#a friendship that's become something more
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heylittleriotact · 2 days ago
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I've never heard this banter and I'm going to go the fuck off.
Firstly: Everything @emmg said. The whole "I want to become a lich" arc is actually incredibly contentious for my death-positive, mortality embracing Rook. Like to the point where she basically tells him at one point: "I really like you, and I really like us, and it's important to me that you're happy, so I won't try to change your mind or interfere with your plans, but I think it's only right to be transparent now about the fact that I can't see a future for us should you successfully pursue lichdom." She's very up-front about it, because she isn't at all comfortable with the radical change of the entire power dynamic of their relationship: they would no longer be equals, and she's not interested in ultimately becoming one more rag that he's dragging behind him (to quote the absolutely beautiful song by Josh Ritter called 'The Curse' which is about an Egyptologist who discovers a mummy who comes back to life and they fall in love but since he is undead and she is mortal, it ends tragically and it reminds me SO MUCH OF a Emm!Lich/Rook romance, or honestly any future romances he might find himself in as a Lich.) Here - listen to it: go. Right now. Cute af music video too:
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Secondly: BULLSHIT, EMMRICH. That's such absolute fucking bullshit. "There's always something to discover in the world" and "I think I should never grow tired of that" are both such insanely pompous, self-aggrandizing statements that he flings out there in an effort to frame himself in the light he wants to be perceived in: the Quintessential Academic - forever curious and eternally learning: an inspiration to curious and inquisitive minds everywhere to be celebrated and lauded for his immeasurable services to society.
The truth is, he knows it's bullshit, and is painfully aware that lichdom - even without a partner or someone like Rook is bound to be soul-crushingly lonely. Dude is lonely af and he's still got a fucking PULSE. But he's made it this far in life shouldering the burden of feeling like he'll never find someone. Loneliness isn't new to him, and it's really easy to suggest that after a few thousand years of existence under one's belt that picking up new friends will be as easy as popping down to the pub and saying "hi" to a stranger. Pffft! Trifles!
Emmrich is smarter than that. He knows better than that, but he's trying to convince himself just as much as he's trying to convince Lucanis that having to embrace the fleeting, transitory nature of relationships as he watches the ebb and flow of life and death cycle repeatedly before his eyes is not only what he wants, but it's what will make him happy and it's such a brazen contradiction of himself that if my Rook overheard this she would be unable to keep herself from snorting and going, "... really?"
This man is trying to put himself above love and friendships and relationships in a way that makes them seem like specimens to be studied and written about, when we know that he's probably written no less than a dozen poems about how Rook's hair looks in the sunlight, and is annoying the shit out of Vorgoth and Myrna because all of his letters home since he and Rook got together are less about their progress against the gods, and more about how absolutely wonderful Rook is and how pleased he is that he decided to accompany her on this journey blah blah blah...
He's collected a little family with the Veilguard, and he makes no secret of how much he cares for all of them.
Delusional, pookie: you're fucking delusional.
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Lucanis and Emmrich about immortality
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ghostlyferrettarot · 2 days ago
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🌁Pick a Picture:✨️❄️What wishes will come true for you?❄️✨️
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•Pile 1 •Pile 2 •Pile 3
✨️Hello! I wanted to say thank you for being a part of my year and for supporting me so much, i am so thankful to everyone that took a little bit of their time to look into my page! I hope you guys have a Happy Holidays and i hope we can still be together next year <3✨️
❗️This is a collective reading, take what resonates and leave the rest❗️
✨️Paid Services ✨️ (Natal charts and tarot readings) Open!
🌸If you like my work you can support me through Ko-fi. Thank you!🌸
🎀Masterlist🎀
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⛄Pile 1: The Hanged Man, 5 of Pentacles and Ace of Cups.
Hi pile 1! You are my creative people, and this is a sign that wishes related to creativity, personal growth and the beginning of new projects are on their way to being fulfilled.
There is a vibration of creative abundance and personal power, I feel like you will be stepping into your power, you will be manifesting into reality a creative project that you have been working on for a while.
The next few months will be full of opportunities to expand your mind and your creative nature. If you were waiting for that moment to launch a new idea or project, get ready to see how the universe opens doors for you. This is a period of fertility and manifestation: everything you sow with your effort will manifest successfully. Do not hold back because of doubts, because your power of creation is at its peak.
Wishes that have to do with artistic projects, entrepreneurship or simply personal development will be aligned. Remember that abundance flows to you when you nurture your passions and follow your instincts. It's time to take action and trust your vision.
❄️Song:
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⛄Pile 2: The Moon, 4 of Cups and Page of Wands.
Hi pile 2!, there is a strong energy related to love and emotional healing. This pile brings with it the fulfillment of desires linked to emotional healing and deep relationships.
If you have been looking for a deeper type of connection, whether in the romantic realm or in your friendships, this is a time of revelations and healing. You will have more hope, restoration and an energetic flow full of inner peace. Those desires related to the perfect relationship, reconciliation or the feeling of belonging will soon manifest. It is a time to trust that the universe will guide you to what is right for you.
This pile also speaks of the importance of listening to your intuition. If there is something you need to let go or heal, the energy of the Moon is really prominent in this pile, so it suggests that the desire for emotional release will come true. You have the ability to release internal blockages that have prevented you from living love in its purest form. Self-love will also be key in this process. I feel like a significant connection, especially a soulmate one is coming into your way pile 2!
❄️Song:
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⛄Pile 3: Death, 8 of Wands and 6 of Wands.
Hi pile 3! this pile indicates that you are in a stage of changes, where desires related to destiny and personal transformation are about to become true. You are going to experience powerful changes that represent life turns and success.
Desires that relate to important life changes and recognitions of success are aligned for you. If you have been waiting for a turn in your destiny, this is the time. Your guides tell you that the cycle is changing, and that what seemed uncertain will now become a golden opportunity.
It is a time of rebirth and evolution, you probably are in a transformative journey right now and its gonna pay off pile 3!
I also feel that wishes for prosperity, joy and success will soon come true aswell. It is time to shine and take advantage of the opportunities that the universe brings you. All that effort, those seeds planted with sacrifice, are now ready to grow and bear fruit, you are doing an amazing job, so trust yourself and soon you will live your dream reality step by step!
❄️Song:
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✧˚.⋆Thanks for reading and let me know if it resonated!✧˚.⋆
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Dividers by: @dollywons
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tateypots · 2 days ago
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Save Me A Dance
18+ MDNI
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Pairing: Jackson Joel x f!reader
Word count: 3.7k
A/N: Next parts of Collared and To Keep You Safe are coming along nicely, should hopefully have those out next week. Here is something soft and sweet for Christmas Eve (it’s not set at Christmas but never mind).
This is the same pair as To Keep You Safe (Part 1 is here) but can be read as a standalone.
Merry Christmas to everyone who celebrates and to everyone who doesn’t, I wish you peace and happiness.
Summary: Your patrol partner tells you to save him a dance at the Harvest Festival party.
Warnings: Misogyny (not from Joel), feelings of panic, mutual pining, idiots in love, sexual thoughts, fluff.
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Your fingers played absentmindedly with the skirt of your dress. The material so soft and luxurious, worlds away from the ever practical jeans, shirt and boots you typically donned. You felt self-conscious and ridiculous. You’d only agreed to wear it because Maria had begged you to, telling you how great it looked on you. You felt people staring at you and it made you uneasy, even if it was just because it took them a while to recognise you in this infernal dress, your hair loose down your back instead of semi-tamed into a messy braid as usual.
The Jackson harvest celebration was in full swing, the whole town seemingly crammed into the decorated hall. The whole town except the one person you actually wanted to see. Joel, your patrol partner had told you he would be coming, even told you to save him a dance.
This was the first large gathering you had dared to attend since you had arrived in Jackson and it had you on edge. Still not fully out of the habit of needing to be hyper vigilant in all situations, still not entirely believing you were safe. You needed Joel’s presence to calm you. You knew he would have your back no matter what, just like you would have his. You had formed a tight bond in the 6 months since you became his patrol partner. He was one of the few people in town you felt truly comfortable with.
You tried your best to relax, made small talk with your neighbours and acquaintances. No one asked you to dance. You had broken up with your last boyfriend Glenn not long after your arrival and in the time since not one of the single men in Jackson had even glanced your way. And while you weren’t exactly interested in any of them you’d be lying if you said their collective rejection of you as a potential partner didn’t sting just a little, especially in a town with such limited options.
But truthfully you weren’t lonely. Your friendship with Joel was precious to you. He had taught you so much in your time together, and although he could be gruff and brash and impatient at times you knew he cared deeply for those he loved. That he would risk life and limb for anyone in this town, that he had done so on many occasions. That he also had a playful side, buried beneath his menacing exterior. It hadn’t taken you long to slip into an easy camaraderie and from there the roots of friendship had grown strong and deep and now you were a permanent fixture in his life, spending much of your time within the walls with him, Ellie, Tommy and Maria. You had tried to fight the intrusive thoughts that whispered your relationship with Joel could be more than friendship. He was so handsome, so capable, he could have his pick of anyone in Jackson. Half the women in town (and some of the men) were mooning after him. You couldn’t compete with them. And you couldn’t risk losing him by admitting to a stupid crush. So you bottled it up and tried to focus on being his friend, pretending it wasn’t getting harder and harder to ignore.
You were starting to feel overwhelmed, the noise of the music and chatter overlapping, the jostling of bodies against you and the stifling heat in the room leaving you dizzy as your breaths started to become laboured, panic beginning to set in. You stumbled your way to the door, desperate for some fresh air, quiet and space. The cool night air was welcome as you stumbled out into the night, easing some of the restrictive tension you felt around your lungs. You braced yourself against the wall of the building, leaning down with your hands on your knees and taking deep steadying breaths. Where the hell was Joel?!
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Pacing the floor of his bedroom, Joel was in turmoil. Had been for the last few weeks, since that day on patrol when you’d found an entire stash of medical supplies locked in a storage facility on the outskirts of a nearby town. Needles, syringes, pain meds, bandages and the holy grail, antibiotics, you’d hit the motherlode. Packing everything up and loading the horses had meant your return to Jackson was later than expected, and as you’d neared home you’d turned to him, giddy with the success of the day, the most beautiful smile adorning your face and bathed in the golden light of the sunset. You were breathtaking. Finally spotting the gates come into view you urged your horse into a canter with a laugh, shouting behind you, “keep up old man, lots to unload when we get home,” failing to notice his dumbstruck expression.
He had tried to convince himself that it was just the high from finding those life saving supplies. That he didn’t think of you that way. And he almost had himself convinced until the next time he saw you. Covered in sweat and hay and sawdust from mucking out at the stables, your cheeks flushed with exertion and he thought he’d never seen anyone so beautiful. He was fucked. He didn’t understand why this was happening now. You’d been friends for months and he’d never thought of you like that before. You were far too good for him. Far too precious to him to risk losing you altogether if you found out the depraved thoughts he was having about you. About your body naked and writhing under his, of the noises he could coax out of you, the way you would squeeze his cock as you came apart around him. It was as if that one sun kissed moment had unlocked something in his brain that he could not contain now that that it was free. He didn’t know what to do. He couldn’t bear the thought of cutting himself off from you. And there was no way you could possibly reciprocate and he couldn’t face losing you
So he tried his best to bury it, carry on as normal, pretend he wasn’t drowning in desire for you. But today, he’d opened his stupid mouth and put his foot right in it. Telling you to save him a dance, like there was any chance he could be that close to you, have you in his arms and ever let you go again. So yeah he was fucked. He was also very late. He knew you’d been nervous about going, that you still struggled to be around large groups. And it was the thought of letting you down, you having to face it alone that finally propelled him out of his front door.
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You had finally managed to get your breathing under control but your heart was still racing. Leaning back fully against the wall you closed your eyes and tried to calm down. You heard the door open and swing shut.
“Well look who it is.”
Ugh. “Hi Glenn.”
“What’s the matter princess, not having fun?”
“Just getting some air.”
He’d sauntered over to you, leaning his arm against the wall next to you. “That’s a pretty dress princess, who are you getting all dolled up for hm?”
You rolled your eyes, “no one.”
He let out a little chuckle, “that’s right I forgot. No one wants you do they? And it’s going to take more than a little dress to convince them otherwise. I did warn you princess.”
“Fuck off Glenn.” You pushed yourself off the wall, even the overwhelming crowd inside being more appealing than spending any more time with this asshole. His hand shot out and grabbed you by the bicep in a bruising grip. “Don’t you-“
“Is there a problem here?” Joel’s voiced washed over you, his presence soothing your frayed nerves and calming your pounding heart. Glenn dropped your arm and stepped back as Joel sauntered up behind you, his hand coming to rest lightly between your waist and hip. At his touch you visibly relaxed, the tension in your body seeping out of you and dissipating into the quiet night. Glenn clocked it immediately.
“Thought a woman like you had no need of a knight in shining armour,” he snarked at you.
“She ain’t the one who needed saving Glenn. Didn’t want her breaking your wrist, I’ve seen her do worse to men for less out on patrol and I’m too old and tired to be picking up extra patrol shifts cos you couldn’t keep your hands to yourself. Now are we done here or do I need to go and tell Maria that you’re hassling women outside the dance hall?”
“We’re done,” he sneered, turning on his heel and stomping back through the door into the hall, slamming it behind him for good measure.
“What the hell did you ever see in him?”
“I was lonely and he was there,” you only half joked.
Joel turned you so you were facing him, his hands coming to settle on your shoulders, “I heard what he said to you. What did he mean he warned you no one would want you?”
Your arms instinctively wrapped around your middle and your gaze fixed on the ground, unable to look at him. You’d never discussed your break up with anyone, it coming so soon after your arrival in Jackson that you didn’t have anyone to confide in at the time. And by the time you and Joel had built a friendship it was old news and never brought up.
“Um, well, you know we broke up the day of the patrol trials,” you spotted Joel nodding in your periphery so you continued, “well, I guess some of the other guys made some comments while we were out and we got into a fight about it when we got back. He said I’d shown him up, made him look weak by being better than him. Told me that men want a woman who needs them to look after and protect them and if I didn’t turn down patrol and take a job in town instead he’d break up with me. That if he did I’d be alone forever because none of the other men here would be interested in having a girlfriend who emasculated them.”
He jostled your shoulders slightly, trying to coax you into looking at him, “that’s absolute nonsense sweetheart.”
You huffed a laugh, “it’s not though, he was right. It’s been 6 months and no one else has shown any interest.”
“What do you mean?”
“Joel, what do you mean, what do I mean?! You know I’ve not been on any dates since I got here, I spend all my time with you and Ellie!”
“Well yeah I knew you hadn’t been on any dates but figured you’d just been turning guys down.”
“Well I haven’t, no one has asked, most of the guys won’t even stick around long enough to have a conversation with me,” you groaned at him, your eyes squeezing shut, the mortification at discussing your undesirability with the one person you wanted to find you desirable burning through you. This night was turning out so much worse than you thought it would. “It’s fine ok, I’m not interested in any of them anyway, it just annoys me when Glenn is right.”
“Honey Glenn ain’t right,” he squeezes your shoulders before sliding his hands down to take hold of yours, “please look at me.”
You let out a deep sigh and look up at him, expecting to see pity written all over his face, instead he looks…sheepish. It’s his turn to sigh now, “I think it might be my fault. I know for a fact that there are plenty of guys here who would be interested in taking you out,” you open your mouth to protest but he shushes you and continues, “I was in the Bison with Tommy, maybe a month after we were first paired for patrol. I overheard some of the guys talking about you, arguing over who would get to be the first to ask you out. A couple of the guys started making crude comments so I stepped in, gave em’ what for, told em’ that you deserved more respect than that. One of em’ kept going, kept sayin’ things he shouldn’t so…so I punched him. Couple o’ times,” he swallowed, hanging his head, “I told em’ if I heard they’d even looked at you the wrong way they’d have to answer to me. But I swear I never meant for them to stay away from you completely, just wanted them to treat you with respect. I’m so, so sorry sweetheart.”
He was so angry with himself. He’d not even thought about it since, never imagining it would lead to you feeling so unwanted and unhappy. Had no idea that Glenn had planted that ugly seed in your head. That his own actions had helped water and tend it allowing it grow and wrap it’s prickly vines around your mind. He braced himself for your anger at his confession, for you to shout at him and tell him to stay away from you. So when you let out a melodic little giggle, his head snapped up in surprise. You had to bite your lip to contain further laughter at the look on his face, your heart so much lighter now. You weren’t completely unwanted and rejected, Joel had stood up for you and perhaps most importantly, Glenn had been wrong.
“Thank you for looking out for me,” you whisper to him, standing on your tip toes to plant a soft kiss on his cheek, missing the flush that crept across his face in the dim lighting.
“I can talk to the guys, set things straight,” he tells you. The thought of seeing you with someone else left him nauseous but he’d do anything if it made you happy.
You shake your head at him, giving his hands a gentle squeeze, “I meant what I said Joel, I’m not interested in any of them.”
Your wording dances round his brain. In any of them. His heart was beating so fast in his chest he couldn’t make out the individual beats. What if he’s reading this wrong? You’re so close it clouds his senses, lost in you as you look up at him with soft eyes and a gentle little smile.
Without a word he moves towards the door of the hall pulling you with him. You follow him easily with no resistance. Once inside he heads straight for the dancefloor just as the band starts a new song. He pulls you into him, one of his hands still cradling yours as his other settles on the small of your back. He starts to sway you side to side, his eyes never leaving yours as the lyrics start to float through the room.
“Wise men say,
Only fools rush in,
But I can’t help falling in love with you.”
The hand on your back squeezes you tighter, trying to pull you in closer despite there being not a shred of light between your bodies already. Before he even fully realises what he’s doing he’s planting a lingering kiss on your forehead. He waits for you to pull away, for you to tell him he’s got the wrong idea. But instead he feels you let out a deep sigh as your head drops forward onto his chest, eyes closed and your face the picture of contentment. You turn your head slightly to press a little kiss right over his heart before settling your cheek against his chest once more.
“Take my hand,
Take my whole life too,
For I can’t help, falling in love with you.”
He was right. He’ll never be able to let you go. But he doesn’t feel afraid like he thought he would. Because the feel of you against him is right. Feels safe and comforting but at the same time exciting and exhilarating. Because he recognises the feeling that you bring with you now. The feeling that tore down his walls faster than any other person had. That within a few patrol shifts had him sharing his past, his losses, his fears with you like he’d known you his whole life. That brightened his day whenever he knew you would be around.
Home. You felt like home and you always had.
He’d been deluding himself that he’d only recently developed these feelings. The vision of you wrapped in the golden glow of the sunset was just the first time he admitted it to himself. He should have realised the day he knocked two of Dave’s teeth out for being disrespectful about you. He should have realised every time his heart sank when it was time for you to leave after dinner, how his pulse quickened every time he made you laugh.
“Like a river flows,
Surely to the sea,
Darling, so it goes,
Some things are meant to be.”
You tilted your head to look up at him, your chin resting on his chest. He gave you the softest smile that had you melting further into him. Safe. You felt safe at last, the heat from his large hand splayed over your back warming you like a security blanket. You forgot about everything else. About the dangers outside the walls. About Glenn. About all the things you had lost and all the hopes you had given up on. This was exactly where you were supposed to be. Wrapped up in Joel’s arms. And it didn’t matter to you that this was a very public affair, the whole town gathered round, eyeing the pair of you. Tommy and Ellie giddy with excitement, knowing smiles on their faces, relieved you had both finally come to your senses. The town gossips trying to ascertain how they had not seen this coming. Your ex-boyfriend glowering at the two of you on one side of the room and Joel’s ex-girlfriend doing the same on the other. Because it wasn’t just physical safety Joel offered, you were more than capable of taking care of yourself on that front. It was emotional. He knew you better than anyone. Never made you feel self-conscious about the goofier sides of your personality, never ridiculed you for fears and tendencies you knew were irrational. Never made you feel bad for being able to take care of yourself or asked you to make yourself lesser for his comfort. He’d always accepted you as you were, warts and all. You knew he’d protect you with everything he had and you would do the same for him. So no one else’s opinion mattered.
“Take my hand,
Take my whole life too,
For I can’t help, falling in love with you.”
The song ends but Joel doesn’t release you from his hold, his hand remaining steady on your back as he brings the other to gently cup your cheek as his forehead falls to rest against yours. Your eyes drift close and your head turns in his hand to place a soft kiss on his palm.
You twine your arms around his neck and collapse into his chest once again, listening to the steady but rapid beat of his heart. Both of you had completely zoned out the noise of the dance carrying on around you so it is a shock when you feel yourselves being jostled by others on the crowded dancefloor. Snapping back to reality he feels rather than hears you giggling against his chest. He’s all at once overjoyed to feel you against him and pissed that it’s so loud inside the hall that he missed the sound of your laugh. He takes your hand in his and pulls you out into the night.
You don’t even question it as he starts leading you back to his house, you’d follow him anywhere. No words are passed between the two of you as you continue to bask in the high of having Joel’s arms around you.
He keeps waiting for you to come to your senses, to realise you don’t want a miserable old man like him and his heart breaks when you tug on his arm to stop him once you reach the top of Rancher Street. This is it. He braces himself. But instead of pulling away you’re wrapping your arms around his neck and standing on your tip toes to reach up and push your lips against his, your tongue swiping at his bottom lip. He immediately grants you access to his mouth, pulling you in close to him, one hand on your back and the other cradling the back of your head. Your kiss is passionate and frantic, you pour everything into it, laying yourself bare for him, and he answers in kind.
When you break the kiss, panting for air you sink back onto your heels and your hands trail to his chest.
“Sorry, couldn’t wait any longer,” you confess to him.
“Don’ need to apologise sweet girl. These lips belong to you, can have em’ whenever you want.”
You bite your lip and smirk up at him, “just your lips?”
“Greedy girl,” he growls out, dropping his hand to pull you closer to him by your ass cheek, squeezing the fleshy globe for good measure making you giggle, “all o’ me darlin’, I’m all yours.”
“And I’m all yours.”
“Good,” he smirks at you. You let out a shriek as he bends to hoist you over his shoulder before striding purposely towards his house. “Joel, what are you doing?!” you chuckle at him.
“No more distractions baby, I need to look over what’s mine.”
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obsessive-valentine · 2 days ago
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Yandere Artist x GN!Maid-Reader
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Julian (or Jules as you nickname him), an esteemed artist in Victorian society, becomes captivated by a forgotten maid who moves through life unnoticed by others. Obsessed with finding ways to capture the adoration he has for you on canvas.
You’d been a maid at the gallery Julian visited, and the reason he returned over and over. He, a man of great status, an esteemed artist too, became drawn to you beyond his own understanding.
On one of Julian’s many visits, he found the courage to speak to you. "You work so hard, yet make it look as graceful as a dance", he murmured, his voice soft but sincere. You were startled—maids weren't meant to be noticed by men of his status. But Julian wasn’t like the others.
It was only after weeks of shared glances, whispered conversation and quiet sketches that Julian dared to ask you for more.
Losing sleep over the way you made him feel, emotions so deep and unexplainable he began going mad over trying to express it. His current models and pieces of art just weren't good enough compared to you and the way you make him feel.
A type of suffocating love he never thought could exist.
“Forgive me for being so forward,” he said, his voice gentle and earnest. “I understand this may come as a shock, but if you’d allow me, I would be honoured if you would be my muse."
Though you were hesitant to overstep and cause a scandal, he promised you everything you could want if you were to only be his muse, he’d give you a place to stay and all you could ask for, you wouldn’t have to be a maid anymore. But then being his muse, turned into friendship, then lovers.
He fell in love with how you so effortlessly inspired his work -but fell harder for how you grounded him as a person. Smitten by the little things- your soft laughter, the gentle way you spoke. He loved the small gestures you made without thinking, the way you’d hum as you worked. He'd notice it all.
While initially hesitant from the intensity of not being spared a glance to having a man tripping over himself at the sight of you -you grew to enjoy his presence. The idea of being someone who inspires him, someone who is at the centre of his world. After living your whole life in the shadows.
...
Many hours a week are sat in his study as he paints you, his work taking on a new life, new meaning that only makes it so much more beautiful.
Julian loves to draw you absentmindedly—it’s almost like an instinct, something that he can't stop even when he's lost in thought. He has many books filled with fast sketches that are almost abstract that he scribbles without even looking at the page, to incredibly detailed sketches that almost look like photos.
Parts of your day are recorded in those books like his own form of videoing you. Some are so attentive they could be made into a seamless stop motion.
Sometimes he even finds himself sitting on the bathroom floor as you bathe, talking to you as he once again absent-mindedly draws. finding inspiration for his next piece.
He’s obsessed with the little details. He gets lost in those details, and every sketch is a desperate attempt to capture your essence. But not necessarily just when he’s drawing either.
When he’s not drawing, Julian traces his fingers over your skin studying every part of you.
His love language is physical touch, though it’s always gentle and respectful. Gently running his fingers through your hair or resting a hand possessively on your waist.
But that doesn't mean he lacks in the other 4 departments. Like how he loves to whisper to you just how much you mean to him.
His feelings for you are intense, to the point of worship, though he doesn’t fully realise how deep his obsession runs, he doesn't do anything to correct it either.
Sometimes that can be overwhelming for you, especially going from such an ignored life to one in a lovely house, a handsome gentleman of a husband and the title of being a muse.
But you can't bring yourself to make him stop, he’s Prince Charming in your eyes.
You don’t see the way he glares or scowls at men who dare talk to you when you accompany him to town or an event. Or how he makes borderline cruel verbal jabs to women who try to take his attention from you even for a moment.
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baronessvonglitter · 2 days ago
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Law of Attraction ~ Chapter 4
Rom Con AU divorce lawyer!Dave York x fem!Reader
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Word count: 2,759
Summary: You and Dave naturally become closer in a friendship comprised of two lonely people.
WARNINGS: Rated T. No smut, but there is brief mention of a fantasy (nothing described). Dave is a capital S - Simp! No physical infidelity but definitely an emotional affair. Fluff. Idiots falling in love and they don't even know it yet. No use of y/n.
Author's note: I wanted to give these two some more time together to let their romance blossom. They keep going on dates that are not dates but are totally dates. I want to thank everyone who's shown love for this lil series of mine, which is honestly such a surprise because I wrote it thinking people would pan it. I will strive to keep bringing y'all some rom com goodness 🩷
Series Masterlist
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Out of sight, out of mind. But even when you're not in sight, you're still on Dave's mind.
He starts his morning early, a brisk run through the park, a shower, selecting a suit for that day, rifling through the abundance of ties he has on a spinning rack in the walk-in close he shares with Carol.
Nine times out of ten she disapproves, making a face when he comes down, swiftly putting down her tea so she can remove whatever color or print has offended her eyes and telling him which one to wear. Though he's a lawyer he's not going to argue with his wife. He goes upstairs and switches it out for the one Carol wants.
Breakfast is usually had on the go, but he makes sure the girls get to school with something nutritious in their bellies, walking them to the school doors and kissing the tops of their heads before they disappear inside. He's aware of the looks some of the mothers and even the teachers give him, and he gives a friendly wave or smile to each, but he's not thinking about their smiles and sultry 'good morning' greetings.
He thinks about you more often than he should, considering you're no longer his client. But he appreciates that you promote his services on the corkboard near the register at your bakery.
A smile stays on his face all day when you send over a thank-you gift of an assortment of bagels and muffins, complete with flavored cream cheese, butter, and jam. It's the most thoughtful thing anyone's done for him in a long time, made concrete when he spots a special blueberry muffin in a separate pastry box from the others, with a little note tucked inside:
I can't thank you enough, Dave. I'll always appreciate what you've done for me. Your name is signed on the bottom.
There's a slight scent on the paper, probably the perfume on your wrist that rubbed off as you wrote the note. He presses it to his lips just briefly.
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He goes to your cafe every morning, heart racing, gut twisting with anticipation of seeing you. He subtly checks himself in the window before going in, making sure his hair looks okay and his tie is straight.
On the days he doesn't see you there, disappointment sits heavy in his chest, similar to a kind of heartbreak, as he orders his coffee and heads across the street to work.
He tries not to look overeager when he does see you behind the counter, though he feels the blood rush to his face (and even lower, if he's honest). Sure, he's found other women attractive, but he hasn't had a crush since high school.
And that's just what this is - a crush.
You're beautiful and kind and funny and smart. And single.
And he's married.
Still, it's not a crime to get a coffee and a raspberry danish just because the owner is a stunning and sweet former client.
You greet him with a smile that's different from others, special, set aside, more genuine. And he returns that smile. You've stopped insisting he doesn't need to pay, and take his credit card with a little smirk as you spy him putting money in the tip jar.
"What? Business is obviously terrible," he returns your smirk, glancing back at the line that's formed, that forms every day in fact. You haven't had a bad business day in awhile, and he's happy to be a small part of your patronage.
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Every day is too much, right? It's not like you have much time to chat anyway. A quick hello, do anything fun over the weekend, hope you have a good day.
He makes the choice to go just three days a week. He's worried he might come off as a stalker, some deranged guy wanting your attention because you're single now. On the days he doesn't come to your cafe he stays at the office, puts his coffee order in with a group DoorDashing from Starbucks or Dunkin' Donuts, and it never tastes the same as yours.
It doesn't help that you're suddenly gone for a week. Then two. The last time you'd been absent was right after your breakup with that asshole Javier, and he worries about you. In between meetings and consultations, he finds your file with your phone number, but thinks twice about calling or texting you.
The next time he's at the cafe he casually asks the young man at the register, "Hey, I haven't seen the big boss in awhile," and the cashier tells him your on a vacation with your family.
He's grateful you're okay, and glad you're enjoying yourself after all you've been through so far. But it doesn't really ease the ache that gnaws at him like a fresh bruise that has yet to turn an odd color.
It takes him completely by surprise when, the next time he does see you, you pull him aside to show him your photos from the cruise you took with your parents and siblings, turquoise-polished thumb swiping gracefully over photos of you with your family posing in front of a huge cruise ship; some scenery shots of the ocean and pink sands of the Bahamas; and others of you hanging out on the pool deck sipping a fruity orange drink, a beatific smile on your lips. Dave gives a small cough when he sees one of you in your swimsuit, obviously just a selfie and not meant to be seen by him. He blushes as you click out of the photos.
"Sorry, I guess I just wanted to tell someone how it went," you tell him, putting your phone away.
"Don't be sorry. Looks like you had fun."
"I was a little seasick the first few days. It was awful," you laugh.
"I know how you feel. My wife and I took the kids on one of those Disney cruises last year, and I'd never been happier to set foot on dry land."
He asks you more about the sights, the beaches, the restaurants. There's nothing better than the smile that lights up your face as you talk about your experiences, and he hangs onto every word.
Suddenly there's a buzzing in his pocket. He reaches quickly for his phone and learns he's late for a meeting with a new client. He curses quietly. "I have to go," he apologizes. "We should catch up later."
"Lunch tomorrow?" It's hard for him to ignore the hopefulness in your voice, the notes of which sing straight into his heart.
"Tomorrow," he nods and smiles, heading out.
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It's just supposed to be one lunch. Just two people who know each other and get along well. Just friends, but even Dave doesn't dare to let his mind venture too far into any further possibilities because of the fact that you're vulnerable.
Dave wants to feel guilty for monopolizing your free time, especially considering the way he feels about you. But then one lunch turns into two, and then three. and it becomes the most natural thing in the world to meet with you for an hour or so during the day. There's a significance in carving out time for each other that neither of you mention as an easy, genuine affinity blooms between you.
He's never texted another woman simply because he wants to. Everything has been business related, but he catches the way his heart skips a beat when he receives a text from you. Due to the nature of his work he keeps some privacy by only showing your name and not the message itself on his home screen. It's usually something related to your plans:
I heard that new sandwich place is really good. We should lunch there soon.
I'm trying out a new muffin recipe. Stop by tomorrow and tell me what you think.
They're featuring Monet at the museum this week and I'd love to get you in for free again!
It's not a date, but quite reminiscent of one when he does meet you on the front steps of the museum. His hand naturally rests on the small of your back, a gesture born of protectiveness and intimacy. You don't smell of roses this time, but something softer, sweeter, indefinably you. Dressed all in pink, from the casual long sleeve shirt and sequined skirt to the flowers you're idly twirling in your fingers, you look like a dream.
He never feels at peace unless he's in your presence, a fact which he tries like hell not to think about. You're not even trying to be alluring, and that's the hard part. If you'd make a move he'd politely sidestep it (or at least he tells himself he would) but you're just friendly, approachable, sweet.
You watch the art and Dave watches you. Your profile, the way your eyes squint slightly when you're really trying to see the details of the paintings, the quick pink tongue that peeks out to wet your lips now and then. And when you catch him staring at you, you have the audacity to smile, give him a playful shove. It could be your slight warning, your reminder that he's married and you're friends. But he doesn't mind the contact, as brief as it is.
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As he walks you to your car it starts pouring down rain. Sans umbrella, he whisks you under the nearest canopy to wait out the sudden shower.
"How did you know I wanted to see a movie?" you tease him, and he looks up to see you're taking shelter under a marquee heralding classic films.
"Shall we?" he asks, and after purchasing two tickets you find your way inside. The theater is cozy and warm as The Apartment plays onscreen. Your fingers touch while you share the popcorn bucket, and he chuckles when you get brain freeze from your cherry icee.
"Are you okay?" he asks, slipping his arm around your shoulders. It's an involuntary act that doesn't register until he feels the warmth of your body under his touch and he tenses around you for a moment.
He's tempted to leave it there for the rest of the movie, but he knows how it would sound if someone saw him here with you and it got back to Carol. He could probably talk his way out of it if she ever questioned him, but he also knows she's so preoccupied with her own life that she'd be completely oblivious if he were to bring you home and do ungentlemanly things to you in front of her.
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"What does she do?" you ask as you're sharing a post-movie snack at the cafe. It's near closing time and you've whipped up Monte Cristo sandwiches and hot herbal tea. ("I just love tea after a good rain," you'd told him, and he stashed away that little fact in his ever-growing file of you in his brain.)
"Carol's a hospital director at Mercy Memorial," he says, hoping that saying her name out loud will ward off the thoughts he's having about you.
"That sounds pretty important. A lawyer and a hospital director.." you sip your drink, letting the heat from the cup warm your hands.
"She likes taking charge and making decisions," he shrugs. "I guess you could say it suits her."
You'd brought her up simply because you felt you needed to. Spending all this extra time with someone whose wife you weren't even acquainted with was starting to feel like a secret you could never spill. You thought about all the women you know Javier had been involved with, knowing he was taken. Did they ever stop and think about you and how their actions would hurt you?
Then again, you doubt any of Javier's whores had daydreamed over Monet paintings with him, or shared a laugh over an old black and white film. They likely never ran through rain sprinkles or cooked a late night meal together.
But it doesn't necessarily make you innocent.
"What would she say about us.. hanging out?"
Dave really thinks about the question. "I don't know, " he says at last. "She might not even care."
"Don't say that," you tell him immediately. "She's been with you for so long. She obviously loves you and the girls." When Dave goes quiet over this, you fill the silence before it can become awkward. "Sorry.. I didn't mean to put a damper on our day."
Our day. Dave has to smile at the comforting sound those words have."I'm sorry," he says. "I wish I knew what was going on in Carol's head. It sometimes feels like we're in a chess match and she's playing by a different set of rules that's never existed before."
You lean forward in your seat, listening.
"She's a control freak," he says at last. "She works too much and criticizes people for what they lack. I proposed to her when I was in law school and she refused, saying she wanted to be engaged to an actual attorney. She wouldn't say yes until I passed the bar."
That should have been the first red flag, he knows that now. But he was young and in love. Carol had first dated Dave's college roommate before things went sour with them. Now he knows she just wanted to marry status.
"She hated that I changed fields. Criminal law is where most of us can make a name for ourselves, but I wanted something else. She gave me the cold shoulder for three weeks when I switched to family law." He chuckles at it now, but at the time he felt like nothing he could do was ever good enough for her. Any time he was happy she seemed to be the opposite.
"And then the kids came and every perspective I had changed. Children can bring a couple together. But more often they split you apart."
"Alice and Molly are great," you tell him, sensing he needs some positive reassurance. "They're such sweet kids."
Dave agrees smiling. "And how are you doing? How's living on your own for the first time?"
A dry, bitter chuckle leaves you. "I'm considering getting a cat. But I know I'd pick up stray after stray.. I'm continually one cat away from being the Crazy Lonely Cat Woman."
"You should get a dog," he says.
"Do you have one?"
He shakes his head. "Can't. Carol's allergic."
"Then I'll definitely get one. We'll pick out a dog together and I'll keep it at my place, and you can come and visit whenever you want."
"That actually sounds like a nice idea.."
"What kind of dog should we get? A nice golden retriever? Labradoodle? Shiba Inu?"
"I'm pretty sure that last one's made up," he smirks. And yet it feels so normal, discussing something so domestic with you, and the thought of sharing any kind of space with you sets a new beat to his heart, as if redirecting and resetting it.
Later after you've closed up he walks you to your car. There's a chill in the air and you've rolled your sleeves down. You've put the pink flowers you had from earlier that day in your purse. When you release them they fill the air between you with their fragrance. "Give these to Carol," you tell him, hating to waste the last of their beauty forgotten on your dashboard.
"And, do me another favor, Dave?" He turns back to you when you call out.
You smile, holding his gaze a little longer. "Wear blue more often. It brings out your eyes.."
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Carol doesn't come home until after Dave is already awake. She either ignores or doesn't notice the flowers he left on her pillow, and it pleases him to have a reminder of you in his own bed, as if you've already made your mark on something so intimate.
Later when he comes downstairs in a navy suit and royal blue tie, he ignores Carol's critical stare as he grabs an apple from the counter.
"Darling, change something about that suit. You look like you're going to a wedding."
He shakes his head, enjoying the look on his wife's face when he refuses to comply. "I like it. Blue's my color."
"At least get that ridiculous wilted flower out of your pocket."
He pats the pink bloom you gave him the night before, a small symbol of his insubordination and leaves without saying anything, pulling out his phone to text you good morning.
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dividers by @strangergraphics 👑
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swimmingenthusiasty · 3 days ago
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Woah. That phrase is nostalgic of school. Fucking stationary. Pencil case.
Every surface is fucking smooth. and flat. The tables the floors the board the field the court the path the brains.
The girls like steaming compost heaps inside uniform. Sterile, kept from dirt and dust, yet somehow gross. Warm and fixed in place behind a desk like the zits and pustules on their face. Insecure eyes darting side to side and only finding each other, other girls to judge. Like some type of layer in hell.
Loosing their shit over 'guys' who are all mummy's boys at that age. Yelling over their egos, mum flavoured cries for approval. Repeating mum's script. The asian one talking about a 'gud future' it was just what mum said. The stickler worried about safety was just mum's script. Literal fucking babies. With egos. Because those are the two things that mums make. Babies and egos. It's like full circle for the girls looking because nothing less conceited would have sufficed.
There's no patriarchy. Guys stop moving without egos. Without someone to hype them up. If guys want to function without girls, they will invent women amongst themselves to hype them up. If you want dad to keep going to work and mum does a shit job of hyping him up, you better find a way fast. Either you become like a girl and hype or you get used to making your own home. If she insists that you just can't do that and you can't say no because you're still a mommy's boy and her script overrides yours. Then I hope you like lacey stuff. There was one more thing. Oh, this is when I knew it was him. Women created guys like this because of the way they are with eachother. The way they compete and stuff but always indirectly, through a middle thing. That's why they made men.
This is brother's air. Before he leaves for work is when he has the most to give and he only gives when he sees something in my messages. Doesn't make it less true. I mean i don't know if it is fully correct. I'm like a windchime at this point. Anyone you put me near, I'll make a noise to their presence, to their movements, to the air they displace. Guys usually make writing happen though. Girls will make something actually happen.
If I really wanted I can take with me this feeling about -not being a guy's hype prop by releasing my concern for finances and a place to sleep, for stability. Not stability itself but my concern over it.
She wanted me to replace him in her life, to earn for her in his place and she'd go gut whatever he'd had left without holding back. Mistakes me for him often like it already happened in her mind. Like there was no need to ask. She put me between them when I was little and said I should defend when they fought. I think she also liked cucking when they were good. I think she's a bit gay the way she talks about little girls and women's thighs. I don't know if that means I got it from her, like passed down or if I reacted to how gross she was being. Anyway. All that to say that the next time I'll say 'okay burn the house down if you like' when she tries to make herself your problem (her moods and emotions are hers) or her lifestyle your fault (her lack of lasting friendships does not make you a mandatory friend forever, you're no different to all the other people who wouldn't want to stay) or insists her decisons are your decisons (all those times you say something and get ignored, it wasn't hard to hear what you said, she didn't forget that quick. It's up to you to decide how much respect you want) but then that's no way to practice having a house and any fight or playing up will get a crowd. It's hard to affirm without resorting to disrespect when someone is actually dismisive and disrespectful. I can see how their conversations always went the same. She got what she gave. Then that carries over into other conversations. Or you just feel a bit sad and resentful at real kindess, and i've seen it on my father's face. Like he's thinking oh I have to get used to this now? Where were you this whole time. You're only temporary, it's her shit that I'm used to, we'll be back in the shit and you'll be gone, so just be gone early as a favor. It's not just her. He attracted her from a lifetime of the same shits. It made him more than rough around the edges as a consequence and I've gone through all that's like and I wouldn't want to repeat what he felt or how he became. Input output. Change his input, don't have the same shit he had.
All this sympathy towards him. Told you it was the brother. He misunderstands that's why he thinks I need to think this stuff. I need these people to take back their issues. Him you can't tell him anything other than you're hurt, you need to work on yourself. You're allowed to tell someone enough and they should leave. You don't need a million and one ways to push people away. Some are really hurtful. She was at fault when you said enough and she just smirked that you reacted and looked a fool infront of your house. Now for her, you really can't tell her anything. That's why it's taken so long to peel her off. But being here is because he failed me. I went to him, to be my lifeline IF I needed the van sold. End of story. He betrayed himself so often that he just wanted someone else to take the shit. That's why he called her seconds after he hung up and promised me he wouldn't. That's not exactly why though. There's something severly damaged about him from that last disrespect. She went to his last respectable friendship source, the guy she couldn't dis, undisputed source of respectability amongst both of them and the guy called and shamed him. It's like how the guy at the end of 1984 broke. He will just do anything after that. To appease his opressor. My father had a right to a boundary that she could not cross. He is helping by staying away. He is preventing himself from further betrayal. He is of no use to either of us in this fight. Let me finish and if I betray myself it won't be his influence. Don't fuck bears next time pa pap.
Think of leaving and that's how I know brother's air is wrapping up. It always shows up at the end as what he wants. So stressed to see the car parked, room taken up. Doesn't make it the wrong decision necessarily. Im pretty sure i could sneak guys around in the morning. To help line her up. So they want the same thing. I couldn't get him to line up with her though. I can ask for more stuff, room back, more space in the garden, hang around the house a lot. Though I still think he'd stay and get more sabotagey. It's what he's practiced. More foreign for him to get a place. More familiar to ruin something that's around. I get nothing from a fight. I don't want to have the house, I don't like to be here all the time. I can visualise him moving out. Like he does. But again, for what? I would gladly exchange the feelings for them for something good towards myself. It's just that the best way to do that is not clear cut. Everyone did the best they could with what they had. You can't choose them. If however she chose you to be her backup financial plan that's something but not at all uncommon. If she fought hard to hold you back so she wouldn't be alone then that is also not unheard of in love.
It's about learning about these behaviours from others and knowing better and also, unfortunately, it's about undoing hangups they might have caused. If they weren't undoable, many unfortunate consequences are permanent. It becomes a question of acceptance and if you accept will it also define your direction? Will you do something with it, every. single. day.
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Early bird gets the moon
Lake Elkhorn, Maryland.
📷: @zalman_waihaus
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leeknot · 20 hours ago
Text
Under the Mistletoe
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A/N : Happy Christmas!!!!
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Summarry : A mistletoe prank at a holiday gathering forces two long-time friends to kiss in front of everyone. Embarassed, they leave the party, but the spark from that kiss leads them into a night they'll never forget.
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Pairing : Changbin × reader
Warnings : smut,car sex
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MDNI
Changbin and you had been inseparable since childhood, your bond unbreakable through the years—until tonight. As you mingled at the crowded holiday party, a mischievous giggle caught your ear.
"Look what I found!" Hyunjin's voice rang out across the room, holding up a perfectly formed sprig of mistletoe. Changbin's eyes flickered towards you almost nervously, remembering all the times they'd teasingly referenced the old tradition.
Before either of you could react, Hyunjin playfully dangled the mistletoe above your heads, grinning wildly. "Kiss, kiss!" he chanted, gathering a chorus of encouragement from the amused crowd.
Your hearts pounded in unison as you faced each other, the weight of the moment heavy. Changbin's gaze dropped to your lips, his Adam's apple bobbing as he swallowed hard.
In a swift, almost desperate motion, Changbin closed the gap between you, his cool hands cupping your face. His lips met yours - a gentle brush at first, then deepening as the cheers around you faded into white noise.
As you pulled away, breathless, Changbin's eyes searched yours, wide and uncertain. The room erupted into applause and laughter, but you barely noticed, trapped in the bubble of that unexpected kiss.
Without a word, Changbin grabbed your hand and dragged you out of the noisy party, leaving behind the curious stares and unanswered questions. His car awaited outside, purring softly in the cold night.
Once inside the car, the tension between you and Changbin crackled like the chill in the air. He gripped the steering wheel tightly, knuckles white as he took deep breaths.
Finally, Changbin spoke, his voice low and husky. "I can't believe I just kissed you," he murmured, his gaze fixed on the road ahead. "But I can't stop thinking about it." He glanced at you sidelong, his eyes burning with an unspoken hunger.
Your heart raced as you met Changbin's intense gaze, the memory of that kiss still lingering on your lips. "I've been thinking about it too," you admitted, your voice barely above a whisper. "But what does it mean? We're friends, right?"
Changbin's grip tightened on the steering wheel as he considered your words, the engine's steady hum filling the tense silence. "Friends... yeah, we are," he said slowly, "but maybe that's not enough anymore." He took a shaky breath, glancing your way with a conflicted frown.
As Changbin's words hung in the air, you felt a spark of hope ignite within you. Could it be possible that your friendship was evolving into something more? Before you could ponder it further, Changbin pulled into a secluded parking lot, the only sound the soft crunch of gravel beneath the tires.
The car's interior was suddenly too warm, too small, as Changbin turned to face you fully. His eyes reflected the dim light of a distant streetlamp, intense and vulnerable all at once. "Y/N..." he whispered, your name on his lips sounding like a question, a plea.
Your throat tightened at the way Changbin said your name, filled with such raw emotion and barely restrained desire. Unable to form words, you leaned in instinctively, erasing the distance between you. When your lips met in a tender, exploratory kiss, any doubts or questions evaporated like mist.
The kiss deepened, becoming a desperate, hungry dance of tongues and breaths. Changbin's arms wrapped around you, holding you close as if he'd never let you go. The world outside the car faded away, leaving only the two of you, lost in the overwhelming feeling of finally being together.
As Changbin's hands roamed over your back and sides, pulling you onto his lap, you could feel the hardness beneath his clothes pressing against you. He broke the kiss to trail open-mouthed kisses down your neck, his warm breath sending shivers down your spine.
"Changbin..." you gasped, tilting your head to give him better access. His name on your lips seemed to snap something inside him. With a growl, he lifted you effortlessly, laying you back on the car's small rear seat.
His body hovering over yours, Changbin paused, his darkened eyes searching yours. A playful smirk tugged at the corner of his mouth. "Still just friends?" he murmured teasingly before capturing your lips again, his touch turning more daring, wandering lower with each caress.
Your breath caught in your throat as his fingers traced the curve of your waist, inching upwards beneath your shirt. You wrapped your fingers in his hair, pulling him closer as your legs instinctively wrapped around his waist. "Friends..." you gasped between kisses, "don't usually..."
"Do this?" Changbin whispered, his fingers splaying out over your midriff and slowly sliding upward. He nuzzled your neck, his breath warm against your pulse. "Or this?" He hooked his fingers under the hem of your shirt, slowly lifting it up to reveal your stomach.
Your cheeks flushed as he bared your skin, a shiver running down your spine at the exposure and his gentle touch. You lifted your arms, helping him remove your shirt completely. The cool air of the car hit your skin, but the heat in his gaze soon chased away the chill. "Definitely not."
He murmured, his calloused fingers trailing along your ribcage and then splaying out over your stomach again. He looked up at you through his dark lashes, his expression serious. "Friends don't look at each other like this, either," he whispered, his gaze dropping lower.
His eyes roamed over your midsection, taking in the smooth skin of your stomach and the hint of your waist. He swore he could feel the heat radiating off your skin, drawing him in. He unbuckled his belt, giving himself more room to maneuver between your legs.
He leaned down, pressing a trail of kisses along your stomach and hips, his hands slowly unbuttoning your jeans. His touch was gentle but firm, leaving no doubt about his intentions. The car filled with the sounds of your ragged breaths and the soft rustling of fabric as he slowly peeled away your clothing.
He paused, his face hovering just above the edge of your jeans. He looked up at you, his eyes dark and intense. Without a word, he slowly pulled down your jeans and underwear, baring you completely to his gaze.
He swallowed hard, taking in the sight of you. He spread your legs wider, stepping between them. He could feel the heat of your skin against his own, the thin fabric of his boxers doing little to hide his growing interest. He hooked his arms under your thighs, pulling you closer.
"Fuck," he breathed, his face inches from your core. He could smell your arousal, sweet and intoxicating. He leaned in, pressing a soft kiss to your inner thigh. His hands tightened on your legs as he fought the urge to devour you right then and there.
He teased along your thigh with maddeningly light kisses, purposely avoiding your most sensitive spots. His hot breath ghosted over your skin, sending shivers up your spine. With deliberate slowness, he licked a teasing stripe along your folds, barely grazing your clit.
"You're so wet." he murmurs against your skin, his tongue circling your clit this time with purpose. His hands grip your thighs tighter, holding you in place as he explores every inch of you with his mouth.
He sucked your clit into his mouth, his tongue swirling around the sensitive nub as he eats you out. His fingers dig into your thighs, his arms trembling with the effort of keeping you pinned in place. The sound of his hungry mouth and your desperate whimpering fills the car.
Just as you're about to reach your peak, he pulls away, leaving you shaking and needy. He stands up, his face flushed and his boxers soaked through with his arousal. He quickly sheds his clothes, revealing his hard, throbbing cock.
"I'm going to fuck you so hard, you'll feel me for days," he promises darkly, grabbing your hips and pulling you to the edge of the seat.
He slams into you without warning, burying his cock deep inside your dripping pussy. The car shakes as he starts pounding into you, his balls slapping against your ass with each brutal thrust. He reaches between your legs, rubbing your clit in time with his rough fucking.
Your nails dig into his shoulders as he hits a spot deep inside you that makes your eyes roll back. "Yes, just like that." you pant, meeting his every thrust. The sound of wet skin slapping together and your desperate moans fill the car as he drives you closer to the edge again.
He wraps his arms around your thighs, lifting you higher onto his lap as he continues to pound into you. His face contorts with raw passion as he stares into your eyes, his hips bucking wildly. "You like that?" he growls, his voice hoarse.
"Fuck yes." you gasp out, your pussy clenching around his throbbing cock. "Don't stop, please don't stop!" Your breasts bounce with each vigorous thrust, nipples hard and aching.
"Not stopping until you come all over my cock," he grunts, driving into you with complete abandon. One hand pinches your nipple while the other continues to circle your sensitive clit. "Come for me, baby. Let me feel you milk my cock with that tight little pussy."
The combination of his filthy words and relentless fucking pushes you over the edge. Your whole body convulses as a powerful orgasm rips through you, your inner walls pulsing around his cock. He lets out a deep, satisfying groan, his hot seed spilling into you one throbbing burst after another.
You milk every last drop from him as he empties himself inside you, both of you shuddering with the intensity. Panting heavily, he leans forward, capturing your lips in a searing kiss as he savors the aftershocks of your explosive lovemaking.
You glance down, seeing the sticky mess coating your thighs. "Fuck, look at us," you agree, laughing breathlessly. He carefully sets you back onto the seat, his softening cock slipping from your soaked pussy with a wet pop.
He reaches for the wipes in the glove compartment and gently cleans you up, his fingers tender as he wipes away the evidence of your passionate encounter. Once you're clean, he tucks you back into your clothes, making sure you're presentable before pulling back onto the road.
As he drives, he reaches over and squeezes your thigh, a playful smirk on his face. "Just thinking about round two when we get home." he teases with a wink.
after you got home
The room is dark, the only light coming from the digital clock on the nightstand. Changbin's voice is low and raspy as he speaks into the darkness. "I'm glad we're not just friends anymore."
He nuzzles his face against your neck, his arms tightening around you possessively. "I like this better," he whispers, his voice barely audible. "Being your boyfriend, not just your best friend..."
He falls silent, his fingers gently tracing patterns on your stomach as he holds you close. He can feel contentment washing over him, a feeling he'd never experienced as strongly when you were just friends. He nuzzles your neck again, inhaling your scent deeply. "Much better..."
"I never knew holding you like this would feel so... right. Like you were made to fit against me." His voice is soft and intimate in the darkness, his breath warm against your neck. "Goodnight, my girlfriend."
You sigh contentedly, feeling Changbin's warmth and the comfort of his arms around you. You wrap your own arms around him, holding him close. "Goodnight, Changbin." you whisper, nuzzling your head against his chest.
---
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preservationofnormalcy · 3 days ago
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The scene is sombre. Though Königsratte the rat king is hooked up to various forms of medical machinery, they seem to be a formality. They can measure his vitals to a point, but the cause of his condition seems unclear, even to the parafictional professionals at the Office. The tone is one of hope, of chances taken wildly. Of wishing, perhaps, for a miracle.
The King's form has been insubstantial. His furred skin feels like paper in a way that seems literal. He changes appearances, unstable, his reality unable to settle on a single depiction.
Surrounding the figure in the cot are, by now, dozens of kitschy figurines. Nutcrackers all, from cheap plastic candy dispensers to ancient family heirlooms. On every flat surface there appears a wide-mouthed garish depiction of a soldier, of Santa, of a man in ski gear. There's even a crude alligator, dressed in the orange and blue of a Florida university. Taped to the walls are art pieces. Scribbles on napkins, doodles, some crayon drawings from a Virginia school catering to the extranormal. Digital art, painted mugs.
There's something to be said for the commercialism of the season (something worth continually critiquing) giving way to honest empathy and compassion. Beneath the thin plastic and gold paint of modern Christmas lies a core of good will. Scratch a dollar store ornament, and a thoughtful gift bleeds.
Very few people are allowed in to see the Rat King. Yours truly is only allowed due to a longstanding friendship between the King and I - European figures of myth and story share a kinship that stays across oceans.
One figure stays during my visits. After the first few days of the king's hospitalization, one Orson Knight stays by his bedside. The Office's head of security (or O-Sec) is an imposing figure, silent, unwilling to engage any other visitor. Rumors abound about his relationship to the King, but I am unwilling to speculate.
It is perhaps chance, perhaps a miracle, perhaps a grand joke at Director Knight's expense that I am present when the king stirs.
Knight's face behind his ever-present mask is fear, worry, faint hope being kindled. He reaches for the king, hesitates.
"Ah...dummerchen," mumbles Königsratte. His muzzle barely moves, a smile trying to break onto his face.
"Johann?" Breathes Orson.
"So brave in the scharzwald. And now not brave enough to hold my hand? What has become of mein ritter?"
Königsratte extends his weak hand, and I notice his fur seems more...substantial. Like he's been coloured in. Knight reaches for his hand, and takes it gently.
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glowfangs · 13 hours ago
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My Nextgen Ocs - Shining Armor x Cadance
These are some ocs tumblr hasnt seen yet! Merry Christmas :Þ
Love Of My Life
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He/she, nonbinary, young adult, bi, crystal unicorn
While his friends and family often call him 'Love', Love Of My Life prefers her full name above any sort of nickname.
What makes this pony special is her extreme charisma - He's very charming, and almost everypony falls completely head over hooves for her! Unfortunately for them, she "can't be tied down", and has never truly committed to having a special somepony. Instead, he's made a bit of a habit of pairing up ponies she thinks would be good together.
His unicorn magic is very weak, and likely very mixed with pegasus magic, as this unicorn can walk on clouds! ... Of course, all it does is make ponies fall for her even more.
Permafrost
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He/him, cis stallion, late teen, ???, crystal unicorn
Crystal ponies are all born with a certain crystal within them - His mother's is rose quartz, Love Of My Life's is garnet, but Frost... Something went wrong, and he ended up with ice instead. He's constantly cold, and no amount of blankets or fire helps.
Despite his constant shivering, he actually has quite a warm personality. He's very patient, having learned to live with his affliction, and is very understanding when foals ask about his horn. He handles winter in the Crystal Empire very well, his internal body temperature already matching the temperature outside, and has found his talent in making ice sculptures using his magic.
Candygram
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She/her, filly, child, ???, crystal pegasus
Candygram loves love and everything to do with it! She takes after her mother in this regard, and is affectionately known as 'the littler princess of love'. Her absolute most favorite holiday is Hearts and Hooves Day, which is also her birthday!
She has a knack for bringing people together, so much that it's become the thing she's special for. Friendship, communication, and unity are all very important to this little filly!
Her wings aren't just wings, they're clouds! Real life clouds! If you were to touch them, your hoof would pass right right through!
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serve-441 · 23 hours ago
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SERVE for Christmas
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SERVE-441 got the orders to return home for Christmas to keep up familial traditions. The Hive would grant each drone's host just enough memory to remember their families and be able to interact. Some drones had even been instructed to convert male family members into the Hive if a favorable situation arose. SERVE-441 called its host's brothers to find their parents were away for the holiday. It would just be the three of them.
SERVE-441 thought that would be optimal conditions for conversion. Its host's biological brothers were both quite athletic, prime candidates for SERVE if they desired to join. That was until its host's brothers told him they were part of The Golden Army and Silver Collective. SERVE-441 remembered a rule of the hive. It was not to recruit or convert any members of those groups.
SERVE-441's mission objective changed slightly. It would now spend time with its host's family and keep connections.
SERVE-441, had to remember its host's name Grayson. While interacting with family, it would have to react to that name that no longer had meaning. It was SERVE-441. It had to emulate human interaction.
SERVE-441 put on a SERVE issue sweater, but it still had its designation on the sweater. Arriving at its host's familial home, it was greeted by Ken and Drayden. Its host's two younger brothers.
SERVE-441 sat down on the couch next to Ken, who was wearing a metallic gold soccer jersey. SERVE-441 had some minor memories of a sibling rivalry return. He was in football, Ken was in soccer, and Drayden was in baseball. Each one tried to brag their team was the best. SERVE-441 shook its head, memories like this were only to keep up appearances. Sentimental feelings were unnecessary and erased in the Hive.
Ken and Drayden told 441 all about their teams. The brotherhood, connections, and bonds. How their teams kept winning games. 441 listened, storing the information for later use if it had to emulate its host longer. The Voice came to SERVE-441, stating that bonding with your host's family is important. Even if they cannot be brought into SERVE. Drones must keep up appearances and connections with family that accept the Hive.
SERVE-441 took The Voice's command and realized it had to be open with its host's biological brothers.
Ken and Drayden realized that their brother was being rather quiet. "Grayson, are you feeling okay? You're kind of quiet. Did you want to tell us about new things in your life? What's this SERVE-441 on your sweater?"
SERVE-441 took off its sweater, revealing the latex underneath. It had to switch on some temporary human speech mode to make it easier for Ken and Drayden to understand.
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"I'm no longer Grayson. I'm SERVE-441. A drone for the SERVE Hive. I serve and obey the Hive. The Hive ordered 441 to emulate Grayson for familial festivities."
Ken and Drayden looked a little confused. They stood by the Christmas tree that Ken begrudgingly let Drayden decorate in silver.
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"So is this something you wanted? Do you enjoy being a drone?" Drayden asked?
"441 feels pleasure and fulfillment from being a drone for the Hive. It has a purpose in serving the Hive. Grayson wanted this and joined SERVE willingly." 441 responded.
"You know we still love you Grayson. You're our family. But tell us more." Ken stated, curious.
SERVE-441 explained various aspects of the Hive. How it has become stronger through continuous physical training, and more mentally focused and driven in its purpose due to mental training.
Both of its host's brothers asked about camaraderie in the Hive. Wondering if the drones were as connected as they were to their teammates.
441 had to explain the Hive was not like their team. Drone connections were for the betterment of serving the Hive. Drones had no emotions, they did not feel love, compassion, sympathy, or other elements of friendship. However, 441 did tell stories of working with other drones on missions for the Hive.
"So you convert other men into this Hive? Hopefully you're making sure there is consent, bro." Ken tried to say.
"Please do not address this drone as bro. You may during this visit call it by it's host's name." 441 retorted.
Both brothers looked at their drone older brother then to themselves. Drayden spoke next, "But what would you prefer we call you? We want you to be your true self. If that is a drone, we accept you bro."
441 took a moment to process, its host almost taking control to cry at the acceptance. However 441 kept control, drones do not feel emotions. Emotions are unnecessary for a drone. It could emulate them for other humans as needed.
"441 or SERVE-441 is this drone's preferred designation." 441 replied.
Both brothers shook their head in agreement, their brother was now 441. They wouldn't call him Grayson and he wouldn't have to hide his drone identity from them. 441 thanked its host's brothers for the acceptance. As thanks it used Grayson's former knowledge of baking to bake some cookies.
Ken and Drayden were freshening up. Drayden mentioned wanting to do something with his hair.
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"Cookies are done." 441 yelled.
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Ken was quick to come to his drone brother's side. He tried a cookie. "441, these are the best cookies I've ever had. Whatever that programming is doing to help strengthen your resolve and focus it must have helped you become an even better baker."
441 thanked Ken for his compliment to 441 and the HIVE's training. Even though it wasn't baking skills that were improved, rather mental training strengthened 441's analytical skills. It could now analyze 10 recipes and piece together the best elements to create the best cookie for its host's family.
"441 can you come here? We have a present for you." Drayden shouted from the living room.
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441 walked in. It saw a gold box with a silver ribbon with Grayson on the name tag scribbled out saying 441. It was evident that Drayden had just crossed out the old identity to make 441 feel more welcome.
"441 does not need any presents. Drones do not need possessions, besides those needed for survival of the drone and its host."
Ken and Drayden insisted 441 open it. It was a letter.
Grayson,
Or should we say SERVE-441. We know you're a drone for SERVE now. We already knew, Ken follows you on Tumblr. We read up on what it entails and while it isn't for us we know it makes you happy. Or well whatever the drone equivalent of happy is. We're sorry we can't join SERVE to be with you more, but your host is still our biological brother and we accept him in whatever form he chooses. Remember whether we're gold, silver, or drone we can accept one another and peacefully co-exist.
P.S. Ken thinks the drones look super hot.
Love & Best Regards,
Your host's biological brothers Ken & Drayden.
A picture was also attached of Ken and Drayden.
441 started to cry. Its emotional inhibitors were malfunctioning.
"Thank you both. Your biological brother loves you." Came out of 441's mouth before it shook and a robotic tone came from it.
"Malfunction in emotional inhibitors corrected. Drones do not feel emotions. Drones do not feel love. 441 back fully online."
"441 is sorry for that malfunction. It appreciates the gift and your acceptance. Please know the Hive also holds no ill will towards your teams. It may permit 441 to visit your games. 441 will confirm with the Hive."
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"441 must now return to the HIVE's facility for mental diagnostic, training, and recharge."
Ken and Drayden hugged their drone brother. They knew in his full drone state he may not remember them or may have limited memory of them. But they knew 441 would remember they accepted the drone as he was. He didn't have to pretend to be Grayson for them.
SERVE-441 left and knew it would have to find two others to convert to the Hive after the mental diagnostic of the emotional inhibitor malfunction.
SERVE-441 was back to being just a drone. Stating its mantra.
SERVE-441 obeys the Hive. Obedience is pleasure. Pleasure is obedience. We are rubber. We are one. SERVE, transform, excel.
When stating that mantra, 441 could feel its host getting even more into it. Maybe knowing its host's family accepted the drone made it even stronger.
SERVE-441 commenced a long round of physical training and mental training before recharging. The mental diagnostic found a very small lapse in emotional inhibitors due to strong host response. After strong mental programming and further diagnostic scans, 441 realized this issue would not be replicated. Grayson was gone. He had no need to fight 441's control and the Hive training, hypnosis, and brainwashing any longer.
As 441 got ready to recharge, it placed the letter on its bedside table. It knew these humans were family to its host. And that they accepted the drone.
Merry Christmas from SERVE-441.
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venstm · 1 day ago
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I want to preface this by saying that I am holding myself accountable for not stepping up and either breaking off the friendship sooner or defending myself properly. As it stands even now I am not someone who copes well with confrontation and would rather stay as far away from it as possible. I’m speaking now because other people are coming forward with their stories and experiences. Whilst I have very few actual screenshots of conversations please understand that the interactions I’m discussing impacted me quite a lot mentally. It’s up to you to decide if you think I’m overreacting but by the end of those six months I had basically decided I no longer had a place in the rpc where I was welcomed after losing that friendship. I’ll be putting this under a read more so look at your own discretion. I won’t be speaking about this again after this.
If terios / ty sees this and decides they wish to unblock me and speak about it in order to see these feelings discussed and resolved im okay with that and if anyone else who has been in a similar situation needs someone to talk to or discuss it with in also open to that.
At the beginning of our friendship things were pretty intense and feeling like you were the main writing partner for someone who had already established themselves a place in the rpc was such a good feeling ? It’s like you really belong and you have someone who is so invested in your portrayal that you feel really important. There were many times where this once good feeling became tarnished by negativity, bitterness and what to me, felt like being bullied or belittled.
I’ll touch on a few things I really do remember quite clearly and be understanding that my adhd / ptsd and other things impact my capacity to retain information all the time I try to be very clear with this when talking with mutuals to avoid them becoming frustrated when I don’t remember everything all the time. they would tell me I wasn’t listening or paying attention when I tried to explain this.
there was a lot of time monopolising that I ended up enabling, this one in particular was mentioned to me by my partner who ended up feeling like I really distanced myself from them and even when I did want / try to spend time with them terios’ reaction would always be to change their tone to speaking bitterly or giving off this change of energy and if you recognise it you know it’s the sort where you’ve done something wrong and you need to fix it immediately.
There were also times where other friends became an issue, terios had problems with someone I was interacting with on dash. At the time I wanted to be in their corner because we were really close, they were my closest friend but these people had also been nothing but nice to me and I didn’t have issues with them. This tension went on for a while until terios let me know that I was two faced for not taking their side fully and I ended up blocking them which I thought was the right answer to appeasing someone who was upset. Yes, this was my fault I should have said no but they were a really important friend to me and I wanted them to feel like they were heard and understood. In the end I lost both of those friends and another friend who told me that if I continued to always take terios’ side in arguments like that I would have no one else left but them in the end.
It also happened when I mentioned that I was watching things with my mutual, we had only just started writing again after not speaking for a long time and terios was instantly making comments about it, usually vague and never good and when I finally said hey you know this isn’t cool to be saying this their response was just that I should have told them that sooner.
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They were always unpleasant about Gepard ships that weren’t ours and I don’t know if that was because they just had a bias or not but I remember plotting an almost au verse with a firefly writer and dropping it because they were telling me when and how would that happen why is this something you’re writing ? basically implying that I owed it to some how justify what I was deciding to write for my muse ?
This also happened when I was creating an au for Gepard around being a vampire hunter I was so excited about it and I wanted to tell them and their response was to pick it apart reminding me oh this doesn’t make sense for Gepard’s canon age or this doesn’t make sense for his family and whilst I get caring about canon it really made me feel ? like my spark had just been squashed something I was so excited about just being torn to shreds completely and I never spoke about it again, tobias was there when this happened I had just came home from the gym in tears because I was so upset about it.
As those who interact with me know I am someone who is always earnestly trying to expand my vocabulary and learn new ways to incorporate cool stuff into my writing and there was one time one time when I used a word wrong and I did apologize for it and they ended up bringing it up over and over again for three months and whilst it was a joke in their eyes I don’t doubt it really just made me not want to try to improve my writing anymore and minimised myself to be someone they would approve of.
it also felt like anytime I began to get the confidence to bring up how I was feeling that it was turned around to make me feel worse or shit and like the whole situation was my fault rather than looking at it and both taking accountability and working to find a solution. I found this so challenging because so many times I left feeling like I was truly in the wrong because they had told me I was.
SC:
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The last thing I will mention is that they will jump between gepard writers quite frequently. I wasn’t on the receiving end of this but I do know that when they blocked me only a day later then were dming a mutual and friend of mine who they had all but ghosted for those six months asking to write again. While this isn’t the worst thing ever I can only imagine how shitty that must feel and I know when they spoke to me and I said this it really hit home for them that they had been second best for those whole six months despite being there before me. This has happened with other Gepard writers too not just me and that person.
In the end a lot of this shit could have been amended if I told them your behaviour is shitty and it’s making me feel like shit but who wants to be put in a situation with a friend or writing partner where they feel like they have to make that choice.
I still do think terios is a good writer and they’re committed to the sampo they’re shaping but there are ways to interact with people that are kinder and not always with this undertone of being nasty or mean or spiteful. Again, if they or anyone else does want to talk to me about this they can and I trust that everyone can decide who they want to write with themselves. I just want my feelings and story to be heard and others to know they can speak up too.
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manda-kat · 3 days ago
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Sometimes you really just have to let people be mad at you.
I've known several people with anxiety, RSD and other personal hurdles that lead them to be super aware of tone changes and anything that may hint at a person being angry or upset at them. A lot of those relationships didn't end very well, but hey- my heartbreak can be your learning opportunity! (This is especially important if you know you have a tendency to overthink relationships)
It's okay to just let the other person be mad at you!
Here's a story that's happened to me a few times. Someone meets me, becomes my friend and everything is great until one day I suddenly change. I give them a weird tone or I don't respond like I usually do. I must be angry at them. They ask if I'm angry at them. I say no. They aren't convinced. Every time they ask me, I tell them I'm fine. They don't know how to make me tell them what's bothering me. I become more distant every time they ask. Finally it comes to a head and they're convinced I hate them and they've ruined the entire relationship by being a terrible person.
Meanwhile, on my side of things, we're both enjoying life until one day out of the blue they ask if I'm angry at them. I have no reason to be angry at them. I say no. They continue to ask over and over again, each time getting reassurance that I'm not angry. It comes to a point where I'm pretty sure I must be doing something to upset them, but I have no idea what. We both become convinced the other person hates us.
If you ever feel stuck in this kind of situation, please try to just let it go. When you ask 'are you mad at me' and they say 'no'- take it as a no! You might not be as good at reading emotions as you think you are. Me personally? I have trouble expressing my emotions- especially over text. But for some reason, telling them that didn't help. They were convinced that they knew how I felt and that I was lying about not being angry.
So if you ask someone 'are you mad at me?' And they lie and tell you 'no'... that's a them problem. Either they don't want to push the issue OR they actually aren't upset at all. Either way, they won't want you to keep asking. If they're mad, let them be mad. They'll get over it easier if you don't keep bringing it up.
They're a big, mature person who can make their own emotional choices and can pick their own battles. If they AREN'T mature enough to deal with their emotions in a healthy way, then forcing them to keep addressing those issues is only going to upset both of you!
You don't need to face their feelings for them. They don't need to admit their frustration with you. If they're hiding their own feelings, then it's usually out of kindness. You don't need to know every single time someone is mad at you. That sounds like torture. Your friends don't want to torture you.
If you keep asking and pushing, then when you do finally upset them, they won't feel safe telling you because you've convinced them you're emotionally needy and can't handle negative feedback. Even if you're just trying to be mature, you can end up convincing them of the opposits.
Your relationships are going to develop their own spoken and unspoken rules over time, but a good rule of thumb is: ask once. If you REALLY think they're being dishonest with you, ask again, making it clear that you just want to make sure you haven't done anything wrong. If they insist they're fine, then they're fine. Move on.
It might be hard to just take someone's word for it and it feels like open communication may be the only way to keep a healthy relationship, but sometimes you need to have a little faith in your friend. Sometimes you need to be able to let sleeping dogs lie. If it's important enough for them to tell you, trust them to tell you.
Don't overcommunicate your friendships to death.
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triptychgrip · 1 day ago
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So sorry to ask @arom-antix but do you think you (or someone else, if you see this first) could send me screenshots of thegirlwhorideslikeasamurai’s post? I am now blocked, so can’t see their analysis for myself 🙃🙃🙃
The topic of plagiarism reminds me of something I’d refrained from including in my earlier post which, in my opinion, is a tendency as damaging to fandom as their trying to dictate how others enjoy the source media: their preference for competition over fostering community
…even when they have posted very openly about wanting to feel like a more rooted part of the fandom.
This actually gets at something you already touched upon @arom-antix and I love how you framed it:
“And considering Samurai believes their interpretations are the most correct according to canon and that anyone who doesn't share those views is illiterate (I can't find that screenshot rn, you're free to doubt my claim), shouldn't it be good that Vic came to the same conclusions? Doesn't that mean that Samurai's analysis is being backed up and that Vic is not illiterate? But Vic's analysis gained more traction and that's apparently enough to accuse the fandom of being a waste of time and energy (Fig. 22).”
I’ll mention a similarly telling example of the focus on traction/ the tendency towards competition: thegirlwhorideslikeasamurai made a post during the past summer, I believe that (paraphrasing) said something to the effect of: “when you plan to post something only to discover that someone has already gone ahead and posted nearly the exact same thing, it makes you wonder why you even bother, sometimes”
I’ll be honest, I found this line of thinking very bizarre, and even more bizarre to readily admit.
Because if you profess to care so much about canon compliance while also feeling that nobody is capable of presenting the kind of intellectually based discourse you really want to see more of, why is someone else posting about something you share interpretations around such a bad thing?
Might it be because they did it first?
I think this honestly goes beyond “well I spent a lot of time developing the post and now that’s all a waste”. Because here’s the thing: it doesn’t have to be a waste, depending on your attitude.
Shouldn’t you feel happy that someone else is analyzing things the way you do? Can’t that be a platform to foster a connection and maybe even a friendship (i.e. “I noticed your analysis really resonates with my own headcanons, would you be open to talking about them?”)?
Now, maybe they in fact did reach out to that person via DM’s or a non-public forum, but given the things I’ve already seen people bring up, I highly doubt they did. Because as has become increasingly clear to me, their main drive seems to be to preference appearing relevant over cultivating connection.
And before I get accused of speaking in absolutes, I’ll say that it’s likely true that thegirlwhorideslikeasamurai was indeed genuine on the occasions they’ve said they want more fandom friends/community.
However, it has always read to me that those statements were extremely conditional, and left many things unspoken like: “I want community, as long as I am perceived as the most relevant. Community, but only if I am the foremost authority figure, the person who posts first, and comes out looking like I have the most unique thing to say.”
(If you can’t already tell, I have some long-harbored frustration around this…mostly due to my making excuses for them for far too long.)
I remember a post they made shortly before going on a social media hiatus in which they mentioned (again, paraphrasing) feeling like they are the antipode of fun.
I can’t remember the exact wording, but it was essentially a very vulnerable post about feeling like the odd one out in the fandom, and a general struggle to make friends. I believe I had commented to them with something sympathetic — if anyone who they haven’t blocked wants to look this up and verify, feel free.
But what I wish I would have added had I been more brave is that a really valuable opportunity for making friends could be to engage in conversations with people from a place of curiosity. It’s like you’ve said so well already, @arom-antix : come at things not from a desire to prove anyone wrong — nor in order to come out looking like you’re the only one with something worth saying — but because you genuinely value the opportunity to connect with others around something you’re both so passionate about
Hey, just wanted to reach out to say that I found you pointing out and calling this person was really great and you shouldn't have apologized. It was incredibly true what you said, and to be honest it seems out of touch with the reality of a great deal of the japanese fandom, the nuances and their culture. Also, it was as you pointed out, extreme and may I say rude. I want to mention too that the way it was written, as if entitled of the knowledge and the 'explanation' made it all worse in context of the 'fucked up'. The original poster always gets away by using the 'well-written academic'' statement of their 'metas' as an excuse to do or say and make everyone else agree and if not, uses victim narrative and discourses exactly selecting wording for people to agree on it or feel bad.
I don't know if they tagging you in the way they did made you reblog and apologizing/backing up, but no one thought bad about you pointing it out. On the contrary, a lot of people had been bullied and discriminated by this person when they called them out/disagreed going onto lenghts of sending their friends to harass people, and the other persons can't even defend themselves because they are effectively blocked. To quite a few people in the fandom has been done, even accusing them as 'acephobes' (when they're not) or even Nazis by spreading lies. So yeah, I just wanted to say that. I think you were right to call them out publicly.
Thank you very much for this ask. To be completely honest I agree with everything you said here and don't actually feel bad about pointing anything out. I mainly apologised because I didn't want any potentially poor phrasing from my side to cause unnecessary hostility and because I myself have gripes with this person's behaviour but didn't want to cause a scene.
My honest opinion is that they have a serious issue with taking accountability for their own mistakes and highly overestimate their own intellect. If you're reading this, @thegirlwhorideslikeasamurai, sorry if I seem harsh, but it's true. I saw your post lamenting how you're the only academic meta writer / fan in the fandom and I didn't interact then because I honestly do not care enough to start that drama but with the information Blonndiec has just given me, I think it's necessary that someone calls you out.
You're not an academic. You're not beyond the mental capabilities of other fans. You're actually incredibly childish in your metas and analyses and I am not kidding when I say that I was halfheartedly writing essays more academic than every analysis I've seen from you when I was barely a teenager. I don't know how old you are and I frankly don't care. You're not as clever as you think you are.
Also, don't think I didn't notice that you didn't reblog my correction (link here to my correction and here to their "response" for those who didn't see that exchange) of your post so that you could control what your followers saw of the exchange. You're the opposite of an academic. You control information to tailor the narrative, you don't cite your sources properly if at all, you don't format your posts in anything close to how an academic analysis would be, you make unbased claims, you reference posts and canon material without in any way indicating where that information is from, you reference your own (equally unacademic) metas and your conclusions from them without indicating what post it's from or that it's your own theory this new one is based on and instead present it as a common fact, and I could go on and on and on. Your posts are also riddled with logical fallacies and you talk in absolutes and opinions when there's no canon basis to claim such things. I'm sorry, but that's not academic in the slightest.
To be clear, you don't have to be an academic to post on the Internet. You don't have to be anything at all. You could up front be a genuine idiot with no remorse and that's fine. But when you claim to be an academic and also put down the rest of the fandom for not being on your level, you have to be able to back that up. It'd still make you sound like a prick but at least your arrogance would have a basis. It currently does not.
I haven't personally seen the discussions that Blonndiec is referencing and I'm not going to claim anything definitive (because that would be unacademic of me, take notes) but if what they're saying is true and did happen as described, which I have empirical, if anecdotal, evidence to believe could very well be (a friend of mine has personally been blocked by you after they criticised you without actually mentioning your name which I of course can't prove is the reason for the block but the timing is awfully convenient), you should know that you should be ashamed of yourself.
If there's context missing, feel free to enlighten me and call out any incorrect accusations. You have every right to defend yourself. However, I encourage you to cite your sources since you're such an academic. If you don't, then it's just your word against Blonndiec and anyone else who might comment's word and that doesn't prove anything. Don't misunderstand, acephobia and nazi rhetoric should absolutely be called out but only if it's actually happening. False accusations can ruin lives. I hope you know that.
I'm not a fan of calling people out publicly and, again, thank you for this ask, Blonndiec. But considering many of the issues I've personally seen and those I've been informed of by second hand sources were posted publically, I don't really feel bad about calling this out. I could do a full breakdown of just the insulting "academic" comments alone and how there's no academia to be found in said academic metas and, Samurai, if you give me reason to, I will show exactly what I mean point by point (and academically just to give you an example of even low level academia).
If you respond to this, do it in a reblog. That's what a real academic would do. If I'm wrong and you can prove it, you'd have no reason to not show my post in your rebuttal. If I'm right, you'd have every reason to be upfront about your mistakes and how you intend to rectify them. There's nothing wrong with being wrong but there's a lot wrong with refusing to admit to it in a way that lets others peer review you (academic thing, look it up) and come to their own conclusions about the situation. That's what you did when you just @'ed me instead of reblogging my response. A true academic wouldn't hide a peer review. You'd know that if you were one.
I swing in many academic spaces and yet that doesn't make me any kind of expert and I don't claim to be one because I'm not. But since you want to be one so badly, reblog this with a response and show us all how smart you are. I'm dying to know what your academic take on this is.
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everburningpinkphoenix · 1 day ago
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From Broken to Reborn: How I Met Adia
It all started back on Sunday, December 1st. After a difficult moment when I lashed out at my friend St4r for her feedback on my content, I made promises to make things right with her. However, this left me feeling heartbroken, mentally broken, upset, misunderstood, and isolated. I didn’t feel like I could post anything on Tumblr anymore, not even about Foster’s Home for Imaginary Friends, which had always been a huge passion of mine.
On Tuesday, December 3rd, I made major changes to my blog to reflect my mental state. I updated my username, avatar, blog description, banner, and background color—everything. My blog became a place that felt empty and disconnected from who I truly was. I felt like I couldn’t interact with anyone, not even my close friends.
The next few days were tough. I felt like I had lost my confidence and my enthusiasm to post anything. On top of that, one of my followers messaged me, telling me to "move on" and post content unrelated to Foster’s Home for Imaginary Friends, which only discouraged me more. I didn’t know how to move forward, and it felt like my situation was getting worse.
Then, Peace messaged me, expressing concern after seeing how much I had changed on my blog. She wanted to know what was going on, but I was too afraid to tell her, fearing it would cause a conflict with St4r. I felt stuck, unsure of how to express myself without causing more damage. Eventually, I was able to tell Peace everything that had happened on that night, and she helped me start to feel understood.
But then, Peace reached out to me again. She introduced me to her friend, Adia (@wanderfan2000), and called her for help, explaining that I was a friend in need. Adia was there for me when I needed it the most, offering a space to share what had been weighing on me. I felt ready to unload everything, and Adia's response was kind and understanding. She simply asked, "Alrighty, so what's going on? What is the trouble?" That moment opened the door for me to share everything that had happened from Sunday night through to Friday, December 6th.
After I opened up, I felt a huge weight lift off my shoulders. Adia listened and provided me with hope and support. She checked in with me when I felt sad or upset, always reminding me that I wasn’t alone. Her presence, along with Peace's, helped heal the emotional scars left by St4r. With their help, I was able to regain my strength and move on from the past.
Thanks to Peace and Adia, I found the courage to update my blog. It became a reflection of me being reborn from the ashes of pain and struggle. Although I may never forget what happened that week, I’ve learned not to let my past mistakes interfere with my passion for blogging.
And I’m so grateful that Peace brought Adia into my life. She has truly become my guardian angel, always looking out for me. Our friendship blossomed into something beautiful, and I now have a true friend who’s there for me through thick and thin. Adia, thank you for being the amazing friend you are. I’m so lucky to have you by my side.
This is the story of how I met Adia and became best friends with her.
Thank you, Adia @wanderfan2000 for everything, for being a true friend and my guardian angel.
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echologname · 2 days ago
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In support of Sam x Danny
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We never got to see what the relationship of the Phantom trio was like before the portal accident but I think it's mostly similar to how we see them in the show. To me, it seems like it's implied that Sam always secretly liked Danny and then one fateful day, she and Tucker witnessed him almost die, don't you think after something traumatic like that, it's harder to keep feelings for another inside? Also, after Danny got his powers and started fighting ghosts, Sam got to witness his bravery and willingness to help people put to extreme tests. She didn't fall in love with him because of cool powers, she genuinely fell in love with who he is. His new life as a halfa, like all trials in life, helped him to become a better person, throughout their adventures virtues were strengthened and vices were weakened and their friendship was matured through its testing. I don't see it but it's a common claim that Sam only started crushing on Danny AFTER he got his powers which paints her in a shallow view. So, I'd like to point out correlation does not necessarily equal causation. Clearly Danny went through big changes from the accident but I betcha Sam and Tucker weren't quite the same themselves and if one of them being a more prominent openness to showing affection then there's nothing wrong with that.
Whether friends or lovers, I think both work but I just wanted to say, Sam doesn't deserve the hate she gets from fans for canonically being the one to end up with Danny in the end. And who's to say it's a forever thing? Teens are constantly growing and changing and so are their romantic interests. It's OK to think you work together at one point and not so much the next. Their identities are still developing and so are their brains. And if they do stay together forever, no matter what happens, then isn't that all the more sweet and wholesome? Even if Sam had an inkling of ghostly bias towards liking him, it's totally the green eyes given how much she likes plants and nature (ironically green is the color of life and health).
The whole episode with Sam falling for the fake foreign exchange guy who looks a lot like Danny's ghost form doesn't help her case. I get it, because of an example like this, fans fear she likes Phantom more than Fenton. But his whole persona WAS all an act for the purpose of targeting what a specific girl likes like telling Sam he was a vegetarian then acted like a jock in front of cheerleaders. Or maybe this is what she needed, to see that like Danny, this guy also had an alter ego but he was using it deceptively for personal gain. Meeting Danny PHANTOM for the first time might have felt like meeting a new person to her, so a stranger from another country symbolizes that. Then the truth about him being a jerk comes out when he metaphorically, "drops his mask." Sam knows both sides of Danny and knows that he isn't like that guy at all, and she's seen for herself that he's still himself no matter what he looks like. He genuinely wants to help people and doesn't put on an act. Perhaps this failed relationship helped her realize how much Danny cares for her both as Fenton AND Phantom and that he's always been a good friend she can trust (he DID spy on her in the episode and of course Sam was offended but it didn't really hurt their relationship).
Disagreeing with them being together is still understandable but c'mon, how many relationships were you in that was also a cringe pairing? Relationships aren't perfect but the people that we were/are with have helped us understand ourselves and each other more. The person you're with now may be who you need to be with for a certain period of your life to help prepare you for the one you'll be with forever. It's important for even awkward and rash relationships to take their course so we can grow from them.
So, I think we can find it in our hearts to be more forgiving to some cartoon kids. Sam and Danny's relationship is an important part of their character development no matter how it turns out or how much the ship is hated.
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ingravinoveritas · 8 months ago
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David, Michael, and the joy of being together...
| GO 1 press tour, 2019 vs. TV BAFTAs red carpet, 2024.
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