#and then you remember that you can just go talk about your experience

[xinganhao]

🍨 svt spoiling their partner.

★ prompt: how ot13 spoils their partner? 🥹🥹🥹 i am just a girl give me treats c/o @shinwonderful

ⓘ established relationship, pet names, fluff. headcanons under the cut. special thanks to @chugging-antiseptic-dye for helping! ♡

🍨 read more?

seungcheol 𖹭 planning dates. he will refuse to let you lift a finger for your day out. everything will be meticulously laid out, finetuned to be something that you'll enjoy. his goal is to lessen the mental load of decision-making and planning; he wants you to be able to focus solely on enjoying the surprise, and he'll break his back to make sure that happens.

jeonghan 𖹭 'parallel play'. even if the two of you might not be interested in the same things, that's okay. he's happiest to spend quality time with you at home, where the two of you are free to do your own thing within eachother's presence. just being in your vicinity already makes him content, and so he plans everything around the two of you getting to explore and share your respective hobbies.

shua 𖹭 acts of service. need help with your taxes? need someone to fill up your tank? he's already on it. he'll say that these are all 'little things', call it the bare minimum, when it's apparent that he makes it a conscious effort to make your day-to-day easier. his brand of spoiling you comes in the form of quietly doing things that will improve your quality of life.

junhui 𖹭 buying clothes you'll like. he can't help it, really. when he sees an article of clothing that he thinks suits your style? when he finds a local brand that shares your advoacy? he's already pulling out his wallet. he likes the idea of dressing you up. nothing makes him happier than knowing you're wearing an outfit that he entirely picked out for you.

soonyoung 𖹭 daily reasons why he loves you. people always joke that he has a bit of a motormouth, so why shouldn't he use it on talking about you, you, you? he's big on words of affirmation, on making sure you never doubt how he feels for you. he'll point out the little and big things that make him adore you, and it's never the same reason twice.

wonwoo 𖹭 indulging your interests. he may not always understand these trends— blind boxes, must-have fashion pieces, et cetera— but he'll never make you feel bad about it. if there's anything that you want, he's already doing everything within his power to get it. his greatest joy is seeing your face light up once he's gotten you your 'priority' item; it's why he keeps doing it in the first place.

jihoon 𖹭 trying new things for you. there's a long list of things that jihoon never thought he'd do, but then he started dating you. time and time again, he willingly goes out of his comfort zone to accompany you on the little adventures and experiences that you ask to go on. he does these things scared, does them anxious, does them begrudgingly,— does them all for you.

seokmin 𖹭 meals he thinks you'll like. he's the type to have dozens of tabs open for homemade recipes dot com. he knows he's an amateur at this, but he's undeterred in trying. whether it's a trending pastry on tiktok or the comfort meal that your mother makes you, he's determined to learn it so you're always eating well.

mingyu 𖹭 getting-to-know card games. he gives as good as he takes, which means mingyu's way is to listen and remember. a night where the two of you can just have deep conversations with no interruptions is his ideal evening. he will know he succeeded if the two of you end up talking until the sun rises, feeling like the hours haven't passed at all.

minghao 𖹭 postcards from tour stops. he loves art and he loves you. his postcards are pocket-sized reminders of those facts, always packaged with a few choice words that are sweet and sincere. his trinkets are very "i-got-you-this-because-it-reminded-me-of-you" in nature, and you know each one was purchased with you at the front of mind.

seungkwan 𖹭 getting you your favorites. he figures he should put his industry connections to use somehow. he's always amused by how happy you get over a rare photocard, signed album, or concert tickets, and so he keeps it up. buying dozens of albums, contacting other labels, bearing the arduous ticketing. your excitement at the end of it makes it all worth it.

vernon 𖹭 producing songs. he hadn't really pegged himself as the making-music-for-the-sake-of-it type until he met you. now, he revels in getting to send you a track that's for your ears only. all the lyrics just seems to flow naturally when it's you inspiring him, and so he sends you works-in-progress with reminders that you're the only intended audience.

chan 𖹭 at-home massages. he's all too familiar with the aches of an ailing body, so he knows exactly how and where to work on you. he always does what he calls 'the works'— a good bath, scented candles, essential oils. he lets you take your time, and he takes his time with you in helping you unwind.

› scroll through all my work ദ്ദി ˉ͈̀꒳ˉ͈́ )✧ ᶻ 𝗓 𐰁 .ᐟ my masterlist | @xinganhao

[gay4carver]

(don't be afraid to write a lot, do what you want ¯⁠\⁠_⁠(⁠ツ⁠)⁠_⁠/⁠¯)

1/ Which category of alterhumanity do you belong to?

I have a few terms Inuse to self Identify but I vibe the most with just Alterhuman. They are: fictionkin,PAI umbrella, holothere of sorts,Soulbond+fictotype secret mix, demihuman of sorts, draconic of sorts...Ig that's it. LIES I remembered: Polymorph, Otherlink, Otherhearted, Copinglink, starseed of sorts.

2/ What/who is/are your type(s)? (if you have any)

- Isaac clarke from dead space

- Luke Arcanjel from my brain, I made him uo and he gained semi-conciousness™

- Kelvin from Sons of the forest

- Sly fox from William and Sly series

- Nimona

- A gelfling. Probably a Stonewood gelfling, new type.

- Dragon dog thing. Green.

3/ Do you experience shifts? If so, can you tell us your most common shifts and your strangest cameo shift (if you've ever had a cameo shift)?

I used to more when I had just figured out my nonhuman identity. Nowadays I only feel phantom limbs and get dragon/fox zoomies.

And Luke shifts (kin or not) when I listen to starset or get pissed but its hard to tell who is who from how similar we are.

And Gelfling shifts when I feel connected to the world. My strongest shifts are dream shifts nowadays, from all of my kins.

4/ How do you experience your alterhumanity in everyday life?

That's a though one, I actually don't know how to answer that. It is a bog part of me but it is something so personal and like in my soul and brain that I barely recognize how it affects my life because like, I kinda just am like this and i'm used to it. I guess I feel stronger than usual connections to nature and certain aspects of it that are related to my kins, that longing for my hearthomes and for freedom I know I'll never have, that weord feeling that you feel when you watch or read some piece of fiction and you figure out you've found a new thing to call "home".

The feeling you could never disingage yourself from those "characters" and thoae creatures and this part of yourself or else your life woulf be miserable and you know that probably other nonhumans could survive without that perfectly fine. Or missing people you "never met" missing places you "never got to" and onowing you probably wont now but somehow fundong thoae exact places and people on earth and feeling whole.

5/ What do you think of the community?

it's 50/50 either the shittiest crap I ever got into or the safest place I got into. Depends on plataform, group, user base age, and the kind of kin the userbase is. In my experience the most toxic spaces have been (in order):

- Draconic discords because: dick measuring, trauma olympics, "who is the most OP" olympics, "I started a war in my past life and I cannot deal with the pain. "Bro I destroyed UNIVERSES that's NOTHING!!"" Suicidal ideation normalization and even glamorization of suicide to "go back on living as a dragon again".

- Fictionkin/KFF discords because of younger users fighting over doubles, "problematic" kins, fakeclaiming people who doubled their friends and talking the utmost shit of that person who did NOTHING to them, "anti this anti that", trauma olympics.

- Bluesky in general because in my country the theriam community got famous and now its a trend to hate on it and tell people to kill themselves.

- Tumblr because of the amount of grilling, "activism" that is actually just policing, fake claimojg and so on.

- The off date othercon server because no one seems to be able to listen to someone else's experience without giving their opinion on it saying how wrong it it because it doesnt fit their definition of x label, because apparently "you gotta fit the box" and not "the box has to fit you" is more important. They also know better about you than you know yourself. No one can stfu about themselves and listen to other people either it was always a "me me me" competition when I was there.

These places might have changed idk I no longer am there, sometimes I pop up on tumblr still but I avoid it. I have honestly lost most of my interest to engage with the community because it is most of the time unpleasant and stressfull or I read stupid shit that makes me too angry. Now I just hang out on a server I mod with other friends.

6/ What are the things that make you most comfortable and euphoric in your alterhumanity?

Nature, space, looking at stars, drawing, singing and listening to music, when i'm out in nature, when the day its so beautiful I want to cry. Rain. Gear sometimes. Playing my game sources. Witchcraft, beijg around my friends and especially my partners. My shifts.

7/ Are you experiencing species dysphoria?

Somtimes it is as bad as my gender dysphoria but that's mostly because most of my kins are men or another gender. I don't like to be percieved as a human sometimes and it angers me i'm not percieved and treated as a mystical being.

8/ What advice would you like to say to a young alterhuman who has just awakened?

DO YOUR RESEARCH AND DONT TRUST TIKTOK AND FOR THE LOVE OF GOD DONT GO DOING QUADROBICS AS IF IT'S NOT A SPORT THAT REQUIRES PRE-TRAINING AND AS IF YOU WHERE A PROFESSIONAL. Please I know a kid that git kicked by a horse and the other dislocated their wrist because they tried jumping from a sofa to another. Quadrobics can be dangerous and it's not everyone that can do it cus it can mess up some health conditions more. Do not grill people or mistrear thwm because you dont understand them. Dont use your kins as an excuse to being an asshole or misstreating others. You are a amalgam of yout kins and you are not them individually, dont try to act like your past life because you feel like you should because it feels "more legit" and throw away the person you are nowadays, you are still your kin and valid even if you sound, act, look nothing like them. Don't post thinga about yourself online that could potentialy harm you, like triggers, your face, your city etc, seems obvious but people still post a lot of things like that and end up regretting it later.

There is nothing wrong ig your identity isn't 100% involuntary and some aspects of it are not subconciously imprinting but rather copinh mechanisms. I used to lie to myself a lot on this and it only hurt me further. Try to see everything with a grey area, not everything is a us vs them thing like it seems online. Your nonhuman identity is yours only, doesnt have to look like anyone else's or has to look like what people tell you it should. Its ok to not know yout kins at first, dont rush things, its also okay to realize you were wrong about a kin or if your identity changes over time, nothing is ever in vain or lost you are just living your cycle, life and nature works in cycles, honour yours and live it to the fullest and freely.

9/ Do you have/want to have gears?

I have 2 tails, I want wings and a RIG now.

10/ Do you know/have any theories about the origin of your alterhumanity? If so, tell us! (all beliefs are legitimate)

Trauma imprinting and trying to actively cope with it. I was also technically raised my my childhood cat. I dunno! I just am! for me it doesn't matter much but it feels sacred somehow! Also autism.

11/ Tag someone/a creature to answer these questions!ㅤᵕ̈

@darksou07

If you are a alterhuman, reblog and answer these questions!

(don't be afraid to write a lot, do what you want ¯⁠\⁠_⁠(⁠ツ⁠)⁠_⁠/⁠¯)

1/ Which category of alterhumanity do you belong to?

2/ What/who is/are your type(s)? (if you have any)

3/ Do you experience shifts? If so, can you tell us your most common shifts and your strangest cameo shift (if you've ever had a cameo shift)?

4/ How do you experience your alterhumanity in everyday life?

5/ What do you think of the community?

6/ What are the things that make you most comfortable and euphoric in your alterhumanity?

7/ Are you experiencing species dysphoria?

8/ What advice would you like to say to a young alterhuman who has just awakened?

9/ Do you have/want to have gears?

10/ Do you know/have any theories about the origin of your alterhumanity? If so, tell us! (all beliefs are legitimate)

11/ Tag someone/a creature to answer these questions!ㅤᵕ̈

[ranger-danger]

Honestly I’ve gotten over the brunt of a lot of my transandropia reactions, but nothing pisses me off more than when people trash trans men in a “actually you’re robbing trans women and femmes of their experiences and don’t even suffer half the actual issues of this problem than them.”

I really doubt most trans women want trans men to be harassed or stripped of their control over their own situations “for” trans women. Idk what world your living in where you see a trans man trying to talk about an issue he faces and go “I should invalidate/minimize all of his problems, that’s what makes me an ally to trans women.” Also. Just to say, not very feminist of you.

You really gotta stop making it seem like trans people hate each other. Most trans people IRL couldn’t care less, we have more in common than we have different, and at the end of the day we’re all minorities people hate and we’re all suffering. So please just remember most of us gender minorities don’t actually hate each other like it can seem, even if you don’t have a queer community to connect to outside of online there’s tons of people who don’t harbor vitriolic hate towards trans men.

Y’all are cool <3 have a nice night. I love you for heifer 🐄 (sorry that’s my favorite pun)

[that-nerd-who-writes-fanfiction]

Sometimes I think Merlin and Arthur started the sacrificing each other to save each other shit too soon into the series.

Then I remember this scene exists.

(Screenshot from S1E2 - Valiant of Merlin bringing the snake head from the enchanted shield to Arthur to warn him that he’s in danger.)

They moved quickly, but they have a damn good reason for it. I honestly can’t say I blame them.

Merlin learned two things about his destiny with Arthur from this episode:

The first is that Arthur will listen when it matters, but his father’s influence runs deep. Arthur cares more about people’s opinion of him than anything else because he’s been groomed his entire life to become the future king, and Uther is tyrannical in his power so he believes that his is the only way to rule. Arthur picked up bad habits, so while he’s still young and learning what kind of man and leader he wants to be, he could still go either way and Merlin can’t yet trust him to always make the best decisions. (Proved in S1E3 when he enlists Morgana to talk to Arthur about the Afank)

The second thing is that Arthur believes in the systems that Merlin knows to be broken, so he learns it’s better to come to Arthur with results rather than warnings, because Arthur believes the systems in place can help, even in situations where they’d be more of a liability.

Both points are then enforced through season 1 and reinforced by Merlin himself in season 2 onwards.

Arthur learned that Merlin is loyal and honest to a fault, but because of the lifelong grooming as royalty and someone who’s supposed to be “above all others” - as proven when Uther says “his life isn’t worthless, it’s worth less than yours” to Arthur in S1E4 when he denies Arthur a group of men to take to save Merlin - it takes a while for it to really sink in that someone can be loyal and genuinely like him without ulterior motive, and when he finally does recognise that Merlin’s devotion is genuinely sincere, he pushes Merlin away (S2E1) in an attempt to keep himself from getting too close and then hurt by what his father would call his own naivety, rather than just admitting that sometimes people are just bad people who do bad things.

He then subconsciously or not learns that Merlin not being by his side is bad so he keeps him around but at a distance with walls built to protect himself. I can go more into that another time. Uther scapegoats Arthur for a lot, and even acknowledges that he’s a bad parent a few times but never does anything to change the behaviour so his apologies aren’t worth shit. Add that to the genocidal tyranny, and you’ve got a fascinating character who somehow isn’t the main villain of the story. I hate him, he should go play hop scotch on quick sand, but damn is he interesting from a writing/analytical standpoint.

So, yeah, they moved from “if anyone wants to kill him, they can go right ahead. I’ll give them a hand” (-Merlin S1E1) to “…Certain death. Few who have crossed the mountains in search of the Mortaeus Flower have made it back alive” “Sounds like fun” (-Gaius and Arthur S1E4) pretty quickly, but it makes sense when you think about why they moved that quickly with context of how they interact and their (assumed) past experiences.

[hxlxnaaa]

𝐬𝐡𝐚𝐝𝐞𝐬 𝐨𝐟 𝐠𝐫𝐞𝐞𝐧

★ synopsis: over one summer, a whirlwind romance creates an obvious choice: to stay in the life she's always known or follow sylus into the unknown, chasing love and freedom.

★ character: sylus

★ cw: first-person POV, sort of present day au? pretty fluffy, some implications but nothing obvious, soft sylus, may have spelling errors (i wrote this at 2 am)

★ word count: 1.3k

★ a/n: this is super short and not really meant as an intense read. just some poetic fluff about sylus (lord knows we need more sweet reads of him *sob*)

I remember the first time I saw him.

He was so… different from everyone around. The way he acted, the way he held himself, the devious smirk that always graced his devilishly handsome face. He had this aura that was off, but in this perfectly, sickeningly good way. He was something this dull town never had.

He came in once to my bakery, smiling and talking to me as if he had known me forever.

“What’s your name, sweetie?” That was different, no one spoke to each other like that around here. Anyone in their right mind would be creeped out, yet I enjoyed every second; every word that came out of his mouth spoke with his deep, velvet voice. I loved the difference, I loved the attention he gave me. Constant indulging in the feeling his presence brought on.

Introducing himself as Sylus, I said his name thousands of times in my head.

The look he gave me when he learned my name was engraved in my mind for centuries. His hard eyes softened, repeating every syllable as if it was candy on his tongue. Of my name.

Sylus, Sylus, Sylus.

After that, he would visit at least once a day, if not a few times. He’d lean over my counter, propping himself up on one of his arms. He always rolled his sleeves up, and buttoned his shirt to his lower chest, showing enough of his perfect skin that I always resisted to touch.

“Red is your color.” I had told him this after he wore this delicious, wine red top. It complimented everything on him, like a rose in the snow.

“Everything is your color.” He leaned towards me, holding his face in his hand.

“Why do you say that?” I started serving a customer, and I could feel his eyes on me.

“Well,” He started, “Your personality is very warm, like yellow, orange, and red.”

I glanced at him, “Have a good evening!” I bid the lady I served goodbye.

“And your looks are very cool, blues and purples fit you best.”

Turning away from him, adjusting things on my shelves, I asked, “What about green?”

“What about green?” He repeated.

“You didn’t mention green. Does green fit me?”

He smirked, “I told you every color fits you. So green would too. I’m sorry I didn’t mention every shade in the rainbow.”

I turned back to him, and he had his head resting in his arms, staring at me with his usual smug look. Walking up to him, I ran a hand through his hair, “Y’know, green actually takes up most of the color spectrum. It has a countless number of shades.”

“Really?”

“Mm,” I gave him one of his favorite pastries I made, “it's evolutionary. Humans are omnivores, so our eyes help us differentiate between shades of green to help us find plants to eat and avoid, but it can help us find prey animals that are seeking specific kinds of plants.”

“You’re truly fascinating, sweetie. You and all your shades of green.”

“As are you, Sylus.”

As are you.

Sylus was on a trip here for the summer. When I asked him why?

"To find someone like you."

I thought of him as borrowing my heart, when I knew he wouldn’t return it when he left at the end of the summer. When the leaves turned yellow, red and orange, just as he described my personality, he’d take my heart with him back to his home.

I felt something with him, a spark, a waterfall of passion. Something I had never felt in this city before.

There were the ruins, a place where all the young civilians would go to party into the early mornings. Sylus convinced me to go with him once.

“I want the experience of being here.” He had stated matter of factly, yet I knew the tall man was just finding an excuse to be with me a while longer.

I rolled my eyes, “That’s not much of an experience, being around a bunch of sweaty drunks.”

Oh but it was. To travel back to that night, where we had danced together, our cheeks flushed with red wine, or bodies pressed into one.

He took me back to the bakery, and kissed me against the old brick walls. Him in his red shirt, buttoned down and sleeves up, his hair a mess, but still shining in the illumination of the moon and street lights.

From there, something shifted.

I’d show him all my secret spots, just to fall into a field together, tangled in each other's limbs. He’d kiss me like I was his world, and nothing else existed; and with him, nothing else did exist.

I tried to teach him how to bake, how to knead dough, how to remember measurements without a recipe. Sylus would get flour in his hair, on his cheeks, his nose, his shirt and his pants (all on purpose, courtesy of me).

"We have to match.” He’d say, before taking his flour covered hands and taking my face in them, rubbing his dusty nose on mine, rubbing our cheeks together. I giggled and smacked his chest with a towel, before wiping his and my face off.

There was the night where I wore a new dress; an emerald green sundress that matched the grassy hills of the city in the night. He took one look at me, his red eyes burning with love and desire, and as I took a step forward his hands were all over. Dinner was scrapped, and I spent the night under him tangled in the sheets, one with love.

After, cuddled together, a sweaty beautiful mess, he adjusted his bare chest against mine. Placing his hand on my hip, drawing shapes with his finger, he whispered to me as I was about to fall asleep,

“So many shades of green, and I was lucky enough to find you.”

“I love you, Sylus.” I mumbled through reality and my dreams.

He smiled against my lips, “I love you too.”

As they say, time flies when you’re having fun. Eventually, the end of summer came around.

I would have to say goodbye. Say goodbye to Sylus, say goodbye to everything.

No more grand entrances into my work, messing with the collar of his red billowy shirt. No more watching his bare back as he’d stretch in the morning, smirking back at me as he’d trace his fingers over marks on his neck and chest. Life would go back to routine, everything in this town staying quiet and still as it once was. Before I knew him.

The day before he had to leave, he swung open the door to my bakery, a wild look in his eyes.

“Come with me.” He said, stern. The look on his face told me I wasn’t getting much of a choice. I wasn’t sure I wanted one.

I raised a brow, “What?”

He walked behind the counter, one hand grabbing my waist, the other going through my hair.

“Come back with me. Stay with me. You can open a bakery there, I’ll help. Everything will be the same. You said it yourself, you wanted out of here, come with me.” His usual put together look was coming undone, his lips pulled tightly together as a silent plea.

He could make it happen, the man had more money than I could ever imagine. Going with him could make all my dreams come true; getting out of this monotonous town, living comfortably, being…happy.

I shook my head, almost trying to convince myself not to listen, “Sylus, you’re not thinking about this.” Hypocritical, I’m not sure I was either.

His brows furrowed, “I have. That's all I’ve done. Now, sweetie, say yes.”

I thought about all the shades of green.

…

“Yes.”

(divider by cafekitsune)

[autisticcatnip]

Andy Weir beat you to it

The Egg

By: Andy Weir

You were on your way home when you died.

It was a car accident. Nothing particularly remarkable, but fatal nonetheless. You left behind a wife and two children. It was a painless death. The EMTs tried their best to save you, but to no avail. Your body was so utterly shattered you were better off, trust me.

And that’s when you met me.

“What… what happened?” You asked. “Where am I?”

“You died,” I said, matter-of-factly. No point in mincing words.

“There was a… a truck and it was skidding…”

“Yup,” I said.

“I… I died?”

“Yup. But don’t feel bad about it. Everyone dies,” I said.

You looked around. There was nothingness. Just you and me. “What is this place?” You asked. “Is this the afterlife?”

“More or less,” I said.

“Are you god?” You asked.

“Yup,” I replied. “I’m God.”

“My kids… my wife,” you said.

“What about them?”

“Will they be all right?”

“That’s what I like to see,” I said. “You just died and your main concern is for your family. That’s good stuff right there.”

You looked at me with fascination. To you, I didn’t look like God. I just looked like some man. Or possibly a woman. Some vague authority figure, maybe. More of a grammar school teacher than the almighty.

“Don’t worry,” I said. “They’ll be fine. Your kids will remember you as perfect in every way. They didn’t have time to grow contempt for you. Your wife will cry on the outside, but will be secretly relieved. To be fair, your marriage was falling apart. If it’s any consolation, she’ll feel very guilty for feeling relieved.”

“Oh,” you said. “So what happens now? Do I go to heaven or hell or something?”

“Neither,” I said. “You’ll be reincarnated.”

“Ah,” you said. “So the Hindus were right,”

“All religions are right in their own way,” I said. “Walk with me.”

You followed along as we strode through the void. “Where are we going?”

“Nowhere in particular,” I said. “It’s just nice to walk while we talk.”

“So what’s the point, then?” You asked. “When I get reborn, I’ll just be a blank slate, right? A baby. So all my experiences and everything I did in this life won’t matter.”

“Not so!” I said. “You have within you all the knowledge and experiences of all your past lives. You just don’t remember them right now.”

I stopped walking and took you by the shoulders. “Your soul is more magnificent, beautiful, and gigantic than you can possibly imagine. A human mind can only contain a tiny fraction of what you are. It’s like sticking your finger in a glass of water to see if it’s hot or cold. You put a tiny part of yourself into the vessel, and when you bring it back out, you’ve gained all the experiences it had.

“You’ve been in a human for the last 48 years, so you haven’t stretched out yet and felt the rest of your immense consciousness. If we hung out here for long enough, you’d start remembering everything. But there’s no point to doing that between each life.”

“How many times have I been reincarnated, then?”

“Oh lots. Lots and lots. An in to lots of different lives.” I said. “This time around, you’ll be a Chinese peasant girl in 540 AD.”

“Wait, what?” You stammered. “You’re sending me back in time?”

“Well, I guess technically. Time, as you know it, only exists in your universe. Things are different where I come from.”

“Where you come from?” You said.

“Oh sure,” I explained “I come from somewhere. Somewhere else. And there are others like me. I know you’ll want to know what it’s like there, but honestly you wouldn’t understand.”

“Oh,” you said, a little let down. “But wait. If I get reincarnated to other places in time, I could have interacted with myself at some point.”

“Sure. Happens all the time. And with both lives only aware of their own lifespan you don’t even know it’s happening.”

“So what’s the point of it all?”

“Seriously?” I asked. “Seriously? You’re asking me for the meaning of life? Isn’t that a little stereotypical?”

“Well it’s a reasonable question,” you persisted.

I looked you in the eye. “The meaning of life, the reason I made this whole universe, is for you to mature.”

“You mean mankind? You want us to mature?”

“No, just you. I made this whole universe for you. With each new life you grow and mature and become a larger and greater intellect.”

“Just me? What about everyone else?”

“There is no one else,” I said. “In this universe, there’s just you and me.”

You stared blankly at me. “But all the people on earth…”

“All you. Different incarnations of you.”

“Wait. I’m everyone!?”

“Now you’re getting it,” I said, with a congratulatory slap on the back.

“I’m every human being who ever lived?”

“Or who will ever live, yes.”

“I’m Abraham Lincoln?”

“And you’re John Wilkes Booth, too,” I added.

“I’m Hitler?” You said, appalled.

“And you’re the millions he killed.”

“I’m Jesus?”

“And you’re everyone who followed him.”

You fell silent.

“Every time you victimized someone,” I said, “you were victimizing yourself. Every act of kindness you’ve done, you’ve done to yourself. Every happy and sad moment ever experienced by any human was, or will be, experienced by you.”

You thought for a long time.

“Why?” You asked me. “Why do all this?”

“Because someday, you will become like me. Because that’s what you are. You’re one of my kind. You’re my child.”

“Whoa,” you said, incredulous. “You mean I’m a god?”

“No. Not yet. You’re a fetus. You’re still growing. Once you’ve lived every human life throughout all time, you will have grown enough to be born.”

“So the whole universe,” you said, “it’s just…”

“An egg.” I answered. “Now it’s time for you to move on to your next life.”

And I sent you on your way.

Imagining a world where reincarnation is real and everybody suddenly remembers their past lives BUT it turns out all of humanity is just a single soul reincarnating over and over again irrespective of time and space so nobody can talk shit

[loganhowlettshousewife]

logan howlett x disabled!reader with chronic pain (not specified)

series masterlist - my masterlist

you should have known better than to go on the mission yesterday, but there’s nothing you hate more than feeling weak and patronised. charles had told you to sit it out if you were in pain, and you’d snapped back that you could handle missions just as well as any other x-man which, while true, doesn’t mean you should push yourself past your limits.

you can’t even get out of bed, every small movement making you whimper and groan as pain shoots through you, unforgiving. after so long dealing with chronic pain, you sometimes think you should be used to it, but no matter how many years go by and how many flares you experience, it never gets any easier.

logan’s upset with you, huffy and fussing, repeating over and over how you should have listened to charles, how the professor only wants what’s best for you, and telling you that it’s idiotic to let your pride take over. he’s being hypocritical, but you know it’s only because he hates to see you this way, hates to see you vulnerable, worries that one day something will happen and the x-mansion will be attacked and you’ll be in too much pain to effectively defend yourself.

so you let him take care of you, because you know it makes him feel better. it allows him a modicum of control over an uncontrollable situation. he, unlike you, has not yet given up on the idea of finding methods to lessen your chronic pain.

he helps you take your medication, brings you food and water, goes so far as to feed you so that you don’t even have to shift your body in case it’s too much. he waits by your side until the drugs kick in, refusing to leave until you tell him to go.

he asks jean to check in on you, asks if there’s anything she can do with all of her medical knowledge - the answer is no, there is no cure to a condition like yours, only techniques to lessen the pain temporarily. he searches for the few mutants in the mansion with healing abilities and practically begs them for help; it’s the only time he lets anyone see him vulnerable, because he hates to see you in pain and would do anything to bring your usual smile back to your face.

you groan in annoyance when he returns to your room with a slightly scared-looking teenager that you vaguely remember teaching last year, but she takes some of your pain away and so you thank the kid. she blushes and whispers “you’re welcome” before skittering out the room, and you’re now able to move enough to turn towards logan with your arms crossed over your chest, an unimpressed stare leveled at his face.

“she asked to help!” he protests, “he overheard me talking to jean about your pain and she offered. i didn’t force her to do anything.”

you sigh. chronic pain can’t be healed even with mutant abilities, you’ve tried it all before. it can take away the worst of it in the same way that some medication can, help with the inflammation that comes with a flare up, bring it down to manageable levels. but you’ll never be free of this burden.

“come here,” you say, and he does, nearly tripping over himself in his haste to give you anything and everything you desire. it’s ridiculous and you laugh, the first real smile you’ve shown all day, now that every breath no longer feels like a battle not to cry out in pain.

you stay in bed the rest of the day. it’s better to take it easy for a while than to risk anything. and logan stays with you, massaging at your muscles until they relax under his strong grip, leaving only to bring you more meals and your medication. he kisses you every time you complain that he surely has better things to be doing, covering your mouth with his large palm as he reminds you that you’re the most important thing to him now.

main taglist: @raeinyourdreams @meetmypointlessaddiction @chubbyhedgehog @yxtkiwiyxt @isepod @dis-plus-fanfic-reblog-writes @deaky-with-a-c

[deathdetermineslife]

happy memories selfship ask game !

❄️ - are you and your f/o fond of the snow or the cold? what's your favorite memory of you and them you spent together in the winter time?

🌈 - have you and your f/o ever seen a rainbow together? what was the experience like? when you and your f/o were little, did you believe there was a pot of gold at the end of a rainbow?

🫧 - what's a silly memory you have of your f/o. something you think about and just giggle a little bit.

🌊 - have you and your f/o ever went to the beach together? or, if not the beach, have you ever visited a lake or some other large body of water together? what did you do? how was the experience?

🌪️ - do you and your f/o ever go to restaurants together? what are those experiences like? is there anything you two order in particular, maybe you share a meal?

⚡ - how do you and your f/o typically fair in thunderstorms? do you like spending them together? do you find them relaxing, or perhaps one or both of you are scared of the thunder?

☁️ - what's a memory you have of your f/o helping you cheer up after a bad day? do you think your f/o remembers that experience? do you think it meant as much to them as it did to you?

☀️ - do you have an experience that you've had with your f/o that you just love to talk about? what is it? why do you love it so much? if you don't have one, do you think your f/o has one?

⭐ - have you and your f/o ever stargazed before? if not, do you ever sit under the stars with them? take a moment to just appreciate your life and the care you share for your f/o?

✨ - what's a memory you have of your f/o that makes you happy? something little, not something big. something that you think about and just smile.

💫 - if you and your f/o have ever watched the sunrise or sunset together, what was it like? what did you talk about? did you talk at all?

☄️ - have you and your f/o ever experienced something really cool together, like watching a meteor shower or a solar eclipse? something else? what was it? how did you two feel about it?

🪐 - whats the most fun experience you've had with your f/o? what did you two do together? why did you love it so much?

🌑 - what's the first really impactful memory you can think of having with your f/o? the first time you really thought, "yea, this is gonna be someone I care for for a really long time."

🌕 - what was your first time exchanging "I love you's" like with your f/o? romantically or not. did you say "I love you", or did you say that in another way?

a little self indulgent because I'm feeling kinda gushy today and wanna share the love. practice reblog karma if you can, I tried to keep this as general as I could so it wasn't just about romantic f/os!

[goddessinnerglow]

Become Your Best Version Before 2025 - Day 20

Building Confidence

Hey Goddesses! After yesterday's deep dive into self-care rituals, let's talk about something that naturally builds on taking care of ourselves, developing genuine confidence. You know how those small acts of self-care we discussed help us feel more grounded? That same step-by-step approach can work wonders for building lasting confidence.

Think about confidence like a garden. You don't just throw some seeds on the ground and expect a flourishing garden overnight. It needs daily attention, nurturing, and patience. The good news? Every small action counts.

Let's explore some practical ways to grow your confidence:

The "Evidence Collection" technique works wonders. Create a folder on your phone where you save screenshots of positive feedback, accomplishments, or moments you felt proud of. On tough days, this becomes your personal proof that you're more capable than you might feel.

Try the "Power Pause" – before automatically saying "I can't" or "I'm not good enough," pause for three seconds. Use that tiny break to add "…yet" to the end of those thoughts. "I'm not good at public speaking… yet." It's amazing how this small shift opens up possibilities.

Remember those self-care rituals we talked about yesterday? They play a huge role here. When you honor your basic needs: rest, movement, nourishment, you're sending yourself a powerful message that you matter. Each time you keep a promise to yourself, even a tiny one like drinking water or taking a short walk, you're building self-trust.

Building confidence isn't about never feeling uncertain; it's about learning to trust yourself even when you do.

Build your confidence with these steps:

Celebrate your daily wins, even tiny ones

Keep promises to yourself

Try one small new thing each day

Stand up straight and take deep breaths

Wear what makes you feel good

Remember your strength by:

Writing down past successes

Keeping a compliments folder

Noting times you were brave

Tracking your progress

Celebrating small victories

Simple ways to feel more confident using Body Language:

Stand tall

Shoulders back

Head high

Make eye contact

Smile when you mean it

Change your inner voice:

Replace "I can't" with "I'm learning"

"I'm not good enough" becomes "I'm growing"

"What if I fail?" becomes "What if I succeed?"

"I should" becomes "I choose to"

"I'm sorry" becomes "Thank you for understanding"

Build confidence through doing:

Start with small challenges

Learn something new

Practice speaking up

Ask questions when unsure

Share your knowledge

When things don't go as planned:

Remember past successes

Learn from the experience

Take a small next step

Be kind to yourself

Ask for help if needed

Build your confidence circle:

Connect with encouraging people

Share your goals with others

Ask for feedback

Offer help to others

Celebrate others' wins

Your challenge for today: Choose one thing that scares you just a little bit (we're talking tiny steps here), and do it. Maybe it's making that phone call you've been putting off, or wearing that colorful shirt that's been sitting in your closet, or sharing your opinion on something small.

What's one small confidence-building step you could take today? Drop your thoughts in the comments, your idea might be exactly what someone else needs to hear.

P.S. Is there a specific aspect of confidence you'd love to learn more about? Public speaking? Dating? Job interviews? Let me know in the comments. I'm planning future content based on what matters most to YOU!

See you tomorrow for Day 21! Remember, confidence isn't about being perfect, it's about trusting that you can handle whatever comes your way. And you absolutely can!

♡ ☆:.｡ Keep glowing, babes! ♡ ☆:.｡ With love, Goddess Inner Glow.

[thoughtscout]

I think it's genuinely becoming concerning how hyper-sexualized we, as a society, are becoming. does no one else think it's genuinely worrying that so many women can remember being a child not being able to google their favourite female cartoon character without seeing grotesquely over-sexualized fanart of her that they couldn't even healthily process at the time, and if you talk about that making you uncomfortable or affecting your wellbeing in any way, you're called a puritan, or a prude, or some other pejorative to indicate that having complex or negative feelings about sexuality in any way is callous or judgemental or a display of moral superiority? why is it so difficult to find art or media that isn't sexualized in nature? why are we so obsessed with making a special and unique feature of the human condition our primary focus almost all of the time? even more concerning is that it isn't just some niche little group of people on the internet, it's rampant. every nook and cranny of the internet has these people, ready and raring to compare you to a Christian missionary if you dare speak anything slightly negative about society's many varying views on sexuality. like the people on Twitter proudly displaying their incest/rape kink (I've seen this one A LOT), because how can you claim to be an ally to survivors of sexual assault, or a feminist, but not even be able to recognize that incestuous abuse is one of the most common forms of child sexual abuse that is committed to young girls by their male relatives, and that women struggle to have their rape stories taken seriously because sexual abuse has been culturally normalized by the mainstream-ification of violent, abusive pornography? why do other people criticizing how modern sexuality enables rape culture make you feel personally threatened or limited in your own, private relationship to your own sexuality? and where does it end? are we going to start telling women who say "no thank you, I'm not interested" to 'loosen up' and 'learn to have some fun' again? are we going to ban women from the platforms they created for themselves to talk about their experiences with sexual trauma and assault? start protecting sex offenders from being held accountable for their crimes, start ignoring the role marriage plays as an institution for male control over female sexuality, start preaching that individual sexual pleasure is all that matters, and anyone who disagrees is a fascist? I'm sure that a large part of the problem is that these people generally have a Shadow Complex, and are still stuck in the "I like to pretend I'm being so rebellious against sexual shame culture, but really my shame is just making me act out in hyper-sexual ways just to be contrarian and spiteful to the perceived status quo, because I never developed the emotional tools needed to simultaneously practice destigmatizing human sexuality while also maintaining critical thinking towards sexual culture, which shows that I'm actually still feeling my internalized shame on a very deep level, and it's still very much affecting me in unconscious and almost uncontrollable ways" phase, which is honestly the case for most of them. I'm just worried for the future, because all the people saying these things are just reinventing pornographic rape culture under the guise of progressivism, and are (intentionally or unintentionally, it depends) causing more harm than good.

I think it's genuinely concerning how sex-negative we, as a society, are becoming. (This post brought to you by a few tweets I saw)

Does no one else think it's genuinely worrying how if you even find a fictional character attractive, you're called a gooner, or a degenerate, or some other pejorative to indicate that being sexual in any way is gross and nasty and yucky? Why does art suddenly lack artistic value because it's sexual in nature? Why are we so obsessed with associating a core feature of the human condition with shame and guilt?

Even more concerning is that it isn't just some niche little group of people on the internet, it's rampant. Every nook and cranny of the internet has these people, ready and raring to call you names if you dare speak anything slightly not-safe-for-work.

Like the people on twitter openly calling trans women degenerates and freaks for having an incest/rape kink (I've seen this one A LOT), because how can you claim to be an ally, or lgbt-friendly, or a feminist, but get mad at a woman expressing her sexuality? Why does sexuality gross you out to the point you feel the need to demean people over it?

And where does it end? Are we going to start calling women who dress a little too revealing 'sluts' again? Are we going to ban sex scenes in movies? Start preaching abstinence, say sex outside of marriage is bad, that lust is immoral, and being gay is a sin?

I'm sure that a large part of the problem is that these people are generally children, and still in the "sex is gross" phase, but I know that's not the case with all of them. I'm just worried for the future, because all the people saying these things are just reinventing conservatism under the guise of progressivism, and are (intentionally or unintentionally, I'm not sure) causing more harm than good.

I know we talk about puritanism and stuff all the time, but in my opinion, it's gotten to a point even the actual puritans didn't get to.

[mad-hatter-memes]

FunkyFrogBait Starters

A collection of dialogue prompts from the videos by FunkyFrogBait. Feel free to edit quotes as necessary.

TW: Swearing, threats, and suggestive references

"My fellow Caucasians astound us with their ingenuity yet again..."

"This is just an evil, evil thing to do with pasta..."

"No spaghetti for you, sir."

"I could be doing any number of things with my life, but I've chosen to share this moment with you...Don't you feel so special?"

"This feels very forbidden..."

"I don't know what this is but it's not fettucine!"

"I just scalded myself! That was uncomfortable..."

"To be clear...I would not feed this to a dog..."

"This esophagus is rated E for everything!"

"Aren't I a lucky little boy? Only 40% of these are broken!"

"Is this a complaint that I'm hearing? Spitters are quitters, [Name]."

"It's just you and me, [Name]. So...who's gonna union with you?"

"If there is a god, he has abandoned us for celestial milk and cigarettes."

"That looks like something that would leak out of an infected wound!"

"This looks like porridge was spilled on the floor of a gym locker room and left to ferment for forty days and forty nights!"

"Trying to boil Pringles to make mashed potatoes is like trying to send her flowers after she's already taken the kids."

"Hahahaha, that's really cute, how about you go fuck yourself?!"

"Being a dad seems pretty fun; All you have to do is sometimes remember their names and forget to pick them up from soccer practice. "

"Now, now, don't be hysterical, dear. This is a nearly painless procedure...For me anyways!"

"I have not been allowed around a glue gun since...The incident..."

"The caveman method usually works in my experience."

"Aw babe, your texture makes me wanna barf."

"Now the nice thing about turkey bacon is that you can eat it raw! I think..."

"This says says it serves twenty four people...They haven't met me."

"Hello, Mr. [Last Name]. I'm here to pick up your daughter."

"Please don't call the police...I know this a weird use of my free time but it's technically not illegal."

"I'm about to give myself an accidental haircut..."

"Can I just call up a priest and have him waterboard me...?"

"Whoookay...This makes me want to join a nunnery."

"Who up praying with they rosary right now?"

"STOP FINGERING EVERYTHING! I AM A CHILD OF GOD!"

"Girl, what foundation is that?! Not a pore in sight!"

"[Name], honey. You're already slaying, you don't need to slay innocent civilians."

"Where did they find this child? The Victorian Era?!"

"ASAB: Assigned Sidekick at Birth. How unfortunate..."

"Who is giving these children access to deadly weapons?! Hello?!"

"The kids like thirteen. Just throw a Roblox gift card as hard as you can and run in the opposite direction."

"[Character Name] is dead, [Muse Name]! And you're worried about the fidelity of this game to it's source material?!"

"Paint a picture for us, [Name]! Don't hold back!"

"I would've bully the fuck outta this kid. And I did musical theater!"

"Where are people getting all this Tannerite?! I want some!"

"Is the cockroach infestation required or optional?"

"I'm being manipulated by a gothic aesthetic and common sense!"

"Yikes! Don't show that to your grandma!"

"That's my heart after the hot girl in my Com Sci class tells me that our star signs are incompatible!"

"I really wouldn't talk how other people look if your eyebrows can't agree on what timezone they're in."

"Is god really rockin' with you? Sinner..."

"Let me eat my oreos in peace goddamnit!"

"I'M GONNA START POWERWASHING THE CEILING!"

"You know what crybaby fumblefingers? At this point you owe me money. Hand over twenty, pretty boy!

"Why is she beckoning me ominously...?"

"That's because you've been selected for ritual sacrifice, [Name]. You know how they are this time of the month..."

"Do you have family, [Name]? Anyone you'd be particularly devastated to lose in a violent and sudden way?"

"You know what, [Name]? I'd probably punch you over a Hot Wheels too!"

"I see god's law not as a restriction...but a challenge!"

"I am deeply dissatisfied with my life choices and I am NOT afraid to make that your problem at five o' clock in the morning!"

"I hope one of your family members is in a car accident this week!"

"It's fucking terrible and I'm overcome by a desire to kill James Corden for some reason!"

"I'm sorry...Do you think mother earth is just lactating blue raspberry surprise, bitch?!"

[sturniololuv08]

On The Fifth Day Of Nickmas....

Day 5 of Juno's 12 Days Of Nickmas (posting late!)

Nick had just fallen asleep a few hours before being woken up to start their early day. He spent most of the night thinking about his situation with Jared. He was grumpy and tired. During the three-hour drive to the airport, he couldn't get comfortable enough to try and take a nap. Then, TSA was hell to get through because it was one week before Christmas. Everyone was starting to travel out while they were just trying to get back home. Nick wished they could have Christmas with his parents on the actual day, but they knew it would be less of a headache to do it early. Once they were on the plane seated Nick got comfy and was hoping to try and take a nap. The way the flights worked out meant as soon as they landed he had to go straight to the warehouse to start prepping for the campaign. Jared was sitting next to Matt on this flight.

"Are you coming with us to the ware house?" Matt started conversation.

"I don't know. I assumed not since its business and all." Jared was honest.

"You should come." Matt smiled and rested his head back to get comfy.

"If Nick is fine with it, sure." Jared was fine letting Nick be the deciding factor. It was his campaign, and he was in charge. The rest of the plane ride, Jared sneaked a glance at Nick's profile from a few rows behind. He noticed his jaw was a little sharper than usual. He couldn't help but smile every time he peeked over at his best friend. Once the routine travel experience was over, they found themselves outside at the warehouse.

"I'll see you later." Jared smiled.

"Wait, you aren't coming?" Nick asked, shocked.

"Can I?" Jared further explained his confusion. "I know it's like business stuff. I didn't know if friends were allowed to come."

"Yeah, come on." Nick took his bag from him and walked inside the warehouse's double door. Jared followed him in. Chris and Matt stayed behind in the cab to take the ride home.

"Doesn't look like how I remember it." Jared walked doing a 360 turn.

"Well, yeah. We have to change things for new posts, themes, and also for our solo projects."

"Speaking of, does Matt even have one?" Jared chuckled.

"At this point, probably not." Nick dropped their bags on the floor.

"Nick, are you here?" Someone's voice yelled from up the stairs.

"Yeah." Nick jolted up the stairs. Jared noted how exhausted he indeed looked. "Coming?" He looked down and gave a weakened smile.

"Yeah." Jared followed him up the steps. Once he broke the floor level with his head he saw how tiring their job really could be. There were people moving props around, a few people with a rack of clothes discussing outfit ideas, a lady with a clipboard pointing and directing, and a group of men and women who were getting directed.

"Thank god you are here." She stopped talking to everyone else to focus solely on Nick. "You first outfit change is ready for you. I figured we'd get you dressed and then do the models first. Then you." A fake Christmas tree passed us. "Where are the lights?" She yelled at the men carrying it.

"They haven't arrived yet." One shrugged.

"What?" She seethed and looked at her clipboard.

"Laura, breathe. It'll be fine. It already looked amazing in here." Nick put a hand on her shoulder, and she took a few breaths.

"Who is this?" Her tunnel vision widened, and she saw Jared.

"This is my friend -"

"Jared." She finished cocking her head to the side. "You auditioned for the Pool Club Pack." She bit her pen.

"Yeah, horrible audition but -"

"But I liked it. I liked your aura." She smiled and put out a hand. "I'm Laura, the boy's manager." Jared shook it lightly.

"Thank you."

"Anyways. Nick, outfit." She directed. Nick grabbed Jared's hand, knowing he wouldn't know where to go or what to do without Nick taking charge. Nick was handed some clothes and Jared followed him to the bathroom.

"Do I -"

"Sure." Nick held the door open. He knew Jared would feel too uncomfortable sitting out there with strangers. Jared crammed in the tiny bathroom with him. Nick took off his shirt and Jared saw all of his tattoos. He had seen them before but in this proximity they held a richer black hue than usual. "Can you hold this?" Nick handed Jared his old clothes. He was down to his boxers and socks. Jared nodded, feeling a lump in his throat. Being this close to Nick, with him mainly being exposed, made him feel warm. Nick finished dressing quickly, and when he opened the door, Jared felt the cold air spill into the room, filling his lungs. He licked his lips and tried to forget what Nick's tattooed body looked like in front of him.

"Perfect." Laura's voice boomed loud enough to clear Jared's thoughts. Nick was in a pretty pink polo and some khaki shorts now.

"What do I do?" Jared whispered.

"Just watch." Nick winked, and Jared immediately felt embarrassed. He couldn't help but think Nick had caught him staring in the bathroom.

"This is the candy cane flavor," Laura announced to everyone. "Think spicy and fun." A couple of people laughed. Some cheery Christmas music started up, and Nick walked over to be with the models. He started talking and laughing, all of which looked forced and exhausted. Jared liked the way he looked in pink, but the khakis were a miss. Jared found himself looking through the racks of clothes. He found some white jeans, draped them over his arm, and kept looking. He walked over to a wall with shoes lined up and found some brown loafers. He nodded and carried it back to where he was supposed to be stuck. He noticed Nick was eating and displaying the candy cane cookies he had baked with his family in Chicago. Jared's mouth dropped open a little bit at the surprise.

"What's this?" Nick asked, walking over. Jared looked down at the clothes he was caught holding.

"I don't think the khakis are right. So I just looked around and found this and -"

"Sweet. Thanks." Nick grabbed it without asking any questions and went to the bathroom without Jared. He emerged and looked breathtaking.

"What is this? This isn't the second outfit they -"

"It is now." Nick looked down at himself and back up to Laura.

"Okay." She didn't fight him. He flashed Jared a smile and followed her to a corner with a white backdrop. Jared sighed, realizing his mistake.

"He is going to blend in too much." The photographer said. Jared wanted to fix his mistake, so Nick was in trouble or embarrassed for taking his friend's style idea. His eyes darted all around the room until his eyes settled on a bright red throw blanket. He walked over and grabbed it fast. He approached the three, discussing the outfit issue confidently.

"Try this, Nick?" He handed it to him.

"Jared, this is great." Nick laid the blanket out and sat on it. He pulled out his new unreleased candy cane-flavored lip balm and looked at Laura and the photographer expectantly.

"Okay." The cameraman started taking shots of Nick posing with minimal directions.

"Nice work, Jared." Laura stood back by him as they watched Nick smile and laugh. "He seems more comfortable," she noted. Nick came over after the shots were done.

"Can I do a few with Jared?" Nick puppy dog-eyed Laura.

"No. No. I look so bad." Jared humbly refused.

"Sure." Laura saw all of Nick's exhaustion turn into enthusiasm. Nick grabbed Jared and rushed them over to the clothes.

"You are going to do so good." Nick started looking for something to fit Jared.

"Nick, I'm literally the worst. It's why I didn't get chosen before."

"You have modeling experience, right?" Nick looked at his worried friend.

"So I lied on my application." Jared owned up to his flaw.

"You did what?" Nick busted up laughing.

"I really wanted the gig." He flushed red, exposing himself.

"Okay, well, this is really easy. This isn't like Matt's Prada gigs." Nick rolled his eyes and handed Jared a makeshift outfit based on the color scheme of the next shoot. Jared went and changed, noting that the clothes weren't a perfect fit but unnoticeable.

"We'll have you over here. And Jared can do this." Laura planned to involve Jared. "I know it's not my job to get in your personal lives too much, but as your manager, I do want to say one thing." Laura took her chance to speak to Nick alone.

"Yeah?" Nick braced himself for the lecture that wouldn't mean anything since they were just best friends.

"There is a difference between just friends and best friends, Nick. Just friends don't look at each other the way you look at him. And best friends never stay just friends." She smiled. Before Nick could give his usual speech to her too, Jared emerged. "Wonderful. Remember, just be yourself."

"I'm nervous," Jared whispered to Nick so only he could hear.

"Come here." Nick wrapped an arm around Jared's waist and pulled him in close. Nick's action was meant to make him feel safer, but it only made him feel flustered more. Nick handed Jared his product to model with, and the flashes started popping off. Jared felt a sensation similar to sleeping; he only moved and went with the flow with no control over his body. "Try this." Nick started to apply the balm to Jared's plush lips. Nick looked deeply into the green eyes he never cared for before. This time, he saw the twinkling staring daringly back at him. Jared started pressing the tube to Nick's lips and watched as the pressure slowly pulled his bottom lip to the right. Jared licked his bottom lip slightly from the unexpected tingly sensation the candy cane flavor had to it. His eyes never left Nick's.

"I think we got everything," the photographer announced. The boys both looked around, trying to see who saw their shared moment. The only person Nick caught a glimpse of was Laura, who smirked knowingly.

"You only did one flavor?" Jared leaned against the prop counter.

"We only planned marketing for the candy cane one so far. I'm sure by tomorrow, I'll have an email to go over plans for the gingerbread and hot cocoa flavors." Nick fully applied the test tube to his lips. "Besides, I'm tired. I've spent the last five days traveling. I'd like just to go home and relax with Matt and Chris." Jared wasn't sure if he was just sharing or if that was a subtle hint to wanting some space from him specifically.

"I appreciate you letting me come to your family's Christmas, and thank you for coming along to mine." Jared and Nick grabbed their travel bags.

"You know you are welcome at any time, and I'm glad you invited me. Those candy cane cookies were amazing," Nick gushed.

"I saw they might have made a special appearance in some photos." Nick paused for a second.

"I hope that was okay?" He looked nervous. "I just wanted something to make it not look so staged and fake." They waited for the Lyft.

"Totally fine. I thought it was cute." Jared smiled down at Nick to show him he was being genuine.

"Do you want to hang out tomorrow?" Nick looked up at him. The car pulled up to take him home.

"I can't. I have some work stuff I need to do before Christmas." Jared didn't want to decline, but he knew that since they were back in LA, he needed to try to focus on a few other things.

"That's fine, just text me." Nick got into his car and closed the door. As the car drove off, all he could do was think. He wondered if Jared was thinking as much about that moment in the car as he was? He wanted to know what he was thinking about that moment, but most importantly, he wanted to know what was Jared thinking of him.

Taglist: @trevorsgodmother @strnilolover @chrissbug333 @kirby0strombolli @abbilmao @ksturnz

@thenickgirl for reminding me to post though 🫡🫠🫶🥰

[beemovieerotica]

I just saw your post (one of? ) where you discuss your OCD symptoms, and they sounded... Familiar, for lack of a better word. I went into a therapist recently for anxiety and intrusive thoughts, and she wanted to evaluate me for OCD. My dad has diagnosed OCD, and I don't think that my internal experiences match his at all. I really feel like I just have stress-correlated anxiety. Do you mind talking about what your OCD experience is like, for comparison?

oh 100% my ocd ramps up a lot with stress. I have a lot going on but basically ocd can attach itself to anything in your environment and create reasons for why it is an existential threat. anything can be a trigger.

there's also a distinction where people may do none of the habitual compulsions (like physically checking things) and it's all just things revolving in their head - this is a lot of what I have. but yeah here are some more common symptoms / subtypes im familiar with that do get screened for by specialists:

intrusive thoughts like horror movie imagery throughout the day

spiraling what-if catastrophe scenarios that go on for minutes at a time where I just kind of blank out and get wrapped up in an extremely vivid and distressing daydream that feels like it's actually happening. like I will straight up start grieving for someone who is not dead.

superstitions/very specific fear-based beliefs that go beyond what would be typical for the person's religion. centered on blasphemy, moral goodness, purifying one's thoughts, punishing one's self, believing you deserve retribution/death, etc

believing that you're going to hurt/kill yourself and having obsessive suicidal thoughts. suicidal ocd is different from actual suicidality but a lot of providers don't know this or that it needs to be treated differently - it can lead to highly avoidant behavior like not wanting to use kitchen knives or being near ledges out of fear that you will do something.

questioning your memories of the past. being convinced that something horrifying and traumatic happened to you but you just can't remember it, obsessively analyzing memories to try and fill in the gaps. you can develop false memories in this process.

persistent fear of forgetting things, needing to feel like you have to remember everything all the time to avoid catastrophe

re-playing conversations word for word in your head hours or days after something happened over and over assessing everything that happened to try and figure out the precise way in which you fucked up

no amount of re-checking can reliably convince you that you haven't fucked up, or maybe you do get a moment of peace before something else takes its place

also, I heard somewhere that having 1 parent with ocd gives you a 50% chance of developing it...ough.

[biowaredisasterbisexual]

So, obviously, everyone has their own opinion and experience. How much Andrastianism in Veilguard is to your personal taste I couldn’t say. But based on your statements, I feel like we’ve played not just one but possibly several different games despite them having the same names.

Andrastianism isn’t “absent everywhere,” whether in plot, imagery, or even audio. As you yourself said, we go to the Temple of Andraste in Minrathous where people are both milling about and praying both inside and outside. So we see the Andrastianism happening, visually. And there is, contrary to your experience, ambient dialogue from NPCs we pass that reference the Maker (Andraste I believe as well, but I’d have to double-check that, and less reference to her would be expected as a schism over her importance is part of why the Northern and Southern Chantries split) both near the Temple and in other parts of Dock Town.

We also, in Minrathous with Neve, visit the Wall of Light, the city’s memorial for the dead and an explicit reference to the Chant of Light. Something of enough significance to Neve that she feels the need to go there before the end of her quest line. A Shadow Dragon Rook can even speak the traditional words of remembrance at that point. It’s fairly explicit Andrastianism. Different than it would look and be done in Ferelden, but that’s because we aren’t in Ferelden we’re in Tevinter.

I’m not entirely sure what the mixture of Northern to Southern Wardens would be at Weisshaupt, and I’m less certain than you are that Southerners would have a significant presence. Orlais’ Wardens were decimated at Adamant and may have even been disbanded at that time (dependent on player choice). Their numbers suffered regardless, and would have been hard to build back up since it has apparently gotten around that they tried to build a demon army (which is why in Veilguard the First Warden is so quick to throw them under the bus). Ferelden didn’t have any wardens to speak of until a cup of coffee before the Fifth Blight, as we see in Origins. And at the end of that blight had one or two. After Awakening maybe six? But there’s a bunch of conditional stuff to even hit that number, if I remember correctly. They’ve had some time to build up since then, but we don’t know how many went down from Ferelden at Adamant and Ferelden’s Wardens also don’t have spotless reputations due to the whole coup thing.

In any case, I agree that there probably are some devout Andrastians in the Wardens. But I think devout Southern Andrastian wardens - those whose Andrastianism we would recognize - are probably a very, very small minority. Not only for the reasons I already gave, but because they are competing with religious military orders that can recruit soldiers as children while generally only recruiting adults. I’m not surprised, since based on what we know their numbers are fairly small, we don’t personally run across a bunch of vocal devout Andrastian Southerners at Weisshaupt.

The people of the Anderfels are devoutly Andrastian, you’re absolutely right. But we don’t meet nearly any of them. Our only exposure to the region is through working with the Wardens in a fortress that is Wardens Only tm and in a town that has been so overrun with blight that nearly all of its inhabitants are gone. I’d be more inclined to agree with you, solely vis-a-vis the people of the Anderfels, if we interacted with more than a handful. But we don’t, we pretty much just interact with the Wardens which I already discussed above.

What you didn’t mention were Treviso and the Necropolis. We do get ambient dialogue in Treviso explicitly referencing both the Maker and Andraste (sometimes to blaspheme, but that was probably more than half the Andrastianism we got in DA2, too). Lucanis references them, and talks about having lost his faith while imprisoned and tortured (and reaching a state of hopeful agnosticism by later in the game which he is also open about). He has statues of Andraste in his house. It’s part of his character arc, even if it’s not the main focus.

The Mourn Watch is an Andrastian religious order. Their whole deal, different though it is to what we see in the South, is them being devoutly Andrastian. Just Nevarra mortalitasi-style. And we go through and attend to religious rites in that style with Emmrich.

We witness the results of slaughter by the Southern Chantry in a quest in Rivain.

Harding at one point straight up asks if we just disproved the Chant of Light.

Religion is discussed, where relevant, multiple times. (See, e.g., all of the above.)

Is it enough Andrastianism for you, or any individual player, personally? Maybe not. That’s okay. You’re allowed to feel that way. Everyone is entitled to their opinion.

Is it not there or in someway incorrect based on the lore of the game? I have a hard time understanding that argument.

I really don’t understand the criticism that Veilguard doesn’t include enough open, devout Andrastianism. Like, it just perplexes me?

Unlike the first three games, which take place in Southern Thedas (the purview of the Orlesian Chantry, the Sunburst throne), Veilguard takes place almost entirely in Northern Thedas. And it’s clear the Chantry’s role there is very different than in the South.

In Southern Thedas, the Chantry is a power unto itself. The Southern Divine, holder of the Sunburst Throne, occupies a place of real significance and power. She has her own militarized forces (the Templar and Seeker Orders). She politically has to interface with the rulers of the various places in Southern Thedas (Orlais, Ferelden, the Free Marches, etc.), but is not formally associated with or dependent on them. The South is comparatively poorer than the North, and we see a majority of services (taking care of orphans, medical care, the Circles, and very significantly education) being taken care of by the Chantry without necessarily much assistance from the relevant countries.

The Southern Chantry is an ever present figure in Southern Thedas, even for those that aren’t devout. And that is reflected in those stories and the cultures we learn about there.

The Tevinter Imperium is not like that. And that’s not terribly surprising. First, the Imperium pre-dates Andrastianism. They have another, older religion that helped form some of their cultural touchpoints. The Imperium did adopt Andrastianism, but did so as a consolidation of empire (which tracks with the Imperium being, in no small part, a reflection of the real life Roman Empire). As such, the Chantry is folded into and subordinate to the Imperium’s government. The real power in Tevinter, and control over the incidents of daily life that we see the Southern Chantry involved in, is the Magisterium and the Archon.

The Imperial Divine doesn’t control the Templars, the Magisterium and Archon do. He doesn’t control the Circles/education. That’s the Magisterium and Archon again. He is, in practical terms, less powerful than Dorian. He can’t make any real change as the Imperial Divine, so he dons a mask and runs a vigilante group to free slaves and make change that way.

The Northern Chantry simply isn’t as omnipresent as the Southern Chantry in the areas it exists, and it competes with a preexisting cultural backbone in a way the Southern Chantry doesn’t (because it largely stamped that out, though some of the Avvar and Chasind are still around).

I think a lot of people are comparing the impact of Andrastianism in Veilguard to that in Inquisition, because it’s the most recent, and the criticism spawns from that. But that…doesn’t make sense. The Inquisitor is leading a religious organization, ultimately affiliated with the Southern Chantry itself and founded by the left and right hands of the former Divine. It claims its legitimacy from Andraste herself (even if the Inquisitor doesn’t believe a single bit of it). The people who join the Inquisition are all okay enough with Andrastianism to affiliate themselves openly with it (Solas aside, but of course he has other reasons), and many are devout.

The Veilguard are just…random people. Skilled, powerful, talented people, but not people with any real affiliation with any Chantry. Davrin and Bellara have complicated relationships with the Dalish religion they grew up with, for obvious reasons, but they weren’t raised in Andrastianism or an Andrastian culture. Neve, per her, “barely keeps the holidays.” Her relationship to Andrastianism seems closer to the average non-church-attending American who celebrates Christmas and Easter, but isn’t particularly Christian beyond that. Lucanis does seem open to belief in the Maker and Andraste, but isn’t kind of ambivalent to it. More agnostic than anything else. Taash wasn’t raised Andrastian, their mom largely still embraces much of the Qun even if she left, and Rivain was always kind of religiously funky anyway. Only Emmrich and Harding are particularly Andrastian, and even then Emmrich is from Nevarra which although deeply Andrastian is unique. Harding is the only companion whose Andrastianism we’d recognize from the prior games.

So in a game set in a region where Andrastianism is culturally less of an influence, where the Chantry holds far less power, and that has companions that aren’t devout Andrastians…how is it a failure of the game that it isn’t brought up more. That makes sense. It’s consistent with the world building that came before it and the continued reveal of that world in game.

I don’t get it.

[yuyusshinelight]

The Elf feat c.jh

⚠️ Warning ⚠️

♪ English is not my first language so sorry if there's any mistake.

♪ This post is just pure fiction. This does NOT represent Jongho in any way.

Note: Hi my shining stars! I have a cold so I'm probably not uploading things as often as I would like. But don't worry, I feel a bit better today so I have brought you the next one: Jongho! I hope you have fun reading it as much as I had writing it. I love you all, my shining stars!!!

The Elf tradition. Something he discovered on social media and later he saw in his hyungs. Also it was an activity he wanted to experience with his son since he was born but obviously he couldn't because his son was too young.

But now his kid is three years old so Santa has finally 'sent' one of his elves to his house. Apple, as his son named it. And today is Jongho's turn to move the elf. He is so excited for doing so, more than your son searching the elf in the morning. You actually think that the father is more enthusiastic with this whole thing than the son. Cute.

The matter is that your son has been playing lately with a tiny cactus you have as decoration and, as his parents, you are worried about him getting hurt with the plant. The best solution would have been to hide the cactus but you want to teach your son that if you tell him to not do something for his wellbeing, he should not do it. But, again, he is three years old. Kids are curious and the more you tell them no, the more they want to do it.

So, taking advantage of having a wicked elf in the house, you can teach your son what can happen if he continues playing with the cactus. And that's exactly what Jongho has prepared for this morning. He has put some band-aids on the elf's butt pretending to be hurt and, next to the poor 'pained' elf, he has placed a note.

"Apple! What did you do?" That's your son's little voice after running all over the house searching for his elf. The kid knows that neither of you can touch the elf so he just stands there, with a little pout and both hands on his cheeks. You, who can't see your baby pouting without going to hug him, crouch down to his level, obviously hugging him and pointing at the piece of paper next to the elf "Look, he left a note. Give it to daddy so he can read it for us" and that's exactly what your kid does.

Taking the paper carefully so as not to touch the elf, your son goes with Jongho to hand him said paper and the male, being as dramatic as he can be, reads the note for his son "Tip of the day, never play leap frog with a cactus".

"Who would think of it?" Your son puts his fist on his waist before turning to look at his elf again, he's not worried about Apple anymore "Well darling, Apple was bored and decided to play with the cactus" you decide to defend the elf, just curious of what your son will respond, but instead of the kid, is the father who talks next "See? He played with the cactus and got a puncture" Jongho gives him a little tap on the nose, leaving the note forgotten on the table "But I don't play leap frog with it!".

"But you can also get a puncture, love" Jongho replies to him, imitating his posture until the kid turns to look at his mother for help but you just nod at what your husband has said. Defeated, your son looks at his hands, thinking about how much it would hurt if he gets punctured and suddenly raises his hand "I will be careful next time, I don't want a puncture on my finger" the kid moves his index in front of your face, exactly the same way as when he wants you to give him a kiss because he has gotten hurt, and that's precisely what you do, give him a kiss on his finger.

And even if that was not what you had planned with this mischief, the face your son is giving you is sufficient to make you two look at each other in defeat "You love to play with that cactus, uhm?" Jongho says, taking your son in his arms to tickle him a little "Then remember, you have to be extra careful with the thorns, okay?" and your son only nods, taking his father's hand to avoid further tickling.

[37-children-of-the-dreams]

PSA WARNING: Asaba Harumasa’s Agent Story Part One

CW: Child exploitation, suicide and talks of suicide, and a bittersweet ending.

So I did Harumasa’s Agent Story knowing that it’s not going to be a happy one. Yet, I was not prepared for what the writers had in store for his Agent Story.

Now, if you think Lighter had problems, you’re about to question what is wrong with the writers because they upped the ante with Asaba Harumasa.

(Sorry to the next S rank male, but the devs might torture you next)

Now, the story starts off lightly and a bit sad because Harumasa wants to be on sick leave, and then it’s revealed that he was abandoned as a child. Is he an orphan? Might as well because those people shouldn’t be called parents anymore.

Then, after a few fights into his story, we learn that he knew Seth and his brother from their academy days, though it seems that Asaba did not have a good relationship with Seth’s brother and that might’ve contributed to why he acts mean to Seth. If you did Lighter’s Trust Events, you would remember that Asaba and Seth did not get along when dealing with Lighter, Asaba even going as far as to tell Lighter to report Seth for what happened. And now you know why.

And then the fight with the child who turned into an Ethereal. It was bad. Asaba is shook and Seth drives it harder. We had no chance to save the child.

And then you meet this guy. You will want him dead and gone to HELL.

More lore about his master. It hurts him to think about him. He wants answers and has been finding him for years.

I didn’t get much pictures from the start of his second part, but the ones I did get, it’s just horrible. The reason being that you and Asaba meet THREE more victims and Asaba knows what they’re going through because it’s his past that they’re going through. And one of them is suicidal.

He studied a bit of psychology. Good for him because it does help with trying to deal with trauma.

The writers need a ton of awards, higher pay checks and a million vacation days. They legitimately deserve it. This is highly realistic and true. There will be days when you’ll think of why you’re still alive when the world is just suffocating you but then realize that everyday you haven’t died is you being a survivor of your worst thoughts. It’s hard, and it is highly annoying to keep hearing people telling you to be happy when you don’t want to feel like it, but one more day of living for a tiny reason is better than nothing.

We get back to Seth and the other guy. All I can say is, I advocate murdering people that uses children as science experiments and lie to their face about it. Also, I don’t like the other guy because he’s okay with children dying for medical advancement. I get that they won’t live for long, but it’s not right, and we all should try to be like Seth in this topic.

I know this is a secret test of character, but this is why, despite his naivety on some topics, Seth is a good boy. You can trust him to save your life.

May the bad blood end today. Seth passed his test.

Shoot him. Take him to HELL.