#Whatever you've been doing to keep yourself safe is probably still fine

[polyamorousmood]

There's been an uptick in people discussing how much hate polyamory gets. While I have no doubt people are seeing it more, if only because polyamory is starting to come out from the shadows more, I want to say very little of it has been directed at this blog. So firstly, thank you to all of you following for being chill.

I think that's because y'all are poly too, which brings me to my next point. If the talk surrounding it has you fearful, breathe. This is a very public blog easily found through basically any poly-related tag. That should make it an easy target for bullshit, but I've gotten very little. So you're probably fine. If you DO have a repeated problem with it, I can promise it's only a few bad actors, and if you block them, your life will improve dramatically. Most people have better shit to do than harass strangers online, it turns out!

[suguann]

✎. you've been on the run for a while. you knew someone would come eventually—but not him.

tags. fem!reader, old west era, bounty hunter simon, size difference, size kink, implied the reader's husband is a terrible human, accidental voyeurism, period-typical sexism, masturbation [18+ only]

masterlist

You’ve been running for months, first from your husband (the phantom grip of his hand still sending an ache through your wrist) and now as a wanted conwoman for stealing the clothes from an unsuspecting cowpoke who thought he was getting lucky. You can only imagine what Mama would say about trading your ruffled skirts for grass-stained trousers and boiled-leather suspenders.

(It’s unbecoming of a respectable woman, dear. Uncouth.)

She’d probably have a lot to say if she knew everything you’ve done to survive.

You hop from one place to the next only by the mere chance someone was willing to let a helpless woman accompany them on their travels. Nearly a month has passed since being stranded in a dusty old mining town after a man and his wife dump you off and leave you behind. Washoe’s a little gritty and not welcoming unless there’s money to spend.

It’s not exactly safe, not unsafe, either, but nobody asks questions as long as you keep your head down and play the part of a mourning widow just passing through.

You know you’ve overextended your stay when you can’t leave your room during the day without worrying about a noose and the open end of a barrel meeting you outside. 

(That your husband or that gun-waving cowpoke finally found you.)

Sleep practically clings to you like a second skin, but you don’t dare close your eyes—you can’t.

This is how you end up sitting in the corner of the saloon, using the last of whatever you have in your change purse to order something strong, something your husband kept locked away, and anything else he thought women shouldn’t have a part in. 

You don’t even realize that your eyelids begin to feel heavy, steadily blurring out the flickering lantern on the wall while you wait for your drink. 

You catch yourself once or twice before your head can hit the table, rapidly blinking away the exhaustion before your eyes slide to the swinging doors.

You should stay awake. 

You need to stay awake just a little bit longer—

Your luck runs out that day. 

It’s one thing to know it’d happen eventually, and something else to realize that you make it easy for him—the man with an infamous name and a faded black bandana covering half his face—how he walked into the saloon and scooped you up (all unladylike sleepy dead weight) out of the weathered booth without a fight.

When you’d woken up to find yourself trussed up and thrown over the back of his horse, you cursed him out with every word you could think of that would make Mama clutch her skirts. Your captor ignored you, only talking to you whenever he warned you he was about to set up camp. 

“Did my husband send you?” Acknowledging him after all this time tasted like pennies on your tongue.

The man, Simon Riley, had leaned back against his bedroll and tipped the brim of his hat over his eyes. “Go the fuck to sleep.”

That was several weeks ago. 

Now, you find yourself stranded in another state that’s more green and vibrant than anything you’re familiar with, stuck with a man who refuses to answer the questions you throw at him. He doesn’t talk outside a few cursory words you greedily latch onto. Anything’s better than silence and the sound of hooves hitting earth. 

The pace he keeps you at is exhausting. You complain about it enough until he moves you in front of him, tying your hands to the saddle's horn.

“I would strongly advise you to shut that mouth for the rest of the ride unless you want me to do something about that, too.” The low growl of his voice in your ear makes the fine hairs on the back of your neck stand up, muddling your brain.

You’re distantly aware you had something to say to that, but you don’t. 

And that is really saying something.

It’s because there’s someone he needs to meet in town—an errand that lawbreakers who run their mouths aren’t allowed to go on.

This is how you end up sitting in camp alone, twirling around a knife he gave you solely for emergencies. 

(Surprise, sharp and quick through your middle, when he tosses his pocket knife into the grass beside you. “What’s to stop me from leaving?”

You could’ve sworn he rolled his eyes. “Will you?”

It doesn’t seem worth dignifying with a reply. You don’t want to travel alone, and there’s a high possibility of getting lost, finding yourself saddled up with worse company than the one you’re stuck with.

Until he evidently catches you again.)

He’s a lot nicer than you first gave him credit for—if only by a fraction—not that you know much about Simon other than what you overheard from gossip circles before you became Mrs. Thornton. Afternoons spent sipping tea laden with honey and lounging around a table full of cakes in the sun parlor while wealthy women talked behind their lace-covered hands to hide secret smiles you were too naive to understand. 

Trying not to stare at the bulge of his arms with thin pink scars—unlike the men you’re used to who got through life with a silver spoon hanging from their mouth—as he places his saddle back on his horse, you think you finally know what they smiled about.

You learn those scars also litter his torso from the time you accidentally walked upon him mid-way through putting his trousers on after washing in the river. It’d been too dark for you to see much else, and you quickly returned to camp before he could say something that would embarrass you both. 

Then, of course, tucked away into your bedroll, you can’t help wondering what the rest of him would have looked like if you had stayed a second longer. 

If his jaw is sharp or soft behind that mask he insists on wearing—that’s if he’d let you see at all. 

Simon’s always so serious that it’s often hard to determine whether he’s merely tolerating your existence until he can get rid of you or if he’s unused to traveling accompanied for so long. It’s not as if he goes out of his way to make pleasant conversation with you for you to assume otherwise.

You look off in the direction where he disappeared into the dense line of trees hours ago, wondering if you should go out looking for him (mainly because you’re hot and sticky from the humidity) despite his order to stay put. 

But after four hours turns into five, you head off, searching for something to help cool you off.

Luckily, unlike the heavily eroded lands you’re used to, there isn’t any water shortage in a place that sees rain three times a day, so it doesn’t take long to find a lake. You set your knife down on the stone-covered beach, followed by your boots, until you’re left in nothing but your undergarments. 

The water is icy cold and laps gently at your feet when you step in. You can’t find it in you to complain as the heat from the day slowly washes away the further you walk in and find a wide ledge to sit on. 

Your thoughts drift back to Simon, incessant and intruding even though you shouldn’t be thinking about him while wet and naked. And suddenly, you can picture it: his hands replacing yours as they trace along your neck. You have a feeling they’re probably rough and scarred from years of living hard and gunslinging, extracting the readily available knowledge that they’re big enough to encase your waist.

He could maneuver you around however he wants (you know this), and you feel dizzy just thinking about it.

Sighing, you sink deeper into the water while your hands smooth over the tips of your breasts and down your stomach. 

You wish you could see him without violating whatever personal preservations hide him from the rest of the world. Instead, you’re left with your imagination—the benefits of being a married woman and the little experience you have in the bedroom finally coming into play. 

Closing your eyes, you picture what he might look like under those sun-weathered leathers, knowing that the broadness of his shoulders isn’t only due to his vest and holsters but also from how his job has shaped him.

Your hands travel lower, fingers brushing through the creamy, soft wetness between your legs, evidence of what Simon does to you even when he’s not around. A moan, too high and breathy, slips past your lips as you use your middle finger to circle your clit in slow, clumsy swirls from lack of practice and patience that spreads warmth through your middle despite the cold water. 

It’s good, your fingers discovering places your husband always ignored—too many nights spent with your hand under your nightgown long after he’d tucked his cock away and gone to sleep—but probably don’t compare to the ones you’ve caught yourself staring at far too many times. 

They don’t fill you nearly enough, unlike how you know Simon’s would—thick and unrelenting. Rough and long, reaching deep enough to make you breathless.

Your breath hitches from pinching the tight, sensitive peak of your nipple until you feel a slight sting, and then it slips out, a tiny thing that’s only audible to your ears—Simon—a secret you now share with the lightning bugs and crickets.

“Dirty, no good rotten—” he’d tell you for thinking such lewd thoughts about him, for sinning so easily. Maybe you are, for getting so worked up over a man who isn’t your husband (no matter how terrible a husband he may be).

A man who’s so big that he makes you feel small, the type that gives before he takes. It’s enough to make you work your hand faster—your body vibrating from the chill of the water and the ache between your trembling thighs.  

Fantasies aren’t enough to sate the deep longing in your chest. Yet you’re slipping over the edge of ecstasy before taking your next breath—all of it builds up and gradually crests inside you like the lake rippling against the shore.

Afterward, it leaves you feeling soft and blurred around the edges, a watercolor painting drying under the sun while you wait for your rapid heartbeat to slow.

You don’t realize your eyes have fallen shut until they flutter open, and you’re startled to find Simon standing at the shoreline, his chest heaving as if he ran here. 

(Though he probably did to see if you took the opportunity to leave.)

You’re glued to your spot on the rock, suddenly struck with the mortifying realization that he’d seen you come—that he possibly heard you cry out his name so intimately.

You watch him remove his hat and hang it on a branch with wide eyes. Followed by his undershirt, guns, and—

He keeps removing clothes until he’s completely naked on the shore—aside from his face that stays hidden—scars marred his chest, spreading to his collarbones and below the water as he steps into the lake and sits on another ledge across from you.

His mask makes him look more menacing, erasing any trace of softness there. And you wonder if he’s angry at you for wandering off.

"Come here." His voice is low and deep, rumbling in his chest.

You don't think he'd hurt you. If he wanted to, he would have done it by now.

At least, that’s what you’re going with to settle the nervous fluttering in your middle.

Water laps at your arms as you wade through the water, each shaky step bringing you closer until you stop before him.

"In my lap."

Your breath sticks in your throat as you do as he says, settling down onto his sturdy thighs, palms falling flat against his broad chest. That same breath comes out in one large exhale as his fingers slide along your jaw, to the nape of your neck, curling into your hair, wet and falling around your shoulders.

“Like this?” you ask, trying to ignore how breathy you sound.

He grunts, apparently in confirmation.

You don’t think you’ve ever felt so conflicted in your life—fear and arousal turning into a messy cocktail in your veins.

“Why do I always have to use a heavy hand to make you listen?”

Your lips part. Breath growing short. “I’m sorry.”

And then—

Simon pulls your head back sharply, exposing your throat.

Your body goes slack against his. Mind blissfully blank.

“No,” he says, tone flat. “But you will be.”

[autisticlifelessons]

Tips for boosting driving confidence in Autistic people

For some autistic people, myself included, driving anxiety can be really detrimental to your ability to get around and be independent. However, this year (10 years after starting to learn and 9 years after passing my test lol), I have been working hard to improve my confidence and whilst I still have a ways to go, my anxiety isn't nearly as bad as it was and I've driven places I would never have dreamed of this time last year.

The following tips are aimed at autistic people, but I think they'll apply to anyone who considers themselves a nervous driver.

Practice makes perfect! - if something makes you super anxious, the natural thing to do is avoid it if at all humanly possible, right? Well, it might make you feel relief in the moment, but over time this just reinforces your anxious thoughts and can make it harder and harder to break the cycle. As much as it sucks, the key thing is to just. keep. driving. Start with just short journeys on familiar roads and build it up from there. The more situations you encounter the more your skills will improve. For various reasons - including issues with visual processing and sensory overload - it's natural that some autistic people take longer to feel comfortable and confident at doing something, so just keep working at it and you'll slowly but surely notice a difference.

Leave yourself plenty of time - being late is a massive trigger for me, so if I find myself in a situation where I have to drive somewhere in a tight time frame it really freaks me out. Give yourself plenty of time to get where you need to go, so you know you have wriggle room if there's unexpected road closures or if you make a wrong turn. This is especially important if you're going somewhere unfamiliar as you will probably already be anxious about this. Plus, if you arrive early you will have some time to regulate/decompress yourself in preparation for whatever you have planned.

Set out your boundaries - Ok driving alone but having people in car with you sends you into a flat spin? That's fine - say no to passengers for a while and then if you feel ready have a trial run with someone you know will be kind and supportive. Equally, if you find having someone in the car with you is reassuring, that can be a big help - just be sure they understand you are feeling anxious so they don't pressure you to go routes you aren't ready for. Also, some people are overconfident in their driving abilities and may try to get you to do things that are unsafe - don't listen to them! Trust your own judgement.

Set a goal - having something specific to work for can help motivate you and give you a measure of your confidence improving. Maybe you want to drive to an out of town shopping centre, or take a road trip with a friend? Just make sure your goal is realistic and you give yourself a big pat on the back once you achieve it.

Practice self compassion - driving is stressful for some people and that's totally ok. I've accepted that while I can safely get from A to B, I'm probably never someone who is going to want to drive for fun. Remember, you are in charge of your life, no one else. Whilst I'm ok driving short distances, if I have to go to another city I would always opt for public transport if at all available. I know it'll make the whole thing much less stressful for me (and is better for the environment, too). Also, if you've been trying for a while but driving just isn't for you, that's totally ok, too! It sucks that the way our society is built means not having access to your own car is inconvenient at best, but remember we all have different strengths and weaknesses, and deciding not to drive doesn't make you a failure. You can bet the minute I can get hold of a (reliable and affordable) self-driving car, my life will be made so much easier!

And there you have it! I do hope my tips brought you some comfort or reassurance if this is something you've been struggling with. Remember, these tips are what have helped me personally - I am not a driving (lol) or medical professional, and I certainly don't claim to speak for all autistic people.

Your support is hugely appreciated xx

[themultifandomgal]

Shelby Sister- Strained Relationship Pt1

YN and her older brother Tommy have never seen eye to eye. Their relationship strained from the moment she was born. Maybe it's because YN was born 2 years after Tommy, he was jealous that all his mums attention went to the young baby. Maybe it was because growing up their personalities were way to similar and now they just but heads. Even though there is this strain on their relationship, Tommy doesn't want to loose any more of his siblings. So with Luca Changretta in town after the murder of John Shelby, Tommy has taken extra precautions to try and keep his family safe

"Finn I'm fine. I'm just going to the bakery" YN tells her youngest brother who has always been very protective of his eldest sister

"But..."

"Finn seriously what's gonna happen?" YN crosses her arms

"Don't bother trying to stop her brother. She does as she pleases"

"But Tom..."

"You know our YN" Tommy puts down his paper and stands up walking towards his sister "but don't come crying to me if a bullet lands in your head"

"Don't worry. Rather that bullet kill me that come to you"

"When will you two stop hating one another"

"Ask 'im. Now if you'll excuse me I'm going. I'll be half an hour" YN takes her coat and and leaves the house.

On her way back home, with cakes and buns in her brown paper bag YN feels as though there are eyes on her. Turning around she can't see anyone, so YN picks up her pace. That is until she's pulled down an alleyway, dropping her purse and brown bag. Something sharp hits her head and suddenly YN is on the floor surrounded by a growing pool of blood.

Half an hour went by, then an hour, then an hour and a half. Finn starts to get worried

"Will you stop pacing" Tommy mutters

"She said half an hour. She was going to the bakery"

"Probably gone for a fuck

"Whatever Tom. I'm going to look for her"

"Knock yourself out"

"If she's dead, that's on you" with that Finn takes his coat and stormed out the house searching for YN. Tommy carried on drinking his whiskey, but something Finn said doesn't sit right with Tommy 'if she's dead that's on you' YN wasn't one to tell them how long she'd be and be gone much longer. Putting down his drink he sighs taking his own coat off the rack and heading out onto the streets of Small Heath. Deciding to look at the bakery first for his sister, he starts walking that way, noticing how the cool air is pricking at his face like a dozen needles. His sister must be freezing, he thought walking through the street. Half way to the bakery he sees YNs purse, a discarded paper bag and blood. Lots of blood. But no YN. For the first time, his heart sinks at the thought of YN being hurt or worse. Looking closer he sees a bullet on the ground, picking it up he sees a name engraved, Luca Changretta. He's gone to far now. Luca has Tommys sister, possibly even hurt her, he's going to kill him. 

YN wakes up to a pounding head. She's in a dimly lit room, tied to a chair

"Ahh your awake. Nice of you to join us miss Shelby. Your brothers should have noticed that your missing by now and dear old Tommy will come to save you" this makes YN chuckle

"Tommy doesn't care about me. You took the wrong Shelby sister if you want Tommy to hand  over the company. Your gonna have to do better than this"

"If Tommy still wants a relationship with the rest of his family then he'll save you"

"Yeah right" YN scoffs at the man she knows to be Luca Changretta "what's another death in the Shelby family eh? you've already killed John, least if I'm dead I'll be with my brother, away from this cruel world"

"Oh don't worry Miss Shelby, you'll be joining your brother soon, in fact all of you will, but I must wait until he arrives"

"Like I said. He won't"

"We will just have to wait and see, won't we mia cara"

[theamityelf]

(In the Mini THH AU)

Some time after the execution for the fourth trial, Hajime speaks up to say, "So, Nagito. Are you finally going to let Makoto out of your pocket now?" Because usually that's when he'd do it, and give Makoto a chance to talk to the other kouhais about what they've just experienced.

But he looks around and finds that Nagito is long gone.

Back at his cabin, Nagito is running water in his bathroom sink, holding a ruler and thermometer to make sure the water comes to exactly an inch high and isn't too hot or cold. Makoto, standing on the side of the basin, between the faucet and the toothbrush cup, is trying to ask a question, but the running water covers the sound of his tiny voice. He waves for attention, and Nagito turns the water off.

"You still haven't explained why you hid me from the others," Makoto says. "Or what you read in that binder. Or why you've been angry all day."

Nagito scoops him up, mussing his sweat-dampened hair with one fingertip. There's a look in his eyes, and has been at least since Makoto could see his face again, that looks as if he's simultaneously hyperfocused on what he's doing and mentally detached from it. Like he's on autopilot with his eyes firmly on the road.

"I'm sorry it was so uncomfortable in there," he says. "There was no ice in the octagon, and nothing safe to soak a napkin with. I did my best to keep you from my body heat."

"It's fine. Please just tell me what's wrong."

"Maybe...We can read through the binder together later, okay? After your bath." He sets Makoto back down on the basin, turning his back so Makoto can get undressed. He pours a bit of shampoo into the cap of the shampoo bottle for him. "I'm going to hurry and pack our things before the others are back from the execution. Fortunately, they usually linger, and they'll probably want a meal first thing."

"Pack? Where are we going?"

"The beach house on the second island. We're surrounded, here. Even if I blocked off the door and the windows, someone could swim beneath us. There's only one path to the beach house, which makes it a lot easier to protect, and I can grab some diner food on the way so we can hole up until we've decided how to proceed."

"That...I know you said we'll read through what you learned later, but can you just tell me something to explain why you're suddenly so hostile to everyone else?"

"It's just because...they were never what we thought they were. They wasted their potential for hope."

"Wasted their potential...?"

"Hey." Nagito is gripping the edge of the sink tightly. "Once you find out the truth...it's okay if you hate me. I'll still protect you and care for you as best I can, so please don't feel like you have to pretend you aren't revolted."

"...Whatever it is, Monokuma showed it to you for a reason. He wanted to hurt you, and he wanted you to hurt them. We can't let him have that. You understand, right?"

Nagito makes a sound that is very difficult to parse as positive or negative. Almost like a sound Teruteru might make. Almost.

"Earlier, you were talking about all the ways you almost lost me. But, you're not giving yourself credit for the fact that you didn't. You always found me and made sure I was safe and well-taken-care-of. You made sure Hajime would be the one looking after me when you were sick, because you knew that Mikan-"

"Mikan," Nagito echoes. His body, which seemed to be gradually melting as he listened to Makoto's words, suddenly erects itself. "Yes, of course. It also explains why she..." The reminder seems to energize him, in a very unintended way. "I need to pack. I'll be back in just a minute."

When he returns, he has a heavy backpack on his back and a pillowcase filled with various other possessions in one hand. He helps Makoto out of the basin to dry off and get dressed.

"You rushed out before I could finish," Makoto complains.

Nagito kneels so he's at eye-level. "My apologies. But we should really hurry, before we risk running into the others en route. And...it's not fair of me to let you praise me before you know the truth."

Since Makoto has finished getting dressed, he scoops him up.

"Wait, wait! Are you about to put me back in your pocket?"

"I'm afraid so. But do remember that you're more than welcome to hate me for it."

Makoto is nestled gently into Nagito's left breast pocket. There is already a napkin-wrapped ice cube there for him this time, keeping the temperature manageable. He can both hear and feel Nagito's heartbeat. It could very well soothe him to sleep.

"You..." Nagito breathes. Makoto feels Nagito's big hand carefully cupping the pocket he's occupying. "What does it say about me, that the Ultimate Hope makes me desperately want to be selfish?"

Makoto gives an answer, but of course Nagito can't hear it.

He leaves his cabin without another word.

[raccoonfallsharder]

First of all, i love your art. Your style is amazing.

We all know Rocket is amazing in repairing space ships (and even building them) but what about a normal Earth car?

i am BLUSHING. i feel like i don't really have a set style (at least when it comes to drawing rocket - i am still figuring it out) so this really means a LOT. you’re so sweet i could actually die, little fox. just a coin-sized blueberry pancake with whipped cream. thank you for the kind words ♡ truly ♡♡~

secondly, what about normal earth cars? ur boy rocket looks at any given machine and understands it almost instantaneously. the kree charted him within .024 points of optimum intuitive grasp. a puny little earth-car is gonna be child's play for him.

not that i would ever suggest letting him work on yours.

it'll be more or less safe (for you) because rocket does care about you and isn't trying to get you killed. and sure, if you let him do that oil change you've been needing, he'll probably make some sneaky upgrades that allow for a smoother ride and better mileage. but the next time you find yourself with a lead foot, you'll realize you can also go way faster than anything on terra should be able to go. and the next time you accidentally bump one of those buttons on the console you rarely use, you'll probably end up with laser rifles unfolding from your wheel-wells, or your taillights flipping down to ready your "brand new" plasma cannons. (brand new in the sense that rocket will probably patch them together out of some old tech he has lying around his own ship, combined with whatever he can steal out of your kitchen cabinets. don't be too surprised if that mixer you bought from the thrift store no longer works because he's jacked all the internal wiring). lucky you - he'll probably figure out a way to make your powertrain UNTN-compatible and from there, he'll figure he's only gotta get you to let him do one more tire rotation, and when he's "working" on that, he can probably figure out a way to get your car capable of actual flight. it might take a bit longer to make sure it has adequate life-support systems and an airtight seal for short-term space travel but hey, he'll figure he's doing you both a favor, piece by piece.

it'll take you a while to figure out where he's hidden all the artillery in your car - and the thrusters, and the additional fuel tanks - and how to keep yourself from accidentally opening up the wings he's installed when you're in the middle of rush-hour traffic or construction. more than once you'll scrape the bottom of your car before you realize that the clearance has changed because he'll have added some re-entry grade ceramic plating to the bottom of it.

"you got any repairs you need done?" he'll probably ask casually, the next time he's planetside. "thought you mentioned your climate control being out."

"air conditioner," you'll say dryly. "and no thanks."

his jaw will probably drop. he'll look wounded. "why not? i did a fine job on the brakes last time."

your eyes will narrow. "i keep getting pulled over by the fucken cops."

his nose will wrinkle. "ew. why?"

your glare will turn withering. "because they don't believe the thing i'm driving is roadworthy anymore," you'll have to tell him. he'll sputter, probably - outraged and insulted - but you won't really be too mad. you know he's just trying to maximize the amount of time the two of you can hang out.

besides, the upgrades he'll make to your sound system will be worth it. your music will never have sounded better.

headcanons & imagines masterlist

[thedelusionreaderbitch]

Poly! Catradora x gn! Reader - Triumph from a shadow (PRIDE 2023)

A/n: Here is the first installment to the fics of pride 2023! (This is also old, so don't expect the writing to be stellar!)

Summary: You've always been a third wheel to Adora and Catra, even when you stayed with Catra in the horde. You've been over shadowed by the two of them your whole life and you're okay with that. You've seen what power can do to people, but your destiny isn't okay with it, and neither is your feelings.

Warnings: panic attacks, ptsd from the horde prolly, mild violence, death swearing, low self esteem, abandonment issues, crying, unrequited love, I think that's it? You have been warned!

The three P's:

[Pov: 2nd person][Pronouns used: you/your][Pairings: romantic! Catradora x reader, platonic! glimmer x reader, platonic! bow x reader, platonic! Entrapta x reader]

You've been a third wheel to Catra's and Adora's relationship from the beginning. Even in the horde when you had decided to stay with Catra to keep her safe she was still obsessed with Adora. When you had defected the horde because you saw what Catra was doing to herself and not only could you not watch her do it, you felt like you were only encouraging it.

While you came back to Brightmoon and tried to help Adora and the rest of the Princess's everything had spiraled and eventually Adora couldn't just ignore her feelings for Catra and you were left alone.

Unlike Catra and Adora, you can ignore you feelings, because you know they're unrequited, you take one look at the way they look at each and whatever hope in you dies. They've never looked at you like that before.

We're you really that hard to love?

As you were on the ship - Darla, with the "best friend squad" and Entrapta you're eternally grateful Glimmer had suggested you come, because you didn't want to be on Etheria. Not really, you would have been useless, and even though when you look around at all these people who are so strong you know you're out of place. At least you were with the people you longed to be with the most.

Which, is a different kind of torture all on it's own.

On the couch in the control area of the ship tears come to your eyes as Darla is on autopilot for a planet called Nyxion, it's believed that the people there are called Nyx. Though you haven't gotten a transmission back after you guys had tried to send one to them.

Sniffles are heard throughout the room as you try desperately not to cry, you couldn't cry not only would it probably wake somebody up, it would only prove your weakness.

Although it seemed like someone was already awake because you heard footsteps from behind you as someone place's a hand on your shoulder.

"Y/n?"

It's Adora, you would know that happy, soft voice from anywhere.

More footsteps erupt from behind the two of you and another hand is placed on your other shoulder and you know it's Catra from the claws that slightly dig into you in worry.

"Are you okay?" Catra's soothing, hard voice, whispers and the urge to burst out into tears gets even harder to ignore.

You close your eyes and sigh, "I'm fine, you guys should go back to sleep. I know you need your rest."

Adora laughs quietly and wraps her arms around you and leans in so her head is against your shoulder, while Catra leaps gracefully into your lap and places her hands over Adora's.

"You're always putting others before yourself, just relax for a second." Catra's voice surrounds you.

"We're here for you." Adora says warmly. "We'll always be."

"What?" Your breathe out as your mind starts getting flashes of your memories from your childhood at the horde.

"Ya, we made a promise clumsy." Catra grins up slyly at you.

"Adora! Catra!" Your child self yells out excitedly for the two of them.

"We're over here clumsy!" Catra screeches at you as she and Adora wave you over to them. Of course you come barreling towards them knocking you guys all down.

"Nice work clumsy!" Catra snaps at you as she helps Adora up leaving you on your own.

"Sorry I was just excited." You say dejectedly, taking sudden interest with the floor below you.

"It's okay." Adora offers. "We're really excited to see you too!"

Looking up you see Adora nearly jumping up and down she's so happy and you see Catra soften her glare towards you and it almost turns into a smile.

"Where were you guys?" You question tilting your head to the side to observe how Catra grips onto Adora's arm.

"With Shadow Weaver." Catra murmurs fearfully, and shudders as she says her Shadow Weavers name.

Scrunching your nose you shake your little head.

"Shadow weaver doesn't like me."

Which wasn't entirely true, she had avoided you at all costs sure, but she hadn't yelled or screamed at you. Not like she did everyone else, she even sometimes would yell at Adora. But never you, it was like she admired you, or perhaps the truth is she was afraid of you. Of what you didn't know. All you know now looking back on it, is that Shadow weaver for some reason was afraid of you.

Adora shrugs and walks up to you and grabs you by your shoulders.

"That doesn't mean we can't be friends!"

As you shake your head the younger Catra comes up from behind you and wraps her arms around your torso (a little possessively) and cuddles you from behind.

"I'm just scared you'll forget about me, and leave me..." You trail off but Catra finishes the sentence for you. "Alone?"

You nod your head sadly.

"Hey." Adora squeezes onto your shoulders.

"We're here for you." She says quietly like it's the most important secret in the world, to say that she and Catra won't leave you. "We'll always be."

"What?" Your younger self thinks out loud.

"We're making a promise clumsy." Catra says affectionately.

Abruptly you pull away from the two of them and stand up.

You couldn't do this, you couldn't just stay in their embrace like you when you guys were young. You are young no longer, and no longer are your feels platonic and free. They are love and caged, and enraged because of it. The love you feel, would only hurt them.

"I can't-" You break off the beginning of your sentence and you nearly start to cry. "I can't do this again."

The two of them stand up and Adora stands in front of you, as Catra stands behind you.

"Y/n, we just want to help." Adora says gently and tries to take your hand in hers but you pull away before you can.

"Just leave, leave me be."

Adora looks at you clearly hurt by your actions and words, as Catra, being as protective over her girlfriend as she is gets a little bit angry.

"Fine, we'll leave you to wallow alone then! If you don't want us, we'll leave!"

Catra takes Adora's hand, and although Adora probably isn't very happy with Catra's choice of words but she doesn't protest when she leads both of them out of the control room. Away from you.

"No, wait-"

"We've tried Y/n, but we can't wait around for you while you push us away." Adora says quietly and her words stab you straight through the heart and they kick at your delicate walls. They come crumbling down around you as you collapse into sobs.

"Wait! Please!" Your voice borders on hysterical "I'm sorry I'll-" This time you cut yourself off as your own voice gets taken over by the cries that erupt from your throat uncontrollably. Cries that have been waiting a long time to be let out.

In seconds Catra is in front of you taking your face in her beautifully dangerous hands and moves your head so you're looking up at her.

"Hey, hey, hey." Adora's voice comes from behind Catra. "You're okay." Adora says while Catra says at the same time; "You're with us."

"We won't leave you alone." Catra whispers into your ear.

"We promise." Adora says as she takes your hands into hers and places it over her heart.

"Am I-" Your voice is hoarse, and still riddled with hiccups as tears still run down your face. Yet it isn't as hysterical and out of control as before.

"Am I hard to love?"

It's silent for a second before Adora shakes her head. "Y/n, I'm not sure we totally understand." She tells you lightly.

"Am I hard to love." Your voice is like a scorching fire. "Because you guys have never loved me, not once. Not even when I love you guys so much it hurts to be around you. So tell me, am I just that impossible. That unlovable." Your voice is hard and both of them look at you with surprised faces and while Darla starts beeping, alerting everyone that you've reached your destination.

Glimmer, Bow, and Entrapta come through as the ship starts opening it's doors and ramps to the ground as you rip yourself away from Catra and Adora. While you go to join Glimmer, and Bow who look at you with matching concerned expressions.

"Don't ask." You grit out as you wipe the rest of the tears from your face.

"Are you-" Bow starts, trying not to freak out.

"I said don't."

Everyone is quiet as you guys take in the seemingly abandoned planet.

It's primary colors are black, and different shades of grey, as vines twist across the ground and trees hang over your heads. Yet there's a certain beauty to the darkness. When the light hits the right parts of the dark vines and trees they glow an almost rainbow color.

In the distance there's a structure that looks vaguely like a broken down temple. You feel a pull towards it, and you know you guys have to head over there if you want any answers.

"We should head over to that temple over there." You raise your voice and there's no response from anyone, everyone is just stays extremely quiet, keeping their heads down. You want to scream in anger, at least it would break the heavy tension in the room.

Finally the tenison is broken by Entrapta (bless her heart) as she shakes her head full of purple hair.

"I'll just stay over here I think! But I still want to know what's happening soooo..."

She hands everyone small little body camera's and you can't help but smile at her. She really is a genius beyond compare.

"I can also speak through them and if you want to try and get my attention just say my name!" She says excitedly, bouncing up and down.

"Thanks Entrapta." You nod your head towards her, as everyone puts on the body cams.

Catra slyly glares at Entrapta as she harshly grabs onto your hand and starts leading the group towards the temple.

"What the fuck was that!" You scowl at Catra passive-aggressive behavior.

She doesn't say anything but she doesn't let you go either. If anything, she grips onto you harder as you feel her claws dig into your wrist.

Taking your other hand, Adora grips onto it like it's her last life-line before she's pulled into the sea.

They don't say anything at all, the only words that are exchanged are from Glimmer and Bow who are desperately trying to fill the awkward silence.

"Y/n." Adora starts. "We just wanted to say-"

You cut her off by shaking both their hands off not wanting to hear their ultimate rejection.

Just in time before the two girlfriends can say anything else, the temple stands before the five of you.

It's black like the trees and the vines, and it looks old. Nevertheless it's beautiful with some dark crystals and symbols engraved into the black stone. Although it feels like the temple is missing something.

You feel like you're in a trance as you walk through the entryway as the others follow behind you.

"Uh, guys?" Entrapta's voice comes through the devices.

"If you guys go straight it will lead you to a power source that may or may not be magical. And it may or may have been barred off from the planet for a long time and if you guys don't unlock it from it's cage it will make the planet below up in... 30 minutes."

Immediately, everyone starts running furiously forward trying to get to the center as fast as possible.

Running up next to Glimmer you jog beside her contemplating on asking her your question wondering if she'll actually say yes but... If you don't say anything you'll never know.

"Glimmer." You brush your hand against her arm to get her attention.

"Can you teleport me to the center."

"But I can't teleport everyone?" She questions you, eyebrows frowned.

"I know." You whisper as you don't really want the others to hear. "I just want you teleport me, just me. I just have a feeling to this place, a connection I think."

Glimmer stops and observes you before nodding her head. Out of everyone, Glimmer was the one to go with problems like these. The other person might have been Adora but you didn't want to talk to her right now and she had a tendency to freak out over your safety. Not that Glimmer didn't, but she wasn't dramatic like Adora, nor would she be irrational.

"Okay."

In a second she takes your arm and you're teleported into the center of the temple.

Glimmer teleports out quickly as to not worry the others and probably to leave you alone here. She would understand, you would think.

In the center of the... center you suppose, is a beam of magic that's red, and black light with a grey magic barrier surrounding it.

Looking closer you realize it must be dark magic.

Taking a closer look at the walls around you, you realize that these aren't random symbols, they were writings, and you could read them.

Memories from the past flash through your mind forcefully as you read them.

People that were born from dark magic, normal, happy, magic users who used it for good. They were shunned from outside planets but the queens did not tell their people to resent them, they told them they just didn't understand them.

The queens were powerful and together they birthed a child from the magic, but before they could raise them Horde Prime came and obliterated their people. In a rush they had contained it's magic making so only one person could contain all the magic. Dark magic would always stay on this planet but it needed someone to stick to.

They created a safety guard on the place so if anyone came inside they would have to fight an large three headed dog.

As Prime came closer the two queens kissed their baby on the head goodbye with tears in their eyes as they did what they couldn't do for their people.

Save them.

So they sent the baby away with a spell, sending the child through darkness hoping praying they would end up somewhere safe. And that child you - had ended up right into Shadow weavers arms.

Then Prime killed the queens.

You fell to the ground your head pounding at your heart yearning.

You knew what you had to do, you had to go inside the beam of magic and absorb it's magic's power before it teared the planet apart.

Getting up you start to trek forward before four hands firmly pull you back.

"What are you doing!" Adora yells at you.

"The magic is restless, someone needs to absorb it so it doesn't tear the planet apart!"

"It's dark magic! You won't survive!" Catra screams down at you as her iron hold on you becomes even stronger.

"Yes, I will." You say calmly, the tone of your voice surprises everyone.

"You don't know that!" Adora cries out. "I'm going to do it, She-ra can do take it!"

Instantly Catra lets you go when she hears Adora's words.

"No you will not!"

In the distance you hear a growl and the ground shakes beneath you and you know you've run out of time.

Dodging She-ra and Catra, you sprint up to the magic and you hesitant slightly.

What if it didn't accept you? What if your moms had it made for someone else?

"Y/n!" Everyone screams for you to stand back, and the rational part of your brain is agreeing with them. Really, you didn't know what you were dealing with, but the pull you feel here is undeniable.

You've never been one for rational decisions anyways.

"I love you." You declare to Catra and Adora before taking a step into the dark.

It envelopes you wholly, it's long black inky arms seeks entry into your body, it doesn't hurt. This much magic going into your body should hurt, but maybe it's had a place there all along.

You're lifted into the air and you feel the darkness seep into you, and you welcome it like an old friend. More memories of your moms, of your people are filtered through your brain, even that you don't stop. This is where you were meant to be, what you've been meaning to become.

You feel every last drop of the magic inside of you yet you don't come down. What happens if you just stayed there? Could you be able to learn more about your people, why would you ever need to come down? Down there is so confusing, and horrible, terrible things have happened down there.

However the shouts of Adora and Catra fill your ears, their pleas for you to come back to them are desperate. Then you hear Adora turn into She-ra but she's not trying to "save" you, you don't think Catra would let her, no there must be something attacking them.

The three headed dog.

Opening suddenly your eyes are filled with black as you descend down, while around you your body is glowing. You can feel every shadow across the universe, and all the secrets of every individual.

You stand in front of your friends and you send an inky black barrier to cover them with just the flick of your hand as the dogs snarls and howls at you. He's a afraid, not of you but of being alone, yet he feels like he has to fulfill his purpose.

"I remember you." You whisper. "Mom used to play fetch with you outside the temple, and mama would watch from the sidelines, claiming she didn't like you."

You tilt your head to the side and the three headed dog does the same, as if he too, is starting to recognize you.

"But she gave you your name, Spot right? And she was the one who would pet you in the middle of the night."

Spot howls and runs at you as he nuzzles your neck, and cuddles you. Slobber must have been all over you.

Giggling the barrier separating you, with your friends dissipates as your eyes slowly fade back to their natural color, of course with a dark tint that wasn't quite there before.

"Y/n!" Adora runs up behind you as she pulls you into a hug.

"I thought I had lost you!" She exclaims.

"We, thought we had lost you." Catra comes in front of you, and takes your hands into hers.

"You almost did, it showed me so many memories of me, my moms, and my people. I didn't want to leave, even when the magic had transferred over to me entirely." You sigh a bit shyly.

"What made you come back?" Glimmer is behind you in a spark, but you knew she would end up there - her shadow was there before she was. So you didn't flinch or jump at the sound of her voice.

"Well I didn't want you guys to hurt Spot." You pet the ginormous three headed dog, you joke with a sarcastic tone at the end. Yet you pause before what you're going to say next. Did you have to courage to tell them outright when you weren't in distress?

Still, as you observe Adora and Catra you think maybe it's them who have to say it to you, or break it to you that they didn't love you.

"My friends." You reply, "All of you, I thought Spot was going to go after you guys (it's what he was trained to do after all) and just knowing that anyone of you could die... I just knew I couldn't stay there forever, not while you guys were suffering."

"OH!" Bow screeches. "Best friend squad!" And he pulls you all into a big hug as Entrapta agree's from the cameras.

"How did you know about any of this..." Adore trails off as everything soon gets quieter at her question.

Chuckling you take Catra's and Adora's hands into your as you wink at Bow and Glimmer. "I'll tell you all on the way and maybe on the ship. Quite frankly it's a long story!"

____________

After you had told your story to them, Glimmer had informed you that you would have to start training with your newfound magical powers. Even if she still sounded a little uncomfortable at the prospect of dark magic, you had told her that you were basically a vessel made to hold dark magic, and control it. There was no corrupting you, plus your people and parents had never been corrupted.

Catra and Adora had been acting weirdly around you, to say the least. You would do something you would normally do and they would have matching bright faces. Along with the fact that the three of you still haven't spoke about you confessing your love for them... Twice.

"Well this is a familiar setting." Catra speaks from behind you in the control room, while everyone else are in their respective rooms.

You can feel Adora's shadow also coming to the control room a bit farther down the hall then Catra. Without turning around you call out to her;

"Hello Adora."

"Oh crap! That's like super scary!" She yells as she jogs up to the couch where Catra now is laying her head inside your lap.

"That's the point Adora." You snicker but there's definitely a teasing tone to your voice.

She comes up behind you and somehow slides in behind you so her arms are warped around you, and your back is flushed against her chest.

There's silence for a while, for long time. It's not awkward or bad, it's actually pretty great as you cuddle the two of them.

"Y/n?" Adora's voice comes out a bit croaky.

"Yes?"

"We love, you like a lot."

"I know."

Catra sits up and slides into your lap. "If you were any other person right now I would slap you."

Giggling you run an hand through her hair. "I think- I think even I deserve love. Whether it be platonic or romantic."

"Hey Y/n." Adora whispers as her lips touch the shell of your ear.

"You aren't hard to love."

Catra kisses your cheek and smiles down at you, it's that smile you know not many people other than Adora and now you have seen.

"You never were."

Words 3774

-thedelusionreaderbitch

She-ra taglist: No one yet!

[therealcodfather]

How to help anxiety attacks, methods I've discovered.

(my credits? I've dealt with them for the past two years. I have found ways to help. They may not help you, but they might help someone out there and that's enough for me.)

1. The ice cube. This is the one to use if you need to stop it NOW. Go to your freezer, grab an ice cube with your bare hand. Do not stop if it starts hurting a little, only stop if you can't take it anymore but try and withstand it for as long as you can take. Your body goes into shock and starts caring more about the ice cube than the anxiety, it's not expecting something cold so try not to prepare yourself and grab it without thinking.

2. Problem solving. At some point, it's going to stop. Time is not frozen in place. Let's say you have an anxiety attack at 10 p.m: okay, in 10 hours it's going to be 8 a.m. Do you think you'll still be having an anxiety attack by then? Because you'll probably pass out from exhaustion, or even if you don't then when you get up you'll have to get on with your day anyway. Even if you do quite literally nothing, at some point time will progress and the problem will have resolved itself.

3. Deadlines. So you went out and you're afraid you might of caught Something. I want you to look up how long it takes for the symptoms to start. Let's say 24 hours, Make a calendar note for 24 hours from now. Now, since you've already done it: just relax for 24 hours. Yep. I pulled the ole "Just stop being anxious" card on you (joking joking ofc I didn't) but now you know when it would start, and if it's not right this moment you don't have to worry until you check back at the deadline. If it hasn't started by then, you're fine.

4. Distractions. Download a shitty mobile game. The brainrot ones, yeah just hyperfixate on it. I have been doing this when I had my mild anxiety attacks since I was what like 11? Definitely not the BEST option but it gets the job done. Different types of anxiety calls for Different types of games. You just got something at the back of your mind that's making you nervous? Play a slow paced game like solitaire or something. Having a reaaaal bad one? Something you have to really think about like piano tiles. I really reccomend Tetris or columns for that if you have it on a gaming system, but if you can't and only have a mobile game that works too!

5. Talk it out. Find someone you trust, talk their ear off. Whether it's irl or a voice message, just talk as much as you can. Don't worry about sounding stupid, just talk about whatever comes to mind. Talk about your plans for the week, or what you want for your birthday, or a show you watched. Anything works.

6. I've always found if I'm only mildly anxious, putting on a show with a plot helps. I'm one to get into something and never want to miss it. Sometimes my anxiety dissapears if I'm too invested in a show it's just like oh nvm guys I wanna see what happens..

7. This is specifically for ocd but I think it may help with general anxiety, This is the very first thing I got told when I started therapy. Give it a name, give it a persona. Fighting anxiety isn't the answer, it just makes you both tired. It's just misunderstood. Anxiety is a response your body makes when it thinks you're in danger, sometimes though: it can trigger a false response. Something that doesn't endanger you may trigger it instead. Your anxiety isn't your enemy, it's just trying to keep you safe. This is going to be hard, but sometimes you need to reason with it. Tell it that it's wrong, you appreciate the concern but there's nothing to worry about. I reccomend playing/watching the game Celeste if you haven't. It is quite literally exactly that.

Feel free to add onto this with any methods or tips and tricks, or even just a different point of view to keep in mind! Anything you think might be helpful!

[fea-resources]

Managing Your Drafts/Ask Count: A Roleplayer Guide

"I have so many drafts / asks right now. I'm feeling overwhelmed!"

Does this sound familiar? If it's not you personally, you probably know at least a good dozen roleplayers on your dash who have said some variation of this.

Overload and draft/ask stress is a pretty common problem in the RPC. I've seen some accounts that go well over 1,000 drafts! More than on one occasion. Yikes. That's super stressful!

So how do you manage that? And manage it in a way that keeps your followers / mutuals happy? Here's a few easy tips! From someone who has never let their draft count go over 50.

Set A Draft / Ask Limit For Yourself

The first and easiest step is to impose limits on how many drafts and asks you accumulate in the first place!

If you start feeling overwhelmed with answering things once you hit 30 drafts/asks, don't just keep pressing for more interactions until you start hitting double or even triple digits! Figure out where your comfort zone is and stick to that.

If you go a tiny bit past that (you set your limit to 30 drafts, but you have 31), that's okay! Just be careful about not using leniency as an excuse to move your own goal posts. If your limit is 30, allow yourself to go to 31, but don't start moving to 40 drafts, then 50, then 100. This is how you get yourself dug into a hole you can't get out of!

Set A Time Limit On Everything Before It Gets Deleted / Dropped

Yes, it sucks not having Asks answered and threads dropped, but it happens. Sometimes the muse just isn't musing for something, and that's totally fine!

If its an actual dedicated thread or a very special tailored custom Ask or Starter, I would recommend communicating it with your partners before yeeting it into the void, but if its just a random ask from a meme list, especially if you've already got 20 other things going with the person who sent it, you're probably safe to throw it away without much fuss. Chances are your partners won't even remember half the Asks they sent, especially if they're repeat customers who send you a lot of things.

The fact of the matter is, if something is clearly never going to be answered, there's no problem just dropping it. Otherwise its just going to be another number in an ever-increasing pile of things you're never going to answer stressing you out!

Set general time limits, like if it hasn't been answered in 2 months, it gets thrown away (unless its just one particular super ultra special ask/thread you DEFINITELY want to answer, you just haven't been able to yet ; everything else goes in the trash).

Set A Thread / Ask Limit Per Partner

Maybe you have that one person that has 50 unfinished threads with you, but lo and behold, they want to start another one! While you're still struggling to keep up with the 50 that you have with them.

If you want to give more people an equal chance, a simple solution is to divide up that everyone gets X amount of time and effort from you.

Feel free to set limits with your partners, such as "I will only do 2 threads with each person at a time". If that person wants another thread, they will have to either complete the ones you already have, or drop some.

Likewise, you might have a rule that someone can send you 10 Asks, but you will only answer up to 2 of them that you receive. The rest get deleted.

The same goes in reverse. If you already have whatever number of interactions you want with a particular person, you don't have to send them more interactions yourself until activity has dropped off enough that you want to create extra engagement to fill the void of whatever other interactions you had that used to be there.

If you're really determined to give all your partners an equal chance at interaction, this is a good route to consider going with.

Curate Your Mutuals List / How Many People You Follow And Interact With

Another one of the easy ways to deal with Draft / Ask stress: Don't follow too many people to begin with!

If someone follows you, you don't have to automatically follow them back, especially if they have a muse or universe you're unfamiliar with or not particularly interested in.

Setting yourself up to interact with muses or universes which barely hold your attention or that you struggle to figure out how to interact with is just setting yourself up to have a lot of unanswered stuff that never goes anywhere.

This is as frustrating for you as its going to become for the other person.

Likewise, only follow back and interact with the people you actually have the time and energy for. Mind you, there are ways to still effectively manage your blog if you're low energy, but that should come after you've found a comfortable number of people to keep up with, not after you're already overwhelmed!

Otherwise, you're bound to frustrate yourself with too many people you can't possibly interact with, and frustrate the people who follow you who aren't getting the engagement they're looking for.

Be Upfront About Playing Favorites (If You Do)

Nothing is more frustrating for both people in a writing partnership when two people who clearly aren't each others' mutual favorites try to interact.

What I mean specifically is that you have one person who tries really hard to engage, and another who barely puts in any effort unless its only for specific people.

Truth of the matter is, everyone has favorites. Some play favorites harder than others. Don't lie to people and say you treat everyone in your mutuals list equally if you don't. Lying to people about it is bound to create problems and resentments, and justifiably so! No one likes to be strung along.

What ends up happening is that you have one person putting in all kinds of effort to get nothing in return, and another person who keeps getting flooded with attempts at interaction they don't really want, adding to their pile of Things That Will Never Be Answered, adding to your stress with a high draft count.

The simple solution is be honest so your partners know what to expect. If there's only three people you ever care to answer and everyone else is a Once In A Blue Moon interaction, just tell people! They're bound to be far more forgiving about it if you set their expectations of you realistically. At worst, the person will quietly move along to interact with other people who actually put in the effort.

Delete Things That Just Don't Work For You

It happens. Sometimes we get an ask that no matter how we think about it, we can't think of how we want to answer it or a good situation we can turn it into.

Or sometimes we just get a bad ask.

You reblog that meme that has 100 options, and that one person you haven't agreed to Ship with sends the only 2 that involve something Shippy, like kissing.

Or they send the one Ask that would be completely out of character for anything your character would be involved with, like you've got a mustache-twirling villain who likes to kick kittens, and someone sent you a meme insinuating your character is catsitting out of the goodness of their heart.

If something just plain doesn't work no matter how you try to turn it around, delete it!

Alternatively, you can reach out to your partners and discuss how to turn the Ask into something. Maybe your partner had something specific in mind when they sent that particular ask, and its just not coming to you, but once you find out the vision of the sender, it'll be much easier to reply to!

Likewise, feel free to delete a few things that don't work for you if someone sends you a lot of Asks. Maybe someone sends you 10 different Asks. You don't have to answer every single one. Pick the ones that are easy to work with and delete the rest. If you answered 3 out of 10, you still answered 3, and that's good!

Stop Reblogging / Asking For More Memes

I'm not saying everyone should do this. Memes are great! They're good, easy interaction starters! Especially when you don't have a lot of interactions going already or you're stuck waiting in limbo for other people to reply back to you!

But if you're just using memes to run away from your ever-growing pile of unanswered things, stop yourself.

Chances are, at least half of your problem with being overwhelmed is that you're chronically reblogging memes when you don't actually need to be, further compounding your problem of having too many drafts and being even more overwhelmed as a result.

I get it. The instant gratification of getting something in your inbox is nice. Its a real dopamine rush that makes you feel good! At first. But its going to come back to bite you later.

Its also a good, quick way to ruin your relationship with people who want to interact with you. If someone is already waiting on you to answer a bunch of things they sent in, and you post "Wow, I'm feeling so overwhelmed right now because I have too many things I still need to answer! But send me more things!", that's bound to put a sour taste in peoples' mouths.

That tells your partners that you have an impulse problem and that they're bound to keep sending you things that will never be answered, which defeats the purpose of following another RP blog.

At worst, people will get tired of it and unfollow, ending all chance of interaction from ever happening at all.

Some people think the answer to solving this problem is to simply purge their inbox of everything or remake blogs "fresh". While these steps can help in some cases, if you never solve the underlying problem of actually managing your draft count moving forward, eventually you will just find yourself back to square one.

I've seen this happen plenty of times, where people purge or remake a good two, five, ten different times to make a fresh slate, only to go back to the same problem given a little bit of time, because they never took any other steps to stop from ending up in the same situation. They got rid of their draft pile, but never addressed the habits that got them there in the first place.

A good, easy first step in that is to stop endlessly reblogging memes when you already have a pile of them just sitting unanswered.

Instead of letting everything pile up to unmanageable levels and keep asking for more, prioritize going through what you already have first. Answer whatever you're able to, talk to your partners about Asks or threads you're unsure of, delete anything that you know for a fact won't go anywhere.

Then, once you've dealt with the things you already have, then you can reward yourself by reblogging more Memes and Starters and whatever else you want!

Don't Lie To Your Mutuals (Or Yourself) About Guarantees To Answer EVERYTHING

I've seen this a few times before. Someone talks about how they have over a thousand drafts, but they swear up and down to their dashboard that they answer EVERYTHING they receive, so keep sending in more!

Don't do this.

The moment I see someone saying something like this is usually the moment they instantly earn an unfollow / soft block from me, because I know they're completely full of it.

These are the people who chronically never answer anything and end up blog-hopping because they let it get so out of control that the only way forward was to purge or completely remake their blog fresh, often multiple times.

This kind of rhetoric will also establish you as a liar in the eyes of your mutuals, especially your mutuals who never get any engagement while they watch you reply only to the same five people and everyone else is just a number to brag about collecting.

There's nothing wrong with acknowledging the fact that you simply cannot and won't answer every tiny thing you receive. That kind of unrealistic expectation placed upon yourself is just going to end up creating problems for both you and your mutuals.

Learn to let some interactions and Asks go unanswered, and be honest with people that that is the case! You're a human being with finite time, not a writing machine, and your partners are more than just a number for you to collect and ignore.

Yes, announcing you're going to be dropping or deleting things may lose you followers, especially the ones who keep going unanswered, but it shouldn't really bother you if you weren't going to be giving those people proper engagement anyway.

Plot With People If Interactions Aren't Happening Organically

Everyone has their own style of RP and how heavily they want to plot things. Some people need things heavily plotted, others just like to wing it. Sometimes the heavy plotter ends up with the wing-it roleplayer.

Regardless, sometimes an answer to an Ask or Thread just won't come to you. Maybe your partner had something in mind already or a direction they want to take things, while you're just scratching your head with nothing.

Sometimes, getting to answering things is as simple as reaching out to discuss it with your partners!

Of course, there are times where this goes nowhere. Maybe both of you are stumped or didn't really think very far ahead. Maybe its just not vibing with either of you. Maybe you or your partner suck at communication and brainstorming. That's fine! But at least if you reach out, you can say you tried before dropping something!

And it gives you a chance to discuss doing something else that does work instead of such is the case!

Create Side-Blogs For Organization and Bookmark Purposes

The great thing about tumblr is you can basically create however many blogs and side-blogs you want to!

Let's say you're scrolling the dash and you see some neat stuff you want to save, but not reblog. Maybe its a PSA post. Maybe its a gifset. Maybe its a funny canon information/fanon post you saw and want to look back on.

Don't save "other" things in the same place as your Drafts and Asks go!

When you start mixing in "other" posts with your Drafts, your drafts are going to look even bigger and more daunting than they already are! Chances are you're not keeping a mental count all the time about those 50 other "drafts" you have mixed in with your real drafts.

Make a side-blog (or a Personal) for saving all those other completely unrelated things on! This will help keep your actual draft and Ask count in perspective, otherwise you might be stressing about having so many drafts when you actually have a lot less of them than you thought!

Use The Queue

If you find a lot of your problem comes down to having too many things at once, or your partners reply to your threads too fast so you can never make a dent in them, then you can always Queue up your posts to spread them out!

You can even customize how often and at what time frames your Queue posts things to the dash, which will slow down how fast you receive replies and allow you to get through things at a more comfortable pace.

You can always alternate using it as much as you want, such as using the Queue when you have a high volume of things to answer or return activity, and then publish things in real time or push things through the Queue faster as you like when things are going slow!

Prioritize Easiest / Favorite Drafts First (But Don't Do Them Exclusively)

This one is fairly easy, and I think most people already do this intuitively. The problem is, a lot of people do this, and then that's where they stop. They end up doing their favorites exclusively, instead of only doing them first, while letting everything else just rot in their drafts, never actually touching them.

But there's a good reason to prioritize easy and favorite threads first, especially when paired with the queue or other partners who are slower to reply. It's the easiest and fastest way to reduce your draft count and make it less daunting to deal with, without deleting and dropping things entirely.

Then you can focus on the other unanswered things that aren't speaking as easily to you, and get through those.

This step works, but only if you actually commit to answering the other stuff that you have to actually think about next. If you just answer your favorite things, and then do something like, say... immediately run to tell people to send you more memes and starters instead, you are falling back into the trap of overwhelming yourself with things you're never actually going to answer.

Instead, try to knuckle down and work on what you already have, whenever possible.

Prioritize Oldest Drafts First

Okay, so you've already gone through and answered the easiest stuff first! (Or maybe you didn't). Great!

Now what?

While this one isn't strictly an issue having to do with Draft Count, I find some people have insecurity about answering things simply because they're old.

While this inevitably happens to everyone at some point, as some threads or Asks may not be speaking to you until much later, I find that one thing that helps with this is to prioritize the oldest replies / first come first serve as much as possible!

Go to the oldest things you have, sit on them for a few minutes. Try to think of something, and work on that reply. If you try to work on it and its still not coming to you, then go on to the next second-oldest thing you have. Rinse and repeat.

Personally, I rarely have things sitting super old unless I just end up in a straight up writer's slump/block, because I prioritize oldest things first whenever possible, which helps to never have super old stuff just sitting there forever, taunting me.

This way, you're avoiding thoughts like "oh god, but they sent that thing 5 months ago. Should I really answer it at this point? Do they even want it anymore??".

Instead, you're replacing it with "Oh, they only sent that 3 days ago. That's not too bad."

Doing it like this means that my turn-around time is seldom ever so slow that I stress about how long its been.

Don't Be Afraid To Sit On Something For A While

Yes, we've talked a lot about deleting things if you just can't think of anything. And sometimes that is the correct and obvious answer! Likewise, sometimes we get something we need to set aside (but not forget about).

The more you manage the rest of your draft count, the easier this is to do without getting overwhelmed about it!

You don't have to just delete everything that doesn't immediately spring out at you. You can set some things aside however long you want to, just be careful not to use "I'll answer it later" to feed your bad habit of Draft Collection.

If you managed to answer 25 other threads and Asks, but those last 5 are just giving you a lot of trouble, that's totally fine! Even the best of us get hit with that sometimes. It doesn't always mean its time to delete them. Sometimes you sit scratching your head for a month, and then one day, the answer to that thread just comes to you!

But be honest with yourself about it. Are you really going to answer that thread, after you have some time to think on it? Are you really really going to answer it? Or are you lying to yourself and your partners? If not, there's no shame in dropping it.

Close Your Inbox

So let's say you're personally taking all the right steps you need to to manage your workload, but people are still trying to send you more things than you can handle to your Ask box.

You always have the option to simply close your inbox from receiving any new activity! Whether you just turn off Anon (not because of receiving hate, that's another topic altogether, just regular activity) or the entire Ask box, you can limit or entirely halt inbox activity from receiving anything new for a while until you have what you currently already owe into a comfortable and easy to manage state!

Yes, this means people won't be able to send you more, new things, and if they want to message you, they will have to do so through a different avenue (such as IMs or discord), but if you're already too overwhelmed with what you have, you don't need more activity.

Don't Keep People Around Who Make Your Dash Uncomfortable

And finally, though a bit of a sad truth, some people just make the tumblr dash a very uncomfortable place to be.

Maybe they stir up drama. Maybe they don't tag triggers (or they use stupid fancy tags that can't be filtered). Maybe they write too much of a topic or fandom you don't like to see. Maybe they write nothing but OOC and treat their RP blog as their personal blog. Maybe you're not even following that person, but they interact with someone you DO interact with and don't want to see them around.

Whatever the case, chances are good that if someone's presence makes your dash uncomfortable, its going to affect how well you're able to write.

Luckily, there are options available.

You can unfollow / block people.

You can filter tags and key words through tumblr.

You can use the mute function from the xKit extension.

Whether you make it public or private, you can have a DNI (Do Not Interact) saying who is and is not allowed to interact with you based on whatever criteria you set.

If people are sending you unsolicited Anons that you don't like, you can turn Anon off.

If people send you things you don't like with real or burner accounts, you can block those accounts or turn your Ask box and IMs off.

Ultimately, your tumblr blog is your space to curate, and you shouldn't let anyone else tell you otherwise. Having boundaries and expectations for how people act on your blog is your right and their privilege, not the other way around.

If other people aren't going to behave appropriately within and/or invade your yard space, you always have a right to lock people out of it by any means necessary until they either behave or leave.

Don't be afraid to do so, no matter who its coming from, even from so-called "friends" or "good people", because the only people who have a problem with you exercising your right to making your blog a good place to be for you are unsafe people who feel entitled to crossing your boundaries.

[sarnai4]

M'aider

Exaggerated headcanons for how the Berkians and Berserkers would ask for help. (Key note being that they're asking for them specifically to be helped. If they were asking for someone else, I would change these)

Fishlegs: Politely. He doesn't want to bother you, but after trying out everything he can think of, he asks if you could please lend a hand.

Gobber: Through others. He doesn't know how to do something and when someone nearly loses every limb because of that, it's probably time to step in and give the blacksmith some advice.

Astrid: Angrily. She has been spending all day doing something. She doesn't want you to get involved, but her plan obviously isn't working, so she'd rather you just help out vs continuing to give her that look.

Stoick: Subtly. He's actually unconscious and has been for a few days. Now would be a good time to help.

Snotlout: Indirectly. Well, if you really want to help, then he guesses that it wouldn't be terrible. Sure, he's been going at this for however long and has enough cuts and scrapes to show for it...and he could probably handle it if you give him about 5 more minutes, but since you're so worried, he'd feel bad stressing you out. There is totally no other reason he's accepting help. Ignore the limp. It doesn't exist. He's just doing that to make you feel useful.

Tuffnut: Through actions. He probably doesn't actually need your help because this is definitely a scheme or a project that has little importance, so you've declined helping a lot. This doesn't stop him. Therefore, he keeps putting himself in increasingly more danger until you realize it's between getting involved or him dying. He's very happy when your concern finally takes over. Now, you two can look for Chicken together.

Ruffnut: Forcefully. She never asked, she just grabbed your arm and you found yourself in the middle of nowhere on a quest. You're still not really sure why you're there or what this quest is. You just know that you're not allowed to leave because she keeps tackling you when you try. It seems like you might need help before this is over.

Hiccup: Dramatically. He almost dies. Then, he does that again. Then...you get the point. So, you hide Toothless's tailfin, his leg, and sit them both down to have a long talk before you're down a dragon and Berkian. Depending on the situation, you might have to sit down on him to keep him from trying to get both items and run off again. Just be wary of that.

Heather: Dramatically but a little less than Hiccup. She doesn't almost die. She just gets captured. You asked if she needed help first, but she kept insisting that she didn't. After watching the third wave of enemies capture her and/or Windshear, you decide to take matters into your own hands.

Dagur: Implicitly. He's currently bleeding out somewhere and would appreciate your help, but he's not really in the best position to ask. Of course, if he could talk, he'd say he was fine and could handle whatever danger there is so that you're safe. What's a concerning amount of little blood loss going to do? Hope he isn't too heavy because you've got some dragging ahead of you.

[betweenthings2]

holding hands during a stressful situation, it’s giving matty being nervous to fly or on a high ledge for some reason

Thank you for the ask!! The prompt list is here if anyone else wants to see it =) Poor Matty not liking flying--I love flying. The airport is the only place I can pay $15 for a beer at nine in the morning with the best and worst dressed people I've ever seen.

Anyways, here's holding hands in a stressful situation from the physical intimacy prompt list.

Matty has been on edge since they got to the airport. George knows he doesn't like flying, but he didn't realize it put Matty on edge like this. He hasn't stood still since they got to the airport, practically vibrating while they stood in line to check luggage and go through security, then pacing once they get to the terminal. They're early, partly a product of Matty's anxiety, so don't have a gate yet, but there's plenty of open seating and space in the terminal, but Matty can't be still enough to sit. George watches him pace for about fifteen minutes before physically making him sit down. Matty lasts about thirty seconds before he gets fidgety and gets back up.

George asks him to go for coffee in an effort to give him something to do. Matty probably doesn't really need any caffeine, but it's usually about a fifty-fifty shot as to whether or not caffeine will amp Matty up or almost knock him out. George is banking on the latter today. By the time Matty comes back, their gate has been announced, which George would have thought would have calmed him down some, but Matty is still just as on edge as he had been when they get to the gate.

It's not long before Matty's anxiety starts to earn him glares and glances from the other people waiting in line, so George takes his hand and pulls him close, murmuring, "You've got to relax, love."

Matty wrenches his hand free, stepping away, and glares. "Don't fucking tell me calm down. I'm fine."

"You haven't sat still since we got to the airport," George counters. "You're gonna exhaust yourself or you're gonna feel awful later."

"I'm fine," Matty insists.

George fixes him with a sad look and agrees, "'k."

The line moves forward a bit, then Matty steps close to George again and quietly admits, "I fucking hate flying."

George takes Matty's hand again, running a thumb over his knuckles, and says, "I know. Flying is really safe, though."

"Human beings are not supposed to fly," Matty grumbles. "It's a metal tube held up by witchcraft or some shit."

George can't help but smile and chuckle. "I'm pretty sure it's math and physics," he says. "And aerodynamics."

"Witchcraft," Matty counters, shuffling forward as the boarding line begins moving again.

George presses a quick kiss to Matty's temple and agrees, "Whatever you say."

Matty keeps himself close to George as the line begins moving again, moving and letting go of his hand only when it's time for them to show their boarding passes and their passports. He's quick to take George's hand again, holding a little bit tighter as they head down the jetway. He only lets go when they get to the door of the plane, George urging Matty to go first.

Matty's nervous fidgeting is quick to return when they finally sit down and he's quick to take George's hand again. George feels for him, they have a ten hour flight and a photoshoot when they land and Matty is liable to be tense and stressed the whole time. George just isn't sure how to help.

"This is stupid," Matty mumbles. "What the fuck is a seat cushion supposed to do when the plane crashes in the ocean?"

George glances up, seeing Matty glancing over the safety pamphlet. He's like this just about every time they get on a plane, though, and George has learned to just let him share his thoughts.

"You know you used to be able to smoke on planes?" Matty continues, tucking the pamphlet away. "Why they'd get rid of that? I'd feel better if they brought that back."

George can't help but chuckle again and he runs his thumb over Matty's knuckles again, saying, "'s probably a safety hazard."

"So they want me to just freak out instead?"

"How many planes have you been on and been just fine?" George tries.

"Yeah, but what if this is the time it's not fine?" Matty says quietly, clinging to George's hand.

"I think it's going to be ok," George offers. "I think we're going to get to LA and we'll be fine."

"I just don't like it," Matty admits, gaze falling to their hands. "And I don't like not liking it."

"I know," George murmurs. "I'm sorry this stresses you out so much."

"Thanks," Matty mumbles, resting his head against George's shoulder. "Sorry for being so annoying today."

"You're not annoying," George counters. "You're allowed to be stressed. That's ok."

"Still," Matty insists.

George presses another kiss into Matty's curls and quietly says, "'s all ok. Promise."

[alightbuthappypen]

twenty questions for fic writers

As a treat entirely for me I get to do a meme. I wasn't tagged and I won't tag anyone but invite anyone who wants to do it to treat yourself too!

How many works do you have on AO3?

33, though 3 of those are posted anonymously (2 RPF that I'm not wholly comfortable having attached to my name anymore, 1 based around a Problematic Trope that I'm too chicken to own up to)

That's like an average of just under 2 fics per year I've been posting to Ao3, ha.

But I probably have about 20 wips for CQL alone, you know how it is

2. What's your total AO3 word count?

92,993 apparently.

3. What fandoms do you write for?

Pretty monogamous at any given time - obviously CQL right now, though I did slip out that cathartic Good Omens thing earlier this year.

Previous big hitters (by my standards) were Dragon Age and The Musketeers (BBC version, yes I know)

4. What are your top 5 fics by kudos?

From Now On (陈情令 | The Untamed (TV) (1,013)

The Look You Give (陈情令 | The Untamed (TV) (995)

Retrospect (陈情令 | The Untamed (TV) (552)

In the Quiet It Will Grow (陈情令 | The Untamed (TV) (507)

A natural liking (Good Omens - Neil Gaiman & Terry Pratchett, Good Omens (TV) (487)

5. Do you respond to comments? Why or why not?

I go through phases...I think it's polite to, and I do try, but also when I comment on a fic I don't actually expect a response from the author (though it's always nice!) so I don't angst about it. I obviously LOVE comments, it's not for lack of caring.

When I don't respond it's always because I end up overthinking what I should say, like does "thank you! <3" ten times in row look insincere.

Sometimes I go on a reply binge and start responding to really old comments, and that probably looks weirder.

6. What is a fic you wrote with the angstiest ending?

I think I gravitate towards bittersweet or melancholy endings generally, though not usually real downers. Stories that take place within an angsty point of canon are good for this, like

A Promise (X-Men: First Class)

A Kind of Cruel (BBC Musketeers)

Probably angstiest of all is the very short For the wounded (Dragon Age: Inquisition) which is set in a Bad End post-canon.

7. What's the fic you wrote with the happiest ending?

I feel like "happy endings" suggest some kind of narrative arc and most of my finished fics are too oneshotty to really have that. But I'd say my fluffiest, most angst-free are probably:

Safe Keeping (Dragon Age: Inquisition) 

Nights Bright Days (Good Omens)

A natural liking (Good Omens)

In the Quiet It Will Grow (The Untamed)

8. Do you get hate on fics?

I don't think I've ever got a hateful comment? If I have I've repressed it. I've had a couple that I wasn't sure what to make of, or which I felt misinterpreted what the story was about, but nothing mean.

9. Do you write smut? If so, what kind?

DO I. Smutty oneshots my beloved.

In terms of like, sex acts, pretty vanilla, though I think some of my favoured tropes could be considered Problematic (a bit of dubcon, Cloud Recesses arc smut). Whatever it is, it has to be extremely emotional. If the participants aren't experiencing heightened emotions of some kind and having them described in long introspective paragraphs it's not me.

10. Do you write crossovers? What's the craziest one you've written?

No, my tastes are deeply boring and I have zero interest in crossovers or most AUs.

11. Have you ever had a fic stolen?

Not to my knowledge.

12. Have you ever had a fic translated?

In the Quiet It Will Grow was translated into Brazilian Portuguese with permission, though I didn't realise it was going on wattpad and didn't think to ask (it's fine, but I do prefer the Ao3 "inspired by" function). A bit random, but still, flattering.

13. Have you ever co-written a fic before?

No, I kind of like the idea but I think I'm too precious about the process and have too specific an idea of what the final piece should be.

I do love the collaborative storytelling of D&D, but prose is a whole different matter.

14. What's your all-time favorite ship?

Surely it's whichever one you're into at the time of asking? So obviously right now it's wangxian taking up most of my brainspace, but really most of the serious ships I've had I still have affection for. But wangxian is the only ship I've done both art and fic for, and overall feels like the deepest cut.

15. What's a wip you want to finish, but doubt you ever will?

SO many unpublished wips, but Against your will is one of my two published wips and for that reason I would like to see it finished, but unless I get back in and refamiliarise myself with the canon again I don't think it'll happen.

Also I have all these other wangxian wips that are like...look at them, they're everywhere, spilling out of my pockets, strewn across the floor of every room

16. What are your writing strengths?

My method is usually to overwrite then trim back to the bare bones so I think my finished prose usually feels quite..."clean", and to the point. That might not count as a strength to everyone though!

In terms of things I most commonly get good comments about: characterisation, emotion, and clear description of action (people can easily picture what's happening)

17. What are your writing weaknesses?

Dialogue, maybe? I hope it doesn't feel weak in the finished story but it's definitely the thing I find hardest - I'm very conscious of dialogue feeling right for a character and it's usually the part I rewrite the most.

Also actually sitting down and drafting stories in the first place. Obviously.

18. Thoughts on writing dialogue in another language for a fic?

I mean, I don't speak any other languages and dialogue is hard enough so god, no, unless it's a word or expression that is used by the characters canonically.

I don't mind it in fic as a reader but if I'm having to copy-paste paragraphs into google translate just to figure out what's going on I'm probably not going to persevere.

19. First fandom you wrote for?

Oh, you mean the Buffy self insert fics I hand wrote in a notebook 14-year-old me kept under their pillow.

20. Favorite fic you've written?

This is hard because...I'm pretty happy with most fic I've published. I can definitely see flaws but overall if I've finished something and stuck it online I like it, and I've reread every one at least once (I am my own target audience).

Secondly, I think my favourite fic is usually the one or ones I'm in the process of writing. I'm always trying to improve and like to think the next one I finish will be the best I've done (unrealistic I know).

That said,

Keep Burning (Dragon Age: Inquisition) is a fic I'm still really proud of. It's far from perfect and I remember it being a tough experience to write but it came out mostly how I wanted in the end. It still feels like one of the most emotionally...honest things I finished. Also I know it made people cry, and I don't know if anything else I've written has done that.

Also There Grew Between is probably the CQL fic I'm most satisfied with, I just think the pacing and structure work really well and it's the one fic I wish got more love because I like so much how it came out.

[leafdebrief]

a tree falls in a forest

it was struck by lightning.

a weird thing that came from nature shot down from the sky unexpectedly. it's reasoning for location and target are not known. indiscernible really. all we know about it right now is that it must've been full of energy and crazy fucking power because a whole tree fell over when it got hit.

and now there's a fire all over the branches.

lots and lots of destructive energy flying everywhere indiscriminately.

now: you are looking right at a branch. right now. this branch is on fire. hello 👋 i am that fire.

let me tell you some things about myself to get acquainted. as a fire, if you want to ask me "what do you know how to do?" i could answer a couple of ways. if you mean know in a kind of "what does this thing do?" way, i can can at least answer in the spirit of your figure of speech.

i'd say:

if you must think of me, a fire, as something of intelligence that can know things, then i 'know' how to take a bunch of matter around me and turn it into energy that could potentially be very useful. if someone were to come along who happens to be the first actual intelligence to figure out how to use my energy, they might make some pretty neat tools. heck, they might kick off an evolution—i'd love to watch that, as a lowly fire with no real intelligence.

really though, i'd prefer to answer the question a bit more literally so nobody gets confused.

i'd probably go:

that's tricky to answer, because fires don't really know things. there's nothing really special about me, and if you look to the branch just over there, there's a really fucking huge fire burning that does my fire things even better right now! i look up to them in my fire passions of being a fire that burns.

and that's it?

well, pretty much. but when you think about it, there's still some neat things about just being a fire at all. despite not knowing how to be anything different, i still think fires everywhere are pretty hot.

and why's that?

well, for starters (ha! 🔥), in spite of all the fires on this tree being different sizes and temperatures, all of us can be a really fucking huge fire given the time and some tree to consume (ha!!! 💨) so it seems to me that all fires are equally badass the moment they start, right?

well that depends surely, because fires are destructive too. we know because those batteries you leave precariously close to yourself leave marks on our skin when the lithium in them touches you or any humidity in the air and loudly goes FfffrFSSSSHHHRRRttTtTt💨🔥

hey! you speak emojinese too?

it's just on my maternal side and i'm not conversational. stay focused please.

shit. sorry. got burnin there for a sec.

all good. but let's use that an example: i took my eye off you for one second and it got a little hairy in here. are you sure fires are even safe to be around?

oh definitely not. things with that much energy and no real intelligence to keep them at least in one spot just burn stuff. a lot! you should've seen this bridge support we were just making little marks on once, then in a few sec—

—f o c u s.

FUCK. ok. sorry again. what were we talking about?

fires are clearly not safe.

no no no ok i remember!! bear with me here. so fires: they burn things. i'm not going to try and sell you a false bill of goods there. but what i'm trying to impress is that someone who, for whatever reason—training, insanity, luck—is really good at managing fires, might have that intelligence that could take something destructive like me, a fire, and use it to actually do the opposite

chill my drink?

where did you even get that? is that scotch?? i'll take a vodka, room temp, highest proof you've got please

NO.

..🤏🥺🫱🍸.. 🫵🥃??? 👯‍♀️! 🔥!!!

👁️👁️👁️

OK FINE. you have the fun. i can still burn stuff. i've got wood. HA. erection jokes too. what do you have?? a bougie glass that you put ROCKS inside. ROCKS. can't burn that shit, and you pooOooOoUred perfectly good fuel aAAaAAaLL over them, just shao youccould rookallSHOOPEErio—

Jesus Christ. where did you even get that other bottle? how it is almost gone?

is there more? there was a tree here before but it looks–*HIC*–smaller in this lighting. i'm hungry now. do you do–*HIC*–all night poutine and also extra curd plzss

let's get you into a lamp somewhere, you seem a little burnt out tonight buddy. we're gonna grab a wick and move you in a second, just stay there ok?

(broken english/emojinese slurs) the really 😎 thing about 🔥s is the way they haff all🚫of like 🔻▪️shape like. NONEx but still 🔛when put in things be FULL! and if ʸᵒᵘ ᵖᵘᵗ 🔥ᶠⁱʳᵉʷᵒʳᵏ—.. (moves to cozy spot in dry grass) (sleepy ember is soaked in ethanol and not burning b/c oxygen kept at bay)

...hey where'd you go? i said stay put.

(..did any of you see a fire around here, bout yay tall? nothing? fucker's gotta be close, give me a holler if you smell burning weeds nearby ok please, it could be an emergency, thanks)

[safetyandsurvival]

Tips for the ladies (defense)

1. Fun fact: your elbow is EXTREMELY powerful. Use it.

2. 🍇 drugs taste salty. If your on a date with someone your meeting for the first time, get a drink you usually get. If it tastes salty, or odd whatsoever, don't drink it.

3. You think someone is following you? Stay on main roads, don't take that shortcut down the shady alleyway. Don't immediately go to your house, if you can, go by a nearby store and wander around inside for abit. If you still think your being followed, get on the phone with someone. Anyone. Your mom, your dad, your great aunt; it doesn't matter. Hell, PRETEND to be on a phone call (helpful if your phone is dead).

4. Being attacked? Be gross. It sounds odd, but it's the truth. Spit, piss, shit, it doesn't matter. Whatever you think is going to get them off of you, do it.

5. Relating to point 4, don't fight fair. This isn't a friendly fade, your being attacked. Grab hair, pinch, bite, scratch, kick, punch, do whatever you need to do to free yourself.

6. Considering on your whereabouts, some defense tools aren't legal. But that doesnt mean you can't carry something that can't do damage. Keys are a big yes. Alot like a butterfly knife, you can get "butterfly clombs" which are the exact same but have a metal comb (sorry, but imagine slashing someone with the metal teeth of a comb. That's going to hurt). For anyone in school, something as simple as pens or pencils or protractors will do the job. Break a ruler in half, keep it in your pocket. Be creative, anything can be sharp and stabby if you want it to be.

7. For all my girlie's who wear nails, don't punch with a fist. You'll break your actual nails, and probably damage yourself more then your attacker. Instead, put your hand out like your giving someone a high five or use the base of your palm to hit. Its affective, and if you clock someone in the nose, it's going to hurt.

8. Heels. Did I mention carrying something sharp? Yeah, heels fit into that category. Just picture a heel and a person's eye and you'll start to realise what I'm getting at.

9. If you are walking in a place you don't know well or you've never been there before, don't be shy. Head high, walk with purpose. Looking like a damsel in distress will only make you one. If you have earbuds or headphones, put one in (or if you are wearing headphones, only rest one on your ear) and put Google maps on with that little annoying lady who screams the directions. This way, you don't look like a target but you can still manage to get to where you need to safely.

10. This one is drastic, but if your trapped in a car with the door locks on, remember that the headrests are detachable. Car windows are easier to break from the inside, and the pointy metal antenna looking things at the end of the headrests can be used to drive into the window and hopefully crack it.

11. Last one, don't ignore your gut. If you think something seems like a bad idea (walking down a new route, going to a club with bad reviews, even walking home alone, etc.) Then it probably is. Go for what you think Is safe, and you'll most likely be fine.

Stay safe lovelies!

[bentleysbeetle]

//please may we request a tarot card reading, we need to figure out if we're gonna catch the cat flu that every roleplayer has. (I want to be a cat. I can sleep all day.)//

//Beetle's secretary here!! Just wanted to say that seeing as she is still a cat I will be. Translating what they are saying. Imagine how silly it would be if you waited for this reading to only get a bunch of meows, huh?//

Ok!! I decided to do 5 cards for this one!! I could have done only 1 card to see if it's a yes or a no but these cards don't say yes or no on them :( but the first one means you and the situation, the second is what you can do, the third is obstacles, the fourth is the outcome and the fifth is how you can be affected!!

The first card we got is the tower upside down!!! The tower is burning and collapsing and there's lightning, and there's 2 little people falling off to the ground! It looks like they're gonna be really hurt :( but it's upside down, so it's fine! The lightning is actually catching the tower an keeping it safe, and the fire is now red juice that is flowing down, and the people are climbing up to the ground! It looks like they'll be fine :) so uhh!! That probably means that since the people aren't fine YET that means you could be fine or you could not be fine? And it's up to you if you want to keep climbing up to the ground or if you wanna slide down and walk on the lightning! So it could go either way? And you're the one who decides!!!

Ok this one is easy. Your second card is the queen. That means you can do anything you want, the queen is the most powerful person (and chest piece I think I heard once?) and also Queen is the best band. Oh!! It probably means you should do whatever you want AND you should listen to Queen while you do it!!! And she has a very cool wand!! Like a magic wand!!!! I KNOW!! you should turn YOURSELF into a cat WHILE YOU LISTEN TO QUEEN!!!

Uhh the 3rd one, your obstacles, is 7 cups!!! They're in a river, and cats don't like water, so uhh I think there will be lots of water if you turn into a cat and you'll have to knock over a LOT of cups. So be careful!

Oh no uhh.... The um... The fourth card is uhhh the 7 of pentacles but it's upside down... Uh... They look like little shields! And they're in a grassy field! So uhhh the outcome is you will be very very safe in a grass field? Oh no but it's upside down!!! That means the OPPOSITE!! Maybe you'll be hunted for super long by DOGS!!! D: Oh no oh no, be careful anon!!!

Okay the fifth one... How you'll be affected... It is the wagon and there is a guy with two horses, a brown and a white one.... Maybe uhh...... Okay either you'll ummm... Get a ride from Aziraphale and Crowley? Or you'll turn into a horse instead of a cat!!! Oh no!!!! I hope not!

That's my tarot reading!!! Thanks, anon!! Best of luck!

(//actual reading under the cut!//)

//Ok. Actual reading here

The tower usually represents catastrophe. (CAT astrophe 🐈) The tower (in the card) is meant to be your hopes or ambitions or something of the likes, and it's of course falling apart. HOWEVER it is upside down, so it's more like your biggest fears hit when smthn falls apart and u know it's partially your fault (according to my little guide book). However it's meant to come with relief as well, like a battle that's finally over.

My intuition is telling me that this thing falling apart is a facade or barrier of some sorts, like maybe you've been trying to stay alone because you thought it's for the better, but now you realize maybe you're missing out or something and you'd rather join in on things.

Or it could be that the cat thing is nearing an end and you better hurry in joining it. Either or. Beetle is gonna stay a kitten for a while at least, no worries, I'm having fun with this.

Oh and just btw take what resonates, leave what doesn't, I don't know you, maybe you're the most social person ever 🤷🏻

Okay so, queen of wands for the second card (which is what you can do for the situation) The queen of wands represents creativity! She's empathetic (apparently), good at talking and listening and she's popular! She's not scared to tell people her ideas and she is inspiring!

To me, the cards are telling you to be creative. Since the booklet specifically mentions that she's popular with other people, I'd recommend talking to those around you (honestly I'd reccomend that anyway)

But I still also stand by Beetle's reading. Turn yourself into a cat while you're listening to queen

7 of cups represents confusion. It says there will be lots of opportunities and such, some of which can help you and some of which won't. There's a lot of options here and it's getting confusing, so you have to trust your gut.

I feel like this is pretty straight forward, there's lots of ways to get the cat flu but just go with your instinct. Unless your instinct was to get a tarot reading about it, which while it's fun, I doubt that the cards will make you a cat all by themselves /silly

Contrary to popular belief, pentacles represents money and safety, and not dogs.

Anyway, the 7 of pentacles represents endurance. I'm not sure what my booklet is trying to say it means upside down (my booklet is in Swedish, which I do not speak, and Google Translate is giving me.... VARIED results) but I'm guessing my booklet means hesitance? And the first link I pressed said lack of results. It says that it can feel like you have too much to do, you or someone you're close to are uneasy in a situation based in finance or trust. It also says that the problem is way more simple than it seems.

My brain is latching onto that last part a lot, it feels like that's the relevant part here, that the problem is a lot simpler than it seems. It also says to just do something to fix it. And honestly, in these kinds of situation (roleplay in general, as well as wanting to be included overall) a lot of the time all you have to do is ask! Or just include yourself! Don't be scared to just take action <3

I forgot for a moment that this was meant to be the outcome so- there may be a chance you're too busy to roleplay or this will take up a lot of your time, but hey honestly that's just life.

And finally, the wagon! I love the big arcana they're so much fun. Okay this guy represents a travel, determination, self-control and departure. This card has a young man in shiny armor in a wagon, he's just started his journey, he's filled with charm and ambition, and his horses have no reigns so he can control them with his will.

I feel like this is a start for you, anon! Maybe you don't do this stuff often, or maybe you'll just experience some fun and whimsy in this mission!

Something just tells me you've maybe been a bit anxious to include yourself in these kinds of things, you realize you've been lonely or bored, and you're finally trying to join in on something and it'll help you doing stuff like this more often in the future! Maybe you need to speak out for yourself, or maybe you just haven't done roleplay much before.

Either way, I hope this helped! As always take what resonates and leave what doesn't! I spoke a bit from just a gut feeling so I'm sorry if I got some stuff wrong! Best of luck, and if you need just say your @ and I could help ;)

[arobinwithoutbatman]

((Lol whoops it's been 4 weeks since I did this. Onto The Search!))

Oh we're finally back in Santa Prisca and seeing wtf Bruce and Alfred have been up to!

So Bruce's wheelchair is all tricked out and thank fuck for that! Because God damn, not even a minute and he's getting attacked

Oooooo local hero! Nice!

Damn, Bruce pulled some strings and got himself 2 Justice League heroes to keep him safe though I don't like the name of one of them. Why are we still using that slur as a name?

Lol, Green Arrow is hanging out there too

...Tim is like 14 at most, why does this art style make him look 40

So miss subterfuge specialist ~~I refuse to use her actual hero name and I will die on this hill~~ just casually turns invisible, love that

And they're attacking the drugdealer hotel Bruce is staying at. I'm betting he's already left

-------------

Called it! Bruce is fine and already playing 5D chess to keep his identity a secret

Jack isn't doing too good though and these kidnappers are fucking awful

Oh cool! Angry rabid dogs! Love that!

Oh hey Ollie! Finally revealing yourself to the others... you've really just got your whole face out like that? Shadows from your hood don't do shit, you should know better!

Setting a fire and smoking them all out, nice!

And of course Shondra ran after Jack, she's his doctor and she's a damn good doctor

Oh and Bruce has a yacht waiting anyway

-------------

...I'm sorry, is there random vampire oneshots in this? Why? Does it have *anything* ot do with the current plot?

I don't think it did? But hte plot continued after a few pages anyway sooooo -shrug-

I'm sorry, is there some kind of hunting going on?! Jack is just there to get Shondra to agree with whatever this sicko is planning?!

Waaaiiiiitttttt the beginning was actually necessary... I got he gist tho. Bruce met up with Hood as Batman even though he's still not fully walking yet and now Hood (named after Robin Hood, Jason hasn't even come back to life yet) is helping out while Bruce and Alfred are in London

...Shondra has a power? And it's healing based? Makes sense

Oh dang, Bruce really loves Catwoman... okay Talia and Viki Vale I knew about but he actually had a bit of a fling with *Poison Ivy?!*

*O H* Shondra heals and this Asp asshole amplifies. Oooohhhhh I don't like this. She knew him as a girl? Something is *very* wrong here

I'll give comic writers this; they got the London accent and general slang right. Though I wonder how much it hurt Alfred to drop his RP dialect

-----------

Okay but those disguises tho

Oooooooo comics entering the discussion on fox hunting~

Huh, figured out who Hood is, nice! But I'm pretty sure he's clocked Bruce and Alfed too

So Asp is looking to store Shondra's ability to eradicate disease? ...he's storing it alright but I doubt that's his end goal. Nah, if he's got files with MI5 that say he didn't exist before the age of 25, something's wrong. He's working with outside forces

CALLED IT. He's not looking to heal, he's looking to kill

And Bruce is having an identity crisis

Ah and this is when Tim calls in while Azreal's going nuts

Eeeeyyy found her! And also, Asp is awful, he just wiped out most of the surrounding village! Now was that sign language Shondra made or pure coincidence?

--------------------

Holy fuck, *he caught a mum and baby in that wave* I hate him. I utterly despise him

Shondra's gone but Jack's here and just barely alive!

Mmmmm not quite right, Bruce, she's protecting herself, she's getting threatened and smacked around, she'll say anything to keep herself and her power safe because I get the feeling she's not really been using it all that much

---------------

Bruce is gonna be stuck in this misunderstanding, isn't he? Better to focus on that rather than focus on teh fact that he's probably stuck with chronic pain for the rest of his life

Mind control drugs now? Well damn, that's not gonna be good

Tim, wtf is going on with your hair

Shondra/Sandra is still fighting like damn... oh you bastard! He's planting false memories! Wait... those aren't false memories?! Oh fuck. Poor woman's been through hell

---------

Back in Gotham and apprently, a fkae name and appearance are enough to dodge this new power. Good thing too!

Oof, you know Alfred's serious when he threatens to resign

Holy shit, he actually resigned!

And gone to Jean-Paul so that Bruce at least has a body guard... but is Jean-Paul going to care?

...Bruce are you going mad or are you trying to draw out Asp fucker?

Not going mad but might be a touch suicidal

Jean-Paul proving he's not Batman cause he almost let a wheelchair bound disguised Bruce fall... or a decoy... but at least he tried?

-------------

So Bruce is now in the Carribean with the killer asshat and Shondra and even without a name, he's tried to redirect that anger from her upgringing to the voice she's hearing and *she's* the one thinking of both Bruce and Batman

But because she settled on Batman, Bruce is just knocked out, thank fuck

And now, Tim's chatting to Commissioner Gordon

Oh damn, getting Tim to listen in to try and help and find him. Or at the very least, bust this whole operation

He's trying for an escape! With a paralysed arm

Oh shit, she guessed! And now she's regressing and talking like a child so she's just blabbing and neither of them have realised there's a transmitter in the room oh shit!

...or he could be killed. That works for me, tbh! Bruce, you didn't kill him and tehcnically, Shondra, neither did you. It was definitely self defence. But also, with you age regressing all over hte place and somewhat in love with your patient, you both will kind of have to change things

Huh... she made sure to keep touching him and that healed a good portion of the damage while they weathered out the monsoon and it just skips to them all being back in Gotham

Shondra's got her own estate now and medical staff because she's stuck in child headspace, poor woman :(

--------------

...Tim did you fall asleep *in your Robin uniform?!*

Awww picking up his dad from the airport... and does that porter in the background have a sign that says C Kent? Is that an Easter Egg?

Jack really wants to try... and it seems like he's definitely going to try once he's healed

And they've broken into the Batcave and holy shit WaynManor is a mess and *Alfred is still very much gone*

Oooooo car race!

That didn't end well... yeah sorry Tim, you need to leave this for the adults

And Bruce is going back to get some crash course training from... I feel like it's either gonna be Talia or Cass' mother who's name currently escapes me