#also isn't she supposed to be kind of small and fragile?

[witchwives]

I just can't romanticize Emily's life before New Moon. "Emily didn't know she was being pitied and didn't know what lonesomeness meant." The poor girl has no friends her age and regularly goes to bed hungry. She's never been to school, never received any kind of proper education. Her dad is dying, and the help is none too sensitive about it. I know it's like, "Emily doesn't need school or friends because she has her father and her cats and the trees blah blah blah" but it's actually really sad, especially from a modern perspective.

[pickingupmymercedes]

“watch it. seriously.” “take another step towards me and watch what happens.”

hi can we have one where it is the 1st time lewis ever hurt her deeply with his words after days of giving her silent treatment without any explanation? and then reader just decided to stop trying to talk to him bcs she has tried everything b4? and then maybe decided to sleep separately or smth. HEAVY ANGST and SFW please. also, congratulations on the 500 followers!!!! i love you 🤍🤍🤍

Hi lovely, thank you for sending your request ❤️

Also, I changed the timeline of your blurb a bit (mainly because I kind wanted to give this one a happy ending). Hope it's okay

“watch it. seriously.” and “take another step towards me and watch what happens.”

Y/N slammed the apartment door shut behind her, the sound echoing through. Lewis stood frozen in the middle of the living room; the remnants of his half-packed bags scattered around as they were both supposed to be packing for Singapore.

"Seriously, Lewis?" Her voice was tight, laced with hurt and anger. "It's not even a special race, and I’m going to be with you in the very weekend anyway!"

Silence stretched between them, thick with tension. Lewis ran a hand through his hair, his frustration mirroring hers.

"It's more than just the race, Y/N," he finally spoke, his voice strained. "Everything lining up just right."

"I can’t leave my team right now Lewis." she spat, the words bitter on her tongue. "My work and my life is just as important as yours, your know!?"

Lewis's jaw clenched. "Watch it. Seriously."

But the warning only fueled her fire. "No, you watch it, Lewis!" she shouted, tears stinging her eyes. "You fly all over the world, chasing glory, and then expect me to drop everything on a dime because it might be a 'good race'?!"

He flinched, and the hurt in his eyes momentarily stopped her tirade. But the silence stretched, and the unspoken words hung heavy in the air. Then, in a low voice laced with frustration, Lewis spoke, “This isn't working, Y/N. Our schedules just don't..."

The words cut her deeper than any argument ever could. Without a word, she turned and started to walk away. Lewis caught her hands, trying to turn her around but she flinched at his touch.

"Don't," she warned, her voice surprisingly steady. "Take another step towards me and watch what happens." He froze, hand hovering in mid-air. "Y/N," he started, frustration battling with concern in his voice.

But she cut him off, the fight momentarily drained out of her. "I'll… I'll talk to you later" she mumbled, needing some space to cool down before she shredded their fragile peace even further.

 She knew she was being unreasonable. She knew Lewis just wanted her with him for support, especially on race weekends, but her own hectic schedule made it impossible for her to be there for every race, and he had always known that. Yet, the sting of his words wouldn't fade.

Hours later, when the anger had subsided and only a dull ache remained, Y/N found her way to the music room, the most likely place to find him. The door was slightly ajar, and the soft strains of his favorite playlist filled the space.

Lewis sat on the worn leather couch, his head hanging low as he tried to write something on a notebook. He looked up as she entered, a flicker of surprise crossing his features before being replaced by a heavy sigh.

"Can we talk about it?" she asked, her voice softer now.

"I'm here when you're ready" he replied, his voice gruff.

She crossed the room and sat down on the other end of the couch, gazing out the window for a moment before turning back to him. "What's so important about Singapore, Lewis?" she asked, the question heavy with unspoken hurt.

He hesitated, then met her gaze. "It's… the car feels good this week," he finally admitted. "The data, the track… everything's lining up." He paused, then added softly, "And I would really like you to be there with me, if that victory is really possible."

The air hung heavy for a moment. Then, a small smile tugged at the corner of her lips. Maybe, just maybe, your team could catch up virtually.

"Alright, Hamilton" she said, her voice teasing. "Looks like you get your lucky charm this weekend then."

______________________________________________________________

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[erikahenningsen]

Since you asked… #20 for rejanis bc I like pain

20. “You need to wake up because I can’t do this without you.”

Janis really thought she wanted Regina dead. She had wished every day since sixth grade that she had never met Regina—and since she hadn't yet figured out time travel, Regina being dead was the next best thing.

Then a bus barreled into Regina in front of half their class and Janis suddenly realized that she did not want Regina to die.

The guidance counselor doesn't have any pamphlets covering what to do when someone nearly gets killed and it's technically not your fault, but it's also not not your fault, and all the conflicting emotions raging inside your body make you feel constantly like you're going to throw up.

Janis hears from Damian who heard from Karen who heard from Shane that Regina had emergency surgery but is stable and sedated.

Mrs. George also keeps all of her 3,239 TikTok followers updated on every detail of Regina's medical care, which feels illegal but Janis supposes probably isn't.

Two days after the bus, Janis screws up the courage to visit Regina in the hospital. She runs into Mrs. George, who is on her way to get coffee, in the hallway. Mrs. George hugs her and kisses her on the cheek without acknowledging the fact that they haven't seen each other in four years. Janis is thankful for that.

Regina looks so small and fragile lying sedated and unconscious in the hospital bed, surrounded by machines and wires and tubes, and Janis immediately feels her throat closing.

"Uh, hey," Janis croaks, sitting in the chair at Regina's bedside. It's still warm, so Janis assumes it's where Mrs. George had been sitting. "It's me. Janis."

Carefully, Janis touches Regina's hand, just to remind herself that Regina is not dead. Her skin is cold and dry, some of her nails a broken mess, others still carefully painted and filed. For some reason, that is what makes Janis start to cry.

"I'm sorry, Regina," Janis whispers. "If you die, I..." She squeezes her eyes shut for a moment. She can't go down that path. "I need you to wake up because I can't do this without you. Our story isn't done yet, okay? We're just in the shitty part in the last third of the book where everything is fucked up."

Regina makes a kind of gasping noise, her eyelashes fluttering, and Janis nearly falls out of her chair. A minute passes, then two, but Regina doesn't wake up, and Janis's heart rate returns to normal.

"You have to pull through so everyone can apologize to each other and—" Kiss, her brain supplies unhelpfully. "You are going to wake up, Regina," Janis says instead. "Okay?"

Her only reply is the steady beep of the machines, the rasping of the ventilator.

"Okay," Janis answers for herself. "I'll see you soon."

She's afraid to move Regina's hand or lean over her, so Janis just presses a kiss to her own fingers and touches them to Regina's hand.

[resident-idiot-simp]

I’ve always hated media interpretations of hope, usually its depicted as an innocent fragile little thing that needs to be protected regardless of what form it’s taken ie inanimate object, animal, human or just a concept. I actually like what they did with hope in the Percy Jackson universe but I won’t into details here for fear of spoilers.

I think Ghost as the God of Hope works really well because he (nearly) always survives regardless or in spite of what it will take to live like when he dug himself out of his own grave. None of it was pretty or kind and there are even moments where he is small and fragile but it feels earnt in the story and hearing still survived Hope has a nasty habit of springing back up even after you’ve squashed it.

I fell like people have a habit of writing Despair as some loud ugly thing that just lashes out and it can be that but it can also be silent and still or even seemingly happy it doesn’t always lead to steaming and crying I have literally seen people so sad they start laughing.

I’ve think Soap as the God Despair works so well as well because people also sometimes mischaracterise him as this happy go lucky guy who not as smart or as good at his job compared to the rest of the 141 and Ghost in particular, he may not be as stealthy as Ghost but he’s more destructive and I would argue smarter in a book sense way.

As Gods I’d say they both have a Grim determination to get the job done the difference being hope fighting for the end and despair fighting till the end.

One of the inspirations for this idea was the story of Pandora and the Alone mission. Soap opens the proverbial jar and lets out the nightmares when questioning graves on his and shepherd’s betrayal. Pandora was curios and opened the jar realising evil unto the world. Ghost stayed to watch over and guide Soap through a city being destroyed by monsters they’d previously helped. Hope was the last thing left in the jar and it stayed to protect and help humanity survive.

When questioned about Ghost staying behind to help Soap in Las Alma’s they both responded together and opposite eachother, Soap in despair felling alone and Ghost resolute always there.

This was supposed to be short lol

Side note imagine 09 Ghost Soap Persephone and Hades

I agree honestly it misses the whole point of hope smh.

OOHHH amazing reasoning absolutely agree with you. God and that is such a powerful connection and example. That even in the worst moments humanity will always succeed and conquer.

I have to it is a sight to see and so telling of the sheer lengths people can go and what they can handle. The amount of respect I have for people who suffer so much and can still smile is beyond words. My mom is disabled and was told she would never work again, but that woman got up and told the world to fuck Itself. She got better It's still hard and there are days she can't get out of bed, but she beat the predictions. She has chronic fatigue and chronic pain with fibromyalgia, she has a heart aneurysm we are keeping a close eye on and just beat breast cancer. She from what I have seen is the embodiment of hope and the strength of the human spirit.

Completely agree as does @azilver we talk about this a lot. People really don't understand Soap's character and it sucks. It's all a mask or if it isn't it is a tool in his arsenal so people don't realize how dangerous he is.

Again, completely agree.

YES, GOD DO YOU HAVE A LINK I NEED TO CONSUME THAT LIKE CRACK!

AGAIN, SPOT ON! That is such a good way to tie that line into the idea as well as a good basis on top of the already solid reasoning!

(HOLY SHIT!!!! OMFG YOUR RIGHT THE LIST IS BEING ADDED TO THAT IS SO BASED)

[224terminal]

Oh my gosh! I love Ceto so much! If you ever have time and if you’re interested, can you write a short interaction with any or all of the Octatrio? It can be a short snippet! I just want to see Jade (please make it Jade) so bothered and unsettled by her UM! Or have the both of them out in the forest collecting and harvesting their respective hobbies!

Ceto sounds so cute! I love her so much! Can she be my girlfriend? I wouldn’t mind staring into her mouth…

(Ignore that last part hahah, I’m just so in love with her)

Oh gosh! Just realized! Ceto means “sea monster”! Very clever hahahah

- - -

aaaa thank you so much for liking her!!! she's the cutest and the creepiest. <3 she fits right in with the eccentric octavinelle trio. the tags you left on your reblog are also very true!! azul would absolutely capitalize on her um, weaponizing it for his own benefit. she likes to tease everyone by opening her mouth and seeming suggestive about it just to gauge reactions hehe. the twins are her favorite two to subject to this teasing. she's a menace through and through.

and her name does indeed mean "sea monster"! i took inspiration from the greek goddess ceto, who is the goddess of the dangers of the sea and sea monsters. essentially, ceto (my oc) is meant to embody that sort of unnerving fear of the deep sea and all of the horrors it can house.

stare into her mouth as much as you would like. she has many fun (scary) things to show you. <3 and she is everyone's girl-friend. ceto proudly proclaims that, by which she means she's everyone's friend who is a girl. aaaa she's silly and annoying just like jade, which is why he makes for such a good specimen to test her um on.

without further ado, please enjoy this small scenario!!! i think the idea of jade and ceto collecting things for their respective hobbies together is a fun prompt. i imagine they have the sort of relationship where they can tolerate one another on polite and friendly levels, but both know to tread lightly as they are deep-sea predators.

ceto steps across a fallen tree as if it's a tightrope placed precariously high, her arms outstretched to retain a graceful sort of balance. though she had initially come to search the forest for interesting insect specimens, she's done no such thing in the thirty or so minutes she's spent walking beside jade, who keeps his stare trained to the ground in hopes of finding a certain mushroom species. it thrives in this part of the forest, or so he had explained, his mismatched eyes alight with an almost child-like wonder.

she hops down from the tree just as the question leaves her lips: "do you know how many teeth make up an adult human's mouth?"

jade turns to view her with a raised brow. "thirty-two," he replies as if it's easy trivia.

she hums her approval and then taps a manicured fingernail against her cheek. "compared to our mouths, that's not a lot of teeth."

"i suppose not, no."

"that's too bad." she twirls slowly, moving as if acting out steps in a one-partner waltz. it's a strange sort of whimsy that pairs well with the bright musicality in her tone. "many teeth make mincing meals easier!"

jade hums his acknowledgement, flipping through a guidebook for visual reference. ceto peers past him, brows furrowed. they've walked deep enough to have come across all kinds of fungi. she wonders what's so special about this specific species. maybe it's like a butterfly: fluttery and difficult to catch. beautifully fragile. although in jade's case, it's likely prized for its use in a terrarium or a dish and not how pretty it will look pinned to a board. maybe it's the poisonous kind. maybe it's the kind that looks poisonous but is really just innocent. an expert mimic. she can never determine which jade will choose to gather next.

"having lots of teeth is nice. if they break or fall out, we can just grow more. humans only get two sets, so they don't have the luxury of endless teeth."

"it's rather unfortunate, isn't it?"

"very much so!" skipping ahead, ceto falls into step beside him. "it's a shame, really."

jade chuckles. "if i may ask, why have teeth left you so fascinated?"

"i was just thinking. when i open my mouth, most recoil in surprise or fear. but human teeth are beautiful and terrifying all in one, yet no one discusses it as often as they do our teeth. i recently learned that the human jaw is powerful enough to bite through fingers." she feigns a shudder, her voice wavering with faux fright. "humans are scary."

"i would hope so, otherwise they wouldn't be very worthy of the title 'predator' now, would they?"

"no, not really." she folds her arms behind her back, humming once more. her feet deliberately carry her further until she stops, pivots, and stands directly in front of jade. his gait halts, and he looks at her quizzically. "for us, the idea of chewing through finger bones is fry's play. it's not very unsettling."

his eyes narrow.

"and so i've been wondering something lately—with all this talk of teeth and fear." a sharp smile tugs at the corners of her lips. "just what is the jade leech afraid of? because you exist in lots of nightmares, but you don't seem to have a nightmare of your own."

she steps towards him, and he allows it. ceto knows he's not a fool. he could draw his magic pen, use brute strength to force her into submission, but he doesn't. he watches carefully, assessing her every movement. a coward waiting for the perfect moment to strike.

"i've considered dozens of phobias and none of them seem to suit you. but i know you're not fearless. no one is. and for someone who can carve the truth from others with a single stare, i'd like to do the same. if you'd be willing to indulge me, that is."

jade smiles thinly, aiming to remain effortlessly composed, but he's looking right into her open maw, right at the alluring luminescence in the back of her throat. and perhaps it's because it delights ceto so that he does it, or perhaps it's simply because he cannot force himself to look away no matter how hard he tries. she's something of a shipwreck: brutal and cruel, yet tragically hypnotic. and were her voice that of a siren's scream or the merry cries of phantom sailors, he would be thoroughly ensorcelled.

"you're too good at masking your anxieties, jade. it's almost unfair."

the forest falls away then, patches of vibrant greenery and beaming sunlight gradually swallowed by an encroaching pitch-black void. ceto's eyes widen with anticipation, flashing a predatory pink.

"so let's find out what your nightmare is together, shall we?"

with a resonating finger snap, darkness descends all at once, leaving jade in a frigid pit of gloom with a lurking horror.

[leefi]

The Flower That Bloomed Nowhere Read-through | Part 8: 100-127 (END)

Part 1: 1-14 | Part 2: 14-22 | Part 3: 22-34 | Part 4: 34-64 | Part 5: 64-80 | Part 6: 81-90 | Part 7: 90-100 | Part 8: 100-127 (caught up here)

How did Anna have a contact paradox...how many people is ophelia twinning her infinite feminine energy with...ok my new theory is that everyone is ophelia, except for theo chan, who is currently having the worst acid trip of his life

Su keeps pointing out how Kam had been weirdly reticient to Fang's ideas surrounding the murders basically leading up to the moment of their death. She's maybe mutually noticed something with them, or has privately ruled them out as the culprit. At first I thought they were maybe in cahoots but it doesn't seem to go both ways - but then again Fang was always super in their own head anyway, and kind of acts like a chaotic neutral-good agent (helping the rest of the class but also working to solve the mystery just for the sake of solving it/as an intellectual exercise). I really do think they were familiar with Balthazar to some degree (not necessarily in cahoots, they just know more about his deal than the rest of the class), but don't have much to go off of beyond that. Just wanna mention they were both pseudo-outsiders to the group. Also don’t wanna forget that Balt is primarily connected to Zeno in the first place, and nebulously connected to Utsu. He’s also a thanatomancer just like her.

Su said she can't help but feel as if this whole scenario was made for her. Is this her punishment? But why would she be getting punished?

Balthazar's name means "Bel protect the king". Actually let me look everyone up im curies

Kamrusepa was a goddess of magic and medicine. Go visit the Wikipedia page, the myth she appears in is pretty cool. Her symbol is an iron throne.

Ran: From Japanese 蘭, meaning orchid

Kuroka: From Japanese 黒岡, meaning black hill. thinking abt the story's cover art

Utsushikome was the name of a Japanese empress

Theodoros means divine gift/god’s gift

Ezekiel means strength of god

Seth means annointed, or placed. He was Adam and Eve’s third child, born after Abel’s death to appease the family’s heartbreak

I can’t find for his specific spelling but Bardia means exalted, lofty

theo zeke and seth are all biblical names im assuming. which is an interesting connection considering what the three of them are being accused of right now! bardia isn’t - it’s of persian origin. maybe the 3 of them were in cahoots about killing him together because of brett and the blood gulch. brettdiya

Fang: From Chinese 芳 (fāng), a gender-neutral name meaning "wind, fragrant, virtuous, beautiful". Kam’s name is also apparently associated with air but i could only find it on a google search excerpt. The goddess of medicine thing felt more prescient

Interesting thing I found on Fang’s name Wikipedia page! not implying that this is connected to the story, just wanted to share a cool thing given that this historical figure was an alchemist like them

Our group really did feel small and fragile now-- Down to just eight people. Even with the barrier, it didn't feel completely safe.

genuinely stupefied over how linos is still fucking alive. why haven’t they eaten him yet

I think Fang and the council lied about how long they'd been at the Sanctuary. That would explain why they seemed familiar with Balthazar too - they'd already met in a way that isn't impossible from when they walk into the conference room, announcing themselves. I think Kamrusepa had knowledge of this too - likely due to her position as class head. But why hasn’t she suspected Fang of Vijana’s death then? If she only knew that they agreed to show up, then kept it a secret from everyone else she would’ve tried to fit them into the murder puzzle. No, there’s probably something more she knows about Fang's role in this...

Yeah, Ezekiel was never supposed to meet Balthazar either. Ughhhhh this is making my HEAD HURT. FUCKING WEEKEND AT BALTHAZAR'S

im still laughing over him wearing the sunglassesssss indoors btwww. that was so cunty of him

You are what you are, and you can't be anything else. Right?

Ran of Hoa Trinh I love youuuuuuuu

me: wow i miss fang so much. sometimes i can still read their voice

READ ME

HEY GUYS

me: NOWAY

i spent the first day basically hiding out on my own in neffies room and only snuck out a couple times.

Neffie!!!!!!!!! also this could explain why the group saw nef grabbing a package of food over surveillance and delivering it to her room? but also was fang then the last person to see her alive?

The way Fang describes tls time is reminding me a lot of the Epic of Gilgamesh weird endless looping notepad fanfic where you can shuffle the pages around. Su found it AGES ago and I don’t think it’s been mentioned since. “anyway time in tls is FUCKED UP. it's not even really time at all. it's like if you asked a dumbass how they think time works and then made it that way instead. like ok. imagine you're some asshole god. and you can see that object. the whole 10d universe, everything that has happened+will ever happened etc. and you want something different to happen, but can't make it happen because everything already exists. so instead you grab a 1d point and pull it loose. a single "frame" of reality or something idk. now on its own that's not gonna do much right? but then you break it and make it rebuild itself. so then you have a new frame. bam. tls.”

ahh shit. i'm out of time. assuming i was killed and i'm not showing you this as a joke:

if i was shot from the garden, that means that the culprit doesn't remember the previous loops.

if i was shot from inside the room, that means they do.

AWAAYWAWYAWAWYAYW A GETS UP AND RUNS AROUND THE ROOM IN CIRCLES AGAIN AND AGAIN AND AGAIN AND

Su was pretty sure that the shot came from outside, and her memory is supposed to be the most reliable, like how Ptolema’s observations are. I don't think she'd emphasize it in her internal narration twice unless Lurina wanted to stress it

Does it even matter who the culprit is? Could the culprit already be dead??? RAHHHHHHHH

"It sounds more like you just don't want it to be true," Ezekiel observed. He seemed strangely resigned, like he'd already accepted the idea, though I couldn't say why that was the case.

its because he went up to bal's crazy funtime room and achieved enlightenment

Does granddad know that kuroka became shiko. I'm not talking about the dementia. I mean we saw him being against the idea and then Samium may have acted independently. But also Sami seemed to have been ignoring Kuroka completely. How does she fit into this puzzle? What did Su say, that they needed someone Shiko knew?

When she says she and granddad are really alike...maybe she means in comparison that Wen is his lost person and Shiko is hers. And they're both grasping for something they'll never have again

WHYW HW THEO CHAN IS ON THE STAGE????? REVUEDOROS???????????

oooh director and playwright treat specific scenes or character actions with probability...how inch resting

PTOLEMA BEING THE FIRST TO DETECT SOMETHING IS OFF WITH THE PLAYWRIGHT/DIRECTOR FOURTH WALL BREAK. SWEEP SWEEP SWEEP SWEEP SWEEP!!! SHE'S A SAVANT!

Joshi…hmm…modernized anima scripting…. HEIGHT SCRIPTING?

YOU CAN PLASTIC SURGERY YOUR HEIGHT NOW!!! SWEEEEEEEEEPPPP. also what is joshis blood type and culinary notes. i need it for my research

Su says the name is familiar but i'm confident we've never heard it before. how am i so sure? well it's all thanks to my beautiful gorgeous mind (i quote searched it on google) (ran also clarifies like 3 lines later but i didn’t see it because i was too busy quote searching on google)

Is this bioenclosure the same case as the pantry? anomalous to the time loops, kept more preserved thanks to the previous experiments they ran on it?

I climbed the stairs, and there she was at last, standing at the rear wall

PLAYWRIGHT: Ack, no! That doesn't work for this scenario! Switch it over to the alternative!

DIRECTOR: <sighing> Very well...

sorry that was me. but i got shy

THE IRON PRINCE STUFF. HUH

A MIND TRANSFERRED TO A MACHINE OF IRON…HUHHHHHH

Would putting someone’s mind in that kind of machine turn them into an invincible god? Like they’d have limitless connection to the power. Is that the key to immortality? Ok they clarify this in like 5 lines cool. Is that what the Order was trying to do in erasing themselves? Give themselves godlike powers then dip? Unmmn My brain feels like mush and baby im stirring that pot

They'd covered the sun in photovoltaic panels, and built minds for themselves as vast as oceans, where they could rule over their own artificial realities like gods. The rest of the human population lived and died by their leave, either as specks of detritus on Earth and the smaller colonies spread about the solar system and its close neighbors, or in a lesser state of transcendence within their domains. It was paradise and hell at once. All progress ground to a halt, and the distinction between real and unreal ceased to matter.

this literally happened in cookie clicker

ANNA???????????

WHAT

???

HUH??????

UHHHHHHHH

Sure. That might as well have happened

I don't think the timeloop explains Bal's knowledge of Su's past, which is how she just tried to rationalize it ...that seems totally separate. What did he call himself? a parasite to their group

Zeno thought Su was someone else...Bal is a close relation of one of Zeno's friends...RRRRRRRRR

watching kam sweep linos with this interrogation is so bonkers!!! go girlboss go!!!!!

Even at a time like this, I appreciated Kam's apparent willingness to become a huge hypocrite on my behalf.

kamsu 💖sweep forever

Personal matter. I'd overlooked the significance of that phrase. When you set aside the rest, that made it sound like the reason he'd been swayed had been something private and embarrassing. What kind of 'projects' did people have that were personal and embarrassing, and involved much younger men? The only ideas which came to mind felt more like a product of me being a pervert than anything, even if Zeno had made insinuations during our conversation.

Plus, when I'd asked Zeno about Balthazar, he'd told me he was here as part of a favor to an old friend. That didn't connect with what Neferuaten had said at all - so was it just an outright lie?

I think Bal is related to Sami…I have this feeling…ok so Zeno, their sponsor, is a neuromancer right. That’s the closest modern day equivalent to Samium’s pneumancy…so they could’ve worked closely together. That doesn’t really explain the embarrassing personal project though…What did nef say again?

"Everyone was part of the plan from the start," Ezekiel insisted, ignoring Seth's anger. "Not just Theodoros, but Bardiya, too. That's why you saw his room in the state it was earlier in the night-- He'd been upset about the whole thing, and drunk himself half to death."

LIAR! BROTHER BARDI DOESN’T DRINK. IT’S IN HIS CULINARY NOTE! kicks him down the stairs

idk about this culprit theo theory kam. I’m at the point where I can buy him doing something for bard’s death but swaying everything??? no wayyyy he’s simply too obvies and sweaty about it. but i could listen to you play murder mystery chicken with su all day long so please keep going

"Fine," she replies, with a flat look. "I will concede we cannot completely rule out a nude suicide attack from Balthazar

this is my nomination for best line in the story so far. runner up is wheres the elevator

taking a shot every time utsushiko says “you’re just fucking guessing!!!!” and kam replies “but my dear sweet precious trembling submissive prey animal of a classmate it is SUSPICIOUS 🤨☝️” and you find me dead at the bottom of a stairwell

"I'll tell you what almost certainly happened," KAMRUSEPA continues. "When we met with Bardiya, his room was in a terrible state. It looked as though he'd been drinking, and though he did a good job carrying his regular dignity, he was most likely inebriated to some degree, leaving

RAHHHHHHHHHH kicks her down the same set of stairs that im dead at the bottom of but Ezekiel’s body is suspiciously absent

So Bardiya was like…in a fit? In a haze? Was there a struggle in his room???? Why?

Why do Kamsu not realize the world has come to a standstill to listen to them talk. My answer to that is: the unstoppable tide of yuri

SORRY BOYS, this is YURI WORLD now and we’re taking PTOLEMA HOSTAGE

"What of it? Life precludes everything! I won't apologize for wanting to live above all else!" She brushes her curly ginger hair from her face, her expression growing serious as she stares at UTSUSHIKOME. "I know you're the same as me at your core, Su. You think I can't see it? It's why we get along so well in the first place. You do a good job of acting like a person with normal ethics, and sometimes your neurosis keeps you from acting when you know you should. But deep down, you're someone who would do anything to attain your desires. You'd even betray the entire world."

The kamsu is actually making me go fucking crazy. This is insane. THIS IS INSANEEEEEEE. ILL DO WHAT YOU LACK THE COURAGE FOR FOR BOTH OF OUR SAKES!!!

Su voice: we get along?

𒊹𒊹𒊹utsushikome: But I guess it couldn't have happened any other way. Pieces move according to the rules of the game. I am who I am, and I can't be anything else. <;smiling bitterly>

SHE’S QUOTING RAANNNNNNNN

did they just say deliberate assimilation failure

"It's not self-indulgent!" Samium declared. His tone was defensive, but it was clear it wasn't for himself. At this point he was obviously upset, a subtle tremble in his tone. "It's for Wen's sake! To give her another chance in this world, even in spite of everything!"

The parallels to Kuroka and Utushikome. I’m seeing them. Also sam i am definitely fucked that old man

This was such a shit garbage world. To have let this happen to Kuroka and so many other children. 200 years of peace and prosperity? more like 200 years of. Not that

Maybe Kuroka’s love of horror is part of the reason why she feels this punishment was designed especially for her. It’s like it’s tailor made to watch her suffer.

This yaoi between Samium and Gpa is going somewhere I can’t follow. You’re discussing KILLING A CHILD???? and you have NO HANGUPS???? They’re insane

In the midst of this, someone manages to throw a grenade in the air; they must have been carrying it since the visit to the armory.

There is only one cunt I know of who was hyperfixated on the grenades and they r not alive rn

I stared down into my cup listlessly, my hands trembling slightly as conflicting strands of thought shot through my mind. I cleared my throat hoarsely, almost like I was choking.

"...t-they tricked me," I told her, my voice feeble.

She was just talking about how she usually exaggerated how badly people were treating her to make sure they got in trouble.

Why does she keep calling her old body defective? Is it because she didn’t get pre-natal distinction treatment? Is there a disability we haven’t seen?

SHE’S RETELLING THE DEMON STORY FROM THE CARRIAGE RIDE WITH RAN??????? FRIM HER SPELEOSOEDITCIE (<-PERSPECTIVE)? BARKS

Do you remember the acclimation journal that I keep? The day number I wrote in it was 4412. If you count backwards from the first day of the conclave,

babygirl i was not going to do that

When she thought we were researching Induction in mutual ignorance during those first weeks, scouring old books and the logic sea for information, I was just working up the courage to talk to Samium's contact. When I told her I discovered my original body was dead, that was no revelation at all; Samium had informed me in advance exactly what the process was going to entail and how it'd be disposed of, and I even lied to her about the details, saying that it had been physically discovered rather than the truth, which was that Samium took it somewhere far away from the city and discreetly disintegrated it.

…

It was because I wanted to employ her as a tool to soothe my guilt.

it has literally never been more over than it is right now

she took 12 years of ran’s life. ran didn’t want to go into medicine. if someone made me go into medicine what I’d do to them could not be publically shared on the internet

through all these insane revelations I have just one thing to say. I cannot fucking believe that Kam was right about Theo

diversity win! the girl whose life and body you just stole might be bi!

These last chapters have actually been giving me a headache. I feel violated. Kudos to the author!

God everything she did made sense and the way her mentality was described was so so so perfect. I can’t believe it took 127 chapters to realize just how much of an antihero she is. She really let us believe that most of her self loathing was just some kind of self flagellation, but she was right. She really is as wicked and pathetic and awful as she claims. But the world failed her so so so so so many times, and then once it finally granted her a miracle, she threw it away.

Kam getting a double kill in the span of 5 minutes is making mejdjrjrjsjjsjsjdjdjdjdhhfrbfjjf. thank you Lurina for granting us the COD lobby i so dearly wished for

Bal says he thought someone could be saved by love…Sami was trying to save Su’s grandpa by bringing Wen back…Their manner of speech is similar to someone we’ve heard speak several times in flashbacks now…I feel fucking stupid even suggesting it but could Bal and Samium be the same person? How would that even work because they’re both alive and existing in the same place at the same time?

It would be so delicious if Su was dying for this chance to speak to Samium this entire time and she did. Like 3 times. While he was reading magazines

Also they’re a thanatomancer like su…i feel like if he were a neuromancer I’d be bouncing off the walls with this theory right now but it’s just my brain trying to make connections rn

Samium’s zeal towards this wen mission made me wonder if his conviction went beyond old man yaoi to a personal goal, especially after his call with autonoe. But then he actually dropped it after gpa said not to go through with it so. I guess he really is just super gay?

What would happen to Su if you put her in the Apega(?) machine?. Would she just revert to a younger combo of Shiko&Kuroka, would she maybe revert to younger Shiko only…like, could that be the way to kill Kuroka and restore Shiko?

So Su is Utsushikome and Kuroka simultaneously. A fusion of them. And Su also looks exactly like Wen, someone dear to gdad from before the collapse. So Su is like. 4 different identities at the same time - kuro chan, utsu, su (amalgamation), wen

And ran was literally forced to go into medicine

Zeno asks Seth where the world is. Seth is confused. Zeno’s answer is essentially “what you make of it”/in your mind/yours to mold. The world is a copy of something long dead. The protag is a copy of someone long dead. The narrative’s actors’ fixation on immortality…accompanied in tandem with the obsession with things long dead…absolutely tubular

Anyway here are screencaps of the lines that made my brain melt:

[aikoiya]

LoZ - Sheikah Wedding Traditions

I know that there'd be a lot of eastern influence in the traditions. Primarily Japanese, but possibly also a bit of Chinese & South Korean too.

—

I know, for sure, that the bride & groom's clothing bears a pattern of or jewelry or just something that features Sweetheart Orchids due to their symbolism. As they are a symbol of happy couples, love, vivifatility (a word I made up that refers to both fertility & virility), sexuality, & abundance. It's supposed to grant “good luck” on their wedding night & is thought to help increase the likelihood of conception.

I also know that I love imperial collars.

—

While, traditionally speaking, it's expected that the man be the one to propose, it also isn't frowned upon for women to do so instead.

As for how the Sheikah generally propose, they'll get a small wooden box, doesn't matter what kind or what size, fill it with the petals of either Sweetheart Orchids, Lovely Roses, a/o Valiant Gladiolus in the case of the recipient being a soldier, guard, or hero.

Then, upon those petals would be placed a slip of paper with "結婚して下さい" (Kekkon shite kudasai) written in calligraphy on it. Which is a formal request to marry.

—

Anyway, the grooms are expected to, if not make, then purchase/commission, their bride's first knife block. It's supposed to act as either a wedding gift or a housewarming gift to her for their first home together. I've got a whole thing about it somewhere.

In a way, it's supposed to symbolize a willingness to make room for her in his life. Like, "my home is your home now as well."

Anyway, a knife block is referred to as a Hōchō-Kaku (包丁角, Kitchen Knife Square), but the knife set itself, especially if it is fully stocked with everything a chef needs, is referred to as a Kamado Nakama (かまど仲間, Oven Companion) as the Sheikah refer to their kitchens as Kamado.

Anyway, Hōchō-Kaku & Kamado Nakama generally come in 2 types: Katei-Yō (家庭用, Home) & Mamena (まめな, Diligent). As you can likely guess, one is for a home-chef & one is for more professional-use.

Generally, most men get their new wives Katei-Yō no Hōchō-Kaku unless the man is either marrying a chef or is a chef himself.

Something to note, the man isn't expected to purchase his wife a Kamado Nakama with the Hōchō Kaku.

---

Like with damn near every culture in Hyrule, especially those residing in the Necluda, Faron, & Ordona regions, Sheikah weddings fall under the domain of Karina, the Hyrulean Goddess of Love, Passion, & Weddings, or as she's referred to by the Sheikah, Kariaina-no-Mikoto. Which can be written as和人愛永の命 or 花人愛永の命 or 海人愛永の命. Each spelling has an ever so slightly different meaning that is relevant to her as a goddess.

Anyway, as a result, weddings, Sheikah weddings included, are presided over by Kanūshi or Miko of Kariaina.

Despite almost every culture in Hyrule recognizing Karina, this hasn't caused wedding traditions to become homogenized at all.

In fact, every culture & even subculture within Hyrule has its own way of doing weddings, the Sheikah included.

For more on Karina, go here.

---

Brides traditionally wear a type of pale foundation made from the petals of the Sweetheart Orchid on their faces. Not thickly as to look sheet white, just enough to pale the skin slightly & give her a feel of fragility. Then they apply a pink, almond set style eyeshadow & layered over that, they also paint the edges of their eyelids red in something similar to the hooded or close set style. (Think certain Geisha eye makeup; which the Sheikah don't really have.) Any eyeliner they wear tends to be delicately applied, except for the outside of their eyes sometimes having dots or circles of eyeliner that create crescents around the eyes. Finally, their lips are painted red.

Like this:

They also tend to have their hair pulled up into complicated, but beautiful updos, decorated with lovely, delicate-looking, floral hairpieces inspired by Chinese bridal hairpieces.

Grooms generally only wear red eyelid paint if that.

—

During the wedding, the bride & groom are given a bowl of red ink. At which point, they put 2 fingers into the ink & paint a pair of dots between each other's brows. These are known as the Kokoro no Kekkon Shuiro (心の結婚朱色, Marriage of Minds Sindoorani) or Kokoro no Kekkon Shindōrurani (心の結婚シンドールラニ, Marriage of Minds Sindoorani).

After the wedding, one skilled with tattoos will have these dots driven into their skin & if you look carefully, you can see the shape of their spouse's fingerprint hidden in the dot. This is a sign of fidelity & commitment to their spouse. It's supposed to act as a signal to all that their minds are sealed to one & only one.

These are inspired by the Hindu concept of Sindoor (सिन्दूर) or Sindura which are used to indicate marital status for women. And are or were thought to help one access their inner wisdom (which they'd likely need a lot of as a married woman). However, actual Sindoor & other types of Bindi are simply makeup, typically made of Tumeric & Alum or Lime.

Though, the location was chosen, both here & in real life, because of it being near the Anja or Third Eye Chakra, meaning that it actually has a degree of spiritual purpose to it. Which is why it's believed that they help one access inner wisdom.

Regardless, I've sort of expanded on the idea for my own purposes. Specifically, in having 2 dots instead of one, in them being worn by both husband & wife to represent marriage, them being tattoos instead of makeup, & in being designed to retain their spouse's fingerprint.

Because of this tradition, the gesture that anywhere else means “I'm watching you” in a warning sort of way, to a Sheikah would mean something more along the lines of, “I always have you on my mind” in a more romantic or comforting sense. Same if you tap your own forehead with 2 fingers. However, tapping your significant other on the forehead with 2 fingers would mean something like, “think of me” or “I'm always close.”

But such gestures are only considered appropriate between romantic partners.

As such, there can sometimes be a bit of cultural confusion at times.

Married Sheikah will also at times press their foreheads together & it's considered very tender.

—

Being a tribe of essentially ninja, Sheikah tend to keep their relationships under wraps or close to their chests. This results in their culture being one that generally frowns upon PDA & prefers to convey closeness when outside the home in a more subtle manner.

If a Sheikah engages in such openly, it's typically due to marrying a non-Sheikah, who doesn't understand the tradition. As such, the more adaptable Sheikah tend to have an easier time of getting used to such things.

However, this doesn't mean that they aren't affectionate.

---

Dyes are used to imprint a wife's first steps into her new home after marriage.

---

I'll add more later, but for now, this is all.

LoZ Cultural Masterlist 2

[shipcestuous]

I was SURE you had some kind of commentary post on The Banshees of Inisherin, so after watching it for the first time yesterday, I went looking for it to see what you thought about the relationship between the main character and his sister... but it seems I either imagined that post or confused The Banshees with another shippable movie set in Ireland!

Anyway, I really wanted to rec you the movie, in case you haven't seen it yet. It's very... I almost want to say "literary", because while I don't know if it's based on anything, to me watching it felt very like reading one of those novels written in a very literary style where the idiosyncrasies of a small, isolated community take on increasingly surreal, ironic, bittersweet, and eventually tragic tones... but always in a very "matter-of-fact" way, if you get what I mean, and with the quiet shadow of a civil war looming in the background. Very entertaining, if you like that sort of thing.

The story is set in 1923 and revolves around Pádraic, a nice, "salt of the earth" but insecure farmer, and his friend Colm, an ill-tempered aspiring musician and singer. The two meet every afternoon to drink and chat at the pub, until Colm suddenly decides Pádraic is too dull and boring and that it's all his idle chattering that's been keeping him from composing a song truly worth being remembered, and just as suddenly chooses to break off their friendship and never talk to Pádraic again. Pádraic can't wrap his head around this, and his stubborn and increasingly desperate attempts to get things to go back to the way they were will affect not just the both of them, but also many other people in their lives, changing Pádraic himself as a person and spiralling in a dramatic climax.

The only mention of canonical incest is between young and mentally fragile Dominic, another friend of Pádraic who is temporarily forced to rely on his hospitality, and his abusive father, who beats him and sexually harasses him. The whole thing is treated, again, in a very "small community" way: it's clearly not a good thing, but it's an open secret people aren't really supposed to say or do anything about, especially because Dominic's father is a cop. But as you can probably tell, talking about that relationship isn't the point of this ask.

See, Pádraic is generally liked by the people of Inisherin, but the only beings he seems to be actually close to are Dominic, Colm, his beloved donkey Jenny, and his sister Siobhán. Pádraic and Siobhán live together, with all the arguments that might be expected from two adult siblings sharing a house: could Pádraic just stop letting the animals inside, since it's Siobhán who has to clean up after them? Could Siobhán just warn Pádraic before she brings her weird friend home? The fact that they're very different people, with Pádraic being generally satisfied with his life as a farmer in Inisherin and Siobhán being the smart, bookish sister who doesn't really fit in, doesn't help.

However, the two of them genuinely love each other. Siobhán loves Pádraic for his kind nature, and despite being aware that he is indeed kind of dull, she initially attempts to defend him against Colm, whom she tries to talk into being his friend again. Pádraic loves Siobhán for her intelligence as well as her goodness and, even while trying to get her to be more sociable, he can't really imagine anyone genuinely not liking her.

When Siobhán finally has enough, both of her suffocating, monotonous life in Inisherin (where people do in fact consider her weird and unlikable) and of Pádraic increasingly dramatic and deranged feud with Colm, she accepts a job in the mainland despite being warned by others (and knowing herself) that Pádraic will be devastated by her leaving. Which he very much is! But he doesn't stop her. When she has settled into her new house and job, she writes him a letter, telling him about her new experiences but also asking him to move in with her, leaving his animals in Dominic's care and leaving the feud and everything else beyond.

Unfortunately, by that point something terrible has happened... so Pádraic sends back a letter with one harsh truth and a bunch of reassuring lies to make her think little else has changed and that he's okay, then goes right back to what his life has become, with all its bitterness, loneliness, and hatred. You've got to wonder if he will ever tell her what really happened...

One interesting thing is that Pádraic has no love interest, while Dominic is in love with Siobhán and clumsily teases her as he tries to flirt with her, but deep down he knows he doesn't have any chances with her, and when he confesses his feelings, she confirms right away that she could never love him that way.

Hi Anon!

You were not wrong. I did make a post about The Banshees of Inisherin, which can be found here. With some additional discussion in the tag here. I am so sorry that it was difficult (impossible) to find! In related news, I am going to remove the search bar from my sidebar because, for whatever reason, it doesn't work anymore.

For future reference for everyone, I list everything on this page (referred to as the relationships or ships index in sidebars and link lists and things like that, but it only gets updated every few weeks), and googling shipcestuous + the title of what you're looking for usually (not always) works pretty well.

Now that so many people favor mobile and tumblr's default is to present blogs in a dashboard-style, a lot of the sidebar links are almost obsolete and it complicates navigation things.

Anyway, I'm glad you took the time to describe the movie because it was such a beautiful description and you went into detail on things that I didn't or described things a different way so that's so valuable to have on the blog. I'm honestly giddy to have another Padraic/Siobhan shipper on board because I really love these two.

I just want them both to be happy and be together. Is that so much to ask?

[lilith-vodkaaunt-of-demons]

Adding some stuff just because:

Sometimes Babies will just...stop breathing. This is actually normal, and they'll either start breathing, or pass out and start breathing. This is also normal. That being said, an unnecessary hospital bill is always better than a small casket bill.

If you feel like your doctor isn't taking you seriously, get a second opinion. This is more for younger parents and parents who LOOK young. Unfortunately, there will be doctors who don't take you seriously just because you either are young, or look young, so they don't think you know what you're talking about. Find another doctor. My older brother's pediatrician when he was an infant almost killed him because they wouldn't listen to my mom when she said she was sure he was allergic to milk. For refence to how impacted his sinuses were, they new Pediatrician did an x-ray and couldn't find them. It took several months for them to clear out.

A lot of Older People (e.g. Boomers and older) will give you advice genuinely trying to help, but ALWAYS double check it. There has been a lot of development specifically in Baby Medicine in the last 30 years. My grandma was giving my Uncle cereal at SIX WEEKS because his Pediatrician told her if he could keep it down, why not.

You aren't a terrible parent for hating the sound of your baby crying, that's actually how it's supposed to work. Your brain is wired to hate the sound of a crying baby so you'll do whatever is necessary to stop it. That being said, sometimes a baby will cry just because. You have to remember that they are experiencing everything for the first time, so every thing is literally the best and the worst thing they've ever experienced.

Baby Fragility is a paradox. Shrodinger's Fragility. They are both very fragile, and also super rubbery.

Infants don't just WANT attention, they NEED attention, or they can die, kind of like rabbits. Skin-to-skin contact and playing are necessities, not luxuries. (Frankly, I think this never stops being true, but specifically for babies in this case.)

seeing a lot of videos that are like “I didn’t know babies couldn’t have water” so here’s an incomplete list of things you need to know before having a baby

- the obvious, they can’t have water bc milk is incredibly high in water already so excess water leads to over hydration

- babies cannot have honey until 1

- if ur breastfeeding your kid and saving excess milk, make sure you label what you pumped in the morning vs at night bc your body produces different melatonin levels throughout the day and giving your baby daytime milk at night can make them more alert and fuck up their sleep schedule

- idk why ppl keep saying this but swaddling your babies or getting them those baby straight jacket things is not abuse. It chills them out cuz it reminds them of the womb

- babies have a dandruff like buildup on their head called cradle cap, and it’s very easy to deal with and remove with just some baby shampoo, a gentle scrub brush (MADE FOR BABIES!!) and a comb. It does need to be removed tho cuz it can be very painful after a while. This can also continue to happen late into toddlerhood it’s normal

- you have to clean out the creases of your baby’s skin and hands and feet they WILL collect dust😭😭

- you cannot bathe your baby until their umbilical cord naturally falls off. Use a warm damp rag until then

- tummy time is actually very important

- your baby might have a misshapen head at first (not all the time but sometimes) this will either sort itself out or they’ll need a corrective helmet ask your doctor

- I wouldn’t recommend having your baby leave the house very much until they’re at least 6 months old, especially if they’re born near cold and flu season cuz the common cold can kill a newborn

- you’re not an awful horrible person for having postpartum depression and it’s always a million times better to let your baby cry a few minutes longer than normal while you regain your composure than to freak out and give ur kid shaken baby syndrome

- you’re not an awful horrible person for giving your baby formula milk either

- don’t put shoes on your baby it’ll compromise their toe box and balance

- babies put every single thing in their mouths

- the easiest way to burp a baby is to hold them straight up (spine straight) and hold their head a bit higher

- always support their head they barely have necks

- if your baby fights away food, fights tummy time, vomits every single time you burp them, is gaining or losing an unreasonable amount of weight at a time, wheezes after eating, or goes red after eating, chances are they’re probably allergic to the type of milk they’re eating (again ask a doctor but these are just some signs it’s not just colic)

- they will wobble a lot when learning to do things but you gotta fight the urge to help them every single time cuz they gotta learn

- they’re not always spitting out baby food cuz they don’t like it they just don’t know how to eat. Like they don’t know how to push food down they only know how to stick their tongue out so be patient

- babies craniums are broken up into three parts at first that later fuse together, this is to help make birthing easier but it results in a small EXTREMELY sensitive spot in the top of their head that has no protection. This puts their brain at a high risk. Always protect their soft spot

- read to your baby!! Get cute bright colorful sensory books with sight words and read them to your baby it makes such a huge difference in their educational growth and will help them acquire a love for reading early on. And talk to them never shut up just say whatever comes to mind all the time this will strengthen their vocabulary growth also.

- babies poop like a lot. A lot. an unreasonable amount. Bring back up clothes and more diapers than you think

- no pillows or stuffies in the crib and only use a muslin blanket unless it’s especially cold to prevent suffocation

- babies kick reflexively until they’re out of their newborn scrunch (they stay womb shaped for a while) and if your baby is crying and pushing at the swaddle try letting them flail around for a minute

- consoling your baby is not spoiling them ! They need comfort and they will learn to self soothe on their own

- singing lullabies actually works, they can recognize your voice a consistent place of comfort from the womb and the cadence of lullabies is literally engineered to create a calm headspace

- for the love of god do not get boring ass beige toys. Colors are important for their neurological development

- babies are very responsive to praise from a young age so be as supportive of them as you can

- babies get constipated a lot and you have to do like tummy massages to help ease their pain the easiest way is to lay them on their backs and hold one foot in each hand, kick their feet like bicycles, scrunch up, and then stretch their legs out

- holding them on your hip too much will not cause bow legged-ness if your baby is bow legged that was always gonna happen

- they drool so so much and you have to get bibs for them so they don’t get chest eczema

- don’t use scented products on their skin cuz their skin is sooo much thinner than ours

- when your baby first starts sitting on their own never walk away from them without setting up a nest of pillows and blankets around them. Even minor head trauma can mess them up sometimes

- this one is kinda morbid and scary but sometimes babies just die out of nowhere and it’s no one’s fault or anything it’s called sudden infantile death syndrome(SIDS) and it’s about 1.3k deaths on average per year in America so not super common but still very real. 90% of these deaths happen during the first four months however edit: apparently it’s bc of an enzyme deficiency which at the very least you can take steps to try and prevent

- smoking and drinking during pregnancy WILL affect your baby and your breast milk and also might contribute to SIDS cases

- babies sometimes have a big red mark on them somewhere called a stork bite immediately after birth but typically it goes away

- babies can’t see very well for a while after birth and they’re VERY wobbly so they’ll typically bonk their head into your chest and face a lot while trying to support themselves

- female babies might have smth similar to a period the first few days after birth, this is because of the hormone transfer that happens during the birthing process and the days leading up to it

- male babies get random erections for the first few days after birth(hormone transfer again) literally do not be weird about this it’s a baby

- things like weaning your baby onto solid foods, potty training, weaning off pacifiers etc, can actually be directed by the baby and will happen naturally will minimal guidance from the parent(some guidance is still necessary) although I would do individual research into baby led weaning for food to prevent choking

- get those chewy feeding pouches to help with weaning

- the most random things will scare the hell out of your baby don’t take it personal 😭

- baby carriers are life savers (tulas are one of my favorites)

- once babies hit toddlerhood they’re tougher than you think, and a lot of their reaction is based on YOURS. they’re always going to be looking to you for how to react to a situation. Remain calm and if they’re ok they’ll calm down but if they’re genuinely hurt they’ll keep crying

- babies will most likely get ridiculously attached to an inanimate object and you have to keep this thing intact at all costs until they’re old enough to abandon it or they will throw a FIT. I got a lemur plushie from a zoo once and every single one of the kids has bonded their soul with it until about 6 years old and once a month I have to stitch him back up

- don’t compare yourself to other parents. Maybe your kid isnt getting grass fed wild caught north Atlantic cheerios but at least they’re fed. If your kid is alive and healthy and happy you’re doing a good job

- you will need 3 car seats, an infant seat, a grow with me toddler seat, and a booster seat

- getting a good diaper bag is a MUST

- the hair a baby is born with will most likely all fall out or they’ll get a bald spot on the back of their head where they sleep cuz their hair is so fragile and thin but once it grows back it grows back thick

- get like 20 muslin blankets so you always have a backup when the main ones are covered in spit up

- the babies grip IS stronger than yours (keep your hair up and keep pets away best you can)

- your best bet for your teething baby is a pacifier you can put your finger in so you can massage their gums and some chewing toys numbing cream can be dangerous and should be used sparingly

- go ahead and come to terms with the fact you’re gonna have to use a Frida Baby to manually remove snot

- babies can get hair and thread wrapped around their toes and fingers that can cut off their circulation try to make a habit of checking

- don’t hit your kid please it’s nothing but trauma and fucked up coping mechanisms from there pls empathize with your child they’re a person too

- be careful not to pull too hard on their arms and legs(like during play or holding their hand while they walk) and NEVER pick them up by their hands this will very easily cause dislocation

- they might have a little tooth like callous on their lip from their pacifier. This does not hurt them and it will go away but it may hurt during breastfeeding

- breastfeeding will make your boobs different sizes

Yeag that’s all I can think of rn but yk i Will add as I remember stuff ppl are also adding things I forgot in the tags in case you’d like to look thru that as well <3

[tropicalrpg]

24 read below

the reason why i stopped writing things down in my notebook is because i kept forgetting. i kept thinking, this would be good to write down, then i didn't, because it meant going out of my way to do something. it meant stopping whatever useless thing i was doing and putting effort into something productive and active.

so i stopped writing. i stopped writing in general: every day, or most days, i think of fic ideas that i'd love to write or keep writing. but i never, or almost never, do. i don't write anymore. even here, i forget, i spend too long without posting (this was supposed to be daily, six months ago! we're twenty-four posts in! it's june!), and i only ever post things i write straight into the blogging feature, with no edits, with no marination. i'm bored or i feel like writing, like ranting, and here i come. i don't post because there's something i want to post about: i post because i want to post. when there's something i want to post about, i just. don't.

here are two things i've thought of posting about.

on thursday, i went to my brother's flat briefly. i didn't know if i wanted to write about this here because it's very personal, very private, and because i'd like to have access to it many years down the line, when the person this is about can hear me talk about it. my brother just had a kid, that's why. jade, is her name. and i'd never seen a baby so young before, and it's fascinating. i wanted to write down the experience so i can remember it when she's big. she's so small. she's so small, her head is smaller than her father's hand, and so he can hold her right on his chest with no effort. he shushes her into stillness not with humming or a song, but actual, soft, melodic shushing. her crying was funny to me, because she'd cry, then start settling down, then start crying again like she was doing it because she felt she was supposed to. and she was so cute. she tugged on my dad's mask when he held her. her eyes were dark, dark, dark, and neither of her parents' are that dark, so i guess that must be a baby thing. it's the first time i've seen her since the day after she was born. she's so small. when my dad held her, i could see the back of her head, and i almost wanted to touch it and feel its softness, its smooth warmth. i only touched her briefly, the tips of her fingers, because i'm scared to touch a baby so small, so fragile. here's something i deliberately thought of writing about, something i want to tell her years down the line: she's so small now, her toes are the size of rice grains. rice! she's so small. i hope she grows big and healthy. i hope i end up being a cool uncle to her. i hope i'm not distant, and i hope she likes me. i know it's still a long time before she even knows what i'm saying, and i also know these years will at least kind of fly by, and she'll be huge before i notice it. so i wanted to write it down. i should've written it down two days ago when the memories were fresher, but better late than never, huh, jade?

yesterday, friday, and i also hesitated on writing about this because i thought of doing it in the same post i'd mention my two week old niece and it just feels wrong, but life is made of many aspects, and now fuck it, this post isn't about either of these things and instead about the act of writing (i forgot to mention in the introduction, despite meaning to: the only thing i kept writing for the past few years, although in the past month or two i've not written any of it, is poetry. because the poems i write are short and efficient and somewhat inspiration based. love based. i yearn and the words come together, somehow. and i write poems by opening my notes app, trying to look for metaphors that fit what i want to say, deciding on a verse scheme on the fly, then finishing the poem whenever it feels like i've written enough. i rarely do touch ups, although sometimes i do. and that's it. a poem. i got one of those published once. fifty dollars for a few minutes of my time. it never happened again, but, still.). yesterday, friday, i took the bus home and got a seat (almost didn't, but did). and all was fine. until, like, ten minutes away from home, when this guy got on the bus and, well, how can i put this? i worry i can't explain this properly even to brazilians, imagine to gringos. but anyway. i was on the aisle? seat? i guess. i was next to the hallway, passage, corridor, thing. and people stand there when there's nowhere to sit! normal! i don't know what buses are like abroad, okay, i'm trying to be as thorough as i can be. the gist of it is a guy (around my age, reasonably attractive, certainly straight) kind of caged me into my seat. not on purpose or like in a threatening way. he just decided to use my seat and the seat ahead of me as the supports he held on to. and he probably chose me because i'm a guy; if i were a girl, this would be threatening even in the best of intentions. you just don't do that. but he did it to me, and it was, well, um. i feel stupid and like a fucking virgin for saying this. but it was an experience! because i made it be one in my brain! it wasn't a huge deal, and thank god no one is reading this, and it wasn't even ten minutes away from my stop, but it was something. i'd love to actually, intentionally, consensually, be caged in by a man. and he knew as well as i did that he didn't have to do that; at some point, he held onto the bars affixed to the roof. he was a little short, so of course the seats were more comfortable, but i think if he hadn't been hot i would've been a little bothered, too. but, too? i don't know. i'm tired, idgaf about grammar. i think i'm getting good at hiding my gayness. i'm certain i scared a straight guy away at some point last year. a hot guy that took the bus to school with me in the morning. there's another hot straight guy that on occasion takes the same bus as me, but i don't even allow myself to look at him now. i always think my attraction will scare guys away. because i'm ugly, and because they're always straight. because ew. because of a million reasons. i've talked about this in therapy. it hasn't really gotten better. i also didn't really want to write about this because i feel like thinking of sex on public transport is a pervy thing, even though i didn't do anything, didn't ogle him (didn't even look at him!), didn't move, didn't even think much. i don't know. i'm sorry, if someone ended up reading this. i'm so tired, good night.

23 06 03

[peachmangopie323]

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Chapter 10: Just Like You

Kirby SST!

Long before the Dreamland we know today, the time where Kirby was still off to deal with Nightmare,

A young and small Waddle Dee with a fighting spirit stood in his feet.

In Castle Dedede, children are tasked to do simple chores while adults handle guarding and harder labor, this child however, refused listen to what the adults had to say and stayed on his post with a spear on his hand.

One day, the King was walking through the halls and saw the said Dee and immediately approached him.

The tiny Dee tried to sit still but his hand were shaking as the King was about to take a closer look.

"What's the little one doin here?"

The king asked a guard.

"Well it seems like he wants to be a guard your majesty, he won't listen to us when I tell him to give us the weapon!"

"Hmmm so you're a lil tough guy huh?" He looks closer,

The tiny Dee's heart raced, he doesn't know what to do, there's a chance that he could get punished for not doing what he's supposed to do-

"Welp Little Dee here has a passion for being a royal guard, maybe teach him the ropes will ya? Maybe he'd grow up to be my finest warrior who knows." He chuckles as he gives the

little one's head a pat.

The tiny dee's eyes widen, his eyes were almost tearing up, the King's approval is all he needed, from that day, he vowed to be strong, to defend King Dedede, to be his right hand man. He began to idolize his king, he trained and worked hard to get where he is today.

At the age of 14 he is now one of Dreamland's greatest defenders, He's almost like Dedede's own son, isn't that his long dreamed happy ending?

"When I grow up I want to be just like you Your Majesty!" Said the optimistic bandana dee.

Bandana Dee started his day like normal, he noticed his head felt a bit more heavy than usual, maybe he was just hungry.

An hour passed and he felt his stomach hurt, he has felt worse so he also shrugged that off.

Another hour passes and the stomach pain got really worse, he finally decided to ask for help.

"M...miss my stomach hurts..do you have some kind of medicine for it?"

"Oh! sir Bandana Dee! Let's get you to your room.." The servant girl noticed how the poor boy looked pale, she immediately told the other servants to prepare hot water.

"W-what's going on with me?" Bandee asked.

"Everything will be alright, this is happens to everyone, just sit still and I'll try to ease the pain."

"Okay.."

Around that time Kirby and Sailor were off to another trip, sailor is really taking advantage of her vacation, she managed to cheer Kirby up somehow by giving him as many food as she can make!

"I'm sorry if this comes off as weird but.." Sailor asked, she had been observing the little pink boy inhale mountains of food.

"Yes miss Sailor?"

"Do youuu..digest things? Or food just disappear once you swallow something?"

"I don't know... but what I know is, I could eat as much as I can without getting full, I guess if everyone has the opportunity to not get full they'd sure eat alot!"

"Good point."

Somewhere near to where Sailor and Kirby were, a group of soccer players gathered to their meeting place waiting for their captain,

"It's 12:04 pm and captain bandee isn't here! He's never late! What do we do??"

"Maybe we should call him to check if he's alright?"

"Let's visit him!"

The players nodded and agreed until Marx appeared on their back.

"Its no need, he's not coming today because of some stomach ache, is it really a big deal if that chump doesn't show up?"

"Stomach ache?"

"How did you know?"

"Of course it's a big deal! He tells us what to do!"

"Without a leader we won't be able to practice!"

The team chattered

"Well shit I survived crashing into a planet sized galactic nova and absorbed it's powers and YOU'RE wondering how I know what happened to some fragile loser." Marx rolled his eyes and sighed.

"I'll be your captain only for today only because I'm bored."

"Eww! You're just going to sabotage us!"

"Well it's either me or nobody" Marx crosses his arms.

"..."

"I'll make sure we would win without that Banana Dee whatever his name is, are you with me?" He exclaimed, maybe teaching a couple of kids some tricks would keep him occupied, it's like he has anything to do as long as he can't decrypt any of the spells.

The team had no choice but to follow Marx,

"Well, the popstar soccer team doesn't miss on new opportunities yeah?"

"I think this is for the best.."

Sailor and Kirby rests beside a tree and told each other stories.

"Miss Sailor, is liking girly stuff...bad?"

"What? No, who told you that?"

"No one in particular..."

"Then why?"

"I don't know why I feel shame about liking girly and cutesy things even if it's nothing to be ashamed of.."

"Kirby...don't listen to anyone that tells you you should feel that way just because you're a boy.." Sailor looked at him with eyes full of concern

"You're kind of like my big sister and all...do you experience something close to that?"

"Not really, but I know how it's like to have to hide who you are you know?... mainly when I was a young girl being a sailor isn't a feminine job I had to pretend like a lad my whole time at the sea.."

"What?"

"Captain Vul recommend me a job to the Halberd and I had to tell him that I'm a girl because it gets harder to hide it when you grow up."

"Does it even matter?"

"Jee, I know right? I can't believe I had to persuade them to accept me and now I'm the crew member who takes the most jobs!" She scoffs resting her chin onto her palm.

☆ﾟ.*･｡ﾟ*.✧Flashback--

"See young lady as much as your skill sets are promising I can't promise you'd get accepted. How about...keep that act for a bit longer?"

"But I'm 17 there's no way-"

Captain Vul interrupts, stuffing her short growing hair under her hat.

"You look convincing if you just tuck all your hair on that cap, I'll do the talking."

"Okay.."

"Ahem." Captain vul called everyone's attention.

"We have a sailor boy who wants to work as our assistant."

Sailor Dee was nervous.

"He looks a bit short, and skinny for someone his age..." The crew speculated.

"You're a girl aren't you?"

Axe knight said jokingly, he didn't think he was actually right.

Captain Vul and Sailors expressions dropped, their silence and shock only meant she is.

"Wait for real? That would be a problem since we don't need more damsels to protect- ow!" Captain Vul hit axe knight's head as he completely foiled his plan.

The crew wasn't really shocked, instead they showed concern for the Sailor.

☆ﾟ.*･｡ﾟ*.✧

As Sailor continues to blabber, Kirby didn't hear the footsteps approaching him.

"Hey Kirby!"

The two snapped out of the flashback and noticed a grinning Marx infront of them, his hands were in his back as if he was hiding something.

"What do you need Marx?" Kirby's mood immediately dropped

Sailor instinctively grabbed Kirby and backed off, she knew that Marx's assertiveness means he could do harm.

"Why so tensed up? I haven't even moved yet!"

"What's the meaning of this!?" Kirby exclaimed

"My revenge!"

Marx grew his distorted yellow wings and let out a maniacal laughter, he spread a glowing book in his hand and absorbed it's power.

'of course, why haven't I thought of that sooner?' Marx thought to himself.

Kirby shimmied his way out of Sailor's grasps and prepared himself to attack.

"Kirby!!!"

Marx emitted large amounts of power making it a struggle for Kirby to approach him.

"Gg-gahh...I'm..gonna...KILL YOU!!"

Kirby grit his teeth and kicked the floor to pierce againts the wind.

"I'd like to see you try!"

Marx laughed.

As the pink boy almost grabbed Marx's neck mid air, Marx reacted quickly and gave Kirby a super hard kick.

"GGKK-..HH!!

Kirby went flying, he didn't land quite well and broke his arm.

"You really think I'd behave that easily? After I betrayed you? You shouldn't have let me live, you're lame, an idiot!" Marx walked closer to the crawling Kirby.

Kirby was helpless, he wasn't prepared for this battle and he didn't bring any copy essence with him. He panicked, he tried to crawl away only for Marx's wing claws violently grab his leg.

"Now..how should I kill you?"

The jester lifts the poor Kirby's face from the ground by grabbing his hair.

"I want it to be humiliating, to be painful, just like when you threw me like garbage at nova!!" Marx shouted.

Kirby could not speak, he only let out desperate groans in hopes that someone would hear him.

He wanted to cry, he felt like passing out, the pain he is in were numb.

He could only hear his thoughts.

'is this the end?'

'i can't die like this, not in his hands...'

'miss sailor...I hope you ran away far..'

Kirby closed his eyes and accepted defeat.

"OOOMPF-!!" Marx felt a large hard kick to his head, it was strong enough to make him collapse.

As the fog that Marx created fades away, Kirby was able to move he immediately looked for who defeated Marx.

"M-miss Sailor!?"

"Haaaahh...hah..what are you waiting for? Immobilize him while he's still paralyzed!!" Sailor huffed and made sure Marx was completely knocked out.

Kirby was dumbfounded by what he just saw, but he quickly got up and landed a hard hit on the defenseless jester.

"Why don't you just give up on being a bad guy you stupid stupid clown!??" Kirby growled gritting his teeth in anger.

As Kirby was mercilessly putting Marx in his place he had to let out all the bullying Marx had done the past few months,

Sailor then noticed the book Marx had dropped, she immediately picked it up and knew it was the book Meta Knight was talking about before taking off.

She panicked, she had to tell her boss right away!

Sailor removed her hat and hid the book inside, she temporarily removed her mask and took a deep breath as she rests on a tree.

*Beep*

"haahh..hhah..Sir Meta Knight?"

"Sailor? What happened?" Meta Knight quickly replied.

"Ah well, I think you dropped that book with the weird cat face in it.."

"...Pardon?"

"The spell book thing!"

"Right...hmm..could you perhaps read the contents on it?"

"N-no...it's all Halcandrian!"

"Good. That means you've found it. Well done Sailor Dee."

"W-wh-what do I do sir??"

"Just keep it hidden and never reveal or give it to anyone until we get back."

"Leave it to me!"

*Beep*

'If merely absorbing some of this book's power can almost kill Kirby...Who knows what this book could do!?'

Sailor is left with a task she must fulfil, but before that she saw the mangled bloody state Marx is in and decided Kirby had to stop.

"Kirby I think that's enough..."

Kirby's knuckles were soaked in blood, Marx is still very alive but he made sure to rough him up until he learn his lesson.

Kirby wiped the blood on Marx's white shirt and approached Sailor, leaving the jester bleeding in the middle of the fields.

The soccer team continued to repeat the kicks Marx taught them early on but they started to feel like their new captain was gone for too long.

"Marx had been gone for 20 minutes isn't that weird?"

"He probably ditched us"

"I think so too, but let's go look for him."

Our hero and the Sailor were exhausted and decided to go home.

"Hey..you alright? Let's clean you up on the castle. Are you in any pain? I have some healing food in my pocket..." Sailor kneeled infront of Kirby checking for any critical wounds.

"Miss Sailor how did you do that?"

"Like, an axe kick?"

"Like fighting! Knocking people out with a kick!"

"I don't know if I want to go over that but.."

☆ﾟ.*･｡ﾟ*.✧

"But seriously Captain I don't think Lord Meta Knight would approve of her!"

Sailor pouts.

"She'll serve as our brain for all of you numbskulls are only good for fighting!" The captain rests his palm in his temple and sighed.

"What if you all just teach her self defense huh? Will that suffice?"

"That's not part of the job description!" Sailor whined.

"If you're a man yeah." Sword responds

"What different does it make!?" Sailor glared at sword knight.

"Let's be honest here you look like the character that always gets kidnapped to lure us on an enemy base!"

Sailor's dark and dead eyes pierced directly at the knight, she's starting to want to accept the training just to beat them all up.

"She's the smartest lackey we've got! The sailors left in the dock only knew how to fish and untie sails!" Vul testimonies.

The crew takes on good look on Sailor Dee once again.

"Okay...lady, as long as you acknowledge that you might die, you really have to learn to fight if you want to work for us!"

"....fine" she replied with a bit of salt.

"We could even teach you! Right knights?"

"It don't sound half bad!"

"Well then, Miss Sailor Dee, welcome to the Halberd."

Shortly after Sailor Dee had a meeting with the Meta Knight himself, he read her resume from top to bottom and she filled every requirement needed for the job. She was accepted right away!

☆ﾟ.*･｡ﾟ*.✧

"I had months of training alongside doing my actual work, it was so exhausting and thank god it's over a decade ago."

"Just because you're a girl?"

"Yes but heeeyy the training paid off somehow, I wouldn't have saved you if I couldn't fight! It's all good."

"Do you...do you have a reason to work under Meta Knight?" He wondered, it isn't normal to just overwork oneself that willingly.

"At first it was just all for the salary and how cool sounding the job was, I mean, working on a full battleship and for a very popular guy? It was a big opportunity!" Sailor was also too young and naive to reject or pass on Captain Vul's offer, she didn't want to live in the fishy smelling coast forever.

"But now, I realized our crew members aren't just barbaric drunkards but chivalrous people that risks their life for their planet, and that motivates me to help save the world and help heroes like you!"

Sailor gave him a big bright smile giving some inspiration and hope to the boy's eyes.

Kirby admired his optimistic friend, he gave sailor a hug as they walk back to the castle.

"Thank you for saving my life." He smiles as the sunset's reflection glistens in his eyes.

☆ﾟ.*･｡ﾟ*.✧ about 2 hours later.

"That's not a very funny joke! That is not true...no..!"

Kirby heard cries on the hallways.

*Door slams shut*

"Ughh..no...noooo..."

Kirby followed the noise to find Bandana Dee curled into a ball, he was breaking down, to which Kirby immediately asked.

"What's the matter??"

"I..i-...i don't want to talk about it yet..*sniffles*...let me be.. please.."

"I can't just leave you like this bandee...I'll be here when you need me." Kirby comforted.

The orange haired boy continued to sob as Kirby pat his back.

"Do you need water?"

"no I'm..I'm fine.."

He finally calmed down, took a deep breath and looked at Kirby with helpless and tired eyes.

It made Kirby even more concerned.

Bandana Dee took a deep breath and leaned on a wall,

"What's the matter?"

"Its..it's that..I will never be who I always dreamed to be when I grow up." He takes rapid breaths

"Like what?"

"To be a man!"

"Are you gonna die??"

"No!! I was bleeding even though I wasn't hurt, even they were shocked to find out I was actually a girl!" Bandana wiped his face in frustration, he didn't want to believe what was happening.

"Bandana.."

"I haven't seen anyone's parts all of my life how was i supposed to know right!?"

"Like..god...all that I ever dreamed about is that one day I would be big that i would have a beard! Its all gone.."

His voice cracks.

"H-hey that's alright...no one is stopping you from still being you!"

"Not when I start looking like a girl, one day everyone will know and they'd start treating me differently!...what if King Dedede finds out? What would he think? Am I going to get abandoned??"

Bandana grabbed Kirby's shoulder and shaked him out of panic.

"No wonder my voice never changes unlike boys my age, I wasn't even a boy after all!!" Tears gushed down his face.

"H-hey...there's nothing wrong with being a girl-" Kirby mumbled.

"I-It changes everything! You won't understand since you'd still look the same until I die!"

"..."

"..."

"D...don't say that.." Kirby felt hurt.

"I don't want this body I don't want to live like this! Im jealous of you Kirby! Of your power and your popularity and that you're a real boy!" Bandana ranted as he slams his fist on the cement floor weeping.

Kirby stood up and pats his orange hair.

"Bandana...I really get the feeling of how you're doomed to live the future you don't want." Kirby, with all of his power left tried not to cry, but tears kept gushing in, his shaking hand strokes his brothers orange hair in attempt to calm him down. He doesn't want to hear him spout more of such stupid words.

"The future I'll live is that I will witness all of my loved ones die...I will witness...you..die.." Kirby's voice was breaking apart.

Bandana heavily breathes as he wipes his tears.

"You don't know how afraid I am that one day all of you will just slip through my fingers and I could do nothing about it! And do you really think I want to be me? How I'm always the one to step up on every single disaster just because I have powers I didn't ask for!!" Kirby cried.

The atmosphere felt heavier , they both have their own fears, their own consequences that they'll have to deal with the rest of their life. Bandana didn't mean to hurt Kirby at all, for a moment he wished he could be young for very long and capable as Kirby, but as he watches his pink brother burst in tears no one would like to have a future destined to watch everything you love gone, to watch everything die. Kirby would stop valuing friends in the next thousand years, all of them will be just another lifespan he would barely age through.

Bandana realizes his mistake, his little brother needs him, Bandana has never felt strong emotions like these before, he hates it.

He took a deep breath, they could only think rationally when they're calm.

He apologized.

"I'm..I'm so sorry Kirby, my mind was in shambles I didn't think of what I said.." bandana Dee hugged the little one and sobbed. "It was stupid of me to get jealous of you. I'm sorry for making you cry."

He embrace him tighter.

".....it's..its..okay...don't worry! You know..You're the best brother I could ask for Bandana Dee, and always will be..." Kirby sniffled and hugged back, Kirby isn't okay but he really just wants the situation to be over.

"You too man...you too.."

Bandana Dee and Kirby wiped their tears and stood up, they cheered each other up, everything will be okay. As long as they have their family and friends healthy and alive, they would live those times to the fullest.

With their eyes worn out of crying, it did take them a while to get over it together, a hefty amount of junk food from Bandana's secret snack stash definitely helped their nerves out.

"There should be some sort of magic spell out there to change your body." Kirby suggested.

"It could make me look worse, I don't really trust magic.."

"We'll find a way soon nuff!"

"Of course!"

"When do well tell King dedede? Or do we? It's really up to you..."

"I want to get it off my chest now, after all it's him who I trust the most!"

"Alright!"

The two held hands and entered the throne room, Kirby felt Bandanas hand get colder and shiver, he gave him a big ol pat and told him it will be alright.

"Well if it isn't Bandana Dee!" The king greeted.

"Your majesty!!...I uhh..I want to tell you something...it's uhm.." he stuttered.

⭐ Notes ⭐

Kirby says trans rights

Next Chapter

[yatsugareboyf]

hi :o,can i request soukoku headcanons with an adopted daughter? like, what kind of parents would they be for your daughter and how would they act in some situations? i really want to see this plss🥺

this is so cute 😭 btw (p/n) is just gonna be in place of like mom or dad just in case any of yall arent comfortable w mom/dad or any parental term and to keep this gender-neutral

nakahara chuuya and dazai osamu with an adopted daughter.

nakahara chuuya

hes so inlove. very inlove. not only w you but w his daughter :(

you probably got her when she was little, not even a year old.

her name is kian and shes currently a 3 year old introverted kid

she was orphaned at a young age because of an accident her birth parents were in:(( and you were friends w her parents and couldnt bare to give her away

"chuuya, remember my friend tht got in an accident recently?"

"yeah, what about it?"

"they left behind a kid, she's probably not even a year old. i- can we keep her?"

"what??"

probably had to think about it for a while before asking to see the child

and he fell inlove w her like omg :(

she was so small and fragile, not to mention how she smiled so brightly at chuuya when he carried her

he was silent the whole time while holding her, while kian was laughing up a storm

you let the worker in the orphanage take her back when it was time to go, and not even two steps outside chuuya went like

"let's get her today. let's just get her stuff before we go home. we're going to get her now."

and you couldn't agree more

so you came back and took baby kian with you home, driving by the mall to buy her a crib and all the othet things

OH BOY CHUUYA WENT ALL OUT GOD IDK IF HIS CARD IS EMPTY OR WHAT

almost bought the entire baby girl section.

on your first night, he refused to let kian sleep in her unbuilt nursery. so in the mean time, she slept in the middle of you and chuuya in your room.

she wasnt noisy or demanding, she was very shy and quiet which worried chuuya

"isn't.... isn't she supposed to be crying?"

"pls don't ask for it if she cries i dont know what to do"

at night she did cry a lot, probably realized that she isnt sleeping with her parents in their home anymore :(

it took a while for chuuya to calm her down, but she found comfort in chuuya and slept peacefully after that, whining whenever he had to part from her

HIS HEART IS BROKE <////3

probably swore over his dead body that he wont ever leave her side

which he know realized, after a few days, would be much harder than he thought it would

hes in the mafia, goddamnit, hes always on-call and hes gone most of the day and into the night so how the fuck will he see his daughter

he thought of bringing her with him at work but you refused, like so much it turned into an argument like

"she's going to be fine! the port mafia isn't kid-friendly but at least i'm there to protect her!"

"no fucking way, you just said it isn't kid-friendly, what if she walks in or sees something she's not supposed to see? she's gonna turn into a liability for the mafia? you are not bringing her there"

"she'll be in my office the whole time, do you think im stupid enough to let her run around a giant ass building? no"

eventually y'all settled down bcs poor kian was so confused why the both of u were yelling her name over and over 😭

you still didnt let chuuya bring her to the mafia but you also cant leave her since u have work/school too

finally, you decided it was best to let chuuya bring her, but only to have her escorted by you all the way to his office to ensure that she's in his office ONLY.

y'all couldnt hire a babysitter bcs kian alr had too many changes in her life and adding another guardian would probably overwhelm her

you worked it out and now kian is happily spoiled by his father 24/7

he wouldn't take any risky missions the first few weeks that kian was there so he wouldn't have to leave her, but once kian knew kouyou and trusted her enough, she started looking after kian whenever chuuya ran to do an errand

ofc nothing would compare to chuuya and the moment she would run to his arms when she saw him again is heartwarming

kian loves chuuya and chuuya loves kian end of story

dazai osamu

i think dazai is... indifferent with children

like, yeah they exist but he never rlly thought of having one? would he even live that long? yeah he didnt think that far

but when he met you, he almost immediately knew that you were taking care of someone at home

he wasn't sure if it was a child at first, but when you showed up one day with the sticker of a diaper on your sleeve, he deduced tht it was a baby, maybe even a toddler.

now tht u two are dating/in a relationship, you had told him abt your adopted baby boy and why u decided to adopt him

your friend loves attending events for adoption centers, retirement homes and charity events and you decided to tag along to some of them

one of them was at an adoption center where you met little baby tadashi, a baby who was abandoned by his parents because "they wanted to live their lives"

you adopted baby tadashi even if u didnt mean to adopt anyone in the first place, you couldnt seem to let go of him

dazai wasn't surprised ofc, he kinda knew alr

at first, he didnt really feel any obligation towards tadashi, like he was dating you and not your son

but the longer you two stayed together, he got to know baby tadashi and see him grow up

he didnt see tadashi that often but when he moved in, he couldn't help but watch him all the time

he felt a tiny connection with tadashi until it grew so much that he would prefer hanging out with tadashi more than going to work apparently

would take him out to the park when hes a bit older, since hes a bit energetic, or bring him to an amusement park to eat all the sugary sweets he likes and ride all the rides he sees

you were so happy to see them get along, but you always reminded dazai that he doesn't really have an obligation to take care of tadashi, since he's your child, but omg

"what do u mean? he's our child now, isn't he? he grew up with us two here with him, it'll be too confusing for tiny little tadashi to say that im not his father."

tadashi calls dazai "osa" ever since he was a baby (or how old a child can talk....) and he calls you by your nickname, never rlly by any parental terms

but when tadashi grew old enough to ask, you weren't afraid to tell him the truth, that he was adopted but you and osamu loved him very much

he didnt really mind it, but he started to try and call you by p/n and osa by dad

the first time tadashi called dazai "dad*, dazai probably cried inside ngl

"dad, can you come to my basketball game tomorrow?"

ofc he plays it off and just smiles at your son and goes "of course! what kind of dad wouldn't be at their son's basketball game?"

he hugged u for so long while tadashi was gone 😭😭

would definitely listen to every story tadashi had to tell

would to everything for your son, in general, whether it be learning to play a sport to play w him or teaching him math he never really learned or driving him to school or bringing him to play dates

he loves tadashi so much 😭 like that's the light of his life right there

probably a bit strict (?) just because he wants him to be safe

bcs of this, they probably get into arguments a lot and its just a while before one of them (or both of them at different times) come to you to tell their side of the story

but dazai is so gentle w his son and talks it out with him and in the morning they would get ice cream together just GAJFJFVJDJAJ

sigh. dazai w a son.

[darlingonlyknow]

i was going to just start yapping in the tags but it got longer and longer so i figure i'll just reply on this post itself

first of all you hit the nail on the head so very much and this is exactly how i feel too, but the way you've managed to word this frustration is better than i feel like i ever could. so thank you for making this post, this is so valuable.

so what i started mostly talking about in the tags was how they absolutely did de-sexify her... but also they absolutely did not. the annoying part of the remake maria is how they decided to twist her character seemingly to make her more appealing to a modern audience, rather than analyze why her character was that way other than "early 2000s game being sexist and objectifying her". which is absolutely a problem in other games, don't get me wrong. and i think the change with angela was very justified too. but their solution to maria as some kind of happy middle ground was not even to really personify her further and distance her from femininity. she is still given this kind of sensuality, but it's been replaced with basically being a girlboss instead. for a lack of a better word...

but you can see it in almost every comparison between her in the two games. she is still the one in control of james, but now it's extremely overt. in her character design, she's much more sharp-edged, wearing this leather jacket and a black dress instead of her rounded-edge crop top and cutesy clothes. she is obviously still wearing clothes that aren't exactly modest, but in the color and shape theory they chose, they were purposeful to make her more hard edged and threatening. which can be good character design - which maria LOOKS more threatening or hard edge? but it falls apart when maria is supposed to be feigning innocence and fragility. it falls apart when she is an exaggeration of these stereotypes.

her body language too has annoyed me ever since i've seen her in motion. they made a point to change how she holds herself in every scene. in scenes she's original sitting slumped over and holding herself, she is now leaning back and extremely confident. she now seems also extremely genuine all the time. like with original maria, her change of tone makes you wonder about her motive everytime she makes an appearance. the new maria is like... acting like a genuine fully fledged person who just wound up in silent hill or ven lives there for whatever reason. her original character had to revolve around james, because she was created in his narrative of guilt and all the flaws that come with jame's perceptions of her and perceptions/expectations of mary.

when you get to the iconic mindfuck "i'm real" scene it doesn't hit as hard for me, and why would it? you've had no reason to doubt her other than her infatuation with james being a big much and the uncanny similarity with mary as per james. like her existence in the narrative raised an eyebrow but wasn't scary. because thrill is what keeps horror scary between the monster bits.

they took the good groundwork for the story and used it, so the plot still makes sense, but the nuance that made it feel like a THRILLER is gone. i'm not left guessing at what the motive is - i'm not feeling anything. things are moreso just happening and i'm just watching them. background movie you turn on to make dinner style. i don't need to be attentive to understand what's happening. nuance isn't necessary. AND THAT'S A BAD TREND IN MEDIA RIGHT NOW.

my favorite scene for comparison's sake, if you haven't seen it, oh my god. the voice acting is like... just okay. this is acceptable. but that's the issue. it's just acceptable??? they had the actors and animators just do these scene verbatim from the script it feels like. it is objectively good but there is no switch in tone. she doesn't go quiet before screaming at james and scaring the shit out of you. she doesn't immediately start fawning and making herself small after her anger and literally throwing herself as james before he can even think in tears, not even checking over and over for his reaction. this barely feels like she was just in a life or death situation. there is no thrill in this scene. it's just a thing that happens.

i feel like the bloobers tried to rework her character to make it less nuanced, and i don't even think it was on purpose. like everything is objectively good and correct. but it's not the POINT of the original. it's as if a woman preforming hyper femininity was 1. inherently offensive and a product of the time and 2. unable to be an antagonist the way she looked, and that her appearance and actions had no weight to james. when in reality that is probably the only reason he took up this patriarchal role of the protector sort. it interests him but she was this scared, weak, lost girl.... who happens to look just like mary. you can see his face drop in the original every time he remembers this is not mary. he could not give less of a fuck if he wasn't so guilt ridden already, imo. which the whole point is that she acts stereotypical like the weak woman archetype, and uses her lack of perceived power to manipulate james further

the way you put it in the third paragraph is absolutely key. as someone who was also made to live as a woman for a large portion of my life i instantly connect to storylines about existential horror in womanhood and narratives that she is begging to be seen as person and not mary. in the original she is using it to her advantage to manipulate james, like in the above scene, but james is not innocent in the way he treats and perceives her. this is the straight relationship and performative gender roles unmasked to me. the horror of silent hill is partially and constantly hinted at to be what's just underneath the surface, and that's it. and like you said THIS IS THE ONE TIME IT MATTERS!!!

i think this inner narrative of the horror of being a woman isn't just still relevant, it's still so effective. i didn't play silent hill until like a year ago and i still understood it and felt it was so smart. there's nothing dated about it, unfortunately.

without these exaggerations in their characters, they're just normal people. which is great if you are writing something that is 100% realistic. but maria is not a realistic person, just like pyramid head is not realistic. they both represent the ideas james has about his relationship and maria specifically is his perception of women. just like pyramid head, this is an intense characteristic of a feeling that james has. i believe maria illustrates the horror of being mary, essentially. the subconscious realization james has of that and the more shallow feelings he has to her, or viewing his own sexual needs not being met as this haunting guilt, sometimes even a violent one (again, pyramid head).

and not all scenes are bad, like the meeting maria scene is pretty on par. when she's playful it's not nearly as bad. but they lost the nuance. and sorry silent hill is not a realism horror, it's okay if you liked the remake but it is supposed to be psychological and heavily symbolic

potentially unpopular (but undeniably correct) Maria SH2 opinion incoming.

I am normally so profoundly against the "oh no, they un-sexified my video game woman" rhetoric but it is so critically important to who Maria is as a character and to the overall theming of the game as a whole, and to put her in a more conservative outfit is so blatantly missing the point that it makes me deeply worried for the direction of this remake and the dev's grasps on the games most central theme.

Silent Hill 2 is an exploration into the psychosexual guilt of a man who experienced carnal urges while his wife was dying of a mysterious disease and physically unavailable to him. Maria is the most concrete confirmation of and confrontation with this theme that exists in the game. A mirror of his dead wife, meant to look James in the face and say "this is what you wanted, right?" She HAS to be identifiably sexual on sight, because Maria only exists to be a purposeful avatar of this concept.

it is ESSENTIAL TO THE PLOT that Maria is aware of and in CONTROL of her sexuality. Not only is it critical to James' story and his overall theming, but part of the tragedy of Silent Hill IS Maria's own story. Maria, who feels like a real, whole person, is an invention of the town made explicitly and only to torture James. Part of the tragedy is that Maria herself was born (from a wish, ba dum tss) by a malevolent supernatural force to exist as a sexual object. Maria, who is brought back to life again and again to be killed brutally, begging for James to save her. Maria, who comes to understand that she will never live up to the ideal of James' dead wife, and will continually beg to be taken seriously as her own person. The only thing she has to offer is her sexuality, the one thing James couldn't get from Mary; the thing that brought him to the town, to her. It her is primary character function, and it wasn't done to objectify her for shits and giggles, or because the devs were pervs who wanted a sexy woman in their game. It was done because that, in itself, is a horrifying, gut-wrenching reality to be brought into, a fundamentally ABYSMAL reason to exist. It IS the horror.

Maria exists exclusively to be a confrontation with James' sexual guilt. She is a specter that haunts the hallways James walks down, a shadow that hovers over his shoulder, the object of his shame and desire. Maria is the worst, most carnal aspects of James' urges made manifest, standing before him, tempting him deeper into the clutches of the town, muddying his senses with her physical allure.

Maria's outfit actually IS that deep. Part of the tragedy is that she only exists to be objectified. It is a commentary in itself. This is the one time EVER (god willing) that I will champion a woman being in a revealing outfit in a video game, because this is the one time it actually fucking MATTERS

maybe this is an unpopular opinion but as an afab person these themes are so so important and identifiable to me. it reflects the horror of every day life as a woman and magnifies them tenfold. it is tragic, it is awful, it is sick, and the point isn't to glorify it, but to call attention to it. it forces you to engage, to not turn your head away. and that matters to me.

anyways bloober team really be bloobing all over this IP huh

[venusararara]

ALLTHE HEART EMOJIS FOR GATHERINE.. PLS <3 i like ehr hehee

EHE THANKS SHE LIKES YOU TOO ♡

Gatherine relationship questions ☆☆☆

💗 GROWING HEART - if they have a crush, is it noticable? what changes when they're in love?

Gatherine becomes noticeably more fidgety. She becomes super protective, of her lovers and others who are like them. Like, Stacy was her first love who was a blonde so she associates that hair color with someone who is defenseless and needs protection. Because, Stacy got stabbed in the face by another angel in school and Gatherine started seeing her as helpless [unfortunate]

💓 BEATING HEART - what gets their heart racing?

In a sexual way or? Well she likes being held down and rough housing lol

Fear wise, Gatherine is deathly afraid of other creatures' mortality. It scares her very much, making her protective of her loved ones to the point where it's obsessive. The fear itself stems from the fear of being alone, because she knows everyone she loves will die way before she does.

💘 HEART W/ ARROW - what traits do they look for in a relationship? do they believe in love at first sight?

Gatherine loves pathetic creatures. Ones who are injured, weak, and/or small, and can't defend themselves. Most demons are attracted to these features bc of their subconscious, which controls their benders. Their victims while on benders are the same as their own lovers. Many demons end up mauling their angel or mortal partners unintentionally. A lot of demons suffer from trauma because of their benders, since they kill loved ones, as well as family. Demons like to get close to fragile creatures because they want to eat them, whether they're aware of it or not.

Yes, Gatherine instantly falls for weaklings.

💚 GREEN HEART - what things make your oc feel comforted? hugs, kisses, food?

Gatherine's comfort food is raw meat. Her bender-blockers are also comforting for her, because she knows she's less likely to eat her girlfriend and friends. She likes hugs, but is liable to squeeze you a little too hard, so you'll be tender afterwards.

💙 BLUE HEART - do they miss their s/o easily? how do they act when their s/o isn't around?

Gatherine will lose her mind if she doesn't know her loved ones are safe. It intensifies her benders, and she spends the entire bender screaming their names and trashing everything in her path lol

She'll start sobbing over any creature she kills and saying she's sorry bc her fucked up brain mistakes them for her loved ones!! She's terrified of losing them, especially killing them.

She commits crimes and mauls living things while not on a bender if she's alone long enough, because she sees no reason to behave.

❤️ RED HEART - their love language(s)?

Gatherine's love language is gift giving, she brings things home for Bresklyn all the time. She usually brings plants home. She always took flowers to Stacy in school, since she had to stay in the nurse's office so she wouldn't get hurt again.

She really likes quality time, but is afraid of physical touch because she thinks she'll hurt someone.

💖 SPARKLING HEART - are they a subtle or a showy lover?

Gatherine is used to pretending she has no one bc her first gf was an angel, and they're not supposed to date. Also, Tantibusian criminals are more likely to go after your loved ones than you if you wrong them. Gatherine has had a lot of run-ins with criminals. It keeps Bresklyn, Dawsin and co. from getting targeted on her behalf if she pretends not to know them in public.

💌 LOVE LETTER - do they like love letters? what kind of messages do they leave for their partner?

She feels undeserving, but yeah.

Love letter from Gatherine:

"The sea parts upon your arrival. Every step you take rattles my heart, and keeps it pumping. You are my drive, my inspiration. They will never take you, because I adore you so. There is no meat upon this world sweeter than yours. I will protect you with my life. Farewell."

She leaves these randomly and they usually read like suicide notes, so Bresklyn gets super worried and sends out search parties for her. She just went out shopping for food though lol

Mortals don't understand that demons just come back after they die.

💔 BROKEN HEART - what could their partner do that would absolutely break their heart?

Die. Gatherine would be absolutely devastated. She would become the worst version of herself, and begin a never-ending bender. She would completely neglect her health, stop taking her meds, and wreak havoc. Demons are absolutely insane without a reason to live, because they just go back to Infernum when they die. There's no reset button, no do overs. Just a continuous stream of misery, without loved ones. There's a point where demons will just give upon loving things. Amidst the never-ending bender, they'll be captured and put in a coma collar so they stop destroying everything. Then, they will lay on a metal table forever, trapped in their own bodies.

[erintoknow]

what other media, if any (literally anything; interactive fiction, Bioware- or Bethesda-esque RPGs, etc) do you think Ari would be a good fit for?

what other media? hmmm

well i guess in a way i've already decided the answer to this because i picked out ari and a few other character concepts and are reworking them to fit into an original fiction narrative.

it's been incredibly invigorating to get back into a writing project again after spending the last two years tossing around different ideas and concepts - this one seems to be the one that's sticking so far.

oh dear, i've ended up writing quite a bit more then i originally intended for this, but here we go:

i can't really imagine ari as a character being that good a fit for a video game or even like a tv show or something like (despite having spent a non-small amount of time imagining different such scenarios haha) at the same time though, fiction is fiction - what you consider a good fit is going to depend on what specifically you consider essential to the character, so let's see...

fiction, or i suppose potentially interactive fiction as well, is kind of the one medium that allows the closeness to a character's interior narrative that feels core to making ari stand out in my mind.

i don't think she could support being a lead character without that close lens. dropped into a video game or movie or some other medium, i think you'd get wildly different impressions of her depending on if she was part of the central cast and afforded space (at least in a narrative sense) to drop her guard, or if she was limited to specific section or like 'side quest.' It'd be the difference between seeing a stoic 'action hero' esque figure, a fragile emotional mess underneath that, or a character desperate for love yet utterly afraid of it underneath that.

of course, this is true for all characters in fiction isn't it? the amount of space the narrative affords them determines how well they can be examined or well, characterized, within the core text. different character concepts are better suited for different roles, and which roles those may be can also be dependent on the medium at hand

so then, i'd say - if you want to lean into ariadne's interior psyche drama you want the close perspective only really possible in written fiction imo; if you want more emphasis on action, on ari's outside world relationship, a more visual-based medium like a tv show might be suitable.

hmm actually, a graphic novel in particular would be very hit or miss i think, a traditional approach i think would be pretty boring, but if you had someone willing to get really experimental with page layout and visuals to convey experience through nonverbal means... that could be interesting?

jumping back to video games for a second because now i'm in full on 8am ramble mode and i am going to make 0 effort to edit or clean this up – video games are pretty unique in our forms of media in their ability to use audience interaction to further draw them into the fantasy of the story being told - i mean, really this the whole appeal that otherwise extremely weak narrative series like bioware rpgs right? they manage to have such a profound emotional effect on us as player/audience because we allow ourselves to be drawn into the fantasy that we aren't just watching or reading events unfold but are actively participating in them ourselves. there's absolutely ways you could work with that for ariadne's character concept, i think? i still think she'd be better utilized as not a main character in such a conceit, but a character you have to choose to work to get to know, maybe? probably in some way that ideally comes back later in the game to have repercussions either in revealed information or character actions to represent / respect the work that was or wasn't put into befriending the character.

so uh, to summarize, i think you could take this character and jam her into just about anything with a bit of work and she'd still be mostly recognizable - but it's really only with the close pov of written narrative that she stands out (with the visual element of graphic fiction making it a potential runner up here if you got someone willing to go nuts with it)

an interactive fiction story feels a little too close to her origin as a FHR fanfic character for me to feel comfortable going that route - but objectively i suppose that could work pretty well too? it's just not an angle i'm interested in exploring with the character - if i were to write an interactive fiction story, i already know which concept i'd want to roll with for that. the Grey Painter by William Loman (which is a fantastic piece of horror fiction imo and deserves more love) is a great example of the kind of direction i was already thinking of going with: a character with several preset characteristics in a preexisting relationship with another character, navigating a situation --- i'm digressing now though

considering i am a writer and prefer written narrative (books are so good!!! please check out Hell Followed with Us by Andrew Joseph White or The Girls I've Been by Tessa Sharpe), am actively writing one rn, and developed the original version of the character as part of a written narrative fan fiction, i can't say i'm surprised at my own conclusion haha

[merry-andrews]

oh dear God I finally found free time to sit and type my comment!

First thing that got my attention is the title! I love your story titles so much! they're so artistic and cute and give a brief review of what the reader would expect! I also like this concept of Billy washing (or putting it in washing machine) something that belongs to Homelander. I always think of Billy as someone that doesn't do such thing kd7v5duysv that man is so messy and gross hhn so reading things like him doing laundry is really cute! maybe dating with Homelander finally had effects on him XD

it's cute how you mentioned his cape as his security blanket which it is XD I can't remember a scene that he actually took off his top half of the uniform? thinking of Homelander gripping the cape while he's making love, awww. my boy has many issues and is a fragile soul, please be kind to him, Billy!

"You were leaking all over the place! Easier to wash your cape than all of the bedding." Butcher tries to keep a straight face, but a smile is hard to suppress when he can see the supe get more irate with each word, shaking his head.

"Don't even--! Your entire bed smells like cigarettes most days of the week! Maybe you should have just washed your sheets instead of throwing my cape into your godforsaken basement washing machine!"

I love how Billy doesn't back off in an argument, he certainly did that because he found it 'hot' in that heat of the moment hehe. I like to think that Billy's affection language is act of service, he did that and when he saw Homelander got upset, he offered to wash the cape for him, something that he doesn't do for himself (his bedding smells and his clothing look like that'd seen better days!) but he did this only exception for John.. that's really cute!

"Because you're not allowed to throw an American flag in the trash, idiot. Even if it's been desecrated by some British barbarian."

"Desecrated, huh? Pretty sure you're not supposed to wear an American flag either."

"I'm not some nobody. I honor it by wearing it."

"Then stop bitching and keep wearing it! Maybe you'll start a new trend."

Homelander looks like he's contemplating lasering Butcher in half, but his eyes don't go red.

'SCREAMS' Gosh I love love this part soo much!! first of all, okay you can think I'm weird or BUT bringing this thing of Billy being British and manhandles Homelander around by his American cape or this cute, small dialogue of 'how you can understand the value of this flag? you're a barbarian British man' is just really cute! I keep imagine how their kids' accent gonna be by one parent being english and another one is an american hehe. I once read somewhere that Karl's accent isn't good at all but oh well, I like it XD it's also cute how Billy says back 'you aren't supposed to wear it too' then just giving up like 'just stop yelling at me and wear it! you'll start a new brand!' God, Billy just say you're sorry! both of them are hard to tolerate and both of them are made to be together! one of my friends kept asking me why I ship these two this much and after she watched the show she's like 'they both are evil and assholes and are made to be boyfriends for eachother' X3 I shared your Zinc fic with her too and she's loving it so much already! oh God, forgive my long comment! I babble a lot when I get excited and sometimes it gets out of the subject! sorry! I really love reading how you write their argument! they act like married couples hehe. I loved how John held himself back hehe his eyes didn't even glow red! (then you were expecting I have him laser Billy in my game Xp) he would never hurt his Billy so.

"Didn't see a tag that said 'cold wash only'." Butcher shrugs. "And I was always told that 'these colors don't run'."

"You are so fucking disrespectful and so fucking proud of it too," Homelander says, shaking his head. "Insulting every vet who ever died defending this country and what this flag stands for."

"Oh please, there's only one person I'm disrespecting." Butcher checks something on his phone. "Well, you're right. You're not supposed to throw the flag in with rubbish. You're supposed to burn it. Funny that, always thought that was more of a 'Death to America' kind of spectacle."

Gosh, no wonder they got divorce in season 4! Billy kept being irritating then John just decided to take their kid and leave him hehe. just joking XD he'd never do that to his loved ones hehe, he's a cute, clingy boy. tho Billy really needs to make some changes in his behaviour! and not wash his boy's cape with hot water! and stop talking to his boy like that!

"Fine by me," Homelander says and before Butcher can protest sets the shrunken, red-and-pink striped cape he's holding at arm's length on fire, right in the middle of the living room. Charred, black pieces of it float down to the wooden floor.

oh my God!! John no! hhn this headcanon of him heating up the food or cooking with his laser, ok I have an idea and it's so silly but what if he turns on Billy's cigarette with his laser?! I'm just saying! and this imagination of him that does little things like cooking, trying to help Ryan in his school project, doing tricks in parties with his laser or just heating up Billy's coffee/tea or lighting up his smoke is really cute!

The ending, I loved every part of it! poor baby puts his suit out of Billy's reach this time and I wonder if it was all a plan to get the supe shed off his top? XD when Billy went down on his knees I was talking to my screen like 'come on! Billy won't relent! there should be another fight! XD' but then gasp! he went and put John's legs over his shoulder, bending him in half then went to kiss and lick at his chest oh dear!! I love, love body worship for these two! and yeah poor John feels insecure to have his chest exposed or just wear something that shows his true body figure underneath (and the blushing part was soo cute!!!!) Billy's going to make sure he feels confident enough about his body hehe. they're fit for each other, I keep saying! I'd love to know what happens next (God, can you blame me?! your butchlander fics got me addicted! hides) but I think Billy's going to eat him out next after he's finished with his work with John's chest then maybe who knows, John brings around next time a spare flag so Billy can spread it on the ground and ravish John on it hehe. wish I could gift this story more kudos! I love love love it soo much!!! thank you for writing and sharing such cute story!

Cozy Corner Domaystic prompt #6: Laundry

Butchlander, 1k. (Ok, at least I wrote one! phew)

"It's really not that funny."

"Agree to disagree." Butcher can barely get the words out before he cracks up again.

"This is entirely your fault, you know, beginning to end."

"Oh yeah, how do you figure that?"

"If you didn't fucking--" Homelander sighs and presses his lips together in frustration, looking pained to even say it. "... fucking use my cape as a rag and get it dirty in the first place..."

"Did I insist you keep your top on the whole time? Did you really need your security blanket with you while getting shagged?"

"I had the cape out of the way. It wasn't going to get dirty until you decided to clean up with it."

"You were leaking all over the place! Easier to wash your cape than all of the bedding." Butcher tries to keep a straight face, but a smile is hard to suppress when he can see the supe get more irate with each word, shaking his head.

"Don't even--! Your entire bed smells like cigarettes most days of the week! Maybe you should have just washed your sheets instead of throwing my cape into your godforsaken basement washing machine!"

"I'm sorry, love. I'm sure Vought will provide ya with a new one."

"It's not about that." Homelander rolls his eyes. "It's not something you can just throw in the trash."

"Why not?"

"Because you're not allowed to throw an American flag in the trash, idiot. Even if it's been desecrated by some British barbarian."

"Desecrated, huh? Pretty sure you're not supposed to wear an American flag either."

"I'm not some nobody. I honor it by wearing it."

"Then stop bitching and keep wearing it! Maybe you'll start a new trend."

Homelander looks like he's contemplating lasering Butcher in half, but his eyes don't go red.

"It might look better like this, you know. Make you look taller."

"You didn't just shrink it."

"Didn't see a tag that said 'cold wash only'." Butcher shrugs. "And I was always told that 'these colors don't run'."

"You are so fucking disrespectful and so fucking proud of it too," Homelander says, shaking his head. "Insulting every vet who ever died defending this country and what this flag stands for."

"Oh please, there's only one person I'm disrespecting." Butcher checks something on his phone. "Well, you're right. You're not supposed to throw the flag in with rubbish. You're supposed to burn it. Funny that, always thought that was more of a 'Death to America' kind of spectacle."

"Fine by me," Homelander says and before Butcher can protest sets the shrunken, red-and-pink striped cape he's holding at arm's length on fire, right in the middle of the living room. Charred, black pieces of it float down to the wooden floor.

"Oi! You tryin'a burn my flat down just for ruining one of your stupid capes?!"

Homelander's eyes fade back to their cool unnerving blue. "William. I can burn your dingy little apartment down in much more efficient ways if you give me cause."

"Cause?" Butcher asks as he sweeps up the ash into a dustpan. "Like what? Tryin' to kill ya?"

"Like not giving me an I'm-sorry blowjob right fucking now," Homelander says, seating himself on the couch, leaning back and spreading his thighs.

Butcher looks him over, smirks at the supe's brazen eagerness despite getting so worked up about a piece of his uniform getting ruined. "Only if you actually undress this time."

Homelander hesitates, evidently much more comfortable taking off his pants than anything above the waist, but relents. Butcher can't help but snigger when he sees the supe fold his stiff padded suit up carefully and drape it over the back of one of the chairs near the kitchen, making sure it's out of easy reach of where he reseats himself.

Butcher knows when to humor the cunt, and slides down to his knees between Homelander's legs. But he can't help himself, hooks his hands on the insides of Homeland's knees, and pulls them over his shoulders, tilting the pelvis in front of him. Homelander doesn't fight it and instantly, magically looks thrown off his game-- that annoying look of sitting on a throne awaiting service is nowhere to be seen anymore.

"You sure you don't want me to run the rest of it through the wash?"

"Shut up and get on with it already," Homelander hisses, not trying to hide his irritation in the slightest, but still throwing a nervous look over to where his clothes are, out of harm's way, at least for now.

"You don't look half bad with your top off, you know," Butcher says, working Homelander's erection with one hand while sneaking his hand up and tweaking one of the newly uncovered nipples. "And I don’t think you ever really fooled anyone with those pushup padded tits."

Homelander doesn't even deign to respond, turns away with a huff. His face is red... is this shameless son of a bitch blushing because he's actually embarrassed? By this of all things? There's no way Butcher won't take advantage of it.

"You scared to be seen shirtless? Scared to have your nips out? Scared someone might do... this?" Butcher pushes upwards, pulls the supe's knees up right along with him, still hooked over his shoulders, and breathes softly against Homelander's chest and watches his small nipples pull up even tighter. Homelander lets out a delicious, pained sound when Butcher runs his tongue against one of them, still panting as he wraps his arms protectively around his chest.

"My cock's down there," he mumbles, motioning down with his gaze, trying so hard to sound mean.

"Yeah, think I saw it on the way up here."

"William, I've been nothing but patient and never once pulled you or pushed you."

"That's very kind of you."

"Don't make this the first time I have to shove your head down."

"Your cock will get its turn, don't you worry. Soon as I get my fill of being up here, watchin' ya squirm."

Homelander's arms only pull in more tightly, refusing access. Butcher kisses one of his forearms.

"I'm gonna put your whole clownsuit through the wash if you keep acting coy," Butcher threatens the other man, but deep down he wonders why this supe seems so uncomfortable showing his upper body to anyone.

"And I'm gonna laser you in the face," Homelander mutters, but relents and opens his arms.

"Fair trade," Butcher says before running his tongue across the other nipple, enjoying Homelander’s feeble attempt to suppress a moan.

(AO3 link)

A/N: I find these rules amusing and, yes, somewhat crazy:

(d) The flag should never be used as wearing apparel, bedding, or drapery... (j) No part of the flag should ever be used as a costume or athletic uniform [...] The flag represents a living country and is itself considered a living thing. (k) The flag, when it is in such condition that it is no longer a fitting emblem for display, should be destroyed in a dignified way, preferably by burning.