#It’s a hefty role to carry but he carries it well

[random-kido]

He’s a little confused but he’s got the spirit 🩷💜💙

[yeyinde]

The 141 finding out you've never had sex.

Just casually drinking, playing cards. A joke causes it to slip out.

body electric: the virgin edition

Gaz, the instigator, mutters something about not having been fucked in ages. this springs up a sudden surge of comradery, because, yeah. neither have they.

Soap's devote Catholicism (i like to imagine) leaves little room for flippant intimacy. he tries to be a good boy. key word, of course, being: tries. but the last serious relationship was years ago. back when he was grunt. he's pent up. abstinence, yeah? he holds it tight in his hand. but the thing about fists is that they're often mistaken for anger. Soap's a realist masquerading as an optimist. he knows whoever falls into his jowls next will be a MacTavish by the time he's through with them. and commitment. well. his comes at a price. a hefty one.

Ghost prefers casual flings where he doesn't have to take any clothes off. unzips his trousers, frees his cock, and then tries to pretend he's a real, flesh and blood, human. to feel something, anything, except a vacuum between hollow bones. but his tastes are peculiar. on the side of unhinged. he hasn't found the perfect body yet satiate himself with.

Price. well. with his bloody hands, he thinks he'd rather not dirty the same people he swears to protect. and divorcing at the age of 30 does that to a man, maybe. his role as a captain (an excuse in retrospect) also keeps him from unleashing his wants. the very same ones that are probably best under lock and key, anyway. it's just for the best, really. something he ought to do because the moment he has another chance to sink his teeth into someone's neck, he'll tear them apart. break them into pieces.

despite bringing it up, Gaz knows the real reason he's single is because he's pushy. he wants. so he takes. and then takes some more. more. more. until his gullet is full of the person he's obsessed with. carrying them around in his breast pocket everywhere he goes. the perfect mate. the one he can shower with unfettered affection. a deluge, in all honesty. one with the ideation to drown. biblical floods. trapped beneath him. he likes it more than he should, but. singedom, then, he supposes.

and then you roll the dice. admit, sheepishly, that, technically, you have them all beat. zero is always lesser than five, ten, twenty. but it's this misstep—zero, never—that catches their attention.

suddenly, you're not surrounded by kin but a pack of wolves. all hungry in their own ways, all starving. it just makes sense to quench their hunger with you, doesn't it? friend, ally. pretty little thing. so sweet for them. and perfectly mouldable. putty they shape to their hearts desire. the perfect mate.

Soap grips his rosary. the sign of the cross, heavenly Father and Holy Spirit, digging into his palm like the burn of a baptism. what's devotion if not pain? he cuts himself on the gold. offers blood of the sacrament to whoever might be listening, and leans in, sniffing.

Price's knuckles are white. he leans back, hidden in shadows. all you can see is spark of burning orange from his cigar as he takes mouthful after mouthful of smoke, contemplating. assessing.

"that so?" he doesn't even need to look at his Lieutenant to know that the man has gone still. too bad for you, it's not from shock.

Ghost barely holds himself back. keeps tight in his seat. fists clenching. unclenching. he has a good enough read on the people around him to see the unfiltered desire ripping across their face. scorching. but to bite, with his mouthful of jagged, seraded teeth; ones meant to rip, break, tear, would ruin you. permanently. unequivocally. and—

"wanna give it a go?" all eyes turn to Gaz, electric in his seat. eyes smouldering umbre. "i mean, you trust us the most, don't you?" us. it's stunning, he thinks, the way Gaz can weave tapestry in the air like this with just his words. one tangled like shibari binds. "and we care for you a lot. we'll be gentle. it's up to you, of course, but—"

Soap's bloody hand disappears under the table. you gasp. "yer askin' fer it, ain't ye? beggin' so pretty fer it."

"n-no, i—"

"mind your manners." Price. his voice is chiselled into char, authoritative; low. a lulling command spoken in a breath of smoke. "and don't lie, love. or i'll have to take you over my knee."

the tension is thick. Soap's arm moves, slow. deliberate. Ghost has clench his jaw to avoid bearing his teeth. snarling.

Gaz cuts it with a knife. hews compliance into your skin with a fine needle point. "it's okay. we'll take such good care'a you. make you feel so good."

your submission is a heavy thing. oppressive. the shallow dip of your chin, the blistering heat simmering under your flesh, burning right, is the prettiest fuckin' thing he's ever seen. he does clench his jaw this time. tight, tight. tight

until something pops.

"okay." you yield. head bowed. beautifully submissive.

when he looks around, catches the predatory crackle in the air. his hackles raise. immediate. instinctual. and ah, right.

it's easy to forget he's surrounded by a wild pack of stray dogs. starving ones, too.

[jadelotusflower]

Rewatch: Return to Oz (1985)

I've been on a bit of an Oz kick recently, revisiting the original Baum books and of course anticipating Wicked coming out later this year (which I'm managing expectations for to avoid disappointment).

Return to Oz was a staple (and nightmare fuel) for many a millennial childhood, at the tail end of the "dark fantasy" era popularised by The Neverending Story and The Dark Crystal, the antithesis of the Technicolour, musical world of MGM's The Wizard of Oz - a dystopian future that reflects the fracturing of Dorothy's mind and her inability to reconcile the trauma of her previous Kansas-Oz journey.

Return lives in a sort of mirror world to the 1939 film, taking elements such as the ruby slippers (for which Disney had to pay MGM a hefty fee), but returning to the original illustrations for the character designs, and drawing inspiration from Baum's novels but not explicitly adapting them. It also returns Dorothy to a child rather than Garland's quasi-teenager, which is important as I feel Baum (an advocate of women's suffrage) had a keen interest in the empowerment of girls as the heroes of their own stories.

To evoke that other turn of the century fantasy classic, Dorothy is to early modern American folklore as Alice is to English, and if The Wizard of Oz is Wonderland, Return to Oz is Through the Looking Glass. In fact Return relies heavily on the mirror motif, not only literally, in the mirror that entraps Ozma, but Ozma herself as a mirror to Dorothy. Return also takes the Kansas/Oz dichotomy from the film in reflecting people Dorothy knows in Kansas to characters of Oz (a concept not found in the books), but while in Wizard it’s Dorothy’s trio of friends that are personified in the Scarecrow, Tinman, and Cowardly Lion, in Return it is her trio of antagonists from Kansas who appear in Oz - the Dr Worley/The Nome King, Nurse Wilson/Mombi, and the Orderly/Wheeler.

Her Oz friends in Return are instead pulled from inanimate objects - Ozma gives her a pumpkin that personifies in Jack Pumpkinhead, Tik-Tok resembles the "Electrical Therapy" machine with the face, and the gump...well, I guess they forgot about that one.

But I'm getting ahead of myself.

Fairuza Balk was just 11 but has a compelling screen presence - her Dorothy is troubled and serious, befitting the overall darker tone of the film. While she would go on to embody "witchy" energy in later roles, here there's a world-weariness yet innate strength to her Dorothy.

Aunt Em helpfully tells us it's been six months since the tornado and Dorothy can't sleep. Her body may be back in Kansas, but her mind remains in Oz.

The film doesn't really pick a lane between the "it was all a dream" of the 1939 film and the "Oz is an actual place" of the books, leaving it for the viewer to decide. We are told the old house was "lost" but that can suit either interpretation, same with the OZ key being either delivered by shooting star or the key to the old house (as Em posits). Dorothy's inability to sleep is either unresolved trauma from the tornado, or longing to return to her friends in Oz and/or sensing that there is trouble in Oz.

I'm much more sympathetic to Em as an adult - she has a husband unable or unwilling to finish building the new house, Dorothy won't stop rabbiting on about nonsense rather than helping with chores, and she has to borrow money from her sister to pay for medical treatment to try and cure Dorothy's insomnia.

Justice for Aunt Em! Played with grace by three-time Oscar nominee Piper Laurie (for The Hustler, Carrie, and Children of a Lesser God respectively).

Poor Toto doesn't get to come on this adventure, but hey, he's still around, guess Mrs Gulch didn't make good on her threat to have him destroyed (or she died in the tornado, which is probably likely given the Witch's fate).

Just a guy patronizing a child that the machine intended to surge electricity through her brain is perfectly safe because it has a face.

But there is a face in the machine - Ozma, stuck in the glass.

Nicol Williamson is our villain, with a fantastic voice. Mostly known for theatre and Shakespeare, you may remember him as Merlin from that other dark fantasy classic Excalibur, or as Little John from Robin and Marian.

Jean Marsh is our witch, complete with black gown and pointed sleeves - to continue our fantasy bingo she was Queen Bavmorda in Willow (which I've actually never seen) and Rose in the original Upstairs Downstairs (which I've never seen either). She'll always be creepy Mombi to me.

We see Ozma in the glass again before she appears in Dorothy's room, ethereal barefoot child gifting her a carved pumpkin because "it's Halloween soon". Okay, whatever you have to do to get there.

On that note, the screenplay was written by Gill Dennis (who would go on to co-write Walk the Line) and Walter Murch, who also directed. Murch was film school friends with George Lucas, and they wrote THX-1138 together - Lucas has a "special thanks" credit on this film. Murch worked steadily in sound design and editing (nominated for 10 Oscars with 4 wins), but after Return was a box office failure he never directed another film, which is a real shame.

Dorothy "combs" the pumpkins hair, which I find very charming.

The growing tension of Dorothy's isolation, being strapped to the gurney, the squeaking wheels, the far-off screaming: this is a horror film for children.

My sister and I used to re-create Ozma and Dorothy's escape on our grandmother's porch all the time.

Because we’re in a mirror, the streaming river of Kansas becomes the deadly desert of Oz - water, of course, also being a mirror and common pathway/doorway between worlds.

Billina the hen also appears, because Dorothy needs an animal companion, who can now talk because she is in Oz. The question is whether Toto could also talk, as all animals can in Oz, and simply chose not to (iirc in the books he didn't because he could "make himself understood" without words or something). The chicken puppetry is really quite good, I'll always prefer puppets/animatronics over cgi.

The voice of Billina is provided by Denise Bryer, who was the "junk lady" in Labyrinth (have we got that bingo yet?).

Another reflection - the packed lunch that was taken from Dorothy at the sanitarium in Kansas is returned to her in the form of a lunch pail tree in Oz, which leans towards the reading that Oz is a projection of Dorothy's mind as a way to cope and resolve/repair the traumas of her Kansas life.

Dorothy comes across her old house that is seemingly not in Munchkinland, the broken remains of the yellow brick road nearby. How much time has passed in Oz? Since everyone was turned to stone it could be hundreds of years and we're in a Narnia situation - at least long enough for a forest to grow where there once was a munchkin town square.

Glinda is conspicuous by her absence - probably because the plot couldn't happen if she was around.

Also absent are any stone munchkins which has very dark implications - the Emerald City still has ruins and stone inhabitants, but Munchkinland has been completely obliterated.

lol, Dorothy runs to the Emerald City in literally minutes, a journey that previously took half a film.

Sleep well, kids!

If we go with the interpretation that Oz is a manifestation of Dorothy's mind (maladaptive daydreaming?), it is interesting how she projects people and objects from her real life into her fantasy life - obviously her threats in the sanitarium become the villains, but the Electric Shock machine becomes Tik-Tok, her erstwhile protector. In this, she transforms a threat into an ally, and yet much is made that he isn't, and cannot be, "alive."

Many of the elements of this film - Billina, the Wheelers, Tik-Tok, the Nome King, and the princess with a hundred heads - came from Ozma of Oz, while Ozma herself, Jack Pumpkinhead, and the witch Mombi (combined in this film with Princess Langwidere) originate in the earlier The Marvellous Land of Oz, with a different backstory.

Oh to be a wicked witch, playing a mandolin, in a gilded, mirrored palace.

I enjoy this costume! Reflective of the high structured sleeves of nurse but sharp to emphasise the danger Mombi poses, and with the same mechanical accents/coloiur scheme as the Wheelers

Those cabinets full of heads are still so creepy. The way they watch Dorothy - are they alive and aware the whole time? Horrifying.

Jack Pumpkinhead was voiced by a young Brian Henson (who also acted as puppeteer).

I always used to fast-forward the scene where Dorothy steals the key and gets chased by headless Mombi as a kid, it was just too tense.

I mean maybe this isn't scary to kids today, but it sure freaked the fuck out of me. Especially with all of those heads screaming in their cabinets.

But how exactly was zombie Mombi snoring without a head?

Interesting that the cabinet with Mombi's original head is the only one without transparent glass, but instead has a mirror. Her original head is also kept in cabinet 31, which was Dorothy's room in the sanitarium. As a kid I was always dead set that Oz was real and Dorothy really went there, but now I'm leaning more towards Oz as a manifestation, or at least a world directly influenced and constantly adapting based on Dorothy's experiences. Was she unable to sleep in Kansas because she knew Oz was in trouble, or was Oz in trouble because of her mental discord?

"If his brain's run down, how can he talk?" "It happens to people all the time Jack!" is a nice callback to "Some people without brains do an awful lot of talking don't they?"

In which we strain the metaphor.

But all these mirrors also serve a story purpose as well as a metaphorical one - the mirror world is where Mombi has trapped Ozma, so she can look on every surface and see her victory. The mirror is also a connection with the real world, and how Ozma can reach Dorothy and draw her back to Oz. Mirrors are reflections, but they are also doorways, as we see in this very scene as Ozma directs Dorothy to the right passage to get back up to the tower.

We also get another Dorothy/Ozma parallel, in which she becomes a surrogate mother to Jack in place of Ozma, his creator.

There's almost some social commentary in the Nome King's grievances: "All the previous stones in the world are made here in my underground dominions...so imagine how I feel when someone from the world above digs down and steals my treasures? All those emeralds in the Emerald City really belong to me. I was just taking back what was mine to begin with." But of course he didn't just take back the emeralds, he turned the populace to stone or into inanimate objects so that does undercut his point a bit.

Her descent visually recalls (deliberate or not) Alice's fall down the rabbit hole in Wonderland. The VFX are pretty rough though.

Dorothy points out that he has so much, implying perhaps he could share, and the Nome King retorts "that's not the point." It is the point in later books, where under Ozma's leadership the Emerald City is essentially a utopian communal living society.

She also points out that the Scarecrow didn't take the emeralds rather they were there when he was made king, but the film is uninterested in exploring the culpability around generational wealth and repatriation of cultural property.

But it's interesting how much the Oz story revolves around powerful objects and theft and/or appropriation of them. Glinda steals the Witch of the East's ruby slippers and gives them to Dorothy, who then steals the Witch of the West's broom to give to the Wizard, Mombi steals Ozma, someone stole the emeralds from the Nome King, who steals them back, Mombi steals heads, Dorothy steals the Powder of Life, etc etc

At this point the Nome King is merely a face in the stone, but when he comforts Dorothy he starts to takes a more humanoid rock form, with a hand to reach out to her.

Is his sympathy genuine or feigned? I'm going with the latter, since he manipulates her into playing the "guessing game" to try and get the Scarecrow back.

Worst production of Starlight Express ever.

When I was a kid I always wanted to try the limestone pie and hot silver drink, but now it looks super gross.

The Gump chose…poorly.

The Nome King making points again - Dorothy and co didn't ask what would happen if they got it wrong, even Tik-Tok only brings it up after the Gump has already gone in. But they press on in order of most expendable, Jack (with Billina hiding in his head) and then Tik-Tok.

As each get turned into ornaments, we see the Nome King become more and more humanised in his rock form - a nice subtle indication that his motives aren't purely spite and he gains power from turning living (or living-adjacent) things into inanimate objects, the opposite (mirror) of Dorothy's power in turning inanimate objects into living things in the journey from Kansas to Oz. If Dorothy had chosen wrong too, he says he would have become completely human - would he have been able to access the path to the human world? Was his goal to eliminate Oz, the fantasy world, in favour of the human world, much like Worley was obsessed with harnessing electricity and the "modern" world?

It's revealed that Chekhov's ruby slippers that Dorothy earlier told Dr Worley had fallen off on her way back to Kansas the first time were found by the Nome King, and their power enabled him to conquer the Emerald City.

It's unclear whether the rubies were first mined from the Nome King's caverns, but Dorothy really can't complain given the shoes were magicked off the feet of a dead woman and onto her own.

I'm actually surprised that they kept the ruby slippers in given the license fee they had to pay, since nothing really turns on their inclusion, other than the Nome King's offer to send her home with them, allowing Dorothy the choice between her own safety and the lives of her friends, of course the parallel to Worley offering the ECT to wipe her mind of Oz. I do like the callback, but it didn't need to be the ruby slippers rather than some other power the Nome King had.

Hee, the Nome King's little stone feet kicking out of his stone robe with the ruby slippers is so camp.

It is interesting through to think about the chain of events - Dorothy, eager to get back home, lets go of the ruby slippers, they fall into the Nome King's hands, he uses them to conquer Oz and install Mombi, who has imprisoned Ozma in the mirror (at some point long in the past). The fracturing of Oz influences Dorothy's mental state which drives her to Worley, where Ozma is able to contact her through the mirror world and bring her back to Oz, depose the Nome King/Mombi, and restore Ozma to her throne. It's quite neat writing.

There's an interesting green/red dichotomy - red seems to represent the witch's power, the ruby slippers that originally belonged to the Witch of the East, Mombi's ruby key, fire/red smoke being used by the Witch of the West, and even pink was the colour associated with Glinda in the 1939 film, while green represents Oz in the ornaments they turn into, the Emerald City, the Gump is green, etc. Both rubies and emeralds are present in the Nome King's costuming, perhaps indicating that the raw items did come from his dominions.

When Dorothy chooses correctly, the Nome King reverts to his claymation rock form, and the room turns red. I don't think it's explicitly green=good and red=bad (the Witch of the West had green screen after all), but both are associated with power.

I always used to fast forward this sequence as well. The Nomes coming out of the walls? *shudder*

The Nome King, felled by a classic egg poisoning.

Dorothy liberates the ruby slippers from another dead body, lol.

At the celebration in Oz, the costuming does lean heavily into either red or green - so maybe that was just standard complementary colour palette and I'm reading too much into things.

We get a nice long pan over the mirrored ceiling of the parade, just to really hit the point home.

Oh hey, the Wheelers are here too! All is forgiven I guess? Except Mombi, she gets to be paraded about in her cage by the woman whose heads she stole. Hey, at least she's able to smirk about her villainy.

Dorothy turns down queenship of Oz but wishes she "could be in both places at the same time" - the ruby slippers grant her wish and Ozma is released from the mirror.

Ozma's backstory: "Her father was king of Oz before the Wizard came. Ozma grew up as Mombi's slave, but when the Nome King promised Mombi thirty beautiful heads if she kept Ozma a secret, she enchanted her into the mirror." The first part is the much the same in the book, although there we get some interesting gender-bending stuff where Mombi transforms her into a boy name Tip and she doesn't discover her true nature until much later.

Dorothy gives Ozma the ruby slippers, combining the power of green and red (I'm just going with it now), therefore healing the kingdom of Oz from the discord first created when the Wizard arrived (in the book he was the one who gave baby Ozma to Mombi), and drawing Ozma's real world counterpart Dorothy to fix it by deposing the Wicked Witches and then the Nome King. But with Ozma returned, there is no need for Dorothy to remain in Oz, the two sides of herself are split and no longer warring inside her.

Billina however remains, to be Ozma's animal counterpart to Dorothy's Toto.

As a kid I coveted this gown, and I still kind of dig the headdress. Well, the OZ circlet anyway.

I also acted out the pulling Ozma from the mirror scene many times.

Although kind of a bitch move on Ozma's part to send Dorothy back before she could give her proper goodbyes. It's like, off you pop, thanks for freeing me but this is my kingdom now.

Dorothy wakes up beside the river (with a close up of a reflective pool of water/Dorothy's eye), and again, this could either be her actually returned by Ozma, or her simply waking from her delirium.

But the real world counterparts have met the same fate as their Oz reflections - Worley died in the fire and Wilson is carried off in a police cart.

Henry, after the shock of almost losing Dorothy, is motivated to finish building the house, and Dorothy is able to look back fondly at Oz through her reflection, but has learned to keep it a secret and not let it consume her life.

Her trauma is resolved, Oz is at peace; Dorothy and Ozma can live contentedly in parallel, with a connection between both worlds.

This is also a nice callback to the books, where Ozma would check in on Dorothy once a day through her magic mirror to see if she needed her assistance.

Maybe it's just my nostalgia goggles, but this film really holds up for me! Yes the effects are a little dated and it's on the darker side for kid's fare, but overall the story and acting is strong, there's meaty subtext around the importance - but necessary limits - of fantasy as escapism, it unequivocally centers girls/women as the heart of the story with their own agency and harnessing their own power. It's well worth the rewatch.

What do you think? Am I blinded by nostalgia? Reading way too much into a kids movie? Am I just rambling into the void here?

[dominiquelucalover]

May I request Street's or Deac's girlfriend gifting the team hats she crocheted 🧶 for Christmas 🎄? I'd love to see her plus sized if you don't mind! (I totally didn't request this because I've made almost 10 hats for Christmas)

Giving Season | Jim Street x Plus-Sized!Fem!Reader

CW: nothing but fluff!

The Christmas season was always your favorite time of year; the pretty lights, the warm and fuzzy feelings going around, and showing everyone around you how much you appreciate them through gift giving and spending time together. It was amazing and fun and wonderful.

When you started dating Jim Street, he invited you to hang out with his SWAT family from time to time. After a while, you were practically a part of that family. Street adored you and talked about you all the time, as his teammates would tell you, and they'd tease him for it in a loving manner. You were just was enamored by him, which they could tell by the way you held onto his arm and looked at him with nothing but love in your eyes. So, it was a no-brainer to invite you to SWAT family Christmas.

You were so excited, planning for the day of with vigor and creativity. You began working on gifts for everyone, thinking of the perfect colors to use and whether or not to had a puff ball on the top. You were in a hat making frenzy, crocheting to your heart's desire. To say your living room was strewn with yarn, charms, and other materials was an understatement. A tornado of inspiration had torn through your place and you were on a roll. By the time Christmas Eve approached, which was when you were exchanging gifts with the team, you had a hefty amount of wrapped gift boxes in a large bag to carry.

Street picked you up and took the bag from you, being quite the gentleman. He drove to the little party being thrown at his and Luca's place, which was decked out with Christmas lights and a nice, humble tree. Christmas mucis instrumentals played softly over the speakers as Luca finished putting out a hot cocoa bar.

You were welcomed with hugs and bright, cheery grins. Tan saw the bag as Street brought it in, rubbing his hands together.

"What'd you get us?" he asked, almost sounding like a child on Christmas day.

You laughed. "You'll have to wait and see."

Street put the bag down and you unpacked everything to place under the tree. You'd spent time wrapping the little boxes and putting pretty bows on them. They were the prettiest gifts under the Christmas tree, which Hondo mentioned as he watched you.

"Outdoing us all on the Christmas wrapping game, huh?" he joked.

You laughed and stood up, folding the bag down. "Well, what can I say? I come from a long line of gift wrapping masters."

From there, the party really started. You socialized with everyone and ate cookies and other goodies. You and Street made hot cocoa and nearly made a mess of the kitchen, making the both of you laugh. Everyone was having fun, eventually calming down enough to sit in the living room.

You took the role of handing out gifts to everyone. Most were gag gifts but got a nice laugh out of everyone. A few gifts were genuine and thoughtful. Street got you a shirt that 'My Boyfriend is SWAT' which made you giggle.

Then everyone got to your gifts and you watched patiently. Street tore into his first, pulling the crouched hat from its box and grinning wide. "This is my favorite color."

"I know," you smiled and kissed his cheek.

Chris' hat was checkered white and blue, which she put on immediately as she thanked you. Luca had a big hat with ear covers, making him look like a puppy. Tan's was striped with a puff ball on the top. Hondo's was simple yet perfect for him, solid black with a thick rim.

Deacon had the biggest box and when he opened it, he understood why. In your frenzy, you'd made more hats than necessary, so you gifted him a few extra for Annie and the kids.

He gave you a big hug as he thanked you. "The kids will love these."

"You're welcome," you told him and pulled out your own hat, which looked more Santa-like than the others, and put it on. Then, with everyone's hats on, you took a group picture with big smiles on your faces.

After the party, you stayed to help Street and Luca clean up the place. As you were tossing trash in the bin, Street came up behind you. His arms snaked around your thick waist and pulled you back into him. His lips met your cheek.

"Best Christmas yet," he mumbled sweetly.

You looked at him over his shoulder and smiled. "It's not over yet."

He raised an eyebrow. "Really? What else have you got to give?"

You hummed and went back to cleaning. "You'll just have to see."

He pouted and tried to pull you away from the counter. "But I hate waiting."

"Well, too bad," you laughed and turned to him. Giving him a proper kiss, you allowed yourself a short break from the housekeeping. Then you pulled away and sighed. "Tomorrow, you'll see."

With a wink, you turned away from him and continued clean up duty. He watched you with nothing but admiration, hoping you'll love the gift he'll give you tomorrow.

[georgiapeach30513]

Just because it's Friday and I think it may help with a few reminders in case your inbox starts to get flooded with the same old bs since a movie is releasing today:

R1 was filmed two years ago. It was supposed to be released at the end of last year but got delayed. The movie is now releasing this weekend so of course there will be tons of promotion because I'm sure the Rock and his crew spent a hefty amount on marketing and PR for this film. Chris is second billing so he's going to help with promoting the film and if that includes some other fluff pieces, then so be it. And People magazine loves to write fluff posts.

The movie was filmed TWO years ago. Chris has long moved on from this film, despite whatever reception it may get, and people may want to remember that. He is apparently already back to work on his most recent project, and he's already filmed two other projects this year. Nobody knows when these films plan to release or how they will release, but I expect it'll happen in the next few months or year.

Chris has had some recent misfires and from what I can see, it feels like some decisions were rushed due to the pandemic and also perhaps some business decisions made on the backend (get some bigger paychecks, then cushion your way to doing some smaller indie films). The way his last three projects appear to be much smaller in budget and scale, I think this is a safe bet that's what happened.

If your intention is to go looking for confirmation bias, that's what you're going to get. Searching for bad reviews and justifying it as a reason to be mad or upset, of course you're going to revel in misery loves company.

It looks like Chris did a great job in this otherwise lackluster movie and he has a lot of charm and charisma, but him carrying the film on his back isn't much if he's the only one doing the lifting. JK Simmons actually did lift heavy weights but he got wasted in this film because of his role being the "kidnapped Santa." So I wouldn't harp too much on that.

General audiences and critics are disappointed Chris's post MCU career hasn't been super exciting, but most agree they think he deserves better and wants better for him. Perhaps it's a testament the legacy he left in his most famous role, that has people just rooting for him regardless. Let's see what he does next. I think he's slowly carving a new path as we speak.

Lastly: Remember that in the world of public relations, marketing, and entertainment, agenda is always underlying. That being said, sometimes less famous and less influential people latch onto the more influential and famous in order to get a leg up. This usually happens when someone either doesn't have the ability themselves, or there's a bigger and more strategic story behind everything or there's transactional mutual benefits. Why do actresses like Sydney Sweeney and Florence Pugh seem to be able to go so far on their own, while others like Jordan Hudson (aka Bill Belichick's new gf) or every one of Leo D's gfs of the last decade seem to pop up on scene leveraging their relationships to get attention? Well...think about it. For example, Jordan is a former collegiate cheerleader that is now dating a famous ex head NFL coach. She's getting a lot of press right now due to this relationship and she was papped showing up to cheerleading practice recently in a Porsche. I'll just leave you with that. (And no, I don't think it's just because Bill is suddenly going through his mid-life crisis when he's 70 years old.)

You know what, anon? I’m not going to add anymore to this post. You’ve said it all.

I will say, I’m going in a few hours to watch the movie. Got a snack box made for us, and I’ll see what it has to offer. People who think that a Christmas movie with Dwayne is going to anything more than fun, high octane, and goofy are fooling themselves.

And let’s be honest, most people haven’t checked out a ton of Chris’ movies outside of Knives Out and Marvel anyways. They want him to do more unique roles, and he has, but they don’t watch 🙄 he’s creating the career he wants.

[youryurigoddess]

The stuff dreams are made of, or the interesting case of Anthony J. Crowley

We’ve talked a bit about Crowley’s trauma and his way of reclaiming the narrative in the past, but it’s time for some deep dive into the story he’s trying to tell. A story that meanders through the fabric of time and space, slightly changing with the human fashion trends, but slowly and surely bringing the demon closer to a certain angel like the red thread of fate.

1793

Some stories start in a garden, some even Before the Beginning, but this one starts with an Arrangement. Or, to be precise, a little bit after that.

See, most of the iterations of Crowley we saw throughout the history until then didn’t delve too deep into human cultural tropes. If anything, they were the inspirations behind more or less prominent biblical figures, maybe some nameless villains matching his demonic provenance and role assigned to him by his employers.

But in the hustle and bustle of the revolutionary Paris, Crowley emerges as a prototype of the Scarlet Pimpernel — a chivalrous Englishman who rescues aristocrats before they are sent to the guillotine. Stan Lee famously called him “the first character who could be called a superhero”.

Sir Percy Blakeney, the main character of the novel and the West End play under the same title, leads a double life. Appearing as nothing more than a wealthy fop, in reality he’s a formidable swordsman, a quick-thinking master of disguise and an escape artist. Even his own wife, Marguerite, has no idea.

Unfortunately Marguerite is being blackmailed with her brother’s life to find and expose the wanted Pimpernel. She regrets betraying her husband the moment she's forced to do it and spends the rest of the plot working to save him. She does, they make up, and return together to England.

In Aziraphale and Crowley’s case there was just a short stop for crêpes. But what seems to be an inspiration of a specific scene might as well come up later in the wider perspective of the show, so keep in mind those fragments of the musical’s libretto:

We all are caught in the middle

of one long treacherous riddle.

Can I trust you?

Should you trust me too?...

We shamble on through this hell

taking on more secrets to sell

'til there comes a day

when we sell our souls away.

We seek him here, we seek him there,

Those Frenchies seek him everywhere!

Is he in heaven? Is he in hell?

Where is that damn elusive Pimpernel!

1941

The London Blitz is when we see a full-fledged iteration of the superhero Crowley performing dashing and heroic deeds under the literal cover of darkness and air bomb smoke. In a bespoke double-breasted suit and a fedora — still free from the unfortunate modern connotations from the internet culture — he’s clearly channeling Humphrey Bogart as a private investigator Sam Spade in The Maltese Falcon (1941) now.

It all starts with a woman and a simple plan gone wrong: Spade’s partner is shot dead, just like the man he was supposed to be tailing upon the request of a mysterious Miss Wonderly. And when a very soft-looking, sweet-scented man named Joel Cairo appears in his office willing to pay a hefty price for a "black figure of a bird", Spade starts not only a new job, but also his own quest for truth.

On the surface, The Maltese Falcon ends happily: the killer gets caught, and the hero winds up with the Falcon. But Spade's victory is completely hollow. The Falcon itself, originally meant as a symbol of loyalty, transforms into a symbol of a corrupting, futile, and self-destructive greed that makes people betray their own loyalties.

The treasure is just a worthless forgery and he’s fallen in love with the criminal — one of the first femmes fatales on screen. Despite his feelings for her and a kiss, Spade gives her up and submits the statuette as evidence, describing it as "the stuff that dreams are made of".

Remember the eagle lectern? The eagle was believed to be flying highest in the sky and therefore closest to heaven, symbolizing the carrying of the word of God to the four corners of the world. Aziraphale in the 1941 church scene is the closest to Heaven we’ve seen him on Earth. Just look at him: dressed in a smart, well-fitted coat with peaked lapels, symbolizing his Heavenly allegiance, and doing good this time not as a work assignment, but of his own accord. Being the closest to Heaven means the furthest and most unattainable for a demon like Crowley.

The Maltese Falcon is a metaphor for unattainability ��� things out of reach to desire and fight for, although never truly possess. It’s “the stuff that dreams are made of”. But Crowley secured the original — made of gold and encrusted with jewels, but hiding its real value under black enamel — eerily reminiscent of the demon himself and the unending kindness behind his inappropriately tight black clothing.

Quoting Michael Ralph — the production mastermind behind Good Omens — from the S01E04 “Saturday Morning Funtime” DVD commentary, “We wanted to tip our hat to the Maltese Falcon as being a precious object that no-one thought really exists but it does”. So we can safely assume that Crowley can and will achieve his dream in the future.

1967

Do you know what else happens in 1941 in Scotland? Ian Fleming, a British naval intelligence agent, meets with the famous occultist Aleister Crowley and asks him to lead the interrogation of newly imprisoned Rudolf Hess — a leading member of the Nazi Party in Nazi Germany appointed Deputy Führer — given the two men’s shared enthusiasm for the occult.

This meeting has a significant impact on Fleming’s work as a writer; Aleister Crowley becomes the inspiration for his first villain Le Chiffre and creates a blueprint for most of the James Bond’s franchise ever since 1953, the publication date of the novel Casino Royale.

Meanwhile our Anthony J. Crowley believes in himself not being the villain he’s usually and sometimes forcefully painted as, but a superhero in disguise. The character of James Bond in particular inspires him so much that he buys petrol to get the limited You Only Live Twice (1967) window decals for his Bentley, dons his own tactical turtleneck, and sets off to organize a heist like no other. Sean Connery style.

Like a typical superhero, Crowley’s once again both saved and betrayed by his love interest. Aziraphale leaves him with a thermos of Holy Water, a faint smile, and a hope that they’ll soon match their speeds to meet halfway at the Ritz. The cancelled heist is not an ending, but a promise of a new beginning. And the fact that UK decriminalizes homosexual acts in the very same year is more than telling in this regard.

2019

An exceptional situation calls for exceptional solutions, and what’s more important than the impending Apocalypse? Demon Crowley does his best to put the arsenal of his 20th century film inspirations to good use.

"Ask yourself, do you feel lucky?" Crowley drawls, clearly imitating (although slightly misquoting) the titular Dirty Harry (1971). He’s hoping to be menacing and making the point of being the one on the right side of the law and history.

Some situations require more than quoting action heroes is not everything though. He knows what to do:

A jeep was heading purposefully towards the gate, and it looked as though it was crowded with people who were about to shout questions and fire guns and not worry about which order they did this in.

[Crowley] brightened up. This was more what you might call his area of competence.

He took his hands out of his pockets and he raised them like Bruce Lee and then he smiled like Lee Van Cleef.

'Ah,' he said, 'here comes transport.'

When in doubt, Crowley acts. He transforms into a combination of a stoic martial arts phenomenon and a sardonic, menacing character. His smile alone — even on Aziraphale’s angelic face, as seen in one of the final cut scenes — seems to be enough to ward off evil spirits, angels, and humans alike.

But we all know that even as breathtaking performances as those can’t protect anyone from the cogs of the Heavenly machine and its plans.

2023

No wonder that Crowley’s tactical turtleneck comes back in style after mere four years of retirement with a self-introduction “Former Demon, hated by Heaven, loathed by Hell. How will our hero cope?”. Something has changed during this time; he’s more mature now, not playing pretend by hiding behind the usual veneer of sarcasm and movie quotes anymore. Finally comfortable with the fact that this is his own story and there’s no need to become anyone else than himself.

The bookshop fire and the Heavenly trial still seem to haunt the demon in a way that makes him realize what all humans know: that every hero is his own biggest enemy. His ultimate dream might effortlessly change into his greatest nightmare any moment now, and the only thing he can do about it is hover in a two-minute distance from the epicenter of his feelings. But Crowley has no time to work on it when a new mission appears, to protect his angel from Gabriel and the combined powers of Heaven and Hell. Even if this — rather ostentatiously — is the last thing he wants to think about at the moment.

Crowley tries to plan ahead, while his story slowly warps into a different genre due to Aziraphale’s interruptions. He eventually changes back into his usual Henley shirt after agreeing to swap places and guarding the bookshop while the angel is off to Edinburgh, collecting more clues. Did he finish his personal quest off-screen? Did he just give up on it in the whirlwind of matchmaking shenanigans? Remains to be seen.

In the S2 finale our master of disguise in yet another turtleneck proves that he can successfully infiltrate even the universe’s back office. We don’t know where he drives off in the end, but one thing is certain — he’s got a plan. And a world (and his dream) to save, like a superhero he is.

[siremasterlawrence]

Breaking In To Hollywood: Henry Cavill

Breaking In To Hollywood studios is having a massive sale so I decide to take a long shot to see if they have anybody available for me as I arrive and the doors swing open as I walk in. The red carpet roles out me the youngest new star enter the compound as the lights blow up shining as I make my way down the red carpet and the owner of gallery greets me. In the door way he offers his hands at me as we shook hands tightly in excitement as I squeeze him hard and I let go as he points for me to sit carrying this massive apple red packet to me.

I grab it feeling something unraveling inside when I open it a golden color emits letting me now it is all about to go topsy turvey for me and a pen appears in my hand at the same minute. The time spins about as I realize my hand is writing on the paper my name turns to gold as it vanishes from my hand and I am completely in awe of it all and next thing the room spinning out of control. Once it stops rotating I soon come to noticing that I am in a entirely different room painted in a array of color schemes forcing me to see it as a door appears and a keys floats down in to my head.

Rising as I make it to the threshold of the door way placing face key in the key hole turning it as the door blows up in brightly lit room fill to the broom in red ink but I am not about to and or could not not make it out. I am swooping in as the door slamming right behind him as the air swirls in cooling up the room wrapping around me, the next thing I know I see the name Henry Cavill written in red paint. A flat screen television flips on switch to a video proof playing of Henry introducing himself to a perspective buyer because he has agreed to see his life for a lifetime.

“Did you buy that little act of mine? “

“Yeah I know!”

“Oscar worthy!”

“Don’t flatter yourself “

“Ok then! Magnificent “

“So you a contract to fill and the lifetime retainer.”

“All settled here you go”

“Excellent! Quiet the thrill ride “

“What is your story?”

“Well one day I found I myself despising the wealthy.”

“So you sought revenge by making them in to meat suits?”

“Precisely! You are lucky to make this deal with me dude.”

“If you can produce the magic.”

“Well step inside, let’s make the magic happen.”

“The machine is rolling on”

“The door closes behind me”

“We have a narrator here”

“Commence it already “

“I’ll see you soon Mr. Cavill”

“Alright! Here we go!”

“Wait for the light?”

“Then what?”

“Hello?”

“Anybody there?”

“Shit”

“Oh well!”

“Please walk to the center “

“Is that a scanner”

“Say cheese “

“This before “

The lights flips on revealing Mr. Cavill is lock in a glass connected to the walls the glass is shiny, clean and such a sight to behold as his eyes are closed and he is everywhere bit swoon worthy as I thought. I approach the class case placing my hand on the frame as I oogle his beautiful body from the front of the glass as it begins to change color and explode on my touch as the body falls forward. It tumbles on top of me so heavy, strong and so admirable before clumps up in to a hefty explosion it’s self drowning me a liquid sea of gold and attaching its self to my body rightly so before I collapse.

My body lifts upward in to the air lower then the ceiling as I begin encircling the upper area of the room going round and round as my body shook like crazy letting the goop sip in to my skin. I fall forward to the ground as I melt into the floor slowly my body took shape rebuilding in to what I thought it is my body fully forming in to a human shape taking a deep breath. Ilove the feeling standing up as I go for awalk towards the mirror happily, instead I see another man’s reflection as I see himHenry Cavill staring back at me with utter love.

I watch with smirk placing my hand under my masculine chin, blowing my self a sweet soft kiss as I feel my masculine body roll under my finger and I feel like God for the first time. My new body shiver at a quake when I check myself out he is ravish in all the ways letting me fingers slide down the cloth and gropes my ass tight knowing that everyone wants to worship this. The door swings open on both sides as he steadily makes his way to stand next to me with pride in his eyes and on his face he is definitely cocky and I plan on using it against.

“This is after “

“You were not kidding “

“Duh! want to try it out “

“Hell yeah!”

“At your service”

“Actually!”

“Don’t do it! Please “

“Ignore Henry! He will become non existent soon.”

“Give me back my body “

“What was that? Connection is bad”

“Asshole! Zip it “

“So static zzzzzz”

“Damn it! You bitch”

“Or what? What can you do?”

“I’ll usurp…”

“You will do no such thing and in fact you will see it my way now.”

“Mwahahahahaha”

“Oh My Goodness! I want to be “

“To be what?”

“Ffffrrrreeeee!”

“Go silent? Good Riddance”

“Where was I? Oh yes! Time to seal the deal bitch.”

The end

[seriowan]

I'm fully in Dad!Wrecker brain rot. I could totally see him playing the protector role well. Defending his little ones from the monster under the bed.

dad!wrecker has such a special place in my heart. just imagining such big hunky man being so incredibly soft with his little babies 🥺 ugh it's enough to send me into a baby fever meltdown — ( @drafthorsemath )

more dad!wrecker below the cut!

"daddy?"

wrecker snorted as he woke, eyes popping open only to flicker to his adi'ka. they stood by the couch with their blanket held up to their chin, glossy eyes gazing down at him. sitting up, wrecker gave a big yawn and stretch, partially disoriented from unintentionally falling asleep mid-holo film.

after rubbing the sleep from his eyes, he noticed the look of discomfort on his little one's face and frowned.

"hey, tooka," he cooed softly, gently cupping the side of adi'ka's face. "you okay? you don't look too good."

they glanced around the living room, eyeing the dark hallway. with a little shiver, they walked in between wrecker's legs and dropped their forehead against his chest, cowering. wrecker gently palmed their hair, kissing the top of their head.

when they spoke, their voice was soft and raspy — a sign that they had been crying.

"i had a nightmare." they glanced up, big eyes full of glossy tears that slowly began to slip down their cheeks. "it was really scary. a monster ran under my bed and i think it still there."

wrecker frowned, brushing their hair back with his palm. "a monster? there's no monsters here, tooka. you're safe."

unconvinced, his adi'ka shook their head. "nuh-uh, daddy. i seent it."

he managed a small, sympathetic smile as he nodded his head. pulling adi'ka up and into the safety of his arms, wrecker carried his little one down the dimly lit hall and to their bedroom. they immediately squished their face in the crook of his neck, arms tightly locked around it.

wrecker hunched over to lay them down on the bed, smiling when his adi'ka continued clinging onto him. his little mini was small but their grip was like iron.

"tooks," he rumbled with amusement. "i promise that there's no monsters under the bed."

"nuh-uh."

with a sigh, he glanced toward the nightstand and noticed a toy blaster, causing an idea to pop into his head. wrecker shifted his little one onto his hip, picked up the toy blaster, and tapped his adi'ka's back, causing them to peek at him.

"i can't blast the monster away if you're not in bed, adi'ka," he grinned, winking. "i need you to be my eyes and ears in case it runs away."

they nervously chewed on their lip, eyes flicking towards the shadows underneath their bed.

"honest?"

"honest," he promised, nodding for an added dose of assurance. "you get under the bed, all safe and comfy, and i'll check every corner of this room to find that monster."

that seemed to be convincing enough. his adi'ka nodded and stretched towards the bed, falling into it with a hefty bounce. they wormed their way underneath the sheets, pulling it all the way up to their neck while wrecker crouched down, glancing under the bed.

"nothing here, tooks," he voiced, glancing up just as adi'ka shook their head.

"no, daddy. i seent it. it was there."

wrecker nodded and continued searching through the room, peeking behind dressers and under them, through the closet and above bookcases. when he came across adi'ka's toy chest, he gave it a nudge with his legs, eyes widening when he saw the small creature curled up atop a stuffed rancor.

"found it!" he smiled, reaching down to pick up the ball of fuzz.

with a yawn, muchi the tooka cat unfurled in his arms and gave a long, hearty stretch, big eyes blinked up at wrecker before flicking over to his adi'ka. it gave a meow and leaped out of his arms, landing atop the bed.

adi'ka giggled, tiny hands reaching over to grab and pull the tooka into their arms. wrecker grinned when the cat gave an angry yowl before slowly succumbing to adi'ka's comforting squeeze. it relaxed against his little one, a pout of reluctance on its lips.

"see?" wrecker sang, setting the toy blaster atop the dresser. "no monsters — just muchi!"

his adi'ka warily nodded despite their eyes shifting over to the closet, brows pinching with uncertainty.

"daddy," they questioned softly, pleading gaze shifting to him. "can you stay with me? i don' wanna sleep alone."

wrecker didn't hesitate to nod, undeniably delighted by the request. "sure, tooks. scooch your booch and make some room for your pops."

little adi'ka scooted over only to giggle when wrecker struggled to fit on their too-small bed. the mattress was the width of his shoulders, so when his little one nearly fell over the edge, he grasped the back of their pajamas and raised them up in the air, plopping them down on his chest.

muchi the tooka found its perfect chance to escape adi'ka's grasp. it jumped to the foot of the bed and curled into a ball, exhaling a sigh.

meanwhile, adi'ka sprawled across wrecker like a flattened pancake, holding his chest with a perfectly content smile on their face. they looked up with their chin against his sternum, big eyes full of glee.

"goodnight daddy," they said, giggling when wrecker playfully ruffled their hair.

"g'night, tooks," he mused, tilting his head to glance at the tooka cat by his feet. "and g'night to you too, muchi."

adi'ka giggled once more, causing wrecker's heart to swell. "goodnight, muchi!"

when the cat responded with an annoyed grunt, the two looked at one another and began laughing. their little chuckles dissolved as his adi'ka rested their cheek against him, lulled to comfort by the sound of their father's heartbeat and the gentle rise and fall of wrecker's chest.

it wasn't before long that snores began to echo through the room. wrecker's chest vibrated as he slept like a sprawled bear, limbs hanging off the sides of the small bed. and sitting on his chest, curled up like the tooka at the foot of the bed, was his little adi'ka, mouth open and curled up in a smile as they slept with the blissed reassurance of being safe in their father's arms.

-

i love love love dad!wrecker with my heart and soul. i'll never get over it. ever. uhggghghghg 😩🫶🏼

[pocketsizedowls]

One of the most important characteristics of Mizuki Akiyama is her love of cute things.

Unlike many teenage girls who, by her age, may feel embarrassed about their passion for the color pink or kawaii culture, she thrives as a "girly girl," a teenage representative of the latest fashion trends and make-up products. She is cheerful and artistic, sensitive and kind. If we lived in a world where gender roles and binaries are less rigid, perhaps she wouldn't struggle so much under the glare of society's hefty expectations. I think of her all the time because I know her story well.

Mizuki is just like my brother, who used to sneak into my closet as a young boy to try on my church dresses. My brother, who shed hot tears when my father forced him to cut off his long hair. My brother, who went off to college and at long last, started wearing make-up to school and dancing in a cheer team full of girls who claimed him as one of their own. He has never been this happy, and I am grateful for his happiness and for his femininity, because my mother loves buying me dresses I'll never wear and make-up I'll never use. If I give them to him, I used to tell myself, I'll do a good deed. And, most importantly, I'll no longer have to worry about being a "good enough woman," both for my mother and for society at large.

According to American theorist Judith Butler, gender is a performance. To put it simply, gender is a book of rules, a game of chess, and all people should think twice about their gender and the hoops they jump through to fulfill those roles before they claim to be, for a lack of a better word, gendered the way they were assigned to be. As a glum teenager, I watched girls around me blossom into women, and while I identified with some aspects of girlhood (i.e. crying over a boy, trading secrets at the playground, and braiding each other's hair), I never aspired towards womanhood. Or femininity, really. It wasn't until I got older, after years of settling into a nonbinary lesbian identity, that I finally picked up a foundation brush and put on a skirt. Because by then, those things are just cute and beautiful to me, instead of womanly and intimidating.

I wish I could shout this from the rooftop. That I am free, and so many people should be, too.

Mizuki is just Mizuki, because gender is a friend to meet and a thing to love instead of an obligation to fulfill or a monster to defeat. Much like Tsukasa Tenma, who shines on a stage and carries that spark with him everywhere, gender is supposed to be euphoric. It's Mizuki, when she finishes sewing a new dress. It's my brother, when he puts on heels that actually accommodate his shoe size. It's me, when people call me "they" instead of "she," a "lovely person" instead of an "anxious girl."

I don't exactly know how Mizuki identifies or what her true pronouns are, but what I do know is that she is allowed to take her time. She is young, she is loved, and she is not a freak. If you are trans or nonbinary or anywhere under the umbrella, you are also not a freak. You can also take your time, then stomp your feet like a toddler when the world angers you because transphobic people are everywhere, and America seems especially fond of passing anti-trans registrations these days. Which goes to show, perhaps, that you are a miracle. And despite how lonely being a trans person can be, you're survival gives everyone else in the community hope and strength to keep going.

For some trans anger, I recommend you listen to Teniwoha's Villain, sung by Mizuki and Mafuyu. The lyrics are truly awesome.

For some trans hope, I recommend Toa's ID Smile, sung by all the N25 girls. The background of the 3D MV is so beautiful and relevant.

[nikofortuna]

JTTW Chapter 31 Thoughts

Chapter 31 for the @journeythroughjourneytothewest Reading Group!

You can practically hear the sarcasm seething when Sun Wukong says “O, Master is so just and kind!”. In the other two translations they make it clear in the text that it’s meant sarcastically, but Anthony C. Yu managed to really bring across the sarcasm without a need for spelling out that it’s meant sarcastically. Very neat and pretty difficult to pull of so well!

Excuse me, those children are only eight to ten years old?! Lady Baihua Xiu, what have you been doing making them out as some monsters?! They are still little!

Also not cool at all for Sun Wukong to treat the young children like this. Especially because it is him, he of all people should be more empathetic towards children. He’s a communal grandpa for crying out loud! And it’s not like those two even did anything either.

On a lighter note it’s very cute how Sha Wujing really encapsulates the little brother role, particularly with his interactions with his eldest brother like we see here.

Ah, the return of sexism. This time the lady in question is proving otherwise though, a good step in the right direction. But of course immediately backtracked by blaming her for something inherently out of her control and a hefty case of Men Writing WomenTM.

Old monkey is condensed silly.

Yellow Robe is a decent husband, I give him that. Not without fault as we’ve already seen, but he does care.

That portraying the fights through poems is a good way to do it should be clear from the start, but why it’s so good just came to me now that I think about it. They are snappy, so the tension is carried well and they basically go in a blow by blow manner with the alternating lines. They carry the speed of fighting while also being quite clear and easy to follow. Writing good combat is hard, so writing it like this is smart!

Honestly there would have been a way to at least somewhat fix up the loophole of the jade girl and the Wood Wolf Star ordeal. Just say the princess forgot her previous life. It would still be a little odd that the Yellow Robe fiend didn’t just explain things to her, but you could technically claim that if he spoke out what was going on someone could hear and report him, so he kept it an unspoken, but what he believed known, deal.

Last but not least the jade girl does give me some Ariel vibes with her wanting to see the world, in this case, ‘below’.

[bigbearbigworld]

Howdy!! I’m looking for a super chill rp partner. I currently don’t have one so I would love to have something long term!

Here are a few things I’m looking for in a partner:

Someone who is willing to talk OOC!! I wanna make friends and toss ideas back and forth. So I would love to have full conversations about our blorbos and yknow be friends!!

Understand that I have a busy life and because of that I might be really exhausted at the end of the day. I will always try to reply asap, but I do have a full time job that is mentally taxing sometimes.

This is super important: I am 27(almost 28) years old and really prefer to rp with anyone over 25. I can make exceptions but not for under 20. It’s just something I’m more comfortable with.

——

My rp writing sample:

Boy, the amount of scoffing Wolfwood was about to do at the threat of Vash the Stampede. Yeah, as if that wasn't the same guy who cried over a dog breaking its leg. Wolfwood grunted and waved a dismissive hand because, well, maybe he was looking for this bastard anyways. Nevertheless, the priest carried his weight as he went to go find this place. Besides, it seemed like a general place to start-- to rest that is. Not that he was absolutely looking for him.

Wiping some sweat off his brow, Wolfwood noted that the sun was going down as he approached the door. Knocking heavily on the door with the back of his knuckle, he glanced around and eyed the lingering townsfolk. They were eyeing him, watching to see if he was also going to start some trouble.

Boy, they were definitely in for a surprise.

After a moment of waiting, Wolfwood knocked again and quirked a brow, "Is this even the right place?" He huffed as he looked over the paper.

——

What I’m looking for:

— A Vash rper or/and Wolfwood rper!! I’m happy to play either role! Most of the time I prefer Wolfwood, but I’m absolutely happy to go with the motions of the ocean — NSFW, Dark, angsty, shippy stuff. I’m good with writing NSFW (Whether that’s smut, dark themes, etc etc) let’s just talk about it — Plots: I am full of ideas when given the chance but I am going to have to get comfy with you in order to flourish a bunch of ideas! so when we start i absolutely wanna do a simple but hefty thread!

Edit: I also accept OC’s!! We just need to discuss plotting and stuff :))

There’s the basics!! Plz lemme know if any of y’all have questions!!

[thequeendomhq]

NAME. Tianyou AGE & BIRTH DATE. 656 & April 21st, 2368 GENDER & PRONOUNS. Male & He/Him NATIONALITY. Avalonian SPECIES. High Elvhen FACTION. N/A OCCUPATION. Unemployed FACE CLAIM. Lewis Tan

biography

( tw: Possible parental death, sickness ) Mithrahn and Hiro had both been well into their elvhen lives when they brought in their firstborn son. They were of the Faelorian noble family of Avalon settled within Elgar’nan’s Hearth on the furthest branch of the Laurelin. Where they lived, the elvhen were warriors and scholars, people that remained loyal to the monarchy for as long as they could remember. Mithrahn and Hiro were no different. Mithrahn had grown up in Varda’s Cavern, a huntress that had spent years upon years mastering her craft. When she went out and hunted, she was always going to come back with something. It had not been until she left Avalon for a few years that she had realized that she never wanted to leave again. The same could not be said for the Faelorian patriarch, Hiro. The elvhen man had never left his home within Elgar’nan’s Hearth and he had never had any intention to. The only time he had ever walked outside of it was when they would meet in the gardens of Aldariel decennially. That was when Hiro had met Mithrahn. The two had talked about nature and their travels, or Hiro’s lack thereof. Eventually, Mithrahn was showing Hiro how to track and Hiro was showing Mithrahn martial arts. The two had become so smitten with each other that they Mithrahn had migrated to Elgar’nan’s Hearth to start a family with the elvhen that she could no longer see herself living without.

Only a few years later, Tianyou was born. Hiro was of the noble Faelorian family so that meant that Tianyou would eventually lead the family. That would come much later though. For now, the eldest of the Faelorian would simply be able to be a child. He would simply be able to grow up and enjoy life until that hefty responsibility fell upon him. So that was exactly what Mithrahn and Hiro allowed Tianyou to do. Of course, children would always be children. As soon as he was old enough to, it felt like the eldest boy was going to be a menace to his parents and age them more than they already were. They would live as long as the Laurelin allowed them to, but it always felt like Tianyou was testing that theory. Within Elgar’nan’s Hearth, the golden spires were massive and the golden fields below were just the same. Instead of picking the safer option, Tianyou would find himself climbing as high as he could go on those golden towers day after day. His father would always yell up to him to not go any further than he knew he should go. So, eventually, Tianyou would climb back down and Hiro would carry the young elvhen on his shoulders back to their home.

And home was always where Tianyou would always learn the martial arts that the people on their end of the Laurelin branches were known for. From a young age, it was clear that the boy was gifted, and so were his two siblings after that. With a mother that was proficient in tracking and a father that was proficient in all things martial arts and magic, it only felt fitting that their children be good at it as well. None were more proficient in both than Tianyou though. Being the eldest, he had more time to train and he had always known that he would have to be much more than just a kid with nothing but time on his hands. He would have to lead the family when his father eventually moved into that advisory role for Queen Titania. Tianyou was always determined to prove himself so, when he was not climbing the golden towers, he was in the fields training. Day in and day out, he would train by his lonesome to get better and better. So much so that he would blindfold himself to see if he could detect things without being able to see it. Nobody could ever know what life would throw at them so they had to be prepared for any situation. It was not until he was training with others, able to deflect a fist with his eyes closed that his father had realized what Tianyou’s gift was. 

It had not been seen in the Faelorian family for centuries, but Hiro could tell that Tianyou had a gift unlike any other. It would help in times to come, that radar ability. When Tianyou fought, it was as if someone else took a hold of his body for that time and he was unstoppable. That was what his father saw at least and he knew that, when it was time for his son to lead, their place in Elgar’nan’s Hearth would be secure. For Tianyou himself, he knew that he had to work hard and make himself better every single time he so much as stepped foot outside of his home. Climbing the golden towers became a pastime of his and was replaced by traveling outside of Avalon. When he had first brought the idea up to his parents, he had been told of his own mother’s experience outside of their home. She had not particularly enjoyed it, but she knew that it had been necessary for her to take that step on her own to figure it out herself. At the end of the day, neither of them would stop Tianyou from experiencing the world as best as he could before his life only consisted of living for the Faelorian family. Of course, that was always his first priority, but with a few well wishes from his parents and siblings, he was off to experience the part of the world that he had not viewed ever since he was born.

Tianyou had looked back upon the leaves of the Laurelin as he stepped foot through the Moongate that would bring him into the Feywilds. From the Feywilds, he had no idea where he would go, but he knew where he would end up. Before any great adventure, there had to be a lot of planning. With his mother’s intel of the place she had gone before and spent some of her years as well as a few trips to the scholars within Elgar’nan’s Hearth, he had been prepared for what awaited him. Getting through the Feywilds would most likely be the most difficult part. Thankfully, for Tianyou, he could get out of any situation if he needed to just from his natural keen senses and his radar ability. If there was a danger where he was headed, he could merely turn the other way. And, if he knew what that danger was, he could figure out if it was best to face it head on or find a different direction. Regardless of what he ran into, he knew he would be able to get to the mortal realm just as his mother had before him. And he knew he would make it back when it was time for him to make his way to Avalon again. He would not have much time in the mortal realm, but it was an adventure that he knew he would have to go through and, like Mithrahn had said, figure it out on his own.

When he finally made it out of the Feywilds, he ended up within Lórien’dal, the land of the silver elvhen. Again, stories were all that Tianyou had, but the place was as beautiful as he could have imagined all these years. Instead of those golden fields that he had become accustomed to, there were rolling fields of silver in its place. And the trees that towered above glowed with a light that seemed ethereal in nature. It all seemed so beautiful, he wondered how the high elvhen could ever leave. Then he could remember that the home he had back in Elgar’nan’s Hearth with the golden towers and the fields that felt just as ethereal, if not more than the ones within Lórien’dal, and it felt like maybe there was nothing all that special about this realm. Maybe there would be more outside of it though. So he pushed along to the Waygate after spending a short amount of time with the silver elvhen and made his way to Eterna. Lysara was a beautiful place run by a Queen that he had also never met and probably would never meet. However, that was never his intention when he had stepped foot outside of Avalon. He had wanted to see what the mortal realm had in store for him and, well, Tianyou had not been impressed with the sights. It felt like every place he visited was less pleasing than the next. Eterna had towers, but they weren’t golden. Haven had fields, but they weren’t lush and vibrant like the ones back home. To be honest, Tianyou had found himself miserable. So, after only two years of being within the mortal realm, he made his way back through the Feywilds and to the Moongate to head back to Elgar’nan’s Hearth and back to his home that he probably should have never left.

Getting back home took him a few weeks, but he had gotten there and, when he did, he had been told by his mother that he had not looked upon that realm with open eyes. Tianyou, however, knew exactly what he had expected from the realm and nothing had been what he thought. Maybe he had not given it the proper chance he should have, but it almost felt too late for that now. The thought of going back never even crossed his mind again for several hundred years. When it was time for Hiro to be an advisor to Queen Titania and for Tianyou to lead, he had found himself wanting to go back to the mortal realm one last time. Maybe something would change and he would end up wanting to stay so that he could become one of the silver elvhen and live a life that had not been laid out for him. That was his thought as he made his way back to the Moongate all of those years later and through those Feywilds back to Lórien’dal. He did not travel further than that because there had been one thing keeping him there. 

That second trip to the mortal realm was where he had felt that connection. Tianyou only ever heard about things from scholars, seeing drawings of places outside of Avalon that they could not reach. They had always spoken of being soulbonded to another. It was a common occurrence for the elvhen and he had not known when it would occur for him. Really, he had expected it when the high elvhen all met within Aldariel just like what had happened with his parents. They had not been soulbonded to each other, but he knew that it could come in any form. Love. Perhaps he should have expected that something like that would happen to him in a place where he knew he would not want to stay. Having been in Lórien’dal before, he knew what to expect and it had been no different. But that small bit of love had him thinking that maybe he should stay. All good things ended though. It was foolish of him to think those few years spent with someone would last. They were soulbonded though. They would always be tethered to each other. Well, until the silver elvhen’s mortal life came to an end. When he finally made his way through the Feywilds and through the Moongate back to Avalon after only a few years, he only hoped that it would not hurt when it happened.

Something worse happened when he got back to Elgar’nan’s Hearth though. He had only been back home for a few decades, but the Blight had shaken the leaves of the Laurelin and took a hold of his father. One minute, they had been sparring and, in the next, his father had collapsed before him. Tianyou had known what had happened, but he did not want to believe it. He feared the thought of losing his father to something like this. He’d hoped that the man would make it to the end of his life and have a peaceful end. Instead of that, he had been taken by that darkness that always loomed in the distance. The eldest of the Faelorian noble family, Tianyou had stayed at his father’s side as the man grew sicker and sicker and he could not fathom the thought of losing the man. He had to find a way to help Hiro. The healers had said that there was nothing they could do, but Tianyou could only think of what he could do to help. Maybe he could find a way to help his father. Maybe he would have to travel back to the mortal realm and figure out a way to save the man that he had looked up to all of his life. Maybe the Blight didn’t need to take his father.

Maybe. Maybe. Maybe. His father had always said to only climb as far as he was willing to go. For his family though? Tianyou would keep climbing as far as he was willing to go and keep going until his fingers bled. Maybe even farther than that.

personality

+ Optimistic, Merciful, Resolute – Pessimistic, Impetuous, Captious

played by kenyer. est. she/her.

[the-firebird69]

Few more things are happening in town and it's Freya and we are back

-and we are discussing what's happening here all the time and today we get disgusted with these idiots again you saw them walking around the Sun bothering him saying dumb things doing dumb things and just really being annoying and they started saying we can't live here we're not welcome here and things like that and my son said move out then geez and they start saying this we need a place to go to California and some people are actually going. Other people kept griping and were targeted and they're going to be hit

-there are 30 more households that went to the first ring and 10 more are probably going to go out there they heard about people being put in prison for a police I want to try and break them out. It is going on right now

-we're also going to fire anybody who is like trying to remember Lord and globally and we will definitely be able to remove him permanently and we decide to do that and yeah treystown everything that they have and take it and started yesterday sorry this morning and it was really really good tons of people are doing it and it's saying they're us it's a huge movement there's so many people doing it it's not even funny

-there a couple more things

-this place is not here to torture people or if you to take advantage of them and people are finding out that you thought that about them and it was quasi empire and Max foreigners and even minority morlocks and they're starting to beat you up for your comments you sound like idiots they say and you start mouthing off and they start going after you and it start to hit you and they're taking your stuff it's happening all over the world and your ears of operation in front and your areas of operation a shrunk considerably because of this. At some point there won't be any of you left in many areas

- Trump's son Dave it comes a giant and he's hideous and he looks like a big idiot and yes he's the one in the movies doing stupid things to people and he gets beat up as a giant quite a bit he's slow and lethargic and he's not really strong but he does people in but he starts doing that role he is not allowed back trying to find out they're constantly trying to find out where he is cuz he's holding Bill and maybe more of his race hostage eventually they find them and release them and they go back and they try and harm them they heard about it they get grabbed and interrogated. It's coming up very soon

-right now the police are flowing in and sheriff and they are going to take over those offices fully and tonight they're going to change it over with class I empire minority morlock and miscellaneous they've had enough of these jackasses for a lifetime and they're kicking them out the idiots are still attacking bases of theirs and they are growing with every attack and you see people like bja attacking his own people on hoth even and that guy's an idiot but no it's not them it is bja attacking Trump on the planet half and BG is along for the ride. A lot of that's going on with them fighting each other

-it's a huge deal and it's going on now and yeah he's supposedly not able to correct his brother and her son has never heard of that it's just come over here so I can correct you and that's what he used to say so there's a lot going on it's basically stupid government is arresting people for crimes what are the crimes they're arresting them for is flying the Jets illegally and they're going to rearrest John remillard after the trial tomorrow and it'll be introducing the case and the evidence and the prosecution will start presenting and who knows they might be over with it probably not but they plan on arresting him for their flying routine and it carries with it a pretty hefty sentence they looked at our sons text or email it said a few of the charges and said the sentences and I said well that's good and they're back to back consecutive and they came up with about 90 years Satan ones they don't want to do but they're pretty bad these charges are very potent and they're going to put them on trial for that and they're going to put them all on trial for doing it the ones that were and Tommy f will be holding and the pseudo empire will see it it is going to happen tomorrow and they might arrest him tonight

-furthermore we are going to get you back more luck and it's coming now and you didn't think so but yeah you're going to get creamed a lot of You are it's really households are out there trying to raise trouble and people are grabbed and they're trying to raise the force they have like a hundred thousand and they're getting pulled out right now it's reduced to 50,000 can you try to get more people here and they can't get in it's going to be quite a scene the

-crabs are going to attack the ships are going to reach the mouth and about 2 hours that's the big ships. Right now the skeletons have piled up about a half mile wide about 200 miles long from River to River and crabs are moving in and they're 10 to 20 ft and it's an army only about 400 ft offshore and they're going to go ashore right now it's going to take the crabs a half hour to get there after tonight's event the movie cocoon begins and it's Trump and his kid in a try and get some big crabs near our son for some reason and they can't do it and they get caught and arrested and they are going to put them on trial where they are in Florida and they get arrested in the movie and that's what it's for making all these wise crack remarks some of our son and he said you can't arrest us for crabbing the same when you're crabbing and yacking you're telling people what you're doing it for and they tried to remember what they were saying and start to laugh apparently you can it's not me so then they said we know who it is and they got angry they're trying to do stuff and they got arrested again and it's in the movie The second One

More shortly

Thor Freya

Olympus

[anlawvietnam]

Comprehensive Labor Consulting for Foreigners in Vietnam: Expert Insights on Navigating Complex Employment Regulations

Introduction

As Vietnam continues to attract a diverse range of foreign professionals and investors, understanding the intricacies of the country's labor laws is crucial. Labor consulting for foreigners in Vietnam is pivotal in ensuring employers and employees adhere to the legal framework. This article delves into the essential aspects of labor regulations in Vietnam for foreigners, providing expert insights, personal experiences, and valuable information to navigate the landscape.

Understanding the Legal Framework

Foreign Workers and Labor Law: In Vietnam, foreign workers are subject to specific labor laws and regulations. The legal framework is governed by the Labor Code, which outlines employers' and employees' rights and obligations. The code applies to all employment relationships, regardless of nationality, ensuring fair treatment and protection for workers.

Work Permits and Licensing: Foreigners intending to work in Vietnam must obtain a work permit, which is issued by the Ministry of Labor, Invalids, and Social Affairs (MOLISA). The process involves submitting necessary documents, including job offers, qualifications, and medical certificates. Labor consulting services can provide invaluable assistance in navigating this intricate process.

Navigating Work Contracts

Employment Contracts: Clear employment contracts are vital to establish the terms and conditions of employment. These contracts should outline job descriptions, working hours, salary, benefits, and termination clauses. Consulting with experts ensures that contracts adhere to legal requirements and safeguard the interests of both parties.

Termination and Disputes: Terminating employment contracts can be a complex process. The Labor Code stipulates conditions under which employment can be terminated, protecting employers and employees. In disputes, labor consulting services can guide parties through negotiation and resolution.

Personal Insights

Having worked extensively with foreign clients in Vietnam, I've witnessed firsthand their challenges in navigating the local labor laws. One client, an expatriate manager, was unsure about the validity of his employment contract. By seeking labor consulting, he gained clarity on his rights and avoided potential legal pitfalls.

Benefits of Labor Consulting Services

Expertise and Knowledge: Labor consulting firms in Vietnam possess in-depth expertise on the country's labor laws. Their knowledge helps foreigners understand the nuances of regulations, ensuring compliance and avoiding legal complications.

Customized Guidance: Every foreign worker's situation is unique. Labor consultants provide tailored advice, considering job roles, industries, and visa statuses. This personalized approach minimizes risks and maximizes benefits for all parties involved.

Mitigating Risks: Labor violations can result in hefty fines or even deportation for foreigners. Consulting services assist in mitigating these risks by ensuring all processes, from work permit applications to contract drafting, are carried out meticulously.

Credible Sources and References

For comprehensive and up-to-date information on labor laws for foreigners in Vietnam, credible sources such as AN LAW Firm provide a wealth of resources. Their online guide offers insights into work permits, contracts, and other legal aspects, ensuring readers are well-informed.

Conclusion

Navigating Vietnam's labor laws as a foreigner can be intricate, but the process becomes streamlined and compliant with the guidance of labor consulting services. Foreign workers can thrive in Vietnam's dynamic job market by understanding the legal framework, obtaining work permits, and crafting well-defined employment contracts. Remember, seeking expert advice demonstrates your commitment to compliance and fosters a positive work experience for all parties involved.

[college-girl199328]

Flowery tributes will be laid thick and our undefended border hailed as the only miracle in a fracturing democratic world. This is amid pledges of eternal friendship as glasses filled with Canadian wine are clinked at the state dinner.

Joe Biden is coming for a sleepover next week to make Canada the 18th country he has visited since being sworn in as U.S. president. This is quite a protocol slippage from that fading, if not rescinded, tradition of Canada the first foreign presidential pitstop.

But it will be a warm Canadian welcome thanks to three simple words. He. Isn’t. Trump.

Still, several unrelated developments suggest our U.S.-Canada relationship may require some damage control just as much as a relationship celebration.

For example, Biden this week opened up northern Alaska reserves to oil production, which will be carried by pipeline right down the middle of America’s last wilderness frontier. It was the action of a president throwing his environmental credentials under the political bus.

But wait a minute. Isn’t this the same Biden who vetoed a far less risky mostly-built Keystone pipeline from Canada as his first act of presidential business?

And, lest we forget, it’s the same president seemingly on silent standby as Michigan’s governor aims to kibosh the Line 5 pipeline running under the Great Lakes. This is in clear violation of an international energy treaty Biden is charged with enforcing.

So far, as the fight to keep the pipeline flowing plods through U.S. courts, Biden has not said anything.

For more negative Biden fallout on Canada, just wait for the federal budget later this month.

Biden’s Inflation Reduction Act is a $375-billion bag of supersized carrots dangling in front of investors to lure their renewable electricity generation and hydrogen production interests inside protectionist America.

It’s a commendable goal and all, but it also flips the kill switch on promising Canadian investments in similar ventures.

That’s why Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland will struggle to rein in the deficit while rolling out hefty subsidies to keep our environment and infrastructure investments from disappearing into that giant-sucking sound of U.S. subsidies.

And, finally, Biden is the president who didn’t give Canada even a sideways glance when he inked a three-way submarine deal with Australia and Britain this week.

You could’ve called it a Biden snub except it’s an agreement largely rooted in nuclear submarines and we’re a country seemingly satisfied with just four Victoria-class submarines that were outdated and dented when purchased second-hand from Britain in 1998.

But military experts point out there’s technology-sharing involved in the agreement, which might’ve given Canada if it was allowed into the alliance, a modern upgrade to our sorry state of submarine readiness.

So if Biden is blocking cross-border energy, stealing green investments, and blackballing Canada from a military partnership, what will he bring to Ottawa? Just pajamas and notes from his address to Parliament?

Well, he’s coming here to arm-twist Canada to take a leadership role by deploying forces to restore order to gang-run Haiti, a mission that could ensnare Canada in a failed-state quagmire of ruthless violence. In other words, he wants us to face a no-win scenario. We should say no.

He might want to discuss Chinese security and election interference concerns but, with Trudeau in denial that the problem needs serious cyber-security investments, sworn testimony from his chief of staff, or a formal inquiry, it will be a brief conversation.

He will discuss Ukraine. Canada is already offering what limited military assistance can be spared by an armed force with a surplus in soldier capacity or modern equipment.

And Biden will offer to do nothing to stop the flood of asylum-seekers being bussed to the Quebec border for a hop-over into the warm arms of Canada’s welfare state, a dynamic that will continue until there are changes in a border treaty Biden has no interest in altering.

Let’s face it. The connection has not gone cold but we’re at a “meh” level of cross-border cordiality. This visit feels more like a checked-box obligation than a celebration.

We may be America’s largest trading partner but Canada ranks as an afterthought for Biden and there’s not much sign he shares an Obama-class bromance with Trudeau, a prime minister he probably sees as a lightweight leader on the world stage.

But hopefully, this visit will replace what seems to be Biden’s only Canadian memory. That was when he was honored with a state dinner during his 2016 farewell tour as Obama’s vice president.

And perhaps we should be grateful he won’t follow the departing script of the last U.S. presidential visit to Canada -- when a furious Donald Trump trash-talked Justin Trudeau from Air Force One even before he left Canadian airspace.

[merakiui]

Diluc, Kaeya, Xiao, and Childe Finding out That You’re Being Abused HCs

cw: mentions/descriptions of (physical and emotional) abuse, injuries, depressive mood/thoughts, implied violence **please proceed with caution and do not read if this is triggering! note - submissions are confusing for me, so I wrote it in this format. I hope that was okay! 

@tuestika said: Hi! Sorry that I send my request through submission, tumblr has sometimes eaten my asks either wholly or have omnomned whole ask xD Usually my requests sent through submissions arrive intact so…. I saw that you had done Scaramouche reacting finding out their s/o is being abused headcanons, may I request headcanons for Kaeya, Diluc, Xiao and Childe finding out their their s/o is being abused? Keep up good job! <3

🔥 Diluc 🔥

Diluc might not be the most vocal person in the world, but he’s definitely observant. He’s gotten rather skilled at picking apart your social cues because he’s spent a lot of time with you. 

So when you barge into his tavern one evening, looking absolutely disheveled and asking for one of the Knights, he’s feeling two emotions: confusion and irritation. 

For one, you shouldn’t even entrust your issue to those inadequate Knights. Nevertheless, you are his friend and he isn’t going to kick you out just because you mentioned them. 

He waves you over to the bar and is thoroughly shocked when you beg him to let you hide behind it. Then he notices your split lip and the fresh injuries on your face and forearms, and he wastes no time in getting to the point.

“Why were you out so late fighting hilichurls? I hope you haven’t led any here. We don’t need that sort of trouble right now.”

“Sorry. No, that’s not it. I just—you’re the only one...” You’re struggling to piece a coherent statement together, too busy looking over your shoulder to keep track of your thoughts. “I didn’t know where I could go. I mean, I thought of you and—“

“Please slow down. Start at the beginning.”

More concerned over your safety than professionalism, Diluc allows you to slip behind the bar counter, where you cower on the ground to avoid being seen. 

You gesture for him to come down to your height and he sighs, silently complying when he finds there aren’t any new customers to serve. Bending down to your level, he holds onto the countertop to keep his balance and then he locks eyes with you. 

“What exactly happened?”

You inhale a shuddering breath, wrapping your sore arms around yourself for comfort. Tears are gathering in your eyes as you recall the event. Your abuser had found you after you’d left to get some fresh air, they’d cornered you in a secluded alley, and—you can’t finish the rest of the story.

Diluc doesn’t expect you to continue. He nods as he lets the information sink in, already harboring a deep resentment for this despicable individual. 

“Wait here. I’ll close the tavern early. In the meantime, we should see to your injuries and then we’ll look for that person.”

“I really think we should tell the Knights...” you mumble, knowing he’ll disapprove. “They’re more suited to these types of cases.”

“The Knights are incompetent. The investigation will take days, if not weeks. What happens if your abuser knows they’ll be coming for them? They’ll try to escape and then there’ll be no telling where they’ve gone.”

“I know, but it wouldn’t hurt to—“

“I’ll take care of it.”

You try to object because it’s dangerous and you don’t want him to get injured on your behalf. But he’s insistent in his decision, claiming that if the Knights can’t help you no one can. And you really wouldn’t feel safe if your abuser was still roaming free, so you have no other choice but to allow him to carry out the investigation himself.

And Diluc can be quite clever at times. It won’t be hard to traverse the interior of Mondstadt at night, where his identity melts away into that of the sneaky Darknight Hero. 

He’s going to protect you no matter what. Your abuser won’t receive an ounce of sympathy from Diluc. All he feels is cold hatred when he catches them. Someone as precious as you does not deserve to be put through such torment, and he’ll see to it that your abuser pays a hefty price to make up for all of the damage they’ve caused.

🧊 Kaeya 🧊

Kaeya can’t understand why you’ve started isolating yourself from everyone. In the past, you were always such great friends with the Knights, always catching up to talk to one of them.

He’d spent a lot of time with you and has since gotten to know you through lighthearted conversations and gossip from the people of Mondstadt. 

For someone so appreciated and well-known, he can’t wrap his head around why you might want to suddenly disappear, hiding yourself away as if you didn’t exist. 

And then he happens to catch you in town one day while you’re out running some errands. It’s so like him to pop in with a few flirty lines, but the words stick in his throat when he notices the bandages stuck to your arms and legs. 

“That can’t be good,” he says as he approaches you, leaning ever so gracefully against a wooden support beam. “Why don’t we find Barbara? I’m sure she’ll have you patched up in no time, my dear friend.”

You don’t think you’re worth it so you shake your head, nervously hoping he’ll take the hint and go away. 

“I hope you’re not accepting those dangerous commissions again,” he adds, half teasing and half serious. You can’t tell whether he’s trying to sound chiding or not. 

“Please just...leave me be. I’m a little busy right now.” You try to leave the stall you’re at, walking stiffly to avoid limping in front of him. “I’m not feeling well, so if you’ll excuse me—“

Kaeya pushes off from the beam, standing in front of you with a posture that appears immovable. “By order of the Calvary Captain,” he’s saying, a playful glint in his eyes, “you aren’t allowed to move from that spot until you tell me what’s bothering you and why you’re covered head to toe in bandages.”

You can easily object to such an order, but you figure it’s better to answer instead of arguing over your physical condition. So you explain a modified version of the story, telling him that you simply got into a disagreement and it ended in bruises on both sides. 

Kaeya hears the tremble in your voice when you say it; you’re lying. His expression softens at once and he steps away, indicating that you’re free to leave. But you don’t; you’re looking at him with such a helpless, pleading look. It breaks his heart.

You break before him, lips quivering as you beg for his help. You’re so scared and alone, and you’re not sure how long you can suffer through this before it seriously hurts you. 

“This is the first time I’ve gotten out in weeks.” So that explains your sudden isolation. “Please... I don’t want to go back home anymore. I’ll do anything. Just don’t let them hurt me again.”

Kaeya’s absolutely stunned to hear the silent revelation in your words. You’re awkwardly reaching to undo one of the bandage wrappings to prove your point, but he stops you short. That’s all the proof he needs.

You’ll be brought back to the Knights of Favonius’ Headquarters to be tended to while he gathers a team to search for your abuser. Since you gave him a solid description, it shouldn’t be too hard to find them. 

And once they’re apprehended, Kaeya will subject them to a grueling interrogation. There will be no gentle punishment; it’s going to be as unforgiving as the abuse you had to suffer through. 

☁️ Xiao ☁️

You’ve never really been keen on physical touch and Xiao understands that completely. He usually avoids any sort of interaction to begin with, unless it’s absolutely necessary, so it’s not a surprise whenever you shy away from large crowds.

He has grown rather fond of you, which has lead to the two of you meeting at Wangshu Inn for some Almond Tofu and relaxed chit-chat.

During one of your many conversations, you bring up a few alarming statements. They’re just personal points you’d like to change, such as your weak fighting spirit or the way your joints brokenly click when you stretch. 

Xiao wonders why you’d want to change yourself. You’re not usually this doubtful of yourself. In the past, you would always play the role of his smiling friend, putting on a positive face even when he was in a disagreeable mood. 

Xiao is examining your movements as you awkwardly explain yourself and when your arms move he catches the sight of a rope burn etched into your wrist. 

“What happened?” He gestures to your sleeve, to which you react in a nervous manner, shyly pulling your sleeve down to hide it. Xiao frowns a bit. “Did you get into an accident?”

“No, of course not! I’m fine. It’s just a result of my clumsiness.”

It really doesn’t look like that to Xiao and when he truly looks at you again he finds that you appear abnormally tired and exhausted. He isn’t going to sugarcoat anything and he could be making a giant assumption, but he still asks.

“Is someone hurting you?”

Your eyes widen for a split second and Xiao catches that movement like a cat drawn to a laser pointer. He won’t force you to explain unless you feel comfortable doing so. The last thing he wants is upsetting you or pressuring you into something you don’t want to talk about.

Eventually, though, the story will come to light and he’ll hear all about the horrors you’ve gone through. That rope burn was just one of many punishments you’ve had to endure, and Xiao’s just about ready to snap. How dare someone lay their filthy hands upon you in such a violent way?

Xiao will calmly tell you to stay at Wangshu Inn or anywhere else in Liyue where you’ll be safe. He’ll watch over you while you take time to recuperate and heal. He’s going to make sure you’ll never have to go through something like that ever again.

Having Xiao by your side makes the healing process all the more comforting.

And when you fall asleep in a soft, warm bed, Xiao slips out into the night to search for your abuser. It won’t be a pretty sight once he gets his hands on the human trash who dared to hurt you.

💧 Childe 💧

He’s very perceptive when it comes to your health and overall well-being. After all, he’s got brothers and sisters to care for; perception is absolutely necessary in order to keep them happy and healthy.

So it doesn’t take long for him to realize your behavior is uncharacteristic. You’re jumpier than usual, always apologizing for the littlest of things, and you’ll look over your shoulder whenever you sense something.

It’s almost as if you expect someone to suddenly come at you, which isn’t all that odd. Childe has been known to keep you on your toes when he’s looking for a fight.

But on one particular day he manages to give you a spook when he comes up beside you, grinning and showing up in your peripheral so suddenly that it nearly gives you a heart attack. 

You’re so frightened as you back away, practically folding in on yourself in an effort to protect yourself from an imaginary blow. Childe pauses, that silly grin fading when he realizes you’re shaking.

“Hey, it wasn’t that scary. Come on, comrade!” He’s approaching you warily, not entirely sure why you’re acting the way you are. He’s always been spontaneous; you should be used to this by now.

But you refuse to let him come any closer, having to distance yourself so that you can ease your racing heart and hyperventilating lungs. Once you’ve calmed down, embarrassment floods through you at the fact that Childe just witnessed all of that. 

Childe will ask if you’re okay with him stepping closer and if you nod he’ll be on you like a hawk, pulling up your sleeves before you can stop him. 

For once, you catch an expression you normally don’t find on Childe: surprise. He’s genuinely shocked at what he sees: dark bruises and shallow lacerations from something sharp. 

Either you got these in your many sparring matches or there’s another factor at play here, and Childe is almost certain it’s the latter.  

His voice is gentle as he asks you to explain what’s going on and once you do he’s already set on finding the one who did this. He seems to forget all about his Fatui work, wanting to capture your abuser and give them a piece of his mind—and subject them to more than a few pieces of his strength, too. 

He’ll have you protected in no time, offering to take you to the best healer. You’ll be treated wonderfully and he’ll even lay off on your sparring matches for a while. 

In the meantime, once he gets his hands on your abuser, everything becomes fair game. After all, someone has to handle the brunt of his anger and pent-up bloodlust from the lack of a fight. And your abuser is the perfect match to pummel into the ground. Childe shows absolutely no mercy for them.