we get the image on the left. Dropping the image prompt weight to .25 gets us the center option, and removing the image prompt entirely produces the one on the right.

I expect this will be patched eventually, or general image prompting may fall out of favor compared to a combination of style ref and the upcoming character reference option, which will be the same thing, but will only reference the tokens associated with the character in the reference image. Depending on how that works that will have a lot of uses.

Stay tuned for more experiments. There's some good potential for freaky, unexplored aesthetics with combinations of multiple style refs and text prompts.

[svt-kiki]

( 🖇️ ) 𝐄𝐍𝐃𝐎𝐑𝐒𝐄𝐌𝐄𝐍𝐓 ⌅ .

as of august, 2024

3RD GEN IT GIRL ! 𓂃 .⠀࣪*

　unlike today’s 4th gen idol, kiki hadn’t gathered popularity immedietly after the debut. yes, she was known as her unmatched dance skills, but most people recognize her just because she was a only female member among the group, or the very first japanese female idol in kpop industry. in addition, many people thought she would dissapear from the group or public in couple years, because of her quite unique ‘position’ and concerns that were already in the group itself.

　however — surprisingly, she didn’t leaved the group. seventeen didn’t disband. no one never leaved the group. kiki started to blooming each year, step by step, like jun once said. is she a late bloomer? probably. but the flower she made was the most unique and sparkling art piece. now she understand her strongness, the charisma, and the possibility to become the main character not only in the room, but even nation and generation. she knows what she doing, she understands the elements and assignments, and lots of brands and designers love her because she pay attention to deatils and willing to study its history. or, world just can’t help but falling in love with her.

　　　　　　　　　୨ৎ　—　𝟣𝟫𝟨𝟩 (𝖾𝗌𝗍.) 　

　　　　　　　　›　𝐑𝐀𝐋𝐏𝐇 𝐋𝐀𝐔𝐑𝐄𝐍　‹

ambassador　oct ‘19 -

global ambassador　mar ‘22 -

　guess what, she’s a human ralph lauren ! she has that preppy, old money aesthetic by nature. RL is the brand that gave his attention to kiki much earlier than others, and they build the special connection to each other. ralph treats her as their main issue since she pays attention to details of craftsmanship, history and collections. there is no doubt she’s a face of brand.

　　　　　　　　　୨ৎ　—　𝟣𝟫𝟦𝟫 (𝖾𝗌𝗍.)

　　　　　　　　　　›　𝐀𝐃𝐈𝐃𝐀𝐒　‹

ambassador　sep ‘20 -

global ambassador　dec ‘22 -

she is a hard worker. it’s never easy to be the only female member among the mostly-boys big band. she trained herself to build her body so that she could complete the tour and live concerts with boys, and she was known for having a disciplined personal image for the public. she does dance a lot, work out a lot, so kiki is the perfect choice for the face of brand. she launched the limited collaboration line in summer, 2023 with the brand as ’kiki x adidas’ including track suits, sweat shirts and sneakers and it sold out within a day.

　　　　　　　　　୨ৎ　—　𝟣𝟫𝟧𝟫 (𝖾𝗌𝗍.)

　　　　　　　　　›　𝐕𝐀𝐋𝐄𝐍𝐓𝐈𝐍𝐎　‹　

global ambassador　mar ‘22 -

her first achievement with grand maison ! mostly, she represents the later collection and aesthetics by valentino garavani himself in later 90s to early 00s. it’s needless to say that she’s the first kpop idol who associated officially with the brand, and that indicates that valentino taking her seriously. kiki drew attention especially her in recent ‘black tie’ collection. and even pierpaolo piccioli admitted she’s one of the inspiration ! suit and black tie are always her signature look, so it’s natural for them to chose kiki as a muse. although she has a contract with the brand, valentino hasn’t forced her to wear their piece every time.

　　　　　　　　　୨ৎ　—　𝟣𝟫𝟨𝟪 (𝖾𝗌𝗍.)

　　　　　　　　›　𝐂𝐀𝐋𝐕𝐈𝐍 𝐊𝐋𝐄𝐈𝐍　‹

global ambassador　apr ‘23 -

since she appeared in spring 2023 campaign, the famous jeans & underwear brand fell in love with her. not only jeans and underwear ( well she wasn’t comfortable to wearing just a pair of underwear in ads, so just a sport bra under the jacket that covered her cleavage ) but kiki loves the brand’s classic, sophisticated minimalism in 90s, pulled out vintage and archives and wear it in on and off. she has the class, and it looks really good on her.

　　　　　　　　　୨ৎ　—　𝟣𝟪𝟦𝟩 (𝖾𝗌𝗍.) 　

　　　　　　　　　 ›　𝐂𝐀𝐑𝐓𝐈𝐄𝐑　‹

global ambassador　sep ‘23 -

　carats found out suddenly she appeared in the big billboard in the major cities around the world, wearing gold iconic jewelries, taken with a model in the same picture with relaxing expression. yes, it was the surprise announcement of kiki as a new face of cartier. she was known for using cartier watch for long time, carries two or three of it whenever she goes to oversea schedules, collecting some vintage watches. she is an ambassador for watch and jewelry. her favorites are standard tank louis with black belt and gold frame, and the love bracelet.

　　　　　　　　　୨ৎ　—　𝟣𝟫𝟩𝟪 (𝖾𝗌𝗍.)

　　　　　　　　　 ›　𝐕𝐄𝐑𝐒𝐀𝐂𝐄　‹

global ambassador　apr ‘24 -

　trust me, they are highly frustrated when valentino snatched her right under their nose lol. they have been inviting kiki to the collection since 2022 and they wanted her as an ambassador so bad. her persona as an idol and performer matches with brand’s lavish and luxury color so well ( speaking of her natural personality which is soft, calm character is ... maybe not so much ). she was thinking her presence would be a bit overwhelmed for versace’s couture like clothing would own her more than she owns it... but kiki became a woman who fits with their aesthetics more and more as she becoming confident as a ‘star’. as of april 2024, maison finally announced her as the face of brand with introducing kiki as an ambassador in new versace icon campaign besides cillian murphy and anne hathaway.

𝐂𝐀𝐌𝐏𝐀𝐈𝐆𝐍 𝐌𝐎𝐃𝐄𝐋 !

　　　　　　　　　୨ৎ　—　𝟤𝟢𝟣𝟣 (𝖾𝗌𝗍.) 　

　　　　　　　　 ›　𝐓𝐀𝐌𝐁𝐔𝐑𝐈𝐍𝐒　‹

campaign model　sep ‘22 -

　　　　　　　　　୨ৎ　—　𝟣𝟪𝟫𝟪 (𝖾𝗌𝗍.) 　

　　　　　　　　　 ›　𝐑𝐈𝐌𝐎𝐖𝐀　‹

campaign model　sep ‘23 -

𝐏𝐀𝐑𝐓𝐍𝐄𝐑𝐒𝐇𝐈𝐏𝐒 !

　　　　　　　　　୨ৎ　—　𝟣𝟫𝟩𝟤 (𝖾𝗌𝗍.) 　

　　　　　　　›　𝐘𝐎𝐇𝐉𝐈 𝐘𝐀𝐌𝐀𝐌𝐎𝐓𝐎　‹

　he is indeed the one of the most greatest, phenomenal designer in the japanese fashion history. his first company that established in 1972 “Y’s” is under the concept of “women wearing men’s clothes”. it doesn’t remind someone? well, if there’s an one person who can go well with concept the most, it’s her. maybe kiki was the embodiment of the spirit he was looking for long time… and after all these years, she finally appeared in front of him.

　　　　　　　　　୨ৎ　—　𝟣𝟫𝟨𝟫 (𝖾𝗌𝗍.) 　

　　　　　　›　𝐂𝐎𝐌𝐌𝐄 𝐃𝐄𝐒 𝐆𝐀𝐑𝐂𝐎𝐍𝐒　‹

　now you can see kiki clearly has a passion for legend designers in japan… and the monochrome haha. rei kawakubo, the founder of the brand is also a big name in japanese fashion history like yohji yamamoto. their couture collections esp in 90s are still so odd, new, fun and refreshing to watch in present and she’s there for it. now carats literally betting what brand she will wore on her first met gala and come des garçons is a powerful candidate alongside these big names. ( aka carats are CRAVING for she goes there and makes fashion moment in the history because they know the girl won’t waste the opportunity )

also, she would love to work with thom browne, miss sohee, le fame, tanakadaisuke, and robert wun.

(    📁    )   :   NAVI   :  MASTER LIST     

(    tag list    )   :   @smh-anon @jennwonwoo @angie-x3

[autisticgirliesbracket]

What makes Mabel Pines from Gravity Falls the autistic girlie ever of all time? Here's what the people have to say:

Mabel-related asks/reblogs: x This post will be updated after each round!

Image ID in alt text and under the readmore.

[Image ID. White slide with a screenshot of Mabel in the top right corner, she is dancing. She is surrounded by text boxes which read,

"wears a different sweater every single day in SUMMER. also she's loud and very silly in situations where it might not be appropriate, says whatever's on her mind, struggles with change, retreats into her sweater and rocks back and forth when she's upset, doesn't always realize how her actions impact others, has high empathy and a hard time saying "no" because she doesn't want other people to be upset, etc etc"

"One of her main story arcs is resistance to change particularly when it comes to her being very attached to her brother. She is very social and friendly but is often "too loud" or generally misses social cues - also tends to spit out random information to people she is talking to. The friends she does make are people who thing her eccentric nature is charming! upon meeting a girl with a lizard and a girl who fashioned herself fork-hands she whispers "ive found my people". She hyperfocuses on things very often! Like the sock puppet episode where she spends days producing a puppet show, or her crush of the week, or a boyband. She if VERY much the "oh she isn't autistic lol, shes just girly" type of gal that people dismiss often because shes social so "she cant POSSIBLY be ND". when she is emotionally overhwelmed she "goes to sweater town" aka sinks into her sweater to remove sensory imput from the outside world. also she has trouble empathasing with people at times especially if it comes into conflict with something shes hyperfixating on and can often have trouble controlling emotional bursts as a result of those conflicts. she also adores being creative, colorful stuff, knitting. i frankly think shes is autistic AND had adhd. i love her to death and i think a lot of her conflicts in the show could be interpreted/understood in a way thats like "oh thats an undiagnosed autistic kid dealing with stuff". her relationship with her brother is also interesting cause i think both of them are autistic and have learned to support/help each other in a way other ppl dont understand"

"She has tendency to obsess over things (such as her crush of the week or her pet pig), and clearly enjoys the sensory stimulation of lots of bright colours and patterns, and strong, sweet flavours. Her social skills also leave a little to be desired, as she's often very forward, quite loud and overly enthusiastic. Mabel is also quite change averse, as well as averse to the idea of having to 'grow up' and act more mature, which becomes a running theme throughout the show, as she tries to hold onto her childhood."

"Constantly wearing sweaters even in summer (literally only ever takes one off on-screen when she's made fun of for wearing it, and even then she ties it around her waist instead of tossing it), immediately bonds with two girls who are weirdos (affectionate dw) who do things like tape forks to their fingers in order to eat popcorn without getting butter on their hands, obsessed w/ bright colors and the 80's aesthetic, loves to make weird noises, I could go on"

"She wears sweaters every day (different ones in different colors, same style). She’s sometimes easily distracted, but tends to hyperfocus on a goal once she has it. When she’s sad or scared she goes to “sweater town” (pulling her head, arms, and knees under her sweater)"

"Knitting is her special interest to the point that she has a different sweater every day. She purposefully makes friends with everyone, ignoring social cues. She stims a lot by doing jazz hands and big movements. When she's very upset, she rocks back and forth and hids in an oversized sweater. She takes promises very seriously and always tries to see the best in people. Last but certainly not least, she has a whole episode dedicated to how "weird" she is with the ultimate conclusion being that unconventional, out of the box thinking is good."

"I know everyone hcs her as ADHD but also LISTEN...she has so much autism to me. She has a special interest in crafting, she tends to let her emotions override logical thinking when she's passionate about something, she just means so much to me as a former weird girl and since I am also autistic, I love projecting <3 Also you know she makes her own sweaters 1) because it's fun but also 2) maybe she struggled to find sweaters that weren't bad texture-wise so she decided to take up sewing/crocheting and made all her own clothes with a special yarn after that."

"i am not autistic but all my autistic friends love her and say she has autistic girl swag"

"it's mabel. all of that family has autism in spades and she is no exception. look at her. look at sweater town. come on" End ID.]

[ravenlking]

𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐖𝐎𝐑𝐃𝐒 𝐎𝐍 𝐌𝐘 𝐖𝐑𝐈𝐒𝐓

𝐂𝐀𝐓𝐄𝐑 𝐃𝐈𝐀𝐌𝐎𝐍𝐃 finally, i get my own happily ever after. because the words written on your wrist...is my name

gender-neutral warnings: - spoilers for cater and trey's ceremonial robe vignettes genre: angst + fluff a/n: - the cameos are back!! - pictures don't belong to me, they go to their original owners! - please give me feedback :)

Let me know if you'd like more!

𝐂𝐀𝐓𝐄𝐑 𝐃𝐈𝐀𝐌𝐎𝐍𝐃

"And Cater," Riddle turned to face the jovial senior. The dorm leader was perched atop his throne, a hand gripping the documents while the other was holding onto his scepter of power. "You're free for today. You may be excused."

Nodding, Cater walked away, ignoring the pleading looks of the poor seconds years who stirred Riddle's ire. Although, he had to admit that Riddle was right in punishing them. Honestly, who thought playing golf indoors was a good idea?

Cater Diamond sighs as he throws himself onto his bed. At last, he was free of anything school-related, free of the strange, whimsical rules of Heartlsabyul - here, in his room, he was absolutely free! Smiling, he rolled around until his hand grasped the familiar shape of his phone and began scrolling through Magicam. Bright, colorful pictures from his online friends, followers, and idols assaulted his eyes as he winced, turning down his brightness. He quickly resumed his routine, scrolling, liking, scrolling, liking, until he reached the end of the latest posts.

"Hmm," He wondered aloud,"I wonder what my friends are doing!" He tapped on a friend of his's Magicam account and scrolled through their latest post. Raven King just posted a picture of her wrist and herself at a cafe; the caption reading: "I don't need a soulmate when I have macarons and coffee! :D #soulmate #HappyForeverAlone #FictionalMenOverRealMen"

Cater let out a scoff under his breath. Soulmates, how dare she carelessly dismiss them. At least, she still had a chance of having a soulmate. At least, Raven got her chance of falling in love someday! He couldn't make out the ebony-black writing underneath Magicam's blurred out editing, but he knew that Raven had a soulmate somewhere out there, waiting for her.

Cater threw his phone to the side before looking at his wrists. Although he knew it was hopeless, some part of his soul desperately cried out for the smallest of blessings from some deity above.

Soulmates; someone destined to match with your soul, like two puzzle pieces reuniting to form a beautiful image. Someone who understands you like no other, loves you as if you were a treasure they spent lives searching for, someone who will always be there for you - Cater Diamond has been dreaming of someone like that ever since he heard of such a person. He's been waiting for his own happily ever after - so why didn't the deity above gift it to him?

What has he done to earn their ire? Why does it have to be him who suffers?

From young, Cater has already lost more friends than he could count because of the constant moving. He's lost his source of happiness and joy in his childhood because he knows that sometimes it's best to clam up and not spent hours on a friendship which won't even last a year.

Why does it have to be him who loses his soulmate too?

Everyone on Magicam has theirs already. Not a day goes by without a new couple uniting with their other half or aesthetically-pleasing date pictures being posted with sugary-sweet smiles and so much love in their eyes. Cater couldn't help the hurting pang! in his heart (or was it his soul) whenever he saw them.

"Ahh," Cater laughs depressingly to himself. "I've dived too deep down the rabbit hole of depression again!"

He flung the bedsheets off him before setting aside his phone. Just scrolling through it would only remind him of all the sadness that he wants to avoid. Maybe looking at the sunset would do him good. His view from Heartslabyul wasn't too shabby, in fact, he had a glorious window view of the sunset over the pocket dimension of Heartslabyul from his balcony!

The sun was just setting over the edges of the dimension, painting the sky in streaks of bright orange and coloring the fluffy clouds in pinks. He could faintly make out the shape of the crescent moon that has begun to peak out.

It has been a while since he was able to put away all technology and social media for a peaceful sunset like this. All his filters and editing were nothing compared to the nature-beauty of the natural sunset.

Something quick, the color of pure snow, flashed across the night sky. Cater stood at attention, emerald eyes tracking it. A shooting star, symbolizing new dreams and wishes to be granted. But this early? It hasn't even been seven yet. He had seen so many people post about how their wishes were miraculously granted after wishing upon a star. Maybe he should try? If not, he'll just laugh it off. He had nothing to lose anyways. Cater clasped his hands and squeezed his eyes shut.

Please, he prayed. Grant me my soulmate. I don't know what I did to stir your ire, but please forgive me. I promise to love them with all my heart and soul. I promise to make their days nothing but filled with light and joy.

He cracked open an eye. The night sky was barren of the shooting star. Whether it heard him or not doesn't matter. Cater's hands slumped to his sides. It was getting late, he should try sleeping a bit. Maybe it would do his unhealthy brain some good. He turned on his heel and walked back.

"Hehe, Cater sweetheart, don't you know that we save the best for last?"

༶•┈┈⛧┈♛

Cater Diamond is pleased when the Ceremony ends. He has had a rough time "spawning" copies of himself to paint half the roses in the Rose Garden red. As per the Queen of Heart's rules, to greet newcomers, the roses have to be white and red. Nothing else and the same sentiment was carried out by the fearsome dorm leader of Heartslabyul, Riddle Rosehearts. He was sad that he wasn't able to attend the majority of the Opening Ceremony (seeing the fearful looks on his juniors' face was perfect for future jokes) and playing "Guess the Dorm!" with Trey was always delightful.

He sighed, leaning against one of the multiple hedges grown with much painstaking care from Heartslabyul students. Their efforts were not in vain; Cater could see how the hedge was positively brimming with life.

Finally, peace and quiet. The Unbirthday Party held in honor of the new students from Heartslabyul was delightful as always, but as much as Trey's cooking is delicious, Cater could not stand the sweetness of the tarts. They were aesthetically-beautiful, as expected from the son of a professional baker family, but Cater's poor tongue cried from the sugary sweet taste of each bite. Thankfully, he was able to be excused quickly enough and sought out the Rose Maze for a safe haven.

"Now, let's see," Cater beamed as he took out his phone, quickly tapping on the Magicam app. There was no time to waste! His make-up was perfect, the Rose Maze was a beautiful backdrop, and the sunset was gorgeous! What better moment to take a picture than right now?

As he motioned to take a picture, raising his hand to get the perfect angle, his Ceremonial robes' sleeves slid downwards and Cater's emerald eyes widened drastically. There, written as clear as day, was a name. But not any old name - it was the name of his soulmate.

"No way," He breathed out, shoving his phone into his pocket and reading the name aloud. "Y/N L/N, I've never heard of this name before!"

Pushing off from the hedges, Cater dashed out of the maze. There was no time like the present, he must find his soulmate! He has had enough years of waiting; Y/N L/N, I'll find you soon enough!

༶•┈┈⛧┈♛

You felt yourself being glomped from behind, making you stumble forward. You heard the headmaster, Crowley was his name?, let out a shout of surprise before it was masked by the thankful mumbles and squeals from the man hugging you.

"Um, sir?" You gently pried off the hands from around your waist but kept them in yours as you whirled around. You met eyes with a tall senior with bright orange hair, donned in the same strange robes as your own. His emerald eyes were overwhelming with glistening tears as he stared at your wrists.

You followed his line of sight to meet bold ebony-black writing on your arm.

"What on earth?" You gaped at the words on your wrist. As far as you knew, you never got a tattoo! You were sure of it! Why was everything happening so weirdly; first you woke up almost being boiled alive by some strange tanuki and now this-

"Sir, please explain!" You desperately looked at Crowley, who had his jaw dropped and golden eyes widened beneath his mask. "Sir??"

The man in front of you laughed before pulling back his own sleeve to reveal your own name imprinted on his, written in the exact same font. He grinned cheerfully at you and somehow, you got the feeling that this man was going to be the sole owner of your heart, soul, and mind. Something about him felt so warm, so safe, like a little place to go when you feel weak to be re-charge.

"The name's Cater!" He gave you a little peace symbol before popping a kiss on your wrist, where his name was written.

"But you, my little soulmate, may call me Cray-Cray, as in cray-cray about you~"

You laughed as you got swept away by the man's charms.

༶•┈┈⛧┈♛

Somewhere, far away from Night Raven College, a girl with ebony-black hair and violet eyes sighed as she switched off her phone, the last app on it being Magicam. She took a make-up cleanser and wipped away the illegible scribbles on her wrist. Her mission was complete, she should leave now. She had stirred the feelings needed within Cater in order to find you, and the happy couple was on their way now. But once again, Raven had no feelings, no desires to leave. In fact, she desperately wanted to cling to the magic of this world she loved oh so much. Couldn't she stay, just for a longer time? Her wrist-watch beeped as her time here came to a close.

Raven let out a painful sigh before taking one last bite of her macarons and drank the last of her coffee. Sliding the madols underneath her empty coffee cup, Raven took one last look around the happy ambiance of the cafe. Her heart sunk at the prospect of leaving, but her mind won in the end. Raven reluctantly tapped her feet, disappearing in a wave of purple. Similar to a certain dragon fae's magic, the only thing left of Raven was purple butterflies who slowly flew out of the chamber, leaving no trace of the girl.

A short woman with deep green hair came out of the kitchen, pushing an empty trolley. She moved the table where the girl with ebony-black hair once sat and quickly wiped the table clean for the next customers. She smiled as she held up the little note she left behind.

"Thank you for the delicious treats and warm hospitality, Mrs. and Mr. Clover! I hope to return to your bakery soon."

~ R.L.K

[lovejustforaday]

Gay Pride Anthems (According to Me) - Pull Up to the Bumper

Pull Up to the Bumper - Grace Jones

Genres: Synth Funk, Dance Pop

My next choice pick for a gay pride anthem rides the fine line between "implicit" and "explicit" in tackling a rather delicate act that happens between two consenting adults. It's also kinda about cars too, which is fine I guess (if you're into that sort of thing).

Yes, today we're gonna ram it right into someone's tailgate, and hone in on Grace Jones' 1981 dance hit "Pull Up to the Bumper".

THE ARTIST

Miss Grace Jones is, definitively, one of the most important queer icons of the 20th century. She is also perhaps one of the least likely, coming from her background as a pastor's daughter from Jamaica, one of the most violently homophobic countries to this day.

The Jones family moved to NY state when Grace was a child. Her earliest adulthood ventures were into the 60s bohemian hippy lifestyle, complete with experiments using LSD which she herself described as "experiments in living".

Soon after, she found herself as an upcoming star in the very queer world of NYC disco during the late 70s. During this time and after, she was a frequent patron and performer of gay clubs and bars, earning her stripes early on as an honorary member of the community. Mind you, Grace herself has always refused to label her sexuality.

Along with 1980's Warm Leatherette, Grace's 1981 Nightclubbing record, along with its surrounding fashion photo shoots and music videos, helped to reinvent the artist from a typical 70s disco diva into the one-of-a-kind, bold and sophisticated, genre-bending multimedia pop artist legend that she became in the 80s.

For all that has been (rightfully) said about what Lady Gaga did for bringing transgressive, queer, and avant-garde fashion to the public eye, Grace Jones herself had already been doing the same several decades earlier. Yes, in an age of new romantics and glam rockers wearing their mother's makeup, Grace Jones still managed to tower above all others as the one true queen of androgyny.

Her 80s image also very explicitly celebrated blackness in the most literal sense, appearing in outfits, makeup, and photo shoots that heavily accentuated and even occasionally exaggerated the lustrous dark tones of her skin. Pronounced, avant-garde, and striking images that interrogate race and gender were kinda her bread and butter in the 80s.

That said, I do have to mention that at least some part of how her signature image was delivered was inseparably informed by her collaborator and then-lover Jean-Paul Goude, a French photographer and (with emphasis) white man whose legacy I might very generously describe as....complicated (ie: pretty damn racist). 😬

Unfortunately, some of the work Goude produced with Grace as his muse, however pure his intentions (which I highly doubt), pretty unambiguously falls heavily under the umbrellas of fetishism, other-ing, dehumanization, and even minstrelsy. Perhaps worst of all is the 1985 music video for "Ladies and Gentleman : Miss Grace Jones" which features, and implicitly celebrates the aesthetics, of footage from mid 20th century minstrel shows and their deeply racist stereotypes.

Does it make it at all any better that the queen Miss Jones herself clearly saw merit in his "art" to continue working with him for so long? Could it really be an attempt at satire or subversion that simply doesn't land today like it did back then? Look, I don't know; I don't know how Grace herself understood his "art", and I'm white, so I'm quite out of my depth on this issue.

But I can definitely say that some of the photo shoots and especially the aforementioned music video make me fucking wince, and Goude himself has said a lot of very weird, plainly racist shit over the years, and his work clearly mimics the disdainful white gaze of minstrelsy which is frankly not fucking cool however "ironic" or "satirical" it is.

That said, Grace herself is a very powerful woman who has always been a master of controlling her narrative, known to make frivolous male interviewers back down with their tails between their legs. She doesn't need me to defend her, and it's as clear as day that her 1980s curated artistic image was still very much of her own will and design, as the striking avant-garde taste-maker that she was and continues to be to this day.

But the most notable example of her image is the ICONIQUE cover art of Nightclubbing. Grace's skin appears a metallic indigo, with the straight slants of the shoulder pads of her suit, and the sharpness of her cheekbones and iconic flat-top fade creating an all around highly geometric and strikingly surreal figure. She appears nude under her jacket, flashing the inner sides of her breasts, while sporting a cigarette with a piercing, stoic glare, gleefully playing with signifiers of gender, vulnerability, and power. It's simply one of the most effective cover arts I've ever seen; a perfect, minimal execution of a strong concept, and an image that'll no doubt burn itself into your memory permanently. It's 100% Grace Jones.

But enough already about Grace's image; what is there to say about one of the best songs on her Nightclubbing record?

THE SONG AND WHY IT SLAPS

"Pull Up to the Bumper" is one of two singles off Nightclubbing, both of which are easily the strongest tracks on the record.

Incidentally, the other single "I've Seen That Face Before (Libertango)" is an even bigger highlight in my opinion, but we're focusing on songs that are the GAYEST, and that most definitely describes "Pull Up to the Bumper".

The song itself is a classy, metropolitan synth funk number with a groovy, wobbly bass, brittle early 80s synths, and a reggae-inspired percussion section. True to its metaphor, it also samples car horns and highway noises. Much like the cover art of the record, its a brilliant execution of concept. I feel like I'm putting the pedal to the metal in some seriously luxurious six inch stilettos.

It's also a complete and total earworm. Those choruses? Easy enough to learn on the first listen, and so rhythmically satisfying. That little pre-post-chorus synth line jingle that goes "DO do do do doooooooOOOOOOET"? Immaculate, and I wanna hear it at least a dozen times more on every listen.

Grace sounds seductive and powerful as all hell on this track. I mean, she always does, but she REALLY does here. She possesses this really stoic contralto that makes it all the more sensual when she is inviting to the listener, like a mighty queen granting permission to be seen and bask in the glow of her goddessly stature.

A lot of funk songs like this tend to be described as having a "fat" or "meaty" bassline, but to my ears this one sounds incredibly thin, velvety, even wispy at times. There's a decent amount of negative space between notes and beats that gives the whole experience a kind of light and skippy feeling, and then there's that hollow-sounding style of early 80s mastering and production that can be heard in a lot of new wave and post-punk at the time. All of this of course adds to my enjoyment of the track - it's really got a one-of-a-kind, breezy vibe, but at the same time very tight and controlled.

And it's also just, so incredibly horny in that very refined and subtle kind of way. Truly, music for getting nasty after discarding your haute-couture on the carpeted lounge floor.

WHY IT'S GAY

It's about butt stuff. No really; the "bumper" in question is an ass, and every other lyric is just an extension of this metaphor: "Drive it in between", "Let me lubricate it", "Now that fits nice". Need I say more?

Then again, butt stuff itself can be totally straight too, so the men chanting along certainly helps to up the gay factor. Hold up - the last song had men chanting the chorus as well. Is this a thing? Does men chanting the chorus in unison automatically make a song more homoerotic? It's even in that one really gay song by that one gay guy that you possibly just maybe might've heard from last year. Huh. What to do with this information?

Of course, Grace Jones herself is also one of the most beloved pop divas of her time, and she was an early avant-garde and androgynous fashionista trailblazer who opened so many doors for challenging femmes and gender-bending fashion to make it into the spotlight. Even when not singing about necessarily "queer" topics, her image and her energy make it so that everything she touches has a sprinkle of queer residue that won't rub off (as it shouldn't!)

Honestly, the fact that a song that this blatantly celebrated "buggery" was a US charts dance hit in 1981, coinciding with the beginning of a resurgence of anti-LGBTQ hate and paranoia in the wake of the then-newly announced AIDS crisis, is kind of a miracle unto itself. I guess the car metaphors got it past the filters.

Of course, dance genres have always been more predominantly queer spaces than in other genres, as queer folks have often sought refuge upon the dancefloor. Perhaps its not so surprising that an artist like Grace made it to the top of the dance charts during a time when the community so desperately needed to be seen.

All in all, what we got here folks is a rather precious artifact of queer history in the 1980s, a time when gay anthems were needed more than ever. During an age of misinformation, scare tactics, and persecution, Grace Jones was a beacon of hope, a proud, powerful, and prominent image of an androgynous iconoclast who very much took part in and celebrated the queer community.

Now if you'll excuse me, this song has reminded me that my gay ass DOESN'T have a driver's license, and I have a bus to go catch. Toodles!

[neowinestainedress]

christmas lights | nakamoto yuta

title: christmas lights | part of christmas must be something more

pairing: nakamoto yuta x oc

summary: there’s nothing better than romantic sex under Christmas lights.

genre: smut, non-idol au, established relationship, (implied) polyamorous relationship, smutmas

warnings: shibari / shibari with Christmas lights (just for a few snaps and then the lights were out, DON’T do it, especially if they’re not led lights and if they are connected with the elecritc current. In the story is specified better but I still think it’s necessary to explain that aesthetics =/= safety) | taking pics (does this have a name??), fingering, one orgasm denial, multiple orgasms, romantic sex, minor nipple play, minor dirty talk, sub/dom, dom!yuta, sub!oc

words: 3.426k

taglist: @webscreams @multislut @roxyvogue @dullparadisewithtxt @yutas-princess02 @seongwhaffels @cosmiczen @adorejhyun | couldn't tag: @yutascoffee127

a/n: i hate this but I'm going through life and writer's block so that's all I can put out. I hate even more that this is the last thing I'll post before disappearing, but here it is, so enjoy it anyway, I guess??? Let's pretend it came out when it was supposed to so before Christmas

This wasn’t the first time Jade found herself in that position; tied up with her knees bent and her thighs pressed to her chest in a fetal position, her hands tied on her front bound with her legs while Yuta stared at her with need. Yuta was the only one she trusted with ropes or any other type of tying up that wasn’t a bland tie or handcuffs, he was also the first one that introduced her to this world. At first, she was taken aback, afraid of not being flexible enough, and even scared of everything, but Yuta was trustworthy, and he knew what he was doing. So after the first hesitant steps with the easiest and less complex positions, they explored that world further. 

Jade understood swiftly that it wasn’t only a purely sex-related thing, shibari was about the beauty of the body, and for as uncomfortable as it looked, she loved it because she learned how to appreciate her self-image more. The tons of compliments coming from Yuta’s mouth were an excellent plus to boost her confidence. 

But a few days before Yuta brought something else up, something not only they never tried before but something she never thought about.

“You want to hang me with the lights?” She asked, staring at her boyfriend while she cuddled up in the corner of the couch and he leaned close to the fireplace. 

“I can’t hang you with them, do you want me to kill you or something?” 

She shook her head, munching the biscuits and swallowing the bite before talking again. “No, none of you would survive without me.” 

Yuta huffed, rolling his eyes before reaching her and sitting at her side. “We would do as usual. I’ve got special lights that work with batteries and the wire is a bit larger, but we will still use the ropes. I will wrap them on you just for a few shots and then will try something else.”

“Oh, those lights,” her eyes lit up, the blanket falling off her body, the box of biscuits almost spilling over on the sofa. 

“Yeah, what lights were you thinking?” 

The truth was that she wasn’t thinking a lot lately, and even now that Yuta walked around her on the bed, fixing the last details, her brain was already lost, buzzing in anticipation. 

“Okay, the lights should be detangled. Are the ropes okay?” 

“They’re good.” 

“Are they rubbing on your skin? Itching? Is the position comfortable?” 

She rolled her eyes, she appreciated that Yuta always checked in but sometimes he used to worry too much. “I’m fine, you know these are my favourites, and my body can take this position.” 

Yuta glared at her. “You know your safety comes first, don’t be a brat about it,” he ordered. “I’ll start wrapping them around you, if it’s fine for you, I won’t follow the same exact path of the ropes since there are more and they are for decoration.” 

“Fine by me, just do it.” 

“You don’t have a bit of patience in you,” he murmured, grabbing the lights and starting to place them around her. He partly followed the path of the ropes, wrapping the lights around her, he couldn’t tie them like a knot, but just placing them on her and securing them for what he could, was more than enough to set a fire in him. 

Jade on the other end was watching him patiently, or so, for some reason more excited than she thought she would be. If Yuta loved the art of it, she loved how concentrated he was with everything, the care of tying her up, and securing her in place was an act she loved so much, probably even more than the sex that came after. Even in this position, the ball tie — it took her a while but she actually got a few names here and there — where she was very restricted, she trusted him completely and felt safe. 

Once he was sure everything was perfect, lights turned on, together with other ones scattered around the room, and she was relaxed, he grabbed the camera. 

“Can I take a picture of you?” 

“Is that one of Johnny’s cameras?” 

Yuta hummed, “he told me it’s an old one he doesn’t use anymore.” 

Jade smiled at the memories; that was Johnny’s college years camera, the one that went through hell and back and paid much of their first rents. “Yeah, you can. Make me look good, though,” she winked, beaming at her boyfriend that was staring at her with anticipation.  

Yuta chuckled, bringing his eye to the viewfinder before taking a few snaps. “Do you know how to pose?” 

“You got the wrong partner, honey,” she joked, shaking her head.  

“Come on, just be seductive.” 

“I can only move my head, though,” she said, trying to think of a way she could make it hotter. 

“That’s fine, just look at me,” he reassured, leaning down to get a better angle, “I’ll do the magic.” 

She suppressed a smile, trying to look at him with an intense gaze, angling her neck to the side to stare at the camera. 

“Perfect,” he hummed before standing up on the bed, his feet planted at her side as he took a shoot from above her. 

“Do I look good?” She asked, suddenly feeling shy. 

“You’re perfect,” he replied. “Look up here,” he ordered before snapping another photo, a close-up of her face, lightened up by the lights on her chest and the ones that ran on the bed frame and around the room. 

“Should’ve called Johnny for this,” he chuckled, but another idea made its way into his mind, making his lips curl in a smirk, “maybe next time we can invite him and give you a proper shoot.” 

Her skin heated up just at the idea, and Yuta snickered. “You like that? Or does it scare you? Maybe we should go to his studio with proper lighting. I could wrap you up and he will make you look so good.” 

“I — I like that.” 

“Of course you do,” he teased, moving back before sitting on the mattress another time, he grazed her legs and caressed the exposed skin of her ass, feeling the shivers form on her skin, and then moved his fingers between her legs. “You’re so wet, already. What’s turning you on so much?” 

Jade felt embarrassed when she whispered, “everything.” Shame creeping up even more when Yuta snorted. 

“Everything?” He asked, tilting his head, camera hanging around his neck, and fingers pushing past her entrance, while his eyes focused on her face. 

She hummed. “It’s exciting. You are — uhm — exciting.” 

A small smile crept on his face as he pulled his fingers out, hearing a disappointed sound. He would’ve messed around more, too, but he didn’t want to keep the lights on her body any longer, so he grabbed the camera again before taking some more pictures; they weren’t dirty, surely explicit but they leaned closer to nude photography than pornography and he loved how they came out, intimate, mysterious and provoking at the same time. 

“Are you taking them off?” Jade asked when he placed the camera on the other side and moved closer to her. 

“Yes, don’t you want me to fuck you, honey? Can’t do that with these on.” 

“Yeah, want you,” she replied, following his moves. Yuta was always calm in everything he did, never rushing things. There was something incredibly charming and attractive in the way he moved, so delicately and yet so fiercely and confident of himself. And she was so lost in him that it took her a while to realize he was undoing the ropes too. She wanted to ask why, fearing he was going to fuck her normally and not tied up, but then remembered that wasn’t a practical position for sex so she waited for his next move. 

“Stretch your limbs, babe,” he said, placing the ropes to the side and rubbing her skin. “Yes, I will tie you again,” he chuckled when he met her questioning eyes. “You know I keep promises.” 

And it was true, Yuta always kept his promises, and once she was comfortable again, he didn’t waste time putting her into a new position; calves pressed against the back of her spread-open thighs. 

“Do you want me to tie your arms or leave them free?” 

“Are we doing the, what is it called? Frog tie?” 

Yuta nodded, hand caressing her thighs as he waited. 

“I, uhm, you know I like that but can’t you tie me in another way? Like for my arms.” She didn’t mind having her arms tied behind her back, but the position could get tiring soon, and she didn’t want this to end quickly. 

“Against the frame is fine?” 

“Yes, yes, is fine,” she hummed, nodding swiftly, patience wearing thin as she just wanted things to spark up. 

“Give me your hands then,” he ordered, voice firm but gentle. “Let me know if it’s too tight.” He passed the rope around her wrists and then around the frame, locking her there. “And now your legs, want you all spread for me.” 

When after a few minutes Yuta was done, he simply stared at her for a while, admiring the way the ropes were sinking into her skin and how exposed she was, looking up at him with eager eyes, silently begging him to pay her attention. He didn’t need her words, he could see how wet she was under the dazzling colourful lights, the cum dripping out of her cunt glistening while her clit throbbed ever so often, asking to be taken care of. And Yuta wasn’t in the mood to play games, so he leaned forward, resting his hand on the pillow next to her, kissing her passionately while his fingers teased her entrance before pushing in, finally filling her with something. 

“Yuta,” she breathed out through the kiss, hips barely moving up to meet him halfway. 

“Shh, be patient,” he whispered, trailing his lips down her neck, “I’ll take good care of you.” 

Jade only hummed in response, shivers running through her back as he kept moving his fingers inside and kept kissing her skin until his lips wrapped around her hard nipples. The contrast between the chilly air of the room and his warm mouth made her hips roll up against his palm while her lips parted to leave out a shaky breath. 

“You sound so pretty for me,” Yuta mumbled barely pulling back from her hard nipple, his breath hitting her hot skin. “Can you hear yourself? Your body speaking to me, your cunt so wet it’s squelching around my fingers.” He snickered when she didn’t answer and only rolled her head back, parting her lips to let out louder sounds of pleasure. He moved back, placing his free hand on her knees and pushing her legs more apart, making her look up in surprise, but without answering her silent questions. There wasn’t a specific reason why he did that, other than wanting to look at her better. He also found it kinda funny how silent she would get when they did bondage, Yuta never set any different rules, unless he didn’t specify on the moment, she could talk — unless she wasn’t gagged, of course — but it was like she fell into a different space and full obedience. And she was so immersed in it that she didn’t even complain when he pulled his fingers out. Jade only stared at him, eyes widening and body squirming in embarrassment when he brought his cum stained fingers to his lips and sucked them clean. 

“Sorry, kitten, can’t hold it back any longer,” he smirked before wrapping the wet hand on his cock and giving it a few tugs, moving closer on his knees to align on her wet entrance. “Want my cock?”

She gulped and ran her tongue on her dry lips, pupils wide as she nodded, thrilled with anticipation. 

“Use your words, kitten.” 

“Yes, want your cock,” she replied, voice coming out in a whisper. 

Yuta smirked and then started to push in, taking his time to feel her welcome him, tight walls wrapping around him until he bottomed in. “Fuck,” he groaned, letting his head fall forward for a second, “feel so good every time.” 

She hummed in response, trying not to desperately roll her hips back to fuck into him, but it was hard when she still didn’t come and was denied an orgasm just a few seconds before. Luckily for her, Yuta got it, or maybe he was just as needy, and started moving in and out right after. Hips snapping against her body with a steady rhythm, not too fast and not too slow, it would’ve been perfect if only she didn’t crave the release more than anything else. 

“Want to come already?” He asked, wrapping his hands around her waist. 

“Yes.” 

“Then do it,” he replied. “I want to take it slow, babe. Fuck you nice and slow under the Christmas lights while you’re wrapped up,” he sighed, eyes squeezing when her pussy clenched around him, “don’t care about anything else. You can come all the times you want. Just be pretty for me and take me, alright?” 

“Yes, yeah, fuck,” she answered, eyes closing when his fingers moved to play with her clit and his lips wrapped around her nipple again, and everything was enough to send her over the edge in a second. 

“Just like this, babe. Take it all,” he hummed before he kissed her, muffling the moans. His hips started moving just a bit faster, he wanted to take this slow, savour the moment, watch as the colourful lights lighted up her blissful face and beautiful body, and created beautiful shadows on the hollows caused by the ropes. But she was warm and wet and her pussy clenched perfectly around his cock, so it was hard to don’t get lost in the pleasure. 

“You’re so beautiful, babe. You know that, right?” 

She hummed, feeling shy at the compliment, her whole body on fire as he kept hitting her sweet spot that made her tremble. 

“Yes, my good girl. Following my orders so well. Taking all of me.” His head rolled back when she squeezed harder around him, and as a reaction he gripped her waist tighter, angling her to reach deeper. 

“Fuck,” she spat out, breath faltering and heart beating fast as another orgasm approached. 

“Is it too much for you, babe?” Yuta teased, starting to rub her clit, watching a flame flicker in her eyes as they made eye contact. 

“No — no,” she rasped, “I can take it.” Pride, that surely was it, because Yuta could see she was fighting with herself to hold it in just a bit longer and it wasn’t working really well. 

“Then be my good girl and take it, alright? You’re doing — fuck — so good.” 

She mumbled something under her breath, words choking in her throat as another orgasm washed over, too strong to hold it in now that he was also paying attention to her clit. Also, the position made her feel everything more, and being so exposed and vulnerable at his mercy made her heart, and pussy, throb. 

Yuta came too a few moments after, grunting and moaning as he leaned closer to kiss her while his hips kept slamming against her. 

“That’s it, fuck,” he groaned against her ear, causing her head to roll back as his sexy voice got to her brain, thinking he was done, but when after a small pause his hips picked up the speed again her breath got stuck. 

“Again?” She asked with curiosity and incredulity in her voice. 

Yuta lifted his head a bit and smirked cockily, “I promised you I was going to fuck you over and over. Any complaints?” 

Jade shook her head, shivers running down her body and skin burning up. “Want you.” 

“I know, I’m right here, to give you an early Christmas present. Do you want that?” 

She nodded, biting her lips to hold back the moans. 

“Oh, wait, you are the gift. Look at how pretty you are, the only thing missing is a — fuck — a ribbon.” 

Her hips rolled up, legs pushing further down for what she could, the movements that the ropes allowed were very limited, but she still wanted to feel more. And Yuta got it, he leaned in again, his chest pressing against hers, and started kissing her, hips moving faster in and out of her soaked cunt, filling the room with lewd sounds of cum and skin. 

It went on for a while, with sweet words whispered, hands wrapping tightly around the frame and bodies rocking together under the dazzling lights he put up in the room, colouring it with different shades. 

“I’m — fuck — I’m, uhm, gonna come again,” she breathed out, eyes opening and meeting his, filled with lust and love. 

“Come with me, come on,” he urged, voice thinner as the orgasm was about to break out. “Squeeze my cock, babe.” 

“Mhh,” she hummed. 

“Look at me,” he ordered, grabbing her chin and keeping her in place but the hold was gentle, nothing harsh about the way his hand cupped her face. “Want you to look at me while I fill you up, got it?” 

“Yes, yes,” she mumbled, nodding in his grip and forcing her eyes open, “please.” 

“Fuck,” he groaned, closing his eyes only for a second before he met hers again, “come.” 

It didn’t take much more for both of them to come, just a few more messy thrusts and sloppy kisses as the orgasm washed over with force, leaving them gasping against each other while more moans and sloppy sounds filled the room. 

“Fuck,” Yuta slurred, “you did so well, kitten.” He kissed her one more time before he pulled up to stare at her, admiring her body, watching the cum drip out of her, overflowing even if his cock was still buried deep inside. “Should I untie you?” He chuckled, running his hand over the ropes while he pulled out of her, making her whine at the loss.

“Well, unless you want to put me under the Christmas tree like this,” she replied, laughing. 

Ten minutes later they were in bed again, ropes put back in place and skin hydrated with the cream that Yuta thoroughly applied on her body as he kept praising her for how good she had been. 

“Why couldn’t you fuck me in them?” Jade asked, referring to the lights, the curiosity was killing her, and also she was a bit disappointed because she thought she looked so pretty with them on. 

“I preferred not to, those led lights shouldn’t heat up, and not being attached to the current they shouldn’t electrify you, but I don’t even want to risk it. It was good anyway, right? The mood was the same, just not on your body.” 

She gasped, “oh, that makes sense. The risks didn’t even cross my mind,” she admitted shyly. Once again it was very clear why he was the only one she did certain things with. 

Yuta chuckled, caressing a strand of hair back and tugging it behind her ear. “That’s why you have me,” he whispered with a tender smile on his lips. “Also I guess the thousands of photos on the internet every year can mislead you.” 

“Well, yes, I’ve seen pictures of people having them wrapped around their necks.” Yuta’s expression, a mix between worried and weirded-out, made her laugh loudly, shaking her head. 

“I will shut up or else I will judge hard,” he confessed, rolling his eyes. 

Jade frowned, turning around to lay on her front, supporting her body with her elbows, and Yuta quickly adjusted the sheets to cover her body again. “Wait, isn’t there a thing such as electric play?” 

Yuta nodded. “Yes, but it’s done with specific toys, you can’t just play with electricity randomly and hope nothing happens.” 

She hummed, “make sense.” Then she leaned closer to leave a small peck on his lips, and nose, making him chuckle. “Anyway, thank you for this.” 

“For not electrifying you?” 

A loud laugh rolled from her lips. “Also. But mostly for this aesthetically pleasing fuck under Christmas lights.” 

“It’s Christmas, we should all be more generous, shouldn’t we?” 

“Oh, if you’re this generous every time, I wish for Christmas to last all year.”

Don’t think a lot of you saw the updates so I wanted to inform you even here, I won’t post the last two (one, actually) stories of this Christmas series so this is the last one. Hope you enjoyed it!

[hoardlikegoldenirises]

BEN (i hit the image limit in my drafts so ben is getting his own post lol)

I've been working on developing the timeline for some spidey suits for my au so here's ben's :)

UPDATE (march 2024): decided to go for a red and blue suit and cut back on the gold for the Jackal look for reasons to do with context and fiction etc. but I'll keep the original black and gold one on this post just for comparison's sake. I also updated the hoodie logo cause I hated the old one LOL

—🕸️—

Closeups and details under the cut:

First Thing's First:

This is a suit I've been calling the Jackal's Spider-Man. It's cloth, just a black spandex one piece thing, but Miles Warren made it for Ben to wear against Peter. I know that's not like Thematically the same as what happened in 616 but this isn't 616 and in my case it's not possible for Peter to doubt his real identity because he has a broken nose and Ben... doesn't. lol. Anyway so Ben fights Peter in this a couple of times and eventually their outfits are swapped (or at least, Ben takes Peter's red and blue suit.)

Unlike Peter's red and blue mask, which is padded w/ foam for silhouette, Ben's mask is designed to work with a hard face shell instead. It's not a suit that was initially intended to be worn under his clothes or as an everyday suit, it was a very specific suit he wore maybe twice before Warren died. So it's a little less practical than Peter's in some ways. (though the soles are slim enough he can fit them into regular shoes.)

He has an ankle tracker because he "belongs to" Warren.

However I have decided to ditch this black and gold costume for Lore Reasons and am going with a 90s inspired red and blue:

the goal being that it is very similar to Peter's costume, but not quite the same.

compare:

anyway

I also made the soles white.

I've posted this already (link) but this is Warren's Jackal mask (I'm going for the Anubis aesthetic from the start instead of the weird... goblin thing) Ben takes the mask after killing Warren and he doesn't necessarily wear it at first but after he and Peter have a minor confrontation following the events of the summer in 2012, in the fall, he ends up leaving the city (similar to the Lost Years in some regards) and taking on the Jackal persona entirely, ditching his spider for a blue hoodie (which is btw a nod to Egyptian art as some depictions of Anubis use a very dark muted blue that I liked.

other than that he's just wearing a leotard with some tights under his clothes.

and like, "kung-fu" soles

slim!

and as mentioned briefly elsewhere he does bleach his hair—this happens in early 2015 after he returns to NYC. defining himself as a new man. He bleaches after he stops wearing the jackal mask though so I've updated this post to reflect that.

This is Ben's Scarlet Spider costume, which again, I have already posted, albeit in rougher concept form. He makes this not long after returning to NYC, about a month?? after the brothers three have a bit of a confrontation (after Ben and Kaine being out of the state for like... two years)

Obviously it's riffing very heavily on the classic scarlet spider look with the blue hoodie and the spider and so on, so both of his main Spider-themed costumes are heavily 90s-inspired, but I slimmed down a lot of the hardware, especially as in my AU Ben has organic webbing so he doesn't need cartridges or anything. Just a weird hole in his glove. (or no gloves. a catheter feels too far 💀)

Anyway. The gold bands on this suit are drawing from that classic look by emulating the aesthetic of the shit around his wrists and ankles but I added more for another reason, which is, again drawing from Egyptian depictions of Anubis with gold bands around the arms and neck. I thought it suited the whole aesthetic I'd established for him, and that even when he abandons the Jackal it will always have been an unavoidable part of him (though the context and his behavior as the Jackal in my AU is different compared to 616 which is also why he's not wearing like, a suit) and imo the gold adds some fun visual interest.

shoes. theyʻre shoes! lol. slightly different from my original sketch but mostly the same.

did not draw it but they probably zip up the back.

WRT to this thing... Listen I hate Ir*n M*n Jr. as much as anyone but the Iron Spider suit... is... sexy LOL (my guilty pleasure, maybe it's because of the crop top in sensational spider-man)

so I'm considering adapting some form of the Iron Spider costume for Ben since it suits his whole aesthetic so well but I'd have to think about it… what context and for what purpose might he end up in something like this…

shiny…. i gotta practice the shiny red a little more tbh… i think i should have started with a much darker color and just focused on highlights… it looks alright though! you can tell it's shiny at least XD

can't forget those waldoes

oh closeup of the gloves btw

[alarrytale]

It’s gonna be an unpopular opinion but somedays I wish he’ll do something so ridiculously stupid that most of those fans who came with H’sH and is here just because of his pretty face would unstan him and so his popularity will fall. But unfortunately it is more likely that larries/fans who really care about him as a person and artist will leave and het harries will stay because they don’t think deeper and whatever ridiculous he would do they will quickly forget about it as soon as some aesthetically pleasing promo drop. Only solution of this situation would be that at least if there will come some fresh and younger break-through artist that they will simply move on to someone else who has even prettier face and hotter body, will constatly feed them on sm and Harry will be there for those who are serious about his music as much as he himself is serious about his music - luckily for us he’s nearly 30 and that’s the age when you are too old for teenagers to call you trendy and follow you. So again, it’s unpopular but I kinda wish for this situation because somedays I can’t stand how most of fans don’t go under the surface and I want him for those who truly understand him.

There was this discussion how interesting he is alone as a person without his tabloid drama and womanizerTM image for hets and gp and I can totally say that for me he is totally interesting and would love if he’ll give us more from his personality, his sense of humour or his interests because I know he’s interested in many kinds of art, he reads books and have a feeling he’s just an old soul who on one hand knows internet and memes and usage of emojis f.e. but on the other hand he’s too old for all the sh*ts teens are obsessed with, don’t have tiktok installed in his phone to use it under some fake account or simply doesn’t know what is popular because he lives in his bubble and doesn’t needn’t to keep up with trends.

It’s basically the same as you discussed Louis huge potentional for his shows - there’s a lot what both of them can give us but yet we don’t even get the minimum. At least they have each other and they personalities are fully open and we can only wonder how great they are together when one doesn’t need to hide anything and other one is fully comfortable.

Hi, anon!

I agree with your unpopular opinion. I'd rather have a smaller fanbase consisting of people who see and get him, and let's him do his thing, than him having a huge fanbase but then having to bend backwards to entertain the flighty gp majority. There are larries who disagrees and wants him to be successful over anything else. And we know Sony/Columbia don't agree, cause they will lose money. I'm a realist and i don't see that happening, even though some of us wish it. But i do see that the ones who actually thinks harry is a person of some substance will likely move on if this behaviour continues. But i think harry tm has a shelf life, they didn’t create him to last. He's not a slow burn, but a quick and fast burning star. They might change strategy, and think that a coming out will be a new era, rebrand him so that his career will last. Idk.

I do think harry is an interesting person and i think he's well spoken when he dosn't need to guard his words or speak on things he's not interested in. We see it so rarely though. He hardly does interviews anymore, both on camera or printed. And i agree that he could be so much more if they let him. Same with Louis.

[linawritesocs]

Here is my writing for you <3

Aka reasons why I KNOW Lilia x Lina x Rollo is canon frfr

First of all, the vibes and the aesthetics are there. Trust

The :D x :( x :| dynamic is so fun. So so fun

Lilia is scooping you and Rollo up in his arms and giving you both forehead kisses <3

You and Rollo have things in common and I think you'd be able to help each other get through a lot of stuff!

Plus Lilia is there to always support you and he's very understanding!! No judgment from him at all, absolutely 0

Again, LILIA AND ROLLO WOULD FIND YOUR SMILE AND LITERALLY EVERYTHING ABOUT YOU STUNNING!!! GORGEOUS!!! They wouldn't want to change a single thing about you!

They'd take such good care of you, no cap. Seriously. They'd be absurdly good at it. And they're incredibly careful and ask if you're comfortable :)

Why did they fall for you? Not sure with them but in my head, they saw a failgirl meow meow (affectionate) and went "OMG I LOVE THEMMM" and "...Okay so I love them"

Also that one Halloween drawing you did is like. Stuck in my head permanently. The vampire x witch x priest one.

Ngl I think y'all should have a pet cat. Idk why but it seems right

So the fireworks during masquerade, right? Or whatever they were if they weren't fireworks, I'm not sure jsndkfs

I think Rollo would take you both to a place that's kinda far and the sounds aren't very audible, but the view of the town is great! And you get a clear view of the fireworks so that you don't have to miss how pretty they are!

I'm trying to think of date ideas but I'm kind of blanking rn? I know it'd be something more low-key... OHHH what if cat cafe??? (I feel like I keep mentioning cats but that's literally your and Rollo's energies, I can't just forget cats)

Whenever you're sick, Rollo would definitely take some time away from NBC, like a few hours, so he can see you and make sure you're doing all right! Maybe he brings you some food or medicines he heard is good for you!

I'm sure Lilia does a really good job too, plus he'd make sure you aren't lonely and in low spirits!

Random thought: If Silver is basically the son of Lilia and Lina, what's Rollo's role? I feel like he doesn't dislike Silver, that's all, but if you have thoughts... 👁️👁️

Cottagecore house cottagecore house cottagecore house

Once y'all graduate I can see you having a cottagecore house. Yes just like Seth and Rollo

That's all I have rn but PLEASE RAMBLE IN YOUR RESPONSE IF YOU WANT!!! I WANNA HEAR MORE ABOUT THEM <333

HSDHDJSJSDJKSJS TARUUUUU THIS IS SO CUTE I'M GONNA CRYYYYYY

and you're right. rollo x lina are just cat x cat. both of them are so cat-coded.

THE IMAGE OF LILIA SCOOPING BOTH ME AND ROLLO UP IS SO FUNNY but it's okay i know he can do it

everything about the vampire x priest x witch au is perfect. lina and lilia already dating and lilia going "hey dude wanna form a polycule". rollo naming one of the bells john and making cole and sebastian worry for his mental health. rollo being So Scared that someone is gonna find out about his relationship with those two but when cole and sebastian do find out they just go "OMG SO YOU DO HAVE BITCHES SLAYYYYY- ahem, we mean. wow.. you're not maidenless.." lina secretly being a catgirl and hiding her cat ears under her witch hat and fully turning into a cat when she's comfortable around rollo. honestly priest!rollo is a very popular au concept especially with a vampire/witch/other "monster" s/o but like. come on. we all know this is the best one /lh

. I GUESS SILVER CAN ALSO BE ROLLO'S SON THOUGH THAT'D BE SO FUNNY IT'S LIKE ".. so. uh. y-you're dating my father." ".. yes" "and you're also dating my mother" "also yes" ".. uh. does that make you-" "i am literally one year older than you" "okay father number two" NO BUT THEY EVEN LOOK KINDA SIMILAR. KNIGHT OF DAWN WHO. i'm actually obsessed with the way how silver actually looks and acts like a mix of them. he can appear very suddenly, scaring others in the process, just like lilia, he's eepy like lina and also tends to blame himself a lot just like them and he looks a lot like rollo and is very serious and responsible, just like him. he is literally their son. i'm gonna sob

here are some of my fav lina x lilia x rollo concepts if you don't mind me sharing!

lilia is 700 years old and he's been through so much and it took a lot of time for him to change and become the gremlin that he is today. lina is MUCH younger than him, but she also had to go through a lot of horrors. lilia never says that their trauma isn't valid and never says stuff like "well at least you didn't have to fight in a war". he just hopes they can feel a bit lighter when he's around.

i've mentioned before that i imagine lina's unique magic hurting them a lot in exchange for them to do things as good (or better than) as others so yeah, maybe rollo would find lina suspicious at first but then imagine him finding out about what her magic is doing to her and he's like. "SEE. I AM RIGHT. WE HAVE TO SAVE YOU WE HAVE TO GET RID OF MAGIC WE HAVE TO-" and lina is standing there like "sir.. why do you want to save me.."

*sobs* rollo putting a flower in lina's hair while she's sitting lost in thought and comparing her to that flower *CRIES*

rollo being confused why lilia is 100% okay with a poly relationship and lilia is like "well. uh. well. you see. i have EXPERIENCE" mallenoa and her husband (possibly crowley)

ACTUALLY IT'S SO FUNNY bc if you think about it lina x lilia x rollo is like a reverse version of that relationship. it's not the "actual queen" and a "trash man" it's "the nbc student council president and the most talented student from that school" and "a wet cat i found on the street and said "i just think it's neat"".

*SOBBING* LINA HAS NOTICEABLE FANGS.. DO YOU KNOW WHO ALSO HAS THOSE.. which means linalilia can just bite rollo whenever they want.

lina and lilia dye each other's hair all the time and try to make rollo join them. they fail but it's okay

[neu-apostolisch]

us copyright law and ai - a primer

because people keep asking

I took one (1) class on copyright law in law school from a professor who specialized in both copyright law and ai. below is a collection of my various analyses on the topic. This is not meant to pass any judgement on AI art/generative art/ChatGPT/etc, it's meant to be a primer on the framework.

Disclaimer: Copyright and AI is a bit too expansive of an area to summarize entirely (it's my professor's lifelong research interest!) so i'll just sorta focus on the basic underlying concepts. If you have more specific/targeted questions, feel free to send an ask or use this as a springboard to start researching.

Copyright Law Primer:

Copyright exists on a work when (1) a human/legal person (2) does something creative that (3) is not functional. It’s obviously a bit more complicated than that but if you don’t meet these three things it is Not Copyrightable. A three-legged stool if you will.

The #1 principle of copyright is that it basically only protects creative and aesthetic choices.

In practice: You can’t copyright stuff generated by AI as of now unless the Copyright Office explicitly releases another rule or something saying so. AI does not possess the creativity or authorship necessary to create a copyrightable image. https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/us-copyright-office-rules-ai-art-cant-be-copyrighted-180979808/ and recently, https://www.reuters.com/legal/ai-generated-art-cannot-receive-copyrights-us-court-says-2023-08-21/

Do not think of it as “the AI’s copyright is in the public domain.” The AI cannot have copyright. Full stop. It is not able to be copyrighted and nothing can change that. It's full public domain.

The reasoning from that case actually comes from a bit of an unusual source! https://en.wikipedia.o/wiki/Monkey_selfie_copyright_dispute

As a follow up, just because it's not copyrightable doesn't mean it might not fall under other elements of intellectual property, and just because it's not copyrightable doesn't mean you can't monetize it. So, for example, shitty ape NFTs that are randomly generated aren't copyrightable in the whole, even if someone drew the individual parts and features the composition itself isn't fully copyrightable (but this hasn't really been argued fully yet). They're obviously still monetized, though.

If you want to get really granular and abstract you can start breaking artwork into copyrightable and uncopyrightable elements, because elements of an item can be copyrightable without the whole being copyrightable.

Applied to AI:

The two biggest things present here in this AI/Copyright debate are "authorship" and "creativity," which are both rather philosophical in their own right.

I'll start with creativity. the fundamental core of what makes a work copyrightable is whether it represents "creative expression." So, what is creativity? Really, what is it? Loosely, it's based around subjective aesthetic decisionmaking. Essentially, have you ever taken a generic photo, decided something about it just "didn't look right" and retaken it? That's making a creative and subjective choice.

Applied to the concept of AI artwork, works that are wholly the product of AI generation can't be copyrighted because there are no subjective decisions being made; it's a neural network/model compiling elements and producing something. Even if a person is building/feeding their own model, at the end of the day, the person is merely creating the conditions for the choices to be made by an AI, just as the photographer with the monkey selfie (above) just left the cameras and things lying around expecting monkeys to come and inspect them.

Put another way: if a human is making decisions with absolutely no creativity involved, that’s not copyrightable either.

Authorship is more brief in analysis. AI is certainly more in the vein of a "tool" rather than a distinct author. AI does technically compose new images. It just doesn't meet the qualifications of "creative authorship" because it's not really choosing to be creative any more than a monkey is choosing to compose a selfie. Put more plainly, the final creative decisions to be made that result in the ultimate image/work/etc are not created by something capable of authorship. Therefore, no copyright.

Important sidenote: there are plenty of things made by Humans that also are not creative enough to be copyrightable. Just, ultimately, the US Copyright Office has drawn a pretty clean line at author = human. I didn't necessarily expect the US Copyright Office to be at the forefront of the "what is human" debate, but that's where we're at.

[thereadingchallengechallenge]

Review: Just As You Are by Camille Kellogg Rating: 5/5

Just As You Are is a light-hearted but intriguing novel about Liz, a journalist for a queer online magazine, and Daria, the stuff-shirt business-butch who swoops in to help her well-meaning best friend save the publication from going under. A lot of miscommunication ensues, but it was fun to watch the push and pull between Liz and Daria as they try to save the magazine and their reputations as they accidentally fall for each other.

I can't stand Pride and Prejudice but, apparently, when it's re-imagined in a lesbian image, I eat it up. This is the second sapphic P&P retelling I've read and I loved this one even more than the first - entirely because I finally found a contemporary romance with butch lesbian representation!!! (I mean, it still treats butch - and femme - as aesthetics rather than the community roles they actually are but progress!)

The only thing I wish the book had shown more of was Liz exploring her gender. She does a lot of that in the first third of the book but then it falls by the wayside to the other plots. I'd kind of hoped Daria was gonna help her with that, or that maybe Liz would explore some of the ways nonbinary lesbians present and describe themselves. Lesbians are great at messing with gender and I feel like the book could've really had fun with that.

Regardless, this would be perfect for fans of Alexandria Bellefleur or Boyfriend Material by Alexis Hall. I'll definitely be keeping an eye out for what Camille Kellogg does next!