#it would kind of be another thing if the game implied that the issue was blaming the murder on an innocent person

[hyperfixatedbastard]

how to get the First Man™ out of bed

Soft!Adam x GN!Reader

Turns out the 'First Man' himself is actually super clingy. And he is a big baby when it comes to getting up in the mornings. Good luck convincing him to get his ass outta bed!

Word Count: 1.1k

WARNINGS: mentions of sex, implied sexual content, withholding sex, kissing (it's still SFW!)

A/N: Here is the Adam x Reader fluff, finally! I didn't mean for this to have so much sex-adjacent content but I think that's just too integral to Adam's character lmao. It's still SFW though so it's fineee. I didn't mean for the 'withholding sex' part to be manipulative, it's all fun n' games here, so apologies if it comes across as too serious. (It was originally 'one week', not 'one day' - I changed it just in case lol)

Dividers

Beneath the douchebag exterior of the First Man™, Adam’s really just a big ol’ softie. Just deep, deep, deep down. It took a long time to find that part of him, but as his partner, you’re one of the only people that even knows this side of him exists.

One thing you really hadn’t expected from the man is how clingy he can get—it probably has something to do with the abandonment issues, but you’ve never tried to broach that subject. It’s currently early in the morning, and Adam doesn’t seem to plan on letting go of you anytime soon. You’re cuddled up with him in bed, his mask and robes absent as he sleeps. His wings are wrapped around you like a protective blanket. And now you have to try and convince his stubborn ass to get the fuck up. You’ve already been awake for about fifteen minutes, hoping your boyfriend will wake up on his own, but of course, that’s not going to happen. 

Getting Adam out of bed is always a struggle. Despite the promotion of Heaven as the ‘perfect place’ with ‘no bad days,’ there’s still a schedule to abide by, and angels still need sleep. And Adam really hates those damn schedules, and loves his beauty sleep. There are a multitude of ways to try and get him out of bed, and every morning is a guessing game to see which one will work.

1. Be sweet and try to gently encourage him to get out of bed.

“Adam, babe,” you murmur softly, opting for a gentle approach this time around. You pat his arms where they’re wrapped securely around your waist—you would try to get a look at his face, but he’s spooning you from behind and giving you absolutely zero wiggle room. “You gotta get up, we have shit to do.”

“Mm…fuck off,” Adam grumbles, only tightening his hold on you and nuzzling his face into the nape of your neck. Which was about what you expected.

2. Be a little assertive.

“Adam, c’mon,” you warn in an attempt to convince him to get the fuck up. “I’ve already given you an extra fifteen minutes.”

“Then gimme fifteen more,” he insists, his voice sounding almost whiny. His childishness would be adorable if you didn’t actually have shit to do today. 

3. Be a little more assertive.

You sigh. It’s never easy with this asshole. “Adam.”

The angel in question makes a little ‘mmpf’ sound into your back.

“Get the fuck up.”

He doesn’t even respond this time—he just holds you tighter, his wings copying his arms and trapping you in his embrace.

4. Bribery.

Actually, fuck no. You refuse to bribe him again. He’s already gotten that out of you several times before, getting anything from sex to food to picking what movie you two watch that night (you’ve watched Die Hard three times this week alone)

No, this is a game you are not losing this time.

5. Threats.

“Okay, you’ve got three options,” you offer, your voice less stern than your last attempt but not as soft as your first. “One: you get up.”

Adam makes another noncommittal little grunt of acknowledgment.

“Two: you don’t get up, and Lute breaks into our apartment again to drag your ass out of bed.”

He lets out a sound that sounds kind of like a chuckle, but it’s muffled against the back of your neck, so it’s hard to tell. But he’s clearly not intimidated by the warning.

“Three: you don’t get up and we don’t fuck tonight.”

That gets him. He tenses up for a moment before scoffing in disbelief. “Yeah, right, like you could go a day without this dick.”

A smirk pulls at your lips. You’ve got him now. “Try me.”

Adam’s silent for nearly a full minute. He has a much higher libido than you, and he knows you’d be fine without sex for a day. Him, on the other hand? He’s got a high sex drive and is downright spoiled. 

You’re worried he’s fallen back asleep, but eventually, he sighs. His wings unfurl and his grip around you loosens, though not letting go entirely. “Fineee,” he groans dramatically. “But only because I don’t wanna deprive you of my amazing dick.”

You chuckle and turn to face him, now that you have the ability to actually move. His hair’s all messy, as it usually is, and his golden eyes are just barely cracked open. 

“Oh, how generous of you,” you joke, bringing a hand up to cup his cheek. He instinctively pushes his face into your palm ever so slightly. 

“I know, I’m fucking great,” he agrees, a slight smirk tugging at the corners of his lips. He knows you were being sarcastic, but he’ll turn damn near anything into a compliment that strokes his ego.

You just roll your eyes at his response, albeit fondly. He’s a dumbass, but he’s your dumbass.

“Alright, you big baby, time to get up,” you tease, moving to sit up before his arms tighten around you once more, pulling you back down.

“Hey—” you start, but are immediately cut off by a pair of lips on yours. His lips move slowly and languidly along with yours, and you’re all too happy to reciprocate.

You sigh into the kiss, unable to stop yourself from smiling against Adam’s lips. There’s a big difference between your usual hungry, eager make-outs and the sweet, lazy kisses you get when he’s all soft and sleepy. Both are great, but you really savor these tender, gentle moments with him. In the mornings, he’s too tired to keep up that arrogant ‘too cool for all that mushy, affectionate shit’ persona. And while you love him all the time, sleepy Adam definitely holds a special place in your heart.

He’s smiling when he lets you pull away. The kiss wasn’t a particularly long one, but you could’ve let it go on forever. But you’d be one hell of a hypocrite if you stayed in bed just to kiss your boyfriend after making such a point to get his ass out of bed.

“Now are you ready to get up?” you ask softly, still basking in the warmth of his embrace and the memory of his lips on yours.

“Mm…” Adam hums in consideration. His smile quickly turns to a smirk as he tightens his hold on you yet again and wraps his wings around you. “No.”

“Oh, for the love of—”

⋆⋅☆⋅⋆

Needless to say, you do not stay true to your word about the consequences of Adam not getting out of bed. And Lute does, in fact, break into your apartment half an hour later to be confronted with a sight she sees far too often for her liking. 

Fuck him for being so damn stubborn. Literally.

Taglist - @3sire-777

#hazbin hotel #hazbin hotel adam #hazbin adam #hazbin hotel fluff #hazbin hotel oneshots #hazbin hotel adam x reader #hazbin adam x reader #adam x reader #adam hazbin hotel #adam hazbin hotel x reader #hazbin hotel x reader

[dogtoling]

RE: Question about whether the Deepsea and the Octarian Domes are directly connected to each other. sorry i'm stealing your reply @bucketsquid but i see a chance to talk about this i have to take it. So idk let's try to decode how they might actually be connected.

This is the obvious conclusion. For the record I think it's the RIGHT conclusion after Side Order because they seemed to REALLY imply it this time. I thought for a really long time that the Deepsea and Octarian domes HAVE TO be connected because not only are they both subterranean but also literally how else do you get that many freaking Octolings in there? Since the metro is connected to the Inkopolis subway anyway wouldn't it be WAY EASIER TO JUST GET SQUIDS? (though to be honest i still stand by this.)

Anyway the obvious assumption is that the Deepsea and Octarian domes connect to each other. though it's not so straightforward. How they connect to each other exactly? we don't really know. Anyway let's get back into this in just a second i need to show what absolutely dashed my hopes and made me really mad when it happened

THIS MAP. THEY POSTED THIS MAP. Before this map I was having a great time because this is what the map was in my head:

"why was that the map in your head" idk. the giant stretches of water surrounding both canyons and inkopolis stretching into said body of water gave me the mental image that the canyons were in the ocean by inkopolis' coast. alongside some of the very old concept art that shows some of the domes even being underneath inkopolis if i'm not mistaken!

from the art of splatoon 1. this is an ancient and I MEAN ANCIENT manga depicting what is obviously an early concept of the story so it shouldn't ACTUALLY be taken as fact (almost nothing in this manga holds up anymore). But some of the things WERE kept! I have to assume this is also why you get into Octo Valley through the sewer in the games because the story mode was meant to take place literally straight underneath Inkopolis... it makes a lot less sense in the final result when you supposedly take the sewer like 50 kilometers (i dont know the actual distances but i think they're able to be deciphered) underground to a canyon in the middle of nowhere.

Why is there even continuous sewage all that way. What is happening. Is it even a sewer or a really long underground secret tunnel that Captain Cuttlefish dug because he's been really bored for 100 years.

kind of besides the point. back to the issue of the deepsea and the octarian empire being connected. You know, with the Deepsea Metro being located in Inkopolis Bay and the domes supposedly being all over the Inkopolis underground and the surrounding locations, it didn't seem that far fetched that they could siphon Octolings from the underground (where they live) to another very close-by fork of the underground (the Deepsea). However,

1. the Deepsea is NOT Octarian territory, but its own type of society. which is really weird considering how much Octarian iconography is down there, let alone how many OCTARIANS are down there

2. We have SO LITTLE knowledge about the true scope of the Deepsea that you can't even say for sure whether the Deepsea is *JUST* the Deepsea Metro and the facilities and industrial cities in that exact specific area, or if it's a big underwater and underground empire similar in scope to the Octarian domes, maybe even built in the exact same dome network - or a neighboring one. (This would mean they have a border somewhere undefined, underground.)

3. At face value with only the map, this is the distance for a Single Octarian to travel in order to get from where they live/are stationed, to get to the Deepsea Metro which is cluttered with one billion octarians

HELLO? THAT IS SO FAR. it's even worse than the distance Agents 3 and 4 are swimming through the god damn sewer. This also makes very little sense if we assume all the subterranean domes in all of these locations are exclusively under their surface counterparts... which... well, we don't know.

We know that the Deepsea Metro is connected to the Inkopolis Underground (it even shows this on the map with the little dotted line). I don't really know the significance of that but I've taken it to mean that the Deepsea Metro that is highlighted in the map shows specifically the area covered by the Kamabo Corporation and the tests there, and honestly again, I don't even know if the Deepsea is any bigger than that. Since it's been stated to be an independent society from Inkopolis or the Octarians, you would ASSUME there'd be ample space for people to like, live, and maybe work, and produce stuff you need to like, live. Instead of the test facility being literally the only place that exists plus a city built around only that to sustain everything.

Furthermore, we don't know if Octarians have cities on the surface in their part of the surface world! This is something that really bothers me because I think knowing whether or not this is the case would change SO MUCH (i'm currently under the assumption it is a barren wasteland with Literally Nothing). However given the location of the Salmonid Swim Zone, we can SEE cities in the background of multiple stages, and judging by this map those would be mainly on the Octarian coasts. This could mean that Octarians have surface cities where they coexist with the Salmon, it could mean that they USED TO have surface cities and abandoned them, OR it could mean that Salmonids actually live on Octarian surface turf while the Octarians themselves live underground! Idk! There's a lot of options!

I kind of doubt Octarians have cities on the surface because if they did, then it would feel redundant for the game to keep coming back to "the Octoling world" being this horrible military regime underground that people try to get to the surface from. If it was that easy to get to the surface it feels odd that it would be a big deal. We know that the Octarian domes, at least in Octo Valley, are specifically an underground *secret* military base.

(*Secret* being explicitly stated before and it would imply that they wouldn't necessarily NEED to live underground, but it's just way easier to do Secret Things underground. Plus the surface is a wasteland so honestly not a lot to lose there.)

We still haven't really seen what they have aside from that. We don't know where they get their food, for example. There's got to be farmers in a society. There HAS TO be some kind of surface access or activity, and if you squint, Octo Canyon IS a surface city that they seem to have free access to. So why not have others? It seems only logical to have more. In this case the oppression of the Octoling world and being forced to stay underground feels really case-specific, but it seems to also be an overarching thing that's quite widespread, so... I don't know, I WANT MORE OCTARIAN WORLDBUILDING *PLEASE* i'm working with crumbs here.

Anyway. my current assumption of the subterranean areas of the Deepsea and the Octarian empire goes something like this, all things considered that I've talked about...

(Not exactly that but you get the general picture)

When you put it this way, it suddenly makes a lot more sense that Octarians would be getting into the Deepsea. Generally I tried to keep the locations of Octarian tunnel systems to their turf, and the locations of Deepsea tunnels under the ocean floor, though with Octarian domes explicitly stated to have been dug by humans there's. really no reason they couldn't stretch into Inkling territory. We have no idea how big these tunnel systems are in scope, NO idea.

And that's also the problem with trying to solve this part of worldbuilding, because my concept could easily be right but it could also be COMPLETELY wrong! It's totally possible that the dome networks are actually secluded and tiny and are *just* under the Octarian craters and nowhere else, and it's totally possible that the entirety of the Deepsea is JUST Kamabo Co and the few settlements surrounding it. I'm not that confident that I'm right but I'm not really confident that we'll get answers to these questions either, at least as long as the story modes keep intentionally avoiding expanding on existing game locations and pretending theyre not in the splatoon world at all by making their key locations abstract and closed off bubbles on purpoCOUGH HACK who said that

There is 1 thing I've completely failed to mention in this post and it's that Octo Valley and the Deepsea Metro are like, explicitly connected. Which by the way makes NO SENSE given they're on opposite corners of the map. But between what we know from Side Order and from this Official Snippet from Splatoon Base, the Official Splatoon Story Resource By Nintendo,

Ignoring that none of this makes sense anymore or is intentionally misleading compared to what we know from Agent 8's memory loss now. Anyway. This seems to just imply the Deepsea is *under* Octo Valley. WHICH WOULD LINE UP WITH SIDE ORDER, weirdly enough. It is possible that the Deepsea domes could actually OVERLAP with Octarian Domes, it's just built FAR under sea level, not bound to the actual location of the sea itself.

I want to point out that this segment in the splatoon base and the game itself and dev interviews all tend to contradict each other in some ways when you look at them side by side, which is frustrating, but also serves as a reminder that sometimes the official resources don't know exactly what they're talking about either. so it's often not worthwhile looking them up and trying to conclude something based on it just to find out that it's literally contradicted in the game itself.

anyway, we know One Thing now and it's that there's at least no way that Octarian domes and the Deepsea AREN'T connected to each other in some way. this post doesn't exactly solve the issue of How but there was an attempt. I don't think this is ultimately something you can come to a concrete foolproof conclusion on until there is more information. But in the meantime I guess there's speculation.

#rambles #squidthoughts

[assholepants]

I've been wracking my brain trying to figure out why Dirk's splinters always end up being manipulative and abusive. Because, as another post on here mentioned, when you look at the actions of Dirk himself in homestuck proper, he's actually just a sweet kid who is very hard on himself and cares about his friends.

Everyone is well aware that one of Dirk's major character motifs is control. But pretty much all of the examples we see of Dirk, himself, being controlling, are all directed inwards, as he attempts to maintain a frankly unhealthy level of self control. There's lots of little examples but the most glaringly obvious one is his reaction to Calliope's juju lollipop. It's also evident in the way he insists on taking person responsibility for his splinters, despite having little to no influence over them, and in many cases, having never even met them.

So what happens, if you take a guy who maintains unhealthy levels of self control, and take away his sense of self?

Because all of Dirk's splinters are well aware that they are not the 'Original' so to speak. Even Bro, I think, is aware that he is not a protagonist in the narrative. It's pretty heavily implied across cannon that the guardians have a certain level of awareness of the game, to varying degrees, and that they are aware that their role is Guardian to the protagonists. The splinters know they're not the 'true' Dirk, and so a huge part of their identity exists outside of the realm of their control.

And I think that's where issues start to come in. The nature of the existence of these splinters forces them to build a sense of self that is defined by other people. And so their attempts at self control can never be fully internalised like Dirk's, and end up as manipulation and abuse of the people they have constructed their identity around.

Brain Ghost Dirk is fundamentally Made Of Jake. Jake is a core part of his sense of self, because he literally doesn't exist outside of Jake's mind. So in order to maintain self control, he manipulates Jake.

Lil hal manages to get involved in a lot of different things, but all of these actions boil down to manipulating Dirk's life. Because his entire sense of self is Dirk. So in order to maintain self control, he needs to control Dirk. I think Dirk was right in that hal was dangerous, but I think he was wrong to think that denying him a physical form would be safer. I think if hal had been allowed to have a physical body at an earlier stage, he could have begun developing his own identity, outside of Dirk, which would lessen his reliance on control over Dirk's life.

Bro is like. The reason I'm making this post basically because I can't stop thinking about it. Obviously Dave is the subject of Bro's control issues. Bro is aware he is not a protagonist in the narrative. His function is to Be Dave's Guardian, and so his sense of self is firmly rooted in Dave. But it's done in such a different way to how we see the other splinters behave. Dirk is a really fucking smart kid, and so his splinters generally tend to be pretty good at calculated manipulation. But Bro isn't particularly calculated as far as we can see. He's kind of a fucking mess. His abuse is far more physical and impulsive and far less wordy. He's controlling Dave, moulding him into the kind of protagonist Bro thinks he should be. But it's not elaborate and calculated. And THAT'S where Lil Cal, and by association, Caliborn come in.

There's obviously huge amount of debate and like 172784 different theories about how much influence Caliborn had over Bro, and how much responsibility he holds for Dave's abuse. Personally, I think Bro would have always ended up manipulating and abusing Dave in some way, in the same way that BGD manipulates Jake and Lil Hal manipulates Dirk. The underlying cause of Bro's abuse comes from the same control issues as the other splinters and I think it does a disservice to Dirk, as a character with flaws, to insist that Bro's abuse was 100% down to puppet manipulation. But I do think that Caliborn influenced the method. The random violence, the Saw style psychological horror, the impulsiveness, the obsession with sex and masculinity. All very Caliborn methods.

What I'm interested in is if Bro knew what Cal was. I think it's very easy, and completely plausible to say that he came across this puppet due to Paradox Space Is Just Like That, and fell under its influence without realising it. But if he's a Dirk splinter I just don't buy it. He doesn't allow himself to fall under the influence of Calliope's Juju, so why should his splinter fall under the influence of Caliborn's?

It sounds counterintuitive but stick with me, I think Bro allowed himself to be influenced by the puppet, because it gave him a sense of control. Being a guardian made him a side character. Side characters are often much less developed than the protagonists. In the case of homestuck, they don't even get to have a face. How do you form a coherent sense of self without any development from the narrative? He can channel that into controlling Dave, but at the end of the day that doesn't allow him any more agency than the other guardians. Bro knows he can't be a protagonist. But allowing himself to be influenced by the puppet places him in proximity to the main antagonist of the entire comic. And Caliborn influences EVERYTHING. He's woven through every part of the narrative, his existence sends ripples through every action we see.

Characters that are influenced by Caliborn tend to be integral to the shape of the narrative. Gamzee being an obvious example, but also those who communicate with Doc Scratch, like Vriska and Rose and even the reader themself. I just think it would be interesting if Bro knew what Lil Cal was, and allowed himself to be influenced by it anyway, in an attempt to gain even a little more control over the narrative, and by extension, himself.

#Welcome to my Bro Essay #homestuck #Bro strider #Dirk Strider #Lil hal #Brain Ghost Dirk #Homestuck meta #tw abuse #Also I know Cal isn't technically Caliborn's Juju but you know what I mean

[katebishopsbaefy]

Whatever You Say

pairing: kate bishop x reader (can kind of be read as platonic but there's a couple of things that imply romantic stuff)

summary: you have a nightmare and kate helps you feel better🥰😋

warnings: nightmares, like one swear word, kate is pretty dorky

word count: 1163

notes: hey everyone i said i would make this like a month ago or something but i did not have time and really i didnt have time now either because i have SO MUCH homework that is so much writing but this is more fun😊 anyway im literally in love with her no joke shes so pretty living up to my username woooooohooooooo also also also i wrote this so late at night i am so tired but i was on a writing spree and i ran it through grammarly so i think its probably mostly fine but either way ignore any spelling or grammar issues pretty please😁

Shaking and sweating, your body jolts awake with the force of your nightmare. Eyes flying open, heavy breaths, eventually gaining enough consciousness to notice the tight grip on your sheets you hadn’t realized you had. With a quick glance at your phone, the numbers glow 3:43.  You rub your eyes and sit up, hands coming away wet with tears you hadn’t realized had fallen. The darkness of your room threatened to consume you.

You’d been staying at the Avengers compound recently. Since you had some time off of school, you figured it would be nice to spend time with everyone. Your room was next to Kate’s, and you knew for a fact she would be awake playing video games. Desperately needing to get out of your room, you make your way over to the door. Really you just wanted to see her. Really you just needed to be near her.

Light showed from the bottom of her door, signaling she was still awake like you predicted. You knock quietly on her door after wiping your face one more time, and after a quick “Yeah?” from the other side, you squeeze through the door into Kate’s room. She knew it was you without having to look.

“Hey,” she says, not looking up from her computer, “why are you up so late?”

You try to reply, but all that comes out is a choke and a sniff.

Her head jerks in your direction at the sound, worry immediately lacing her features as she looks over your tear-stained face. You quickly make your way over to her sitting figure and stand between her legs. She pauses her game, gently taking your hands into hers and squeezing them to reassure you that you’re okay. One hand reaches up to wipe away your tears as she stands out of her chair. You lean your face into her hand, your body into hers. She moves her arms to wrap around your shaking shoulders and you bury your face in her neck.

“What’s wrong?” she whispers, rubbing your back. You let out another quiet sob into her shoulder and cling tighter to her hoodie, shaking your head.

It’s quiet for a couple of minutes before she speaks up again. “Nightmare?” she says even quieter than before. Your eyes squeeze shut and you nod. This time her grip on you tightens. “It’s okay, I got you.”

You pull away and wipe your eyes on your sleeve once you calm down a little. “Sorry for coming in here so late. You can go back to your game, I’m sorry,” you say quietly, making a move to leave.

“Hey, no, don’t do that,” Kate pulls you back before you can get too far. “What can I do to help?” she asks genuinely. As you gaze at her through puffy eyes, she takes your hand again. 

“Can I sleep in here tonight?” you whisper so quietly she almost doesn’t hear you. Thankfully she does, though, and smiles so softly at you that you think you might melt. You’re unable to see the light pink color that tints her cheeks because of the darkness at the suggestion. You know if it wasn’t so late she might’ve started rambling nervously, which you always thought was cute, but you appreciated the softness and sincerity radiating off of her at the moment. 

“Whatever you want. Let me shut off my stuff and then I’ll come with you,” she turns to turn off her game.

“No, you don’t have to. It’s okay. You should finish your game. I’m okay, really,” you tell her. You feel bad for interrupting her alone time, and all you really need is the company. Watching her play her game and sitting on her bed sounded perfect.

“Are you sure? I don’t have to, it’s not a big deal,” she replies.

“Yeah, it’s fine. I just need to be near someone.”

“Okay,” she smiles at you and kisses your cheek, “I’ll try not to take too long.”

She sits back down, continuing where she left off. You plop yourself onto her bed and get comfy under the covers. You move in a position so you can see her character over her shoulder. Watching the screen intently, you notice something she misses.

“Kate, there’s a thing behind you,” you point out. You don’t exactly know what it is, but you feel like you should probably point it out.

“Huh?” she questions under her breath, turning her character around. “Oh shit,” she says louder this time, quickly shooting the guy in the face. Apparently, that wins the level for her, and the screen changes. She spins her chair around to face you lying on the bed, smiling. “Thanks for the heads up.”

You smile back. “No problem. Are you done now?”

“Yeah,” she replies, shutting off her computer. She quickly makes her way over, jumping clean over you to the other side of the bed. It makes both you and her bounce on the bed, the whole thing shaking with the sudden movement.

“That was unnecessary,” you giggle, snuggling closer to her.

“Quicker than walking,” she puts her arm around your shoulder, resting your head on her collarbone. She kisses your head very gently. “Less scary, too. Monsters can’t grab your feet if there are no feet to grab,” she shrugs.

“Whatever you say.”

You yawn as Kate starts to rub your back through your shirt, knowing it helps you sleep. She watches you try to fight sleep, moving her hand under the fabric to brush her fingers over your bare skin. “Sleepy?” she asks.

“No.” You force your eyes to open again. You’re tired but don't want to have another nightmare. 

It’s silent for a minute. “Do you want to talk about it?” Kate asks quietly. She feels your grip on her shirt tighten a little and decides to rest her free hand on yours, rubbing circles on both it and your back. She knows the answer before it leaves your mouth, before you even have time to think about it. “We don’t have to. I just want to help you feel better.”

“I do feel better,” you say. And you do feel better with her, but you’re not sure if you feel up to going back to sleep.

“Are you sure?” You nod. “Okay. If you wanna sleep, I’ll be here the whole time. I can fight off any bad dreams. See these muscles?” She flexes her arm a little bit and taps the side of your head. “Don’t even worry about it, I got you. I’ll just punch ‘em in the face.”

You giggle at her antics. Usually, you’d tell her she’s cheesy or not as ripped as she thinks she is, but you’re too sleepy to mess with her.

“Whatever you say, Katie.” 

You fall asleep not even five minutes later. Kate shifts a little to flick off the light and pulls the blanket up further, fully intent on keeping her word.

You don't have another nightmare for the rest of the night.

#kate bishop fluff #kate bishop x reader #marvel #young avengers #hawkeye #kate bishop #kate bishop x female reader #kate bishop x y/n #kate bishop x you #kate bishop fanfic #mcu #mcu fic

[evilbihan]

Bi-Han's and Kuai Liang's father was not a good father

And now it's no longer a theory. Now I have proof.

The last thing I expected to get out of this very strange invasions mode season was confirmation for a theory I've had ever since I first finished the story mode. Despite other characters in the game claiming that the father of the Lin Kuei brothers was an honorable man, something about that never sat right with me, given how cruel that man was in all the previous timelines and how vastly different Bi-Han views his father compared to his brothers, Liu Kang or Sindel.

I made this discovery on the mesa of Shang Tsung's laboratory.

At the very beginning of the mesa when you come in through the portal and head to the right (your character's right) towards the two crates that are next to each other, there's a node featuring a fight against Scorpion.

That node, loosely translated from my language, is called "Daddy's favorite".

It might seem like a small and meaningless detail and maybe I'm reading too much into it, but if the name of that node is anything to go by and if it's a reference to MK1's canon lore (which it has to be, otherwise I don't see why it would be there) this adds a whole new layer to the tragedy of the falling out between Bi-Han and Kuai Liang and Bi-Han's decision to let his father die.

Was he neglected? Despite being the oldest son and the grandmaster's heir, Kuai Liang was the favorite son. He was his father's pride and joy, not Bi-Han. That explains Bi-Han's bitterness and his resentment towards his father as well as his eagerness to earn the respect of others. Because his own father didn't give that to him.

Sub-Zero: I helped you, but I've earned no respect. General Shao: Because there's nothing lower than a traitor.

Johnny Cage: I thought I had daddy issues. But you? Sub-Zero: My family is none of your business.

Would a good father have a "favorite son"? Should a good father not love his sons equally, without picking favorites?

Another small but noteworthy detail is one of Bi-Han's invasions mode encounters being named "Joyless initiate" (again, loosely translated because my game is in my native language, not English). You have to wonder what kind of life Bi-Han lived for the game to refer to him that way and how much of that is owed to his father's strictness or lack of care towards him since he wasn't the favorite son. It certainly implies Bi-Han faced hardships that the main story never really talked about or even mentioned.

It might not seem like much, but I'm sure some thought was put into making these nodes and the references and hints exist for a reason.

I'm aware that a lot of people think the father of the Lin Kuei brothers was a good guy, but as a reminder, in the original timeline, Bi-Han's and Kuai Liang's father was ruthless enough to kidnap the brothers from their mother, potentially even killing her and their younger sister in the process, and turned them both into assassins for the Lin Kuei. Of course, the reboot is set in a new timeline, but as I said in my previous post, all characters are still essentialy the same. Some backstories and allignments have changed, but not the character's personalities and even in this new era, the old grandmaster is no saint.

I think it's messed up that his response to the Lin Kuei killing Smoke's entire family and turning him into an orphan was to take Tomáš in and turn him into a warrior for the very clan that murdered his family.

Sure, some might view it as a noble gesture that he took responsibility for the mistake he made and decided to give Tomáš a home after he was orphaned, but if that man cared at all about Smoke's wellbeing, he could have found a better solution for the situation. He could have told Liu Kang about what happened and asked him to let Tomáš stay at the Wu Shi academy instead of turning him into an asset for the clan that killed his mother and sister.

While that's only a side note, it proves that Bi-Han's and Kuai Liang's father had a twisted idea of what it means to be a good parent if he thought that taking in the son of a family his own warriors murdered was the "honorable" thing to do without sparing a second thought to what that was going to do to Smoke mentally.

Anyway, this subtle hint is one of the few good things to come out of this invasions mode season and I'm glad I found it.

#bi han #bi han sub zero #mk bi han #mk sub zero #bi-han #kuai liang #mk scorpion #tomas vrbada #mk smoke #mk1 #mk1 2023 #mortal kombat 1

[emblazons]

Thinking about how people who only (or primarily) understand Mike’s arc through a “hes queer and coming to accept it / struggling with heteronormativity/will get his happy ending when he gets with Will” lens are missing at least half of what defines his arc in the wider context / themes of the show.

Forewarning: long post (& also maybe an unpopular opinion)

Even as a queer person myself, I know that his arc isn’t solely about embracing his queerness (though it’s inherently interlinked). In Mike, you have a character who is being radically challenged by both external circumstances and his own decisions through a journey away from all kinds of forced conformity (social, familial, romantic & heteronormative) and into someone self actualized enough to live how they want…while also being strong enough to accept that they made mistakes along the way. Someone who is learning to be brave enough to say “this is who I am, what I enjoy, and what/who I love…and while it took me a lot of time to figure it out, now I can exist in the world embracing that even though it will take consistently resisting the tendency to accommodate people who think it’s unacceptable.”

Like. Even from a time before puberty (see: S3) Mike wants a life that stands apart from what’s expected of him in every area, not just in choosing a romantic relationship with another guy. He wants to continue to be a nerd and “child at heart” even though something else is repeatedly demanded of him by everyone from his parents to El in his romantic relationship. He wants to be a writer and someone who takes those nerdy interests into his adult life (cue aggressive gesturing toward the duffers themselves) and grates against all that’s been constructed for him even when he’s not (yet) brave enough to challenge it directly. Mike liking boys/loving Will is just “the final nail in the coffin” of his social and societal nonconformity—not the first (or the last) aspect of what makes him different from Hawkins or the life he was made to believe would suit him best.

Even the fact that Mike has a desire to be “normal” comes from an insecurity and fear that choosing what he truly wants will lead to him being outcasted and losing the people he cares for entirely—which is partially motivated by his queerness yes, but that also has a basis in his general interests and personality…which becomes especially obvious when you realize we are repeatedly shown that he is punished/has his wishes ignored in all areas he doesn’t conform, even long before we get into a plot where it’s clearer he likes boys.

We see it in how his parents have already started to demand he put boundaries on the time he spends playing his “childhood games” the very first scene of season one, how they demand social acceptable emotions from him when Will is missing, and how Karen & Ted want him to give up toys in S2 when he’s showing signs of depression (because they think the issue is him growing up, not that he’s struggling with loss or guilt for what happened to El).

We see it in how his own father comments about taking his CA trip away from him after calling Hellfire being a group for “dropouts” in S4 (implying that he is failing on an academic and social level that matters to wheelers—and that Nancy is good at).

We even see it in the way everyone from his bullies to his own girlfriend threaten and take things away from him when he doesn’t conform to social expectations...from Troy telling him to jump off the cliff to save Dustin in S1 (as punishment for the one time Mike stands up for himself in the gymnasium) to El jumping straight into breaking up with him and spying on him when he doesn’t do exactly what she wants him to in Season 3.

All of these moments are critical to understanding Mike as a person because they show us that, even without addressing his queerness, Mike’s desire to conform to socialized expectations involves but is not solely about him moving out of heteronormativity—it’s about him moving against everything that WASP, patriarchal, heteronormative and capitalistic and performative “wholesome American” values…and how he is learning to move past the fear of what will happen if he steps outside the lines in general, even though he already knows he hates those standards.

Mike’s “coming of age” arc is about finding the strength to choose the “path less traveled” in all areas of his life—even when it means (potentially) losing the support of the people he cares about. It’s about starting from a place of privilege and becoming okay with being outcasted from it in a way your insecurities never let you be before (which is inherently different than Will, who has always been shown to have some kind of support not just for his queerness but his artistic endeavors as well). Mike’s lack of support is why he starts from a place of deep insecurity, yes—but it’s also why him learning power of choosing to be himself, even if it means “losing” people when he’s honest about who (& what) he is will be universally powerful.

You don’t need to be queer to understand the power of what it means to know you will be okay even if people leave you. You don’t need to be queer to understand the power of stepping outside social expectations or your family’s way of raising you. You don’t even need to be queer to understand the weight of breaking up with someone you were only with to satisfy what you thought you should do, rather than be with who you want to.

The power of being strong enough to overcome your insecurities in order to “step out of line” and live and love as you want to is universal, and a stunningly brave choice no matter what or why you chose to do so. The fact that Will will be there waiting to love him in that honesty with himself is beautiful, yes—but it’s not the only lesson to be learned for Mike’s character.

Mike starting out with everything the world (or, at least America) tells would make you happy, realizing he is not happy with those things and rejecting them knowing it might have consequences is what makes his arc powerful, because he is learning (exactly like his sister Nancy) to be brave enough to accept those consequences (which for him are getting dumped, and feeling like he’s being left behind by some of his friends) to follow his own heart.

Even though The Duffers aren’t writing this into a tragic ending (aka: he’s not going to die or be left alone, because the duffers writing is inherently designed ro champion the outcast), these are the things that have (and will) make him relatable even to an audience that doesn’t know queerness. Erasing the fact that his lesson is the bravery it takes to follow your heart solely to talk about him liking guys (even Will) is to undermine his humanity, and the lessons to be learned from him by even the most general an audience.

TL:DR - the heteronormative aspect of Mike’s character is not the sole or even inherent issue within Mike, though heteronormativity is inherently built into his struggle.

There are deep dives on how his arc is also about a war against toxic patriarchy, toxic masculinity, emphasis on capitalistic and academic accomplishments over artistic ones, and even conformist relationships (whether they’re queer or not) that should be explored for his character—and I for one like him too much not to move out of just “this boy is queer because xyz” and into “let’s talk about Mike in terms of the wider scope of his cultural context and upbringing.” 🤷🏽‍♀️😂

#imma go watch the Oscars now but #i know people mean NO HARM in focusing on the heteronormative part of his arc because on tumblr esp that is inherently relatable but #it’s not the only thing that makes his character interesting! #and it’s not the only thing he’s struggling with in his ‘coming of age!’ #understanding white masculinity in America on a wider scale is SUPER helpful to understanding Mike #and in that sense Reddit is actually pretty good at catching his drift—THEY JUST DONT REALIZE THE DUFFERS ARE U N D E R M I N I N G it #erasing Mike’s queerness is to do him a disservice. I absolutely believe this. #but to deny every other part of him that isn’t just expected to be straight is to oversimplify him aggressively #you need BOTH to understand him #which is why you need both El and Will to make sense of his struggle lmao #(I still 100% believe he’s gay not bi) #(but him dating a girl was necessary to make sense of understanding that aspect of socialized expectations). #ANYWAY. Sorry for the rant lmao #mike wheeler core #mike wheeler #my st commentary #byler #< target audience #stranger things

[am-i-the-asshole-official]

WIBTA for kicking someone out of my D&D campaign for reasons not entirely related to the game?

This is long but the context is important I swear.

About a year ago, I (30X) tried to assemble a D&D group with my coworkers. After a whole lot of fucking around, the guy who was going to DM moving across the country, and a bunch of people quitting or getting fired, it ended up being me as the DM, my brother, a few other people who I met through a different campaign, and one guy who used to work with me.

This guy, J (23M), had a lot of personal problems when he worked for us, most of which contributed to him being let go. He had a lot of family issues that led to him missing a lot of work (and I mean A Lot. We have a Very good PTO system for the US that basically amounts to accruing one day off for every 50 hours you work, earning more the longer you stay with the company, and more allowance for attendance infractions than any company I've ever heard of in the states). He also had a lot of interpersonal issues with some of the employees, one in particular, K (21F), with whom he had some kind of situationship. I try not to get involved in work drama, so I don't know all the details.

J also has issues with money, transportation, and depression/suicidal tendencies. I'm not judging him for any of those, as I have experience with them as well, but he has been leaning on me pretty heavily around every time we hang out to play D&D. I would cover his 120$+ Uber rides home, which he would sometimes pay me back but sometimes not (if I couldn't afford it once a month, I wouldn't do it, but he insists he's going to pay me back; since he has lost yet another job I am not expecting it at all and don't hold it against him really, but I do think it's kind of shitty to insist you're going to when you clearly won't be able to), pay for his food, work with my family members to get him home, and let him crash at my house to avoid ordering an Uber. He also messaged me when he was feeling suicidal - bad enough to be institutionalized after I sent him the number for the suicide hotline. Again, no judgement, but it made me uncomfortable because I struggle with the same things. He seemed bothered that I told him I wasn't able to talk him through it, but that may have just been the crisis talking.

After all that, we come to a game session that involves more than just navigating dangerous spaces and fighting off wild animals. The rest of the party does fine, but J really botches the social interaction part, despite everyone telling him what he's doing is a bad idea and me doing my best as a DM to communicate that he should change tactics. He does not change tactics and instead doubles down and goes full murderhobo, which is not the kind of player I'm interested in playing with, something I thought J understood from previous conversations.

My original plan was to say something to the table at our next session about removing themselves from the game if the themes weren't something they were interested in engaging with, but then I get some additional info today about J and K.

Apparently J has been incredibly possessive towards K - someone who, again, he was not dating in any meaningful capacity - for weeks or months, to the point that she has blocked him on social media off and on. And then this past week, J has sent her screenshots of her location, contacted her ex who she still lives with for logistical reasons, made him upset to the point that K thought he was going to kick her out of his apartment, and harassed K's brother to try to get her to talk to him again. K is seriously considering taking out a restraining order against him at this point. J has also been updating his social media to imply that he is going to kill himself.

To say this behavior raises some red flags is an understatement. Clearly J needs help, but as a regular guy, that's really not something I'm able to provide beyond sending mental health hotlines, and I don't feel comfortable being his support system in the way he obviously needs.

All that said, I feel like I might be an asshole for kicking him out of the campaign full stop, because he's been really excited to play this whole time. But the combination of all this really worrisome, potentially dangerous behavior and the mundane reality of him just being a really annoying player kind of has me at my wits end, so, WIBTA?

What are these acronyms?

#aita #am i the asshole #suicide cw

[transmutationisms]

possibly too broad but do you have any thoughts on the discourse around self-pathologizing? seems like there’s weird territory there since there are so many barriers to diagnoses and people should be free to self-report, yet some pathologies are essentially capitalist inventions and it may be more harmful than helpful for people to fixate on them without some kind of external guidance (though i don’t mean to imply they need to consult medical practitioners). i also don’t really think faddishness is the big concern it’s made out to be, but what do you think?

yeah to me this is a good example of how genuinely epistemologically radical critique of psychiatry can become assimilated into pretty staid liberal discourses of self-empowerment / -care / -improvement. pathologisation, imo, is basically materially meaningless if it's not backed by the sorts of institutions and power relations that characterise the psychiatric establishment. which is to say, if we're only talking about diagnostic labels in a kind of personal-choice framework (as so much of the medium dot com industrial complex seems to be doing lately) then it robs these conversations of a lot of their urgency and impact. i don't think overreliance on the language of the dsm is particularly helpful, as a general matter of seeking to develop political consciousness as well as self-knowledge, but i also don't think it really matters one way or another if someone self-dxes or un-dxes. what makes a difference is things like: is this person being robbed of their autonomy? are these explanatory frameworks being imposed on them by credentialled experts levelling their professional status to claim epistemological authority over the psyche? what social and economic violence is being committed here? some rando online relating to a diagnostic label and using it for themself is not doing these things, and may very well be helpful to that person (it may also not. but again the harm here is p limited).

i have said before, a lot of what puts me personally off dsm labels is the essentialism they're in bed with. ie, it's not just a shorthand descriptor of behaviours or symptoms—these terms are pretty much always being wielded as claims to have identified a biologically based 'neurotype', eg, or some as-yet-unverifiable misery-engendering genetic complex, or whatever else. and to be clear, i think these types of claims do actually carry widespread social harm, because no matter what rhetorical games you play, you're never just saying these things about yourself. it's a claim to certain forms of bio-essentialism that both shores up professional psychiatric authority and applies to people besides yourself (this is just the nature of such universalising claims about human biology). but this is an issue that goes so far beyond use or disuse of diagnostic labels; plenty of people who have embraced superficial principles of anti-psych critique still make all manner of such essentialist claims when it comes down to it, with or without grabbing onto a specific diagnostic label. so i think the kind of panicking we see in certain left-leaning circles about self-dx is not actually about this issue at all, and is certainly not capable of addressing it productively.

without going insanely long here i would just add that this is kind of a general answer because different labels have different histories and functions (eg, compare the social and political function of pathologising a depressive episode, vs autistic traits / behaviours, vs a so-called personality disorder). and also, whenever talking about self-dx i think it's important to add that one of the most important functions of these labels from a patient perspective is they function as means of gatekeeping access to certain accessibility measures, so any kind of anti-self dx position in current political conditions will harm people who need those accommodations. and i have less than zero interest in questioning anybody who wants accessibility measures for literally any reason or uses any method to obtain them.

#psychiatry

[fishyfishyfishtimes]

This isn’t like the usual posts I make but, I played through Monster Prom Second Term’s True Calling ending, and what the fuck!!?? TToTT I’ve read before that the reason for the True Calling ending is to expand upon Miranda’s character, but why like this?? Why make fun of their own writing and ignore all they’ve already worked up to? :(

Miranda is heavily reliant on her servants and refuses pretty much all work, that much is obvious. She has her serfs do everything for her while she does whatever she ever desires on a whim, lost and aimless and without a clear purpose, but… wasn’t it always implied that she’s that way for a reason? That reason being her father spoiling her with gifts and money and royal privileges. Her parents already conditioned her to see torture, murder and genocide as normal things! I always figured that her talking about true love and romance and romanticising not-so-good-or-healthy fairytale tropes was a part of that, that her parents more or less raised her to be the perfect little princess whose only purpose is to be married off to a prince of another kingdom to strengthen ties or as a peace offering or something (or for political reasons overall? It is strange that a princess would find herself in a high school of a foreign land, hmm…). That would explain why she really has no aspirations, besides love! She was raised to be that way and she didn’t just decide to be selfish one day.

So, how come the game comes out of left field and has Miranda’s own sister yell at her for being selfish and vague??? Suddenly it’s her own fault that she's spoiled with serfs who’ll do whatever she says? Hello, who gave her those serfs???? Yeah, maybe her sisters are crown heiresses or high priestesses but clearly they were taught those roles! Those were roles that already existed, waiting to be filled! And now Miranda suddenly is the only one who needs to figure out what to be all alone?

Worst of all I can’t believe they’d insult their own writing and literally call Miranda flat :( I know that’s the fandom perception of her but this is your own damn game!! You know how you wrote her! Did you not keep track of all you wrote!? Maybe Miranda’s twist (“sweet mermaid princess is murderous”) is open and out for all to see but that hardly makes her flat. She loves tradition and finds it very important, she’s super into silverware and napkin-folding, she loves singing and water sports (water polo and gymnastics to name two) and fairy tales and stories and she dreams of romance and even though her family’s immoral and murderous ways have been hammered into her so hard she doesn’t know it’s not normal to torture and kill serfs, she’s still kind and worries for people and their well-being, even if they’re commoners! She’s not very “bright” in many things but in the Revenge ending we see her formulate and execute a blackmail plot without any serfs at all, which does require intelligence. Dare I say, just like how everyone has a twist in their personality, another twist of Miranda’s is that she can be cunning when she needs to be? I just can’t believe that they’d go and agree with the people saying that Miranda is flat and make a WHOLE SECRET ENDING TALKING ABOUT HOW FLAT MIRANDA IS instead of… I don’t fucking know. Making a route where they feel they’re actually giving her more depth? They’re just lampshading the issue! They’re talking about how they made Miranda into a flat character and how sad and awful that is instead of doing anything about it.

And they could’ve explored so much too. A character lacking direction in life is already a really interesting thing to explore. They could’ve surely done something with her basically being a tool for her family and kingdom! Alas… Maybe it’s silly to get so worked up about a video game but I don’t know. The game made me feel things. I love Monster Prom but sometimes it is a love-hate relationship :/

#all im saying is… miranda vanderbilt could be a princess of the arts and culture if theyre so adamant to give her a purpose suddenly #i tried my best not to ramble but it is something i do a lot! i tried my best to not get too deep into why i think miri is far from flat #and man… i JUST remembered bellanda’s strange comment. “to you femininity is pink. to me it is sharp teeth.” WHAT!!??? #this sounds strange out of context but it makes no sense in context either. way to put down “basic” women bellanda! so cool! #erm anyway i will stop now! bye! #miranda vanderbilt #monster prom

[brainrotgobrr]

finished the teal mask and oh boy do i have thoughts…

(SPOILERS FOR THE NEW DLC IF YOU DONT WANT SPOILERS PLS DO NOT READ)

god. kieran. kieran is so refreshing from a character perspective. kieran is like the anti-hop. it kind of feels like he’s the protagonist and we’re the classic jerk rival, doesn’t it? this guy clearly has Issues and i really like that, im enjoying this sort of “why can’t i beat you” rival trope that gamefreak’s been doing lately. they nearly did it with hop but with kieran they’re really going full in. the character arc that kieran went through in this dlc was actually difficult for me to watch, seeing this poor boy destroy himself mentally. the first time i battled him for the final time i actually lost, and i was hoping that he would get to keep ogerpon because altho shes cute and i adore her, i felt so bad. but ofc thats not the way the cookie crumbles. kieran is socially awkward, he doesn’t know how to communicate, and he’s never had a true friend. then florian/juliana comes along and suddenly there’s someone who seems to genuinely enjoy hanging out with him that isn’t, yknow, related to him. but then that person that he was so eager to trust goes along and begins befriending and helping a pokemon that hes adored all your life behind his back. i relate to kieran a lot and ofc yknow the absolute maniac arc hes about to go through is probably not healthy but i rlly hope this ends up being good for him. he idolized ogerpon because of how he related to her story, not because of the actual living creature she is. i wouldnt be surprised if it turns out he doesnt value his pokemon as actual living creatures either. i could see him being like a reverse silver, as he grows colder growing to not even care about his pokemon.

on the other hand, carmine! carmine was such a delight, i was genuinely not expecting to enjoy her as much as i did. sure, she also has Issues and has probably been a negative effect on her brother, but at the end of the day she is also just a kid. she probably has no idea what shes doing, and i dont think shed ever hurt kieran. she went through a lot of growth in the dlc and i can see her trying to become a better person with the help of florian/juliana and repairing her odd relationship with kieran.

also, it seems like she kind of has to play a parental role for kieran, as its implied that their parents arent around. thats another thing that separates kieran and carmine from siblings like hop and leon (and oh my god im just realizing all the parallels between hop and leon and kieran and carmine). its implied that the galar bros had a good childhood, and hops Issues dont start until hes set off on his journey and leon is a full adult with an actual life. with the kitakami siblings, if you read between the lines you can tell that theyve had a harder time growing up. with carmines comments on tourism and how it’s negatively effected their town and give her Trust Issues, that obviously fucked them both up a little, seeing that people only valued their hometown as an attraction, and that they themselves were a part of that attraction. and of course we dont know what the issue was with their parents. also, why are they going to school in unova? (side not oh my god it is so obvious that we’re going to get bw remakes in gen 9 or a legends unova game)

kitakami is such an interesting region. obviously its tiny, it has one town and then everything else is just untamed land. i feel like something Else is going on here. or maybe its just small idk

i love ogerpon a lot i think shes adorable and i love that we got to run around with her before she joined our team and it makes the whole “ten year old catches legendary thing” feel more realistic

also why are ogerpon and the loyal three legendaries i feel like they should be mythicals them being legendary feels Wrong

anyways these were my silly thoughts on the dlc and i hope kieran turns out to be the bb leagues champion (pulling a blue) and also i dont trust briar now time to finish my pokedex and talk to legends arceus pandering i mean perrin and if i see anyone call carmine a terrible person i will trade away your ev trained competitive team ok bye

(also this scene made me emotional)

#pokemon #pokemon scarlet and violet #jocey plays games #pokemon scarlet and violet dlc #the teal mask #trainer florian #trainer juliana #trainer kieran #trainer carmine #MASKSHIPPING GANG WHERE ARE U AT #spoilers

[steddiealltheway]

Spin the Bottle

I accidentally wrote another (sort of) rant fic again. (Scroll to the end if you just want to see the descriptions of the kisses)

Backstory: The party is hanging out at the Wheeler’s house in the basement, and the fruity four are upstairs. For some reason, the boys are curious about what girls do at “girl sleepovers” and El says her and Max played spin the bottle.

The boys obviously freak out, and Max tries to explain that their version of spin the bottle involved El spinning a bottle to see who she would spy on. Then El is asking what the other spin the bottle is. The party all kind of look at each other, and Max is finally like “it’s easier if we show you.”

So, they all start rushing up the stairs to see who can find a bottle first. But then they run into Steve who is yelling, “Woah, woah, woah! What’s going on?!” and he’s doing the mom stance with his hands on his hips. 

Suddenly Dustin is stealing the beer out of Eddie’s hands announcing, “We have a bottle!” And they’re all running back downstairs as Dustin pours out the rest of the beer in the sink. Dustin responds to Eddie’s protests by simply saying, “Spin the bottle,” as if it’s the most obvious thing in the world.

Eddie and Steve yell, “Tone!” at the same time, but Dustin is already back downstairs. 

Upstairs, Steve and Nancy reminisce on the last time they played spin the bottle, and Eddie and Robin say they have never played. For some reason, Steve and Nancy think they have to fix this and are seeing who can finish their beer first (it’s Nancy). 

Downstairs, they all settle into a circle, but then Dustin is cursing, “Son of a bitch,” because there’s no way for him to ask Suzie poo if it’s okay. So, he steps out of the circle, and then Will tries to as well, but Mike is stopping him. 

Will explains that he hasn’t had his first kiss, but Mike is insistent that spin the bottle kisses don’t count. Then Max speaks up and offers, “I can be your first kiss?” And Mike gives her the biggest glare and explains that he is Will’s best friend so really it should be him. Max just raises her hands up in defense and is like, “Go ahead then.” 

Will is absolutely frozen in fear and anticipation because he never thought this moment would come, especially not with all his friends watching. But it’s like Mike can read his mind because he’s demanding everyone to turn around and give them some privacy. Then, he asks Will if he’s sure he wants him to be his first kiss and all Will can do is nod and force out a choked, “Yes.” Then Mike gently takes Will’s face in his hands and is slowly bringing him in to close the distance and their lips meet so softly in the sweetest and most chaste kiss. 

When they pull away, they just stare at each other, but then Dustin is asking if they’re done yet. When they say yes and quickly jump apart everyone turns back around and Dustin yells, “Let the game commence!”

Upstairs, they run into a similar issue except Robin is rambling at the speed of light trying to explain why they can’t play until Nancy just takes her hands and gently asks, “What’s wrong?” And Robin blurts out, “I’ve never kissed anyone!” 

But then Nancy is asking, “Do you want to?” And Robin really thinks this is a proposition so of course she says yes. But then Nancy is looking at Steve expectantly, and Robin and him are yelling, “NO,” once they realize what she’s implying. So, Nancy looks at Eddie next and Robin is finally like, “It’s not guys that I want to kiss.” 

Nancy has a little ‘oh’ moment, but then she’s asking Robin if she wants to kiss her. And if Steve were drinking a beer, this would be the exact moment he would start choking on it. But he’s nodding at Robin who is asking consent with her eyes and Steve’s communicating with his this is your chance please take it. So, Robin nods and then Nancy is kissing her gently but definitely not shyly. 

Robin thinks she might faint. When the girls pull away, they’re both a little red in the face, but they agree that they can play now. Then Eddie is the one hesitating and saying he’s in the same predicament as Robin. Which Nancy and Robin instantly get, and Steve is wondering why everyone is suddenly looking at him. Then he’s asking Nancy if she wants to do the honors again, and Robin is saying “Steve” in the same tone as the Tammy Thompson confession and- Oh.

Steve just kind of stares at Eddie and then his lips, but it’s not the first time he’s had the thought so why not. But then Nancy and Robin are staring, so Steve tells them to please look away. Just for good measure, Steve yanks Eddie down behind the table to give them more privacy. Steve begins to ask, “Are you sure you want-” but then Eddie’s hands are in his hair properly messing it up and kissing the life out of him to the point Steve seriously doubts that this is Eddie’s first kiss. But then they’re breaking away because Steve can’t breathe, and Eddie’s popping up from behind the table announcing, “Let’s play.”

The Party Kisses:

Max and Lucas: The kiss is familiar. Not super intrusive but light and loving.

Lucas and El: They kiss so shyly and fast, it’s barely even a peck. Max is calling them lame.

El and Will: They kiss each other on the cheek because they’re literally siblings and already do this.

Will and Lucas: They’re giggling their entire way through this kiss. It’s barely even considered a kiss.

Lucas and Mike: They shrug and give each other a solid kiss. Lucas jokes that he should’ve given Mike better kissing advice when they were younger for El’s sake.

Mike and Max: Max wants more than anything to not do this, so when Mike leans in she turns her face away at the final second, leaving him to kiss her cheek which she still complains about.

Max and El: They’re making out with no shame. Also, the bottle seems to suspiciously be landing on them a lot. One time, El doesn’t wipe her nose fast enough and everyone is yelling, “You’re using your powers?!”

El and Mike: They kiss gently, but when they pull away Mike is saying he doesn’t think he’ll ever be able to kiss her without Hopper yelling at him in the back of his mind. 

Mike and Will: The second time the bottle lands on them, they’re kissing a little less chaste. The third time... Will starts experimenting with tongue. The fourth...

Will and Max: This is the awkwardest kiss that ends the game.

The Fruity Four:

Eddie and Steve: It’s literally Eddie’s personal mission to kill Steve via kisses, and he’s succeeding. The girls are cheering him on.

Steve and Robin: They’re both complaining and as soon as Steve kisses Robin literally just a peck, Robin’s yelling, “Did you try to use tongue?!”

Robin and Eddie: They give each other a solid kiss and high five after. 

Eddie and Nancy: They’re looking at each other as if they didn’t even know this was an option. But then Eddie is dipping her to get rid of her nerves and gives  her a peck while she’s laughing. (Steve asks why Eddie doesn’t kiss him like that, and Eddie promises next time he will.)

Nancy and Robin: They’re both getting butterflies and not shying away from these kisses. Usually it ends with them giggling. 

Nancy and Steve: They kind of shyly kiss, but it’s familiar and soft. They both pull away and immediately realize that it’s not what either of them want any more though. 

Bonus: Argyle and Jonathan: The pair come inside the house looking for food when they see the game going on. Argyle asks, “That’s the game where you spin the bottle and kiss someone, right?” And before anyone can answer him, he’s spinning the bottle, but before it’s close to stopping he’s making out with Jonathan. 

#byler #steddie #ronance #elmax #jargyle #the fruity four #fruity four #they're all gay #oh gosh time to tag everyone #will byers #mike wheeler #dustin henderson #lucas sinclair #max mayfield #el #eleven #eddie munson #steve harrington #nancy wheeler #robin buckley #jonathan byers #argyle #ficlet

[outlanderskin]

About 🍑, promotions and sexual harassment

It doesn't matter how long you've been in this fandom to realize that Sam is seen by some people as a piece of meat. Of course, this bothers normal fans, who treat him with respect and understand that respect is a two-way street. I've been to some events with him (and other artists) and I can say that he treats people with a lot of respect, regardless of gender, age,etc. I really don't understand why some people can't treat him the same way. Anyone who was here in 2015 knows about the fan in Prague who grabbed his ass during a photo and later posted on Twitter apologizing for being the "Black Jack" in his life. Sam's response dealt a heavy blow to people who were outraged condemning the fan's behavior: "I'm a grown man and I can take care of myself." I think that was his way of calming things down, stopping the tantrums and making it clear that he was old enough to complain when something was really bothering him.

So more "recently", in January 2020 we had that fan at Con, who during a game made a gesture implying she was going to grab his ass. Another time the fandom was outraged and another time he clarified that it was all just a joke. I believe the intention was the same as in 2015: to calm things down.

I saw many people in the fandom saying that the fan's behavior in the Whisky promo was Sam's fault. People who are criticizing how he promotes his products certainly haven't seen how other male artists like Jason M., Ian S., Paul W. (among many others) promote their products. There's nothing wrong with the way Sam promotes his products or treats his female fans.

Note: Caitríona has spoken a few times about this type of behavior towards him. I think this interview was the first time she spoke about it. A interview for Vulture August/2014:

He also asked ( very polite) one fan account for not to be objectified in her posts.

Perhaps some people expected him to be more vehement about this issue, but the way he reacts to this kind of fan behavior could just be his immediate way of trying to work things out.

It's good to remember that many male artists also go through the same kind of thing. I don't remember seeing anyone talking about it in that sense, saying how much it bothers them and asking fans not to do that. I also think it would be ideal for them to talk about it.

But, if you are thinking this kind of thing one happens in a fandom, look at this:

#outlander #sam heughan #caitrionabalfe

[nat-without-a-g]

Spoilers for DNDads season 2 up to episode 48, but—

When season 2 started and Grant said something about how he already saw some of himself in Linc (implied to be a bad thing), I really didn’t give it much thought. I mean— Linc is super into video games and soccer, two things that Darryl tried very hard to understand when Grant was a kid to relate to his interests, so that’s probably what he meant. But I think I know when his anxiety about Linc becoming a “monster” like him or however to phrase it might have started becoming more real.

I KNOW i shouldn’t give to much flack to Linc for this since he was a little kid and therefore probably not fully aware of the damage he was trying to do, and Matt admits it was the worst thing he’s ever done, meaning nothing like that happened before or since. That being said: Linc put laxatives in other children’s drinks. I feel like we’re missing a few details (how old was linc, how old were the other kids, how many laxatives, did anyone actually consume the laxatives or was he caught, did anyone get more hurt than a stomach ache because most brands of laxatives are probably not safe for children) but I think no matter what the answers to all of these were, I think the knowledge that your kid is remorseless enough to poison another child was Not healthy for Grant or Marco.

Like, they probably only considered the group homeschooling thing because they felt bad about how little Linc got to see other kids now that school was starting up and still wanted him to have time to socialize with others. And he seemed to take to it well at first, but then grew kind of cold to the other students as the whole family grew more acclimated and as Grant you’d probably be like. Oh this is just growing pains or something, me or my husband are always present so I can tell these kids never pick on him or obstruct him from doing what he wants. He’s just shy, and that’s kind of our fault for not giving him more time with others his age, they’ll start playing together soon, totally. And then your son attempts to poison all of them with tablets out of the pantry.

What’s worse is that this isn’t a situation where he thought it was candy or something, he figured out that those tablets are Not good if you don’t need them and could probably hurt him (probably BECAUSE of Marco and Grant warning him not to touch them), and used that knowledge against the other kids. Already disturbing, especially if you’re scared your murderous tendencies are going to rub off on your kid, but it’d be easier to wave off as a singular incident. There is a chance Linc could have hospitalized another child, though I feel like Matt would have mentioned it. So. Already a rough experience from Linc, Marco and Grant have to leave the homeschooling group and act like their family isn’t kind of marked to other families in the area, even if no one got hurt and everyone laughed it off. This is probably part of the reason the rule about him not straying too far from his dads specifically when around other kids (he was allowed to go into a different group of dance classes while Marco and Grant did ballroom dancing! That’s more than 2 and a half feet!) was put into place, honestly.

Without the context that Linc doesn’t like when he feels like he’s going to lose the attention of his dads to another kid, which I don’t think he was able to verbalize as a kid, it comes off like the nightmare scenario. It explains so much more about why they always put Linc as the center of attention and treated him like they were attempting to mitigate nonexistent behavioral issues. And why they might have chosen to preemptively get rid of the cat when they saw Linc was being (Matt’s words not mine) cruel towards it. It’s so much wilder to think of the weird aspects of Linc’s childhood of you consider it being not just to keep Linc safe, but to not let Linc hurt anyone else.

All of this is to say, I can see why Grant was a little more worried about Linc being remorseless towards harming others, because between the cat and the other homeschool kids, he had a track record before he was 8. I literally did not understand where he was coming from At All before episode 48.

#dndads #dungeons and daddies #dndads season 2 #dungeons and daddies season 2 #dndads spoilers #grant li Wilson #Marco li Wilson #lincoln li wilson #dndads headcanon #and then you see him mourn a video game character and get really confused. #(you being grant in this case) fsdjahkj

[inf1nyxw0rlds]

reposting my infinite is not weak essay because i got anxious and deleted the last one <3 i've been meaning to do this for months, but i'm not exactly the most functional person and i don't often put myself out there. in the process of rewriting it, i also altered the wording and added a few things, as you might notice if you've seen it before; and if you haven't, then welcome to whatever it is i'm doing here!

this is written with all my love, all my frustration, fueled by years worth of listening to a cycle of minsinformation that left permanent damage in the form of skewed perceptions – based in a false claim and the jokes that came with it – and a hesistance on sega's part to even address him save for a few tossed crumbs over the span of the last half a decade. originally i had an elaborate metaphor here, but there was no need for it and i'll cut right to the chase; there has always been good in infinite's character – but not everyone cares to look for it.

it's been six years since the release of sonic forces. which is insane! it's wild to me! as somebody who's been here since before the game even released, i've seen it all. to commemorate the occassion, when i wrote this originally, i thought that i would talk further about infinite's reception; in particular, the Weak thing. i've discussed it before in brief, and you can read that one here; this time though, i'm going to get more into dissecting the actual problem, and debunking arguments that supposedly prove infinite to be objectively weak and pathetic... when canonically, that isn't the case. i'd actually argue the opposite, but at the very least he isn't lacking strength – his skills are average at worst.

the first reason that i see, the one we're all plenty familiar with and the one i brought up previously, is that infinite is weak because he lost to shadow. once. that's it. do i really have to explain why this is stupid? yeah, he did lose, one time. even against a normal opponent, one defeat in comparison to what we can assume, based on his title, many victories, isn't much of an indicator toward being weak. shadow is also the ultimate lifeform, in case anyone has forgotten that detail, and bear in mind that infinite knows shadow to have just slaughtered his entire team – do you really think he would be at his best in that state?

there's also a fuckton of context clues implying that infinite had issues prior to this encounter, specifically inferiority issues. shadow literally told him, after having wiped his whole team out, to never show his pathetic face again. the face with the, you know. the big scar. the blind eye. (shoutout to the person who pointed this out in the tags in the "first part" of this, by the way! based for that)

this argument is so full of holes that it just drives me kind of bonkers how it can be used to claim infinite is weak and stupid. do i think that the scene is without flaw? of course not. if you want to say that the way they handled his breakdown wasn't the greatest, you can, you have every right to your opinion. but that's just it. we're talking about something else. i get it, the "i am not weak" was a memeable line, but it doesn't actually make him weak. people that reduce his reaction to "just" hating shadow because he got his ass beat, people who call it a "temper tantrum", i ... the context is right there. it was never "just" because shadow beat him up. would people say this about anyone else that shadow happens to beat up? that they're irrefutably weak? no. that's stupid. obviously. so why infinite? because it wasn't a strong enough spectacle. let me illustrate this more with another example;

another reason people say that infinite is weak is because sonic didn't need to go super in order to beat him. and... again, this one, too, falls apart pretty easily. sonic has beaten other characters without going super, and this includes shadow. the difference is the when, the how, the context. it's not that infinite is weak, but it was a weak final boss fight. do you get what i mean?

forces, in general, suffered a lot with this problem. it wasn't a problem that was exclusive to infinite. unfortunately, as the new character, he got the most heat. there was a huge amount of hype for him, so when the spectacle fell short, people were pissed. and i get it. but then that issue became, "infinite bad". that issue became "infinite's weak". it has never been that, though. this is why i personally hate weak jokes – because they're rooted in non-issue and misinfo.

a point i saw made once was that the characterisation of sonic and the rest of the cast are part of what made infinite's character hard to take seriously, and i'd agree! infinite actually fits the setting quite well; he has a mysterious, serious presence. he's harsh, he's edgy, but it's cheesy enough that it works in the typical style of the sonic franchise. the problem is, when the other characters aren't taking things seriously, it throws the whole thing off. we're being told this is a hard-hitting, high stakes plot, but how can we see it that way, when they're all just cracking jokes?

as a side-tangent of sorts, you know what's real funny? infinite's backstory, the one thing people use more than anything else to declare his obvious weakness, quite likely wasn't originally going to exist anyway, and he was instead going to be made by eggman. i say "quite likely" as, as i've stated, i don't like misinformation, and sega will probably never confirm this one-hundred percent, but this is something fans – myself included – have discussed a few times.

first, there's the odd dialogue and enviroment in stage 29. tails states outright, as you go through the fortress, where containment/test tubes line the walls in countless numbers, "so this is where eggman built infinite". the tubes do, in fact, appear to have low-res bodies inside them. this is also something they detailed in an early version of the script. infinite's remark on sonic's "data" also fits in with this idea of him being some form of android. prior to release, there was also a cryptic message that, when decoded, referred to infinite as "the fated son of daedalus"; in other words, icarus, who flew too close to the sun; his father being an inventor! that's really dope foreshadowing.

you can argue that tails and amy's commentary is speculation rather than solid fact and that they're mistaken, it's a possibility i definitely consider here, but given how rushed the dlc and prequel comics feel, the fact that there was a statement that big changes were made late into development... yeah. i'll buy it. i often find myself wondering what people would think of infinite had this been his story, whether they would view him differently. also, speaking of the dlc being rushed, there are actually unused lines for episode shadow implying that you would have fought the jackal squad; they were likely just unable to implement it in time. it's a shame, as it would have added to that spectacle factor i mentioned. but hey, gotta push for that holiday release!

what i find really interesting is that you can look at his character through either lense: the former mercenary turned war criminal, or the creation of our ol' doctor, and he still reads well! his behaviour makes sense in whichever context you choose to apply; what he thought he had to become, versus what he was made to be. it's cool and it makes me a bit insane. a lot of people criticise infinite for his one-dimensionality, but in my opinion, like... it's the point. he's meant to feel hollow. because he's masking; or because he wasn't made for feelings, but rather for destruction.

something that seems ironic is that many people attempt to "fix" him by... putting him into a box and inflating a single trait into his entire character and calling it "better writing". now, here's the disclaimer, okay: i'm all for people having fun and being proud of their work! i don't think that we should police what others can create. this is just about the phenomenon of watering a character down or changing them to fit ships and narratives rather than those characters being what shape the direction the story and their relationships take, things like that; which... i mean, i'm not a cop, you can still do these things even if i don't like them! i'm not saying it isn't allowed, but i think that you're kind of missing the point.

he never needed fixing. his story needed refinement. that's different. it's more about exploring what we've been given, looking below the surface; infinite is not just an evil, ruthless tyrant that deserves death nor a traumatised sadboy to be made good by the power of love and friendship – not to me. his trauma and anger are both part of him, and you cannot – or rather shouldn't – reduce him to one thing or another. it does him a major disservice, i think. there are good things there, things you can dissect, you just have to be willing to look.

in choosing to ignore what made him who he is, disregarding the loss of his squad and blatant insecurity unless it's funny, you're purposely looking at him through a faulty lense. bad writing doesn't mean that the intent isn't there. context is so important, and you can't analyse him or critique him with worth unless these things are acknowledged. it's like if you were eating a cake, avoiding the frosting and complaining it's not sweet enough. the frosting is there, not even being withheld from you. it has always been there. you decided not to eat it. sorry i'm making weird analogies again but hopefully this makes sense.

this has gotten long, wow. the point i want to highlight, overall, is that infinite is not nearly as awful as people make him out to be. it was never about his strength, it was about the limits and shortcomings of the narrative, a problem not exclusive to him yet one that has been pinned on him for so many years. i don't want it to sound like i'm saying he is immune to criticism, or that forces is, even though i've criticised forces during the creation of this post (and don't think that i think forces is terrible, either! it's my favourite game and i have lots of things i like about it as well! i've just been drawing attention to these parts to better explain what i want to convey lol); but i do hate how the wrong thing is being criticised.

this issue has been watered down into "infinite weak" when it's way more broad, way more complex than that, and i cannot stand it. it seems like such a trivial matter, like, oh, fandom is being mean about my favourite guy, but it did actual damage and forever altered people's perception of him. i am pissed about it! i'm mad! i don't care if you don't like infinite (because i can just block you as we will not get along!) but... it's about why people don't like him. they don't have to justify it, they can continue hating him, but it always bothered me that the reason is so often not a real problem. yeah.

okay, i think that's it. thank you for taking the time to read this, and if you made it this far, you're gay

#transmission #infinite tag #infinite the jackal #long post

[kirbybecomesastarwarrior]

What Kind of King is in my Blood?

Context: this piece was inspired by the song "In My Blood." sung by Joel Smallbone from Journey to Bethlehem (the movie). And contains the lyrics of the song.

Warning: content contains blood (mild) & implied physical abuse... the more graphic scenes to be underneath the keep reading section of the post... if you are uncomfortable with such things.

I've mentioned this before in a previous post & please check out the original video (have a listen: it's incredible). Or better yet, put it on while reading the comic. :D

I do suggest you read: Celestine is Merlin before this;

Young Arthur... was not a good person in the sightless and was very close to becoming a mini-Sir Uther. And I also would like to stress how evil Sir Uther is...(Uther is not Arthur's father, but the song just fits them so...)

Behind the arrogance and pride, his actions were a tie of wanting and seeking Uther's approval...

Other than that, please enjoy the content.

Background info: this takes place around the time Arthur starts to take a liking to Merlyn and even trust them (and before he found out Merlyn was Lady Celestine). Soon their game of cat & mouse blossomed into a friendship...

Celestine never put pressure on Arthur to change: in fact, she tried to save Nonsurat & Morgan, too... she'd put them in scenarios where she'd see them grow empathy. (Putting someone in another's shoes.)

She'd show them the damage the war was doing to the public... and the innocent.

Allowing them all the chance to do good but in the end...The only one who was receptive to it was Arthur. Which surprised her... she believed Arthur would be the last person who would be captivated by the lesson. (Since he was Uther's most loyal soldier... his right-hand man...)

When it was clear that the lessons were only effective for Arthur (and the only one who was willing to change), she started to tailor them for Arthur. Genuinely started by doing vigilante work with Merlyn and learning more about this "outside world he never knew about."

(Unbeknownst to these goobers these were pretty much the equivalent of dates.)

However, Arthur couldn't help but feel guilty that he was betraying his master (Uther). That all changed, however, after a certain mission...

Arthur & Company were tasked to clear a demon infestation of a cave. Which held serval rare artifacts that were stolen. Some of Nightmare's monsters had made it into a stronghold (a secret base), and Arthur was in charge of clearing it. Morgan tried to trap Arthur in the deeper, darkest part of the cave where the majority of the monsters were dwelling.

Thankfully, Celestine secretly tagged along with him!

It took them a week... to escape the cave ... everyone had started to assume that Arthur had died during the mission. He was about to report his return as soon as he arrived at the camp base until... he overheard a very upsetting conversation.

Sir Kay (Kit Cosmo): Sir Uther! Sir Arthur is still missing, we can't leave just yet...

Sir Uther: He's been missing for a week... we only have three days left on this planet, and we need to finish recovering the reset of the artifacts... our time & manpower is limited.

Kit Cosmo: It that's the case... I'd be more than willing to take a small team to recover him... heck, I'll even go there by myself if I have to...

Sir Uther: DID YOU NOT HEAR WHAT I SAID! I am not wasting manpower... are you questioning my judgment?

Kit Cosmo: NO SIR!* Nevourly but still firm* I just thought you'd press the issue more... he's our captain and, more importantly, your right-hand man-

Sir Uther: WHY do you think you have two other apprentices... he's replaceable...If he died out there then he's a failure that deserves to be left... DON'T NOT BOTHER LOOKING FOR HIM!

You're lucky I have more pressing issues to attend to or that right arm or yours would've been charred... This conversation is over! *leans into Kit menacingly* YOU'RE DISMISSED! *Kit lets out a big gulp and backs away out of the tent*

Little did they know Arthur & Celestine (Merlyn) were listening in on the conversation. With Celestine fuming... and with Arthur shaking...

Celestine (currently disguised as Merlyn): WHY THAT FAT HEADED TYRANT! Don't listen to him, you're- Arthur? *sees Arthurs gone* Arthur...

Arthur runs off to contemplate... his mind reeling from what he had just heard. He always knew that Uther saw him as nothing more than a tool. The title of the right hand was just merely a cover-up... a lie made by Sir Uther (that he was something to him). He always knew this, but he couldn't understand why this still hurt him so much.

Arthur, at his core... still just wanted to be praised and desperately wanted at least a shred of affection from Uther. Hearing this broke him instantly... and forced him to look inside himself. He may have always known it... but a part of him always wanted to believe in the lie... So he put this facade of pride and arrogance to ignore it.

Only realizing how much Uther took advantage of his desire for affection from him... allowing him (Uther) to mold him into what he wanted. The brilliant golden amor (that Uther gave him), was all part of the illusion... he was no hero... he was just a monster... just like his master... just like Uther...

This leads us to this scene...

-The key things I wanted to mention were those marks on Arthur's shoulders are burn marks...

-Those bubbles at the end represent Celestine's influence

-I featured a Kirby-sized baby Arthur with a little training armor... it's pretty much his inner child... Sweet little bean didn't deserve this

-I also updated Uther's shoes :3

At this point, Celestine already cares for Arthur so much, and he's already redeemed himself (in her eyes). But Arthur can't help but hate himself for his past actions now seeing the full picture...

He destroyed himself for a man... who would never care for him... Arthur couldn't help but feel ashamed. He felt so disgusted with himself... forgetting all the progress he'd made... Believing himself to be a worthless puppet...

And it broke her heart to see Arthur like this... that's why she reminds him of what she sees him as. And this is where Arthur finally breaks down his final wall and truly opens himself up. Celestine always saw Arthur as a more than worthy king and always saw the best in him... and that's why Arthur always saw her (in the future) as his queen...

"Did I put too much characterization to a background character we only saw for less than 5 minutes in the anime?" YES, I DID!

"Was it worth it?" YES IT WAS!

(In the KBASW) Sir Arthur is the one who approves and legitimizes the "Star Allies" because if someone like him could be changed for the better... why can't this rag-tag group. Sir Arthur (in a sense) is the first "redeemed villain"...

It just took one person to see the good in him... I really can't wait to explore their relationship (Celarthur) more... I have something special planned for them in February. And I do want to explore Kit Cosmo & Arthur's friendship: it's really fun~

(The Star Allies are going to be the equivalent of the Knights of the Round Table in KBASW, but I'll explore that later...)

Hope you all stick around to see how the story unfolds...

#kirby #kbasw #sir arthur kirby #sir arthur #sir uther #kirby oc #lady celestine #kirby anime #celarthur #kirby gsa #merlyn #journey to bethlehem #kirby right back at ya #krbay

[lovelybrooke]

So I've been watching LilAggy on Youtube and its made me think about the stuff @oldworldpoolhall sent me about Elden Ring so I'll be talking about a bit of it under here.

Also thank you for sending me your thoughts, I didn't know how to reply to it all at once, but keep sending stuff in it really motivates me.

"I had another thought that’s Miquella centric rn bc I feel like he’s the type that would pull this type of thing where he sort of rizzes you by making you lose to a game with him...I don’t think he’d mind control you, even if he could. He doesn’t strike me as that kind of dude. And tbh I like how it’s chill when you’re with him. Slightly unrelated but knowing how the author of Game of Thrones had contribution in writing the game there’s gonna be a lot of politics and mind games concerned when you stay with Marika/Radagon, and although you don’t get to feel that and the heaviness of it directly, there’s some tension there, especially when you’re at the stage where Marika behind to question the Order"

So I really like this idea. I don't know much about Miquella's curse, so I'm kinda scared to imply anything romantic with him (if that's what you meant by rizzes, if not I'm sorry. If someone wants to explain his curse to me, please do, I don't want to be weird). But since I'm a big Mogh x Miquella hater, I wouldn't be apposed to something like this. Honesty it reminded me of an old idea I had for my Elden Ring Concept, where Marika, obsessed with reader, betroths Godwyn to them, which is how they get involved in the main story. I decided to drop it because I didn't think people would like it, but I wouldn't be opposed to writing some characters as romantic.

ANYWAY, I do see reader becoming really close to Miquella. Miquella, having powers related to dreams, relates to reader on a level none of the other characters could, so reader would just be closer to him automatically. If were going off the idea that reader is from our world, and is able to travel to the Lands Between through dreams, then I could see Miquella being really curious about readers world, growing their bond as he learns more and more about reader. Honestly it might be a point of contention with his siblings, as they feel like reader doesn't open up to them they way they do for Miquella. I could even see him being really prideful about the fact that reader prefers him, allowing him to keep reader at the Haligtree for often, keeping them from the others.

Also about your point on GOT, I love Game of Thrones, and it's honestly a reason I was so drawn Elden Ring as a game, so I would really like to involve politics and personal relationships into the concepts I write for Elden Ring. The issue though, is that a lot of stuff will be left up to my own interpretation, because in classic Fromsoftware fashion, a lot of stuff is left vague. Like I kinda just have to assume what these characters were like before the Shattering, y'know. When things are left up to interpretation I'm always scared of stating my own opinion because I don't want people to hate me

"...Also I would like to entertain the idea of the reader being a bit sad about the lands between— while beautiful, it looks bleak, empty. Like imagine walking through Leyndell pre shattering, being able to get out of the castle for the first time in a while after bothering Marika so much about it. And you realize how homesick you are when you walk around and realize it isn’t as… lively. Everything and everyone feels so foreign and there is nothing there that is even remotely familiar to you. The buildings look intimidating, the cold stone towering over you, and the feeling of emptiness is intensified with the lack of people and noise and /life/ and the golden leaves on the concrete. It’s not that it’s completely lifeless, it just feels terribly lonely. I think Miquella or Radagon would try to create something to at least to make you feel a bit more at home, a bit more comfortable, while learning about you at the same time outside of dreams and bonding with you in a way. You’re not complaining about what Radagon or Marika gives you, but it’s clear you’re upset because everything is new. They could give you the grandest things or the nicest of clothes and yet you won’t be happy— not completely. And I don’t think they’d completely understand the sentiment and that’s where the misunderstandings begin. All you want is to go home, and you’re not allowed to, they won’t allow you to. That’s one request they cannot grant you. Not even her children would"

I could see reader becoming really homesick really quickly. Like reader doesn't know how long with dream will last, so they just keep hoping the next time they fall asleep they'll be back in their own bed. I could see reader believing that Leyndell is a lively place, basing it off the cities of their own world, only to be very culture shocked. Like they've painted this picture of this world in their head and it's nothing like they expected.

I actually think Godwyn would be the one to comfort reader. From my knowledge, Godwyn was kind during his life, so I could see him being this comforting presence to reader. If we want to go real fluffy, Godwyn introducing reader to Fortissax, just so that reader could be extra protected, y'know.

Marika and Radagon essentially love bombing reader is very on brand, not gonna lie. Reader is given gift after gift, nice outfits, golden jewelry, books, the whole nine yards, and Marika and Radagon still don't understand why they want to go home so badly. Like, reader could ask anything of these literal gods and demigods, the only thing they can't give them is to leave. However, I could totally see it not being up to them, like reader doesn't have control of their powers, so it's totally a possibility that they fall asleep one day and end up back home.

Ideas I got while writing this, time for readers and their dreams operate weird. Reader could fall asleep and end up in the Lands Between for weeks, months even, only to fall asleep again and wake back up, learning that's it's only been a few hours. This could also work in reverse. It's only been a few days for reader since they've left the Lands Between, but for the others, it could be weeks, months, years before they come back. I don't know if this is a good idea, but it would lead to a cool concept where reader comes back after the Shattering, seeing all that's become of this family they once loved, at least in their own weird way.

Sorry for any of the typos I wrote fast.

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