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friendsofbelmontvillage · 1 year

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Opinion Pieces in the Record

In today’s Record, there are two pieces that caught my eye – an op ed from Mike Schreiner (Ontario Leader of the Greens & MPP for Guelph) and a column by Luisa D’Amato (Record columnist). For the benefit of those who do not have full access to TheRecord.com, I have included both pieces in the body of this email. I have also included a Record editorial, published November 1st.

I encourage you to carefully read these pieces and make your own decisions on how/if you can support the views presented (e.g. a letter to the Premier, letter to your MPP, letters to Regional Chair and Councillors, letters to your mayor and councillors, letter to the editor, etc.).

Please share these published pieces with your friends and neighbours and ask them to also take supportive actions.

Jeff Bennett

OPINION

There’s no excuse for sprawling onto the Greenbelt

Doug Ford is now blaming newcomers for his pro-sprawl agenda and Greenbelt assault. We need real, bold housing solutions — not petty excuses.

By Mike Schreiner Contributor

Thu., Nov. 17, 2022 timer3 min. read

Doug Ford is clearly starting to run out of excuses to justify his government’s expensive pro-sprawl agenda. As the housing crisis worsens, and more and more Ontarians struggle to find an affordable place to call home, the Ontario premier has now found a new scapegoat: blaming newcomers and increased immigration targets for his broken Greenbelt promise that will lead to the destruction of farmland and nature.

Ford’s claim that increased immigration justifies bulldozing the Greenbelt for expensive sprawl is not only offensive but also wildly incorrect. There is more than enough land for development within existing urban boundaries; according to one estimate, there are 88,000 acres approved for development in the Greater Golden Horseshoe alone.

A report from the government’s own Housing Affordability Task Force came to the same conclusion: a shortage of land is not the cause of the housing crisis. The task force went so far as to say that the Greenbelt, along with other environmentally sensitive areas and farms, must be protected.

Yet, Ford’s government has spent the past four years pushing the narrative that we have to choose between providing housing and protecting the environment. This is a false choice.

What is lacking isn’t space for more housing — it’s ambition and real solutions from the Ford government that will actually address the crisis, not just benefit wealthy land speculators and pro-sprawl developers.

Over a year and a half ago, the Ontario Greens put forward a housing plan that was widely applauded and praised by housing experts. We’d have loved it if the government had stolen all of our ideas.

But unfortunately, Bill 23, the government’s eagerly anticipated housing bill, is a flop. A wholly insufficient piece of legislation that misses the mark on multiple fronts, setting the province on a path to massive sprawl, environmental destruction, and an even worse housing and affordability crisis.

So it’s time for action and real solutions. We need to build the type of housing that people — including newcomers to Ontario — can afford, in the communities they want to live in.

Instead of building the wrong homes in the wrong places (million-dollar mansions on the Greenbelt), let’s build where people, especially young people, want to live: in affordable 15-minute communities where people can be close to jobs, family, shops and transit.

We need to abandon the false choice between “tall and sprawl” by allowing construction of fourplexes and walk-up apartments in neighbourhoods, along with midrise housing along arterial roads and transit corridors — not just transit stations. And we need to innovate to provide ownership opportunities within triplexes, fourplexes and walk-up apartments in existing neighbourhoods.

No more sprawl means no more expensive two-hour commutes that decrease quality of life and increase climate pollution. It also means protecting people from the huge financial costs of sprawl. Cities and taxpayers would save millions with higher-density development.

We’re running out of time. How Ontario addresses the housing crisis right now will chart the course for decades and generations to come. We can build more homes in existing built-up spaces and create a livable, affordable, climate-friendly future where young people and newcomers can find an affordable place to call home in walkable, healthy, connected communities. Or we can have expensive, unsustainable, Greenbelt-razing sprawl that only benefits wealthy speculators while putting communities at risk of flooding and making the climate crisis even worse.

It’s time for Premier Ford to step up and put people before speculators. To stop making excuses for his failing housing policy, abandon his pro-sprawl agenda and implement real solutions to address the housing crisis without sacrificing environmental protections. A whole generation of people is relying on him.

Mike Schreiner is leader of the Ontario Greens and MPP for Guelph.

OPINION

Why is Premier Ford suggesting that municipal reform will lead to more housing in Waterloo Region?

Reviewing roles and responsibilities of different layers of government won’t solve the housing shortage in Waterloo Region. Why is Premier Doug Ford suggesting it will, Luisa D’Amato asks

By Luisa D’Amato Record Columnist

Fri., Nov. 18, 2022 timer3 min. read

It’s as if Premier Doug Ford is trying to unlock a door with a screwdriver instead of a key.

This week’s announcement, that reform of municipal governance in Waterloo Region is being looked at once again, in order to create more housing, doesn’t make any sense.

One has almost nothing to do with the other.

Ford has announced a number of sweeping changes lately, including plans to investigate — once again — municipal reform in Waterloo, Niagara, Peel, York, Durham and Halton regions.

He promised that facilitators will be appointed to “work with local governments to access the best mix of roles and responsibilities between upper- and lower-tier municipalities, and ensure they are equipped to deliver on the government’s commitment to tackle the housing supply crisis,” the Ford government said in a statement Wednesday.

“These bold actions are necessary if our government is to keep its commitment to Ontarians and remove the obstacles standing in the way of much-needed housing.”

But how on earth does municipal reform — which looks at issues like whether there should be just one fire department for the whole of Waterloo Region, instead of many — do anything to change the housing supply crisis?

In other cities, it may be the case that councillors are holding up approvals for much-needed housing developments, and the mayors need extra powers to move the process forward.

But that’s not the case in Waterloo Region.

Here, there are 32,000 housing units in the pipeline. They’re waiting to be built, on land within urban boundaries, which has already been approved for that purpose.

Waterloo Region has a “countryside line” outside its cities to prevent sprawl encroaching on our farmland and natural areas. This protected area is not under threat from the call for more housing, because there is still plenty of land inside the urban areas that’s already approved for homebuilding.

This isn’t Toronto, and our countryside line is not the Greenbelt.

We need more homes for our growing population, including immigrants. We need more homes so that the laws of supply and demand can help bring the price down of those homes for everyone.

But some of these 32,000 homes that have been approved are not being built in a timely manner.

They’re delayed by a variety of factors including economic conditions, a shortage of skilled tradespeople to do the building, and competitive disputes between different developers (as in: “He’s taking his sweet time to approve the stormwater management plan I need, so I’ll take my sweet time on agreeing to run his sewer pipe through my property.”)

Municipalities do not have control over these factors.

Municipal reform in Waterloo Region is badly needed, no question about that. With our regional government overlaying three cities and four townships, there are too many layers of bureaucracy, and mass confusion regarding who does what. Over the years, there have been many attempts to solve this, largely unsuccessful. There’s no harm in trying once more.

But if it’s more housing that we want, municipal reform is irrelevant. An unnecessary, time-wasting detour.

There’s actually a simple fix to hurry up the housing, experts say.

All Ford has to do is give municipal councils the power to say to developers: “If you don’t get this development completed within a certain time, the approval expires.”

Municipalities don’t have that power now. If they did, developers would find a way to overcome the delays. The housing we need so badly would appear on time.

How about that, Premier Ford?

Luisa D’Amato is a Waterloo Region-based staff columnist for The Record. Reach her via email: [email protected]

EDITORIAL

Jeff

Ontario’s housing plan needs work

Queen’s Park is on an urgent mission to build new housing. But this headlong rush can’t come at the expense of environmental protections or leave municipal taxpayers stuck with the bill.

By Record Editorial Waterloo Region Record

Tue., Nov. 1, 2022 timer3 min. read

There’s a lot to unpack in Ontario’s housing announcement.

There are elements to like, such as proposals to streamline approvals and crack down on unscrupulous developer sales practices. There are elements that need fixing, like who pays for the financial incentives dangled to developers.

And there are elements that need clarification, like the protection of rental units when a building is demolished, along with worrisome changes that appear to undermine the role of conservation authorities.

The sweeping legislative package, titled the “More Homes Built Faster Act,” leaves no doubt the provincial government is intent on making progress to its somewhat arbitrary goal of getting 1.5 million homes built over the next decade. It leaves no doubt either that Queen’s Park is less interested in cajoling or persuading stakeholders like municipalities on this mission. It’s simply dictating the new rules of the game.

For example, the proposed legislation would override municipal zoning rules to permit denser housing “as of right” for certain residential areas no matter what local politicians had decided for their town and city. It’s a blunt instrument that erodes municipal authority. But it holds the promise of cutting through the sometimes intractable neighbourhood opposition that can stall change.

And it’s hard to argue against the type of housing this change is intended to facilitate. The legislation would override local zoning laws to permit up to three residential units on land now zoned for one home. The new units could be a basement suite or a laneway or garden home, the province says. The legislation would also establish minimum densities for housing around transit hubs.

The province also intends to eliminate fees and charges to provide an incentive to get certain types of housing built. That can be a useful tool. Yet the municipalities will lose these funds, which are collected specifically to pay for the urban infrastructure that supports this growth.

Development charges (DCs) are fees cities apply to most new construction. That money is put into a big pot, and is all earmarked by law for different types of infrastructure.

It didn’t have to be this way. The province could have chosen instead to use its considerable powers, such as tax incentives, to encourage more affordable housing development, which the province describes as 80 per cent of average market rents, and attainable as no more than 30 per cent of an individual’s gross income.

Instead Queen’s Park has chosen to penalize municipalities, suggesting that federal dollars can be used to refund cities for lost development charges. The federal government has not yet said whether or not that is allowable.

Bottom line, cash-strapped municipalities can’t be left on the hook for this costly promise.

The legislation also proposes what, on the face of it, are potentially worrisome changes to the role of conservation authorities in the planning process. These agencies — there 36 in Ontario — manage watersheds and have an important role in the management and protection of these natural habitats.

Under the proposal, authorities would no longer consider pollution or the conservation of land as factors when considering a development. As well, authorities have been told to identify land in their holdings that could support housing development. That seems at odds with their conservation mission. These changes need to be clarified and the impact better understood.

Another concerning aspect is the vow to review municipal regulations that protect rental stock when apartment buildings are demolished for redevelopment. Those rules ensure that rental housing is preserved for existing tenants at the same rent.

Also, one of the strategies appears to be to make homes more affordable by putting less aside for parkland. Cities typically require that developers set aside one hectare of land for every 300 units built. The new legislation is calling for one hectare per 600 units. In other words, the province will halve the land being required for parks. That is not a step forward.

Queen’s Park is on an urgent mission to build new housing. But this headlong rush can’t come at the expense of environmental protections or leave municipal taxpayers stuck with the bill.

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fandom-collective-writers · 4 years

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A Taste of Envy (Le Comte de Saint Germain X MC)

Fandom: Ikemen Vampire

Pairing: Comte de Saint Germain x MC (Female)

Warning: NSFW and there are spoilers featuring Comte’s real name.

Requested by: Anonymous

Written by: @voltage-vixen

“Come closer to me,” Comte murmured, encircling his arms around MC’s body. Enclosing her between the muscles that defined the cuts of his thighs, water rippled around them as her body swayed into his. He felt the contractions of her chest as she reconciled into his embrace, eliciting a serene sigh from the vampire. The slight distance between them had become more than his tolerance allowed him to bear, and her touch was the only cure to settle the fray of nerves still rattled from the encounter earlier.

Previously that evening the couple had attended a ball being hosted by an acquaintance of the pure blood to celebrate the night of Hallow’s Eve. Whilst his partner’s natural charm enchanted the attenders of the party, a green-eyed monster nearly engulfed all sense of the pride endured when one of the guests was acting too familiar after succumbing to a substantial amount of liquor. Undeterred by the stranger’s advances, there was no hesitation in Comte’s actions when he whisked her away back to the safety of his own mansion. Resolved in wanting to cleanse her pureness from the sins that were cast upon MC from the man’s lecherous behavior prior, Comte was pleased when she conceded on with his invitation to join him for a bath to unwind.

“Your angelic face is flushed, ma cherie,” the husk of Comte’s voice purred into MC’s ear. “Perhaps the bath water too warm for your liking this evening?” The sense of rationality that was embodied into the foundation in the whims of his beliefs, was cloaked by his desires of his envy. The shine of the full moon illuminated through the colossal window in the bathroom, and her beauty went beyond what words were capable of portraying as she basked in the moonlight.

He wanted-no! Not wanted but needed. He needed her. And he needed MC to understand he was the only one worthy vying for her affections. His fingers traveled and roamed the length of her body, delivering tantalizing caresses as he kneaded away at the softness of her delicate skin. She shivered when the back of his hand grazed across the side of her wet neck, to sweep the damp curls of her hair to the side of her flushed neck.

“You know exactly why already, Abel,” she whimpered, as his lips grazed against the bareness of her clammy shoulder. The occurrence was rare when MC referred to the man by his real name, but when the words rolled from the tip of her tongue when his touch left her undone was enough to awaken the carnal craving within him. His cock twitched in greed, evoking a gasp of bewilderment when MC felt him suddenly press against her lower back.

A sensuous moan escaped MC when the distraction of Comte’s protruding fangs pressed against the smoothness of her skin, dragging them closer to the sweet spot on her neck the vampire acquainted as one of the woman’s acclaimed erogenous zones. The tips of his fangs provocatively pointed into MC’s skin, yet not enough to pierce the barrier keeping Comte from ravaging her. His foreplay was delightful, but the sensation of his erection so close to her heat, combined with the vampire’s fangs close to penetration was driving her mad in a lasciviousness fit. Her hips wiggled in impatience hoping that Comte would finally release MC from his tormentous teasing, yet instead he simply chuckled and only carried on in his mission to provoke her further. Overtaken by horniness, MC knew she no longer accommodate Comte in his game of cat and mouse.

“Now,” she mewled, attempting to grind herself against the friction of his thick arousal that was more than ready to take her. “Do more now. Anything more. I need to feel more of you. Please, my love.”

Rather than submit to her indulgences, Comte reached around to the front of her body, until his palms were cupping the mounds of her breasts. Gently squeezing the sensitive flesh, MC’s head arched back when his fingers toyed with the perkiness of her nipples. His massaging sparked joys of bliss, inducing a tickle between the opening of her thighs.

“I admire how independent of a woman you are, ma cherie,” he sensually crooned into her ear. “However, I’m also infatuated with the way you melt when I’m pleasuring you.”

While one of his hands traipsed over to cover her eyes, the other sauntered down deeper into the water. Deeper and deeper until he brushed the swell of her clit. Wanting to push her further beyond the brink of coherency, Comte’s finger glided beyond her velvet folds and plunged into the heat of her slit. The intrusion was wonderous, and MC’s walls instantaneously clenched around him. With her vision currently blinded by the vampire’s hand, her senses were heightened, and she was tightening around him much sooner than she normally did during one of their traditional lovemaking sessions.

“Please, don’t make me wait any longer,” MC cried out. “You hold my heart, my soul, and my body. Everything I have, I offer to you. There could never be another.”

There they were. There were the words that set Comte free. Oh, how precious this sweet woman was. Little did MC realize that she underestimated how crazy she drove him. Ignoring her objections when he pro tempore freed her from his released, Comte hastily latched his grip on the curves of MC’s waist. He lifted her up by the hips and lowered her down onto the heat of his arousal. MC chewed the bottom of her lip to keep the screams from pouring out while the solid cock of her lover stretched her walls from behind.

“Don’t hold back,” Comte coaxed, knowingly mindful of her attempts to remain quiet. “Let me hear your stunning voice, ma cherie.” While maintaining the rhythm of her bouncing, Comte wasted not a moment’s notice assaulting that special spot on the side of her neck. The slight pain from the insert of his fangs was instantly infused with jolts of pleasure. Her toes curled, and MC’s whines grew louder as her lower belly began to flutter.

She was so close. And Comte was aware. There was no other in the world out there that understood her better than he. Ready to send the woman to heaven, Comte took pause and adjusted himself underneath her. With a powerful snap of his hips, MC screamed out in joy at the welcomed assault. Each thrust became more desperate as he wanted her to remember that only he could instill this blissful feeling upon her. Comte pushed her further and further, resounding in the sounds of her harmonious moans, until at last MC’s body trembled. Uttering a gratifying cry, she collapsed back into the comfort of his toned chest.

“Ah, ma cherie,” Comte groaned, reaching his own climax behind her. He hugged MC closer to him, panting loudly while together they finished coming back down from the high of nirvana they were finding themselves lost in.

“You were lovely as always,” Comte murmured once his breath was regained. She hummed in response, and he nuzzled his chin down to rest on the top of her head. MC joined her hand with his that was encompassed her waist and entwined their fingers.

“Abel?” she softly spoke, breaking the comfortable silence lingering in the air. “Were you…...Were you jealous?”

One of Comte’s worst fears had come to light-MC was bearing witness to one of his weaknesses. A rare shade of crimson stained his cheeks, and he let out an awkward cough before replying.

“I-I suppose my actions were the result of one what may classify as envy,” he murmured, embarrassed she had put the two and two together. His head dropped and Comte tried to turn away in shame, but MC’s elated squeals halted him.

“Abel, you have no idea how happy that makes me,” MC assured, wiping away at a stray tear dripping from her eyelash. “I accept every side of you, but it’s nice to see that even your self-control can waiver at times. You never have to worry about holding yourself back in front of me.”

Turning around to face him, MC clasped the sides of his face. Both leaning in, their lips united, exchanging small and delicate kisses. Small was no longer enough, and their breaths hitched with the escalation of each kiss. Their frantic hands explored each other, refusing to cease until they were tangled up in the locks of the others hair. The water splashing around them had long grew cold, but the heat from their bodies made such a minute detail unnoticeable.

The twinkling moon outside remained high in the sky, continued to shine down on the couple. Lost in their enrapture with each other, Comte and MC forgot about the mansion and the world they lived in. Time seemed to stand still as they lost themselves in each other, spending a countless amount of times reaffirming their love into the late hours of the night.

#ikemen vampire #ikemen vampire comte #ikemen vampire fanfic #ikevamp comte #ikemen vampire smut #le comte de saint germain #le comte de saint germain smut #ikevamp fanfic #ikevamp smut #cybird fanfic

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chibimyumi · 4 years

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I completely forgot how creepy Nina Hopkins used to be when she first appeared. Do you think Yana is fixing another mistake? Because in last chapter Nina is still being creepy but it's more like she's too excited to notice Meyrin discomfort. Or is this just me trying to be positive?

【Response to: Man!Greller Debunking Series, header 6】

【Relevant post: Yana and Grell, Owning up to Mistakes】

Dear Anon,

I think there is too little information to be able to tell whether Yana is trying to fix the mistake of portraying a gay woman as a molester (with strong pedophilic undertones), but judging from the material there is, I would say it is possible that Yana is trying, but that if she is, her efforts are not as clear as what she has been trying to do for Grell and for Chinese characters.

Please allow me to explain why I think so.

Character Introduction

First, let us look at the main points about Nina, and how she was established. When we first get introduced to Yana, the first impression we have of her is a predatory gay woman who has zero regards for other people’s personal space or consent.

Except for just molesting Meyrin’s breasts and thighs, when working for O!Ciel she also just ripped his clothes apart. Sure, she did not make any attempts to touch him further, but ripping someone’s clothes from their body just like that is a move that stems from lack of respect for someone else’s body.

On top of her lack of respect for others’ bodily autonomy, Nina is also a raging sexist and hides behind the shield of #FEMINISM, and likewise has no regard for the feelings of likewise her customers (Finny and Bard).

This of course is played for laughs, but that does not justify this #FeM!NIsT action... [please click here for more about female sexism for laughs.]

By the time that Nina was introduced, we were already familiar with a character who is actually rather similar to her... the Viscount of Druitt.

The Viscount of Druitt is the first character to be established as someone who has “unrestrained libido”, and we also learned that touching a young child whom he acknowledges to be too young is fine according to him.

The Viscount is a gag character, his ‘threat’ was placed solely on the fact that he partook in human trafficking, and his pedophilic action was entirely unaddressed. Considering Yana’s job history, we can also assume this was a problem she did not see as something that had to be addressed.

This confirmed that the creator is comfortable with an adult advancing on children, and the Viscount together with the clear Seba/Ciel baiting served to “warm us up” for the concept of shota-con.

So by the time Nina makes her entrance and proclaims to be only interested in women AND boys under the age of fifteen, the manga probably expected its already-warmed-up readers to assume that ‘to be interested in’ refers to a sexual way considering how she pounced for Meyrin the moment she saw her.

Homosexual people are being associated with predatory pedophiles, because homosexual are deemed to have ‘unrestrained libido’... this all is the result of the slippery slope argumentation fallacy... “‘same sex love?’ What about animals? What about children!” (FoxNews’ favourite ( ^ v ~ ))

In Kuroshitsuji so far there have only been two characters who are confirmed to not be straight, and thus it is rather unfortunate that both of them are weirdly okay with being “interested” in children.

Second Appearance

By Nina’s second appearance she has not molested anybody, so I would say there is improvement that in the least she did not commit sexual assault. But sadly ‘not groping someone’ is hardly enough to redeem a character. Otherwise her raging sexism still hasn’t improved an inch.

But considering how she is a super minor character, we cannot expect Yana to suddenly drop her “iconic #RagingFeMin!iSt behaviour” without giving her a semblance of a redemption arc. As her sexist behaviour is basically the trait she is now known by, I would say we probably won’t see it disappear in future. But as long as she is not groping anybody, I personally can live with her. I don’t LIKE it, but I can live with it.

Third Appearance

When Nina makes her third appearance she is still just the same #RagingFeMin!iSt, but she has not touched anybody unsolicited. So here too the ‘improvement’ from her second appearance has at least not been undone.

****TLN: I retranslated this line because in the scanlation I found, it was wrongly translated. The mistranslation said “as usual, it’s refreshing to an extent to ignore you.” This is not Sebastian saying he wants to ignore Nina, it’s him showing his dismay at being ignored thoroughly again.

Latest Appearance

In Nina’s latest appearance she does show some clear disdain for Sebastian, but here too she does not grope Meyrin. Although you could say that flirting with somebody you had just met with such proximity is a bit rude, this too is forgivable as long as this is where she stops.

Difference between Nina, Grell and Chinese characters

The main difference between why Yana’s attempts at fixing her mistake in her portrayal of transgender people and Chinese people work is the timeline.

In this latest portrayal of Nina, the timeline is set in the past. Because we have confirmation that in future Nina would grope Meyrin, none of Nina’s mistakes have been ‘compensated for’. Nina going from relative restrain to sexually aggressive can easily be understood as Nina’s fondness for Meyrin having grown over time, after all. Hence, Nina’s problematic portrayal has not been fixed, and neither has the connection between ‘homosexuals and predatory pedophiles’ been broken... i.e. no character growth.

Nina’s ‘more acceptable behaviour’ is different to Grell’s in function. Grell had made a grave mistake in the past. But later when she had her appearance, all her controlled behaviour was shown as the result of her disciplinary confinement and self-reflection. Therefore the audience knows that her terrible behaviour is probably left in the past for good. 【Click here for full analysis】i.e. Character growth!🎉

As for Chinese characters. Meyrin’s ‘problematic portrayal’ was that when she was introduced she was pretty useless and spoke Chinglish. Later it was confirmed that Meyrin is not bad at English at all, but that her Chinglish was in fact a choice. Perhaps a front that she had put up as a professional choice considering her current job as Phantomhive sniper. 【Click here and here for the full explanation】

Lau was portrayed as a clown character, accompanied by your #SexualisedKungfuChinaGirl Ranmao, and he seemed to fulfill no other role than comic relief... a role Chinese characters often fulfill in both Japanese and Western media.

Later in the Mansion Murder arc however, we got a pretty solid confirmation that Lau was not in fact a clown, and was switching between masks to fool others. Then in the Public School arc, we got undeniable confirmation that Lau would use British people’s stereotypes against British people to get things done.

Then in his latest ‘cameo’ in chapter 159, we got yet another undeniable confirmation that Lau is not just not a clown, but in fact a man so fearsome, so powerful he managed to scare a respected syndicate leader in London. We now know that the two Chinese people we thought to be useless Chinglish speakers at first are both terribly dangerous, potent people.

Conclusion

While in-real-world timeline wise, these #problematic characters all have improved behaviour or acceptable explanations as for their past behaviours, I would say the problem of Nina’s character has not been fixed because of the in-story timeline.

While Grell, Lau and Meyrin’s problems are effectively left in the past through story-telling and potent writing of Yana, for Nina the same cannot be said.

I hope this helps! (*´｀*)ノ

#Nina Hopkins #character analysis #analysis #ugh... Yana... XD

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thehollowprince · 4 years

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Context is Everything, Pt. 2

Or... "Have You Actually Watched The Show?"

Pt. 1, with excellent additions by @camelotpark and @princeescaluswords can be found here.

As anyone who follows me knows, I've been particularly active when it comes to defending Scott McCall on Teen Wolf recently, because we've had a lot of anons (one anon on repeat) harassing us. It made me more familiar with those who are just hellbent on taking Scott and casting him in the absolute worst possible light at every opportunity.

As such, occasionally, I'll find myself venturing behind enemy lines to see what nonsense they're spouting now out of a sense of morbid curiosity.

And boy did I find some doozies this time around.

For example:

This is why this post is titled Context, because its something that these people conveniently leave out when they try to woobify certain characters and demonize others.

Take this one - every line written down there is taken out-of-context. If people actually watched the show, they'd know that Derek was living in the burned out shell of his family home by his own choice. We found out later that he had a hell of a lot of money, enough to by entire building. Hell, there were even clues before that, in the fact that he drove around in an expensive muscle car and clearly had enough cash to replace a shattered window on said car in a relatively short period of time. Derek lived in squalor (first the mansion and then the train station) by choice, which is entirely apparent if one would just watch the show.

And then there's the attempt to deflect by bringing up Derek's trauma, hoping that people won't pay attention to all the horrible things Derek did in the first two seasons. These people straight up switch the definitions of Excuse and Explain in an attempt to make Derek's actions, particularly toward Scott and Stiles seem either not that bad, or weirdly enough, romantic (in the case of Stiles). They like to pretend that the horrible things that Derek went through (which explain his behavior) give him free reign to do whatever he wants, particularly when it comes to assaulting Scott (them trying to excuse his behavior.)

They wave Derek's trauma, being sexually assaulted and manipulated by Kate Argent who used him so that she could murder his family as an excuse for him to assault teenagers new to this world, breaking-and-entering, attempted murder (more than once) and actual murder. This is even more disturbing when you remember that the same people who love to troy out what Kate did to him when he was a teenager love to ship Derek as an adult with Stiles, who is a teenager. The irony is so thick you could choke on it.

Derek may have had one of the most fulfilling arcs on this show, but just because he finally stopped trying so hard to be something he wasn't and learned to let go, doesn't absolve him of the things he did in earlier seasons. Was he a hero by the end of the show? Yes, but he wasn't always. His first two seasons were him being one of the antagonists to being more akin to an actual villain (not the main villain, but still a villain - or anti-villain) in the second season.

And then we have this gem:

Once again, every aspect of context from the show is removed from these sentences to make Scott look like the worst thing since the plague.

Without context this just paints Scott as some warmongering asshole who goes around picking up random teenager shapeshifters and inducting them into his personal war.

With context, we know that Scott saved that kid, Alec, from Tamora and her hunters after they'd already killed all of his friends/pack. Scott didn't just pick Alec and say "hey, you're a werewolf and these hunters are after you so you have to join me or else." He invited Alec to join them in stopping the hunters with full knowledge of what he would be getting into. Not at all Derek's recruitment of Isaac, Erica and Boyd, where he preyed on them at their most vulnerable and gave them the most vague idea of what they'd be getting into. You need further proof of that? How about the fact that Derek's whole pack left him because they didn't sign up to be foot soldiers in his personal vendetta. Erica and Boyd straight up left after saying that Derek lied to them about what they'd be getting into and Isaac went and joined Scott's pack, because Scott actually cared about those in his pack.

Scott never asked any of his friends, his pack, to fight for him. Hell, in season four, during the whole deadpool hitlist plot, when Liam was too scared to get involved any more, Scott reassured him that it was okay and that he didn't think any less of him. And when Liam did get involved, that's because it was his choice. Scott didn't order him to fight, Liam chose to because it was the right thing to do. This is in direct contrast to Derek ordering his betas to kill Lydia on nothing more than his own suspicions and lack of knowledge about his own world.

Its also another blatant use of their double-standards when it comes to Scott. For the entire run of the show, these people have complained ad nauseum about how Scott didn't do anything. He was too nice and let the villains off without any consequences (he didn't, but they don't care about that), and yet here, in the finale, we have him finally taking the fight to the people coming after him, and suddenly its a bad thing.

Am I the only one that's confused by that logic?

What makes it worse is the fact that they're comparing Scott and Derek at two very different points in their lives and trying to paint Scott as comparable to Derek at his worst (kudos to them for admitting Derek was bad). Once again, with context, we know that the two situations are completely different, no matter how similar they may look. Derek went actively recruiting child soldiers, turning them into werewolves to fight in his war against Gerard and the hunters. Scott only ever bit two people, and one of them was an accident. Everyone that joined his fight was already a werewolf (or shapeshifter of some kind). Scott didn't turn any of them. He found Alec (and I'm assuming others) and offered him the chance to fight back against people who were actively hunting him. Isaac, Erica and Boyd weren't in any danger from the hunters until after Derek recruited them. On the surface, these two situations look very similar, but with context, they're not even remotely the same.

Context is everything. Without it, people can make whatever statement they like, but it doesn't change the truth of what actually happened. All it takes is for someone to actually watch the show to see how things actually went down.

#context is everything #scott mccall defense squad #teen wolf fandom problems

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crimson-snowfall · 4 years

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Can you write something about how Theo, Isaac and Comte would react to a drunken MC?

Ikevamp HC request: Theo, Isaac, & Comte reacting to a drunk!MC

Warnings: Mildly NSFW because I’m thirsty for Isaac and Theo, alcohol

Theo

Theo is pretty mad that you went drinking with Arthur without him. Sure, it wasn’t on the pub, but the both of you were passed out on the mansion’s lounge.

Chess pieces were also all over the place, and if Theo had to guess, it was another one of Arthur’s stupid games. Probably the same he played with him a long time ago where you had to take a shot for every piece you lost.

He threw a couple of chess pieces to the passed out Arthur before lifting you in his arms, taking in your scent, as though to make sure that his flirt of a friend didn’t try anything with you.

You stirred in his arms as he took you upstairs. You flailed a little as your drunken self thought you were falling down the stairs.

“Calm down you silly hondje. Do you want us to fall?” Theo tightened his grip on you and accelerated his pace towards your room.

You clung to him as soon as he set you down on your bed, refusing to let him go. He’s still pretty upset with you but he’s never done anything that could hurt you, and given the amount of force you were pulling him with, he didn’t think about resisting it too much since he’s afraid you might end up hurting yourself.

Theo begrudgingly lays next to you, and even in your drunken state you could feel the aura of displeasure he’s exuding. Not to mention that the scolding you were expecting hasn’t come on yet, and that unsettles you a little.

You rolled on top of him and rubbed your cheeks against his chest. “I wuv you, Theoooo. Are yooooou maaaad at meeee?”

“Quiet down and go to sleep, hondje. You’re a bad drunk.” He snarled at you, and yet a hand stroked your head affectionately.

“I’m alwaaaays your baaaaad girl, Theoo,” you seductively quipped back, “So won’t youuuu punish a bad giiiiirl?”

Theo groaned in exasperation. “Fine then. So for tonight’s punishment,” he rolled you off to your side and embraced you tightly from behind, “that bad hondje who drunk with a notorious flirt won’t be getting any treats.”

You whined in protest but Theo’s not hearing any of it. Instead, he kept on running his fingers through your scalp, knowing full well that it’s the best way to get you sleepy.

The next morning, you woke up with a terrible hangover. You looked up to see Theo watching you intently, a devious smile spreading over his handsome features.

“About time the bad hondje wakes up.” He rolls you on top of him and you can feel something hard pressing against thighs. “Now, for your punishment.”

You try to negotiate your way out of it, hoping that your terrible headache would earn you some leniency from your still mildly upset lover.

“Well then, we’ll make it hurt so good elsewhere that you’ll forget that little headache of yours, knabbeltje. I hope you’re ready.”

Isaac

As a reward for fixing one of his more antique and precious timepieces, Comte has rewarded Isaac with a well-aged bottle of wine. He tried to refuse it saying he had no need of it, but the pureblood insisted and Isaac couldn’t do anything about it.

Said bottle of wine now rests in his night stand, and for some reason having a fragile object in his room drives Isaac anxious. What if he knocks it over and it spills on something important? His eyes darted all over the room but he couldn’t just seem to find the right place to keep the bottle.

You wrapped him up in a gentle hug before voicing out your suggestion. “If you don’t mind sharing it with me, I can help you with it.”

His eyes widened at your suggestion. “N-no! What if you get drunk?”

Seeing his reaction satisfies your inner tease. Neither of you can handle liquor well, but at the same time you’re looking forward to what kind of experience this would bring about.

“I’m curious about that too.” Without taking your eyes off of him, you took the bottle of wine and uncorked it. You had been looking forward for an opportunity like this for quite some time so upon hearing about the wine, you made sure to come prepared with a couple of glass wines, where you carefully poured the liquor. You handed him his glass, a mischievous expression on your face.

Isaac reluctantly took the glass. “Are you sure it’s going to be alright? I might– hey!” He looked at you in astonishment as you downed your first glass. You took his moment of surprise to snatch away his glass, taking the liquid inside into your mouth then sealing his lips with yours, forcing him to drink the wine.

“See? It’s not that bad.” You licked off the trail of wine that dripped from his lips, and Isaac sighed in defeat.

“Fine… then I hope you don’t mind if I indulge myself as well.” Isaac mimicked your actions from earlier and the two of you went about consuming the wine in that manner; by kiss-feeding it to each other.

While each kiss left you more intoxicated, the same couldn’t be said for Isaac, who surprisingly wasn’t drunk enough as you had hoped him to be even with three-quarters of the liquor consumed. Mildly disappointed that the wolf hasn’t pounced you yet, you downed the remaining contents of the bottle.

Tossing the bottle aside, you were into him in mere seconds. Isaac welcomed your advances, and you broke out in goosebumps when you saw the dark smile of the wolf within.

“What a bad girl,” he traced a circle on his favorite spot on your neck with his tongue, his voice a breathy whisper, “If you wanted me to go crazy, you could’ve just given me your blood.”

The sensation that raced through your nerves as he bit you amplified your intoxicated state, and Isaac gladly obliged in receiving and reciprocating your drunken desires.

Comte

Comte was going through his old belongings when he found the bottle of Zinfandel wine that Leonardo gave him as a token of their friendship centuries ago.

You find him drinking alone in his room, and you couldn’t miss the subtle nostalgia in his expression as he stared off into empty space. He invited you to his side as soon as he realized you were there.

“How’s your day, ma cherie?” Comte sat you in his lap and pulled you into a soft affectionate kiss. The taste of wine in his lips was surprisingly sweet, and you found yourself chasing after his lips as he drew back.

Chuckling in amusement, he poured you a glass. “Do you want to try it? It’s really nice.”

“Would it be alright with you?” You sought confirmation as your cheeks burned a warm shade of pink from embarrassment over your actions earlier.

“Anything for you, ma cherie.” You took the glass from him and started off with a demure sip, but as soon as the rich taste assaulted your taste buds, you found yourself downing the sweet liquor at a rate you’re not exactly proud of.

“It’s good!” You exclaimed in delight, your eyes lighting up the same way it does whenever you enjoy Comte spoiling you. He greedily took in your gleeful expression and poured you another glass, which you enthusiastically and greedily drank.

Halfway through the bottle, you began to show signs of intoxication as your speech began to slur. Comte took that as a sign to stop giving you more of the liquor.

Part of the reason why Comte allowed you to become drunk before stopping is that because he knew you were a talkative drunk, and he just loves listening to you speak your mind more freely. However, only that night did he discover that you were also a crying drunk.

You started off talking about how different that time is from the time you came from, to which he just listened intently. However, for some reason you began crying while you were talking about your time.

“What’s wrong, ma cherie?” Comte soothed you by rubbing a hand over your back as he held you closer to him.

You cried about missing your family every now and then, and some of the things you cherished in your life in the modern world. Comte just listened and soothed you in the best way he could as he took a mental note of everything you were saying.

As soon as he felt that you have calmed down a little, he spoke in a reassuring voice. “The next time the door opens, we’ll come visit your time, ma cherie. It’s a promise, okay?”

“Ish a promish,” was your drowsy reply before you finally drifted off to sleep, exhausted from your day’s work and from all that crying.

Comte gently set you down in his bed, but he didn’t join you yet. He spent the rest of the night planning for your trip in your time the next time the door opens.

Again this turned out to be longer than I expected it to be, and sorry for the excessive thirsting on Isaac’s oh lawd I just can’t help it. Also I’m kind of surprised how fast the requests are piling on my ask box, been thinking about closing it down for a little while if it reaches more than 12 requests I guess? There’s about.. 9 right now?

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fly-sky-high-bug-games · 4 years

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*breathe hard*I need air, oh this is beautiful! I would like to know more, the Noble AU is like a fire!

*slaps lap in excitement*

OKAY! Have a brief update on what has happened so far~

Yonna was brought in to train with Damascus to become a knight and the mantis really grew found of her but she’s hiding it in the most tsundere way. She doesn’t want to appear motherly but like a harsh mentor. I think Yonna figures she’s lowkey caring but keeps up the act of serious knight in training. So far, she thought her some nail art and way of the mantis fight, Yonna packed a bit of muscle in mean time.

So after Misren’s terrible action and assault over Sylva, everyone is acting like nothing happened even tho Misren is hecking dead and gone and Mugo is missing an eye and Sylva has a bit of trauma still creeping on her. Alyssum ordered the ritual of the binding, which started before the whole situation, to be done as quickly as possible, even if Chiffon who is doing the ritual was still in a bad mood. They got really upset over Misren’s death but no one is sure why, Chiffon has been in a terrible mood since. Still, they finished the third act of the ritual and Sylva now has the bindings of the Dew, magic that draws and stores soul from water.

Amalma has become rather chatty with Yonna and Sylva and they had some fun shenanigans on their topics. Friend and I agreed that it’s cannon that she doesn’t like standing in the open space and it gives her anxiety and panic so I’ll with this probably for both verses! XD Anyway, she’s a fun bush girl now~

Sylva, after the whole ordeal, also speaking with Mugo after losing an eye, as well as finding out that the business involves a lot of dirty jobs like killing and manipulation, BUT ALSO that Alyss was already looking for someone new to for her to marry, kind of peaked and said “let’s get out of here” to Yonna. So, while they devised a plan, Mugo helped summon Ignyad to teach Yonna how to ride a mechanical steed (I should sketch how it looks like, they run on the crystal) and fly with it. She’s an amazing pilot so that’s gonna come in handy later... Meanwhile, Alyssum finally allowed for Sylva to learn how to fly with her own two wings so she’s been having fun flight lessons with Mugo. It helped her realize how much she missed him for the past 10ish years.

Alyssum brings in a family of Monarchs that lead a traveling theatre and introduces their son Cypress to Sylva. He was acting odd and eventually had a private chat with Sylva (with Yonna close by as her guardian of course), telling her he wants to get married to help his friends become the best traveling acting and musicians there are, since they don’t have financial income for it. Sylva buys the story but Yonna does not and later warns Sylva about being too naive and kindhearted and that she should not lose her goal to escape the life of a business tool.

Some time later, Yonna becomes super skilled with steed flight and Sylva learns few spells focusing on healing and temperature shift in water. Then, they decide to escape one evening but not before Sylva privately spoke to Mugo to say goodbye, since it will be impossible for them to come back and visit without HARSH consequences... She never did and he told her not to anyways. OVERALL IT WAS SAD. He gave her a map and said to go hide away in the dead kingdom of Hallownest...

Anyway, the evening falls and Sylva leaves her symbols of the family, the mask and the clothes behind and sneaks out with Yonna to get to the now prepped and travel fit steed. However, Chiffon intercepts them and gets super angry for the fact that Sylva is leaving them after everything for some nobody like Yonna. They were about to go full soul powerup and murder Yonna but Vincent injects them with his tail and knocks Chiffon out by making them fall asleep. The two were shocked and knew he will probably get executed for this because Chiffon saw he did it but he just told the girls to hurry up and leave because Sunny warn Alyssum and the guards... the girls get on the steed and take off, shooting for the upper shaft at the top of the kingdom that leads to the lake by the tree that holds the kingdom.

So... powered by soul and sheer rage, Alyssum goes after the two, flying up to intercept them. She managed for a bit, facing the two from the front, she shoots her petals and strikes Yonna’s chest. Her armor luckily protects her but just enough to save her life. Yonna’s riding manages to throw Alyss off enough for them to shoot up and enter the shaft again. Alyss gives chase and in attempts to protect Yonna, Sylva opens her wings, knowing her mother isn’t allowed to harm her. Sylva gets away with it with only slightly torn wing tips. Through the shaft, Yonna uses her trusty nail and strikes the side of the passage to make it crumble while Sylva absorbs soul from the waterfalls that passed through. She freezes the passage right after the two shoot outside of the shaft, Alyss unable to follow up. The two flew above the moonlit lake and picked up the vast world around them... And then Yonna begun to faint. Sylva had to take control over steed in panic, steering it to the shore towards the small town there and have a rough landing against the shore...

Yonna was very injured and the steed crashed so Sylva wasn’t sure what to do in panic of the moment. Then... Lolo finds them! They were in luck, she saw them after staying at their grandma’s old mansion by the lake. Pim and Trail were with her so they helped take the girls and flying steed inside for the rest. Sylva was able to explain everything and beg Lolo not to tell anyone about their whereabouts. Lolo, the kind soul that she is, understood the situation and promised to keep them in secretly. Trail wasn’t too happy about it, thinking they will bring trouble and that Lolo would have to justify to the Queen. Still, she couldn’t say no to Lolo...

Lolo accepted to help only until Yonna recovers and then they would have to leave. This was acceptable as Sylva was tense and wanted to leave but Yonna had to recover. With doctors help and her spells, she is making progress. Sylva made friends with Lolo and Pim but Trail is keeping distance.

MEANWHILE, and “off screen”, it’s absolute chaos at the White Magnolia residence. Vincent is taken in, to Damas’ shock, as they were close friends and now she is torn about everything that happened... Chiffon is still out cold and Alyssum is absolutely furious. She comes back to put the whole blame on Mugo for bring Yonna there in the first place, as well as starting the whole flight lessons but...

He turns the tables on her. For the first time in 20 years, Mugo screams out his displeasure at Alyssum’s actions and teachings around Sylva. He blames her for keeping so many things a secret from her, from keeping her only focused on teachings that don’t shape her as a person but as a tool, for keeping her caged in within the mansion, for choosing love instead of her... he lists many things the outburst to the point that Alyssum is genially submissive and taken aback. While this was suppose to be his act to cover up his tracks for helping the girls escape, he was able to present the arguments to the point as he was truly angry about them for YEARS. On top of it, he learns that Yonna who was the rider was hurt by Alyss and he adds one more salt to the wound, saying that they probably crashed in the lake and drowned because she took out the rider. With no arguments to lead against angered Mugo, she only retorts for a bit, adding that he better do ALL he can to track, find and bring Sylva back if alive... and he, of course, accepts~ :)

#noble!AU #phew holy crud #I'll read proof this late my eyes are tired #so much draaamaaaa~!#Anonymous

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ibtk · 3 years

Text

Book Review: THE SEVENTH MANSION by Maryse Meijer

(Full disclosure: I received a free e-ARC for review though Edelweiss. Trigger warning for sexual assault, homophobia, violence against animals, and disturbing sexual content.)

-- 4.5 stars --

There is this person I love. And he’s not even a person.

After Xie's parents split and an environmental disaster sends his already precarious mental health spiraling, Xie and his father Erik relocate from California to an unnamed town in the rural south, in search of the proverbial fresh start.

At first, Xie is your garden-variety teenage outcast: melancholy. goth. vegan. an outsider. friendless. forgettable. Yet he's quickly "adopted" by the only other vegans in the school - girlfriends Jo and Leni, who together make up the entirety of FKK.

The group's animal rights activism slowly evolves from leafleting to direct action: the trio breaks into a local mink farm, freeing as many of its captives as they can. Xie is nabbed during the getaway, and suddenly he goes from "nobody" to "that freak who vandalized the Moore farm". Instead of silence and indifference, Xie is met by hostile sneers, gossip, and relentless bullying. He takes a leave of absence from high school, instead getting one-on-one tutoring at the local library. His parents are forced to pay restitution, and Xie's placed on probation.

Xie's only respite is nature: his burgeoning vegetable garden; the small but pristine forest behind his house; and, eventually, the mysterious light, nestled among the branches, that leads him to a tiny church - and his beloved. St. Pancratius, who was martyred in 304 A.D. and whose remains are on covert display in a one-room church in the middle of nowhere.

He traces the image with his finger. The story the same in every version: A boy on a road, refusing to lift his sword against the lamb, losing his head every time the story is told, again and again and again.

Still, all of this comes with a cost: loving nature, whether animal, vegetable, or mineral, means saying goodbye to it one day. Relationships can be messy, even when they're with clean bones. Sometimes we get so wrapped up in our own shit that we're oblivious to what our loved ones are going through. Maybe your tutor shows up to work one day piss drunk and tells you about her abortion. Or your friends drag you to a backwoods meeting of environmental activists, where one of them sexually assaults you. Or you show up to a mass protest that is even more massive than you anticipated, and find you're unable to protect yourself, let alone the 55 billion+ land animals slaughtered for food every year in the US alone (animalclock.org).

The problem is too big, even when it's one of the smaller ones. The problem is impossible.

While disturbing, Xie's theft of a skeleton is not the worst crime he'll commit in his teen years. As FKK becomes involved with a local animal rights group, and Xie's sanctuary is threatened, he careens toward an inevitable (????) collision with the outside world, which neither understands him - nor cares to. (Fuck capitalism.)

THE SEVENTH MANSION is one weird-ass book; I mean, the main character has sex with a skeleton (!). This is certainly the wildest aspect of the story, but it's not alone. For example, take the narrative structure, which has a kind of stream-of-(Xie's)-consciousness vibe. Many of the sentences are fractured, even forced, as though we're pulling them from the depth's of Xie's tortured soul. His thoughts. Are broken. Up. Like this. Conversely, there are no chapters, and so many of the paragraphs are just huge, unbroken blocks of text - almost as though Meijer is framing Xie in opposition to the larger world around him.*

I suspect that THE SEVENTH MANSION is one of those love it or hate it dealios. Personally, I loved it, even as some parts proved excruciatingly unbearable to read.

I don't know whether Meijer is vegan, but she gets so much right; sometimes it felt like she was rooting around inside my head. I went vegetarian my freshman year of college (1996, not to date myself) and vegan about 9 years later. Reading Xie was like having a mirror held up to my own depressive, anxious, vegan psyche. One thing carnists probably don't realize about walking around this world as a vegan is: it takes a ton of mental work, of suppression and dissociation, just to get through the day.

Animal suffering is omnipresent, and largely accepted. From Carl's Jr. commercials to classroom trips to the zoo; leather car seats to team lunches at non-vegan restaurants, where you'll be forced to watch your coworkers and friends devour the corpse of a once-living creature - someone's mother, brother, or child - we are constantly forced to bear witness to the oppression of animals. Worse, to pretend as though it's of no consequence: just to get along, or because doing otherwise would quickly devour your time, your prospects, your relationships. To say that it's depressing is an understatement.

Whether Xie is living through the oil spill that finally made his world "snap," or gazing into the eyes of caged mink, I was right there with him, trying not to cry. Not to break. There's so much suffering in the world; if you try to take it all in, to truly understand its scope, it will swallow you whole.

Speaking of the oil spill, which was the impetus for Xie to go vegan - Meijer's description of this moment in Xie's life brought back so many memories. When I decided to stop eating meat, I was working at a local grocery store. Every now and again, they had an employee appreciation dinner (in lieu of a raise, natch), which basically consisted of all you can eat burgers and hot dogs in the break room. Everyone would stuff their faces, taking in as many free calories as possible. Not because they were hungry, but to get as much of a leg up on our cheap ass employer as possible. The sheer gluttony and waste of it all is what finally did it for me. No one needed to eat seven hamburgers in one night; we did because we could, because not doing so would be to lose out. The working class eating the chattel, and no one eating the rich.

Point being, that's a singular moment in my life that I'll never forget. It stands out in stark relief, right alongside the deaths of my husband and furkids (six dogs and one cat down and counting). If I close my eyes, I can almost transport myself back there, white starched shirt, demo table, 7PM Friday fatigue, and all.

The last time he ate meat he was twelve years old, after the spill: Xie was Alex then. Even miles from the beach, they could smell something off; at first they thought it was the sandwiches, ham pressed hot in the pockets of Erik’s windbreaker, but the closer they got to the beach the stronger the smell became, noxious, chemical. They parked at their usual spot, yellow tape blocking access to the beach beyond. A black ribbon flat against the horizon; that was the water. No trace of blue. On the rocks below the lot a half dozen pelicans huddled together. Coated from beak to foot in oil. Don’t touch them, his father said. Someone will come wash it off. But there was no one. The black sea lapping the sand. Those bewildered eyes. He watched as one of the birds collapsed, its head twisted sideways against its folded neck. His father pulled him away. The fire on the water burned for two weeks; the beach remained black for a year. Sea turtles, dolphins, whales, gulls, crabs, otters, fish, birds rolled up by the waves in the tens of thousands. Oil on meat on sand. No stopping it. Xie got headaches, bloody noses; he was always tired, couldn’t sleep. His mother standing in the doorway, Stop playing games, you’re fine. But his father was never angry. Scared of what he saw. Xie in the dark. Unable to make it from one room to another. The people who used to go to the beach just went somewhere else. Life as usual. Slumped in the backseat as his father fed gas into the truck he suddenly couldn’t stand it. Stopped standing it. He opened the back door, started walking. Alex, his father called, but he was not Alex anymore. He poured out all the milk in the house and fed the meat to the dogs next door and rode his bike everywhere.

So yeah, our circumstances may be different, but Xie's conversion sure hit me in the feels.

Meijer also does an excellent job capturing the heartbreak and urgency of Millennials and Gen Z. As tormented as I might have been in high school, at least I had the luxury of not thinking too much about climate change - at least until Al Gore came along. Xie and his peers, on the other hand, will bear the brunt of their predecessors' unchecked greed. Nowhere is this divide more eloquently laid bare than in Jo's post-march argument with Erik (who is likely around my age):

Didn’t you see how he just folded up out there? He can’t protect himself, he won’t. You don’t know what he was like, before we came here, okay, you didn’t watch him, lying in bed day after day, ready to cut his goddamn throat because of all this shit, this constant litany of doomsday statistics, he just takes it in and he can’t—he doesn’t know what to do with it, and you want to keep shoving it in his face, when it’s—it’s enough! Staring at Jo, who stares back. Look, whatever you’re afraid of, whatever he’s afraid of, it’s already happening, okay? And he knows it, he’s living it, and he wants to do something about it. If there was some other option, some fantasyland where everything is going to be fine as long as we bury our heads in the sand, then believe me, I’d take it. But there’s not. Not for me and not for Leni and not for Xie and if you think you can protect him by denying that then you’re just—wrong. I’m sorry. She holds Erik’s gaze; he nods, the first to look away.

My gods, that scene just cuts me to the bone. As bleak as things are now, I cannot imagine going through all this - climate change, COVID-19, a Trump presidency, Democratic ineptitude/complicity, *gesturing wildly* - as an adolescent. Their elders cut them down before they even started crawling.

On a lighter note, Xie's scenes with his clueless mom and her equally clueless new husband (Jerry!) brought a(n admittedly wry) smile to my face. If I had a penny for every times this scene has played out in my life, I'd have enough cash monies to start my own animal sanctuary.

Don’t you want some vegetables, Xie? Jerry asks. I don’t eat animal products, Xie murmurs, and Jerry, confused, staring at the green beans, How is this— Butter, Xie interrupts. Butter is from milk, which is from cows, which are animals. Jerry blinks. Gosh, I didn’t even think of that. Sorry. Xie shrugs.

There's so much to obsess about here: I love Jo and Leni together, and their opposing circumstances just make the relationship so much more complex - and potentially fraught. Erik and tutor Karen (I wonder if the name choice was intentional?) are interesting supporting characters, and their relationships with Xie are so beautiful and nuanced; they both support him the best they know how.

Xie's interactions with his phantom lover are a little more confusing and difficult for me to comprehend. Perhaps P. represents Xie's inability to connect with the human world around him, or at least not as well as the more abstract, ephemeral natural world. Possibly P. is Xie's ideal human: one who would rather die than raise a finger against an animal (or one who cannot disappoint you by voicing their own opinions). Or maybe it's simpler than that, and Xie's hallucinations are just that: hallucinations. In any case, it made an already odd book absolutely bizarre, but in a good way, so I can't complain.

* This could just be because I was reading an early copy in need of further editing - but, seeing as how some formatting was already present, I think it was intentional. https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/3672191091

#books #book review #veganism #animal rights #Maryse Meijer #the seventh mansion #lgbtq #depression #anxiety #environment

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animepopheart · 5 years

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The Adoption of Zenitsu Agatsuma

After months of trying, I recently convinced my wife to take up Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba. We made our way through the initial episodes, which she enjoyed, but I became more and more excited for her to meet one character in particular—Zenitsu. I was anticipating how she would react to seeing his extreme cowardice, and then the reveal both of his inner character and his capabilities. Hints of this are first shown as he battles a demon in the tsuzumi mansion, but it’s all fleshed out during the Natagumo Mountain arc. It’s because of his story there, as portrayed through a flashback showing his training, that Zenitsu became my favorite character.

Zenitsu’s battle against the spider demon on Natagumo Mountain is as unusual as one would expect, with the demon slayer running from his enemy as much as possible. But when he can no longer flee, and is on death’s doorstep, he remembers his training as given by “Gramps.” It’s as pathetic as one can imagine—his sensei must set traps that prevent Zenitsu from escaping the training, and literally drags him back to the dojo at which he practices. When first introduced in the series, Zenitsu appears to have become a coward after facing the reality of fighting demons; the flashback makes it clear that he was this way even prior.

At one point, Zenitsu is bullied by by Kuwajima’s other student, Kaigaku, who berates him for his cowardice and even physically assaults him. Kaigaku says that any time sensei spends on Zenitsu is wasted—he treats his comrade as worthless, as nothing—a feeling, I think, Zenitsu knows all too well.

Unlike Inosuke, Zenitsu is incredible self-aware—more so even than Tanjirou. At one point, he explains that he’s the one acting normal in all this craziness, which makes much sense—who would willingly fight these awful creatures and endure “hellish training”? He also plainly knows he is a coward. Zenitsu’s actions, his sleep-induced berserker quality aside, are done with foresight. He complains because he feels that the situation calls for it, but also understands that the way he acts is miserable. Nothing Kaigaku says is news to Zenitsu—they’re precisely how he feels about himself.

I’ve felt that way, too. I’ve been cowardly like Zenitsu, but my pain comes mostly from different places—my hypocrisy, my pride (Am I Inosuke?!), and most of all, the scheming and devious way I approach people and life, a quality that though tempered by my faith, still exists, still feels a part of my very being. When combined altogether, these vices and others make me feel guilty and sick, a man who is more expert at ruining others’ lives and taking them for granted than at living to love them, as I purport to do.

But there is hope for me. And there’s hope for Zenitsu, too—and that hope is connected not to our own abilities, which are lacking, nor even to who we are, as devious or cowardly as he and I might be.

As Zenitsu travels closer and closer to his foe, the memories of Gramps become even stronger. He recalls the training, and especially the pain. Funny enough, many of the “beatings” which he suffers don’t seem like beatings at all. They look more like love taps.

Gramps was once a hashira, a pillar among the corps. We’ve seen the power of the hashira already, and its frightening. And yet this powerful man has the patience to train Zenitsu day after day after day, from dusk until dawn, when someone as patient as Tanjiro loses his head after spending two minutes with him. How can Gramps possibly do that?

The answer is simple and clear: It’s love.

When I first watched this episode, I thought that “Gramps” was literally Zenitsu’s grandfather. Zenitsu had become orphaned and I thought that Gramps had taken him in. It made sense to me—why else would Kuwajima train Zenitsu and display such patience with him unless he was a blood relative? The feeling was confirmed to me when Kaigaku tells Zenitsu he shouldn’t refer to him as Gramps, that it was too intimate—it seemed to be a way of saying that you must see him as a sensei and not let him treat you with the familiarity of family.

But perhaps only to my surprise, Gramps—Jigoro Kuwajima—is not Zenitsu’s grandfather. He rescued Zenitsu after taking compassion on the boy, who was about to come under servitude due to debt. Kuwajima took him in, fed him, trained him, encouraged him, and helped him become far more than he was destined to be. In other words, Kuwajima took this boy, who was an orphan, and brought him into a household filled with his love. Kuwajima functionally became Zenitu’s adoptive father. In an arc about artificial family, one where Rui forcibly and fearsomely (the use of spiders and their webs is perfect imagery) establishes family bonds, Zenitsu and Kuwajima stand next to Tanjirou and Nezuko as examples of what family is meant to be.

Indeed, there is perhaps no greater demonstration of love than that of adoption, to take someone who is not your own and give him the love and blessings of your family. It’s an intimate connection, both the most intimate one of family and one of grace that can’t even be experienced by blood ties. As lovely and powerful as the bond between Tanjiro and Nezuko (also orphans, it should be noted) is, the decision to take someone and make him part of your family is to travel one step further.

Have you ever felt that kind of love from someone not bound to you in any way? I have, in bits and pieces—the young man who played basketball with me when I was a youth; the friend who chose me me first for his team rather than one of the athletic kids; the mentor who invested what little time he had in helping a young man who complained too much (maybe I’m Zenitsu after all!) grow into an adult. But I’ve also experienced this love in all its fullness, if not through lifelong friends of which I have few or none, through my faith, and it means everything to me, because like Zenitsu, I flounder each day. My problems remain and my character improvement is a slow process.

But when I become a son, I’m given that which I do not deserve. And like Zenitsu as well, in one moment all that love poured into me leads to transformation, and like a flash of lightning, I can change into all that which otherwise I never would have become.

#zenitsu #zenitsu agatsuma #demon slayer #kimetsu no yaiba #kny #blog

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adamdriverwrites · 5 years

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Carpe Noctem || Part 1

Plot summary: Mob boss’s daughter & bodyguard au ft. Kylo Ren. Based off this plot bunny (x)

Warnings: extreme violence, swearing, sexual themes, mentions of non consensual sexual violence, drug use and other explicit themes in this story.

Word count: 3734

Pairing: Kylo Ren/Reader

A/N: here is chapter one, im super excited to delve into this, enjoy! tell me what you think!

Taglist: let me know if you want to be added!

Masterlist here

After all these years being away from your home, you didn’t think that the reason for your return would be under such unfortunate circumstances. One of your brothers going to jail, perhaps, but not the funeral of your beloved sister. You weren’t close with your family, you talked to your Father every couple of months when you needed him to send money to help with university fees and such, but it had been a very long time since you had seen any of them in person.

Mallory was the only one that bothered to visit you - lugging herself halfway across the world to spend Christmas or your birthday together.

You thought you felt hopeless and alone before…

You hadn’t talked to your Dad since that night, save for a lone email telling him you would fly in on Thursday and be staying for an unknown amount of time. You didn’t know what to say, and didn’t want to talk to anyone. You reveled in your silence, grabbing an uber home instead of asking him or one of your brothers for a ride. You landed at 1 pm in New York and figured they would be busy. The driver tried to make small talk, but you kept it to a minimum. Directing him where to go, he drove out of the city, entering suburbia and continuing on until the distance between properties grew far greater. Leading him to a particular neighborhood of large mansions separated by sprawling fields and lush forests until you arrived at your driveway. Driving down the long, winding gravel road, large willow trees lining either side, the two of you maneuvered around the circular driveway. pulling up to a stop at the front door. You peered out the window, looking at the dark stone and large glass, the cold Snoke family manor standing tall in front of you. It looked exactly the same as you remembered. Whispering a thanks, you made exit with your one measly suitcase full of belongings.

You had made a silent promise to yourself you wouldn’t come back for as long as you could get away with it. No one could hold a grudge like you, and when your father sent you away to boarding school at the tender age of 13 you never really forgot how much it hurt.

You had come home for one Christmas holidays when you were 16. It had been such a disaster that you hadn’t been back since.

8 years…. The spell broken all because of Mallory. She had been begging you to come home for a long time. And it would seem she finally got her way. You just hated that she wasn’t here to see it.

Walking up to the front door, you grabbed the handle and pushed, only to be met with a force. You almost headbutted the hard, black painted wood, before realizing it was locked. With a sigh and a curse, you knocked on it with your knuckles. Fancy being locked out of your own house…

There was no answer, and you knocked again, this time your fist pounding harder against the door.

A muffled voice came from inside, muttering they were ‘coming and to ’chill the fuck out’. You held your breath, nerves rising to the precipice, you crossed your fingers and toes it wasn’t your brother Lyon. The door swung open, a gust of wind blowing your hair around your face and you were met with someone familiar.

Dark skin, black hair, and a dashingly perfect smile that reminded you of being a kid.

Finn breathed out your name, his smile growing wider as he pulled you in for a hug, lifting you off the ground in the process. You smiled back, dropping your duffel bag to wrap both arms around him in return.

“Welcome home!” He laughed, separating to look at you again. You went to reach for your luggage but he was quick to pick it up. His eyes met yours again and he maintained his smile, looking you over before he shook his head. “Look at you. All grown up.”

You gave him a wry smile. “That’s the funny thing about time…” you looked past him at the wide expanse of the foyer, proceeding to walk through the doorway. Glistening black, white and cream marble, elaborate moldings and every inch sparkling clean. It all looked exactly the same. “Although, I could say the same about you.“

You had a bit of a crush on Finn growing up. He was closest to your age, but still a little older that you revered his actions and jokes like he was the funniest guy on the planet. He was always around because his Dad worked for your Father, and even though he was friends with your older brother’s, he was always so nice to you. Even if you were an annoying little kid. Giving you a sideways smirk, he used his free arm to curl up and show off his arms, flexing and tensing his muscles. "Well, I uh, have been hitting the gym pretty hard lately.”

“I can tell.” You smiled, if not speaking the truth then only to bolster his confidence he was clearly searching for. You walked deeper into the foyer, eyes casting upward at the tall ceilings. After all these years, you had forgotten how expansive and extravagant it really was. All of it was a nostalgic fueled kick in the face.

“Hey, listen, I’m sorry about Mallory-”

“Me too.” You cut him off. If anything to shut down the conversation so you wouldn’t have to talk about it. “Is Dad home?”

“Yeah. He’s in his office. C'mon,” He shut the large double doors behind him and the two of you walked forward. You glanced at the sprawling hallway in front of you, walking underneath the double curving stairways on either side. As you ventured further, soft voices could be heard. The voices increased in volume, none of them readily recognizable, all sounds merging to create a deep baritone completely unfamiliar to your ears.

“He’s been holed up in his office for the past few days.” Finn explained quietly to you, pushing towards the rumpus room. “You might just be able to pull him out of his funk.”

You sniggered bitterly. “I’m about to make it worse.”

Finn looked back at you. “Don’t say that. He loves you, you know.”

The snigger turned into a small laugh. Agreeing again only to move past the conversation and be done with it. “Yeah.”

You two stopped outside the double doors of the recreation room. Glancing inside the smokey dwelling, you saw no familiar faces. You could rest easy for another minute knowing that you weren’t about to run into any of your brothers. There was about 5 men scattered about, talking, laughing, drinking and smoking. The room was long, filled with a large pool table placed in the center, floor to ceiling bookshelves covered the walls, separated only by windows that peered into the front and the back of the property. Black leather chesterfield sofas pushed to the sides of the room with a few coffee tables littered nearby. It continued on, ending with two more large double doors that led to your Father’s office. You always hated that daunting walk when you were a kid. You gathered it was a deterrent your Dad set in place so he didn’t have to talk to his children that often. They were less likely to walk through a room of gangsters and criminals just to bug their Father when he was working.

“Go on through. I’ll take your stuff up to your room for you.”

“Thanks, Finn.”

You stepped forward, ignoring the looks from people you didn’t recognize, keeping your eyes trained on the doors at the end of the room.

“Holy. Shit.” Your head turned to the voice, and leaning against the bookcase in the dark corner of the room and smoking a cigarette was Phasma. She walked into the light, towering over your short figure, looking almost exactly the same as you remembered. Gorgeous blonde hair in perfectly in place and immaculately tailored suit adorning her as always.

You let a genuine smile curve your lips, and you met her halfway. Phasma was one of the very few people who you could have said you had actually missed. “The prodigal daughter returns…” her smirk copied your own, and her blue eyes cast over your form. “Looking good, Snoke.”

“You too.” You smiled and eyed her cigarette. Maybe it would help your nerves. “Can I please have one of those?”

She pulled an extra from the pack in her pocket and handed it over. “Don’t tell him you got it from me.”

“I’m not a kid anymore, Gwen.”

“I guess not.” She eyed your figure, and you resisted the urge to roll your eyes.

“Alright,” you sighed heavily, coming to the realization this might be harder than you thought it was going to be. “Time to bite the bullet. Wish me luck.”

She stepped aside with a soft smile. Gripping the cigarette in your hand, you walked forward, ignoring the other eyes in the room staring at you. All faceless lackeys, ready to die for your Father’s cause. Coming to a stop in front of the large double, oak doors, lacquered completely in a dark stain, you took a deep breath and prepared yourself. You hadn’t seen your Father in years, and although you had talked, him seeing your face was a different story. The reason he sent you away in the first place was only more prominent now. Raising your fist, you knocked on the door and waited patiently for an answer. Nostalgia kicking in once more, like all the times you were a kid, standing outside this very door and waiting for your Father to beckon you inside.

God, that was shit you would have preferred to forget.

A muffled reply beckoned you to ’come in’. Your hand that was vacant of your unlit cigarette gripped the black iron door knob, lion’s head in a roaring position. Some more gaudy detailing. Twisting it with much more force than necessary, you pushed the heavy door and entered.

The room was smoky, the smell of tobacco assaulting your senses first. The room was slightly darker than the recreation room, and when you shut the door behind you, you realized it was deathly quiet. Noise from the outside barely distinguishable in the fortress that was your Father’s office. A stark contrast to the loud men outside drinking and smoking and playing pool and having fun. This was suddenly the sordid den reserved for strategical talks you weren’t privy to as a kid.

His desk stood center at the far end, two back leather chairs in front, facing it. You noticed an unfamiliar man first, facing away from you. Only the back of his head and broad shoulders visible. Then your eyes fluttered to your Father, leaned back in his chair, head resting softly in his hand, eyes focused on the unknown man before they ventured up towards you. He sat up quickly, his position changing the second he realized who had just entered.

“Hi.” He looked the same as you remembered, if only with a few more wrinkles and more grey hair, though the dark bags under his eyes suggested he was feeling more human than usual.

When your Father stood up and made his way around his desk, the unknown man turned to glance in your direction, and his eyes met your own. Eyebrow perking slightly as he looked at you fully.

“Wow, kiddo.” the proximity of your Father’s voice caught your attention again, and you turned to see he was close. Bright blue eyes glancing all over your face, and a smile covering his lips, before his arms surrounded you and pulled you in for a hug. He was taller than you, and your face pressed against his chest. You frowned at the feeling of contact; not because it was unpleasant, just unfamiliar. You didn’t know which one of those was more sad. Before you could even think about raising your arms from your side to wrap them around him in return, he pulled away. Hands grasping your shoulders as held you in front of him. “Look at you. You’re all grown up, and…” His voice trailed off as his eyes shined with something darker, more solemn. "You look just like her.“

And there it was. The words you didn’t want to hear out of your Father’s mouth. Like you didn’t live in your Mother’s shadow enough already. You were almost all out of fake smiles at the sound of that comment. You gifted a half-assed one to him out of respect for Mallory’s memory.

"It’s so good to have you back home.” you bit back a snarky comment about why the fuck he would send you away in the first place then, also out of respect for your sister. You guess you still harbored some resentment. You pegged it down to your overwhelmed senses and assaulted nostalgia. Being back home was making you feel a lot of things in a very short amount of time, it was hard to cope. “It’s been a while, sweetheart.”

“Yeah.” Your eyes shifted in the direction of the man behind your father. He was now standing, dark eyes staring at you and your interaction with your Dad. A penetrating gaze that seemed like he was assessing you and your words intently. You didn’t recognize him, and you definitely would have remembered a man looking like that working for your father. Strong roman nose, black eyes that looked like he could kill, a scar running down the right side of his face, broad shoulders and large muscles wound tightly under the fabric of his black suit. An intimidating presence indeed.

“That’s Kylo.” Your Father spoke, walking around his desk. You instinctively followed him, walking towards the man he just introduced, and as you approached the seat, his eyes raked over your form. “Kylo, this is my daughter.”

“Hello.” A quiet voice erupted from your lips, one that you were unfamiliar with. You weren’t even entirely sure it was your own. You blamed this new man, and his piercing gaze. He didn’t speak, or smile a hello in return, only looked you up and down as you moved to sit in a chair, then walked away to the side of the room without a word.

Jesus fucking Christ. Who was this guy?

“He will be…” your Father’s words paused and you looked back at him to see him hesitant, “Looking after you while you’re here.”

“What?”

“Since Mallory’s passing, I have assigned some of my men to your brother’s. Kylo is my best man, and I’ve assigned him to you.”

Your eyebrows furrowed deeply. Was he serious? “You want me to have a bodyguard?”

“What happened to Mallory– I don’t think was an accident, and before she…” your Father hesitated once more. Words catching in his throat. You leaned forward in your seat, eager to hear the words spill from his lips. Before Mallory what? You had so many questions, and after the long flight with no sleep the amount of questions had doubled, tripled. You had fought sleep with the processing of information and trying to deal with it in your own way; paranoia fueled reasoning. You wanted to question him intently, but not in front of company, and not while being home all of 5 minutes. But the fact he didn’t think it was an accident? That perhaps Mallory’s death could have been intentional? Now, that was the sort of shit you wanted to hear desperately.

“Some things happened with work,” he continued, “And I don’t want to bury any more of my children. So Kylo will be looking after you while we get to the bottom of this.”

Your gaze flipped over to the man in the corner of the room, back towards you, pouring a drink from the crystal decanter full of scotch. He turned, and you noticed a lit cigarette now dangling between his large fingers. He eyed you with the same look; devoid of any emotion and impossibly hard to read. Though one thing you could infer by the way he stared at you, he didn’t look like it was his first choice of preferred activity; looking after the boss’s daughter. You let your mind wander to the possibilities of his position working under your Father. He didn’t seem like the usual lackey that hung around the Snoke manor, so what the hell did he do exactly?

“No.”

“No?” He questioned you, surprised at the notion. You gathered it had been a long time since anyone had the balls to tell him ‘no’.

“I don’t need a bodyguard. I haven’t been home since I was 16. No one knows who I am, and if they do, then they don’t know what I look like.” A lie, though you stood by the conviction in your voice. “I’ll be fine. I can look after myself.” Another lie.

“Sorry, kiddo, but that’s not going to happen,” Something behind his eyes changed and his voice softened an infinitesimal amount, staring deep at your face. Another first. Fuck, something must have been wrong. “you’re all I got left.”

You so desperately wanted to tell him that ’you weren’t her’, and that you weren’t destined to fall to the same fate as your Mother. However, the look on his face and the intent behind his eyes, you knew he wouldn’t budge. Stubborn old fool set in his ways. But that didn’t mean you had to do exactly what he said, so you begrudgingly accepted with a nod of your head. Easily ignoring the sentiment behind his comment, especially when you had a whole childhood of neglect at your disposal.

“What time is the funeral tomorrow?"You changed the topic, already eager to talk about something else.

"2 p.m, Greenwood Cemetery…” His eyes cast over his desk. “She’s being buried next to your mother.”

“Okay.” you nodded your head and placed the cigarette you had been holding between your lips. Your father had never seen you smoke, and you figured it wasn’t a secret worth keeping if you were going to be here an undisclosed amount of time. “Well, I’m going to go unpack, sleep off this jet lag.”

You stood up before any more words could be spoken. Already well over this conversation. You glanced in your Father’s direction before turning around and walking towards the exit. Your eyes locked with Kylo’s once more, finding that he was still very intently observing you. You didn’t like that one bit.

Leaving through the doors, you were immediately hit with the loud noise of laughter and pool cues hitting balls - a stark contrast compared to the deathly silence in your Father’s office, and you were grateful that interaction was over.

You were quick to make it out of the room, through the long hallways, up the winding stairs and to the east wing of the Snoke manor. Your bedroom was far away from the madness of the central part of the house. You hoped that most of this trip could be spent in relative solitude, if you kept away then maybe it could even be remembered as bearable.

You ventured to end of the eastern hallway, quiet compared to a lot of the house. Your bedroom doors were left open, you assumed by Finn, who had also placed your suitcase on top of your bed. You walked further in, closing the dark wood doors behind you, and glanced around. It was much like the rest of the house, tall ceilings with elaborate moldings and designs. Floor to ceiling windows contrasted with large red velvet curtains, perfect for keeping out the penetrating sunlight. Your room was almost the whole size of your apartment back home, and you forgot exactly how expansive this place was. Well, there was 16 bedrooms, a green house and a hedge maze, so how could you truly be surprised? Your family loved extravagance and wide open spaces, and if your father was still running the same way he used to, he needed somewhere to keep all his lackeys that resided on the property, and he liked that far away from his own quarters.

There was hardly any furniture save for a large bed, and a slightly outdated tv and stereo system, and your vanity table. Though all surfaces in your room were lacking a layer of dust suggesting this room wasn’t as absent as it had been for all these years. You gathered your father had his cleaners in here before you arrived and made this room relatively hospitable.

Mallory’s soft voice ran through your head, ’He never lets anyone in there, you know. Just like your car in the dark, dingy part of the garage, no one’s allowed to touch your stuff’. You had sighed and told her to shut up, she always rambled when she was drunk. ’It’s like he’s waiting for you to come back.’

You went over to the vanity, hoping that everything was still in the drawers like you had left it. You remembered specifically one item that you desperately sought. Shoving a disgustingly old chapstick aside, along with a hair scrunchie or two, you found the little book of matches you reserved for when you liked to light candles. Taking it with you and sitting on the edge of the bed, you dejectedly lit your cigarette.

Inhaling the nicotine deeply, you collapsed backwards onto the feather down comforter. Letting the interaction with your Father sink in. Shock now moderately subsided, you focused on his words, on what he had said about Mallory. He didn’t think it was an accident either, and he had vaguely suggested that something bad had happened with work too. Obviously whatever had transpired was clearly bad enough to warrant a bodyguard for your protection. He told you that he was working on it, but that didn’t stifle any pain from the loss of your sister. You were hungry for justice and revenge, and you weren’t about to sit around and not contribute.

So, after Mallory was buried, and you were assured you could have a moment alone with your Dad, you were going to convince him to let you help. He owed you that much.

#kylo ren #adam driver #kylo ren x reader #kylo x reader #kylo x you #kylo au #adam driver x reader #adam driver fanfiction #adam driver x you #kylo ren imagine #carpe noctem

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optimizche · 5 years

Text

Angelic: The Madness (Park Chanyeol/Reader)

Author's note: This picture of Yixing's back is exactly how I imagine his angel self to be. He's just missing wings 😍

ALL CHAPTERS

Her

My eyes fluttered open slowly, the golden light of the morning sun streaming into my bedroom through the slivers of space between the thick curtains.

I let out a soft sigh, feeling a sense of contentment take root deep within my heart. The restlessness that had become omnipresent ever since he had kissed me that night had died down and dissolved into nothingness.

All because of the man lying beside me.

My brother.

Yixing.

His arms encased me in their hold around my waist, the span of his unfurled ivory wings embracing me. Drawing me into his protection.

Fast asleep he was, the unblemished planes of his face creating a visage of peace. Of comfort. He radiated them, making them seep into every part of me.

On pure instinct, I curled up into him. Moulding my body in order to fit his. Yearning to be near him.

A gentle smile tugged at the rosy plushness of his mouth and he opened his eyes.

"Good morning, princess."

I wanted to smile at him and I wanted to reciprocate the love and adoration that were glowing in his dark eyes. But instead, I felt a horrible feeling come flooding into my heart.

Guilt.

Over the realization that I had led one of my own brothers astray. My festering lust had led Yixing to sin. And when I had fallen into bed with him last night, I had sealed his fate along with my own.

Tears prickled at my eyes and I blinked them away. But it was impossible for me to hide my distress from him. Or his abilities.

His eyes widened when he felt it, his hands rising to cup my face. Drawing me to the warmth of his lips.

I parted my mouth in submission to his exploration, my eyes rolling back into my head at the taste of him. He tasted like honeyed sunbeams, his warmth making me dizzy in its wake.

Fighting back my reluctance to part from him, my hands found their way to his shoulders and I gave him a gentle push.

"We should stop..." I sighed.

His lips traversed the line of my jaw before descending to the column of my throat. In contradiction to my words, I let my head fall back into the cushion beneath me, baring more of my flesh to his hungered exploration.

Offering up myself to him, like a servant to her master.

"Your body is giving away your bluff, my sweet," he chuckled.

His hands came to palm the fullness of my breasts and immediately, I arched into his touch. Nipples growing hard under the tweaks of his thumbs.

And when his mouth came to engulf one of the hardened pebbles in its heat, I let out a moan, my own hands weaving into his hair. Tugging at his raven locks while he suckled at my breasts. Until I was left gasping from the sting, my flesh reddened and swollen. Until I was aching and dripping between my thighs.

Filled with fresh lust, that demanded to be quenched.

The itch in the scars on my back made me toss and turn fitfully. Restlessly.

While I watched Yixing descend the length of my body in a trail of open-mouthed kisses, his large hands spread my thighs open.

And when he brought the wet swelter of his mouth down upon the place where I ached the most, I let out a broken moan.

Loud enough for the rest of my brothers to hear.

Yixing was vicious in his assault upon my raw and tender flesh, making me gush and buck into his mouth. Wanting him to ravage me, utterly and absolutely.

He kept his eyes on me as he devoured me, his fevered gaze commanding me to remain silent while he coaxed out every drop of my honey that he could get. Using his fingers and his tongue.

Ecstasy bloomed like a spring flower through my body, spreading outward from my core to the rest of me, with each dip and stroke of his fingers and tongue.

My legs quivered around his shoulders as he burrowed fervently into my yielding flesh.

With each passing moment, the pleasure grew and swelled. Until it became impossible for me to hold back.

"I...Y-yixing..." I moaned, my back curving in an almost painful arch as I reached the very precipice of my restraint, my body tautening as I braced for release.

And when it finally came to claim me, mere moments later, I let go with a guttural cry, my wings spreading free to their full span.

He stayed between my thighs, easing me through my release with indulgent, coaxing licks, hands cupping the cheeks of my rump. Until I fell limp upon the pillows. Boneless with exhaustion. Weakened, but sated.

"I know that he is still somewhere deep inside you," he spoke, his hand cupping my jaw, tilting my face up so that he could examine my eyes. "And while I cannot purge him out of you just yet, I can help you abate the symptoms. It is my duty to protect you in every way that I can. From any and every danger, be it external or internal."

I nodded, craning my neck up to meet his mouth, to kiss him as a way to express my gratitude. My palpable relief, that he too, was now privy to my secret.

With every warm glide of his tongue upon mine, I felt like I was being gathered into a bubble of reassurance. Of safety.

Yixing felt like a shelter for me. He felt like salvation.

Despite being fully aware of the consequences of his actions, he hadn't hesitated in coming to my aid when I needed him. And for that, I was eternally grateful to him.

Nevertheless, I decided to convey as much to him, my hands caressing the ivory feathers of his wings.

"You know what will happen to us if the others find out? If Junmyeon finds out?" I asked.

Yixing sighed deeply, his eyes filling up with pain as he envisioned the agonizing fate that awaited us, should our secret be revealed.

"I know, sweetness," he said, his voice hushed. "But atleast when we'll fall, we'll fall together."

The moment he said that, I felt the lingering inebriation of ecstasy wane and vanish, to be replaced by dread. He noticed it.

"In a way, I've become bound to you, princess," he said. "Our fates have become intertwined," he said, lacing his fingers into mine. A symbolism.

Tears prickled at my eyes at the sight. I had doomed him to suffer, all because of my mistakes.

He leaned in and pressed his lips to mine.

"I vowed to protect you in every way, and I will, my sweet. But we mustn't let anyone know," he breathed against my lips.

I nodded again, chasing his lips once more. He grinned and leaned down to kiss me again. Deeper and slower.

Until I was moaning into his mouth with every pass of his tongue upon mine. Until I was breathlessly pulling myself away from him, hands locked in his hair. "Where did you learn to kiss like that, Yixing?" I asked, stunned.

"You bring out the best in me, sweetness."

He smirked, pulling me down with him, wrapping the sheets around us. "Now let's sleep for a bit, yeah? Lu and Baek will be making pancakes for breakfast."

I had absolutely no problem in slipping into a deep, dreamless sleep, curled against him.

______________________

Him

Chanyeol was absolutely irate. Livid.

A vein in his forehead throbbed painfully as he stood within the raging fire that had engulfed the wine cellar of his mansion.

The fire that he had created.

He missed the flames licking at his flesh, reminding him of his home.

Hell.

He watched with a savage sense of delight as the flames hissed and crackled, the smoke filling up his lungs.

Cleansing his rage.

And the sole cause of his rage?

His angel.

His grand scheme to get her to summon him had failed. Miserably.

Chanyeol had believed that his plan of filling up her dreams with the most sensual and lascivious visions would make her call out to him.

But instead, he had driven her into he arms of her brother.

That swine. Yixing.

"Bastard," Chanyeol muttered angrily, throwing a fresh blaze from the palm of his hand into the already uncontrollable fire, watching it roar with a sense of satisfaction.

How dare he touch her? Even after he had laid his claim on her? The insolence!

Every time he closed his eyes, all he could imagine was the sound of her broken moans while Yixing knelt between her open legs.

Not him.

Yixing.

"I'm going to kill him," Chanyeol muttered. "I'm going to kill him for putting his hands on her-"

"CHANYEOL!"

The door to the wine cellar swung open and on the other side stood his brothers. Sehun and Kyungsoo. Wearing identical expressions of horror and irritation.

"Have you lost your mind? Burning our house down?" Sehun shouted.

Yes, I've lost my mind, Chanyeol wanted to reply.

"End this madness right this instant," came Kyungsoo's command.

Oh, brother, he thought. The madness has only just begun...

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voltage-obsessed-writer · 4 years

Text

An anniversary you won’t ever forget

Leon x MC (smut) requested by @tres-spades-hotel

Looking over to Leon who was currently stroking your hair as you were snuggling into him; you both hot, panting messes makes you think of how you guys got into this situation.

It all started 6 hours ago when Leon had blown off your date due to what you assumed to be work without telling you, so you obviously stormed over to his room; pissed. You knew he had work, but when it was your anniversary and he doesn’t even tell you that’s when he draws the line. Your heels clicking could be heard throughout the mansion alerting the other gods to stay in their rooms to avoid your wrath. You aggressively knocked on the door, but gave up and slammed it open. Leon jumped at the sound and turned looking shocked, but somewhat annoyed at the disturbance.

“What the hell Leon?!?! I waited for hours!!!” You crossed your arms as you spoke hoping to convey you were extremely angry.

“What are you talking about MC??” He sounded genuinely confused;making you even more mad.

“Are you serious?! You don’t even remember?!?” If you weren’t so mad you would probably be crying right now that he forgot your anniversary. You dramatically pointed to your attire: a low-cut black lace dress, black stilettos, your makeup was done up more than usual and finally you were wearing the necklace he got for your birthday. Seeing your outfit must have clicked as what today was in his head as he started walking over to you an apologetic expression on his face.

“I’m so sorry MC, I was busy and I Err lost track of time” he tried to grab your shoulder but you moved away.

“Hmph 6 hours too late Leon” you took a step back not wanting to be close to him right now.

“Babe I’m sorry, please forgive me” he at least sounded sorry.

“No Leon, your gonna have to do more than just apologise. Did you even remember?? Do you even care??” Your voice cracked as you trailed off, tears pricked your eyes. Maybe he didn’t you thought. He quickly pulled you into a hug and stroked your hair.

“MC don’t ever say that of course I care, I’ll do anything. I am seriously sorry…” with most of your anger dissipated your emotions turned to sadness as you thought about Leon not loving you anymore. You gripped him tight as you let out some of your cries. Leon whispered soothing words that helped the negative thoughts you were feeling. After you had stopped crying you pulled back to look at him to see him staring at you.

“What?” His eyes trailed down your body and finally to your eyes.

“You’re beautiful” he smiled at you making butterflies flutter within your stomach. You blushed at his comment and looked down bashfully. He leant down and gave you a quick kiss, but when he pulled away you latched your arms around his neck to stop him. Shocked at your reaction Leon smirked and started kissing you deeper. His tongue parted your lips and entered your mouth. Moaning into the kiss you started tugging on his hair pulling him closer. He picked you up by your hips and pushed you down onto the bed. Realising he was gaining the upper hand you quickly bit down on his bottom lip then pushed him onto his back when he was distracted. Now straddling him you looked down smirking as you trailed your hand up and down his chest.

“Oh-Ho so you’re taking charge today?” He spoke while laying back allowing you full access to his body. Deciding to not answer and continue with your plan you started unbuttoning his shirt. You then moved towards his pants, slowly unbuckling his belt and pulling them down. Leaving him only wearing his boxer you look up to see him looking quite shocked; not expecting this from you. You’d never took charge before or went down on him. You leant down and licked his clothed cock eliciting a moan from Leon. Getting confidence from his reaction you hooked your fingers under the waistband of his underwear sliding them down; freeing his nearly fully erect cock. Your small hands cupped around it sliding up and down trying to get him fully hard. Once he was completely erect you slid down and got comfortable between his legs. You slowly swipe your tongue down the base of his cock and back to the tip, making sure to go over the slit. Opening your mouth you hesitantly swallowed the tip. Leon bucked his hips slightly making his cock go further down your throat. Noticing how Leon was gripping the bed sheets you continued sucking and going deeper. You went as far as you could before you gagged; which vibrated around his dick making him moan again.

“Ngh yes MC go f-faster” obliging you sped up your pace. While your head bobbed up and down you looked up to make eye contact with Leon; this seeming to turn him on as he gripped the bedsheet tighter. While you continued sucking one of your hands starting fondling his balls.

“Nngg ah yes yes” his eyes were rolling into the back of his head signalling to you that he was close. His hand interlocked with your hair pushing you further onto his cock, making you gag once more. He held you in that position for a moment before he eased his grip and allowed you to move up and down again.

“I’m g-gonna cu-” before he could finish you had already pulled back and wiped your mouth. You smiled at him while he tried to fathom what was happening.

“I’m still a little mad y’know” you had a big cocky grin on your face as his changed to one of complete frustration.

“You’re gonna pay for that” he growled at you. Standing with your arms open you smirked.

“Come and get me then” he quickly stood up and pushed you onto the bed. Letting out a squeak as he roughly ripped your dress open and slid it down; revealing the black and gold laced lingerie you wore for tonight’s date. He looked down amused by your outfit choice. However he was clearly too frustrated to go slowly as he tore off your bra and panties; ripping them in the process.

“Hey! those were expen-” he cut you off with a rough, deep kiss. You were planning on protesting some more, but the tip of his cock rubbing against your core changed your mind. Knowing that he was gonna be rough with you anyway you decided you might as well annoy him some more. He did deserve it at least. Pulling back you purposely yawned, “You gonna fuck me or am I gonna have to go ask one of the other gods?” It was hard but you managed to suppress a giggle as you awaited his response.

“Don’t MC, I’m warning you,” he snarled. You decided to push your luck once more.

“Hmm I think Scorpio isn’t doing anything, maybe he’ll fu-” he harshly thrusted fully into you. Screaming out in pleasure at how aggressive he was being you clawed your nails at his back. He pounded into you with no mercy; going deeper than he ever had before.

“Ahgg h-harder!!” You loudly moan near his ear. He grabbed your leg and hoisted it up by his shoulder so he could reach a different, deeper angle which made you scream his name. You could feel your walls clamp and flutter around his cock as you could feel your impending orgasm.

“You think Scorpio can fuck you like this? Huh?” With each word he violently thrusts deeper.

“I dunnooo” smirking up at him just to annoy him once more. He grasped your hair and forced your head back as he bit down on your throat. Moaning at his action made him do it again and again.

“Well can he?” Your mind was hazy at this point as you knew you were so close to reaching your peak.

“No no nghh god no” You felt your toes curl as your legs shook. You screamed out his name one more time as you started to see stars. Leon didn’t stop his rough assault as he kept rocking his hips until he released his seed into you. With a couple of grunts he’d finished and slowly pulled out of you; causing you to whimper. Yep you were definitely gonna feel that tomorrow. He collapsed next to you panting. You shifted closer to him and rested you head on his chest. He smiled and kissed the top of your head while stroking your hair. “I love you” your voice muffled into Leon chest.

“I love you too, but out anniversary isn’t over yet~~” he smirked down at you while you could already feel a familiar need growing within you again.

Sorry if it’s bad and kinda late ish.

#hope you enjoy #scm #star crossed myth #scm leon #leon #voltage #love 365 #smut

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opes-magnas · 4 years

Text

those two days.

A wise man once said, ”The bad news is, nothing lasts forever and the good news is, nothing lasts forever.”

That’s freaking bullshit. Whoever told that hasn’t gone through the amount of trauma I’ve been through, which made every single moment feel like an eternity. Oh wait! I should’ve explained it more graphically.

Every single second felt like I was being skinned alive and being rolled over in salt and then fried in burning hot oil, then my limbs being torn out of my body and I could probably go on forever. In short, my time as a mortal on this planet has been miserable.

My mother and father were the epitome of love, they were the ideal couple who fell in love as soon they laid eyes on each other and the middle of their story is so cliché I’d rather let you imagine it in the most typical way possible and the end of it is, they got married!

They sadly never had their happily ever after cause they then got pregnant with me.

(After 9 months of my mother craving weird things)

He kept pacing the length of the waiting room, anxious, his face was dripping with perspiration and his brows were knitted in deep thought, his hands were clasping and unclasping and fidgeting with his jacket.

* Piano playing a sad note*

He hears the OR doors opening and rushes towards the doctor and shakes that poor guy until he’s pale. The doctor says that there were a lot of complications with his wife’s pregnancy and that they could save only one of them, and his wife told them to save his child and that he now has a healthy 4.5 pound baby boy.

He fell to the ground. How could he even live without his beloved wife! His moon and stars, his better half! He felt so utterly devastated.

Sometimes when people lose the very thing that defines their life, the very thing that they lived and breathed for, they lose faith and when that happens there is no coming back.

I think this was that moment for my father. I’ve always wondered how anyone could love anything so intensely. But I guess love is a very elusive thing which sadly won’t fit into the bounds of words.

I can try to make sense of though, from what I’ve seen, love is when my father returned home after a tired day of work and as soon as he saw the face that opened the door, he could find calmness in spite of all the chaos surrounding him. One of the biggest regrets of my life is that I couldn’t see and feel that pure unconditional love.

Anyways, in my bittersweet flashback my father also gets to know that it was my mother’s intentional decision to give her life in order to save mine.

So, from that day my father loathed to see my face. As every time he looked at me, I reminded him of the day he lost the purpose of his life. He became an alcoholic and just gave me money to do whatever the hell I want with it.

I never actually went to school regularly, used to bunk most of the time. But that didn’t matter because I passed somehow by cheating and my street smartness. But, it really hit me when I flunked my senior year and all of my friends went to Ivy League colleges, while I was left to attend my dreadful senior year AGAIN with a bunch of crackpots.

Though, that wasn’t the part that made me lose my sense of self- dignity. It was when the look of nonchalance on my father’s face when he heard the former news. Even this far in life I didn’t have goal or any plans to look forward to. This part kept me most of the nights and stole any little peace of mind I had left.

Then I attended community college in hopes of at least getting proper education. In college, I couldn’t stick to any one major for a year as I was pretty fickle minded about it.

One sunny happy day, birds are chirping, I’m braying Beyoncé’s halo and enter the college premises to see this guy snogging my girlfriend. My fury knows no bounds as I beat the shit out of him then I get to know that my girlfriend had been cheating on me with him for many months. But, it was too late to reconsider my actions as I had probably broken 50 of his bones oops!

Then I got slapped an assault case and got expelled from college for disgracing them. This particular joke that I’m about to say is a big touché moment but humour at my expense has been a trend I’ve experienced everywhere so hell with it.

I got expelled from a freaking community college with drug addicts, goons, people who have flunked their freshman year about 3 times go to. And I have been expelled from such a college for “disgracing them”!!!

Go on laugh yourself out.

But a tiny ray of hope appeared after a jumbo combo of disappointment with a side of bad luck and a dollop of ugly fate. I was discovered by the basketball scouts and got a chance to play in the local league and if I did play well, I had a chance of playing ball in college! They absolutely loved me. I had gotten so used to people being disappointed in me that I was so unsure of myself when people really appreciated me.

But as you know of my series fuck ups I had to screw this one too. But, this one was the most epic of them all. I had a few shots in before the game just to you know, bring that edge.

During the game, when I was passed the ball, my drunken brain thought it was the head of my ex-girlfriend and I started smashing the ball against my head (which my brain thinks as a pathetic attempt of kissing “her” or rather “it”). So, at the end, everyone thought I was some lunatic and I got kicked off the field (literally).

I finally let go of all the little self-respect I had and applied for a job as a cashier at McDonalds. And the reply from them was the single most embarrassing moment of my life.

I got rejected!

Then I heard a call saying that my grandpa had died but he had also left me the family mansion, which I assume is out of pity for being ignored for most of my life. This was just in time (not my grandpa’s death of course! Gee I’m not so devoid of emotion!) as I was being kicked out of my apartment due to not paying rent for past 3 months and needed a place to crash.

But, aside from that I was a 23 year old man with no job, no girlfriend, and no degrees to show for, no friends and absolutely broke. I should be the poster boy for the word “miserable” (at least that way I’ll make some profit out of my pathetic existence of a life).

The mansion looks absolutely beautiful from outside. It has a huge dome at the centre with 2 parapets flanking its either sides. The entire dome is made of tinted blue glass which makes it look like it’s a part of the sky but a glistening one filled with hand painted butterflies, hummingbirds, Macau’s and various other exotic species of birds.

The front lawn is as exorbitant as a rare and secret meadow left untouched by mankind, where the flowers unknown grow at their own liberty, unrestricted where bees hover over them making a slight buzzing sound . The whole estate looks so unreal and glorious, it is like a medieval castle left untouched.

But, all I could feel by looking at it was dejection. I felt even this wonderful piece of architecture was looming over and looking at me in pity. I sighed heavily and gathered my meagre possessions and stepped inside.

It was even more splendid from the inside. I don’t know what I’ll do with so much space, I could fit all of my things in the pantry closet! I just lay down on the plush divan to take a small nap because thinking about my wretched life made my mind blackout and heavy like I’d had a few too many tequila shots.

“Poor boy, how can anyone’s life be so tragic and pitiable!?” said pride, wiping off the tears rolling down its cheek, “I know what a troubled childhood feels like, even my mother was too haughty to admit that she had become too fat because of giving birth to me and she never looked at me with a hint of motherly affection, it totally damaged my self-confidence.”

“As if you ever had it to begin with! You appeared to be so full of yourself in front of people but deep down you’re a pathetic little wimp!”

“Stop it envy! See, you made him cry, aren’t you living up to your name! Always jealous of others! I know it’s like we can invade his privacy, by taking a peek at his thoughts, but this boy can’t even defend himself. He doesn’t get angry at all when people talk all sorts of things about him! How can he even live with himself!”

“Now now, anger you don’t upset yourself too much, your BP is gonna skyrocket. All this boy needs to do is to get laid man! He so uptight, he needs to loosen up a little and take a chill pill.”

“I totally agree with you, said Sloth, he needs to take some time out for himself and have a little self’-introspective nap once in a while right, Glutton?”

“All you ever do is take naps! And anyways he needs to round up and appear fuller, he’s such a scrawny kid! Eat more spaghetti and meatballs!”

“You’re awfully quiet Greed, speak up man this isn’t like you! You’re always complaining that you don’t as much time to speak”.

“Yeah dude, it’s just I’ve never seen any man not having even basic survivalist desires. We gotta help this fella.”

“Okay then roll up your sleeves gentlemen and ugh *cough* cough* sorry woman, we got some work to do!”

I opened my eyes and nearly peed myself in the pants, in front of me were six men and woman, I screamed like a cat dunked in a bucket of water!

“Hey Yo mate, chill down, we’re just here to help”, said a boy who was in his teens clearly by the amount of acne on his face and the ripped jeans and hoodie he wore further justified my guess, he wore a badge called “sloth”

What a weird name, I thought. Who would like to be named after the sloth bear!

“Yo, for the fact the sloth bear was named after me!”

“Now, sloth you need to follow your own words, the boy must be scared shitless. By the way, I’m Greed, nice to meet you too and that rude fellow was Sloth.”, spoke a middle aged man with a rather baggy shirt and tight jeans.

“Guys let’s introduce ourselves to make it easier for him. Hello young fellow, I’m Glutton!”, said a shirtless man whose abs glistened with sweat as though he’d come from a workout.

“Hello kitten, I’m Anger.”, said a strikingly beautiful woman with a purple dress synched at the waist with a Gucci belt and black stilettos.

“Greetings from the better part of hell dear, I’m Envy.”, said a man with a formal attire and red horn-rimmed glasses.

“Morning, I’m Pride.”, said a tall man wearing an expensive Armani suit, reebok sunglasses and slick blonde hair.

“Hi, I’m Lust.” ,he whispered, God he must be the male-version of Aphrodite! He was enough to turn a straight man like me, gay.

(I gave such detailed description of them, as they keep recurring and I wanted you guys to see them exactly like I did.)

“Umm. Hi, I’m max I guess.”, I blurted.

“God! We need to work on your self-confidence boy! Okay I’ll tell you why we’re here. While you were napping, we looked into your past and thought you might need a little boost to help you live a better life. So, each of us will help you in their own area of expertise and ooh! I almost forgot we are here only for two days, so buckle up!”

Have become schizophrenic?! I am hearing voices in my head!

“Relax honey, we are visible and audible only to you.”, Anger said.

“Humph okay, what should I do to get rid of you lot?”

Quit the sarcasm brother, first we need to get a good workout. Come on move your ass, and Glutton then pulled me away for what seemed like forever and made me workout like hell. The workout was so intense, I was so sore I couldn’t move a muscle and every time I got up my butt ached.

But, when I looked in the mirror, I couldn’t believe my eyes, my body looked like it was photo shopped! Six pack abs, killer thighs, amazing collar bone and to top it off a chiseled jaw! I looked like a Greek God!

Then, without wasting a minute, Sloth whisked me into the kitchen which was filled with amazing food and magazines. He told me, “You know what mate, you need to take some time out for yourself and make yourself happy once in a while.”

I never forgot those words.

I ate to my stomach’s fill, of course only healthy foods allowed (Glutton approved- check). Then my slot was with Anger.

We took a walk and were talking everyday stuff when she pulled me into a McDonald’s. I resisted as I had just eaten the feast of my life, but she insisted and made me sit down in a booth.

“Sometimes anger in the right direction is okay.”

Then a waiter came and asked for our order, before we could even blink an eye, he started bellowing out like a cow belching and started telling people that I was the specimen of a man who got rejected even from a McDonald’s job and thought a ball was his ex-girlfriend!

People around me started taking selfies and snaps of me and posting it on social media.

Anger whispered, “You need to defend your honour, sugar. No one is going to do it for you.”

I mustered all the courage I had left in me and punched that guy in his face. I pulled Anger away and we made for the run.

After the running all the way to house, I told her, “I never felt so exhilarated and satisfied in my entire life!”

“But, remember kitten, anger only in the right direction and for the right cause, like you defending your honour for example.”

Will remember, Ms. Anger.

Then Pride and Greed approached me together and took me into my room and gave my laptop.

“Listen son, you are quite capable and intelligent, all you need is to believe in yourself a little more and go after the things you want.” , Pride said. “So you need to write an essay to get into Ivy League colleges with full scholarship, so begin writing.”

I bit my lip. Just believe in yourself.

Then I wrote my essay by pulling an all-nighter and submitted it.

I could feel someone shaking me hardly, I rubbed my eyes and opened them reluctantly only to see Greed pulling off my blankets and telling me to get ready for a small basketball session.

We then drove over to the Baltimore city gym, I then realized he had brought me to the basketball try-outs for the city’s team!

Believe in yourself.

After almost half a day, we returned home then Lust dragged me into various clothing stores and dressed me up and told me to remember one girl who had impacted me the most.

Then, I thought how I could miss the one girl who stood with me through thick and thin! She never doubted me! Suddenly I could remember all the subtle hints she gave throughout the time we were friends, and I, a fool, never paid her enough attention, trying to go after girls who were popular!

Oh Sarah! Then I saw the smirk on Lust’s face and knew he was the one who helped me clear my thoughts.

He murmured, “Go! You moron.”

I rushed to my car and drove to Sarah’s house and almost punched a hole into her front door trying to knock.

The door opened, and when I saw her face, I found calm in midst of all chaos of my mind, guess I finally got to see the true love I always yearned for.

I gave her my true confession with gulps in between.

She told, “I thought you’d never realize.”

I pulled her waist close to me, and whispered in her ear, “Better late than never” and tucked the hair on her cheek behind her ear and kissed her like I’d never see her again.

Well, two days passed within a blink of an eye, and yet I have changed so much, grown into a better man. Oh! Only Envy hadn’t had his chance to speak to me.

I then told Sarah I’d see her tomorrow and drove back to the house to see all of them standing on my front porch. I got down and t and went and hugged each one knowing it was time to say our goodbyes.

Envy stepped forward, “Max, we always knew you were a special young man, but always remember that when you succeed, there are always gonna be people who will envy you and try to bring you down, you have to then remember how hard you worked to get there and say, fuck you assholes and stay put.”

“I love you guys; do you have to go?”

“Yes child, but we will be watching you, okay?”

Goodbye.

When I was going to unlock the front door, I saw my reflection on the glass, and I then I realized that I was always like this, but I never saw myself for what I really am.

I measured my life by milestones and achievements all along, never realizing those small moments where I was the best possible version of myself.

I guess, the old wise man was correct.

Epilogue – After a year

I am so busy right now, I don’t even have the time to write this, but I know you guys I are curious of what happened after that.

I got selected to play college ball for Princeton University with a full scholarship. Sarah and I are in a very serious relationship and we are thinking of getting married after college, oh and by the way, she also got accepted to Princeton.

I also work as a part time model for Vogue (who knew!) I think I may be playing for the NBA next year.

And I made things right with my father and actually forgave him of all his shortcomings.

I am so grateful and happy for those two days last year, though I still think my mind is playing tricks with me as I went back the McDonald’s store and asked the guy whom I punched if he remembered me and he gave this weird look .

Anyways, you guys might have thought I have finally achieved something, but I think otherwise. I am still so very insecure about myself in a thousand different ways. But when I wake up in the morning, I am so grateful for being given this life in contrast to before when I used to wonder my purpose.

~ Lady Lazarus

#writeblr #new blog #humor #writings #this is based off a tumblr post #lady lazarus #oneshot

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incorrectsmashbrosquotes · 5 years

Note

Headcanon: Ganondorf tried to get Metwo to join the League of Villains. He always said no, but Ganondorf kept pestering him, and one time he got so annoyed he uppercutted him hard enough to send him crashing through the roof of the mansion. The other villains were laughing their asses off and Wolf recorded it. Ganondorf left Mewtwo alone after that.

Yeah it was funny, until Ganondorf crashed back through the ceiling, sticking the landing, and blazing with purple fire. His eyes blazed with unholy fury, and his thick muscles were taught with rage.

“Umm… we should go.” said Wario nervously.

“Yup. My uh… kid has a piano recital.” said Bowser.

“STAY PUT!” thundered Ganondorf. “Stay put, and witness.” he snarled. Naturally, the other villains froze in terror, reminded why Ganondorf was their leader.

Ganondorf turned to face Mewtwo, the Pokemon burning with psychic fire. “All I want is to be left alone Ganondorf. My Pokemon and I will neither help nor hinder you in your quest.” he said grimly.

Ganondorf sneered. “That’s what you don’t understand Mewtwo. There are no more neutrals. No more middle ground. No more sitting it out.” And then, before Mewtwo could react, a massive fist charged with demonic power slammed into his chest sending him head over heels on to the ground.

Without time to right himself, Ganondorf grabbed him by the throat and slammed him against the wall. “There is no more hiding from me!” he roared, and slammed him into the ground.

With Ganondorf’s fists tightening around his neck, Mewtwo lashed out with his powerful tail, knocking Ganondorf off balance and loosening his grip. The Pokemon wriggled free and bombarded Ganondorf with Aura Blasts. After taking a couple hits, Ganondorf began to dodge.

While keeping him on his toes, Mewtwo grimaced and reached out with his mind. “Your mind is mine, Demon King.” and assaulted Ganondorf’s consciousness.

Ganondorf smiled. “By all means, come in.”

(Inside Ganondorf’s mindscape)

Mewtwo looked about in the inky blackness. This… this wasn’t right. The mind is a full place, and each mindscape took a different form. But this? This endless abyss? It was unheard of?

“WELCOME TO MY WORLD, LITTLE POKEMON” boomed out a voice.

And then the abyss was full.

Full of fire.

Mewtwo felt the scalding hot flames assault him. The burning fury of something older and more terrible than anything he had ever seen before. A being that had faced the Gods and walked backwards into hell. He was inside of something that crushed worlds beneath it.

Not a monster. Not even a demon.

A devil.

“You have sealed the fate of your kind, Mewtwo. Your arrogance and rebellion will be there doom. I will burn your world to ash and cinders, and the charred carcasses of the Pokemon you loved so dearly will be fodder for my beasts. Those that survive will serve, as sport hunting and cattle. But you? You will live. You will live, and watch, as all you have ever loved BURNS!”

Mewtwo screamed as the fire consumed him. There was no escape. No hope. No…

“GET AWAY FROM HIM!”

Lucario and Incineraor ruched Ganondorf who scarcely had time to react as Incineroar slammed a fist into his face and sent him flying. Lucario grabbed Mewtwo who was lying unconscious on the cave floor.

Snapping out of their fear induced paralysis, the other villains sprang into action. Incineroar gave Ridley a lariat and King K Rool a suplex as they were the first to reach him.

However, both Pokemon relaized they were outmatched as the rest of the villains,and a now recovered Ganondorf flew at them. So Lucario shot an aura sphere into the ceiling, collapsing it. The two ran, using the chaos to escape. But behind them, the roar of the infuriated Ganondorf chilled them to the bone.

#incorrect super smash bros #super smash bros #incorrect quotes #request #Mewtwo #Ganondorf #Wario #Bowser #Lucario #Incineroar #Pokemon #Legend of Zelda #Wario Ware #Super Mario #League of Villains

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beneaththetangles · 5 years

Text

The Adoption of Zenitsu Agatsuma

The answer is simple and clear: It’s love.

Have you ever felt that kind of love from someone not bound to you in any way? I have, in bits and pieces—the young man who played basketball with me when I was a youth; the friend who chose me me first for his team rather than one of the athletic kids; the mentor who invested what little time he had in helping a young man who complained too much (maybe I’m Zenitsu after all!) grow into an adult. But I’ve also experienced this love in all its fullness. My faith paints the picture of adoption, of a God who chooses to bring us into his family at great sacrifice: “But when the fullness of time had come, God sent forth his Son, born of woman, born under the law, to redeem those who were under the law, so that we might receive adoption as sons.” (Galatians 4:4-5).

Like Zenitsu, I flounder each day. My problems remain and my character improvement is a slow process. But when I become a son, I’m given that which I do not deserve. And like Zenitsu as well, in one moment all that love poured into me leads to transformation, and like a flash of lightning, I can change into all that which otherwise I never would have become.

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Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba can be streamed on Crunchyroll.

Featured illustration by P (reprinted w/permission).

#Anime #Christianity #Kimetsu no Yaiba #Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba #Zenitsu Agatsuma #Jigoro Kuwajima #Adoption #Articles #Author: TWWK

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thecomicsnexus · 5 years

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UNCANNY X-MEN #145-147 MAY - JULY 1981 BY CHRIS CLAREMONT, DAVE COCKRUM, JOE RUBINSTEIN AND GLYNIS WEIN

SYNOPSIS (FROM MARVEL DATABASE)

Stevie Hunter and Ororo went to see Britain's Royal Ballet. While watching the ballet, Miss Locke entered their box and touched them with a fatal contact poison, a poison she had the antidote to. The poison was merely to buy their undivided attention as Miss Locke related how and why Doom captured Arcade, that she would like the X-Men to rescue Arcade, and that many of the X-Men's family and friends had been captured to ensure that they would. Ororo fell unconscious, and when she awoke Stevie and Miss Locke were gone. She checked on Amanda Sefton and the Greys, but they were all missing. She returned to the mansion.

The X-Men contacted Beast to get information about Dr. Doom from the Avengers. Wolverine argued that they couldn't submit to blackmail, they had to nail Murderworld so hard no one would attack their loved ones and friends again. Ororo agreed, and had a plan. Professor X telepathically contacted former X-Men Havok, Polaris, Iceman, and Banshee to provide extra manpower for the two-pronged assault. Team 1 (Storm, Angel, Colossus, Wolverine, Nightcrawler) would rescue Arcade from Dr. Doom, buying time for Havok, Polaris, Iceman, and Banshee to rescue their friends from Murderworld.

Professor X was unable to contact Cyclops. That may have been because he was just waking up on an unknown Caribbean beach where he and Lee Forrester may have been the only inhabitants. Lee had been tossed overboard by a freak storm, and Scott dove in after her, and now they were stranded.

Meanwhile at Doom's Castle, the Adirondacks, Storm made a dramatic entrance and demanded to speak with Dr. Doom. Dr. Doom emerged and consented to discussing Storm's demand (that he release Arcade) over dinner. Meanwhile the other X-Men in her team infiltrated the castle to rescue Arcade. Unfortunately for them, they found Arcade's cell empty, and were then set upon by men in battle-suits. A fierce battle ensued with the X-Men victorious. In the dining room, Doom was monitoring the battle while engaging Storm in conversation. When it became apparent the battle-suits had lost, Doom presented another of his guests, Arcade. Realizing it was a trap, Storm attacked Doom, but he withstood the assault and hit Storm with a weapon that turned her into a statue. The other X-Men arrived seconds too late, only to be laid low by energy weapons. Colossus emerged unscathed, but Dr. Doom paralyzed him with a neural disruptor and emerged victorious.

Dr. Doom captured the X-Men and devised cunning traps for each of them. Nightcrawler was in a featureless box, incapable of knowing where he was or where he could safely teleport to. Colossus was on an apparent mountain peak, with a whirlpool slowly climbing upwards. Wolverine was in a checkerboard amorphous anti-gravity room that was driving his senses crazy and every time he hit a wall, it accelerated him and Angel was in a giant birdcage where the perch was safe, but any attempt to leave it lead to many low-intensity lasers turning the air into a maze of crisscrossing beams. Storm was trapped in organic chrome - the epitome of confinement - a state which triggered her claustrophobia and caused her to unconsciously generate a fierce Storm across the whole eastern seaboard.

That storm caused a near miss lightning bolt to jolt Cyclops' eye-bandage off, revealing his optic blast to Lee Forrester. The bandage was re-applied, but Scott would have some explaining to do.

The reserve X-Men called in to follow the second half of Storm's plan to fly over the derelict amusement park where the X-Men were released last time they tangled with Murderworld. Polaris used her magnetic powers to trace the underground structures back to Murderworld. Havok 'dug' a tunnel and Polaris short-circuited the electronics to prevent detection, or so she thought. But then a holographic Miss Locke welcomed them, and the games began. Trap doors separated our heroes.

Havok found himself on a roller coaster with spacecraft shooting at him. Some were holograms, but some were dangerously real. He blasted some, but then things looked to get worse as he was headed into a large mothership's mouth. He jumped out at the last second, landing on the outside of the mother-ship. Predictably, his roller coaster car exploded.

Iceman found himself on an ice rink with some enraged hockey players. An ice shield kept them at bay, but the excess weight tumbled the robot players through the ice and into acid. More players skated into the rink, and heating vents turned on.

Banshee found himself in an old-west shoot-out. Deprived of his powers, he had to rely on his Interpol training. He out shot the other robot, but its padres wanted in on the action. Sean used a 'micro-bomb' to destroy them, blowing a hole through the wall where he saw Moira being tied to train tracks.

Polaris found herself on a merry-go-round. She got distracted by what looked like Illyana Rasputin running by her, only to be attacked by the merry-go-round's horses. She destroyed them with her power and went after the girl, except it wasn't Illyana at all, but a robot with a gun. Of course, robots nor guns were no threat to a mistress of magnetism, but then the ride started spinning incredibly quickly, launching itself into the air and detonating, but Polaris managed to protect herself. However, an inhibitor field caused her to fall.

Polaris fell into Iceman's chamber, who caught her. However, the weight of his ice-slide collapsed the rink surface below, meaning he needed to escape now or be eaten by acid. He super-cooled the wall in front of him, making it brittle enough to smash through.

Havok got into the utility tunnels and shorted out a major box. Chambers went to investigate and was taken out by Havok.

Banshee defeated the villain tying her, but she was tied with wire so untying her quickly was impossible. However, along the track came Amanda Sefton and Candy Southern tied up in a roller coaster car, so blowing up the track would kill them. Banshee resigned himself to having to blow up the track when Polaris and Iceman arrived, preventing anyone's death. Suddenly Moira, Amanda, and Candy exploded. They were all robot simulacrums. Our heroes were saved by Polaris's quick magnetic shield.

Miss Locke watched all of this with glee until Havok showed up and trashed her firearm. The control center disabled, the X-Men quickly freed the hostages and made it back out to the hover-jet to discover a major storm outside.

Doom had also noticed the Storm, and it worried him. Arcade, however, was unconcerned and he noticed that Nightcrawler just disappeared from his cell.

Nightcrawler finds himself high in the air above Doom's castle, having teleported blind from a featureless room (last issue). Falling unconscious briefly, Nightcrawler awakes to find himself falling frighteningly fast. He skydives for an updraft and then teleports into the lake near Doom's castle - emerging alive but shivering. He reflects on the circumstances that brought him to this situation (last two issues).

Doom has not failed to notice Nightcrawler's escape, and he orders his men to recapture the X-Man. Doom is worried about the growing storm centered on his castle, although Arcade is unfazed. Doom's unease is echoed by NORAD.

Nightcrawler makes his re-entrance to the castle, disabling two guards. Elsewhere, Colossus has discovered that the lasers below are attuned to size and that chunks of Colossus' size are zapped, those of Peter Rasputin's size are left untouched. Taking a deep breath, he swims downwards, past the cannons, turning into Colossus only when he's safely past. He punches a hole in the wall.

In his giant birdcage Angel has figured out that the lasers which fire when he leaves the perch are actually patterned to create a maze. He flies this maze at high speed and escapes just as his cell detonates behind him - only to get a mouthful of water as Colossus's flood washes over him.

Wolverine, trapped in an anti-gravity chamber which is royally messing with his senses, tries to embrace the beast without letting it control him. He hacks into anything he hits, and eventually, the anti-gravity gives out, dropping him onto the floor. Wolvie carves his way out of the cell and notices the loud thunder shaking the very castle. Ororo must be in trouble, so he rushes up the stairs to confront Doom! Doom tells 'Ororo' (a robot) to deal with him, and Wolvie trashes the robot. Doom blasts Wolverine, but Nightcrawler's timely arrival is enough for the X-Men to turn the tables. Wolverine offers a deal - Doom's life for Storm's. Doom hands them a device that will restore Storm... and it does...

Storm has become one with the planet, with all its myriad of elemental forces at her command, and though Doom uses the other X-Men's distraction to escape Wolverine's clutches, Storm easily overpowers him. Of course, Storm's not-so-tender ministrations aren't reserved solely for Doom, as Colossus finds out when he tries to reason with her. The castle is being torn apart by the storm outside, and Dr. Doom and the X-Men may well be torn apart by the Storm inside. Finally, Colossus says something that triggers Storm's psyche to re-assert itself, and she brings the storm back under control, although it costs her much.

Doom is strangely pleased that Ororo survives the ordeal. Storm again asks for Arcade's freedom, which Doom grants for an apology (rather grudgingly given) from Arcade. Doom also apologizes to Storm, and asks to begin anew (with Storm in particular - yes Doom is hitting on Storm), and Storm consents - a clean slate from that point.

In the Caribbean, Lee and Scott awaken to discover a strange building has emerged from the ocean overnight on the island they're stranded on!

REVIEW

John Byrne’s departure is really felt in this story. Cockrum art feels too aged. And full of inconsistencies. I am not sure if it was Claremont that came up with that dialogue about Doom replacing Wolverine’s costume, but it feels like a continuity error. Perhaps the craziest thing is Storm’s change of costume while she was a statue. Where does it come from?

The villains in this story are forgettable. And yes, I include fake Dr. Doom. Who wasn’t supposed to be a doombot, but since Byrne was writing Doctor Doom on Fantastic Four, and didn’t like the way the character was treated by Claremont, he decided to explain as Doom being replaced by a Doombot. You can read more about it here.

I give this story a score of 5

#dave cockrum #joe rubinstein #marvel comics #comics #review #1981 #bronze age #uncanny x-men #x-men #storm #wolverine #nightcrawler #arcade #doctor doom #havok

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