#idk what i'd do with sole in this case lol

[automatonknight]

been playing around with this idea of kurier going to boston for no real reason (for now) except that he. has a way to get there since he has access to stuff like vertibirds anf shit. anyways he gets there and gets hired as nick’s partner and they’re besties. also it takes on the pseudonym “kier” (like the card) (it still uses kurier but. yeah). probably “non-canon” but it’s fun to think about it and nick as friends. 

#i think it would also probably get more confident as time goes on #they mostly do notes since. nick doesn't write stuff down but eventually they also start asking questions during investigations and #that's kind of like a starter to opening up even more than they did during nv #ok well whatever. it's mostly about two old men that solve cases and gossip together #kurier is probably in his like. mid-forties by then #idk what i'd do with sole in this case lol

[lizzybeth1986]

opinions on lena rys? (sorry if this has already been asked LOL! I'm just interested to see your take)

Thank you for that question @elusetta! It's a pleasant and lovely surprise to get a question like this one... though idk if you'll actually like what I have to say here.

(Also lmao half the fandom will probably hate me for this essay, but everything I've written here is the truth. If y'all want to cling to your biases instead, fandom, be my guest and skip this essay)

I have two kinds of opinions regarding Lena - Lena as an individual character, and Lena in terms of what the writers wanted narratively.

As an individual character...eh. She's okay. On paper she could be promising, but on the whole she starts from one tangent and lands somewhere else altogether midway (and while one can say this of any character in the series, the fact is that, in her case, those inconsistencies all co-exist in the same book!).

Lena is an incredibly self-contained character. Sure, she is both the key to the VI's takeover of Cordonia and the weak link that facilitates their downfall - but there is very little she has to give the story or the other characters, and far more that they are constantly expected to give her. She is first presented to us as more of a loyal soldier to the VI, but mid-story she would have us believe that she'd be a better monarch and had always wanted to be queen. She is part of a cult that claims to be anti-monarchy, yet decides she must be queen and operates under a cult filled with monarchs. And there isn't enough pushback against the notion that a glorified puppet to a murderous cult would make a good monarch, and Lena gets away far too easily with her own crimes at the end (thanks to the brother she had spent the whole book mocking). Most of our time is spent coddling her and pampering her and convincing her that we genuinely like her, and very little on her actually self-evaluating. Like Olivia before her, she's there simply to be cosetted by us (by her brother Liam in particular) before she can afford us even a tenth of the grace she's been given.

And while I'm sure a horde of Lena stans may land on this ask to bleat about her tragic childhood and Sigrid's brainwashing, I'd like them to ask themselves one thing. Even the most conditioned person will find themselves questioning beliefs they grew up with from time to time. (Hana had done that on her own - several times - during the original TRR series, and this same fandom had no problem calling her "weak"). It takes Lena forever to even question Sigrid's weird logic. Yet I'm supposed to believe she'll make a great queen just because she's got military skills? Even though her critical thinking is...barely there? (And believe me, enough people in fandom were celebrating the notion of Lena replacing Liam and what the VI were doing for a portion of the story).

There are possibilities to make such a character compelling - someone who believes they have agency and independence only to realize they are lowly pawns can make for a good inner conflict, and could provide the core group with a good contrast as well - but not with this team, or this fandom. Not with a head writer who will simp for the Val Greaves/Olivia Nevrakis character type against all logic, not with a fandom that is forever desperate to make Liam their personal scapegoat. Not with a team and fandom who are uncomfortable with acknowledging their own favourites' actual flaws. Both of these groups only saw her armor, snark, gun skills and hatred of Liam, and decided she was a great character based solely on that.

Personally and out of the larger context of this story, I don't particularly mind Lena as a character. In a better story that had more balance, I'd probably be more sympathetic. I prefer some of the sweeter and softer female characters, or the characters that represent diplomacy in a series like this. I'm a lot more protective of them nowadays because they tend to be looked down upon most of the time (especially if they are default WOC!). And that happens more often than not with this series!

--

On a narrative level...well. Buckle up coz I have a real bone to pick with the writing team and the fandom on this specific issue.

Narratively, Lena is the most obvious sign of the TRR writing team's cravenness and shamelessness, and the biggest sign of their disdain for the character that gave them the whole premise of this series.

Mind you, I cannot blame solely Lena for this. She is just a culmination of what the team was already doing to Liam. Kneecapping Liam was a process that began early and went on for six books, with fandom encouragement. Liam, contrary to the fandom's claims (and the Drake stans - whose favourite was himself eating up other characters' space on the regular - complain about this the loudest), was already being disadvantaged in several ways.

Here are just a few ways that events that happened to Liam (or storylines that should have been his) but were instead centered on other people, including the MC:

1. Traumatic events:

The assassination attempt that left Liam so traumatized that he could barely eat, and made him shut himself off to everyone, was never incorporated for his benefit. He never gets to talk about it, the MC herself never bothers to ask him about it. It only exists so Drake can sound less whiny about staying in a place that he hates.

The assassination attempt that kills Constantine? At a time when Liam had to grapple with questions about his own rule? Guess what Liam gets. A solitary tear at the finale, and a small scene for the Heir about growing apple trees two books later.

We find out in TRH1 that Godfrey was involved in the plot to kill Eleanor, and in TRH3 that Bartie Sr was his partner in the crime. We center the children of the murderers for the rest. Liam gets barely 10 seconds to attempt to banish Godfrey (the book ends on the latter's successful escape, and the MC conveniently goes into labour at that moment), the next two books require us to pamper the everloving shit out of Madeleine, and Maxwell - who, might I remind you, emotionally blackmailed his brother into giving Bartie Sr his title as Duke and made his father's coup possible - spends more than half of TRH3 playing the betrayed victim.

What does Liam get? A few seconds of the MC mouthing platitudes when they find out, and one scene where Liam is allowed to gaze sadly at daisies. Maxwell gets to weep about his traitor father ad nauseum while barely acknowledging the friend who lost his mother thanks to the same man, Madeleine gets to spend most of TRH2 and 3 expecting us to treat her with kid gloves otherwise she will help Bartie Sr kidnap your child. Honestly, Drake Walker got way more time to moan and gripe about his sister living safely in Paris on Beaumont money!

Most times we hear about something tragic that happened to Liam, it serves to benefit other people - notably team favourites like Drake, Olivia, Madeleine or Maxwell. The entire base of TRH is the mystery of Queen Eleanor's murder, yet the person whose feelings matter least in this story is Eleanor's own son.

Most times when something horrible happens to Liam, or when he discovers something disturbing about his past, the MC hardly pays much attention to him, while showering whiter characters with sympathy and diamond scene moments for less horrific revelations. The same MC who can tell Olivia that it's okay to seek support, or comfort Drake with a drinking game, or convince Bertrand to go easy on Maxwell...has barely any time or interest to support Liam, even when she's married to him.

A Drake stan I'd spoken to around the time of TRH3, once claimed that the narrative may have been trying to balance things between "prominent" LIs by "giving Liam the plot elements" and "giving Drake the emotional baggage". This is an argument I have seen often in the fandom - that "the story makes sense only with Liam as your spouse" ergo he has the biggest advantage of all the LIs. This is directly related to Liam's role as king. Let's take a minute to explore how that is dealt with in the story.

2. Power and Monarchy.

Often Liam is considered PB/TRR's "golden boy" because he is the "royal" spoken about in the title and featuring in all the covers. The popular argument is that the story makes sense only if you married Liam and became his Queen.

However, this argument misses (perhaps deliberately) one very important thing. Even this is mostly centered around the power Liam gives the MC. Liam's attention or even power doesn't increase within the narrative by giving the MC power - in fact it is pushed so far back the narrative often seems to forget who he is, and tosses his role to the MC, Queen Consort or not. His being king hardly seems to benefit him narratively - it is only used to benefit the MC.

People forget that even on a level of being Queen Consort, she shouldn't be having the kind of power she's been given in the narrative, or replace the king. Yet that is exactly what the narrative does.

One of the arcs that was promised for Liam was about the kind of king he hopes to be. As a Crown Prince he grapples with this question, and as a King he faces constant doubt and fear over his capability to rule. When he discovers that his father masterminded the plot against the MC, that moment was written as if it could be a turning point in how he views ruling. At the TRR2 finale he vows to never let fear overpower him the way it did Constantine, and before that in NY he tells the MC that she inspired him to take the reins and have more belief in what he wanted to achieve.

In TRR3, the writers barely bothered to address this conflict at all, besides a line (said in passing, only in his playthrough) about his plans for compensating the Applewood farmers until the new crop could harvest, and a couple lessons on diplomacy for the MC's benefit. Even his role as a king was viewed more in terms of how the MC could use his knowledge, not really as an important aspect of his character. The writers spent far more time forcing Liam to look sadly at the MC that wasn't marrying him, just to appease certain nonLiam stans who missed the love triangle. He was essentially given no real plot of his own in TRR3. This definitely didn't track with the promises made for his storyline in the TRR2 finale in any way or form.

TRH is far more brazen in this respect. From the point that the MC becomes Champion of the Realm/prospective Mother of the Heir, the narrative cedes so much power to her...that it almost treats Liam as a noble rather than the literal King of that country! The royals at the first Ball she hosts in Valtoria address her as if she's the only "monarch" that counts. Isabella questions her about Eleanor rather than Eleanor's actual son. Amalas stalks her constantly. Nobles directly address her as if she's the only one ruling (eg: Kiara's comment about "reactive ruling" elicits a response from the MC, rather than from Liam who is actually standing there).

Even if the MC was the consort ruling alongside the rightfully-appointed King, it still didn't make sense for the narrative to replace him with her in discussions that were meant for the actual person in power. In addition, the narrative itself views her - across playthroughs - more as the Duchess of Valtoria than the Queen of Cordonia - we see her duchy more often than we do the Capitol, there is very little reference to what she does as Queen Consort or any duty she may have to perform on that score, and King Liam himself is made to behave more like a Duke (eg. The only time he's allowed to push back independently against Bradshaw and Isabella in TRH2, is a ballroom duel that is proven pointless by the Auvernese drone attack that they framed Monterisso for).

Most of the power to make decisions is taken out of Liam's hands and given to the nobles who run the Royal Council - and once those decisions turn out to be bad ones, the blame is placed solely on his shoulders even though it was made jointly. Half the characters talk over Liam and directly to the MC about "her rule", even though she is a Queen Consort at best and a random new Duchess at worst.

The MC - who is never really shown doing any actual work for the country or thinking about her people. The MC - whose only political act outside of the shenanigans she gets into with her friends, is a line about contributing to charities. This woman has a wholeass library in her duchy and access to endless resources before that...and still needs to be spoonfed information about neighbouring places by the likes of Hana Lee. This woman started out working in a bar close to a rat-infested dumpster yet never shows a lick of concern for the average commoner in her duchy - forget her kingdom if she is the Queen. She is literally given all of Liam's power, while hardly having to do any of Liam's work (and if you're going to pretend he doesn't do any work? I suggest you read this essay to see what you missed!). And all that is fine - but if this fandom is alright dragging Liam for "being a sucky king" and "partying all the time", I'd better see you guys hold everyone else - including your favourite characters who rule over entire provinces, and your darling MCs - to the same parameters.

By the time we get to TRF, this is the amount of power the narrative gives to the MC:

Not only is Liam's role nerfed to that of a Duke, the narrative itself has no qualms saying the quiet part out loud: Liam isn't the one that matters, the MC is. Liam's decisions and opinions mean nothing, the MC's does.

And this isn't something the MC herself is against, canonically. She enjoys having that power. She revels in it. No matter how badly the fandom wants to make a victim out of her and a Rumpelstiltskin out of Laim - this is a role she accepted wholeheartedly and enjoyed, while not having to work much for it. As a reader you may assume that your vision of the MC wouldn't be comfortable with this role, but canon in no way depicts your assumption as true. So it's not even as if - contrary to fandom's claims - these were roles Liam forced on her.

To revert to what I said at the beginning of this section - the plot runs because Liam is the king of the country and was the reason we came to Cordonia. But in a context like this, that is not at all an advantage. The farther into the story you go, the clearer it is that Liam's role benefits the story more than the story will ever benefit him.

3. Family

Another thread that runs through all the LIs' stories is that of their families. Most of the mystery surrounding the past revolves around Liam's, Drake's, Maxwell's, Olivia's (and briefly, Hana's) parents and their histories - but it would be helpful for once to look at how the narrative frames these stories, and how these characters benefit from them. Are the LIs' themes explored adequately through the inclusion of these stories? Does the LI's feelings get validated by the group, or dismissed? Does the narrative try to downplay the pain they may have endured in childhood, depending on which LI/prominent character the writers preferred?

A prime example of how the narrative uses the family background to their character's advantage is the Drake-Savannah story. Savannah is constantly viewed from Drake's lens, even when it is revealed that she's actually living a comfortable life thanks to a pair of nobles. Drake is STILL allowed to use her "experience" as an example of the "bad, no-good, dastardly nobles", is allowed to look down on the one noblewoman who befriended Savannah, and is allowed to punish Bertrand all the way into TRR3 for perceived slights.

While Savannah likes Bertrand enough to want to marry him, it is Drake's judgement of him that is centered - Savannah brings what he said about Bertrand up whenever she wants to badger him into doing her bidding, and Drake himself is allowed to humiliate Bertrand just to give his agreement to their match. Savannah's wedding is literally the wedding Drake described in a TRR3 diamond scene as his dream wedding (Ice Palace, TRR3 Ch 11), even though canon had her aspire more to the noble life than her brother. That wedding lasted half the book, and involved Bertrand being further humiliated by Drake's family. Despite her many flaws, canon chooses to view Savannah as "perfect" primarily because that's how Drake views her...and Drake can never be proven wrong on anything (even if the team has to do a retcon to make it so). This extends to the rest of his family as well. Canon attempted to create Leona out of whole cloth so that Bianca could appear less of an asshole (an attempt that failed), and Jackson is depicted as a close friend who Queen Eleanor trusted with the news of her pregnancy, yet somehow he never did anything nor asked any questions after she was dead and there was a potential child out there. His father is still the innocent among innocents, the best person and friend that ever existed. Drake is centered in most stories surrounding his family, and so is his perspective.

Maxwell gets something similar to this treatment later on in the story, specifically with the way Bartie Sr's coup and Bertrand's perceived betrayal is handled. The coup itself begins with Bertrand handing over his title and responsibilities to his father - a move facilitated directly due to Maxwell's lies and retcons about Bertrand in his book. Maxwell spends more than half the book clinging to some weak hope that the man - who is literally staging a coup of Maxwell's friend's throne, and later kidnaps a child - is a good man. His tirade against Bartie Sr being a bad parent, in Valtoria, hardly acknowledges what Bertrand had to suffer. As mentioned earlier, when Bartie's treason was revealed Maxwell centers that truth around himself even though the son of the woman Bartie killed is right in front of him (there's a vague promise about how he'll do anything to bring his father to justice, but that's about as far as his communication with Liam on this goes). And finally, even after it's been made clear that Bertrand was secretly supporting the core group, Maxwell and the group still behave like he did something wrong and continue to mistrust him, to the point of expecting him to apologise and suspecting him in the next book to be in the VI (though Maxwell does initially stage a weak protest to this). All this, while never having to acknowledge Maxwell's own role in getting Bartie Sr closer to power!

The team pretends to do something similar for Hana, but with egregious retcons. While in TRR her parents' motives are tied to Hana having a beneficial marriage and furthering their fortune - and they come close to disowning her for wanting to follow her own path - in TRH the narrative aggressively retcons their story so that their motives are attributed to affectionate worry and protection, rather than control. While it is great that Hana still isn't required to forgive her mother, the narrative forces her to soften Lorelai's motives in a way that is insulting to her original story. I won't speak more on how Hana's story was handled, as I do so in detail here. Olivia, while not an LI, was given far more grace from the narrative; she was given an entire holiday book to ruminate over what to do with her traitor aunt's necklace. Throughout TRH, she is involved in and heartily lauded for various "spy missions", most of which culminate in nothing because all she does is sit on that information and not tell anyone (with very few exceptions, like the reveal about Bartie's murder of Eleanor). That story is wholly centered around Olivia and her comfort. Ergo, even a side character can get plenty of space for their story if their writers actually give a damn.

Which brings me to Liam.

There were problems already in the way Liam and his family issues were explored, even before Lena came along. Stoicism and the pressure to show a sense of calm at all times was an accepted trait of Liam's, and it was one that his fans had hoped he would emerge out of as the story progressed. Yet the narrative only allowed him to show strong emotions when it was centered around protecting the MC (see: Liam's confrontation of his father in TRR2 Ch12, or fighting Anton in TRR3 Ch 21). The MC was far, far less proactive in this respect, even as she acted as counselor and teacher and guide and angel of mercy to numerous white characters in the same book.

When Liam's father dies right in front of him, the narrative forces Liam to deflect and keep it moving, only allowing him to shed a single tear at the end of the book. TRH finds Liam hit with reveal after painful reveal of the plots behind his mother's death, and he is allowed barely seconds to even show an emotional response to this - much less be comforted. In each case he is meant to move ahead as if this wouldn't affect him, as if the next mystery is more important, as if he didn't deserve support.

A support that the MC doesn't mind lavishing on Drake, Maxwell, Olivia, Madeleine, Penelope, White Noble no. 1, 2, 3, 4...the list is endless.

Into this already-skewed situation, enters his sister Lena, who hates him. She spends half the book verbally shitting on him and the group, calling Liam weak, claiming without any actual experience (besides heading a company) that she could do a better job leading and fending off coups and plots that he and his friends already managed to thwart. The narrative uses Liam's love for family and need to reconnect to this unknown sister to make sure Lena is centered in whatever reveal comes forth about their mother.

This wouldn't even have been as big of an issue if every other instance where Liam bore immense loss wasn't pushed aside as less important. If they didn't restrict the MC's concern to lukewarm platitudes and the occasional causal question. Lena getting this moment all to herself wouldn't have mattered as much if Liam wasn't constantly forced by the narrative to push his hurt, pain or anger aside when he discovered his father's illness...or when his kingdom was under attack...or when his father died...or when he discovered his mother had hidden a pregnancy...or when he discovered his mother's first attacker...or his mother's second attacker...or the King Guard who betrayed his family...or the cult that clearly wanted to kill his mother and keep him away from his sister...you get the picture.

In fact, the lack of care extends to the way the core group deals with the Lena situation as well. When Lena is first revealed to be both The Fist of the VI and Liam's long-lost sister, the core group callously scoffs at Liam's suggestions to communicate with her, rather than trying to comfort him. Even Hana, who has to sympathize and speak positively about the likes of Madeleine and Olivia - women who have harmed her and have regularly undermined her - is made to sound like she has no patience for Liam's obvious internal conflict. If anyone could understand how hard it would be to let go of family whose motives can be harmful for you, it would be Hana. Yet the team has her place timelines on Liam's emotions in a way the group never bothered to do to Maxwell in a somewhat similar situation, in the previous book.

Of course, once the MC decides it would be a good idea to win Lena's trust, the group magically sees this aim as legitimate. For the rest of the book, Lena is pampered, cosetted, coddled, shown around Cordonia and treated with kid gloves, all while trashing on Liam without much significant pushback. The entire story revolves around her journey from a skeptic of the group to realizing they are genuinely good people. All while her brother who gave us this series languishes in the background - his own power snatched from his hands and passed to the MC, his own traumas and tragedies forgotten, his own emotional baggage thrown away so Lena and Drake can take centerstage.

At the end of the book, when the group gets closure from Sigrid over VI and her multiple betrayals, it is Drake who gets the most space to react out of the group alone. The book begins with his discovery of Bastien's involvement in the VI, and allows Drake ample space to grieve and ruminate over it (btw, let's forget entirely that Bastien has been King Guard this entire time, and that meant that for all five years of his rule and for many many years before that, Liam and his family had a walking talking security risk "protecting" them. Coz who cares if the King of Cordonia dies, amirite?) When it is discovered that Jackson died while working undercover to expose the VI, it is Drake who gets the most time among the group to confront Sigrid, and it is Drake who gets to give a lengthy monologue to his dead parent, for which the MC and Liam are required to stand there and comfort him. In contrast, Liam gets just one line in a scene about the person who masterminded his mother's death. It is Lena instead, who gets to react emotionally to that - because the Sigrid story itself was created specifically to pander to this one just-created character.

Lena wasn't created to add to Liam's story like Savannah was. She wasn't meant to share their joint history like Bertrand and Maxwell initially were, or sidelined for the sake of another side character related to another LI like Bertrand was. Lena was created to replace Liam as the center of a tragedy that happened to him, that affected him, that haunted him for years, that had repercussions on his life...that he was never given any real space to emotionally explore.

Drake's story benefitted from Liam's trauma, to the point where only he was allowed to talk about it and where his perspective was the only one given value. The MC's story benefitted from Liam's power, to the point where she damn near replaced him narratively in that role despite never doing the work, while the fandom laid the entire blame on Liam ad nauseum and not her. Over and over, in plots and coups and murders that hurt his family, other people were allowed to talk, allowed to think, allowed to feel...while Liam got maybe one teardrop per parent.

In the same trajectory, one can clearly see why they developed a character like Lena in the first place. The writers spent 6 whole books heartlessly picking at parts of Liam's story and giving those bits away to their actual favourite characters. Bit by bit, from his experiences to his work to his role, they whittled away Liam as a character until he was left with practically nothing. Do you think they would seriously just stop that process with TRH3? I mean, the head writer is someone who likes "mean characters who speak their mind" and her disdain for characters who represent diplomacy and peace isn't even thinly veiled. Of course they'd go further!!

Lena was created with the sole purpose of ensuring Liam never got adequate closure for himself. They simply passed on that luxury to her, and the fandom who hid behind "Liam gets everything!!111" while never speaking up once about the gross favouritism directed towards their own beloved LIs and side characters, cheered the same team on in this.

I can say this with complete confidence: had Liam been a default white man, like Drake and Maxwell were (or like Ethan Ramsey in OH or Ernest Sinclaire in D&D were), Lena's story would have looked very, very different. In fact, I highly doubt she would even exist.

#the royal romance #king liam #princess lena #anti drake walker #anti maxwell beaumont #anti lena rys #if i ever write an essay series on liam i will call it 'king liam and the single sexy tear' #that's all he's ever allowed to shed #one tear per parent 🥲

[recklesslycaffeinated]

just remember how red’s banned from the library and now i’m curious lol- what if y/n was a librarian instead of a nurse? idk lol just curious ^^

I'd actually love to make Reader a librarian. I'd certainly know a lot more about her job than I do about nursing! XD

Sans would be absolutely in heaven. No Red and Skull around, he has Reader's sole attention. He loves books. There's no one librarians love more than people who love books.

Sans would have been very different - much warmer. He'd want to stay in the new librarian's good books (haha). Reader would not have become wise to his manipulations or dangerous edge for far, far longer than nurse-Reader ever did.

So actually, I think this is the worse case for Reader. The warning Whitglass gave Reader in STES was enough to prevent her from ever completely trusting Sans. Without that warning, I think Reader would have fallen hard for this charismatic charmer who loves books as much as she does.

Red was banned from the library months before Reader arrived. However, the librarian-Reader believes everyone deserves to read! So I think she begins the book trolley - bringing books to prisoners' cells. It's here, Red gets his opportunity to start his flirting campaign. It makes Reader very uncomfortable - not only is he a gangster murderer, but he also tore pages out of books! Clearly evil.

Until she realizes that the comments, leers, and unwanted touching by the other prisoners had entirely stopped. Red made it clear one day in the prison yard what would happen if it didn't. And given that Red's flirting had been ambitious but harmless, Reader doesn't mind indulging him anymore - to an extent.

Skull, on the other hand - I picture his meeting much like the prisoner-Reader meeting. For the sake of not reiterating, that's here!

Maybe after that initial meeting, and Spratt's realization he's found a Skull Soother TM, Reader is sent on a weekly basis to read to Skull in his cell. Reader isn't exactly thrilled - she's a librarian, not a doctor! As he clearly appreciates listening to the stories (not really, he just loves listening to her) she'll keep going. She's held reading groups with five-year-olds, she can deal with an insane cannibal. Everyone deserves books!

#STES #askme #Skull #red #Sans #saving three ex cell ent skeletons

[oraclekleo]

First of all Lemme mention it real quick I've already participated in the game, so I'd not be disappointed at all of you choose to not answer the question and prioritise others before me. This question is literally kind of making me feel dumb and excited too lol idk suddenly I'm being drawn to ask this question and dk why even tho my focus rn isn't even my love life, and i think ik enough about what I need to know but still this question is not leaving my mind. Okay sorry for my rant but still.

My big 3-Capricorn (sun), Virgo (moon), and Taurus (rising)

My question-"is there any message/advice my fs want to tell me right now!?"

My nickname-Jasmine :))

cards i choose-The Slavic Legends Tarot, The witch Oracle.

My mood board-

also a slight note; take care>33 sending in lots of love and good energy. I'm extremely greatful to have this opportunity and if you choose to answer any one of my asks I'm definitely really greatful for it too. As I've mentioned pls prioritise yourself first and rest well. Your readings are amazing tho and the cards don't even get me started on that they are just so pretty...😭

*feeling really selfish and annoying* I'll try not to participate in more games, as i think I've already had enough. 🧍🏻‍♀️

Thankyou so much!!!!! 🧿✨

Hello Jasmine!

I’m always happy to do a reading for you and it doesn’t really matter how many times you participate in the game. You can do so every other week, if that’s what you feel drawn to. 😀

Trust me! If I wanted to limit the participation, I would do it. I’m not really the type who wouldn’t be sure how to apply rules. 😂

I usually don’t really do Future Spouse readings because I don’t like the whole concept of fixing on some unknown person which you will meet in the future and who will miraculously sort your life out. I firmly believe we should enjoy the time we have here and now and that our happiness should be in our own hands and the power over it shouldn’t be just given to someone who can then withdraw it from us on a whim. But let’s try this because you said you are not fixing on the love life so I guess it can’t really throw you into a spiral of waiting for the Mr. or Mrs. Right. 😀

As usual with me, I attach the pics of the cards I pulled, in case they hold any special meaning for you.

Let’s have a look at your cards!

Cards: IX The Hermit, 2 of Cups, 5 of Coins, 6 of Cups (The Slavic Legends Tarot), 43. Tranquillity - Violet, 2. Communication - Pea (Green Witch Oracle)

Not gonna lie to you - It’s not exactly ace to get the Hermit card for any love related question. 😂 But then you also have the 2 of Cups… So let’s dive deeper into this! 

Both the Oracle cards are connected with Venus and the sign of Pisces. And they both speak of deeper understanding and love. You might experience a gentle shift towards topics regarding love and relationships. They might not have been your priority in the past, maybe you simply didn’t feel ready for such pressure to be part of your life because relationships, especially the romantic ones can be very complex and difficult to navigate through. Recently, you might feel like your life has reached the kind of phase where you can start exploring this aspect as well. You might want to start on a more theoretical ground as the Hermit suggests. You might get interested in romantic literature, poetry, in romance focused tarot readings even. At this point you might really appreciate the purer and more vanilla type of love more, reading about mutual understanding and spiritual connection, rather than lust and desire. You might want to resist this wind of change for a little bit but it’s really not necessary. While you don’t need to solely focus on the topic, there’s really no harm in getting interested, in feeling more attuned with the romantic part of your soul. You can feel free to just browse and observe all the various kinds of romance that can become a part of your life. You might want to romanticise your everyday life, too. It can be anything from more romantic vibe decorations like champagne glass you can use for soda or water, to actually including date nights into your schedule. Those can be with your friends, family, or even with just yourself where you simply set the nice atmosphere with dinner and candles and then read a good book or watch a favourite movie. Or you might actually start dating a person. 😀 I sometimes tend to skip this option but it is perfectly normal and alright to actually date other people. 😂 Only make sure you are both communicating honestly and openly with each other. Don’t try to make them guess your thoughts. It always only leads to confusion and going back to the Hermit’s cave. 😜

Thank you so much for requesting the reading!

I'm always grateful for any feedback.

CLICK AND FEED SHELTER DOGS

Improve your karma by helping others and make your dreams come true!

Thank you for reading!

Hit the Like 💖

Comment! 💬

Reblog! 🔁

Follow for more! 💌

Any Feedback is Welcomed ✅

Consider supporting me on ko-fi 💖

#oracle kleo #free tarot readings #free tarot #tarot messages #tarot #tarotblr #tarot blog #tarot games

[cursedvibes]

For character ask game, can I ask for Johan and Nina? Thx :D

Thanks for the Monster ask! I love talking about the twins :)

Johan

Sexuality Headcanon:

It's hard to say anything for certain with Johan's identity. How much is for show/acted and how much is his own genuine wants. It is very noticeable that when he goes to charm people (in a sexual way or otherwise) it's most often men, but it's difficult to say if that's because of personal preference or because they are just easier to manipulate. I would say there's a slight preference for men because going out of dates with Jan was absolutely not necessary, he could've gotten all the information he needed through regular persuasion or a casual chat. He also gives me strong ace vibes.

Gender Headcanon:

Also hard to put into words. I'd say either agender as in he really has none because he has made himself/become empty or bigender as in his own gender and the one of his sister. He does seem to prefer masculine or what is generally seen as boy's/men's clothes even when he was still living with his mother, but I don't know how much of that is his own will and how much is him just not wanting to stick out and fitting into society. I also wouldn't say he's solely wearing women's/girl's clothing because his mother raised him that way or because he wants to imitate his sister. Because the clothes he wears are different from Nina's. Hers are much more casual and unisex, while Johan deliberately goes into a more feminine direction. And in this case I don't think it's to fit in because he could do that perfectly well with Nina's clothing style as well.

A ship I have with said character:

Jan. Somehow I'm always gravitating towards murderer/sweet, naive and slightly delusional guy. I fully believe Jan could come around eventually to giving Johan another chance, seeing that Johan is able to be kind like how he helped his mother gain mental clarity. Johan just has to show that he will be murdering a little less in the future. But either way, I already like their interactions as is and I think the way Johan treats Jan is really interesting. He doesn't kill him, despite Jan knowing quite quite a bit about him and he even helps him before leaving Prague. There's definitely some potential.

A BROTP I have with said character:

Nina lol. I love these kinds of twisted, codependent twin relationships. And oh boy do they have trauma and drama between them. Honestly, the entire backstory about their mother's choice, Red Rose Mansion and their escape from Czechoslovakia alone is giving me so much food for thought. The fairy tales interwoven with it give it the extra surreal feeling, similar to how both of them see their childhood. The way both of their mentalities changed, the things both of them had to endure, the haunting imagery of Johan waiting alone in the empty apartment for Nina to return. It's just so incredibly good and the way you gradually find out about it is even better. Johan helped Nina by taking in her trauma (telling himself eventually it was his), but he also needed her to stay close and support him because he couldn't take it otherwise. Really one monster eating the other.

A NOTP I have with said character:

Johan/Tenma. I don't like Tenma and idk I just never saw any basis for it. Johan fixates on Tenma as well, but I don't see anything sexual or romantic in that.

A random headcanon:

I think he wears women's clothing or lives as Nina or under some other women's name even when it isn't necessarily benefitting his plan. He could do the same thing as a man, but he just decides to be a woman sometimes because why not (people tend to treat him nicer or overlook him easier too).

General Opinion over said character:

Love him, one of the best villains in anime and manga.

Nina

Sexuality Headcanon:

Either bi or a lesbian. She probably isn't quite sure about it yet either. I'd say she's more into girls because all her attempts at dating guys seemed a bit...strained. Like it didn't feel quite natural, even when Johan wasn't inserting himself into the situation.

Gender Headcanon:

She seems pretty happy as a cis girl. Although I wonder if things might be different if Johan and her roles were switched. She always had a strong sense of identity and internal strength though, so she would've probably processed such a situation very differently from Johan.

A ship I have with said character:

Lotte. She clearly has a huge crush on Nina and as far as love interest go, she seems like the best option. Relatively well adjusted while also adventurous and knows how to handle Nina when she's having a little existential crisis. Now Nina just has to be made more aware of Lotte's feelings for her...she can be a bit oblivious, but to be fair, she was hunting her murderous brother, so understandably a bit preoccupied.

A BROTP I have with said character:

Johan :)

A NOTP I have with said character:

Tenma again. Similar reason as with Johan. Sure they are nice to each other, but I really don't see anything else there.

A random headcanon:

I think her mother knew who she was giving away and she didn't do it because she doesn't love Nina but because she thought she would be more likely to handle Red Rose Mansion and Bonaparte as well as you possibly could. Like she wouldn't be as easily influenced by the picture book, not to the point of harming herself and others at least. You can see at times that Nina also has a murderous side to her, but she has it way better under control than Johan.

General Opinion over said character:

Like her. I used to not be that much of a fan, but she has really grown on me over the past years.

#asks #naoki urasawa’s monster

[welcometoteyvat]

i am very curious (and i'm asking this not with any malicious intent) but what ages do you see the genshin characters! i personally see them (most of them) as adults, even collei. even if they were teenagers, time passes in-game (i.e. lantern rite happens every year and we already had 2 lantern rites in-game) so they'll eventually grow to be adults.

tldr: I have schrodinger's age headcanons

long answer: if they're in a ship with a ""clearly"" adult character, I'll assume they're young adults; idk I feel like there's some blurring of age and what growth stage you're in when people are around 17 to 20 (from my experience) so I think it's vague-ish enough that you could probably do what you want.

If they're not in a ship I see some of them as adults and some as still teens/underage. as a general rule of thumb a character's age is solely dependent on what I want at the moment, although I do think the way some characters are written (ie character arcs, character stories and general personality) pushes me to view them as underage (will explain more but the character I'm thinking about most w this is Xingqiu). Some of them read to me as clear adults, and then there are some in-betweens where I just have "vaguely young looking" in my hcs LOL

you bring up a good point that time is passing in game although we don't see it reflected in the character models—everyone points out that Xiao opens up a bit more every lantern rite, but fandom (and genshin devs too ig 💀) definitely forgets that all the other characters are also growing/changing. w/ 4.1 around the corner my personal wish is for hu tao, xingqiu, and chongyun's relationships to each other get developed more so that their relationships (as described through their voicelines abt each other) don't feel so flat,,,,,, it would also help with the sense of "time is passing in game for ALL characters", since we almost never get this kind of evolving relationship portrayed between 4*s/non endgame important charas.

I have too much time on my hands so I'll also just run through all the teen/short models there are for each region and list whether my personal headcanons are adult or minor (at least their ages when we "meet" them in canon):

liyue (mortal/mortal adjacent characters): yanfei, chongyun, xingqiu, hu tao, xiangling, xinyan, yun jin, keqing

yanfei and keqing are solidly adults to me, yanfei's a lawyer and keqing's also in a govt job so both of them feel around like 25-27 to me. Definitely somewhere around their mid-20s, although I can also see them as younger, especially Keqing, because of her overall attitude/perspective on life and the gods. iirc her character stories show how her worldview's grown/broadened to be not as naive/black and white, so I feel like she's still in the process of maturing. If you told me Yanfei was like 23 (appearance wise) I guess I'd believe you too, since she's a very peppy person who seems to be running all over the place all the time, doing errands for madame ping, checking on her clients, taking new cases etc. I feel like it gives her youthful energy, so I can see it if people hc her on the younger side of her 20s (in human years I forgot how her half-adeptal blood works).

I see the other 6 as a friend group (liyue 6ang let's go) so they're either all teens or all adults depending on the portrayal. You can obviously view them as adults all the time, but I don't get those vibes. Xinyan and Yun Jin might be like 18-19, but if that's the case, I can't see the other 4 being any younger than 17, just because I think they're all almost the same age or 1-2 years apart maximum. For some reason so many people view Hu Tao and Yun Jin as adults but at the same time think the others are minors? Idk about that.. genshin has shown that Xiangling, Xinyan, and Yun Jin are pretty close friends, and then always put Xingqiu and Chongyun together for the ship bait, so maybe that's the root of fanon's age hcs. However, I think if some of them are young adults, then all of them are. There's a max 2 year age gap between all 6 of them idk idk I really can't see it otherwise.

To me, Xingqiu's arc reads like a 16 year old finding his footing in the world. Hiding martial arts novels under his bed, tired of playing dutiful 2nd son and sneaking out to live out his idealized wuxia dreams, his multiple voicelines where he's implied to be super worried about us giving away his involvings in the Guhua sect, they all read like he's still trying to figure out his role in his family (what he wants it to be, and what his parents want it to be). He's also very naive about the world, but learning. He just feels a lot like how (chinese) teenagers grow up and like. growing into or out of the paths given to us by our parents. ... or i could just be projecting! Anyways, in my no ships world, he's a 16-17 yr old. Chongyun's clan and family play a not-insignificant role in his backstory, so I think he's the same age as Xingqiu, just older by a month for the flex. Lowkey I don't have as much reason for him as the others, but I think they're in the same age range by association; probably almost 18 at most. Hu Tao's character stories explicitly state she's 13 when her grandfather passed away, and I think she becomes Director not long after this, so I would say she's also around 16-17 when the game starts. @.acatoner who draws quite possibly my favorite interpretations of the gang(TM) once mentioned they see her with spoiled younger sister energy and honestly yeah. she's an only child but has the strongest solidarity with Xingqiu (they're the bratty younger siblings of the friendgroup). Out of all of them, Xiangling is the one with the most plausible job if she was like, young: being a chef apprentice with her dad to continue the family business is pretty reasonable. Middle child energy, probably 17. We did meet her when she was in Mondstadt foraging ingredients, so I'd say she's not very young, but still young enough for her dad to chew her out during moonchase for being like messy or clumsy or smth? Xinyan and Yun Jin.... I think Yun Jin is at least almost 18—running a well acclaimed opera troupe is a pretty big undertaking imo, even if her parents are there to like guide her and whatnot. Same with Xinyan, 17-18 range, although she def started playing rock publicly when she was way younger.

inazuma: shinobu, heizou, kazuha, kirara, gorou, kokomi, ayaka, yoimiya

Disclaimer I have not read the Lore and don't know whether actual ages are given for Ayaka and Ayato (specifically pointing them out because iirc their and Thoma's character stories are the most specific ones wrt the timeline).

I see basically all of them as adults, ayaka might be an exception but she's like 17 minimum in my head. That's pretty interesting considering I labeled almost all the liyue short models as teens. From what I can remember of their character stories, the Inazuman characters seem to be portrayed as having their formative struggles set In the Past (probably a couple years before we meet them) so perhaps that's why I see them as solidly young adults. Additionally, Inazuma's arc and its war pushes me to see all of them as adults, even if they're still obscenely young to be generals and strategicians. The exceptions I can see to this are only Yoimiya (smaller role in archon quest and not related to the government), and Shinobu + Heizou, who were released later. Yoimiya's maturity really stands out to me—from the way her neighbors and old people converse with her, and her overall character arc + second story quest, I cannot see her as below like 19 at least. Shinobu manages an entire unofficial gang and has countless certifications under her belt plus ex-shrine maiden stint—she probably isn't less than 23. It would be cute if she were the same age as Yanfei but just started law school later, so Yanfei's still her senior. I think there's not much to say on Heizou either, he's friends with Kazuha and has a real job, so I can't read him below 20-21. I don't know anything about Kirara (don't have her, haven't read her stories) but I also just get the vibes of like 20-something errand girl SDFDSSKDFJS in a modern au she'd deliver to teyvat/inazuma's college campus for sure

mondstadt (humans): barbara, razor, bennett, fischl, mika, amber, noelle, sucrose

this is a mix again, for Barbara Razor Bennett and Fischl they give me kid vibes, like little adventure gang things. Reddit apparently cites Mona called Fischl an adult in the 2.8 Midsummer Fantasia GAA event, so I mean. I guess she's 18 there—might've been 16 when we met in game the first time (1.2?? scaramouche fake stars event or something?) Idk really. Their group collectively gives me 16 year old vibes, at least when we start the game. I can see it if all of them have aged to 18 now—it just makes sense in my head lol. Mika feels like an 18 year old; mostly because of his relationship with Huffman. Amber seems vaguely adult-ish, I'd say 19 or so, maybe 20 during shadows amidst snowstorms in 2.3. there's some logic behind this that ties into her search for her grandfather but it's like vague and hazy in my head. I haven't given much thought to Noelle and Sucrose— Sucrose also gives "vaguely adult" vibes, idk if her character story about wanting to make a wonderland to meet her past friends in has any relevance to timeline estimation. I'd say Noelle also falls into the vague adult age range, but to me she's a puzzle, because her personality seems incongruent to how I thought she might act if she's like 23 or so.

anyways, anon if you read all this i will declare my love for you. thanks for giving me an excuse to genuinely think on this and then dump my thoughts out for the internet. you can clearly see none of my braincells really go towards Mondstadt headcanons but I hope you're happy w my response ehe

#thank you anon for specifying non malicious intent giving you a platonic kiss rn #and sorry for having this rot in my drafts for so long i was gonna publish it literally the same day and then boom sudden explosion of irl #things. anyways sorry about the delay! I hope this answer is satisfactory and tickles your brain! ty for the ask <33 #also literally not gonna lie but i feel like i have no conception of age bro. like fictional characters is ok but even in real life #i just assume people are the same age as me (unless they look like theyre not) and then i get shocked when theyre not #k anyways. thanks for the ask anon! it was very interesting to think about <3 #if you have diff hcs or think the canon leans towards a diff interpretation feel free to add on i love listening to that kind of thing :-) #asks #teyvat thoughts #genshin impact #hopefully this shows up in the tags somehow. i dont wanna tag like 30 characters

[guideaus]

stampede ep 5 thoughts pt. 1 i guess

WAS THAT REALLY WOLFWOOD'S OLD VA???

i kinda like theyre putting more abt the plant worshippers. in the manga that cult just seemed to be solely an explanation for wolfwood and livio's upbringing, i remember i desperately wanted worldbuilding, but that was about it... not that i expect too much more here

i kinda wanna say smth abt vash being shown sleeping so much, either its an original performative "im not awake, go talk abt whatever serious thing u want" w one eye open, or maybe its him being exhausted from previous events, or maybe it doesnt mean anything idk (which i'd hate). i'd say wolfwood would absolutely be the one to play dead in a fake way, but idk abt this wolfwood yet.

i guess the cult also being located in july sets up livio/others potentially being there?

roberto being a bit more playful, but hes also setting up the ep's conflict i think so :/ again i cant help but think how does he know this

meryl is once again a bad driver in an empty desert

wolfwood's either been let in on the gang (vash)'s issues w knives, or he's just being way too blunt

the animation is nice as always

i just now realized it, but i dont think stampede has ever said why vash is so pacifistic?? obviously no normal person wants to kill anyone, but i think most ppl would understand for a normal case of self defense, not to mention the wacky version of whats going on here. im not sure why theyre holding out on that, or hopefully they will share

its been 5 eps and theyre not very far from jenora's rock (the setting of the first ep), idk how theyre gonna get to july within 12 eps at this pace

hate meryl being useless. in the 2nd ep she at least provided some support

it also doesnt give a reason for wolfwood helping vash (its clearly not friendship)

wolfwood's also got the super perceptive thing going on, so of the main characters, vash purposely is obfuscates, and meryl... is clueless uwu girl, so im wondering if stampede just has an incredibly bad case of telling instead of showing

stampede kind of repeats stuff from the original anime/manga, but doesnt give a reason why. there was a crazy depiction of vash in ep 1, but they never showed any reason for that (while i always disagreed w it in the first place bc his bounty is the key thing causing ppl to wreak havoc trying to get him, i thought originally it was going to be given to him bc he trespassed trying to interact w plants or smth). theres never been a reason shown for him to be called vash the stampede or the humanoid typhoon, it could lead to the revelation of it in this ep, but...

that flashback was kind of weird lmao. i expected more to happen, idk what changed within that short amount of time showing vash and that kid interacting for the kid to go "ok, sure, i'll go back to my village and willingly get sacrificed :)" and its not like vash gave him some out of context advice the kid wrongly misunderstood to interpret as "I should sacrifice myself"

the "if god wont save you, i will" line also felt out of nowhere considering all that happened was vash said his mom sent him to look for him, the kid recognized him as vash the stampede, said he's going to die young bc his sickness, and then seemingly became ok with getting sacrificed before then. i understand theyre giving vash a savior complex (that im not sure was present before..? like obviously hes mr. pacifist, but idk if he ever willingly likened himself to god lol??)

they put conrad with the cult group...

not a fan of how the flashbacks are presented against the current time

and wtf was the group even doing w rollo lmao. turned him into action figure material and then let him loose again lol??

why are meryl and roberto just exploring random buildings instead of trying to help vash...

i wanna say the vash + baby photo is cute, but also im like that implies vash didnt just randomly get saddled w a rescue mission job for a child he just met. how did he not know that town was fucked up then lol

the photo of him looking the exact same (i dont mean age, i mean clothes/hair) reminds me that i wish the characters changes their models in some way

i dont get whats up w rollo, did the cult just experiment on him and let him loose and vash happened to stroll in and he took it out on him, is he attacking as revenge for vash not saving him, is he just a mindless monster?? nothing is really... understandable for some reason

again its reminding me idk wtf stampede is doing concerning the gung ho guns. are they not formally organized here, or not in a group at all... the previous ep's mention by knives abt the gate doesnt mean anything w/o knowing the 90s anime or manga, so here it doesnt mean anything yet...

NOOOO NOT THE KILL WOLFWOOD JUICE NOOOOOOO

i am not sure why whoever at orange chose this moment to have wolfwood do his classic "goes against vash's wishes and kills someone" moment. i think in the manga he did it first w the samurai guy and it was a moment where he stood down, vash turned his back and walked away, and samurai guy was in the middle of doing his super special anime move, and wolfwood said nope. then the anime i think he did it very late and it was w zazie. there i think it was more too that he shot a kid fjhsdjsksds. but here its like... way too early for that. the manga relatively was, but ww had a full volume w vash at that point, and his pre maximum stuff, here in stampede i think that'd just warrant vash telling him to get away from him. ww has done nothing in stampede to solidify his position with vash, in fact doing, something completely against his wishes would earn his hate i think. it wasnt framed as ww showed up and thought vash was going to die, it wasnt a moment where ww saved vash instead of rollo, it wasnt as urgent as zazie or the samurai guy's actions. frankly, i think if they just flat out stole the anime's "legato forces chapel to attack wolfwood after ww shows mercy" v mogami mp100 minori style, that wouldve been more convincing, but... yeah i dont see why that happened lol

ive already seen the manga and anime, so i forgot again, but i think ww probably just seems like an asshole at this point. the previous ep portraying him as a complete liar is v bad for his character, then w him killing someone vash didnt want dead, that makes it worse. ww being the one to call out vash's conflicting ideologies doesnt work here either bc he doesnt have a role of friend yet, he's just someone who heard vash's story, then tried to tell him he's messed up when ww was the one who shot rollo in his least aggressive state. if i was vash, there's no way i'd listen to some guy i just met thats acting superior

the topic of ww killing whoever (rollo in this case) also is different because wolfwood's excuse isnt out of concern for vash this time. zazie or the samurai were potentially about to kill vash, and wolfwood intervened citing his "its us or them" mentality, which vash argues with bc of his skill in avoiding harming others. ww's recognition of vash's skills also lead to his later point that he cant afford to go about life like that since he is human. but the 90s anime and manga that moment was significant bc it highlighted vash's inherited ideals (at least in the anime if i remember right, im not sure if the manga went as hard abt it) from rem abt people's potential for change. stampede also had meryl call vash a coward instead of wolfwood... which is then used for vash to call out nick's behavior in acting in a way that's not true to himself. so idk all in all, it felt like it repeatedly took moments from the original, but in a way where none of it made sense.

#personal #trigun stampede spoilers #me talking about wolfwood here is me going back and forth on spelling his full name out of not

[gayspock]

guys im peckish

something that always kinda.... i dont wanna say it frustrates me, bc i understand WHY its the case & i know its the better choice for most works... but i suppose, kind of? itches at me??? is the way AI in sooo much fiction is solely ever used with regards to comparing it to Humanness. and tht makes total sense- its not always abt exploring AI conceptually in of itself, but moreso using that as a means to explore deeper Human themes and again sometimes thats just better to leave it as that

but nonetheless it itchessss sometimes, yknow, from like a worldbuilding perspective to me. & also just... i dont know. when i hear ppls conception of what AI is in general- and in all fairness, AI in of itself is such a nebulous term - i get well. frowny. bc again its always such a ... human lense.... and idk maybe im being #autistic #compsci girlie but it sometimes just feels so... LIMITING and detrimental, and kind of misunderstanding like- when it comes down to it, ai? its math... ITS MATH. you know that right? all the way top to bottom its just freaking mathematics, its algorithms...

but anyway it just feels like. its HOLES in the fictional world sometimes. like- the actual sophistication behind developing something that's intelligent enough, and ON PAR with a thinking, feeling, freaking person... and for that to become, like, a widespread THING... like it sooo rarely ever lines up with the rest of the technology within the world they set it in?? bc theyy clearly on ever thought- mmhm mhmm (nods) thinking machines. they just programmed people immediately. went from A to B. and sometimes there's like in-universe reasons for things but like other times its crazzzyy like...

bc before we'd ever get to THAT point so many other, complex things would already have commonplace AI applications does that make sense. one billion specialised problems that could have been solved ten times over. or well maybe solved is the wrong word but it would have changed the face of technology soooo much... and i guess sometimes there IS in-universe reasoning for it- it could be a limitation of resources, it could be an issue of knowledge and understanding, it could be other societal influences that stop it, things such as policies that prevent it from being totally pervasive- but thats literally kind of what i mean, like... bc those are GOOD points but not always present . and they could be rlly interesting points of discussion and contention just there that kinda gets neglected

like im watching BSG and i keep thinking abt the only reason the galactica survived is because its more "out of date". and its like if eel like theyre always so vague about what technology theyre actually compromising on, here. or like... hell what technology did all of humanity compromise on after thefirst war... wheres the lines? is it JUST cylons? or were there compromises on everything? and how did they reel shit back?

like im thinking even just roslin and her cancer. already, like... in real life... ai has a LOT of medical applications. idk-i still kinda want to do a PHD in some sort of bioinformatics one day, LOL, if i'd ever get there but like... whilst i guess its mostly diagnosis and screening rn, my point is, i cant imagine how much more medicine could have advanced??? surely ir'd be unrecognisable. even just in terms of developing drugs, and medicine- genomics being sooooooo data dense, there's leaps and bounds that can be done with AI, or even research facilitated by ai. like if you have the capabilities of programming something as sophisticated as human consciousness, with that level of logic and reasoning....

LIKE ... its like again sth very human. this human idea of intelligence and what that means, and thinking of ai in a totally human capacity when its like. idk how to describe ittttt. i guess its like- there are so many tasks that a human cannot do that a machine could do, BUT it would be easier to have a machine implement those tasks, THAN achieving sentience with a machine??? like... no. a person could not piece together a human genome from data BUT a machine could quite easily.

and even just that like- squitns. i think im talking in circles my WHOLEEEE point is just... AGAIN. worldbuilding wise i feel like sooo much drops the ball there like bc writers dont rlly understand the full applications of artifical intelligence and what it can do and wahgh... im sniff... im just rambling arent i [goes into a corner embarassedddd]

#Egg.txt

[yume-x-hanabi]

4, 6, 12, 19 please tell us about Minah, 27, 30, 37, 49, 61 and 65 for Concubinage, and 74

4. How do you choose which fics to write?

ig it depends on how obsessed my brain is with the random plot bunnies hopping around in my head? When I start thinking up narration sentences, that's when I know a particular idea wants to be written. Doesn't mean I always do it, though (in an ideal world with infinite free time, maybe...)

6. What’s the last line you wrote?

I haven't written in so long I don't even remember 😭

Looking at one of my latest wips, probably this one because it's incomplete lmao:

The room was as dingy as the rest of the inn and smelled vaguely of stale tobacco, but at least the bed was soft and the sheets were clean. He collapsed on the bed with a sigh of relief, head swimming from all the

(wtf was I trying to say? it's a mystery 🤷‍♀️)

12. Do you outline your fics?  If yes, how detailed are your outlines?  How far do you stray from them?

Usually not, and then it comes to bite me in the ass when it's ten months since I plotted the idea and I don't remember what I was planning to do 😅

There's one fic that's an exception cuz it's a fusion AU type of thing so I'm planning carefully how it follows (or not) the original's plot. Well, idk if I'll actually write the fic actually, maybe in this case the outline will be all there is, as a fun exercise for myself XD

19. Do you enjoy creating OCs or do you prefer to stick solely to canon characters?

I love creating OCs, but like, they need a purpose. An OC just for the sake of having an OC or self-insert isn't my kind of thing (no shade to those who do, I'm just not wired that way), but depending on the story I might need to flesh out a supporting cast. And I love it when they slowly take life and develop.

Minah was a really fun case because she was supposed to be a kind of "throwaway" role, only there for a scene or two. She wasn't even planned like she turned out to be (I originally imagined her younger, for example). But then she... just happened lol. Within a few lines of her dialogue I was in love with her and she was just so fun to write, in a way she wormed her way into a bigger role than intended and I'm really glad she did because it works out so well in so many ways. Funny how things go sometimes 😂

honestly my OCs often end up surprising me in one way or another haha. rare are those who stick to the plan

(rest under cut cuz it's getting long)

27. What area of writing do you feel strongest in?

Battle scenes, apparently 8)

30. How much do you edit your fics?  Do you edit as you write or wait until you finish the first draft?

I actually... don't edit that much 😅

ig in a way I edit in my head before I write? I've always been like that tbh, even at school--what I write down (whether fic, essay, translation...) is often very close to the final version. Of course I go over it a couple times once I'm done and tweak a few things here and there, but it's usually minor stuff. Sometimes I end up redoing entire scenes/chapters because I feel something's not working, but it's rather rare when it happens.

37. What fic has been the hardest for you to write?

Probably Fractured Lives? There's a reason it's only gotten five updates in nine years so far. I have to be in a very specific mood to write it, which doesn't happen often. A pity, cuz I liked the concept...

49. What fic of yours would you say is the best introduction to you as a writer?

I'd say The Best Laid Plans. It's got my particular brand of humor, and also some kickass battle scenes :p

Another one would be Strong Currents, cuz worldbuilding (plus getting Gaius and Wingul to have emotional talks lolol)

61. In Concubinage, what’s your favorite scene that you wrote?

Probably Lin and Arst's first kiss. It's such a significant moment<3

65. If you wrote a sequel to Concubinage, what would happen in it?

I am actually vaguely planning a sequel if I can finish it. Basically it'd be the events/plot of the game, but with all the changes in settings brought about by the events of Concubinage. I'll have to think carefully about what will change, what will stay the same, and what will be a slightly different spin on things that'll still happen. I think the main difficulty will be to juggle Milla's journey with Gaius&Wingul being the main characters without them overtaking the plot. And also how close or different it should be to canon...

74. Do you have a fic you wish got a bit more love?

Among my least kudosed ones, I'd say Chaos in the Ballroom (my Tales Big Bang fic). I know it's a bit different from my usual stuff, and relies heavily on knowledge about Agria's side story, but I put a lot of thought in that one.

#that was a lot lmao #thanks for asking #ask yume #nngh this is making me want to write again #it's been too long #fanfic talk

[magicalwarriorbattleroyale]

TY FOR TAKING PART :D

this was really fun for me, I know that the cast gets a good amount of votes on other polls but I also have seen quite a few people who voted solely based on things like "well Clover IS purple… AND has a hammer!" or "IDK who Val is but she's cute and black so" So I ddidn't know for sure how much ppl will participate lol. Plus I know the MWDH fanbase is still pretty small all things considered, and despite how arrogant I might act, inside my expectations are often a lot lower than I show on the outside lol. So seeing even more than like a hundred votes is always really cool.

Some of the battles were really surprising. I picked the round one match-ups on a mix of randomization and my better judgement on which characters I thought would be a fair match against. Although with less Crystal Warriors on the bracket, it did make it difficult to chose who Valerie would go up against LOL. I said a few times on my personal accounts that I wanted a final match up to be Clover up against Valerie or Zacharie. I felt that Zacharie is one of the more beloved characters and the possibility existed that they'd make it. I didn't think Zacharie actually would to be honest... I wasn't confident they could get past Val lol. But I really didn't expect her to sweep so HARD lmaooo. I also briefly forgot what kind of community I have been fostering, namely you people are GOOFY AS HELL!!! I did NAWT expect the frog to get as far as it did, And I thought Liam would at least die with dignity lmao. and I kind of feel bad for Ethan now. his second match was mean 😭... I 100% didn't think Liam would make it to the finals but since Liam vs Clover is the true rivals duo, i had to make sure the opportunity existed. They wouldn't want it any other way. If I had been 100% sure Alex was getting in, I'd have matched him with Liam instead at the start, but during the matching I had Alex's spot listed as "reserved" in case I ended up having Diana in his plac.

I feel like Val's mom against Clover in round 1 might seem silly to some but Val's mom is like, surprisingly popular lol. She had a fair shot imo, and honestly? She did pretty well. it's not like she was totally demolished. And I definitely made the correct choice to put Val opposite to Clover, I think if anyone would be a fair match it would be them for the finals. I think maybe the frog was the only other one who coulda done it, because you people are jokesters.

Anyways ill do more polls here since there are characters that didnt get in, and I'm sure the results will change as more episodes will release lmao. I'll also just use this as a general poll account so I can keep the main mwdh account clean, and I might post other magical girl polls here bc this is my account and I can do that :p

#Are you telling me Char broiled this burger?

[writemywaytoyourheart]

I need to write this out because I am a MESS right now :’-)

Chip, you’ve got to be one of the MOST underrated authors here because I binged “Aim for the Heart” in three days and I have never cried so much over a literal fanfic before 😭😭 it’s just so beautifully crafted and no words can describe the story between MC and Jungkook being two sides of the same coin trying to heal their broken selves from their past and falling in love with each other. THE SYMBOLISM TOO I CANNOT— the flowers, the shoe laces, colour symbolism, drawings— it just ALL came back and nothing was ever put in the story as filler IM SOBBING 💕

The way they both came into each others lives and so deeply and fundamentally changed each other- MC showing Jungkook that it’s okay to love and be weak and that it’s not something to be ashamed of; she gave him a sense of purpose other than solely killing to support his mother. She let him see the good the world is capable of 🥲🥲

On the other side, Jungkook helped her see how beautiful she was this whole time, (the metaphor with the Japanese bowls!!!) and that she’s more than her past (which could also be said for him too I’m still crying 😭) + there is beauty in things that are broken and the way he just loves her is so AUGHHHH 🧎🏻‍♀️🧎🏻‍♀️🧎🏻‍♀️ if that’s isn’t true love then idk what is because I don’t ever want anything other than that

There are also so many parallels between Jungkook and Taehyung and Mina and MC. The situation being that one of them pressured the other to do something they didn’t want to do. I’m MC’s case, she wanted to leave the dirty business behind but ended up hurt and dragged into it against her will. In Jungkook’s situation, it’s flipped, where Taehyung wanted to protect him and instead, became a vicious killer, allowing himself into that role by his decision alone.

As for Mina, lemme just say this 💀

There’s honestly so much more I can say about just how amazing this story is 😭 at first I found it hard to get behind MC’s overall demeanour because she made me cringe a big ngl, but I ended up really loving her and how she is meant to represent a sense of childhood innocence because she allows herself to be comfortable as she is, this expressed through her fashion, room decor, eating habits + love for sweets, and Barbie movies— something which Jungkook struggles with within himself and his mental and physical scars (like when he hates the feeling of water running down his back due to his childhood abuse).

Btw I always wondered at the end whether MC could have just looked back in her photo gallery to see the selfie she took with Jungkook when she had lost her memories tho? Lol 😩

Thank you for bringing this into the world 🥲😌😭 I need to find a happy fic to read now because I’m still SHAKEN.

It took me longer than I wanted it to to answer this ask 😔

Tbh, I feel so comfortable writing for characters and getting certain messages across to readers through their words, but when it comes to me writing stuff that comes directly from me, I always feel lacking.

I never feel satisfied with how I've answered an ask whether it be a response to a small heartfelt greeting from a nonnie or long meaningful paragraphs.

I'm always afraid that someone is going to feel like I didn't answer them with as much love and gratefulness as I'm trying so hard to fill it with, that I'm not genuine. Even when I had so few followers and a single ask every once in a blue moon, I was so so so so excited and grateful every time and I'd read it over and over again before getting the courage to answer it. It still happens to this day lol.

I hope you know how much this ask means to me. Again, it took me far longer than I thought to answer it, but I just couldn't come up with the words to show how much it truly means to me. I still can't.

AFTH has such a special place in my heart, and when people love it, it feels like my heart explodes into a million pieces in the best way possible.

There have been so many many nights and days where I had panic attacks because I realized how I could've made it better with a simple word change, how people will think I dragged it on just to mess with people, how people would think it's cringe or a waste of their time to read. How someone might like it in the beginning and then decide they couldn't care less about the characters and leave. That hurts the most in a way.

I love my characters so so much, it's so comforting to see you love them all even if it took time to warm up to some 💝 but you're right Mina can go take a long walk.

I still feel like it's lacking in so many ways I wish I could go back in time and fix.

But it's asks like this that calm my heart more than anything else can. Even with my thousands of mistakes and regrets, the fact that you could love it so much... It hurts in a good way.

As much as I hate to admit it, I know that it's very connected with how I feel about myself. The fear of failure is so strong whenever I post.

I didn't know for so long why I was so afraid, but i finally admitted it to myself. I trust y'all enough to put a part of my diary here T-T

There are so many authors, hundreds of millions of trillions of books in this world. Why would someone pick up mine? How would it even get seen even if it turned out perfect?

I feel like being an author is like being an artist. Either you make it, or you don't. And a lot of it has nothing to do with skill and everything to do with luck. And yet I doubt I have either of those.

I'm scared to put myself out there, because I'm scared of the confirmation that no one wants me.

This ask though. It helped to push those thoughts back onto the back burner. You understood so much of what I was trying so hard to convey in that story. And it touched you. And that's what I wanted so desperately.

Thank you so much for loving aim for the heart, for even giving it a chance at first. I know it's long. Btw you binged over 1200 pages in three days. That's a big ass book lol so you are impressive I must say 😭 yall are truly a different breed. I finally found my people 😂 the fact that you GOT so many of my little details in there is so AGHHH

Anyway, enough of my blubbering. Again I'm not even satisfied with this. But oh well. As long as you know how much this meant to me and how many times I read this over and over again bc it was such a beautiful and comforting ask.

I hope I can continue to give you works that make you feel like this 💕💕💕

ILY 💖

-chip

p.s. you are right, I'll have to go back and see but I don't think I put in there why she didn't see the pictures, I had intended to but forgot lol, nice catch 😉 let's just say she has a different phone 🤪

#asks #ashbxnny

[kuuyandere]

Maybe u could try to replace your reason for living from 'her' to something simple & noble. When I lost this guy, living w/o the thought of having him in my future was v tough, so I diverted my focus on other ppl/helping ppl/making my family proud. Idk but I think to live for 'yourself'/ keeping the drive as your own self for living seems smth like.. Well, smth at least I wouldn't be able to do. Idky but it just seems too selfish/unreliable since we ourselves are supposed to be like the handlers/caretakers of our own selves in this world that keeps on attacking us w one expectation or the other. If u think this applies to you too, then u could try this instead. Keep your own self completely out of the equation unless u wanna have a revenge bod or smth.. Idky but whenever I see ppl (mostly the ones of our gen) whose sole focus is themselves, they seem unnecessarily unhappy and struggling. Are going above n beyond to prove themselves to the world, when they could just keep their jobs/appearances/etc. As smth completely external (not a part of them) n instead focus on how much they can simply give to this world. Like I, since Ive been a pretty much of an idiot with most of my decisions, can listen to ppl without judgement n can sympathise with them well.. They just feel comfortable around me so I also try to be an easy person around em instead of putting myself on a standard. I think whenever u feel worthless, u should try n be simply grateful for whatever u r, how much investment have been made to u (if u wanna be logical) n ultimately try n give the world back in whatever ways u could.. Like for eg, if you're a caretaker, be even more better. Take the focus off from u n your own problems, and think of how much blessed u r in a position to help those in need n find worth thru that help. There are some not so fortunate domestic workers, construction workers, sooo many people, whose shoes if I wear, I'd instantly feel this huge struggle for life n would wanna instantly wanna give up. Yet they accept their lives n always show up to their work which is surrounded by ppl w huge TVs, comforting rooms n whatnot. Now these are the ppl who know v well that comparisons w others/expectations with their own selves is smth which will bring unnecessary self-loathing only. So they just try to make the best of the lives they've been given. But most importantly, they still provide w whatever they got. It's just all about perspective n how you choose to view menial stuff.. You just have to realise the world is bigger than you, certainly much bigger than your darling!!.. Now I tbh do know how to live with being told that from my person😅(we have a history so that day, my long-awaited interaction w him was a bit problematic from my side) which made him ultimately say that. It hurt me, but didn't break me. Or reduced my worth (though atm I was questioning it a lot😅lol). I don't think there's anything more comforting u could say in addition to what u already said - v. helpful!! to make that better🤗I think it just has to pass🤔 u don't have to answer that "how to live with it" part😊 it doesn't affect much now tbh. (also⬆️ is just my way, works for me, doesn't have to 'right', may/may not be helpful to u)

I am glad you are doing better than before, you are a very strong person. :)

That is good advice, it is difficult to live for yourself and helping others is a noble cause. And you are right about perspective playing a large role in You have a lot of empathy and understanding for other people.

In my case, I have a tendency to be a people pleaser and help others to the point of neglecting my own wants, needs, and boundaries. I guess when I say that I want to live for myself, I mean that I want to advocate for myself more instead of living and basing my entire self-worth on how much I can give (to my darling, parents, etc.). I don't want to completely depend on other people to feel happy, if that makes sense.

#your yandere #aidoneus asks #Balance is hard

[ecoamerica]

Watch the American Climate Leadership Awards 2024 now: https://youtu.be/bWiW4Rp8vF0?feature=shared

The American Climate Leadership Awards 2024 broadcast recording is now available on ecoAmerica's YouTube channel for viewers to be inspired by active climate leaders. Watch to find out which finalist received the $50,000 grand prize! Hosted by Vanessa Hauc and featuring Bill McKibben and Katharine Hayhoe!

#ACLA24 #ACLA24Leaders #youtube #youtube video #climate leaders #climate solutions #climate action #climate and environment #climate #climate change #climate and health #climate blog #climate justice #climate news #weather and climate #environmental news #environment #environmental awareness #environment and health #environmental #environmental issues #environmental justice #environment protection #environmental health #Youtube

[kuroos-babie]

Falling in Love with a Single Mom HCs

Akaashi x fem!Reader | Daichi x fem!Reader | Oikawa x fem!Reader

[ Headcanons/MiniFic ]

Request:  🥺👉👈 if you could do more single mom headcanon-fic-things LOL SORRY IDK WHAT TO CALL THEM and w/ akaashi, daichi, and oikawa? THANK U i love u and your writing you're so sweet  —anonymous

a/n: okay so strangely enough, i thoroughly enjoyed writing oikawa's and it's probably my fav out of these three 😳 thank u for giving me the chance to write these and thank u for the kind words! i hope u like it 👉👈

❀ he’s been noticing you more and more — sat on the corner of the cafe he frequents during his breaks

❀ you would always order the same drink and sit on the same table by the window, he would occasionally glance at you, admiring the way sunlight hits your skin and the way the cafe music seemed to be playing solely for you

❀ but you always left too soon for his liking, 15 minutes before 2 in the afternoon to be exact

❀ he never knew where you went or what you did outside of the little cafe he sees you in everyday

❀ but soon enough, he was given a chance

“excuse me, is this seat taken?” 

he saw your eyes look up at him in surprise and your lips curve into a small smile, “oh! no, go ahead”

“sorry for the trouble, i didn’t expect it to be this packed today”, he said in an attempt to engage in small talk

“it’s no problem at all” you assured him with another smile, “i often see you here, do you work nearby?”

❀ the two of you continued to chat until akaashi needed to remind you of the time

❀ but of course before you could even leave he'll ask you for your number saying

"i'd really like to know you more, if that's alright with you"

❀ of course it's alright with you sjckskdks

❀ the two of you would meet at the café everyday, except the weekends — same spot and same time, until it became part of your routines

❀ keiji took his time getting to know you and openly expresses his admiration for you

❀ of course you liked him back, he was sweet and considerate, he was everything you would like in a partner

❀ but you just needed to make sure of one thing before diving headfirst into a relationship

"akaashi-san—"

"keiji", he corrected, reaching out for your hand

the warmth of his hand helped eased your nerves of bringing up something that may potentially be a huge deal breaker

"keiji, we've been meeting for a while and i thought maybe it's time i tell you,"

❀ when you said you have a daughter, you never would've expected him to say "can i meet her?"

❀ you almost cried then and there— it had always been a big deal to the guys you met before, you being a single mother

❀ keiji sensed your relief and squeezed your hand in reassurance that it really was no big deal to him

❀ well it was, but it wasn't something that would easily shake up his resolve of being with you

❀ meeting your daughter for the first time was set in the same café, on a saturday half past noon

❀ he smiled seeing the quiet four year old on your lap, curious eyes and a small smile as he held out the little bunny plushie he got for her as a gift

❀ weekend café dates became frequent with the three of you and soon became home dates— alternating between your and keiji's apartments

❀ your daughter loved when he read to her, having her sat on his lap with a picture book in his hands

❀ more often than not, you would catch him fast asleep on the couch— picture book on the floor and your child snuggled up against his chest

❀ during these moments, especially, you couldn't help but imagine spending every day with them both without having to part ways by the end of it

❀ and of course, when he wakes up, keiji can't help but think the same thing when he wakes up to you smiling softly at him and the little girl who kept a part of his heart inside her tiny little hands

❀ your son met him first

❀ he just got out of the police academy and was assigned near the elementary school gates

❀ kids would often come up to him with fascination in their eyes

❀ and it wasn't a different case with your seven year old son

"hey mister are you a policeman?"

"sure i am, why do you ask?" he answers with the softest smile, crouching down to the child's level

"that's so cool! mom said my dad was a policeman, maybe you're my dad?"

he watched the boy's eyes widen in realization and he couldn't help but chuckle

"sorry, bud, but i don't think i have a child yet neither do i have a wife"

"well do you want one?"

❀ that effectively painted his cheeks in red, standing straight up and ruffling the boy's hair, urging him to go straight home

❀ everyday your son would come up to him to ask him the same questions and saying the same things

"would you want to be my dad?"

"i think it'll be sooo cool to have you as my dad"

"let me ask my mom if you can be my dad"

❀ jesus help this man pls

❀ he found it all to be endearing and soon enough he looked forward to chatting with your son for a few minutes every afternoon on his way home from school

❀ your child would always brag about how nice you are, how pretty, and just how amazing of a mom you are

❀ an amazing lil wingman if u ask me

❀ it wasn't until one of his day offs that he met this wonderful mom that he always heard of— and boy was he stunned

❀ he was out grocery shopping, skimming the aisles when he heard the familiar voice of your son

"mama, it's the policeman i was talking to you about!"

before you even had the chance to react, your child bolted through the spice aisle and cling to this man's leg

you quickly caught up to him and was about to apologize to the stranger when you saw him get to your child's level and pat at his head

"oh hey, didn't know i'd catch you here"

"i'm with mama! now you can see just how pretty she is!"

❀ the comment made both your faces heat up but even moreso when daichi looked up at you, absentmindedly muttering a "she is"

❀ your son had the proudest grin on his face >:)

❀ the three of you went out for lunch then which you insisted to be for all the trouble your son has caused him— who so conveniently disappeared to the playhouse to leave you two to yourselves

❀ it didn't take a lot for daichi to be absolutely smitten by you— admiring how you could handle a child and a job all by yourself and still managing to have that pretty smile on your face

❀ he had to thank your son his little accomplice the next time they have their afternoon chat

❀ and maybe start planning on "Operation Get Mom and Daichi-san Together"

❀ started as students sharing a class and later on became inseparable best friends

❀ you two met in college

❀ tōru would rave on and on about how much better you were than "iwa-chan" whom he never lets you see during their facetimes bec you "might fall for him and choose iwa-chan over me"

❀ he was there to witness you going out with an orgmate, there to listen about the first time you got laid, and of course he was there to comfort you when your ex left the moment you told him you were pregnant during your third year in college

"do you want to keep it?"

tōru held you close as you cried, his soft voice mingling with your sobs

"i d-don't know"

you buried your face on his chest, prompting him to hold you tighter and rub comforting circles on your back

"whatever you choose to do, i'll be here", he promised "i won't leave you"

❀ the moment you decided to keep your baby was the moment it was decided that oikawa would co-parent with you

❀ during your pregnancy, he came to your apartment everyday and stayed over on weekends

❀ he kept his promise and never left your side even after you gave birth

❀ he practically moved in with you, staying up late at night to care for your child so you could get some rest, he changed schedules and skipped classes to let you continue going to yours

❀ it was alright, he said, afterall a pro volleyball team was already eyeing him— he was set even before graduation

❀ the both of you fell into a steady rhythm of domesticity

❀ eating breakfast together, taking turns changing your daughter's diapers, cuddling in the same bed and having sleepy conversations about the future and how you're both thankful of the other

❀ it was never established what you two were— you just knew that you were each other's constant and that you promised to stay with the other until god knows when

"what're you planning to do then?"

"i don't knoooow~ iwa-chan help me out here~"

"well, for starters, you should go and tell her— y'know, about argentina"

there was a moment of silence between the line, tōru mulling over his options

"i don't want to leave her" was his quiet reply

"i know you don't, but this opportunity may never come by again, don't let it slip"

❀ it was a few weeks before your graduation, your daughter now more than a year old, when he received the call inviting him to play for argentina

❀ on one hand he knew it was the chance of a lifetime, but when he looks at you in his arms with your daughter on your chest, he couldn't even think about leaving you

❀ it was less about the promise he made and more about how he couldn't imagine his everyday without the two of you

"y/n-chan~"

you only hummed in response but looked up to meet his eyes

"if i were to get invited to go to the other side of the world to play volleyball, would you come with me?"

he held your gaze with hesitation

"i'll go anywhere with you, tōru, i thought you knew that by now"

a small smile of relief graced his face as he exhaled, closing his eyes and rubbing his face against yours, "thank you"

the next few moments were spent in comfortable silence before he broke it with a chuckle, "is it too late now to ask you to be my girlfriend?"

"tōru, we're basically a married couple for the past two years"

...

...

...

"so will you marry me for real?"

#bro #i never knew i'd love oikawa like this #i am a Changed Woman #haikyuu #haikyuu!! #haikyuu x reader #hq akaashi #akaashi hcs #akaashi keiji #akaashi keiji x reader #hq daichi #daichi sawamura #sawamura daichi #daichi headcanon #sawamura daichi x reader #haikyuu oikawa #oikawa tooru #oikawa tōru #oikawa x reader

[itsclydebitches]

Here's a quandary I've suddenly found myself in: where do you stand on writers deleting their own works, fanfiction or otherwise? I've had this happen to me on more than one occasion - I go to look for an old favorite and find it's since been deleted from whatever site I read it on.

On the one hand, I'm inclined to think that, "Sure. The author wrote it, it's their call. I don't own the work - I certainly didn't pay for it. It's their decision, even if it's disappointing."

But at the same time I can't help but consider the alternative - if I believe in death of the author (and I do), that an author's work fundamentally isn't solely theirs once it's been published, posted, etc., then it also seems wrong to have a work deleted. Stories aren't the sole property of their creator, after all.

But then I circle back. D'you think there are different obligations between authors and readers and the works being made in fandom space? I know if I had bought a book and the author decided they wanted it back, I would feel pretty comfortable telling them no, given I'd paid for it and whatnot. But that's a different world from fanfic and fandom space generally.

So. You're insightful Clyde, I'm curious as to what you'll have to say here (and to all y'all thinking about it, don't flame me. I haven't decided where I stand here yet - haven't heard a good nail-in-the-coffin argument for or against yet).

Val are you a mind reader now? I’ve been thinking about this exact conundrum the last few days!

(And yeah, as a general disclaimer: no flaming. Not allowed. Any asks of the sort will be deleted on sight and with great satisfaction.)

Honestly, I’m not sure there is a “nail-in-the-coffin argument” for this, just because—as you lay out—there are really good points for keeping works around and really good points for allowing authors to have control over their work, especially when fanworks have no payment/legal obligations attached. In mainstream entertainment, your stories reflect a collaborative effort (publisher, editor, cover artists, etc.) so even if it were possible to delete the physical books out of everyone’s home and library (and we're ignoring the censorship angle for the moment), that’s no longer solely the author’s call, even if they have done the lion’s share of the creative work. Though fanworks can also, obviously, be collaborative, they’re usually not collaborative in the same way (more “This fic idea came about from discord conversations, a couple tumblr posts, and that one headcanon on reddit”) and they certainly don’t have the same monetary, legal, and professional strings attached. I wrote this fic as a hobby in my free time. Don’t I have the right to delete it like I also have the right to tear apart the blankets I knit?

Well yes… but also no? I personally view fanworks as akin to gifts—the academic term for our communities is literally “gift economy”—so if we view it like that, suddenly that discomfort with getting rid of works is more pronounced. If I not only knit a blanket, but then gift it to a friend, it would indeed feel outside of my rights to randomly knock on their door one day and go, “I actually decided I hate that? Please give it back so I can tear it to shreds, thanks :)” That’s so rude! And any real friend would try to talk me out of it, explaining both why they love the blanket and, even if it’s not technically the best in terms of craftsmanship, it holds significant emotional value to them. Save it for that reason alone, at least. Fanworks carry that same meaning—“I don’t care if it’s full of typos, super cliché, and using some outdated, uncomfortable tropes. This story meant so much to me as a teenager and I’ll always love it”—but the difference in medium and relationships means it’s easier to ignore all that. I’m not going up to someone’s house and asking face-to-face to destroy something I gave them (which is awkward as hell. That alone deters us), I’m just pressing a button on my computer. I’m not asking this of a personal friend that is involved in my IRL experiences, I’m (mostly) doing this to online peers I know little, if anything, about. It’s easy to distance ourselves from both the impact of our creative work and the act of getting rid of it while online. On the flip-side though, it’s also easier to demean that work and forget that the author is a real person who put a lot of effort into this creation. If someone didn’t like my knitted blanket I gave them as a gift, they’re unlikely to tell me that. They recognize that it’s impolite and that the act of creating something for them is more important than the construction’s craftsmanship. For fanworks though, with everyone spread around the world and using made up identities, people have fewer filters, happily tearing authors to shreds in the comments, sending anon hate, and the like. The fact that we’re both prefacing this conversation with, “Please don’t flame” emphasizes that. So if I wrote a fic with some iffy tropes, “cringy” dialogue, numerous typos, whatever and enough people decided to drag me for it… I don’t know whether I’d resist the urge to just delete the fic, hopefully ending those interactions. There’s a reason why we’re constantly reminding others to express when they enjoy someone else’s work: the ratio of praise to criticism in fandom (or simply praise to seeming indifference because there was no public reaction at all), is horribly skewed.

So I personally can’t blame anyone for deleting. I’d like to hope that more people realize the importance of keeping fanworks around, that everything you put out there is loved by someone… but I’m well aware that the reality is far more complicated. It’s hard to keep that in mind. It’s hard to keep something around that you personally no longer like. Harder still to keep up a work you might be harassed over, that someone IRL discovered, that you’re disgusted with because you didn’t know better back then… there are lots of reasons why people delete and I ultimately can’t fault them for that. I think the reasons why people delete stem more from problems in fandom culture at large—trolling, legal issues, lack of positive feedback, cancel culture, etc.—than anything the author has or has not personally done, and since such work is meant to be a part of an enjoyable hobby… I can’t rightly tell anyone to shoulder those problems, problems they can’t solve themselves, just for the sake of mine or others’ enjoyment. The reason I’ve been thinking about this lately is because I was discussing Attack on Titan and how much I dislike the source material now, resulting in a very uncomfortable relationship with the fics I wrote a few years back. I’ve personally decided to keep them up and that’s largely because some have received fantastic feedback and I’m aware of how it will hurt those still in the fandom if I take them down. So if a positive experience is the cornerstone of me keeping fics up, I can only assume that negative experiences would likewise been the cornerstone of taking them down. And if getting rid of that fic helps your mental health, or solves a bullying problem, or just makes you happier… that, to me, is always more important than the fic itself.

But, of course, it’s still devastating for everyone who loses the work, which is why my compromise-y answer is to embrace options like AO3’s phenomenal orphaning policy. That’s a fantastic middle ground between saving fanworks and allowing authors to distances themselves from them. I’ve also gotten a lot more proactive about saving the works I want to have around in the future. Regardless of whether we agree with deleting works or not, the reality is we do live in a world where it happens, so best to take action on our own to save what we want to keep around. Though I respect an author’s right to delete, I also respect the reader’s right to maintain access to the work, once published, in whatever way they can. That's probably my real answer here: authors have their rights, but readers have their rights too, so if you decide to publish in the first place, be aware that these rights might, at some point, clash. I download all my favorite fics to Calibre and, when I’m earning more money (lol) I hope to print and bind many for my personal library. I’m also willing to re-share fic if others are looking for them, in order to celebrate the author’s work even if they no longer want anything to do with it. Not fanfiction in this case, but one of my fondest memories was being really into Phantom of the Opera as a kid and wanting, oh so desperately, to read Susan Kay’s Phantom. Problem was, it was out of print at the time, not available at my library, and this was before the age of popping online and finding a used copy. For all intents and purposes, based on my personal situation, this was a case of a book just disappearing from the world. So when an old fandom mom on the message boards I frequented offered to type her copy up chapter by chapter and share it with me, you can only imagine how overjoyed I was. Idk what her own situation was that something like scanning wouldn’t work, but the point is she spent months helping a fandom kid she barely knew simply because a story had resonated with her and she wanted to share it. That shit is powerful!

So if someone wants to delete—if that’s something they need right now—I believe that is, ultimately, their decision… but please try your hardest to remember that the art you put out into the world is having an impact and people will absolutely miss it when it’s gone. Often to the point of doing everything they can to put it back out into the world even if you decide to take it out. Hold onto that feeling. The love you have for your favorite fic, fanart, meta, whatever it is? Someone else has that for your work too. I guarantee it.

So take things down as needed, but for the love of everything keep copies for yourself. You may very well want to give it back to the world someday.

#fandom #fic things #mymetas #never any easy questions on this blog huh? lol

[peekbackstage]

"I actually have a lot of thoughts on this but idk if anyone would actually want to hear them on this blog lol" Me! I'd like to hear them!

Welp. Far be it for me to not share, I guess! Though this will be a little off topic as far as this particular blog goes.

cw: genocide

So, I was originally responding to this post written by @bigbadredpanda​ where they state: 

I sometimes see in the mdzs fandom the word ‘genocide’ being used to describe the killing of the Wen remnants during the first siege of Burial Mounds. The word doesn’t sit well with me because it is loaded with strong connotations, it is plain evil, no one is going to argue that a genocide isn’t an atrocious and savage crime against humanity. But that’s not how it’s meant to be perceived in the story.

I agree that the word “genocide” is the wrong word to use when describing what happened to the Wen clan in MDZS/CQL. Genocide describes the targeted mass extermination of a group of people based solely on ethnicity, race, nationality, or religious belief. The reasons for said extermination must be rooted in their ethnicity, race, nationality, or religious beliefs and nothing else. 

In this case, the extermination of the Wen clan is, like OP says, a form of retributive justice and occurs not as a genocide, but as a family extermination. Historically in China, there was a form of punishment known as 株连九族 or “nine familial exterminations,” whereby all relatives of the convicted individual were organized into nine groups and executed. (Also known as 灭族 as OP points out.)

The reasoning behind the nine groups was due to the nine forms of guanxi (relations) that individuals had with their families. As a result, everyone from the convict’s spouse, in-laws, grandchildren and children above a certain age, grandparents, siblings and sibling-in-laws, uncles and aunts and their spouses, would all be thrown into the same guilt-by-association pot. 

Essentially, a family extermination has less to do with the Wen clan’s racial or ethnic makeup, and more to do with the rule of nine when it comes to familial extermination in ancient China. And because of that fact, it cannot actually be called a “genocide.” 

#cw: genocide #cql #the untamed #mdzs

[work-before-glory]

heyy dude! i really don't want to trouble you but like im a tenth grader and will be taking medical next year and i was wondering if there are things that you think i should know for my upcoming two years?!

heyy junior, haha!

Hmm so everything I'll say is solely based on my experience and yk not necessarily will it work for everyone.

So i wasn't really sure what i wanted to do as in careerwise back in 10th so i did not join any coaching. In the lockdown, 2021 i was like yes i wanna be a doctor so 2 weeks before neet 2021 i was like aah this is it. Then i revised whatever i could, gave a few mocks and gave the exam. I scored 350. It wasn't 'bad' for a first attempt without any preparation. So I decided to take coaching this year and also get enrolled in a college cause 'just in case' yk i didn't wanna take a chance. So now I'm badly stuck between coaching and college and I've put college on a backfoot rn.

1. I told you my lifestory cause i feel if you're a one hundred percent sure that you wanna go for medical you should take some coaching with school. Yes, it'll be a little hectic but trust me it'll be worth it.

2. I feel healthy competition is very important to keep you going. You're not gonna be internally motivated 24×7 yk so external motivation is necessary. Just one thing to keep in mind is that you'll not always be doing the best so take it in a positive way and try to improve. Don't demean yourself.

3. Stay consistent and don't go feral. Like doing 12 hours a day just because you're motivated in the beginning and then not doing anything for a week is the dumbest thing ever.

4. Don't take too much stress. You don't have to do everything since 11th. Just try getting your notes in place. Even if you fall behind on some concepts, good notes are your knight in shining armour.

5. Your friends matter A LOT. If you feel they're distracting you pls pls let go. You need to prioritise. You cannot have best of both the world yk. But this does not mean that you have no social life at all. BALANCE is the key.

6. (If) Since you're starting from 11th itself make sure to build your concepts. 10th to 11th is such a major change it's difficult for almost every student to cope up so make sure to not create loads of backlog.

7. Take your tests VERY VERY seriously.

8. Don't burden yourself with 50 books, try to revise the same book 50 times. And NCERT, holy shit that book is lethal. Idk if it happens with everyone but everytime I read a page i find something new than i did before. It is so annoying lol.

9. Also very important thing is to choose your teachers and stick with them till the end if you take any online coaching like unacademy or PW etc. I made the mistake of not sticking to the same teacher initially and ended up wasting two months so that is important.

10. Just wanna let you know that yes this exam is important but it's not the end of our lives so we don't need to make it a big deal. Just go with the flow.

Also I'd like to say that only choose this if YOU want to be a doctor. Not because someone else expects something from you or because you want to be rich lol. That's literally the biggest misconception about being a doctor.

#neet ug #medicine #anon ask

[ecoamerica]

Watch the 2024 American Climate Leadership Awards for High School Students now: https://youtu.be/5C-bb9PoRLc

The recording is now available on ecoAmerica's YouTube channel for viewers to be inspired by student climate leaders! Join Aishah-Nyeta Brown & Jerome Foster II and be inspired by student climate leaders as we recognize the High School Student finalists. Watch now to find out which student received the $25,000 grand prize and top recognition!

#ACLA24 #ACLA24HighSchoolStudents #youtube #youtube video #climate leaders #climate solutions #climate action #climate and environment #climate #climate change #climate and health #climate blog #climate justice #climate news #weather and climate #environmental news #environment #environmental awareness #environment and health #environmental #environmental issues #environmental education #environmental justice #environmental protection #environmental health #high school students #high school #youth #youth of america #school