#I DON'T KNOW WHY BUT I WENT ALL IN ON EFFORT FOR THIS...

[tooboredtothinkofaname]

Funny thing is it's only rude if you're autistic. If you're not then it's totally fine to not like stuff and the convo goes:

- i don't like this, it's really just not my taste

- Ok

Autism thing i hate that it’s considered rude to not like a food and not want to eat it. And i hate that i have to be all apologetic about it instead of people just understanding that foods just aren’t for everyone and a person not wanting to eat something isn’t an insult to anyone’s cooking

[mostlysignssomeportents]

Boss politics antitrust

If you'd like an essay-formatted version of this post to read or share, here's a link to it on pluralistic.net, my surveillance-free, ad-free, tracker-free blog:

https://pluralistic.net/2024/11/12/the-enemy-of-your-enemy/#is-your-enemy

Xi Jinping inaugurated his second term with an anti-corruption purge that ran from 2012-2015, resulting in a massive turnover in the power structures of Chinese society.

At the time, people inside and outside of China believed that Xi was using the crackdown to target his political enemies and consolidate power. Certainly, that was the effect of the purge, which paved the way for reforms to Chinese law that have effectively allowed Xi to hold office for life.

In 2018, Peter Lorentzen (USF Econ) and Xi Lu (NUS Policy) published a paper that used clever empirical methods to get to the bottom of this question:

https://web.archive.org/web/20181222163946/https://peterlorentzen.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/11/Lorentzen-Lu-Crackdown-Nov-2018-Posted-Version.pdf

Working from the extensive data-files published during the corruption trials of the purged officials, Lorentzen and Xi Liu were able to estimate the likelihood that an official had really been corrupt. They concluded that overwhelmingly, the anti-corruption purges did target corrupt officials, some of them very highly placed.

But when they considered the social graph of those defenestrated officials, they found that they came from blocs that were rivals of Xi Jinping and his circle, while officials who were loyal to Xi Jinping's were spared, even when they were corrupt.

In other words, Xi Jinping's anticorruption efforts targeted genuinely corrupt officials – but only if they supported Xi's rivals. Xi's own cronies were exempted from this. Xi did use the anticorruption effort to consolidate power, but that doesn't mean he prosecuted the innocent – rather, he selectively prosecuted the guilty.

Donald Trump will be America's next president. He campaigned against "elites" and won the support of Americans who were rightly furious at being ripped off and abused by big business. The Biden administration had done much to tackle this corruption, starting with July 2020's 72-point executive order creating a "whole of government" approach to fighting corporate power:

https://www.eff.org/de/deeplinks/2021/08/party-its-1979-og-antitrust-back-baby

Trump will have to decide what to do about these efforts. It's easy to say that Trump will just kill them all and let giant, predatory corporations rip, but I think that's wrong. After all, the Google antitrust case that the DoJ just won started under the last Trump administration. Trump also sued to block the absolutely terrible merger between Warner and AT&T.

I think it's safer to say that Trump will selectively target businesses for anticorruption enforcement – including antitrust – based on whether they oppose him or suck up to him. I think American business leaders know it, too, which is why every tech boss lined up to give Trump a public rim-job last week:

https://daringfireball.net/2024/11/i_wonder

Trump killed the AT&T-Time Warner merger to punish CNN. He went after Google to punish "woke" tech firms. That doesn't make AT&T, Time Warner or Google good. They're terrible monopolists and the US government should be making their lives miserable.

Trump will not need to falsify evidence against corporations that are disloyal to him. All of America's big businesses are cesspits of sleaze, fraud and predation. Every merger that is being teed up now for the coming four years is illegal under the antitrust laws that we stopped enforcing in the Reagan era and only dusted off again for four years under Biden. They're all guilty, which means that Trump will be able to bring a valid case against any of them.

This will create a trap for people who hate Trump but don't pay close attention to anticorruption cases. It's a trap that Trump sprung successfully in his first term, when he lashed out at the "intelligence community" – the brutal, corrupt, vicious, lawless American spy agencies that are the sworn enemies of working people and the the struggle for justice at home and abroad – and American liberals decided that the enemy of their enemy was their friend, and energetically sold one another Robert Mueller votive candles:

https://pluralistic.net/2021/12/18/schizmogenesis/

Over the next four years, Trump will use antitrust and other corruption-taming regulations to selective punish crooked companies. He won't target them because they're crooked: he'll target them because they aren't sufficiently loyal to him.

If you let your hatred of Trump blind you to the crookedness of these companies, you lose and Trump wins. The reason Trump will find it easy to punish these companies is that they are all guilty. If you let yourself forget that, if you treat your enemy's enemy as your friend, then Trump will point at his political rivals and call them apologists for corruption and sleaze – and he'll be right.

It is possible for Trump to fight corruption corruptly. That's exactly what he'll do. But just because Trump hates these companies, it doesn't follow that we should love them.

[mochiwonz]

✉ - won the boyfriend lottery ♡

𓍯𓂃 content : insecure fem!reader x sweet bf!ni-ki , FLUFF , skinship (hugging , kissing , hand holding etc) , cursing , petnames (nini , baby , my love etc) , reader loves the scent of vanilla , lots of lovee <33

𓍯𓂃 word count : 2.1k

𓍯𓂃 note : i really reallyy think that as much as ni-ki is playful and likes to tease ,, he would definitely be the most caring, gentle, and understanding boyfriend ever :3 i hope that atleast some of you can find this fic relatable (i know i can) and i hope you enjoyy ♡♡

You look in the mirror, you're wearing a fitted top and flared jeans. Complimenting the outfit, you're wearing bow earrings and pretty rings, and of course some cute makeup. You're supposed to be feeling all pretty and confident, right? But actually, you're feeling the exact opposite. It's like the longer you look at yourself, the uglier you get. Fuck, why is it so hard for you to feel pretty?

Giving up, you change back into your baggy basketball shorts and xl baggy tee.

You've always preferred baggier clothes because 1. they were more comfortable and 2. people don't pay attention to your body. One could say that you were quite insecure. You've never felt gorgeous, at most you've felt okay, average, or mediocre. You've always found something wrong with your face, your uneven eyes, the one bump that won't seem to go away, or your dark circles. You wonder how those pretty girls do it. How they just walk around flawlessly, wind blowing through their hair perfectly and their skin basically glowing. Gosh, you really hated how you looked and how insecure you were. You thought you could never be loved by someone, ever.

That was until your boyfriend, ni-ki appeared in your life, and you couldn't be more grateful. It was like the universe knew when you needed him the most and boom, there he was.

Of course, you were still very insecure, it was nothing compared to how you were one year ago. Ni-ki had always made it very clear that he understood you and that you were absolutely beautiful, even if you couldn't quite see it yet. Everytime you felt insecure, he could immediately tell and instantly went to comfort you. Everytime that you felt unsure about anything, he would reassure you. He made you feel understood and seen, something you hadn't felt since...well...ever. People would always tell you, "you don't need to be insecure" or "just stop being insecure" as if it was really that easy.

Fast forward to today, it was your guy's first anniversary as a couple. You still remember the day he confessed, you also remember being so confused. How did someone as beautiful and perfect as him end up being attracted to you?

To put it simply, you were the most gorgeous human being he had ever laid his eyes on. The first time that he laid his eyes on you in senior year of highschool, he knew that you were the one. He never expected such a beautiful girl to be so insecure, but that didn't matter to him. Everyone worried about something, your worry just happened to be your appearance and overall self. He understood. He truly did.

Anyways, you and ni-ki agreed on just going out to get his favorite gongcha milk tea and come back to your place to cuddle and watch an anime. You guys didn't care if it wasn't that "special", because all you really wanted to do was be in each other's presence.

You didn't wanted to be perceived as the hot boy's ugly girlfriend. That's why you were trying to dress up like the pretty girls you've seen on social media. We already know how it went, and now you're in baggy basketball shorts and a baggy tee.

What if ni-ki doesn't like it? What if he thinks you look bad today? Should you just put more effort and atleast try to look "good"?

"y/n, baby, you're so fucking gorgeous. you don't have to dress up and put on alot of makeup for me to find you beautiful. you could be bald and i'd still find you so gorgeous. and don't worry about what other people think of you, why does it matter at the end of the day?" you remember him telling you.

Right, ni-ki loves you for who you already are, and you try to remind yourself of that everyday. Of course, it's hard- but you're trying.

Snapping you out of your thoughts, you hear a knock on your door and a voice from outside. A very familiar voice, one that you could recognize literally anywhere.

"babyyy it's meee" ni-ki says from the other side of the door, and you already know he has the cutest smile on his face right now. He might be 6ft and all, but he's your giant baby.

"coming!!" you exclaim while excitedly running to the door, trying not to slip. Let's just say you've slipped a few times before.

Opening to the door, you're met with a smiling ni-ki. And wow- he looked so good. He was wearing an oversized black hoodie with some red designs on it and some baggy jeans. On top of that, he also had some silver rings and a silver chrome hearts necklace on and honestly, you were fighting the urge to lunge at him right now. God knows how you were controlling yourself.

He quickly brings you into his embrace, engulfing you in his warmth.

"my baby, i missed youuuu" he says in a sweet tone of voice, still hugging you. He was always so sweet to you, you truly think you won the boyfriend lottery.

You look up at him with hearts in your eyes. "i missed you too ki" you respond, talking in the same sweet tone of voice.

"here, wait- we should go inside, i still need to get ready" you tell him. He nods while intertwining your guy's hands and lets you drag him inside. To be honest, he didn't think you needed to get ready. You were always gorgeous in his eyes, no matter what you were doing.

You bring him into your bedroom, and he instantly smiles at the familiar scent of vanilla. Of course, he was very well aware of your love for vanilla. The way you had 4 different type of vanilla candles on your bedside table and so many different vanilla perfumes was so endearing to him. Quietly, he sits down on the edge of your bed and watches as you go to quickly grab some clothes. He quickly notices that these clothes aren't very you.

"baby, since when did you start wearing such fitted tops? i mean, don't get me wrong- i bet you'd look so good. but i'm just wondering" he asks curiously.

"oh," you say quietly "i just wanted to look pretty for you"

Ni-ki slightly frowns at your words. He wished you knew how effortlessly beautiful you already were. He gets up from your bed and walks towards you, wrapping his large arms around your waist and resting his chin on the top of your head. He makes eye contact with you through the mirror and pulls you closer to his chest.

"my love you always look so pretty. trust me. just wear whatever you're comfortable in, okay?" he tells you in a soft voice. He kisses the top of your head and smiles at you. God, he's so good at reassuring you. You're so in love with this man.

Feeling less pressured after hearing what he said, you put down the clothes and instead, put on one of the oversized hoodies that he lent you. Your favorite one actually, it smelt just like him. After putting it on, you have a comfortable smile on your face, visibly showing that you feel much better. Ni-ki notices the instant change in your energy, and he loves seeing you like this.

"my girl, you're so cuuteee i love you so much" he says while admiring you. He turns you around so that you're facing him and he just stares at you, admiring your beauty in all is glory. Getting shy, you bring your face down and bury it in his chest.

"nini i love you too my big baby" you tell him as you finally look back up at him and go on your tippy toes to give him a peck on the lips. You loved his pretty plump lips, he was really the most beautiful man ever. He giggles and pulls you closer to kiss your forehead. He loved you so so much.

"you're so beautiful" he says as he brushes your hair away from your face, "god i could stare at you forever my pretty girl"

You could already feel how hot and red your cheeks were, you always got like this because of him. He always said such nice things to you and always showered you in compliments, what did you do to deserve such an amazing boyfriend?

"i love you" you tell him while smiling "we should go to gongcha now though, they might be closing soon"

Ni-ki completely forgot about the boba, shit. Agreeing with you, he grabs your tote bag for you and opens the door for you.

"for you m'lady" he says playfully while bowing at you. You giggle and bow back at him, matching his playful energy. He finds you so adorable, and so he ruffles your hair and closes the door behind him.

He quickly intertwines your guy's hands and sways them back and forth. He was always so happy around you, your energy and presence just made him so happy.

Once you guys got back to your place, you decided that you wanted to have a skincare night. You might not be the best at makeup, but you loved your skincare. He, of course- found you so adorable. And of course, he let you do his skincare. He'd let you do whatever you wanted, honestly.

You quickly run to your bathroom and grab your skincare, face masks, and skincare headbands. Ni-ki looks at you, slightly confused, not understanding why you had so many things in your hands. He helps put the items onto your bed and sits down, waiting for you to do his skincare. You wipe his face down with micellar water and put the face mask on him. He just stares at your beautiful face, enjoying how close you are to him. Swiftly, he wraps his arm around your waist and pulls you onto his lap.

Shit, your face was hot again. Ni-ki giggles and gives you a kiss on the cheek.

"kiiiii" you whine, "you got the face mask serum on my face"

"sorry baby, you're just too cute" he teases and gives you another kiss, but on the lips this time.

You smile fondly at him and start putting your own face mask on, asking ni-ki to help you. Of course, he helps you and notices how big his hands are compared to your face. He loves it. You were so tiny compared to him.

Once it was on, you take out your phone to take a selfie. You both loved taking pics together, so that you could look back and laugh at them. After taking the picture with him, you pull out your wired earphones and give him one of them. Another thing you guys loved to do together was listen to music. You both enjoyed music, although you didn't dance like him- you still loved it just as much.

Getting comfortable, you both get under the comforter and he wraps his arms around your waist, your back facing his chest. He rests his head in the crook of your neck and pulls you closer to him. (if that was even possible) He loves how you smell, he could really smell your vanilla shampoo and conditioner now and he almost melts. He feels so relaxed, and you do too. You could hear ni-ki's breathing because he was right next to your ear, and you loved being so close to him. By the way he was breathing, you could tell he was asleep.

Slowly, you shuffle your body around so that you're facing him now, chest to chest. You gently take off the face mask and pat the serum into his skin, making sure you doesn't wake him up. You observe his beautiful features, his pretty eyelashes, his pouty lips, and your favorite- his pretty moles. You loved his moles, especially the one on his chin. He always told you how beautiful you were, and you realized you didn't tell him enough about how absolutely handsome he was, inside and out.

You promised yourself that from now on, you would tell him at least 100 times every. single. day.

You brush your fingers through his pretty hair and lovingly trace his features with your smaller hands. Without realizing, your eyes start to get glassy. Ni-ki was so beautiful on the outside, but also so beautiful on the inside. He always made sure you were doing okay mentaly and reminded you of how beautiful of a person you were.

After staring at him for (at least) 5 whole minutes, you take off your own skincare mask and decide to just call it a night. You really didn't want to get out of this comfortable position.

Ni-ki is so special to you, and you love him so fucking much. He's had such a positive effect on your self esteem and mental health and you're forever grateful. He was your soulmate, you were very sure of that. Nobody compared to him, and nobody was ever going to compare to him.

Honestly, you won the boyfriend lottery.

this is the longest fic i've ever wrote and surprisingly, i don't feel too bad about it! pls reblog if you enjoyed <33 my other works are here :D

[procyonloser]

Pt 5

Lucifer stood nervously on the stage, after Adam clapped him on the shoulder, winking at him. He didn't look bothered to see Lucifer, but Lucifer was bothered to see him. Why was Adam here, at the zoo? Did he work here and at the aquarium? What, did he work at the wildlife park too? The arboretum? Six flags?

"Okay, Lute, if you want to put Hoot away, we can start the demonstration!" Adam said happily, and the girl on stage with him shot Lucifer the most toxic look he'd ever seen outside of a courtroom, before she walked over and had the owl step down onto a stand. When she came back, her expression hadn't changed much.

"What are we doing, Adam?" Lute asked, not the most amazing actress in the world, but Lucifer didn't think it'd be a good idea to tell her that right now.

"I'm going to have you and Lucifer stand about a foot apart from one another, and then we're going to see what Sweetness can do." Adam said easily, leaving Lucifer wondering who the fuck Sweetness was. The eagle? Who named it that?

The gist of it was Adam was going to have the very large eagle fly between Lucifer and the angry woman, narrowly avoiding hitting them. It went off without a hitch, Lucifer felt the power of the eagle going past him, the gust of wind from it's wings, and it was weirdly invigorating to be close to.

But all Lucifer could think about was Adam leaning in to his ear after and whispering to him to come back stage after the show was over. He'd turned red again as he made his way back into the bleachers, beside Charlie, who was talking animatedly and at length as to how cool he looked, and how scary it must have been.

Over the course of the show, Adam brought out snakes and spiders and one fairly large cat, and a parrot that Charlie seemed to love. The show was a hit with the kids that were there, and they all got a little adventure coloring book for their efforts, passed out by Lute, who handed Lucifer theirs with much more force than needed.

They lingered behind after, until Adam poked his head out and gestured for them to come back around. Charlie seemed confused, until they walked through the door, and could see all the holding enclosures for the animals, and her eyes got huge. The Lute girl was leaning against a table, glaring at him openly, but Lucifer tried to ignore her to the best of his abilities.

"I don't work here," Adam said, taking Lucifer's attention off of her. He blinked in surprise, not knowing what to say. "I mean, I used to work here, with some of their aquatics, but then I got the job at the aquarium. But, I'd been doing this show for years, and I have friends here like Lute, so I still volunteer to do it a few times a week."

"As long as you don't think I'm stalking you," Lucifer laughed nervously, not knowing what to say, especially not in front of Lute. "Charlie loved the show, though, didn't you CharBar?"

Charlie barely nodded, crouched and sitting eye to eye with a raccoon.

"How about you?" Adam asked, and Lucifer nodded repeatedly.

"It was great! I love birds, to tell you the truth. It was too bad the parakeet exhibit was closed, I love feeding them on sticks. So does Charlie." Lucifer told him, and Adam hummed to himself.

"I can get you in," Adam said, and Lute sent him a look.

"Adam..."

"It's fine, relax Lute." Adam said with a shrug, clearly not caring much for her opinion on the matter, which gave Lucifer an odd sense of victory over the woman.

"You're going to get in trouble," Lute warned. "They shouldn't even be back here..."

"He's a friend," Adam said with a hint finality in his voice, turning to leave and nodding for Lucifer to follow him.

"Is that what they're calling it now?" Lute asked under her breath, but Lucifer had heard it anyway. What had she meant by that; and did Adam actually see him as a friend? Lucifer didn't fully know, but at least he had a good view, watching Adam walk ahead of him.

Lucifer laughed as Charlie was suddenly swarmed by about ten parakeets, as soon as they'd gotten into the parakeet exhibit. Adam had given her a few seed sticks, and the birds reacted in kind. Lucifer took a few pictures of his daughter, deciding one was most definitely going to be his new phone wallpaper.

"Hey, you want to go on a date sometime?"

Lucifer was so distracted by Charlie and the birds, he'd almost missed the question, but it sank in quickly enough, and Lucifer was left blinking owlishly up at Adam.

"If not, it's whatever, I just thought-" Adam glanced away. "It doesn't matter."

"Oh my god, no, yes." Lucifer breathed out, and Adam looked confused. "I mean, yes. God, yes. I'd love to. Pretty please."

Adam laughed at the tacked on nicety, grinning down at him as a parakeet landed on Lucifer's shoulder. "You're such a fucking weirdo. I like that."

[6up-5oh-copout-procon]

this!!!! i myself, from a REALLY conservative and religious family, was also very bigoted when i was a kid. it was a taboo subject and I'd feel disgusted by queerness thinking of what i heard my parents say about it. and then i met a few queer kids who were willing to call me out when i went too far, but at the same time were patient with me and explained to me every point, and i ended up SO much better and more self aware than i could have been.

i don't think they owed me that patience, and i now think it'd have been understandable if they simply didn't want to stay friends, no one owes anyone an explanation of why they deserve human rights. but I'm still grateful, since that patience did more for me and for queerness than any alternative answer/reaction they could have given me.

Most conservative ideas are what they're named, conserved. They're old ideas passed down from generation to generation. Look around most right wing people, and you'll see their parents and grandparents usually say the same stuff they say, hell even religion is passed down in most cases. Unfortunately I'm in a conservative, dangerous for queers and religious country, but I don't hate any of the people around me for this stuff. They're all multi-faced, the same person who'll say queers deserve to be beaten up will walk and feed a stray cat around the corner.

When you grow up forced to think and believe certain things, and punished if you don't, it doesn't make you a bad person that you ended up actually thinking and believing those things, it just makes you someone who grew up controlled. I was one of them, so now i look at them with compassion and understanding, and if they're safe enough to discuss with without being outed, i usually will try to put in that effort, because i know I'm grateful that effort was put in for me.

posts about the alt-right pipeline being compassionate towards young men while radical leftists shun and shame them are not fucking saying "the men are becoming violent because feminists are too mean!" and if that is your takeaway you need to get off tumblr until you've better honed your critical thinking skills.

those posts are talking about how effective the language and approach you take in your activism can be. this is literally cult deprogramming 101. if someone is being taken in by a violent or dangerous group, that violent or dangerous group is usually offering them compassion and solace while working hard to convince them everyone else in the world is their enemy. you are under no obligation to coddle or act compassionate toward these men and their violent ideologies, but if you have the means to try, it is something that you can do to make a tangible difference.

radicalized people are often only one loving friend or family member or external voice away from being de-radicalized. of course that is not always the case, but it very often is. a lot of y'all rightfully understand that you do not carry the burden of being that voice, but a lot of y'all also have a lot of internalized ideas about morals and punitive justice and have simply written off these people as deserving of only the worst and not worth saving.

ten years ago, my grandmother was a fox news watching republican who voted red in every election and very well could have fallen down the qanon rabbit hole if not for me and her daughter challenging her compassionately, walking her through hypotheticals that validated her feelings & proving why they were false, & being patient with her despite our extreme division in political ideology. it was frustrating fucking work! but i decided i wanted to do it, because i could see the horizon and i could see me making a difference!

"misogynists have been saying feminists are too mean for years, get new material" that is not the fucking POINT. the point is that you, feminist, can be the compassionate voice that guides your brother, your father, your cousin, your grandfather away from fucking becoming or staying a nazi. you can show them compassion and companionship. you can be the woman they think of when their alt-right bros try to convince them that women are the enemy. and you can choose to crystallize that image of yourself so wholly in their mind's eye as worth protecting that they may very well choose to reject those harmful ideas.

it's not saying you HAVE to do it! it's saying you CAN do it! don't you 'firebomb a walmart' people all love taking change into your own hands? where the fuck is that energy right now, huh?

[fsfghgee]

I need to see how that double date ended 🫡

Resolution

(Double Date Sequel - Kuai Liang, Harumi, Bi-Han & Sektor)

— You know this is a trap, don't you?

— I know.

— So why are we doing this? Why can't you just ignore her?

— She's your mother. — Standing in front of the busy restaurant, staring at the door as if trying to muster up the courage to walk through it, Bi-Han took a deep breath and squeezed Sektor's hand before entering the place. — I can't disrespect her.

— Even though she no longer respects you?

Ignoring the reality exposed by Sek and refusing to accept that he would not be able to win Madam Bo's favor as he had won Longwei's, Bi-Han looked for Madam Bo as if she were not already expecting them.

— Madam Bo! — Calling out to the elderly woman upon finding her leaving the kitchen, Bi-Han hurried to her. — We came as soon as we received your message.

— Very well. — She looked from one to the other, not hiding her surprise regarding Bi-Han. She already knew that he had been transformed into a creature of chaos by the titan Havik, but she never imagined that he had become so repulsive and dark in appearance. — I see that you are literally living with a monster now. — Ignoring Bi-Han, she looked at her daughter. — Is it still worth opposing Lord Liu Kang's will?

— I don't care about your disapproval or Liu Kang's. I fell in love with his soul. Not his appearance.

— A soul that was corrupted by chaos magic.

— Someone is keeping you well informed. So much effort to please Liu Kang… — Sektor mocked and Bi-Han held her tighter before she got too close to her mother. — It's no surprise that my father didn't go after a woman like you.

— What are you insinuating?!

— Sektor, please… — Bi-Han intervened before that discussion ended in a fight. — She's not insinuating anything. We came because you said you wanted to see her and talk to me.

— Yes, but the conversation we must have cannot be done in front of so many people. — Motioning to the restaurant, which was as full as usual, she waited for Bi-Han to agree before motioning for them to follow her. — Accompany me to a more private place.

— Bi-Han, no! — Sektor pulled him, murmuring so that only he could hear. — It could be dangerous.

— She's your mother. — Murmuring back, Bi-Han tried to ignore the concern in her eyes. — What harm would she do to you?

— Not to me. But what about you?!

— She can just try.

— I don't have all day. — Without bothering to hide her irritation, she turned around just to give a scolding before continuing up the stairs to the third floor.

Reluctantly, Sektor went up with Bi-Han to the isolated third floor. There were also tables like on the other floors and all the rest of the decoration, but only muffled noises from the floor below could be heard.

— Have a seat. — The elderly woman waited for the young people to sit down before continuing with the face of a few friends. — You're tired of hearing that what you're doing is wrong.

— In your opinion.

— You betrayed Earthrealm! You betrayed Lord Liu Kang's trust... — Indifferent to Madam Bo's indignation, they just stared at her without emotion. — In exchange for what?

— In exchange for a better future for the Lin Kuei.

— And what future will the Lin Kuei have if you die?

— I will never let anything happen to your daughter. I promise that...

— Your word is worthless, Bi-Han!

— Madam Bo, I-I...

— Don't pretend that you care! — Sektor stood up irritably and shouted in disgust. Interrupting her beloved when she saw how affected he had been by the older woman's words. — You abandoned me! You abandoned my father! You abandoned our clan! In exchange for what? To be a nanny for two farm boys!

— Your mother wisely honors Earthrealm with her services. — Liu Kang intervened, finishing climbing the stairs, making Bi-Han release a guttural sound in contempt.

— Is that what you want her to believe? Like you did with my father?! — Irritated by Liu Kang's sudden appearance, Bi-Han also stood up. — Like you do with my brother?! 

— Bi-Han…

— I've had enough. — Tired of her mother and Liu Kang's presence, Sektor grabbed Bi-Han's hand before he could think of trying anything. — Let's go home.

— Wait! — Madam Bo hurried before they reached the door.

— What do you want now?!

— I made a promise. And I'll keep it. Stay for dinner and I'll make your favorite childhood meal.

— I don't want anything from you!

— We'll stay on one condition. — Sektor looked at Bi-Han in disbelief, but Bi-Han ignored it, still thinking that he could achieve his goal with that visit. — I want you to give me your blessing.

— Bi-Han, you don't have to…

— My mother... — He looked at Sektor before looking back at Madam Bo, serious and resolute. — She would want it that way.

Madam Bo sighs and nods.

— I wish you had half the love for Earthrealm that you have for your mother.

Resigned to the young Grandmaster's lack of response, Madam Bo motioned for them to sit down again before going down with the fire god.

...............................

— You haven't even touched your food.

— I'm not hungry. I want to go home.

— You know this is important to me.

— We have my father's blessing. That should be enough. — Fearing that the day would end worse than it had begun, Sektor cupped his face and pleaded with her eyes. — Let's go home, please.

Bi-Han sighed and was about to do as she had asked, when approaching footsteps drew his attention to the front.

— Do you mind if we join you? — Liu Kang, accompanied by Harumi and Kuai Liang, stood in front of their table.

— Oh, no...

— Calm. — Holding Sektor's hand under the table, Bi-Han motioned with his free hand for Kuai Liang to sit across from him. — Feel free.

— Your manners have improved. But your appearance is still as horrible as your heart.

— You have no vision, Kuai Liang.

— It's your ambition that's blind, Bi-Han! As always. — Outraged by his older brother's disregard, Kuai Liang took a deep breath to control his anger. — There are no limits to your desire for power, are there?

— How can you kill and risk your life for a man like that? — Seeing the derision in Bi-Han's eyes and witnessing once again how unpleasant he was, Harumi questioned Sektor.

— Wouldn't you do the same for Kuai Liang?

— Of course I would. But he isn't Bi-Han.

— Exactly. I know his heart. You don't.

— What heart? — Harumi looked at the Chinese woman as if she had gone mad. — That guy let his own father die! He has no honor, no heart. As you must not have to…

— You know nothing about us! You…

— Kuai Liang. — Seeing that the argument between the women was escalating, Liu Kang intervened, seeking support from Scorpion. — Can you say something to your brother?

— I'll never forgive you.

— Did I ask for your forgiveness? — Bi-Han mocked, much to the indignation of his younger brother's wife.

— This guy…

— This is pointless. — Ready to leave the table, Sektor stood up again. — You're wasting our time.

— Wasn't it nice to see the mother you dishonor again?

— Mind your place, Kuai Liang! Or I…

— Or you what?!

— By the elder gods! — Startled to see Bi-Han jump on Kuai Liang and then the two brothers start exchanging punches, Liu Kang hurriedly stood up to try to separate them. — Enough! Bi-Han, Kuai Liang!

— Kuai Liang! — Harumi worried when she saw that her husband wouldn't stop being beaten by Bi-Han, tried to intervene too, but Sektor threw warning flames in front of the Japanese woman. — What are you doing?!

— Hurt Bi-Han and you'll have to deal with me.

— And let that monster kill my husband?!

— What's going on here?! — Madam Bo, who was carrying another tray of food with her, got angry and put the food aside to hit the tray with all her strength. — Stop now! — Hitting until they moved away from each other, Madam Bo stood between them. — Not in my restaurant.

— Madam Bo, I...

— I've had enough of you!

— But it was Kuai Liang who...

— Let's go, Bi-Han. — Trying to spare her beloved from her mother's wrath, Sektor grabbed his hand and pulled him. — Let's go home. She'll never understand either of us.

— If you're not restored, you'll remain immortal! — Liu Kang shouted behind Bi-Han and Sektor. — And immortality has a high price to pay!

— I am willing to pay any price to break the Lin Kuei free from bondage forever!

— Even Sektor's death?

— Liu Kang! — Taking the dark tone as a threat, he finally stopped and turned around ready to confront him. — If you…

— Sektor will not live forever! She is mortal and you cannot change that. Eventually she will die and you will be alone forever. Do you think that's fair to her?

— He's trying to mess with your mind. — Sektor stated, bringing his attention to herself. — I don't mind dying for the Lin Kuei.

— You will not die! — Shocked by the certainty in Sektor's words, he feared that this sacrifice would one day find her. He could have this from anyone, he would accept it from anyone, except Sektor. He wanted to have anything from her, except this.

— The difficult thing about grief is surviving something that could be normal. Losing someone you love is losing everything you have. No matter how much you cry, no matter how much you go crazy with the absence, no matter the level of your pain, nothing will bring it back. The pain of grief is dying while alive, it is living dying little by little, and what a long vain penance to live forever without feeling loved, without having the one you love.

...............................

— Because you are reckless, Bi-Han! What did you think would happen?! — Furious with his son's disobedience, he just shouted as if no one was watching. — That you would go in there and get rid of them all?!

— I-I never thought that…

— Of course not! Of course you never thought! Because you never think, Bi-Han! You never think! — Unhinged by his own fury, he hits the boy so hard that he knocks him down with the impact.

— Bi-Han!

— Stay out of this. — Longwei murmured while holding his daughter.

— B-But…

— Stay out.

— Forgive me, my friend. But I need to excuse myself and end this night here. — Fixing his own clothes as if trying to calm himself by fiddling with the fabric, he continued to stare at his son on the floor as he spoke to the master armorer. — You understand, don't you?

— I understand. Good night.

— But father… — Unable to see Sektor's concern, he only heard the girl's voice cry out to her father before the loud slamming of the front door drowned out her voice.

— Go to your room.

— I-I want to see my mother. — Weak from the injuries from earlier, some so serious that they hadn't healed yet, he got up with great effort.

— Go to your room before I change my mind.

— N-No, I want to talk to my mother…

— I told you to go to your room! — The older one dragged him by the wrist, freezing him to prevent his resistance and cutting the younger one's arm by throwing him inside his chambers without completely thawing his skin. — And you will only leave there for your training and studies until further notice!

— N-No! — Desperate, he runs to the door, banging on it with all his strength, but the door doesn't budge as if it were enchanted. — I-I don't want to be locked in here! Mom! Don't leave me locked in here! - Banging until he almost ran out of strength, he could no longer hold back the tears and cried. — M-Mom… — Crying profusely, he slipped to the floor. — M-Men don't cry... — Repeating what his father always told him, Bi-Han tried to control his emotions in vain. — M-much less perfect warriors, m-much less...

— Lin Kuei warriors.

— S-Sektor?

— What he says is not true. You can...

— Don't look at me!

Waking up suddenly, Bi-Han sat up in bed and looked for Sektor. Soon seeing that she remained beside him, sleeping soundly with her back to him, he stroked her short hair. He inhaled her sweet perfume and hugged her tightly until he fell asleep again.

He found himself in the middle of a war, it reminded him of Chaosrealm, but he had seen the chaos of that place many other times before. It was the chaos of a battlefield, surrounded by fallen dead bodies, destruction and terror. Combat proved that he was alive, there was no better way to prove his strength and skill than by subduing his enemies. And in the midst of it all, he could only see those who attacked him, killing them all with ease, suddenly a scream of pain reminded him that he was not alone.

— Sektor?! - Amidst the darkness, he searched for her as if nothing else mattered.

What was the point of that battle?

What was he looking for?

Who was his target?

He no longer remembered.

— Sektor?! — The trail of deaths he had created to reach her was the reason why his clothes were already bloody when he found her. — S-Sektor… — The blood that dripped from her stomach without stopping stained his clothes even more, as he held her in his arms and begged her to keep her eyes open. — Chō stay with me… P-Please…

— B-Bi-Han…

— S-Stay with me. — Terrified and in a desperate attempt to keep her with him, he tried to transfer the chaos magic to her, but she stopped him by holding his hand with all her remaining strength.

— I-I don't want to live forever.

— Y-You promised you would never abandon me.

— I-I... I-I love you...

— No!

Feeling tears streaming down his face even after opening his eyes, Bi-Han gasped for the recent nightmare. He couldn't lose her. However, he knew...

He knew she was willing to do anything for the Lin Kuei. And that as much as she had accepted him, she didn't want anything to do with chaos magic. Immortality wasn't something any Lin Kuei desired. And he wondered when he had started to think differently...

Taking care not to wake her, he wrote a farewell letter and got dressed. Leaving the envelope on his own pillow, he kissed the side of her forehead and inhaled her scent deeply to take with him as a memento.

— She will remain Grandmaster and will not be punished for having freed me.

— It is not for this transgression that she...

— Either you promise this or there is no deal.

— I agree to your conditions, Bi-Han. As long as you not only make peace with the Shirai Ryu but also reconcile with Kuai Liang.

— That is impossible.

— He is your brother.

— He stopped being my brother when he betrayed me.

— You disappointed him first, Bi-Han. This condition is non-negotiable.

...............................

5 years later…

— You're ready to go, Bi-Han. Don't forget what you promised.

— Only if you have kept your word.

— I wove the fabric of time to shape your destiny. I saw you born, grow and lose yourself. As much as you continue to hate me and your father for what happened to your mother... It was never our intention to hurt you.

— Bi-Han.

— Kuai Liang. — He greeted him with a brief nod, just as the younger one had just done. Still uncomfortable with each other.

— Are you ready, brother?

— You're pushing it, Tomas.

— Okay! Sorry. — Retracting his arms and apologizing after the older's scolding, he bowed briefly before him after walking away. — One step at a time. — He muttered to himself.

— I hope to see you together more often. — Finishing opening the fire portal, Liu Kang motioned for them to go through. — Have a safe journey.

— Where are we going?

— To the Shirai Ryu. — Upon seeing the alarm in Bi-Han’s eyes, Tomas continued. — You promised you would visit our clan when your restoration was completed.

— I don't recall making such a promise.

— Come on, Bi-Han. Tomas was counting the days until your visit. I agreed because Liu Kang said it would be good for both of us too. I still don't trust you completely. So don't threaten my clan when we get there.

Bi-Han took a deep breath before following the two through the portal. And in the blink of an eye, they arrived at the Japanese clan's compound.

— Bi-Han. — The youngest one bowed briefly in greeting.

— Harumi.

— Welcome to the Shirai Ryu. I hope this can be a fresh start for all of us. And that you don't make any of us regret this.

— Where is Hanzo? — Tomas asked almost desperately, anxiously looking around. — He has to meet you! You two have so much in common…

— How can a indigent whelp who lived on the streets not long ago have anything in common with me? — Bi-Han muttered to himself, trying to hide his contempt as Tomas hurried away. Kuai Liang, next to him sighed, listening to every word.

— By the elder gods, Bi-Han. Make an effort. — Without waiting for an answer from his older brother, who only took a deep breath at his demand, Kuai Liang took front of his wife. — Harumi will show you the rest, I have matters to attend to now.

— Don't be late for dinner. — Harumi smiled as she said goodbye to her husband. Hoping he wouldn't leave her waiting once again. — Kuai Liang has been quite busy resolving conflicts within the clan.

Bi-Han scoffed.

— As expected.

Noticing the mockery in the older one's tone, Harumi narrowed her eyes at him and took a deep breath to ignore it.

— Are you at least happy to see your brother? Because I know you were never really fond of me. — Smiling out of politeness, Harumi continued guiding him.  — I know you introduced Cyrax to Kuai Liang to make him forget about me.

— And she failed.

— You failed. — Ignoring the unfriendly looks towards the cryomancer along the way, Harumi continued distracting Bi-Han so he wouldn't stare back. — The way you always treated me coldly, how you always seemed to dislike me, made me wonder once if you had some kind of crush on me.

— I'm not Japanese. I don't pretend to like someone when I actually don't, nor do I pretend to hate someone when I actually like. Falsehood is not part of my culture. What my brother saw in Japan and in a woman so...

— Be careful, dear brother-in-law! — Harumi smiled after seeing Bi-Han lose his breath when she elbowed him in the stomach. — You don't want to get hurt before dinner. 

— I won't participate in your...

— Eventually I learned that my assumption about you was wrong. — Bi-Han, ignoring the pain in his stomach and trying very hard to hold back his curses, continued to follow the Japanese woman reluctantly. — And that you simply didn't think I was worthy of your brother. Because my blood wasn't Lin Kuei.

— It still isn't. Marrying my brother doesn't make you a Lin Kuei.

— I can't change my bloodline, Bi-Han. And I didn't marry your brother for that. I've loved him since I was very young. I love him with all my heart and I'm willing to do anything to protect him. — She said firmly, looking into Bi-Han's eyes without blinking. — You already know that I would give my life for his.

— I can respect that.

Harumi smiled, pleased to feel that she had somehow touched him.

— Thank you. — And finally entering the living room, simple and modest with typical Japanese decoration, Bi-Han controlled himself not to comment on the conditions they lived in. Having been born and raised in the imposing Lin Kuei palace, surrounded by luxuries, having lived his entire life only with the most influential Lin Kuei families and even with OutWorld sovereigns due to his late father's friendship with the emperor, he could not hide the expression of disgust with the simplicity of the place. The compound had already disappointed him enough, but a Grandmaster living in those conditions... — Most of our warriors hate you, so to avoid conflicts we will have an intimate dinner. I advise you not to leave here alone.

— I really don't want to stay for your dinner.

— It'll be worth it. — The young Shirai smiled mysteriously. — If you want to wash up before dinner, you can go down that hallway and turn right.

— I don't...

— See you later.

That wasn't an invitation, it was a summons.

Convinced that he wouldn't be leaving anytime soon, Bi-Han took a deep breath and exhaled slowly in frustration. Frustrated for having to put up with that, frustrated for the time he had spent sleeping until Liu Kang discovered an effective way to restore him, frustrated for not being sure if the conditions he had imposed had been respected by Liu Kang, frustrated for not having returned to the Lin Kuei yet, frustrated for fear that he would never be able to return...

Without paying much attention to the room, Bi-Han locked the door behind him and leaned against it.

— Why wasn't she there? — Sliding from the door to the floor, he curled up and hugged his legs, wishing he was with the Lin Kuei. — W-Where is she? — Wishing he was with her. — S-She can't... S-She can't forget about me.

Tired of holding it in, he let the tears roll down his face twisted in pain. The vision already blurred by his tears.

— M-Men don't cry... — Repeating what his father always told him, Bi-Han, desolate on the floor, tried to control his tears. — M-much less perfect warriors, m-much less...

— Lin Kuei warriors. — Paralyzed, as if she were a mirage, a delirium. It took Bi-Han a while to realize that the warmth in her eyes and her smile were real. She was there. She was there with him this time.

— S-Sektor?!

— Are you still the Bi-Han I know?

— I-I am... — Standing up quickly, he stood in front of her in the blink of an eye. — I will always be. — Looking deep into her eyes, he caressed her bare arms, as if to make sure they were real, and smiled when he felt the softness of her skin under his rough hands again. — Do you still love me?

— Bi-Han, I…

— Say yes… — Whispering as he leaned down towards her lips, he was surprised when she dodged his.

— I don't know if I can forgive you.

— What? I did what I did for both of us.

— No, Bi-Han. You did it for yourself.

— Chō…

— There's no explanation, Bi-Han. — Breaking free from his grip, she dodged when he tried to hold her once more. — Not this time! You abandoned me. You left me alone for 5 years…

— I didn't know it would take this long!

— You didn't know?! You told me we couldn't wait to find a cure. That I should stop looking for it, because you were stronger that way… — She had been so angry and sad since Bi-Han had left, that she could barely control the tears that threatened to fall almost as an insult to herself. — Y-You said it was better for the Lin Kuei if you stayed that way, that you didn't care as long as I didn't…

— Sektor…

— W-Why like that… So suddenly?!

— I never wanted to be immortal. I-I never wanted to put your life at risk. I-I… — It was choked, stuck in his throat, very difficult for someone like him to admit… — I was wrong. I want to build a family with you. I want to grow old by your side. I-I couldn't bear a life without you with me! — With his eyes starting to blur again because of the tears he was holding back, he looked at her like the time he realized he loved her. — I couldn't bear to live without you.

— Why didn't you just talk to me?

— I was afraid you would see me as a…

— As a what?

— As a weakling. — Trying to keep his pride, he almost whispered before confessing in a louder tone. — I was afraid you would see me as a weakling. 

— After everything we've been through together, you still...

— I know! I was wrong. I just need you, I need your love... — Eager to be with her again, he cupped her face, making her see the sincerity in his eyes. — I love you like crazy. Don't you love me anymore?

— I wouldn't be here if I didn't.

— Take me home.

— You must stay for dinner.

— I don't want to stay.

— Bi-Han... — Turning her back on him, Sek wiped away the tears that threatened to make her give in once more.

— Don't leave me here. — Almost begging, but too proud to actually beg, he buried his face in her neck. — Take me with you, p-please.

— Arctika is as much your home as it is mine. Even if I don't want you in my bed anymore. You know the way back.

— You can't be serious.

— Think whatever you want. After 5 years I got used to an empty bed.

— So let me get you used to sharing it again... — Hugging her from behind and bringing her close to him, she moved as if she wanted to break free, but she didn't. Letting out deep sighs, her heart raced and he felt her body temperature rise quickly as the sometimes strong, sometimes soft touches of his lips trailed an imaginary path down her neck. He marked her as if she were his, squeezing her to feel every soft part, reminding her body of what it was like to feel desired and loved by him. — Your body still reacts to mine…

— O-Out of anger…

— Is it? — In a sudden movement, he turned her to him, searching for what he already knew he would find.

— B-Bi-Han… — Melting under his touches, her determination to remain angry wavered. She held his hand as he caressed her face with such affection and looked at her with such ardour that it made her want to forget all the nights she had cried herself to sleep.

— You still want me…

— I-I don't want to want.

— Don't say that.

— That letter… — Taking a deep breath so as not to shed more tears for him, she looked away from his intense hazel eyes to the old lamp flickering in the room. — You asked me to be happy, but not to forget about you. How could I be happy while I imagined you trapped in that temple again? H-How could I not want to forget about you after everything?

— Because you love me. — Caressing her nose with his, feeling her breath blow on his face, he sucked and nibbled on her lower lip. — As much as I love you.

— Bi-Han… — He kisses her deeply, a sweet and voracious kiss. Silencing her protests and fading the hurt she felt for him with each movement of his tongue in the warm interior of her mouth. — I-I still haven't forgiven you.

— D-Don't stop me from being with you…

— I'm not going to.

......

[obstinaterixatrix]

an autograph costs extra <3 for Shimimori

[swordsofsaturn]

early seasons spn homophobia is actually so crazy because they literally do not look gay. hamfisted gay jokes when the characters look straight as hell. "you look the type" they literally don't. is the thing

[disposal-blueeee]

from this thing lolz

ty to @cherry-207 for the idea !! XPP

vargas by zarla-s

[uncanny-tranny]

I think the thing about the way people conceptualize empathy is... when you're interacting with other people, they are going through things that, which you may empathize with, you won't always understand, partially because you're two different people, but also because not all situations are 1:1 copy-pastes that are easy to understand.

This isn't saying that empathy is useless, but that acknowledging when you relate personally to somebody and yet also recognizing that this is their struggle is important. When people pretended to empathize with me, it made me feel like I was being placated to. I felt like people were only trying to shut me up by saying that they, personally, "get it," when I knew they didn't. I just don't want people replicating that because they genuinely do want to help the people in their lives.

[candlebel]

I cared. I still do. I still think of you and I still cry over you. You were importat to me. You still are.

[flavia8]

Not to mention Kpop on main but...

Man, I'm genuinely sad at what happened/is happening with Seunghan, he literally did not deserve any of this. I genuinely hope he and the other members of Riize make it out okay because what the fuck.

[izzyspussy]

why are they laughing at him as he gets straight up killed??? he doesn't deserve this! he's a sweet kid at heart! he literally just needs one (1) real friend!!

[doberrrman]

I have this feeling that I have unofficial beef with my neighbor...

[lususnatura]

ahahhh,, not me accidentally deleting the last post i made AHH i'm just going to recite it from memory now (,: so, basically what i said in my previous post was what if i told y'all that blamore's birthday already passed and i didn't make a post about it since it as a character probably spent the day at nico's [ who is his doctor ] because he was very depressed. and i say that because it was actually on july 25th, NGL, you guys AHH [ so like i probably won't reblog any birthday memes since most of them are for the day and it is VERY belated by now buttt... if y'all would like, though there's absolutely no pressure to, you could send something in related to that if you'd like (,: ]

[nexus-nebulae]

it's so dumb that we still feel awkward about creating willogenic headmates in our sys when we literally found out we were plural through the tulpa community