#I think I just grew up fast tbh which means. more time to learn to do better

[faithfromanewperspective]

I think something they never teach you how to deal with is growing up as a teenager when every single person you know is having their own mental health struggle and you’re well educated enough in mental health to see that, you’re also grounded and secure enough in simple things like being loved and having worth that sometimes your own struggles become pale in comparison. simply a tool for connection, you learn how to listen and you suggest getting help but no one’s earning any money and there are difficult parents and no time and no one has a car to get places anyway. you grow up doing this and you want to create something for the generation after you to make it better, or at least try to, but now you’re in your 20s and used to putting your struggle after everyone else’s, used to functioning and doing all the things that mean no one believes you when you say you’re struggling, because you have no choice but to function if you’re going to make sure the youth of today have it better than you did, if you’re going to put in the work and prove there are adults who will be there for you when your parents won’t. no one tells you that sometimes it’s when you do everything right that things only get worse. you take on more than you can carry and it’s worse to take it off than if you never thought you could do it in the first place. never let anyone down.

but you have to realise that the problem was structural, systemic, a world that lied to a generation before you about what success was and told them using fear that fear might help the next generation achieve it. who shot down their ability to connect and replaced it with a hunger for control just to have that security that meant it was only another thing the children had to go without. who told them to hide who they are, it’s shameful, how the hell could they ever love their children and the children of the community for who they are then? what community? no one chooses to live near their friends anymore. do life together anymore. of course they wouldn’t if that’s what they grew up to believe. they’re just trying to survive and you’re trying to pick up the pieces, leaving nothing left to survive on. you’re brave and passionate and caring and stupid but who can blame you really, if part of your illness seems like a superpower until it gets stuck on and the ideas and compassion can’t stop even if you know you have to, and it leaves you in the dirt with nothing? I certainly can’t blame myself. for seeing all the pain around me and thinking it made mine seem easy in comparison. when really, all I was doing was making it harder for myself.

[intothegreat-wide-open]

tagged by @mpregjohnwinchester thanks bb!

Do you make your bed? kinda, i guess? i usually just put down a bedspread for the cats to lie on but underneath it is a still a mess lmao

What's your favorite number? 11 :)

What is your job? sitting at a desk selling industrial spare parts to customers all over the world and being my boss's bitch

If you could go back to school, would you? like, if it wasn't for time and money constraints i would def be taking uni courses left and right. so yeah.

Can you parallel park? i can, had to do it on the daily for years.

A job you had that would surprise people? idk my jobs so far aren't really that out there. i used to work at a gas station for years (which was surprisingly more fun than it sounds) but that's about it.

Do you think aliens are real? i mean. what are the chances we are alone in this universe?

Can you drive a manual car? yep, learned to drive in one, drove one for years but i'm driving automatic now and it is a blessing in city stop and go traffic

What's your guilty pleasure? omg reality tv. especially real estate. selling sunset, million dollar homes, i LOVE that shit okay. also home makeover/reno shows.

Tattoos? yup. 9 of them.

Favorite color? all the shades of purple. but especially the pastel ones.

Favorite type of music?  eh. hard to say. i do love 30stm (kinda genre-defying tbh) but i also love contemporary country and 80s shit. generally, nothing that is currently playing on pop radio is a good rule of thumb. like (aside from country and 30stm) i kinda stopped listening to new stuff in the mid 00's tbh.

Do you like puzzles? YESSSSS i LOVE them! the big standard ones but even moreso the smaller ones with the odd-shaped pieces. or wood ones! or 3d brain teaser things that you have to take apart and put together again! (can you tell i own a lot of puzzles=

Any phobias? i'm not so good with the creepy crawlies tbh but it's not really a phobia, i will get close enough to kill them if they are inside.

Favorite childhood sport? i used to do ballet as a kid and gymnastics and in my teens i played team handball but tbh none of that was really my favorite activity. (see above, i am puzzle / brain work person)

Do you talk to yourself? uh yeah.

What movies do you adore? i'm more of a tv show person tbh but i do love some like it hot and in complete contrast also the complete fast&furious series

Coffee or tea? tea. coffee i can only tolerate if i can barely taste it anymore (e.g. i like to put a shot of espresso into hot chocolate)

First thing you wanted to be when you grew up? i honestly don't remember (and yeah, i have been trying to remember lately bc of some other post that asked a similar question but....)

no-pressure tagging @first-only @stunt-lads and @setyourfireonme

[torchickentacos]

18 and 25 for May!! (challenge mode: don't say drew for the first one heh)

OOOH thank you! ❤️ Excited for these! From this ask game!

18. How about a relationship they have in canon with another character that you admire?

I actually have a few that I could go with here, but I think the stand-out is May and Ash's mentor/mentee relationship and getting to see how that grows. I'm (slowly) making my way through early AG (and need to watch and write up my post on ep 6 soon) and it's striking how bad at everything May is in early episodes, said with utmost love. Like, she's terrible at this. Worse than Ash was, maybe. Definitely worse than Dawn or pretty much any other starting companion. But what's so great about her shaky start is that it's a great contrast to Ash at that point. AG Ash is generally Ash at his most abrasive and confident from my wide-but-not-thorough experiences with other seasons. He's at something of a peak right now before going on to experience challenges with Paul (which I need to actually make a post on at some point because AG actually set this up really well using May and Drew/Ash and Gary's rivalry as baselines, only to flip the script with Paul). Anyways, that peak makes him a good teacher for May, and she's as receptive a student as I think she can be given everything.

It's really nice to see her grow in ways that can directly be tied to Ash, and he has a few instances of growing from experiences with her. You can see Ash's battle style reflected in May's so clearly that other trainers make note of it several times- she's fast, hard-hitting, unconventional. She fights like Ash (theoretically. We're supposed to think that she does. In practice, AG battles tend to be 'hit it until it dies' half the time but we're supposed to think that deep strategy went into it every time). She genuinely learns from him and we see the effects of it in a meaningful way. I also think that, in part due to the mentor/mentee relationship, I remember Ash actually being really protective over May compared to other companions? I mean, obviously we're not looking at some episodes (cough, the bicker the better, cough) and he always has to be the hero of everyting but I remember a fair few times that he really went out of his way for her. Which was probably just advanceshipping to balance out contest tbh but I'll take it platonically because we LOVE platonic bonds that are just as strong as anything else!

Save for a few... outliers, May and Ash get along incredibly well and I've always enjoyed the mentor/mentee thing! Also, look at their bulbasaurs 🥺

25. What was your first impression of this character? How about now?

Okay. Here's the thing. I do not remember my first impression. I think I was three. I'm only a little older than AG itself is, and I've quite literally been with it as far as I can remember. I grew up with it. I remember going as May for halloween one year at around eight, probably. I know that she's always been my favorite, and not much has changed other than the fact that I like her more now.

I've had the great opportunity to be part of online communities that have deepened my love of all of the characters, and May's no exception. I've spoken to so many people, likeminded and otherwise, and it's been so cool to feel in real time as my view of characters deepens as I listen and discuss them with others.

She's still my favorite. She always has been and at this rate always will be. That hasn't changed at all, but I think that I appreciate her and every other character more from my experiences in communities. I also just hold more sentimentality now than I did before- I associate pokeani with friends! It just makes me happier than it used to despite the fact that I should have 'outgrown' it by now. I do not believe in that. Some people on tumblr like to go on about people who like children's media having fandom brainrot or whatever, to which I say 1.) I've also been enjoying the medical-mystery-people-dying show lately and 2.) who fucking cares. Genuinely. We're all on tumblr. It's the devil's sacrament thing. We're all at the devil's sacrament. We're still blogging about tv shows on company/campus/your own time. You left your dignity and superiority at the login page.

anyways lol i like may :) she's fun.

[tamelee]

Pleaaaseee there is a tier list on ships from Naruto would love to see that one!

Okay I found a decent list to fill in, here you go:

There were many ships that are completely random so I just threw them all into one category..

About the last category

SakuLee.. I actually thought they were going to be a thing when I first saw the show because no way Sasuke was ever going to give in to her advances. And I was right about that last part because he didn't. And gradually Sakura was little by little being a bit nicer about Lee when she decided to visit him at the hospital.. and wow!! For her, that's amazing development because at the time and even now her entire character is based on that selfish love (Kishimoto's words not mine) she has for Sasuke. And so she even said to Ino that the flowers she brought with her weren't just for Sasuke- it was explicitly stated in the Manga- so that visual AND text said a whole lot about her... buuuuuut then that went down the drain real fast too. And so, no this ship doesn't make sense but I think it could've been if x, y and z..

ObiRin!! Okay, I know I have KakaRin in the category where I get that people ship it, but not ObiRin- why? Because Rin loved Kakashi and not Obito. And so shipping ObiRin for me doesn't make sense since I am also against other one-sided ships. Rin to me however is an entirely different character from.. let's say Sakura or Hinata and so are the dynamics between them within Team Minato. Rin genuinely cares for both Obito and Kakashi equally, but she doesn't love Obito in a romantic sense. She also didn't chase after Kakashi rabidly trying to get him to like her back, that's why, although Rin showed many gestures towards Obito that really shouldn't be underestimated, I wonder how it would've played out with Kakashi under different circumstances. His resolve and beliefs were already swaying during that mission thanks to Obito- if they succeeded, perhaps Kakashi grew up learning to love that way. Perhaps that would've been Rin. (Or maybe not.)

SakuHina.. just put them together and let them be miserable together? I see many benefits from this tbh. Two of the most selfish characters to have ever existed if not the most selfish characters ever- lump them together, never bother anyone else- problem solved.

SaiIno.. I don't really have a problem with this ship but.. Sai is really gay. I'm sorry but what is he doing with Ino? He found her ugly and they're pretty much together for the sake of.. well kids/next gen stuff. For Ino I think it's fine, Sai sorta looks like Sasuke so it makes sense for her.. but Sai being in love with Ino, canonically? Weird. I know, SaiIno shippers will fight me on it, that's fine, you people have great art though, I'm not complaining.

Jiraiya/Tsunade.. I haven't really seen them being shipped together other than places like IG and Reddit. And some of them were really protective of them- Jiraiya would've always put his WoF above Tsunade which she accepted... why is this a good ship? I don't have much to say for this other than my surprise of their popularity..

Choji and Karui.. apparently their relationship was "explained" in filler novels. Choji simply said he was "interested in her". So they married and made a baby for 'Boruto'. Although 'Boruto-canon', this shit makes no sense.

ShikaIno, look I shipped them. I mean, I used to when I first watched the show because I liked their team-work and I thought Ino's very extra behavior balanced well with Shikamaru's more calm nature. I mean, if anything, he had misogynistic thoughts which he sometimes voiced out loud.. so perhaps a bit ignorant at the time, but I thought Ino was the one helping him with that development partly because of her appearance (since well.. the genre..) instead of Temari, but alas. And I think this is better anyway.

KankuSaku.. LISTEN! Hear me out~ Ship makes no sense at all. BUT. She came all the way from Konoha, saved his life just in time, playing doctor in a way where she didn't need to be all worshipped as a Mary Sue in some weird- godforsaken jail (ESAKA TAKE NOTES), but actually was useful because she learned, developed and took action- then bonded with Chiyo which Kankuro also somewhat has a relationship with- whom he then takes care of the puppets for after she dies.. there are connections and things that can be used to have them bond over. MISSED OPPORTUNITY OKAY- that's all I'm sayin'.

Most of you know how I feel about Sakura, but one of the scenes where I think she DID very much shine (as most of her fans think she so much deserves for some reason)- is when she tried her best to befriend Sai who actually was pretty rude at the beginning. It was Sakura who asked him what he was drawing when she went out to find him and what it meant to him. It was Sakura who tried to figure out more about him to see if she could help him (and their case) somehow- which surprised me pleasantly!! She for once didn't do this for selfish reasons. Now, both Sakura and Sai don't really grasp situations well especially when it comes to Naruto and Sasuke, but they sorta bonded over it a little. Sai while genuinely wanting to understand and Sakura while genuinely wanting to deny. It's not a ship, nor a really good ship- Because Sai.. and Sakura.. but I still wanted to point it out.

*-* anyway- there is too much to say about so many of these, I'll think I'll try to keep it short 💕

[scourgefrontiers]

oc spotlight: patoto (villainverse)

oh man ok. villainverse patoto. probably one of my favorite ocs ive ever made tbh

he started out as a joke almost, a sort of "what if?" au sorta deal. what if patoto was a villainous saiyan? it sounded like such a fun concept i just had to explore it. and then i came up with this design

which was just SO cool to me i couldnt stop thinking about it. and then before i knew it he became his own character--a patoto from a parallel universe where he was a ruthless warrior, totally opposite from his mainverse counterpart

he developed so fast from there. i gave him a companion that ended up being kinpa, and he developed into kinpa's bodyguard. i gave him a rival that ended up being calabris. i gave him a complicated relationship with his parents, one of which he thought was dead for most of his life (his armor is actually based off of hers to remember her by). his universe grew and his story basically wrote itself i was so obsessed with him and still am

here's his current ref showing how much he's grown

even today im still giving him more development and story! as of right now in the timeline (post-mirrors and post-facets), he has a child with his partner kinpa and his family has grown from just him to a group of six including himself! he's learned to have friends and open his heart to others, and he's gotten so strong im so proud of him.

mirrors would have never existed had i not ran with his concept like i did. his character and story contrasting with mainverse patoto's is just so fun and awesome to me and i've always had fun with it and i feel like i'll continue to have fun with it as well!!

i could honestly keep going about some specific details abt him like his relationship with kinpa and zumeg (both of them) and his father and his kid and. yknow what i will LOL

his relationship with kinpa started as just a bodyguard situation but OF COURSE that developed into an actual partnership bc i love that shit. he was this cold and frankly mean guy that wanted nothing to do with kinpa or being his bodyguard--he hated it. but after getting trapped on earth in a parallel universe, he learned to open up to the idea of having at least one friend and letting himself care about someone for the first time since he was a child.

as for his parents...thats complicated lol. (facets spoilers ahead !!!) his mother zumeg was presumed dead when she didnt return from a battle when he was just a boy, and his father left some time before that, so he was basically raised in an orphanage into adulthood (or at least until he could join the army). he met the mainverse zumeg and that shook him to his core bc she was not only so different but she still cared about him and reminded him what it was like to be loved by his own mother. it wasnt until way later, many many years later, that he decided he wanted to find his father and find out why he left them. after getting that clarification, he chose to give his father a second chance at being part of his life--more for himself than his father, really--and then not long after that he discovered his mother was actually alive, just under someone's control. he saved her, and suddenly he had a family again.

i havent quite developed his story with his kid just yet, but so far what i figure is that he isnt experienced with children at all so he does have a hard time balancing the tough parenting act and the gentle, kind parenting. snake (his son) does feel a pressure to be as great as his father, since he's heard the stories of how he saved the universe before and how he continues to fight and reach new heights. patoto is a little awkward at handling this and has a hard time showing that he's proud of his son and that sort of causes a little tension between them but it eventually works out

basically i love villainverse patoto. a lot. i would die for him actually

[bluejay-in-write]

👀 (spill the tea twin)

Back again to ramble at youuu <333

Send 👀 and I'll tell you some OC Lore

Okay so idk if this is a spoiler or not but idk when I'll get to actually writing this so ya'll get to know early but the two of my Atla Ocs have the funniest fucking relationship/first meeting that I think I might've ever written so I'm gonna ramble at y'all about that! (Sorry Eli I know you already know this but it's too funny so I have to share with the class also adding a read more cause just realized this is gonna be hella long)

So when I first started working on my Atla story I knew that ofc I had to have my own version of the gaang cause tbh I love creating oc groups and this was the perfect excuse to do one. At this point I only really had an idea for my oc Aisha who was the main reason for me starting the Atla fic but we're not gonna get into her here cause this is about Ryuu and Himari! Eventually I realized that I wanted my fic Winds Of Change to be more in depth about how the 100 year war changed every day people's lives in ways that might not have been touched on in depth in the show as well as how they work to heal from it after the war ended. (Which by the way is absolutely amazing no notes from me it was actually so difficult for me to come up with a story for this fandom at first because of that reason)

So the story takes place almost a year after the war has ended and everyone is holding their breath as the year anniversary of the end of the war inches ever closer. Some more than others... for example there is Ryuu who was raised in Caldera City the capital city of the fire nation till he was around 6 (don't hold me to that still figuring out ages) when his Father was killed in action.

After that Ryuu's Mother moved them to Ember Island to live full time at their beach house. She then took over his teaching keeping him home schooled where instead of spreading the indoctrination that was common in most Fire Nation schools she taught him about the Fire Nation before the war. From that point on Ryuu learned to value peace over war and recognizing the Fire Nations false teachings all while making sure not to reveal his and his mother's true opinions about "Fire Nation Supremacy".

Over time he also grew attached to the idea of pacifism refusing to fight even in jest realizing that no good can come from doing harm all the while still naive about the true harm that the Fire Nation was causing to the other nations. While his Mother did her best to inform him the best she could and make him question everything little did he know that she continued to shelter him from much in her own way.

It wasn't until one regular Summers day when everything he thought he knew came into question. They decided to get out of the heat by visiting a cave system that would give them some shade but it wasn't as steady as they thought. As the rocks above Ryuu's Mother began to fall instinctively he called upon something deep inside him and bent the rocks around her to save his mother's life.

Only then did he finally find out the truth of his birth he was a child of the earth kingdom that had been rescued as a baby when his father had found him abandoned in the middle of a siege. His father than took him home to his wife who was already pregnant with child, planning to raise them as "twins". Sadly the unborn did not make it and so they raised Ryuu as their one and only son, explaining his size away with the excuse of him being a fast grower. When they had found him he had a light green knitted blanket wrapped around his form the only design being a name stitched in the center, Riku. Seeing as they couldn't give him a earth kingdom name but still wanting to honor his parents (who his Father assumed perished in the war) they decided to name him Ryuu instead, a name meaning dragon and noble.

(This was wayyy longer than I anticipated so if you made it this far I thank you! And because it got way too long I decided that it was best to do another post about Himari and their connection so if anyone is interested lemme know! Also to be clear there is no romantic relationship between them whatsoever if anyone was worried about that.)

[wetbloodworm]

time for a post about niamh! just some general thoughts about my girl, a bit all over the place

she's turning out much nicer than anticipated when i first planned her out, which i think is partly a fault of mine and struggling to be rude even in roleplay lmao. y’know, like how it’s hard to pick the mean options in video games. i don't mind, though, i think she's interesting and i like that she views the rest of the Bullies/Dolphins as her friends that she cares very much about

she's also a thief that hasn't done any stealing in the campaign so far (despite her absurd sleight of hand), which is one part me being very conscious of Consequences and one part character choice. i think niamh chooses not to steal from those who aren't very well off, and is largely careful about stealing from shops as well. i think she also like... primarily steals for jobs, not just for funsies or on impulse or anything like that? if she's stealing something, it's on purpose and for a reason

when they were at the ruby’s house she was absolutely tempted to take SOMETHING because Rich Person, but that’s an ally.

she was less careful/choosy about her targets early on, for a number of reasons.

she started off stealing because she was felt frustrated and resentful and trapped, and she was lashing out. stealing was an outlet for feeling powerless and betrayed by her family. now that she's left home she feels a little bit more in control of her situation, and she has other things to focus on, and while the stress of being hunted by her hag is there she's generally happier overall, and busier, and needs that outlet less. she doesn’t steal out of spite or because she’s upset now, she steals because she’s good at it

another factor is she grew up a rich kid, and then she only had the money she took before leaving, which went fast. so she had to scramble to take care of herself for the first time, and she cared less about who she stole from.

ALSO as a rich kid, tbh her empathy for the poor and her awareness took time to develop. she didn't look down on people, necessarily, but it didn't quite occur to her how stealing something that seemed small to her could ruin people who don't have much to begin with. niamh had to see how poverty actually affected people, how her actions actually affected people. THEN she only started stealing from those who could afford it. or assholes.

niamh leaving home was one part needing to get away from her family and one part fear of her hag finding her if she stayed still for too long.

her relationship with her parents before the hexblood reveal was... fine. it was alright. they weren’t GREAT parents but they weren’t the worst. they were just kind of there, and sometimes they were bossy, and really the nanny and the cook had more of a positive effect on her emotionally growing up, but they were fine. sometimes they’d give her things, and sometimes they were kind without strings attached. and especially when niamh was young enough to not really know better, they seemed perfectly fine to her! the Reveal was the start of things getting less pleasant. first niamh was upset that her mother kept this from her alongside being upset about not being human very suddenly from her perception, and eventually niamh had to find out on her own about the hag hunting her thing, so she was upset about THAT burden being placed on her against her will. there was tension between her parents, too, since her father hadn’t known about this either, and niamh got the vibe that her parents managed to blame HER for this tension. her relationship with both parents soured, and as niamh got older and examined the situation more and stayed upset she decided this was all real fucked up and hey, fuck her parents actually? fuck her mom for burdening her with the hag situation so she could marry a nobleman, fuck her dad for getting weird when he learned she wasn’t technically his (or only his? how do the genetics work here), fuck them both for acting like this is such an annoyance for THEM that SHE caused by turning blue one day. also generally fuck them for being shitty parents because she was a teenager who could recognize that more and was developing strong opinions about how she should be treated and what she should be able to do.

then, y’know. the hag thing. i imagine she didn’t figure that part out immediately, that she was going to be hunted so that she could also be a hag one day. hexbloods are relatively new to ariknott iirc so that would’ve had to be research that she did on her own trying to find answers to what this meant for her. and that was a horrifying thing to learn, but at first she didn’t. know what to DO about that, y’know? no one really had answers for that. she just was going to be a hag one day. which definitely sent her spiraling for a bit, that feeling that it was inevitable that one day she’d lose all sense of herself and become a monster. she mostly comforted herself by convincing herself that she was safe at home, there were guards and it was Home so it was Safe, and like, no hag had shown up YET, right? so maybe she was special. maybe no one was looking for her. she was never FULLY convinced of that but niamh is good at denial. for a while, anyway, because eventually she became more and more nervous over the idea of being a sitting duck here. like, obviously her home at the estate would be the first place a hag would look, right? the home where the woman who made the deal lived? she’d come here first, right? she’d absolutely come here first. bringing that idea up with her parents didn’t go over too well because as complicated as their relationship had become, niamh was their only heir and they couldn’t just send her away. besides, where would she go? be realistic, niamh.

so yeah, combo “I Hate My Parents I’m Going To Run Away And Become A Thief Out Of Spite” and “If I Stay Here My Hag Will Find Me”

i need a full name for her, both just to have one and because she’s nobility and her Family Name is probably a thing i should figure out

Niamh Clodagh Garrahan

there we go

i don’t know why i’ve just decided to go full irish with her name. i have to get my inspiration somewhere

it’s funny to me that i gave her heroforge figure a rapier thinking she’d be more into that and she’s turned out to be a shortbow kinda girl

thinking about it and if the hexblood thing didn’t happen niamh would’ve still ended up resentful of her parents because of who she is and who they are. it was really just a catalyst

i’ve mentioned this... god, somewhere? probably my dreamwidth dnd PC analysis post and maybe also twitter. anyway niamh is aroace. i think maybe sex/romance-neutral leaning towards repulsed. just not her thing, she doesn’t want anything to do with it, y’all do what makes you happy but leave me out of it pls

sometimes niamh cuts her hair short right before going on a job so she doesn’t have to deal with it being in the way. it’ll all grow back like within a day or something but at least she’s free for that brief period of time.

the ‘eerie token’ thing hexbloods can do... she can remove her teeth and nails ‘harmlessly’, apparently, but does that mean ‘painlessly’? idk, if it’s painless she’s tried before but if not she’ll just stick with making tokens from her hair, thank you

i’m losing steam here, any more niamh thoughts will have to be a separate post

bye friends xoxo

[ettadunham]

at last!!!! i played through my first ace attorney game and i'm delighted!

is ace attorney investigations: miles edgeworth (2009) the best first introduction to the series? probably not, but it's what the random generator picked, so it's what we're rolling with.

well, okay, so... i may or may not have played a little bit of the phoenix wright games by the time i'm writing this, but definitely not enough to get most references this game makes, lol. it did give me an insight into the franchise's mechanics though, and confirmed that they all share these same bones more or less.

there's a crime (usually a murder), you might even see in an intro who's the culprit, you collect evidence, make connections, most importantly though, you cross-examine a bunch of people, looking for flaws and contradictions in their statements.

the extra thing about investigations on that front seems to be well... the extra investigations. it mostly comes up in a so-called logic section where you can connect different clues together. this is a mechanic that's already a staple of a lot of detective games, except of course here connecting the wrong clues also punishes you through the game's penalty system. speaking of which...

oh my god, you do gotta be pulling clues out your ass sometimes. after a while, i dif get the hang of the game, and learned where to push (basically: almost everywhere if i wanted to be safe), and at which exact point i needed to present something i already knew was fishy, but maybe that statement actually isn't specific enough and i need to wait for another section of the game where this comes up with a more precise wording, and okay, why isn't this clue the right one??? it literally means what we want it to mean, aaaaaaaaaaa

but yes, i'm fine, and i didn't curse everyone and their moms at the end section of the game where i kept losing that one point i had in the penalty system at a certain point, and then the game loadad to a much earlier section, even when i manually saved after it, and i had to fast forward a bunch of steps every. single. time, and yes, i am fine, and i was fine, what do you mean i don'T sEEm fInE...

moving on. overall, i did have a lot of fun with this game! i enjoyed the mechanics (for the most part), the characters were delightful (franziska, my beloved <3), and their limited move sets and animations are truly something else. i now understand why these games have rewired so many people's brains i think.

the overall story that connects the 5 episodes also comes together quite nicely by the end, however, i did find the way the different episodes jumped back and forth through the timeline needlessly confusing. i love a nonlinear story, but here, i just had the constant sense that the game is probably breaking its own continuity every time. i can't even tell you if that was the case, but it did seem weird that the characters only seemed to have remember certain past events once we played through those episodes. it was a weird choice for sure.

unexpectedly, there's also a bit of what appears to be some character development for miles, and i liked how some of the relationships changed through the different episodes. there's a particular wolf man that really grew on me by the end especially.

in any case, good times all around! can only really recommend this one tbh, no complaints for me.

well...

except...

i really wish this game had a pc release, and i didn't have to play it on my phone.

yup, you heard that right, i played this game through my phone. it was originally released for the nintendo ds, but only got ported to android and ios so far. which does bum me out a bit, especially now, that i had a bit of playtime of some of the ace attorney games that had pc ports, and found it a much superior experience.

don't get me wrong, there's nothing missing with the mobile ports, the controls work perfectly in this medium, etc, but i find that for mobile games, you usually want something that a player can drop at a moment's notice, instead of something that has a more elaborate, longer narrative structure to it. this game probably worked perfectly for a handheld console, but a phone isn't really the same thing. you'll inevitably start thinking about closing the game to look at something else, or your battery gets drained, or there's a cut scene where you have to keep tapping your screen to avoid the screensaver kicking in, etc.

or maybe it's just me, and i'm the weird one for not knowing how to use my phone for gaming.

anyway, my conclusion stands though, this game is a delight, and i can't wait to play through more of the series.

take that!

[lilly-onthevalley]

Your mindset is a reflection of what you are used to

I read something from another blog which talked about how they personally think some blogs are fake because they can't fathom how someone can be in school, be in a sorority, work, travel, date and do so many other all together.

That was the inspiration for this post ✨😌

Your mindset is a reflection of what you are used to.

You think someone can't handle a certain amount of things or don't see it as realistic because it isn't something that you are used to seeing or have attempted yourself.

Please note I do not know these people and this is not an attack in any form, but I'm just sharing a thought which certain posts triggered within me

I remember I used to have a mindset similar to this, I didn't believe people could actually multi task through their studies, work, social life, self care etc

I always thought there needed to be a sacrifice of some sort for one thing to prosper

E.g

You wanna engage in self care = no hobbies

You wanna get straight A's = no socialising

It was pretty messed up of me tbh 😂 but that was my mindset

I later opened my mind when I came into high school and I was around different people where I met my best friend, I'll call her Regina

Regina would wake up at 5, go for a run with her mother, have a family breakfast, come to school, learn, do sport, lead a club, go home, attend an extended family and friends dinner, do her homework and repeat. On weekends she would travel across half the country to relax, go get her eyebrows waxed with her mom, have extra lessons with her tutor, go out with me and go party.

I was so confused on how she lived like that and how she was still an exemplary student. We had completely different mindsets and I found that so fascinating.

I grew up with the be a doctor or die, caring for your looks is for whores, everyone before yourself, finish all the food on your plate mindset so it was so odd viewing how Regina lived. I didn't think that was possible, that was my mindset then.

After spending years with her my mindset began to change. This also ties into the quote,

"you become who you spend your time with"

I soon became open to the idea of productivity such like Regina.

I started waking up at 5 to do yoga and see the sun rise, shit that I thought only happened in movies. I started doing competitive tennis, leading in my club of interest, working, studying for atleast an hour a day, being social, accepting invitations to places, investing in myself and self care. Life was suddenly so fun. It was also the time when I discovered fasting as well cause I was to busy and active to eat out of boredom. It gave my life so much more meaning than what I had been pre exposed to think. Changing the way I perceived my existence was so freeing. This also included a lot of deprogramming of my masculine and defensive traits!

Being a sedentary couch potato with honours was no way to live😂

That's all I have for now, 😂

💗

[kittymsmithwritesstuff]

could you spare some hc's about moira and mercy as parents? tyty

Ooooh, yes, yes <3

-Moira grew up in a rare breed of large but loving and mostly functional family; she has a lot of siblings that are older than her, and they all had kids while she was still a kid herself so she's experienced with babies and every other stage of childhood; in short, she's always wanted a family, and she is honestly one of the most prepared people for it.

-Being as insanely uprooted from normality as Angela was by the war, she wasn't ever sure if she wanted a family, or if she should have one. She also was an only child with two doting parents so she really isn't sure if she'd be very good at it. But was never totally opposed. Moira gave her the confidence in the matter though.

-They talked a lot. Tbh either of them could have the kid or they could adopt it just depends.

-But they get a baby.

-They both do pretty well with sleeping in shifts since they both had fucked up sleep schedules beforehand anyway.

-They do argue about how to raise the kid; Moira is a little more free-range learn-from-living while Angela tends to want more hard fast rules to follow. They compromise well though; I mean, they had to to become a couple.

-Angela isn't as prepared for the incessant questions, partially because she has a hard time conceptualizing how much life experience is required to understand something so she will sometimes get frustrated, like if she tells their kid not to swipe their hand over a candle flame because they could burn themselves, and they do it anyway because they're pretty damn young and have no idea that getting burned means getting hurt, so she ends up getting mad.

-She bites her tongue a lot, though, and gets better with a little time. Moira is overall the more patient of the two.

-Moira will over-explain things tho and it definitely makes the kid roll their eyes when they're older. They never let her catch them.

-Moira grew up knowing if her mother started reaching for the wooden spoon on the top of the fridge, somebody had really fucked up. She decided not to do the same, but she has given the kid a good flick or light open-palmed thump on the head when they're older.

-She will wag the spoon threateningly, though.

-It's mostly a joke.

-Angela will actually wag her finger unironically during a lecture and both the kid and Moira have to keep themselves from laughing.

-Moira sings lullabies in Irish a lot and they always put the baby right to sleep. She doesn't tell Angela that most of the lullabies are horribly depressing if you translate them.

-Moira teaches their kid Irish, Angela teaches them Swiss German. Moira knows Swiss German but Angela has always had a hard time grasping Irish, which makes planning birthdays, Christmas and Mothers Day right in front of her very fun for the kid and Moira.

-You might think Moira is the parent the school faculty would fear, but it's fucking Angela.

-When the kid has bad dreams they're allowed to sleep in their mothers' bed. Angela wants to argue something about the right time to stop letting them do that buuuut it does go on longer than it probably should because they're both saps.

-Their sex life rejoices when the kid gets old enough to go on sleepovers.

-Angela will do silly dances when their kid is a toddler with them in the living room to all the goofy little kid music.

-The moment they can hold their head up the kid is on Moira's hip while she cooks. They're helping in the kitchen from a very young age ; Moira wants to make absolutely sure they're more than sufficient in the kitchen. Angela has no objections.

-Angela is Mutti, Moira is Mamai

[danhoemei]

What do you think of the reconciliation of Wei Wuxian and Jiang Cheng that is confirmed (post canon) in Lan Wangji's letter?

Tbh I just learnt something new from you anon lmao.

First of all, let's establish the post canon here, as I found that it's from cql. I come from the novel so I had no idea about it.

Although all adaptations spring from the same source, all of them have smaller or bigger differences and divergences. Thus, it's not that easy to say what is "canon" here, e.g. something that happens in the drama doesn't mean that it's canon for the novel as well, and the other way around, and as I've seen so far both are quite different in some aspects, maybe even with a few contradictions.

Another thing is the source of the information. For me the strongest will always be the source material, and additional bits of information from interviews, author's posts etc. can be treated with less weight. I had experiences in other fandoms or media where the author started spewing nonsense out of spite, or literally contradicted what was in the original story, so since then I take additional bits added post-release as a free candy which I can take or not.

Now, coming back to mdzs's adaptations. The manhua and donghua are considerably close to the novel, so I consider the novel as the scroll of truth here. However, when it comes to the drama I kind of think of it as an alternate version with its own rights, and I personally pretty much separate these two. So I'd say that the letter could be treated as canon for cql, but not necessarily for the novel.

So now the question is, do I take this candy? 

Gods in all heavens, heck yes.

Even though I treat all adaptations more or less separate, there are certain parts which I will fiercely headcanon no matter what, in all of them. And one of these things is that yunmeng bros need each other and will gravitate towards each other whether they want it or not. Initially, the main reason could be only jin ling. They love him and care about him, so even if both of them avoided each other they would still have this connection and possibly bump into each other from time to time. Jin ling is the last part of their family who they loved very much, but both of them are also these last bits of it. And it is very clear how strong a family instinct they have. Yunmeng is also wwx's home, where he grew up and what he longed for many times, no matter how much time passed. He would want to come back there from time to time, even if he was thrown away from lotus pier. What about jiang cheng, who threw him out? Even when he shouted at wwx to leave (before the whole golden core revelation), to me it seemed like another thing he spouted in the heat of the moment when his emotions and grievances took reins, as he instantly froze and tried to stop wwx who complied and turned away. So I don't imagine him taking excessive steps to keep wwx away later on, especially after his approach changed quite significantly towards the end, even towards wen ning who he initially hated with every fiber of his being.

And don't get me wrong - I don't see them as sweet bros longing for each other who just need to sit down once and talk and it'll be dandy. They have a ton of issues (mostly on jiang cheng’s side) and unspoken secrets between each other which are not easy to disclose but which hold them back very significantly. Mostly jiang cheng needs to change for this to happen, let his thick as hell walls drop a bit to be less on guard and be more open, and stop constantly hurting others because of his lack of control and toxic coping mechanisms. All that stems from childhood trauma, severe inferiority complex, pathological parents who didn't give him support and love he needed. But not one thing from these justifies his behaviour and how he compensates or lashes out when anything triggers him. Still, in the root of his being is love and care for his family, which could be seen so many times when he made sacrifices in order to protect his loved ones or the whole sect, each time when he's overprotective of jin ling, also each time he helped wwx despite being very vocal about the opposite. He's a contradictory character with tons of issues, which he unfortunately takes out on others.

So their reconciliation in my eyes is not gonna be easy and fast. It's a long and bumpy road, began with a long period of absence from each other's lives, then featuring arguments or clashes, unsaid feelings, secrets, and sacrifices finally spilling (probably in shouting voices and tears). I like to think that with time jiang cheng could mature emotionally and learn to be healthier, not only thanks to being surrounded by people who love him and care for him, but also because maybe those people could open his eyes on his behaviour and teach him a bit. As jin ling grows older, he could get bolder and more confident, and say what he doesn’t like about his uncle’s way of being or treating others. I also like to imagine wwx being more direct in his grievances or reproaches and basically being done with jiang cheng’s bs, because he is now happy, with lwj by his side, and may learn to prioritise himself instead of constantly giving to others and sacrificing himself and his own comfort. If jiang cheng is like that then why should wwx deal with him, if he doesn't feel like it? So what if it's jiang cheng who needs to swallow his pride and finally make the first move, if he actually wants any kind of contact with his brother? Maybe there is a banquet at yunmeng after a long time passes, and he invites wwx. Maybe it doesn’t go so well but later on they still keep bumping into each other and having smaller or bigger conversations, maybe meanwhile jin ling gets involved in something and they collaborate to help him. Bit by bit, I like to think that they both slowly (and finally) learn and understand each other more. And that at some point they'd be like a true and close family, not the one they were - something different, more grown up and mature. That they can travel to each other, have casual conversations and goof around, maybe steal some lotus pods together again, but this time with more mirth and fun than those competitive teenage years way back.

I just... want these two to be happy and there for each other ;__; They lost so much, but they still have each other and I don’t want them to forget that as well, especially when they clearly have so much love and care in them ;___; 

So yes, I am very much into taking the letter as a general canon for me, because this is already what I headcanoned anyway ;d

And just a reminder! This is all my own self indulgent headcanon based on my interpretation of these characters and their relationship (rather from the novel’s perspective, I can’t talk with confidence about the drama). Take what you want from it, or don’t take anything at all. These are stories made for us to enjoy and reflect on, not fight or spread hate over, so go wild with your imagination and headcanons, enjoy and have fun <3

[yuyupowers]

aristocrat!seonghwa

aristocrat!seonghwa x fem!reader

genre: fluff

trigger warning(s): patriarchal society mostly. let me know if there’s anything else!

author’s note: none of the pictures are mine!!

for reference, i’m using british peerage (hierarchy). there are five ranks: baron, viscount, earl (count), marquess, and duke - the highest being duke, and the lowest, baron.

second son of a duke

i imagine seonghwa to be someone who values tradition

unlike hongjoong who finds who finds the numerous aristocratic mannerisms pointless, hwa believes upholding these (rather stringent) rules is a sign of respect

perfect gentleman pt.1

excellent in swordsmanship, horse-back riding, and hunting

well versed in poetry, literature, art, and finance

(can maintain a conversation about politics but honestly it kinda goes over his head)

a bit on the shyer side, but a decent conversationalist

good at keeping the flow and mediating in case anyone becomes a little too heated about their opinions

definitely cares about his and his family’s image

naturally caring and tends to dote on those close to him

(translates into excellent manners)

holds the door open, offers his hand when stepping out of carriages, makes sure to walk on the side closest to traffic, diverts conversation when things are too “distressing,” wouldn’t be caught dead alone with a woman that wasn’t related to him or his fiancée/wife

and surprise, surprise !!

this is where you come in

you’re the second oldest daughter, fourth child out of six; born to an earl

hwa’s family had the highest title bestowed upon aristocracy

whereas your family accumulated more wealth and land than the park family

and since both you and hwa were prime marrying age™, your parents decided upon a mutually beneficial marriage

the first time you met seonghwa was under the watchful eye of both your parents, when the park’s invited your family for dinner

tbh, you were pretty relieved when you met him

“prime marrying age” was different for men, so you were just glad he wasn’t some old geezer

and he seemed like a decent person !!

a well put together gentleman, and his image was only consolidated throughout dinner

all in all, you didn’t have much to complain about from the initial impression

though it was kinda annoying when your little sister would not shut up about how he was the handsome man she’s ever met

even if you agreed

and didn’t she say that when she met woo?

anyways

after the first meeting with the park’s, both your parents set up multiple occasions for you two to meet

whether that be evening walks, picnics in the park, etc,,,

you learned a great deal about seonghwa 

how his favourite is black, how he loved the stars and that his favourite planet was mars

how he loved kids and doted on your youngest siblings (much to your sister’s glee)

how he enjoyed spending a quiet afternoon with you reading dickens, discussing afterwards the contrast between carton and darnay

how he was always considerate of your feelings and opinions

you liked to think you were a decent judge of character and thought overall that seonghwa was a kind and caring person

but you also noticed a few characteristics that-

you wouldn’t say it was off-putting or anything but,,,

it might bother you in the future

see, you were pretty good friends with hongjoong

and while you weren’t as extreme,

(you didn’t sneak out weekly to hang out with a bar maiden that you definitely did not have a crush on)

you certainly agreed with him on certain points

like hwa, you thought that abiding by certain mannerisms = display of respect

but unlike him, you didn’t care all that much about your image

okay, that was a lie.

you couldn’t say you didn’t care about your image

(social ostracization isn’t exactly fun ya feel)

but you thought it was,,,exhausting

it’s one thing to be respectful, but it’s another thing to say things you don’t mean

to fake humility

to undermine people that are supposed to be your “friends” or “one of you”

to be perfect, when “perfect” was such a subjective term anyways

it just felt so fake and that left a bitter taste in your mouth

even now, you could see all the efforts seonghwa made to constantly keep his image of a “perfect gentleman”

with perfect mannerisms and perfect answers and perfect-

yeah, it kinda frustrated you

not to mention how obedient he was?

of course you didn’t fault him for being a dutiful and filial son, but his loyalty blinded him

and it wasn’t like his parents were bad people !!

no, you’d say they were much kinder than the average noble family

especially considering their status

but when they made important decisions for their son without consulting him,

(because they were more experienced, because they knew better, etc,,,)

and he accepted whatever decision they handed to him?

well,,,

nevertheless, despite being his fiancée, you, by this point, had realistically had known seonghwa for a couple months

and you didn’t feel like it was your place 

(at least not yet)

to point this out

so the two of you continued your cordial but emotionally distant meetings

that is until “the incident” (as hwa fondly likes to call it)

okay, so-

one day you paid hwa a visit and the two of you decided to take a walk in his family’s garden

chattering about this and that

a lovely time !!

it was a bit overcast, but it didn’t look too threatening

so the two of you ignored the clouds looming in the horizon and wandered deep into the garden

big mistake

the weather took a turn for the worst, and soon it was pouring

by this point seonghwa was a little panicked

he knew that for women, getting ready could be excessively long and tenuous task

(courtesy of his little sister’s complaints)

and now !! you were getting rained on !! because he didn’t bring an umbrella !! just in case !!

!!!!

he turns to you, ready to shield you with his jacket and lead you back to the manor

but he’s at a loss by what he sees

he had expected you to be upset, to huddle closer to him, to,,,idk, maybe reprimand him for this thoughtlessness??

but instead, he finds you staring up at the dark sky, eyes shimmering with barely contained glee with the biggest smile he’s ever seen from you adorning your lips

he likes your smile

and if he was already confused (he was), he was about to become even more so

because the next thing he knows, you’re hiking your dress in one hand and grabbing his in the other, running through puddles of water and mud and everything in between, laughter falling from you like the rain

up until this point, you had been acting like the perfect (you hate that word) lady

polite, demure, charming-

in public settings, you only spoke when spoken to, with a voice that was purposely soft and soothing

you chatted with his mother and sisters about traditionally feminine things over tea with impeccable manners

whenever you two met, you were always prim and proper; never a strand of hair out of place

but here you were, getting not only yours but his clothes soggy and muddy, laughing without a care about how pleasant it sounded or how loud it was

seonghwa liked to think he wasn’t a judgemental person-

he wasn’t repulsed or anything by your sudden change in demeanor

just.

really confused

and when you looked back, you could tell,if his expression was anything to go by

but your grin only grew wider, because you could work with this

he wasn’t enjoying himself per say; a bit too confused and bit too stiff to do so

but he wasn’t horrified or disgusted

okay maybe he was a little grossed out; he liked to be clean thank you very much

you could work with this.

and so over the next few months, you showed him things he never dreamed of doing

some of which he liked, some of which he didn’t

some he was willing to try, some, less

like sneaking into the restricted section of the library (he’s never been so scandalized in his life)

or visiting the kitchen in the middle of the night so you could teach him how to make some basic recipes (which he surprisingly enjoyed)

or meeting hongjoong

(“of COURSE it matters if they got the colour wrong?! lord help me you’re the most insufferable person i’ve ever met-”)

and the more the two of you explored, the more he,,,real he became.

and vice versa.

gradually, the mask of perfection he worked so on hard to maintain was slipping before you

don’t get me wrong, he’s still kind and caring and a gentleman

but sometimes he would whine and complain when you encouraged him to do something he was less than enthusiastic about (usually something that involved getting him messy)

or he made The Face™ (the disgusted one) to you and when he didn’t like something or someone

or he would be stupidly stubborn about some random fact that you KNEW was wrong but he just WOULDN’T admit if even when you showed him proof

(“seonghwa for the last time toads don’t give you war-” “LALALA I CAN’T HEAR YOU” “eye-”)

once, he even playfully stole the strawberry from your cake

(big mistake. he’s never doing that again. he never knew a woman could move so fast or be so scary.)

it made you so, so happy because the two of you were finally getting to know each other

actually know each other

then one day, while the two of you were reading underneath a tree at the park

“,,,hey love?” (hwa)

“yes?”

“why are we doing this?” 

“what do you mean, dear?”

“i mean,,,i’m not complaining, but i guess,,,why did you decide to show me this part of you? the part that runs around in the rain?” hwa

you don’t reply right away

instead, you shut your book and idly stared at the willow swaying over the pond, wind running its fingers through its drooping leaves

after a few moments of silence

“,,,i wanted to know you and what you believed in. actually believed in.”

seonghwa tilts his head slightly to the side

“love, i hardly think my convictions have changed”

“but do you know what your convictions are?”

and you know when you hear something that resonates with you?

something that strikes deep in your core and makes you rethink everything you’ve know?

yeah,,,this is one of those moments

now it was seonghwa’s turn to set his book aside, falling deep in thought

after an unnaturally long stretch of silence, you began to panic a little

because ?? maybe you misread the situation and got a little too comfortable-

cause i mean you were questioning his core values, which is something he takes very seriously

o god you messed up didn’t you o crap you need to apolog-

“will you help me figure it out?”

“,,,huh??”

“will you help me figure out my convictions?” he asked

and you swear, you’ve never seen such a smile from seonghwa

one that conveyed a plethora of emotions, ranging from honesty and vulnerability, to confusion and loss, to lightness and warmth

it filled you with an unnameable feeling

like something sliding into place, fitting perfectly; like it was always meant to be there, filling you with comfort

shyly intertwining your hands for the first time, you looked up to meet his gaze with a pattering heart and a smile matching his own

“,,,of course.”

[comfyswitcherblanketfort]

Horse info 101

A horse girl’s guide to the basics for fic writing with an important and lively horse involved:

This got kinda long I’m kinda sorry but not at all lol 

There's three basic gaits (speeds with different patterns of hoof-fall/leg movements

Walking is the slowest and is a four beat gait, meaning each foot hits the ground at a different time. Usually the same pace as a walking human when the horse is calm. Some breeds can walk HELLA fast though. Most horses will fill the same spot/hole where their front hoof was with their back hoof on the same side. If they overstep they clip their fetlock (joint lookin bit above the hoof) or pastern (bit between the hoof and fetlock) and can injure themselves. 

Now trotting. The middle gait, a person can jog next to a trot at a comfortable pace but if you push them a little horses can trot faster than your average HS track endurance athlete. Once again some breeds can trot HELLA fast. This is a two beat gait in that two diagonally opposite legs are moving in unison. In some english saddles (I’ll get into that later if we have class time) it’s easier to post while the horse is trotting rather than sit for the gait. That just means you stand up in the irons (stirrups on an english saddle, we’ll also cover that later) at the same time that one of the front legs moves forward. 

Also, see how the trotting horse’s head looks? That’s how they travel when they’re relaxed and attentive. The tucked head thing you see Roach doing is because there’s tension on the reigns and Henry learned to ride for an english seat not a western pleasure seat (might get into those but they’re really not important)

Time for the Canter/Lope. This is a three beat gait so that means two legs are moving in unison and the other two are not. Horses canter/lope fast. This is the go-time gait. Some performance/dressage horses are trained to canter extremely slow but if we’re talking transportation trained horses they’re not gonna be that kind of slow. Your average human is not gonna be able to keep up with this for long if at all. This varies in speed too. There's a rather casual canter seen in the gif directly below, then below that is the balls to the wall canter/lope that most horse people just refer to as a run. That’s as fast as they can go.

Basic tack names

Halter + Lead/Lead Rope - these can be made of rope, leather, nylon (more modern) but the halter is generally used for leading and tying.

Bridle - this is the one that you use while you ride, it holds the bit in their mouth. There’s millions of different types of bridles but they’re usually made out of leather even now. sometimes you get rope/nylon ones but I don’t trust them.

Reins - connect to the bit and you use them to steer and control speed. Horses trained in western or one handed riding will ‘neck rein’ which means if you move your hand to the right and the left rein brushes their neck they will move to the right.

Bit - the metal piece in the horses mouth. most english riding bits are broken (joint in the middle) and most western ones are solid. there’s a gap behind the horse’s front teeth and that’s where the metal sits. Some horses have smaller mouths than others and do better with solid bits because the ‘broken’ ones will hit the top of their mouth and hurt. There’s also things called ‘shanks’ on some bits which are just longer pieces of metal that attach to the sides of the pieces in their mouth and point downward. This gives the rider more leverage and makes any tug on the reins stronger. (google “Horse bit shank” if this doesn’t make sense)

Saddle - you sit in it. simple right? wrong. There’s two main types of saddles, Western - with the horn like you see in the running gif, and English- the loping gif without the horn. The saddles used in the Witcher look like the pre-english saddle versions but the basic parts you need to know are the same. The part where you ass goes? that’s the seat. the part right in front of your crotch? That’s the pomel. that’s your ‘oh shit handle’ if anything goes screwy (other than the mane). The part that sticks up and keeps your ass in place? That’s the cantle. I like western saddles SO MUCH MORE but i also grew up mainly riding western so im biased. 

Stirrups/Irons - stirrups and irons are where your feet go. In western saddles they’re called stirrups and they’ve got wider decorative leather flaps (called fenders, also originally added to protect trousers/legs from the horse sweat and the buckles of the cinch) and on english saddles they’re called irons because they are usually made of iron and rather slim. Geralt’s irons look pretty similar to modern ones, slim leather straps, minimal iron (or steel or any other strong metal really). Traditional english riders have knee high boots like you see in regency costumes which removes the need for the fenders like on western saddles. 

Cinch/girth - this is what keeps the saddles on. You take a strap and attach it to one side of the saddle, run it under the belly right behind their front legs and attach it to the other side. Its usually made of a strong fabric with wool or some kind of softer lining for western riding. English riding uses a leather one most of the time though this horse girl hates them because they’re harder to cinch up. English saddles use buckles while Western saddles use another leather strap to run through the chinch/girth buckle and you either tie it off or use it like a belt. 

Chest strap - this keeps the saddle from sliding backwards. It’s attached to both sides of the saddle by buckles and between the front legs its attached to the cinch/girth. this is pretty universal but not always used. Geralt uses one though. 

Saddle pad - goes under the saddle to protect the baby’s back and whithers (spot where the neck meets the back and the mane ends)

Tacking up and untacking takes time. This is usually 5-10 minutes when done at a leisure pace and done right.

Basic grooming

Brush down before tacking up - you don’t want stuff chaffing the pony while you ride

brush after untacking- helps clear skin of irritants and feels nice

Shedding scraper/curry comb to get rid of shedding hair - if you want a pic of these just google them I think I’m close to the pic limit for my post. 

HOOF PICK - keep the baby's feet clean and clear if rocks so they don't bruise but also so nothing get infected

Yes, plz brush their mane it gets MATTED - a hairbrush works but a wide tooth comb is best

Horses roll to itch their backs and clean off, sounds counterintuitive with the dirt but it works

Shaving a little spot for the bridle to sit is pretty modern but it's easier for everyone involved

Horse Colors- guys roach is not brown she’s a chestnut color

The only thing I have to add to this is that the “Leopard” one is called “appaloosa” in the US at least, and “Pinto” is also reffered to as “Paint” and there’s all sorts of different patterns that you can see. also i want a buckskin so bad. yes i was obsessed with Spirit as a child why do you ask?

Travel care of your babies

Horses CAN and have subsisted off roadside grasses and grazing at night BUT it's good for them to get a lil something extra ESPECIALLY if you’re keeping them in a stall at night where they can’t graze.

Hay and grains like cracked wheat, oats, barley and the like are commonly found in horse feed. Also a lil drizzle of molasses is chock full of calories and all my horses LOVE the taste.

also while we’re talking food: some horses cant keep all the juice/bits in their mouth when they eat apples (we fondly call it making applesauce) or other treats/veg. Yes it gets all over your hand, yeah its kinda gross, but there’s worse things.

Shoes. Babe's need horse shoes. Especially if they're walking over rocks and roads.

Throwing a shoe (when it comes off on accident) is painful sometimes and if left un-dealt with can affect their joints and spine. Imagine walking around in one heeled shoe and one athletic shoe all day. Ow.

On that note though, on lighter travel seasons it's nice to give their hooves a break from shoes (also cheaper)

Horse moods:

horse mood ear chart here: I cant add much tbh

If a horse is comfortable/happy/relaxed they will ‘chew’ on nothing. Just kina a little lip smack type deal. My horse’s bottom lip would hang a couple centimeters below his top one when he was relaxed and I would put my chapstick in it while I fussed with other things.

When a horse is uncomfrotable/scared/tense their lips get sealed tight. I call it ‘fish butt lips’ bc they’re watertight and NOTHING is getting in there. 

Stamping hooves can be a few things. Antsy and ready to roll, nervous, deadass scared, or playful/excited. 

A full whinny is communication - saying hi, warning, scared, etc.

the really soft whinny is called a nicker and its my favorite sound okay? that’s little soft communication and its usually reserved for times when they’re comfortable.

When they’re really relaxed they’ll cock one of their back legs kinda how we shift our weight to one hip. 

general fun facts:

Some horses fake limp when they don’t want to work bc they are lazy and smart and realize their person will get off and check them out and maybe even give them a rest. 

You do a preliminary leg injury test by running your hands slowly over their legs and checking for hot spots - inflammation caused by injury is warm

Basic horse saftey is never stand directly in front of the horse if theres a possibility of spooking, if you’re gonna walk behind them walk out of reach of their hooves or right up against that ass. If they cant get a good wind up it wont do as much damage (on that note though I rode/trained horses for 18 years and was only kicked once by a foal). 

It’s kinda common sense not to walk/sidestep between your horses legs and under their belly but we do it all the time bc its a trust thing? adrenaline? its fun?

laying on your horse’s back sans saddle, and facing their butt is so nice okay, that ass is soft and cushy and perfect for a nap. I miss laying on my horses while they ate like this every damn day. 

Horses can sense your moods. Not unlike the whole ‘witchers smelling you’ thing. They can feel a difference in the tension on the reins and in your posture when you’re tense or relaxed.

Some horses will take care of their riders, some are absolute shits and push the limits for funsies. Some horses will only behave for people they’re used to too. Some horses have trauma from being mistreated and will have triggers kinda like people do. We had a horse who would freak the fuck out if anyone walked around with a red had but as soon as you took it off she was the most level headed horse we had.

A good portion of horses (Who aren’t scared of children) will behave better with kiddos or novice riders because they feel they’re nervous.

If they hurt while they’re moving they usually limp but sometimes they’ll buck. It’s their defense mechanism. 

Horses can’t sleep for too long laying down because their body weight will collapse their lungs. Most horses sleep standing up.

They can sit like a dog and it’s hella cute. 

Stung by bees? Most horses will take off at a dead sprint bucking and hopping unless you’ve done a lot of trust work/training with them

They also run and jump and buck and rear to play.

If theres two horses in a pasture together one will chew at the other’s whithers (or anywhere else) to ask them to scratch them the same way. its very cute and they sometimes try this with people.

horses hug. I cry. 

the whole deal with the rider/horse relationship is it’s a mutual trust you’re building. They let you sit on their back and do weird shit and you trust them not to throw you.  

Thank you for coming to class today! If there’s any questions feel free to message me! I’m not kidding I wanna answer your questions and I miss my horses so this is fun for me.

@elliestormfound​ here it is boo! lol 

[ofxrosepetals]

(davika hoorne ; cisfemale ; she/her ; running up that hill by placebo) hey, look! isn’t that EZEL SOMSI? the 27/500 year old VAMPIRE is known to be BRAVE and IMPULSIVE. they’ve been in town for FIVE YEARS and always remind me of rose colored lipstick, golden heart and jewelry, stiletto red heels. let’s hope they survive what’s to come.

BASICS

NAME: Ezel Somsi AGE: 27 BIRTHDATE: November 1st SIGN: Libra SPECIES Vampire GENDER: Cisfemale ORIENTATION: bisexual, bi-romantic PROFESSION: The red diamond - bartender LOCATION: Ashwick valley

PHYSICAL

HAIR: dark brown EYES: light brown HEIGHT: 5’9″ MARKINGS: lower back tattoo (x)

FAMILY

RELATIONSHIP STATUS: single   SIBLINGS: none PARENTS: unknown

SKILLS

PHYSICAL PROWESS: She is lean, average, has muscle, even if she is pretty petite. She does workout and run occasionally. ABILITIES: she can hunt, so the woods for her is her element. she spent the better of her vampire years learning how to protect herself. she does well in blending with the humans, and she's quick on her feet. (think alice from twilight) SPOKEN LANGUAGES: English, Thai, Russian and Latin HOBBIES: enjoys a good rain fall, loves to eat outdoors, she is a nature kind of gal. Did I mention she loves to shop?

TRAITS

POSITIVE: brave, understanding, adaptive, calculative NEGATIVE: chaotic, indifferent, impulsive, blunt

PREFERENCES

COLORS:  she's a color wheel, just depends on her mood tbh SMELLS: the fresh smell of rain, outdoor wood burning, aromas of food cooking. perfume scents - roses DRINKS: long island tea, tequila, martini, cider beers FOOD: aside from blood, she enjoys pasta, seafood dishes

OTHER

FUN FACTS: she works as a bartender at the red diamond. it's a hobby and something to pass the time. she can tell you the alphabet backwards. she is ambidextrous. She's always in fashion, and loves jewelry. you won't catch her without jewelry tbh. enjoys using her powers to get where she wants, not so much to show off.

CHARACTERS:

HUMAN : Elle Woods (bahah yes) Vampire: Rosalie Hale FEARS: to be accepted, acknowledged TRIGGERS : n/a

BIO  - tw mentions of fire, blood, death

Ezel Somsi grew up learning her worth, and who she is as a person. from a very young age, she was taught to respect her elders. Born in Bangkok, Thailand . She was the second child, as her brother Emir was older than her by 2 years. Her parents respected one another and the people around them. Her childhood was a happy one, that was until she was much older. She made friends everywhere she went, and often put others before herself. Her father managed to own a lot of land. which helped with income and living wages.

one could say that she was the child they have always wanted. Perfect, well mannered, and obedient. she was prideful, and how could she not be, praised for doing good, and living well. Her brother was who her parents wanted to carry on the family name. As she grew older, she was envied by the other girls, especially because of her long brown hair, and bright brown hues. She had the image of being delicate. Did that create a bit of an ego for her? perhaps, but she still appreciated everything she had.

When she turned eighteen, her parents wanted to marry her off. However, Ezel wanted to marry for love, not for convivence or simply because it was a custom. that is where she drew the line, she refused to marry without love. This of course caused issues with her family, leading them to pretend as if she didn't exist. they still had her brother, and if she didn't want to follow their rules, then she would be treated as if she wasn't a part of them. this caused Ezel to run off on her own.

Fast forward a few years down the line, she had managed to travel, finding herself a means to survive and work. She was in her village when a fire broke out, which spread like wildfire. It wasn't until she could hear screams from all around her, and then bloodshed. She saw figure with sharp fangs that in the blink of an eye seemed to disappear. No more than a few seconds later, she felt something attack her. it was too strong, and she tried with all her might to fight it off, but was feeling weaker and weaker. It was then she could feel someone pull the creature off of her. Her hand touching her neck, as she could see blood. Her vision blurry, all she could see was someone grabbing the one that bit her, and throwing the figure to the fire.

Had she known that she would have died that night, she would have seen her family for the last time. Little did she know this person (wanted connection), saved her life. Thus awakening to her new life as a vampire. They have taught her to come into herself, as a predator and creature of the night. At first she hated what she turned into, a vampire. Her whole world had completely change. The tragedy and bloodshed was enough for her to shut it out from her mind. It was like she became new.

Throughout the centuries, she had accustomed herself to build herself up, and of course enjoy the finer and richer life. She was living forever now, did that make her shallow? she begged to differ, she was living better than before. Fashion, clothing, lifestyle , it opened her eyes to a whole new experience. She didn't see this as anything bad, however, the outside world, or people , may not see it thatway.

Countless years allowing money , high class lifestyle to fill the void inside her. Maybe Ashwick Valley could be the change.

PERSONALITY

She can be very proper when she wants to be, but she is 100% herself, even if that means she's a bit ditzy. She is very much a person about her looks, and if her outfit matches. She is very thoughtful and caring. some people may tend not to take her serious (cuz she honestly looks so cute). she dresses for the occasion and sometimes overdresses, but she is who she is and doesn't care. (her style is pretty much like ariana grande?) however she may look like a baby deer or whatnot, she won't hesitate to have her feisty side come out. her heart is gold, and holds the people she cares about close. she doesn't mind doing a 360 in personality either.

CONNECTIONS

Crush / interest - Open - someone that has caught her eye. simply because their encounters have left an impression on her.

Frenemy - someone who may just find her so full of herself? but as they get to know her, they find out she's not as bad? i enjoy a push and pull dynamic.

The helping hand - open she may give the impression / aura of high and mighty, honestly she is a klutz. someone please help her get her act together.

The Savior Open  - the one who sired her, turned her, can be out of pity or good deed. this person ofc is probably mean to her, but she rather enjoys that.

Coworkers - friends who work with her, fellow bartender.

Best friend - someone who likes her just as she is. Brings out her craziness, and they make each other smile.

more tba!

[brockadoodles]

Clumsy - q. hughes

AN: My main squeeze @pettypetey​ has been going through it lately and I just whipped this up out of nowhere in hopes that it makes her smile. Ily kyn. I hope you like this short little blurb. 

Warnings: None

Word Count: 986 (might be the smallest thing I’ve ever written tbh)

“I don’t think she is going to like these,” Elias commented at the flowers Quinn was staring at. They were a mix of baby’s breath and dull pink dahlias that were drooping down. Elias couldn’t help but groan at his friend, who was so entirely lost when it came to most things, but especially lost when it came to finally being ready to admit to you how he felt. 

Quinn had liked you ever since you quite literally tumbled into him six months ago. You were running late, a bad habit you had picked up from taking one too many 8 am classes in college. You were balancing a tray of coffees with your phone in your ear. You knew that your boss was going to kill you if you weren’t at the meeting that was set to start in just a few minutes. Quinn was walking into the coffee shop, set to meet Elias there so that they could catch up from being back home over the summer. He opened the door and you came crashing into his chest, barely saving the tray you were carrying as he caught you. 

Quinn wanted to look back at that memory fondly and think about how smooth he might have been, but in reality, he barely spoke two words to you because he was so stunned over the situation. It wasn’t until he sat down across from Petey that he drifted off, thinking about every feature of your face that he had somehow already memorized. He wasn’t sure if he’d ever see you again, but he’d be lying if he said he didn’t breathe a sigh of relief when he ran into you later in that same spot, this time opening the door for you as you both walked in together. 

Your friendship with him grew fast, and he found himself dazed and quiet most of the time just listening to you talk. He learned all about your interests, from how you listed off every true-crime series you convinced him that he absolutely needed to watch, to how you argued with him about who would win in fantasy football. Which, he knew it was you, but he couldn’t help but like riling you up just enough to get a little mad at him for defending his draft picks. 

Your friendship with him was never really a friendship though, and despite the words of encouragement from practically everyone on the team who had met you, each time the words hung loose on his lips asking you if you felt what he did, he could never say them. He supposed it was the fear of losing what was building with you or wondering if he wasn’t at all what you would want. He knew his life was a lot, he knew that he was arguably too young to really balance his now starting career and a new relationship, but he wanted to try. He wanted to try because you were worth the effort, you were worth late-night phone calls from different timezones, you were worth balancing both of your jobs for the limited time you’d get together. You were absolutely worth all of it, and he wanted to be the one to tell you that. So, he called up Elias in favor of Jake or Brock, who likely would have had horrible taste in flowers anyway, and went to the little flower stand near his apartment. 

“I think she likes rose, but I’m not entirely sure if that’s too much or not,” Quinn trailed off, looking a bit helpless as they continued wandering around the shop. Elias shook his head and pointed toward a delicate arrangement. 

“Those look nice.” He commented. Quinn picked up the vase and examined the flowers, the white and green roses standing out to him. He sighed, hoping that these were enough as he walked to the counter to pay for them. 

You were on your way up to Quinn’s apartment for dinner. Every Tuesday that he didn’t have a game you spent together, sometimes at his place and sometimes at yours. You always ordered food, trying a new restaurant every week for a ranking that you were keeping track of together of the best spots in Vancouver. 

When you let yourself in, you noticed something different. Quinn had the lights lower than he normally did, and there was a big arrangement of flowers sitting on the kitchen counter. You raised your eyebrow at him where he was standing behind the stove, attempting to cook God only knows what since you knew Quinn had no idea how to cook.

“The flowers are for you.” He motioned to the counter and you looked at him again. 

“For me?” You clarified. Your heart was racing a bit because this felt like more than something you and Quinn ever did. You had harbored a small crush on him since you met, but he never said anything so you tried to push it down and keep him in any way that you could. 

“Yeah, uhm, look I’m not really great with words.” He started and you laughed softly. 

“Anyways, I like you, and I thought maybe tonight this could be somewhat of a first date? If you feel the same, I mean.” 

Your heart absolutely leapt out of your chest as you walked toward him, pushing him back against the counter. There were butterflies rumbling in your stomach as you leaned in. 

“I would love that, Quinny.” You smiled, reaching your hand up to thread your fingers through his hair. He visibly relaxed into your touch, looking down at your lips and back up to you. You leaned in, closing the space between you and pressing your lips softly to his. The first meeting may have been an embarrassing show of clumsiness, but the first kiss had you on a high that you were not eager to get rid of.

[cafeinthemoon]

The Senju brothers finding out their little sister is going out with Madara 💥

Lately I’ve been into family drama and such, so when anon requested this I couldn’t say no lol Btw thank you, anon, for this scandalous incredible idea 😘

In this scenario/list/idk we have the Senju brothers finding out their younger sister and Madara are seeing each other. As you might expect, the news provoke different reactions in each of them, but the main point is how she will deal with this situation.

So I’m gonna shut up now and leave you with this:

Fandom: Naruto | Senju Brothers

Warnings: none, just a heated argument and a looong list ahead

Symbols: 💙 | ◻ | ▶▶

Hashirama

Being Hashirama and Tobirama’s younger sister, of course you and Madara were known to each other, but being more than just a friend to him wasn’t in your plans… until now 😳

You used to admire and respect each other, not only because of the alliance between your clans, but mostly because you both were worthy being praised. Plus Hashirama has always been talkative about his best friend’s qualities, which slowly transformed the way you saw the Uchiha leader, but you only noticed this a few weeks ago

During a meeting/party/whatever at your brother’s house, Madara and you spent more time than usual talking to each other. Turned out that you discovered many things in common beyond the fact that you two were shinobi, including your views on life, politics, etc.

If Hashi noticed something, you couldn’t tell, but it was strange that during all the time you were there together he didn’t come to join you (not that you complained about it)

You and the Uchiha saw each other a few times on the next days, and the feeling of familiarity between you only grew. You weren't sure of how to call it. You were fond of each other, but saying that you were just friends didn’t seem to be enough now

You both agreed that it was too soon to name it as a date or something, so you didn't tell anyone, not even your brothers

You wanted to be sure of your own feelings before making a statement. Were you still friends? Were you really in love? Was it just a crush, a superficial attraction? You wanted to understand what was going on

During this time, Hashirama didn’t make a comment or anything that suggested that he was aware of this situation, so you were a bit surprised when one day, he came to talk to you about it

“So you and Madara are engaging in a secret romance and you dared leaving your big brother out of this, y/n? Where did you learn such behavior?!”

“Don’t you really know?”, you smirked

“Excuse me?!”

“Am I the first person in this family to keep secrets that involve Madara, Hashi?” 😑

THE REDNESS ON HIS CHEEKS WAS PRICELESS LMAO

Hashirama was your elder brother aka the person who has been taking care of you since your parents left this world, so not only his worries were valid, but he also had the right to know, so yeah, he was a bit disappointed that you didn't tell him first

Now, I think his feelings about this were not as plain as some can imagine. In fact, he had a mixture of contradicting feelings and ended up talking about them more than demanding an explanation from you

On one hand, he was happy because he loves you both, so finding out that his little sis and his soul brother might have started a relationship was exciting 💖

On the other hand, he was worried because you were even younger than Tobirama, while Madara was not only older but more experienced than you and he knew his friend’s flaws better than anyone else

However, Hashi was an understanding person and was willing to listen, so you explained your feelings and your reasons to him, as well as part of your conversations with Madara, pointing out that making things this way was a mutual decision, for the best of you two and the people you knew

He pointed out that despite not calling your meetings a date, you two were already thinking as a couple 😏

You blushed and asked him to keep quiet, at least for a while

He promised you he would not say anything, but not before hugging you tight and crying about how his lil sis was growing up so fast saying how much he was happy for you two 💓

Tobirama

Prepare yourself to get your ass smacked and burning for an entire week lmao

Okay, so as you can easily imagine, it didn’t take much effort from Tobirama to find out that something was going on between you and Madara

It wasn’t that you two were reckless, it was just that your second brother was not stupid an observing man (and tbh how hard it must be to keep a secret from a smart sensor shinobi, uh?)

Unlike Hashirama, who took some time to connect the dots, he noticed small changes in your routine and behavior since the start

Why have you been so quiet, distracted lately? What has been occupying your mind? You were spending more time alone and/or out, and (yeah, he noticed that) you weve more concerned about your looks and manners than usual. Of course you were up to something 

Besides, you’ve suddenly became too defensive towards Madara and the Uchihas in general. Anything Tobirama said that sounded slightly negative about them was promptly refuted by you. You seemed to have a deeper understanding of their ideologies now, as if you were having long conversations with their leader

So, it was with no surprise that you saw the storm coming ⚡

One day, Tobirama came to your room without warning and just by looking at him you knew he figured it out 

How did he find out? Hashirama and his big mouth, probably. Or did he follow you and saw you two together? Well, he could have simply traced your chakra and once he sensed Madara’s close to you, the riddle was solved. But did it matter now?

His first words: “What is it?”

You don't need an explanation: you little sis + Madara Uchiha problem™ + maintaining your privacy keeping secrets from him

And now you were a brat possessed with the Uchiha evil, and not just with any Uchiha evil but with MADARA’S Uchiha evil 🔥🔥🔥

There was no way for you to have a normal conversation in the current circumstances. You had a heated argument, and I’m sure you’re capable of imagining what it means to have a heated argument with Tobirama

“Tobi, listen to me, I-”

“No YOU listen to me you brat possessed with the Uchiha evil”

Your brother didn’t even let you speak. He stated that not telling anything to your elder brother was not only wrong, but some sort of betrayal, then started remembering serious sh*t from the past when you were so young that you couldn’t even carry a sword the right way and everything you’ve already heard from him countless times before

But now you were done with his incapacity of simply listen, so you just stated that your elder brother Hashirama already knew it and that it was you who asked him to keep it a secret just for a while

“Hashirama is our leader, and if he knows and approves it, that’s enough for me and that should be enough for you too!”

“Hashirama is too soft with you, and this is why you behave like this!”

“Like this how? Living my life without asking for your permission? Is that what you mean?”

“Being unnecessarily connected with a man with whom we need to be careful in our treats, that’s what I mean. Our elder brother purposely ignores the fragile spots of this alliance and you know it, so there’s no excuse for your attitude!”

“Speaking like this about our ally could be considered some sort of betrayal, Tobi. If I was you, I would be careful!”

“Why? Are you going to tell him in your next date?”

“GET OUT OF MY ROOM!”

“Yes, I’m getting out and having a serious conversation with our brother about this!”

“Tobirama, the war is over! We all have to move on, whether you like it or not! So instead of wasting your time with something that’s none of your business, you should go and live your life as well!”

Yes, you lost your temper, and you only realized it when your brother fell silent and lowered his tone

“You are right, lilttle sister. But let me tell you something. My way to show that I care about you might not resemble Hashirama’s, but my feelings towards you are not less deep than his”

You were heartbroken after he left, yes, but you had to stand your ground. Tobi could be very controlling if he was given space to, so you had to learn to deal with this early in your life. In this point you were better than Hashi, who was too easygoing for his own good, so you felt like you had to be strong on your resistance for both of you, otherwise Tobirama would dominate every aspect of your life without even realizing. You loved him as well, but your decisions didn’t have to always gravitate towards him

Still, you weren’t proud of your words about the war. That was a sensitive matter for Tobi. Despite his silence about it, you sensed he was offended. You knew you went too far 💔

The conclusion

Later, Hashirama came to mediate the conflict, and he had some words for both of you. When Tobirama and you found ourselves in the same room, you were about to start a new argument, but your eldest brother elevated his chakra and demanded you to be silent, bc now it was his time to speak

“Brother, I understand you are worried about our sister and I am sure she acknowledges your efforts to protect and guide her, but that doesn’t give you the right to interfere in her decisions regarding her own life. She’s right to remind you about our alliance with the Uchiha clan and to say that we need to move on. If moving on means starting a relationship with Madara in her case, things are what they are. It is her life, not yours. And do not think I haven’t talk to her about this. Y/n is no longer a child, Tobirama. She’s aware of the challenges of maintaining such connection with the Uchiha leader”

“Little sister, I understand that our brother’s way to express his worries uses to irritate you. It happened many times when you two were little. But that doesn’t invalidate the honesty of his intentions. He loves you and cares about you as much as I do. Besides, I’ve already talked to you about thoughtless mentions of the war. That was a though period for all of us, which includes your brother. You were not with us at the battlefield, that’s true, but you weren’t immune to the dark consequences of what happened at it. You mourned our siblings with us, but you were too young to understand everything that was involved. That was not Tobirama’s case. He doesn’t talk about it, but he has his reasons for that, and this must be respected”

Hashirama left you two hoping you would be capable of getting along again, which eventually happened, but at its own pace

The next day you found Tobirama working at his desk. He already acknowledged your presence, but that didn’t discourage you. You hugged him from behind and said you were going out to the river, and he could come with you if he wanted to fish. His first response was a groan

“Is there more people coming with us?” = “Is there any possibility of Madara showing up?”

You kissed his bristly hair

“No. Just us. I promise. And when we get back, I’ll cook fish for you”

Your brother’s next groan meant many things at once, “I agree”, “Thank you” and “I apologize” being some of them 😜