#and there's absolutely no harm in writing about similar stuff!! that's like completely okay!! i know this!! | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

chaifootsteps · 7 months

Note

Okay so, a while ago when Exes and Oohs dropped, I conjured up a dark as hell "Arranged Marriage" Stolitz AU, and then forgot to share it with you. So here it is!

(It's less of an "arranged marriage" AU, and more of a "holy fucking shit this is so fucked up" kinda thing. Content warning for... all of the stuff a darker arranged marriage AU usually implies.)

In this AU, Paimon acts quite similar to Crimson, though in this case the roles of Stolas and Blitz align with Chaz and Moxxie respectively. Basically, Paimon finds out about Stolas's tryst with Blitz. No shit, because he was being completely obvious about it. It's not like Stella blabbed or anything-- Stolas was just so upfront about it without any fear of repercussions, that pretty soon the whole Are Goetia knew. And this, obviously, is pretty bad for them. Not only does it make Paimon look bad for raising an Imp-fucker (and, in their eyes, having ENCOURAGED it since he was the one that got them together originally), but it also makes the whole Ars Goetia look weak as a whole.

Paimon needed to find a way to fix this, and fast. Even if Stolas was still under the command of the Ars Goetia, he can't exactly get Stolas to just-- not fuck an Imp. So killing Blitz is out of the question, as that's just kicking the can down the road. Allowing Stolas to be so obvious about it any further risked the reputation of the Ars Goetia as a whole, so the solution was simple, in his mind. A solution that would keep Stolas from being stupidly open about the relationship, but also keep Stolas from going to another Imp.

Without much fanfare, Paimon kidnapped Blitz.

It was so, so simple. Imps were practically the lowest on the food chain. They already had servants, hell, Goetia's already had pet Imps. Cute little things they could carry around in a purse. So what did it matter if one was a little bigger? So what did it matter if this one had a business? Paimon was killing three birds with one stone; he was keeping Stolas from making a fuss, he was keeping Stolas from going to another Imp, and best of all, he was securing the safety of Stolas's Grimoire.

The arrangement was simple. Blitz would live locked away in Stolas's palace, and act as a glorified pet. He could not leave-- that would bring them too much attention. Stella was already practically living with Andre at the time, so they didn't need to worry about her pitching a fit over it. After all, Octavia was already born-- no harm in just letting Stolas have his little plaything all to himself. And, to be honest, I could even see canon Stolas being happy with his arrangement. And wouldn't, in his eyes, Blitz be happy too? He no longer needed to fight for scraps. He no longer needed to risk his life. Now he could live, pampered and loved, as Stolas's little plaything, wrapped in his golden chains.

(Man, that got dark. Uhhh, let me think of a happy ending real quick! Striker notices Blitz is missing and, with M&M's help, rescues Blitz and decapitates Stolas. Better? No? Okay sorry)

This is excruciating and so painfully plausible it's chilling. You just know that Stolas would absolutely be happy with this arrangement, that he'd call Blitzy "darling" and paw his face without his consent and tell him how perfect their lives are going to be now that they can be together all the time. Anyhow it's safer here, and change is just what we're used to, and if Blitzo got too loud about wanting to leave, Stolas would probably be the first to remind him that Blitzo was the one who broke in to steal his grimoire, so really, Blitzo put that chain around his own neck...

This feels exactly like pilot and Murder Family Stolas's logical, terrifying conclusion and I hate that we didn't get that. If I didn't have a thousand things to do, I'd write a fic about it myself.

#Anonymous #Stolitz critical #Helluva Boss #actual blog post

32 notes · View notes

otakusheep15 · 2 years

Note

Hello! I was wondering if you could write some headcanons of the brothers with a disabled (visible or invisible disability) for Disability Pride month.

If not that’s completely okay, thank you! :)

I love this idea very much. I'm gonna try my best to generalize this as much as possible so that everyone can feel included, but I will still be basing it off of my/my friends' own experiences.

Brothers with Disabled MC

Lucifer

I mean this in the absolute nicest way, but Lucifer doesn’t really care all that much about your disability

Now, obviously he cares in the sense that he’ll do anything to make you feel comfortable in the Devildom and whatnot

But he doesn’t treat you any different just because you’re disabled

He just treats you like he would anyone else, and he almost never brings it up unless he has a question relating to your disability

However, he is still very protective over you, and will not hesitate to punish anyone who makes fun of you or harms you in any way

Since he also has a lot of power in the Devildom, he can easily make any changes necessary if you might be struggling somehow

If you have a mental disability that makes you learn at a different rate or a certain way, he’ll make sure you have the best teachers and tutors to suit your needs, or he’ll just teach you himself

Or if you have a physical disability that requires you to have a wheelchair or some sort of walking aid, he can have ramps installed across campus to make it easier on you

All around just a very practical person

Mammon

Your number one supporter and guard dog

He’s definitely the type to hype you up if you’re ever feeling insecure about your disability, whether physical or mental, visible or invisible

Also the type to absolutely obliterate anyone who tries to make you feel inferior just because you have a disability

Mammon may not be the most helpful, but he tries his best

He’ll get you whatever you need, and he offers all of his support to you

Especially if you have dysgraphia or something similar, since he’s great at math and could easily help you

And if you have any other sort of learning disability, he’ll make sure one of his brothers helps you out, depending on the subject

If you have a physical disability, he’s with you 24/7 to make sure you’re not in any pain, even if said disability isn’t painful

He may not always understand your disability and how it works, but he’s more than happy to learn about it if it’ll make you happy

Leviathan

Levi is also pretty chill when it comes to your disability

The only times he ever really brings it up is if he found some anime or game character with a similar disability to yours

Denies it if you ask, but Levi totally goes looking for media that highlights your disability in the hopes that it might make you feel more included

But besides that, your disability rarely comes up with him

It’s not because he never wants to talk about it, he just doesn’t see it as something that needs to be constantly brought up for no reason

Of course, if you wanna talk about it, he’ll be more than happy to listen, especially if you have concerns or issues regarding your disability

For him, it’s just another part of you, and he doesn’t treat you much differently just because you have a disability

And while he doesn’t usually speak up in council meetings, if you have any complaints about the school not catering to your needs, Levi will bring them up for you

Honestly, he’s probably also the best to go to if you have some sort of speech impediment

Levi hardly likes talking unless it comes to otaku stuff, and when he is talking about his hobbies, he never shuts up

So, if you’re not very good at talking, you can either sit in silence with Levi while he games, or he can do all of the talking for you while ranting about his current obsession

Satan

Besides Lucifer, Satan is probably the most well-informed about human disabilities

Of course, he’s no expert, but he likes to think he’s done a good job of studying up on as many visible and invisible disabilities

If you happen to have a disability Satan isn’t familiar with, he’ll ask you tons of questions (if you’re comfortable with it)

He’ll also do research on his own time, studying both books and the internet

He’s more curious than anything since he does enjoy learning, but he’d never be too invasive if it makes you upset

Satan is also one of the most outspoken when it comes to making sure you have all of the proper necessities

If you need help walking or moving around, he’s going to be with you as much as possible to ensure you’re walking okay, even if you already have a walking aid

Or if you have a speech impediment, he’ll make sure you’re in a safe environment that helps you feel more comfortable talking

He’s also one of the smartest brothers, so if you have a hard time keeping up in classes, he’ll offer to tutor you in any and all subjects

Most likely (besides Mammon) to fight someone for making fun of you or attempting to harm you in any way

Asmodeus

Asmo is another example of a great hype man

He has a very strong policy against discriminating against someone just because of a disability, and he is very vocal about it

Not the most educated about disabilities in general, but he is more than happy to learn if you’ll teach him

Like most of his brothers, Asmo doesn’t really treat you any different just because of your disability

To him, you’re just you, and he loves everything about you

If you ever feel insecure about your disability, visible or invisible, he will make sure you know how much he (and his brothers) absolutely adore you, and they wouldn’t change anything about you

I feel like Asmo would be especially fond of you if you have some kind of physical disability

Not in a weird way or anything, don’t get me wrong; he’s just the type to appreciate all bodies, no matter how they look or function

And if you happen to have a disability that makes it hard to find clothes to wear, he’ll take you shopping and find you some custom-made outfits that suit you perfectly

May not go and physically fight someone who bullies you, but he will make sure they can never see the light of day again by brutally shaming them on every social platform available in the Devildom

Since Asmo has a lot of influence, he uses his platform to encourage business owners (and people in general) to be more inclusive to disabled people, like adding in ramps/elevators, or having braille and sign language options for the blind and deaf, etc.

Beelzebub

Probably not the most informed about human disabilities, but he’s trying his best to learn for your sake

Beel is honestly such a sweetheart any time he asks you to explain something he doesn’t understand, and he’s always making sure nothing he says/does is offensive towards you

If you have a disability that makes it hard to walk or tires you out quickly, he is there to carry you anywhere your heart desires

I think Beel would be the most helpful if your disability somehow involves food

If you have a tendency to overeat like he does, he’ll help you find ways to distract yourself like how his brothers helped him

Or if you undereat, Beel makes sure you eat at least one meal a day, if nothing else

Always carries extra snacks on hand, both for you and himself

Also really nice to chill with if you have a hard time with speech

Whether you have a speech impediment or you just have other issues with talking, Beel si more than happy to just chill in silence with you

He’s not super talkative either, so he doesn’t mind the two of you sitting in a room and not talking

Or maybe if you wanna get better at talking, Beel wouldn’t mind listening to you and helping you practice

The best listener out of all the brothers, so he’s great to practice with

Belphegor

To know one’s surprise, Belphie is really good at helping you out if you have some sort of sleeping disorder, or if your disability makes sleeping difficult

If you have trouble staying awake like he does, Belphie has a few ways he can stay up, if only for a bit, and he’s be more than happy to share with you

Or if you have trouble falling asleep, he does know quite a few spells to help you sleep

Similarly, if you deal with any sort of chronic pain, his sleep spells can often double as pain relief to help soothe your body for a bit

He won’t admit it, but Belphie is pretty familiar with lots of human disabilities since he used to be so obsessed with humans, so chances are that he’s already well-versed on what disability you have

Also, since you’re probably learning magic during your stay in the Devildom, he offers to teach you all of the spells he uses on you so that you can use them once you leave

He’s not really one to outwardly hype you up like some of his brothers, but he is there for you, and he’s ready to support you no matter what

One of the brothers most likely to just straight-up kill someone for upsetting/making fun of you

I really hope y’all enjoy this one. It’s probably not 100% accurate since I am not the most familiar with lots of disabilities, but I did try my best. I also tried to be as inclusive as possible, so it might be a little vague in some parts, but I promise that’s intentional.

#obey me #shall we date obey me #gender neutral mc #gn mc #disabled mc #disabled reader #obey me lucifer #obey me mammon #obey me leviathan #obey me satan #obey me asmodeus #obey me beelzebub #obey me belphegor #scenarios #headcanons

139 notes · View notes

wishful-seeker · 10 months

Text

Why reality shifting can be harmful

Tw: mention of suicide and untrue ideas about reality (unreality)

Reality shifting is the practice of attempting to shift into a different reality using your mind. The purpose of this is to temporarily (or permanently) move yourself into a custom DR (dream reality) that you write a story or script for so you can live out the fantasies in your mind and potentially abandon your CR (current reality, aka, here on earth).

How does is work and what is it?

When trying to research what this phenomenon was or how to do it, everyone seemed to try and keep the information a secret, and no one would give me the same answer, or one that made sense. All the reality shifters i asked how to preform this or what it was only said "it's shifting realities" (very helpful)

So i watched interviews and how to videos on YouTube and read articles i found online.

The few things that every process had in common was that

1. You had to write or imagine a desired reality or "DR" (most people chose wanting to go to hogwarts and date Draco Malfoy).

2. The shifting happened as you slept.

To shift there were multiple methods i found, all of them some form of meditation before sleep or some kind of ritual before sleep. Some would listen to "shifting music" or "shifting guided meditation" before falling asleep, others would write an opening scene they wish to play out in their DR and place it under their pillow.

The claim is that when you wake up you will be in your DR.

Here is where the problems arose. No one could confidently tell me if they literally meant a new reality and physical dimension, or just a lucid dream.

I found some reality shifters that said this is a method of lucid dreaming similar to astral projection, but you train your brain to make the lucid dream feel as real as possible. Feeling wind in your hair, tasting food you eat, ect. And people who disagreed with that claimed it was just as real as the physical world, but could not provide evidence or even an explanation for why they were physically still here if they were able to shift.

I'm a lucid dreamer, have been sense i was very young. I can taste and feel my dreams, and sometimes with meditation beforehand i can control every aspect of the dream like location, events, or encounters. I believe if shifting exists its simply lucid dreaming. There is absolutely no evidence to suggest that it isn't. Some claim reality shifting has existed for thousands of but can't provide any evidence or sources suggesting that.

Okay so now that we've covered that i can actually explain the issues with it.

What's wrong with reality shifting?

So firstly, the idea and practice itself is not necessarily harmful on its own as long as you understand it IS a dream and not concrete reality.

The issue is that tiktokers, especially ones that are minors, fall into the trap of thinking this dream is just as real as physical reality. And with the echo chamber tiktok is more and more young kids are believing this.

"But why is that a bad thing?"

Tw: this is where the stuff i warned about comes in

Firstly, it's very common and natural for some people to feel like they don't belong or come from Earth, and to have a yearning for a true home. I felt this way as a teen aswell.

Reality shifters become easily obsessed with making and living in a "perfect world". The problems this causes are:

1. They successfully shift for one night and upon awakening have a complete mental breakdown because they "want to go home." And further makes them feel like they don't belong here.

2. realize they still aren't happy and create a new DR over and over again, wondering why its not making them happy and feeding a vicious cycle of hoping to find a home and not finding one.

3. Are never able to shift and become extremely depressed because they believe their real home is so close but so far.

4. Reality shifting teaches these young impressionable minds that Earth ISN'T where they belong and they can abandon, yes abandon, this world for a brand new perfect one. This has led to some tiktok reality shifters pushing ideas and methods to permanently leave this world for a new one with no flaws. Methods to kill your real body and move to a new one by shifting. Promoting suicide to find their true home. This is known as Respawning.

5. This idea they push that your dream is as real as the physical world can easily harm the minds of people who ALREADY have trouble with grasping reality, like those with schizophrenia and similar disorders, actively making it harder for these people to understand reality which can push them towards psychosis, or at the very least, a very triggering or bad time.

So how do we fix this?

Firstly, do not push this practice towards minors, as a minor and especially one with previous mental health issues, these ideas can easily become dangerous. This happened to me first hand when i was younger.

Second, DO NOT PUSH THE IDEA THAT THIS IS REAL, we may not be certain if it is "real" or not but we ARE CERTAIN it harms REAL people. If you wish to try this you must understand that it is a lucid dream and if you truly believe its more you need to keep it to yourself and not share that opinion with thousands of vulnerable people on social media.

Thirdly, if you are feeling lost or disconnected with this world please seek a therapist if possible or practice mindfulness exercises to help you feel less dissociated with this world. As someone who used to feel this way i absolutely feel like this world is my home now after getting help.

I hope this explains this practice pretty well. Its totally okay to explore new things but we must be responsible and do it safely for the sake of more vulnerable people.

#tw unreality #tw suicide #reality shifting #witchcraft #witchblr #tiktok

5 notes · View notes

silveredcircuitry · 1 year

Note

28 and/or 37 for the OC questions!

28. Your most dangerous OC?

Shard. Absolutely Shard. Power and potential for danger aren't strict hierarchies, especially when dealing with weird extradimensional entities, but... yeah they're on the dangerous side even among other eldritch beings. Being a whole sapient universe that feeds off other universes to live will do some things to your reputation. (They work a bit like a virus and a bit like several types of parasites combined together. And then they're trying to be a good and friendly person in spite of. all that. It's a bit of a struggle.)

I'd give the most dangerous ones for each world/continuity I made up to put these guys in, but "world-destroying eldritch parasite" is. a bit of a tough bar to clear even if said entity shows an abundance of restraint.

Also for the record Shard can be in a universe without doing any real harm to said universe. They can pull off some supernatural stuff as well while still not harming the fabric of reality or the people around them too much, though at times they do need to be really really careful to not mess things up.

37. Introduce an OC who is not quite human

I have very few ocs who are completely human tbh. But one who's more... on the edge between human and not is one Dr. Emery Lloyd, whom I haven't done anything major with this whole literal year somehow.

He used to be a normal-ish human, albeit one who used some unusual magic. After a magic-related experiment with one of his colleagues went awry, he ended up somewhere between alive, dead, and undead, and a body made up of a lot of parts that weren't originally his. There's a massive hole in his memory around the time of the experiment, and the colleague he worked with reports something similar (not that they've had the chance to talk since it happened). So long story short he really doesn't have a clue how it happened.

Between him being undead-ish and the fact that his magic is on the "easy to use in some really fucked-up ways" side, he has to keep some special enchantments on him to not set off alarm bells for anyone who can even subconsciously sense magic.

(Said magic is a particular flavor of "biomancy" which is already not the main healing magic in the setting and I'm not explaining more because this is already long)

Anyway he works as a healer and refuses to physically harm anyone else unless there is literally no other course of action that wouldn't be far far worse. Quite frankly what he thinks he'll do if he even thinks about hurting someone else (in like. Any form) is both not accurate and probably not good for his mental health.

Unfortunately for him he ends up in situations where it is really really hard to be a pacifist.

(Okay I talked a lot about him given that I don't even write stuff with him in it and will likely continue to not do so)

#queries #lore #ask game #Shard #the latter of whom I don't think I've even tagged in any posts even though there's definitely art of him on here.#had some lore abt vexter I coulda put in for the 'not quite human' thing but I already talk abt them a lot #anyway turns out these take a while to answer lol #okay post finished I have answered the questions #Dr. Lloyd

4 notes · View notes

b0ne--r0t · 9 months

Text

I really love it when I bring up genuine concerns about my mental health to my mother, and it's taken me literal MONTHS to work up the courage to do this, and say;

"oh hey mom, I'm really fucking struggling with [insert symptoms] and I've talked to some people who experience similar things, and I also study psychology which you know because I hyperfixated on it two fucking years ago and I've done lots of research, and lots of thinking, and I think it might actually be [insert disorder] because I checked the criteria, and I actually fit every single one, and this is having a really detrimental effect on me, and I just think we should go to the doctor and see if-"

And then she interrupts me in the middle of my carefully structured speech and fucking laughs in my face, and tells me to get my ass off of Google and stop self diagnosing, whEN ALL IM LITERALLY DOING IS TRYING TO RAISE A GENUINE CONCERN ABOUT SOMETHING THAT IS LITERALLY DESTROYING ME, AND THE REAL KICKER IS I DIDNT FUCKING USE GOOGLE.

It drives me mental. Whenever I bring up the fact that the stuff wrong with me is possibly not just 'mild depression and anxiety' she goes absolutely ballistic or laughs at me, because she views people with anything else as non functional and crazy. Like fuck off.

I've tried to kill myself five times. I self harm at any given opportunity mostly clean at the moment tho and I have these fucking horrible episodes where I'm either so happy it fucking hurts, so angry, I hurt MYSELF, or where I believe everyone fucking hates me and they're all gonna leave, and something as simple as texting me 'goodbye.' With the fucking dot at the end of the sentence is enough to make me spiral and believe everyone hates me. And let's not mention the psychotic episodes, like the time I had to smear my blood on every window and door in the fucking house to keep the monsters outside from eating and murdering the entire fucking family.

This isn't just a 'mild' case of depression and anxiety. This IS ME, GOING COMPLETELY FUCKING BONKERS, AND NOBODY FUCKING CARES. NOBODY NOTICES, AND NOBODY CARES.

IM NOT FUCKING EATING. I BARLEY SLEEP. I WRITE NEW SUICIDE NOTES ALMOST EVERY NIGHT BECAUSE I DONT HAVE A FUCKING CLUE IF IM GOING TO MAKE IT TILL MORNING. LIKE THIS IS NOT FUCKING NORMAL.

THIS IS NOT OKAY. BUT YET YOU JUST FUCKONG LAUGH AT ME AND ACT LIKE IM MAKING IT UP, DONT YOU MOM?

0 notes

guardianofrivendell · 3 years

Note

Uh, so I'mma request something because I really like your writing and want more of your wonderful Aragorn fics in my life. So, I was thinking some headcannons about what it would be like to date/be in a relationship with Aragorn before, during and/or after the fellowship? Thanks man, and take as long as you need!💕

A/N: I am STRUGGLING with sleepover requests, my own series (PS and DAKT) and some new stuff so I turned to my stack of ‘normal’ requests to try and write something different. Et voilà!

@katethewriter I took a lot longer than I should have with these and I’m so sorry! I’m leaning more towards the Hobbit era lately (I’m really turning into a Dwarf simp here), and I’m neglecting the fellowship members. Unforgivable!

I interpreted this as how your relationship would develop while on the quest to destroy the ring and you’re not actually together at the start of it. Also maybe slightly OOC Aragorn.

A/N 2: It has some nsfw hints (not much), I couldn’t help myself and it’s very unlike Aragorn I think but I’m not sorry. Also this turned out really long, I am sorry for that.

A/N 3: Just like my other headcanons, this doesn’t make much sense so best to simply ignore this. I really don’t know what this is... :)

Being In a Relationship With Aragorn On The Quest Would Go Like This:

Aragorn had met you in some seedy pub

Not his first choice to take shelter from the weather but after days and days of endless rain and trudging through mud it was almost nice to be there

at least he was able to dry his clothes and have a warm meal

he was surprised to see someone like you there

surprised but concerned too

for your wellbeing that is

every single person in that bar had his eyes on you the minute you moved

Aragorn had too but for entirely different reasons

at least that’s what he told himself

so the minute one of those drunk lads laid a hand on you he was on his feet

knight in shining armor ranger clothes

before he got to you, you had floored and knocked out your assailant, threatening the others they would suffer the same fate if they tried something similar

Aragorn stood frozen in place, completely mesmerized by you

and maybe a tad bit aroused too

the life of a ranger is very lonely after all

you winked at him and left the bar shortly after

Aragorn couldn’t get you out of his head

but what were the odds he would ever run into you again

he even returned to that godawful place a few times

a guy can hope right

you can imagine his surprise when he saw you in Rivendell

attending the secret council

he was jaw on the floor surprised

he couldn’t tear his eyes away from you

on the outside he was the cool ranger of the north, bringer of Hobbits, inventor of the Sexy But Still Rough Around The Edges Stare™

while on the inside he was f r e a k i n g o u t

because there you were, finally within reach

but then Frodo had to sacrifice himself

and Aragorn could not not go with him

he absolutely lost it when you volunteered as well

there was no way you were going to put your life on the line like that

you scoffed at his remark

wait did he said that out loud?

“I can handle myself just fine.”

Oh he knew that

Flashes of the bar fight filled his mind

it filled something else too 😏

so Aragorn had set himself a second goal

besides getting Frodo and the ring to Mordor he now vowed to keep you safe as well

and to make you his by the time you would arrive at Mordor

but we all know how smooth that will go do we

the first few days and weeks it went reasonably well

you have to read that as ‘he didn’t embarass himself in front of you’

because there was no progress at all on any other front

you seemed to prefer the company of the Hobbits over him or any other member of the fellowship

he tried to make conversation with you every time you walked near him

A+ for effort

when the Crebain flew over his instinct was to make sure Frodo (and Sam because those two were attached at the hip) was out of sight

after that he searched for you, but Legolas had already pulled you under the bushes with him

surely the feeling in his stomach was the fault of the Lembas bread

because Aragorn doesn’t get jealous

but then the same thing happened in Moria

you weren’t a fan of the dark and claustrophobic mines so he let you walk up front with Gandalf and Frodo near the light of Gandalf’s staff

with him right behind you of course

when the Orcs and Troll attacked, he tried to stay near you

keep an extra eye out for you, driving the Orcs away who were trying to get to you

it was you together with Legolas who defeated the troll, high fiving each other over a job well done

okay fine maybe Aragorn did get jealous this time

like he had done his best to protect you but did you notice?

then when Gandalf fell you surprisingly turned to him for comfort

leaving Legolas, Gimli and Boromir to comfort the Hobbits

take that Leaf Boi

even though it felt really good to hold you, he knew you couldn’t stay there

so he ordered everyone to get going, taking the lead

and then Lothlorien happened

a forest that was both magical and romantic

perfect setting for a love confession right

when he finally got you alone he chickened out at the last moment

because OF cOUrsE

luckily for him you did not

you almost knocked him over in your attempt to kiss him

he eagerly reciprocated the kiss though

no complaints there

but he also explained that even though he wanted this, the quest and Frodo had to come first

which you respected and understood, but you were also willing to test his resolve 👀

you didn’t tell the others

but they didn’t need an explanation, it’s not like you two were subtle

he held your hand whenever he could

Gimli couldn’t help but commenting on it, Aragorn explaining it was to prevent you from falling or tripping

“Lad, you’re sitting down in a boat...”

cue roaring laughter and flushed cheeks on Aragorn

although the fellowship supported your relationship they couldn’t help but tease Aragorn relentlessly

lots of sneaky forehead kisses

during the rest of the quest Aragorn did his best to keep you out of harm’s way

to your own frustration of course, you weren’t helpless or as fragile as he made you seem

you fought alongside Boromir when Uglúk shot him

they took Merry and Pippin and dragged you away from Boromir’s body

the one time Aragorn wasn’t at your side and you got kidnapped

you weren’t going to hear the end of this

needless to say Aragorn was indeed beside himself with worry

he couldn’t get a break

first Frodo gone, then Boromir shot and now it seemed he failed his promise to himself

enter brooding Aragorn

but he knew you were brave and could take care of yourself - you had repeated that countless times - so he was sure he was going to find you

AND HE DID

after three days of running with a dartling Elf and a wheezing Dwarf they bumped into Éomer and his horse gang

before he could ask Éomer if he saw you or the Hobbits, one of his riders jumped off their horse and made a beeline for him

Legolas notched an arrow and Gimli raised his axe but you simply shoved them aside and threw your arms around Aragorn

relieved kisses

the hug lasted several minutes until Legolas cleared his throat

oh right... audience

you shared a horse with Aragorn on the way to Edoras

while with King Théoden Aragorn kept an arm around your waist or a hand on the small of your back the entire time

as if he had to make sure you were still there

Éowyn who?

The Battle of Helm’s Deep was torture for Aragorn

he wanted to stay with you but you both knew you would be too distracted by each other

it took him a while to find you after the battle was won

few years of his life were lost in panic

but of course you were alright, already helping with the wounded

now it was his turn to sweep you off your feet

quite literally too

as the quest progressed, it became clear to Aragorn that he had to take up his rightful place as the King of Gondor when the time came

so during the victory feast after Helm’s Deep he took you outside for a walk

cue comments and whistling from Gimli

but Aragorn only wanted to talk to you

to make sure you knew what you were getting yourself into if you stayed with him

were you ready to be the spouse of a King?

of course he made it seem as if he was going to ditch you

because that man is angst embodied

everything to keep you safe right?

luckily as soon as it was clear that no, he wasn’t going to ditch you and yes, this was kind of a hastily thrown together proposal in a way, you kissed him saying that as long as you were at his side you were ready for anything

as long as you were together

Aragorn taglist: @katethewriter @lovemusic26alwaysblog @sokkasdarling @snailcoveredcottage

Permanent taglist: @roosliefje @kata1803 @entishramblings @artsywaterlily @sleepy-daydream-in-a-rose @marvelschriss @kumqu4t @myrin1234 @dark-angel-is-back @the-fandoms-georgie @lathalea @xxbyimm @sokkasdarling @katethewriter @aredhel-of-gondolin @leethology @elvish-sky @moony-artnstuff @emmapotato8 @kirenia15 @vicmackeybullshxt @moarfandomtrash

#Aragorn x reader #Aragorn headcanons #Aragorn imagine #lotr #Lord of the rings #Lotr fanfiction #Lord of the rings headcanons #Lord of the rings imagine #Aragorn x you #Lord of the rings x reader

448 notes · View notes

nctworststuff · 3 years

Note

idk how detailed my request should be so I'll just explain all I can

fluff, with jaemin, y/n as a doctor

new relationship, jaemin doesn't know about his partner being a doctor

prompts 20 and 25

thank you 💗

Lucy say: Hi ^^ Thank you so much for requesting this 💗 Also I'm not sure if I understood your request correctly, so I'm really sorry if it's not what you wanted. In that case please tell us and I'll write it! -Lucy [Also please tell me if I made a mistake, English isn't my native language.]

Disclaimer: This is purely fictional, means it's an AU and in no way meant to harm anyone. Pairings: jaeminX gn!doctor!reader

Prompt 20 (i love you) + 25 (we are meant to be)

Warnings: mentions of severe burns, accidents in general, cold pizza, worried jaemin and my horrible writing. If you notice anything else pls lmk

Genre: tiniest bit of angs in the beginning, fluff, slice of life? New relationship and Jaemin doesn't know that y/n is a doctor

Words count: 0.9k

23.41 Pacing up and down the living room, Jaemin nervously glanced at his phone. It was already way past the time you were supposed to arrive. See you at 11, Na! Maybe he had heard you wrong over the phone and you said something else. But then why weren't you reading his texts or answering his calls? For the fifth time in the past 10 minutes he dialed your number. And for the fifth time he instantly heard the voice mail. To say he was worried was an understatement by now. Yes, you had only started dating a few weeks ago. Yes, you were still in the phase of getting to know each other. And yes, you two still lived in different apartments, so meeting up wasn't always as easy as it could've been, but both of you said that you preferred keeping your own place. The topic simply dropped and never came up again. However Jaemin felt like he knew you for years already. When you first met, you clicked immediately and talked nonstop. It was like an old tale where two people, destined to be together, met one day and fell in love as soon as they laid eyes on each other's frame. Like Soulmates. He believed in it and he knew you felt similar about your relation. You never talked about it, but he knew. Just how he knew that you hadn't forgotten about the date and went home. You were the most organized and structured person he ever met. There was no way you would've forgotten. However that only left one last option in his mind: You were kept from coming. Maybe you had an accident? Maybe you were robbed? Hit? Or even worse, were you... DING. As fast as a lightning bolt Jaemin sprinted to the wooden door and pulled it open, not even bothering to check who it was first. And he was lucky. Upon seeing your face, completely fine with a small excusing smile, he pulled you in and wrapped you in his arms. "Do you know how worried I was? I thought something happened to you." Feeling utterly calm in his atmosphere you simply sighed, before freeing yourself and readjusting your position so you could squish his cheeks. The small pout making you giggle. "I'm really sorry Nana! We had a horrible accident at work and I was the only person available, so I needed to step in without having the chance to tell you I won't make it in time and then when I was finished cleaning up, I jumped in the car and got here as quick as I could. I'm so, so sorry!" Now it was his turn to coe at your pout. "You don't need to be sorry y/n! I'm just glad you're fine! But what about the accident? Is everyone okay now?" "Yes, those accidents keep happening from time to time. It wasn't the first time I saw something like that. In fact it's the third severe burn we had this year and it's only February." Looking in shock at you, Jaemin kept opening and closing his mouth. "Y-you.. bu-urn.. acci-d-dent... f-from time to, from time to time?" Finally he seemed to got his brain to properly function again. "You have accidents at work which lead to severe burns for already three times this year? Y/N I know you said you wanted to wait a bit longer to tell me where you work, but I don't know if I'll ever be able to rest again if the only thing I can think of is weather you get hurt too. I know we haven't said this before, but I love you and I don't plan on losing you this soon!" Now it was your turn to be speechless. Of course you liked him and yes, maybe you considered the idea that you

loved him before, but hearing it from him, right in this moment, made your brain feel like cotton candy. "Say that again!" It only came out as a whisper, but he heard it clearly."I love you y/n! I truly do! It was weird at first, I admit that, but I've never felt for a person like this before! It just... It feels like we're meant to be." Those words mixed with his deep brown eyes looking at you like were the only good thing on this planet brought out your shy side. Going back to hugging him, you buried your head in his mint green pullover. "I love you too, nana! And don't worry, I work in a hospital. I didn't want to tell you because I'm not permanently employed yet and I wanted it to be a surprise once I am." Getting nervous you started playing with the fabric of his pullover. Jaemin still hadn't said anything, so you pulled away from his arms, expecting his face to be angry or even dissapointed, but instead his beautiful smile beamed down at you. "That's like so cool, you know that? You're out there saving lives and stuff. That's wOw." You chuckled at his cute way of pronouncing the word, feeling unbelievably relieved he wasn't feeling negative about it. Instead he suddenly picked you up, forcing a squeal from your lips. "So y/n, tell me which movie do you want to watch while eating our cold pizza?" "I absolutely don't care as long as I can watch it with you, I'm fine with everything!" You kissed his cheek one last time before he plopped you down on the chouch and started the TV.

©ɴᴄᴛᴡᴏʀsᴛsᴛᴜғғ

#neoturtles #czennet #nct imagines #nct scenarios #nct drabbles #jaemin imagines #nct prompts #nct fluff #nct timestamps #nct angst #nct fanfic #nct x reader #jaemin x reader #jaemin #nct dream #nct u

99 notes · View notes

silverflame2724 · 3 years

Note

A cute prompt for you to make up for the angst: Merman Au. In a world where humans and mer are acquainted communities (trade and navigation partners), Mer-WWX sees human prince Lan Zhan and tried to get his attention! Splashing to draw eyes, making acrobatic jumps to impress, wearing his best jiaro silks, leaving cute trinkets on his windowsill in the hopes that he will like them, and singing enchanting songs for his Prince, all hoping that Lan Zhan will sing back and court him (mermaids court with music and gifts so write a completely smitten WWX and go nuts!)

Oh thank you!! I absolutely adore merman/jiaoren!WWX!! And this prompt is so nice! I really appreciate you giving me such a happy prompt since my grandaunt died two days ago from Covid.

_______________________________

It was a complete coincidence that brought them together. Wei Wuxian swam to the surface, intent on exchanging the jiaoren goods for coin and food, when he noticed the bright decorations around town.

As he handed the stuff over, red tail swishing every now and then, he asked the vendor, “What’s going on? Is there a festival I don’t know about?”

“Ah, Young Master Wei! You’re just in time! The second prince is coming here!”

“Second Prince? Why is he coming here?”

“It’s just a yearly inspection.”

What? Wei Wuxian hadn’t heard about this in all the years he’d been here!

“Why haven’t I heard about this before?”

“Ah....the Second Prince doesn’t like crowded places or making a big deal about his arrival, so he takes some sort of alternate route to come here. Though, this year, that route was flooded.”

“I see.....”

“Do you want to see him?” The vendor asked upon noticing Wei Wuxian’s thoughtful look. “He’s rumored to be a beautiful person, second only to his brother, the Emperor. We can get a few of my friends to carry a tub over so you can see him!”

“Oh! I couldn’t bother you all that way.” Wei Wuxian politely refused. “I have other errands to do, unfortunately.”

“Oh....”

The real reason he was thoughtful was because of his and his people’s prior horrible experience with royals. They had fled Lanling, where the king had captured many of his people for the pearls they cried in place of tears. Gusu had been reportedly better, its Emperor laying down a law that bans the harm of mythical creatures such as the jiaoren. But Wei Wuxian didn’t want to risk any sort of attention to his people after they had just escaped.

Wei Wuxian waved goodbye and dove back under the water. When he arrived at his home after going through a series of underwater caves, he found out his parents knew of these yearly visits from the prince and that it was fine to wander around since the prince doesn’t usually stay for long.

Wei Wuxian nodded along and decided to do make sure to distribute the food and coin around his community.

Before he knew it, the sun had set. Wei Wuxian returned to the surface, considering he wanted to have some spicy human food for dinner. After eating on the edge of the dock, tail partially in to keep himself from drying, he heard music from afar.

Curious as to the owner of such a beautiful sound, he submerges and follows the sound towards a more secluded area of the dock. There, dressed in shades of blue, was a young boy, seemingly around Wei Wuxian’s age, playing the guqin with nary an expression on his face.

Something itched within Wei Wuxian and he had the urge to tease the boy into making a new sort of expression. As quiet as a mouse, he snuck close to the boy and burst out of the water, shouting, “Boo!”

As he expected, the white-clothed human became startled and nearly jumped in shock. Wei Wuxian cackled until he came face with a sword. He held his hands up in surrender even as his heart beat fast.

“Who are you?” The boy demanded.

Wei Wuxian lifted his head from the sword to come face to face with the most beautiful boy he had ever seen. The boy in front of him had the most entrancing pair of golden eyes. The boy narrowed his eyes and repeated his question, though the sword at his neck faltered a little.

Wei Wuxian took the opportunity to swim a little farther from the boy and pouted. “Gege, I just wanted to surprise you! You looked so serious sitting by yourself! You should look happier on such a beautiful night such as this!” The boy didn’t change his expression. “Also! Isn’t it rude to point your sword at a stranger?”

“You do not know who I am?”

He’s probably some noble considering not many people own swords, but him specifically? “Nope! Should I know who you are?” He’s probably new or something. I haven’t seen him around before and nobles don’t usually come around these parts. ....Hmm, perhaps he’s here to see the prince?

The boy seemed to relax a little and put away his sword. “.....I apologize for pointing my sword at you. I was....unsure if you meant ill.”

“Why would I voluntarily bring harm to a stranger?”

“...” The human turned away and turned to his guqin, checking for damage.

“Hey, hey! Beautiful human with gold eyes! Don’t ignore meeee! Look at me, look at me!!”

The human merely sighed in exasperation.

Wei Wuxian’s pout became more pronounced and his tail splashed in irritation. The human’s eyes went wide with curiosity and shock and Wei Wuxian realized his mistake. “..Uhh....”

“A jiaoren?”

“Yeah! Do you have a problem with that?” Wei Wuxian said, guarded.

“No. I have never seen one before.”

“I see.”

The atmosphere became awkward with the ensuing silence but Wei Wuxian could never stay quiet for long.

“So what brings you around these parts? I’ve never seen you before!”

“......I came with the prince’s entourage.” There was something odd in his tone.

“I see. You know, I’ve never seen the prince before. Is he as beautiful as the rumors suggest?”

“Vanity is against the rules.”

“Whose rules?”

“The palace’s.”

“Hmph. Well, this isn’t the palace. it’s fine to say something, hm?”

“....Gossiping is against the rules. Talking behind someone’s back is forbidden.”

Wei Wuxian threw his hands up. “Well, if I can’t talk about the prince, then tell me about you! That’s not against the rules, isn’t it?”

“........”

“A name! At least tell me your name! Mine’s Wei Wuxian, but Gege can call me Wei Ying since we’re already so close!”

“Shameless!” The boy hissed, ears red.

“Oh come on!! I told you my name, it’s only fair that you tell me yours! Don’t be rude, Gege!”

“.....Zhan.”

“Hm?”

“Lan Zhan.” He repeated.

“Lan Zhan?” Wei Wuxian murmured and Lan Zhan nodded. Hmm. It’s a birth name, not a courtesy name. Is he trying to hide his identity? He’s not doing a very good job though, considering ‘Lan’ is the name of the royal family. Perhaps he’s a relative of the prince’s? I wouldn’t expect a prince to be out here by himself without guards so he must be a guard or something. Hmm. It’s something to think about later. It doesn’t seem like he means harm even after knowing what I am. Regardless, it’s not like he could follow me back to my home even if he did mean ill. Humans can’t hold their breath for that long. “Well, Lan Zhan, now that we know each other’s names, you’re now my friend!”

“........We do not know each other.”

“That’s what we’re talking for, silly! We’re getting to know each other, right?”

“Hm.” Lan Zhan packed his guqin away. “I must go. It is late.”

“Late? We’ve hardly talked though! Don’t leave me here, Lan-gege!” Wei Wuxian whined.

“Not.....Not.....gege.”

“Hm?”

“I have an older brother.”

“Hm? Oh.....oh! Okay, I understand! Lan-er-gege!”

Lan Zhan looked away, gripping his sword. “I will come back tomorrow night.”

“Huh?” Then he connected the dots. “Oh! Okay! See you later, Er-gege!”

Lan Zhan nodded and left. It was only when he couldn’t see him anymore did Wei Wuxian realize he could have just asked where Lan Zhan lived. If it was close to the water, he could just swim to him. That might put him close to the prince and other people from the palace which wasn’t a very comforting thought. He still didn’t know whether to trust the Gusu royals, despite possibly conversing with one.

.......................

The next few nights passed by in a similar fashion, with Wei Wuxian trying to get Lan Zhan’s attention and Lan Zhan hardly giving the jiaoren an inch.

Wei Wuxian, however, saw this as a challenge and began to do many things to get Lan Zhan’s attention. The most effective one was splashing him, though it earned him a glare as well as Lan Zhan predicting it and being able to dodge more often than not.

He moved onto trying to impress Lan Zhan by performing difficult acrobatic tricks. Lan Zhan looked amazed at this and Wei Wuxian was extremely smug, quickly turning an embarrassed red when Lan Zhan praised him, with a, “Beautiful.”

Wei Wuxian wailed, hiding his face in his hands, “Lan-er-gege, you can’t just say that!”

“Why?”

“It’s too embarrassing!!”

“Wei Ying calls me beautiful all the time.” Lan Zhan deadpanned.

Wei Wuxian peeked at him from in between his fingers, “You’re enjoying this, aren’t you?” He demanded. “You can’t just tease me like this! Where did the Lan Zhan who got so easily flustered go?”

Lan Zhan said nothing, but Wei Wuxian could see the faint upturn of his lips that made his overall expression smug.

And Wei Wuxian didn’t know why, but it made his heart beat faster/

.......

It escalated. Because of course it did. Wei Wuxian wanted to hear Lan Zhan praise him again and see that faint smile again - no matter if it was smug or not.

He wore his best jiaoxiao silks - ones he personally weaved -, danced, and....and even sang to him. Lan Zhan even joined him sometimes, playing on the guqin.

He returned every night, sighing into his parents’ embrace about his Lan Zhan and his parents shot him increasingly knowing looks until they laid down the truth.

“You’re courting him, aren’t you, A’ Ying?” His father asked.

“C-Court?”

“Yes, A’ Ying.” His mother patiently said. “You wore the most beautiful jiaoxiao silks you weaved, danced a well-known courting dance, and even sang for him. If you aren’t courting him, if you aren’t in love with him, then I call bullshit.”

Wei Wuxian clutched his burning cheeks. “Courting?” Am I really courting Lan Zhan? I mean.....I like it when he praises me and calls me beautiful and plays his guqin for me and even plays an accompaniment when I sing!

......Oh god. Oh heavens! I really am courting him!!! How could I not notice???!!!! Ahhhh!!!!

.......................

The nature of Wei Ying’s gifts and music changed, Lan Wangji noted absently.

When Lan Wangji first met Wei Ying, he was unsure of what to think but was quickly captivated by his smile and intelligence. It made Lan Wangji reluctant to return to the palace. Or maybe even bring Wei Ying with him.

He shook that thought away quickly. He couldn’t just take Wei Ying away from his family!

Back to the point, Lan Wangji noticed the shy looks Wei Ying shot him from time to time and how his songs gained a sort of.....longing tone. The gifts too......they were pearl bracelets and hairpins that had to be made from Wei Ying’s tears. Lan Wangji may be shy but he was not oblivious to what it meant to receive a jiaoren’s personally made songs and pearls.

Perhaps.....Wei Ying might share his feelings after all?

That thought made his heart beat faster. If he remembered correctly, jiaoren court through songs. And Lan Wangji had the perfect one in mind.

.....................

Lan Zhan had to leave today. He had to leave!!

Wei Wuxian wanted to cry, somehow. He hadn’t finished courting Lan Zhan!

Fortunately, Lan Zhan seemed reluctant to leave too. “I can ask my brother to send me here soon.”

“Really? Really, Lan Zhan?”

“Mn.”

Wei Wuxian’s tail propelled him out of the water and forward so that he could wrap Lan Zhan into a hug. “I knew you liked me! Oh! Uh-- I mean--!”

Lan Zhan’s arms came around him. “Mn. Like Wei Ying.”

Wei Wuxian squealed happily. Lan Zhan liked him back!! He pulled back to give Lan Zhan a bright smile which, surprisingly, was returned!!

Wei Wuxian’s tail swished happily, “Keep smiling, Lan-er-gege! It’s really pretty!!”

Lan Zhan huffed out a laugh and Wei Wuxian grinned.

“Wei Ying, there is something I must tell you.”

“Hm? What is it?”

Lan Zhan hesitated and Wei Wuxian sat up, sensing it was serious.

“What is it?”

“Wei Ying, I have not been entirely honest with you. My name is Lan Zhan....... courtesy name: Wangji.”

Wei Wuxian took a moment to let that sink in. Where had he heard that courtesy name before?

“Hey, Mom.” Wei Wuxian asked as they crossed the border between Lanling and Gusu. “The Gusu royals. Are they good people?”

His mother nodded. “I was acquainted with the current king’s uncle until we had a.....” She winces. “A fight. They are good people, regardless of our past differences. The current king, Lan Xichen, and his little brother, Lan Wangji, have implemented a law that ensures the safety of creatures like us.”

“Really?”

“Yeah.”

“You’re the second prince?!” Wei Wuxian gasped, dramatically flopping into the water. The prince?! He was courting the actual prince of Gusu???!!!

“Mn.” Lan Zhan confirmed as soon as he surfaced, shoulders tense.

“Well, shit. I didn’t know, but it’s not like you’re going to punish me for my rather shameless behavior, right? I know humans have different customs for courting.”

“Mn.”

“Okay! Now that that’s out of the way, Lan Zhan - I can still call you Lan Zhan, right?” Lan Zhan nodded. “Then, Lan Zhan, now that I know you’re the prince, I know you must have a lot of business and I can’t push you to come here often. But do try to visit, okay? I’ll miss you a lot!”

“Mn. Will miss Wei Ying too.”

__________________________

Then, a few years down the line, the two of them get together because this is a happy universe and they know how to communicate!

#wei ying #wei wuxian #lan zhan #lan wangji #mdzs #lan huan #lan xichen #prince lan wangji #jiaoren wei wuxian #meet cute #getting together #communication #fluff #there is no angst in this house #wait I lied #a sprinkle of angst #but mostly happy!

81 notes · View notes

ms-demeanor · 4 years

Text

Stressed Computer Anon:

Hi friend!

You’ve actually given me the idea for a very helpful book I want to write but it’s pretty clear you’re not going to be okay waiting that long so here’s a very, very basic primer for people in similar situations

SO YOU THINK YOU’RE BEING CYBERSTALKED

If you’re worried about being tracked online by people who have somehow accessed your computer or phone and/or you’re worried about your computer being taken over FEAR NOT! This is VERY fixable!

So the thing is the only way that people can track you like this is by having some kind of network access to your devices. I can’t track your cellphone if it isn’t connected to the cell network (at least not without a pretty serious amount of legwork and a warrant) and I can’t track your computer if it’s not connected to the internet.

The absolute easiest, fastest, most guaranteed way to fix this problem is by disconnecting all your devices. I know that doesn’t seem great because what’s the point of having the devices if they’re not going to be connected, but don’t worry you’ll get this settled and get back online eventually.

What you are going to do FIRST is get on a device that you’ve never used before, get on a computer or phone network you’ve never used before, and you’re going to change your passwords. While you’re at it you may want to get yourself set up with a password manager. Here’s a step by step of the ideal way this would work:

Go to someplace with public-ish computers where you can use the computers for a while (school or public library works well)

Open up a private session of whatever browser is installed on that computer

Create a protonmail email account

(do the rest of the stuff that i’m going to tell you about)

Install a password manager AFTER you’ve sanitized your network and change all your passwords AGAIN using the password manager generated passwords.

Once you have reset all your passwords (steps 1-3) it is time to sanitize your network and your extant devices.

Start by doing a backup of your phone and your computer. This is a FILE BACKUP ONLY, you DO NOT want to restore from backup.

Make sure you’ve got the manufacturer installation discs and activation keys for any software that you have on your computer (or the online equivalent - you don’t use a disc to install MS office these days, you use a Microsoft account and you should have already changed your password for that) because you are going to have to REINSTALL your computer. This means you ALSO need an installation disc for your operating system.

Connect to your router and change the password, select the most secure security settings you router allows.

Reinstall your operating system on your computer and factory reset your phone (make sure you’ve written down all your contacts and saved all the files on your computer or phone to an external device because you will lose them with the reset/reinstall).

(Windows, Mac, Android, iOS)

Make sure that the only things you plug into your computer are things you’ve purchased - remove all wireless dongles for mice or keyboards, make sure the chargers for your phones are all ones that you’ve purchased and not any that were given to you, and only plug stuff back in if you’re 100% sure you know what it goes to.

AFTER REINSTALL/RESET TURN OFF ALL THE WEIRD WIRELESS CONNECTIONS YOUR PHONE AND COMPUTER MAKE. Turn off bluetooth, turn off network discoverability, turn off anything that lets shit talk to your computer or phone.

(This will break/disable things like smart speakers, activity trackers, and a bunch of other IoT tech. If you’re paranoid enough to be doing all of this stuff you should NOT be using those things anyway)

Once you’ve reinstalled your OS on your computer go online and set yourself up with a VPN. If you are feeling EXCEPTIONALLY paranoid you can do this using a mobile hotspot instead of your internet connection. Also if you are feeling exceptionally paranoid you can encrypt your devices.

Now that your traffic is encrypted go back into your router settings and reset your password again. You may want to consider purchasing a better/more secure router or one that has an included VPN (from that list I like the Synology router).

Since at this point your computer should be pretty much completely taken care of you can follow the steps in my other post on the issue to secure your phone.

At this point if you connect to the internet through a secured router and a vpn, and if you are using a VPN on the phone and don’t have any weird mystery apps installed and have shut down app permissions, and if you’re doing all of that carefully and well and you’ve changed all your passwords a couple times, nobody should reasonably be able to snoop your traffic.

That isn’t to say I’d consider this setup safe to plot against the government or anything or to prevent a subpoena to your wireless provider if someone filed one, but for the average weirdo on the internet who wants to creep on your traffic you’ve pretty much locked them out.

After that be careful about what you post online (because a SHOCKING amount of what people think has come from someone spying on their network is actually just stuff that’s reasonably extrapolated from your socials) and if someone approaches you in person about your online activities don’t be alone with that person and publicly challenge them about what they’re saying (maybe take a video of them and post that online). Also do not allow other people physical access to your phone, computer, or router.

Based on the descriptions you’ve given me in your asks it seems reasonably possible that you’re experiencing some upsetting coincidences and that nothing is happening, but there’s also a possibility that someone is remotely accessing your computer. If so, doing everything that I’ve described will close off their access.

If you continue to have these upsetting experiences after going through all of these steps I’d say to have a conversation with a reasonable friend and get a reality check. Unfortunately people are often very scared of computers and because they don’t understand them sometimes innocuous things can be upsetting.

There have been several people who have visited our hacker meetups over the years to beg us to stop the hackers attacking them when there is nobody attacking them or they’ve got things set up in such a way that it would be impossible to do what they think is happening. Fixating on the belief that you’re being attacked and tracked can be very upsetting and can make you more likely to misinterpret nonthreatening happenstance as a cohesive and intentional plan.

I’m not saying that’s what’s happening to you, your circumstance is in a gray area where I don’t want to tell you that someone is watching you and you should be paranoid because that’s not what it sounds like, but the things you’re describing reasonably COULD be because of intruders on your computer so there’s no harm in hardening your network. HOWEVER if you DO harden your network and that doesn’t make you feel any better it’s time to ask for some assistance from people in your life.

IN GENERAL to avoid having people remotely access your computer you should:

Make sure that you are very cautious about what programs you install

Do not open unexpected email attachments and do not click on mystery links

Use unique passwords across your accounts

Do not allow people physical access to your devices

Use encryption on your web traffic through a VPN or a secured router

Do not grant people permission to access your computer or allow people to talk you through the process of setting up access for them (so if someone calls from “microsoft” and says they need access to your computer to fix it just hang up)

Use a strong antivirus program

And in general if you think that something FUCKING WEIRD is going on with your computer you should

document every instance of it being fucking weird

take a photo or video of the fucking weird thing on your phone

think about what someone has to gain by accessing your system

think about the ways that someone could plausibly access your system

check in with someone who knows more about computers than you do (like me - this is the right thing to do! and similarly the people who come to the hacker meetups are doing the right thing! But it’s important to listen to these folks and learn from the conversation instead of dismissing the information they give you - that “what do they gain” question applies here too. I have nothing to gain by misleading you, so it’s very unlikely that I’m lying to you)

And in your life in general:

If you’re scared about something you should ask questions and learn more. Everything is much less scary when you know how to fix it or are able to identify the source of a problem. This is true for computers, it’s true for auto repair, it’s true for plumbing.

So I’m really glad you asked, and good luck. I hope this helps.

#long post

1K notes · View notes

onebatch2batch · 3 years

Note

Heyo, dialogue prompts: 14 or 30? 😊

HI THIS WAS FROM FOREVER AGO BUUUUUT that's my m.o. so here we are. Hope you like it!!

And no, I'm never going to stop writing different versions of Frank and Karen getting together, you can't make me :)

14. “You’re never going to let that go, are you?”

Frank can practically hear David scheming, and he’s proven right when an anthropomorphic mop of hair bends into his line of sight and he says, “Hey, remember in the bunker, when we were still on the run?”

They’re both standing in David’s front yard. Frank’s van is in need of an oil change and a replacement filter and since he’s not keen on anyone else working on his getaway vehicle, he called up David to request use of his paved, suburban driveway. It’s been a few weeks since he’s managed to get over here, and David had instantly agreed on the condition that Frank stay for dinner. It’s a beautiful summer day, even if it’s a little hot, and he’s feeling a little off-kilter from the sounds of children playing all around. It’s so painfully normal that for a moment he’d regretted asking, and then David had offered him a drink. The taller computer genius doesn’t know shit about cars, so he’s alternating between fetching more beers and talking Frank’s ear off. It’s been about an hour now, and Frank has slowly relaxed into the background noise.

“Yeah,” Frank responds dryly around the flashlight between his teeth. He’s elbow deep in grease and not really interested in where this line of questioning is going to go, but David has other ideas.

“Uh huh. You know, when you got yourself on the news after that kid held Karen hostage?”

If Frank is affected by the name, all David notices is a sharp glance. “Yeah.”

“And how you freaked out and begged for my help and said she was family?”

Frank straightens and sets the flashlight down on the bumper of the car. “You got a point, Lieberman? I’m busy.”

“Yeah, I have a point. Was that all just bullshit, or what?”

They stare at each other. Frank’s jaw ticks.

“...what.”

“Thought so.”

“No, what?”

“Well you made this huge declaration and then almost got yourself killed trying to rescue her so--”

“God damn it, Lieberman, you’re never going to let that go, are you--”

David shakes his head, exasperated. “I mean, we haven’t even gotten to meet her yet and it’s been six months since Madini used her government wiles to give you a new identity--”

Frank scowls. “It’s none of your--”

The other man cuts him off quickly, hands up. To Frank’s immense displeasure, the other man looks less cowed and more placating. “I’m just saying, invite her to dinner next week. What harm is there? Maybe something good might happen to you for once, god forbid.” His friend stares him down, using every couple of inches of height to try and look intimidating. Of course it doesn’t work, but Frank is too busy thinking about having a family dinner with Karen, with his friends, like a normal person. Like a couple. He realizes too slow that David is leering at him, pleased.

“David, shut the hell up.”

“You’re blushing. Is that a yes? I’ll tell Sarah.”

Karen doesn’t question it when Frank calls her up after half a year of radio silence. She asks if it's a casual dress dinner and what kind of wine to bring, and then announces she’s got to go and she’ll see him Friday at six sharp.

He doesn’t know if that’s better or worse than her just telling him to shove it.

Friday creeps up on him, and by the time he parks outside of her apartment it hasn’t really sunk in that he’s about to take Karen Page to a domestic dinner in the suburbs. Because it’s definitely not a date, even though it kind of is. It’s the stuff he used to do with Maria and the kids all the time when he was on leave; double dates and cook outs and all that crap. He’s rusty as hell and usually shit company, but they keep asking him back. And now, he’s throwing Karen into the mix.

It’s a feeling similar to being shot in the head and waking up in a hospital room. Disorienting and uncomfortable as hell.

He picks her up in the van, leaning against the side of it as he waits. The Lieberman’s neighborhood is outside the city, about a twenty minute drive. It’s going to give them plenty of time to talk, and he’d barely restrained himself from looking up conversation starters online before leaving his place. He doubts there’s any suggestions for a vigilante-cum-construction worker who’s picking up a date he’s spoken a handful of words to for the first time in six months. He’s just considering cancelling the whole thing when the door to her building opens and she steps out.

He’s seen Karen a lot of ways. He’s seen her in pencil skirts and heels and blouses, in tshirt and jeans, bruised and bloody. He’s never seen her in a sundress with her pinked shoulders bare to the world and strappy sandals on her feet. Her hair is in a long braid over her shoulder. She looks fucking resplendant. Absolutely divine. Fucking poetry in motion.

He’s fucked.

“Hi,” she greets, coming to a stop in front of him. She’s got a bottle of wine in her hands. Her eyes punch little, individual question marks into his skin when she searches his face.

“Hey.” He inhales, bracing for her reaction. His throat closes up when he gets a whiff of her perfume. So familiar from the handful of times he’s been close enough to smell it--something soft and floral, something that makes his head swim. He thinks back to that moment so many months ago, swaying together in the elevator, her skin against his, her perfume subtle under the metallic tang of blood.

Karen doesn’t immediately go for interrogating him. She only lifts the bottle in her hand. “I brought a white, is that okay?”

Wary relief loosens the knot at the top of his spine. He nods, pushing off the car to open her door. “Sure.”

When Karen climbs in, carefully arranging her skirt around her, the dark interior contrasting with the soft yellow of her dress, Frank thinks about a conversation with Curtis all those months ago. Wonders when the kick is coming.

They spend the first ten minutes looking out separate windows and listening to the radio. After that, Karen starts talking like she’s made her mind up about the evening is going to go. She asks him how he’s been, if he’s gotten a job, how Dinah is, what the Liebermans are like. Nothing is accusatory. They could be old friends passing one another on the street, the way she’s talking. Almost like she’s talking to a scared dog. Coaxing it out of a corner.

Guess he deserves that.

By the time he pulls onto the appropriate street, it almost feels normal. They’ve fallen into a familiar back and forth that’s easy to keep up with, and when he opens her door she gives him a small grateful smile, accepting his hand on the way down.

He’s not disappointed when she lets go to straighten the fabric of her dress. He’s not.

As always, the Lieberman household is an explosion of domesticity. There’s shoes on the stairs, a sweet smelling candle burning on the coffee table, toys and books strewn over the floor. Pictures line the walls. When Frank knocks on the door, Zach opens it like he’s been waiting for them.

“ Hi, Pete!” he greets excitedly, and then his eyes land on Karen. “Who’s that?”

“Hello, I’m Karen Page.” She crouches down to look him in the eye and smiles. “You must be Zach, right?”

He flushes, twisting his fingers nervously. “Yeah. Are you Pete’s girlfriend?”

They’re saved from answering by a sudden, high pitched shriek. “Frank!!”

Karen manages to stand out of the way just in time for Leo to come barrelling down the stairs directly into Frank, hugging him tightly around the middle.

“Frank, Dad says you were here Saturday but you were gone before I left Ann’s house!!” she pulls away and waves a book at him. “I’m reading the book you told me about!”

He grins down at her. “I waited around for ya, but your mom said you wouldn’t be home until later. How’s the book, huh?”

She scrunches her nose. “I don’t know yet. I’ll let you know. Are you Karen?”

Karen laughs. “I sure am. Leo, right?”

“That’s me. Come on, my mom is in the kitchen.” She nudges Zach and then four of them head into the other room. Sarah Lieberman is standing behind the kitchen counter, chopping up a head of lettuce. When they walk in, she beams at them.

“Hey guys, welcome! Hang on, let me finish this. Pete, David’s out in the garage trying to fix the sprinklers. Can you--?”

Frank rolls his eyes. “Say no more.”

He lifts his brows at Karen, but she gives him a jerk of her head. Frank huffs and stalks off after kissing Sarah on the cheek, Leo trailing after him talking about sprinkler systems and tools. Zach joins his mother behind the counter and peers at Karen curiously. She sets the bottle of wine down.

“So Karen!” Sarah exclaims, dumping the lettuce into a bowl. “Let’s get you a glass of wine and chat. How’s that sound?”

They end up on the patio furniture. After completing the salad and sides, Sarah turns on the grill and then ushers them to the corner of the patio, refilling their glasses.

“So,” she starts, and peers at Karen over the rim of her glass. “I’m going to be forward, but I get the feeling you’ll appreciate that. What’s the deal with you and Pete? Sorry--habit. Frank.”

Karen could have guessed this was coming, even if she expected a little more subtlety. And Sarah’s right, she appreciates the bluntness. It gives her a chance to answer in kind.

“I don’t know.” She runs a finger over the rim of her glass, frowning. “I haven’t--we haven’t spoken in...a while. Six months, actually. And the last time I saw him..well, it didn’t go as well as I’d hoped. I thought I scared him off, actually.”

“How so?”

And the story falls out of her mouth, in pieces. She hasn’t spoken to anyone about Frank, about her feelings for him--the good or bad--or about that afternoon in the hospital. “--and I thought...I thought maybe he would finally kiss me.” She runs a hand through her hair, frustrated. “And then he pulled that I’m not a hero bullshit and that’s the last I saw of him. Until he called this week.”

Sarah rolls her eyes. “That sounds like him. Honey, did you know when we first met he was gathering information on David?”

“Ah, yes. I was the one who found David for him.” She grimaces. “Sorry.”

“Don’t be! We’re lucky he came looking. Without him…” she shrugs. “I would still be a widow. And my kids still wouldn’t have their father. I’m just trying to say he may do things backwards, but he ends up doing things for the right reasons. Even if it takes him time to figure that out.”

Dinner goes well. Dinner goes really, really well. Not that Frank was worried--there isn’t a person alive who can sit down with Karen Page and at the very least admire her. The Liebermans fall in love with her immediately. The kids demand that she stay for a board game after dinner. Leo brags about her science project. Zach shyly asks if Karen likes football. Sarah drills her with questions about her job. David keeps her laughing while stupid jokes and send Frank knowing glances throughout dinner that makes Frank want to throw peas at him.

Karen is charming, sweet, and great with the kids. She gets along with David and Sarah, and sends him warm, unsure smiles until dessert.

They play Apples to Apples, and the kids decimate. Karen is a close third. Frank loses terribly, but he’s still busy ruminating over the warm feeling in his chest at the cacophony of noise that surrounds him as everyone submits to another peal of laughter to notice.

“Frank,” Leo says innocently once they’ve put the board game away and Sarah has told the kids it’s time for bed. She stands in the doorway to the kitchen and looks at him sternly, hands on her hips. “Please bring Karen around more. It’s not fair that you get to hog her and we’ve just met.”

“Leo, that’s Miss Page to you.” Sarah tries for sharpness but ends up laughing. “Off to bed. Don’t forget to brush your teeth.”

“Bye Miss Page!” the kids chorus, and then it’s just the adults.

“Great kids,” Karen laughs. “Smart, too. You’re in trouble.”

Sarah sighs and pats her husband’s cheek fondly. “Yeah, we know. Somehow both of them got his brain.”

David chuckles, turns quickly to press a kiss to his wife’s palm. “At least they didn’t get my hair,” he jokes.

Karen sneaks a glance at Frank, then quickly looks away. He catches it, just briefly, as does David.

“Sarah, we should probably make sure the kids are actually brushing their teeth. I’ll tackle Leo if you tackle Zach, tag team it? We’ll be right back, guys.”

It’s quiet in the kitchen after that. Karen takes a sip of her wine and taps her fingers. There’s something on her mind, he can tell. When she doesn’t say anything he leans forward to capture her gaze. “What is it?”

“Why now, Frank?” Karen asks.

The conversation he’s been dreading. A feeling of shame bubbles up so suddenly it nearly knocks him off his chair. He scratches his neck for no reason other than to expel the nervous energy building in him.

“I didn’t want to…” There’s no use pretending like they’re talking about something else, not when she’s staring at him like that. Like she's been waiting all night for this conversation while he’s been tricking himself into thinking it may not happen. His finger dances restlessly on the table top. “I didn’t want to get you sucked back in.”

“Into what?” She arches a brow. “You?”

“Me. My life. My goddamn baggage. I know you deserve better than me.” He clears his throat. “So I wanted you to have a chance to live your life without my ghosts hanging around.”

“Frank Castle,” Karen sighs, exasperated, “please don’t tell me you’re making decisions for me. And that still doesn’t answer my question--why now?”

His expression tightens. “C’mon Karen. I’m just tryin’ to keep you safe--”

“How many times do I have to tell you--”

“As many as it ta--”

“Frank--” David steps into the kitchen, Sarah in tow. They pause, looking between the two people seated at the table awkwardly. “Oh, are we interrupting something?”

“No, David. Thank you both for tonight. I think I should be going.” Karen stands and looks at Frank. “I have loved you for two years, Frank. No amount of avoiding me or trying to protect me is going to change that. Excuse me.”

And then she walks away.

He catches up to her just down the street. As soon as he sees that familiar head of blond hair he pulls the van over and hops out, jogging to catch up. Karen glances at him and then pauses, as if waiting for something.

“Let me drive you home,” he asks. “Please.”

He doesn’t take her home straight away; she doesn’t ask. Frank drives until he finds a spot overlooking the water. The heat has finally broken and a cool breeze comes in through the open window, stirring Karen’s hair. He shuts off the engine. They sit in silence while he tries to decide what to say.

“I guess I should start by apologizing,” he says finally, tapping the steering wheel. He’s past nervous, he just wants to fix his own screw up. “I’m sorry, Karen. I don’t want to make any decisions for you. I should have--I should have talked to you about it. I should have started this conversation a long time ago.”

“So, start it.” She’s watching him, waiting. There’s a tense expression on her face--like she’s either trying not to cry, or trying not to smile. Or tell him off. He’s not sure which, yet.

Frank clears his throat. “Okay. Uh. I’m not gonna make excuses, I’m just gonna tell you what I know. I know that I have done some shit, and I’m going to continue doing that shit. I’m not ever gonna be normal. I know that you’re smart as hell, and you check me, and you’re a fucking force of nature. I know that I have been telling myself that you deserve more than some--fuckin’ vigilante who wakes up to nightmares more than he doesn’t. I know you deserve to be safe and happy. You deserve more than I can give you. But uh,” he takes her hand cautiously, waits for her to pull away, relaxes when she doesn’t, “...I wanna try.”

“You gotta mean it, Frank,” she says, voice watery. “You better fucking mean it.”

“I mean it. I swear to Christ, I mean it.”

She pulls her hand away and for a millisecond, he thinks he’s said something wrong. Then she’s unbuckling her seat belt and clamoring over the armrest into his lap. It’s not the most majestic first kiss he’s ever had (of which there are few) but her breath is hot on his lips and her fingernails scrape gently over his scalp as if entreating him closer. Frank makes a low groan that he hasn’t heard from himself in a long time--too long--and then Karen shifts and his breath catches in his throat. The heat of her, all wrapped up in his arms, her hair falling over one shoulder as she peppers his mouth, his cheeks, his jaw with the tiniest of kisses.

He could have ruined this without even knowing. He almost ruined it before it even happened.

“I do want you, you know,” Karen murmurs against the skin of his jaw, fingers grasping his shirt. “All of you.”

“I know.”

“Does that scare you?”

He pushes gently until he can look her in the eyes. “A little,” he admits. “I don’t wanna fuck this up.”

“You’re doing okay so far,” she says, smiling. “Now that you’ve pulled your self-deprecating head out of your ass.”

“Took me long enough.” He cradles the back of her head in one hand, drawing her closer until their lips meet again. They’re both uncomfortable at the weird angle but it’s not until the horn beeps once, gaining the attention of a woman walking her dog, that Karen reluctantly returns to her seat.

They work to catch their breaths, watching the water.

“The Liebermans aren’t upset I left so--...abruptly, right?”

“Nah,” Frank chuckles, grasping her hand. He finds an indescribable amount of comfort in brushing his thumb over the ridges over her knuckles. “Actually, I think they like you better for it. Sarah almost chased me out of the house with a goddamn spatula.”

“I knew I liked her. Take me home? I’ll make coffee.”

“It’s a date.”

Frank’s phone lights up that night. If he were to reach an arm over and hold it up to see, David’s text would read, WELL?? Did you get the girl, Lloyd Dobler?

But he doesn’t. He tugs Karen closer and goes back to sleep.

#kastle #kastle ff #kastle fanfic #my writing #answered #cant-think-of-anything-creative

39 notes · View notes

crimeronan · 3 years

Note

Can you explain the appeal of Julian Blackthorn? This is a genuine question because I read the books and came away utterly bored by him and unconvinced of his moral greyness as opposed to like, Adam Parrish’s. He seemed so one dimensional to me but I want to know if I’m Wrong TM considering I tend to be very very biased toward my favourite characters and bored by the rest, and my favourites were Mark and Kieran. So maybe I just didn’t pay him enough attention??

it’s been a while since i wrote any earnest tsc meta but cringe culture is dead and the chance to infodump about my julian thoughts has me vibrating where i’m sitting so. yes okay.

technical stuff

(aka: things pertaining to How The Story Is Constructed)

cassandra clare’s characterization has become much stronger just in general since she first began writing the series like twenty years ago

perhaps most importantly: the more recent stuff i’ve read from her has involved characters who actually grow, change, and learn from their past mistakes

rather than repeating the same stupid decisions over and over again

and over and over and over some more

seriously take a shot every time someone in tmi miscommunicates or self-destructs in ways They Have Learned Not To Do for no real reason. u will die of alcohol poisoning

in tda this shines ESPECIALLY with the evolution of mark, kieran, and cristina’s relationship, but that’s a separate post

clare’s trademark is also the angsty traumatized jerkass love interest with a secret heart of gold

the woman is almost singlehandedly responsible for draco in leather pants and the proliferation of this kind of character type in fandom and teen lit. this isn’t a criticism it’s me marveling at how if you commit hard enough to a single trope you truly can change the world. follow your dreams

sad jackass with a heart of gold isn’t an Inherently Problematic Character Type

but poorly done it can lead to relationship dynamics in which one partner is constantly being hurt by and then forgiving the other despite them making no real effort to change, because they are narratively absolved due to being sad

(there’s a lot of this with earlier jace content. in some ways i think will was later created specifically to be a same-archetype protagonist who actually does get called on his shit and grow. that’s also another post)

also if all of your sexy male love interests are tortured jackasses with a heart of gold then people start calling you a one-trick pony

enter julian blackthorn!

from the very start everything about him is designed to be the INVERSE of the heart of gold jackass. which immediately makes him interesting just from a meta perspective

(mark and kieran are also both alternate angles on this time-honored archetype. mark gets the heart of gold and kieran gets the jackass and then they’re both much more deeply messy than that. yet another post)

julian is kind, self-sacrificing, empathetic, artistic, emotionally supportive, responsible, and favored by old grannies everywhere

so a completely nonthreatening milquetoast guy, right

immediately forgettable if you’re only here for the dramatic conflicts and shithead antics of clare’s other protags

except that he is A Mess

and that he has structured his priorities very carefully, and they are as selfless as you expect from The Hero (TM) but they are also Not Heroic (TM) and they do not align with the moral framework The Hero (TM) is supposed to use

moral ambiguity in characters always exists in relation to their narratives imo. you mention adam parrish - trc’s narrative already mucks around in different ethical shades of gray, and adam falls on the canon scale about where julian does on his canon scale. both more willing than the average pov character to do the ruthless thing or make the fucked-up choice if the ends justify the means; both with an intensely strong sense of internal priorities that they adhere to at all costs, both so unbelievably fucking down for murder; etc

i do think there are ways julian’s choices could have been pushed even further, but considering the number of readers who hate his guts already, i can see why clare opted not to go for the most controversial possible conflicts

so we’re flipping the narrative

instead of seeing this angsty bad boy and peeling back the layers of his trauma to find his heart of gold, we’re seeing the put-together selfless family man and peeling back the layers of his Responsibility Mask to expose the rotting husk underneath

MMMMMMMMMMMMMMM

THAT IS FUN AS FUCK

then when julian DOES lash out in hurtful, uncontrolled ways, he has significantly more narrative justification for it than most of clare’s protagonists (will elaborate in characterization thoughts)

julian is also interesting as fuck because of how his struggles allow for a more in-depth look at the failings of shadowhunter society, something that’s also sorely lacking in clare’s earlier work

his apparent amorality is simply the result of him making pragmatic and impossible choices because he has been faced with fucked-up ethical dilemmas since age 12 Because Society Has Failed Him

which opens the door for narrative exploration of how and why he’s been failed so badly & what needs to change

i also love that he has such a coldly calculated way of analyzing situations and allowing harm to occur when need be, bc a lot of clare’s early protagonists have such a bad case of Rush In And Get Myself Killed Because I’ve Got Feelings About Impulsive Heroism syndrome that i wanna push them in front of a truck

probably there’s other meta narrative stuff i could say but i’m stopping myself and moving on to character analysis

characterization stuff

(aka: reasons why i’m also attached to him in a vacuum)

i don’t read him as one-dimensional at all tbh

u may feel the narrative pushes “ruthless julian blackthorn” too much without delivering enough actual ruthless julian But i don’t think that’s the same as having only one dimension

from the get-go, the big question centered on julian is always “how far are you willing to go?” and the narrative pushes the stakes slowly higher and higher to continuously test julian’s “the price is always justified” mindset

he has a far more layered and realistic response to trauma than clare’s early protagonists - trauma affects every single aspect of his personality and how he conducts himself, and the effects vary depending on the circumstances

his conviction that he has to be the perfect parent to his siblings because they will fall apart if they see him show weakness?? rooted in how he feels like he’s fallen apart since losing the stable adult support he once relied upon

his willingness to hurt semi-innocent people, commit coldblooded murder, manipulate people using political leverage, allow harm to befall any stranger if it protects his family?? rooted in how he has already had to ask himself how much he’s willing to sacrifice, and how his family is his only source of stability when the world has never done Shit for him

his conviction that he has a darker heart than anyone else because he killed his possessed father, even though intellectually he knows he was saving his brother’s life?? rooted in having no means of processing this trauma and being unable to voice his feelings for fear of backlash from a deeply non-understanding society

the way he represses every single negative emotion he ever has, to the point where emma - his actual literal magic soulmate who can feel his emotions - is startled to find him hurting or angry?? once again all about how he has to be the perfect father or he’s failed completely

the way his anger is so totally disproportionate to different situations and the way his negative emotions can only come out in completely uncontrolled breaks?? all that repression baybey. this kid has not processed a single bad feeling in five years. every single real grievance and petty annoyance has been festering indefinitely inside him like a slowly spreading infection

julian’s arc involves him needing to get thru being his worst self to actually start to heal

as in, he has to actually learn to acknowledge his feelings, take care of himself, lean on his family, and let other people take some responsibility

he also has to learn that in his quest to be the perfect emotionally controlled authority figure, he has not actually learned how to control or deal with his emotions. like. At Fucking All. good god

the narrative setup is also about asking “how far are you willing to go?” until the answer is finally “not this far. not this far”

and once he reaches that point, he has to reevaluate everything about how he weighs his priorities and morals and plans, etc

(i also like that emma has a perpendicular arc in which she’s always the one tempering julian and telling him “no we can’t go that far” until she’s willing to do something horrific that he absolutely won’t and HE has to stop HER. very sexy)

it’s also just really nice to have a character who’s learned to relate so well to literally every single member of his family while still having a very detached ruthless interior consciousness. i have similar feelings about how adam teaches himself to love people, but with julian it’s spelled out more explicitly in canon & it’s a more central character theme

i’m sure i’m also forgetting stuff here but this post is long enough so i’m gonna say good enough

and like i said in the tags on my other post, there are things i’d personally write differently if it were my story - plot points i’d shift, character contrasts i’d up, themes i’d explore differently, pacing i’d adjust, etc. i have plenty of ways i could be nitpicky and editorial about the effectiveness of julian’s arc. but i also don’t feel like writing them out at the moment & none of my critiques on effectiveness have an impact on the core appeal of his character 2 me. he’s so fucking good

#replies #tsc #tda #julian blackthorn #meta #long post #ungodly long post.#shadowhunters #Anonymous

207 notes · View notes

writingwithcolor · 4 years

Text

Mixing North America with Old World Cultures in Fantasy: What Are The Issues?

So I sent in an ask several years ago that, due in no small part to your response, I have grown from and eventually led to a complete restructuring of my story. I included a measure of context in this, so if you need to skip it, my main three questions are at the bottom. I think this mostly applies to Mod Lesya.

The new setting is both inspired by and based on North America in the late 1400s where the indigenous cultures thrive and are major powers on the continent. Since there is no “Europe” in this setting the colonization and plague events never happened. Within the continent itself (since it is a fantasy setting) there are also analogous cultures that resemble Norse, Central European, Persian, Arabic, Indian, and Bengali. Although not native to the fantasy continent, there is also a high population of ‘African’ and ‘Oceanic’ peoples of many cultures, the latter usually limited to coastal cities as traders and sailors. Elves are entirely not-human, or at least evolved parallel to humans ala Neanderthals/Denisovans; they have green blood, black sclera, and skin tones that run from pale to dark.

The main national setting of the story takes great inspiration from a Byzantine/Turkish/Mississippian background, and the neighboring nations are based on the Haudenosee (Iriquois Confederacy), Numunuu (Comancheria), and the Hopi and Zuni (as the descendants of the Ancestral Puebloans) (I also know that 2 of these 3 occur much later than the 1400s, but I love the government systems and they provide excellent narrative foils for the more ‘traditional’ fantasy government that takes place in the story). The Maya inhabit the role analogous to Ancient Greece in that most writing systems on the continent descend from Maya script and all the Great Philosophers were Maya (and nobility from across the continent spend lots of money to send their children to schools in the Maya City-States or in the Triple Alliance (Aztec Empire)). There is magic with varying traditions, practices, and methods spread across the continent, some of which are kept secret from outsiders, so I would hope that this avoids the “Magical Native” trope.

Beyond the setting, I have three main questions:

When it comes to foodstuffs, I was originally planning to limit myself to Pre-Columbian cuisine from the Americas (eg the Three Sisters and potatoes) but in doing my research, Navajo fry-bread seems to be a fairly integral part of the food culture and that does require flour, which originated in the Old World. Would it be better to incorporate some of the Old World stuff that has since become traditional to indigenous groups?

For place names used in the setting and writing systems would it be better to use existing languages or writing systems or ones inspired by them? EG should I make a language that is very similar to Cherokee, complete with its own syllabary, or should I use IRL Cherokee and its extant syllabary? I ask because I feel like using the real language might step on some toes, but using the conlang might seem like erasure.

One of the main themes of this story is the harm that even a ‘benevolent’ Empire can wreak on people. The Byzantine/Turkish/Mississippian culture is the main Empire on the continent, taking cues from both western and American monarchical systems (eg the Triple Alliance (Aztec) and The Four Regions (the Inca Empire)), but when I think about it having any kind of even vaguely western ‘Empire’ spring up from the soil of a North American inspired setting might be troubling.

Thank you for your time and consideration! Do you guys have a kofi or something so I can compensate you for time spent?

I actually do remember you, and I am going to 99% disregard your questions here because you went from glaringly obvious racism to covert racism, and none of your questions ask if your basic strings of logic for assumptions you built into the setting are okay.

Since there is some extremely flawed basic logic in here, I’m going to tackle that first.

Question 1: Why did you originally title this “Pre Colombian North American Fantasy World” when you have more old world cultures than new world cultures?

A very simple, straightforward question. The actual content of the setting is what made me retitle it.

If you want to write a North American fantasy setting… why are there so many old world cultures represented here?

Old world: - Greece (as a societal myth; see next point) - Byzantine - Turkey - Norse - Central European - Persian - Arabic - Indian - Bengali - African (which, let’s be honest, should be heavily broken up into multiple peoples) - Oceana (which, again, should be heavily broken up into multiple peoples)

New world: - Mississippian - Iroquois - Numunuu - Hopi - Zuni - Maya - Aztec - Inca (maybe? not mentioned as having their own place on the continent, but one of your questions mentions them) - Navajo (maybe? See above)

To account for respecting Africa and Oceana, I’m going to make African cultures count as 3 and Oceanic cultures count as 5, and this is a purposeful lowball.

Old World: 17 New World: 9

It’s a giant discrepancy, especially if your attempt is writing an exclusively New World fantasy. And this is bare minimum old world, considering the fact I tried to limit myself to peoples who would be more likely to interact with the heavy Mediterranean/Alexander the Great’s Empire centricity.

Question 2: Why does there have to be a Greece analogue?

I haven’t spoken about this topic at length on this blog, but Greek worship in the Western world is a very carefully crafted white supremacy based mythos that was created to prop up European “Excellence” and actually erases the reality of Greece as a peoples.

Cultural evolutionism is a theory that states the (assumed-white-European) Greeks were superior because of their philosophy, their abstract art, and their mathematics. When many of these concepts were refined in Egypt (African, aka Black), or the Arab world (aka brown), but white Europeans did not want to admit any of this so they instead painted everything as coming out of their ideas of Greece lock stock and barrel.

The theory also ignored Iroquois science, Plains and Southwestern abstract art, and generally everything about North America, because the theory was designed to move the goalposts and paint North America as something it wasn’t, just to make Europeans feel okay taking it over and “bringing it to civilization.”

This theory was still taught in force up until the 1970s, and is still a major school of anthropological thought to this day (and still taught in some universities), so it is still very much influencing the Western world.

While the theory itself is only from the 1800s, it had long-growing roots in white/ noble Europe’s attempt to prop up European “Excellence” during its multiple periods of colonization, from the Crusades, onwards. You can see it in the copious amount of art produced during the Renaissance.

Europeans ignored the sheer amount of settling and travel that happened within Greece and Rome, and you’ll notice how many Renaissance paintings depict Greek philosophers as white, teaching other white people. In reality, we have no idea what their skin tone was, and they could have taught a huge variety of different skin tones. But it was appealing to European nobility to have people like them be the founders of all things great and “advanced”, so they invested huge amounts of time and money in creating this myth.

(Note: I said their nobility, not their population. People of colour existed en masse in Europe, but the nobility has been downplaying that for an exceptionally long time)

Greece took over most of the old world. It borrowed and stole from hundreds of cultures, brought it all back, and was assigned credit for it. White Europeans didn’t want to admit that the concept of 0 came from the Arabs, the pythagorean theorem came from Egypt, etc, and since Greece won, detailed records of how they were perceived and what they stole are long lost. It’s only glaring when they took from other global powers.

Question 3: Why would you pick totally different biomes to mix in here?

Turkey and the Mississippi are very, very different places when it comes to what can grow and what sort of housing is required, which makes them on the difficult side to merge together. They relied on different methods of trade, as well (boats vs roads), and generally just don’t line up.

The fact you pick such a specific European powerhouse—the Byzantine Empire—to mix into your “not European” fantasy world is… coming back to my above point about Greek (and Roman) worship in the West. Why can’t a fantasy world set in North America be enough on its own? Why does it need Europe copycats?

Question 4: Why are you missing a variety of nomads and Plains peoples?

Nomadic plains peoples were a thing across the globe, from the Cree to the Blackfoot to the Mongols. You have hyperfocused on settled peoples (with only one nomadic group named in both new and old world), which… comes across as very odd to me, because it is, again, very European sounding. That continent was about the only one without major populations that were nomadic, and if you look at European history, nomadic peoples were very highly demonized because of the aforementioned Mongols.

Cultural evolutionism also absolutely hated nomadic peoples, which is where we get the term “savage” (hunter-gatherers, nomads) and “barbarian” (horticulturalists and pastoralists, the latter nomadic); these were “lesser cultures” that needed to settle down and be brought to “civilization” (European agriculture), and nothing good could ever come out of them.

Meanwhile, in North America, nomadic peoples took up a very large portion of landmass, produced a huge amount of culture and cultural diffusion, and mostly ignoring them while trying to create a “fantasy North America” is, well, like I said: odd.

General Discussion Points

My suggestion for you is to write a fantasy Mediterranean region. Completely serious, here.

With the kinds of dynamics you are attracted to—the empires, the continental powers, the fact you keep trying to make Europe analogues in North America—you will do a much, much more respectful job by going into a really richly researched Mediterranean fantasy world than attempting to mix Europe and North America together in ways that show European traits (settled peoples, agriculture, a single empire dominating the whole culture and being viewed as superior) as the default.

I legitimately cannot see anything in here that feels like it comes from North America, or at the very least, treats non-sensationalized peoples (aka, those outside the Maya and Mississippian region) with respect.

It falls into Maya worship, which is a very sensationalized topic and is fuelled by racist fascination, assuming no Indigenous peoples could be that smart.

It falls into settled peoples worship, which is something that has cultural evolutionism roots because under such a model only settled peoples with agriculture are “civilized.”

It falls into placing Western concepts (public schools, large cities, the ilk) as the ideal, better solution, compared to methods better suited to horticulturalists, pastoralists, and hunter-gatherers and letting those teaching methods be respected.

There is no shame in writing inside Europe

The Mediterranean region contains Indigenous peoples, contains a huge diversity of skin tones, contains empires, contains democracy/a variety of governments, and in general contains every aspect of what you’re trying to create without playing god with a continent that did not evolve the way you’re trying to make it.

A Mediterranean fantasy world would still be a departure from “fantasy world 35″ as I like to call it, because it would be different from the vaguely Germanic/ French/ Norse fantasy worlds that are Tolkien ripoffs. You can dig beyond the whitewashed historical revisions and write something that actually reflects the region, and get all the fun conflicts you want.

You don’t need to go creating a European/North American blend to “be diverse.” You can perfectly respectfully write inside Europe and have as much variety in peoples as you can write in a non-European setting. Europe is not the antithesis to diversity.

North America developed a certain way for a reason. It had the required fauna, space, resources, and climate to produce what it created. The old world developed a certain way for its own reasons, based off its own factors in the same categories.

You’re not really going to get them to blend very easily, and if you did, the fact there is such a strong European way-of-life preference (by picking places that mirror European society on the surface) makes me raise an eyebrow. It’s subtle, but very much there, and the fact you are ignorant to it shows me you still need to do more work before you go writing North American Indigenous Peoples.

Writing in Europe isn’t the problem, here. Writing a whitewashed, mythologized, everyone-not-white-is-a-caricature, ahistorical “Europe” is the problem. And you cannot fix this problem by simply painting European ways of life a different skin tone when the setting isn’t European. In fact, you’re perpetuating harm by doing that, because you are recreating the cultural evolutionism that calls anything you can find in Europe “better.” Indigenous cultures were vastly different from Europe, even if they shared similar trappings.

Let North America exist without trying to shoehorn its most famous peoples into European analogues.

~ Mod Lesya

#General #Asks #submission #worldbuilding #fantasy #europe #greece #north america #Indigenous Peoples #native american #zacharandom

991 notes · View notes

ao3-sucks · 4 years

Text

An Archive of Someone’s Own: my experiences being groomed in fandom circles on AO3

TW: Childhood sexual abuse, grooming, mentions of incest and rape.

I used to be a big writer of fanfiction. It was the logical choice for me. I loved to write and create bold and immersive worlds, and I craved an audience who would enjoy my work as much as I did. Since my writing wasn’t actually good, I needed a community of other amateurs who wouldn’t mind that, and by tweaking my characters and settings into ones from canonical media, I got the audience I so craved.

I started writing fanfiction online when I was 14, posting initially on FanFiction.net and then moving to AO3 a few months later. As I got back into writing original fiction towards the end of high school, I lost interest in this community, and it’s been a long time since I posted anything much on AO3.

I’ve always struggled with the fact I display a lot of symptoms of CSA, and for the longest time, I couldn’t figure out why. Throughout my teen years, I refused to get changed or bathe when anyone was even vaguely nearby, constantly paranoid about being spied on; I developed a severe touch phobia, and would have frequent panic attacks from something as small as brushing arms with a passerby; I resolutely identified as asexual and refused to get into anything resembling a relationship with others because the very concept disgusted and repulsed me.

Weird, considering I had grown up pretty normal and all of these symptoms had started around my early teens. It was only when I told my friends about my friendship with a 30 year old I had met online that the pieces started falling into place for me.

Child grooming is usually discussed in the context of one adult going out of their way to befriend a child with the goal of lowering their resistance to sexual abuse, through normalisation and friendliness. I’d like to talk about how that worked on the fanfiction website AO3. Since it’s an open website and most communication takes place between anonymous users or accounts in the comments section of a work, there is very little delineation between spaces for adults to discuss whatever dark topics they like and spaces for kids to do the same.

This frequently leads to pretty inappropriate conversations between people of widely varying ages and life experiences, which is how I ended up talking sex as a fourteen year old with people ranging from a couple of years older than me, who were generally okay, to more than twice my age. The 30 year old in question listed on her profile how many pedophilic ships she loved, and she knew my age but pushed me to keep discussing sexual topics with her. Sounds like a red flag, yeah? Well. I was 14, and very stupid.

This 30 year old woman, who I will call Aku (because it’s similar to her screen name and because it’s funny to name her after the bad guy from Samurai Jack) would start conversations with me whenever I posted anything to AO3 and would refuse to take no for an answer when I tried to back out of conversations with her, and since these conversations were public and occurring within comments, I didn’t want to be rude to her since this was taking place on content I was trying to promote.

I told her my age multiple times and she would either pretend she forgot from last time (saying her memory is super bad) or continue as though it was just trivia about me and not a sign she shouldn’t have been pushing me. My primary objection to what she would say to me (since most of it was just her being annoying) was her insistence on sexualising everything I wrote, and her determination to push me into writing pornographic content, which I eventually gave in to.

Yes, she was a terrible person. She emailed me using her personal email address, so I know her full name and place of residence, because she’s an idiot. These emails also contain sexually explicit materials. Nothing much ever happened between us except for these very creepy interactions and the fact we remained online friends for a few years. But here’s the thing: she wasn’t the only person pushing me into creating sexual content. Lots of people would comment on my writing demanding that I show explicit sexual content when I really didn’t want to.

After a while it felt like I couldn’t write a longer, romantic fanfiction without including explicit sexual content. Like my work wasn’t valid without it. Other, more popular writers were usually sexual in their content, and I wanted to be like them and bring in the views, right? So, when I look at my back catalog of works, I can see how my content moved from completely non-sexual to featuring sexual content over time, and the views usually came with. In this way, I was in an environment that was encouraging me on many levels to sexualise my own work, which impacted the way I thought about my creative process.

Here’s another example I remember. When I was a young sprout, I remember reading down someone’s list of fanfiction recommendations and seeing a work called Hug Therapy, which I promptly read. While the work is marked as explicit and containing the Loki/Thor pairing, the use of relationship and rating tags on AO3 is so poorly regulated that it didn’t really mean anything to me to see either of those. People tag hardcore material as non-explicit and tag friendships as relationships, because there’s no motivation to tag properly. Plus, someone I followed here on Tumblr had recommended it to me.

Now, you wouldn’t know from the listing, but while this piece starts out as comedy, it turns out in the end to include rape, incest, and BDSM in very explicit terms. The fact it was tagged as being explicit didn’t slow me down, because the liberal use of these tags could mean that an explicit tag was just there because sexual content was implied or mentioned, which I thought would be the case based on the rest of the listing. Out of curiosity, I recently tried to report this work to the moderators for containing no warnings about incest or rape, and I got this in response:

“Selecting “Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings” satisfies a creator’s obligation under the warnings policy. Users who wish to avoid specific elements entirely should not access fanworks marked with “Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings”. Our Terms of Service note: “You understand that using the Archive may expose you to material that is offensive, triggering, erroneous, sexually explicit, indecent, blasphemous, objectionable, grammatically incorrect, or badly spelled. ….. This decision is in accordance with our policy of maximum inclusiveness; we have therefore closed this case and will not be investigating further.”

Which, yeah, I guess. The frustration comes from how ‘Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings’ is an extremely commonly used tag, and most things that it’s used on are totally harmless.

This fanfiction, which I was recommended by a friend, is hugely popular, in the top 60 most read fanfictions in the entire fandom. You wanna hear the kicker? The author, Astolat, is one of the founders of AO3. They’re not just some random author who isn’t following the rules. They’re a creator of the whole website, and they made the rules. This is pretty telling about how seriously the website actually takes protecting their users.

My final example I want to give is one of fetish content. People in fetish communities generally (not always) say that fetishes are probably something one should work up to after the onset of sexual activity, especially potentially harmful stuff like BDSM. In the circles I was running in, if you weren’t sporting a fetish or two (no matter your age) you were a boring bitch.

Maybe this isn’t true of everywhere in the fanfiction community, but I used to feel that bizarre pressure until I got out. Bear in mind that my main time in this community was from ages 14 to 17. I never made my age a secret, either. I told people outright I was that age, I was in high school, I was playing hockey and studying The Great Gatsby when I wasn’t online.

Since I was in the Avengers fandom and I liked Loki and the Asgardians, I was frequently exposed to incestuous content between Loki and Thor, and a lot of it came out of nowhere or was poorly tagged. This was considered the norm, and while I at first felt completely horrified and repulsed, within a year or two I no longer gave a shit. It’s only in the last few years as I’ve begun to unpack everything that I’ve started to get that strong revulsion reaction to incestuous content.

In the circles I was in, it was relentlessly normal. Normal to the point that people who disliked it were usually shouted down. Even to this day, debate rages on in fandom spaces about whether or not content like this normalises this kind of abuse. In my own personal experience, which I don’t usually like to talk about, it absolutely does.

In real life, this normalisation started to have serious consequences for my mental health and interpersonal relationships. In fanfiction, any occasion when you are alone with someone could become sexual, any familial relationship is possibly sexual, and it doesn’t matter if you like it or not. I became incredibly anxious around male family members for fear of being sexually assaulted, and my OCD, which I had been developing since I was a child, turned from thoughts of physical violence to thoughts of graphically sexually assaulted by anyone and everyone around me.

My fear of being touched got to the point where I would have panic attacks if anyone came anywhere close to touching me. I quit sports, fucked up my romantic relationships, and didn’t hug anyone, not even members of my family, for years. All the while, I had bought my first laptop and was consuming more fanfiction than ever before. I struggled with my sexuality growing up, as I am bisexual, and while fanfiction provided LGBT content to help me, the content was frequently so disturbing that I viewed any expression of sexuality as something evil and predatory.

The community on AO3, whether you like it or not, is often sexual, and provides no barriers between the casual user looking for content and extremely intense fetish material. It’s sometimes called the Pornhub of fanfiction, but considering the wide range of people who use it, it’s more like if you opened Youtube and saw niche hardcore fetish videos just on the front page, recommended and trending.

Sure, you have to click a little button to confirm you’re 18 before you can actually read a story, but the tags and descriptions of readily available works can be extremely explicit. Fanfiction also brings you into close contact with fellow readers and the author, and encourages you to become a content creator, which in some ways makes it more dangerous.

I was affected much more strongly by what I saw than most people would be, because I was already treading shaky ground. But I’m also not the only person out there who has been hurt in this way. Most of my friends who grew up in fandom can report the impact that fanfiction culture had on them. One of my friends from high school knew a panoply of porn terms at age 14 or so due to reading fanfiction, and another of my other friends at high school almost exclusively read rape porn because it was her favourite. I didn’t have friends who watched porn; I had friends who read fanfiction. These are just as troubling to me as any other accounts of young people consuming visual porn from a very early age.

It’s frequently cited that fanfiction gives minority groups the opportunity for creative outlet. It was a great place for me to cut my teeth as a content creator, and a source of acceptance and kindness when times were tough. Fanfiction communities have historically been the domain of women and minorities, and create a space for these people to tell their own stories.

It’s largely because of this that fanfiction communities fear censorship and strict moderation, as they have been attacked in the past on homophobic or misogynistic grounds, resulting in mass deletions of works or the shutdown of websites. But there must be some middle ground between total censorship and the kind of free rein that puts vulnerable people in danger, and I strongly encourage the board of AO3 to seek this middle ground out.

But it’s the community itself that needs to shape up; AO3 is, after all, a community-led website built by fans for fans, so the fact that this website has such issues is a reflection of the issues that run deeply within the people who created it. Aku didn’t talk to me with the intention of doing me harm, or so I believe at this time, and she didn’t pursue me as a lone wolf or in isolation.

She was simply a particularly brazen member of a community that was used to having inappropriate conversations with young people and sexualising everything they did. Even people my own age were jokingly pushing me into discussing and consuming extremely sexual content. It was just normal. That’s what I want to say here. Inside the world of fandom on AO3, the grooming of children with sexual content is normal. And that’s scary.

- Mod Daft

#mod daft post #ao3 discourse #fandom wank #fanfiction discourse #fanfiction wank #csa//#rape//#grooming//#incest//

891 notes · View notes

khaotic-kitsunes · 3 years

Text

Compassion

Hello! Okay, so I’m doing...alright? I guess hahaha

Things have been hectic and shit, some fun stuff, some not so fun stuff. Life. Really. Anywho! This request? I love. I FUCKING LOVEEEEE

It was so much fun to write up and it nearly became office sex but like, I resisted. However, if someone wants to hit me the fuck up for a part two...???

Hope this was to your liking! I didn’t wanna just cut it off, so I did a few things here and there! Please let me know what you think because, well, uh...it fuels my dumbassery?? I dunno. Enjoy.

Cheeky Kitsune 🦊💋

“Ah…”

You stared into the dark alleyway with wide eyes, your mouth falling open as heavy steps grew closer to you; a large shadow approaching, quiet grunts and low groans of effort reaching you before your eyes could make out the person belonging to the shape in front of you.

What was supposed to be a quick shortcut to your modest home had now turned into a strange encounter that left you staring at what appeared to be two men; one unconscious and the other barely managing to hold himself up, let alone the man on his shoulder.

“You’re hurt…” You trailed off as your eyes landed on the bloodied stains on their clothes, instinctively taking a step closer despite the sharp voice that demanded you back off; threats fell on deaf ears while concerns for their survival rose within you. You grabbed onto his free arm without thinking, quickly dragging the them back the way they came and towards your home; where you would be able to help them.

“Hey! What do you think you’re doing lady!?” You glanced back at the man, motioning for him to quiet down as you stepped out of the alleyway and dragged him along to your front door; releasing him only when you had to search for your house keys.

“I’m taking you in here to treat you. You’re covered in blood and if you’re wandering the alleyways like that, I doubt you’ll want me to take you to a hospital.” You paused, turning to grab onto his arm with one hand while inserting your key into the lock, turning it to unlock the door. Even though you had no idea who the two men were or how they had gotten their injuries; you simply couldn’t ignore them, nor could you allow them to leave without being looked at.

“I am a certified doctor, so shut up and get inside before you drop dead from a loss of blood.” You narrowed your eyes at the man, finally able to take in his appearance; finding yourself to be shocked at how young he appeared to be. Though you still couldn’t get a good look at the man he carried; the only thing you knew about him was that he was unconscious.

“…Tch, fine.”

~ ~ ~

“Here you go…and this is for your friend if he wakes up”

You set down the tray onto a nearby table gently, barely making a sound while the man who you had learnt to be called Eijiro, watched you with a sceptical gaze; not trusting you despite the fact that you had already patched both of them up to the best of your abilities given the limited supplies you had in your home.

“Thanks.” He dropped his gaze to the cups of hot chocolate and fresh biscuits that you had brought to them, reaching out for one of the cups almost hesitantly while you sat across from him, your head tilted in vague curiosity.

“…Your wounds were deep and he almost bleed to death. I’ve done the best I can but without the proper equipment, you’re still in danger of opening your wounds and tearing your stitches. My best advice would be to rest until your wounds are properly healed, take antibiotics to prevent infections and absolutely no heavy lifting.” You spoke softly, watching as he began to gulp down the drink you provided, his hand already stretching out towards the biscuits; as if he had finally relaxed. Food being the key.

“Can’t do that.” The words were muffled as biscuits were shoved into his mouth, crimson gaze meeting your own; still guarded, yet thankfully a lot less hostile than before.

“I see, then that must mean you’re eager for death” You let out a sigh, closing your eyes before opening them and looking towards your bed, where the second man laid, previously unconscious; though the low groans that came from him made it sound like he had finally woken up.

“Oi, you should leave him alone lady!” You ignored Eijiro as you moved towards the bed, gently pressing your hands against the man’s shoulders and preventing him from sitting up; ignoring the confused and frantic look in his eyes for the moment. Your biggest concern was to stop him from tearing the stitches he had needed; his injuries were by far the worst of the two and if they re-opened now, a hospital would be inevitable if he didn’t want to die.

“Stop it. Calm down before you try moving” His eyes darted over towards Eijiro, who had moved closer when you grabbed a hold of his friend; relaxing at the slight nod he was given and though he completely ignored anything you had said, he had stopped moving.

“…Dunno why but she’s helping us” Eijiro kept his voice quiet as he approached the two of you, causing you to step back, allowing the two of them their space and hopefully help them relax a little more.

“Instead of worrying about that, help him sit up. Carefully! He needs to eat and a warm drink wouldn’t kill him either” You turned your back to them, moving to pick up the tray from the table before approaching them once more; watching as Eijiro helped his friend sit up, even going as far as to move some pillows behind his back so that he didn’t have to use up all of his energy. It was nice to see.

“Thank you…” You nodded your head in response to the man’s quietly spoken words, gently setting the tray down on his lap; holding out the cup of hot chocolate to him so that it wouldn’t spill and cause more damage to the injured man.

“You can thank me by resting. For him, it’s optional but I cannot stress this enough. You nearly died from your injuries and if I hadn’t found you both, you would be dead.” You took a step back as you spoke, running a hand through your hair and letting out a tired sigh; it had been a long day, as well as your only day off for the week and now there was only a few hours before your next shift at the local hospital.

“Alright, I understand.”

~ ~ ~ ~ ~

“Hey! Eijiro, Tamaki, what the hell do you think you’re doing!?”

You managed to pull your arm free as Eijiro dragged you into a room, soon followed by Tamaki who blocked the doorway to prevent you from attempting to escape; the two of them had visited you during your lunch break. It had been a pleasant surprise until you found yourself being led into a building you had never seen before, for reasons they refused to explain.

“Boys, I told ya to be gentle with our precious guest.” A shiver raced through your body at the sound of the new voice, deep and sweet like honey; causing your eyes to dart to the door, seeing that Tamaki had stepped out the way to allow a giant of a man to enter the room.

“Now, this must be the little lady you were telling me about. The one that helped you when you were dying. Is that right?” Your mouth fell open as you stared up at the man, speechless while he addressed the two you had saved over a month ago now; it wasn’t clear what they wanted with you, but given the line of conversation, you prayed that things wouldn’t go south.

“That’s right, crazy lady took us to her home, patched us up, gave us her own bed then left us alone in her home to leave whenever while she went off to work” Eijiro chuckled as he spoke, shaking his head and placing his hand on your shoulder gently, offering a relaxed grin that you hadn’t before seen in an attempt to sooth your obvious worries. Despite how hard you found it to take your eyes off of the man that had entered the room.

“Relax, would ya? This is our boss. He wanted to thank you himself but we didn’t know if you’d come along with us since…” Eijiro trailed off when his boss raised his hand slightly, a signal that he had spoken too much from the looks of things; not that you were about to press him for more details. The less you knew, felt like the better.

“Why don’t the two of you give us a few minutes alone. I’ve got something I’d like to discuss with miss (Name).” No other words were needed, Tamaki and Eijiro quickly left the room, closing the door behind them and leaving you alone with a terrifyingly giant man that for some reason, seemed as if he meant you no harm; despite how you were brought to the room.

“Please, take a seat.” He motioned towards a seat while stepping past you, taking his own seat on the other side of the desk you had been standing in front of; watching you with a curious golden gaze.

“I promise not to bite, unless you’d like me to” He flashed a reassuring smile at you, similar to the one that Eijiro had offered you moments ago while you sat across from him hesitantly; fidgeting with your clothes out of nerves.

“I’m going to have to pass on that offer, I have a shift to get back to…about half an hour ago if I’m not mistaken.” You were surprised at how calm your voice sounded, given the nerves that currently raced through your system. Yet somehow, it was a manageable feat.

“Ah, yes. Your job at the local hospital…exactly what I wanted to have a chat about” He leaned back into his chair as he watched you, silent for a moment before reaching into one of the drawers of his desk; pulling out a piece of paper filled with small print that you couldn’t quite read from that distance.

“Now, to start with, my name is Taishiro Toyomitsu and you saved two of my best and most loyal men. Eijiro and Tamaki…for that, you already have my gratitude and my protection. However, I would like to offer you a better job that what you have” You blinked in surprise at his words, taking a moment to process exactly what he had said before rising to your feet and slamming your hands down onto his desk.

“What?! No, I can’t!” He chuckled at your refusal, motioning for you to take your seat again before placing the piece of paper onto the desk; tapping it lightly.

“I understand you do a lot of fantastic work at your current place of employment, however, finding someone with your talent is an exceptionally hard task and I believe we could use your talents more than a hospital full of doctors. As it is, we have no one here with any medical knowledge. You would save lives if you worked with us and we would pay double whatever it is you currently get. Your hours would be kinder as well” Taishiro spoke calmly, stating the benefits that he could think of while you stayed standing there, staring at him with wide eyes and an open mouth; no idea how to take in the offer he was currently trying to get you to accept.

“…I can’t just leave my job…if you need a doctor then I suggest go to a hospital.” Your words seemed to cause the light-hearted air around him to disappear, replacing it with one of absolute seriousness; not something you enjoyed. Not with the dark look in his eyes.

“I see, you…don’t seem to understand. Then allow me to explain. Eijiro and Tamaki are members of my gang, my right-hand men. Which as you can probably guess, makes me the leader and while my offer to you is exactly that, an offer…I don’t believe it’s something you should turn down without thinking about it first” He paused, rising to his feet and picking up the paper he had placed on the desk, holding it out to you with a small smile decorating his features; though it didn’t quite reach his eyes.

“Tamaki will take you back to work, please. Consider my offer, you could save a lot of lives here…keep my family together. Those boys you saved really took a shine to you, made them feel safer than they have in a long time.”

67 notes · View notes

lorei-writes · 3 years

Text

How To: Comments

A brief guide to commenting under the fics by Lorei.

As some of you may know, I am a court overthinker. I know that human interactions can be scary - and honestly, sometimes so is commenting. However... I wish that anxiety did not stand in way of interactions between readers and the author. So, to cut this introduction short: from me, an anxious writer-overthinker, to you, any person who may need it.

Contents:

Few general truths.

Do’s.

Don’ts.

All things I will talk about stem from my personal experience and observations. It may vary to some extent between writers, although I did my best to stick to the general trends and to mark where something is more of my personal opinion.

EDIT: As per usual, this is just the general “this will be most likely okay”. If you are doing things differently and it works out for you - great! No need to change that. This was written with people who may be anxious and/or overthinking the matter in particular. I also tried to remove myself from this as much as possible.

Few general truths.

Does my comment even matter?

Yes, it does, especially for longer series. It may be one of the few things pulling the writer through a crisis.

Your comment notifies the writer that they are indeed seen, that their words reached somebody. If the story resonated with you in any way, letting the writer know that it did may boost their self-confidence, and perhaps even motivate them to keep on writing.

The writer didn’t reply to my comment. Did I do something wrong?

No! In plenty cases, the writer may not know how to reply, simply as that. They may not have enough time, they may be too tired - just the ordinary, mundane life stuff can cause such a thing too.

An important thing to remember here is that they still appreciate it, even if they don’t have enough resources to reply to every single person - or even any of them.

How do I know the writer even welcomes comments?

Unless it is specified they do not want comments (or a certain type of comments), assume those are always welcome.

Do’s

Good will and courage is one thing, but... What could a comment even include?What things are appropriate? Ahhh, no, this is too hard...!

*catches your hand and pulls you back* No, no, no, don’t run, I’ve got you covered!

First, remember that it is way more likely that what you want to say is okay than for it to be inappropriate. Worst case scenario, the writer will tell you that well, you missed the mark - but! Then you will have the knowledge on what to avoid doing. Your potential to cause plenty good is still way greater than that to cause harm. Not only that! You can apologize! We are humans. We all make errors. Never doing a thing in fear of messing up never leads anywhere.

So, what things are generally okay*?

If the story made you feel something, say so! For example: “This made me feel happy!” “I smiled too much because of this story!” “I’m crying, nooo.” “This is so sad!” “My heart has melted.” “This made my day!” “I love it!”

If you can’t find words for your state, emojis work too! For example: 😭 ❤️ ❤️ 😳 💖 🥺 🥺 🥺 😍 💯✨

Of course, mixing up emojis with text is a great idea! The only thing you may want to be mindful of is that screen-readers do interpret emojis too - so you perhaps want to avoid emoji-[word]-emoji combinations (which overall, applies to the internet in general, btw).

The story made you think about something? Elaborate! The tricky part here is that yes, you are sharing your thoughts, but you should also tell the writer something nice about their work. The rule of thumb seems to be that it is the story that is in the spotlight, not your experience - or, in other words, you are speaking of the experience in relation to the work, not the work in relation to the experience. For example: “I love your OC, they are so relatable! I don’t think I have ever seen a character which spoke to me so much. I struggle with XYZ too, so I’m feeling for them, I know it’s hard :(” “AAAAAA. The theme of red string reminds me a little of a certain superstition. Some people here think red bows are a good-luck charms. This is wonderful, I love it. 😭💖”

Now, this may seem a little self-centered. Allow me to explain why I insist the story is kept in the spotlight. Imagine that you’ve spent your time on writing a story, however much of it. Let’s assume it’s about missing a long-deceased pet. Then, you get this comment:

“Nooo, this is so sad, I used to have a dog like that too 😭 His name was Teddy and we were best friends. We’d oftentimes sit together and sometimes I’d throw him a stick. Whenever I would cry, he’d come snuggle up with me, and he wouldn’t leave me until HOURS after I’ve calmed down. I miss him so much, I wish dogs could live forever 😭 “

Now, this makes the situation uncomfortable. You must remember that well, sometimes you may still be almost complete strangers to one another, and this much information puts a great emotional load on the writer. Is it still the writer’s space after such comment, or...? Yeah. It is a bit of a lapse in regards to well, knowing a person.

You are simply thankful and don’t know what to say? Express gratitude! For example: “Thanks for writing <3 “ “I really needed to read this story.” “Thank you!”

Other things which generally are okay to include:

key smashes (as part of the comment, so that the author knows what you mean) For example: “I’m wheezing ghesgeskgess” “ghoeigjeshes THANK YOU”

quoting the part of the work you especially liked + adding emoji at the end/commenting something under it

listing the things you enjoyed about the work

Of course, you can do some of those, you can do all of those, you can do just one - whichever suits you!

Don’ts

Okay, we know what is going to be fine. Now, what things to avoid?

Do not give critique unless the writer clearly asked for it.

Critique must be consensual. Unsolicited advice is not. Sure, your intention may be good, but it leads to backhanded compliments and nobody likes those.

Example of what not to do:

“I enjoyed it, tho it was rater boring at first and it took me several tries to even get to the half of it. Like, some things were confusing? [Explanation]. Overall, yeah, hard to understand and boring at first, but I liked it.”

Now you may ask - is the writer exempt from feedback?! And the answer is... Yes, honestly, yes. Unless they ask for it, yes. As long as they don’t hurt anybody - yes. Although then I suggest blocking instead of going on a crusade.

FanFiction isn’t the same as published books. We don’t get paid for it. It is simply an act of sharing what you enjoy with the world, like a sort of perpetuum-mobile. FanFiction propels the reader, the reader comments and thus puts the writer in motion.

Now, you can say that something made you sad. You can say that something made you angry, or that it wasn’t what you were expecting. BUT. Make sure you aren’t demanding the writer changes those things.

This stretches also to typos, grammar errors, etc. - unless you are absolutely sure the writer asks for this sort of feedback, assume it is unwelcome.

Also, from my personal experience: it happened to me once. I did not know what to reply and went on with my standard apologetic... Ekhem. I regret it. The person who commented knew less about the issue than I did.

EDIT: There is also another reason for this - most often, if a person wants to get feedback, they look for a beta-reader. Beta-reader is a person who reads the work before it is posted. Generally, they point out errors and inaccuracies. However, for it to work well, you need a certain sort of fit, both in how the message is delivered (some people do well with harsher criticism, some need to be more gentle with them), in the writing style, and so on. Another thing when looking for a beta-reader is that, well, you generally look for a person that knows more than you do, or is at a similar level. This isn’t to say that we know more than every single person out there - only that it’s hard to ascertain it at first glance and it’s generally better to talk about it before any critique is delivered. Communication is the key.

Do not ask when the next part will be posted/when your request will be completed unless you are sure the writer is okay with such questions.

When this happens, many writers feel as if they were being pressured into working harder.

Do not write fleshed out paragraphs of what you think should have happened.

If you have an idea for a story - write it. Again, we write in our free time and do it for fun. This feels like being pressured or told what to do.

What may be more grey in regards to whether it is okay or not is theorising about what happens next. To me, personally, that would be okay, but you may want to ask your writer whether they are okay with this sort of things - for example, by writing a comment with a short theory and then asking whether it’s okay to do so? However, be mindful not to tap into suggesting or putting too much pressure on what must happen.

Do not write “Imagine that... [fleshed out scenario]” type comments.

Those are basically requests hidden as comments.

Do not compare writers to other writers (You are so much better than XYZ/ You wrote trope X so much better than XYZ).

This is pretty self-explanatory. We want to lift each other up, not feel better about ourselves because of putting others down.

Another slippery situation here: some people may mind being compared to published authors. Some may not. It is hard to tell, there is no strict rule here.

Hmm... I think it’s about it? ^^” I hope it was helpful ^^” Overall, if you avoid those major Don’ts, you should be good ^^”

14 notes · View notes