#<- because a lot of my asks are keeper themed

[comikbook]

so you talk about your religious trauma and it’s a major theme in your art, and i was wondering what your current relationship with religion is? is in, do you practice any religion or consider yourself religious? if it isn’t too personal :)

im willing to answer !! i dont talk about it on most of my socials outright because people tend to misinterpret things intensely when it comes to this kind of topic, but ill give it a shot trying to write it out. In fact, I will give the whole story of my experience with religion. So its gonna be long.

there will be talk of psychosis, eating disorders, delusions, and self harm in this post. However I will not be graphic in my descriptions.

To start out I suppose for context, my parents are not catholic. my mom doesn’t talk about religion, and my dad doesnt follow anything in the real sense, but practices a lot of principals of buddhism. My nana was catholic, and my extended family vary in their religious beliefs.

That being said, (i think to my nana’s influence) when i started school i attended a small private catholic school which has since been shut down. fun fact ! if you’ve ever watched the Netflix doc “The Keepers” my school was only about 3 miles from where one of the nun’s bodies were found. The priest who was suspected to be the one to blame previously taught at the school i went to before moving to the one he is known for teaching at. Not really relevant, but i did always feel a bit uneasy there as a child so it was a weird thing to find out later.

Anyways, I attended this catholic school for 3 years. pre-k, kindergarden, and first grade. I would often ask to use the restroom and just wander around the halls or hide in the bathroom. I would get scolded for asking questions that were “inappropriate”. The one i remember most vividly was “If God created all of us, who created God ?” to one of the nuns, who became upset with me. We weren’t taught whar we should have been, and when I did move to public school i was far behind my peers in specifically science, math, and history, but I digress. This is my one class photo from our yearbook !

It is important to note that my first remembered instance of psychosis started when i attended this private school. My mom was picking me up one day, there was heavy traffic. She was trying to get over and was complaining no one would let her. I caught myself staring at my reflection in the front mirror of the car, and the clicking of the blinker kind of overwhelmed me. In the constant clicking I “decoded” a message that involved me being told to do something particularly violent. In my small brain in addition to my outside influences, I thought the person that sent this message to me was God. I was confused as to why, but I felt i did something wrong to deserve it. i quietly prayed in the back seat internally for forgiveness.

So I started to receive more messages from “God” commanding me to do something or another, typically vile in some way. i would hear this voice in my head frequently, until eventually it faded out and stopped. I dont remember when it stopped, i just remember i had this experience as a child and then when i was a little older i just didnt think about it anymore.

I do have gaps in my memory of my childhood, pretty big ones, for reasons im still struggling to understand to this day. So that makes things fuzzy. I do remember falling back into religion briefly in middle school, but eventually fell out of it again.

As i approached the end of highschool my mental health was tanking. Mostly with depression and anxiety, however this wouldnt be the worst it would get. In 2019 I was in college and things were getting increasingly worse. I was one of the few people that loved the isolation of the quarantine actually, i fear if not for that what was to come would have been way worse.

My symptoms of psychosis started to creep back into my life. I was already isolating before the quarantine, but got worse after it had started. I know i said i enjoyed it, and i did, but it also fed into some bad habits. Anyways I was becoming increasingly scared and paranoid, I was actively self harming, I was extremely depressed. I had plans to take my own life, a few of them actually. I started eating less. I didnt think much of it, I was just depressed, i have been depressed most of my life so this was just a particularly bad bout for me is what i thought.

That is, until one night where I had my first psychotic episode. It remains to be the worst and only very big episode i have had. I dealt with it mostly alone, never alerting my family of it. I was on the phone with one friend i had at the time, although they were not the kindest to me overall. Despite that they sat with me. This episode led to me standing in one place for over 2 hours too scared to move. When I finally did, it seemed to trigger a more violent outburst.

I wont go into too much detail but i left the experience cried out, bloodied, and heavily bruised. My legs were entirely black and blue for over a month following. After this episode I finally decided to try to get help, and I met with my psychiatrist for the first time. I was immediately put on several antidepressants which ended up being beneficial but in the beginning caused me to lose my appetite entirely. This is when i fell more and more into my eating disorder. With this though, I was still experiencing delusions and hallucinations and got put on my first antipsychotic.

It helped with my symptoms, and it helped me get back to a normal weight. Even tho at the time I was abusing my adderall I was still able to get my body (mostly) back to normal, at least physically. That being said, while my symptoms were lessened they were not gone, it just became less scary to me. Maybe it was because I was being desensitized, but thats something to ponder another time.

I started to become more and more infatuated with catholicism again from that original episode forward. I was obsessed and that voice of god returned to me. I started hearing clicking and chirping coming from the back of my right ear, which ive dubbed as a “chip” in my brain placed by god for me to receive his messages. I thought there was an evil inside of me that needed to be let out, which i did by participating in frequent bloodletting to force out the bad, and make my body create newer, cleaner, and holier blood. This was something i felt I had to keep up often so that this evil force wouldnt take over. I was eventually able to stop self harming, and have been clean for over 2 years now. It is hard and i still feel the need to “cleanse” myself, but i try my best to push it down.

Fast foreward to 2022 and I would start the first piece in my painting series. I still experienced symptoms but much less frequently ! I started to detail my experience thru art. I would finish the first piece in my series titled “Forgive Me Father” in 2023. Since then I have made many more.

So we finally get to today. I have waited to talk about my current relationship with religion until the end as I felt the context was necessary, and to be honest it is complicated. As you can tell, It has effected me greatly and has come and gone in my life.

I would say from where I am now, I am not religious. A better way to put it i suppose is i consciously make the choice to not be. Like I said its complicated.

I like to think of it as there is two of me in my body. One is paranoid, scared, and extremely delusional. This is the part that still believes god is communicating with them. This is the person that still prays for forgiveness and cries over the fear of being sent to hell for their sins, all approved and constructed by god himself. and then theres my rational side, which exists im sure solely because of my medication. This part is extremely self aware, can tell when i am being delusional or irrational, who knows this is something caused by my illness. They exist side by side, at the same time, always. They fight in my head for control but always exist simultaniously, think of it like a pie chart. one may be more prevelant but the other is still always there.

So in a way, there is a lot I do personally believe. That being said the reason I do believe is because of my schizophrenia. So I choose to navigate my life as someone who actively does not believe as an attempt to not let the delusion control me. do i think people who are religious are delusional ? I do not, but I know in my personal case what leads me to believe these things is an unwell mind.

I still have an intense fascination with catholicism and religion in general. I think its a beautiful thing, it moves me, but i must keep it at a distance to avoid hurting me. It is not something I can actively engage in outside of general interest because it would kill me, and despite my previous statements i would like to live at least a little longer haha.

With all that said, and I doubt anyone will read this whole thing, its been a rollercoaster of a ride. If anyone has questions about it, feel free to ask. Im an open book about this stuff online most days, and Im willing to offer any information about it.

[yanderecrazysie]

Twisted Zoo: Chapter 11

Prologue (beginning): here

Previous Chapter: here

Next Chapter: here

Note: THE TAGS BROKE AGAIN, I'M SO SORRY!

This is based on the stories of a keeper reader with the octotrio by @ashensgrotto and @merakiui

Also @twistedcece @cenatour @xiaopleasecomehome @bearshideout @koebishrimpuwu @vash-yuu @twstsandturns @help-whatdoimakemyusername @secret-potion @magmdnv @sunshine-for-serotonin @the-ace-reader @mel-star636 @silkkorchid @pamv11 @coffee-or-hot-cocoa @hrhqueenfox @goseew @luxthestrange @juno-of-wonderland @who-mst @despairingy-obsessed @lanxianschoenheit @ceramic-raven @m0063576 @kimdourden @rammylog @sushiperson @starshiningsirius @im-here-for-the-fun-of-it @the-monochrome-jester @owodi @girl-nahh-two @obeythehuman @berry-efoy @ivorette @the-broken-truth @losingmybrain @sxftiebee @queens-unheard-thoughts @medicine-san @strugglingsleeper @asdorlia @nightskylark @cashmerek @rocketstyx and @ryovel wanted to be tagged! Let me know if anyone else wants to be tagged for future chapters. If you no longer want to be tagged, please tell me! (I have removed the tags that weren’t working for me, apologies if yours was removed!)

Summary: You’re a brand new zookeeper at The Halfling Zoo- a place where half-animals live in captivity. Your job is simple- feed them and study them. Your main worry is that one of the more dangerous halflings might kill you. 

Unfortunately, that may become the least of your worries.

WARNINGS: yandere themes

Note: All characters are aged up, since there will be mature themes in future parts.

Also, I can’t promise I’ll finish this. I suck at finishing stories.

NOTE 2: Sorry that it took over a month to write this, but I needed inspiration + my new job is kicking my butt. It’s pretty short and bad but I didn’t have a lot of inspiration.

—-------------------------------------------------------

You were on your way to the birds’ enclosure when you heard your name being called. You turned around to see Crowley making his way towards you, one arm raised to flag you down. You hurried over to him.

“Yes, Mr. Crowley?”

As you drew closer, you could see the concern on his face. 

“I need you to come with me,” he said softly, leading the way to the aviary. You nodded and followed him, worry starting to consume you.

“Is everything okay?” you asked.

Mr. Crowley led you around to a side of the aviary you hadn’t been to before- a side that faced neither the employee entrance nor the zoo visitors. It took only a few seconds to realize why he had led you there.

The metal enclosure had been dented outwards, as though a lot of force had been applied to it from the inside. The seams were starting to split apart, artificial light from inside the enclosure peeking through the cracks. It looked like an elephant had been body-slamming the aviary’s walls.

“Wha- what happened?” you asked, stunned.

“We’ve had some… incidents recently. All of the halflings have been acting up more than usual and, as you can see, there’s been some damage to the aviary’s metal dome.”

“But the birds are so well-behaved!” you protested in shock.

“That’s the thing,” Mr. Crowley said gravely, “It seems to happen after your visits. The halflings become… agitated when you aren’t around.”

You couldn’t believe that the gentle, friendly birds had caused this kind of damage to a metal enclosure. And because of you? It was almost unthinkable.

“I don’t understand,” you said in a near whisper, “Why would they do this?”

Mr. Crowley sighed wearily, “Halflings form strong bonds, that’s why we have so many bonded species at this zoo. They will especially latch on to anyone who shows them true kindness. You clearly mean a lot to them and your absence upsets them.”

“I didn’t mean to cause any trouble,” you said, a pang of guilt tugging at your heartstrings.

“I know, and I don’t blame you,” Mr. Crowley reassured you, “But we need to find a solution.”

“Do you have any ideas?” you asked.

Mr. Crowley went silent and avoided eye contact. A thrill of apprehension shot up your spine but you willed it away. Mr. Crowley would never put you in danger, right?

“For now, just continue as normal,” Mr. Crowley replied, “We’ll work on fixing the enclosure.”

You nodded and the zoo director dismissed you with a careless wave. You hurried to the enclosure’s employee entrance and were disturbed to hear, instead of the usual quiet, the sounds of squawks and hoots and other cries. 

You stepped inside and were surprised by the scene you were met with. The halflings were clearly distressed: pacing in their cages and looking around wildly, feathers fluffed up in agitation. Even calm-and-collected Vil looked ruffled.

“Guys? Are you alright?” you called out softly.

Ace was first to respond, “Where were you?” he demanded to know, voice tinged with panic, “You’re late! You’ve never been late before!”

“I’m sorry, Ace,” you said, trying to sound as soothing as possible, “I was talking to Mr. Crowley about some… problems with the enclosure.”

Ace’s eyes narrowed dangerously, “Problems? What problems?”

“It’s nothing to worry about,” you said, feeling a little nervous by the intensity of his gaze. Glancing around, you could see that every bird halfling had their eyes trained on you.

Trey flew from his birdhouse to his perch, landing gracefully on the wooden perch and fixing you with a stern glare and saying, “You can’t disappear.”

You nodded, trying to calm them all down, “I understand. It won’t happen again.”

Vil stepped forward, his beautiful feathers out of place and ruffled. His eyes were narrowed and he was frowning as though disappointed in you, “You always leave us.”

You were overwhelmed by all of their intense gazes and you felt a lump form in your throat. “I’m here as often as I can be.”

Epel looked up at you with watery eyes, “We worry when you leave. Not safe out there.”

You forced a gentle smile to your lips, “I’m perfectly safe. And I’m here now. Let’s all calm down everyone, okay?”

Slowly, the halflings relaxed. Rook stopped pacing, Vil smoothed his feathers, and Trey flew back into his bird house. Even though the tension had mostly disappeared, the underlying worry and hint of possessiveness remained.

You turned to Deuce, who hadn’t spoken yet, but instead looked at you wistfully. “Are you doing okay, Deuce?” you asked.

Deuce’s eyes softened, but the troubled frown remained on his face, “I’m fine,” his voice was strained, “I missed you.”

Your heart ached, “I missed you too,”

Ace piped up in an annoyed tone, “Why can’t you just stay here with us?”

You blinked in surprise, “I have a life outside the zoo. I’m sorry, but I can’t stay here.”

It was Cater’s turn to speak, and the expression he gave you made your stomach twist unpleasantly, “You’re too good to stay with us halflings, mademoiselle? We do not have a life outside this zoo, but we deserve that, don’t we?”

“Wh-what? Of course not!” you spluttered.

“Then stay!” Epel whined, a tear sliding down his cheek.

“I- I can’t,” your voice came out in a whisper. You shook yourself and turned around, heading for the staff door,  “I’ll go get your meals…”

There was an eerie silence as you passed out their meals. Each of the halflings took their salads and set them aside, their appetites gone. The tension in the air was so thick you thought you might choke on it.

Finally, the time came for you to leave. As you turned towards the staff door, a hand grabbed the back of your shirt. You turned in surprise to find Riddle outside his enclosure, his pink feathers standing on end.

“Promise… you’ll come back.” Riddle choked out, fighting back tears.

You turned to him and gave him a gentle smile before pulling him into a hug. “Of course I’ll come back.”

“Promise!” he demanded.

“I promise.”

With the way they all looked at you, with victory and possessiveness, you halfway wondered if you had sold your soul with that promise.

[housemdork]

house md rewatch: 1x05, "damned if you do"

this is going to be a long one, so apologies in advance!

i'm putting this at the top of the recap because it's funny and i don't want to forget to mention it: hugh laurie cannot say "percent" in an american accent. it's the single word that he's fumbled so far, and i love it every time.

very solid episode overall with a lot more character-specific development. i feel like 1x04 was more overall thematic development, whereas 1x05 featured more individual traits among the ducklings, house, and cuddy (with some fleeting bonus wilson at the end). for organization's sake, i'll list those here:

cuddy remains the keeper of order, but her sense of duty comes increasingly from her strong-willed responsibility and patient advocacy rather than any petulance. i love how house as an individual pushes us to dislike her/find her annoying, but cuddy herself makes compelling ethical arguments for refuting house every time. not to be hostile here, but i think viewers who have a strong dislike for cuddy are fundamentally missing the intent and brilliance of her character.

cameron is a strong agnostic who doesn't quite see the irony in her absolutist devotion to house. she craves order in the world - she doesn't reject a universal keeper-of-order, just an "anthropomorphic" being - and finds that within her job and within the realm of house. i love that her naivety isn't just her being Young And Impressionable, but comes from her need to make sense of the loss in her life and in that of her patients'.

foreman was giving judas throughout this episode, giving us the most direct character trait of his yet - clear, unwavering convictions. and i think it's misguided to qualify these convictions are selfish or inherently anti-house (i see that take a lot on twitter). he doesn't take the decision to oust house to cuddy lightly, yet even when he's rejected by cameron and chase for his choice, he stays firm. and he's paradoxically rewarded by house for it.

robert chase. i'm already getting weepy about where his story is headed. this is the show's first mentioning of chase's history with catholicism - his time in seminary school, his distaste for his father, the fact that he's held onto the religious know-how instilled in him, and that his doubt and dejection stems from fear. retrospective knowledge about his father also shows how he's already transferring his ideal of fatherhood to house, however subliminally. one of my favorite interactions in this episode was when house insists to chase that religion is enforced via fear of god and divine retribution passed down by fathers to their sons. not only do we know this to be true of chase's childhood, but chase has already shown us a fear of failing house.

a note about me for context - i'm an atheist (i promise on my life that i'm not edgy and exclusionary like house!) who grew up catholic until i was about 15. i also recently taught at a catholic university, so catholic themes and practices are fresh on my mind. this episode is rife with direct allusions to the religion.

over-ambitious though this comparison may be, i viewed cuddy and house as competing religious dogmas in 1x05, very in line with a church (PPTH) schism. the patient's moral code, her being a nun, is textually compared to cuddy's rule over the hospital (in a funny house-hates-authority-because-he-finds-it-suffocating way). house objects to the nuns' belief system and, in the same breath, objects to cuddy's taking control of the case because he's violating established codes of hospital conduct, i.e., putting the patient in the hyperbaric chamber without enough evidence that it will help her.

so when house is taken off the case, he's basically being thrown out of a metaphorical church and treated like an outcast. maybe a pariah, if we take the comparison even further, which sparks a very unexpected patch of guilt within him. also very catholic (ask my irish catholic family). more on this later!

i also think the emphasis on house's potential misery bears some investigating since this is the first time the show tugs at this thread. at the very start of the episode, wilson and house are comparing clinic duties to dante's circles of hell. house eventually equivocates the task of charting to having "melancholy without hope." it's a fleeting and funny remark at first, but one of the patient's fellow nuns resurrects this conversation later on in the hospital chapel.

the nun addresses house's facade, saying that "you make jokes because you're afraid to take anything seriously because, if you take things seriously, they matter."

house refutes this instantly, of course, which she's prepared for. in the face of his obstinance, she says, "i barely know you, and i don't know if i'm right. i just hope i am, because the alternative is you really are as miserable as you seem to be."

THIS IS THE GOOD STUFF! not only does 1x05 offer up a woman of faith as a suitable opponent for house's wry cynicism, but we've been unsure thus far about the depths of house's misery, nor how far down his front goes. this episode shows us the absolute top of the iceberg. in the following scene, cuddy kicks him off the case, and the next time we see house, he's searching through the epinephrine drawer in the clinic room to see if he really did make a mistake and make his patient sick. guilt has struck, and guilt is scary because it also proves that house himself believes that he can be fallible.

so it's only fitting that the angel on house's shoulder appears during the throes of his guilt to probe a little further into his thoughts and feelings. wilson circumvents the several conversational traps that house lays for him like he's paid to do it, and lands on the fact that house feels guilty for potentially failing his patient, but wilson phrases it in a very nonsecular way: "guilt does a lot of damage...you're here because you're having doubts."

in a trend that will be repeated well into the future, it's only wilson who can permeate the deific walls house erects around himself. how crazy it is to psychoanalyze the show's symbolic god figure, let alone do it successfully?

and that all sounds a whole lot like a conversation that could take place inside a confessional.

this exchange helps inspire what i think is the episode's most profound conversation - when house and the patient speak to one another about her god and her faith as she denies treatment. house permits belief in the afterlife, but rejects any and all belief that insists that a god can affect the Here And Now. subliminally, he's struggling with the idea that suffering and illness could be caused by a being people are supposed to love and worship because he sees suffering and illness as puzzles that need to be solved and corrected. how can anyone, then, find bliss in unsolved suffering?

the patient then says this in response: "i don't believe that He is inside me and is going to save me. i believe He is inside me whether i live or die."

house: "then you might as well live. you got a better shot betting on me than Him."

in an incredibly odd twist, 1x05 highlights a deep, barely detectable kindness in house that the show posits is not accessible via the catholic nun's faith (controversial, i know, but i'm calling it like i see it). house does not operate like their god. if he is a symbolic god figure, his penchant for puzzle solving isn't so far removed from humanity. it comes from the belief that life is good and suffering is bad. not that he would ever really admit that, though.

finally (and i'm scaling back a lot of my thoughts here because this post is already way too long), i want to circle back on confession and guilt. the relationship between the 2 is everywhere in 1x05. foreman, though he was in the right to "betray" house, feels guilty for confessing to cuddy. chase confesses to the patient that he left seminary school because he failed the faith/fear test, and he exhibits conflicted guilt throughout the episode. his specific brand of catholic guilt becomes a huge component of his character moving forward. house feels guilt on-screen for the first time. and cuddy even feels guilt for, first, letting one of her doctors potentially harm a patient due to negligence and, later, almost sabotaging house's diagnosis.

you know who doesn't feel guilty this episode, though? despite having the most blatant reason for it?

"maybe i'll come to your place." "your wife doesn't mind being alone on christmas?" "i'm a doctor. she's used to being alone. i don't want to talk about it."

i can think of very few conversations that reveal so much about a character so quickly:

hanging out together outside of work is normal for these 2.

wilson is married and the relationship is rocky.

he's clearly to blame, at least in part, for that rockiness.

he doesn't seem to mind being to blame for it. he'd much rather prioritize his other relationships.

despite being the one to draw out the truth being house's thoughts and feelings about guilt and self-honesty throughout the episode, wilson refuses to engage in this himself. he flagrantly shuts down the opportunity for confession, despite having demanded it of house earlier on.

this marks a clear shift from wilson existing just to define/prop up house into wilson as a slowly burgeoning foil. he's characterized by our lack of knowledge about him; by now, cameron, foreman, chase, and house are pretty illuminated, and 1x05 did a lot of work with cuddy, too. even the slightest tease of info deconstructs a lot of our assumptions about wilson so far. he's only been the kind oncologist who sees the good in house - what do you mean he's shitty?

this episode had some visuals to imply house/wilson as foils, too:

and, much like how he can bring out the painful honesty in house, he can also bring out house's most organic (unmasked, some might say) side, too. spending christmas eve together lets us know that domesticity is common between them, while also confirming that house does not, in fact, have much to come home to.

that one tumblr post that says "nothing prepares you for james wilson" is so right. he's the lynchpin for so much of this show yet approaches so slowly.

i could keep going. i forgot how much i like this episode. there's even one line from wilson to house where he says "you do realize that if you're wrong about the big picture, you're going to burn" and like. okay. whatever.

[redjademilktea]

Last night's episode of 4 Sided Dive was absolutely wonderful in terms of the amount of insight and perspective we got. Not only the Crown Keepers interlude, but also for campaign 3's themes as a whole.

Specifically what fascinated me though, was the incredible analogy Aimee drew between the Ruidian culture and colonial influence on indigenous/colonized spaces in real life (around the 1h32m mark for reference). It was amazing question to ask and I'll love Aimee endlessly for it because it touches on am interesting parallel between the discourse surrounding the Exandiran gods and what they thematically can represent to us as an audience.

Before I dive into my thoughts, I want to preface this by saying this is my specific perspective as a queer woman of color and daughter of a refugee. While my year-5-in-a-PhD-program brain may just be over analyzing this too much, what Aimee brought up just deeply resonated with me in a way that I don't really see talked about in discussions around the themes of campaign 3. Additionally, the ideas I'll be talking about borrow heavily from Christine Taitano DeLisle's Placental Politics: CHamoru Women, White Womanhood, and Indigeneity under U.S. Colonialism in Guam (2023). Its an incredible piece on indigenous knowledge production and political action that importantly looks to decenter colonial perspectives and history (and more importantly recenter indigenous histories, knowledge, and perspectives in a way that allows us to dislodge the idea that colonialism is something that is immutable and inevitable.)

To quickly summarize Aimee's point/follow up question, she pointed out that the way Ruidians have engaged with, repurposed, and were resentful towards Exandrian cultures mirrors some of the real life experiences of colonized/marginalized communities in relation to colonialism. It was such a powerful comparison to make because in a lot of ways, the struggle of the Ruidian people over the course of the campaign along with the looming question about the gods and whether or not to save them is (intentional or not) deeply resonant with the idea of colonialism and the ways it is deeply ingrained in the even mundane aspects of our life.

In a lot of ways, the Exandrian pantheon can be seen as a colonial force. One that came in and displaced a preexisting order of things and entrenched itself in the new way of being it established. Ashton and Laudna have repeatedly pointed this out throughout the campaign. There was life and existence before the gods. The gods are merely a different mode of being, not the only and inevitable mode of being. Life, society, and being can and did exist without them.

And its important to recognize that aspect of the gods, because it helps us understand their motivations that much better. Aabria in her description of what Opal saw in the Spider Queen as she tried to take Opal as her champion was poignant. Opal did not see an omniscient, unknowable entity. She saw a woman. A woman who was frustrated, angry, and most importantly frightened. They keep Predathos chained away not to protect life on Exandria nor because they feel a moral obligation to do so. They are doing so because they are afraid. Their mortality is at stake. And, as Aabria keenly pointed out, their pride is as well. Every action, every move is out of self preservation. An attempt to save themselves because Predathos demonstrate that not even the gods are a permanent thing.

You'll find (as Anne Stoler writes about frequently) that colonial systems are much the same. They are vehemently intent on self preservation. Any action they undertake and any narrative they create about themselves is solely done to preserve the way things are currently. And that includes narratives that the way things are currently is somehow inevitable. That things were always coming to this moment. Often, this is done at the expense of framing other modes of being as somehow antithetical to the way things are now. That it needs to be this way. And that this way is right and forever.

To me, its important to recognize these parallels. While Ruidians may engage with, adapt, and innovate off of Exandrian ideas, culture, and art, it is only because - as Aimee aptly phrased it - Exandrian culture as a direct result of the gods actions has "sucked all the air out" everything. What is there to engage with, if not the looming orb in the sky that has shaped every aspect of their existence?

It really brings the campaign-wide question of "should we save the gods?" into new light, at least in my opinion. Because its suddenly not about "saving the gods in a morally righteous act to preserve all life." It becomes a layered and complicated network of issues that makes the answer to that question incredibly difficult to answer. Is preserving the status quo because its how things operate now worth it at the expense of the suffering of others? What would saving the gods and the Ruidians look like? Is it even possible to save both? What changes to how things operate would be a result of that? How would those changes be handled?

I bring this up because there is a tendency in some discourse that I've seen to frame questioning the validity of saving the gods as inherently the "wrong" choice to make. When instead, when you see the cast struggling over the question, its because the answer is not straight forward. The gods are not necessary for life. They never were. They just are necessary for life the way things are now. And the question of what disrupting that means is such a fascinating one to engage with.

[musicalmoritz]

this gonna be a weird question but ever since i have know Aoinene. I have always found a consistent theme of Aoi being a lesbian. While it cool, interesting and all, it hard to found anything canonically to use to prove the interpretation beyond "it just a vibe" . It doesnt interfer with the shipping experience but it still an interesting HC that i would love to found some canon material to build on.

I’m so glad you asked this, I’ve been trying to find a way to talk about my feelings on the lesbian Aoi headcanon for a while now. I’ve written it in my own fics a lot but I have some issues with the way people treat it so I’d like to make this a more nuanced discussion

First off, where does it come from? To answer that question you have to keep in mind that as the manga chapters were being released, fans had no idea where AidaIro planned to go with Aoi and Akane’s relationship beyond what they could infer. While it seems obvious in hindsight that Aoi always liked Akane, a lot of lesbian readers overlooked those hints because they were able to relate to being pursued by a relentless man that they didn’t want. They found comfort in Aoi’s character because her perceived disinterest in Akane was something they could connect to their own experiences with their male best friends falling for them

Then we have this scene, which is a whole rollercoaster in and of itself. At this point in the manga, fans didn’t know Aoi was faking her personality. She only existed as Nene’s popular best friend, the girl with the rumors. And, of course, the girl who kept rejecting Akane. Aoi and Nene seemed to have a very close friendship, so when this scene came out, many readers jumped to the conclusion that Aoi planned to confess to Nene. This, coupled with her constant rejection of Akane, led many fans to believe Aoi was a lesbian. Not just as a cool headcanon, but as an actual theory. To this day some fans still call her queercoded, and that’s where I have a bit of an issue with the headcanon

Because, despite all of this, Aoi isn’t a lesbian in canon. She’s not even coded to be one. In fact her and Akane’s characters aren’t able to develop without each other. Some fans chalk this up to bad writing or lesbiphobia, stating that Aoi never showed interest in Akane up until chapter 69, but this simply isn’t true. There were numerous hints that Aoi liked Akane back, since his feelings for her were first introduced. She’s shown to be absolutely devastated at the possibility of him dating someone else, and in the Clock Keepers arc we see that she’s been encouraging his pursuit of her this whole time. Fans may not like them, but it’s impossible to deny they’ve been set up since the beginning of the manga- on both sides

However, if you were to call Aoi sapphic coded/bi coded in canon, you wouldn’t be far off. In the Hanako-Kun Of Magic au, Mei fell in love with Aoi through a spell. After the spell wore off, they were confirmed to still hang out. They hang out so frequently, that it makes Mei’s little sister jealous because Aoi is stealing all her attention

It wouldn’t be a reach to assume they’re dating in this au, which would make Aoi bi or bi-coded in canon (though it’s very up to interpretation so I wouldn’t say she’s as strongly bi-coded as Kou or even Nene). It rubs me the wrong way when people discuss her potential queercoding and entirely ignore her feelings for Akane just because they don’t like the ship, it feels biphobic. It’s also been implied that Aoi has liked men (or people in general) other than Akane, he joins school clubs based on whoever her current type is

Canon aside though, I’d like to talk about why people like the lesbian Aoi headcanon. Namely, why I still like it in fanon despite feeling that it has a very weak basis in canon. Because for some fans, Aoi’s true personality reveal only made their love of the lesbian Aoi headcanon stronger

Remember how I said fans overlooked Aoi’s feelings for Akane because they projected onto her? I don’t think there’s anything inherently wrong with that as long as they aren’t bringing their bias into analyses. I’ve read many Aoi queercoding analyses where the creator completely ignores Aoi’s attraction to men in canon due to their own projection, and I hate to say it but that is a bad way to analyze. I’ve mentioned before that I strongly relate to Nene’s shallow crushes on men because they remind me of my own experiences with comphet, but I would never call Nene lesbian coded because that would ignore her entire arc with Hanako. Project onto characters all you want but leave that out of your analyses

Anyways, the reveal that Aoi had been faking her personality only gave the lesbian Aoi headcanon more fuel. At this point in the manga, fans were already fully convinced that Aoi was a lesbian…so to find out the pretty popular girl was hiding her true self from the world?? I mean that sounds queercoded as hell. And I won’t lie, I relate to that a lot too. The need to hide who you really are is a nearly universal queer experience, so pretty much any character that has that storyline is going to hit home for a lot of queer readers. That same trope also plays into Mitsuba’s queercoding, so yeah. Despite all the romance stuff with Akane that happened in those chapters, the big takeaway for lesbian Aoi truthers was that Aoi had been hiding a part of herself that the world would shame her for

This is furthered by her relationship with femininity. Aoi plays the role of the ideal popular girl, a common archetype in media. These girls are feminine, passive, kind, humble, and all the boys love them. That is the image Aoi presents to the rest of the school. However, the real Aoi is nothing like that. I wouldn’t go as far as to call her masculine, but she doesn’t act like the poster child for femininity when she’s being her true self. She’s bitter, arrogant, spiteful, and she only really cares about two people. Lesbians tend to have a very complicated relationship with femininity, because heteronormativity asserts that the defining trait of being a woman is your relationship to a man. As a woman, you are someone’s wife, daughter, mother, sister. So when a woman has no interest in men, she loses a core part of her “femininity.” Some lesbians choose to embrace this, they have no interest in femininity so they perform whatever gender presentation they want. Other lesbians reclaim femininity as something defined by themselves, not society. So when lesbians see a character faking her personality to conform to the societal expectations for her gender…oops she’s one of us now lol. This is also why the transmasc Aoi headcanon is popular, though I won’t be getting into that today

There are more simplistic reasons people like the lesbian Aoi headcanon. It fits a trope, the popular girl who’s pressured to be perfect is secretly a lesbian. Then she falls for her fun and quirky bisexual best friend. Unfortunately this is where the headcanon gets very boiled down, people want Aoi to be something that she’s not in canon. They want her to be a trope rather than her own, unique character. The aesthetic girlboss lesbian. She hates Akane and has a huge crush on Nene, maybe some mommy issues and that’s all there is to her. I don’t like these type of headcanons very much, they reduce queerness to an aesthetic rather than an experience. As I mentioned, the lesbian Aoi headcanon does have potential for fanon content, but some fans sadly reduce it to a stereotype

I’ve written both bisexual and lesbian Aoi, and I think they both have their perks. Lesbian Aoi requires a bit of stretching/rewriting of canon, which can be fun but it has to be handled very carefully. Otherwise you get fics that villainize Akane and ignore Aoi and Nene’s complexities. It’s perfectly fine to project onto a character and headcanon them a certain way for comfort, but in terms of characterization I would recommend people try to look past those biases when they’re writing analyses. Fanfic is a bit different bcuz that depends on whether or not you’re trying to stay in character lol, this might be controversial but some writers just don’t care and that’s fine too. They’re just writing it for fun, it doesn’t have to be that serious. Still, I would like to see more fics that keep Aoi and Nene closer to canon (they absolutely exist dw)

The reason I hesitated for so long to address this headcanon is because I wanted to find a way to talk about it sensitively. Queer fans, especially lesbians, already get a lot of flack for their headcanons and I didn’t want to make it seem like I was invalidating anyone’s experiences. If the lesbian Aoi headcanon brings you comfort then, yes, Aoi can absolutely be a lesbian. Fandom is about fan enjoyment, not authorial intent, so headcanon the characters however you want. Just don’t push those headcanons into others, and try to at least be aware of what’s going on in canon. And again, don’t write an analysis if you’re going to be biased. A better way to do it would be something like “I recognize that AidaIro didn’t go this route but it would’ve been interesting if they made Aoi a lesbian.” An analysis like that might have some weight to it!! Aoi and Akane are a super cute ship, but another straight relationship is nothing revolutionary in fiction. However, canon lesbians in a shonen series?? That’s something you don’t see every day. People have valid reasons for wishing Aoi had been written differently, I just wish they would accept that she didn’t get written that way rather than ignoring canon

Sorry if this isn’t what you were expecting, I hope I explained all sides of the headcanon well enough. Tbh a lot of it is just “vibes” but once you look past the surface, it goes a lot deeper. I also want to clarify that Aoi faking her personality reading as queercoding could absolutely work with her being bi too, bisexuals also have to hide a part of themselves and that’s something other lgbtq+ individuals often overlook. The reason it reads specifically as lesbian coding to some fans is because of her projection of femininity being fake so, by extension, her encouragement of the men who pursue her must be too. That’s obviously not canon but some fans believe it would’ve been a cool route to go. Okay that’s it I think I covered everything lol

Thanks again for the ask, I’m glad I finally got the opportunity to talk abt this <3

[charliemwrites]

(losing my fucking mind rn tumblr closed out on me and made me have to rewrite this ask from the beginning 😞😞)

but anyways!!! obedient sitting on johns lap, dozing off in their heavily decorated house (he bought her every holiday themed decoration her lil heart desires, the theme of their house is light and snowy with white tinsel and pretty garlands and fairy lights around every corner, accenting the dark wood floors and oak furniture perfectly <3) the smell of cocoa heavy in the background. price never ever lets her drink, but tonight is an exception. shes cupping a mug of peppermint schnapps in her little hands, sipping on it slowly and price laughs so hard at the sight of his good girl being tipsy, the vibrations of it rumbling through his chest and slightly jostling her; but shes too sleepy and warm, almost asleep from the combination of her keepers big burly arms wrapped around her and the heat in the house being cranked due to the cold outside. shes chatty today, probably because of the drink but mainly because of how excited she is to finally see her owner again. they talk about their days, share stories about childhood holiday experiences (she cant seem to remember hers though..), share lots of little kisses and snuggle each other; watching various winter themed hallmark movies and giggling about how corny they are (she secretly loves them and more than once, price catches her peering up at him from her place on his lap; her big doe eyes staring at him in adoration) shes more than a little drunk when she ends up falling asleep on him in front of the roaring fire. he chuckles to himself and kisses her head, shifting just barely to keep from waking her; as he grabs a big plush throw (one she picked out!!!!!) and spreads it out over them. they wake up the next morning, tangled together and faintly smelling of mint and his cologne. they both get up to go potty a little while after price nags obedient enough; and her legs feel like mush from sleeping on the couch overnight. (even if she technically slept on price, EVEN though their couch could count as a small twin sized bed its so big and cushy) its okay though, because price is off for a week and has time to help his kept bake and cook all day!!!! (rare holiday leave<3, he might get called in but god help whoever he has to face if it means taking away from the time he has with his babygirl) they make lots of cookies, end up feeding each other half of them before they even get to icing them (!!!!! they make a game out of it, seeing who can get more of the unused icing on the others face !!!!!!!!!!!); and price hasnt seen his pet this happy; ever. if only he had time off all the time!!! oh. oh. he wont bring it up just yet, but retiring is starting to sound like a good idea…

-🎄🎄anon (happy holidays love!!!!!!!)

Oh I hate when tumblr does that, you’re a trooper for rewriting it. Fun fact, if my computer doesn’t save something I’ve written, I just about abandon the whole project. It’s only happened a couple times, but it drives me a special kind of crazy.

Now for this little Drabble I’m utterly obsessed with. 🎄🎄?? This is brilliant. Ever since @ceilidho made that bear!price fic, I’ve been yearning to just hibernate through the damn winter with this man. I love everything about this, no notes. Just a deep deep need to have this experience.

[sha-brytols]

im afraid to open a can of worms, haha, but can i ask you what do you like about solas and his romance? coming from a genuine place of curiosity because i never romanced him

i liked him decently on my first playthrough where i befriended him, but when i tried to romance him on another try, my lavellan and him clashed so much, arguing constantly and gaining disapproval like crazy 😭 so i didn't continue it

maybe it's on me for choosing to play as an older keeper and grandmamancing him (romancing him as a grandma), i thought it'd be a fun dynamic but grandma lavellan's freak was left unmatched...

what solas and elnora's dynamic is like? what drives them to romance? what makes them click? i rly want to know

i can't remember if this was sent before or after i wailed about how much i miss blackwall's romance but if its the latter this is really funny. anyway i'm flattered you're asking me of all people since i feel like i'm probably on a solavellan blacklist somewhere LOL

this post ended up longer than expected so um. woe readmore be upon ye

my enjoyment of his romance is like almost purely from a meta perspective so take my opinions with several grains of salt because i am like the furthest you can get from a standard solavellan fan; like on an actual emotional level i just physically cannot fucking stomach imagining myself in a relationship with him even in a self indulgent "sexy older man with Issues" fantasy. which might be the root of your problem too idk what your personal preferences are but full disclosure this is NOT my usual taste LOL

but um. i think for me the biggest part of solas' romance that i enjoy is being able to play off of his character and his flaws and motivations etc. elnora was like my 50th inquisitor so i kind of had the privilege of meta knowledge allowing me to write her relationship to him from a more informed place than someone would be if they were going in blind (which is what i think contributed to me enjoying the game just in general so much, having the ability to go into certain situations already knowing how things will play out and making sure my character complimented the themes and plot structure accordingly).

like for elnora specifically, i gave her a more unorthodox take on her faith (she believes in the maker as well as the creators and tries to follow the wisdom of both andraste And mythal from a place of open-minded curiosity), which meant it was easier to talk to solas and gain some common ground without the constant feeling that you're just being talked down to, which in turn i think made him as a character a lot more digestible to me because i think when you approach his dialogue from a position of genuine interest—even from just a roleplay perspective and not necessarily your own interest in the material—it makes the whole thing a lot more enjoyable because it feels less like an argument and more like a character study (if that makes sense.?) like for me i HAD to detach myself from my character's beliefs to get the most out of it. this isn't even to say you have to make a character that constantly agrees with him because elnora SURE DIDNT LOL but i think it's just about having a character that values his wisdom i would say, because it really shifts your perspective of him and makes it easier to appreciate him as a character

also. yeah. sorry i think the grandma part might have contributed LOL solas' romance does seem like its geared more towards like. mid-30 year old lavellans Max. or at least people who dont have the same amount of life experience that he posits to have. again i think understanding that a lot of the condescension is completely unintentional is important because from solas' perspective he really is just trying to set the record straight for someone who he believes is genuinely just uneducated in a subject matter he is well versed in (you know, it's that thin line between pride and wisdom). so yeah it's probably going to be extra irritating to have a character that DOES actually know what she's talking about and is having to listen to him mansplain elfy shit to her LOL. the power imbalance is a big part of the romance, so it's kind of something you have to accept or at least find a way to navigate that works for your personal comfort level

my favorite part about elnora and solas' relationship i think is that they're pretty much the same person but at two different stages of their journey. elnora is the free-spirited skeptic who just wants to understand as much of the world as possible and carve out her place in it. solas is the bitter old sage who's learned the hard way the cost of his ambitions and is looking back on his own journey with a heavy dose of regret. neither of their outlooks are inherently right or wrong, so there's always this kind of push-and-pull where they're learning from each other but also trying to change each other's minds and they both eventually reach a line where they can't cross over. i think that's why it made so much sense to me for them specifically to have a relationship rooted more in the emotional intimacy as opposed to the sexual and this is only partly because the mental image of solas being sexual in any way makes me feel violently ill.

my FAVORITE part about the romance though that i think is what ultimately sealed it as one of my favorite dynamics is the fact that lavellan can be Angry with him. i love when he shatters her entire world and then immediately decides to dump her on the spot in the most clinical and detached way possible and she can say "are you FUCKING kidding me?!" and storms off. i love that she can confront him later and Not Allow him to play it off like it was nothing. i love that you can shout "YOU LIED TO ME" when you finally meet him again in trespasser and when he tries to brush it off ("only by omission") she just gets angrier and then they literally square off like this.

but like the reason why i like that is because the game never once tries to strongarm what you should do with that anger. lavellan can be angry and also still love him. the ability to adopt that "fuck you you can't push me away i'm bringing you home even if it's kicking and screaming the whole way" mentality is soooo delicious to me. i love how much agency she has in how she can react to him after he essentially betrays her (multiple times) and how that reaction does not necessarily misalign with what she wants to do in terms of his fate. its such an interesting dynamic that really allows you to explore the character from angles that you don't really get to see very often because video game romances tend to be VERY binary in terms of your characterization (and as much as i adore da2 i do fully believe even the rivalmance/friendmance paths fall victim to this). idk i just think it's super cool

also uhhhh i like drama. yeah thats the post

[brotherscain]

MY TURN TO GIVE YOU A WINCEST WEDNESDAY ASK!

Keeping it on the weecest theme, how do you think Dean reacted the first time John allowed Sam to join them on a hunt? Or even before that, when he figured out that Sam wasn't going to be spared from the hunter lifestyle and started to learn about weapons and fighting?

!!!!!! a treat!!!!!!

part of dean, a part of himself that he hates more than anything, is sort of glad. dean loves sam but dean never got to pretend that bad shit wasn’t out there. he never got to say no to dad. a sick voice in the back of dean’s head is really satisfied that sam now has to look it in the face like deans had to for years.

but the bigger, overwhelming feeling that overtakes everything else is fear. so much fucking fear. dean is his little brother’s keeper and that was ten times easier when sam wasn’t tagging along. to compensate, i think dean trains himself harder than ever. he’s less focused on sam needing to pull through and save his own ass because his head is just a constant stream of “protectsammygetsammyoutofthewaysavesam” for the first couple of years sam’s out on jobs with them. it causes a lot of fights because sam isn’t happy about this whole thing but he can at least be trusted enough to watch his own damn back without dean throwing himself in the line of fire and getting stupid injuries. and it takes a while for dean to get over the feeling, to get over himself, maybe he never truly does!!!

thank you for the ask soni <333 i love it

[psychhound]

ttrpgs in the classroom (part 4)

howdy!! back again after,, a time away (grad school is insane <33 save me <33) for a long overdue classroom post!!

so this one is about our first big essay assignment, the personal narrative essay! we'll actually be going over a number of games for this one!!

the assignment:

write a 900-1200 word personal narrative essay by playing a solo journaling ttrpg and reflecting on the experience using the prompts provided

the prompts:

What memory surfaced while you were playing the game, and why do you think that is?

What was your main emotion while playing, and where do you think that emotion came from?

What story from your childhood did your playthrough remind you of, and how did you come to know that story?

How did playing through the game inspire you? Is there a change you want to make in your life because of this experience?

Did playing through the game remind you of a success or failure from your real life, and if so, how did playing help you reflect on this?

the games: (as presented on the assignment sheet)

The Lighthouse at the Edge of the Universe by @lostwaysclub

You are a lighthouse keeper in the far reaches of space. Every day, there is work to be done to maintain your lighthouse, safeguarding passing ships from the edge of the universe. Log your observations, maintenance, and events while facing threats like emotion-driven weather.

Yourself

You have just discovered that you are a changeling: something between human and fey. Over five acts, you will reckon with this new discovery, and let your feelings shift and grow.

Snow

There’s something on your mind. There’s snow in the driveway. As you take the time to shovel it out, you think through and process your situation, whether mundane or life-altering.

Long Haul 1983 by @seanpatrickcain

You are a long-haul truck driver making a journey through an empty but dangerous world. Each day, you face a long, lonely highway filled with threats—whether mechanical, supernatural, or psychological. Each night, you make a payphone call to your most important person and leave them a message, though they never pick up.

Last Tea Shop (CW: death)

You own a tea shop on the border between the worlds of the living and the dead. As people pass from the first to the last, they stop into your teashop to have a drink and talk with you.

&

village witch - which was not on the assignment sheet but one student asked special permission to play this one after we listened to an actual play podcast that played this game (alone at the table by @ladytabletop) and the themes of the game really spoke to her

(if folks know other tumblrs for the creators feel free to tag them!!)

the results:

i was really really happy with these essays overall. the students wrote about some very impactful memories and emotions, and all seemed to get a lot out of playing

i had a lot of essays that came back and said "i never thought i'd be a gamer but i really enjoyed this" or "i didn't think i would get anything out of this experience but it really moved me". i was particularly happy with the essay from the business major that said "this was way better than being on my phone" considering these are 18 year olds still adjusting after years of the pandemic and leaving home for the first time and also this was homework

the most popular game played was last tea shop, and i had a mix of responses of "this made me realize how much i value my friends" to "i really need to value my friends and memories with them more" to "i really want to make more friends". i also had students who said this game helped them process grief over losing loved ones

long haul was also a popular one, and i got my most descriptive writing out of this game. it was interesting who the students chose to make their calls to, as well as what they chose the threats to be. one student got a bad ending and decided to play the whole thing again so he could make it home

the students who played lighthouse found it really soothing, as the game intends, and said it was a good way to process things that were on their mind after some of them had rough days leading up to playing (one student said he had to start over because he almost fell asleep on his desk after the game was too relaxing)

and with snow, none of the students chose to meditate on things directly from their lives, but all ended up finding that they had unconsciously put things they needed to process into the game and found new perspectives on them from playing. the kids who chose this one were the most surprised at what they got out of the experience

no one ended up choosing to play yourself, so i may switch this one out for future classes

the reason i chose these games in particular is that they all have an element of choice, and they all deal with emotions in some way. i thought this was a really successful first assignment and was glad the students all seemed invested and excited to play more after this

[dangermousie]

Tagged by @tavina-writes

1. why did you choose your url?

This nick and my icon is all the way from Farscape forums back in early 00s. I picked it because I enjoyed the Dangermouse cartoons.

2. any sideblogs? if you have them name them and why you have them.

I made dangermousie2 in the event the main one gets banned or there is some other issue, but I don't use it. I am old enough that I started when people didn't have theme/sideblogs and that's how I roll.

3. how long have you been on tumblr?

2011? 2012? I am a LiveJournal refugee who first got an account when LJ started being unreliable but only switched in a meaningful way when I got into Spartacus and all the fun fandom was here.

4. do you have a queue tag?

Nope. Impulse control and planning, what's that?

5. why did you start your blog in the first place?

I first got LJ back in 2005 (I think) because a cousin got me into it; I was posting about things like books and Bollywood and Star Wars then. And then here I am all these years later.

6. why did you choose your icon/pfp?

Fits my user name. A very kind person made it for me back on long defunct Farscape boards back in 2003/2004.

7. why did you choose your header?

I don't have anything there, it's whatever tumblr gave me.

8. what’s your post with the most notes?

I have NO idea how to find it out tbh. But it might be:

9. how many mutuals do you have?

No idea how to check.

10. how many followers do you have?

6581

11. how many people do you follow?

2565

12. have you ever made a shitpost?

Nope

13. how often do you use tumblr each day?

Way way way too often.

14. did you have a fight/argument with another blog once?

Yes. I am a lot less likely to do so now but when I was younger and more impulsive, oh yes.

15. how do you feel about ‘you need to reblog this’ posts?

You say that, I will not reblog and will likely block you to boot.

16. do you like tag games?

Sometimes.

17. do you like ask games

Sometimes.

18. which of your mutuals do you think is tumblr famous?

I have no idea. Thankfully we are largely past the era of BNFs and I am glad for that.

19. do you have a crush on a mutual?

I am waaaay too old for that question. No.

20. what is the last song you listened to?

ТІК & Ірина Білик - Не цілуй

21. what are you currently watching?

I have a pinned post about that but a bunch. My faves out of the airing stuff I am watching are Love in the Desert, Black Out and Iron Family.

22. sweet/ savoury/ spicy?

I have no spice tolerance so the other two.

23. what is your current relationship status?

Married. To a man who is OK with listening me describe Wu Chang Jie to him in excruciating detail so def a keeper.

24. what is your current obsession?

Lust in the Dust (iykyk), Cass Morris' Aven Cycle, coffee.

25. what are nine albums/ songs you've been listening to lately?

no idea, it changes.

Tagging @aysekira @silviakundera @renewedmotionforjudgment @fake-married-my-dead-fiance and anyone else who wants to

[cyb3rsku1l]

Hallo, I'll make a request for 1995 Undertaker please: he finds a big rip in his coat soon before he has to go make his entrance, and a stagehand who is always shy and quiet but secretly likes him a lot offers to go out of her way to fix it for him, then later Taker is in the graveyard and finds that same stagehand, looking sad, they talk and she tells him she was orphaned young and she always feels alone, as they speak the feelings between them are growing until Taker holds her in his arms and they kiss sweetly, officially becoming together now, makeout and kiss somemore and Taker carries his now girlfriend inside his spooky house lol. Sorry if it's long.. -_-

AN: Thank you for your request! I'll try my best to deliver this is my first fic so yk lol enjoy!

Warnings(?): None really just kissing :]

Not proof read! My first fic please be nice

TuT👍

You strolled through the halls of backstage. You managed to land your dream job working for one of the bigger companies, WWE. You got a job as stagehand. this job could be tedious since you had to run around setting things up, fixing wrestlers costumes, making sure props were switched with their breakable counter parts.

It was just a usual day for you. Everything was going good, the crowd was loving the show. You were sitting in the "costume room" making sure none were ripped from stunts and such when you heard the door open with an ominous creak. You looked up to see The undertaker in all his intimating scary glory. You didn't say anything you just glanced up at him and back down to the costume you were finishing up with a minor repair needed. You assumed he needed a part to his costume or something. Vince McMan the owner of WWE always seemed on edge with the undertaker given how he acts his ominous presence just being there. You got how Vince felt you were already pretty shy around the wrestlers male or female but with Taker...you really tried to have limited interaction with him because of his intimating appearance and demeanor. You couldn't lie you might have had some feelings for the Deadman. Just how he was so ominous and vague...it intrigued you. You wanted to know more about the Deadman and what drives him to be the way he is...

Your thoughts were interrupted by a deep voice rumbling out in the small room as the Deadman removed his coat. "There's...a rip in my jacket. Fix it." You deadpanned as you looked up at the black leather jacket that Taker held out to you his cold eyes scanned your face as you took his jacket without a word. You had a line of costumes you had to fix but you stopped to fix Takers jacket for him because he was on soon. You began to sew the tip for him as he just stood there staring at you under his back and purple Fedora. As you finished up, you tied the knot to secure the repair and gave it a little test tug before handing it back to him. You smiled up at the Deadman which caught him by surprise. "It shouldn't rip in that area unless you cut it or someone pulls really hard on it." You turned away as Taker put the jacket on and slightly nodded his head before leaving the room just as his theme began making the crowd go wild.

Later that night you stood over your parents graves. You placed a new set of their favorite flowers in the little side jar in between their respective resting places. You stepped back and just stood there. The slight wind blew gently through your hair seemingly trying to be a sort of comfort.

As you stood there you let a couple of tears fall. The bright beautiful moon made them shimmer as they fell down your face. You felt a Presence behind you and you turned around thinking it was a grave keeper that was coming to tell you that they were closing up for the night. Instead you were met with Taker...he stood behind you without his hat this time. You turned your head wiping your tears as Taker tilted his head slightly. "What's wrong little one?" Taker asked his voice low with a bit of curiosity. You looked up and then looked away again before you said in a small voice, "Nothing just visiting some people..." You felt Takers hand take your chin with surprising gentleness. Your eyes met his as he asked again, "Don't lie. What's wrong?" Your heart skipped a beat as you felt a new wave of tears film your eyes as they slowly trailed down your face Taker used his thumb to wipe them away.

"I'm visiting my parents...they passed when I was little so...I had nobody growing up. I guess I'm just reflecting on that." You said, your voice small and timid. "I see" Taker said his voice low and rumbly as he looked away then back to you before he slowly pulled you close and held you in a surprisingly gentle hug. You paused before hugging him back. Your arms were unable to wrap all the way around his waist due to his muscular body.

Taker tilted your head up and stared into your eyes. You stared back a light blush creeping up your neck coloring your cheeks. Suddenly Taker leaned down, capturing your lips in his. You froze but then closed your eyes and kissed back. You placed your hands on his chest as he pulled you closer by your waist.

Taker's tongue invaded your mouth making you let out a small gasp which made him chuckle. You wrapped your arms around his neck as you kissed taking little breaths in between. When Taker pulled back you were left slightly panting as he stared down at you with a slight smirk. You blushed as what you just did set in. You buried your head in his chest as your blush covered your face. "It's alright love. A kiss never hurt anyone right?" Taker chuckled as he picked you up into his arms bridal style. You squeaked as your blush intensified. "Wait!" You called out making Taker look down at you as he made his way to his manor. "Do not fret love, I am taking you home, where you will be safe with me in my arms and sights always." You thought about it for a moment, 'how bad can this be?' you thought to yourself as you leaned your head on his shoulder a happy smile painted on your face.

[kimdokjas]

Shaking your hand shaking your hand shaking your hand. Thank you for being the first person to engage with my rambling 1000xRESIST post. Also compliments on the username; I do think ORV has some parallels in 1000xRESIST. Specifically how both Dokja and Iris were in isolation, and duplicated themselves in a way where their copy hated them and tried to kill them. The main difference being that Dokja had others who cared about him, but Iris had already gotten rid of anyone who might intervene in her new world. And both of them are EXCELLENT at being works that have no single all-consuming thesis, but instead are complex and interwoven narratives that cannot be consumed and understood in a single attempt, or even by a single viewpoint.

absolutely insane ask to wake up to. hello. a fellow 1xr AND orv enjoyer oh my gosh..... how does it feel having immaculate taste!!! we are melding minds rn 🧠🤝🧠

throwing up blood at the dokja/iris parallels i feel sick to my stomach!!! thank YOU for being the first person to bring up the orvcore of this game. i've been literally vibrating out of my skin without anyone to scream about this hyperspecific niche with so i hope you don't mind me rambling for a sec lmao

you're SO right about their similarities and it's breaking my heart.... also the way both iris and dokja only know how to sacrifice, and the tragic irony of how they both take after their mothers in this because it's the only way they know to love. and the contrast between iris deciding to show everyone her past which led to her eventual demise vs dokja hiding his past at all costs and taking up the blade to doom himself.

also! the themes of stories and memories. how the keepers/occupants were referencing memories and the outer gods were beings of excised stories. and the concept of death and remembrance as a transfer. how a story is alive as long as someone out there is thinking of it. a person living through the memories of others. how because of this both dokja and iris remained and remained and remained after death.

i also see a lot of similarities between watcher and od... both scattered across time and having lived too many lifetimes, lost in reminiscence in an endless train. they're the reason their current timeline exists because they embodied that balance between remembrance of the past and hope for the future... even if that future didn't include themselves.

the difference was watcher communed in an attempt to understand, and od dreamed out of love for that one story... but in a way, just like orv said, isn't trying to understand someone a labor of love? how you can keep rereading a person's story and find something new each time, and still never fully understand them?

oh!! i absolutely love how you articulated that last part about narratives that can't be completely understood by a single viewpoint... i've often found those to be my favorite kind of stories; the ones that raise questions without any one definitive answer, that allow for different interpretations and multiple readings. and you're right, both of these stories are PEAK in that regard 🤌

also if you'd like another story with similar vibes, interwoven narratives, and nuanced themes i highly recommend a manhwa called Truth or Dare (Jinsolhan Segye) by Yu Myeong. it's fairly short and it starts out slow but gets very philosophical and is a social commentary on so many things... i posted some rambling propaganda here if you're curious but tbh i'd rec going in blind! i don't want to say too much about it because just like with 1xr and orv there's so much joy in gleaning the themes in a story for yourself <3

[ariannaserissa]

Inquisitor and Solas Post-Breakup? 👀

Argh, this one just needs a few more scenes to come together and then it'll be ready to post. Hopefully soon!

I was unsatisfied by how few characters reacted to Solas and Lavellan ending their relationship in-game as well as, in my case, Lavellan no longer having her face tattoos, so this story focuses on that. (I know including more in the game would have devoted a lot of resources to a niche outcome few players would probably see, thus it wasn't worth the cost.) I'm sure there are many stories that explore this theme, but hopefully I'll be able to put my own spin on it.

From the WIP Ask Game here!

----------

The Inquisitor returned to Skyhold alone, her face unmarked by vallaslin and her heart broken. She had thought it would be a romantic trip away with Solas. She had never been more wrong.

Kaliska paused when the Inquisition’s headquarters came into view. As she studied the fortress walls, she reached up to touch where Elgar’nan’s twisting vines had been on her cheek. She had come to regret asking Solas to rid her of the tattoos that had marked her as Dalish. There were a great many things she regretted now.

She heard footsteps behind her and tensed but did not turn around. She recognized Solas’ stride by the sound and rhythm alone, and he was not a danger to her, at least physically. Emotionally was another matter. He had been standing by her side for so long, a formerly comforting presence that had turned hurtful now.

 “Why are you here?” she asked dully, her voice flat and empty. She could not bear to look at him, keeping her face toward Skyhold in the distance instead of the elf by her side.

“I traveled behind you, but close enough to ensure that you came across no danger on your own.”

She had been too caught up in her own thoughts to notice that he had been following her all along. She could not find it within herself to be grateful that he had been watching over her right now, not when her emotions were still so raw.

“I thought you would leave.” She wished he had. If they truly could not be together anymore, it would be easier if she never had to see him again, especially when he refused to tell her why he had ended things.

“I still have my part to play in what transpires next. Corypheus is not yet defeated.”

“You just want that elven Orb he has,” she accused, her hands clenching into fists. She welcomed the anger. It was better than the numbness or the grief. She had shed too many tears over this man already. “Is the only reason you joined the Inquisition and stayed through everything because it was a means to an end?”

Solas was silent for a moment. “The threat remains. I hope to see you put an end to Corypheus with my own eyes.”

The anger left her as quickly as it came, replaced by weariness. “I thought about running away instead of coming back,” she found herself admitting to him.

“What changed your mind?”

“I have nowhere else to go.” She did not know how her clan would react if she returned to them with her face bare of vallaslin. Receiving the markings was a rite of passage to show that the recipients were now full members of the clan. No adult elf who called themselves Dalish lacked vallaslin.

Even if her clan accepted her back within their ranks, which she doubted they would do now, she was not sure she wanted to join them again and resume her role as First to the Keeper. She had not thought much about what would happen once the Inquisition’s task was complete – her focus was on defeating Corypheus, a challenge that often seemed impossible – but when she imagined her future, she had pictured a life spent traveling with Solas. She had seen too much of the world now to be content as a future Keeper.

“And like you said,” she added, “this isn’t over yet. I can’t abandon the Inquisition when Corypheus is still out there.”

“You would never have come as far as you have without such tenacity.” He paused. “And it will continue to carry you forward.”

She snorted at that. Yes, she would continue to endure as she had from the beginning. The world needed the Inquisitor, the Herald of Andraste, not the broken-hearted, uncivilized elf who had given her love to a man who had denied it without telling her why.

Solas had never once reached out to her during their entire conversation. His arms remained at his sides. He seemed to realize that any touch or kind gesture from him would only hurt now.

Still, there was a part of her that wished his stoic façade would break and he would at least indicate her wanted to comfort her, even if he stopped himself from carrying the motion out. He had usually kept her at distance, his walls coming down only occasionally. Those rare moments of affection, warmth, and passion were the reason she had fallen in love with him.

She took a deep breath. “Wait until tomorrow to enter Skyhold. Let me have one night without you near.”

Solas inclined his head. “As you wish.”

She hoped he spent the night cold and miserable. Squaring her shoulders, she made the final leg of her journey.

[snackara]

Hey there! Sorry it took me so long, but I finally got my questions ready for your "Solomonar Chronicles"!

I remember that this series was inspired by how bad "Fantastic Beast" got after the first film. (which I get, the other two were such wasted potential) Is anything else from Harry Potter being used for inspiration for your series?

How did you come up with your character names?

Who would say is your favorite character that you made?

Do these characters get trauma like the ones in "Upon a Star?"

Are you going to do more Draconology Files? That one caught my interest the most since I'm studying dragon biology for a villain in my superhero story.

Would this be formatted like a regular book, or play out like a movie?

Is Solomonar Chronicles like a series with each chapter being an episode, or one large story broken up into chapters?

Why did you choose the 1920's for the setting? Its not a bad thing, I actually really enjoy stories set in that period. I'm just curious.

Will we see designs for the characters some day?

Any major villains coming up we should know about?

Are there other fantasy creatures in this world, or just dragons?

I was also curious about your "Dinosauroids Project" story too. I finished the first story of my "Visitors From Pangea" trilogy, so I'm curious how you would write a dinosaur based project.

In regards to original stories we're making, I'm currently creating one called "SuperZeroes", where its a story inspired by all the CBM I grew up with. Not sure if you're into heroes, but I was hoping I could share some stuff I have with you? At least while I'm still building the world and characters.

Thank you! 🐶

Oh hell yeah, ask away!

I took a lot of inspiration from problems I found in the world-building. If you want an in-depth look at the flaws in the Wizarding World, I highly recommend this video. It’s very long, but very good. The main flaw I wanted to tackle with this series is the whole Statue of Secrecy, and how it’s more harmful than helpful for mages and non-mages alike. Also this is not a Harry Potter thing, but weirdly enough Deadpool and Wolverine had a heavy influence on the story.

I looked up lists of common names from the 1920s and picked out some that stood out to me for first and last names. Except for Atticus and Clara. Those two just sort of came to me.

Either Atticus or Jesse, it’s a tough choice. On one hand you have Atticus ,who’s deeply traumatized and scarred but over the course of the story slowly heals and finding good in the world again. And on the other is Jesse, who’s just an absolute sweetheart and so supportive of his lover.

Oh heavens no…it’s so much worse in this series. Just look at Atticus.

Yes, I have a couple in my drafts I’ve been meaning to work on.

Im hoping to get it published as a real book series someday, so it’s formatted like a normal novel.

More like a larger story broken up into chapters, for the most part.

Mainly because that was when the Fantastic Beasts trilogy was set. I’ll probably tie it into the themes of the story better with prohibition and the non-mage government, but for now that’s it. Shallow? Yeah. But it works.

I’ve been digging through concept art to use as references lately. So far the pickings are a little slim for how I envision dragons, but I still have some stuff.

Edward Donahue. He’s basically the head of the mage CIA but somehow worse (Keepers), is the strongest believer in keeping non-mages and mages separate, and oh yeah basically started all of this by killing William Torrence and burning half of Atticus’ face off. So yeah, not a great guy.

There are plenty. I’m not sure how I’ll fit them in at the moment, but they will appear, because I have some interesting interpretations. One fun idea I have is making fairies more like bugs than tiny humans.

It’s based of a theory originally created back in the 1980s by David Russell which explores the question of “What if dinosaurs never went extinct and involved human-like intelligence?” It’s a really fascinating concept that I’m surprised more people haven’t picked up on. My own story is based on concept art created by C.M. Koseman and Simon Roy. Unfortunately I don’t have a solid story yet, just some worldbuilding stuff.

Yes please

And thank you for the asks!

[smolwritingchick]

Forced To Believe Chapter 75- Knocking Sense Into You

Summary: Melanie fangirls over working with Chris Jericho, Roman doesn't give up on Morgan, Morgan prepares to be the ref for the upcoming triple threat match for the Diva's Championship

Words: 8,000+

------

Filming Lockdown was a really fun experience for Jon. He was enjoying every second of it, despite the saddening news about Ellie. Melanie and Jon found a way to accept her passing, accepting that pets can't live forever. But Ellie will always have a special place in their hearts. Jon managed to check out Raw for a few minutes, and ironically caught the segment for his 'Eulogy'.

Once the segment was over, he texted Melanie, saying 'The fuck!? I'm dead!?'

----

Eating her delicious grapes, she felt her phone vibrate and checked out Jon's text. She laughed for a few moments, before replying with a laughing emoji.

-----

Back to Jon, they gave each other a couple more text messages before saying their 'I love yous' and 'I miss yous'.

"Thinking about someone special, back at home?" Rebecca Marshall, one of Jon's costars, asked with a smile.

"Yeah." He replied.

"Who's the lucky girl?"

"Ah…her name is Melanie. She's badass that's for sure. Avid grape lover. Her intense eyes can see through my bullshit and all. She's been through a lot with me and she just always keeps me going."

"Sounds like a keeper."

"Definitely." he smiled. "It's nice to come home to someone special. And it's nice to know I have a beautiful woman, waiting for me to come home. I hope she can wait just a little longer. Having her in my arms after all this time will be worth the wait."

-----

Next Week, backstage for Raw, Melanie was in her fangirl phase, again. And this time, it was because of Chris Irvine.

"Mel, calm down." April giggled, watching her pop grapes in her mouth, faster than usual.

"I'm sorry but I'm gonna be working with Chris. Chris friggin' Jericho! His feud with my cousin was one of my favorites to watch, and I'm now gonna work with him! It's crazy!"

April continued to giggle. "You're so cute when you're like this."

"Shut it…" The Outspoken Diva blushed.

"Melanie." Chris greeted.

"H-hey Chris!" She stood up and greeted him with a hug.

"You're not scared of me, are you?" He teased.

"Far from it!" She replied in a high voice.

April laughed. "She's fangirling because she gets to work with you."

Chris let out a laugh. "And here I am, trying to play it cool. I'll admit, I'm fanboying, too. I can't believe I'm working with Joan's cousin." He smiled warmly.

Melanie smiled in response. After getting ready for the opening segment, she went over the script with Chris. She had to admit that acting with him was one of her goals in the WWE. And now she was going to fulfill that goal. She's going up against someone, one of her relatives went up against. It just reminds her of how time flies.

-------

In the ring, as soon as Jericho announced Randy Orton, he got interrupted by the sound of Triple H's theme. The crowd instantly booed as soon as Triple H walked out with the rest of The Authority who were wearing suits.

"Well, Randy Orton was supposed to be the guest of the Highlight Reel, tonight, but look who's here," Cole said.

Morgan walked out in a grey Icon For Hire tank top that said Suns Out, Guns Out, along with a denim jacket and trademark skinny jeans. Her hair was in loose curls as she stood in between Triple H and Rollins.

"Not only Randy Orton, but the entire authority."

The Authority stood on the stage, as Jericho looked on, feeling skeptical. The Authority then stalked their way to the ring.

"This is how you kick off Monday night Raw." JBL cheered.

"Are you kidding me? This cannot be good." King warned.

"I hope it's not good. I love it!" JBL replied as the members of the Authority got in the ring.

"I think if I were Jericho, I might as well call it a night. Good night, everyone!"

"I'd love to see them all gang up on Chris Jericho. That would be entertaining, that would be best for business, that's the way you kick off Monday night Raw! Everybody beat up Chris Jericho."

"You're fired up tonight," Cole said to JBL.

"I'll even join in!" JBL offered as Morgan stood in between Rollins & Orton, crossing her arms.

"Randy, I was expecting you to come out here by yourself, I wasn't expecting you to bring your law firm, of Sellout, Vixen, Suck Up, and Schnoz." Chris insulted.

Kane stepped up to him. "Chris, as Director of Operations, may I remind you-"

Triple H took the microphone from his hands. "It's okay, I got this, I got this. After all, this is Chris Jericho!" He announced, earning cheers from the crowd. "The man that never grew up. And I mean that both figuratively, and you know, literally."

"Hah, hah, hah!" Seth laughed out loud.

"Now, I'd love nothing more Chris than to stand out here and swap insults with you…but I've got important business to take care of." Triple H said.

"You're right, Hunter, I am just a little guy," Chris replied in a funny voice. "But I'm confused as to what you said because you usually don't conduct important business in this ring unless your wife is gettin' put in jail."

Triple H began insulting Chris's scarf, and Chris came back by saying "At least it's not a pink tie."

"Yeah. It's violet, Nimrod. Anyway, you should be thanking me. You should be thanking me for making this the historic highlight reel in history. Because I have been, reviewing the match at SummerSlam between John Cena and Brock Lesnar, I have been listening to the experts, I have been reviewing the commentary, from our Hall of Famers, and I have watched the match between Cena and Lesnar at SummerSlam, over and over again. And all of you can too by the way on the WWE Network for only 9.99." He reminded as the crowd said 9.99 with him. "After watching it, I came to the conclusion that it might not be best for business to have a rematch between Cena and Brock Lesnar. And I am contemplating, naming a new number one contender for Night of Champions."

"Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, hold on, hold on, let me get this straight. You mean to tell me, that you can get the WWE Network for only 9.99?" Chris asked.

"Don't know if you heard."

"And second of all, even though you already granted John Cena his mandatory rematch against Brock Lesnar, you're saying you might have changed your mind? Who are you gonna give the title shot to, now? Who are you gonna give the chance to now?"

"Chris, Chris," Randy spoke up. "There's only one man in this arena that can beat Brock Lesnar. And he is a 12 time world champion. A third generation competitor and the most vicious superstar in that locker room. By the way…he has earned everything that he's gotten." He reminded, still annoyed at Jericho's beginning promo, talking about how he gets things handed to him on a silver platter.

"Or maybe it should be someone who digs up a mask, opens up the gates of hell, and unleashes a demon, on the beast incarnate," Kane spoke up.

"Or maybe," Seth said, earning cheers from the Iowa crowd. "The future has already arrived!"

Morgan revealed a small smile from the crowd chanting Seth's name.

"Seth is from Iowa." Cole reminded. "We're in Des Moines, tonight."

"Maybe the future has already arrived in Mister Money In The Bank, himself." Seth showed off his briefcase. "I mean…I did take out Dean Ambrose and I have become one of the most intelligent & dangerous superstars in that locker room."

Jericho ignored them and turned his attention to Morgan. Feeling eyes on her, she looked up and locked eyes with Jericho. Feeling annoyance from her, he chuckled.

"Ah…I finally get to speak with Chyna's cousin." Chris said as Seth and Orton moved out of the way to reveal her. "What is your name again?"

"Her name is Morgan," Seth replied. "And you will remember that."

"Was I talking to you, two tones? She can speak for herself. Unless The Authority took away her outspoken nature. What did you do to get involved with these losers? Did you go down on your knees, so you can get more opportunities?"

Morgan scoffed and crossed her arms as the crowd laughed and cheered at Jericho's comment.

"Cute." She mumbled.

"Cut it out! Don't disrespect her like that! Her name is Morgan!" Seth glared at him.

"Dorgan?" Chris asked.

"Morgan!"

"Borgan?"

"Morgan!" Seth continued to shout.

Morgan rolled her eyes, watching the two go back and forth.

"Momo?

"Morgan!"

"Morgo?"

"Morgan!"

"Morganna?"

"Morgan!"

"Morgydorgy?"

"Morgan!"

"Morgan Freeman?" Chris questioned as the crowd laughed.

Seth threw his arms up and gave up, as Jericho let out a laugh. Morgan put a hand on Seth's bicep, to calm him down. He gave her the microphone, as she stepped in front of The Authority. Hearing enough of Jericho butchering her name, she spoke up.

"…I'm sorry, weren't you supposed to get a sex change, years ago? Christina Jericho?"

The crowd laughed while Triple H nodded in response.

"Christina?" King asked.

"I've watched you on TV, and every time I do, I go back to that day."

"And what day is that?" Chris asked.

"Oh, so you don't remember tying up my cousin and destroying her hand? You don't remember that?" She started to get more angry at the horrid memory. "Now luckily you got whacked in the head with a hammer and got hit with a fire extinguisher to cool down after you whined and complained about receiving a concussion from my cousin. But I will always have that memory in my head. You said you can be crazy, and I've seen that when you did what you did to my cousin but…I don't think you understand crazy until you meet Harley. I've kept her in all this time, but you never know when she wants to come out and play. I'd watch your back if I were-"

"Would you PLEASE! Shut the hell-UP!" He shouted with the crowd as they cheered for him. Morgan, insulted, glared at him. "Now I must admit that you're probably miffed over what happened in the past. But, I have no problem embarrassing you like I embarrassed your cousin." Chris chuckled at the memories, earning another sharp glare from the diva. "Now I must admit, you're an impressive woman. You're wrestling WWE Superstars, and you never back down from any challenge. You were in one of the most impressive teams in WWE, The Shield. And you were the Diva's champion. But I can also say that you are the biggest bitch of the year!"

"Hey! You don't talk to her like that!" Seth shouted while Morgan frowned at the disrespectful words.

"I mean you attacked your ex-fiancé, watched him get put out of action by Mister Sellout over there…and you've downgraded to The Authority. You always said that you never held your tongue and you'd always open your mouth. Well, I see that after you downgraded to The Authority, you did do something else with your mouth," Chris laughed as the crowd laughed with him.

Morgan's jaw dropped, looking at him in disbelief. Her face began to get red from embarrassment.

"Oh boy!" King chuckled as Seth and Orton got angry.

"Watch it," Orton said in a sharp tone.

"Yeah, it looks like you are a repulsive, manipulative, vindictive, egotistical, desperate, bitch of the year!" He called out as the crowd cheered in response.

Morgan's blood began to boil as her cheeks got more red from embarrassment.

"Do you guys agree with me!?" He shouted as the crowd shouted 'yeah!' in response. "Say it with me! She's repulsive!"

"Repulsive…" The crowd repeated.

"Manipulative."

"Manipulative…"

"Vindictive."

"Vindictive..."

"Egotistical."

"Egotistical…"

"Desperate."

"Desperate…"

"Bitch of the year!" Chris laughed.

"Bitch of the year!" The crowd cheered.

Morgan started pacing around, trying to cool down from being embarrassed by Y2J.

"Aw, you mad? Are you mad at me?" Chris pouted.

"Ya think!?" She shouted. "You think you're real funny, huh?"

"Oh yeah, you're definitely Miss bitch of the year." He applauded her.

"First of all! Do not interrupt me! Second of all, all I heard was blah, blah, blah, blah. I could kind of hear what you're saying, but I don't speak asshole." She snapped. "And is that all you do? Do that same stupid catchphrase? What you need to be saying is…" She cleared her throat, calming down as she began a Jericho impression. "Everybody welcome to…Raw-is-Jericha!"

"Jericha?" King laughed.

"Now since you want to play games...Christina Jericha, I have no problem getting physical with you. But I want you to know that after tonight, when I drop you with a backfire, you will never…EEE~VER! Be the same…again." She quoted with a smirk and did her cocky curtsy.

"That was pretty good," Cole praised.

"Hah, hah, hah." Seth laughed and nodded in approval.

Chris looked on, amused, and nodded in approval of her impersonation of him.

"Back on track about championships…" Morgan turned her attention to Triple H. "Don't you think a woman should go for the title, in the future? To create more history in the WWE? To stand out more from the past WWE Divas?"

"Or maybe…" Chris spoke up. "You should give the chance to a six time world champion, and the first undisputed champion in the history of this business, Y2J! The Ayatollah of Rock 'n' Rolla!"

All of sudden John Cena's music blared out around the arena, cutting Jericho off. The Authority and Chris turned their attention to the stage as Cena marched down to the ring with a stern facial expression. He was not going to have his rematch with Lesnar get taken away from him so easily.

"What the hell are you talking about?" Cena cut right to the chase as soon as he got in the ring. "You know just because your best friends, Ric Flair & Shawn Michaels don't think I can beat Brock Lesnar, doesn't mean I can't and doesn't mean I won't. Funny…because those same two guys thought I could never beat you at WrestleMania 22, yet you tapped out."

"Ouch…" King commented.

"And if you don't remember that, you can go back and watch it for 9.99," Cena said, earning a half smile from Triple H. "This isn't back in the day Hunter…you're not convincing your buddies about who you like and who you don't. You're running the company, the COO. Which means I don't care how many times you watch the footage. I don't care how many Hall of Famers you talk to…I evoked my rematch and you authorized it. Which means if you even think about taking it away from me, I think I'm taking you to court,"

Morgan rolled her eyes at Cena's statement.

"Yeah…I will sue you for every single penny that you have and then I'll be COO of the company. And my first order of business will be looking at you straight in the eye and say, Triple H…you're FIRED!" Cena said with intensity in his voice. "So, why don't you save yourself a headache and your job? The rematch is happening. I meant what I said last week. At Night of Champions, I'm not just going to beat Brock Lesnar. I'm going to beat Brock Lesnar's ass,"

"Are you kidding me? Are you friggin' kidding me, right now? Court? Out of all things?" Morgan bluntly asked.

Cena turned his attention to the Outspoken Diva. "Morgan, this has nothing to do with you. So, I suggest you shut your mouth, sit back, and stand over there with Triple H's goons. I am not in the mood, tonight." He replied in a stern voice as the crowd oohed in response.

"First of all, I don't care who you are but you don't ever talk to me like that. I can say what the hell I want and there's not a damn thing that you can do about it. So, let's get one thing straight…when I talk, you shut your mouth and listen. And when I'm done talking, you can talk," She replied in a dangerous tone. "Clear?"

"Wow," Cole commented.

Morgan looked at Cena up and down before giving him a distasteful facial expression. "Look at you…whining about Triple H not giving you the match…I can't blame him honestly…I mean, it's not my fault you got the five moves of death." She bluntly said with a shrug, as some of the Cena haters cheered.

"Oh boy," Cole looked on.

"Morgan is going into some dangerous territory, right now. You sure you want to say all this in front of an unhappy John Cena?" King wondered.

"I mean come on! You do the same stuff, over, and over again! Like just give up, it's been over a decade. Don't you think some of us are tired of you?" she asked, earning some cheers. "You come out here, doing the same promos. Like when you did that promo about Brock Lesnar. But what happened? News flash! You still got your ass kicked at SummerSlam."

Seth smirked in delight at the angry facial expressions Cena was making. Even though Cena admitted he did get a beating from Lesnar, his anger from Triple H trying to not give him his rematch, was starting to take over.

"What's the deal? What's the deal, dude? I don't understand. Is this gonna be a cycle?" Morgan continued to ponder. "Eat, be with kids, do promos, win all the time, Lesnar comes, get my ass kicked, come back with a vengeance, but still get my ass kicked?"

The Cena fans gave her a ton of heat for that statement, while the Cena haters cheered for her, giving off mixed reactions. Morgan turned to the crowd, chucking.

"You can boo me all you want but you gotta admit that I'm spitting out facts, not raps, which Super Cena likes to do." She shrugged and gave them a smug look. "Still don't believe me, John? Here, lemme do an impression of you." She snatched his hat off his head and put it on her head.

"Ooh, another impression?" King looked on with anticipation.

She cleared her throat and started to act like Cena. "Yo, yo, yo, yo! It's John Cena, man. I bust the rhymes but get busted in the face by Brock Lesnar, every single time I come down to the ring to face him. Oh, wait a minute, I always win because I'm super Cena. And Super Cena is about to bore you with the same stupid promos about Hustle, Loyalty, and Respect." She impersonated while The Authority and some fans laughed. "Hey! I just got a great idea. Why don't I wear a Superman outfit since every time I come down to the ring, it's the same rewritten story? Win, win, and win." She rolled her eyes.

Cena smiled out of frustration because of the match, and amusement from Morgan's impersonation of him. He decided to let her continue to her little promo instead of interrupting.

"This is great! A John Cena impression." King chuckled as Morgan did Cena's trademark taunt in his face, saying "You can't see me!"

Suddenly the Outspoken Diva started to get hype. "Oh, lemme get hit with a big RKO! Here comes the referee! ONE! TWO! Oh my god! Kick out of two! Cena kicks out of two! How I'm not surprised…" She lost her enthusiasm and frowned, giving him a dirty look.

She took his hat off and tossed it in the crowd as fans in the area rushed to try to grab it, snatching it in all different directions.

"Yikes," King said as Morgan faced off with Cena, looking up at him as she got in his face.

"…Been here over a decade and you just keep becoming staler and staler…" she spoke as the Cena haters cheered loudly and chant 'Thank you Morgan!' while the Cena lovers chanted 'Morgan sucks' in response.

She took a few steps back as the chants died down.

"Well, you are a scandalous bitch after beating up your ex-fiancé to align with the Authority," Cena replied as the crowd cheered. "As Jericho said, you're a repulsive, manipulative, vindictive, egotistical, desperate, bitch of the year. And you'd do anything to further your career, huh? Even turning your back on your fans…"

Morgan scoffed. "Coming from the guy who had the fans chanting we want divas, in his match back at the Royal Rumble…" She dissed as the crowd 'ohs' and cheered in response.

"Whoa!" King shouted.

"I swear if you pull that crap in my hometown, we are gonna have a serious problem." she pointed out.

Celeste tweets 'Ah...Heel WWEMorgan101...just asking to get her butt kicked.'

"You don't deserve a rematch. You don't. And what are you gonna do John? What? Give me an AA? Get revenge on me, like Ambrose tried to do? You're not gonna do crap. Let me remind you I broke off my engagement to a lunatic. And he's been vowing for revenge. And he still hasn't done it and he will never do it because he's gone and never coming back. And since Ambrose didn't have the balls to do it, what makes you think that you of all people would do anything to me?"

"All right, all right. Let's calm down." Triple H put a hand on her shoulder, making her back up and stand behind him to continue his business with Cena.

Triple H began to talk about how he does things that are best for business.

"Hey, Hunter. I say let him have the rematch. What's the worst that could happen?" Seth chuckled. "And I mean…if an opportunity should present itself…there's always plan B."

"You know what H?" Orton spoke up. "Seth is right. Give John Cena his rematch, he's earned it, and so have I. Let me have the winner. Give me the winner one on one for the championship. After all…what happened to my rematch, you know way back at WrestleMania?"

"Randy let me just interject here. This is still the highlight reel…uh, since WrestleMania, you've had like 4000 title matches, and succeeded a grand total of never. As a matter of fact, the last big match that I saw you have, you got Superman punched and speared by Roman Reigns!" Chris said.

"Chris, you know as well as I do that Roman Reigns beating me at SummerSlam, means nothing. Roman Reigns means nothing. If he were here, right now, I would drop that piece of crap, right where he stands. And now Chris…a little advice for you, I wouldn't proceed with caution. You wanna make a joke of me? You will not like the punchline."

Before Jericho had the chance to respond, the crowd erupted into loud cheers when Roman's theme came on.

"Okay, Randy!" Cole said.

"Speaking of punchline," King said as Roman walked down the steps and through the crowd.

"Now's his chance to drop him."

"He may do it," JBL replied. "Roman Reigns may walk in the ring and get dropped down by Randy Orton."

"You're right, he might. Maybe it could happen, as Roman Reigns makes his way to the WWE Universe. What a way to kick off Monday night Raw, here, tonight, live." Cole said as Roman jumped over the barricade and got in the ring.

"Well, here I am, Randy. Drop me." Roman gave him permission. Triple H put a hand out to block Randy's way. "Just like I thought…all talk. And you two…you guys don't see happy to see me." He looked at Kane and Rollins. "You still mad when I busted up your little eulogy for Dean Ambrose? No, you're pretty pissed for when I almost crushed your skull with that cinder block, last week, huh?"

Rollins started to get angry as he tried to forget about that unpleasant memory.

"And you." Roman looked directly at Morgan. "What happened to you?"

"I'm great, what's up with you? Why are you so mad?" Morgan asked nonchalantly. "You know ever since Dean got taken out, you've been around me more often. Have you guys been noticing that?" she asked The Authority as they nodded in response. "Come on, Roman…I know what this is about. You're happy Dean is out of the picture, aren't you?"

"Happy?" Cole asked.

"You're happy because you get to have me all for yourself." She smirked out of amusement.

"I'm around you more because the real Morgan wouldn't even join The Authority if she was paid to. I want my baby girl back."

Morgan showed a half smile at her nickname before frowning. "Guess you really don't know me well if you thought that. I said it once and I'll say it again…I know what I'm doing and I don't need you. Let me go,"

"I guess Mrs. Ambrose just wants to start even more trouble around here," Cena interrupted their talk.

"Do not call me that!" Morgan lashed out at him, making Cena laugh.

"Call you what? Mrs, Ambrose?" He provoked.

"Don't call me that! I will never ever be that, so shut up!" She started to become irate.

"Sorry, can't hear you because of the WWE Universe. Can you guys chant louder?" Cena encouraged as the crowd chanted 'Mrs. Ambrose' to make Morgan even madder.

"Shut up! All of you!" She shouted at the audience.

Seth covered her ears. "Don't listen to them. They're wrong. They're all wrong. Don't listen to them. You're doing the right thing. And you did the right thing at SummerSlam."

Roman shook his head out of disappointment. "I'm not done with you, Morgan. And those cinder blocks from last week." he looked at Seth. "That's me reminding you that we also have some unfinished business. But it sounds like the business is all about the WWE World Heavyweight championship. And if that's the case, my name belongs in-that-mix."

"Sounds like everybody here in the ring, feels like they're the person who can take on the challenger at Night of Champions. Cena, you think you've proved your resolve. I don't know if I'm believing it yet. Matter a fact, I don't think you're believing it yet. I'm gonna give everybody in this ring an opportunity to prove themselves tonight. Let's see who stands tall. John Cena, Chris Jericho, Roman Reigns…take on Seth Rollins, Randy Orton, and the demon, Kane." Triple H announced as the crowd cheered. "Let's see who can earn their spot. Let's see who can prove it. I'll sit right down there and I'll be watching."

Triple H's theme came on as he exited the ring.

"A big main event tonight, made by our COO, Triple H. Six men with an opportunity to prove themselves, in a six man tag team match," Cole said as the heels and Morgan exited the ring, while the babyfaces taunted the crowd.

All of a sudden, Rollins tries to hit Roman with his briefcase but gets hit with a strike to the face, making him roll out of the ring.

"Dude!" Morgan helped Seth up as he started lashing out at Roman, irritated that his plan didn't work.

"You give that to me!" Seth shouted at Roman who picked up his briefcase. "You give me that! Get your hands off that! Get it to me right now! You give me that right now!"

Roman shoves the briefcase at him, making him catch it, but then dropping it soon after. Seth picks up his briefcase as Roman grins and stares down The Authority. Tonight is the night comes on as The Authority starts walking up the ramp.

"So fireworks to kick off Monday night Raw for our main event, John Cena, Roman Reigns and Chris Jericho, to take on three members of The Authority. Seth Rollins, Kane & Randy Orton, here tonight, live on Raw."

------------

The Main Event with Reigns, Cena and Y2J going up against Orton, Rollins, and Kane was a back and forth match up. Triple H and Stephanie were at ringside, having a front row seat to the action, while Morgan remained at ringside with Seth's team. Bored, Morgan begins her stalking phase, as she slowly walks around the ring, gaining the attention of Seth's opponents.

"Oh…I hate it when she does this. You don't know if she's gonna strike or do mind games." King looked on with nervousness.

"Cena and Jericho better watch out," JBL said as Morgan walked past them, for the third time.

Morgan stands back at Seth's corner once things start to turn around for Cena's team. Roman makes a hot tag to Jericho as the crowd cheers. Cena is a bit annoyed that he didn't get tagged in, as the commentators notice the frown on his face. But as soon as Jericho traps Rollins in the Walls of Jericho, The Authority, and Morgan begin to look nervous.

"Randy Orton from behind! Saving the match up for his team." Cole said as Orton broke up the submission. As soon as he stood up, he got dropped by a Superman punch. "Roman Reigns!"

"Ah!" King shouted in a high pitched voice.

All of a sudden, Kane grabs Reigns and lays him out with a chokeslam.

"Cena!" Cole shouted as Cena picked up Kane and dropped him with the Attitude Adjustment.

Cena looks at The Authority and shouts "I didn't even get a chance!"

"Watch out!" King warned as Rollins hit Cena with a flying knee to the head.

"He just caught Cena. He just caught Cena." Cole said as Stephanie smirked in satisfaction while Cena rolled out of the ring.

While Rollins taunts the crowd, Jericho takes advantage by rolling him up for a pin, but gets a near fall. Ducking Jericho's clothesline, Rollins kicks him in the back of the head and pins him for another near fall.

"What an awesome match," King said.

"Bodies are everywhere," Cole added

Later on in the match, things get back under control with Jericho and Orton in the ring.

Cena was having a hard time getting tagged in, screaming "Tag me in! Tag me in!" since Reigns and Jericho continued to tag each other in and out of the match. Seth who gets tagged in, takes control and decides to go on the top rope. As soon as Jericho stands up, Rollins dives but gets dropkicked as the crowd pops. Triple H stands up, looking nervous while Jericho tries to crawl for a tag. As soon as Kane get tagged in, he drags Jericho back, keeping him away from his team. Unfortunately for The Authority, things get turned around when Jericho finally tags in Cena, gaining loud cheers.

"There he is! There he is!" King shouted.

"Cena! Here comes Cena!" Cole shouted.

Cena drops Kane down with a couple of shoulder blocks. He slams him down, but then Morgan gets on the apron to try to distract him.

"Look at Morgan!"

"Hey! Kick out of two, guy!" she shouted.

Before she could try to hit him, Jericho grabs her leg and brings her down.

"Hey! Get your hands off me!" She shoved him but got dropped with a Codebreaker as the crowd popped.

"Codebreaker on Morgan!" King shouted as Seth slid into the ring but got kicked back down by Cena. "A lot of frustration here."

"A lot of anger and frustration from everyone in this match," Cole replied.

As soon as Cena turns around, Kane grabs his neck, setting up for the chokeslam.

"Uh oh. And just like that Kane looking to put Cena away."

Jericho slides back in the ring and hits Kane from behind, to make him release Cena. Orton slithers in the ring and strikes him from behind, making him fall. While the referee was distracted with Cena and Kane, Morgan slides in the ring, and grabs Jericho for the backfire position.

"All this frustration and anger. Looks like Morgan still isn't happy with what happened earlier this evening. And backfire!" Cole shouted as she dropped him.

"You don't codebreak me! You do not codebreak me!" Morgan shouted at Jericho.

Orton kicks Jericho out of the ring and goes after him while Morgan rubs her jaw, which is still aching from Jericho's knees going up against her face. Once Cena clotheslines Kane down, and slams Rollins down, Morgan turns around. She screams once Cena picks her up, putting her over his shoulders for an AA.

"Uh oh! Uh oh!" Cole said as the crowd chanted with anticipation. "Cena! Oh, and Orton saves Morgan at the last second!" He shouted as the crowd booed once Orton pulled her off of Cena's shoulders.

"Thank goodness. Cena needs to let things go with her." JBL grumbled.

Orton gets laid out by a Superman punch by Roman as the crowd cheers.

"Superman punch!"

"Another one!" King shouted.

Still recovering from the shock of almost getting Attitude Adjusted, Morgan gets back up, oblivious to Roman setting up for a spear.

"Whoa, whoa, wait, don't tell me." Cole began but shouted "SPEAR!" as soon as Roman hit Morgan with the spear.

"Ah!" King screamed in a high pitched voice.

"What the hell!?" JBL shouted as Triple H and Stephanie stood up.

Stephanie widens her eyes in shock.

"That's your friend, Roman!" King shouted.

"Are you kidding me!? Is this becoming a trend? Now THAT did not look accidental." JBL stated.

The camera goes right towards Morgan, who clenches her stomach, while Roman remains at her side, with his hands on each side of her head, resting on the mat. Roman looks up at Triple H and gives him a glare. He was not going to have Morgan get taken away from him by The Authority. Triple H glares right back at him, upset with what just happened.

"Ugh." she groaned. The sound of her groaning, made Roman look down at her. "What the hell!? What the hell, man? What was that for?"

"Hope that knocked some sense into you," he replied.

"By spearing me!? Why can't you just back off and leave me alone? I know what I'm doing."

He frowned. "I won't leave you alone because you're still my friend. And you'll always be my babygirl. I just wish you'd wake up. I want my baby girl back." He stood up as she rolled out the ring.

His words remained in her head as she clenched her stomach, leaning her back against the ring. Meanwhile in the ring, Roman gets back on the apron, while Cena picks Kane up for the AA. He turns to The Authority and does his 'You can't see me' taunt, before laying Kane out.

"AA to Kane!" Cole said.

"Good enough?" Cena asked before tagging in Roman.

Roman roars as Kane staggers up to his feet. As soon as he turns around, he lays him out with a spear.

"Here's the cover!" Cole said.

"1!"

"2!"

"3!"

"Roman Reigns, Cena, and Jericho win!" Cole announced as Cena went straight to The Authority.

"The winners of this match, the team of John Cena, Chris Jericho, and Roman Reigns!" Justin announced.

While shouting his frustrations to The Authority, Rollins attacks Cena from behind, only to get picked up and hit with an AA on top of the announce table.

"I will see Brock Lesnar at Night Of Champions!" John shouted as his theme came on.

Morgan tweets 'SPEAR! After SPEAR! After SPEAR! Isn't this the fourth time you've SPEARED me, WWERomanReigns? #SickOfThis #IsThisATrend? #LetsSpearMorgan'

Morgan also tweets 'This isn't over #KickOutOfTwoGuy. Watch your back JohnCena.'

------

Next week on Smackdown, Morgan is backstage getting interviewed by Byron as the crowd booed her.

"Wait, wait." She put a finger behind her ear, listening to the boos that were getting louder, with a smug look. "I knew that crowd could get louder. What's up?"

"Stephanie McMahon has announced a triple threat match for the Diva's championship. It will be, Paige going up against AJ Lee, and Nikki Bella. And Stephanie McMahon has announced you as the special guest referee for that match. How do you feel about that?"

Melanie wanted to get back into the title picture but Vince had her being a...special guest referee instead of being in the match? Her patience was getting tested with this storyline.

"I have history with all three of those girls, and I think things are going to get…really interesting. I don't care who wins or loses. I just know that whoever wins better watch their back-"

"Hey!" Nikki appeared next to her. "What's up, girl? How you been?"

"Girl?" Morgan retorted.

"Come on. I mean, we all know who's gonna win. Morgan I LOVED what you did at SummerSlam. I mean, Dean didn't deserve you. And I'm glad that you and I don't have to do what the crowd wants us to do. We do what we want to do. We're Authority girls. And we're a team. And teams always have each other's backs. Even when it comes to the Diva's Championship," Nikki smiled. "I mean, I'm glad Stephanie picked you as the referee. We need someone who is smart, beautiful, and feisty, like yourself. You and I are the biggest influences on this diva's division. We own this Diva's division since we're The Authority girls. No one can touch us. And I know that no one will touch me Night of Champions. Ain't that right, Morg?"

"Right…" she mumbled.

"Nikki, what kind of effects did the Jerry Springer show have on you?" Byron asked.

"Thanks for asking. It was a rough week for me. On Monday, the entire world got a taste of what I've been going through, my whole life." Nikki replied. "And all along, I've been the victim here, not Brie."

Morgan exhaled. "Here we go…"

"And I think that everyone recognizes that. I mean Jerry Springer couldn't even help my family come to their senses. Instead, he gets carried out on a stretcher, thanks to my sister, Brie. But that's on her. I've been just going through so much right now, and I should be focusing on MY Diva's title match. Because, my buddy here, Morgan..." she smiled sweetly. "I know she's gonna do what's best for business."

The Outspoken Diva smirked. "You're right about that... "

"Winning that title will help me forget that I ever had a sister. And Morgan here, is gonna help me." Nikki winked at her but turned her attention to AJ, who was playing with her hair, listening in, as the crowd gave her a pop.

"Oh, I'm sorry, don't let me interrupt. You were about to talk about how…you weaseled your way into my Diva's title rematch. I guess there's certain benefits to being Stephanie McMahon's little…lapdog. Down girl." AJ pretended to be a dog.

"Are you guys, fighting over this? Oh, best friend of mine." Paige smiled as she got some boos. "You know what? I agree with you, 100 percent. It's not actually about me, you, and you know…don't tell me….Nikki? Right? It's actually about me and you." Paige pointed to AJ. "Because I'm gonna beat you, one last time so we can stop all this fightin' and we can be best friends. Okay pumpkin? And Morgan! My favorite little referee. Did you get the basket of grapes, I sent you?"

"Yeah, I did," Morgan replied.

"I'm glad. I hope you're feeling better. I know you got speared by Roman last week, and I just wanted to be a good friend and give you something nice. So, did any of the other divas give you a basket full of grapes? No~ because I'm your friend. And I know that you're going to have my back at Night of Champions. Ain't that right, Morgan?" Paige playfully punched her shoulder.

"Excuse me? She's my friend. And we're Authority girls, and we have a bigger bond." Nikki spoke up.

AJ cleared her throat. "Sorry to interrupt but I've known her longer, and I got a feeling I know what she's going to do at Night of Champions."

"Didn't you get your butt kicked by her, after SummerSlam?" Nikki blasted AJ as Morgan looked at the three divas bicker at one another.

"Friends fight each other. We're fine now. Ain't that right, Morgan?" AJ tilted her head to the side, giving her a grin.

"Y-"

"I~ gave her grapes." Paige cut her off before she could answer AJ's question. "Remember that. I win this battle. I gave her grapes."

"You're trying to get on her good side so that she can help you win. That's not going to work." Nikki exclaimed.

"I could have sworn you were giving her all these compliments, earlier, to try to sweet talk her into helping you win my title. That's not going to happen. Morgan is a great person."

"No, she's not. At least...for now she isn't." AJ objected, making Morgan smirk at her comment. "She attacked her boyfriend and watched him get laid out. She broke off her engagement to that Lunatic. Shockingly, since I've supported them since day one..."

"Um….Forgive and forget?" Paige said in a tone like she was stating the obvious. "You see how rude AJ is to you, Morgan? I would never say those things to you. I would never say anything bad about you. I know you are a good person. And you did what was best for you at SummerSlam. I don't blame you for anything. You are amazing. And I know that you will do what's best for this diva's division. Okay, Morgy?"

"Ugh, you are so full of crap." Nikki rolled her eyes. "You think she's gonna fall for that?"

"She really isn't falling for any of you, two," AJ added. "Ain't that right, Morgan?"

"Enough!" Morgan shouted and turned to Nikki. "First of all, Nikki, focus on controlling those silicone nip slips from now on, instead of focusing on what I'm gonna do, at Night of Champions."

"There's the Outspoken Diva, I know," AJ spoke up.

"Excuse me?" Nikki asked in disbelief.

"Just because we're Authority girls, doesn't mean we're friends or I like you. So calm your…twins." Morgan glanced at her chest. "And why are you laughing?" She turned to Paige.

"What?" Paige asked, looking confused.

"Is there something funny? Instead of laughing, I would be worried about that little title of yours. Just remember your fate is in my hands. And I'd stay on my good side."

Paige's jaw dropped. "I thought we were friends, what's that all about?"

"So Morgan, you're not going to give any of these divas an easy advantage?" Byron asked.

"Rightarooney. Tata for now!" Morgan winked and walked away.

"I can't believe her..." Paige pouted and turned her attention to AJ and Nikki. "This is my title. Remember that."

She grinned at AJ. "I love you,"

She then turned to Nikki. "Bye Brie. Nikki. Bye Nikki."

Paige walks away, while AJ starts to play with her hair more viciously, after glaring at Paige. She makes a dog sound before walking away, leaving Byron confused.

"You know…I actually think this could be easy…Actually…this may be easier than I thought. I can win Morgan over. She's not that hard of a nut to crack." Nikki said confidently.

Paige tweets 'I LOVE WWEMorgan101!'

Nikki tweets 'You're seriously not gonna listen to RealPaigeWWE's lies, right WWEMorgan101? #MorganIsBestForBusiness'

Paige replies to Nikki, 'BellaTwins Don't be jealous of our friendship #MorganIsMYfriend #GetYourOwn'

AJ Tweets 'While you two bicker on, I'll be with WWEMorgan101 playing video games. BellaTwins RealPaigeWWE'

Paige tweets 'WHAT!? Say it isn't so WWEMorgan101! You're MY friend! WWEAJLee will betray you as she did with the others.'

Morgan tweets a photo of two game controllers and a stack of video games. 'BellaTwins WWEAJLee RealPaigeWWE Uh...No comment...'

Paige tweets, 'Quiet, WWEAJLee, BellaTwins! And I am VERY upset with you right now, WWEMorgan101. #YouHadONEjob! Be MY friend!'

-------

On Raw, Morgan wore black pants, black sneakers and a tank top version of a referee shirt with skinny straps that was cropped, showing off her navel piercing. She sat on the middle turnbuckle, while resting her arms on the ropes, watching Paige skip around with her title.

"There's the Diva's champion, Paige, skipping around the ring, while Morgan, who is the special guest referee, is in the corner," Cole said.

Paige stops skipping and grins at Morgan.

"This is one of my good friends, right here!" Paige pointed and clapped for Morgan. "I love you!"

"Uh huh." Morgan gave her a confused look and slowly nodded.

"This is a diva's tag team match, set for one fall! Joining Paige, from San Diego, California, Nikki Bella!" Justin announced as she walked down the ring.

"Nikki takes on Paige and AJ Lee, in a triple threat match, for the Diva's title," Cole said.

"And guess who is the ref? Morgan! This is gonna be good!" King said with anticipation.

"Indeed. And things are getting very interesting, with these four divas."

Brie makes her entrance, and then AJ who gets a big pop. Paige claps for AJ as she skips down the ring.

"I love you!" Paige does a heart with her hands as AJ gets in the ring.

Morgan walks up to the middle of the ring, glancing at both teams.

"Ring the bell." She motioned the time keeper.

'Ding Ding Ding!'

"I cannot wait to see when Brie and Nikki finally get into the ring together, and mix it up in this match up, tonight. And Brie and Nikki are starting things off!" Cole said as Nikki and Brie stood in the ring, getting themselves ready, while AJ and Paige stood on the apron.

"Here we go!" JBL said.

Before Brie could get the chance to put her hands on Nikki, Nikki flees and swiftly tags in Paige as the crowd boos.

"Whoa, whoa, Brie. Brie, back up." Morgan rushed over to her, to stop her, as Nikki got out of the ring.

Paige gets in the ring, while Brie gives Nikki an annoyed facial expression.

"After all that big talk Nikki has been saying," King said as Brie and Paige circled around the ring before locking up.

As soon Brie pushes Paige near the ropes, Morgan gets in between them.

"Let her go." She demanded.

Paige shoves Brie back, and kicks her hard in the chest.

"Whoa!" King exclaimed.

"Paige! Wow!" Cole looked on, impressed.

"Did you see that? Did you like that, friend?" Paige grinned at Morgan before skipping around Brie.

"I don't care, Paige. Just focus on the match." The Outspoken Diva replied as Paige dragged Brie between the ropes, and stood on the apron. "Hey! Get her back in the ring."

Paige ignores her, giving Brie vicious knee lifts to the chest.

"Uh oh. Looks like Paige isn't listening to her friend." Cole pointed out.

"Hey! 1! 2! 3! HEY!" Morgan shouted.

"Whoa! Morgan is getting vocal in this match." King said as Paige released Brie.

"Do you not see me or hear me friggin' telling you to let her friggin' go!? Get her back in the ring!" Morgan shouted at Paige.

"I HEARD you!" Paige shouted back and pushed Brie back into the ring.

"Whoa! What happened to Paige saying she loves Morgan, and that she's her friend?" King asked.

"Friends can argue." JBL defended.

"I don't think Paige and Morgan are actually friends," Cole replied as Paige put Brie in a headlock, in the middle of the ring.

"What do you say, Brie? Give me something." Morgan got down on her knees, waiting for a response.

Brie just groans and struggles to release the hold. Brie starts to get back up to her feet, as Morgan stands up and walks around the two, keeping a safe distance from the action. Paige slams Brie back down as AJ exhales, and looks on, trying to test her patience because she really wanted to get tagged in. She then makes Brie stand up by grabbing her hair.

"Paige, hair is a great thing. Don't yank Brie's hair out. She worked hard for it. Let go of the hair." Morgan ordered.

Brie escapes Paige's grip and starts hitting her with elbows but Paige strikes her back down with a punch and headbutts her. The Diva's Champion goes for the pin, as Morgan gets down.

"1!"

"2!"

"2!" Morgan put up two fingers.

"Nice call there by Morgan," Cole looked on.

"Come on, Morgan, that was supposed to be three," Paige complained.

"It was two. Get over it." The Philly Diva retorted and stood up.

"Looks like Paige is having a hard time with her little self-proclaimed friend," King said.

Brie tries to tag in AJ but Paige drags her back and stands over her. She puts out Brie's hand, mocking AJ, pretending to go for a tag. AJ responds by giving her one of her stares, as Paige kisses Brie's palm and blows it at AJ.

"Is she…blowing a kiss to AJ?" King asked.

Brie counters Paige's stunt by rolling her up. Morgan swiftly gets down on her knees.

"1!"

"2!"

"And Paige kicks out!"

Paige lays Brie back down with another headbutt and puts her in another headlock.

"Speak Brie, tell me something," Morgan said as the crowd clapped to motivate her.

Brie gets back on her feet and drops down, giving Paige a jawbreaker. Stunned, Paige drops down and crawls over to her corner, while Brie tries to tag in AJ.

"Morgan is doing a nice job refereeing, don't you think? Being fair, vocal, and Outspoken...not letting any personal issues get to her." JBL praised.

"I agree," King replied. "And boy do I love that outfit."

Before Brie could tag in AJ, Nikki runs around the ring and yanks AJ off the apron.

"Oh, look at that! Nikki just…ripping AJ Lee off the apron." Cole said.

"Dude! What the hell was that?" Morgan exclaimed.

Paige takes advantage by picking Brie up and laying her out with the RamPaige.

"Oh man the RamPaige." Cole said as Morgan sighed and got down.

"1!"

"2!"

"3! Ring the bell." she motioned to the timekeeper as Paige's theme came on.

"The winners of this match, the team of, Nikki Bella, and the Diva's champion, Paige!" Justin announced as Morgan raised their arms in victory.

"Well, thanks to Nikki Bella, Brie had nobody to tag!" King exclaimed.

Morgan walks over to the corner and receives the Diva's title from Justin. Meanwhile, Paige's theme fades as Nikki grabs Brie and lifts her up for the Nikki Rack Attack.

"Oh, come on, Brie is out of it! Brie has no idea where she's at." Cole frowned.

"Come on, that's your sister!" King shouted as Nikki laid Brie out.

"Come on! Nikki didn't even have the opportunity to fight Brie fair and square in that match, and she attacked her after she was down and out."

Nikki exits the ring, as the crowd boos. Meanwhile, Morgan ignored everything that was happening in the ring and continued to look at Paige's title with admiration. Paige turns to her and narrows her eyes.

"Thank you, can I have that back, now?" Paige forced a smile.

Morgan glances at her before continuing to look at the title.

"Hey!" she shouted, but was ignored. "Hey! Give me my title!"

"I knew this was going to happen," JBL looked on.

"Morgan is taking her sweet time with Paige's title," Cole said.

"I said…give me my title!" Paige screamed in a loud, thunderous way.

She snatches the championship from her, before roughly shoving her down. Morgan lands on her butt, slightly taken aback from Paige's sudden mood change.

Paige realizes what she's done and widens her eyes. "Oh my gosh! I am so sorry! Are you okay, friend?"

She tries to help her up but gets her hand slapped away, hard, by Morgan.

"Ow! What was that for!?" Paige shouted in disbelief.

With hair in her face, making her seem even more intimidating, Morgan's indifferent facial expression changed. With her raging eyes, staring at Paige, she clenches her teeth together, giving her a glowering look.

"Paige, I don't think that was wise," King warned.

"Yeah. You just got on Morgan's bad side." Cole added.

"It was an accident, okay? An accident." Paige reassured as the crowd started to anticipate a fight between the two.

The crowd gets disappointed when Morgan backs off and runs a hand through her hair.

"You're my friend, okay? My good friend." Paige smiled as her theme came on.

Morgan smirks and gives her a nod, before exiting the ring.

"That smirk can mean anything," King reminded.

"Agreed. I think Paige made a mistake, tonight." Cole predicted. "She really riled up Morgan."

Paige starts skipping around with her title, as AJ recovers and starts skipping with her, at ringside.

"Look at AJ," King said.

"Strange…" JBL mumbled as AJ gave her a crazed grin before skipping up the ramp.

"Who will be skipping away with the Diva's championship, this Sunday? Nikki Bella, AJ Lee, or Paige? Their fate is up to Morgan." Cole said.

"Yeah. And Paige needs to remember that Morgan is the REFEREE for her match at Night of Champions." JBL reminded. "I hope she knows what she's doing.

[maaikeatthefullmoon]

This week I have mostly been reading...

May 27th – Jun 2nd, 2024

This week has mostly been taken up by reading the behemoth that is Rough Enough…AND I finished my WIP – all details below. It’s been a week.

Completed works I've read this week:

Rough Enough For Love by Nekhen Rated E – A GO Human AU classic. It’s *extremely* E rated, so pass it up if that’s not your thing – the NSFW isn’t skippable. It’s an absolute BEAST at 403,339 words over 42 chapters and took me most of the week to read but I was HOOKED. It’s a D/s themed story, but atypical and beautifully written. There is so much beautiful vulnerability and the most achingly gorgeous CARE ever written. Also major, hardcore Pining™️ & ©️Yearning. I’ve got some experience in D/s spheres and thought I had my preferences iron-clad in my head and this story has managed to turn EVERYTHING on its head, or at least it's given me a lot to think about. This is one of those fics which will stick with me. As someone with family-related trauma, I’d add a content warning for family judgement/feelings of severe inferiority due to family trauma.

Terminus by @emotional-support-demon-crowley Rated T – This was on my WIP list but has now been completed - *sniffle*. Astronaut A is guided back to Earth by controller C after 92 years in space. There are many difficulties both of them have to face and they develop an amazing rapport. Ch 17/17 posted this week.

WIPs which have updated this week (which I devour as soon as I get the update!)

There Is A Light And It Never Goes Out by @phoen1xr0se Rated M - A is a researcher (puffins!), C is a lighthouse keeper on the island where A has run away to to escape his problems and do his research. The author has recently spent a week studying puffins - which is the ultimate dedication, if you ask me. Ch 9/26 posted this week

Find The Light by @klikandtuna Rated E - Headmaster A and Rockstar C. The story teases out a fraught history between them whilst keeping a tension between them in the modern day. Ch 8/? posted this week.

Oddity by @tsyvia48 Rated E - Actor C is contracted by (useless) Gabriel to guest curate an exhibition at the museum where A works. After getting off on the wrong foot, can they work together to pull off this show? Ch 24/26 posted this week

Under The Summer Stars by @pannotbread Rated E - This wonderful fic has taught me more about physics than school ever did (mostly because I never did any physics, but...well). A & C have to share their time at an observatory because there is Only One Telescope. Not only will you learn about astrophysics, astrobiology, and astroecology, you'll also read some of the most poetically, beautifully written masturbation scenes I've ever seen. *ahem* Ch 8/13 posted this week.

Exodus_2 by @tismrot Rated E – Human AU set in a dystopian future. The summary says it best, really: Ezra studies programming at the University of ha-Gan. He’s as determined as he is damaged, as fastidious as he is precise, and likes to believe he'll stop at nothing to achieve his goals. His beliefs are challenged when a new student appears late to the first Ethics module lecture - and his life is changed forever. It's the future, it's dystopian, it's cyber and it's punk. It's political, grimy and slick with tears, lube and chemical snot. TW: Sex, drugs, trauma. Ch 30/35 posted this week.

Free by well, me: imposterssyndrome Rated E - A & C meet (again?) in an acute mental health ward after both having had mental health crises. A runs a bookshop but is very much under his parents' control. C has been homeless since childhood and has struggled his entire life. They do not trust each other when they first meet, but feel strangely drawn to one another all the same. Where will this lead them? This is a passion piece for me. There is a lot of lived experience in it, and extensive research from both professionals and peers. It has been a real journey for me to write it, and as I'm coming closer to the end it's becoming very emotional for me. Ch 48/56 posted this week – I officially finished writing this this week! I’m updating more frequently now, although I still have to proof & edit each chapter before I publish it.

Want more recommendations? This is last week's list.