#<- is what i tag my rambly personal posts with (and it is distinct from the '' space chirp'' tag that i use for other original posts)

[welcometogrouchland]

We talk a lot about the merits of pop culture vs 'high culture' on this website and anti-intellectualism and stuff but where's the appreciation for ppl who deeply enjoy both. Can we make some noise for people who's favorite movies are like. Ratatouille and Eraserhead? Or something?

[neverpathia]

Intro/About Me Post

I offer the humblest salutations from one who has never been humble.

So here I am. The StP and perhaps ASoIaF communities might've seen Nev around from time to time, but here I am in the flesh (pun intended, heh). I ramble. I doodle. Nothing much to see here.

You may call me Nev, Nevvey, or Neville, or really any other derivative nickname so long as it's not too feminine. Truth be told, I don't give half a damn.

I'm a losermale and a simp, though hopefully not in the incel way. Gods forbid.

Other Socials:

Reddit - u/FyreSkar

Discord - @neverpathia

AO3 - Nevverything

Scratch - Neverpathos

I'm pretty lackluster elsewhere, and the bulk of my (consumable) content's up in my Tumblr anyway.

My reblog dumpster's at @neverpasta

Fun fact. My sona's a gargoyle sentinel. He's also a little undead.

So I'm ethnically Chinese, though I don't speak too much of my mother tongue. My nationality's Malaysian.

Also, I'm FtM trans and gynosexual (attracted to feminine attributes). Bit of an oxymoron, go figure.

Tags:

...

...

.....

What did you expect? I haven't organised my blog just yet, pardon me.

Sorry if I haven't answered your ask. I do apologise, sincere and true. I just have a shitty work ethic and a shittier brain.

No empty promises or guarantees: if I'm not getting to it there's a pretty solid chance I never will. But I do read it! Feel free to leave stuff in my asks anytime-- even if I don't necessarily respond, I do love seeing what everyone has to say to me, and it always gets a much-needed smile on my face.

Also, my DMs are open, though if you're gonna chat me up then I'd rather you do it on Discord instead. I do like talking, though. This one's a shameless extrovert.

The Other-People-Promotion Section (please check them all out, I beg of you, amazing stuff out there):

@everestgale - They have a pretty distinctive artstyle and their lineart is clean as hell. And two whole sets of voice designs somehow. And Opportunist brainrot. Also, they run the (absolutely horrendously utterly indescribably) chaotic Yap Central Station on Discord. I repeat, really good art, but they're also a very chill person and pretty dang nice in general. And they were one of my first friends coming into the fandom, plus they helped me out a lot so I truly do thank them.

@hello-universe-lovers - Holy shit her ideas. Holy shit, her ideas. She has a fuck ton of AUs and they way she does characterisation is just [careens out a window vigorously explosively.] I'm going to have to compliment her designs too, particularly her Opportunist, whose rehabilitation's probably universally acknowledged throughout the fandom by now but he's hot. She's helped me out a lot too. Best buddy to yap about traumatizing my voices with.

@miyuka1709 - JAW DROPPING ART WITH HOT GIRLS. Another one with smoking hot character designs, and the rendering, and the composition and the. The. And this is another one who gladly endures my ramblings in my Discord thread and actually compliments my incoherencies. Also, pretty art. Lovely artstyle, I must stress. And she animated my Opportunist that one time and I'm still not over it. She has mastered the illegible sorceries of Live2D somehow.

I don't have as much to say about the rest of you but just know that you're very appreciated.

@pareidolla @phantasmatoucan @lavb-b @writingdevil @orcatnip @salty-an-disco @acethekenku @sorry-not-feeling-it-right-now

and pretty much everyone else in this community, but alas, I can only annoy so many people.

[bluedandylyon]

Rewatch Rambles (tm) Season 1

Sword Pt. 2

I'm making every ep into a separate post and just making season-specific tags bc otherwise the og post would turn into "do u like the color of the sky" and nobody wants that.

I love the series-long payoff of finally talking to this hologram properly on failsafe. Is this room the crystal castle main chambers? I feel like I don't remember seeing the giant she-ra mural but I might be wrong and it's the same room Adora always goes to when training.

Ughhhhhhh mannnnnnnn it’s just watching Adora at her first party is so sad bc she gets to be an actual kid for the first time ever. Catra should’ve gone with herrrrr waaaa I know we wouldn’t have a show but waaaaaa

LIKE DUDE THE SECOND CATRA SEES ADORA AGAIN SHE POUNCES ON HER AND STRADDLES HER AND PURRS ARE U KIDDING ME SHE LOVES ADORA SO MUCH 

SC = 3

RAHHH the mocking “what are you wearing?” And Adora throwing the flower she was wearing to the floor bc it’s a symbol of softness and vulnerability and they can’t that with each other yet. 

Oh I’m going to bite my arm off actually. The LOOK on Catra’s face when Adora says “they’ve been lying to us, manipulating us” she looks so freaking HURT. She’s like “YEAH DUDE IVE BEEN PHYSICALLY ABUSED IN FRONT OF YOU MULTIPLE TIMES LIKE WHAT ARE YOU TALKING ABOUT”

idk I used to really not understand why Catra didn’t go with Adora here but now that I have a deeper understanding of the show I totally get it. Dude this is the moment Catra really internalizes that Adora thinks that some of her mistreatment was warranted. Like the fact that Adora leaves bc the horde is hurting civilians but not Catra must have destroyed her. And like I GET IT. BC ADORA HAS BEEN MANIPULATED HER WHOLE LIFE BUT LIKE AAAA SHE’S ACTUALLY SO UNEMPATHETIC IN THIS MOMENT TOWARDS CATRA. And it’s cuz Catra doesn’t give a shit about the civilians so Adora feels hurt by that too bc “how can Catra not care about this?” and she’s in shock and her entire life is falling apart in front of her and like I get it but NGHHH this whole interaction once u understand the characters is UGH.

This post is an incredible breakdown of their miscommunication here, they are both understanding very different things from what the other person is saying. 

“Why are you doing this?” 

RAAAA RAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA. 

I want to talk a second about how BPD coded Catra is, specifically in this moment (although there are many great examples later). 

With BPD, there is no sense of identity, that is like, one of the main symptoms of the personality disorder, so it makes sense that for Catra, I’m leaving the Horde = I am leaving YOU. Catra reacts so intensely bc she’s conflagrating both the horde and her. And from her POV it also makes sense bc it was Catra that went to find Adora, not the other way around. We know from promise, this is something that Catra feels resentful about too. 

I also find Catra’s reaction really interesting because it’s one of the only times Catra physically hurts Adora as Adora and not She-Ra. There is no distinction to cognitively hide behind here. She immediately jumps to hurting Adora when she feels that perceived abandonment and then immediately feels guilty, but will do it again to not be abandoned by her once more. And it’s also coupled with the fact that there is the fear of abuse from Shadow Weaver if she doesn’t bring Adora home too. It just shows how poor her impulse control is when it comes to her splitting and idealization/devaluing symptoms. 

Love this pose, love the hiss. I just appreciate when voice actors who are portraying anthropomorphic characters SOUND like the species they're portraying. S1 Catra means everything to me bc she has the most cat-like behaviors in the show. As she grows, she tries to hide those behaviors and try to act more human-like, esp when S4 rolls around.

Glimmer saying “We need you, we need she-ra” ope I’m sure that phrase won’t add to Adora’s hero complex !!!!!!!!!!!! 

God and the way Adora can’t talk to anybody about missing Catra bc everyone in the rebellion (rightfully) hates her. She just has to pretend that she doesn’t care at all about losing her best friend and home. Rewatching the show makes me realize just how fast Adora erases herself and becomes She-Ra basically full time to the point that ppl don't call her Adora, they call her She-Ra. And it's cause she has no idea how to deal with emotions, so she just shoves all of that grief aside and buries it in all of her new duties and responsibilities.

[imagionationstation]

Hi! I read your TMNT 2012 separated au that you made with ellestrade and it really gave me brainworms so I wrote a small one-shot for it! The characters kinda ended up writing themselves haha.

anyways, wanted to share it with you and also make sure that you're okay with it. Not sure how you feel about other people taking inspiration from you ideas, so if you would like me to take it down, just let me know!

Thanks for sharing such fun ideas. Here's the post (I've also tagged you in it but sometimes tags are weird and don't always show. Also its on my fandom specific sideblog, but I am the same person haha)

Gotta love those brain worms! (Ironic statement from a 2012 viewpoint, actually-) HOLY CHALUPA, BRAIN WORMS IN THIS AU UNIVERSE, WAIT WAIT ACTUALLY WAIT-

*background rambles and spazzing*

Okay, I’m back.

I’m always a-okay with whatever fan things anyone wants to create with inspiration from something I made or helped make. As long as it isn’t containing some stamp that says “this I deem canon” when neither me (nor my partner) deemed it canon, no one ever has to worry with me getting upset over some story/comic/art.

I’m going to give some thoughts and I want to disclaimer.

When I discuss my thoughts on your POV of events in the AU, I will never, in any way, intend to diss or attack the story. I think the flow was excellent and Raph’s analysis of the events occurring was intriguing. I loved it! And nothing I say will be a statement otherwise.

But, since I have a distinct inability to keep my mouth shut when it comes to turtles and you asked, I have thoughts 🧐

My brain is now turning and ya’ll have to deal.

Characterization:

Donnie: Much distrust. Much sass. A strong sense of duty to defend his brethren turtles who don’t deserve it but he’s doing it anyway.

Very on point. Much approval 👌

Mikey: Could not be more perfect. I love him. Sweet soul ✨

Leo: He’s a bit less… Forceful. Cold and calculating. Than I envision.

I’d imagine that he had to learn to shut feelings down in order to survive. Fidgeting/smiling/visibly hesitating is out of the question. Staying in Shredder’s graces meant learning to play the game. His silence is what earns Raph the ability to be loud. The only times that he’s himself is when him and Raph are alone, outside of the sight of cameras, or when someone in is danger and fear/fury overwhelms all else. He seems bland to outsiders and it takes the Hamato brothers a while to see that that he’s just a scared little boi at heart that’s just trying his best in a cruel world.

He’s also set in his beliefs, so he’s going to assume that they’re being tormented mentally, if not physically. There’s no place in his mind that wonders if they were actually safer elsewhere.

I do like your POV, though. Plenty for me to play with.

Raph:

He’s ABSOLUTELY the first to question the differences between how Shredder treats them and how Splinter treats their brothers. He doesn’t jump the gun, but as devoted as he is, he’s never really liked Shredder. I love the implications that he’s been filing away concerns subconsciously and his brain keeps poking him like “HELLO?!”

He’s very deep. I can’t decide how I feel about that 🤔

Shredder would have wanted to fan that temper into something unforgiving and vile. Or course, that doesn’t mean he stops being a sensitive soul. It could… Have something to do with Shredder manipulating him into being angry when he wills it (basically all the time) and solemn and still when he doesn’t (such as during lectures, punishments, etc).

His brain registers this situation as one where he’s not meant to be loud and angry, and so he’s kinda… Shut down. Sassy, but mellow. Processing. Adapting. Letting what happens happen because he’s not meant to stop it.

It’s a reason that Leo gets so defensive when punishments come into play. It forces Raph to feel small. It make him vulnerable.

HOLY MOTHER OF MUTATIONS- I AM IN LOVE WITH THIS NEW TAKE ON THE AU @ellestrade TELL ME IF I’M ONTO SOMETHING

Anyway, commentary:

“in one of Takeō's strategy books he couldn't care less about”

It’s like Space Heroes. He claims so and YET he read, recalls, AND clearly has DEBATED the passage so I call sus vibes.

I get giddy when I think of Takeō discovering Space Heroes-

“Junkō and Kōta— or Donnie and Mikey, whatever false name they’d been given—”

My brain made connections. I don’t know if it was intended, but I always believe that they knew them by Shredder’s names through the beginning of season one, end of season one/beginning of season two they were associating them as both, and then by the time that the City is under attack, they’ve adapted to using their real names. (But the Saki brothers still keep their Foot names.)

So, now I assume this is somewhere in that middle plot.

Fun little Easter egg~

“Takeō and Akihitō were the offense, and Donnie and Mikey were the defense” “They held their own. In fact, they dominated.”

I’m in love with Raph’s simple acknowledgment of their roles in battle. It’s a very practical outline of exactly how their dynamic on the field plays out and he's so certain of his place.

On the other hand, I’m a bit uncertain about whether they’d dominate. I do believe that they are trained and can hold their own, but I don’t know about them being as impressive as Raph&Leo, simply because Splinter trained them to defend and Shredder trained them to kill. The Hamato brothers haven’t had much time to practice in the offensive, especially since that’s Leo&Raph’s job. (In non-AU canon, they are all offensive/defensive.)

I think Mikey might learn that kinda strength at the farmhouse after being taught by Leo&Raph, and Donnie will step back from that, finally finding his place not as a fighter/leader, but as a scientist.

Definitely an interesting take, tho 🤔

“Only now does he think that, perhaps, there was a reason their master made their primary weapons blunts and not blades.”

I am chewing on this line so hard. It’s so powerful.

I can’t even tell you why. It just is.

“Akihitō knows that Takeō isn’t lying. He’d already tried to take tonight's blame all on his own shoulders, spare Akihitō of the punishment. But Akihitō knows all his tricks and he won’t let his brother suffer alone. Again.”

100% behind Raph learning to butt in when Leo tries to take the fall as they get older and punishments get worse.

“Seeing the situation, the evidence glaring at him, Akihitō cannot deny that this wasn’t exactly a great sell. Takeō and him are tied to the ground, trying to convince these two strangers that they would be safe with them. That their clan would not hurt them while that same clan was just about ready to beat them to a pulp.”

I was thinking the same thing 🤣

Leo, dude, seriously. Look around. Think for a second. You are not selling your point. You are doing the opposite.

In the end, it doesn’t even matter. Sensei will always find them no matter where they run. It was better to follow than be chased.

SOMEONE NEEDS TO TEACH THESE KIDS THAT THIS IS A TOXIC RELATIONSHIP. YOU SHOULD NOT FEEL MOTIVATED TO STAY WITH DAD BECAUSE HE WILL FORCED YOU TO REMAIN OTHERWISE. BRUH. RED FLAG.

These were Foot Ninja binds made specifically to hold them. Mutant strength and all.

It makes sense that Shredder would make these. But.

But man. He made those. For them.

Takeō tries to take control of the situation again, the bossy oldest sibling coming out in him.

HA. Got him. Leo is Leo in any universe.

“His name is Mikey.” Donnie glares. “The rat is lying and he has—” “Donnie, its fine.”

Absolutely how they view things. Mikey doesn’t care what they think or do as long as no one he cares about is paying the price. Donnie feels it is a manner of principle that they accept logic and truth.

Leo talking over both of them is valid. This kid, I swear.

“Then tell your older brother to shut up about—”

LEO IS IT OFFICIAL YOU HAVE BEEN DISOWNED

“Sounds like a you-problem.” Donnie stands. “Mikey, we saved them. It's time to go.”

Donnie would die for them <3

A hand lands on his shoulder, and he recognizes it. Takeō always knows when to give support. He’s a good brother. He hopes Donnie and Mikey will know that one day too.

OH. OKAY. WELL. 🥺

THOSE FEELS CAME OUT OF NOWHERE-

He loved his big bro sm hjkhkjhkjhjkkjhkjhkjhku

If Akihitō didn’t know any better, he’d say it was longing.

Oh, don’t worry, he is dying to have other people in his life who genuinely care for him, but as long as you guys are with the enemy, you’re a threat to his baby brother and daddy and not to be trusted

And, just maybe, it could be their world too. 

Oh, so that’s what pain feels like. Glad to be reminded.

[weirdpersonifiedpills]

🌟💊-Welcome!-💊🌟

Heyo, I’m Mouthy (@mouthydraws), welcome to my funny pill blog! I’m an autistic artist with a special interest in pharmacology, specially psychiatric medications, more specifically antidepressants, even more specifically SSRIs. A lot of the stuff I post here will be older until I’m able to catch up, but that hopefully won’t take too long!

New blog for my medication personifications? First post obviously has to be the SSRI lineup from 2022, here come the white-tailed deer ready to fight for your mental health!

From left to right: Zelmid (zimelidine), Luvox (fluvoxamine), Prozac (fluoxetine), Zoloft (sertraline), Paxil (paroxetine), Celexa (citalopram), and Lexapro (escitalopram)

SSRIs (Selective Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitors) are a class of antidepressants used to treat a variety of mental illnesses, most notably anxiety disorders and depression. They’re my absolute favorite class and the reason I’m currently in college for pharmacology. Prozac’s history in particular is my favorite to read about, so expect plenty of him and his history lol.

F.A.Q.

What are personified pills?

Personified pills are, as the name suggests, personifications of medications. Each aspect of the character, from their design to their personality, is carefully chosen based on historical, chemical, and pharmacological aspects of the actual medication. I enjoy drawing the characters in scenes that reference the real-life history of said drug.

Are these your OCs?

Yes. While I don’t own the idea of personifying medications, the designs and characters themselves do belong to me. You’re welcome to design your own personifications, or use mine with credit!

Why are they animals/furries?

Each class of drugs is a different animal species, I think it adds a lot to the characters, and specific animals are chosen in the same way every other aspect of the characters are chosen. Having the characters be animals also allows for clear distinctions between drug classes. I don’t enjoy drawing humans, but even if I did, I’d still keep them as animals.

Do you have a personification for *insert medication here*

All of my personifications are on my Toyhouse (@mouthydraws) under the ‘Medications’ folder. It can take some background knowledge on the class of the drug/possible subclasses or categories to find some of them, so I’ll also be uploading all of them here and using tags to make them easier to locate. If you have a specific medication you want to see, feel free to let me know!

Will you personify illegal drugs?

Given that most illegal drugs either didn’t start out as illegal or are only illegal in certain forms/circumstances, yes. I’ve started on the opioid personifications, and diacetylmorphine (her0in) is definitely going to be a part of that, as well as ADHD medications, which means m3thamphetamine hydrochloride (crystal m3th) is also on the horizon.

Are real people/names included in character lore?

No, I try to keep real people out of the personified pill lore, as it is fiction that’s simply based on actual events. A lot of the history behind these medications can be upsetting, and I do my best to treat these events with the respect they deserve. I’ll talk a lot about drug companies (Eli Lilly, Pfizer, Novartis, AstraZeneca, etc. etc.) but I won’t mention anyone specific lore-wise. I enjoy talking about drug history OUTSIDE of these characters, and will probably do that here too (with appropriate tags of course).

My inbox is always open, but I’m more active on Instagram and Twitter (@mouthydraws). I post a lot of WIPs and general pharmacology ramblings on my Instagram stories, so if you’re interested come check it out! I’m always looking for more pharmacology mutuals!!

[rin-and-jade]

Im so happy to see you taking a break and I hope the break is very nice!

I understand there might be a delay in responses but thats okay, please take your time your health is more important !!

Be prepared for a huge wall of text so sorry in advance-

But, i have a few things im just itching to ask gahhh

Firstly, we originally believed we had little to no amnesia (believing osdd-1b) BUT since then we realised the amnesia is so much heavier than we realised, we figured bc we could recall general events and it was calm in a sense (we saw majority of the time when people experience amnesia its distressing and the loss of all memory) but, the memories are not memorying, so now we are assuming just DID, and that brings me to the second part...

fragments and subsystems, so, idk how valid this is (mostly bc my assumptions are based off vibes/gut instinct) but im fairly sure a subsystem occurred a few months back from a split where that alter just disappeared, which is unusual from what we have documented from the past 1.5 years (most splits the alter detaches from the stressor and those stressors mould a new alter to deal with it in a sense-) so from the recent odd split i believe a subsys was created as such? i have no clue except the vibes, in which it feels like a bunch of fragments in a sense? like i believe ive been fronting for months on my own for now, but there are some parts of my days where i just blank anything that happened, so im curious if there is-

and its not the only time as such where we have had this dreaded gut feeling there were more parts that might be dormant or even very separate, or even parts we dont even notice due to the nature of disorder being a whole lot of forgetting and the disorder pretending to not be the disorder and stuff ;-;

im so sorry for the huge rambles, if you have any advice or explanations or even resources i can read through to draw my own conclusions that would be so cool, bc as of right now im so scared to say this as i feel like im actually faking it for attention and theres no way i was traumatised enough for this and yadayada

tldr: should i trust my 'gut instincts' about system related information, or is my brain being silly?

I don't see the point on invalidating instincts, they're subconscious pattern detectors, so if you feel off, you bet it IS off. Though it's healthy to back it up with evidence preferably, and if there's no evidence yet, then you prowl like a predator in attempt to search for the truth scroll... cough--with a help from me whenever you need it, i mean im not going anywhere.

Also, you can check wether you have did or osdd by jotting down logs or patterns wether: you're memorying more or memorying less, the things you forgot, how often do you find yourself black/greying out, how distinct your personalities are, and wether you can easily remember other part's memories or able to grasp another facet of yourself (if you do not, or is really hard too, im sure this is 'did' from first impression)

--

Right, and for the advices, further explanations, or even resources are all answered by my previous edu posts where its compiled in the #jeducates tag,, i'd love you to just swim in it and process all my information like a sponge.. and come back the second time with more specific questions if you still need confirmation or assurances.

Let me know how it went, i'll be waiting for ya's update!

- c

[identifying-birds-in-postss]

i identify birds in posts!

hi, i'm aster, i use he/him mostly, i'm from the southeastern US, and my main is @aster-is-confused

you can send in birds by tagging me in a post or sending an ask with a photo! if you know where the photo was taken, then including the general region is super helpful for identification.

i also sometimes debunk fake birds (mostly ai photos and videos). if you're wondering whether a bird photo is ai, feel free to send it in.

if you notice an identification i posted is wrong, please let me know! i've only been birding for about a year and a half, my identifications are sometimes pretty quick, and the tools i rely on are not foolproof, so it happens.

this blog is run by a trans guy, terfs fuck off

shoutout to my fellow tumblr bird identifiers, @identifying-birds @identifying-birds-in-posts @i-identify-birds-in-posts @identifying-parrots @birdidentification @birdidentifier @bird-id @birds-in-posts and probably more i forgot. (i have no relation to identifying-birds-in-posts, i just couldn't find a better url that wasn't taken.)

birds in pfp are all from the best rated photos in macaulay library as of february 2024

below the cut is my tagging system and answers to a few questions people might have (what sp. means, how i identify birds, how i tell if a bird photo is AI, what to do if you find a baby bird)

tagging system

"#aster identifies birds" - self explanatory

"#aster debunks birds" - debunking ai and photoshopped birds

"#aster rambles sometimes" - me talking about various things

each identification post is also tagged with what i identified it as.

if i identified it to species (or likely to species), i put the english common name (usually the most common/standard one if there are multiple) with hyphens and apostrophes removed. for example: "#mourning dove" "#red breasted nuthatch" "#swainsons thrush"

if i identified it only to some larger taxonomic unit, like genus or family, the tagging is more variable. typically it depends on whether that taxonomic unit has a widely used common name. for example: a post identified to Pelecanus sp. would be tagged "#pelican sp" since that's the common name for the genus. a post identified to Accipiter sp. would be tagged "#accipiter sp" since there's no common name.

sometimes i get loose with the tagging system and will put things like "#crow sp" or "#hawk sp" even when the formal taxonomic units encompassing those groups contain more than just that.

what does sp. mean?

sp. stands for species, and it's usually used when a bird can't be identified down to species level but you know it's in a certain group. for example, "sparrow sp." would mean it's some kind of sparrow, but i'm not sure which one.

how do you identify all those birds?

most of the birds i identify on here are ones i'm not personally familiar with and able to identify on sight, especially species outside of the eastern US. my main tool is google lens, which isn't entirely reliable but is faster to use for a quick ID than inaturalist. i usually double check IDs that google lens gives me by checking for similar looking birds. other tools i use include good old fashioned googling ("hummingbird with pink throat," "pelican species list," etc), and sometimes inaturalist and/or the merlin bird ID app.

how do you tell if a bird photo is AI?

i usually state my reasoning in the post, so you can scroll through the '#aster debunks birds" tag for some examples, but here's some big red flags

overall photo quality and style. it's hard to explain, but AI nature photos trying to be realistic tend to have an almost animated look to them. AI photos trying to look like art lack any distinct or unique art style. they might have an uncanny valley feeling to them. they're also usually square and fairly grainy. these are rarely my only reasons, but they're usually a sign that tells me to look closer.

anatomy. study feathers and feet especially closely. look for extra toes, misshapen feet, an extra leg or wing, misshapen feathers, color patterns that are assymetrical or otherwise don't make sense, overly large and/or shiny eyes, etc.

species identification. this one can be a bit tricky because of course artists may stylize existing species or just create based on vibes and not one species. but if you can't identify a species it's at least based on, it's a red flag. note that species identification doesn't rule out AI though. for example, if I asked AI to make a common species like a pigeon it would probably do fairly well, but if i ask for a general type of bird like a hawk, it's likely to combine features of several different hawk species, and maybe add some eagle and falcon traits too, making an unidentifiable species.

account. if the account seems to be a genuine artist or photographer with a well-made profile and many legitimate works in other recent posts, it's less likely to be ai. ai photos are most often accounts with fairly little information, maybe even no captions on the photos. their pictures may portray a wide range of things, or they may be mostly focused on one theme. accounts that post AI images usually post either exclusively AI images or AI images mixed in with reposted content.

obvious giveaways. these are typically when the poster isn't trying to hide that fact that the photo is AI generated. if the post includes a prompt that describes the image (usually a long phrase or a few sentences, often labeled as "prompt:"), it's almost certainly AI. AI-related tags are also a giveaway obviously.

what should you do if you find a baby bird?

there's plenty of resources on this, but i'm putting it here because people very often try to "help" young birds that are doing just fine. from the Audubon article linked below: "Eighty percent of baby birds that [are brought to a rehabber] have basically just been kidnapped." if you find a baby bird, ask these questions:

is it injured? no matter the age, if a bird is visibly injured or sick, you should contact a wildlife rehabilitator and ask what to do. you should be able to find one nearby with a google search for "bird rehabilitators [state/province]." in the US it's illegal to handle a native bird in any condition (healthy, injured, or even dead) without proper permitting. it's rarely enforced, so do with that what you will, but there are fines if they do enforce it. outside of the US, research your national and local laws regarding handling and rehabilitating birds before attempting to help an injured bird yourself.

is it fully feathered? if the young bird has a mostly full set of feathers (not just fluffy down), especially on its wings, and seems fully alert, it is supposed to be out of the nest. this is called a fledgling, it's a bird that has left the nest when it was supposed to but still gets food from its parents for a few weeks. fledglings often lack fear of humans, so people are worried that they're injured or hurt because they'll allow a person to pick them up. even if it's not scared of you, do not handle the bird (pick it up, try to feed it, etc) if its not in danger. this is just stressful for the chick and for its parents too, since they're usually nearby. it's also normal for fledglings to struggle with flight and be generally clumsy, this doesn't necessarily mean that they're injured. if it's in a dangerous location like the road or a busy sidewalk, gently move it away from the danger. don't handle it more than you need to. afterwards, wash your hands if possible. if it's in your backyard and you have cats or dogs that go outside, try to limit and supervise their outside time for a few days while the fledgling is nearby. they're at a very vulnerable age and can be easy targets for a playful pet.

if it's not fully feathered: first, identify whether or not it is a precocial chick, aka a chick that leave the nest shortly after hatching and are covered in down. most commonly these are ducks, geese, or shorebirds. if it's covered in down and walking around or swimming, it's probably precocial. if it is, and it's alone, then wait a few hours and come back. if it's still there and alone, contact a rehabilitator. if it's not a precocial chick, and it's not a fledgling, then it will likely be sparsely feathered or completely naked. in this situation, look for a nest nearby. at this age, the chick can't travel far, so keep your search within 10 feet or so of where you found it. if you find the nest, return the chick to the nest. if you can't find it, you can make a homemade "nest" with a bowl, some twigs, and soft material like dead grass. attach this to a nearby tree and wait a few hours to see if the parent bird visits the nest. if it doesn't, contact a wildlife rehabilitator.

more resources on when/how to help baby birds:

^ by birdandmoon (part of it is a joke obviously but there's still very good info here)

[cityyliights]

very curious as to how we all settle on ship names for mygo!!!!! (specifically ones involving tomori), since ive seen so many different ones floating around already!! ik this doesn't really matter in the grand scheme of things lol, just sharing my thoughts for funsies :]

im curious if there are any other mygo fans out there (please say hi) who were trying to find a community around them, and maybe had the same thoughts as i did! how do we decide ship names lmao?!?! so take my silly ramblings under the cut if you're interested :D

ive seen tomotaki as a name for taki x tomori a lot, but i feel like using tomo as a shortening for tomori's name will just get confusing? because that's already a pretty common one for tomoe, and i think even platonic mygo and afterglow interactions would be really neat to see, so i feel like it just unnecessarily muddles things y'know? takimori is what ive personally been saying, but i genuinely don't know?? how people end up coming to any kind of consensus on these things lol. it's baby's first time in a newly growing fandom like this

iirc ive seen tomoanon used for anon x tomori, which is my personal fave mygo ship, so ive been using anomori as their ship name? for the same reasons as not wanting to confuse tomori with tomoe, there are enough confusingly similar names in bandori (soyo, saya, sayo...), i'd love to be able to avoid any confusion with ship names too. anonmori is also a fun one i think, but i found that anomori rolls off the tongue better (at least as an english speaker lol)

it's mostly tomori ships ive been thinking about, because the rest of the names feel very distinct! like takisoyo, anotaki or takianon, anosoyo or soyoanon, there's always some variation in ship names throughout fandoms so those feel less pressing to me. i was just curious if there are any other mygo fans trying to build some more community around them who had the same thoughts as i did! polygo could also be a cute name for all of them as a group, though i guess it could be similar to polyglow lmao. i am also proposing anotakimori as a concept and a ship name

one of these days you'll get a giant ass essay from me about why i love anomori specifically, but if i post about them i have no idea what to tag it as, and i figured i can't be the only one thinking about this and maybe having an issue with it! so yeah mygo fans sound off pls i am dying to find more of you and i'd love to hear ur thoughts!!

[kaylinalexanderbooks]

2 & 13 for the writing asks!

Hey! Thanks for the ask! (From this writers ask game)

2.     Are you a pantser or plotter?

I self-identify as more of a Plantser. I delve in both, understand both, practice both.

I used to be more of a Pantser, but I lean more toward Plotter/Planner. It's helped me so much to have an outline, to do background world building, to plan a chapter before I write it. I do, however, need to write to figure some things out. I also do the world building as needed sometimes. Same goes for characters.

So yeah, bit of both, but I've shifted over time.

13.  Describe your writing process from idea to polished

Hm, this seems tricky. My writing process is very strange. I'm still polishing.

Linked in my pinned post on TSP is the backstory of how I got to where I am. It's hard to explain, but I'll try.

I got the idea for TSP from this story I acted out with my stuffed animals when I was young. I don't know why 10 y/o me decided to write an adaptation of this for a school project, but I became obsessed with it. I rewrote it multiple times, staying in each version for a while, revising as I went, until I settled on something that was finally close to what it is today at around 14.

I rewrote it because I got stuck and didn't plan. I didn't have a lot of this draft planned, but I did start to develop one as I went on. This version of TSP lasted a while until I realized I needed to massively overhaul it. Change the timeline, add about half a book of new content, cut unnecessary things, focus more on characters, etc. I started over again.

Throughout this draft, I've taken multiple breaks of overhauling one key aspect. Characters were huge. I needed to make everyone distinct, so I focused on personality, emotions, how they express that, etc. Every time I think of a new thing each character should have, I focused on that for a while. I am currently working on world building the magic system, which will take a while.

I have gone through TSP multiple times, rereading for specific revisions, like character ticks or using Ctrl+F for unnecessary words and phrasing. Last time I was revising I got stuck, so that's why I've decided to world build.

My process of outlining now is quite complicated. I have a master "brainstorming document" as I call it. I have it more organized now though. Sections where I make broad comments on characters and their dynamics, plot ideas for various story threads organized by the part they're in, notes on revision ideas, etc. I also made a brief outline for Part Two listing all the chapters I need to make happen.

I then take those vague outlines and focus more on what I need for the entirety of Part Two. I cross-reference them with my brainstorming ideas to pair together characters and scene ideas. As each chapter comes up, I look at what I have and expand even more on what needs to happen in this chapter. As I go on, I note when I can cut a chapter from the outline because it turns out it became unnecessary. Changing the outline is not a big deal for me at all. I had an idea, but part of writing is the discovery, hence why I'm part Pantser.

When this draft of Part Two is complete, I'll do similar revision sweeps as I did with Part One. I also am writing down ideas for revisions as I go. Sometimes, if something is small, I'll go back and change something immediately. If it's a little bigger, I tend to wait to revise it.

Now Part One is in beta reading stages. What I do is I read over the comments the reader left me and think critically about each of them. What I'm doing right, what I need to work on. I take every comment seriously whenever they make a suggestion or criticism. Their word is not gospel, but their insight is important. I decide if I like their input, then implement it. Most of the time I do listen, at least partially, because a second opinion is always helpful.

Hope these were good answers :)

TSP intro

TSP tag list (ask to be +/-): @thepeculiarbird @illarian-rambling @televisionjester @finchwrites

[natyune-writes]

oh look! an intro post!

hello! welcome to my writing side blog. this is where i hide all my oc nonsense. i will try my best to post here but i make no promises.

a little about me: you may call me nat or natyune! i don't really like any other nicknames. i'm a palestinian graduate student. as such, i am super busy and my activity is sporadic at best. my main blog is @natyune-art, which is where i post art of my ocs :)

all asks are welcome! i try to answer all the ones i get but i am a busy person.

you guys should totally follow my besties @briarborealisocs (aka @briarborealisart), @sqeedledob, and @ck-scribbles

a little about my current WIPs:

the weaver's apprentice:

vaguely a collaboration with @briarborealisocs! this wip follows auryn, a fire mage and traveling performer with a distinct inability to tell the truth. despite lacking the ability to perceive or control witch-magic, he has become somewhat obsessed with learning all he can about it. he seemingly refuses to answer questions about the spells and enchantments he is researching. auryn eventually befriends a witch named kadijah (@briarborealisocs' character), who slowly grows suspicious of him due to his seemingly coincidental connections to the recent kidnappings that have been occurring in his wake. still, she is somewhat reckless and curious and ends up attempting to figure him out while she helps him with his research, despite not fully understanding what it is he is searching for.

the fey courts:

this one doesn't have an official name yet. someday it will. regardless, this wip follows amina, a young seelie mother, as she attempts to save her changeling son's life from a magical illness with seemingly no cure. in the process of searching for a cure, things don't go to plan and she ends up transported into the unseelie fey realm. amina ends up befriending katarina, an unseelie changeling with the same set of symptoms as her son. she also befriends nikolai, katarina's twin brother, who has been researching a medicinal treatment for his sister's symptoms since he could walk. in the process of trying to understand the magical illness, amina begins to grow wary of nikolai's very unnerving methods. to put it simply, things begin to fall apart the more amina begins to uncover.

i have other WIPS, but theyre on the backburner. maybe someday i'll share about them. anyways, my ask box is open and i would love to talk about my characters, so if you have any questions please feel free to ask!

tags system!

oc tags: #nat oc: [character name] (ex: #nat oc: auryn)

story tags: #the-weavers-apprentice, #the-fey-courts

me just rambling: #nat posting

thanks for reading! <3

[aewrie]

i started rambling in tags there but actually i'll just make a separate post bc i have a lot of thoughts. readmore bc long, cw mentioned csa, harassment, etc

there's a world of difference between minors exploring sexual topics at their own pace in neutral/educational contexts etc, and being unwillingly exposed to sexual topics in ways meant to shock/disturb/harass/groom

i have been a minor in both of these situations. amazingly enough only the instances where my consent/boundaries were ignored ever bothered me, who would have thought!

the first book i read that had a sexually explicit scene was the clan of the cave bear (heavy cw for csa if you plan to read/look it up). i was 13 iirc. i did not know it contained such a scene, but going forward with the series, i quickly realized there would be a lot of sex. i read the whole thing before turning 18.

in general, i was given pretty free reign with the media i engaged with. zero adult supervision with my library habits. i learned what my limits were, i learned to pace myself as needed, i learned to curate my media intake. this was far more useful than someone filtering all my books for 'bad' content with no input from me would have been.

i started drawing/writing sexual things of my own in my preteens or soon after. it got fairly explicit fairly fast. i didn't share any of it with anyone, it was just for me, but i did draw and write these things as a outlet for the thoughts and feelings i was having.

i find this much preferable to what several of my peers were doing, which was having unsafe sex with each other and/or unsafe people. there were a few who were drinking around at 15ish, which means there was/were sketchy adult(s) providing alcohol, and who knows what else. at least one of the girl got pregnant. (worth noting that teen pregnancies are very rare here)

me reading spicy books or secretly drawing sex did not traumatize me. wouldn't be so sure about those former classmates.

also, in the context of that post showing a sign/disclaimer that is at an art gallery, i must mention that this not a one off situation. once i went to an exhibit (on an art school trip) dedicated to selfies. there was a section for nudes/sexual selfies. it was a somewhat separate corner of the exhibit, walled off but with open doorways so you could easily see inside. there was only a simple sign noting that there was sexual content in there, but no one stood there to check who went in. no ids were asked when we arrived to the gallery. all of us minus the teacher were in our late teens; some might have been minors, idk. just. your own call if you went in or skipped that section, that's it.

minors still should steer clear of specifically 18+ spaces/communities and such. it's not safe or educational or anything. a teen secretly & privately looking at something illicit vs engaging in sexual and/or kinky interactions/communities are extremely different. something like a strip club or a kink dungeon is strictly adults only for a reason. online, minors posting heavily suggestive material is extremely not good even if technically not adult content. there's some wiggle room in things appropriate for teens but not younger kids, i know i started sharing occasional mild nsfw art at around 15, but it was specifically in general art communities, not sexual/kink communities. social media makes that distinction tricky if it is there at all.

(tho i must admit, seeing what i intended as a sweet tender moment between my ocs to end up in someone's pregnancy fetish collection on deviantart was certainly a lesson to be learned about how people engage with things online. i was weirded out but shrugged it off since the person wasn't otherwise interacting with me or anything & it was ultimately harmless, and i've kept on doing that ever since. highly recommend!)

but. "nsfw spaces for minors"? (yikes) "sfw kink" communities open for minors? (for the love of fuck no)- you mean places designed for grooming. creeps will lie about their ages and motivations.

when and how and why and with whom matters so much when it comes to minors and sexual topics.

also i saw one person in the notes there going on about how you shouldn't tell kids what porn is until they're teens bc porn is traumatizing. fuck off with that

one thing mom did 100% right was explaining that porn is unrealistic make belief for adults that i shouldn't take seriously or try to mimic before i even knew what porn was & only had a rough understanding of sex.

that's how you prevent porn from messing with kid's perception of sex & reduce related trauma. you EDUCATE, and do it BEFORE the exposure happens. if you only teach about sex related things when they become "topical" there's a good change you're already too late. signed, more than one lesson came too late for me. fun things to learn in your-20s, yay

parents/teachers should go forward with the assumption that one way or another, minors will be exposed to sexual things, through their own curiosity, trough harassment/abuse, through peers wanting to shock them/gross them out, by pure chance/on accident, whatever it might be, and give them the tools and spaces to process what weird feelings or upset might come. pretending porn doesn't exist and demonizing sex all but guarantees issues and trauma.

[rabarbarzcukrem]

Hi, this is my first time posting fanfiction. Please keep in mind that I am not a native English speaker and be kind enough to excuse any mistakes.

This short fic was inspired by these two lovely pieces of art by @helloanthy and @biruesque:

Ship: Utena Tenjou x Anthy Himemiya

Contains: one shot, post-canon, reunion, Anthy is a badass now, Utena doesn't remember Ohtori but experiences lesbian feelings nonetheless

~~~~~~~~

Utena was waiting outside the store that she worked at, with her backpack slung over one shoulder. The setting sun gilded the usually dull and grey concrete of the parking lot.

"It's getting colder, I guess autumn is coming soon..." she thought absent-mindedly, casually stretching her arms one after the other. When she had mentioned that she is looking for an apartment during a conversation with her colleague Kokomi the day before, she hadn't expected that an opportunity would present itself so soon. Her friend had instantly lit up and started rambling on about some girl that she knew, who was apparently looking for a roomate right now.

Utena glanced at her phone screen. Half past six.

The girl was supposed to pick her up after work - so about 15 minutes ago - so she could see the apartment. And although Utena had assured that it's unnecessary and she is perfectly capable of getting there on her own, Kokomi replied that the roomate-to-be presented the idea herself and would gladly give Utena a ride.

"She'd better hurry up, it's gonna start getting dark soon..." she sighed to herself.

Suddenly, a pink motorcycle pulled into the parking lot and stopped just a few meters in front of her. The person driving the vehicle took of their helmet.

"Tenjou Utena, right?" they said, giving her a warm smile. For a moment, Utena forgot how to speak. The girl standing before her had skin of deep brown, glistening emerald eyes and tumbling purple curls, tied into a high ponytail revealing her undercut. There was a Hindu red dot between her eyebrows, which Utena recalled was called 'bindi'. She wore a truly punk outfit - ripped jeans and a leather sleeveless vest with lots of pins, in her ears and on on her face glistened various silver piercings.

"This is the girl?!" thought Utena, shocked and quite intimidated."Just what kind of people does Kokomi hang out with?!"

"U-uh, yeah, that would be me... Kokomi said you're looking for a roomate...?" she managed to choke out awkwardly, scratching the back of her neck with a nervous smile.

The girl nodded, unbuckling a second helmet from the seat and handing it to her. Utena suddenly realized in what way they were supposed to get to the apartment.

"I-I've never ridden a motorcycle before...To be honest, I was expecting a car " Utena explained, a bit embarrassed.

"Don't worry." replied the girl kindly. "Just sit behind me and you'll be alright."

This openly and assuredly tender, affectionate way she was looking at her made Utena feel bashful.

She let out a small breath and put on the helmet. She expected a longer conversation, some questions at least... Maybe the girl wanted them to discuss the details on the spot? Then again, the quiet between them didn't feel uncomfortable, somehow.

As she was getting on the vehicle, Utena realized how close to the girl she would actually be sitting and suddenly felt her cheeks burn. She also smelled a nice, distinctive, floral smell which enveloped the mysterious stranger. Despite how shy and flustered she felt for some reason, there was something that drew Utena to her. And not just because the girl was plain gorgeous, but also due to a strange feeling of comfort and familiarity that the girl induced in her, as if they had known each other for a very long time.

"I could use something to hold onto" Utena thought, considering grabbing the seat, if only to do something with her hands.

As if she was reading her thoughts, the girl spoke calmly:

"It's okay, just put your arm around my waist."

"Ah."

Utena complied carefully, trying very hard not to be too weird about it and ignore the pounding of her agitated heart. And suddenly there was that strange deja vu sensation again - as if she had embraced her this was a hundred of times before. Utena felt like she was forgetting something. Had they maybe...met in the past..?

"I'm sorry, but I don't think I caught your name" said Utena, suddenly realizing that.

The girl was silent for a short moment.

"Anthy" she said, quietly. Was her voice a bit sad, or did Utena just imagine it? "My name is Himemiya Anthy".

And she started the engine.

~~~~~

By the time they got there, it had gotten dark. The apartment was situated on the third floor of a nice-looking building, in a bit isolated area of the city. As Utena followed Anthy up the stairs, listening to the clink of keys in the girl's hand, she couldn't do anything else but wonder how she might have known her. Something in the back of her mind told her Anthy was important to her - so why was her mind blank whenever she tried to remember?

"Make yourself at home," Anthy said, letting her inside. Removing her shoes, Utena looked around the apartment. Apart from the short hallway, there were two pairs of doors, probably leading to a bedroom and a bathroom, and a living room with a small, open kitchen. The main room was decorated very nicely, in a way Utena had to admit she couldn't arrange herself. It was full of pots of plants, cute pieces of furniture and all sorts of knick-knacks that made it feel more cramped than it actually was, but in a cozy way.

"Say hello to Chuchu" said Anthy, picking up something small from the table in the center of the room. She uncurled her fingers, revealing to Utena a tiny, 4-inches tall, purple monkey, with big ears and a curled tail, which appeared to be in the middle of attempting to smallow a chocolate bar whole.

"Um...Hi, Chuchu" said Utena, extending her index finger towards the creature so he could shake it. It was so adorably small and goofy Utena couldn't help but smile.

"He's very cute. Is he your friend?"

Anthy looked at Chuchu with fondness.

"The best of all that I have."

She kissed him on his little forehead and placed him gently on the countertop of one of the cupboards, then walked over to the counter in the kitchen.

"Tea?"

"Um, sure. Thanks."

Utena sat at the table. Out of the corner of her eye, she noticed a terrarium standing by the wall. It took her a moment to realize that several other living creatures were also moving freely around the apartment.

"Who is this?" Utena asked, a bit surprised, pointing to one of them.

"Oh, my hen, Miss Milly."

"And these?" Utena pointed to another ones.

"Just my kitties, Theodore and Wolfgang."

"And this?"

"My dearest mongoose, Sweet Biscuit Jr."

"I suppose all the ants probably have names as well, huh?"

Anthy smiled at her softly.

"Would my animals be a problem for you, Utena?"

"No, I just... didn't think you were that kind of girl" she said, before thinking.

Anthy turned towards her, intrigued.

"That kind?" she asked, more curious than offended.

"It's just, because of the way you dress, I thought you were one of these, hardcore ones, not the type to care about animals and stuff" said Utena nervously, wanting to explain her poor choice of words, but realized that she just made it worse. "B-But for some reason, it feels right, you know?" She added quickly. "It makes sense. If anything, I think it makes you...even cooler..."

"Ah, a pretty, totally badass girl brings you to her house and the first thing you do is embarrass yourself!" she scolded herself in her thoughts, but the only thing Anthy did was chuckle softly and say "Thanks", before geting back to preparing tea for them.

For a moment a calm, comfortable silence fell upon the room. For some reason, sitting at that table filled Utena with a warm, nostalgic feeling inside, almost as if... she had finally come home. What a silly thought. Utena was an orphan, she didn't have any family that she knew of, there was no home waiting for her. And yet...

"Himemiya" Utena said suddenly, which she noticed made Anthy flinch. "This may sound weird, but have we....met before?"

The girl turned around to face her, with the warm smile back on. Utena expected an answer, but Anthy kept quiet.

"I'm thinking we may have gone to school together or something" explained Utena hurriedly, thinking Anthy didn't understand. "Like, maybe we were in different classes...I suffered an injury in middle school, I admit I don't remember much of that time."

Anthy stared at her in silence for a moment, her expression unchanging. Utena guessed she may be lost in thought, trying to recall something. But when she finally spoke, it was just a question, in a perfectly calm, although a bit deeper voice:

"Are you a forgetful person, Utena?"

This startled her.

"Uh...."

She didn't have a clue what to say to that. But she had a gnawing feeling that it was important, somehow.

".....Anyway" said Anthy, suddenly cheerful again, as if the previous interaction hadn't taken place. "Would you like some cookies as well? I just baked them yesterday."

"Sure..."

Utena followed Anthy with her eyes for a bit, puzzled, as the girl pulled out the cookies from one of the cabinets.

"She's avoiding the subject" she thought. "I guess I shouldn't be pushy, if she doesn't want to talk about it..."

She sighed and looked through the window. The moon was shining unusually brightly, the night sky was unclouded and full of stars. She noticed that the apartment had a balcony, and on it, through the glass, she saw....

"Are those roses?" asked Utena, standing up suddenly, something pulling her towards the balcony doors. She opened them and stepped outside, feeling the refreshing, chilly air against her skin. The balcony was, indeed, packed with pots and pots of beautiful, pink roses, which barely left any room for a person to stand comfortably.

"So this is where the floral smell comes from..."

As she was standing there, in awe of the sight before her, she heard Anthy step outside too and close the door.

"Are all of them yours?" asked Utena, smiling wide, genuinely impressed. "They probably need a lot of care... You must really love roses, huh?"

Anthy returned the smile, but there was something pained in her voice when she responded with a short, quiet:

"...Yes."

Looking into the girl's eyes, under the starry sky, she couldn't shake off the feeling that there's something she should say, something she should do, but no matter how hard she tried, she couldn't figure out what. Her throat tightened, some weird, intense feeling was building up inside of her, under her skin, she couldn't stand it-

"We should probably get back inside, it's getting cold" she turned around quickly, too quickly, and stumbled on one of the pots.

In a split second, Anthy lunged forward and caught her by the waist, her other hand gripping Utena's, bringing them close.

In that moment, a wave of memories washed over her, and she remembered everything. The academy. The crushing weight of the swords. The struggles they had faced together, the fights she had fought for her, the illusions, the cruel, cruel lies... All the suffering and the horror...And through all of that, Anthy's hand in hers, time and time again. The love.

"Someday, together..."

Overwhelmed, she felt her eyes fill up with tears. Upon seeing this, Anthy's face softened in understanding. She let out half a chuckle, half a sob.

"Utena" she said, her voice trembling with emotion, but so, so loving. "At last...we meet."

"You escaped. You got out of there."

"I wanted to find you."

Utena couldn't bring herself to say anything else, there was no need to. No words could ever describe what had happened between them, the feelings they had for each other. Instead, she intertwined their fingers together, and the act of it felt like putting together two halfes of a broken heart.

A loud, unpleasant whistling sound filled the air.

Anthy let out a small breath and smiled in amusement, lowering her gaze.

"The tea..."

There they were, sitting at a table again, with two cups, a plate of cookies, and ChuChu sleeping peacefully beside them. Anthy took both of Utena's hands in hers, and squeezed them gently. Right now, neither of them felt like drinking. No words were spoken that night. Just tears of pure joy spilled, and knowing, tender smiles exchanged. It wasn't a happy ending, it was hardly an ending at all. The next day, there were other hardships for them to face. But in that moment, none of that mattered, because these two girls found each other, and at last - were free. Finally, together, shining brighter than the stars in the sky.

[guangshi-091305]

This is so fucking real! Also using the mdzs fandom tag before cql fandom tag and using 'cql canon'. Dont do this. you arent deceiving us into giving your fic more reads by this, you're actively pissing us off. Sometimes a person is in a bad place and just have an idea of what they can read to feel better. For me its canonverse/fix it fics (obviously) set in novel mdzs canon. So being attacked by Yin Iron and other cql elements?? Yea it really messes my mood up. Fanfic is an escape for so many of us, free temporary therapy for others, dont use our coping method to intentionally fuck with us just because you crave validation and wanna play dirty for it. I get it, not everyone has malicious/deceptive intentions because tags ARE hard. But please, learn how to properly tag for your own and our sanity too. Not everyone who gets pissed off at fics tends to silently close the tab like I do, a lot of people leave truly mean comments too and while I dont condone that behaviour, its semi-warranted.

You dont necessarily have to use both CQL and MDZS fandom tags for your fics because you want us to find your fics. Trust me, lots of people dive into ship tags and begin filtering from there, instead of fandom so your content WILL reach the people its meant to reach without the crossover-ish fandom tags.

There's also this thing I like. It doesnt make up for making me click a fic after getting interested in tags and summary but it works. using custome tags like set in CQLverse or CQL canon or any distinct cql element like Yin Iron does wonders for helping us find what we want to read and what we want to avoid. The other thing you can do is indicate the usage of novel or cql canon in either the fic summary or in the beginning notes of the first chapter you post. That works too.

But please do your best to tag your fic correctly, especially in terms of what canon you're following or including elements for. Kindness is free and it makes it easy to trust you as a good author. So if you tag CQL and your summary interests me enough, i WILL ignore my discomfort and dive in. But if I find out mid-reading that you didnt tag CQL, I'll never read another one of your fics, even if its modern day AU, I am sorry. Because its not as easy to forget negative/discomfort-inducing interactions.

I hope the rambling made sense. Once again, tagging well doesnt mean you get less reads. It means your readers know what they're going in to and will never be able to blame you for being deceptive. It will be their fault then if they ignore tags and dive in. So please be kind to us and yourself indirectly. Your fics WILL reach those who you write them for and they will be easier for people to find too!

i’m absolutely begging on my knees right now ,,, PLEASE don’t use ONLY the mdzs tag on ao3 when it’s cql canon like 😭😭😭 not even tagging the untamed at all is crazy bc now i can’t even exclude it and be free from that shit 😭😭 ive clicked on a fic tagged only with mdzs and been jumpscared by yin iron bullshit and other cql fuckery way too many times , tf are u doing just tagging it mdzs i hate u it’s bad enough people use both the tags when they only mean cql shit and now ur filling the solo mdzs tag with it too 😭😭😭 STOP

[sxvethelastdance]

Princes Deposed by the Plot - Piccolo and Vegeta

Time for another entry into the series of Z posting, as warned here with all its various disclaimers.

Naturally… By virtue of my [ahem] writer’s priorities, I ran to slap a comparison of Vegeta and Piccolo’s arcs together based on their two major monologues and their companion quotes! Is it because I think their trajectories are mirrored in both of them having this major speech that shifts their priorities or because my brain is two tsuns poisoned? Who knows. Anyhow, this is a decidedly non-shippy analysis— shocking for this blog. I know! But yes, my intentions in posting this are to provide a really interesting comparison that I think deserves attention. I’m still going to tag it with the ship labels though for all you folks at home who see something compelling here.

An up front special thanks to my friend Stiles over @bastardsunlight for listening to me ramble about these developments over a period of a year and change as I faithfully documented my reactions and came to this conclusion. ANOTHER special thanks to my buddy B for making the joke that became the title of this post. 

Analysis below

It’s so fucking INTERESTING to me, the way that both Piccolo and Vegeta come to a major conclusion about themselves through putting themselves on the line for Goku specifically. 

Mind you, this is hardly anything new for a Dragon Ball villain, but there’s always been a consensus that these two are Goku’s ultimate rivals. Piccolo because he was born to hate Goku, a dying wish with the mission of ‘kill kill kill’ in the egg he hatched from- and Vegeta because he was raised to hate the kind of challenge someone like Goku presents him. They maintain the bulk of their personality and distinctive traits because of the sustained relevance that their position measured relative to Goku’s grants them. 

You have these two former villains with not only the kind of baggage that your Z-Fighter prior had, but on steroids. A child’s desire to be worth the legacy and remaking of a ‘King’ and his great evil vs the child’s bottomless ambition for power so as to never be helpless again, to be the boot crushing the ant instead of the ant.  Piccolo was “born” evil, not raised. Vegeta was raised into a culture that delights in other people’s pain, strength for strength’s sake- and also with Frieza as his “parent” in some respects. 

There’s this fundamental similarity in the trajectory of their arcs- though Piccolo inevitably finds it much easier because he doesn’t have to contend with the expectation of cultural norms. He doesn’t have a context of that until he’s an adult. And like I mentioned before, the crowning moment of when their characters earnestly have shifted their beliefs rings rather similarly in both cases. 

Piccolo wanted to stay on Namek to fight by Goku’s side, even if it meant putting himself in Frieza’s line of fire. 

Vegeta admitted out loud that he didn’t stand a chance against Buu and committed to a fight WITHOUT the goal of winning- the goal was explicitly a support role to Goku. Holding Buu off to give him time to power up and beat the monster. 

Both of them put down their goals right on the floor and stepped into what their earlier selves would’ve considered humiliating positions. They are admitting second fiddle and for the first time they’re not taking it as an insult. They want to see him win! They NEED him to win. 

So much of it is the stakes- wanting to see a common foe go down, yes. But for both of them we see that they’ve got people they love that they’re doing this for. It’s not about what they want or even need or themselves anymore. These monologues happen after several turning points- it’s like closing the book on the chapter of a compulsion that they realized wasn’t making them happy. 

They both allow themselves to get brutally tortured not as a consequence of fighting to fight around the time of these revelations, but because they realize that there’s someone to go home to- and that home won’t exist anymore if they don’t do it. 

And— what the shit. I realize as I’m writing this that they both did it so that Goku could charge the spirit bomb. Piccolo for the bomb against Frieza, Vegeta for the bomb against Kid Buu. Straight up scene after scene of them not just getting thrashed; but very visibly put in the ground like a dog. Worse than death, because it isn’t over. 

You get to hear these men getting beaten brutally (the visual style communicates a lot more than a blow for blow fight in instances where one character is severely outmatched. Think Tien vs Nappa, Frieza and Vegeta at the waterfall, the Androids and the Z-Fighters), 

- knowing that Goku’s the only way, and that they’re only getting up because he needs them to. They know he needs them, and they need him right back. 

It’s their home they’re bleeding for. Now is the time to do the noble thing- and it is noble. Because it requires no shortage of fighting their innate selfishness, their drives and the goals that subsumed a good deal of their lives. 

Now here’s the monologues and some companion scenes signaling the shift in their characters at different points. 

The Monologues + Companion Quotes:

Piccolo’s monologue [Spoken after being transported to Earth while SSJ Goku fights Frieza]

"Goku... Our paths have crossed many times along the way. It's because of you that I was even born. 

From the very beginning, when I was nothing but an egg, even then I wanted you destroyed. I was born hating you. As a young fighter, those tournaments against you were all that I had. I lived for the chance to see you die.

(Flash to the 23rd World Martial Arts Tournament)

I will never forget our fight in the World Martial arts tournament. With my newly learned ability to increase my size, I knew that this would be it. This would be my chance to finish you. But still you found a way to beat me, your power, I've never seen it anything like it. 

From that day forward, I knew that there was something different about you. Something... Not of this world. And then the fight with Raditz—

(Cut to the killing blow between Raditz and Goku, the Special Beam Cannon)

Huh. I can't say I objected to destroying you.

After all, it's what I'd been waiting for my whole life. But as you lay there lifeless, the job wasn't what I'd imagined. 

How could I hate someone with such an honorable sacrifice? Goku, why did you have to send me back to Earth? I wanted to fight alongside of you... It's vexing, but your powers have become far greater than my own, and so has your character. You chose to beat Frieza at the cost of your own life. You're always like that."

+

Scene — Gohan asleep by the fire 

PICCOLO: (gently pushes Gohan’s bangs back) Until now, training you has been about vengeance. But something’s changed. No matter what happens, I’ll always be there to protect you, Gohan. Sleep well, my friend. 

Scene — Flying toward the battle with Frieza

PICCOLO: Gohan’s energy signal is fading! I’m not gonna let it happen, cause we’ve been through too much together.  

(Flashback, spanning their time training together) 

You were just a pampered kid when I took you in, but you never gave up. You never failed to surprise me either. Maybe I shouldn’t have been so hard on you. But you took it without complaint and I could tell despite the hardship I put you through;  You truly cared about me. So I died for you... And I’d do it all again. 

Scene — Piccolo and Vegeta’s final talk

PICCOLO: I was just like you once, until Gohan’s love changed me. I know you were changed too, I know how much courage it took to do what you did. 

                                                             VS.

Vegeta’s Monologue [spoken while SSJ3 Goku fights Buu off]

“Amazing. How do you do it Kakarot? You’ve always been like this. Ever since the first day I met you. Always ready to meet the next challenge, even when it’s bigger than you are. 

It was the same on Namek, you had improved so much it made Recoome look like he was standing still. Your power had increased so dramatically since our battle on Earth that I thought you’d done it! That you had become a super Saiyan. 

It tore me apart. How could you, a low class soldier, accomplish so easily what I- I had struggled my whole life to achieve? Then at last it happened. I too transformed. After living every moment of every day for the singular purpose of surpassing you, I finally became a super Saiyan myself. The prince had reclaimed his throne and fulfilled his destiny! But no matter how strong I became, your power still exceeded mine. 

At first I thought it was your loved ones —

(flash to Gohan, Chi-Chi, Piccolo, Bulma, Krillin, Oolong, Yamcha, Puar— all in that order) 

— that it was your instinct to protect them that spurred you on and pushed you beyond your limits. But then I found myself with a family of my own and my power didn’t increase at all. 

I used to fight for the sheer pleasure of it. For the thrill of the hunt. Oh, I had the strength unmeasurable. I spared no one. And yet… you showed mercy to everyone. Even your fiercest enemies, even me. Yet you never fought to kill or for revenge. Only to test your limits and to push yourself beyond. To become the strongest you could possibly be. How can a Saiyan fight like that and at the same time be so gentle that he wouldn’t hurt a fly? 

Oh, it makes me angry just thinking about it! But perhaps it is my anger that’s made me blind to the truth for so long. I see it now. This day has made it all too clear. 

You’re better than me Kakarot. You are the best.”

+

Scene — Goten and Trunks arrive. Vegeta hugs Trunks.

VEGETA: Trunks, there’s something you must know. You’ve made me proud, son. 

Scene — Before The Explosion

VEGETA: Trunks, Bulma, I do this for you. And yes… Even for you, Kakarot. 

Scene - Asking The Earth for Its Energy (cutting between Namek and The Sacred World of the Kais)

KIBITO KAI: Do you think Vegeta could soften his request somewhat? You know, ask them nicely? (The people of the Earth)

ELDER KAI: He could. If he wasn’t a proud, pigheaded, arrogant fool! 

KIBITO KAI: Look! He’s trying again.

VEGETA: (now pleading): People of the earth, please. I beg of you. You have to listen to me, please. We’re running out of time. 

(either sweat or a tear that runs down his face at this point. It’s ambiguous) 

Raise your hands. Do it before it’s too late. don’t let Majin Buu destroy you and your children! PLEASE! DONT LET HIM WIN!

These considerations in mind: It makes a great deal of sense as to what people would see in pairing them together- be it for the sake of putting the two stoic men who used to be the big bad in the same panel together while Goku fights the big battles, or for shipping purposes. They’re kindred spirits, and sometimes when you see yourself in someone else you decide: Boy, I don’t fucking like you.

They are two characters who after a series of journeys, have broken from either familial or cultural expectations as a hallmark of their development and subsequently found some kind of validation and self-actualization. From that point they can think about what it is that THEY want. A long path on its own. 

[moonsdancer]

This is a good question @fleursdusang. I've done a lot of thinking about this with the other eight or so MelJay shippers I communicate with on Discord 😭 , and we'd long ago agreed that MelJay is an ironic rare-pair. But more on that below.

@arcane-rarepair-week has done a great write-up of what "constitutes" a rare pair in fandom, and they've broken it down here: (they do include MelJay on their list). Fandom Wiktionary describes it as:

A ship that generally receives little attention from fans and has few associated fanworks.

Ultimately, a ship is a rare pair based on output / engagement and not whether it's canon or not. Generally, the most "fair" metric to use is ao3 (although in some cases, it becomes apparent looking at fanart, or fan discourse, and other creative outputs what's what). MelJay has the unique 'distinction' of being one of the least supported / celebrated / whatever canon ships in maybe the history of any fandom. I ran the numbers, and it's pretty dire, just a quick summary from Sunday when I did this exercise to ask:

Is MelJay a "rare pair"?

based on ao3, only -

There were 8568 fanworks dedicated to Arcane on ao3. Of those fanworks, in terms of popularty by tag (including explicitly romantic and ships defined by '&' which are sometimes still romantic but not always), MelJay doesn't even appear in the top ten or fifteen.

Filtering out some of the "&" pairings allowed MelJay to edge its way in at about no. 9 or 10 with 213 stories.

Of those 213 stories: 116 were JayVik stories that weren't about MelJay. A good majority were often about breaking MelJay up or killing off Mel or whatever other narrative device in order to tell a story about JayVik. 74 of those are Violyn stories that tag MelJay despite it not being a factor in said story (I assume they do so because it's a canon ship, so folks just toss it in there). 51 of those were MelJayVik stories.

Once you filter those out, we come to 56 overall stories tagged MelJay. Of those 56, roughly 17 were actually about viktor with someone i.e. viktor / you or viktor / reader or viktor / original character. we can, if we're generous, pretend that about a third of those are as much about meljay as they are about viktor and whoever else, but even that would be a bit of a lie.

Once you filter those out, we were left with about 46 stories. And even in those, a quick review of the content showed some of them weren't even about MelJay.

A weird and non-self-aggrandizing fact that was pointed out to me today - just stating it to show the reality of things - I've written 15 of those stories, so that's about a third of stories, that are explicitly and materially in terms of the content about Mel Medarda and Jayce Talis in a relationship of some kind, were written by one person. That's weird, for the only confirmed, together, onscreen, canon romantic ship - but that's the reality.

ANYWAY.

The above rambling answer to your comment from this post is really my way of just reflecting on all this for my own reasons and opening the discussion which we'll all probably only have in an honest way in a few years across fandom about this and not to rant at you in anyway. Because the treatment of / reception / backlash (in many ways especially in the first few months) to MelJay is a bit weird. That's the word I'll use so I don't use different words that piss folks off.

This was a bit of a Ted Talk, sorry! 😂✨

ETA: Because someone did mention this, I know the '&' tag is generally used for platonic or familial relationships. But I notice people in a lot of cases in this fandom use it interchangeably with the bigger ships. May not always be the case. But either way, the situation for MelJay is dire. And those '&' ships don't really detract from that conclusion.

[thecataclysmic6]

hihi!! sorry if this is weird kr whatever but I just realized I'm a system!! but the issue is I know next to nothing about roles and headspace(?) and everything. how do you find that stuff out? is there a beginners guide?? pls there's silly little people in my head and idk what to do about it -☁️🌱 (tag with ☁️🌱 so I can find this ask again pls? <3)

We can definitely try! Each system is different, so our experiences might also be very different. We're also still learning about what being a system entails ourselves (as we like to say, we're not a doctor, we're a patient lol).

Anyways! As we understand it, roles describe what part each alter plays in a system and can also just provide insight for others about that alter. They're not mutually exclusive or rigid, so they can overlap and even change over time.

An important distinction is between the ANPs and the EPs, that's a good place to start.

ANPs are "Apparently Normal Parts". Otherwise known as alters who take care of day to day life and usually have little to know recollection of trauma. They may have high amnesia and identify heavily with the body. A common alter type to fall under this are 'hosts'. In our system, I (Cat🐈‍⬛️) am the host and I have alot of amnesia around trauma. I'm an ANP.

EPs are "Emotional Parts". These are alters who hold onto trauma, are usually formed to keep the trauma hidden from the system, or alters who have been formed to handle specific experiences. A good example of this in our system is Ren✨️, who is a trauma holder and split to help with that specific trauma.

From there they can be placed into a bunch of other roles. Keep in mind, alters tend to be fully formed personalities and may not take to kindly to being placed in boxes. Assigning certain roles takes cooperation, communication, and time. All of which are difficult for some systems to form, don't worry if it doesn't happen immediately and don't try and rush it.

The headspace is generally what systems use to refer to the place alters exist when they are not fronting. It can be a safe place that became internalized. Each systems headspace will look different, and some don't have one at all! Ours for a very long time was just a black empty void, but over time it's changed to a black empty void but with a library.

At the moment, sysblr is very focused on endogenic vs. traumagenic. (Note we are neutral on this discourse and prefer to stay at minimum 10ft away at all times, please dont ask us our opinions on it cause it stresses us out) So alot of our sources will be outside of tumblr blogs.

Essentially endogenic systems are systems formed without trauma, while traumagenic is formed from either an incident or long term related trauma (very simplified). Keep in mind, systems are usually formed to protect from trauma and you should not go looking for evidence of trauma without guided assistance from a professional such as through therapy. Honestly, my advice is to avoid this discourse until you get a better grasp on being a system. (It can be kinda a cesspool and just not a safe place for new systems)

My best advice is to try and set up communication with your system. This can be a very long process for some but it's a good step.

Anyways long post rambling aside, I asked a few other systems to help me gather some good resources for you. I hope these can be some bit of help! Note: alot of these resources are dedicated to DID specific systems but can also be useful to other types of systems. CW: there may be triggering topics mentioned, please read with caution. Here's some that we all gathered together:

A Book about living with alters (explains headspace and developing communication):

Book describing dissociation:

Blog full of multiple coping mechanisms to help with being a system. (They also have a list of more resources on their blog)

An online list of common Alter Roles and Terminology (not conclusive and some are outdated):