You’d love me if I was gentle, right? If I wasn’t so bitter at my mother. If I wasn’t so loud, so blunt, so damaged from my past. You’d love me if I was smaller, right?
My whole life I have been trying to make myself smaller. To live a life without an echo, without a shadow. I keep my curtains closed, my head down and use my inside voice just like I’m told.
I am just a girl, occupying the space I was given when I was 5, too afraid to ask for more.
I am confined to the smallest room, in a large, empty house. I know what I am and what I could’ve been. While they are discovering the ocean, I am still trying to unlock the door. And if all that lies on the other side of the door is settled dust, please find me a comfortable place to rest. I promise I will never ask for more.
I have seen what emptiness has done to my mother and the door never unlocks. The wound never closes.
— Hannah Green, ‘As The Dust Settles’.
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Shang Qinghua becomes the one person Binghe trusts with Shen Qingqiu when he has to be away from him because when asked (and he asks everyone) "what are your intentions with my Shizun" he caught Shang Qinghua sleep deprived and fed up and so he answered "Dunno. Probably to piss him off."
When asked the inevitable "are you in love with Shizun!" instead of the usual angry or hysterical denials that he never believes Shang Qinghua answered with a deadpan "ew. That's my bro. I'd rather vacation in the endless abyss."
And then Shang Qinghua wandered off muttering about how Mobei has much better tits anyway
He didn't bother to ask Mobei these questions because Mobei keeps making what he thinks are subtle digs about how HIS human is the superior one
Which would normally piss Binghe off for many reasons but it means that he knows for a fact his right hand man won't try to fuck his husband so he puts up with it
Sha Hualing he puts up with because he told her and Mobei about the other Luo Binghe and mentioned the harem they had this conversation:
Sha Hualing: If you're not gonna can I collect them?
Luo Binghe: you want a harem?
Sha Hualing: yeah but not that big. I only need like a hundred wives and husbands at most. Mostly I think it could be fun! Yingying and Yan-er tell me I need more girls who are friends and it sounds exciting!
Luo Binghe: as long as it doesn't distract you from your duties
Sha Hualing: *clapping her hands* Yay! I'm going to kidnap Yang Yixuan and tell him the good news! Oh! He can come with me! I'll take Yingying as well! She needs more practice fighting
Luo Binghe: how many people from Cang Qiong are you fucking?!
Sha Hualing: less than 20! But they all know and they all know my favourites! I made sure to cum-oo-n-e-cat after we sat through Peak Lord Mu's lesson on romancing humans
Mobei Jun: *who found that lesson both very helpful and very pointed* that's very conservative of you.
Sha Hualing: ikr? You and Junshang are rubbing off on me. Making me act all old fashioned and stuff though this human method of talking is really hard to get the hang of
Mobei Jun: mn. It is very necessary for their health but they also do not do the cum-oo-n-e-cat very well either. It's very strange.
Luo Binghe: it's communicate! And...I'm going to be with people who aren't you two for awhile
This got away from me
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One thing that is relevant to my work in Making Queer History is the fact that I never went to university. To be honest, I used to be really ashamed of that. Because of that shame, I often give alternative narratives around queer history a bit more grace, assuming that the person spouting them has more experience than I do. I have been working in queer history for eight years now, but I'm well aware that I haven't seen even a fraction of what is out there to find.
For a while I forced myself to watch James Somerton videos because he spoke about history in a way I had never heard before. I assumed that meant he knew something I didn't. Eventually, he crossed a line with sexist critiques that were borderline nonsensical, so I stopped watching. But there was still that persistent feeling of unease. Like maybe I just wasn't educated enough to understand him.
To be frank, James Somerton is a cisgender gay man with a degree, so I gave his words more leeway than I should have. That's a character flaw I need to work on. But the bigger picture is that there is an image a lot of people have around expertise. We are lucky that someone of similar standing in that regard spoke out. But let's not pretend that people hadn't already pulled the alarm. In the video that stripped away Somerton's reputation bit by bit (and outside of it), there were many moments of queer women and trans people pointing out problems with his work. I would go so far as to say that it's likely that even more queer women and trans people who felt something wrong but didn't say anything. Like I didn't. Because, at best, you start drama against someone who is well-respected. At worst, you lose your own credibility.
I have had cisgender people explain trans history to me, and I let them. I have had uneducated people tell me that Greece was the pinnacle of queer history, and I let them. I have had James Somerton spout nonsense at me, and I let him. I would hope that through this, I learn to be cognizant of when the image of expertise overwhelms the reality of it.
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After the dust settles
Summary: You and Ari got into a fight.
Pairing: Ari Levinson x fem!Reader
Warnings: angst, language, jealous reader, fluff
Written for: Winter Break Advent: Day 11 - Romantic fluff
Words: 1.1k+
After the dust settles you stare at yourself in the mirror. What happened? Why did you have to fight over stupid nonsense? Now it feels like everything you built over two years lies in ruins at your feet. – Just like the silver picture frame he gifted to you for Valentine’s Day.
He spent too much time with his friends, especially his lady friend, Rachel. You never liked the blonde. Maybe it was only your imagination, or your jealous streak telling you she’s after your man.
It’s not the first time you have tried to talk to Ari and make him see that Rachel is not interested in being only friends with your boyfriend. She always plays nice around Ari, but the looks she gives you tell a different story. Her smile is sugar-sweet, but her eyes give the truth away.
Rachel wants your man, and you are fairly sure you just drove Ari into her welcoming arms. His smile and soft kisses will be hers from now on, and you will be left outside alone once again.
You sniffle and kneel next to the broken picture frame. Your fingers tremble when you try to part the shards from the picture of you and Ari. The frame is broken in the middle, just like your heart.
Ari will turn his back on you due to a stupid fight. The waitress at the bar called Rachel and Ari a cute pair. You tried not to take it to heart that he danced with Rachel at the bar and paid for her drinks. But the waitress’s comment was too much.
You stormed out of the bar, walking away when Ari called your name. He followed you home and tried to talk to you but you started a fight. All the pent-up anger you held back for so long broke free.
The last thing you said was that if he wants Rachel, he should go to her and never come back. And he just did that. He looked at you for a moment, shook his head, and stormed out of your house.
That was around three hours ago and since then, you couldn’t move, or think. You just stared at the picture frame, feeling like you were frozen in time.
“I let her win,” you choke out a sob. “I let that bitch win!”
You get back up and step over the broken frame. If you lost Ari tonight, you need something to numb the pain. Anything…
“Ari,” you sniffle as you end up on voicemail once again. “Ari, I’m a little drunk. Baby, I’m sorry. I don’t want you to go to her. I want you here.”
You sigh deeply. “Ari?? Can you hear me?” You slur into the phone. “Baby? I’m all alone and I need you here. Please?”
You sigh deeply as you hang up the phone. With trembling fingers, you dial his number again.
“Ari…I’m mad at you for leaving me here. I hate drinking, you know that,” you scrunch up the nose. “It tastes like old socks. But not yours. I bet yours would taste good. Even your sweat tastes good.”
You hang up the phone only to dial his number again. “I forgot to tell you that I hate that woman. She always looks at me like she wants to kill me only because I love you. That’s it. I won’t call again.”
This time you turn off your phone and throw it onto your bed. You give up. Ari won’t answer your calls and you are sure, it’s because he’s with Rachel now.
Why not? No one is keeping him from being with the woman he wants. You gave him permission to be with Rachel. It’s your own fault.
If only you weren’t such a fool sometimes…
“Y/N? Peanut?” Ari stumbles into your house. He desperately calls your name, searching for you in every room. “BABY? I’m worried. Please make a noise. Y/N, are you alive?”
He jogs upstairs, almost tripping over his feet as he tries to check the rooms upstairs.
“Peanut? BABE!!” He looks inside the bathroom, huffing as your clothes lie splattered on the ground. Ari grins and snaps a picture before walking toward the bedroom. “Y/N?”
Ari sneaks inside the room, tiptoeing toward the bed only to find you curled up on his side of the bed. You’re cradling three of his shirts in your arms and snore lightly. “So, the lady doesn’t snore, huh?” He grins and gets out his phone to film you. “I’ll so tease you for this.”
“Ari…” you murmur in your sleep and hold the shirts even tighter. “Asshole.”
“Thank you for the compliment,” he grunts as he kicks off his shoes. “I’ll talk about your fecal language with your later, Y/N. You little stubborn peanut.”
While you mutter in your sleep, Ari joins you on the bed. He wraps his arms around you and kisses your hair. “Ari.”
“I’m sorry for leaving. I was mad at myself, not you. You were right all along. Rachel is not a good friend. When I came to her tonight to convince her to come with me and tell you that you don’t need to worry about her being into me she told me the truth.”
“Ari?” Your eyes snap open when you feel someone press himself against your back. “Please tell me it’s you.”
“Hey, Peanut?” He grins when you turn your head to look at him. “What did you drink? You called me fifteen times. I was already on my way back.”
“UH-I butt-called you,” you lie. The last thing you want is to let Ari get away with his behavior easily. “Maybe you have mistaken me with your lady friend.”
“Y/N, I don’t want to fight again. I’m sorry, okay. Please believe me that I only love you. Rachel was a friend to me, nothing else.”
“You dance with her, Ari! That waitress believed you were Rachel’s boyfriend, not mine,” you sniffle and angrily wipe your eyes. “I don’t want to fight but for you to see that I was hurt.”
“Baby…you’re right. I was wrong,” he gives you a cracked smile. “I told her that we cannot be friends if she wants to get in my pants. Then she tried to jump at me.”
“What? I’ll scratch her eyes out!” You square your jaw. “Let me kill her.”
“That’s my girl,” Ari grins proudly. “Don’t worry, Peanut. I told her to get lost and that I’m going to go home to my girl, kiss her, and tell her that I was a fool.”
“Good for your girl,” you relax in his arms. “I hope you know that I won’t forgive you so easily…”
Tags in reblog.
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Things I Personally Want to See in Season 2
In no particular order:
Alastor learns what asexuality is and finds a way to be annoying about it
Episode actually focusing on Lucifer's mental state, or at least some scattered references to the idea that one touching song with his daughter wasn't enough to "fix" anything
Valentino dies
Pentious trying to fit into Heaven interspersed with bits about his life in Hell and/or before he died
Vaggie hanging out/bonding with characters other than Charlie
Valentino dies horribly onscreen
Entire episode recounted as an anecdote on Alastor's radio program - most of the show is the events with occasional witty narration and cuts back to the studio, mostly for his commentary but occasionally for silly jokes and off-air moments. We also get to see his lead-in, some pot-shots at the Vees, and how he handles it when a fly gets into the booth (violently).
Sera tries to assassinate Pentious, or at least cover up his presence in Heaven
Emily goes to Hell - not as in falling (maybe as in falling), but at least something showing her reacting to it, possibly with some kind of sinister reprise of "Welcome to Heaven" wherein everyone else is inured to things that terrify her
Angel brings up BDSM again and Charlie actually takes him seriously/challenges her assumptions about sex negativity
Vox explicitly has some kind of Alastor shrine or cork board or something, and he's secretly trying desperately to figure out what happened during the seven-year gap
Nifty dates someone
Rosie visits the hotel
Charlie tries to ban booze in the hotel, and Husk, Angel, and Alastor (mostly because he's amused and nostalgic) create a speakeasy in the basement
Valentino is brutally murdered by one of the main cast - ideally Lucifer, Alastor, Vaggie, or Husk
St. Peter turns out to have a more normal set of facial expressions when he's not at work
Alastor's mom is officially introduced
Lucifer and Lilith have it out and get seriously divorced
One of the new sinners at the hotel is a cannibal who learned about it from the battle preparations
The hotel gets attacked and Alastor and Lucifer argue about who gets to disembowel the attackers until Charlie has to step in and scare them off. Later, once they've worked out their differences a little, they keep doing the "after you" thing until the same thing happens.
Vox does something competent
Vox blurts out that he's in love with Alastor live on-air
Angel Dust establishes that he doesn't have a problem with sex work and is fine continuing to do it post-Valentino. He just doesn't want to be exploited.
Alastor tries to fix his microphone without his full powers and embarrasses himself
Velvette does something significant
Valentino dies
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