#I just have some relevant experience for once

[dannyriccsystem]

hi Z! I have scoliosis (around 20 degrees) and sometimes people like us experience back pain during sex, especially if it’s rough. so imagine the reader has scoliosis. her and the driver just finished having sex but they were really rough on her and she was in pain but didn’t want to say anything because she didn’t want to ruin the moment. she tries to get up or move around and the drivers see her struggling, they thought at first that she was so sore because of them (they’re like 😏😏). but they realize she was in instead pain and she tells them about her scoliosis, and they feel bad for not knowing and promise to go softer or at her pace next time. then cue the soft aftercare. thank you for indulging in my delusions 🙂‍↕️🙂‍↕️

NOT SO ROUGH!

FORMULA ONE DRIVERS X READER

SUMMARY: You have scoliosis, and the drivers go just a tad bit too rough on you! Cue the aftercare.

WARNINGS: Rough sex causing pain (not intentional), aftercare, fluff, Y/N usage, smut/mentions of smut, not entirely proofread

FEATURING: MV1, DR3, LN4, CL16, LH44, CS55, GR63, OP81

I actually dropped everything to do this request this is so cute.

MAX VERSTAPPEN - MV1

Sex with Max was unlike any other, and you found that out the hard way— Literally. You never thought it was relevant to mention the scoliosis, because you hadn’t expected it to be an issue. It never proved as one before, but you were beginning to realize the mistake you’ve made.

He was rough, to sum it up. At first it was fine, your body gently rocking on the soft mattress with every pound of his hips against yours. Then, like a train, it hit you all at once. Your back started to throb, and your cries of pain mixed in with your soft moans, which fueled him more. You climaxed hard, finally falling flat against the mattress as he pulled out.

“You were so good my love,” He whispered as he pressed a soft kiss to your forehead. You groaned, trying to sit up, but it just hurt even more. He chuckled softly, mistaking your pain for soreness. “Can’t move?”

You hissed, eyes welling with tears. He paused, freezing up immediately. He cupped your face, hands suddenly so gentle. The same hands that were roughing you around just moments ago. “Y/N, hey. What’s wrong? Did I hurt you?”

“Just-… Just a little,” You breathed in slowly, letting his hands pull you up into a sitting position. “I should have told you, I have scoliosis… It really hurts, I just… I was enjoying it, and I didn’t want to ruin your moment.”

“Oh, lieverd.” He pulled you towards him softly, peppering your face with kisses. “I will always prioritize your comfort over my pleasure. I want you to feel good too.” He propped up some pillow behind you, helping you lean back against them. “I’m glad you felt good, but next time, tell me as soon as it starts hurting.”

He kissed away your tears, sitting down beside you. “Okay… I’m sorry.”

“Don’t apologize.” He climbed off the bed and stepped into the connecting bathroom, returning seconds later with a towel. Max carefully wiped the sweat and arousal from your naked body, before draping you with a soft blanket. You hummed, your soreness seeping away. “Can I get you anything else?”

“No, I think I’m okay.” He climbed in beside you, softly kissing your forehead again. You smiled softly, relaxing against your mountain of pillows.

“You did great, I’m sorry I hurt you.” With those final words, you pressed yourself against his side and drifted off into a gentle snore.

—

DANIEL RICCIARDO - DR3

Unfortunately for you, it was hard for Daniel to tell the difference between whines of pain and whines of pleasure, which is why he didn’t take note of the excruciating back pain you were in. It was partially stupid on your end to hold back the information from him, as it could prove to be helpful, especially in a time like this. However, in your defense, you didn’t know that your first night together would be so rough.

And I mean literally. He was manhandling you, slamming his hips against yours. Of course, you enjoyed it at first, but as the minutes went by, the pain in your back grew. You hissed out in pain, clawing at his back. He figured this was part of your expression of arousal, and continued. It wasn’t until the tears began to well that he got the hint.

He slowly withdrew his length, pressing soft kisses to your cheeks. You breathed heavily, your back throbbing in pain. “Hey, hey…” He whispered in a hushed tone as you quietly cried. “Too rough? I’m sorry, sweetheart.” His hands softened as he lowered you back against the mattress.

You twitched, trying to shift into an upright position, and then cried out in pain. With quick reaction time, he grabbed your waist to steady you, brows furrowed. “What’s going on? Did I hurt you?” The sincerity in his eyes pained your heart.

“No- Well, yes, but it’s not your fault.” Your voice was shaking. With his help you sat up, your legs feeling like jelly and your back hurting like hell. “I have scoliosis, Danny. It was just a bit too rough for me.” You felt ashamed saying it, because you realized you should have said something sooner.

“Oh, Y/N, I’m so sorry.” He kissed your cheeks apologetically, hands rubbing soothing circles across your exposed back. “I wish you would have told me, I would have been much more careful.” You shook your head.

“No, it’s okay. I’ll be okay, it just hurt,” You giggled softly at his worried expression, and leaned back against the headboard.

“Next time I’ll be more mindful. We can establish a safe word just in case it starts to hurt again.” You nodded in agreement, and shortly after Danny scampered off to collect some items to help soothe your pain.

—

LANDO NORRIS - LN4

Lando was a pent up guy. Racing really restricted his access to his lover, you, and when he was traveling so much he barely had any time to get himself off. It sounded gross, but the guy desperately needed a release. Thankfully, the week after the triple header was a free week, meaning he could come home and cherish you like he had been yearning for.

Cherish you he did. Your first time was a wild ride with Lando. He had assured your pleasure came first before he finally let himself enjoy you, sinking into your plush walls and losing control of himself. He hammered his hips into yours at a relentless pace, truly sinking in the glory of it all.

It felt great at first— Better than anything you had tried yourself, but the pleasure had melted into pain as soon as he started getting rougher. You hissed in pain, which was subsided by loud and uncontrollable moans. It felt like ages you were laying there until he pulled out, releasing on your stomach.

You breathed in shakily as he flopped onto the bed beside you, panting from over exertion. Even an athlete like himself would get tired after that. He rolled onto his side to face you, chuckling under his breath when he saw you struggling to move. “Sore?” He asked softly, amusement in his tone.

Except the color drained from his face when he realized you were in pain. He should have noticed it instantly, but he was caught up in the adrenaline of it all still. He sat up quickly, cupping your cheek with his palm and soothingly brushing his thumb over your soft skin. “Hey, Y/N? What’s happening?”

“Pain,” You uttered out. His heart immediately shattered for you, and he lifted to cradle your head in his lap, brushing a few baby hairs away from your face. “My back— Scoliosis flaring up-”

“Oh, Y/N… I didn’t know,” He pressed a kiss to your forehead. “What can I do?” You huffed, breathing out shakily. You slowly tried to lift yourself, and he took the hint to help you sit up. In a more steady position, you felt like you could breathe clearly again.

“‘M sorry, Lan. I should have told you.” He gently rubbed circles onto your back, checking your eyes for clarity. “I never thought it would be necessary until now.” You locked eyes with him, and he offered an apologetic smile. “I felt really good, but… Maybe we should take it slow next time.”

He nodded immediately, pulling a blanket up to cover your exposed skin. You softened, feeling the throbbing pain start to slowly creep away. “Yes, thank you for understanding.” You felt your lips quirk into a smile as you shared a gentle kiss.

—

CHARLES LECLERC - CL16

Maybe it was the position. Sitting up straight with no support, moving your hips as you rode your boyfriend, was probably not the best idea considering your back condition. Charles could barely contain himself, his passion too strong to hold back.

You hadn’t expressed your pain, trying to push it aside. It wasn’t until you went limp against his body that he realized something was wrong. Charles slowly pulled himself out of your tight heat, feeling himself soften instantly. He cupped your cheeks, shaking you fully awake.

“Y/N? Hey, Y/N-” He froze when you blinked your eyes, seeming barely awake. He gave a sigh of relief. “Are you okay? Too rough?” He tried to keep calm, but it was hard. Pain was the last feeling he wanted you to experience during sex, unless you asked for it of course.

“Just a little bit.” You tried to push yourself up, but pain shot up your spine and you froze. “I should have told you. Charles, I have scoliosis. I never thought it would be important to mention.” You frowned, and he pressed a kiss to your forehead.

“I’m sorry, I wish I had known. Either way, I should have checked in to make sure you felt good.” He lifted you carefully, his strong arms picking you up with ease. He placed you back on the mattress, tucking the covers in around you. “What can I get for you?”

“Maybe some painkillers and a heating pad.” You weren’t mad, just in pain, and thankfully… Charles was willing to care for you.

He rushed off out of the bedroom to gather your things. Roughly five minutes later he returned with some tea, medicine, and a heating pad for you to lay on. After you were situated, he climbed in beside you and carefully held you in the safety of his arms.

He drew patterns into the skin of your arm with his finger, tracing random shapes. You were 90% sure some of them were outlines of circuits. “Next time, we can go at your pace. Maybe even use a safe word, hm?” His voice was barely a whisper.

“I’d like that.”

—

LEWIS HAMILTON - LH44

Lewis was a sincere guy. He always asked for permission, and assured that you were comfortable and safe during the act of sex. Tonight was no different, except he was testing the waters to see how rough he could go.

He was unaware of your scoliosis, and you were equally unaware of how much of an issue it would pose. Your pleasure had softened into pain, and your moans started to sound more like desperate cries. It didn’t take long for him to notice.

He tried to keep a good eye on you, and when he realized the subtle change, he froze his movements. “Everything okay?” Lewis asked, brushing a stray tear from your eyes. You shook your head softly, and he pulled out, his focus now entirely on you. “Okay, okay… Shh..”

He scooped you up into his arms and carried you off the hard couch, and set you down on his bed. You could barely move any part of your body without an unbearable ache. He kissed your jaw and collarbones, soothing your muscles. “Talk to me, pretty. What’s going on?”

“My scoliosis is acting up.” You watched his brows furrow.

“I didn’t realize you had scoliosis.” You seemed to shrink down into yourself, feeling slightly ashamed for not saying anything. “Well now I know, and I won’t cross that line again.” He positioned both hands on your waist. “Can you roll onto your stomach? How about a back massage?”

—

CARLOS SAINZ - CS55

This was a new position for the both of you. You always liked missionary, because you liked to see the expressions Carlos made, and it was nice and relaxing that way. Sex felt so much more intimate, but after a particularly grueling race, he came back to your hotel room feeling a little more wound up than usual.

You ended up on your hands and knees on the bed, back slightly arched. You were in pain from the start, but the pleasure helped to mask it. Right up until the end. You managed to stick it out until you both came, leaving each of your satisfactory. It was after your climax that you collapsed against the uncomfortable hotel bed, quivering.

You felt Carlos lean over you, his chest brushing against the bareness of your back as he left little kisses all over the skin. “Sore, mi amor?” His accent was thick as he whispered against you. You shuddered, but it wasn’t like the typical one. Something felt off.

He lifted himself up and helped you tilt your head to the side, realizing you were in pain. He helped you roll onto your back and sit up, making sure your every move was supported. After giving you some water and helping you breathe again, you looked away and explained yourself. “Carlos, I should have told you earlier but I didn’t want to ruin the moment… I have scoliosis.”

“Ah, amor…” He kissed your temple, holding the side of your head with his large hand. “I don’t care about that, I just care that you’re okay and safe. In the future, tell me if I’m too rough. I’ll never be too out of it to listen to your wishes, especially during intimate moment.”

His sincere response made you feel emotional. You buried your face in his neck, letting him cradle you gently to ease the pain.

—

GEORGE RUSSELL - GR63

Your relationship with George had been practically perfect, but things were still going at a slower pace. Tonight in itself was a big step, because it was the first night you both showed interest in having sex— So you did.

You wanted to tell him, you really did, but it never came up naturally. It was hard to talk about, because even though it didn’t look too obvious, scoliosis made a lot of everyday things difficult for you. What you didn’t realize was that sex would be one of these things.

You initially were fine, but as George lost himself in the pleasure, the pain started to become more prominent. You seethed between gritted teeth, clinging to him tight. He took this as a sign to continue his efforts, letting the both of you climax simultaneously. He laid down beside you, rolling the two of you onto your sides as he held you.

You winced, tears finally spilling. Finally paying attention fully, George quickly realized and hopped out of bed, ready to do whatever you asked of him. “Y/N? What’s wrong? Can I get you anything?”

You almost laughed, but the pain was too prevalent. You just shook your head. “Scoliosis- Back hurts.”

“Oh, sweetheart. I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to hurt you.” He helped you shift into a position that was comfortable, and sat down beside you. “Deep breaths with me, like this.”

Once he was certain you would be okay, he gathered some towels, fresh clothes, some hot tea, and put on your favorite movie while he gently massaged your aching back muscles, reassuring you that this would not be a repeat cause. It was safe to say you felt very loved that night.

—

OSCAR PIASTRI - OP81

It actually started as your idea. You and Oscar had always been fairly vanilla in bed, and while you loved it, you wanted to experiment more- Find out what you were really in to. He didn’t mind your request to be a bit rougher, even if it was awkward for him at first. He was used to being gentle with you.

You really did enjoy it at first, and then rough turned into hurtful, and your back started throbbing like hell. You scratched his bare back, for sure leaving deep marks from your nails. He groaned, head dipping down to bury into your neck. You whispered out a hoarse, “stop,” and he didn’t even have to think twice.

There was no safe word in place, but he didn’t want to take any chances. Oscar pulled out immediately, staring down at your face and searching for emotion. He could tell you were hurting, and your pain usually meant he felt pain too.

“What? What happened?” He stared down at you, and you slowly tried to reach up, but couldn’t really move your arm. Even that alone hurt like hell.

“Scoliosis. I think you went too rough,” Her tone wasn’t accusatory or mad, but he still felt awful. “Help me sit,” He did it without question, pulling your body up to sit against the headboards. He stood up and grabbed his hoodie off the floor, helping you pull it over your head.

“What can I get for you, baby?” He kissed your forehead, voice soft as he rubbed your arms soothingly. You shook your head.

“Nothing, it’ll pass… I just need to relax.” After dressing himself, he joined you on the bed and let you get settled in his arms.

“Maybe we should stick to being gentle.”

“Couldn’t agree more.”

[zvahlne]

a long post about today's aphmau video ("REBORN as the THE GODDESS of Minecraft" <- it. has a typo while i'm writing this) and all of the Minecraft Diaries references/weird things i caught in it!!!

if you want to know what diaries-things happened in this video but you don't want to watch a video that is pretty heavy cocomau (fair) this post is for you...

and if you watched the video please feel free to add anything i missed!!!!

my knowledge is from watching minecraft diaries almost a decade ago and i didn't watch When Angels Fall, so i could TOTALLY have missed something. but this should be pretty comprehensive!

okay!! let's get into it!

note in advance: the music that plays for most of the video really adds to the weird vibe. i think subconsciously that adds a lot to why this video felt so off.

the video opens with aphmau, pierce, and KC rushing over to garroth's house because of a storm over his house. when they get inside, kim and garroth are performing some kind of ritual with a book. an animation starts and they all get pulled up into the storm.

aphmau gets hit by lightning, and we cut to

the irene dimension!??

aphmau then wakes up back home in this outfit (!!) and the first thing she mentions is "What was that mirror?"

i find the mirror EXTREMELY fascinating, if anyone has thoughts on it please share with me because i'm having a hard time putting it into words but there's such a vibe happening there

when she leaves her house, there are a bunch of floating islands with irene's symbol under them. i don't know what that means, but i thought it was REALLY interesting. they were inescapable once she went outside; all these fragmented reminders of irene. it made ME feel some type of way for sure !!! it was very "haunting the narrative"... i don't think they were ever once properly acknowledged (even when characters were interacting with them), which somehow made it even weirder.

this guy also shows up and attacks aphmau. nothing came to mind other than the way irene's hood shaded her face, but i'm adding him to the post in case there's something i'm forgetting!

i acknowledge this next one to be a total reach but i could not, for the life of me, get it out of my head, so,

IT'S JUST. THEY WERE STANDING IN THE SAME SPOT RELATIVELY IN FRONT OF A GIANT BURNING CRATER. AND THE TREES... AND WITH EVERYTHING ELSE GOING ON... it was hard not to think of it.

throughout the video, aphmau gets new powers by... eating these little guys?

i mostly mention that for something else we'll get to in a minute

nothing of mcd/weird vibes note happens for a while so we're just going to skip ahead...

an interesting sidenote though is that garroth is just like, evil in this video. first he's doing the ritual thing with kim at the start, and later in the video he continues conspiring with her and even drops a boulder on aphmau's head. i haven't watched all the smp videos, but usually garroth is only evil when he's playing a character in my experience (like in a "one girl at an all yandere school!" video)? this is just smp garroth being straight up evil. the weird feeling this gave me really crystallized in ANOTHER thing we'll have to get to in a minute

cut to aphmau and kim. kim has told aphmau she wants to stop garroth too, so aphmau is following her into this weird cave. and.

do. do you see it

"I saw that symbol once before." "Eh, probably just some kids leaving graffiti."

I ALSO SAW THAT SYMBOL BEFORE. HELLO SHAD???

they go further in and there's this too

kim has aphmau say some magic words standing on this circle, which causes her to lose her wings and also covers her in the symbol??

i don't remember enough to know if this is lore relevant but it will be included in my deepdive anyway because what

shortly after this is when garroth drops the boulder on her head. when she wakes up the symbols are gone and garroth then leads her to an underground bunker. down there, they have this exchange:

"I'm just saying this is... new for you." "Well, maybe things are CHANGING, huh?!"

WHICH combined with what i mentioned earlier about him being randomly evil in this video stood out and really added to the weird vibe. pierce also mentions that weird things are happening on the server, but that could be said in any video, i'm just mentioning it because again, this video had a particular vibe to it.

we can now also circle back to her getting new powers like i mentioned! because the last power she gets in the video is... just... the irene eyes???

there's nothing new in the hotbar, like every other power. and she seems distressed by this one, in a way she wasn't for anything else. pierce is with her, and the first thing she says is, "What happened?" and the second thing (after some classic concerned aphmau noises) she says is "Help..! This is... different..!"

her concern is cut off by more of the angels i showed earlier coming back to attack her and pierce. her powers aren't working at first but then kick in and she then quickly dispatches them (and is surprised by how fast it happened).

in the next room, the mirror is back! aphmau is drawn to it, and says (in a voice more serious than the average cocomau voice), "I've been seeing this this whole time... I think I need to go through it."

she goes through and kim is there with angel wings now and explains that she was using the book to get powers, but aphmau got in the way. she also introduces three angels (one girl and two boys) as her children, and then proceeds to turn them into babies and explode them to steal their power since she (kim) was running out??? aphmau is very distressed by this (reasonably lmao) and takes her out in ONE HIT.

after this, in a more serious/deeper voice, she says "You merely adopted the powers, I was born in them." which is totally a bane reference i think, but what was more interesting to me is that the voice stuck for a line after ("You did it, Aphmau!" "I did.") before she gets startled and her voice returns to normal.

after which, she goes and looks at the mirror again (lmao bye garroth) and has a conversation with pierce

"Uh, hey, are you okay?"

"Yeah, I'm fine... I just..." more serious music starts playing. "I just felt like something called me here..."

"Oh uh, good, hey, can it NOT call you here, and can we go home?!"

"Yeah. We can go home. But... those poor babies..."

pierce then goes into more cocomau humor, and aphmau does NOT match his energy, just agreeing with him in a subdued tone. pierce hops through the mirror. she then decides to leave her powers there, and the video finishes with her saying, "I need to get out of here, gh!" and jumping through the mirror again.

video end.

so.... is it just me or was there a vibe????? i feel like normally with these videos when she does easter eggs, it's more of a fourth wall break? this time it felt more like aphmau was actually remembering/experiencing stuff. and it wasn't like the laurance video, where she has no recollection of anything shadow knights and they're just being used as a cocomau prop; she REMEMBERS shad's symbol from somewhere, and is quickly brushed off. and it was made especially odd by the background music throughout most of the video, and the occasional dissonance between aphmau's serious delivery and the other characters' smp-style delivery.

the whole video wasn't like this, with cocomau definitely throughout that i skipped for this post, but honestly that only made it feel weirder whenever the two vibes clashed. it was pretty unsettling to me tbh

you can watch it if this post intrigues you, but i think i covered anything interesting and it is pretty cocomau heavy despite all this, and if that's not your scene (completely fair, it's not usually mine), you can probably just stick with this post.

regardless of if it all MEANS anything, i think this was a very interesting video!!!! and i'm always down for references to her old stuff!! lmk what y'all think, i'm super super curious

[throughpatchesofviolet]

I found an incredibly in-depth template for L. Corp OCs on Toyhouse, and it's going to change everything about how I display info for my nuggets--it has the general stuff like their personalities and appearance, as well as a section for fun facts, but it also has tabs for relationships and E.G.O gear, including Gifts, and it's making me so excited ... I'm like a kid in a candy store. Now I just have to fill this out for all 44 of my nuggets ... why did I allow myself to have this many?

[unproduciblesmackdown]

costume design, set mockup, and rehearsal photos from this guide to the show that's like really thorough in providing Context like, mini articles about the creators of the original movie, musical, and movie musical, about other versions of productions, the history, quotes of other commentary, interview quotes, context of other / preexisting genres like b movies, faustian stories, "what if a plant was weird" stories, glossary of terms (such as references that may generally be less obscure if you were in the '60s, e.g.), suggested further reading....haven't read it top to bottom but i think it's fantastic, link to the pdf as post source

[ravenwolfie97]

i can't sleep and i want to fight youtube

[remxedmoon]

(You don’t know how much longer you can do this.)

hi the wip for this was absolutely not supposed to blow up. why does that have 1k notes. horrifying. anyways!!!! it’s update time baby!!!! 64 new assets this time around!

so that’s what the caption was supposed to be. this update was already pretty damn big and took a ton of time to make!!! and i was finally done!! but then my hand slipped and now we’re at 143 new assets. super sorry for the delay! That Was Not Supposed To Happen.

i’ll go more indepth below the cut, but this update encompasses all menu/profile art for both isat and sasasaap, battle portraits for sasasaap, every single pixel icon in isat (to my knowledge anyways), the dialogue skipping animations, and a few miscellaneous additions.

also i spent too much time on these to put them below the cut so Please God Look At My Icon Resprites I Spent 16 Hours On Them. enjoy!

okay first things first. why the hell is this batch 143 assets. so. i HEAVILY underestimated how many times the menu drawings are used in the games. even removing all of the custom art, it’s still ≈30-40 variations! that’s a lot! and once i finally finished everything, i got Posting Anxiety and somehow convinced myself that attempting Animation And Pixel Art (two things i haven’t done in YEARS) would be easier than writing a normal post. so here we are.

the custom art here is pretty much par for the course at this point. extra menu art for bonnie, extra expressions for the party in act 5, we’ve done this enough times that it’s expected. i am aware that bonnie’s custom menu art gets completely covered by the ui. i kept it in because it’s really funny (and also i didn’t feel like extending the sprite (but then the sasasaap version forced me to extend the sprite anyways so Whartever)).

once again, provided a spritesheet for sasasaap’s battle portraits! i do intend to cover both games, it’s just a slightly lower priority atm. unlike isat though, i’ve got Less (read “No”) experience with sasasaap, so there might be more issues with those assets?? apologies if there are, i’ll try to fix any issues that come up!

the Miscellaneous Additions i mentioned above are the sprites used on the teleport map and the loading screen, which is just a tiny version of the skipping animation. they were pretty small, so i figured i might as well get them out of the way!

not actually much to say about the 75 icons surprisingly! i haven’t done pixel art in about 5 years?? and that’s a Travesty actually these were super fun to make. i did make mockups for the overworld sprites earlier, but they aren’t Officially part of the redraws (yet) so they’re getting posted seperately

and also!! some exciting news!! this project might actually become a Proper Published Mod pretty soon!! i’ve been in contact with someone who’s willing to help me get everything set up, and i’ll be getting a Usable Computer around the end of the year!!!! it’ll still be at least a month before it’s up (i’d like to get the enemy art finished beforehand wauaua) but!!! still exciting!

okay, i think that’s everything relevant to the update!! i Definitely can’t fit all of the relevant assets here lol. but i’ll try my best ! please enjoy !!

[unintentionalseductress]

Natural Breeding Clinic - Prologue

warnings: MDNI, breeding kinks, general sex, mention of infertility and insemination methods

a/n: It's here. Finally.

Teaser - Prologue - Patient 1

You take a deep breath and sit down in front of the laptop, waiting for the other person to join the call. Never in your life had you heard about such a unique reproductive center but lately, you’d been feeling the pull to start your own family. You’d discussed this with relevant people in your life. Everyone had said if you really wanted a child, then you should go with the options you thought were right for you.

You’d done the research, looking into different doctors and fertility clinics, but this one just stood out. There were testimonials from several happy families, saying their methods, though unconventional, were effective, and the doctors showcased on the website were all incredibly striking, each one handsome in their own way. But it was the success rate that caught your eye. A 98% guaranteed rate that you would be pregnant, and that pregnancy would be healthy. The site didn’t go into too much detail on their method, but the wording caught your eye.

“A natural breeding clinic” they’d called themselves. You’d finally bitten the bullet and called, requesting an information session. The screen suddenly lightens and you focus your attention as an attractive woman with shoulder-length brown hair comes into view. She smiles in a welcoming way before speaking.

“Hello. Am I speaking with Mrs. L/n?” You nod and smile back, trying not to look awkward or uncomfortable. 

“Perfect! My name is Shoko Ieiri, I’m the main coordinating nurse here at Jujutsu Fertility. Thank you for scheduling an information session with us.”

“Yes, of course. I just needed more details before I booked an appointment.”

“Indeed.” Shoko claps her hands together before continuing. “Let me start by telling you a little bit about ourselves. We’ve been around for almost 6 years now. What sets us apart is that we focus more on women’s comfort than most other clinics. And we are sought out by people who are willing to use a sperm donor. We do not perform insemination services with sperm that are not from our own stock.”

“Your own stock? Are you associated with a sperm bank? And screen all the donors yourself?”

“Not a sperm bank in the conventional sense. We have 5 doctors who keep excellent health and their sperm is regularly screened to ensure quality. They are the only stock we allow for insemination.”

You blink to make sure you haven’t misheard. “The…doctors? Are you saying the fertility doctor I’d be meeting with will also be my sperm donor?”

“That is correct.” Shoko nods her head to confirm. “You will be meeting with the doctor of your choosing for at least 5 sessions. They will need to be at least once a week. Some women take the week off and come in 5 days straight.”

“5…sessions?” you ask, confused by the wording.

“Yes. It’s to ensure the insemination process has occurred an optimal number of times.”

“Wait…so…I’m going to be inseminated multiple times? How much downtime do I need in between each insemination?”

“Hardly any. Our method isn’t like a typical clinic. Most women leave feeling very normal and a lot more satisfied than when they came in.”

“Not like a typical clinic? So…you don’t use the catheter method?”

“We use minimal medical equipment in our inseminations.”

“Minimal…so what does the procedure entail?”

Shoko clears her throat and continues. “So it begins with you choosing one of our doctors. We highly recommend spending some time on this part. It’s essential that you feel attraction towards your doctor. Once you make a choice, they will reach out to discuss how your insemination experience can be optimized for you. You will receive a biodata on their sexual profile, their preferred methods of arousal, and other relevant details.”

“I’m sorry, but what?” You are at the edge of your seat wondering if you’ve entered an alternate dimension. Surely, this was all being made up? “Arousal, sexual profile- why would I need all these details? I thought sperm donors only gave information like height, weight, medical history and stuff like that.”

“Why wouldn’t they? You’re choosing to be bred by them. They would have to make sure their patient is satisfied with the experience.”

“Bred?” You bleat the word stupidly.

“Yes. We are a natural breeding clinic. We use the method nature has provided to us to ensure a pregnancy.”

The gears in your brain start turning and something finally clicks.

“Are-are you saying…I would be having sex with my doctor?”

“That is correct.” Shoko smiles gently at you, pleased that you have finally caught on.

“The human body doesn’t necessarily enjoy having medical equipment inserted into it. All that cold plastic, and the mechanical methods of insertion. It puts the body in a state of stress. Not good for implantation. So our doctors will inseminate you through the process of intercourse.”

 Her words fall like a fog around you. You can feel your heart racing, a flush creeping into your cheeks. It was…insane. The doctor of your choosing was essentially going to fuck a baby into you. As your mind starts pulling up the images of their doctors, each one impossibly handsome and striking, you feel a familiar throb starting between your legs. Wetting your lips, you try to talk to continue with the information session.

“I see. And…there are benefits to this?”

“Yes. Intercourse allows the body to relax, releasing happy hormones. In this stress-free state, in addition to the knowledge that your doctor is someone you’re attracted to and trust, the chance of an implantation doubles.”

You gape at Shoko, your mind reeling from all the information.

“And…when you say the insemination process will be optimized for my best experience…?”

“The doctor you choose will ask you extensive questions about your preferences. What turns you on, positions, dislikes, toys. It’s to determine if they will satisfy your breeding experience. If they feel they might not be a good fit, they’ll recommend another one of our doctors.”

You swallow, your mouth going dry. “I see. And…what else do I need to know?”

“We will start by collecting your medical history and run some blood work to make sure your body is ready for an insemination process. Women who have a domestic partner will need to get both a waiver and a consent form signed by their partner that they have been informed what happens for the insemination.”

“Of course. Makes sense.”

“You will be assigned an emotional support companion during this process. It will either be myself or Mr. Ijichi Kiyotaka. We are there to help ease your nerves and ensure you enjoy the process. And all patients must think of a unique safeword to use during the insemination process.”

“Safeword?” you parrot back, still processing.

“Yes. At any point during the process, should you feel uncomfortable, your safeword ensures all actions cease and your doctor will give you some space to breathe and reassess the situation.”

All you can do is nod along. Shoko gives you a look of reassurance. “I can guarantee that most women are pleased with the results. And our doctors are quite skilled in what they do. It’s natural to feel a little shy and embarrassed but at the end of the day, we all share a common goal- a healthy baby.”

Despite your initial shock, you feel some of your trepidation fade away. Shoko continues.

“If you are ok with all of this, I can send you the forms to get the process started. Once those are filled, you can take some time to decide on your doctor. Then we’ll set up a call with them.”

“Thank you.” You make a split-second decision. “Please go ahead and send the forms.”

“Excellent. I’ll send them to the email you put in your inquiry. Was there anything else?”

You shake your head no. “I think I have all I need.”

“Great! I look forward to assisting you again.” Shoko ends the call and you immediately go the the website again to look at the doctors, one of which will end up fathering your child. Such a hard decision. How will you ever make the choice?

@thesunxwentblack @kentocalls @actuallysaiyan

@belle-oftheball34 @jesssicapaniagua

@figmentforms

© unintentionalseductress original work | no copying, plagiarizing or translating

[reignpage]

Piercer!Geto

Manx Norton: going over the limit

Contents: 18+ mdni, fluff, smut, grinding, making out, blowjob, deepthroating, throat fucking, swallowing, marks the end of their pre-relationship story

“We need to talk,” you say. 

Geto looks up from his journal, slow and steady like he knew you would come here and at this time. He sets his pen down. His hair is tied up completely today and there are dark bags under his eyes that you can’t bear to look at, so you don’t. Instead, you settle into the seat, without being asked, and you cross your legs and your arms. 

You mean business. 

“Good afternoon, pretty. You look gorgeous.” 

Sighing, you ignore that fluttering in your stomach. There’s no point in getting carried away by his charm; it’s his instinct to be sweet, otherwise he wouldn’t have as many clients as he does. But you’re aware, faintly and right at the very back of your mind, that his words have a bite to them — they’re complimentary whilst also accusatory. 

“I need an explanation, Geto,” you state firmly. 

His left eye twitches. It’s not a flicker or a nervous tick, it’s a flinch. You have the power, just like your sister said, when you were throwing her shoes out of the window, and she was offering advice as a means to fight your murderous intent off. It didn’t work.

There’s always something shifting between you, something unstable, and it’s been difficult to manage — you’re new to relationships, so new to venturing outside your comfort zone that you’ve relied so much on him to guide you. But you’ve also had to step up and make decisions for yourself. 

Your friends weren’t very helpful; they insisted you quit or bring a new man to the studio to make him jealous, and as tempting as it is to be petty, you know they wouldn’t solve anything. It’ll just make you feel bad and icky. 

So, you’ve chosen the high road, providing him the opportunity to share his side, to explain why he let you down once again and why everything between you had been built on a lie.

Nodding, he opens a drawer and takes out a familiar sheet of paper. Then, in a conversational tone, he asks, “What do you see?”

“It’s my CV,” you answer. Truthfully, you have no clue what game he’s playing; there’s something in particular he’s looking for but all you see is the whites of the paper and the lines of ink. 

“Look at it from the perspective of an employer looking to fill a hole in their establishment,” is his reply. 

You’ve heard that tone often, every day, in fact. It’s the tone he uses on clients when he needs to go over payment plans, or on suppliers when he needs to negotiate a new contract. But he’s never used it on you. Distant and devoid of attachment, it makes you feel uneasy. 

Fiddling with a loose thread on your sweater, you furrow your brows as you read over the paper. Geto is leaning back on the chair, hands folded on his lap, the pinnacle of confidence. That used to be so attractive. Now, you’re just a little peeved off. You were supposed to be the confident one; you came here on your own volition, even prepared a speech you practised with your sister.

You should have known he’d sweep the rug from under you. 

Frustrated, you groan and smack the sheet. “Just tell me what I’m supposed to see! I have no time for this.”

Smiling reassuringly, Geto doesn’t bat an eye at your outburst and instead, begins a lecture, “What I saw was a CV lacking in relevant work experience. In fact, you had very little experience. Your most recent job was in high school, when you worked as a librarian’s assistant for a day. The other things on there were debate club and a certificate for being a neighbourhood ‘sweetheart’, and I’m not even sure what that means.”

“Oh.”

To your embarrassment, he laughs. A blush is growing on your face and suddenly you’re very aware of how some strands of hair are sticking to your forehead uncomfortably, how the sweater you’re wearing is a little scratchy and that maybe, just maybe, you’ve overreacted terribly.

Maybe you should have confronted him sooner. Perhaps just as soon as you overheard him tell Miguel that your sister owes him a favour for hiring you. However, in your defence, you were feeling a little hurt from having been left at the restaurant — you waited for an hour, watching people pass by and give you sympathetic looks as you sent text after text to a man too busy with a client to realise time passed by. 

A week has gone by since then, and you haven’t come to work at all, you dodged every text and call from Geto and ignored him when he showed up on campus and had the nerve to get upset that you’re hanging out with a classmate. Your sister tried to defend him, and herself, but you weren’t willing to hear her out. On many occasions, you’ve told her to butt out, to leave you to make mistakes and get hurt, because it’s your prerogative. 

She can’t protect you from everything and the more she tries, the harder you all learn that lesson. 

“Okay, fine. So, my CV sucks a little,” you huff, “but you should have never hired me under the pretence that I was good enough when the real reason was because my sister asked you. It’s unfair on me. I wanted to earn this job on my own and you two went behind my back to manipulate this whole situation!”

The man sighs and leans forward. You smell his cologne and it’s muddling your mind a little, so you lean back, away from him. He notices. “I understand you’re upset. And I’m sorry to have colluded with your meddling sister. But it really isn’t what you think, pretty girl.”

You hate how patient he sounds, like you’re the crazy one. And maybe you are. You don’t know anymore. In fact, you’re starting to think you know nothing at all. 

“Yes, it’s true she asked me to give you a job. But all I promised her was that I’ll give you a chance, like everyone else. And when you came for the interview, I thought a lot of things. One was that you are so different from your sister. Different from the people that tend to come through the door, from me. You’re much brighter, much warmer and lighter than everyone I’ve ever seen.”

There’s something in his eyes, a sincerity that makes you breathless. All the air has left the room and you’re leaning in without even realising it. Everything that he says is entrancing, he’s a pied piper playing a tune that fills your soul with a fire you can’t put out, and he’s leading you closer to him, away from everything you’ve ever known, away from safety and reason. 

You’re not afraid. 

“I had a look at your CV and thought, there’s no way I would hire you, not even if she begged or blackmailed me — I take great pride in my studio, I turned it from a little backroom space with flickering lights to what it is now. My clients trust me to provide quality service from beginning to end, and I will not let a woman, no matter how beautiful, get in the way of that.”

Geto reaches for your cheek, like he can’t help himself, and you let him. His hands are slightly calloused but otherwise smooth and soft. And that smile, the polite one he always wears, is gone. In its place is something that reflects how you feel, how you’ve both been feeling for a long time now. A frustration against the distance between you, the boundary that’s erected itself between employer and employee, boss and receptionist, and a man who’s seen it all versus a girl who knows so little. 

You aren’t meant to be. Everything about this relationship is wrong, it’s inadvisable, foolish, like Hades and Persephone, or Eros and Psyche. It’s a tragic love story doomed from the very beginning, the kind people talk about centuries later with a mix sense of awe and pity. You know all about it, have read so many variations of the same story with the same individuals who think they know everything, who believe they’re different, special and that the Fates will smile fondly on them. 

Except neither you nor Suguru are under the impression that you’re different, that this will turn out differently and that the cards you’ve been dealt are from a separate, fresh deck. You both know you’re playing a dangerous game. 

Neither of you care. 

“But then I talked to you. And you were so witty, so undeterred by my unrelenting questions, and so willing to learn as you go. You had the confidence of someone who’s worked a thousand jobs, who’s met a thousand people that, despite knowing better, I wanted to hire you on the spot.”

Carefully, with your eyes fluttering shut at the tentative touch of your skin, you breathe out, “Suguru, we shouldn’t.”

“I know.”

When your eyes open, you see his gorgeous, tortured eyes fall to your lips and you know what you want. 

Your lips meet his.

This kiss is so similar to the one you shared that night, but oh so new. It seems so long ago now, and when you feel his plush lips devour yours it feels like this is new to both of you and it urges you to push in further. His tongue touches yours and you don’t hesitate to intertwine it, to explore all that he’s laying out for you. 

Gasping for breath, you pull away with little success before he’s grasping the back of your neck and urging you over the desk, kneeing the papers there and hearing the pens and stapler fall to the floor with a dull clatter, you sit onto the desk and you hear his chair slam against the wall when he stands to press himself closer to you. He kisses you again. 

“Things work differently with me,” he says in between pecks to your lips. 

Whilst his mouth moves to your jaw, sucking at the skin by your ear, you giggle. “I know. My sister says you like control. Something about Christian Grey.”

Chuckling in your ear before nipping you there, he admits, “I’m not as insane as him. In truth, I don’t really know what I am, but I know it’s more intense than what most men ask for.”

“That’s okay, Suguru. We can work it out together, step by step.”

He kisses your pulse point. You moan. Goosebumps are rising along your arms; your back is arching to press as much of you closer to him. You’re barely capable of creating a single train of thought, you feel so lightheaded you don’t register how your legs are wrapping around his hips. 

“My smart girl,” Suguru muses against your skin. 

Your legs are wrapped around his hip, pulling him close until you can feel the bulge there push against your core. With a roll of your hips, the zipper of his jeans nudges your bundle of nerves. You gasp. And you seek out that pleasure again with slow, gradual grinds. 

Breathlessly, you say, “Suguru…”

He’s scraping his teeth against your pulse point, one hand kneading your thigh and the other holding himself up. Filling your senses, all you can think about is him and how there’s a growing pressure within that’s dying to be released. 

“Go on, pretty girl. Take what you need.” Tightening your legs around his hips, you grind harder, frustrated that there are layers between you. Your arch your back, chest rubbing against his. Like he knows what you want, his hand finds your breast, squeezing and groping. “No bra? Are you sure you came here to talk, angel?”

When his thumb brushes over your nipple, you cry out, body tightening as that coil inside snaps. You spasm, grinding hastily to draw out your pleasure. It’s much better than you any could have given yourself and you’re addicted. Hand flying to his hair, you thread it through, brushing out his hair tie until his silky hair cascades down.

He groans. 

In a blink of an eye, you’re being pulled and pushed down onto your knees. You grip his thighs, blinking fast as you desperately try to regain your bearings. 

“You’re asking for trouble, sweet thing. Can you handle it?” Suguru asks, a challenge glinting in his eyes as he smiles down at you. 

You bite your lip, thighs squeezing to subdue the regrowing aching there. With a sudden bravery, your hands make their way up, revelling in the marble like strength in his muscles before they find his zip. 

Hesitating, you feel something holding you back, an instinct within awakening. Awkwardly, you question, “May I?”

His smile widens, surprise flickering in his eyes, and then he’s threading his hands through your hair. It’s a rewarding pat, one full of warmth, and it’s empowering. 

“Such a good girl. You’re a perfect little angel, aren’t you?” He coos. “Of course you may, my pretty girl. Go on, go at your own pace.”

Nodding, you unzip his jeans, tugging it down with his boxers. And what springs out leaves your mouth watering. It’s huge and intimidating. It’s bad enough that he’s well-endowed, but nothing about him is typical. He’s different to the average man in every way. 

Starting with the metal piercing the underside of his dick, emerging through the head. 

Seeing the horrified look on your face, he chuckles, the hair soothing your head delving down to pinch your chin. Unperturbed by your reaction, likely expecting it, he explains, “I got it done a year ago, mostly as a dare. It took around nine weeks to heal and yes, it did hurt.”

“B-but I-I can’t,” you stammer and shake your head, adding, “there’s just n-no way.”

Suguru sighs, thumb grazing your cheek. “You don’t need to. I understand this is too much too soon, but I don’t think you’re giving yourself enough credit. You’re more than capable.”

You don’t want to disappoint him. And you want to prove you can do whatever you set your mind to. Recalling one of your sister’s drunken admissions, you know the trick is to pinch your thumb, so you don’t gag, to breathe through your nose and take a little at a time. 

“Okay, okay. I can do it.”

He gathers your hair and keeps them out of the way. Slowly, you wrap your hand around the base, gasping at the way your fingers barely touch. With no particular method in mind, you explore his length, thumb following a vein from bottom to top. He’s hot in your hand, almost burning, and the tip is shining with what you know to be pre-cum. 

It’s pearly white and you can’t wait to know what it tastes like; you lean in and scoop up the drop with your tongue. You both groan. 

Salty, you mull the taste over. It isn’t bad. And suddenly, you no longer feel scared. Your tongue fiddles with the bent metal barbell, surprisingly not minding the cold sensation against your hot tongue. 

“That’s it,” he groans, grip on your hair tightening. 

You widen your jaw, suckling the head, tongue pressing against the slit before it circles around, grinding the barbell back and forth. He groans louder, deep breaths vibrating through the room. 

When you push in further, you make the mistake of doing it too fast. You gag, eyes tearing up. 

“Slowly, pretty. Slowly. There’s no rush, okay?”

Coughing, you nod weakly, feeling embarrassed. Recovering your breath, you go back in, slower. Eventually, you work up a rhythm, bobbing your head up and down, taking more and more of him but never quite making it further than halfway. 

Both hands on your head, he soothes your tears away with his thumb before he advises, “Relax your throat, sweet thing. I’ll guide you, is that alright?”

You tap his thighs twice in a yes. 

And then he’s pushing in, more and more until he’s filling your throat, muscles stretching to take him in. Tearing up once more, you mentally swallow that panic rising, the claustrophobia within forcing your nails into his bare thighs. 

“You’re doing so well, angel. So good -ngh- for me, hmm?”

Suguru pulls back, the piercing scraping your tongue. And then he pushes back in. Again and again, he builds up to a rhythm, allowing you to get used to it, before he gives you more of him. 

This is so overwhelming, the feeling of his piercing bumping at the back of your throat, the ache in your jaw at the stretch, and the salty taste filling your senses. All you can see and feel and hear and taste is Suguru. You can’t get enough of him. 

So, when he bottoms out, your lips tickling his skin, your eyes roll to the back of your head just as his do. 

“I’m going to cum, pretty. Do you want to pull out?” He asks, pleasure written all over his face, the veins in his arm bulging at his barely constrained urge to fuck your throat freely. Knowing that he’s so in control, so concerned over you, when he could use you how he pleased, could take what he wants makes you so wet. 

You blink rapidly. 

“No? Are you sure you -ha- can take it? I won’t let you spit it out,” he warns. 

Sucking your cheeks in, you suction him closer. His cock head is rubbing the back of your throat, piercing burning, and with a shallow thrust, he’s cumming down your throat. 

Hot liquid fills your mouth. 

Suguru pulls out and you swallow the thick cream he leaves in your mouth. Your head slumps against his thigh, gasping for breath, heaving like you’ve just ridden a rollercoaster. 

Hands tucking themselves under your arms, he lifts you onto his lap just as he sits back on his chair, boxers pulled up before you even realise what position you’re in now. 

He rubs your back, muttering encouraging words about how perfect you were, how amazing you did, and how he knew you’d do well for him. 

“Open,” he orders, bottom lip pulled down by his thumb. He inspects your mouth and smiles at what he sees. “Good girl.”

And then he’s kissing you, tasting both yours and his essence. 

“No wonder Miguel gave me a funny look when I asked how many piercings you have,” you whisper against his lips, a high pulsing through your veins. 

Suguru chuckles. “He’s a good guy, did all my piercings. Eased all my concerns every time and I knew I wanted him in my studio.”

You nod. 

Your eyes are heavy and you’re hiding your face in the crook of his neck, breathing him in, and pondering the change between you. You’ve accepted that you’re entering an unconventional relationship, that he’s going to introduce you to a world none of your friends had seen a glimpse of, but you won’t be navigating it by yourself. 

He’ll lead you just as he had when you first started working here. 

Softly, gently and with so much patience, you’ll be free to stumble as often as you need until you know who you are, what you want, and what you need to be.

“Get some sleep, my gorgeous, gorgeous girl.”

Is the last thing you hear before you fall deeper into sleep in his arms.

[roguerambles]

I understand the disappointment, I really do, but I think people might be blowing the whole world state thing a bit out of proportion. "This is SPITTING IN THE FACE of long-time fans" no it's not Steve, calm down.

The series has always had to compromise when it comes to the state of the world because so many of the choices (especially from the end of Origins) were so wildly different that trying to build a sequel from so many conflicting factors would be more or less impossible. It's why we've never seen the Architect again, because him being alive or dead has HUGE ripple effects that are damn near impossible to write around.

Heck, it was entirely possible for Anders to die at the end of Awakening, but the writers wrote around it by saying "oh no he actually faked his death" even though logically that made very little sense because at that point he'd have absolutely no reason to do that? But Anders was in the sequel so that had to come up with something.

Basically nothing from Dragon Age 2 was important in Inquisition - Hawke siding with Mages or Templars made no difference, Anders being alive or dead made no difference, whether Carver or Bethany were dead or Wardens or whatever made no difference. We got some flavour text and that was literally it, everything else played out exactly the same.

Hell, the Temple of Sacred Ashes gets blown to bits at the beginning of Inquisition, rendering everything to do with that quest from Origins basically moot. And we've never gone back to Orzammar, and everything we have heard from it has been kept super vague, because depending on who the King is and if Branka is still alive things would look WILDLY different. Crafting a new story there would be borderline impossible because the dozen different possible world states make the foundation shaky at best.

It's why I highly doubt we'll be able to side with Solas and help him tear down the Veil because that would result in basically a whole new world being created. Imagine them trying to make Dragon Age 5 and being like "okay 50% sided with Solas and tore the Veil down and 50% kept the Veil intact....wtf now what do we do--?"

Again, I understand the disappointment, but I just hope once the dust has settled and people calm down a bit they'll see that, realistically, very little has changed. Your saves are still there, your experiences and enjoyment of the games and the characters and the story are still there, but they were always gonna have to draw the line SOMEWHERE.

And that's not to say none of our previous choices will come back - if we get another game, or a spin off or something they'll probably do what they're doing with the Inquisitor now. They're just taking what's relevant to the story they are trying to tell, and leaving what they aren’t going to use presently ambiguous.

[corasexigence]

Intox Play Primer

Vet for high risk play. If you don't have the utmost trust in someone, control what you're putting in your own body and know where it all came from.

Check for interactions. Yes, this means sharing complete information about whatever medications the person getting drugged is on. No, the interactions are not always intuitive. Yes, this includes things like alcohol. Ideally, ask your doctor about interactions with whatever you're about to play with- they're trained in spotting interactions, you're probably not. (ETA- @vekarin-striae mentioned that pharmacists are often cheaper, more specialized, and less invasive to talk to about drug interactions.)

If you've checked the interactions yourself, assume you might have missed something. Even if you've gotten your doctor to check, be aware they might have missed something. I once caught a potassium deficiency issue in someone's existing medication that their doctor prescribed them.

ROUND 1- Use it for its own sake before you play with it. Spend the time together and set yourself up for success: easy access to food, water, comfort media, and comfortable places to sit and lie down. Know how long it should last. Get someone who's used it before to tripsit if you can. Don't give yourself any tasks that involve new skills. Be ready to offer yourself or your partner a redirect from negative or anxious trains of thought.

Know what a good time on your drug physically looks and feels like. This is crucial, because things might go sideways in a way you're not expecting. Don't just be watching for specific signs of an overdose (though those are worth keeping in mind too)- if something seems wrong, get help. Seconds matter and you're probably not a professional.

Similarly: if the drug is at all sedative, or a downer, or long-lasting, and they're unconscious before it's out of their system, check for breathing and check for pulse. Also, your risk profile is your own, but I don't fuck around with hard sedatives- there's too fine a line between which body systems they shut down.

Start with a low-to-standard dose, and adjust doses for any relevant interactions (e.g. estradiol approximately halves liver tolerance [alcohol, weed, diphenhydramine]).

In order to avoid dependence issues, I wait a default of two weeks between recreational uses of any drug. (I only count caffeine here if I'm having more than two cups of tea in a day.)

ROUND 2- Play with it scripted and above board before you play with it in an explicitly cnc way. Your communication and mental state will have shifted, and you'll need to learn to accommodate that; make sure you try things out without added communication barriers first. Also, make sure to talk about how everything went afterwards when you're both sober!

If you're going to adjust doses, do it slowly and carefully. Most easily accessible recreational drugs can be incremented by half the standard dose. Some drugs are incredibly sensitive to fine adjustments; this is why Fentanyl, for example, is so dangerous and not recommended to use.

ROUND 3- Don't get comfortable. Try to have as peaceful and relaxed an experience as you want, and keep an eye on things as you play with different emotional states- but DEFINITELY continue to keep an eye on safety. It doesn't stop being a concern because you've done it once and everything went fine.

ETA- Mind how drugs affect things like pain tolerance! You might miss important signals from your body. Also, pay attention to overlap with your neurotype when planning and risk profiling. You might desire or achieve different effects depending on your own specific brain.

[onlycosmere]

WaitUntilTheHighway: Why did Sanderson just get rid of this great character? 

I feel like Rock was one of the best characters in Kaladin's world, and it seems like he was 'sent off' for literally no plot-relevant reason. It's like it's a TV show and the actor died so they had to get rid of the character. I'm bummed because I'm almost done with RoW now and there's just no more fun camaraderie among bridge four, largely thanks to Rock being gone. He was one of my faves.

Brandon Sanderson: As others have said, Rock will get his own novella--but that's not why I sent him off. Even if there had been no time for a novella, or no plot-relevant things for him to do, he would have left.

I need Bridge Four to be alive. Their time together, as a cohesive unit, was a powerful moment in time--and you can always reread the first few books to experience it again. However, in life, nothing remains the same, and time draws people apart. Rock has a family, a people, and responsibilities. He has to be about those, now that he's free from Alethi slavery.

Bridge Four, as it stood in books one and two, had to eventually evolve, and some members had to go their own way. That's life. For all Kaladin wanted to grasp for it, hold it together by force, he couldn't--just as we can't keep rigidly hold of the friends and family we love. Time inevitably divides us.

Each book of the Stormlight Archive must be something new. New tone, new feeling, evolved from the previous volume. They are too big, too weighty, to be allowed to repeat the same plot cycles, same emotional beats, or to allow the characters to stagnate into repetitive playacting of the people they were in the first few volumes. As readers travel through the series, I intend for them to realize this, though it may take a while for it to really click.

Anyway, I'm glad to see your post, /u/WaitUntilTheHighway ! If you miss Rock, I did something right in this specific case. Please don't see my response here as a recrimination, merely an explanation of my philosophy for the series. I hope that the insight helps a little.

Cherish what you have--even if that includes memories of a once warm relationship, now become embers cooled by time or distance. Try not to be sorrowful for the parting, but grateful for the experience while it lasted. Journey before Destination can apply even after that destination has been reached, so long as it doesn't cause us to fixate so much on the past that we overlook the new journeys ever opening before us.

Thanks for reading.

[bonus-links]

Hello! Could we have a director’s commentary on Ruins pt.11 please?? It drives me insane 🥺🥺

YEAHHH this is gonna be a long one. link to the update

this is also one of my favorite updates (and 100% my favorite dialogue in all of ch.1, possibly the whole comic so far) but I'm glad I waited to do a commentary bc I think this is actually really relevant to the latest update

cause like the conversation Loft has with botw Zelda here is very similar to the one he has with Ganondorf, though he's much less snippy during it

I wanted to give Zelda a chance to be bitter and share her grievances with the gods. Her entire story in BOTW is largely about how the legends and the expectations put upon her by them fail not only her personally but the entire kingdom. And yet she's made to feel like it's all her fault.

A lot of his comic focuses on the legacy of the Hero, but I don't want to leave Zelda (or Ganondorf) out of the conversation. The cycle makes victims of all three of them in various ways, and while I can't do everything at once, it's still my goal to explore that. The Zeldas in particular are all in interesting positions as members of the Royal Family, because they're at once always thrown in peril by it with little agency, and expected to be the facilitators of its success as the people with the closest proximity to the gods. Much to think about.

on that note BOTW Zelda is my favorite Zelda. she is my babygirl. she is my everything. I will die a BOTW Zelda defender. we haven't seen the last of her in this comic i promise :-)

okay on to actually analyzing the comic. This top panel is framed like a diptych, two paintings hinged together. these are often (though not always) associated with religious paintings and are often altarpieces. I use a triptych format in the newest update :D sidenote I think it's very cute that some of the Hylia statues in BOTW have been decorated, so i gave her a little flower crown

I imagine praying starts to feel a little strange when you are dating ur god. yeah. Also I think it's interesting that Skyloft seems to mainly worship Hylia, with the other gods being more distant. It makes sense given the whole "she personally raised us up into the sky to save us all" thing. Even though Loft is the very first hero sent on a personal religious quest directly by his goddess, I've always imagined him as kind of,,,,casually devout? In that way that it's all you've ever known. Like obviously his beliefs are deeply ingrained, but he's not as into the formality of it all as other Links we might meet later.

I think about Zelda in that freezing pool on Mt. Lanayru all the time. RAHHHHHHH

I've posted this before but close up of Slate running their errands, the errand being talking to the Great Fairies about if they've noticed anything weird going on lol. I actually wanted to make it a whole update on its own, but I cut it for time and also because. I don't think the Great Fairies really have any information that was necessary other than "no I don't know what's going on". So u get this panel.

I like this shot of that little statue towering over the both of them, and I mimic it a little bit in the new update here. something something about why we build monuments and what they stand for.

negative sim interaction

Loft still has to believe that Zelda and Slate's negative experiences had to have been some sort of misunderstanding. If Hylia could have helped, she would have. Knowing and loving your goddess on a human level also makes you want to give her the benefit of the doubt.

I actually really love that in BOTW Zelda resents Link for having some sort of access to the divine that she just can't reach. She has her arc about it in the game, but especially now she's come to understand that having the gods' favor is a double-edged sword. Also, that's not really meant to be Peony, but I like the idea that Champion also had an affinity for fairies. :-( Intentionally the same pose as Slate at the fairy fountain, though Slate is so tiny I probably didn't need to bother lol

that was a lot of rambling lol but i have. so many thoughts abt the subject matter of this update. this is the shit about LOZ that makes me froth at the mouth tbh

[cosmereplay]

Brandon's answer:

As others have said, Rock will get his own novella--but that's not why I sent him off. Even if there had been no time for a novella, or no plot-relevant things for him to do, he would have left.

I need Bridge Four to be alive. Their time together, as a cohesive unit, was a powerful moment in time--and you can always reread the first few books to experience it again. However, in life, nothing remains the same, and time draws people apart. Rock has a family, a people, and responsibilities. He has to be about those, now that he's free from Alethi slavery.

Bridge Four, as it stood in books one and two, had to eventually evolve, and some members had to go their own way. That's life. For all Kaladin wanted to grasp for it, hold it together by force, he couldn't--just as we can't keep rigidly hold of the friends and family we love. Time inevitably divides us.

Each book of the Stormlight Archive must be something new. New tone, new feeling, evolved from the previous volume. They are too big, too weighty, to be allowed to repeat the same plot cycles, same emotional beats, or to allow the characters to stagnate into repetitive playacting of the people they were in the first few volumes. As readers travel through the series, I intend for them to realize this, though it may take a while for it to really click.

Anyway, I'm glad to see your post, /u/WaitUntilTheHighway! If you miss Rock, I did something right in this specific case. Please don't see my response here as a recrimination, merely an explanation of my philosophy for the series. I hope that the insight helps a little.

Cherish what you have--even if that includes memories of a once warm relationship, now become embers cooled by time or distance. Try not to be sorrowful for the parting, but grateful for the experience while it lasted. Journey before Destination can apply even after that destination has been reached, so long as it doesn't cause us to fixate so much on the past that we overlook the new journeys ever opening before us. Thanks for reading.

Link to post

[meanbossart]

Ok, so, I love your work (clearly as I am also a Patreon member). I have A Novel Experience open in one of my many ADHD tabs (so many tabs *sob*) and I very much want to read it. The problem that I seem to be having is that my OCD brain knows there is so much previous content (the game) that I NEED to know before I read it and I don’t know where to find that content? Or if you’ve even written it down? Is your in game journey somewhere that I haven’t noticed? Or is there just not a fully written account? If it is somewhere, I’d love to read it, please point me in the right direction!

Hey! Well, playing the game (or at least watching a walkthrough of it) and understanding the Dark Urge storyline is kind of required for ANE. You will be very lost otherwise.

Knowing every detail about DU drow's campaign, on the other hand, is absolutely not required to enjoy it - or at least I don't think it is, and I have definitely had people read through it without having prior exposure to this blog. Events are referenced with proper context, there's instances of backstory exposition, and information is fed to you (in a hopefully organic manner) throughout the course of the first few chapters. Indeed, you won't learn about every little minute occurrence or DU drow's opinions about every single person he met throughout the game - but that's what the #du drow lore tag is for and hardly ever relevant to the plot. You learn about his character THROUGH reading ANE as well as you would through browsing the asks in this blog!

BUT, If it eases yours or anyone else's conscience, here's a quick list of some significant events from the game - once again, many of these are either revealed throughout the course of the fic or entirely irrelevant (most are, I'd argue), but I guess it might be fun flavor-text all the same.

ACT 1: -He kills Lae'zel very early in the game. -he saves Mayrina. -He kills Barcus. -He kills Minthara, saves Halsin and helps the tieflings in act 1. He did not help Kagha or unravel her shadowdruid scheme. -He didn't spend the night with anyone at the tiefling party. -He did not visit the creche or go through mountain pass at all. -Astarion's romance triggered late in act 1. He first tells him about being vampire through dialogue after they had sex, and only after that did he try to bite him during a long rest. (Apparently a bug and no longer possible to pull off since patches, but this is the "canonical" order of events for DU drow's story.) -He sides with the duergar mercenaries at grymforge, kills Neere, and lets the gnomes die/remain enslaved.

Act 2: -He was supportive of Shadowheart and her DJ aspirations, though not ecstatic about it. -I got a bug where Gale kept coming onto me despite not being in a romance with him. This is also canon. -He didn't kill Isobel nor let her be kidnapped by Marcus. -He didn't save the imprisoned tieflings or gnomes. -He killed Yurgur after Astarion struck up a deal with Raphael. -He never met Araj. -He let Shadowheart make her own choice during the Nightsong's face-off and she spares her. -He didn't help Halsin cure the land and left him behind. -He recruited Jaheira. -He stomps the Astral Tadpole dead.

Act 3: -He's always antagonistic towards The Emperor. -He helps Shadowheart kill Viconia and she chooses to sacrifice her parents. -He is opposed to Gale pursuing the crown of Karsus. -He strikes up a deal with Gortash. -He convinces Wyll to break his contract AND saves his father from the Iron Throne. -He convinces Astarion to not Ascend and the Spawn are all freed and sent into the Underdark. -He saves Minsc and goes through the whole Nine-Fingers thing (clueless all throughout but hey, he likes Jaheira.) -He steals the Orphic hammer from Raphael's house. -He kills Gortash. -Yenna is the one that gets kidnapped, she dies at Orin's altar. -DU drow refuses Bhaal's gift after killing Orin, dies, and is resurrected by Withers. -He frees Orpheus and makes him turn into a Mindflayer. -Him, Shadowheart, Astarion and Gale kill the Netherbrain. -DU drow kills Orpheus. -Karlach dies at the docks. -Gale restores the crown and Ascends to Godhood (In ANE, this is a process that takes time - so he is not the God of Ambition yet in that timeline.)

Also, I completed the game prior to the Epilogue Party Patch and do not consider anything said or done in it to be canonical in ANE's timeline.

[markrosewater]

I appreciate your patience in listening to the people mourn what's currently being decided right now. If I can contribute something as well: I am also a UB fan, and I agree with the mechanical uniqueness and the awesome designs and all that.

However, the mantra being spoken before has been "maybe this product isn't for you," and while that was far from easing my concerns about some decisions, now that ub is going to be at every level of competitive play, wotc has taken away the ability for competitive players to opt out of an experience they don't want to partake in. If you want to win, you HAVE to get Sephiroth and Green Goblin, etc.

I like UB as an opt in choice, but the current decision feels malicious towards those who expressed their concerns before who were abated by consolations that wotc has rolled back. It does feel like a cynical money grab at the cost of many of the most dedicated players.

It’s not a “cynical money grab”. It’s us responding to two big pieces of feedback from the players.

1) Straight to modern sets were speeding up the flux in Modern. Metagames are influenced by how many new relevant cards enter the environment, and having a bunch of straight-to-Modern sets was creating unwanted flux. Modern players enjoyed that archetypes lasted longer than in smaller formats. It was a loud compliment often made here on Blogatog. This change is made to address that.

As a corollary to that issue, because we had less experience with making straight-to-Modern cards, our ability to balance them wasn’t as efficient as premier sets. This change also has the vast majority of cards going through the same system and power level, one we have years of experience with.

2) Players who were entering through Universes Beyond (and there are a lot of them - it’s a primary strength of UB sets) that wanted to play competitively were thrown into Modern. That’s just a bad entry ramp into tournament Magic, and it was a common complaint we were getting from newer players.

Universes Beyond’s greatest contribution to the long-term health of Magic is as a conduit to introduce new players. Learn the game system with a property you love, and then once you see what a great game Magic is, become a lifelong Magic player.

To accomplish this we need to have a “softer” landing spot, and we believe that is Standard. Note this is in addition to a lot of other work we are doing to return Standard to prominence.

I know it’s easy to want to attribute malice to a company’s decisions, but we really are trying to do what we feel is best for the longterm health of the game

[natalchartnurtures]

PAC: Energy Check~ for wherever you are right now

This was completely unplanned but frankly spirit doesn't give a fuck about my plans. So if this found you, here are some messages you probably need right now-

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pile 1: Ooh.. as I was preparing to start your reading, I saw 11:11 as the Chariot card showed up for you. This. Tells me that you are pretty strongly connected to your divine path right now, which simply means that you're doing something that's keeping you in alignment, sweet pile one! Good job! Keep going down this road because you WILL stumble upon amazing experiences and people! This message is coming through quite strongly. Now, isn't that lovely? Hehe.

Here's the thing, though.. Although you're actually IN alignment with your greatest timeline and life, you seem to be completely UNAWARE of the fact! You might be going through the necessary purging emotionally and/or mentally as a result of this alignment since the "old stuff" has no more room in your new vibration anymore. So, you've probably had to go through some intense endings and/or tower moments in life lately and THIS has left you feeling really, really sad. Maybe even depressed. For some of you, if that's the case, please seek help, sweet soul. It doesn't have to be therapy but even as simple as talking to a trusted loved one, you know? Or even journaling about it could help if you're into it. It seems like you could use a new perspective on the things you're going through right now. I'm sensing that you might be feeling emotionally numb right now too, but that's because you've been doing a lot of emotional processing lately AND IT'S ALL PAYING OFF. I just need you to know that. You just can't see it right now because you're slap dead in the middle of the storm, and I'm looking at it from a bird's eye view, you know?

While you're purging old stuff, I also see you making your way through an old core belief - "I gotta work hard to be deserving of anything because I inherently don't" Or something along those lines. You may have started purging this belief as a result of life showing you that it's simply not something worth keeping alive inside you. Maybe recently, you caught yourself overworking yourself to death only to receive very little in return (in any area of your life - relationships included) and this experience helped you wake up to this unhelpful belief of yours. You're unlearning this belief as we speak. It's not easy though, but I CAN assure you, you're acing it.

If you find yourself worrying too much about anything and everything or simply feeling a general fear, just know that it's a normal reaction to having things uprooted in your life. Life, right now, is asking you to do your best to focus on what's right in front of you because if you do this, the future is guaranteed to sort itself out. I promise.

I love you so much, pile 1. I see all your hard work and am rooting for you SO hard, bro. Love and light.

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Pile 2: Seems like to me that y'all have been STUCK in a particular pattern for a while now, maybe years? For some of you folks reading? Let me spell it out for you what this pattern looks like to me - an imbalance of the mind and heart. Too much mind and too little heart. Maybe none at all.

I can't seem to tap into the root of this imbalance, maybe because it's different for each of you reading, OR maybe it's not relevant to us right now because you can simply begin to address this imbalance as you see it in your day-to-day. But I sense that you're really good at addressing things, so once you're conscious of this pattern going on subtly in the background, running your life, you can really do something about this. This pattern may show up as you struggling with feeling fear, and this is blocking you off to one very important thing fear is here to show us, and that is how to support ourselves. If we are afraid of something we desire and have a healthy relationship with fear, we go for the desire while caretaking our fear. I read a quote the other day, it said "Do that thing you love but if you find that you're scared, then go do it scared." The point I'm trying to make is, fear isn't going to go away on its own, it's you who will simply expand your ability to hold space for it AND your desires equally. When you figure out how to do this, magic will happen in your life. You'll find that your unwillingness to caretake your fear only gave you more things to be afraid of (because, hello, Law Of Attraction *lol*), BUT you'll also find that when you radically start taking responsibility for your fear(s), you'll be able to act from a wiser space and be your full badass self. You'll find that there are so many things you CAN do and so much life you CAN live. Everything you've wanted to start doing in life will start to happen almost seamlessly. It WILL surprise you big time. You're currently making your way through an important part of your healing, and that is to hold yourself in all your glory. To hold all parts of yourself, even the ones that are scared shitless. Once you've integrated this segment of your healing, SO many doors will unlock for you. Sweet soul, you have no clue of JUST HOW MANY. And this… is probably because you manifest with your heart primarily (meaning you feel things deeply and so you unknowingly tap into the frequency of what you want easily) and your fear is keeping you stuck in your head, which means you're only 40% of the full You right now, PRIOR the healing of c. You might even feel it sometimes. You might feel like you're only a shell of a person (been there myself, you're not alone in this!). Listen to that feeling. Your truth lies in there. You're meant to be the 100% you, and I see that you're already halfway there!

I love you so much, pile 2, sending you so much light and love. Hope you find the resources you need to make it through to your new life where you live in more love than fear.

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Pile 3: Man… y'all been fighting for your lives, huh? I see that you may be in the midst of a lot of divinely evoked darkness? Lol, I literally heard that - divinely evoked darkness. Maybe you're going through a dark night of the soul, perhaps? Whatever your're going through though, it seems like you've been hanging on for dear life.

Some good news for you- no matter the circumstances you're in right now (be it good, bad, or terrible), you've been doing all the work necessary to keep your head above water and have been diligently nurturing your own light, positivity, and essence. THAT'S incredible resilience, sweet pile 3, and I'm really proud of you! It's not easy to keep an open heart through bad times, and that's such a grand achievement in my eyes. UGH, BEAUTIFUL.

Your energy SCREAMS transition period vibes. You seem to be neither in your "old" timeline nor in the new one yet. You're sorta hanging in the middle right now. I see the Hanged Man in the third eye as I tell you this. Feels like you're in the void right now, and things just seem… bleh. Boring. Colorless. This is probably because you're already done with the ugly part of the process, "the divine shakeups", the loss, and the purge. Think… the bland but peaceful feeling you feel after having an intense ugly crying session, you know? Yeah, you're energetically there right now. You'll probably be here for a while longer because you've let go of MAJOR stuff, pile 3. Did you let go of people recently, maybe? Or that old bad habit, perhaps? That was the purge, so to speak. And now you're in the aftermath of it all, the uncomfortable but necessary calm.

-Side note: You might've struggled to embody your divine feminine earlier, but the timeline you're entering right now is the exact opposite of that. You might be attracted towards things that will help you nurture your own divine feminine right now. Give into it. Nurture patience, stillness, and compassion for self. It will HOPEFULLY speed up the void period if you consciously take part in it, you know?-

You're quite emotionally intelligent, and it has guided you throughout the whole process, and it also seems like it ain't your first rodeo in the process of proverbial death and rebirth. Good on you because you're doing a real good job keeping your calm through venturing into the unknown. You know what? You remind me of Elsa from Frozen, taking on the unknown like it belongs to her. You are such a queen, omg.

Yep, all that's left to do now is celebrate yourself, pile 3! Try your best to embrace this period, the void, and you'll be on your way to your next happy adventure! Love and light, sweet soul. Thanks for sharing your energy with me today.

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