#I'll be posting more about it if you're curious but don't be afraid to ask questions

[kittehbiscuits]

Ok I was going to wait to post this until the whole lineup was completed but that's never going to happen! These are my (hopefully) final designs for Beetlejuice and Lydia that I'll be using in my cartoon revival project (which I'll gladly accept help on, if anyone wants to)

[pomellon]

(This might be a little bit of a dark question, sorry lol)

I was looking at your egg lore for the saurian dragons and I was wondering what would happen if a dragon was like... pregnant with a fertilized egg when they were crystalized?

Like Karl, for example, if he had an egg and was crystalized would he still be able to have it? Would it hatch? Or would it like... get reabsorbed? Would he have like a dragon miscarriage?

(Again sorry for the weird question but this has been in the back of my mind and I thought I'd ask. I love the lore and designs for the saurian dragons btw! They're a really neat species! :D)

I actually like this question because it’s really interesting and had me think for a while :o 

I will put it under a read more since it touches on some darker subjects like miscarriage and death.

I think it would depend on how far along the eggs development is. The pregnancy itself takes around 2 months and the eggshell is made of hardened magic. When a dragon crystallises they use ALL their magic to form the crystal. It does put them in a kind of stasis state where they don’t need to eat, drink, etc. So I think if an egg had a fully developed shell, at which point the magic would be hardened and unusable to the parent, it would be put in the same stasis and survive. If an egg was still developing though, the magic that was meant to go to the shell would probably go to the crystallisation. It would still be in stasis, but probably end up as a slug/miscarriage once the dragon becomes free from the crystal. 

Another issue I can see with this tho, is even if the egg was fully developed and survived, the parent might not be able to lay it after breaking free from the crystal. Dragons need magic to survive and since they use all of it to crystallise they’re very weak and fatigued once they wake up. Even if the egg survives the dragon might not have the energy to lay it and end up becoming egg bound, which would most definitely be fatal unless they can get help. In that case I can see the egg surviving even if the dragon dies, since fully developed eggs are very hardy. 

Which creates a completely different dark imagery of a hatchling coming out of their shell, within the skeletal remains of their parent.

[donuts4evry1]

Hi!!! I love your account with all of its fabulous jellyfish information. And I wanted to know, where are you getting aforementioned fabulous jellyfish information? Is there a book or a website or documentary or smth? Do you have any recommendations?

Tysm and I CANT WAIT for the advanced quiz :DD

Oh!! I'm glad you enjoy it ^-^

I get my jellyfish research from a variety of places, actually. But since I'm kind of obsessed with collecting my information in one place, asks like these are my cup of tea :)

My main source of jellyfish lore comes from Wikipedia. Just like the legendary Hank Green, I ended up downloading Firefox's tree-tab extension so I can organize the tabs by natural taxonomic order. It's really quite relaxing, actually.

Wikipedia, understandably, isn't always the best source though (Take the pages for Cephea cephea and Atolla wyvillei for example. The Cephea cephea page is almost entirely blatant misinformation while the Atolla wyvillei contains an incorrect and misleading throwaway line)

That's why the next logical step is simple- Wikipedia references! This serves as a beginning into further jellyfish research.

Let's take the reference page for the Aurelia aurita, for example:

The information citing citation 14 was super interesting, so I pulled it up on another tab to read it, and got this:

Then I just had a field day reading it all.

One big site that's used as a reference on Wikipedia is humorously named WorMS (World Registry of Marine Species), which goes into the specific classification of pretty much every jellyfish taxon (it is very. VERY comprehensive). It'll tell you how many species are in a genus, what scientific name has become synonomized with another, and even link to the original documents that describe the species (though they may be written in a different language and come in a scan- so tough luck if you don't understand the language since um... it's pretty hard to translate a scan).

Eventually that wasn't enough, though, so I branched out into searching scientific articles myself. My personal favourite website to do this on is ResearchGate, since the UI is the easiest for me to use, but I get plenty of research from other sites and publishers. (And pssst, if you can't access papers through a school or an institution, there's always sci-hub and libgen 😉)

The rest just depends on to how savvy you are with google. I despise normal reporting articles on jellyfish (Most can't tell the difference between them anyways), so I skip those and simply go to the jellyfish papers themselves lol. I've found out a lot of interesting things about jellyfish just by searching random questions on google.

Um, but I suppose I do have extra stuff to add.

Apparently, making a video game for jellyfish is a surefire way to learn more about them (especially when you write them as sapient beings lol). You start to crave niche, specific knowledge of them- like um... If they sleep or not, or what things can make them sleep.

Um... Another thing I've learned about jellyfish? The japanese are absolutely OBSESSED with their jellyfish. Their jellyfish spotlight sites are incredibly detailed (if not a bit region-specific), and I honestly trust them more than I trust our English-speaking sites.

In particular, I adore kurage-ya.com and gogo zoo aquarium, though you definitely will not be able to read anything unless you have a good translator (Kurage-ya is written in such an adorable voice.... and gogo zoo is incredibly detailed. I suggest going onto both for full coverage of your jellyfish knowledge, though)

(I also suggest going on different languages of Wikipedia- you can learn SO much stuff that normal Wikipedia doesn't give to you. Like the Chrysaora pacifica and Nemophilema nomurai have more robust Japanese pages, and the Spanish page for Order Semaeostomeae is a lot more beefed up, haha...)

To learn more about niche jellyfish facts, I also suggest looking through jellyfish husbandry sites (Especially jellyfish warehouse- travis knows so much more about jellyfish than I do it's actually pretty crazy).

As for Jellyfish documentaries? I only know of a few good ones, but I'll list them here:

^^ (not a documentary, but the jellyfish warehouse is friggin awesome and they even have a youtube channel)

Umm... So yeah that's pretty much all the things I got for free.

I think any jellyfan would suggest Lisa-Ann Gerswhin's book, Jellyfish: A Natural History.

I'm pretty sure you can find it in any major bookstore or whatever (online, at least), but it goes super in-depth about pretty much everything you need to know about jellyfish.

She goes SUPER in-depth about things like jellyfish life cycle, jellyfish anatomy, jellyfish ecology- and SO, SO MUCH MORE. She doesn't stay in Phylum Cnidaria, either, branching out into Ctenophora and even Chorodata(?) (Since Salps/tunicates are also there ig).

If you want to learn about specific jellyfish species, however, I would honestly just stick to Google and write it yourself. She only highlights about 40 different jellyfish species, and only mentions the textually relevant things in their bio. I would use the book just to learn about jellyfish basics, tbh (since it primes you to learn about the more technical jellyfish language you'll inevitably encounter in jellyfish articles). Overall, though, Lisa-Ann Gershwin's book is incredibly detailed, in-depth, and gorgeous and I could not recommend it more to anyone.

Other than that tho? All the English jellyfish books kinda suck, and I'm seriously considering branching out to japanese books instead (There's one that focuses on 114 species of jellyfish and you can bet your manus that I'm salivating over it rn i am enamoured with Japanese jellyfish culture)

Erm... Anyways?

TLDR;

Wikipedia is a good place to start. Reading Published Scientific articles is where you can get the bulk of your information, but Jellyfish-dedicated Websites will also be pretty knowledgeable as well.

There are a choice few Youtube documentaries you can watch, but if you want to read an actual book, Jellyfish: A Natural History is your best bet.

[boytoykevinday]

Do I even want to know what happened in the last 24 hours 😭 I'm almost afraid to ask but I'm also insanely curious

You probably don't want to know but I'll tell you because you have no choice. This will be long and...awful. But there are sources so that's fun! Please keep in mind that this was all released within 24 hours on Thursday, September 20th, 2024 and that, unfortunately, I haven't mentioned everything.

But! The GOP was certainly having a wild one yesterday.

To start things off:

The first 'Big News' to break was about Mark Robinson.

For those saying 'who the fuck is Mark Robinson', he's the current (R) Lt. Gov of North Carolina that is running for Gov. Before yesterday, he was best known for openly hating LGBT+ and Jewish folks, being a Holocaust denier, being (forcefully) anti abortion, saying it was better when women couldn't vote, anti immigrant, hating the civil rights movement, etc, just being a hateful Evangelical nasty fascist. MAGA to his core. Trump has endorsed him, saying he should be cherished and calling him "MLK on steroids". (Robinson is Black).

So, yeah, that's bad enough right? Yesterday it got even worse. CNN released a report about some comments he made on a porn site forum 12 years ago, the most prominent being 'i'm a black NAZI'. He also commented that he wished slavery was legal and that he'd own a few, and called himself a 'perv' that used to 'peep' on women in public locker rooms when he was a teenager.

Also the tale as old as time that I'm sure you could guess when I mentioned 'GOP' 'loudly transphobic' and 'porn site scandal' - trans porn was a favourite of his. Because of course.

Also of course - the GOP hasn't taken him off the ticket, and he will continue to be the nominee for governor in North Carolina!

Read the article, there's more about him and the situation in general. Mind the warnings.

-

Now on to our favourite worm brained bear eating anti vaxxer conspiracy theorist, Robert F. Kennedy Junior! I'm putting this under a read more now.

The first thing to drop about him yesterday was the news of an investigation after he allegedly cut off the head of a dead whale and took it home 20 years ago. Now I bet you're thinking, wow that's bad! Unfortunately for RFK Jr yesterday got worse. It was then revealed that he (70) was having an affair with right wing journalist Olivia Nuzzi (31) after New York Magazine suspended her.

Everything I learn about RFK Jr I learn against my own will.

-

Saying goodbye to RFK for now, let's move on to Rep. Matt Gaetz of Florida! This Matt Gaetz, with the botox if you didn't recognise him.

Scary lookin, right?

This isn't a completely new story (here's an article about how he alledgedly paid for sex with a minor) but new court filings were released yesterday alledging that he attended a drug-fueled sex party in 2017 with the 17-year-old girl at the center of the alleged sex trafficking scandal.

Sure is great to have such trustworthy men representing this country!

OKAY, on to the next.

-

This wasn't really breaking news because this is just Trump being Trump but he gave a speech at an ANTI ANTISEMITISM EVENT where he preemptively blamed the Jews for being the reason he'll lose this election, telling them they need to get their head checked if they vote for Harris (that's pretty much part of his stump speech by now though) and saying he'll reinstate his Muslim ban. White fascist blaming Jews? Wow, I did Nazi that coming.

-

I genuinely could go on, I really truly could.

Oh! Kamala Harris went on Oprah and it was really nice and not at all insane and she talked to the family of the first known victim of Trump's abortion ban and it was very touching. Trump's official social media then posted a clip of her talking about her gun and saying 'If somebody breaks into my house, they're getting shot' like it was a snatch when in reality Republicans in the comments are saying 'actually, this would make me vote for her'. Thanks, Trump Team for the free advertising!

Misc:

Chris Rufo (known racist and anti immigration right wing activist) got revealed to have an illegal immigrant wife, and then got revealed to be a user of Ashley Madison (database where people go to cheat on their partners)(Robinson was also on Ashley Madison).

Jasmine Crockett during her thing and ripping white republicans to shreds. (idk this was just fun to me)

Actually Republicans and Project 2025 got ripped to shreds and shut down in general by multiple Congress members.

GOP is on the brink of causing a government shutdown, because of COURSE they are.

Cards Against Humanity sues SpaceX over “invasion” of land on US/Mexico border.

Anyway there's actually MORE believe it or not but I can't remember if it happened yesterday. Thank you for reading, I'm always open to discussing current events. I don't think it's a well known fact that I'm into politics because I don't talk about it on tumblr because people are kinda stupid. Anyway!

[alatushours]

☆ CRYSTALFLIES, feat. xiao — he didn’t ask for much, just to spend precious time with you.

contents. gender neutral reader, fluff, rewritten + reposted from wp. inspired by xiao’s 2021 birthday letter. ♡ word count. 648

notes. this is a rewrite of the xiao oneshot i wrote + posted on my wattpad (link in about on pinned) back in 2021! omg the old version was so cringey and xiao was super ooc so i hope this is better, i hope you enjoy <3

SPRING HAD SPRUNG in liyue, and you were enjoying the lovely weather. golden leaves fluttered along a gust of wind as you sat next to the statue of the seven at qingyun peak, looking down at the natural scenery below.

swinging your legs over the edge of the floating platform, you gazed towards the mountains beyond, lost in your own thoughts.

it had been a few days since you had seen the guardian yaksha, and somehow you found yourself missing him. you were pretty sure he only tolerated your presence whenever you were around him, but over the past few months you had found yourself taking a liking to him. he was aloof but silently caring, protective, and certainly quite handsome too.

his voice echoed in your head, the way he always said he didn't care a bit for mortals, but you had a sneaking suspicion that he enjoyed your company.

as you whispered to yourself, a sudden gust of wind blew past, and xiao appeared before you. his arms were crossed, a look of slight concern in your eyes. "you called my name?"

"oh!" you hadn't realized that you had said his name in your ramblings. "sorry, i was just thinking out loud about some things and i suppose i must have said your name on accident… sorry for disturbing you, i know you're busy."

embarrassed, you started to pick up your things, getting ready to head back to liyue harbor. "i was just about to leave anyway, haha…"

"wait, y/n," xiao called after you. "don't leave, you didn't bother me at all. in fact…" you turned back around, curious, and found the adeptus standing in front of you with his hand outstretched. a small velvet pouch lay open in his palm, full of beautiful sparkling crystalflies.

"i, uh, had nothing to do today," he started quietly as you stared at the crystals in wonder. "so, i decided to find a crystalfly for you… to put in your hair. i thought that��� it would look nice."

you smiled, taking the pouch from his hands as he continued. "before long i had caught more than i expected… i hope you do not mind." he turned away, about to leave, but you grabbed his wrist.

"xiao, these are beautiful. thank you so much!" your smile was like the sun, and he looked away, blushing.

"there's no need to thank me, i was just repaying your kindness." his voice wavered, but he continued, "i do not care much for birthdays or other mortal celebrations, and i do not wish to be around large crowds of people. just spending time with you is enough."

your mind wrapped around on particular word in his sentence. "wait, birthday? don't tell me… is it your birthday today, xiao?"

the yaksha coughed into his fist and turned away, face flushed, before nodding.

you squealed. "why didn't you tell me sooner?"

"i suppose there was never really a reason too…"

you took his hands, feeling even more excited than you were before. "well, you should have! i'm really glad you came to me today, xiao. i know you probably find me tiresome, but i really enjoy your company. i want to help you with whatever you might struggle with. so don't be afraid to come to me if you need anything, 'kay?"

xiao sighed, but it wasn't one of exasperation. "i don't require your assistance, but i appreciate your concern. however… if you want to visit the inn more often, i wouldn't be against it."

you laugh, "i guess i'll hold you to that offer then!"

as the sun began to dip into the horizon, you invited xiao to sit with you, asking him to weave the crystalflies into your hair. "i don't really need to go to the harbor until tomorrow morning," you tell him, "so why don't we just spend some time together?"

end notes. i hope you can tell the improvement LMAO but anyways xiao was the first character that i received a birthday letter from (i started on april 9 2021) so he has always held a special place in my heart, if you can’t already tell <3 please look forward to april 13th, when i’ll be posting the next one!

© alatushours 2024. please do not copy, modify, or translate my work in any way, nor upload to any other platforms. in the meantime, if you enjoyed, please like, reblog, and comment! it helps a lot ♡

[cielcreations]

Front Seat (Danny Phantom

Characters are aged up to be 18+! Also, no ghosts AU!

I remember past me when I first used Tumblr liked this post and was like "Hey, this is a good idea for a short story."

And now, like 5yrs later, I actually made a short story. Enjoy!

Dash Baxter did not like Danny Fenton. That much was obvious.

He tolerated the annoying bug for the most part because of his sister. Jazz Fenton helped him with work and made it easier for him to somewhat maintain his minimum GPA to stay on the football team. Granted, Dash's definition of "tolerance" was shoving Fenton into lockers or pushing him out of the way. It could be worse. He gives some other nerds swirlies or slam their faces into food, so Fenton should feel somewhat grateful!

One day, when it was snowing and cold, Dash's practice ended early and he needed to get something from his locker. So, after he changed and got dressed, he grabbed his textbooks from his locker and headed out the front doors of the school. As he stepped outside, he saw a none other than Fenton, reading a random book, slouching over as he did.

"What're you doing here, nerd?" Dash asked, not really caring but still curious.

Fenton looked over his shoulder, scoffed and went back to his book.

"Hey! Don't just ignore me!"

"Do you actually care?"

"Just answer, idiot."

The raven groaned, rolled his eyes, and sighed, "Jazz is tutoring some freshmen and I don't have a ride cause parents are busy with ghost work."

"What about that weird goth freak and tech geek?"

"That 'goth freak' and 'tech geek' have names." Fenton hissed, "Sam can't take me home, her parents are weird and don't like my parents and, therein, me, and Tucker is too far away from me. It'd be too out of his way and I don't wanna inconvenience him."

Dash hesitated before walking past him. He noticed Fenton was only wearing a jacket and pants, nothing to help him with the biting cold. Dash wore a scarf, a large winter coat over his long sleeved shirt, his letterman jacket, two pairs of pants, and two pairs of socks. How could Fenton stand this cold? He went to walk away, turned to face the raven, and took another step away. Am I really going to do this?

Dash looked over his shoulder one more time before he groaned dramatically, "Alright, come on."

"What?" Fenton asked.

"Come on, I'll take you home."

"Are you high? No, you don't smoke." The raven shook his head, correcting himself, "Are you drunk?"

"NO!" Dash hissed, groaning, "Listen, if you freeze to death, I am not going to be the last one to have seen you! If Jazz found out I saw you and left you to die in the cold, she'd kill me! And I am not spending my afterlife with you, Fenton!"

"I'm not going to freeze to death, idiot, I'm fine!"

"You barely have anything on!"

"So what?! I'm fine!"

"Nope, nuh uh, come with me, now!"

"Fuck you, I'm not-"

"If you let me drive you home and not make a peep, I'll stop messing with you for a day!"

Fenton's eyes widened before he narrowed, "Seriously? You're willing to do that just to get me to let you drive me home? You got something in your car I should be concerned about?"

"NO! JUST- UUUGH!" Dash pinched his temples, "Listen, recently, during tutoring session, your sister has mentioned how worried she is with you. She said she's afraid you're going to get hypo.... hyper...? The shit when you're too cold!"

"Hypothermia?"

"YES! She's worried 'bout that!" The blonde sighed, "She really cares about you and if she finds out I left you out here when it's freezing, she'd make me pay for it. I get not trusting me, but can you at least do it for her?"

Fenton seemed to hesitate before he sighed. He shut his book and stood up, "Fine. But I get bragging rights and get to say I won a bet if anyone sees and asks."

"Ugh, whatever. Just come on."

The two began walking to the blonde's car. Dash unlocked the doors and got in the driver's seat, Fenton getting in the passenger's seat. He sat, looking out the window, hugging his bag to his check, uncomfortable and awkward. Dash turned the car on, turning the heat up and pressing his seat warmer.

"You want yours on?" Dash asked, pointing to the seat warmer button.

Fenton looked at the button and shook his head, looking out the window again, "No."

Dash shrugged and looked over his shoulder. He reversed out of the parking lot, beginning to drive away. The ride was silent for the most part, awkward, on both sides. They stopped at a red light, silent, the only noise being from outside. The blonde was trying to think of something to say, trying to figure out if he should even say something. Suddenly, Fenton leaned over and turned on the radio.

"Hey, don't-"

"Hey, it's Ember's new song!" Fenton exclaimed, excitedly turning the music up a bit, "Don't ruin it!"

Dash looked at the raven out of the corner of his eye, confused, "You... like Ember?"

"Uh, who doesn't?" Fenton rolled his eyes, "You may think I'm a nerd or whatever, but nerds have taste too!"

Dash snorted a laugh, focusing on the road and beginning to move once the light was green, "Well, how was I suppose to know? We don't exactly talk."

"And who's fault is that?"

The blonde was silent, knowing he was right. The raven nodded his head along to the music, mouthing the lyrics, Dash watching out of the corner of his eye. He was... kind of impressed. The other wasn't as lame as he originally thought. Then again, liking Ember McLain is not necessarily anything to write home about. Like Fenton said, who doesn't like her songs? I guess it's weird coming from him. Dash thought, pulling up to the building with the large neon glowing signs and metal space ship looking thing.

Suddenly, green smoke started coming out from the top of the building.

"Ughhhh..." Fenton pinched his temples.

"Uhhhh, is your place... safe?"

"It is. My parents are too stupid for any of their shit to work." Fenton groaned, grabbing his stuff, "Thanks for the ride."

"Uh, yeah, no problem." Dash stared at the green smoke, "Uh, you sure your place is not on fire or something?"

"Dash, did you forget my parents are the crazy ghost fanatics?" The raven opened the passenger door, waving his hand at the smoke, "This is what they do. It's stupid, crazy, and annoying, but to the few who believe in fairy tales, it makes money."

The blonde snickered, "I guess that's what matters?"

Fenton shrugged, stepping out, "Thanks again." He shut the passenger door and walked to front door of his home.

He opened the door and immediately stepped out of the way, just in time for Mr. and Mrs. Fenton to run out of the building and going to the alley next to their home, holding what looked to be junk. The raven groaned and walked inside, slamming the door behind him. 

Dash felt... weird. Bad, maybe? He can't imagine living with those types of parents.

Dash shook his head, beginning to drive away. He wasn't going to worry about Danny.

Fenton. He wasn't going to worry about Fenton.

***

For the next couple of weeks, the same thing had happened. Dash's practice was cut off early due to weather, he would "forget" his textbooks, and he would find Dan- Fenton sitting at the front, either reading a book, copying some notes, studying for a test, or just on his phone. Dash would offer him a ride and the other would agree. At first, it was reluctant, but over the next few days turned to weeks, he would put up less of a fight, to the point when Dash came out of the building, he would stand up and look at him.

The rides turned from Dash taking Fenton home, to Dash driving to the nearby fast food joint, offering to buy Danny some food. They would hang out, eating in his car, sometimes going inside to do some studying together. Over time, Dash noticed how Danny didn't prepare much for the cold, which made him a bit worried. Danny always said he was fine, but the blonde didn't always believe him.

One day, when he walked out, he shoved a small letterman jacket in Danny's direction, "For you."

"Huh?"

"Listen, you don't have a winter's coat and you're probably freezing your ass off. Just take it. It was from my freshman year, so it's too small. It'll just collect dust in my closet anyways."

Danny blinked and took it. He put the letterman on and hummed, hugging himself a bit, "It's... pretty warm."

"I know, why do you think I wear it all the time." Dash snickered, "Come on, we're going to the movies."

"Movies?" Danny was quick to follow him to the car, "Why?"

"Cause I wanna see that new horror movie that just came out and Paulina, Star, and Kwan are too chicken and I know you will enjoy it!"

"Hell yeah!" The raven exclaimed, "I'll pay for-"

"Nope, on me. I'm inviting you out."

They got in their seats, the raven looking at the blonde, smiling, "You don't have to."

"If I'm taking you, it's only right I pay." Dash began to reverse.

Danny chuckled, "You know, Dash, you're not a bad guy!"

The blonde chuckled, "You're not so bad yourself, Danny."

The raven widened his eyes.

"What?"

"I think that's the first time you've called me by my first name."

Dash blushed a bit and shrugged, "Well, uh, I figured I should."

The ride was silent to the movies, mainly because both we feeling a bit embarrassed and awkward again. Once they got to the movie theater, they hopped out, going to the ticket stand. Dash bought their tickets, a bag of popcorn, and their drinks before they went into the theater room. They sat down and whispered to one another as the ads played, laughing quietly and joking with one another. Once the movie began playing, they shut up and began watching. As it began, Dash thought Danny would get scared, but the other was fine. If anything, he got more excited and loved it. Danny leaned into the blonde, who wrapped his arm around the raven without even thinking.

Once the movie ended, the two stood up, hand in hand, walking out of the theaters, talking excitedly about the movie and how impressed they were with it. They got back to Dash's car and continued laughing, joking, and overall having a nice time as the blonde drove to Danny's home. By the time they got there, the sun had set. Dash walked Danny to the front door, the raven taking out his keys and unlocking the door. He peaked inside, seeing all the lights were off.

"Will you get in trouble?" Dash asked, "Like, do you have a curfew or something?"

"Probably, but where's the fun in that?" Danny snickered, looking at him, "What about you?"

"Meh, my mom's chill."

"Well, good." The raven faced him, smiling, "Thank you, Dash, for the nice time. I-I had a lot of fun."

"Me too. I-I like sending time with you." The blonde responded.

The two stood there for a second, silent. Danny took a step forward and stood on his toes to lean up and kiss Dash's cheek. The blonde grabbed his chin before he could pull away, leaning down and kissing his lips. It was a short kiss, nothing dramatic or otherworldly, but it didn't have to be. They stepped back and smiled at each other.

"Good, I wasn't reading that wrong, then." The raven chuckled.

Dash chuckled awkwardly, "No, you, weren't." He hesitated and stepped back, "So, um, see you tomorrow?"

"See you tomorrow, Dash."

From then on, everything seemed to change.

***

"Party time! Party time!" Paulina and Star cheered, both dressed in cute short party dresses.

Kwan laughed, wearing a nice button up and pants, holding the door opened for everyone, "Dash! Leo! Come on or we're leaving you!"

"Oh, I'm sorry, who's driving?" Dash teased, tossing a football towards him, also in a nice shirt, blazer, and jeans.

Kwan easily caught it with a laugh.

Leo, a new student at Casper High, easily integrated into the popular clique. He was a great football player, a bit of a class clown, smart, funny, and attractive. They easily accepted him both on the team and part of the friend group.

"I can drive you Kwan, if need be!" Leo chuckled, wearing a shirt with joggers, going for more casual than nice.

"Yeah, with what car?"

"Yours still, I'll just steal your keys!" 

The group laughed and got to Dash's car, the blonde unlocking just the driver's side and getting in. He jokingly made them wait before unlocking the car, allowing everyone to pile in the back.

However, Leo opened the passenger door.

"Nah, nah, nah." Dash immediately stopped him, pointing to the back, "Backseat."

Leo laughed but Dash just pointed to the back again. The man stared, "Wait, seriously?"

"We're picking up someone else. You get in the back."

"Wait, why can't they sit in the back?

"Oh, riiiight!" Kwan exclaimed, "Leo, get in the back, you'll see."

"But-"

"Just trust us!" Paulina giggled, "Come on!"

Leo begrudgingly got in the back, thankful Dash's car could at least fit all four of them in the back. The group continued talking and laughing as Dash pulled out of the school parking lot, making his way to wherever they were going. No one told Leo what was going on, so he just waited to see what was going on.

They pulled in front of a large building with a glowing neon sign reading Fenton Works. Leo remembered hearing about the Fentons, how Mr. and Mrs. Fenton were crazy about ghosts and their kids did everything in their power to not be embarrassed by them. He heard their daughter was going to college and their son also went to their school. Danny Fenton, the kid who sat with a weird goth chick and tech geek.

"What're we doing here?" Leo asked.

No one responded, rolling down the windows. Dash blasted the music and honked the horn, Paulina, Kwan, and Star cheering. After a few seconds, Danny Fenton emerged from the home, wearing a shirt with the NASA logo, a letterman jacket, and some skinny jeans. He was clearly holding back laughter as he approached the car, the four cheering.

"DANNY! DANNY! DANNY! DANNY!" Kwan, Paulina, Star, and Dash chanted, the raven blushing, covering his face in embarrassment.

"Shut up!" Danny hissed playfully as he hopped in the front seat, "God, you all are embarrassing."

Dash rolled the windows up and turned the music down as Kwan spoke first, "How you doing man, you ready for the party?!"

"Hell yeah I am!"

The group cheered, but Leo stared at Danny in confusion.

"Oh, is Sam gonna be there? I have to return her mirror!" Star explained.

"She and Tuck are carpooling with Valerie."

"Perfect, I need to give Val her headband back!" Paulina explained.

"Oh, Danny, this is Leo." Dash pointed to the seat behind him, Danny turning to face him, "Newbie. Probably heard it around."

The raven smiled, "Oh, nice to meet you. Sorry about them, you were probably confused."

"It's cool, I'm more confused why you get front seat."

Dash glared out his review mirror, Danny chuckled, and the other three jokingly 'ooooh'ed.

"Oh, you are new." He looked at Kwan, Paulina, and Star, who smiled innocently, "And you three didn't tell. Nice play." Finally, the raven looked at Dash, "Dashy~ Can I have a kiss~?"

Dash blushed and nodded softly, leaning over and kissing his lips.

Leo widened his eyes as the other three cheered. Once they pulled away, the blonde quickly focused on driving, embarrassed.

Danny then looked at Leo, winking, "See, I always get front seat. Perks of being the quarterback's boyfriend!"

Leo blushed in embarrassment, looking away as the car erupted into laughter, the group beginning to joke and talk once again.

[stephaniebrownslover]

HIII WELCOME MEE

FIRST I WANT TO SAY I REALLY LOVE YOUR WRITING STYLE. YOU'RE ONE OF MY FAVORITE CP WRITERS IN TUMBLR (Seriously, no joking)

Can you please write Kate x Nina's relationship for your main AU?

(Also it's one of my fav ship, I wanted to read my fav ships hcs by my fav writers)

I WAS ALMOST FORGET, HAVE A GOOD DAY/NİGHT :3

HIIIIIII AGAIN LOVELY PERSON!!!!

Bro. Bro stop saying things like this because I'm literally about to cry. THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU SO MUCH

I really love and be surprised when people like my writing because of my self-esteem issues lol you have no idea how your kind words make me so happy and and make hate less from my writing style so thank youuuuuuu

I appericate you so much and and you're so sweet and nice and cool and awesome and cool and kind and sweet and and and

Okay I think I'll have an heart attack sorry if İ bothered you but I'm truly so grateful for your kind words<3333

I love NinaKate so much so of course I can do it for you even if I'm dying lol

(Ps: it wasn't seasonal allergies, turns out, it was the beginnig stage of pneumonia and bronchitis lol)

Also you can check this non-canon NinaKate headcanon post I made some time ago too!!

Okay but I can't get over how nice the words you say, really, I'm thinking about it since I saw the ask.

Sorry it's more like how they became friends and Nina and Kate lore but it would be so long that I had to split it into 2 parts. Hope you don't mind.

HAVE A GOOD NIGHT AND DAY TOO!!!!

Holy shit it's angst, I really didn't mean to...

NinaKate Romantic Relationship For My Main AU-Part I

Seeing each other for the first time

Nina has been known among the proxies since the night when Zalgo controlled her at the age of 15 and helped her find Jeff. Slenderman didn't want to take her with him because he didn't see any benefit to himself since Zalgo had reached out to her first, but he hadn't given the order to kill her yet just because he was curious about what would happen.

Nina was unaware that it was a ritual to summon Zalgo when she practiced one of the love spells she found on the Internet at the age of 13. Zalgo, seeing potential in her because of her obsessive love, followed her for 2 years, did not leave her alone. And since he decided it was the perfect time to take her with him, he took control of her body at the age of 15 and had her kill her own family.

Regaining control while plunging a knife into the heart of her younger brother Chris, Nina then felt so bad that she ran to the woods near her home. Zalgo led Nina through the forest, aiming to convince her that all this was Slenderman's and Jeff's fault and get her to the stage of wanting revenge. There she met Jeff, but Zalgo's plan backfired, as she hugged him and cried instead of hating him as he expected.

Kate had never seen the newcoming stray killer that Slenderman wanted to get rid of face to face before, but she had heard about the descriptions of her appearance and that she was a weird person in general. Since she was already someone who had been drifted away from humanity for a while, she had no reason to meet her, and these rumors didn't help either.

Kate, who was only 16 years old, had been a proxy for two years and had no one because of the fact that Masky and Hoodie were too focused on their own worlds and she didn't like them either. Rouge, Cody and Toby were not yet a proxy. So she was alone with Hoodie and Masky, who didn't even want to talk to her because they were afraid of her, and she wasn't looking for any human relationship.

She had experienced a hellish life until she was 14, but since she became a proxy, she has literally not been a human being. Although she had all the necessary human characteristics, she was not treated as a human, she did not think like a human, she did not feel like a human. That's why she was Slenderman's favorite proxy, since the whole purpose of her living was to fulfill his duties. The fact that she unconditionally accomplished everything he said made the others even more distant from her, but there was no problem for Kate. After all, she was no longer a human being.

It's been a month since Nina started staying in the same cabin with Jeff. Actually, she could have gone back to her old life since Zalgo destroyed the traces of that night, but Nina didn't know about it yet. Since no one else was trying to communicate with her, she thought that Jeff was the only important thing in her life, and she was holding on to him with all her strength. Although Jeff felt sorry for her at first, they started arguing because he was getting overwhelmed by her sticky attitude.

One day, when Jeff was drunk and really hurt Nina's feelings, Nina ran away deep into the forest to calm down. After walking for a while, she realized that she had lost. Moreover, this time, since both sides considered Nina worthless, there was no one to guide her through the forest. Nina was completely lost. She crossed to the foot towards a tree and let the tears flow, which she could no longer hold back. She was crying not only for this moment, but for everything. Most of all, because she was a bad person, and the fact she deserved all this.

Kate was returning from a mission. She was incredibly injured, and if people really cared about her, they wouldn't have let her walk on her own. Actually, Hoodie, with whom she had gone on, had offered to help her, but Kate's snarling with hatred indicated that she had responded negatively to his offer, and Hoodie's fear of Kate had caused him not to insist any further. After all, Kate knew that no one really wanted to deal with a non-human proxy who was at the age of 16.

That's why Kate was staggering through the forest alone, trying to ignore the pain and depth of her wounds. She just needed to get to Jack's cabin. Ann had just arrived, and Kate still didn't trust her. She had many reasons not to trust a zombie. Smiley hadn't started working for Slenderman yet either. So Jack was the only one Kate could go to, and despite her bleeding wounds, she was trying to get there as quickly as possible.

Kate, who was trying to walk, heard a crying sound. It... it was a human cry. She didn't know what she had to do. She kept walking, thinking that she didn't need to do anything because she knew she wasn't a human. But there was something in that crying sound which bothered her. This stranger's voice was filled with more pain and anger than she had ever heard before. Although Kate was not ready to face an enemy, she decided to check the source of the sound.

The person crying was none other than Nina, whose name was mentioned only with hatred and contempt.

Their first real meeting

Kate watched Nina for a while without making a sound. She did not know why she was crying, and frankly she had wondered what made her so sad. Because as far as she heard from others, Nina was a person who was cheerful enough to annoy and never got upset. And obviously, Kate was surprised to encounter a sight that was the opposite of the rumors she had heard.

Just when Kate decided she had watched enough crying and was getting ready to leave, Nina, who heard the sounds Kate was making, shouted in that direction. Kate would never normally have made such a fatal mistake, her injuries had made it difficult to control her body and she hated it. She hated being weak.

When Nina screamed again, Kate knew she had to do something. Her first thought was to quietly leave the environment, but she was not in a good enough condition to do so, and Nina was not an enemy. So, Kate thought it would be enough for her to just say hello and introduce herself.

When she appeared, Nina tried to suppress her sobs and stand up, but she fell to the ground since she sprained her leg. While Kate was only frowning at this situation, Nina was thinking about how useless and incompetent she was, which is why her crying became more intense.

Not knowing what to do, Kate slowly went up to her and held out her hand to her. On her first attempt, she had pulled her hand out regretfully before she even reached the halfway point, but when she saw how upset Nina was, she tried to overcome her hesitation. Kate was sure that she had been disturbed by the sound of her crying, and that she had been so kind as to make her cease her voice. However, in reality, it was just a proof that her humanity had not completely died.

Although Nina wanted to hold her hand, she suddenly saw how badly Kate was injured, and Nina immediatly pulled the hand she was holding out to hold Kate's and took support from the tree. She then stated that she did this because she did not want to hurt her any more, but was grateful for the offer of help.

Then nervously asked if Kate, who she knew was not the enemy, could take her back to Jeff's cabin after someone checked Kate. Nina didn't know where she was supposed to go, but she was sure that the person in front of her knew. She had seen the proxy mark on her wrist from her torn clothing.

Kate only responded with a shrug and started walking slowly. Nina also went after her, hoping that this was a signal for her to follow the proxy. Along the way, although Kate occasionally looked at Nina, Nina didn't mind it. Nina had noticed that she was an observant person, and she even thought it was cute.

After a walk, they arrived at Jack's cabin, where Nina randomly asked Kate questions to distract her own mind from sad topics, and Kate sometimes gave audible answers, while most of them were in body language.

Kate knocked on the door and asked Jack if he could take a look at her wounds. When Jack called her in, Nina was standing in front of the door because she didn't recognize him. But later, when she saw Kate making a movement signaling for her to come inside, she entered the cabin and closed the door.

After first Kate's wounds were taken care of, and then her own leg, Jack insisted they should stay here. He said it was too late even for a proxy and the killer to be roaming the forest, and explained that he had enough places. He also mentioned that Kate wouldn't need to come all that distance for her check-up the next morning.

Nina, who heard the word , only burst into sobs. Killer. That's how people must have see her now. As someone who takes lifes of innocent people for no reason. She knew that her idol was a murderer, but she had convinced herself that his victims were for a purpose. That's why she hated herself while glorifying Jeff in her eyes.

While Jack was trying to calm her down, Kate also bizarrely asked why she was crying. Nina was angry at being asked so clearly, so she yelled and told what had happened to her. She said how she had a wonderful family, but now they're nine floors underground because of her own stupidity. And what a terrible big sister she was.

While Jack was patting her on the back just to calm her down, Kate said it wasn't her fault. She even tried to explain that she was aware of what Zalgo had done, and that Nina was considered lucky to have survived with this much, as Kate was someone who had seen even worse.

Nina, on the other hand, was only more annoyed and asked how she was considered lucky. Her life was completely ruined, she had nowhere or no one to go to. Then Kate told her that the cops weren't after her, that she didn't have to live this life like herself. She sat down next to Nina and controlled herself, even though she wanted to put her hand on Nina's back.

Nina was surprised now. She asked Kate about her own story. Nina wanted her to tell her why Kate was here, why she was a proxy. And Kate just paused.

She said she didn't remember.

She mentioned that she had no memories of before the age of 14. Hearing this, Nina felt an incredible sense of pity for the young proxy standing in front of her. Nina may have had bad memories, but at least she had good ones too. She thought what a terrible thing it was to not know who she was. Not being aware of the existence of anyone who loves her. Not having a real life.

And quite instinctively she took hold of Kate's bony hands, which were like ice.

Kate didn't know what to do. She reflexively withdrew her hand, but she also knew that Nina had not done it for any malicious purpose, and her apology was a proof of this. Then Kate said it was okay for her to hold her hand and placed it back on her own lap. Nina grasped her hands tightly once again.

She told Kate that not having a past did not pose any problems. And Nina even got a little overexcited and said that if she wanted, they could build a future together as friends.

Kate, on the other hand, was literally shocked. While Kate was content with just nodding, Nina excitedly let go of Kate's hands and clapped her owns in the air. This was how their friendship, which was quite meaningful for both, began.

The beginning of their friendship

That night they stayed in the beds that Jack had made for them. Nina was acting incredibly protective of Kate's injuries, and Kate felt that day for the first time in years that she was worthy of being cared for as a person. Of course, this feeling was not long-lasting, but it was enough to create an involuntary smile on her lips. And that was enough for Kate for now.

Nina was constantly jumping from topic to topic while talking, occasionally not neglecting to ask Kate questions about her own thoughts. Nina realized that she was someone who didn't like to talk too much, and she didn't see extra talking as a problem because she knew that Kate was really listening her. 

Kate, on the other hand, was starting to feel more and more comfortable answering Nina's questions. Maybe this could have been due to her slowly creeping sleep, which came under the influence of medications. After saying goodnight, she finished talking. However, realizing that Nina may have thought that Kate was bored with herself, she offered that Nina could come to the proxy cabin for a few hours tomorrow if she wanted.

Nina instantly accepted this with the joy of having found a new friend. Although she was physically hurt while sleeping that night, she was emotionally relieved. A voice inside her was saying that they would both be good for each other.

Kate kept her promise. After the necessary check-up the next day, they set off for the proxy cabin. Nina was upset that Jeff hadn't called her even though she'd been away all night, but she didn't care about it as much as she usually did. Because she was no longer alone, she had a friend.

It was good for them that there was no one in the cabin. Both Kate didn't want to deal with others, and Nina wasn't ready to meet someone else yet. For a while they just hung out doing nothing and just chatted.

Kate then timidly asked Nina if she liked to play video games. Nina mentioned that she sucked at games and explained that's why she only watched other people play. Kate, on the other hand, in an even more shy manner, said that Nina could watch herself if she wanted to.

They played games for hours that day. They did not stop playing until nightfall came. And then Kate offered to take Nina to Jeff's cabin before it got too dark. Nina was actually staying alone in the same cabin with Jeff and Ben. Because they were considered one of the first inhabitants of the forest, and apart from the proxy cabin, other cabins had enough place for maximum 4-5 people.

Kate was very angry when she saw that Jeff was rude to Nina while dropping her off at the cabin, but when she saw that Nina was generally happy, she didn't say anything to avoid upsetting her. Then, when she was going to say goodbye to Nina and leave, Nina stopped her and gave her her number. Nina didn't have anywhere to write, so she asked if it would be a problem if she wrote in Kate's hand, and when Kate said yes, she wrote down her number. Then Nina asked for her own number and registered it.

After saying goodbye, Nina was waving enthusiastically to Kate from inside the cabin. Kate, too, shyly waved to her gently. When Kate turned around, she couldn't help but smiling.

When Kate came to the place where she was staying, she had a strange feeling inside. She wasn't sure what it was, but she liked it. Then, while she picked up her phone to check if there was any important message from Masky and Hoodie, she saw Nina's new message.

"Hiiiii, thx so much for helping me!!!!! Hop i can see ya soon sweetie :3333"

That day, Kate had found a real friend for herself. Maybe it could have been her first friend in her life. And she was glad of it.

Nina had found herself a true friend. Someone who really cared about her and doesn't use her for her own interests. There was a pleasant feeling in her.

Holly hell how long this shit is-

Also Nina's message might be out of character, English is not my main language and I'm not used to writing like that.

Sorry for shitty writing but I'm sick as hell

[polyamorousmood]

hey! I hope this isn't too non-traditional of a poly situation to be sending in, but this is the only place I think I'll be able to get good advice. As a pre-ask thing, to be clear, my best friend is the love of my life, I am aroace, we're very happily in love.

So, a while ago, we were dating, and it ended pretty quickly bc he came out as aroace. I asked him a lot whether or not that was the full reason he broke up with me and he insisted that it was and if it was going to be anyone it would have been me. I figured out that I was also aroace a couple months later. Recently (about a year after we first met and started dating) he got a boyfriend. I already set a firm boundary of no talking to me about his boyfriend bc it made me have a paranoid breakdown once and I don't want to do that to him, but even just the knowledge of him existing is pissing me off so much. I can't ask him to break up with him because I would never do thst to him and I love him more than anything even if this situation is hurting me like this, but I did recently ask him how the relationship was going with him being aroace, and he said that he isn't really aroace and he just wasn't ready for a relationship with me and thinking about that makes me want to cry. I don't want something romantic with him, I'm very much aroace and very sex and sensuality repulsed, I just hate that this random guy who I don't even know and never will (I don't want to bc I know I'd end up being a dick to him if I did meet him) is somehow more important to him than me, even if he insists thst isn't how it is. Since the situation isn't changing, I really need help with dealing with the jealousy. I've tried a ton of stuff and every single time I think about him I still want to kill him. I really don't know what to do, and my therapist isn't being particularly helpful (she isn't poly tho so she doesn't have experience with weird situations)

Hi. I'm sorry you're having such a hard time with this.

I'm curious how "he got a boyfriend" went down, and why you didn't bring up your concerns about his honestly to him when he was initially talking to you about it. Or if you did, why it still... doesn't seem resolved😬.

Not to put emotions in your mouth, but it sounds like a large proportion (though certainly not all) of your issue here stems from you feeling lied to about the breakup. This would damage anyone's trust and faith in the relationship, and I think having a formal talk about why he handled it the way he did and if that will continue in your refigured relationship will really help you. Maybe he didn't lie, maybe he was genuinely confused (for example, "if I can't make a relationship work with this person I feel a deep connection with, I must be aroace!" [one year later] "yo wtf I wanna fuck this other person?")! I think you should acknowledge -- with him, if possible -- that hurt. You feel like you want to cry? So cry. Giving the feeling full expression makes it easier to work through (and the only way out is through, darling).

Be prepared to explain why it hurts so much. The betrayal, your assumption that since he was aroace y'all were on the same page and he'd functionally be your life partner, or whatever the fuck.

Aside from the advice in this post (please read it in full📖, it is all applicable here), you have a LOT of legwork🦵 to do in unpacking and deconstructing your feelings. I think this worksheet outlines how to do that well (though, you know, tweak the wording in your head, because its aimed at a more traditional romance). If done right, it will be difficult and time consuming⌛. I recommend working through the worksheet slowly, in at least two separate sessions an hour or longer each. 'Cause shit takes time to sink in. In fact, you will have to remind yourself of the things you learn doing it for weeks to come, if not longer, so don't be afraid to revisit it! There is no shortcut, but I hope you and your best friend can be on the same page and you can have support while you navigate it.

Remember, the boyfriend didn't do anything wrong. He cares about this guy you care about. Try to see him as an extra support for him, rather than competition.

Good luck out there, space cowboy. There is hope 💛 <- its a yellow heart for friendship, get it?

[liskantope]

Here's a silly question out of left field: in your experience, are the women on dating websites disproportionately dog owners rather than cat owners?

Btw, I ask this as a cat lover who very much feels that female cat owners are not particularly well represented on the sites. Just curious if you've seen this, too, especially if you're a cat person.

(This is one of those asks from ages ago that I meant to answer at the time.)

Yes, one hundred percent, one thousand percent yes. I'm pretty sure I've ranted plenty about this before (I think in more posts than just the one I linked to above). The dog-obsessed dating profiles outnumber cat-owners by probably at least 8-to-1 (I'm not being hyperbolic here), and even more interestingly to me, there doesn't even seem to be such a thing as a cat-obsessed dating profile. Sure, there are women who mention having a cat in their dating profile and a few even say they love their cat. But with the dog-owners it's constantly "must love dogs" (such a common cliche that it's the title of a Family Guy episode!) / "my dog is my world" / some variation on "I like my dog better than all people" or "dogs > people" / "I'll never kick my dog out of bed for you" (my personal "favorite") / some variant of "I'm totally obsessed with my dog" ("my dog" was a frequent answer to Bumble's often-misinterpreted prompt "A fun fact I'm obsessed with:"). Whereas the cat-owners seem to have some awareness that their backs are against the wall as a small minority demographic in the online dating world and so don't dare act too enthusiastic: "must tolerate cats" / "please don't hate cats" / "I have cats and depression" (yes, this is an actual quote and pretty much says it all).

And yes, I am a cat person (although I've never owned one) and honestly don't much care for dogs. So this trend sucks for me personally -- in fact, it's one of several reasons I'm afraid to get a cat even though I often wish I had one.

[blessedarethebinarybreakers]

(I’m popping a extra disclaimer here because I don’t know if I worded this very well, and I understand if this isnt the kind if question you feel comfortable answering, but this is a genuine question made in good faith. I also apologise if this sounds really stupid)

I read one of your recent asks about inclusivism and it reminded me of something that always sat in the back of my mind with this train of thought.

If we say that everyone regardless of religion, or absence of it, gets into heaven, doesn’t that seem disrespectful to their faith. By saying that people of other religions get into christian heaven, is that not inadvertently telling them that their religion or their gods are fake, and that when they die it’ll be okay because they’ll learn the real truth? I hope this doesn’t come across as blunt or disrespectful to anyone, I’ve just never be able to come to a conclusion that isn’t exclusive (which is kind of a depressing thought), but is also respectful. Because it’s a beautiful idea that god loves us all regardless of who we are or what we believe, but what about people who have the kind of faith we do in a completely different god, or multiple gods, do they have the same thoughts about us? that their god loves us even though we dont believe?

I feel like I’m asking questions I’m not supposed to but I’m just really curious about your perspective if this is something you’re comfortable answering.

Hey anon, this is an important question, so thanks for asking it! You don't sound "stupid"; you're thinking like a theologian :) I'm probably not going to do it justice, I'm afraid, but maybe folks will hop on with more ideas or resources?

This got really long, so the TL;DR: I agree with you, and so do a lot of theologians and other thinkers!

In a religiously diverse world, it makes sense that people of various religions ponder where people outside their religions "fit" in their understanding of both the present world and whatever form of afterlife they have.

If someone has a firm personal belief in certain things taking place after death (from heaven to reincarnation), I don't think it's inherently wrong to imagine all kinds of people joining them in that experience, when it points to how that person recognizes the inherent holiness and value of all kinds of people, and shows that they long for continued community with & flourishing for those people.

However, this contemplation should be done with great care — especially when your religion is the dominant one in your culture; especially if your religion has a long history (and/or present) of colonialism and coerced conversions.

Ultimately, humility and openness are key! It's fine to have your own beliefs about humanity's place in this life and after death, but make yourself mindful of your own limited perspective. Accept you might be wrong in part or in whole! And be open to learning from others' ideas, and truly listening to them if they say something in your ideas has caused them or their community tangible harm.

In the rest of this post, I'll focus on a Christian perspective and keep grappling with how to consider these questions while honoring both one's personal faith and people all religions...without coming to any solid conclusions (sorry, but I don't think there's any one-size-fits-all or fully satisfying answer!).

I'll talk a bit about inclusivism and how it fails pretty miserably in this regard, and point towards religious pluralism as a possibly better (tho still imperfect) option.

And as usual I'll say I highly recommend Barbara Brown Taylor's book Holy Envy: Finding God in the Faith of Others to any Christians / cultural Christians who want to learn more about entering into mutual relationship with people of other religions.

In previous posts, I brought up the concepts of exclusivism, inclusivism, and religious pluralism without digging into their academic definitions and histories — partially because it's A Lot for a tumblr post, but also because it's by no means in my sphere of expertise. I worried about misrepresenting any viewpoint if I tried to get all academic, so I just stuck to my own personal opinions instead — but looking back at some posts, I see I didn't do a great job of clarifying that's what I was doing!

So now I'll go into what scholars mean when talking about these different viewpoints, with a huge caveat that I'm not an expert; I'm just drawing from notes and foggy memories from old seminary classes + this article from the Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy (IEP), and anyone interested in learning more should find scholarly articles or books rather than relying on some guy on tumblr!

Defining exclusivism, inclusivism, & religious pluralism

When we encounter traditions that offer differing and often conflicting "accounts of the nature of both mundane and supramundane reality, of the ultimate ends of human beings, and of the ways to achieve those ends" (IEP), how do we respond? Do we focus on difference and reject any truth in their views that conflicts with our views? Do we avoid looking too closely at the places we differ? try to find common ground? try to make their views fit ours?

Exclusivism, inclusivism, and religious pluralism are three categories into which we can place various responses to the reality of religious diversity.

It's important to note that this is only one categorization system one can use, and that these categories were developed within a Western, Christian context (by a guy named Alan Race in 1983). They are meant to be usable by persons of any religion — all sorts of people ask these questions about how their beliefs relate to others' beliefs — but largely do skew towards a Western, Christian way of understanding religion. (For one thing, there's a strong focus on salvation / afterlife and not all religions emphasize that stuff very much, if at all!)

Drawing primarily from this article on the Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy (IEP), here are basic definitions of each:

Exclusivist positions maintain that "only one set of belief claims or practices can ultimately be true or correct (in most cases, those of the one holding the position). A Christian exclusivist would therefore hold that the beliefs of non-Christians (and perhaps even Christians of other denominations) are in some way flawed, if not wholly false..." . (From my old class notes — Exclusivist Christians believe 3 things are non-negotiable: the unique authority of Jesus Christ as the apex of revelation; Jesus as normative; salvation exclusively through repentance and faith in Christ's work on the cross. Some will allow that God does provide some truths about Godself and humanity through general revelation, including truths found in other religious traditions, but the Biggest most Important revelation is still Jesus.) .

Inclusivist positions "recognize the possibility that more than one religious tradition can contain elements that are true or efficacious, while at the same time hold that only one tradition expresses ultimate religious truth most completely." . Christian inclusivists tend to focus on salvation, claiming that non-Christians can still achieve salvation — still through Jesus Christ. Sometimes they hold that any non-Christian whose life happens to fit Jesus's call to love God and neighbor, etc., will be saved. Other times they hold that only non-Christians who never had the chance to learn about Jesus can be saved; if you know about Christianity and reject it, it doesn't matter how "good"you are, you're doomed. .

Pluralist positions hold that "more than one set of beliefs or practices can be, at least partially and perhaps wholly, true or correct simultaneously." For Christian pluralists, that means believing that Jesus is not the one Way to God / to heaven/salvation; Christianity is one way of many, usually conceived of as all being on equal footing, to connect to the Divine. .

(These three categories are not all encompassing; the IEP article also brings up relativism and skepticism.)

Issues with Exclusivism & Inclusivism

I hope the issues with exclusivism are clear, but to name a few:

Christians who are taught that all non-Christians (or even the "wrong kind" of Christians) are doomed to hell are taught to see those people as Projects more than people — there's a perceived urgent need to convert them asap in order to "save them." The only kind of relationship you'd form with one of them is centered in efforts to convert them, rather than to live and learn alongside them as they are.

Doesn't matter if they are already happily committed to a different religion. In your eyes, they're wrong about feeling fulfilled and connected to the Divine.

Doesn't matter if you have to resort to violent and coercive practices like wiping out all signs of non-Christian culture or kidnapping non-Christian children to raise Christian — the ends justify the means because you're looking out for their "immortal souls."

...But what about inclusivism? If you're a Christian inclusivist, you aren't forcing anyone to convert to Christianity right now! You acknowledge that non-Christians can live holy and fulfilling lives! You even acknowledge that there's scraps of value in their valid-but-not-as-valid-as-Christianity religions! So what's the problem?

Turns out that this is a major case of one's good intentions not being nearly as important as one's impact.

You may be pushing back against exclusivism's outright refusal that non-Christians have any connection to the divine at all, which is nice and all — but by saying that non-Christians will basically become Christian after they die, you are still perpetuating our long history of coercive conversions.

There's a reason some scholars argue that inclusivism isn't actually a separate category from, but a sub-category of, exclusivism: you're still saying everyone has to be Christian, "so luckily you'll See The Light and become Christian after you die :)"

This is very reasonably offensive to many non-Christians. If nothing else, it's ludicrously smug and paternalistic! I won't get into it here but it only gets worse when some inclusivist positions try to get all Darwinian and start arranging religions from lower to higher, with Christianity as the "evolutionary" apex of religion ://

For now, I'll only go into detail about Catholic Jesuit theologian Karl Rahner's particular version of inclusivism, because it's quite common and really highlights the paternalism:

Rahner's Anonymous Christians:

A question that Catholics and other Christians struggled with in the 20th century was this: If non-Christians cannot be saved (because they held firm in believing that salvation must be in and through Christ), what happens if someone never even had the chance to learn about Christianity? Surely a loving God wouldn't write them an automatic ticket to hell when they're non-Christian through no fault of their own, right?

German Jesuit Karl Rahner's response was to conceive of a sort of abstract version of Christianity for non-Christians who lived good, faithful lives outside of official (what he called "constituted") Christianity:

"Anonymous Christianity means that a person lives in the grace of God and attains salvation outside of explicitly constituted Christianity. ...Let us say, a Buddhist monk…who, because he follows his conscience, attains salvation and lives in the grace of God; of him I must say that he is an anonymous Christian; if not, I would have to presuppose that there is a genuine path to salvation that really attains that goal, but that simply has nothing to do with Jesus Christ. But I cannot do that. And so, if I hold if everyone depends upon Jesus Christ for salvation, and if at the same time I hold that many live in the world who have not expressly recognized Jesus Christ, then there remains in my opinion nothing else but to take up this postulate of an anonymous Christianity." - Karl Rahner in Dialogue (1986), p. 135.

So someone who has intentionally devoted themselves to another religion, someone who does good work in that religion's name, is...secretly, unbeknownst to them, actually Christian?

I hope the offensiveness of that is clear — the condescension in implying these people are ignorant of what religion they "really" belong to! the assumption that Good deeds & virtues are always inherently Christian deeds & virtues! the arrogance of being so sure your own religion is The One Right Way that you have to construct a "back door" (as Hans Küng describes it) into it to shove in all these poor people who for whatever reason can't or don't choose to join it!

One theologian who criticized the paternalism of "anonymous Christianity" is John Hick, who was one of the big advocates for religious pluralism as a more respectful way of understanding non-Christian religions. So let's finally talk some more about pluralism!

Religious Pluralism!

As defined earlier, religious pluralist positions hold that there are many paths to the divine, and that all religions have access to some truths about the divine.

For Christians, this means rejecting those 3 non-negotiables of exclusionists about Christianity being the one true religion and Jesus being the one path to salvation. Instead of claiming that Christianity is the "most advanced" religion, pluralism claims that Christianity is just one religion among many, with no unique claim on the truth.

Some other pluralist points:

Pluralism resists antisemitic claims that Christianity is the "fulfillment" of (or that it "supercedes") Judaism.

Various religions provide independent access to salvation rather than everyone's salvation relying on Christ. (Note the still very Christian-skewed lens here in emphasizing salvation at all though!)

When we notice how different religions' truth claims conflict with one another, pluralists reconcile this by talking about how one's experience of truth is subjective.

Pluralism tends to give more authority to human experience than sacred texts

John Hicks' pluralist position

I mentioned before that Hicks is one of the big names in the religious pluralism scene. The IEP article I drew from earlier goes into much greater detail about his views and responses to it in the section titled "c. John Hick: the Pluralistic Hypothesis," but for a brief overview:

His central claim is that "diverse religious traditions have emerged as various finite, historical responses to a single transcendent, ultimate, divine reality. The diversity of traditions (and the belief claims they contain) is a product of the diversity of religious experiences among individuals and groups throughout history, and the various interpretations given to these experiences."

"As for the content of particular belief claims, Hick understands the personal deities of those traditions that posit them...as personae of the Real, explicitly invoking the connotation of a theatrical mask in the Latin word persona."

"Hick claims that all religious understandings of the Real are on equal footing insofar as they can only offer limited, phenomenal representations of transcendent truth."

We must accept that world religions are fundamentally different from each other, rather than falling into platitudes about how "we're all the same deep down"

Each religion has its own particular and comprehensive framework for understanding the world and human experience (i.e. we shouldn't use the normative Christian framework to describe other faiths)

Another angle: hospitality

As various philosophers and theologians have responded to and expanded upon pluralist frameworks, one big concept that some emphasize is hospitality: that all of us regardless of religion have an obligation to welcome others to all that is ours, if and when they have need of it — especially when they are of different cultures or religions from us.

Hospitality requires respect for those under our care, honoring and protecting their differences.

When we are the ones in need of hospitality, we should be able to expect the same.

Hospitality implies being able to anticipate our guest's needs, but we need to accept the impossibility of being able to guess every need, so communication is key!

Liberation theology & Pluralism

I also appreciate what liberation theologians have brought into the discussion. Here's from the IEP article:

"Liberation theology, which advocates a religious duty to aid those who are poor or suffering other forms of inequality and oppression, has had a significant influence on recent discussions of pluralism. The struggle against oppression can be seen as providing an enterprise in which members of diverse religious traditions can come together in solidarity.

"Paul F. Knitter, whose work serves as a prominent theological synthesis of liberation and pluralist perspectives, argues that engaging in interreligious dialogue is part and parcel of the ethical responsibility at the heart of liberation theology. He maintains not only that any liberation theology ought to be pluralistic, but also that any adequate theory of religious pluralism ought to include an ethical dimension oriented toward the goal of resisting injustice and oppression.

"Knitter claims that, if members of diverse religions are interested (as they should be) in encountering each other in dialogue and resolving their conflicts, this can only be done on the basis of some common ground. ..."

Knitter sees suffering as that common ground: "Suffering provides a common cause with which diverse religious traditions are concerned and towards which they can come together to craft a common agenda. Particular instances of suffering will, of course, differ from each other in their causes and effects; likewise, the practical details of work to alleviate suffering will almost necessarily be fleshed out differently by different religions, at different times and in different places. Nevertheless, Knitter maintains that suffering itself is a cross-cultural and universal phenomenon and should thus serve as the reference point for a practical religious pluralism. Confronting suffering will naturally give rise to solidarity, and pluralist respect and understanding can emerge from there."

Knitter also sees the planet as a source of literal common ground for us all: "Earth not only serves as a common physical location for all religious traditions, but it also provides these traditions with what Knitter calls a 'common cosmological story' (1995, p. 119). ...Knitter makes a case that different religious traditions share an ecological responsibility and that awareness of this shared responsibility, as it continues to emerge, can also serve as a basis for mutual understanding."

When Knitter and other liberation theologians speak of suffering or earth care as rallying points for interreligious solidarity, it's important to point out that such solidarity doesn't happen automatically: it is something we have to choose to commit to. We have to be courageous about challenging those who would pin suffering on another religious or cultural group. We have to be courageous about having difficult conversations, again and again. We have to learn how to work together for common goals even while accepting where we differ.

How to end this long ass post?

My hope is that as you read (or skimmed) all this, you were thinking about your own personal beliefs: where, if anywhere, do they fit among all these ideas? where would you like them to fit?

And, in the end, did I really address anon's question about whether it's disrespectful to people of other religions to assert that everyone is loved by God, or gets into heaven? Not really, because I don't know. I think it probably depends on context, and how one puts it, and how certain one acts about their ideas about God and heaven.

For me, it always comes down to humility about my own limited perspective, even while asserting that we all have a right to our personal beliefs, including ideas about what comes after this life.

When I imagine all human beings together in whatever comes next, I hope I do so not out of a desire for assimilation into my religion, but a desire to continue to learn from and alongside all kinds of people and beliefs. I hope I remain open to learning about how other people envision both what comes after death, and more importantly, what they think about life here and now. What can I learn from them about truth, kindness, justice? How can we work together to achieve those things for all creation, despite and in and through our differences?

I'll end with Eboo Patel's description of religious pluralism, which sums up much of how I feel, from his memoir Acts of Faith: The Story of an American Muslim:

"Religious pluralism is neither mere coexistence nor forced consensus. It is a form of proactive cooperation that affirms the identities of the constituent communities while emphasizing that the wellbeing of each and all depends on the health of the whole. It is the belief that the common good is best served when each community has a chance to make its unique contribution."

___

Further resources:

Explore my #religious pluralism tag for more thoughts and quotes

You might also enjoy wandering through my #interfaith tag

Two podcast episodes that draw from Eboo Patel, Barbara Brown Taylor, and other wonderful people: "No One Owns God: Readying yourself for respectful interfaith encounters" and "It's good to have wings, but you have to have roots too: Cultivating your own faith while embracing religious pluralism"

My tag with excerpts from Holy Envy

Post that includes links to various questions about heaven

Here’s a post where I talk about why I don’t believe in hell

My evangelism tag (tl;dr: I’m staunchly against prosletyzing to anyone who doesn’t explicitly request more info about Christianity)

[luneemeritus]

「Kisses in summer night」

(Leroux Erik / Christine) Romantic, SFW

NOTES: this is my first fanfiction i post here and i'm so nervous because english is not my first language, please be kind!! Btw, this is Leroux Erik and Leroux Christine 💋

━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━

A cold and orange afternoon covered the sky of Paris, the last glints of the sun slowly agonizing on the horizon before disappearing completely. This was the time when most men returned to their homes after a long day at work – and unfortunately, others were just beginning a journey of hellish fatigue. However, whatever was going on in the sick, dystopian world outside didn't interest Christine. The Scandinavian soprano has spent most of her recent days in the catacombs of Paris since she met her Maestro in person. She was certainly surprised to discover that the Angel of Music was a man of flesh and blood. A man she could touch and see. She considered him a divine gift, even as mortal and imperfect.

Christine was not forced to stay downstairs, and she was well aware that her adoptive mother and her acquaintances were curious and worried about her long periods of absence. But she couldn't resist. She loved spending hours and hours in that place, next to The Phantom. Her will was never to leave the dark catacombs again, never again to feel the fatal light of day burn her white and ruddy skin, and Erik's presence was her main reason. That afternoon, he was gone most of the day... he insisted on shopping for his student and guest, but all that stress and interaction with other people just made him irritable. Erik hated leaving the house, hated being in public and interacting with human beings. In addition to hatred, he was afraid. Poor Erik.

When he returned to his lair on that evening, he felt tired and sore after walking so far. He wasn't used to exercising, walking a lot or even leaving the house to get some sun. Yes, his care for his own health was questionable. But Christine still loved and admired him, and she cared for him even though she wouldn't admit it. She was engaged in academic reading during his absence, but as much fun and interesting as Nana was, Erik's arrival was far more important.

— Survived the outside world? – Christine asked in an ironic tone, closing the book and following her teacher's discouraged steps.

— Barely – he replied, tossing the shopping bags onto the couch and pulling off his cloak – I don't know how you manage to exist out there without freaking out.

Erik was visibly stressed and tired; his fingers trembled in agony, which always happens when he anxious. Despite this, he was still willing to sit down at the piano and try some composing. Christine moved closer to him, keeping her hands tucked into her dress – she wasn't sure it felt right to touch him right now.

— Try to get some rest, Maestro. You're not well, you won't be able to compose today.

— I'm fine, Christine. It's over... – his voice came out weak and trembling – the looks, that crowd of people squeezing me... it's over...

— Next time, I'll go with you. You've been so kind to me this week, sacrificing yourself out there to please me, I need to make it up to you somehow.

— Your presence alone is more reward than I deserve, Christine. – he made an effort to smile at her, it was still strange to express himself to other people without his mask.

Erik focused on the piano, still a little embarrassed by his student's proximity. It was stressful in every way imaginable, which reflected in his performance – he frequently missed notes when he was anxious, and his creative mind was still too blocked to write anything. But he didn't want the luxury of confessing his weaknesses to Christine; no, they weren't close enough. Not yet. He tried to ignore her presence there, avoiding eye or physical contact.

But what Erik didn't expect to feel at that moment were Christine's small and delicate hands touching his shoulders. And it wasn't just touching, she was massaging his stressed muscles. It wasn't long before he felt less sore, the muscles relaxing as Christine gently twisted them with her slender fingers. Yes, it was a very good feeling, even if it provoked an annoying shyness in the Maestro – but he would not be ignorant to refuse that privilege. Erik didn't know what to say, so he just stopped playing and accepted the affection. He was careful not to slump into her body or even sigh at the relief her hands brought him.

— You need to relax – Christine said at last – You're too hard on yourself. You don't have to be strong all the time, not by my side.

— Oh, hum, thanks. I-I... I don't know how to take care of myself. I didn't have the opportunity to learn how.

— Let me take care of you, then. – she realized that her suggestion left the Maestro awkward and embarrassed, he was still hesitant and shy.

Christine quickly sat down behind Erik in the small space left over from the bench and laid his head on her chest. She continued massaging his shoulders, this time he allowed himself to sigh at her soft touch. For a moment, all of her tiredness and stress from before was completely gone. He craved Christine's touch – as simple and chaste as it was – every day, every night, every moment. I craved them at levels that were painful, almost physically. But he was too insecure to ask for them, he felt like a damned gargoyle demanding the unworthy affection of a divine angel. Erik realized that he needed to surrender to his own desires every now and then... no, he didn't need to be strong all the time. Next to her, he could be himself.

Immersed in brief comfort, eyes closed, Erik was unprepared for the soprano's next move – she leaned in and placed a warm, lingering kiss on the crook of his neck. He opened his eyes in fright, his pale skin reddening like a cherry in a matter of seconds. Christine, still blushing with her, let out a soft, low laugh as she realized the effect her kiss had had on the Maestro.

— You look like a tomato – she said, in an amused tone.

— I-I noticed... and it's because of you... – Erik replied awkwardly, unable to hold back his shy smile as he rubbed his hands together.

Christine didn't answer, just gasped weakly and trailed kisses down the curve of his neck, feeling him grow warmer. She didn't stop there, pulling a little of his shirt away and kissing his shoulders. It was the first time she had heard Erik laugh and sigh, filled with a happiness and relief he never thought he could reach.

— You are so strange, Maestro – she commented, without stopping kissing him – You seek affection and when you receive it, you are scared.

— It was a quest… a bit platonic, at least that's what I thought. Oh! – he gasped, surprised to feel his student's sweet lips kissing his face – Oh, Christine… I don't deserve this. She kissed his cheek harder and caressed the other half of his face with her left hand while her right massaged Erik's chest.

— You deserve this and much more – Christine kissed the corner of his lip – Please start loving yourself the way I love you.

— I-I... – he turned his face slightly, receiving a chaste kiss on the lips – I'll try.

At that moment, it was his turn to act. Erik turned his torso to the side and hugged Christine tightly, kissing her passionately as he threaded his hands through the soprano's golden hair. He was hungry and desperate for her touch, for the sweet pink lips she possessed. She returned the affection and wrapped her arms around his neck, but it didn't take long for her to pull away from the kiss, gasping for air. Both were flushed, panting and smiling, caressing each other with their faces. Erik kissed her lightly on the forehead.

— I love you very much, Christine. Much more than my own life – he whispered – Let me sleep on top of you tonight, my Angel. All I want is to lay on your breasts and sleep hugging you.

— You will never be alone again, Erik. – she answered with a sweet smile and a calm, loving voice.

He buried his face in the crook of her neck, kissing and smelling her pale skin – now lightly flushed like a delicate tulip. She kissed him on the forehead and remained wrapped around him, her sun-colored hair falling over Erik's shoulder. Nights were never as calm as this one.

[sylvia-forest]

[CN] Shaw's bday ASMR - Summer Night Rhythm

⚡Warning: This post contains detailed spoilers for an ASMR which hasn't released in EN yet!⚡

[Transcript under the cut!]

Please please read the transcript along the video as to not to miss out his raspy, sleepy voice 💦

[sound of door knocking and cicada's]

came fast enough

It seems that you are very interested in my remodeled room

Okay

Getting smarter

I just took pictures of only one corner of the room on purpose

So that some "curious rabbits"

come bouncing

Eh

Why did you open your mouth and bite?

Don't mess with you?

Then i can't do that 

[MC bite shaw]

Hiss

OK, OK, OK.

You are very tired from working overtime these days

Soreness all over the body

Bad mood

You should be treated as a bodhisattva

[shaw cuckles]

Stop teasing you

Go inside

[sound of footsteps + shaw breathing] 

Just okay?

[shaw clicks his tongue]

The requirements are quite high

[sound of pressing buttons]

What about this

[shaw laughs]

Not bad

These sensor lights didn't take that much effort

I just did some stuff casually

Play the game this way 

It's more exciting when you watch a movie.

And when some people come to “board”

I won't trip over things when going to the bathroom in the middle of the night.

Don't know

I thought it was some thief going on duty for the first time

Clumsy

[MC beats shaw and bit him AGAIN]

Ah hiss

You're addicted to biting, right?

Why don't you put a row of tooth marks on my arm?

Then donate me to a museum

I have thought of the title of the work for you

just call

"Daily Life of a Rogue Rabbit"

[MC start walking out of the room and shaw grabbing her midway]

where are you going?

Angry?

Oh.... to turn on the lights

No need

Let's leave it like that.

Why are you looking at me with that expression?

What are you laughing at?

You're the one who got the wrong idea.

[shaw purposely lowering his voice to an octave]

Or are you thinking wrongly?

I see you are tired from work these two days

Dimly lit environment

Helps you relax a bit

[shaw clicks his tongue]

However

You really got it right today

Come

I'll show you a good thing

My new massage sofa

Isn't it a backache?

Come 

try

Comfortable?

The more comfortable ones are still behind.

I’ll adjust the first rate strength for you to begin off

[beeping sound]

Of course not bad

When have I ever gone wrong when I picked something

They’re all first class goods

what

only you can enjoy

Let me stand around and stare?

I won't do such a wasteful thing

If you don't want to be oppressed by me

just sit down

[shaw joins MC on the massaging chair]

Too crowded?

[shaw cuckles lightly]

Usually one meter eight of the bed is squeezed into one meter two by you

Why didn't I hear you complaining about that

[low humming sound of the massage chair + shaw breathing sounds]

Don't worry

I've asked

Although this is not a massage sofa for two people

But it’s okay for two people to use it at the same time

[rustling of clothes sound???]

It's okay

very comfortable

But isn't the strength a little bit less powerful?

Don’t you think so too?

[beeping + buzzing sounds from the chair + shaw moaning sounds]

What's wrong

Not enjoying the power of technology

You're afraid I'll fall asleep

i didn't slept

just close your eyes

What are you doing

So concerned about whether I am sleepy or not

[shaw yawns]

oh

Want to go out and watch a movie?

sure

Go later

[rustling of clothes + shaw clicking his tongue]

What are you messing with?

be honest

Didn't say not to go out to see

Let me get a rest for a while

Who said that if I shut my eyes for a while, it takes three hours

[shaw sleepy voice]

save your energy

tickling doesn't work on me

How come you got serious

[shaw grabs MC hands and whispers in a sleepy voice]

I've said it all, just sleep for a while

[continuous humming sound + shaw steady breathing]

Not asleep and awake

[from here on you’ll hear his raspy, sleepy voice which sounds so sexy]

Hey

Where are you putting your hands?

Thanks to you

I'm fully awake now

It's time to settle

Admit defeat?

I haven't done anything yet

Just surrendered straight away?

that's not right 

It can't be so easy

Itchy?

So you know how itchy it is too

then bear with it

I won't stop easily

you didn't find yourself

You’re extra rebellious today?

hmmmm

Ii’s right to just don't admit it

Rebels are like this

So ....

Got to cure

what am i doing

what else can i do

Of course, to settle the score

We got it back one by one

It won't take long.

that is

Just before dawn, I guess 

—

⚡ ASMR texts

[cooliogirl101]

Per my last post, I mentioned how hyperintuition might be an interesting signet power to explore, combined with Violet's intelligence. Here's an experiment in how that might play out:

"Why?" Violet asked, sounding genuinely curious. Xaden blinked. Out of all the responses he'd expected, that hadn't been one of them.

"Why shouldn't we be friends?" Violet repeated, after Xaden didn't respond.

"The history between our families isn't enough for you?" Xaden scoffed, injecting as much scorn as possible into his voice.

"We agreed a long time ago not to let what happened between our parents influence our relationship," Violet said calmly, looking at him with those too-perceptive eyes of hers. "Try again."

"Look, let's not make this more awkward than it has to be. We're already tied together through our dragons which is difficult enough as it is. Adding emotions into the mix--" Longing, fondness, admiration so intense it made this chest hurt. "--is only going to complicate things."

"If anything, that only provides more reason for us to become friends," Violet argued. "You're right, it's not an ideal situation, but the fact of the matter is, we're bound together because our dragons are mated to each other. Your life is tied to mine, we're never going to be able to be apart from each other for any significant amount of time. If that's the case, why not make the best of it? If we're going to be stuck together, isn't it better if things are amicable between us? Otherwise we're just both going to be miserable all the time."

It all seemed very logical to Violet. She didn't understand why Xaden was being so stubborn about this whole thing.

"Have you ever considered that maybe I just don't want to be friends with you?" He asked bitingly. "That I don't care for you and I don't particularly want to try?"

Hurt bubbled up like a river of acid in Violet's throat and she swallowed, feeling the corners of her eyes prickle. She ignored it, shoving it back down and expertly wiping her face clean of any emotion-- say what you want about Liilith Sorrengail but she had taught her daughter some things, one of which was putting up emotional walls-- and focused instead on the feeling of wrongness sitting like a weight in her chest.

"That excuse would work better if you hadn't spent the past several months seeking me out," she murmured. "There's a reason why you don't want to get close to me. Or rather, why you don't want me to get close to you, isn't there?" There was a bell-like humming in her ears. She was on the right track. "And it's not because you don't care-- if you wanted me to think that, you shouldn't have made me those daggers or commissioned me that saddle, Xaden."

She tilted her head in thought as she considered what she knew about Xaden Riorson. Or rather, what she didn't know.

"The secret meetings you've been having. The trips you've been taking. The thing you've been hiding from me," Violet said, watching Xaden's face carefully. "That wouldn't have anything to do with this, would it?"

She exhaled as the air seemed to shift to the tune of a puzzle piece sliding into place.

"If that's the case, perhaps you don't want me getting closer to you because it increases my chances of figuring out what you're involved in. As for why you're so determined to keep the truth from me...maybe you think I'll report what you're doing? No-- that's not quite it. Or at least, it's not the whole truth," Violet mused as her chest twinged uncomfortably. "Maybe you're afraid it'll change how I view you? I think that's part of it. Or is it that what you're involved in is so dangerous that getting closer to you could potentially endanger me by association?" The thrumming in her ears got louder, even as she watched Xaden stiffen abruptly. "That's got to be it, hasn't it?"

Xaden fought to keep his expression blank as Violet continued talking with the confidence of someone who had Magic itself telling her she was right.

Even before receiving her signet ability, her mind was something formidable. Afterwards? Now it was more than a little terrifying being on the other side of that intelligence.

"Of course, that's only part of the puzzle. Now, as for what you're hiding...well, obviously you're not the only one involved. Garrick and Bodhi are clearly in on it, quite possibly all the Marked ones are. Now, a secret that involves the children of the rebellion leaders and is so damning that you worry I'll turn against you and that even being friends with you would drag me down by association--" Her voice faded into silence as she let the implications sink in.

Xaden's eyes widened with something like panic. "It's not what you think--!"

"No, I don't think you're plotting another revolution, Xaden," Violet said quietly, cutting him off. He relaxed slightly. "The thing is, whatever you know, Sgaeyl knows, and what Sgaeyl knows, Tairn knows."

Isn't that right, Tairn? She asked the dragon who had been uncharacteristically quiet until now.

I chose you for your intelligence. Tairn let out a resigned sigh. It was all the answer she needed.

"And if Tairn chose to keep this from me, then whatever you're doing is not something that will put me or Navarre at risk. But it is something that you would be killed for doing." Violet paused. "Well, I hate to break it to you, but I don't think any amount of ignorance or emotional distance between us is going to shield me from getting dragged along with you if you go down. So let me ask you again, Xaden, because I think I have a right to know-- what are you hiding from me?"

A pause. Then Andarna's voice piped up in her head, impressed.

You got all that from 'I don't want to be friends with you'?!

(Violet: I don't like to pry into my friends' secrets. They're entitled to their privacy.

Xaden: We're not friends.

Violet: ...

Violet: Gonna make you regret saying that.)

[purupurple]

wow look i have a kofi! in fact i always have, but i haven't really advertised it for a long while now and unfortunately, there's a reason for me bringing it up. i'll go ahead and spare you the details but i've been quite unwell lately, enough so that i now need money. said money is for mostly paying bills (thank you america very cool) but may be used for groceries and pet care.

so the deal is this: you give me 5 kofis ($15 dollars), and i will draw you a sketch. there are more examples that i've done on my kofi page if you're curious. as i am currently still feeling pretty icky, its going to take me a bit longer than usual to be able to deliver requests. if you'd also like to just donate just to donate, that's very much appreciated! anything helps, even just a little. and please, don't feel like you're obligated to donate if you don't think you can. you can still help in other ways like spreading the word! i would be ever so grateful.

anyways, i have a post on kofi for more info about what i do and don't do, so please: take a look! don't be afraid to ask me any questions if you're not sure about something.

i know it's a long post, but i wouldn't really be posting this at all if i didn't need the help. thank you for reading, and thank you in advance if you spread this around and/or donate!! have a nice day!

[penelopecolinb]

Hi, nat! I became a big fan of POLIN after watching season 3 of BRIDGERTON, and for the past two months, I've been obsessed with everything about Polin and even reading your fanfiction! I don't read English very well, but with the help of a translator, I've been devouring all of your fics these past few weeks! The way you describe Polin’s relationship, Colin's character, and their intimacy is so sexy and mesmerizing, and I feel like this could only be done by you. I especially love the way you describe Colin's possessiveness and obsession, which is never unpleasant, but rather charming, because it shows his purity towards Penelope...

I have so many questions for you since you write such amazing fiction... I don't want to bother you, but if you have time, I'd love for you to answer them!

1. you wrote a fanfiction of Polin before season 3 was released, and I'm curious what it is about this couple that fascinated you! Are you a fan of the original show?

2. i was wondering how you viewed season 3, because despite the fact that your fic was written before season 3 was released, i felt that the Colin from the show and the Colin from your novel were very similar, especially in terms of Colin being insecure about Pen's love and being afraid that he wouldn't be a better man for her, and trying to hold on to her, even having sex with her right after they got engaged! I know that part 2 left fans disappointed in terms of length and other aspects, but do you think the show satisfied you?

3. last but not least...I was actually going to ask you if you'd be willing to release a new ONE SHOT fic during this Bonus Polin Week! Then I read your most recent one, SPARE HEART, and I found out that you're in a difficult situation to write fics. I'm so sad for you, but I hope your situation will turn out the way you want it to be soon. It's a great pain for me to know that my favorite fanfiction author is in a bad situation!

Your fics have given me so much comfort and strength!!! 🥺 I can't wait until you start posting fanfiction again! And I'm Korean, and I just wanted to let you know that in the Korean online community I'm in, there are a lot of compliments and mentions of your fics!! I love you!!! If I'm approved to join Ao3, I promise to leave comments and kudos on your fics in the future 😘😘

oh god my darling, thank you so so so much for this lovely message, my heart is so full 💖💖

i'll be happy to answer any questions you (or anyone else) might have!

yes, i was a casual viewer of the original series. i got into it even more when queen charlotte came out, and then i just started loving the angst of pen overhearing colin say that shit about never courting her. i went into a deep dive on polin ao3 and never came back!

im hesitant to answer any questions about the show because i dont want to be a hater. i didnt like a lot of the decisions the writers made - not just in part 2, but part 1 too. i think i'll leave it at that. i feel that thinking of the many many things that i wasn't satisfied by really overshadowed the few parts of the series i genuinely liked.

oh, bless your heart. thank you so much for your kind words. i'm trying to finish spare heart at the moment, and then i have a oneshot coming up (but not in polin week) for the polin x care for gaza raffle winner. and after that, i do have a few ideas i wanna start on! so hopefully i will be able to write, but probably not as frequently as i do now.

that is so insane to me, that the polin community in korea have an awareness of my fic and talk about it and really like it 😭😭😭😭😭 thank you for sharing that with me! im so so so glad that my fics have such a broad reach. please pass on my thanks to the lovely korean online community you're in!

i hope you, my lovely friend, have a wonderful, wonderful day!

[nikoldragonne12]

Poll about Czechia (update):

There's already 8 votes at the poll about my home country Czechia and that's great... but out of curiosity, I also voted (yes, the 9th vote is mine) and noticed that there's a lot of "YES" answers but no comments with questions and it's not the first time - it already happened to me in a different poll.

Guys, you don't have to be afraid to ask about anything you would like to know about Czechia/Czech Republic. If you're curious and your questions won’t be rude or something like that, I have no problem to answer.

I try my best to always answer every question.

I was actually thinking about making some posts about my country earlier, mainly after I saw a czech series where foreigners were supposed to try czech dishes, read our books, watch some czech movies etc. and most of them had wrong information and thoughts about us that were repeated there several times. The most significant of them being:

"Czechia is in the Eastern Europe/is a part of Russia." My answer: We're in a Central Europe and we're not a part of Russia.

"Dr*gs are legal in Czechia." My answer: Dr*gs are illegal in our country.

"Czechia a sea or that we're an island." My answer: We're a landlocked country.

"Czech people have no inventors/scientists etc. in our historiy who made/found something that's still used nowadays and even in different countries." My answer: We have famous inventors and scientists in our history. For example, prof. Otto Wichterle, the inventor of contact lences.

"Czechoslovakia!" My answer: Czechs and Slovaks are two different nationalities and despite being together in one country for a long time, we are two separated countries since 1992/1993. I was already born to Czechia/The Czech Republic, not to Czechoslovakia.

There are more myths and/or wrong information and I don't remember everything they say - these are just the most often ones.

This all led me to an idea that I should explain some interesting things about Czech people and/or to break some myths about us, however, I also wanted to talk about something that would interest you, guys.

Therefore, if your answer in my poll is YES, write that question as a comment under the poll. I'll answer you privately (my answers tends to be long) and then I'll explain the topic of the question publically in a post.

The link for the poll: