#Fantastically Great Women Who Changed the World

[room-surprise]

This is a topic that is very near and dear to my heart, but I'll try not to write too much about it right now. Elf gender studies indeed!

I go into this to the best of my ability in my giant Dungeon Meshi Essay (Real World Cultural and Linguistic Influences in Delicious in Dungeon) and there will be more detailed discussions of the subject as I complete each chapter. You can except a more comprehensive section on the subject in the chapters about the dwarves and the elves, with some minor mentions in other upcoming chapters.

Right now I have a very brief overview in chapter 3, in a section titled "GENDER, MAGIC AND SOCIETY IN DUNGEON MESHI."

Gender presentation and society is a topic that comes up in many small ways in Dungeon Meshi, despite never being directly addressed. It's difficult to discuss sometimes because a lot of it relies on:

Knowledge of gender norms across multiple real-world historical societies, and how gender norms have changed between ancient times and the modern world.

Lots of small clues Kui has left us.

Things which we must intuit from Kui telling us what isn't normal or good, without telling us what the actual socially desirable behavior is.

Cithis is a particularly fascinating case, and @dunmeshistash hits on multiple key points in their answer that I'll discuss once I get to the elf chapter. Sorry it's taking me so long to finish 😂

Before I go, I'll just throw this out there: these two outfits are considered unisex by the elves. These outfits are also very much like a "ethnic national costume," and other elven fashion seems to be based from this starting point.

To the elves, these tunics are like a plain T-shirt and denim jeans are to us today. Most likely every elf has one of these, and many elven outfits are built on a base that starts with this, including the Canary uniform.

Kui intended for the Canary uniform to be unisex, and worried that it came across as looking too feminine, but I think she did a fantastic job of designing an ancient world military uniform that doesn't just look exactly like something that exists in the real world, while still feeling plausible and grounded.

Ancient world clothing will always look feminine to modern eyes, because modern ideas of what makes clothing masculine or feminine is rooted in the cultural divide between the Greco-Romans and their barbarian adversaries, the eventual gendered division between dresses and trousers, and The Great Male Renunciation, where western men's fashion began to exclude the wearing of bright colors, patterns, and many other elements of fashion, which all then became associated with women's clothing.

The most masculine, macho dudes of the ancient world would look like "guys in weird dresses" to many of us today.

I would actually say that the feature that's the most unusual about Cithis and Misyl's clothing is their modesty. Kui tells us elves don't wear a lot of clothing, to the point that the queen goes around nearly naked at times. This suggests that Cithis and Misyl are counter-cultural rebels who wear their clothes in an unusual style. Cithis also wears much, much more makeup than any other elf, which makes her stand out as someone who doesn't care about what elven society thinks of her appearance. She's being different on purpose... And unlike Benichidori, she doesn't care if people see her without makeup. She's not trying to hide anything, she's trying to communicate something else.

I would say that Cithis' presentation, to elves, probably seems like a cis woman doing female drag. She's emphasizing her feminine qualities in a way that elven society might find tacky or distasteful - too much, too far. It may also be designed to target and appeal to other races, who have a stronger sense of gender binary... Since the Canaries do travel outside of the elven empire and deal with non-elves regularly.

So then, the gender-swapped Cithis is also dressed "modestly" for a male elf (knee-length tunic), and presenting himself in a more stoic, stern way. This may mean that Cithis is presenting an "overly masculine" male elf, like a cis man doing male drag. Stoic and aloof might be some of the things elves consider attractive in a man.

But because elves have such strongly unisex gender presentation, most likely the traits overlap, and many elven women also present themselves as stoic and aloof, and many elven men probably present themselves as smiling and coy. I imagine somewhere in the middle is what is considered "ideal elf-like behavior" for both genders, and deviating too much either way is seen as weird.

Anyway, time for me to get back to work 😊 I hope this is helpful for you, though.

cithis's overtly feminine presentation is so fun to me... the long dress and the cleavage window and the makeup and the fact that she's the only one who changes super noticeably in the genderswap is just . Idk its cool, esp with how androgynous all the other elves are

It is very cool! Cithis has a very overt gender presentation that we don't really see in other elves, even Otta who makes a point to present as male doesn't read as super masculine to the level of "hyper-feminine" that Cithis is

Elves seem to have their own fashion preferences independent of gender (from what we can tell from the gender swap)

Which makes sense, Lycion himself wears a very feminine hairstyle even in the original, so Pattadol also keeping the same hairstyle while she's a man is consistent! Meanwhile Cithis seems to be way more conscious of her own gender when dressing?

I wonder if presenting more feminine is more common than presenting more "masculine" for elves? Would a male elf dressed like Cithis be strange? I don't think Cithis is completely unique in how feminine she is cause we do see a few other elves with similar traits. Flamela has a exposed cleavage, Mysil has a long skirt, Daltian clan "Aunt Uranesse" seems very feminine with makeup and adorned hair, Cithis has it all at once but the pieces aren't unique I guess is what I'm saying

They say that for the most part there isn't much difference between male and female fashion but even here we have an elf in what we would call a "feminine" looking long dress

I wonder if those are things that male elves could wear without other elves finding it strange too 🤔

I wonder if there's an equivalent for "very masculine" in elf fashion, tbh I don't know what that would even look like, male Cithis just wears a very average looking version of the uniform (minus the boots and arm armor) even the neck piece is on instead of her choker. Otta does "dress like a man" to the point other elves get her gender wrong tho so there must be an equivalent? (besides the fact she wears the male uniform) Or maybe is her behavior along with the fashion that makes them read her as masculine and the fashion alone wouldn't?

Anyway it is very interesting!!! But I have no idea what to make of it!!!! Elf gender studies when

[lucy90712]

I saw that you requests was open, could you mby do a Hector fanfic 💋 ty xx

Football has been part of my life for as long as I remember my older brothers have always played so from birth I was taken to matches to watch them play. As soon as I was able to I played too and I was good at least people told me I was I developed so quickly as a player that I was put into boys teams under the advice of my coaches so that I could continue to develop. That's when my life really changed after one particularly good match my parents were approached by someone from Barcelona's academy offering me a place there. Of course I wanted to go but it was a tough decision for my parents letting their little girl go to play football when there is no guarantees of making it but I begged them enough to convince them so at 10 I went to La masia. 

La masia is the best place in the world or at least I always thought it was for a kid who loved football getting to play almost everyday while still doing school was the best thing ever. It was there that I met all my friends all of the girls were close as there wasn't as many of us but we also made friends with the guys like Hector, Lamine and Pau. They were rough but they made us all better players and I like to think playing with players who have made it now like Lamine made me a better striker. At just 16 I started to play for the women's b team which was a fantastic experience my first few games were tough but then I figured it out and since I've been scoring goals consistently most matches. 

During my time at La masia I got really close to Hector we used to play together after school I'd try and beat him to score goals which helped us both practice our skills one on one. That innocent childish relationship changed as we got older we both developed feelings for each other which Hector was brave enough to admit so from that moment we've been together. That happened when we were 15 and now we are both 18 and still happily together. Throughout that time we were the power couple of La masia the star striker and defensive protégée of the academy. Then Hector started playing for the first team while I stayed with the academy and for a while that hurt. Watching him do so well with the first team was amazing and I love watching him live his dream but it did hurt deep down as I was still stuck playing for the b team. 

Hector has been great at encouraging me he still comes to all of my games that he can make and celebrates every goal like it's my best or likes it's the champions league final. He will practice with me and he makes Lamine train with me so I can learn from him too. That's all nice but the best thing he does for me is just be there when another match goes by that I don't get called up for he is there to comfort me if I cry or to listen if I need to vent. Even when the men's team is winning and doing well he can put that behind him and be there for me which is one of Hector's best qualities. He believes in me more than I do sometimes so it's his support that keeps me going and his encouragement that keeps me motivated to keep going and keep proving that I'm worthy of a chance. 

After training today I stayed behind to practice for longer which is when the manager of the first team came out to the pitch and walked in my direction. I panicked thinking I wasn't supposed to be out on the pitch but when he got closer I saw he had a smile on his face which calmed me down a bit. 

"Just the person I've been looking for y/n it's nice to meet you" he said 

"It's nice to meet you too coach" I said 

"I have some news I think you'd like to hear it's been a long time coming but I'm going to call you up for this game this weekend" he said 

"Thank you so much I appreciate the opportunity I won't let you down" I said

"I don't doubt you'll be amazing we have training tomorrow at 9 I expect you to be there" he said 

"Of course I'll be there" I said 

Suddenly I no longer wanted to train I just wanted to go and tell Hector he didn't have training today and I told him I'd come over when I finished training. I made sure to call my parents and tell them the good news they were incredibly proud of me but they couldn't make the game as they are both out of town for work. My brothers were the next people I told and they promised they'd try and make it to the game but I know they won't be there they never are they are jealous that I'm the one with the football career and they have to work normal jobs. Their jealousy doesn't bother me anymore I have plenty of people who care about me and are proud of my achievements. The person I really care about is Hector and I know he'll be over the moon for me and I can't wait to tell him. The drive to Hector's felt like an age but eventually I got there and I ran up to the door jumping around on the spot waiting for Hector to open the door. 

"Hey love I wasn't expecting you here yet" Hector said 

"I was going to stay late but I just had to come here and tell you something" I said beaming 

"What is it?" He asked 

"I'm being called up to the first team for the match this weekend and I'll be training with them all this week" I said 

He didn't say anything he just picked me up and spun me round while kissing all over my face. Once he put me down he told me how proud he was and he promised me he'd be at the game whether I played or not he said he wouldn't dare miss my first game. I was there for his first game with the first team and the first time he played and now he gets to do the same for me. He said we have to celebrate so he ordered dinner from my favourite restaurant for dinner and we got to cuddle while watching our show which is exactly how I wanted to celebrate this occasion. 

~~~~~~~~~~

It's match day and I've been so nervous all day. Last night I stayed with Hector as he didn't want me to be nervous alone as he was alone before his first game and he swears it made him more nervous. He made me breakfast and drove me to the training ground so I could meet with the rest of the team to go to the stadium. That's when we had to leave each other but I didn't want him to go I need him by my side to keep me from getting too nervous he's been through this he knows how it feels and how to cope and I need that knowledge. He stayed for as long as he could but eventually we had to leave and get on the bus so he gave me one last hug and kiss on my cheeks and lips before handing me an envelope. 

"I know you'll get nervous so open this before the match and if you need to read it again at half time but remember you're amazing and you can do this you wouldn't be here if you weren't I believe in you so you should believe in yourself" he said 

"Thank you" I said 

"Now tell me that you can do it" he said 

"I can do it and I will do it" I said 

"Thats my girl now go and kill it I'll be there to watch every second" he said 

I ran onto the team bus holding the envelope smiling knowing I could do it. That confidence carried through right until after the warm up when it realised this was actually happening. I started to panic until I remembered the envelope so I grabbed it from my bag and opened it. Inside was a handwritten note from Hector reminding me of all my achievements and telling me that I'm more than capable of doing this and if I wasn't I wouldn't be here. His words really helped they reminded me that I'm not just some kid I have 12 goals in the first few matches of the season for the b team I'm a professional footballer and I deserve to be here. 

As I thought I didn't start and nor did I play any of the first half then some subs were made and I still didn't get to go on and then another few subs were made and still I was just warming up on the sidelines. Then it happened I was called over and told to get ready to go on I thought I'd feel anxious in that moment but instead I just felt excitement I was finally getting my debut and all I wanted was to prove that they made the right decision in calling me up and bringing me on. While waiting at the side to come on I looked up to the stands to find Hector who was right where he was said he would be beaming ear to ear and gave me a thumbs up for encouragement. 

I stepped out on the pitch not expecting much to happen but straight away we were on the attack and I had the ball given to me but I wasn't in the right space to get the shot in but I managed to pass it back so we could rebuild. The next time the ball was coming my way I was in a much better position I wasn't sure if I was slightly offside but I made the run anyway and somehow the ball landed at my feet right where I wanted it to be so instinct kicked in and the next thing I knew the ball was in the back of the net. It didn't feel real but when the rest of the girls all ran to me cheering and hugging me it hit me that I just scored on my debut for the first team. I've never had a goal celebration but in the moment I couldn't stop my hands from making a heart and thanking the crowd. 

The rest of the match felt like a blur I managed to score a second goal which had me on cloud 9 the match couldn't have gone any better until I found out I'd received player of the match so I had to go and do an interview straight after the match even though all I wanted was to find Hector and celebrate with him. I did my interview to the best of my abilities before I was finally let go and managed to find Hector stood at the entrance to the tunnel waiting for me. Before he could even move I ran up to him and jumped in his arms which luckily he was ready for and he caught me and managed to spin me round. He treated me like I was simba in the lion king it felt like he was holding me up to the sky to show me off but really he was just so happy he didn't know how to process his emotions. I was thrown in the air a few times before Hector put me back down on the ground and kissed me in front of everyone still in the stadium which was most people which I should've cared more about as I don't like everyone seeing the private parts of our relationship but in the moment I couldn't care less. 

"You were amazing out there I couldn't believe it when you scored the first goal let alone the second now don't tell anyone this but I cried a little watching you celebrate that first goal" he said 

"If I wasn't so full of adrenaline I might've cried too" I said 

"I can't even put into words how proud I am of you but you should be even prouder of yourself what you did out there was amazing you proved exactly why you should be here every week" he said 

"Thank you I don't know if I'll be able to play for the first team again but this has been an amazing experience" I said 

"Oh you will be back here trust me" he said 

He gave me another kiss before we were approached by a tv crew wanting an interview. Hector tried to step aside to let me do the interview but they asked if he would stay as they captured our moment together earlier and wanted to give their viewers an insight into what this game meant for both of us. I was nervous about doing it but when Hector squeezed my hand I knew it would be ok so I agreed to it. 

"So y/n this is your first match for the first team and to score two goals that must feel amazing" the interviewers said 

"It really does I wasn't expecting to score at all let alone two goals I feel invincible" I said 

"Now you two had a heartfelt moment after that match Hector you must be incredibly proud of her" the interviewer said 

"I couldn't be prouder of her I'm proud to call y/n my girlfriend I was proud before but now I'll be shouting it from the rooftops I just know she's going to be an incredible player and she already showing that" he said 

"It seems we have a new power couple in Barcelona on our hands" the interviewer joked 

"She's certainly a star I'm just lucky to be along for the ride" Hector said 

The interviewer thanked us both and finally we were able to walk down the tunnel and get some privacy. I quickly got changed and grabbed my things and met Hector right outside the door to the locker room so we could go back to his place and celebrate as he promised me we'd do that no matter if I played or how well I played and seeing as things went so well we have a lot to celebrate. 

[doyouknowthismusical]

[centrestagereviews]

Fantastically Great Women who Changed the World - The Other Palace

[spineless-lobster]

Okay so it is 1:20am and I should be going to bed but instead I’m gonna contribute to the endless conversation about how fucking fantastic the representation in hades is

Like as a queer person of colour I just get this massive wave of joy when I see my favourite characters look like me. Like I often forget how underrepresented people like me are in the media until I actually see it and it changes me fundamentally lol

Orpheus and eurydice have afros LIKE ME! Athena, ares, zeus and patroclus are black LIKE ME! Dusa is asexual and trans LIKE ME! Chaos is nonbinary LIKE ME! There’s also east/south asian representation via hermes and dionysus. And it’s all portrayed so casually, it’s not there to tick off a diversity box. Supergiant actually put thought and care into these designs and stories and that’s just so amazing to see especially within the gaming industry

To quote the creative director of supergiant from this article (which you should DEFINITELY check out)

“As we discussed and researched the Olympians from canon sources, something stood out that in retrospect was obvious: They’re called the Greek gods because they were worshiped in ancient Greece, not because they themselves are ethnically Greek.”

“Zeus rules all the heavens, not just the airspace over Greece, Poseidon rules all the sea and land. They sprang from the Titans, who sprang from primordial Chaos, the source of all creation. So it stands to reason that the gods represent all the people of the world, at least indirectly.”

Not only is it great to see sexuality represented but it’s represented well. Like everyone just knows zag is bi, there’s no coming out story and there’s no threat of discrimination. It’s just like yeah this is zagreus he likes men and women and pissing off his dad. When zag asks dusa about her body and she declines to talk about it he apologizes saying that he didn’t know any better. Everything is treated with so much respect it’s just so great

Again, my heart feels so full when I see portrayals like this. I looked in the mirror the other day and made a joke about how my hair looked like orpheus’ and that honestly made me so happy and giddy it was a little embarrassing lol

Anyways, I think I had more to say but I’m tired and my brain is foggy but I needed to rant about this because otherwise I might’ve exploded lmao

I just love this game so much

[shadowgast-recs-weekly]

MODERN AU: A Shadowgast Rec List

This week, we have modern AU! Check under the cut for a whopping 24 fics that all take place in modern times, and don't forget to comment and kudos if you like them!

LOVE & OTHER ENCHANTMENTS by LivThael (2092, General) Reccer's Content Notes: No Content Notes

An imagined review and synopsis of a movie about a Shadowgast modern-setting bookstore AU.

Reccer says: Hilariously awful, I say with great love, and by that I mean it purposefully and artfully swan dives out of the AU tree and hits every trope on the way down. This was written to be as cursed as possible, and Liv really delivers both that and non-stop laughs. This is clearly a love letter to terrible romcoms, cliché fanfic tropes, and the Shadowgast fandom as a whole. A+ satire, PLEASE read this!

like 80/20 on the kinsey scale by jakia (2772, Teen) Reccer's Content Notes: No Content Notes

Caleb bangs his hot TA and panics about it the next day. Beau did not sign up for listening to this.

Reccer says: Caleb -- who's only dated women before -- discovers he LOVES the D.

ask to be unbroken by chaotic_geeky (40038, Teen) Reccer's Content Notes: No Content Notes, Unfinished Cliffhanger

Caleb gets a last minute chance to be a photographer at a big runway event. He meets the star model at the afterparty, and things go from there.

Reccer says: The premise is great, the story is excellent, and the characters are enthralling. It does end on an unfinished cliffhanger, but the beginning is so good it's worth it.

Fundamental Forces Other Than Gravity by mllekurtz (TheKnittingJedi) (40676, Explicit) Reccer's Content Notes: No Content Notes

How cold, ruthless and lonely Essek Thelyss (a brilliant student with a secret) accidentally makes some friends and falls in love: a Shadowgast college AU.

Reccer says: This is a fantastic college AU! And the characterization is done so well it's phenomenal.

a smile is more than showing teeth by thought (13642, Teen) Reccer's Content Notes: No Content Notes

"you are welcome in Zadash should that be an option for you," Caleb had written, "and I would be pleased to set aside a few days to work with you in person." Or How to seduce your academic pen pal through basic kindness, stolen sweaters, and books. Mostly books.

Reccer says: This is the start of an incredible AU with two more after it in the series. I love this version of Essek and Caleb falling in love. SO MUCH.

Paradigm Shift by full_time_dreamer_behold (114291, Teen) Reccer's Content Notes: No Content Notes

Caleb joins a law firm. He meets Essek, the IT manager. Things happen. They fall in love

Reccer says: It's a super sweet slow burn!! Essek and Beau have a really fun dynamic and the budding romance is very satisfying.

(your face in my hands is) everything good i need by mllekurtz (25884, Mature) Reccer's Content Notes: No Content Notes

Academics Caleb and Essek are nerds and fall in love over the course of a conference

Reccer says: I liked it!

like colored indigo inscribed with my name by KmacKatie (kmackatie) (30648, Teen) Reccer's Content Notes: No Content Notes

An exploration of tradition, culture, what is worth sacrificing in finding yourself and family. Essek learns how to make a new family.

Reccer says: This is an incredible pic with a lot of beautiful world and culture building set into it. Though I love the idea that Essek knits, I am especially fond of the other handcrafts that the Dynasty may do culturally, and this one does such a great job with it. And the interpersonal relationships are absolutely incredible!

we learn to live with the pain, mosaic broken hearts by vegabondfirelily (5777, Teen) Reccer's Content Notes: No Content Notes

Sometimes things don't go as planned. Caleb will always be there for Essek, though, even after a life-changing accident. Non-linear narrative, angst with a better ending

Reccer says: I love this pic, even if it makes me cry every time. It is emotional and brilliant.

the fire kept closest (burns most of all) by Mousecookie (21822, Mature) Reccer's Content Notes: Major Character Death

Takes place on a modern Rumblecusp, Essek and Caleb are volcanologists. Absolutely bonkers genre mashup of scifi disaster thriller ghost story romance that somehow works. There is a MCD warning but it is also tagged as Happy Ending and that does come through!

Reccer says: The writing style is like watching a movie and it made me cry both sad and happy tears.

Starting with your heart (bright heart) by 2manyboys (9914, Explicit) Reccer's Content Notes: No Content Notes

Essek and Caleb have been taking showers together, but it's totally platonic, they swear

Reccer says: I liked it!

scene: a shift in tempo by hanap (6790, Teen) Reccer's Content Notes: No Content Notes

Essek, first soloist of Rosohna Ballet, comes across the mountains in an exchange to be Caleb's new partner.

Reccer says: A beautiful fic! I love the way the AU fits our characters so beautifully, and how it honors ballet while also subverting it just a little. Gorgeous!

A King in Cat's Clothes by royalgreen (1544, Teen) Reccer's Content Notes: No Content Notes

Frumpkin is extremely suspicious of this interloper Essek who keeps visiting Frumpkin's domain (the cat cafe) and sniffing around Frumpkin's human

Reccer says: Frumpkin's POV is utterly hilarious. He is so angry that Essek is sweetly romancing Caleb.

read between the lines (everything is gradual) by SpottedEnchanse (SpottedEnchants) (3047, General) Reccer's Content Notes: No Content Notes

A series in which Caleb owns a cat cafe. It's amazing.

Reccer says: SpottedEnchanse's writing can do literally no wrong ever. It's like flossing for the brain

the golden thread around your neck whispered visions of my undoing by MarsBar2019 (191412, Explicit) Reccer's Content Notes: No Content Notes

Essek is the CEO of an arcane tech company in Roshona where Caleb gets a job as his personal assistant.

Reccer says: A tense slow burn that's sexy as hell, one of my favourite fics.

Sleep, With Benefits by KmacKatie (62272, Explicit) Reccer's Content Notes: No Content Notes

Caleb tries out his coworkers' mattress. That's definitely all and not that he has a major crush on Essek.

Reccer says: I liked it!

take chances by 06151126 (3021, Teen) Reccer's Content Notes: No Content Notes

Essek left Formula One and came back, but his return isn't going well. He hires Caleb to help.

Reccer says: This is the second work in a series, and the whole thing is wonderful! Well written and honest, it's very cool to see how Essek and Caleb come together over the course.

Empire of Lights by mllekurtz (TheKnittingJedi) (17215, Explicit) Reccer's Content Notes: No Content Notes

Rosohnans call it the rainy season: a time of humid days, heavy showers, and suffocating heat. Caleb, who feels less and less like a stranger in the city he recently decided to call home, finds it's also a time for revelations.

Reccer says: This is a fantastic, sweet AU of our wizards getting together and I love it.

A mile high by Mousecookie (545, Mature) Reccer's Content Notes: No Content Notes

Caleb and Essek (try to) get frisky in an airplane lavatory.

Reccer says: It's cute and funny.

The Kitchen Sink by mousecookie (17126, Mature) Reccer's Content Notes: No Content Notes

Essek is a supermodel and Caleb is a jack-of-all-trades, and they keep meeting in increasingly unlikely circumstances. WIP with 6/12 chapters.

Reccer says: It's funny and the writing style is almost Pratchett-esque at times

The following fics each received 2 recs each!

Something to Believe in by AwesomeFroggy (108948, Teen) Reccer's Content Notes: No Content Notes

Essek's mother sends him to Nicodranas as punishment, where unbeknownst to her he already has a friend. Jester thinks he'd really get along with her friend Caleb.

Reccer 1 says: I liked it! Reccer 2 says: This is an amazing incredible story! I love it so very much! The story is complete, though it is marked as one chapter left as no epilogue is out. Don't let that stop you from reading! I love every single second of this story so very much.

I’ve been lost before (and I’m lost again, I guess) by toneofjoy (165k, Explicit) Reccer's Content Notes: No Content Notes

Rock climbing AU! Caleb is the new athlete to the gym and Essek takes over his training. Despite the specter of their pasts, feelings blossom.

Reccer 1 says: It's well written, most of the esoteric climbing stuff is explained well, and I really enjoy their characterizations. There's a good balance between the relationship-building and the climbing part. Reccer 2 says: This is top three Shadowgast stories ever. It's a wild, beautiful, heartfelt ride. It's worth every second of time it takes to read. Also, this will make you want to take up climbing or at least start watching climbing. It's so well written and enjoyable. Everyone should at least give it a try!

The Secret Romance of Caleb Widogast by Cardinal_Daughter (15680, Explicit) Reccer's Content Notes: No Content Notes

All Caleb wants is a peaceful, romantic weekend alone with his boyfriend. The boyfriend none of his friends know about. Naturally, nothing goes quite as planned.

Reccer 1 says: a sweet and silly story where we get a glimpse of the absolute chaos of a M9 group chat Reccer 2 says: A fantastic AU with a brilliant sequel. I love it!

coping skills by eldritchmochi (251061, Explicit) Reccer's Content Notes: No Content Notes

BDSM fic for a disabled Essek and the trials he experiences

Reccer 1 says: There is so much good about this WIP! The depiction of both Essek’s disabilities and the kink community are so well done, and the characterization is super fun. Well written and super hot. Reccer 2 says: This is one of the best long fits out there for a modern prompt. It is an absolutely wonderful story, heartfelt and meaningful, and the characters have so much depth. And I'm a sucker for a well written chronic illness/chronic pain Essek, and this one is so realistic it walks the line to uncanny. I love this!

Aeor is for Lovers is an 18+ Shadowgast Discord server. The above fanfic recommendations were pulled from our community for this weekly event. All fics, unless otherwise specified, will primarily feature Shadowgast. Have any questions about what this is? Check out the FAQ! Next week, we’ll be back with WIPS

[revvethasmythh]

okay I HAVE FINISHED. a few final thoughts below the cut

-yes, i romanced lucanis. yes, my personal canon has rook is a throuple with lucanis and davrin. we exist

-i was very aware going into this that there was criticism of the lucanis romance in general and honestly i don't even know if i can judge it accurately considering how much time i spent dicking around before moving the story along. my suspicion is that the romance plays pretty fine if you're consistently moving along, but has heavy lags if you're spending a lot of time dicking around as I did. i still enjoyed it! especially the final romance scene after coming back from the fade, that was good stuff. it's hard to build a romance with a character who is really scared of a relationship and is frightened to act on things, but i think there was room for one more small scene after you commit and before completing his personal quest, probably. just to smooth over the whole experience. i have thoughts, but they're kind of vague so put a pin in that. but again, overall i liked it and would do again. it ain't the fenris romance but, then again, what is?

-it was fun seeing the inquisitor and dorian back at it again! bonded for life after in hushed whispers best friends fr

-choosing harding for the distraction team AND bellara to deal with the wards absolutely felt like the perfect choices in my playthrough. harding's sacrifice hits very hard because she was always very "whatever it takes" about this and "if you need me like I needed you, i will be there. that is my promise to you" and her belief that the world is good and people can change was genuinely inspiring in that it made rook choose to take the high road and give solas one last chance to potentially fuck her over to see if she could save him (which he almost did, but didn't because of The Convocation Of 3.5 Women Needed To Change His Mind). rook would simply have not made that decision if she wasn't trying to honor harding's memory as best she could.

-bellara taking control of the blight FUCKED. there was NO waffling, no uncertainty, no "ifs" or "maybes" or "mights." she said "I CAN do this" and then she DID and I think it felt like fantastic character growth for her. great choice, no notes, honestly glad i chose her for this instead of neve (because it would have felt like neve whump at that point, she'd been THROUGH IT this game).

-i wish there was more of a discussion to be had with taash about what happened with harding or some resolution to it that wasn't one line of dialogue when you get back to the lighthouse. i wanted to do a proper check in about that (and be like! hey! don't say everyone you love dies! please let me help you taash!). but that's overall a part of the fact that there's little follow up at the end of the game, which, it is what it is. da2 did also just kind of END, so like. been there, done that i suppose.

-i had a lot of fun! there are clunky things and some awkward writing and it's an imperfect game, yeah--but i really, genunely did have fun and will play this more than i ever will inquisition or even origins. not to repeat myself but: it ain't da2, but then, what is?

[sasaranurude]

I'm a loser who both spends too much time playing gacha games and loves to hear myself talk, so here's another game review style post, this time covering my first day playing Break My Case. This time I'm not even being a little hater! I'm a lover! I'm cringe! I'm free! I love you Coly! I love you ikemen gacha games!!!!!!!

Break My Case is a new puzzle-music-adventure mobile game from Coly, the developers behind Mahoutsukai no Yakusoku and On Air. More relevant to BMC/BreMai is their game Stand My Heroes, with which it shares a writer, some gameplay elements, and of course a naming convention. Coly has developed a bit of a cult following for their unique status in the Japanese mobile gaming world: they're a company that was founded by women and hires women to make games for women. They put a lot of soul into their games. From the start, BMC is no different!

"Could you have pulled a clean version of this image from the internet so it didn't have all the game junk" no. it's my tumblr and you get my screenshots.

I (with help from friends) overviewed the initial Break My Case announcement back when it dropped. You can read that here! I said in that post that I thought a "dark rhythm game" would be a really cool direction for the game… and that's more or less what we got! GO ME!!!!!

First: the game's presentation is fantastic. Super slick graphical design and just amazing atmosphere. The sound design of this game is incredible. Genuinely. Really, really, good. All the music is amazing—I'm not knowledgeable enough to say anything other than "IT SLAPS!", but it totally does slap. The illustrations for the cards are all wonderfully atmospheric in and of themselves, and are just a delight to look at on the homescreen with its chill background music. Even just navigating menus is a sleek, seamless experience. The live2d is well-done, although it clashes a tad with the art style for a bit of an uncanny look at times. 

The atmosphere! The atmospheeeeeeere!!!

Of course, the draw to this game is the characters and story, so let's jump into that. I'll admit right now that I read the story through a machine translation—I have aaaalmost enough Japanese knowledge to fill in the gaps, especially since the story is fully voiced, but I'm definitely not getting the full nuance of the story that someone fluent in Japanese is going to get. THAT SAID, after completing the prologue, I was definitely intrigued enough that I want to continue slogging through the MTL just to read more! There's a great setup, centered around the bar Aporia and its three modes—a daytime cafe, a nighttime members-only bar, and, secretly, a "fixer" service who'll help anyone with any problem. Our main character, a woman who was just forced to quit her job at a corrupt company, gets hired to replace Aporia's eccentric owner while he goes on a who-knows-how-long vacation. The owner also has the role of "tail"—as in, the tail a lizard sheds to avoid being eaten. If anything in the fixer service goes wrong, it's the owner who takes the fall and the blame. This hasn't come to mean much in practice yet in the (quite short) prologue, but it's a fascinating setup. The story promises to touch on themes of the threads that weave our lives together, how small meetings can lead to massive life changes, and whether any human being is truly replaceable, even in our modern corporate world where people are treated like cogs in a machine. According to a staff interview, there are a handful of references to Stand My Heroes in BreMai, but the games' settings aren't otherwise closely linked.

Rough translation in alt text. The Aporia manager Ai may be the most mysterious, intimidating character, but he also beefs with a parrot the first time you meet him, so...

All the characters are staff at Aporia with various unique roles and background. The prologue just gives you a little bit of each of them, but everyone does show up, and they all have interesting dynamics with each other already. Ai, the stern manager, has some history with the MC that he refuses to divulge, and goes so far as to force psychologist Riku to agree to not look into it. The range of relationships among the staff run the gamut from the calm and mature friendship between fortune teller Kiho and art teacher Kyoya, to the unfaltering dedication of Yu to his ex-mafioso savior Tomose, to the ridiculous Takeru and Soyogu who spend their first appearance waking up after having gotten black-out drunk together the night before. My favorite dynamic of all so far is that of Kou and Mao—Kou is a playboy who insists he's not a playboy, and is introduced evading a woman by… asking the icy Mao to pretend to be his boyfriend so that she thinks he's taken and gay and leaves him alone. Which Mao exasperatedly agrees to, telling Kou that he's used up his allotment for this month which ohmygod how often does Kou do this. Kou if you're asking this guy to pretend to be your gay lover so often he gives you a monthly limit I think you might just have to admit you want him to actually be your gay lover, Kou, oh my god— 

Rough TL in alt text. Kou is letting the implication do all the heavy lifting here. He technically never said he was dating Mao. Technically. 

On to the gameplay. There's gameplay! Unique gameplay! Good unique gameplay! Oh my god, uncharted joseimuke territory! The main gameplay mode is a match-3 puzzle game with rhythm elements. As in other rhythm games, each song in the game is its own level, more or less. (Each character has two unique songs, and three songs shared with the other members of their unit.) You set up a team with cards you've collected from the gacha, which determine your power level and special skills. The "leader" of the team has to be the character whose level you've selected. The puzzle gameplay is a tile-swapping match 3—think bejeweled or candy crush—but the tiles you've matched are only cleared once a bar sliding across the screen hits them, clearing them in tune with the song. Everything cleared in a single swipe of the bar ups the combo counter. There's also a life system, where if the bar slides across the screen without clearing a single match, you lose a life… But the bar moves pretty slow. You're not likely to game over or even lose a single life any time soon. There are more difficult versions of the levels I've yet to unlock, so I'm sure the life meter becomes relevant then. There's also "auto" and "loop" features if you want to grind a level over and over for exp and items, but, of course, the computer can't score as high as you playing it yourself.

And, really, it's fun to play, so why would you want to!? The sound of matches clearing with the music is so satisfying and really makes you want to combo as high as possible. Once you've matched some tiles, you can't move them again, nor use them in a second match (eg, in a cross shape), so if you want to maximize your combo and make as many matches as possible with what's on the board, you have to think ahead about which matches you're going to make. The bar slowly crossing the screen adds a visual timed element that gives some urgency to putting all the matches together. It definitely feels like a game you can pick up an instinct for over time, which is super fun. 

All in all, a really solid, enjoyable little puzzle game. It would be fun to play even without the promise of anime boys. Stand My Heroes is also a match-3, for the record, which is what really cements the two games as being part of the same series.

Admittedly, the anime boy staring at you while you play musical candy crush is a little disconcerting.

The second gameplay mode is "Snap'n Spin", a… gameplay-lite mode that just puts chibi characters in random strange situations and lets you take pictures of them. The mode is explained to be a video game within the world of BreMai, so it's not even trying to be realistic or relevant to anything else in the game. Once you take your pokemon snaps of the boys, they get a fun little caption. You can save up to 40 pictures in your album. Other than being cute, the main way this mode interfaces with the rest of the game is that it's the primary way to unlock card stories for the cards you pulled in gacha. 

This gameplay mode is... cute? I guess? It being so disconnected from the style and aesthetics of the entire rest of the game felt weird. The chibis are adorable, so it has that going for it. And I do like some of the captions you get on the photos afterwards. My favorite were the scenes you catch of a character drinking, and then the caption reveals their current favorite drink. That's a delightful detail for a game set in a bar. Mostly, though, this mode left me wondering "why?" ...And I imagine the answer is something like "because merchandisable chibi characters are a requirement for joseimuke games." This mode could've been anything so long as these cute, starry little dudes were in it.

Urara here hated the drink and the caption revealed that, lately, his favorite thing is sparkling water. He's the youngest character in the cast, so I guess he hasn't grown into booze yet...

One last feature I want to mention is the jukebox. Like many games, BreMai has a music player that lets you listen to tracks from the game… But its music player is, genuinely, a fully-featured music player app with shuffle, repeat, lyric displays, and even background play that works when you're in another app or your phone is off. What! Wild! When I first learned a few days ago that BreMai had a built-in player for its BGM tracks, my first thought was "Well, what's stopping someone from downloading the game just to use the music player and never spending a cent on it? Wouldn't you rather have the songs on spotify so you at least get a pittance of ad revenue, in that case? It's more than nothing."

But having played the game now, I see what they did to prevent that, lol. You don't unlock the songs in the jukebox until you get an SS score on the song's level. Which, I mean, that's normal rhythm game stuff, of course. Can't fault that decision. But, as in other gacha rhythm games, your score in a level depends on the power of your team of cards, and the cards you get from the initial handful of pulls aren't gonna get you anywhere near an SS score without significant investment. So you're either buying in-game currency to buy upgrade items, more gacha pulls, or both. Of course, you can also put a bunch of time into grinding for upgrade items—they drop from levels. Gacha currency is harder to come by. So you're not getting songs in the player without actually playing the game lmfao. The character solo songs in particular (the ones with vocals rather than just instrumentals) also require you to build up rapport with that character—the game calls it "Nice". You build up Nice with them by playing their other songs and using their cards in levels. It takes 1000 Nice on a character to unlock their song. In my first day of playing, I was able to get one character to about 250 Nice, another to 200, and a handful more with a few points, so it builds at an okay pace. There's ways to pay to speed up the grinding for Nice and for upgrade items with things like level skip tickets. So, basically: you're not getting that music player to a useful state without investing either money or time, lmao. Is paying-or-grinding to get cool music you can listen to while not playing the game more "worth it" than the usual freemium game goals of better units, new in-game outfits, or prettier card illustrations? ...Honestly, maybe it is? It's novel, at least.

All gacha rhythm games have the same card select screen, don't they. These were my cards' levels after my first day of play, and you can see they didn't quite reach a suggested score of "A", much less the maximum "SS".

But I do want to stress, the monetization is, for the most part, pretty easy to ignore. Nothing in-your-face. The button to go to the shop screen is a different color, but it's not flashing with an eternal indicator, it's not popping up at every second, it's just sitting there alongside all the other menu buttons. The game isn't shoving timers in your face at all times—there's a stamina meter, which is mildly annoying, but you get ten plays when it's full, and if you're just playing casually you're probably not going to want to play the puzzle game over and over enough to fully deplete that. I know the bar is on the damn floor here but Tokyo Debunker seriously made me realize how bad it can be with mobile game monetization. BreMai is freemium, yeah, but as far as dark patterns go, it's not egregiously bad.

So, the verdict: if you're a joseimuke game fan and aren't afraid to play a game that probably won't get an English port and doesn't even have a fan translation yet (which I realize is already counting out 99.99% of people), definitely give this one a try. See if you like the gameplay—it really is worth trying—and do check out the story if you've got the ability. Or just look at the pretty anime boys. 

[thebrilliot]

As a straight white cis dude, I find it entirely rude that other straight white cis men are not trying to teach me to love myself and others, and instead are selling me cryptocurrency and superhero stories. Don't give me that fake hero-and-money-glorifying crap. Give me the real stuff, like being a kid of divorced parents and trying to survive high school, or a multi-generational story all about community and family in a mountain town in Colorado, or making an unlikely friend in the big city, or even good romance.

Do you know how good girls have it reading literature written by women for women about real women's struggles? Book stores are alive because of women's literature. They're packed full to the brim with books written by women for other women. They're just writing poetry back and forth to each other! It's beautiful! These women love each other! Meanwhile, the only thing I can find that is written for men is sci-fi and fantasy and geez it's all the same thing. I don't need fantastical anymore. I don't want to spend another 6 hours figuring out the story behind your world. I don't care if it's epic and grand. Give me some good, reality-grounded, relatable stuff.

Here's what I want to happen in pop culture. I want men to say, "let's talk about forgotten people in history and lift each other up and support each other" which is Six the Musical's message to women. Which is way healthier than what men write for men. Don't try to convince me that I should idolize a founding father who pulled himself up by his bootstraps (by marrying into an influential family where both daughters were in love with him - and note that there is no evidence that Angelica Schuyler ever had feelings for Alexander Hamilton - because who else would I want to idolize other than a man whom women find irresistibly attractive) and single-handedly against all odds created the American financial system, cheated on his wife, paid hush money to keep cheating on his wife, then publicly revealed the affair because he would rather be seen as a cheater than a traitor to his country because hOnOr Is So ImPoRtAnT, then got his son and himself killed in two different duels because AGAIN hOnOr Is So ImPoRtAnT. Nowhere in the entire plot of Hamilton did Alexander Hamilton actually do something purely because he cared about someone else. The revolutionary war and every political dispute was fought and won through pride and stubbornness. John Laurens died in a different part of the country. He didn't pause his work to spend time with his family. He didn't abandon honor to protect himself or his family.

I didn't mean for this to be a rant about Hamilton, but it is a great example of the literature and art that men create for other men. Great music, pacing, etc. but riddled with things that keep bothering me about patriarchy. Stop telling me to be a hero that does everything by himself. Just tell me how to be happy and love the people I love! Don't tell me that because I'm average and feel overlooked that there's actually something special about me that makes me some sort of chosen one. That's not real! I already got told enough of those lies in school. I grew up in gifted and talent student programs through grade school and they told me the same thing. "YoU'rE gOiNg To ChAnGe ThE wOrLd." Actually, probably not, but because I'm a good kid and just the right amount of neurodivergent, I'm going to take you seriously and put an unhealthy amount of pressure on myself and also then fail to reach any of my vague and lofty goals, especially because no one is telling boys and men that community is a crucial part of human life, happiness and fulfillment, mental health, change and progress, and personal growth and accomplishment.

Maybe I don't want to change the world, and maybe I don't want to do things all by myself, and maybe I don't want to rely on finding a wife and having children as a way to find or create a community or a support system. Maybe I get fulfillment out of things other than fame and sex. Where are the men who are writing to me as an audience?

Anyway, the patriarchy sucks. Fuck patriarchal messaging. I reject that. Men, be better. Write something worthwhile for once.

[basedkikuenjoyer]

Jojolands 13: Ohana Means I'll Set Your Ass on Fire

Dragona dropping some great truth about the absurd in this bizarre adventure. We finally got a peak behind that mask. I love it and I hate it, if you've read the chapter already you know what I mean. We'll get to that, because this right here isn't spoilery and it was such a cool nugget.

I love the way Dragona talks about the "absurd." Chance moments that alter one's life for better or for worse. The things that just don't make sense. Especially paired with Dragona opining about nearly losing their heart in the same chapter that last part about hearts being destroyed hits hard. I'm definitely sure we're looking at a trans narrative here and one we'll see play out. The chapter does a good job of implying what we need to know. Nudges at an early theory you've been changing your body with Smooth Operator. We ready? What follows is no place for beginners or sensitive hearts:

Oh HELL yes! As if I needed a reason, these two were well on their way to top Jojo status and now the dynamic duo of the Joestar Siblings are definitely there. Mean girl sets her sights on a much more timid Dragona who we now know looked way more masculine at 14 than 18. Talking physical build and not just fashion. You know, I don't expect an 18yo to have all that figured out and with this I do think we'll see her keep coming into her own. But holy shit that was fucked up and I sincerely hope we can get through the rest of this with no more sexual assault on my Jojos blorbo.

If they do...Jodio will fuck you up. Set a whole damn bus on fire! And while I'm not looking forward to having to relive the impetus in the inevitable anime adaptation, since we've already had the cop I kinda like the perpetrator being a girl here. For one because it shows a side of this kind of bigotry that often goes underrepresented. You see a little more space made typically for trans men who had bad experiences with men prior to coming out, largely because it tends to overlap with those who found a comfortable half-step in something like a radical feminist group. But this sets up Dragona pretty well for a realistic other side of the coin to that. Your experiences with bullying might make you a little skittish of girls your age, you keep a foot in this criminal world even if we keep showing you (not unlike Okiku) as someone who doesn't fit super well, all this would certainly explain why you'd gravitate towards a figure like Meryl Mei. Why there's great potential for drama if she shows a nastier side. It's all great for a trans story that justifies still figuring yourself out through it...but sticks to a fairly realistic path for a lot of young women who find themselves running with gangs.

All that said, Jodio you absolute freak. Burning the whole bus is metal, it's scruffy, he's protecting family. Doooooope. These two are fantastic and I can't wait to explore their story, their dynamic more. Jodio & Dragona's sibling bond is the beating heart of this part. As much as I love Kiku/Izo & Killua/Alluka yeah this is gonna be a banger. Speaking of, this chapter was also the second time we nudged at Jodio getting shit for looking fey too. These two are ride or die for each other and their awesome mom Barbara Ann. How this all ties into their family falling apart and their desire to become filthy rich? No need to ask...

In lighter news. They. When Meryl learns of the other lava rock that got smashed. We're all clear on who's the brains and who's the firepower in the dynamic duo right? I trust Meryl as far as I can throw her and she's a big lady. But for now everything seems on the up-and-up. Charmingman seems to have passed the sniff test and yeah it looks like he's just going to hang around. I like this new setup. Scouting a shadowy company to see if we can get more lava rock.

All in all one of the best chapters of Jojolands so far. I'm loving it, this is the exact direction I hoped it'd go. The backstory made this pretty heavy and I hope we can have more fun with this gang on the new excursion.

[ghoulsbeard]

ooo the Fool and the World??

ahh thank you mouse :) <3 !!

Where did Rook's journey begin? What were they doing before joining the Veilguard?

Cracks my knuckles evilly… Mikal is honestly one of my favorites sfgds and she has the big indulgent backstory… she grew up in the free marches, became a friend of red jenny at the end of the “old guard” (when the jennies were a little bloodier and grimmer), fucked over the merchants’ guild, fucked over the coterie, lived to tell the tale… became the inquisition’s enchantment expert. she and dagna have dissenting opinions on the fade and love each other for it…she and varric do not get along but he really respects her so she ended up called in for the solas hunt (mostly by tessa and charter’s doing, they both thought she’d be a great help, and she does like them both.) i think she was on tessa and vaea’s team and saw the others infrequently before she was moved over in the last year to helping lace and varric; she and lace got along fairly well in the inquisition and worked together great.. she and varric clashed a lot as usual, especially since he’d begun to get more sentimental about solas... I think a hunt of ten years wore on him a lot.

Vasiliki was an old watcher; well known as a bit of a troublemaker for years before she got put on leave for antagonizing the nobility (again)… she grew up in Cumberland alienage i believe, if i have my cities right, and worked on a fishing trawler before she became an apprentice at the necropolis. she’s always prodded at a few of the traditions of the Necropolis - the organization of labor, for one- so she wasn’t at all surprised when Myrna told her to take a vacation, though it was a blow as the necropolis is her home the wisps and spirits are her family and neighbors... i think varric and lace persuaded her to join them by promising her plenty of fade weirdness

What does happily-ever-after look like for Rook? Is it attainable, or just wishful thinking?

they’re both very pragmatic women, they live in the present, mikal’s big pie in the sky dream is to see the thaigs of Rivain but besides that they both roll with the punches so to speak.. not much wishful thinking for either of them..

Mikal is pleased to live day by day.. she wants to see her family as much as she can before she dies, explore the world and see new artistry and craftsmanship, read widely as she can, create whatever burns in her mind and soul… she romanced bellara so i think they visit bel’s clan and mikal’s family together :) mikal’s family has a tradition of engraving a stone to honor those who have passed, and mikal does one for cyrian as a gift to bel. I think they’d be happy to explore and travel together, no matter where they end up living mikal will be a friend of red jenny and bel will be a scholar of dalish magic, and she’ll have mikal read her drafts, and mikal will show her the plans for her designs, and they’ll collaborate on enchantments and so on and so forth… :) clan lutare and the glavonaks celebrating together. i think it would be great

vasiliki would be pleased just to sit by the sea and have a nice meal with someone she likes. I think if she and neve decide to make it work, they’d want to go long distance and visit a few times a year or vasiliki would consider moving to minrathous… she might do so.. her faith in the watch is deeply rattled by johanna.. she’d be a great shadow dragon all things considered, she enjoyed the work while the dragons were scattered post-dragon attack and she and neve balance each other really well … if she hadn’t romanced neve i think she’d move to Rivain, learn more about spirits… not sure what she’d do for a living though… she’s honed herself as a mourn watcher and it’s a particular set of skills

I did briefly lament that she should have been a decade younger and romanced davrin… she would have relished the challenge of training griffons & thumbing her nose at warden politics as the order changes… she and dav have a fantastic and very fun dynamic. ah well </3

[bonesandthebees]

after barely reading (published) books for the past few years, I finally got back into reading around the end of 2023. I ended up reading 6 books total in the year, which isn't a lot but in total fairness I'd only read two books into november. then I read the other 4 all between november and december.

anyway in case you're curious what I read in 2023 was

I'm Glad My Mom Died by Jennette McCurdy (listened to it as an audiobook when I was driving from New Jersey to Florida, I think McCurdy is an incredible writer and her authorial voice was so unique especially with the way she adjusted the writing style based off her age in the time period being talked about. incredibly raw and painful to listen to)

Game of Thrones by George RR Martin (worked through it so slowly from february all the way to november, I tried watching the first episode of the show while I was reading it and I got so pissed off at how much the show changed and flattened out characters, especially the women)

She Who Became the Sun by Shelley Parker-Chan (amazing, showstopping, absolutely love the exploration of gender and sexuality in it along with the constant push and pull between morality and ideas of destiny and grandeur. It's set in China during the time when the Mongols ruled and that's a time period I didn't know much about before reading so it was incredibly interesting to learn about, and I cannot wait to read the sequel)

Sharp Objects by Gillian Flynn (definitely still think Gone Girl was better, but I adore Flynn's writing and how she explores incredibly fucked up women and their relationships)

The Poppy War by RF Kuang (wasn't my favorite, I've heard amazing things about RF Kuang as an author and I really like her writing style, but I know this was her first novel and it definitely feels like a new author kind of book. Loved the worldbuilding and thought it was super fascinating and appreciated the grim and brutal depiction of the realities of war. didn't grip me as much as I wanted it to. very excited to eventually read Babel though)

and then

The Priory of the Orange Tree by Samantha Shannon (one of my new favorite books ever. literally could talk about it for ages. amazing worldbuilding and a plot that takes you all over this incredibly detailed world, a fantastic cast of characters who are all so nuanced, a very deftly woven plot, gorgeous writing style, lovely wlw romance, just such a great epic high fantasy novel) (it's over 800 pages but didn't feel that long at all it's so easy to get into)

my goal for 2024 is to read at least 20 books which might not seem like much to some people but considering reading 5 books in 2023 was more than I've read in the past 3 years combined I think it's a pretty fair goal. probably will ramble about my to read list here soon, I've already started reading The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes which I'm really enjoying so far. as always I love Suzanne Collins' writing style :)

[helenofsimblr]

Dream adjusts himself on his throne as he watches Elita and her new visitor. Elita had already sensed Ambrose, but wanted to see if he would approach. He has no trouble approaching an innocent youth, yet it’d be interesting to see how these two would face off against each other. Ambrose was an old soul, far older than most and yet he seems to be catching up quite quickly. How interesting. 

Elita: You know, you being here is kinda risky.  I'm not sure if your ancient ass is up to no good or what yet.

Ambrose: I’m hurt darling. Can you blame me for wanting to see your pretty face in person? This cellular phone that Jure gave me is a marvel… but it doesn’t compare to seeing your face in the moonlight.

Elita: You say that to all the unsuspecting maidens before you suck them dry? 

Ambrose: Only to the ones who have captured my interest so wholly. Others pale in your light my dear.

Elita: Great but still, You being here could result in 10 million questions I am not equipped to answer. 

Ambrose: I believe there is a park nearby, yes?

Elita: Yeah, let's head there. Just gimme a sec to change my clothes.

****

Elita: So what's the deal huh, Fangs? You like me?

Ambrose: I adore you and our little chats are a highlight of my night. What deal are we discussing?

Dream laughs, “Apparently 'Fangs' is not entirely caught up. What a ridiculous response.” 

Elita: Yeah, so, you like... "wish to court me" as they say in oldspeak? Or is it just sex you want?

Ambrose: I suppose courting would be the appropriate term. Granted, sex would be fabulously appreciated, but I am not a man who will press women into doing things until they’re ready. Don’t the kids call it “dating” now? I’ve been reading! You’d be quite proud. I’ve learned to traverse the inter…inter webs? No… internet! Yes.

Elita: I am somewhat impressed you are learning our new ways.

Dream scoffs, “Dear Elita, I wonder if you’d be as impressed if you knew the exact method in which he obtains this knowledge.” 

Ambrose: I’ve been gone a while, but the occasional, discreet and completely safe meal has given me some insights to the new world. It’s a fantastic place. So open, so free! It is a marvelous time to be awake.

****

Elita: Yeah it's a marvelous time, sure

Ambrose: You do not seem so pleased, red pill? Is there something troubling you?

Elita: No, not at all... I was just thinking of somebody who I knew from before.  So you want to date me right?

Ambrose:If it’s another man in your life, I may just have to  toss myself onto the rocks of Windenberg Island. I think you’re truly a wonder Elita Robinson and anyone who does not see that is not worthy of your thoughts. And I would be honored to date you, my lovely red pill.

Elita: Then… let's give it a try?

[centrestagereviews]

Interview: Rachel Seirian - Fantastically Great Women Who Changed the World

Interview: Rachel Seirian - Fantastically Great Women Who Changed the World

The empowering smash hit pop musical Fantastically Great Women Who Changed the World is coming to London this Summer!  Based on the popular book by Suffragette relative Kate Pankhurst, this inspiring, joyous show has won over audiences across the UK with its catchy pop soundtrack, inspiring heroines and TikTok favourite choreography. Ahead of their London opening we’ve spoken with Rachel…

[cbsxreader]

if ur ok with more fantastical and/or meta stuff, could i please have the mercs with an s/o who was teleported to the tf2 verse from a much more serious setting and is still getting used to their comedic surroundings?

Oooh

Mercs with an S/o who is from a different universe

Tw: (slight mention of drinking in Demo's one)

Scout

Is a bit confused, since he's used to his world and hasn't really thought of it being different in some way.

But he does kind of understand his S/o's frustration, from what he's heard from them, his world doesn't seem bad in the slightest.

If his S/o asks him about something, he'll act as if he knows all about it, but his S/o can tell that he's just a motormouth. He does say the truth sometimes, but it sounds so outrageous that his S/o doesn't believe him anyways.

"Did ya' know that I'm God's gift to women?"

"Yeah...sure you are."

Soldier

Loves that his S/o is tough and ready for anything, but is oblivious to the fact that something must have happened to them that made them that way.

Once he does get it though, he is really protective of his S/o in the way that he teaches them his infamous necksnap, how to defend themselves and how to use certain weapons.

"You're doing great, cupcake!"

Pyro

Is kind of a distraction for his S/o.

Like, both the fact that they're strangelly wholesome and that they see the world completely differently makes their S/o worry less about everything else.

Pyro holds their S/o's hand if they are in public or are feeling paranoid.

If their S/o wants an explanation for something they'll have to ask someone else, but if their S/o tells them about it afterwards, they will draw a picture of them

Demoman

He is at a loss for words at first, because he, just like his coworkers, hasn't thought about his world differently from a different perspective.

He, for once, worries about his S/o drinking their trauma away and hides his alchohol better, locking it away in safes, lockers and cabinets.

If his S/o feels paranoid, he'll bring them away from people and soothe them.

Engineer

He's honestly sorry for it, but there are times when he's more enticed about how his S/o might have ended up in his world than his S/o's world itself or their backstory.

"Did ya' temper with anything that could have caused ya' to teleport to our universe?"

"...We were just talking about how leaders in my world killed people for no reason..."

"*clears throat* oh..right, my apologies...carry on..."

But other than that, he tackles one silly thing after another, telling his S/o about them as well as providing theories to them about his world to calm them down and keep them from overthinking.

Heavy

Is willing to act as a personal bodyguard for his S/o. He always stays by their side and makes sure they're not feeling paranoid or stressed.

If his S/o asks something about his world, he tries to explain it but quickly starts tripping over his words, apologizes and suggests they go and visit Medic or Engineer.

Heavy is also a good listener and wants to know what his S/o's world was like.

Medic

He is INVESTED in his S/o's world and backstory, gladly listening to them when they feel like talking about it. He even specifically asks to not leave out the gruesome and/or serious details.

S/o: *talking about a traumatizing event that dramatically changed their life*

Medic: *looking at his S/o, listening to them carefully, hand under his chin, unbothered by the theme*

Medic lets them watch his operations if his S/o needs a bit of space to breathe from exploring his comedic world.

Would try to explain anything that ponders his S/o's mind about his world, succeeding in explaining his medical adventures and achievements.

Sniper

He tries to slowly but steadily explain how the world works and he himself realizes how silly it is compared to his S/o's home.

"Wait, wait. So, New Zealand is underwater and you're the last person from there and Australia is full of buff people with moustaches, because of a metal very creatively called 'Australium'?"

"Yea...we're all so used these things that Oi haven't even thought why they work in such ways.."

He understands that his S/o is still paranoid and helps them get used to his world by making lighthearted jokes about their surroundings as well as actually gently soothing them when they're paranoid.

Spy

Spy is a bit confused at first, thinking his S/o is crazy. But he spends more time with them and from the way they talk, act and interact with their surroundings, he can tell that they're telling the truth.

If his S/o is paranoid or stressed, he lets them use his cloak, so they can observe the chaos from aside and learn the weirdness of his world without needing to worry about them getting involved in it.

Spy also promises his S/o that he's always going to make sure they're safe and will watch their back.

"From now on, zhere won't be a time when you aren't safe."

Ms. Pauling

Finally, someone understands her!

"Wow! And they called me crazy, can you believe it!?"

Pauling is a great listener and lets her S/o talk about themselves and their world, if it makes them feel better.

Always provides her S/o with something to always protect themselves with (guns, knives, tranquilizers - you name it)

She may or may not sneak her S/o in to her office, if they're feeling anxious about their surroundings.

Sorry for the wait, anon!

[wheelsupimagine]

Take your chance - Jennifer Jareau x FemReader blurb

Pairing: Jennifer Jareau x Fem!reader

Word count: 948 words

Warnings: angst and fluff

Summary: When you first started in the Bau, JJ feel in love with you but was scared to tell you but one night out with the team may change everything

Jennifer Jareau is a beautiful kind kind-hearted woman she has a decent life, filled with fantastic friends and a job she likes but the moment you stepped into the FBI headquarters she was done for you.

This was two months ago now since you first started working at the BAU and everything is going great, you are a great addition to the team, do good as a profiler and you have a sweet boyfriend named Brad.

JJ on the other hand never understood why you fell for Brad, you were beautiful and intelligent, and your laugh could light up the whole world and Brad wasn’t anything of those, in JJ's eyes you deserved someone better,

someone who loves you unconditionally, someone who supports you in every way and that’s when JJ knew she wanted to be more than your friend, she wanted to be the person you come home to.

Since her realization, JJ tried to stand away from you as far as possible but it was hard not to arouse any suspicion that something was wrong.

JJ didn’t tell anyone about her feelings for you, but she couldn’t hide them very well - once in a while JJ stole more glances at you, obviously the team noticed it, but they never said anything to JJ, so she could cope with it herself.

After another successful case, the team decided to celebrate at the bar.

JJ sat with Emily at a round table, the others were all over the bar but JJ's eyes were on one person and one person only -

Y/n.

She chatted in a very flirty way with another woman. It was no secret that y/n is bisexual, cause once Derek couldn’t keep his mouth shut when he tried to get every little detail out of y/n’s love life but why would she talk to a woman so flirtatious right now, she has a boyfriend right? And why was it not her?

JJ held on to her glass so tight that her knuckles turned white.

Emily saw the change in JJ’s behavior and followed her gaze to you who was so close to another woman that their noses almost touched.

"You know it’s okay, right ?" Emily said and pulled JJ out of her thoughts.

"WHAT ?" JJ asked totally shocked by what Emily said.

"It’s okay that you feel something for her. I know you are scared because this is new and different for you, but if you going to sit here all night and ask yourself what would have happened, you wished you dared to go up to her and become clean of your feelings, you are going to regret it, if you not do it now."

JJ was completely stunned by what Emily just said to her that she couldn’t come up with something immediately, they sat there in silence for a second until JJ spoke again.

"I don’t know what you mean, I don’t care what y/n is doing, I was just curious why she is talking to someone else when she has a boyfriend but else I just have a great time."

" you sure about that. I just talked to you for five minutes and you didn’t answer me, you just held your glass real tight and stared at Y/n. At one point I even said you are the worst person on the team and they would be better without you, so yeah you totally do not care about Y/n.

JJ wanted to answer her but then she saw how y/n leaned into the stranger and JJ knew this couldn’t happen.

"Excuse me," JJ said to Emily as she left their table. Emily couldn’t even say anything JJ as she already stormed her way to you and Emily couldn’t hold back a smirk.

You were completely focused on the stranger, your lips almost touched but out of a sudden you felt a cold liquid on your body and you backed up from the kiss only to see that JJ was the person who spilled the drink on your outfit.

"WHAT THE HELL ?!" The stranger said, but she was completely ignored by both women.

"Oh my god, I am so sorry y/n. Let me help you clean this up." JJ said, she didn’t wait for your answer and took your hand in hers and led the way to the empty bathroom.

"WHAT THE FUCK JJ, why did you do that ?" Y/n asked.

" I am sorry Y/n, it wasn’t my intention, it was just an accident, and you know that this isn’t you y/n and probably I saved you from a big mistake."

"JJ do you really think that this was an accident, don’t you think I didn’t see you staring at me the whole night?

"So JJ tell me the truth, why did you do it ?"

You took a step closer to JJ after she stayed silent after what you just said and now you two stood so close to each other that JJ was sure you could hear her heartbeat.

JJ was still shocked at how close you stood next to each other, you never were this close She didn’t dare to say anything.

"JJ, it’s okay, if you do not know what you want, I am not going to push you. I just want you to know, that whatever you are going to say, don’t think too much about it, trust me it’s not going to be too bad." Y/n said and stroked JJ's arm.

" I really would like to kiss you," JJ admitted.

"Then do it Jennifer Jareau, no one is going to stop you." You said and

finally, your lips collided.

Let me know if you want a part 2 with smut 😏