#where else am I gonna get posts like this

[sanguineterrain]

I am FERAL over your knight Jason thought. FERAL!!! Okay check this out: so Jason's ignoring reader because he feels guilty right? Maybe he tried to give them back but the king wouldn't allow it. But maybe the reader misunderstands and thinks they're not doing their "duties" so they make dinner and breakfast and wash his clothes and basically act like a perfect spouse. How would Jason react? 👀

Dear god... I feel another series coming on...

Idkidk, their dynamic is just really interesting to me! it's probably gonna be a bit of a slow burn here. Feel free to send more thoughts about them. I am rotating these two like a rotisserie chicken in my brain.

knight!jason todd x gn!reader. ambiguous time period but just assume it's olden times *gestures vaguely*. tw arranged marriage/forced relationship but it's complicated! jason is full of angst and self-loathing but he's a sweetie as per usual. original post for context.

****

The soldier—Jason—has said four words since you've arrived.

The first was "here," which he said whilst handing you a mug of milk. He didn't look at you as he said it, and that morning, he left for a five-day long station. You only know that because he said, after handing you the milk, "I've been stationed."

You realized it was five days when you heard his horse galloping towards the house... five days later.

You haven't initiated conversation because though you're a commoner, and no one ever had much hope for you to become anything but an old spinster, you know not to challenge knights.

But this is fucking ridiculous.

"Do you like veal?" you ask on your fourteenth day here.

Jason is about to leave, his boots half laced. He freezes at your question and looks up.

You stand tall, chin up. This is a normal question. A question a wife would ask her husband, except you're not a wife, and you're pretty sure this soldier isn't a husband either.

"I like veal," he says carefully, slowly. "Would you like me to fetch some from the market?"

Now, this is where it gets tricky. When the king summoned you, he made it clear that you were expected to care for Jason under his rules. You don't know how to navigate this world. You know what couples in your village do, but you don't know what's expected of you here.

"Actually, I..." Jason looks at you. His eyes are very green. He has a surprisingly sweet face under his helmet. "Actually, I was wondering if I could go. On my own."

"Oh."

You brace yourself for arguing or yelling. True, he hasn't raised his voice once, but he also hasn't said much at all. It's like living with a ghost.

"Yes, of course. Of course you can go." He fishes out a pouch of coins and gives them to you. You take it slowly, waiting for him to realize his mistake. He doesn't.

"Thank you," you say.

He nods and watches you walk.

"Wait."

You stop. Here it comes.

"There's a cargo ship in port today. The guards rotate at noon."

He leaves before you can form a thought. You hold the coins, watching blankly as the door shuts behind him. His horse whinnies, and then he's gone.

The market isn't far from the cottage. It's fantastic to be outside again. No one's noticed your absence, clearly, but that's alright. You've never expected more.

You buy a good cut of veal and potatoes and carrots and apples. Jason gave you more money than any cut of meat would cost, so surely he assumed you would buy other food. Why else would he give you so much?

A ship's horn drones in the distance. You're feeling some oranges when you remember his words. A cargo ship.

The sun is almost at its highest point.

"Oi! Either buy 'em or stop feelin' 'em!" the seller snaps.

You roll your eyes and move on from the orange stand. You can see the horizon of where the sky meets the sea from here. Any moment, the guards will change, and the ship will be...

You stop. Was Jason hinting at your escape?

No, he couldn't have been! That's preposterous. Why would he want you gone? The king took you for a reason.

And where would you go anyway? Once you leave, you'd be a criminal forever. You couldn't make a home on your own. And who knows what could happen in between? Pirates, enemy soldiers, anybody could snatch you up.

This must've been a test. A test to see if you would run. That's why he agreed to you going so easily.

No, your escape can't be planned now. Not when you're so obviously uncomfortable, and Jason knows it.

You ignore the ship and go home with your purchases. You spend the rest of the afternoon preparing veal stew. You warm leftover bread over the fire and set a pot of butter on the table.

Jason comes in louder than he has before, humming quietly. You perk up at the sound, happy for the lack of silence.

You set a bowl of stew at his chair and wait by the fire. As soon as he enters the kitchen, the humming stops.

"Welcome home," you say, wringing your hands. "I made supper."

Jason glances at the table, then back at you.

"You came back," he says.

"Why wouldn't I?" you ask, face neutral as you cut the bread into chunks.

"That—did the ship come?"

"Yes."

Jason sits. His face is dirty from training.

"I bought more than veal," you say, and hand him the pouch. "I hope that's alright. We—there were no more potatoes."

He takes the pouch, rubbing the string tied around the top. "You went to the marketplace... and came back."

It's not a question, but it sounds like there might be one behind it.

"Certainly," you say. "I'm loyal to you, Jason. I serve you."

He looks up, blinking rapidly. Then he looks back at his stew.

Oh, right. He's waiting for you to ask permission to sit.

"May I join you?" you ask.

Jason flinches. "You don't... you don't have to ask. I would never stop you from eating."

The words hang in the air. It's like neither one of you can speak right.

You watch him, and he watches you as you serve yourself and sit on the opposite side of the table. Jason takes the first bite, and you eat right after.

"Is the supper satisfactory? Have I done well?" you ask.

Jason stops chewing and sets his spoon down. You're struck by his shift in demeanor. You worry for a moment you've screwed up something as dim-wittingly simple as stew.

His eyes are sad as they fall on you. It's akin to grief, the pain he wears, but you don't know why he's grieving. You silently offer him more bread, pushing it toward him. He takes it.

"Yes," he says quietly and eats another spoonful. "You did. Thank you for supper."

Jason cleans his bowl three times. You have no stew leftover, which pleases you.

But as soon as Jason finishes eating, he gets up, rinses his bowl, and wordlessly leaves.

You don't see him for the rest of the night.

Somehow, you feel lonelier than when you weren't speaking.

[foone]

I think my brain has decided to dump mind control/hypnosis into the same bucket as fursonas and TF.

Specifically the one where it's like "this would be extremely interesting if you could do it, but you can't, so why bother with something that's only fantasy?"

Which is strange that it happens here. Like, there are definitely interests/kinks that are completely fantasy but I'm still into them, still enjoy reading about and seeing art of them. (I'm not gonna specify which ones because this is not a TMI Tuesday post)

But for some things my brain decides that I'm provisionally into it but only if it can be done for real. Like... Imagine someone who is into bondage but has zero interest in bondage porn/erotica, only in doing it for real... And then imagine they're someone who can't do any bondage for partner/disability reasons. That's where my brain is at.

I'm not sure if it's that I'm not interested enough in these things, or I'm too interested.

Like the former makes sense: if I was majorly into TF, I'd be into it even though it's impossible. The fantasy would be so erotic/interesting that I'd be all over it, even knowing I'm very unlikely to ever get slowly turned into a deergirl with antlers.

But the latter might be closer: I'm too into these things. My brain is like "omg this is the best idea ever! We need to do it now!!!" and then the disappointment at realizing it's impossible just sours me on the whole damn subject.

Like I can't get the motivation to design a fursona because it keeps reminding me that I can never be the cute cow. I don't want to have a fursona that's just a thing in pictures and stories, I want to have hooves and big horizontal ears and NOT BE A FUCKING HUMAN.

It's annoying because I think in all these cases it's something I could legitimately be interested in and get a lot of enjoyment out of! Like, furries are awesome! (and I am one, even without a fursona). They have lots of fun with their fursonas. I could commission art of my fursona using old computers! I could design keyboards for use with my hooves! It could be tons of fun.

And TF? Don't get me started. I am constantly saying I need to be less human. I theoretically love the idea of turning into something else. But nope. I can't enjoy it, maybe because I'm going "why isn't that me?"

And I've read some mind-control/hypnosis stuff recently and I'm having the exact same reaction. There some parts where I'm like "this has a lot of interesting ideas! Why can't I do this?" oh yeah because it doesn't exist. Damn it.

And that "damn it" emotion is when I close the story. So I can't really enjoy the parts of it I like, I'm too dissuaded by the disappointment.

I dunno if this is an autism thing. I've known some other people on the spectrum have similar issues with just deciding subjects are zero interest to them, after only a quick glance. I don't know if that's the same or a similar thing than I'm talking about.

(also, hypnotists? Don't come saying "but hypnosis is real!" to me. I know, but it's not real in the ways I'm interested in)

[cerealmonster15]

[sebekifies your anon hate to cope] the demons are winning today lads

[hellobabydoll333]

The Law of Assumption - dismantling your limiting beliefs (Simplified & Finalized)

I did something like this already, but these are basically my updated beliefs- everything I’ve learned on this blog from others and most importantly, myself. Idk if there’s anything more I can say after this, but… if this don’t resonate with you, as I’ve said in my intro post welp… find something that does cuz hunny this ain’t for you (and no your ask won’t be answered if you decide to speak on it) Anyways, a perfect beginner & non-beginner post that covers just about all you need to know imo. Feel free to ask questions my luvs <3

Your assumptions right now are everything. Be present. What you assumed yesterday don’t matter if it’s not what you’re assuming right now in this moment. ‘Your subconscious doesn’t have eyes, it’s shows what you tell it’, is what a lot of bloggers like to say and that such a great reminder for me to choose what I want rather than the undesirable.

It’s true that repetition creates your dominant thoughts and assumptions (exactly why you can’t be one foot in, one out) but it feels better when you don’t make it a chore and actually have fun with it.

Give the 3D none of your acceptance- you never have to accept it. Yes it’s something you don’t control directly, so you should only focus on things you can control such as the 4D, interact with it, pay attention to it, have fun with it

The 4D/imagination/inner reality isn’t some fake world, it’s very real- it’s where creation happens. I CANNOT STRESSSSSS the importance of doing what you want in the 4D and accepting it as your reality above all. SOOOO IMPORTANT YALL.

It comes down to discipline because you can choose to be the prettiest being in the world right now but even if you don’t continuously choose that over the undesired state, you get what you persist in. Think of it like a game of this or that

You have to actually want better for yourself to do better for yourself- and this is why I push mental health and self love so hard in my posts. It makes no sense that you are struggling so much to do something so easy, you do some thinking and then realize that you don’t actually believe you’re worth your desires and then you do nothing about it.. This focus on yourself includes being real with you. No one is gonna do it for you. Like have convos with yourself, listen to yourself and how you feel about things, people and YOU. Mainly you. This is how you discover your beliefs. Pay attention to you.

This isn’t something that’s too commonly said because usually it’s just ‘ignore your 3D’ whatever, whatever. But sometimes the 3D be jumping out at you in way you SHOULD NOT ignore. Some circumstances be like that. Some people just would never understand that unless it’s them in the situation. And that’s why I said in one of my recent posts, do what you need to do in the 3D. Idc what anyone else says, you can deal with what needs to be done in your 3D while not giving it any power.

Working on your Self concept isn’t necessary for some people but I am an advocate for it. I’m someone who had such a shitty self concept and I didn’t even know I felt this way about myself until I came across loa and it took me forever to fix because I still couldn’t admit to myself that it was a problem, but after spending my time choosing to fix it- think & assume better of myself, love myself- guess who’s flourishing now. “You can still manifest with a shitty self concept” but why would you want to feel that way about yourself… and if you have a good self concept already, great, 10/10 love that for you sweetie!!

When working on your self concept/yourself in general, what you consume matters & give your attention to. It’s a form of repetition. If you constantly consume negativity, it stays in your life. For example, my social media consumption mainly contains pr1sm’s affirmation tape, mai Pham, miss tada & Fatima Bah- people who attract endless opportunities, Hamimommy - someone who’s life is similar to a life I’ll live in the future, my Pinterest boards which reflect my life perfectly. The peace I’ve felt since I’ve changed what I consumed feels so good and I’ve already seen it start to show itself in my life through others, realizations within myself and opportunities.

You make rules. You could take this with a grain of salt. I don’t give one fuck what someone else says if it doesn’t resonate with me honestly and neither should you. Everyone’s journey is different and at the end of the day, it’s all about you. Your life is about you, thus your world revolves around you. Do what makes you happy

Reading this isn’t gonna change anything, you have to make the change yourself. Bloggers can’t give you want you, you have to give it to yourself

And you would never think it’s that straightforward. I don’t post my successes but I do reblog others that I see to keep my followers motivated even though motivation means nothing if you don’t have disciple. And yes I slip up sometimes but I always remind myself of these things and then I’m back on track hunny. I think this will be my last informative post for a long time if not forever because I really don’t think there’s anything more I can say, but I may post lil epiphanies like connections I make about self love or even loa but it’ll be essentially the same things but more detailed how.

This feels like the end of an era for me. Because now I can be completely focused on the 4D now that I’m aware of what works for me.

And to close, I really love this post of mine and this would have to be my all time fav and I definitely will be coming back to read to remind myself whenever I make that slip. YALL LIKE MY SUMMER THEME IN THIS POST?

xoxo, hellobabydoll333

[dreamchasernina]

"I don't want to engage in ship wars"

"I can't defend my ship without being ATTACKED"

I wonder why you keep getting grief🤔

I'm sorry I don't want to be rude, but what the hell did you think would happen? You're clearly responding to criticism of your ship, and there's nothing wrong with that. But everyone else also has the right to a) respond to your arguments and b) call your points stupid. You're literally engaging with the ship war by arguing against criticism of your ship. You have to be able to see that

How is me responding to criticism of my ship - engaging in ship wars? I don’t mention another ship anywhere in my post. ANYWHERE. So like…anytime I talk about Kataang where I disagree with a popular opinion against my ship, it means I’m engaging in ship wars? Am I like…not allowed to address the common hate? After seeing 10 posts saying “Aang is an abuser” am I not allow to post to my own blog and say “actually, I don’t think Aang’s an abuser” and then not expect to be attacked for it?

I go into Kataang tag and see 10 anti Kataang posts a day. So if I want to share 2 pro Kataangs a day, without hating anyone else, that means I’m engaging in ship wars? I’m not addressing anyone in particular, just addressing the main points brought up against Kataang.

Seriously, genuinely, anon. Put another ask in my inbox and tell me where am I engaging in ship wars when ALL IM DOING is talking about MY SHIP and not even mentioning another ship, not in the posts and not in the tags. Those posts are meant for the people who are actively seeking content on that particular ship.

You’re saying the fact that I defend my ship against terrible takes without involving anyone directly, means I should expect to get hate? Does that sound okay to you?

If I see points defending another ship, I would NEVER go into their post to say, hey, actually that’s dumb. Why on earth would anyone do that? And you’re defending it for what??

Why am I, as an active atla fan and shipper, not allowed to share my thoughts on my ship without getting attacked?? Like seriously. Answer that question. All of my posts are positive. Nothing negative.

And I agree, anyone has a right to respond and disagree, but that’s not what’s happening. 2 of ZK shippers attacked, literally attacked my points, made fun of them, called me a “pest” and automatically blocked me without giving me a chance to respond. If you’re gonna block me, why respond in the first place? And I’m the bad guy in all of this? Because I dared to talk about my ship?

Like I truly don’t know how you guys don’t see how delusional you sound! I’m not the one going into ZK shippers blogs, looking for a post I disagree with and then shame them for having those opinions. I beg you to look inside your shippers behavior for once and ask yourselves, why are ZK shippers being labeled the worst part of ATLA fandom. By everyone. Maybe because of behavior like this?

[ganondoodle]

this isnt a call out for anyone; i keep getting asked why i even post my opinions on the internet if i dont want to argue whenever i mention how tired i am of people trying to argue with me or proof me wrong

and i just ... for one its bc there are people that have told me they like hearing my opinions bc it makes them feel less alone, its validating to hear that i am not alone and i make them feel less alone (this is a big reason)

then theres the thing .. do you feel good never saying your opinion on anything and just keeping everything to yourself? be it big or small, i tried to do that for years, just trying to crawl deeper and deeper into a hole bc clearly i am the problem and should be able to deal with everything on my own, never say anything, i could be annoying, i could be a burden, and it nearly killed me; i have very few friends and i already spam them enough to feel constantly guilty

and if i did that on some private account ... what use is that, thats the same thing as not saying anything, whats the use of saying anything when no one listens, even to select few, whats the point if others cant find it, there might be people i dont know at all that would find solace in hearing my stupid ramblings about games

its true i lack self control and just tend to talk about stuff when i feel the need of talking, but is that really so bad?

correct me if im wrong but i was never of the impression that posting something on the internet automatically means wanting to debate and argue unless you specifically say or initiate it on someone elses post? like thats why i pretty much always make my own post to complain and dont go on other peoples posts of opposing views, id view the latter as an invitation to argue moreso than the former

when i post some stupid opinion (im talking about harmless personal video game opinions mind you) on my own account who am i bothering, if people agree thats great! if they dont they can just move on- i know people love to discuss and share different opinions but the the ones i most often encounter are ones where its a basically trying to start a fight over whos more right (like theres always one correct opinion to have) or just telling me i am not allowed to feel like i feel-

im aware i cant expect everyone to be able to see a differeing opinion and move on without saying anything, but when i say something, unless its specifically a question, i just do it to vent, to let my thoughts out so they dont slowly gnaw at me, maybe find validation in others also thinking like that (i know i cant also expect everyone to think that way .. i just see it as a form of politeness? sorta?); in all honesty, i dont do it to get told opposing opinions (i know thats maybe a little ... idk, selfish i guess?) bc i usually have seen or heard those already and am saying mine bc i havent seen it before or very very little- what i think is often very much not the majority so the need to say something gets greater the more i see somethign i dont agree with, like an urge to balance it? a call to see if i am alone or not? and much less so to argue or debate over something like that, im tired and exhausted at all times, and have often trouble even getting myself to draw, i dont enjoy fights of any kind, and especialyl so when its about something so completely ignorable like a game opinion i only said bc i wanted it out of my head and bc i have seen that the majority seems to be of a different one

like a sticky note on a wall, not an invitation to a political meeting?

maybe this is something i need to work on and get better at, i havent found a way that lets me get rid of my thoughts in a way that doesnt leave me feeling guilty (like spamming my friends) or to gnaw at me (not saying anything, or somewhere no ones gonna hear it)

i know im incapable of shutting up ever (though at least i got a better control over my emotions by now) and i risk accidentally seeming like im inviting people to a fight but i dont know what else to do

maybe its something i horribly missunderstood about the internet, but its my only outlet for that, i dont have anyone IRL to talk to about my interests, maybe its a flaw that needs work, maybe its just a flaw, i dont know :/

[poetry-protest-pornography]

Okay, episode 3 part 2, mostly as cried about to @hotasfahrenheit while watching, with random additions.

Part 1 here

I am going to perish. Look at these soft, happy boyfriends? (She says as though she is unaware of the looking kidnapping)

Look at Ming being a competent boyfriend!

Help:

I'm gonna cryyyy

Joe, please stop undervaluing yourself

Ming.

He bought you a present.

The correct response is "thank you"

I TAKE IT BACK, YOU DID GOOD BABY

He is so happy about that watch 😭

Oh, ffs

HE SAID NO YOU FUCK

Mia: I lost it but I was just reading a post earlier where someone was basically like "what if part of what's actually happening is Ming actively choosing Joe over Tong just like he loves that watch, because he doesn't have to have the movie star, he can have the normal guy too" and 😭😭😭

Me: NO LISTEN

"I can like something normal"

While looking at Joe -- who constantly devalues himself and accentuates his normal-guy-ness -- with full heart eyes

Ming doesn't want a political marriage and to run the family business!

He wants a little house and a quiet life that he gets to choose

He wants *Joe*, specifically

And this is him telling Joe that! That even if he's not "special" (lies, Joe is incredible) he is still valuable, and loveable, and Ming still values him (in his fucked up little emotionally repressed gremlin way, BUT HE'S WORKING ON IT!). This is Ming looking at Joe and telling him outright "why can't I like you". The way he's looking at that watch? It's the same way he looks at Joe

Ffs I want to throw myself into traffic

May, no.

Let him say no

No one at this table is happy or comfortable

THEY WERE SO HAPPY A MINUTE AGO 😭 MING WAS GOING TO GIVE JOE THE MUGS 😭

Oh, I hate it so much more when it's Ming saying "stand in" than when someone else says it, and that already hurts my feelings so much

"I didn't know you were so close", bitch, you saw them making out in the bathroom, shut the fuck up

SOL TO THE RESCUE AND MING IS SO MAD ABOUT IT

Sol:

Ming, you already have so, so many problems, baby, please stop gulping down that wine

(I mean, I geddit, Tong sucks, but slow down)

May with the sister superpowers

May explicitly telling Ming that he should be with whoever makes him happy, after the shit show where they had to pretend to not be together is so necessary for Ming, but so ouch for me

He's smiling just *thinking* about Joe, help

Tong 100% knows Ming likes him, and asking him to stay to watch him propose to his sister is so unnecessarily cruel

Ming. You know he doesn't do his own stunts, come onnnn

My poor emotionally bereft baby

Baby, that is the back of the man you love-- like for realsies, not for safe emotionally unavailable reasons-- you should recognize him, but also you should not tear it into little pieces

Joe, put him on the floor in a blanket

Joe I'm so serious

It'll be good for him

Fine, fine, Mr Fancy Pants can get the couch

THE MUGS 😭😭😭

Oh no

The Realization

Ouch ouch ouch

No really, put him on the floor. It's better than he deserves right now

I'm losing my mind about this show

I knew it was going to consume my brain

[mattodore]

not many people online atm so i figured i’d show off theo’s freshly customized moles :) i'll post a proper close up of his face moles later because i'm obsessed, but for now here’s the full thing.

also this is how this background looks with the character page (this isn't the pic i'll be using, i was just testing things out). i'll probably alter the code to match the background rather than editing the background’s color, i think.

[majoringinsarcasm]

“I hate people who mindlessly praise RWBY and deny any of its awful writing choices”

I have no idea what circles you’re in that have people like this. I won’t deny they exist bc I’m certain they do, but I’ve seen so many ppl who love RWBY with all their hearts talk about multiple things across the volumes they didn’t like or wish had happens differently or where a scene was weak or where the pacing was off. Especially after people politely explained issues they had with V9 while still throughly enjoying the volume as a whole.

Again I’m not denying the existence of mindless praise but I have to ask WHO you’re coming across who In Earnest and not as a joke say the show is 100% Perfect For Real. Bc in the 10 years I’ve been watching the show I have not seen those people. Which maybe means I’m lucky?

But I feel like RWBY specially gets so much hate and shade and ppl talk about “bad writing” every other episode for the past six volumes like. Bruh if it’s THAT bad HOW are you still watching? There’s thinking it’s bad and hoping it’ll get better and then there’s hate watching and being confused why people seem to love a thing you hate and that doesn’t sound fun At All

[carnivalcarriondiscarded]

oh yeah fyi im gonna be liveblogging as i explore the update, uhhhh prepare for me to be Absolutely Unbearable <3

[lupucs]

Gosh I love your art!

But uh whats your favorite deltarune ships?

Thank you so much!! Oh gosh, you really caught me off guard with this one hah!

Well, uh I think it should be pretty obvious which ships I like by now...

It's clearly-

It-

It's obviously...

THOSE GUYS!

[meeko-mar]

Katsuki gets revived and saves Izuku and they finish the war together, but they are both heavily wounded and lose consciousness together soon after victory.

This time somehow Izuku wakes up before Katsuki, and he can't find Katsuki. So the anxiety drives him out of his bed this time and he trudges agonizingly and single-mindedly through the hospital to find Katsuki.

He finds him down the hall. His arm still in cast, his face mostly healed but wrapped under bandages, chest bandaged so heavily, but rising and falling with healthy breaths. The machine beeps with his heart, thank god, Izuku exhales a breath he'd been holding in for too long.

He doesn't even care that there's only one bed when he gets to the right room. He pulls an extra blanket off a nearby chair, wraps it around himself and carefully pulls himself into the space between Katsuki and the edge of the bed.

Katsuki responds to his warmth and turns his head towards him but doesn't wake.

"...Izuku..." he talks in his sleep, his soul just KNOWING whose presence was with him.

"I won't leave. Not again. Not ever." Izuku murmurs into Katsuki's shoulder. Silent tears stream down his cheeks.

Eventually Katsuki warms and returns the embrace, as if Izuku was a precious plushie he needed in order to sleep.

They are found this way by Aizawa, who makes it explicitly clear to staff that the two are not to be separated during their recovery. He smiles down at his House Arrest Boys and flicks off the overhead lights.

[gentil-minou]

sharing my wangxian phlebotomist!wwx/blood donor!lwj au from twitter here (a summary here if you wanna see)

--

The hardest part of the adoption process was supposed to be endless paperwork and screenings and the anxiety of not being good enough to meet high standards of the court.

It wasn't supposed to be A-Yuan's first doctors appointment.

His pitiful screams fill the small doctor's office. He's clinging to Lan Wangji's shoulders like there a lifeline, hiding and all LWJ wants to do is bundle up his son and carry him back to safety.

But these are mandatory vaccines he needs in order to attend pre-k. So he cant.

Nurse: Shots are never fun at this age, huh He would beg to differ; they're never fun at any age But see lwj isnt afraid of the shots themselves. Hes terrified of the sight of blood. His BFF loves horror movies & he watches them with her bravely by staring at the corner of the tv

When lwj gets his blood drawn, he looks closes his eyes and imagines being in a cold pond somewhere. But he's never been afraid of just the shot before.

He's helpless in the face of his son's distress. The nurse sighs, saying theyll have to try again another day.

A-Yuan sniffles into his baba's shirt, exhausted from the crying fit. His eyes are still watery and he looks around the room with such fear in his eyes, before withdrawing back into the safety of his baba's chest.

Lan Wangji has no idea what to do, only cradles him closer

Thankfully, LWJ has someone who can help. His best friend, Jiang Yanli is a child therapist and has been helping him prepare his home for A-Yuan.

If anyone knows what to do, it's Yanli-jie

JYL: Zhanzhan, have you tried showing him its not scary?

LWJ has not, bc he's terrified

JYL is the only one allowed to call him Zhanzhan. In Uni she was the one who mentored him his first week of school. Someone slipped him alcohol and he got deliriously drunk.

Yanli-jie was the one who found him and took him home. This is what they told the cohort but actually…

JYL: seeing his Baba get a shot and be okay might motivate him to be more brave

LWJ certainly doesn't feel brave. He's thinking of the blood flowing from his veins and then LEAVING them to go who knows where. It sounds barbaric

He has the distinct memory of learning what a period is in middle school and promptly passing out

He is not a fan of anything related to blood

But LWJ has learned that Yanli-jie knows what she's doing, so, despite the way he can swear he feels his blood pumping with fear, he agrees...but there's a problem.

LWJ: I am up to date on all my shots. How can I show him it is safe?

JYL: Hmm....I have an idea. My brother is a phlebotomist! He can help.

LWJ is confused. Last he heard, the younger Jiang is a prosecutor who makes a living viciously yelling in a courtroom.

JYL: Not him, Zhanzhan. My adoptive brother, A-Xian. I bet he would be happy to help you. He works at the blood bank at Yiling Clinic! The perfect exposure!

For who?, LWJ wonders. A blood bank sounds like a house of horrors to him. And a person who chooses to stick a needle in people and remove the very force that gives them life? He cannot imagine getting along with this person at all.

--

Yiling Clinic is a community clinic in a part of town Lan Wangji has never been to, especially since the Gusu Group has their own private hospital.

But this is where Yanli-jie's phlebotomist little brother works.

A-Yuan clings to the back of his legs as they approach the receptionist, a young man with amazing cat eye makeup named Mo Xuanyu

These two definitely do not fit the bill for their usual patients, with their designer clothing, so he asks with some skepticism: Um, can I help you?

LWJ has spent the last two hours siking himself up for the blood part, he isn't prepared at all for social interactions. He flounders like a fish.

LWJ: …I am…We are here for…

A shout comes from behind them: Ah! A-Yu, is that A-jie's friend? Zhanzhan?

LWJ flinches until he sees a man sprinting towards them. The 1st thing he notices is this man is wearing lilac scrubs with little white rabbits on them.

The 2nd thing he notices is this man has the most enchanting smile he's ever seen. Already, LWJ feels more relaxed.

The man winks at him: You like the scrubs? A-jie said A-Yuan liked bunnies, I figured this would help keep him calm.

LWJ does not blurt I like bunnies too. But only just.

Beside the man is a pediatric nurse named Wen Ning, no relation, who says he's here to help with A-Yuan

Yanli-jie's little brother, the phlebotomist, introduces himself: Ah! Sorry, Lan Zhan. Jiejie always calls you that so it just stuck. I'm Wei Wuxian. You can call me Wei Ying if you wanna make it even.

Strangely, LWJ feels no need to correct him: Lan Zhan is fine, Wei Ying.

WWX smiles so brightly, LWJ feels dizzy with it.

WWX: Now where's the little bunny himself?

A-Yuan has been clinging behind LWJ's pant leg, tilting around just enough to peek with one eye at this strange gege.

WWX: Maybe not a rabbit then, a radish who likes to hide away!

A-Yuan becomes offended: I don't like radishes!

WWX laughs: Me neither! But Qing-jie says they help us grow big and strong, so they can't be all that bad huh?

WWX is crouched in front of A-Yuan, draping both arms across his knees and resting his chin in one hand. He waits.

LWJ admires his patience. The longer WWX waits, crouched and rocking back and forth in front of A-Yuan, smile gently and welcoming, the more A-Yuan's natural curiosity gets the better of him.

Eventually, his son comes out from behind his leg to touch a black bunny on his sleeve

A-Yuan: I like this one. We only have a white bunny at home.

WWX: I like the black bunny too! What's your bunny's name?

A-Yuan: Banana, bc she tries to eat Baba's banana every morning, and you are what you eat.

He recites this with all the solemnity a 4 yo could possess

WWX's laughter echoes through the lobby: Well! You're very right, A-Yuan. Maybe you aren't a radish after all then. Tell me, what do little boys eat?

A-Yuan: I'm not little! I'm 4 and a half!

WWX: Right, right, I sincerely apologize for my mistake. What do big boys eat then?

A-Yuan purses his lips and taps his chin, pondering his question carefully: Hmm… jelly beans?

WWX looks like he wants to laugh more, but instead says: I see, I see. Thank you for your wisdom A-Yuan.

He looks up at LWJ, dark eyes dancing. LWJ's heart rabbits against his chest

WWX: If your baba is ready, we can head down to my cave if you'd like. I have a lot of cool machines I'd love to show you.

A-Yuan's eyes widen into saucers as he gasps: A cave? Wowww

They grin conspiratorially at each other, before turning bright eyes up at LWJ

LWJ feels warm and much more relaxed inside, so he nods: Mn. We may go.

A-Yuan cheers and holds WWX's hand as the head downstairs.

LWJ trails behind making small talk with WN, watching WWX and A-Yuan swing their hands and skip ahead, feeling something warm blossom in his chest.

The hallway to Wei Wuxian's lab isn't anything like Lan Wangji expects.

The rooms at Gusu are all perfectly pristine and sterile, painted white to promote serenity, rest, and healing.

For one thing, he'd raided a Halloween store at some point and hung up all sorts of decorations, mostly vampire themed. There's one that's says "I vant to suck your blood!" except suck is crossed out and replaced with "donate". Wwx and A-yuan giggle together at wwx's fake accent

It's definitely not up to Gusu General's strict standards. For one thing, there're beanbag chairs in the hall outside. Wwx says it's to feel more comfy while others wait, as he's the only phlebotomist on staff and it can take a while. A-Yuan personally tests each one.

His lab is…adequate if far too small. There's a desk that's overrun with stacks of papers and textbooks and a shelf that's filled with even more. The actual space where blood is drawn is, thankfully, sterile and clean. Though he's decorated with demons demanding blood for food

There's a temp controlled room where the blood is stored, with a red door and the words "Blood Pool" written in menacing barely legible font

Despite the…interesting decor, the room is homely and, surprisingly, welcoming. A-Yuan at least is having a very fun time getting a tour

Wwx patiently answers all of A-Yuan’s questions, even the endless why's, with utmost sincerity, even when his answers are purely nonsense.

Lwj can't stop the fond smile from lifting the corner of his lips. A-Yuan had never warmed up to a medical professional so fast.

He's pulled from his musings when A-Yuan grabs his sleeve: Baba! Blood-gege says this machine makes blood spin around!

Wwx burst out laughing: Blood-gege? I love it!

Lwj is enchanted, head repeating those last 3 words again and again as wwx fondly ruffles A-Yuan's fluffy hair

Wwx: alright, now that you're familiar with my beauty Chenqing (referring to his bloody spinny machine lwj does not want to think about), shall we get down to business?

He says this with his bright dark eyes glittering at LWJ. Right. The blood donating part.

Lwj gulps, nodding. A prisoner walking up to the gallows.

TBC

(If you're interested, I'm probably going to continue at least up to the end of the first part before i just make it into one long fic! You can follow it on my twitter!)

[puppyeared]

who up seeing their disorder in a fictional character but feel like its not their place to put a name on it

[iceeericeee]

I wonder how many tags i can add on to this

[blupengu]

Y’all is Hollow Knight hard or do I just suck because oh my god??