#What Makes a Man

[hopelesslyshippingalong]

They say not to wander in this part of the desert. They say a demon lurks who plays games with men's souls. They say whoever finds themselves in his shadow will never again see the light of day.

Well, Seto doesn't care what they say. He wants his brother back, and no superstitious fairytale is going to stop him.

Prideshipping Beauty and the Beast AU

What Makes a Man (and What Makes a Monster)

[redinkquill]

What Makes a Man

What makes a man

Is being gentle

When we’re irate

It’s being humble

When we are great

It’s finding love

Amongst the hate

What makes a man

Is supporting one another

Building each other up

Picking up the pieces

When everything goes toes up

It’s shaking hands

To heal rifts

It’s being generous

With our gifts

What makes a man

Is helping friends

And making amends

It’s recognizing mistakes

And fixing them with haste

Boys may fight

But men do what’s right

That’s what makes a man

[drspleenmeister]

Just came across a Twitter post irreverently stating that Tom Welling was the inadvertent creator of gays in the '00s, and I can't help but feel that with a big enough role Taylor might be that guy for the '20s... (my pic selections are obviously those that satisfy my own biased, female gaze; maybe some of my male followers can post their own take on these two delicious boys?)

[perennialkarmaofficial]

"Real men have male genitalia", "real men don't cry", "real men treat women like trash", "real men go hunting"

No. Real men respect women. Real men show their emotions. Real men don't take their bodies for granted. Real men love animals. Real men respect nature. Real men accept each other. Real men uplift.

Anyone who says otherwise are part of the problem.

[vault-heck]

What Makes a Man - now complete!

Read on AO3

Playlist

Super excited to share that I've finished the first portion of my longfic re-write! These 40,400+ words make up 5 chapters and I feel they do a much better job of detailing my sole survivor's backstory and initial weeks after vault exit.

You might enjoy this story if you:

read the original work, Wildfire

are a millennial deconstructing evangelical christianity

are transmasculine and anxious and/or impulsive

prefer bethesda fanfic that bends canon at certain times and beats it with a stick at others

As for the rest of the Wildfire re-write, I currently have two works that I'm outlining:

What God Doesn't Give

What Would You Build?

And some others that take place in the same universe:

Untitled - multiple chapters - RJ MacCready & (OC) Adelaide Noble

Untitled - multiple chapters - Piper Wright / Fahrenheit

The Rules of Baseball - one shot - Preston Garvey / (OC) Noah O'Neill

Marked for Death - multiple chapters - Chase / (OC) Omen

[aznisure]

belly of the beast

[butchfalin]

the funniest meltdown ive ever had was in college when i got so overstimulated that i could Not speak, including over text. one of my friends was trying to talk me through it but i was solely using emojis because they were easier than trying to come up with words so he started using primarily emojis as well just to make things feel balanced. this was not the Most effective strategy... until. he tried to ask me "you okay?" but the way he chose to do that was by sending "👉🏼👌🏼❓" and i was so shocked by suddenly being asked if i was dtf that i was like WHAT???? WHAT DID YOU JUST SAY TO ME?????????? and thus was verbal again

[callmeurrbunny]

i'm just a kid

i never use my brain

i only use my heart

and my imagination

[hanszoe]

on acting, うそ is so ubiquitous in japanese that this is probably nothing, but when sawney and bean are killed hans screams

噓だと 噓だと言ってくれ

which seems slightly modified from this panel in the manga

where it's one of the random soldiers who says ウソだろ (lit. "it's untrue"), hans is only depicted yelling sawney and bean's names

the literal translation of their dialog in the anime is

[...] that it's untrue Tell me that it's untrue

噓 うそ is a standalone noun meaning "untrue" or "lie" (or various other similar words, in the official sub it's translated as "not real". "joke" probably also suffices here). in the manga dialog you can see its very common use to express disbelief (噓だ literally means "it's untrue" as translated earlier, but is commonly approximated to "I can't believe it" in english).

its literal meaning is unavoidable in hans' dialog, as they're asking someone to tell them it isn't real. this construction also exists in english and is sensically literally translatable, but i was thinking about their dialog and the meaning of 噓 to them

hans is arguably telling untruths any time they put on an act, up to more direct lies. acting, or lying, is an unavoidable part of their character, and it's how they behave in social situations a lot of the time. it's interesting to me that they voice the concept of lying here, but particularly in a way that pleads someone to tell them that it's a lie. as if when they're lying they are aware that they hold that power over who they're lying to (and indeed, they tell sannes the truth when it's no longer necessary for him to believe the lie). this makes their lying (or acting) a method of attaining power. it's multifaceted: they're able to not only distance themself from the situation, but are also able to direct it in a way that elicits favorable responses.

of course, hans knows that sawney and bean are dead. no one could pull off a prank that elaborate. but when confronted with unwanted truth hans immediately thinks of lies, and that's the really interesting part to me: the reappearance of 噓 is a coping mechanism. this time a situation outside of their control, but their mind still immediately goes to their want for it and the lies which would keep them safe.

[hopelesslyshippingalong]

They say not to wander in this part of the desert. They say a demon lurks who plays games with men's souls. They say whoever finds themselves in his shadow will never again see the light of day.

Well, Seto doesn't care what they say. He wants his brother back, and no superstitious fairytale is going to stop him.

AKA The Beauty and the Beast AU that nobody asked for but we all needed.

[ink-the-artist]

Love the contrast between the Americans’ “Apollo” and the Soviets’ “Sputnik.” You got the Americans naming their rocket after a Greek god trying to communicate the grandness and importance of this rocket. And you got the Soviets naming their rocket “fellow traveler.” Like a friend you go on an  adventure with together. This rocket is our little friend lol 

[mejkosmos]

hot people fw with spideypool AND poolverine btwbtw

[neveroceanblvd]

he might be the love of my life

[liquidstar]

Yes, Greece still exists, we didn't all die 2000 years ago. Yes, people speak Greek. You people are so fucking stupid for real. So many of you claim to love ancient shit but can't even acknowledge the actual living culture of the people whose mythology and classics you romanticize. You keep leaving annoying comments about how you just forget Greek people still exist, thinking you're being quirky because you love ancient stuff soooo much that you forgot about the people it came from. You think about it so little you don't even realize that an actual Greek person has to read this shit, making it clear how little you actually care about the culture beyond the romanticized (and westernized) mythology. Don't claim you love Greece, don't use our mythology anymore if you can't acknowledge that we're still around without making it about how little you think about us. It's mind boggling that you'd think a Greek person would read this and think you're anything but obnoxious. Explode.

[starii-void]

going to chb must be crazy like imagine sharing a camp with

-one of the strongest demigods ever who's saved the world like at least 3 times, fought multiple gods & titans and WON (and is a tartarus survivor)

-the literal main architect of OLYMPUS who's also saved the world multiple times (also tartarus survivor)

-THE lord of the wild who's also close friends with the first two (and has helped save the world multiple times)

-an emo kid from the 1930s who again helped save the world and is also a tartarus survivor (TWICE)

-a son of apollo who survived tartarus with nothing but cargo shorts and sheer will (pun intended)

-the main designer and builder for the argo II, also the first hephaestus kid to have fire powers since hundreds of years ago (did i mention killed gaea? no? yeah he did that too)

-a girl who somehow charmspeak-ed gaea into falling back asleep (also side note daughter of super famous actor because why not)

-pretty much everybody is a two-time war veteran

-THE GOD APOLLO who just sometimes comes down to visit in the form of a teenage boy

-did i mention dionysus, god of wine madness and theatre

-also chiron, trainer of pretty much every greek hero ever

[inkskinned]

you said you were stuck in a time loop, which was fine. i feel like late-stage capitalism has us all in a time loop, ammiright? you came barging in at 5:33. in the morning. i hadn't even processed the idea of coffee.

but you had this look of utter panic in your eyes. terror like the ocean. you grabbed my cheeks. im in a time loop.

i don't know why in movies the first reaction is to deny it. when someone is panicking like that, it's not appropriate to ask them to calm down. it didn't matter if i believed it, what mattered was that you believed it so much that it was consuming you.

so here we are. i pour you some of the dark roast. "you look like utter and entire hell," i say.

you push your fingers into your eyes. "you always say that."

i try to think of something funny to say that i wouldn't have said on previous time loops, but jokes don't land without the proper timing (lol). "remind me to think -"

"-yeah, of a joke that only works in the future. and before you say anything, i know you're pissed i just stole your punchline." you bolt the coffee, which is wild. it's very hot. you don't seem to notice.

i blow on mine to cool it down. i both am very pissed at you and also i can't see you in this amount of panic without wanting to help. but i'm also not really sure what we are, not since i saw you kiss her like that, no offense. it just was like, kind of rude when you knew i liked you.

and besides. i'm just like, barely a person. i write omegaverse fanfiction. i love the concept of a time loop, but what the fuck am i gonna do? send an alpha in there? i open my mouth.

you point at me. "you're about to ask why me. and then say some disparaging shit about yourself. i'm just a nerd who plays dnd or something. that self-own is slightly different each time." you sigh. "i know you think you can't really help me. i don't know who can help me. i only came to you because you fucking believe me." you check your watch, sigh, and throw your head back. you cover your eyes with one hand. "i've come here on 26 separate revolutions," you say. "you have believed me every time. and yeah, i have no idea how you fit into this but i just -" you sigh again. "i just like fucking talking to someone about it."

"do you need more cof-" i start, but you're already holding the empty cup out. i frown at it. "you're not getting any more until you promise not to bolt this one like an animal."

you laugh a little and sit up, pushing your hair out of your face. "okay, that's new dialogue. but to be fair to you, i'm not usually this rude. i'm still pretty new at all of this." you check your watch again. another sigh. i guess you're cruising for a personal best in the Sigh Olympics.

i almost tell you im not an NPC but i've played enough video games to know i'm very much an NPC. i pour you another cup. "so what happens in the loop?"

"really bad explosion." you mutter into the mug. you put your elbows on the table (rude) and bury your face in your arms like an angsty teenager. one hand floats up while you talk, because evidently you literally can't talk without your hands. "i have to save the day and there's this bomb and i have no bomb training and it keeps moving, you know."

"do i die?"

you peek up from your arms. "yeah. bigtime. you keep trying to run or stay or do anything and you always super die."

"oh."

"to be fair, like, everyone dies in it though.... so you're in good company."

i hate that you make me laugh. i hate that being around you always feels tingly and strange, this electric tension between us. something that is evidently (given how you stuck your tongue down a stranger's throat literally 3 days ago) (well. 3 for me) super one-sided. i take a sip of my coffee and close my eyes.

i die today, i guess. a little spark of panic starts at the top of my hands and starts whipping up my wrists.

"shit," you say. you look at your watch and jump to your feet. "i have to go. if i can come back, i will. i am still trying to figure out when is best to do everything, you know? the order of stuff. maybe morning isn't good for us."

i look up at you and think about how you keep kissing me in the back of my car and in alleyways and in the dark. and i can never fucking get a read on you. and i also think about how incredibly panicked you look. how broken. how long have you been doing this? "i don't want to die," i say.

you glance downwards. "well, you're not really dead, you'll come back in the loop."

"but i will have died." my hands are shaking. i am trying really hard to stay calm.

you push your hands through your hair again. "i really have to go. i will have this discussion with the next version of you, though. it is like, something i am thinking about."

"but i don't get a next version," i say. i don't really have the language for this, because i haven't had 26 tries with you. i only have my memories: you, a week ago. drunk and telling me you loved me in my ear. you, kissing her anyway. you, months ago, throwing up on my birthday, whispering to me i ruin everything i touch, always, over and over. please don't ask. i can't ever fucking have that be you.

i run my finger along the rim of the mug. "i don't want to die in this one."

you seem baffled by this. "i get that but - time will reset, you'll be fine, you won't even remember we talked about this."

"but i know now." i stand up too. "i have to live the rest of this day knowing i could die. knowing i probably am going to."

"you could always die, to be fair."

i feel my hands get out of control. "earlier, you said i always say a different insult about myself. what if you're just going through different parallel universes and those are all just different - but real - versions of myself? what if you're not in a time loop, you're in a fucking universe loop?"

"if it helps, i've wondered this too. also, you're hot in all of them. if that helps."

i point at you. "no flirting. i'm trying to figure out if i die today."

"who's flirting?" you catch my wild hands and give me that long, perfect smile. like we're in this together. "i won't let ya die." you check your watch and sigh again. "well. maybe not this time."

i grit my teeth. you are so not making quips at me while i try to explain the existential dread i'm having. "does the time loop reset if i fucking kill you?"

"honestly i don't know how long it continues after i die, because i just wake up. it could be that the loop goes until the explosion for everyone, and we're all in the loop, or it could be that when i die, the loop restarts. when i die i wake up, is all."

i pull away from you and stalk into the kitchen and start doing all 3 of my dishes. "okay, first, you know i was joking. and secondly, this is exactly my point. you don't know if this is just a parallel universe. maybe in the ones where you died, the explosion happened and nobody reset and it's just you travelling." i have to stop and push my heel into my eyeball. "... how often have you died?"

i look at you. you look at me. you give me this very sad, halfway smile and a little what can ya do shrug. something in that action seems so old and weary that i want to burst into tears.

"i have to go," you say. "really. for real. there's this family of five i save from getting into a car crash. and i know it's like oh but we're all gonna die in the explosion anyway, what's the point. and..." you shrug again. "it matters to me, is all. at least i saved them for now. at least i saved anything."

you pad over to me and wrap me in a tight hug. you always seem so tall against me. i feel your cheek rest against the top of my head for a moment. for a second, it's just us, and the space is warm, and my heart is a little broken hare.

you leave me there, and i stand in my stupid badly lit kitchen with my stupid mugs. i think about you. i start texting my mom that she needs to get out of the city, but it feels pointless.

i don't know what to do. tomorrow is the same day for you. but i have to prepare to die in my today.