#and ​choosing to live helps the people around you

[emmemmelyn]

How to shift realities right now using the law of assumption

This is a guide that I put together myself using all of the knowledge and wisdom that I've accumulated over the past three years of studying the law of assumption including my experiences using the law with reality shifting!

Going Back to the Basics

What is the law of assumption?

The law of assumption is what you believe is true is what you will see and experience in your reality.

We are creators who are meant to create. Where creation starts is from imagination/the 4D. And what is from imagination/the 4D gets reflected out into the physical/the 3D. In other words, what you see and experience is a reflection of what goes on in your mind (the thoughts that you have and continue to think, the beliefs that you have that you took in from the people who you were surrounded by when you were a child, and the assumptions you formed in your own mind).

For example you believe that you have to work hard to be successful. Because you believe this what you continue to see and experience is you being successful only after working hard.

Another example is you believe that something that you own is a lucky charm and makes you lucky when you carry it around. Because you believe this you see and experience that you are lucky whenever you carry that item around.

How do you manifest using the law of assumption?

Actually, you are always manifesting using the law of assumption. You are just unconsciously doing it. To consciously manifest using the law of assumption you change what goes on in imagination/the 4D by being the person who has what they want already in your mind by knowing what you want, knowing that you have it in your mind, and receiving it in the physical/the 3D.

How do you manifest shifting to your desired reality using the law of assumption?

Let's apply the three steps that I mentioned above to shifting realities specifically...

Step One: Know what you want.

This would be wanting to shift to your desired reality.

Step Two: Know that you have it.

Know that you have shifted to your desired reality already in your mind and be like how you would be long after you have shifted to your desired reality. How would you think long after you have shifted to your desired reality? When you think about your desired reality and living in it how fulfilled would you be?

If you like using manifestation techniques and believe that it helps you then do ONE of these things to "know that you have it":

Go through your day and night affirming and/or visualizing that you have shifted to your desired reality already and you are in your current reality right now because you choose to be.

Go through your day and night affirming and/or visualizing that you have shifted to your desired reality and you are living in your desired reality right now in your mind. (For example, if you are shifting to Hogwarts then while getting ready in the morning in your current reality you would think to yourself, "I can't wait to meet Luna later to go shopping at that crystal shop she was talking about.")

Remember, you are doing all of this IN YOUR MIND.

Step Three: Receive it in the physical/the 3D.

You experience shifting to your desired reality and living in it in real life.

When you stay in the state of already having shifted to your desired reality without having doubts and without wavering long enough then you will experience shifting to your desired reality and living in it in real life (wavering by the way is going back and forth in your mind thinking, "I have this," and then thinking, "I don't have this.").

That's it!

From the moment you want something you have it. From the moment you wanted to shift to your desired reality you shifted to your desired reality. Manifestation is instant. You can manifest things fast. Having this belief that you cannot is only because of conditioning, because of what you believed when you were a child from the people around you and from society. Also, time is an illusion. This is because you manifest your desire the moment you get into the state, the moment you believe that what you are telling yourself is true.

Furthermore, manifesting is easy and natural. You don't have to know how things will manifest in the physical/the 3D. That is not your job. Your job is to know that you have what you want now. Know what you want and go through with it in your mind long enough until it manifests in the physical/the 3D.

Other Things to Note

I know that most of us like to use shifting methods (myself included lol), so this portion is for those of you who do! You DO NOT need to use a shifting method to shift to your desired reality, but if you believe that using a shifting method will help you to shift you to your desired reality then do this...

When the time comes to use your shifting method believe that you will shift to your desired reality after using your shifting method.

If you see in the physical/the 3D that you don't shift to your desired reality after using your shifting method..that's okay. Don't be so hard on yourself. Keep acting as if.

Affirm and/or imagine that you have shifted to your desired reality:

"I shifted to my desired reality."

"I woke up in my desired reality."

"I opened my eyes in my desired reality."

Then, go to sleep knowing this or go on with the rest of your day or night continuing to know that you have shifted to your desired reality already in your mind.

Your subconscious mind cannot tell the difference between what is real and what is not real so as long as you keep telling yourself the same affirmations (affirmations are just new thoughts that you want to have) then your subconscious mind will eventually take it as true and they will be your new assumptions or beliefs. And because your assumptions or beliefs create the physical/the 3D you will eventually experience shifting to your desired reality.

I hope this helped any shifter out there in some way!

With love, Emme

[eerna]

Thank you for posting all your takes on Arcane season 2, reading them has been helping me process what a disappointing shitshow it was and not feel so alone lol. I'm popping in to your asks to vent a bit about how messed up Jinx's ending was. They really led us on all season with themes of redemption and forgiveness and healing from trauma, showing us Vi finally accepting her for who she was, and Ekko showing up for her and saving her because she's worth that. They gave her Isha to love her unconditionally (and then took her away for shock value and tragedy porn), and demonstrated that Jinx's death wish should be something the people around her fight against and work on proving to her that she actually does deserve to live and heal and be loved ......... only to end on her killing herself anyway. She makes one big grand gesture by showing up for the final fight, and then sacrifices herself for Vi. As if in the end, she did deserve to die. As if that's the only way to redeem herself. As if that's a better ending than her processing her trauma and healing, and finally allowing herself to be loved. And we were robbed of Vi and Jinx healing their relationship and finally being in each others' lives. For what, exactly??? A death scene that wasn't even sad because it was just so ridiculous and out of place? That didn't fit the narrative themes AT ALL?

I'm just heartbroken that they did our girl SO dirty. It's unforgiveable. It doesn't even matter to me whether the fan theory that she survived is true or not, because even if she's somehow alive and will show up in a future show, the writers still chose to end this show with the message that the traumatized suicidal girl who never felt like she was worth anything and made violent choices because of the system she was born into actually did deserve to kill herself at the end!!!! And that it was the right choice and led to redemption for her!!!!! Gah!!!!! (sorry for basically yelling, I'm just so sad)

Awh, I'm glad you enjoy reading them, and feel free to express your sadness~ Jinx is definitely alive, it is spelled out by the show, but you are right, it doesn't change the fact that the framing device used in the scene was saying "Vi should just let Jinx kill herself already, we have been heading this way for quite some time and she should just let it happen after all this time". But that was only there for the emotional extortion!!!! And the fact that Jinx chooses to survive and start a new life proves it. Today I was listening to the soundtrack and found out that the song that plays as Jinx' suicide montages roll actually has a final verse and chorus where the singer decides she actually wants to keep living because she is no longer alone, and asks "don't let me go". And this makes sense to me!!! I assume they wanted Jinx to be heroic and remove herself from Vi's life so Vi can live happily and she knew the only way to force her to do it is to fake her own death.. but why??? They are fine now, they are a team and she has other people who care about her as well??? What did Vi, or the others, gain from not having Jinx in their life anymore????? Idk man it is so weird

[fromville-divorce-lawyer]

Here's my From season 4 theory:

So we know Tabitha has dreamed about being in Fromville as a girl who was dressed in a cape at the red stones, and Jade saw the guy dressed in old rags and missing an eye at the same stones. I don't know what time period this is, but I saw a person somewhere mention they look dressed from the same period.

Both are also seeing civil war soldiers. (Tabitha not directly. She was Miranda when she saw them.)

So they both seem to have memories from lives in Fromville far into the past.

I think the monsters from the 1950s being the OG ones who sacrificed their children is a misdirect. Jade & Tabitha's visions/memories go back further than that, so the place has been around a lot longer. I think Jade and Tabitha have reincarnating since the beginning of this place, and the people who first sacrificed their kids are older than the monsters. They're actually the things in the forest that are worse than the town.

Now why are Tabitha & Jade reincarnating rather than becoming whatever the other people became?

Well, it's because Tabitha made a promise to the Boy in White to defeat the Man in Yellow by fulfilling a quest.

What quest you ask? Why, the quest to obtain the hottest husband possible.

Wait, wait. Hear me out.

Henry looks like he was a good-looking dude at 35, and Jim is a blue-eyed hottie himself, so Miranda & Tabitha were obviously well on the way. It just was not quite enough.

Then Tabitha gets to Fromville and meets Jade who (based on empirical data collected via Tumblr poll) is becoming exponentially more fuckable each season. By season 4, Jade's fuckability will be reaching critical levels. Fifth season, it'll be unchartable. Tabitha will have achieved her goal of most fuckable husband to ever live.

Then, everyone gets go home. Remember when we get to season 5 that I called it!

Okay. Sorry, I'm kidding about the Jade fuckability part. But for real, I don't think that the 1950s monsters are the original people who made the deal for immortality.

My theory is that it started hundreds of years ago. With help from the Boy in White, (original)Jade and (original)Tabitha were able to reincarnate so that they can try to save their daughter. (The image on the talisman is either Jade & Tabitha with the sun & moon representing rebirth or MIY & BIW with the sun and moon representing opposing forces. I'm leaning toward the second.)

Now, each cycle restarts when both Jade & Tabitha arrive. (Miranda and Christopher were the two cars that arrived in the past, and although Victor talks about it like he remembers it happening but doesn't seem like he was in one of the cars, I think that's a misdirect, because it would have been too obvious if we knew Mirand and Christopher were the last people to arrive in the same day.)

Each cycle gets to make a choice. If they choose to sacrifice their children, they become a new monster in the forest. In the 1950s cycle, they chose to make the sacrifice, forming the town and turning the people into monsters.

During Victor's cycle in the 1970s, neither Miranda nor Christopher remembered their past lives like Tabitha and Jade just did. However, the town was given the same choice. Miranda hid Victor and Eloise from Christopher (she told Victor to hide somewhere Christopher didn't know about), because he was going to choose to sacrifice the children while Miranda wanted to try to set the ones that were already trapped free. Since Victor was hidden, there was no sacrifice, and everyone died instead of becoming a new type of immortal monster.

[youshouldjustliveinmychurch]

Symbolism of Jinx's Hair

*Arcane spoilers*

CW: Violence, self-harm, suicide

OH. MY. GOD. So so so many thoughts, but for now a few quick thoughts on the symbolism of Jinx's hair.

-The bangs are there the whole time and represent her relationship with Silco since we see young Silco with similar bangs. (credit to Tik Tok for that).

-After Isha's death, Jinx's very long hair is completely undone from its braid. This calls to mind Rapunzel, perhaps symbolizing that in her depression Jinx is isolated in the tower of her mind and - maybe - needs someone to rescue her but it's difficult to reach her unless she tosses her hair down and lets someone in. Problem is, Jinx doesn't feel worthy of letting anyone in. Silco, while well-meaning, is reminiscent of Mother Gothel, who keeps Rapunzel trapped by teaching her to act a certain way. The hair is unbraided, which symbolizes the loss of her identity as Jinx. Her inability to form and be comfortable in a distinct identity not explicitly attached to another person leads to a lack of self-worth that causes her death.

-THEN she cuts her hair to the length it happens to be when she's powder in the other timeline. This symbolizes a reversion to - not necessarily her old self (too much has happened) - but to someone closer to who she would have been without so much trauma. This is the point when she's about to *you know* and Ekko manages to stop her. The sad thing about Jinx in the current timeline is that her identity has become irreparably tied to other people because of her trauma so she doesn't think she has any value on her own. First she (and her identity as a younger sister / daughter) was linked to Vi and Vander, then attached to Silco (as a daughter). When she loses Silco, she loses her identity, until she once more finds an identity in being a sister / attaching to Isha. She thinks she has value by playing that role. When she loses that, she once more loses her sense of identity and worth because she's never been allowed to grow up / form one on her own because of her trauma. That's why her "sacrifice" in the end is such a tragedy and not actually something to be admired.  It all stems from her lack of valuing herself, which is a tragedy. The Powder in the other timeline is different because she's had time to form an independent identity and sense of self-worth which we can see demonstrated by her clothes and the fact that she's not very susceptible to the slight pressure from Vander and others to be more ambitious and live up to her potential. The ONLY thing that makes her help Ekko is the fact that Vi is alive in the other timeline. She expresses her love in her own way by creating something contrasted to how Jinx expresses her love for Vi by destroying herself. Also, Ekko is the only one who can reach her in that moment and stop her self-destruction because he sees her soul - the real Powder. It's like the difference between friends and family. We love our families. They are (good or bad) important. But they have preconceived notions about us and our identities related to them. Our friends, on the other hand, CHOOSE us. They choose to be around us (ideally) because they like us for who we are in our natural state.

-When she zooms up with Ekko, her hair has been changed yet again. She keeps the bangs (representing Silco) and has dyed a streak purple (to represent her and Vi together - pink + blue and also VIOLET). The rest, however, is jaggedly cut off close to her head. Instead of this representing an entirely new identity, I see it as representing the hope and POSSIBILITY of a new, more authentic identity growing (see hair growing) while still keeping the foundation of her care for the people she loves. The hair is cut jaggedly and isn't necessarily beautiful or put together by typical standards, but it doesn't have to be. One of the main themes of this season is that "brokenness" is essential to who we are and isn't always a bad thing. As Ekko says, it's a chance to build something new. Unfortunately that never happens because of the consequences of trauma.

I'm not sure I agree with Jinx's death because on the surface it feels like the tired trope of villain / morally grey character is redeemed by sacrificing themselves for someone else. Personally, I think it's much more powerful to have a character take responsibility for themselves while also forgiving themselves. I concede that this was done in a really nuanced way. The thing is, I don't think we're actually supposed to read Jinx's death as a heroic act that redeems her. Instead, it is more in line with the themes to read it as a horrific suicide caused by trauma, oppression, and a lack of self-worth/identity. In that split-second decision, Jinx reverts to all that she knows and has been taught, even though for a moment she did have a shot at a new identity. She chooses to die because she doesn't value herself / doesn't know who she is and has been taught all her life that you show love through violence (even if it's violence in protection of those you love). With as clever and innovative as Jinx is, don't tell me she and Vi couldn't have figured out another way to best Vander. It makes sense to read this moment as an avoidable, tragic suicide because Jinx is clearly suicidal and even makes an attempt. The song that plays during her attempt also plays during her death. We're supposed to see this event more in the light of what happened to Isha, which HEAVILY foreshadowed and paralleled Jinx's death by showing a child's misguided attempt at expressing love. An innocent child shouldn't feel obligated to sacrifice their life to save someone else's life. That moment is horrific. Not even an adult should be asked to do that. That's an unmistakable tragedy. Just like Isha was doing what she was taught (the simplicity and complexity of "pew-pew"), Jinx was doing what she was taught. It's a cycle of innocence, violence, and trauma that also mirrors Jinx's accidental role in Vander's death when she was trying to mold herself to what everyone expected her to be. It's haunting that Jinx says, "Killing isn't mercy." She doesn't give herself mercy in the end. We see that even though Vi tries her hardest to show Jinx she's loved and can have mercy/ a second chance, Jinx doesn't know how to accept that. It's not a coincidence that in that same conversation with ghost Silco they talk about identity. That's just my personal interpretation.

Anyway.

[honest-moth-of-silver-grove]

That is so nice of you honestly, i think the the ask was how a yan alucard would take advantage of his position of power in the village post season 4, and if he and the people(the villages people, the orphans, sypha and Trevor) around him would pressure his fem love interest/obsession into being with him because of all he has done for them making it very difficult to reject his advances with out becoming a social outcast .Like I can imagine a darker version of him proposing to his Darling in a public space surrounded by the aforementioned people and villagers for that very reason. And side note do you think he would turn his Darling so they could be together for ever?

A/N: Yes, oh my gosh, yes! A Yandere! Alucard would 100% use his position of power over her to gently “guide” her into falling for him. And I do think, that yes, a Yandere! Alucard would eventually try to turn his Darling. I like to think that it might take some extra dark magic, as he is not a full vampire, but that he goes down that path willingly for her (regardless of how she feels about it) because once he falls, he falls hard, and he cannot imagine living without her.

TW: Toxic/Manualpative Relationship, and Brief Mentions of Sex and Pregnancy 

Yandere! Village Leader Alucard Headcanons: 

A Yandere! Village Leader Alucard who always insists on “helping” his Darling, and whatever group she happens to be in. ‘Ah, you’re on kitchen duty today. Well it's a good thing that my Mother taught me to cook.’ & ‘Barn raising? Surely your tiny frame is no match for such a strenuous job. Here, allow me.’ 

You don’t like feeling helpless, but you couldn’t say ‘no’. That would be such a rude thing to deny the very Savior of your people. 

A Yandere! Village Leader Alucard, who is always so kind, and attentive. One who chooses to spend most of the free time he has at gatherings putting the spotlight on his Darling so that he may listen to her speak. ‘Hmm, what an interesting Speaker tradition, Sypha. Tell me, (Y/N), what sort of traditions remind you of home?’ 

You’re running out of things to share with him, it seems everything you could say about yourself he seems to already know.

A Yandere! Village Leader Alucard who memorizes every little detail his Darling shares, and uses it to his advantage, all the while pretending such occurrences are mere coincidence. ‘I found these flowers blooming on the other side of the castle and I thought of you. Truly? How lucky, I had no idea these were your favorite flowers.’ & ‘Hmm, now that you mention it, I believe Mother had an old dress in that color. Why don’t you wait here while I go and fetch it for you?’ 

The dress fits perfectly, huh. How odd that you and Alucard’s mother must have been the same size. 

A Yandere! Village Leader Alucard who “lets it slip” in conversation with Trevor and Sypha just how madly in love he is with his Darling, prompting his married friends to conspire together, coming up with ways to make you see Alucard’s love. ‘I can only hope she shares the same affection, although I must admit, I am unsure of how to tell her of my feelings.’ ‘& ‘Do you mean to say you’ll help me win her devotion?’ 

Did Sypha always talk up Alucard like that? Trevor sure keeps talking an awful lot about being married, even for a newlywed. 

A Yandere! Village Leader Alucard who always speaks your praises to the children, about how smart, loving, and fun you are so that when they call on him to play games, they’re always scheming to get you to play as well. ‘I must admit I’ve pondered over whether I have the ability to have my own.’ & ‘Don’t believe I haven’t seen the way you light up when the children call you Mother.’ 

Wait? Don’t they also call Alucard, Father?

A Yandere! Village Leader Alucard who insists on caring for you by himself, anytime you become the least bit injured or ill. He insists you stay within the walls of the castle for the time being, as opposed to in your cottage with your family outside. ‘I know the castle can feel overwhelming at times, but please, try to think of it as a mere extension of your home.’ & ‘I do wish you’d let me take better care of you, Darling. You’re too important of a person around here to be laid out sick so often.’ 

You didn't used to fall ill so often. What the hell is happening to you?!

A Yandere! Village Leader Alucard who makes a very public display of asking for your hand, one evening during a solstice festival. All eyes are on you as you smile, and you a faint chorus of applause as you accept the dhampir’s proposal. ‘It would be my utmost honor to marry you, my Darling.’ & ‘You are making me the happiest man alive.’ 

Not as if you could say no with all the other villagers and your family watching. They want this for you too, so, this marriage must be a good idea, right?

A Yandere! Village Leader Alucard who arranges for you to be wed as soon as possible. One of the castle’s largest halls is transformed into a makeshift chapel as Sypha performs the wedding rites. Greta acts as your Maiden of Honor, while Alucard slots Trevor in as his Best Man. All of the villagers- your family included- are there to watch the ceremony, with laughter and joyful tears in their eyes. ‘I know it’s not a church wedding, Darling. But you understand, I doubt we’d find a Priest anywhere willing to marry the son of Dracula.’ 

You look like royalty in the dress Alucard provided you, so you try to ignore how the cuffs of your dress’s bishop sleeves feel like weighted shackles upon your wrists. 

A Yandere! Village Leader Alucard who promises you can’t get pregnant the first time you have sex. He’d know of course, silly! His Mother was a Doctor after all. Just let him love you… No, let him worship you, mind, body, and soul. ‘Besides, I’m quite certain dhampirs are sterile. It would take a miracle for us to make a child together.’ & ‘Even if it were to happen, it’s not the end of the world, is it? We are wedded after all.’  

If that’s not a goal, why does he insist on always flipping you over so that he can watch your expression as he finishes inside you? 

A Yandere! Village Leader Alucard who swears you will make incredible parents, and he could not be happier to have a large family with you. You have so much knowledge and wisdom to impart, creating this legacy with him is a great act of service for the world. And Alucard promises, as soon as you’re done having his children, maybe two or three, he’ll change you into a vampire so that you can enjoy the fruits of your labor at his side- forever. ‘Just imagine it, Darling. Neither one of us will be lonely ever again.’ & ‘We’ll be each other’s soulmate for all eternity.’ 

Surely, eternity isn’t all that long. 

Right?

A/N: I hope you liked it! I was trying a different style/format here, so I apologize if it isn't what you expected. My mom’s having surgery this week, so I didn’t get as much writing/editing time as expected. 

Please Like, Leave and Comment, and REBLOG if you enjoyed it!

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[happyandticklish]

Morning Breath

Summary: Nancy is worried for her upcoming job interview, and Steve tries—inadvisably—to lighten the mood.

Notes: Commission for @ultimatelee19. I don't often write for Stranger Things, so I hope this is up to par! I had fun writing it nonetheless. I love these two dorks <3

“You’re up early.”

Nancy stiffened from her position on the couch, her hands immediately flying to her chest. She cursed herself for the involuntary action afterward. She was still in pajamas, after all, thus leaving anything that would have been there thoroughly protected by a thin tank top. Not to mention, it was nothing Steve hadn’t seen before. She still wasn’t quite used to knowing that it was only her and Steve in the apartment. She kept expecting annoying little brothers or overprotective parents to barge in at any moment.

She turned around to find Steve leaning against the railing midway down the stairs, his mouth quirked in a half smile. He was, noticeably, dressed only in some thin shorts. Nancy’s gaze roamed his torso for a moment before she caught herself and smiled in return.

“Couldn’t sleep.”

“You’re going to be fine. It’s only one job interview. I'm sure you'll do great, and if you don't, there will be others, I promise."

“A job interview that I only barely secured,” Nancy corrected as Steve made his way down the stairs. “A female reporter is a ridiculous notion according to this society we live in. I mean, they could cancel right now. They hardly need to keep their word, after all. Sure they may think it’s an ‘interesting concept’ now, but—”

“Nancy.”

She broke off mid-rant as two arms wrapped around her from behind. Soft lips pressed into the back of her neck, peppering her shoulders with featherlight kisses so she couldn’t help but shiver. “You’re going to do great. You are incredibly smart, a verified badass, and you can articulate yourself better than half the dying old men in the profession. Not to mention, I’ve never met anyone so skilled at getting into other people’s business as yourself—”

“Hey.” She elbowed him lightly, but turned her head to grin back at him. “I suppose I’ll choose to take that as a compliment.”

“You should.”

He leaned forward to kiss her and she sighed a little as her lips meant hers. Her and Steve’s relationship had never exactly been a stable one, but five years had passed since the craziness that Hawkins had brought about; things were different between them—calmer. And she often found herself in moments like these realizing how lucky she truly was to have found him.

“Although, Nance, no offense, but if anything is going to throw them off, it’s this bad breath.”

…or not.

“Seriously, I love you babe, but it smells like something gross died in there.”

Nancy’s brows twitched in irritation, and she squirmed out of his embrace, whirling around on him. “For your information, I haven’t had time to brush my teeth just yet. And who are you to judge? Your breath doesn’t exactly smell like roses either.” She opened her mouth, breathing at him and he lurched back. “How does that smell, hmm? Since you’re such an expert.”

Steve held a hand up to his throat, faking a gag as he fell back on the couch. “Gross! Ach, the smell! I may never recover.”

“You—!” Nancy smacked a pillow lightly on his stomach, and he grinned over the top of it.

Steve held up his hands in mock surrender, though the shit-eating grin on his face didn't make him look all that apologetic. “Relax, I’m just trying to lighten the mood. You know, make you less tense.”

“Oh yeah? Why don’t I just make you ‘less tense’?”

“What is that supposed to mean—woah!”

Steve grunted as Nancy tackled him back against the couch, clambering quickly atop his waist.  He opened his mouth to retort something back, perhaps an apology or some further continuance of the bit that had gotten him here in the first place, but a bark of laughter escaped instead as Nancy dug her fingers into his ribs.

“W-Woah, woah, woah, Nance—shit, not thehehere!”

Nancy tried hard to fight back her giddy smirk. Steve’s ticklishness had become apparent not far into their first relationship, though she had forgotten about it for a while once they reopened things. She had made sure to make good use of the information once it had reappeared after cuddling during a movie night had led to its revelation. Nancy was hardly immune to it, but Steve was ticklish enough that it was easy to make him forget that revenge was a possibility. Convenient for her.

“How’s about it, Stevie?” she crooned, gently climbing her way up his ribcage. “Are you feeling the tension leaving yet?”

His hands shot down to latch around her wrists at that, but they didn’t do much to actually shove her off. “This is cruhuhuel!” he whined, yelping the closer her fingers grew to his underarms. His legs kicked against the cushion, attempting to push his body further up the couch to failing results.

“This is payback.” She teased the edges of his armpits, scratching against his top rib without actually leaving the area just yet. Steve shook his head, letting out noises that could only be described as giggles. “Besides, I have to get out my nervous jitters somehow, and you’re the perfect subject to release them on.”

One of her fingers inched ever so slightly higher. Steve yelped. “Don’t."

“Don’t what? Tickle you?”

“D-Don’t go thehehere!”

She raised an eyebrow, this time unable to hide her smirk. “Ahh, just don’t go there? But not, ‘don’t stop tickling’? Interesting bargaining. One could be led to believe that you’re enjoying yourself.”

“Nohohot lihihike thihis!"

“But there’s another way you could enjoy it?”

A flush had begun to creep its way up Steve’s neck and he groaned, glancing away. “S-Stop twisting my wohohords! And—fuck, get ohohout of there!”

Nancy had gone in for the kill, allowing her hands to free roam under his arms now in quick, spidery motions that were quickly destroying his composure. Steve’s arms twitched violently, struggling not to jerk down but to stay up in the air. He had let go of her hands in favor of gripping the back of the couch, his face twisted up in expression of helpless mirth.

Honestly, Nancy thought, Steve had only himself to blame for getting tickled like this so often. She couldn’t be faulted for taking advantage of someone who was so obviously leaving themselves vulnerable on purpose.

He continued to let her tickle him like that for another few minutes before it finally became too much for him. Nancy’s eyes widened as he lurched forward suddenly, grabbing her hands and pushing back until she was lying trapped underneath him on the couch instead.

“Too much for you?” she asked innocently, knowing she was digging her own grave, but unable to help it. And it did have wonderful results as Steve’s flush darkened even as he transferred both her wrists to one hand, leaving his other free to sue.

“How long do you have before your interview again?”

She frowned. “An hour. Why—”

“Ten-minute car ride, fifteen minutes to get ready, fifteen to eat—I believe that leaves us twenty minutes.”

Nancy’s pulse quickened in her chest, from fear or excitement she couldn’t tell. “I don’t suppose there’s any chance you’d consider putting this whole thing behind us?"

“Ask me in another ten minutes.”

Nancy’s laughter rang through the house as Steve followed through on his promise. In reality, he only kept her there for another five minutes before a particularly effective strategy against her hips had her shrieking for mercy in mere seconds, though to Nancy, it felt like much longer. Not that she would learn her lesson for the next time she decided Steve needed to be taken down a peg.

After all, standing down was not within the nature of Nancy Wheeler.

[mar3ggiata]

professional help, finale. All's well what ends well.

simon riley x original character.

'Nothing's gonna hurt you, not while I'm around.'

'You know, I still think about that day a lot.'

'You do?'

He shifted beside her, making the covers shuffle and move on her body. He grabbed the hem of the sheet, pulling it on her naked shoulders, he knew she was always cold in the morning.

'Sometimes.'

She kept her eyes closed, she was still sleepy, and at the same time she didn't really want to remember. The fact that he still thought about that time frightened her. It was guilt, what she felt. He pulled a hair from the pillow, a long blonde curl, 'This yours…' He felt her cold feet trying to fit in the space between his calves, he welcomed them to warm them up.

Me and Simon never went on that date. I'm Alba, by the way. Me and Simon never went on that date, after the bar or whatever. A lot has changed since then and we really just forgot about it. You best believe we had other problems. If everything happens for a reason, I sometimes still struggle to see it. I lost everything. I lost everything and I don't know what I gained. Well, that's wrong, Simon's what I gained. Simon is all I have. I look back at who I was when this mess started, hell, I look back at who I was when I got my job as a therapist and I just… I don't recognise myself. Sometimes I envy the times when I was so clueless. Life's more painless for the brainless. Sometimes I even wish I could go back. Simon is the only real reason why I choose to stay. Simon is the reason why it all went to shit, really. Me and him, we played a pivotal role in each others lives, his life changed too when he met me. And when, well, the whole thing went down. The beginning of the end. Here's what happened that night.

We drank some more, I was tipsy and so was everyone. It was nearly two in the morning when Roman offered me a ride home. Truth be told, I don't really remember what I said, I have very little memories of that part of the night. I think I might have looked at Simon, who asked me if I needed a ride, if I drove there, to which I said no, that I was gonna get a cab. He spoke to me like the others weren't there, he spoke in a protective way. No way he was gonna let me get a cab, or go home with Roman for that matter. He claimed me. Roman didn't insist when I told him I was with Simon. We left together, as everyone suspected. They had been saying it since he walked in, they're gonna go home together. Nothing happened, if that's what you're thinking. I was way too drunk and he was respectful. He walked me to my door and said hi to the dog. I thanked him for the ride and he looked at me with those gentle, deep, brown eyes I love so much. He said to sleep tight, with a confidence he didn't have within himself at the bar. It made me giggle and I almost invited him to come inside and spend the night. I'm kinda glad I didn't.

'I don't like that you bring that up', she murmured, she turned her back to him, rolling to her side and hugging the pillow under her head. Embarrassed. He sighed, 'Why, cause you know you messed up?' She felt burning in her chest. She felt his arm, firmly wrapping around her waist, was like poison. A trap. She tried to resist his force, he pulled her towards him, his chest against her back, both arms around her to keep her in his warm embrace. One of his legs swung on her to keep her from escaping him, he was always afraid she wanted to run away from him. Even if he woke up beside her every day.

He told me everything that happened and how things went not long ago, I waited a year to know, maybe more. Again, a lot has happened, so we forgot about some parts of our story. He told me how happy he was and how weird he felt that night, driving to base. Good things didn't really happen to people like him, and I was a good thing. I was good, I treated him like he was good. He drove to base, went to bed and thought about me all night. He thought about our date, the dress I was going to wear, my eyes, my neck, the skin of my hands. He thought of us eating, talking, maybe bringing Jinx along with us. He fell asleep wondering where to go with me, he hoped to dream about me in his bed. Silly.

She huffed and whined at him, trying to free herself from his grasp. 'Where you going?' He whispered and she scratched his arm. 'You're always wrong.' She commented. They had that talk a million times, he never failed to make her feel miserable. 'You're selfish.' He pinned her down in a swift motion, his body on top of hers, one hand brushing her hair away from her face. Her breasts were pressed against his chest, out of habit, she had spread her legs to welcome him. Her feet rested on his calves. 'I'm selfish because I love you'. He nuzzled his face in the crook of her neck, breathing in her scent. She circled his shoulders with her arms. 'You would have done the same thing, if not worse.' She pushed him back away from her, her hands pressed as firmly as she could on his pecs. He was smiling.

The day after, he woke up groggy from the alcohol. He told me he couldn't be bothered with the briefing for the next mission and debated skipping it. His mind was somewhere else. Little did he know. Ruining his mood, that is the thing I'm most sorry for. I like my man happy. He sat down in a room full of soldiers, Price in front of them, his computer screen projected in the wall like he had prepared some kind of presentation. He told me the captain looked tense, or rather sad. It was a day he never really thought would come, he had news he didn't really want to share, or believe. Seeing him like this, made his heartbeat increase, he started to sweat. Something was going on.

'I would have done worse, yes…' His words were spoken into her cheek, he left a trail of wet kisses on her jawline, making her sigh loudly, her legs firmly wrapped around his waist '…you broke my heart.' She scoffed and let her hand travel down his back, scratching the skin of his lumbar muscles, 'So dramatic…' He cradled her face with his hands, forcing her to look at him. He liked teasing her about that time, and he knew how bad she felt. It was cause he craved reassurance that she would never do anything like it, ever again.

'Sit down, please.' He felt his palms sweaty, he felt a sense of discomfort. 'We had a…', even the captain, he was struggling to find the words, he looked unease. What in the world was going on…

'We're talking mafia. Uhm… Italian mafia, from Naples. It's called Camorra, I believe.' He stopped to check some papers, 'Laswell and Shepherd have been keeping an eye on a specific clan from over there, they're dealing with prostitution and drug trafficking.' He sighed. This was no normal mission. He tuned towards his laptop, an image appeared on the wall behind the captain. A woman, in her fifties. She had blonde hair, she wore glasses, she had a stern and serious expression on her face. In the picture, she looked out a window into a busy street. She had blue eyes and a roman nose. 'This is Tania Dalla Rocca, she runs the Dalla Rocca family. In Italy, especially in the south, they have very patriarchal families, but her husband, the ex leader, died in prison. She's been in control of the business for over twenty years.' He went back to the laptop and a new image appeared. A man, maybe his age, a dark brown buzzcut. 'This is Carmine Caserano, he runs the opposing clan. They've been fighting with the Della Roccas for decades, over businesses, neighbourhoods… They're eternal enemies.' He cleared his voice. Simon began to feel a stinging pain in his left temple. 'We're in charge of dismantling both families, essentially.' He let his eyes wander inside the room and Simon could swear he let his gaze linger on him for a few seconds. Pitiful. I'm sorry, son. 'They've been in contact with Italian-American immigrants for a while and the situation is escalating quickly, they're terrorising citizens, we're gonna work with Italian special forces in Naples and try to solve the situation.' '

'What situation?' someone asked. He could not turn his head to look at who spoke, he was frozen in his chair.

'So… someone in the Dalla Rocca family is responsible for a… an accident, back in 2013. Explosives inside a car. One of the Caseranos died.' He was about to click on the laptop again, but stopped. 'The Caseranos, the other family, is moving for revenge, they want control over the territory, sure, but more than anything they want revenge. Many innocent lives are at stake.'

'So, are we protecting the other family? And the terrorist?'

Price shook his head. 'No one is worth protecting. No one is innocent over there. It's incarceration or death, for all of them. And the… terrorist, what she is is a terrorist, is someone many of you know, I'm afraid.'

Her eyelashes fluttered, a small whimper escaping from her parted lips. 'You broke my heart, Eva', he murmured into her mouth, he licked her lower lip, feeling her soft hand cupping his cheek. She replied by taking his face in her hands and kissing him softly, pulling him down towards her.

A click of the keyboard, a new picture appeared on the wall. As he leaned foreword, to better see the image, the ringing in his ears was becoming almost painful. He didn't need to lean in, he could see me perfectly. A young Jude was painted in the wall behind Price. My eyes, my mouth, the bridge of my nose, it was definitely me, younger and angrier. 'She's not even 18 in this picture'. Price's voice mixed with the murmuring and chatting of Simon's colleagues, who had recognised the girl on the screen. The terrorist.

She brushed her thumb over his lower lip, he kissed her hand and then her mouth again. His arms kept her still, his hand pressed firmly on her hipbone, scorching hot.

He felt like throwing up. He felt like an idiot. Like a fly in a spider's net, I had tricked him and everyone else into believing I was someone else, Alba. Him specifically, my special Simon. Without saying a word, Price skipped to the next picture. It was a classified FBI file. His eyes scanned the file, reading through the mountains of lies I had told him, reading the truth. The whole truth. He was being set up, it could not be real. His head was throbbing, his blood cold. It had to be a joke, a sick, sick joke.

His hips aligned with hers, he drank the soft gasp that left her lips when she felt him slip inside her.

'This is Eva. Jude. Some of you know her as Alba'. Price gave him a quick look, but he wasn't paying attention. His eyes felt like they were burning thought the wall. Eva. 'The woman I showed you earlier…' That's her mother, he thought. '…That's Eva's mother.' No… That's Alba, no? No, Eva. Eva Dalla Rocca, I wasn't born in the UK, I was born and raised in Southern Italy, by one of the most influential clans in Naples. I have a sister, I had a brother. 'She was hired here and given a fake identity, under the condition of cutting all ties and contact with her family…' Price went on. Eva. Not Alba, not just a therapist, what? Eva. Southern Italy, the fucking mafia? Naples, moved away when I was 18 after a major attack that let to the death of an infant, he read. My Alba? How? An attack? How? Why? It couldn't be, it had to… it had to be a mistake, I was with him the night before, so pretty, so sweet, I held his hand...

Her nails pressed on the flesh of his back and shoulders, while he rocked his hips foreword. Opening his eyes, he took in the sight of her, curled against him, clinging to him like she was afraid he was gonna vanish like a fever dream. Her brows furrowed, mouth agape sucking in a breath. He saw her in that state every single night, and yet it never failed to make him dizzy, the amount of pleasure he was able to make her feel. The necklace he bought her fell in the middle of her chest, a blue stone shining in the morning light.

'Since she broke no contact yesterday night, we have every reason to believe she's going back to her roots, possibly helping out her family. She's our first target.' Eva. Terrorist. He had just asked the terrorist on a date. Broke no contact, I was a criminal. I was hired and given a fake identity. Eva was hired and became Alba. Eva. God help him, so many lies, and he believed. Every. Single. Word.

He leaned down close, desperate to feel more of her, everything. It was never enough, he was never close enough, always needed more. She raised her hips from the mattress, reaching for him. He allowed himself to relax and lay his head beside her on the pillow. She had one arm around his neck, one hand pressed on his chest. Left side, his heart. 'Scusami', he said in her mother tongue. His hips lazily grinding against her, he moaned her name into her neck repeatedly like he was praying. Her legs straddled his hips, she was shaking.

'I'm sorry to everyone who considered her a friend.'

This is what happens when you let your guard down. Now Simon, Ghost, wasn't good with feelings, but he sure was good at war. Next target, did the captain say? Target. A job. Terrorist. Consider it done, then. War was what I wanted, war was what I was created for. Well, so was Simon. War was what he would bring me.

This is what happens when you let your guard down, this is what gets people heartbroken, killed, fooled, this is what happens to people like him. Betrayed. By me of all people, his sweet angel. It was absurd, but he let me do this, he gave me permission to ruin eveything, deep down it was his own fault.

Such an idiot.

On top of him, she intertwined her fingers with his, pinning his arms to the mattress, stretching them above his head. Her movements against him were erratic and desperate, back and forth, he whimpered like he was crying. Making him feel so good, it was her way of saying she was sorry. She kissed his eyes, she kissed his cheek and his mouth. She created a world from scratch just for him, a world where he was only hers, every hour of every day. Hers to love, to take care of. She reminded him every day, he was hers forever. He was safe everyday. Nothing's gonna hurt you. Not while I'm around. When his hands were freed, he circled her back with his strong arms, needed to feel her at all times, her belly pressed against him, her ribcage, her breasts. She run her hands through his hair that were starting to stick with sweat. ‘Sei l’amore della mia vita’ she whispered, like a hymnal. He believed her. He couldn't possibly do any different.

notes: happy professional help finale! I started writing this series after thinking about it a lot, I am new to all this. I wrote at least 27 chapters before even publishing the introduction, over a year ago. I am very very happy to have continued this project to the point of finishing part one. I still have a lot in mind and a lot of things that I want to explore with my characters. thank you so so much to all of you that liked, reblogged and commented such sweet things!! I really appreciate it so so much and I hope you'll continue to love Alba, or better, Eva and Simon as much as I love them.

I'm gonna go back to writing!

enjoy!

mare.

taglist:

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[monstrous-femme]

None of this actually runs counter to what I said.

The situations you are describing as the hardest are the ones in which other people aren't out. As you say, living in places with threat of violence and no local community are the hardest versions of this situation, and I'm certainly not asking anyone to martyr themselves. As I said above, I don't judge anyone for their individual choices around this risk.

And yet.

When people do take the risk and come out, especially in areas like those that you speak of, it makes it safer for others. That local community can only begin to exist if people choose to take the risk, and communities have only ever become safer when we have made them so.

"If there were only three other queer kids at your school and you're already closeted to half your family" does not exactly describe the circumstances under which I came out, but there is some resonance. I was in middle school. The year was 2007. No one at my school was out, although I did have the benefit of being in a liberal area in which I knew queer adults. I came out to my family and my school in the same year, and when I did so, I was the only out person at my school.

It is not a choice I would ever ask anyone else to make. I had friends at that school who I knew were queer who chose not to come out, and I never asked them to, even though it would have made things easier for me. And I was lucky enough that I did not typically experience the threat of physical violence.

But I will also tell you that after I came out, other people at my school did too. I do believe that my choice to put myself at risk made other people safer.

People need to make their own choice, with their own judgment, but I think it is important when assessing the risk to consider how taking on some personal risk can make others safer, and conversely to practice gratitude towards others who have taken that risk and made us safer. The queer adults I knew in middle school came out at a time in which they are at a higher risk that I have ever experienced, but their choice to be out made me safer, and I am grateful to them.

Lastly, I will specifically say that this is about obeying or not obeying in advance, which to my understanding is about not obeying at the first signs of risk. It does not mean not obeying in the face of severe and imminent danger-- that's not obeying in advance, that's just obeying. And of course, the specific risks should be weighed-- an adult who can live independently has less risk than someone living with homophobic family, and it makes more sense for the first person to take on the personal risks of coming out than the second.

This is obviously a complex and nuanced issue, but hopefully some of these specific thoughts and details help convey what I was trying to get at with my post.

so the thing I haven't seen anyone say yet about not obeying in advance is that yes, it puts you as an individual at some risk! but it makes us as a collective safer, and the more people do that the more true it is!!

going back into the closet, for example, might make you as an individual safer, but the more of us who chose to stay out of the closet, the safer it is for anyone who wants to be out. the more people resist, the easier resistance becomes.

and it's scary! it's absolutely scary, and I don't judge anyone for how they individually choose to handle the risk, but I personally don't think that hiding from the risk is the answer. I think the more we choose to tolerate the risk and live authentically anyway, the safer we all are

[ambrosiagourmet]

This is just a smaller observation that will hopefully someday be part of a larger analysis on Kabru's view of Laios & how Laios impacts him...

But I think it really interesting that Kabru surrenders something for Laios twice, and that these moments are inversions of each other.

The first time, Kabru gives up his life to maintain his control. He changes the course of the entire story with this action, and is willing to die to achieve that. Kabru is (supposedly) entrusting the future to Laios, but he is still very much the primary actor in the overall narrative. He is still the one choosing what the story should be.

The second time, however, Kabru gives up his control to keep hold of something personal and selfish (in the way of dungeon meshi selfishness - it is a good thing to keep this desire. It small piece of what makes him a living creature). He steps aside to let Laios choose the way forward. He surrenders narrative agency for personal agency... not changing the story, but changing himself.

[thelaurenshippen]

open ai made a little post about how they chose their chatbot voices and two things stood out to me:

a) I am genuinely pleased and surprised that the voices come from specific real people that they hired and paid, rather than being built off of all of the data open ai has scraped. the voice for siri did one job for one company 20 years ago and now she is literally everywhere without ever being compensated by apple or even acknowledged as the voice. there's simply no way she was paid enough in that original job. whereas, open ai says "each actor receives compensation above top-of-market rates, and this will continue for as long as their voices are used in our products." this could mean literally anything (what market rate are we going above? does continue mean they get residuals or get paid for doing more sessions?) but, christ, at least the actors are doing it with full knowledge of what their voices are being used for and can decide for themselves if the compensation is enough

b) the post talks about working with "award-winning casting directors" to get the voices. first of all, yay for paying casting directors! we love to see it. but they also say the CDs received over 400 submissions in a week and they state that like a big number and it's just...not at all. and look, without knowing the intricacies of the casting process, it's hard to know what approach the CDs took - it's very possible they were selective from the jump and 400 is a lot from the pool they were tapping. 400 would be a lot if you were going to the agencies directly and asking for names, but there's just no way in hell open ai went after big stars for this. so it would've been a pool of unknowns. in which case, 400 is laughably small. even if you're not using the big casting sites like actorsaccess, I've worked on projects with CDs and their own internal systems where we've gotten over 100 submissions for a single role. I've posted roles on casting sites and received literally thousands of submissions in just a few days

look, I have a very limited perspective on this - I am not a casting director (imo, one of the most important and undervalued jobs in hollywood) and I, in fact, hate the process of casting with a passion. but 400 just seemed like such a tiny pool to pull from and, idk, it heartens me! it's heartening to think that there's very little interest from actors and agents to be doing this kind of stuff. and absolutely no shade to the actors who did--I want actors to get their bag however they want as long as it's, like, safe sane and consensual, you know? but there's something encouraging about thinking that open ai hired some big casting agency to get their foot into the voice acting door and people didn't come running

[queencaramilflinda]

The real message of Lucy vs Buddy is that worshipping a divinity is about following the values that the god puts forth, not about preaching or praying or evangelizing.

When Buddy was offered to die a Helio worshipper or live with a different god, he chose to abandon the faith he claimed such devotion to. When Lucy was offered the same thing, she looked to her values as they related to her religion and decided that she would not add to the coldness of the world. Lucy, even in death, remains a light in the dark, the warm memory in the coldness of the ratgrinders. That’s true devotion. That’s the point of religion.

[malewifehenrycooldown]

Re-reading Bleach’s Arrancar arc, and… god I want to give Orihime a shoulder to lean on and cry on. Just… gosh the poor girl… she can’t catch a break :’(

The moment she has self doubts about her own abilities (a very understandable and normal teenaged thing!) she has an even more stronger insistence to be stronger, and just when she’s about to get a tremendous improvement in her abilites, the bad guys show up (specifically Ul//quiorra) and basically coerces her to join the arrancar because the value her abilities. That refusal would lead to the deaths of her friends, and as a pacifist who doesn’t like violence and wants to keep her friends safe, it’s understandable that such an offer is VERY HARD for her to decline.

May I remind people that Orihime at this point in Bleach is a teenaged girl attending high school. Who just a few months ago almost saw her best friend die (they’re okay but they’re not the same person anymore), had a near death experience herself, and also saw the person she has a crush on be violently defeated in a battle he wasn’t prepared for.

Arrancar arc is really just… Orihime and the horrible, terrible, no good, very bad day :(

[pepprs]

my dad might have fucking covid. about to jump off a bridge

[dogin8]

back in my day weaponized incompetence was when a character was so head empty that psychic powers had no effect on them

some of yall won't do the dishes but would DEFINITELY get mind controlled is all I'm saying 😤

[zoologica42]

Temperate Lake Dashboard Simulator

🐦‍⬛2xcrested_cormorant Follow Going to try and eat this weird fish

♻️🐦‍⬛2xcrested_cormorant Follow wilmdlife hopital

🐸rana-bufo Follow No one can ever truly understand what BULL4rog's music means to me 😭 this song in particular argrgrgrgrgrg the way he puffs out his vocal sack asdfghjk

BULL4rog: listen here on spotify ♻️🐸rana-bufo Follow I think I huave chytrid

🐟ilikeeatingminnowsFollow I just migrated here from finstagram please be nice

🐠powerbottomfeeder Follow

I have HAD IT with this lake, it’s the third day in a row we’ve had nitrates above 8 ppm and uug the algae, my allergies I can’t do this

♻️🐟carpy-diem Follow

Lol we regularly get nitrates up to 20 ppm in my lake ♻️🦞crawdaddy Follow uhhh you shouldn't be bragging about that, it's really unsafe ♻️🐟carpy-diem Follow suck it you little oligotrophic bitch

🐢snappturt Follow Dear Tumblr, am I the Basshole for the way I catch minnows? I was chatting with some of the guys I bask with and they said the way I catch minnows is problematic; What I do is I sit on the bottom of the lake, I hide myself in the mud and I open my mouth. My tongue looks a lot like a little worm so I wiggle it around- and because of that, minnows swim over and check it out. Once they get close enough, then I bite down and eat them. Some of my rockmates have told me that this is manipulative and toxic behavior- but they also eat minnows...I don't know guys...

🦆tree hole-nester-acorn-eater Follow

is it just me, or is this super homoerotic???

🐟bigpikexxl Follow liveblogging diving down to the bottom

♻️🐟bigpikexxl Follow dark

♻️🐟bigpikexxl Follow big log

♻️🐟bigpikexxl Follow rock

♻️🐟bigpikexxl Follow kinda cold

♻️🐟bigpikexxl Follow oh hi @deepwatersculpin!!!

♻️🐠deepwatersculpin Follow oh hey @bigpikexxl!!!

never thought i'd seen one of my mutuals irl!!! I didn't even know we lived in the same lake!!!

🐠Shadlad Follow I'm not sorry, and I'm not afraid to say it, if you're an introduced species, go dry yourself out. You're not welcome to eat up all of our resources and live in my ancestral longs and rock crags. These things are for us to relate to and not for you to squander.

♻️🦞crevice-steve Follow

Can't believe this type of fishcourse is still popular on this site, introduced species didn't choose to be introduced and have as much of a right to live as anyone else. Bigotry against introduced species is still bigotry and that's a hill I will dry on. ♻️🐠Shadlad Follow Go ahead, dry yourself out then ;) ♻️🪷nootnootnewt Follow Hey man, I hate invasive species as much as anyone else but please stop telling people to beach themselves for political reasons- yeah that includes inavsives too ♻️🦐typical_scud Follow Did you legit just use the word Invas*ve to describe introduced species? ♻️🦢flatfootswimmer Follow anyone in this thread eat pondweed?

♻️🐟largemouthbASS Follow A colab with my mutual @2xcrested_cormorant after they got released from the wildlife hospital. They haven't been on much since the Fish and Wildlife Service released them in the wrong lake and it took them a while to get back to their colony. We hope this guide will help you avoid accidentally eating/engaging with bait!

[nunyabznsbabes]

Katniss is like Lucy Gray this, Katniss is like Sejanus that, and yes fine that's all good and true and lovely but Katniss Everdeen is also a direct parallel to Coriolanus Snow and people NEED to start talking about this because it's driving me crazy.

Think about it: they both grew up poor and deeply vulnerable, losing parents at a very young age, with a matriarchal adult (Katniss' mother and Coriolanus' Grandma'am) who fails to provide for them emotionally and physically. They intimately understand the threat of starvation, even developing with stunted growth because of it, and their narrations in the books share a fixation on food. Throughout their childhoods, both experienced constant fear and suffered a fundamental lack of control over their circumstances. Because of this, they're inherently suspicious of the people around them. They resent feeling indebted to others, especially those who have saved their lives. They're motivated almost entirely by family and deeply connected to their communities. Both are used and manipulated by the Capitol, both are forced to perform to survive and despise every inch of it, both are thrown into the Arena and made to kill. Both have a self-sacrificial, genuinely sweet sister figure acting as their conscience. Peeta and Lucy Gray - performers and love interests with a fundamental kindness and sense of hope about them - fulfill markedly similar roles in their narrative. Both contribute to the development of the future Hunger Games, Snow throughout tbosas and Katniss towards the end of Mockingjay.

It's easy to ignore these similarities because, as mirrors of each other, they are exact opposites. Katniss is from District 12, viewed and treated as less than human; Snow is the cream of the Capitol crop, given the privilege of a name with social weight, an ancestral home, and the opportunity of the Academy despite having no more money than a miner from 12. Katniss has no agency over her life, and responds by being kind whenever she's able, while Snow justifies horrendous evils in order to continue his quest for complete control. Katniss does everything she can to protect her family; Snow does everything he can to protect his family's image as an extension of his own ego. Katniss loves her District and connects with its inhabitants on a meaningful level, but Snow is indifferent at best to his peers - the apparent "superior people" - and only engages with his community for personal gain. Katniss emerges from the Arena horrified at herself and the system, but Snow takes his trauma and turns it into an excuse to perpetuate the violence with himself at the top. Katniss cares for Prim until her death and then snaps at the loss of her little sister, while Snow survives on Tigris' blood, sweat, and tears and then torments and abandons her, presumably because she calls him out on his insanity. Snow actively adds to and popularizes the Hunger Games because of his vendetta against the Districts following his childhood wartime trauma - Katniss briefly agrees to a new Hunger Games in the pursuit of vengeance, but later stops them from happening by killing Coin and choosing a life of peace and privacy. Snow is obsessed with revenge, but Katniss empathizes with the Capitolites and does what she can to keep them from suffering. He exists in a cruel system and selfishly upholds it; she exists in a cruel system and works to dismantle it for the good of her family and community, at great personal cost. And Peeta and Lucy Gray are incredibly similar, but Katniss and Peeta forge a relationship of genuine love and understanding that shines in comparison to Coriolanus' obsessive projection onto Lucy Gray.

So, yeah, Katniss is Lucy Gray haunting Coriolanus. But I bet you anything that eighty-something year old President Snow looks at her, the girl on fire, bright and young and brilliant, emerging from a childhood of starvation with a relentless hunger for success, a talented and charming performer helping her win the Games, and he sees the ghost of his own past. And that's why he's so afraid of her! Because if he sees himself in her, then he's up against his own cunning, his own talent for manipulation, his own charisma, his own genius. He's up against the version of himself that he once wished to be, with the nightmare army of his childhood at her back and her star-crossed lover at her side, spewing Sejanus' truths in his own voice. This isn't to say that Katniss ever achieved the level of power and agency that Coriolanus did during her time with the rebellion, but it is to say that Snow was taken down by what truly terrified him - his own morality, come to finish the job.