#sorry the format for this is messy

[mnmarsart]

It reminds him of that pensive way she'd looked in the passenger seat when he'd dropped her off at JFK, eyes full of longing and then quiet resignation when neither of them had reached across the gearshift. And then she'd gotten out of the car and never come back.

Benny suddenly realizes he doesn't care about circumspect behavior in public or the two relative strangers in the front seat anymore. He's already made a thirty six hour poker run, dropped three grand and flown more than four thousand miles in order to be right here – the whole fucking world probably knows exactly how he feels, and yet Beth still doesn't seem to.

So he closes those last few inches between them definitively, and the way she whimpers with relief and kisses him back, burying her fingers in his hair and dragging him close – god, this was exactly the welcome he wanted.

JK this is the last post for 2022

Art for @nrgburst ‘s Queen’s Gambit fic Playing the Rush

Go and check the fic out!

#tqg #the Queen’s gambit #queens gambit #beth harmon #elizabeth harmon #benny watts #benjamin watts #b2 #bethxbenny #myart #mnmars_art #netflix #sorry the format for this is messy #beth x benny #nrgburst #commission

[littlebloomclan]

Moon 1

He kept the trait Compassionate but also gained Good Hunter and Helpful Insight. Little is just an overall good boy

#Clangen #warrior cats #warrior cats ocs #Littlelilac #Deerkit #figuring out as I go how I wanna format this lol #sorry for how messy it may be #BloomMoon

[somethingaboutfireflies]

I want a fic where Tommy thinks Buck has feelings for Eddie and so he prepares himself mentally, making sure he's not going to be that hurt when Buck is going to realize it. He can't compete with a long co-dependant friendship anyway.

His speech is already ready: "It's okay Evan, I'm so greatful and lucky for the time we had! You deserve to be with someone you're really in love with! I only wish the best."

Buck is so confused. "Huh? Where's that come from?

And then Tommy is like "It's okay Evan, It's totally fine you know. I should have noticed sooner but I guess I didn't want to... I will be okay (lying to himself ofc) You really should tell Eddie."

A even more confused Buck: What? Tell what to Eddie?

Tommy: Your feelings for him. Listen I understand it's always scary to tell someone that you are in love with them"

Buck: But I'm already with someone I'm in love with and its you!"

So yeah the fic would end up with bucktommy happy ending yk.

#bucktommy #I'm not a fic writer and English isn't even my first language #I mean I wish I could write it fr #tevan #buck x tommy #sorry for the messy format💀 #please don't mind my typos

[straw-terry]

old misc sam and max stuff

#sam and max #sam and max freelance police #freelance husbands #wuz debatin on how to post these sorry if its messy i format stuff for insta so then it makes it weird postin on tumblr xP #chucky

[liverpool-enjoyer]

footballers when theyre sick

requested by my homie @rubybecker-rb2 !!! ty so much for requesting <3

leo: he recognizes that he should take it easy so he takes the day off from training, but what he DOESNT do is text his teammates saying hes sick n wont be there, so later that day when hes watching tv n eating soup he hears his doorbell ring, only to be greeted with a very worried neymar whos like "I WAS SO WORRIED ABOUT YOUUUU!!!!1!!!11!!!"

ney: oh he complains a lot. once he starts feeling unwell he calls up leo like "leeeeo i feel like shit!!" n naturally leos like "what do you want me to do about that -_-"

luka: oh hes the one who gets sick EASILY. fifty degree weather with a slight breeze is all it takes to do him in. like on a particularly cold day, he'll start sneezing (oh n he sneezes like a little bunny you cant tell me otherwise) n sniffling n be like "AGAIN??!?!!?"

zlatan: has never gotten sick once in his entire life. his temperature is a perfect 98.6 at ALL times n has never changed.

gavi: ok idk why i get this vibe but he becomes a whiny little bitch when hes sick (IM NOT INSULTING HIM IM EXACTLY THE SAME WAY). like if he starts getting sick at training he is gonna make it EVERYONES problem. you KNOW hes whipping out those big brown puppy dog eyes at every given opportunity. "i feel so terrible can you get me some ginger ale🥺"

sergio: this stubborn bitch wakes up feeling sick n what does he do?? haul ass to training anyways. as the day progresses n it becomes increasingly obvious hes unwell the team will tell him hes gotta sit out n take it easy. luka nags the SHIT outta him n ends up taking care of him even tho hes still salty he came to training in this condition, and sergio considers it the best day of his life.

mbappe: see at first hes a stubborn bitch who goes to training despite being sick, however he CANNOT pull through n ends up sitting out after warmups

joão: oh boy. he gets so sick he decides to go to the doctor, n while hes there he takes some kinda picture n posts it online captioned "feel awful, wish me luck" n then NEVER follows up on it, so his comments are filled w ppl being concerned for his well being

pep: wakes up, realizes hes sick, texts kevin "youre in charge today. dont fuck it up" n goes back to sleep

klopp: decided to still go to training, but lfcs practically a family so everyone knows somethings up within like five minutes. when the boys realize the boss isnt feeling well they give him a rant abt self care n milly drives him home.

#typing this on mobie in the car so sorry if the formattings crap 🙏 #ty for the request! #leo messi #neymar #neymessi #luka modric #zlatan ibrahimovic #gavi #sergio ramos #modramos #kylian mbappe #pep guardiola #kevin de bruyne #jurgen klopp #james milner #liverpool fc #lfc #liverpool #joao felix

[planetbots]

So earth... youre human, right? So you gotta eat, right?? Where do you get food? Do you have a ton stockpiled or do you have to order it? Where are yall anyway??? Nebraska??????? Space??????????

(internet safety tips with earth: avoid doxxing yourself)

#planetbots #mini comic #ask #(earth) #(mars) #sorry this is so messy i got Sleepy. also lmk if this formatting sucks for longer stuff or not

[silverstarfics]

time for an overdue conversation

#thunderbirds are go #posting from my phone so if the formatting is messy IM SORRY

[hwanswerland]

ATEEZ @ MAMA 2020 (Inception + Answer) ↳ aka my second Atinyversary 

Summary in case you don't want to read all this: it's been two years since I got into Ateez, I ramble about it, then I tagged my lovely mutuals. I can't believe it's already been two years since Youtube recommended me this video out of the blue and because I was bored and San and Honjoong looked sp pretty on the thumbnail I watched it. Instantly fell in love with Answer and decided that well, if they have one song this good, there have got to be more right? And so began my descent into the kpop (read: Ateez) madness. I didn't expect on December 6th 2020 that two years later I would run a tumblr blog dedicated to the one guy that I actively did not want to bias at first, spend who knows how much money on albums and other merch, go to one of their concerts and scream along with all those other fans despite me thinking I would never have a boy group phase in this life (lol), least of all one starting when I was 21 years old. Not that I regret anything about it :D I realise that these gifs are not actually the most giffable moment for some members, but as this is a very self indulgent set I chose to gif what are moments I still remember reacting to when I saw the first time. Honorary mention to Hongjoong shouting "1, 2, 3 lets BURN" into his mic. If I could gif a sound that would be the first I'd gif because Answer is special to me and I absolutely came to life when he did the same thing at my concert. I started giffing on this blog way later in 2021, around the end of Deja Vu promotions, and for the most part I did not feel very welcome here on Atinyblr lol, for reasons that have nothing to do with anyone I interact with these days. This only very recently changed when I finally joined the atzsource team and actually talked to the people on here. So thank you for being so cool and talking about some things that mean I can finally chill and not feel like an imposter on here anymore. So in no particular order tagging my lovely mutuals that I love seeing on the dash/talking to/admire from afar ♡

@sanchelinz (thank you forever for the file!) @woosansang @jonghho @jeong-yunhoes @jjongho​ @sanhwaiting @woosanhui @jngif @guerrila @yunhogifs @applejongho @xuseokgyu @blueberrysan @jeongyunho99 @chwejongho @strhwaberries @cruellajoong @song-mingi @hwatermelon @seonghwaminho @yukuz

#ateez #ateezedit #atzsource #fio.gifs #atz:other #so this is first of all a bit late #because turns out this stage is not easy to colour and even less to colour match #which brings me to my second point #colour matching this defeated me i'm sorry pls don't mind the relative crustiness #esp the jh gif i'm sorry ribos i tried my best #but the lighting changes were stronger than me #i'm too tired to proofread this ajhsdga i hope there's not too many typos #i am SO SORRY if i forgot anyone #if i've ever talked to you you probably know this bc i say it all the time but i'm just not good with words but i appreciate you all <3 #ALSO sorry for this messy formatting it was ok but then the links didnt work and then when i changed it there were huge breaks suddenly lol

[sleepyseals]

[Image Description: A digital painting depicting Feldspar standing to the right of a campfire, facing away from the viewer and upwards. They are holding an arm outstretched above them and the other gesticulates as if they were telling a story. Several fireflies surround them and their shadow falls to their right. Wreathed in the smoke of the campfire is a scene of their campsite in Dark Bramble. Three large twisting brambles, the anglerfish fossil’s teeth, and three pine trees are suspended upside down, stretching downwards toward Feldspar and the campfire. A plume of stylized curling smoke stretches across the top of the scene from Feldspar’s ship in the top right corner. The ship is sparking with electrical failure. End Image Description.]

my piece for the @travelers-encore-zine !!!  I think this came out a bit more conceptual than I wanted but I still like it!

Thank you to the mods for making this happen, putting everything together and being an amazing support team!!! Thank you to my fellow contributors for being so lovely and making such amazing things and sharing this project with me, I'm really happy I got to be a part of it!!

#I'm so late to posting this omg sorry!! I got stressed abt writing the caption bc its hard getting the words out of my brain sometimes #but its already been a few days since the zine came out I can't believe it #expect some sort of process video or post for this maybe!! as soon as I figure out how I want to do that haha #idk I put a lot of work into this that I don't want to leave unseen but I don't know how I would even go about formatting smth like that #I dont know how to feel abt this piece lol I definitely got very tired of looking at it by the end but I think I'm still happy with it #there's so much going on for me atm but I'm happy! I'm so happy I have things to be passionate about #crazy how life is messy as ever but so much more manageable when you have something you care a lot about #videos game. <3 <3 <3 #I’m interested to hear people’s thoughts on what this means like symbolically ::] #both lonely and claustrophobic #Stories are the basis of so much in game but give feldspar room to breathe god damn it #I have to go to class and stop rambling in the tags now #outer wilds #feldspar #dark bramble #my art #outer wilds spoilers #ow spoilers #how did i forget spoiler tags... smh my head XD

[bitter-sweet-coffee]

i think my problem with a lot of the tails and wave content that’s out there (besides the ship content we all know that’s the bottom of the barrel) is that people… LOVE to make tails win in the end. and like. i’m so sorry but no the fuck he would not LMAO

listen, LISTEN. i know i’m biased as a wave girlie, but seriously. wave’s whole thing is that she not only gets under his skin and outdoes him, but that he’s just simply not at her level when it comes to mechanics. inventions? whole other story, there’s a mandate restriction shimmied in there somewhere about eggman and tails. mechanics? EXTREME GEAR??? run, dude.

in the end, wave is very clever and also mean. tails isn’t going to get a last minute victory or upper hand, he isn’t going to “school her” or put her in her place… he is going to get bullied by her. sure he can land a few hits back but unfortunately wave isn’t going to give him the time of day required for him to even rebuttal.

“but in his spinoffs—“ i am so sorry to break it to you but wave is a rival, not a villain. tails can’t murder her, hell, their fight is of an intellectual nature not a physical one! tails does not win by fighting wave, the whole point of her character is that she’s older, more experienced, more specialized, and more cutthroat than him in her field. die and stay mad at it guys, tails isn’t coming out of this one unscathed

#semi vent #wave the swallow #tails the fox #it is SO dangerous putting this in the tails tag #tails fans you are so cool and real. i am a tails fan too just not on main i promise #do NOT come for my formatting and capitalization here. let her stay informal and messy and ugly <3 peace and love on planet earth #btw don’t even get me started on the extreme gear shit #TAILS CUSTOMIZED GEAR HE DIDN’T MAKE CUSTOM GEAR. THERE IS A DIFFERENCE #WAVE’S GEAR IS EXPLICITLY STATED TO BE HANDMADE AND FULLY CUSTOM. HER DESIGNS AND COMPLETE ENGINEERING. #IT IS IMPLIED TAILS USED A SHELL THAT HE WENT ON TO MODIFY. WITH MOST SHELLS BEING MASS PRODUCED BY EGGMAN #ok sorry for yelling i’ll stop now i promise. but like. riders lore goes insane y’all trust me

[moozyfreak]

any dialogue i make will SUCK so here!!💖💖

+rlly wish we coulda given 'er a gift😭

#im so sorry fer the messy comic format #fanart #yakuza #yakuza fanart #doodle #rgg #rgg fanart #ryo ga gotoku #kazuma kiryu #kazumaji #goromi #goro majima #goromi desu!!

[somer-writes]

"my theory is the zonai become the twili eventually" Ah, I see you are a man of culture! Love seeing that people still subscribe to that theory!

the anon is so ominous XD /j

I mean how are they not!! The art is so similar and there’s way too many parallels imo

keep in mind that throughout tp the only twili we see are midna and zant as the others are all corrupt but presumably they look somewhat similar. Not quite hylian anyway

i find it extremely plausible that the zonai following rauru fall victim to seeking out more and more powerful magic until they are ultimately banished in the interloper war.

The zonai statues look similar to twili

Imo raurus clothing is similar to what we see at the very least midna wear. Theres long wraps/shawls and a lot of ornamentation

the cave under the castle has a similar sound design to TP

The sages maintain hyrule history and we know they essentially scrubbed the twili from the records

-> as a sub note we know there are 6 sages in OOT and TP. TOTK has 5 *however* Zelda is a sage which carries over from the timeline. In TP the water sage is killed by ganon, in TOTK the sages are all long gone. The sages in TP wear the masks of old men so who’s to say that TP isn’t the beginning of the sages downfall

the angular art design which relies on geometric patterns is very twili

the color palette is also v twili. We see a lot of teals as well as the zonais’ typical body color and the zonai ore is v twilight color

the curious part is how does this interact with skyward sword. Is it so far after skyward that the kingdom needs reestablished? Is it parallel to skyward?

the interlopers are banished by the gods but the zonai *arent* hylian. They have no reason to be reverent to hylia but they’re not one of the surface races in skyward. I think it’s entirely possible that the hylians move to the surface and the zonai simply remain undiscovered in the sky or come after.

Sonia is very clearly hylian to me so some thread of hylians must be present in the sky at least until her birth. She and rauru do not have descendants which leaves sky and suns line to royalty.

#somer answers #sorry for messy formatting #the zonai are too twili coded to be anything else imo #And we know they have a destructive thirst for power #Specifically bc draconification #And rauru himself is very power based #It makes sense too that ganon then establishes reverence in the twilight realm later on

[yuniemaki]

On beiguang, yin/yang symbolism and the blessed dragon/fenghuang pairing

The Beidou x Ningguang ship in Genshin is heavily inspired by two main symbols in Chinese culture: Yin and yang, and the dragon and fenghuang pairing. In this essay (literally) I will deep-dive into the nuances of these two symbols that make this ship so complex and enthralling to me at least?!

Yin/Yang

Let’s talk a bit about the concept of duality in Chinese cosmology. Yin and Yang are complementary forces that interact together to represent duality and balance in all aspects, i.e a shadow (Yin) cannot exist without light (Yang).

Yin and yang are always opposite and equal qualities. Whenever one quality reaches its peak, it will naturally begin the transformation into the opposite quality: for example, a flower that blooms in spring (fully Yang) will wither and die back in winter (fully Yin) in an endless cycle.

This can be applied to all cyclic events in life, for example the rise and fall of things: Yang being the rise and yin being the fall. Creation (Yang) and entropy (Yin) are also two sides of the same coin. 

阴 Yin can be translated in several ways: the moon, concealed, overcast, hidden, shade. Generally, it represents the direction North.

The character 阴 can be broken down into two components:

The radical 阝, the graphical variant of 阜, meaning “mound, abundant, rich”, 

and the character 月, meaning “moon”.

阳 Yang can be translated as, male, the sun, overt, belonging to this world, activity. Generally, it represents the direction South.

The character 阳 can also be broken down into two components:

The radical 阝, the graphical variant of 阜, meaning “mound, abundant, rich”, 

and the character 日, meaning “sun”.

The terms “male” and “female” here don’t refer to gender specifically and are used very loosely – the Chinese believe in “feminine”/”negative” and “masculine”/”positive” energy as two halves of a whole, i.e. both must exist for balance to be. Neither can thrive without the other.

An interesting thing to note about Yin/Yang’s entomology is the way this phrase is written in Chinese. Chinese linguistics typically plac the “male”/”positive” energy first in the language, e.g. 男女, man-woman, and 天地, heaven and earth.

But in yinyang, 阴阳, the “female”/”negative” energy comes first. Scholars theorise that proto-Chinese society was perhaps matriarchal (Empress Dowager being more powerful than the Emperor), or that it was a way to challenge existing cultural preconceptions.

Dragon/Fenghuang

In Chinese mythology, the dragon and fenghuang are the two most powerful celestial symbols. The dragon represents "Yang" while the fenghuang represents "Yin”. 

The Chinese dragon is traditionally drawn without wings. Oftentimes it may be depicted together with a flaming pearl under its chin or in its talons. The pearl is associated with spiritual energy, wisdom, prosperity, power, immortality, thunder (electro!), or the moon.

The fenghuang is sometimes referred to as the “Chinese phoenix”, but it has a completely different mythos to the Western legends of rebirth and fire.

The fenghuang is a peace-loving celestial being that is believed to only appear in places blessed with the utmost prosperity and happiness. It is said to live atop the Kunlun Mountains, the Chinese version of Mount Olympus.

Together, the dragon/fenghuang pairing is known as the celestial pairing. The fenghuang is a symbol of luck, prosperity, and success; the dragon is a symbol of status and power. The two are said to strengthen each other when paired. Their union is a symbol of matrimonial bliss and more importantly - balance. 

Balance is a recurring theme in Beiguang, from Ningguang’s life and philosophy to Beidou’s (reluctant) admission that Ningguang balances her (more on that later when we deep dive into them individually).

It’s also worth noting that in some areas, the dragon/fenghuang symbol only appears to herald a new era - very much like what Liyue is going through now, heralding a new era of humans without an Archon’s guidance. And how fitting is it that the two most powerful women in Liyue now carry this symbol as they lead the nation into uncharted waters?

How Beiguang parallels Yin/Yang

The duality of Yin/Yang is visible in many aspects of life, from nature to society. One example is the sun moving across the sky. As the sun moves across the sky, things that are once illuminated (Yang) give way to shadow (Yin), revealing what was hidden, and hiding what was revealed.

Similarly, it represents the crux of Beidou and Ningguang’s relationship: infamously public yet ultimately secretive. The Captain and Tianquan talk about each other all the time, but what exactly is their deal? No one really knows.

Another example is their prized homes. The Jade Chamber is known to block out the moon over Liyue, yet is iconic in its skies – literally seen as the moon. It is passive in nature, still and motionless, and is also the epicentre of intelligence - aka covert activity. All these are symbols of Yin. 

Now we don’t know exactly where True North is in Teyvat’s map, but Polaris, the North Star, has always been known as a fixed point in the sky, which is why sailors use it to navigate their way home.

Similarly, the Jade Chamber is this fixed point in the sky of Teyvat that could be used as a “North Star” to return to Liyue Harbour. North is, after all, the direction that Yin represents.

I digress a little here, but also consider that Beidou is the Chinese name of the Big Dipper, the very constellation used to point sailors towards Polaris. We know from Beidou’s namecard that she believes in looking to the skies when she wavers, and “the stars shall light the way”.

There’s a poetic beauty in the Jade Chamber being representative of Liyue’s Polaris, and Beidou finding her way back to her “North Star'' each time the Alcor sails for home. 

Back on topic. In contrast, the Alcor on the other hand, is constantly moving and full of activity. It sails across the oceans; it is a symbol of power much like Beidou herself is (slayer of Haishan, Beidou tames the seas). 

And just like the sun, the Alcor docks and leaves Liyue Harbour - a reflection of how only the sun travels across the sky, illuminating different sides of the moon that patiently waits for light to be cast upon its surface (again, something we’ll return to later).

Water itself can also be separated into Yin (still bodies, lakes) and Yang (moving water, river, ocean). The Jade Chamber is home to still bodies of water (Yin symbol) both inside and out; the Alcor’s very home is the ocean, a powerful Yang water symbol.

Ningguang and Yin/fenghuang symbolism

Alright, let’s deep-dive into Ningguang’s character first. Her strongest fenghuang link is seen mainly in her namecard, and it carries a lovely name:

凝光・凤仪 (Níngguāng - Fèngyí): the admiration/ceremony/rites of the fenghuang

The duality of the fenghuang

What’s interesting about the fenghuang is its duality: in ancient times, the fenghuang was a cohesive yin/yang symbol on its own. Over time when the dragon came into the picture, the fenghuang was altered. When paired with the dragon, it now symbolises Yin. But alone, it symbolises Yang instead.

And that’s why Ningguang’s storied history reflects elements of Yin/Yang balance. She rises (Yang) to power by herself; she retreats from the public eye, hiding (Yin) in the Jade Chamber, yet she is known to publicly flaunt (Yang) her position as a member of the Liyue Qixing.

The diverse nature of the fenghuang and its original symbolism as balance in and of itself contributes to Ningguang’s enigmatic nature, and why she has so many seemingly contradictory opinions - fame being usually associated with Yang, yet secrets being more of Yin.

When the dragon/Yang is not there, the fenghuang shines, becoming the “sun”/Yang - Ningguang is, after all, the de-facto leader of Liyue at this point. She has the awe and the attention of the masses, her chamber is unmissable, she is a ruthless business mogul yet adored by the children like an elder sister. 

The parts of a fenghuang

It's also interesting to note that the fenghuang's body parts represent Ningguang's character well: 

virtue (head), 

duty (wings), 

propriety (back), 

credibility (abdomen), 

and mercy (chest).

Beidou and Yang/dragon symbolism

Perhaps the most obvious link between Beidou and the dragon is her Chinese title: 无冕的龙王 Wúmiǎn de Lóngwáng - “Uncrowned King of Dragons”.

She is specifically given the title “King”/王wáng instead of “Queen”/女王Nǚwáng - masculine energy being a strong Yang quality.

A symbol of Yang quality

Unlike the fenghuang, the Chinese dragon has always been a representation of Yang, which is why Beidou’s character very clearly represents the quintessence of Yang: well-liked, respected, reputed, masculine (in her feats - slaying Haishan, leading a pirate fleet, taming the seas), always on the move, never on land for long.

Traditionally, the dragon has always symbolised power and confidence. The Chinese dragon is the ruler of water and weather, especially moving bodies of water such as the sea, which might suggest why Beidou is able to navigate the sea so very well, to the point that her crew “believe her capable of taming the storms and billows on the sea.” 

She also “understands” the sea almost intimately, as seen in her CN voiceline “About us: an eye for people”:

“I’m good at reading people. When you’ve seen the wide ocean, the little splashes (changes) on people’s faces are just too easy to understand. Haha, so, I noticed you from the start.”

Beidou refers to the “changes on people’s faces” as “小水花/splashes (of water)”, implying that once you learn to read the sea (often known as a cruel mistress), people become easy to read in comparison. And to read the sea, you observe. You study every wave, every detail, so you can understand her subtleties. 

Despite being a pirate, Beidou’s dragon-symbolic traits show up in her honourable personality, her ability to command the loyalty of her crew, and her commitment to helping the less fortunate.

The dragon's history

Initially, the dragon was benevolent, wise and just, but the introduction of Buddhism added malevolent influence to the dragons. Water can raise and water can destroy. So dragons became able to destroy through floods, tsunamis and storms. 

Similarly, that could also be why Beidou, although symbolising the dragon, was also named to be a cursed child – perhaps a tribute to the dragon’s newfound duality.

Yin/Yang Symbolism in relation to Beiguang

Okay, we’ve got that all down, so now we can study Beiguang in the context of Yin/Yang and dragon/fenghuang symbolisms. Remember the bit earlier about how the sun is the only celestial body to travel across the sky in astrologers’ eyes, illuminating different sides of the moon? 

Present-day Ningguang resides in Liyue Harbour and (as far as we know) rarely leaves the nation. Beidou comes and goes as the sun rises and falls, and it is with her return that we have been seeing different facets of Ningguang come alive under the light of the sun (Yang). 

Ningguang has a voiceline in particular titled “About Us: Observing”. There is one key difference in the CN version of this voiceline, which I’ll translate:

“You’ve followed me for so long, (I’m sure) you’ve learned how to observe. Then, try to observe me, until you become my trusted confidant.” 

She asks Traveler to observe her. But what can you observe in the obscured until it is illuminated? Who illuminates her beyond the Tianquan that the masses know? 

Most of the key Liyue events in 2021 featuring Ningguang, Archon Quest aside, have also featured Beidou in some capacity. And we learn the most about Ningguang from and through Beidou, like how Yang casts light on and reveals what was previously hidden (Yin). 

Romantic gestures aside, their business relationship is also reflective of the dragon/fenghuang motif. Now the dragon symbolises the Chinese Emperor, known as a descendent of the celestial dragons, and the fenghuang symbolises the Empress. To be more specific, the fenghuang represents "power sent from the heavens'' to the Empress. 

This brings me back to the way Yinyang is written: female first. 

Traditionally although the empress dowager (Yin, fenghuang) supposedly holds more power than the Emperor (Yang, dragon), she works from the shadows, often more covertly. For all intents and purposes, the emperor has the final say. Similarly, Ningguang uses Beidou to do her dirty work.

Yin/Yang - two halves of a whole

Beiguang is essentially a perfectly balanced couple, and the game alludes to this in various ways. One is this interaction between Paimon and Beidou during Moonchase, after Ningguang and Beidou have their little squabble in front of the giant rock and all their friends:

The idiom she uses for "evenly-matched" (势均力敌) is usually used in context of a game/polls/tournament/etc. If you break down the etymology, it literally means "power/influence are equal (in a situation), (so our) strengths match".

Reminder that yin and yang are not just equals - they are also opposite qualities. Life and death, light and darkness, rise and fall. This is why Beidou and Ningguang “profess antipathy to each other’s way of life”, and yet they are united for Liyue’s greater good. They are the direct opposites of each other (law vs crime, elegance vs boorish, luxurious vs simple, light vs dark), but they are also equals. 

And Ningguang values this very much -

“Of the many candidates available, she picked Beidou.” 

She values time as her greatest resource, making businessmen bid for her time - but Beidou is given the permission to “come up any time” for a game of chess. 

All that said, their yin/yang dynamic is not new in Chinese romance stories. Off the top of my head, the titular characters of C-drama Who Rules The World essentially share the same Yin/Yang dynamic as Beiguang does. It’s a lovely trope that adds great complexity to character dynamics.

I do love how hyv has interwoven the dragon/fenghuang symbolisms deep into their lives however, such that Ningguang and Beidou both live and breathe the cultural symbols that they are inspired by, rather than letting it simply be a romantic trope. 

Beiguang nation, this be my first gift to you. Hope it’s been a fun read! Next up: GINKGOS.

Beiguang masterlist

#beiguang #genshin impact #genshin lore #genshin analysis #yinyang #dragon and phoenix #chinese culture #beidou x ningguang #beidou #ningguang #ship dynamics #otp dynamics #my otp forever #umm im tryna figure out how to format stuff here #sorry if things look messy or low quality #beiguang dynamics

[duskbats]

Clan Toreador;

The Toreador have long been associated with art and socializing, which is incorporated into their weakness – when they are faced with a thing of beauty, they struggle to turn their attention from it. Many emerge from the ranks of accomplished artists, both new and faded. But not all artists need wield a brush: To the Toreador, art encompasses all forms of entertainment and stimulation.

Amala; She/Her - Primogen

In order from left to right: 

Omar - He/Him

Morgan - She/Her

Darian - He/They

Lydia - She/They

#sorry if its messy under the cut #still trying to figure out how to format these #the generations don't rly matter that much and i don't wanna do backstories #so i just put pronouns #because i plan on having at least some of these clan members appear in a story like manner #the whole toreador clan are bisexual so i didn't add sexuality here #but i did update the tremere :)) #ok so omar was inspired by qadir from the VN i'm playing #darian inspired by my friend's bloodhunt character #i'm never happy with my male sims so i might redo them one day #ts4 #the sims 4 #simblr #ts4: vtm #ts4: vampire the masquerade

[camping-with-monsters]

dropping some BMB character concepts—

“Vasilisa the Unfairly”

“One of the once living being that entered The Spotlight and succumbed to the groove— she went in with an unknown goal and a wooden doll in hand that was “charmed” to protect her. However, Vasilisa ended up losing the doll, and now wanders sickly through the glow, half-dead, and with clusters of mushrooms and veins of mycelium infesting her body, as well as an impressive pair of protrusions in a fully functional arm and a “head” that appears to look like a skull. The head can glow a brilliant orange like a flame when in the night and light herself a path, but most don’t assume kindly of someone in The Spotlight.”

(Based on Vasilisa the Beautiful/Fair and fairy rings)

“The Three Billy Goats Gruff”

“Also inhabitants of The Spotlight, possibly succumbing to the wrath themselves. To help those fall into to the groove, they attempt to charm others with a haunting melody and sing along. Marching to the beat of their own rhythm, they’ll do what’s necessary to win, even if that means sabotaging each other.”

(Based on The Three Billy Goats Gruff, fairy rings, and a lot of other weird prion/disease related stuff.)

“Merdusa”

“Should you be rafting your way through the waters towards “Giant Peach Island”, you best be weary about not disturbing the Merdusa that swims beneath the water. A bit more on the timid side unless provoked, looking into her eyes long enough can make your body attempt to disintegrate into sea foam. It’s undetermined if she does this willingly, or is just an unfortunate feature of her’s.”

(Based on The Little Mermaid and Medusa)

Credit to @pazam for help with this design!

#are they villains? ehhhh….. I prefer “obstacles” #I actually have a couple more than this #but now showing on accounts to them not having personalities/development yet besides designs #sorry these are so messy but here are some of my new sillies I’ve been cooking up #those who remember by DST oc Willabelle may find Vasilisa familiar…? #this post is killing me cause the format feels weird to me but eh whatever #Merdusa did not mean to become Cala Maria I swear /LHJ #Vasilisa The Unfairly #Three Billy Goats Gruff #Merdusa #Blind Man’s Bluff #Tags of Whistlegrimm #ocs #original characters #original stories #art #digital art #character design #character concepts #concept art #doodles #sketches #digital sketches #The Kiwi Draws

[gayhomophobicscout]

If you’re still taking requests, consider: pyro venting about their terrible day (whatever that looks like to you) to Pauling and/or Scout who listen supportively, perhaps interjecting with questionable advice or offers of help.

i'm gonna apologize up front and gently plea for forgiveness up top up front on this one bc this answer / post is a Messss. i'm really and truly obsessed w this req, i love it so so much, thank you for sending it <3 seeing it sent me into a state of frenzy of drawing w/o any real .. planning or. anything <3 anything at all<3333

i think if i try to be comprehensible or give further context i'm just gonna fail miserably so i humbly and meekly give unto thee

as well as

and

plus. in case scout ever is feeling like his chatty self and / or can properly understand pyro

#this is a disaster of messy sketches and formatting i'm honestly so so sorry #the in-inbox? new editor? thing was NOT working so i can't add alt text to these like i was hoping to either #so further apologies for the inaccessibility #this ask was so. like. sweet and lovely and so strangely insightful #like hey. how did you know i just had a positvitely putrid day. how did you know i needed this. #like can't thank you enough also can't apologize enough for the frantic messy response #it is five am i have to go to sleep. fr. i can see how wordy im being i can SEE it <3 #sorry for the over the top tone of this post. apologies for! all of that! #and thank you again for this request #🤡 #💌 #🏃‍♂️💨 #🥺🔥 #💜👓 #what the fuck is my silly little tag for th . these two #💥e #nope that sure is not it #💥‼🧨 #ayooooo got it #🖍