#and by acting skills i mean lack thereof

[howdoichooseablogname]

buddie au where they get together after the episode of hotshots they're cameo in is released

theyre watching it and curious on what people think, if they were noticed. they have a small cult following shipping them and like 10 works on ao3. this is, like, a month or two after the episode is released

the two of them read all of them (half are explicit) and can't look at each other in the eyes. it takes bobby asking about what's going on between them that gets them to confess

they never realized they could be together and it made them realize they actually love each other

it ends with them getting together and possibly accidentally making waves online (the fics of thier characters triple over night)

[seokgyuu]

After your flawless job-interview, Seokmin hires you as the newest addition to his company. Just that, once you start, it seems like you’re not who you previously portrayed to be. Instead, he finds himself faced with mini-skirts, push-up bras and gawking co-workers, not to mention your absolute lack of work ethic. Obviously, he needs to fire you! Just that, when he tries to… you simply don’t let him.

Pairing: Boss!Seokmin x Employee!F!Reader

Genre: Porn with the smallest bits of plot, workplace “romance”, Smut MDNI!

Warnings: Morally gray characters, Seokmin is obviously reader’s boss and shouldn’t be fucking her, power imbalance, reader gets objectified a lot, but she enjoys it, reader is… acting very dumb (on purpose), Smut warnings under the cut!

Word Count: 3.7k

A/N: Hi everyone!! welcome to this little work of… filth! Making my return with a Seokmin fic just felt right (also I just could not stop thinking about this). Please let me know what you think with a reply or a reblog, it would mean the world to me!! also a big thanks to @shadowkoo for making this AMAZING banner and to @bitchlessdino for beta-ing!!

tagging: @okiedokrie, @inkchwe, @shinysobi, @gyuhanniescarat, @haologram, @beomcoups @wongyuseokie, @the-boy-meets-evil, @multi-kpop-fanfics (just some of my fellow dk enjoyers)

Smut Warnings: oral (m receiving), face fucking, praise (good girl, etc.), degradation (whore, etc.), unprotected sex, titjob, breeding, usage of the word “Sir” in a sexual context, tell me if i missed anything!

His phone rings. The Harry Potter title music is playing, letting him know it’s his sister calling. He can’t pick up, or well, no, he can, considering his hands are free, but he probably shouldn’t.

Having talks with his employees about having to let them go is Seokmin’s least favorite thing about being the boss. He never wants anyone to feel like they weren’t good enough or couldn’t live up to any expectations, but sometimes… sometimes it was inevitable.

Like with you.

When you had first walked into your interview, you impressed him with your sharp tongue and your witty humor. Your resume looked perfect for the job, and your previous experience was exactly what he needed. He hired you the following week and deemed his decision a good one - until you showed up for your first day.

See, before anything else, Seokmin is simply just a man. A man with eyes and needs and desires.

The mini skirt barely covered your backside, showed off your legs and those perfect thighs you had hidden from sight before. Your dress shirt would have been fine for the office if only it wasn’t… half open. Or at least open enough to see your breasts almost falling out of your push-up bra.

He knew back then that he should say something. Tell you that this wasn’t appropriate to wear to work. But he didn’t. For the same reason, his mostly male staff began coming into work more punctually, more eagerly and stayed for even longer hours.

It was a mistake, he thinks now, not to say anything to you on your first day. Or any other day after that.

A mistake or the single best decision he had ever made.

Truth be told, he’d never called you into his office to discuss his decision to let you go if it was only about the clothes (or lack thereof) you wore to work. No, he was fine with the clothes, more than fine, actually, if you took just one look at the amount of tissues discarded in his office’s trash can.

But… you lacked certain skills he had thought you’d easily have, considering your previous jobs. You struggled doing, in his opinion, the most basic tasks, and more or less let the others do the work for you. The work he paid you to do. Instead, you sat at your desk all day and played Solitaire or scrolled on Instagram.

The two of you almost never interacted, mainly because he was scared to say the wrong thing or stare too long at your breasts he couldn’t stop thinking about anyway. When it did happen that he had to talk to you, it mostly went with him going back to his office with a raging boner and a guilty conscience.

One time, he brought back some prints from the copy room, only to find out you had been the one to print them. When he asked around the room and you were the one to raise your hand and get up from your chair he almost choked on his spit. You made your way over him, your tight dress hugging every single one of your curves, the slit in the side showing off where your stockings began, the neckline down far enough for him to see the lacy material of your bra once again.

“Thank you, Mr. Lee, Sir,” you smiled at him, your fingers touching his when you reached for the pile of papers. He felt like you shot him and as a result, he shot a huge load of cum into one of his tissues when he was back in his office.

Then, he met you at the coffee maker one time, witnessing you eat a fucking banana in one god damned bite. He couldn’t believe his eyes when you basically deepthroated the fruit all while looking directly into his eyes. He popped a boner right then and there.

All in all, it was safe to say the woman he had met in the interview was gone and he had absolutely no clue why or how he had let you fool him that day you met.

A part of him was angry at himself for letting it get this far, but he couldn’t deny that with every glimpse of your exposed ass and tits, with every encounter like the prints or the banana, he decided to give you one last chance to prove yourself. So far he had given you about 151 chances and you’d screwed up all of them.

Which is how he ended up calling you into his office.

Which is how you ended up sitting in front of his desk on one of the comfortable dark red armchairs, your legs crossed, yet another mini-skirt rising up far enough for Seokmin to at least imagine he can smell you. The shirt you were wearing was tight and cropped and your blazer was lazily hung over the back of the armchair.

“So, Y/N,” he began, shifting on his seat and trying very hard not to look at your tits, “do you have any idea why I called you in here?”

You shook your head no.

“No, sir, I don’t. Did I do something wrong?”

Sir. Oh good lord, Seokmin had to swallow down the pathetic moan he feels creeping up his throat.

“Well,” he cleared his throat, “I have noticed that you’ve been handing your work off to Chan a lot. Soonyoung as well, and while I understand you’re the newest employee, you have been here for almost five months now, Y/N, and I did expect you to already, you know, do at least a certain amount of work by yourself.”

Your eyes widened the more he spoke, your pout prominent once he finished.

“I’m sorry, Sir, truly! They always offered to help me and I just- I just didn’t want to disappoint them,” your voice strained, almost sounding like you were about to start crying. Seokmin felt his heart speed up.

“I understand that. But still - it must make sense to you that-,”

You jumping up from your chair made him stop mid sentence. He watched how you stalked over to him, your big eyes staring him down with something he couldn’t pinpoint even if he tried.

“It does make sense, Sir, and I want to apologize. I can do better, please don’t fire me.”

Seokmin was frozen in his chair, his seated figure looking up at you, almost panicking when he realized how close you were. If he raised his hand now, he could touch your thigh, could let it slip higher, could-

“Please, Mr. Lee, I’d do anything to keep this job.”

Which is how we get to… now.

His phone is still ringing on the desk, but he’s still nowhere near answering it. He is too focused on your mouth around his rock-hard cock, on the way you look up at him with watery eyes, on the way your hand is fondling his aching balls.

You dropping to your knees might have been the single most hottest thing he has ever seen before. Or well, maybe this right now tops it. Your tongue is flat against his shaft, dragging it along his veins, licking up all the precum that doesn’t directly land in your mouth. You suck on his tip, tease his slit, and moan when you take him all the way.

And Seokmin? He thinks he might have just entered heaven. His hands are itching to touch you, to push you down and fuck up, to lose control, but he doesn’t. Instead, he watches you with his mouth dropped, with his heart going at triple speed in his chest.

This is wrong. So, so wrong! He shouldn’t let you suck his cock as a way to keep your job, for god’s sake!

Once his tip crashes against the back of your throat, his mind goes blank, and all the thoughts from before disappear. They make room for new thoughts instead, thoughts that finally allow him to do what he wanted to from the second you had walked in on your first day.

The groan he lets out causes you to drip into your panties. And the way his hands now find the back of your head almost makes you come. Your eyes roll back for a second, before you bring them back to look at your boss.

Your extremely hot, perfect boss who took so fucking long to bring you into his office. Who could not take a hint at-fucking-all.

He begins to thrust up into your throat, letting out moans you wish you could record and replay as many times as you wished. His cock is big, just as big as you had hoped it to be. He’s veiny and perfect and his angry red tip is going to become your favorite thing to suck on. He tastes salty and sweet and bitter at the same time, melts on your tongue, and gets you to clench around absolutely nothing.

“Fuck,” he cries out when he picks up his speed, nails digging into your scalp as he continues his hard and fast thrusts, his cock beginning to twitch, his balls tightening dangerously. You need him, want him and almost demand him to come down your throat. To give you everything he has to offer. You press your tongue harder against his shaft, cheeks hollowed out, and you can feel his orgasm nearing with every passing second.

“I’m gonna- fu-fuck, I’m gonna c-come!” His cry is almost taking you over the edge too.

Seokmin sees red and white at the same time, opens his eyes, and stares down at you with his pupils blown and his cock finally emptying his seed inside your awaiting mouth. It almost breaks him, seeing how you swallow all of his cum like a pro, never breaking eye contact.

Breathless, Seokmin slowly gets down from his high, watching how you lick up his cock, your eyes twinkling with mischief, giving his tip a small kiss before finally leaning back, batting your eyelashes.

“So tasty, Mr. Lee. Now, should I get back to work?”

· · ─────── ·𖥸· ─────── · ·

It kind of becomes a thing. At the beginning, Seokmin calls you into his office and you suck his cock, make him come, go back to work. All while still wearing your skimpy outfits to work and doing the minimum requirements to not be a complete waste of Seokmin’s money. Even though he figures with a cold shiver running down his spine, it seems like he’s paying you for something totally different now.

You’re enjoying this to the fullest, having a right out blast. Not just because you get to have Seokmin fuck your throat every other day, no, but because of how he looks at you. When you met him that first day at the interview, you already knew you wanted him. Knew he was going to be your next little project. So far you had never failed, and you sure as hell weren’t going to start now.

Working at the company for five months hadn’t exactly been your plan, though. Five months until he finally called you into his office. Five months of you choosing the most outrageous outfits, knowing every single man in that office wanted a taste of you, but only wanting one of them to actually act on it.

“Holy fucking hell, yeah, just- just like that,” he’s leaning against the wall behind his desk, you back on your knees, his cock hitting the soft inside of your cheek over and over again. He’s holding onto your hair with one hand while the other is pressed against the wall next to him. You lick and suck and fuck his cock against your cheek, drool running down your chin. You’re painfully wet, throbbing, and needing him to finally put his cock in you.

By now (3 weeks after your little blowjob-job started) you know his tells, can sense when he’s about to come. So, when you hear that first little noise, you let go of his cock with a plop and get up. Seokmin’s eyes open and he looks at you, visibly confused.

“Wha-,” he begins, but you just take a step forward and crush your lips against his, your hands grabbing his face.

For the first few seconds, Seokmin doesn’t really grasp the situation. You’re kissing him. He begins to melt, his hands somehow finding their way to your waist and when you lead him back, suddenly seated on his desk, his mind goes blank. You want him to fuck you. Want his cock to go inside that probably sweet tasting pussy of yours. He moans into your mouth.

“Take me, Mr. Lee, please, need your cock in me, need you to fuck me,” you whisper into his ear, biting his earlobe after and sighing in relief when he immediately moves to get your panties off of you.

“Fuck, fuck, you’re so hot.” He kisses you again, wild and uncontrolled, your panties now landing on the floor. You part your legs and grab his cock, bringing it to your awaiting entrance. There is no stopping the moan that escapes you once his tip slips in, your teeth sinking into his bottom lip harshly. He licks over your teeth, feels his mind fog up, no thoughts just you, you, you.

Then, he’s fully inside of you. Twitches, groans, kisses you harder. And fucks you like a god-damned beast.

The pace he sets is brutal and you’re lucky it’s after hours so no one is at the office anymore. They for sure would have heard the way the desk is bouncing against the floor with every thrust as well as your high pitched moans, and Seokmin’s low growls.

He fucks you like he owns you and you live for it. His cock drags along your walls, fills you like he was made for you, hits your sweet spot over and over again as if he’d done this thousand times before.

“Fuck, yes!” You basically scream, your body falling backward, only his strong hands holding you up as he speeds up once more.

“God, shit, how are you so tight, baby?” He moves to kiss your neck, licks over the salty skin, revels in your taste, in the way you shiver under his touch. You wanna scream and cry and mark his body with your mouth and nails - and so you begin to pull on the hem of his shirt, which he gladly helps you to take off completely.

He’s built like a god. Wide shoulders, bulked up arms, abs like they were painted on. You let your nails drag over his torso, finally sliding them to his strong, muscular back. When he pushes into you even more, his lips not getting enough of your own, you dig into his flesh and hear him hiss. Still, he doesn’t stop. If anything, he goes even harder. Fucks you til you scream his name while experiencing the most intense orgasm of your life, milking his cock of all he had, cum filling your pussy to the brim.

After that it spirals.

He fucks you every chance he gets. He is addicted to you and your pussy. Whenever he needs you, he gets to have you.

He bends you over his desk during work hours, drilling into your pussy like a mad man while pressing his hand over your mouth to make sure no one notices. He comes inside you and stuffs it all back in there with his fingers, pulls your panties back up and sends you out to continue your work day as before.

When lunch time comes around, you meet him in the building’s cafeteria and he drags you to the nearest supply closet to fuck your mouth and then your cunt, telling you what a good little slut you are and how well you always take him.

He sends you pictures of his hard cock after work, begging you to come to his place and bounce on him - but you never do. It’s a game for both of you. No fucking outside of work, no dates or anything like that. He gets to keep fucking you and you get to keep your job - easy as that.

Just that… you’re not really bad at your job. Seokmin is slow to figure that one out, you realize.

When your seventh month at the company begins, he is so focused on getting his cock inside of you, he doesn’t even notice you’ve stopped handing off your assignments to your colleagues. You’ve actually grown quite fond of this job and the team - and Seokmin for that matter. Not that you want to admit that to him, or confess that you’ve been playing this part of the dumb girl with the slutty outfits simply to get his attention.

“I love when you get to the office with no panties on, gods, you’re a dirty little whore.” Seokmin’s hands are on your ass while you bounce on his cock. He’s sitting on his desk chair, admiring the view of your tits as you fuck yourself on his cock. His dirty words make your pussy flutter around him and you whimper, your hands braced on his shoulders.

“Mhmm, only a whore for you, Mr. Lee,” you moan, biting down on your lip. There is no chance you’ll ever grow tired of seeing the way he looks at you when you fuck. His hooded eyes, his red lips dropped open. His cheeks flushed and his hair a mess.

You enjoy being on top, enjoy watching him watch you, setting your own pace until he can’t hold back any longer and wraps his arm around your waist, pushing you down so he can fuck into you at his desired speed.

“That’s right, you’re my whore, your pussy belongs only to me.” He squeezes your ass cheeks and moans when you clench around him again, thrusting his hips up once. You can tell he’s about to lose control, about to hold you down and fuck you senseless. There is nothing quite as hot as Seokmin losing his composure.

Just two days ago, you teased him by being flirty with Soonyoung all day. Seokmin had not thought of himself as possessive, but somehow when it came to you…

Safe to say, he fucked you against his office door two minutes after your last encounter with Soonyoung, simply shoving up your skirt and ripping off your panties, his cock deeply buried inside of you the next second. He fucked you so hard you couldn’t properly walk even the day after.

“Yes, Mr. Lee, my pussy belongs to you, I am yours, Sir.”

You bounce on his cock quicker now, throwing your head back when his hands move to your breasts, taking them both into his hands and cradling them. His fingers press onto your nipples, squeezing them between his thumb and forefinger, pinching and teasing you. With every touch of his, you feel yourself nearing your high.

“You’re so beautiful, always so good for me, isn’t that right?” He breathes out, licking his lips as his eyes are glued to the way your tits look between his hands.

He fucked them a few days ago, your tits. Had you kneeling between his legs, squeezing them together as he fucked his cock between them with the lube he now stored in his bottom drawer. They had felt amazing around him, but nothing compared to your cunt, to its warmth, to its tightness.

“Oh- oh! I’m- I’m gonna come, Mr. Lee! Please, can I come?!” Your orgasm is so close, is ready to crash down on you and when Seokmin moaned out a yes, you let it happen. Waves and waves of pleasure erupt in your body and make you fall forward against his chest, his hips now beginning to thrust up, his moans turning more and more desperate.

“Good girl, such a good girl, fuck- I’m gonna fill you up, yeah? Fill you up with my cum, breed you like my own personal whore, hm?”

Your nails dig into his skin desperately as he fucks you fast and hard, his right arm now around your waist, pressing you down while he uses you for his pleasure, crying out your name when he comes - white hot cum landing inside your spent pussy, painting it the colours of his affection for you.

Seokmin fucks both of you through your orgasms, whispering sweet nothings into your ear, kissing your lips passionately when his hips still. You kiss him back, arms wrapping around his neck, your high still present in your bones.

“You’re perfect,” Seokmin mumbles against your lips and you smile, kissing him again, fingers brushing through his hair.

For a while, you make-out just like that, him still safely buried inside of you, some bits of your combined releases dripping down onto his chair.

Only when Seokmin’s phone rings do the two of you part. You give his cheek a small kiss before climbing off his lap and looking for your underwear, all while you put your dress back into its place. Your boss watches you, wishes he could just do this all over again instead of answering his phone. Reluctantly, he takes the call and watches how you wave at him, panties back on and clothes and shoes back where they belong. He waves back, greeting the business partner on the other line.

And when you leave his office and close the door behind you, when none of your co-workers even pay you any mind, you realize that maybe you like to keep it this way for just a little while longer.

[thebomb-thebird-andtheburntbitch]

"you'd like me to what?" zhongli had been enjoying your company in silence for a spell before you had blurted out a request you wished he would fulfil for you.

"show me how to fight with a polearm." zhongli had not yet divulged the information about him being a god to you, and as far as he knew you hadn't known just how much physical power he possessed. so why ask him?

"may i ask why you've chosen to come to me with this request? i'm afriad i am quite at a loss."

"well, you go out with the traveler on occasion, right? and they're super strong and it's not like you go on leisurely walks among the hilichurl invaded mountains of liyue." before zhongli could even try and rebuttle, you keep going. "and truthfully, if you go out into the rolling hills with the traveler covering you everywhere you go, that makes you look kinda bad you know."

"bad?" his voice pitches and recoils slightly from your words.

"making them do all the work while you sit back and do nothing! that certainly would paint a bad picture if you keep going out there willingly and don't learn. so! you must know something."

"hmm," he hums, wordless agreeing with a small furrow to his brow and a sweat on his neck. though your scenarios were purely hypothetical and very untrue since he does carry his own weight very well, it still wasn't a picture his wanted you to paint of him. "perhaps.. you're correct. but, then why would you request training specific to polearms? could you not ask a local millelith for aid?"

"i could i guess," you deflate and he almost cracks right there. "but hu tao said you were definitely a better choice in regards to what i'm looking for."

zhongli feels a deep sigh in his chest at the mention of the current director. yes, this does have her written all over it. if she wasn't looking into ridiculous ways of promoting the business of death, she was snooping around in zhongli's love life- or lack thereof since you were not his significant other much to her displeasure.

"last i check however, you were already very skilled in other means of combat. why the sudden interest?"

"isn't is a good thing to broaden your horizons? that's what childe said anyways."

you've also convened with childe it seems. lovely.

"you really should disregard anything those two say." his voice is normal as he speaks, but the dryness of it makes you laugh. he wasn't joking, but he smiles at you regardless.

"well, i'm not going to pressure you!" you get the sense that his questions were a very very polite way of stalling you from a rejection. "if you dont want to, childe did offer since he said he's mastered every form of combat aside from archery." zhongli felt his brow twitch.

"i also wouldn't recommend getting too frivolous with childe. kind though he may act, he is still someone to be cautious of."

"because he's a fatui?"

"partially." also because he'll easily vie all of your free time from this point onwards until he leaves liyue if you go to him for training. zhongli wouldn't get to enjoy your company like this anymore if you do run to childe, and that idea alone makes his chest itch. "i accept your request."

his calm agreement makes your face light up and your eyes shine with such excitement he feels antsy. strange how strong the urge to kiss you grows when you look at him like he had just hung the stars.

zhongli is lucky the next time you see childe and tell him that zhongli will be training you with polearms, he's seated up in the higher shops of liyue's red-fenced architecture. the strained, yet begrudging look of disappointment to cross the harbingers face is a perfect appetizer to go with his fresh cup of tea.

as is the smug look zhongli shoots him when childe feels the burning gaze on his skull and looks up once you saunter off. zhongli takes pleasure in knowing he is a being who is and always will be above childe, both in his current fenced in seat above his head and higher status of being. a mere fatui harbinger has nothing on a god, gnosis or no.

zhongli was untouchable by many, in many ways. you however, all you had to do was simply ask and he would do whatever you wished.

besides, he hadn't forgotten what childe tried to do to his nation where all his beloved people and you resided. and his memory, much to childe's misfortune, is very good.

[damnfandomproblems]

Posting a compilation of replies to Fandom Problem #5796.

Anon:

"Don't you think that minors would be more polite if..." No. No I don't. I was a minor in fandom. I also grew up at the dawn of the internet age and had internet safety pounded into my head from the age of 10 onward. If I interacted online at all outside of viewing and reading, I knew better than to be an asshole, because the internet has always been an adult sphere. I saw other minors get well deserved internet smackdowns for acting stupid online. If the kids are in actual kids spaces, then fine, leave them alone, that's their space. If they're on Xitter or Tumblr.com or A03 and acting the fool? No. You're in an adult space, interacting with adults, and those adults aren't there to cater to or coddle you. Which media the adult in question happens to like is irrelevant. You came into our spaces and started throwing a shit fit because you, a minor, didn't like what you, a minor, saw in our, adults, adult spaces. Most of the time we don't care if you're being cringe and having fun. Go, have fun, be cringe be free all that. Some kids are great and here to learn and have fun and are able to actually read the fandom room and know how to act like a respectable human while also having a good time. But if you're being antagonistic and hateful because you literally just are not mature enough to handle/comprehend what's going on in the space, then you don't need to be in the space at worst. At best, sit down, hush, and learn rather than running at the mouth about how you hate x y z thing because eww icky or you think it's problematic to your current pet social issue that doesn't even have anything to do with it. Kids are some of the biggest natural bullies out there. Kids being assholes to each other isn't just a trope, it's why secondary school/highschool was hell for so many people. Adults aren't all assholes, we're just better at calling kids out on their bullshit and don't have the patience for the "but I'm a minor" nonsense. Being a minor doesn't mean you're free from consequences, but some of y'alls parents clearly never taught you that. They aren't puritans, they're being idiots because they literally have no concept of fandom history and are just parroting nonsense that's been spoon-fed to them by other idiots. And rather than question things like anyone with critical thinking skills should be doing they take it all at face value and believe their own poor understanding or lack thereof is gospel, and everyone suffers for it, including other minors who also don't know better.

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Anon:

Fandom isn't just for minors though. Adults are allowed to be in fandoms even if it is uncomfy to minors. Adults are allowed to make NSFW of fictional characters in fandom if they want to. If minors don't like it, they can just ignore it. If minors want to be respected, they should also respect adults in fandom spaces. Complaints like "adults shouldn't be here" or "you are an adult, go get a job instead!" does not make you any better.

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Anon:

I agree with this tbh. Like adults are the ones making things unsafe for minors in fandom spaces. YOU are the ones who approach minors unprompted. Minors are just minding their own business in fandom, then you all come along and bother everyone.

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Anon:

I agree with this post, cause like... the ones doing the most harassing are adults. I am a minor, and it makes me feel unsafe in fandom spaces. Especially when I see adults drawing nsfw of characters who are MINORS! aging them up does not excuse that gross and creepy behavior. Just stop and give us a space where we don't get pushed into a corner and called annoying. Leave our fandom spaces!

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Anon:

When I was 17 so technically a technically still a minor I would have to keep my age off of all my blogs and accounts because so many other minors have ruined being younger in a fandom space. Literally just having my age up affected my numbers and how seriously I was taken. Y’all are not innocent though stop playing victim there are valid reasons why people don’t like you. Tons of younger kids these days are entitled overly sensitive and somehow both pretentiously “woke” and super disrespectful at the same time. So yea saying this as someone with pretty recent memories of being a minor online so many of you are actually insane and people not feeling comfortable around you is completely valid especially when you’re typing stuff like this up as your best defense. Especially with darker or NSFW stuff you don’t have to look we aren’t shoving down your throat you chose to be here just look away.

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Anon:

I see people getting mad about Fandom Problem #5796, but that kind of is just proving the point? You all act like the minors are the biggest problem in fandom, but you are the ones constantly inserting yourselves and making it about you. I see adults say things like: - "Fandom wouldn't exist without adults." - "Who do you think created fandom? Not minors!" - "Minors wouldn't have content if it weren't for adults." All are ignorant of the idea that minors are the foundation to fandom. Fandom would not exist if it wasn't for minors being interested in it and starting groups for people to join. Often times, the best artists and writers in the fandoms are THE MINORS. Adults make the space uncomfortable by inserting themselves and putting NSFW fics and art of minor characters. Then they get pissy when a minor points out it makes them uncomfortable and go "stop invading our space!" You are the ones trying to push minors out when we just want to have fun! Just leave us alone! -A minor

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Anon:

Of course, 5796 has a corollary: "To the minors who constantly complain about adults in fandom being mean to them: don't you think adults would be more polite to minors if said minors didn't make fun of them, didn't treat them like shit everywhere they went, didn't blame them for all the problems on the internet, didn't publicly shame them for minor social faux pas, didn't call them "pedophiles" for anything from liking an icky ship to saying two words to a minor in passing to just existing peacefully in a space where a child might theoretically be present, and didn't try to gatekeep them out of fandom spaces that were literally made by and for them?? And don't give me that "well we just want to be safe! 🥺" Bs. Because if that were in any way true, then y'all would be listening to the safety tips that the adults are giving you, not using them as a scapegoat for anything bad happening in fandom and generalizing them as these eeeevil predators who just hate children." It doesn't matter what your age is; if you refuse to behave in a given space, then you won't be welcome in that space.

[dwobbitfromtheshire]

Give it to Me

Summary: In which Jonathan doesn't feel right taking the camera. Giving it back stirs something in Jonathan.

A/N: It could be a a one shot but if you guys wanted to leapfrog what you might think happens next in the reblogs, I wouldn't mind. Leapfrog: in which a person writes a little something off someone's story in a reblog for someone else to write a little something. I don't know if leapfrogging is a thing, but I would love it if it was. Would it be leapfrogging or leapreblogging?

Jonathan stared at the camera in Will's hand. He should feel happy that he was given a new one after Steve broke his other one. Steve had gone too far, hadn't he? He hadn't actually cared about Nancy or how she felt. All he wanted to do was to make Jonathan look and feel bad. He wanted to show everyone who was in charge. Jonathan shook his head. Maybe that's what he wanted to tell himself to make him feel better about what he did. It had been clear as day that Steve had been concerned about how Nancy would react, and he had gotten angry for her because she had been in shock. . .too stunned for words. It should have been Nancy to break his camera, and Nancy should have slapped him. No, Jonathan didn't deserve this camera. Not only did he betray Nancy in such an utterly fowl way, but he also betrayed his skills as a photographer.

"Jonathan?" Will asked.

"I need to go back in," Jonathan said and took the camera from Will. "Take this back. Come on."

"I can stay in the car for a few minutes, Jonathan," Will sighed.

"Will, please," Jonathan said softly.

"Fine," Will rolled his eyes.

He got out of the car with Jonathan and followed him back into the house. Jonathan could see Ted and Karen in the kitchen with Holly. Ted was holding her, and Karen was trying to get something out of her mouth. Holly was cackling. Apparently, she had eaten something she wasn't supposed to again. Will watched from the hallway, amused by the scene. While his brother was distracted, Jonathan slipped into the living room. Nancy was cuddled up next to Steve. Jonathan pushed away the jealous pang in his chest and stood in front of them.

"Oh, hey, Jonathan, did you forget something?" Nancy asked.

"Here," Jonathan said and handed her the camera.

"That's a gift," Nancy said in surprise.

"It's something I don't deserve," Jonathan said. "What I did. . .it was messed up, and I crossed a huge line. What's even worse is that I made up so many excuses and placed the blame on other people. . .but the truth is that I had plenty of time to stop and not do what I did. All I could see was you guys having fun when my brother was lost. . .It made me a little angry at first. . .then I realized that I was just jealous. . . I never had any friends or did anything like that. I suppose it was my fault because I pushed people away, and I used my camera to do it. I shouldn't have done it, and I want to earn it back. All of it," Jonathan said. "I'm apologizing to both of you, because you both deserve it."

Jonathan caught their eyes. Both of their looked at him softly and full of meaning. Nancy's eyes were a wide, beautiful blue that threw him off so much sometimes that he had to look anywhere else. He never noticed how beautiful Steve’s were until now. He always assumed that they were just brown but no. . .they were actually mostly a dark forest green with brown surrounding the iris. It reminded Jonathan strongly of the woods. Steve was looking at a curious realization as if he had just had a thought, and he wasn't sure why he did. Jonathan realized then that he wasn't that much different than Steve, and he wondered if Steve was thinking the same thing he was.

They both had fucked up. Steve, with his actions, or lack thereof, and words at the Hawk. He knew then why Steve had said those things. He had acted out of jealousy, out of hurt. . . Much like Jonathan did in the woods with Nancy. . . Jonathan had fucked up by taking those pictures, and he waited outside of Steve’s house for Nancy to come to her senses but there had been a part of him that wanted to follow her up the stairs. . . To watch or maybe, they'd let him be a part of whatever it was they were doing. When Nancy had told him that it wasn't okay what he had done, he wanted to continue to not take accountability for the photos because then it would mean something else. Instead, he yelled at Nancy and accused her of being like all the other girls Steve had dated. He had spent so long behind the camera that he had forgotten that people weren't just photographs. There's more to them than he had ever thought.

"I forgive you, Jonathan," Nancy said and pushed the camera back towards him. "You more than made up for it."

"I just - I haven't forgiven myself yet," Jonathan said and placed it on her lap.

Steve stood up, smiling at him. He held out his hand at Jonathan. He wanted to shake his hand. Jonathan stared at his hand longer than he should have. Steve cleared his throat, and Jonathan tentatively took his hand.

"Thank you, you saved my life. . .in more ways than one. I don't think I ever would have realized that there were more important things if it hadn't been for you and Nancy," Steve said. "And I forgive you, too."

"You give us too much credit," Jonathan blushed. "You made the choice to walk away from those assholes."

"It's not a big deal," Steve shrugged.

"Okay, now you're just fishing for a compliment," Jonathan said and Nancy laughed.

"Well," Steve said. "You know, you're welcome to hang out with us any time. . .could definitely use a friend like you."

Jonathan realized they were still shaking hands. . .well, they were holding hands. Steve had started rubbing circles into his skin with his thumb, and he made his eyes bigger, pleading with Jonathan.

"Why? So, I can sit around and watch you two makeout?" Jonathan asked.

"Well, if you're into that," Steve smirked. "You might want to ask Nancy if she'd be up for that."

"I am," Nancy smiled.

"Are you sure you don't want to take the camera?" Steve asked.

"Give it to me when I'm ready," Jonathan said.

"Give it to you when you're ready?" Steve asked, laughing.

"Yeah, what did I say that was so funny?" He asked as Nancy giggled. "Yes, give it to me when I'm ready."

"You're not hearing it, are you?" Steve laughed again.

"What's so funny about you giving it to me?" Jonathan asked.

Nancy bent over, laughing. Steve’s eyes twinkled with mirth as he gazed affectionately at him. He released Jonathan's hand and gave him a kiss on the cheek, much to Jonathan's surprise.

"Well, it looked fun when Nancy did it," Steve said. "And it was."

"I still don't get it," Jonathan muttered.

Suddenly, they heard a loud sound from the kitchen, Holly cackling, and Will bursting into laughter.

"HOLLY! THIS FIGURINE IS NOT SOMETHING YOU EAT!" Mike screamed. "DO YOU KNOW HOW LONG IT TOOK ME TO PAINT THIS?!"

"You should be more worried that your sister almost choked on it!" Ted yelled.

"Michael!" Karen scolded.

"If she wasn't so cute, I'd - !" Mike start to yell.

"Do nothing!" They heard Holly taunt.

"I think that's my que to leave," Jonathan said. "Will!"

Will came back into the living room, laughing.

"Mike had freaked out because he couldn't find his d&d figurine, and it turns out Holly was hiding it in her mouth," Will said.

"Wasn't gonna eat it, Mommy!" They heard Holly yell. "Just hide it!"

"Why?!" Mike asked.

"You are a meaniehead!" Holly said.

"Yeah, time to go," Jonathan said. "Good luck with that."

"Thanks," Nancy said laughing.

"Bye Steve, bye Nancy!" Will exclaimed.

Jonathan walked out of the living room towards the front door. Smiling, he could still feel Steve’s lips against his skin, as though it had left an imprint there. . .burning its way deep inside of him. He touched his cheek as though he was trying to touch Steve’s lips with his fingertips. Yeah, he and Steve weren't so different. They both strived to do better, not just for Nancy, but for each other as well. They both knew what it was like to be alone and to feel lonely all at the same time. In some ways, Steve kept people at arms length in the same way that Jonathan had done, except instead of a camera, it had been Tommy and Carol. Fuck. Goddamnit. Not only was he hopelessly in love with Nancy, but now it seemed like falling for Steve Harrington, too. Shit, maybe that had always been the case. . .maybe that's why he had been so deadset on admiting that Nancy actually wanted to sleep with Steve because he didn't want to be honest with himself about wanting to sleep with him too.

"Jonathan?" Will asked.

"Oh my god!" Jonathan exclaimed. "I just got it! Steve! Seriously?!"

He heard Steve and Nancy laughing loudly as he finally left the Wheelers. Assholes. He laughed all the way to his car.

[ai-the-broccoli]

Luka is actually kind of like Klavier Gavin, I think

(messy informal comparative analysis)

this might feel like a little bit of a jarring comparison to some, because Luka is kinda remembered by many fans for his fucked up-ness (largely because he takes on an antagonistic role in alnst and is involved in the death and/or harming of major characters that many fans have emotional investment in), while Klavier is often known/remembered as the nicest rival prosecutor in AA.

so. now I get where that impression regarding Klavier comes from, and in fact I think it IS kinda true afaik, but you know what I gotta say something. Klavier very well might be the nicest prosecutor indeed, but imo this really isn't necessarily because he is actually extremely really nice all the time, but rather because the other prosecutors are really fucking mean on average lmao. the majority of them routinely physically assault the defense attorney in court so like. yeah! technically, Klavier is much nicer! in that he doesn't physically attack others in court, doesn't hold a strong personal grudge against the defense (even when he technically could've found a reason for it) unlike several other prosecutors, and cares about finding the truth more than various others prosecutors and is willing to work together with the defense toward that goal.

all of that however doesn't mean he's actually super super nice. I do not say this out of dislike for Klavier; he is one of my favourite characters in AA, and this is part of what I like him for. he definitely acts significantly "chiller" than the other prosecutors, but in terms of niceness or the lack thereof, he has his moments too. most notably, the time when he was very callous about Wocky's presumed upcoming death, as well as Klavier's behaviour during some trials in Turnabout Serenade. in general he can be callous and/or even slightly sadistic at times, and often, the more stress he is under, the more the latter tends to show. on a related note, Klavier is also fairly manipulative* imo, as in he is quite capable of stringing the scenario in the courtroom along to his will.

* reminder that this is a morally neutral thing btw. in a general/wide sense, "manipulativeness/manipulation" isn't actually this really rare sinister evil thing that is only done by malicious parties. actually, a hell lot of things that nearly everyfuckingbody does (consciously or unconsciously) on a regular basis are acts of manipulation, technically, in social and interpersonal settings.

anyway back to the point. what's relevant here is that typically, people are more likely to develop a tendency to manipulate to a degree that is above average and/or otherwise different from the typical/socially accepted forms of manipulation, if there has been a need and/or a desire for it. this goes for, for example, some children who grow up in hostile, controlling, neglectful, and/or otherwise toxic environments, where they learned to manipulate as a survival skill and/or defense mechanism.

... which I do think is the likely case for both Luka and Klavier. when you look at it, both of them kind of have like. covert control freak tendencies? this is despite the fact that they always act totally Chill and Charming as long as they can

for Klavier, his chill-dazzling-and-charming persona very visibly slips at various points starting in Turnabout Serenade, not only when he's away from the courtroom (when he more actively acts out) but also sometimes when he's in the courtroom too -- like, he visibly shows a moment of stress/anxiety every time he learns of information he has not been able to obtain/expect before, and stuff.

for Luka, there's also the moment in Round 7 where Till gets distracted when he finally sees Mizi in the crowd, and the stage thus stops playing out the way Luka has expected, and Luka is shown to be annoyed by that.

when you look at it, both of them very much kind of are control freaks. they're Performers in every sense of the word, and like. the ways they act on their respective "stages" (for Luka, the literal stage; for Klavier, both the literal stage, and the courtroom, which is a different stage of his. and kind of in life in general if you view him that way, but to a lesser extent. here I'm talking about his court cases and stage performances.)? They both meticulously pre-plan their "performances" -- that's why they're able to pull it off so calmly, coolly and seemingly effortlessly -- and they really do not like it when something completely unexpected disrupts their plans.

see Luka's interview for instance:

7. How do you calm your nerves on stage? I think ahead about how I would handle a possible problem situation. You never know what will happen on stage, so it’s important to have a solution in mind. That’s how you keep your heart rate under control – again, I have my father’s training to thank for this. (laugh) 8. “Luka is unlike any other ALNST winner” – this seems to be the popular opinion. What do you think sets you apart? ALNST is a survival competition, but what’s more important is the performance itself. Focusing solely on the performance and putting on the perfect stage is what every participant should have in mind.

Luka is annoyed to see Mizi suddenly appearing to distract Till because he probably has not prepared for a way to counter such an incident, and now his perfect stage is ruined.

also. earlier I mentioned the (mild?) sadism exhibited by Klavier at certain times (especially when he's stressed out) and this is also seen in Luka's behavior and. again. this is also kinda about control, because when you mess with people like that, you are reinforcing a feeling of control over the situation and the other people, which is exactly why Klavier mostly kinda does it when he feels like everything is out of wack and his life is messed up and slipping out of his control.

e.g. in Turnabout Serenade (aka Klavier's Terrible Horrible Very Bad No Good Night + its aftermath) he deliberately manipulates the conversation so that Apollo accidentally does the work for him, of proving something that makes the defendant seem more guilty/suspicious rather than less, and Klavier delights in doing so.

compare Luka who likes to mess with his opponents' mind during the performance, and laughs at Till when Till begins to have traumatic flashbacks due to Luka's manipulation

in Klavier's case, it makes sense from a psychological perspective that he will have such control issues if we consider Kristoph's influence on him; Kristoph is shown to be very controlling and manipulative in general as well as to Klavier (incredibly strong red flags during their onscreen interaction). in that case, while I think it's likely/possible that Klavier's control thing is multisourced, it's safe to assume that his background with Kristoph, where he was placed in a situation where he had a distinct lack of anatomy / where someone else had an unhealthy amount of control over Klavier's life, is a key reason to it.

In a similar vein, nearly every single aspect of Luka's life is highly controlled by his alien guardian Heperu, except for Luka's performances. this does make it natural that he would opt for total control of everything to have power over what he can, on the stage where he is performing, the only place where he has a sense of anatomy.

...and yeah that's all I think. this isn't a very comprehensive analysis or anything, I just had a thought and decided I should write it down lol

[dingoat]

Oc asks Appearance 11, Objects 12, and Mind Body Soul 6 for Five?

11: Is your character’s favorite color a color they wear often?

Ahaha. Five is actually stupidly sentimental about colour, and he's obsessed with Thirteen; he might not have given a second thought to 'favourite' colours before knowing him, but since then the hawkbat's purple and gold have definitely made their way quite consistently into Five's wardrobe, or green to match Thirteen's eyes. Most notably is in the cybernetic arm he had personally designed and commissioned once he finally came to terms with the fact that his real arm was gone- this was a big deal for him, and he wound up opting for form over function, with a finish that resembles white porcelain, with elegant patterns in purple and gold swirling across it.

12: Does your character personify objects?

I think Five would only really do so in the most ordinary kind of way, like saying 'oh she really turns heads, doesn't she?' when referring to his favourite speeder, or perhaps during one of his moments of feeling particularly poetic about things or wanting to use flowery language to impress, but that would be completely detached from his actual feelings (or lack thereof) toward the object in question.

6: How well does your character act under pressure?

Aaahahaha WELL. In general. As a rule. The man is quite exceptional under pressure. He learned to bottle things up and keep a cool head as a matter of survival when he was very young, and it was a skill that he carried into adulthood, helped him shine in his early jobs and eventually landed him his career with Imperial Intelligence. He lives and breathes deception and manipulation, and for most of his life his driving goal was to attain perfect, unquestionable control over every aspect of his life- so staying calm, collected and above it all at all times has been pretty much essential.

Of course this means when his hubris catches up with him, or when he's found himself unexpectedly emotionally compromised, and he actually does crack under pressure? There's an awful lot there ready to explode.

[sodaa-enby]

no i dont know anyone that plays dnd sadly :( what do you mean by character sheet? /genq

ok this is goingt o be a long read. jusr a warning . im about to explain dnd fully to you.

VERY LONG POST YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED

!!!!!NEW DND PLAYERS OR PEOPLE WANTING TO PLAY SHOULD READ THIS!!!!!! ITS USEFUL I PROMISE AND PROBABLY EASIER TO READ THAN THE OFICCIAL BOOKS. IT ALSO HAS AN EXAMPLE

the basic things needed for dnd are a DM, some dice and a player. the dm is like the storyteller- they act all of the npcs and run and prepare your story. you would be the player and you only have one character to take care of which you rp and play as.

the dice are used to randomly determine things like attacks, damage, and how well you can do stuff. dice are named with "d"and the number of sides they have- so d10 would be a 10 sided dice, d4 is a 4 sided dice etc. a standard set has dice with 4, 6, 8, 10, 12, 20, and 10 sides. the most commonly used dice is a d20 or a 20 sided dice.

so when ur playing dnd the thing u make first is a character sheet. this contains information about the characters general appearance and their skills and abilities. most of them look like this (its quite complex but hopefully i can explain it)

im going to use this character as an example cause im sure this post will be useful for other people as well :)

so this is the character nat

and here is a blank character sheet (linked is a fillable pdf)

and here is the sheet that has boxes which ill be using to explain

when you make a dnd character you have to pick a class and a race.

your race is basically What you are so it could be something like human elf dawrf gnome etc. from what ive seen of ur character she would probably be an elf or an aasimar (people with holy/divine blood which explains the wings and halo). your race gives you certain things like a speed, special moves/abilities (like flying) and specific things you can do. throwing your halo or using your feathers as daggers would be considered a race ability because it comes from your genetic makeup and body and has nothing to do with things youve learned.

the next thing you choose is a class. a class determines more of what you can do that isnt based on how youre born (well. sometimes it is). some examples of classes are fighters(they. fight), wizards (who get their magic from study) and druids (they use the magic of plants and the earth). the character nat is absolutely a druid because these guys' main thing is plant magic, creature summoning and healing which sounds like her from the description. as you progress in the game, you gain levels in your class and become more powerful.

you write your class and race in the yellow box

the rest of the yellow box:

background

backgrounds are short descriptors of what your character has already lived through. they can give you minor bonuses that are different for each one but they are very situational

alignment

alignments are a measure of your characters morality or lack thereof. tthey are often not used by DMS and im pretty sure the rules are being changed in the next edition so i wont go into too much detail but heres a link to a website that explains them

experience points

every time your character kills a monster or completes a goal they gain a set number of exp. at certain amounts of exp the character gains a level which means more abilities and spells etc. the levels in dnd can range from 1-20, and most players start at level 1.

all of the classes + their main abilities (and linked info) are:

barbarian (uses their emotions and rage for powerful attacks), bard (casts spells through performance, usually singing. also inspires others), cleric (gets their magic through worshipping a god), druid (gets their magic from nature), fighter (they fight), monks (devoted to life in a monestary. they are incredibly fast and hard hitters, and mostly martial artists), paladins (they get their power from an oath to a cause), rangers (hunters, sometimes use nature magic too), rogues (bounty hunters and criminals who use stealth to get their way), sorcerers (people born with magic in their blood), warlocks (people who make a pact with an entity for power), and wizards, people who have spent their days studying and mastering spells.

so. the things in the red box are called ability scores.

they are a number from 1-20 that demonstrates how well you can do certain things. 10 is an average score, 1 is incredibly low, and 20 is very high. each number from 1-20 is given a modifier. for example, 10=+0, 20=+5, and 1=-5.

heres the full table:

1= -5

2-3=-4

4-5=-3

6-7=-2

8-9=-1

10-11=+0

12-13=+1

14-15=+2

16-17=+3

18-19=+4

20= +5

the different scores are:

strength (how strong you are) strength rolls are usually made to lift things or complete athletic feats. a character with high strength would be. well. strong

dexterity (how agile and stealthy you are) dex rolls are used when youre sneaking somewhere trying something acrobatic or stealing stuff. a character with high dexterity would be fast, not clumsy, and have very good reflexes

constitution (basically how strong your immune system is) you might roll for constitution if you walk through a hot desert or drink lots of alcohol. a person with high constitution would have lots of stamina and be able to endure quite extreme climates. they also wouldn't get drunk easily.

charisma (social skills and character) cha rolls are made to persuade, influence or rally people. a character with high intelligence probably has a large social circle and may friends.

intelligence (general knowledge and logic skills) int rolls are made to decipher codes, recall patterns and understand other languages. a character with high intelligence might have an extensive vocabulary and good memory, and theyd probably know many languages.

wisdom (perception, gut feeling and alertness). a character with high wisdom would notice small details, have good instincts and be able to provide good insights.

so if you had a character with a charisma score of 15 the modifier tied to it would be +3. these are important cause you will regularly have to roll for things, and the bonuses are what you add to these rolls. for example- you try to do something with your character that is charisma based (persuading someone to let you into a hotel etc etc) and you roll a d20 (20 sided dice) and add the number tied to your charisma score, which in this case is plus 3.

the next things (in the green box) are called skills.

theyre basically more refined versions of abilities, and you can pick 3 of them that you get an extra bonus with. usually your dm (the person who runs the game) will tell you to roll with skills instead of ability scores. so if you want to do the same thing as before (persuading someone to let you in to a place) youd roll persuasion instead of just charisma. if you dont have the skill of persuasion you just add your normal modifier but if you do you get an extra +2 as well as the normal one.

the purple box has some important small things

first up is your HP which is basically just a measure of your health. if this is decreased to 0 you drop unconscious. when you create a character you roll dice to create your characters HP

the next thing is your speed (pretty self explanatory this shows how fast your character is). speed is a measure of how far you can move in one turn or 6 seconds and its mainly used for combat.

the last thing in this box is your armour class. this is a score that shows basically how hard you are to hit. if someone wants to attack you they have to roll higher than this number on the d20 otherwise it misses. this number can be increased by wearing armour, but the base number is 10 plus your dexterity modifier

next up: light blue box

this box contains space for you to flesh out your character. personality traits are, well- personality traits, and ideals are things your character might strive for or want to achieve (for example a character with the ideal of freedom might advocate for oppressed people and try to help someone running from the law because they think everyone deserves to be free.). Bonds are things, concepts or people that your character has an attachment to in some way. bonds are usually very relevant to the characters backstory- for example the bond of a character whose town was destroyed might be something about how they want to avenge the raiders and find any survivors. flaws are also pretty self explanatory, but they are sometimes hard to play. A flaw should be something that influences the characters choices but also lets them develop.

more will be explained in another post about spells and combat but this is the basics for now :)

[latenightcinephile]

Film #920: 'The Unknown', dir. Tod Browning, 1927.

Keeping track of the films on the list is often a complicated task, especially when you're trying to find films years in advance of any opportunities to watch them. The master spreadsheet I keep has about two dozen films that are still marked 'UNKNOWN' in orange, and ironically Tod Browning's The Unknown was among them for over a decade. Fortunately, a restoration was undertaken in 2022, and you can now find the Criterion version easily accessible.

Silent film is a fascinating subject after a century of sound pictures. It operated with a very limited palette of techniques, and as such needed to make the most of what it had available. People often complain that silent films are too 'theatrical', but the lack of synchronised sound meant that a silent film in fact had fewer tools at its disposal than the theatre did. While modern films can use realistic sound (or its lack thereof) to punctuate, draw attention to or minimise particular moments of a film, in silent films these tasks had to be shifted onto an actor's performance or onto the film's musical score. Even the use of a score was not foolproof, as theatre musicians would have to compare the requested music with what they had available. A larger toolbox available in contemporary cinema has evened out the workload, and it's less common to see a modern film rely so heavily on, say, performance. Tod Browning's film, though, is a stellar example of how films from before the advent of talking pictures honed these elements - to the point where you almost forget that you're watching something with no audible dialogue.

The star attraction of a circus in Spain, Alonzo the Armless (Lon Chaney)'s main act is to use his feet to throw knives. He is smitten with his partner in this act, Nanon (Joan Crawford), who is also the daughter of the circus ringmaster, Zanzi. Nanon has a fear of being touched or held by men, which means that she easily finds solace in her friendship with Alonzo, and spurns the advances of the strongman, Malabar (Norman Kerry). Eager to further draw Nanon into his clutches, Alonzo encourages Malabar to display his strength to Nanon more and more. The situation is complicated when it is revealed that Alonzo actually still has his arms - he hides them in a corset to make his act more sensational. Alonzo's friendship with Nanon infuriates Zanzi and, after an altercation, Zanzi discovers that Alonzo still has his arms. Out of rage and fear, Alonzo strangles Zanzi to death. Nanon sees the strangling (and in particular, that the culprit has two thumbs on one hand) - but doesn't recognise Alonzo - and her fear is exacerbated. A cursory police investigation doesn't find the culprit, and when the circus moves on, Alonzo and Nanon stay in town, with Alonzo hoping that he might be able to draw Nanon's affections more.

Before long, Nanon embraces Alonzo - an act that alarms Alonzo's friend and servant, Cojo, who worries that Nanon will see through the deception. Realising that he is so accustomed to hiding his arms that he can get by without them, Alonzo hatches a plan to have both arms amputated, which will conveniently hide any evidence that it was he who killed Zanzi. He blackmails a doctor into performing the surgery, and hides from Nanon for the period of his recovery. During this time, ironically, Nanon overcomes her fear of "men and their hands", and kindles a romance with Malabar. Together, they plan a new theatrical show, built around Malabar's strongman skills.

When Alonzo has recovered, he visits Nanon and Malabar at the theatre (hilariously, Nanon notices that his torso is a lot thinner than it was before). They reveal their engagement to Alonzo, and describe the centrepiece of their new act, in which Malabar uses ropes to tether two horses running on treadmills in opposite directions. Alonzo is driven to hysterics by the news, especially because it was delivered in a way that got his hopes up tremendously, and plans to disrupt the performance so that Malabar is maimed in the process (as Malabar cheerfully admits, if a treadmill stops suddenly, "the horses would tear my arms from my body"). During the show, Alonzo locks away the technician who controls the treadmills, and abruptly slows the treadmills, panicking the horses. Nanon tries to calm the horses down to prevent them killing Malabar; Alonzo then pushes her to safety before he is fatally trampled by one of the horses. With Alonzo out of the picture, Malabar and Nanon can finally spend their lives together in security.

This is a relatively brisk summary of the plot, but it's put in greater context when you realise that the film is only about fifty minutes long. There's a small pile of things in the plot that make no sense - why does Alonzo, who is certain Nanon would come to forgive him for having arms, elect to have them both amputated, and not just remove his extra thumb? Why doesn't Alonzo come up with any explanation for his absence while recovering? - but the film moves along at such a breakneck pace that there's no time to properly question any of them before the next complication arises. Characters are also very fond in this film of saying the most on-the-nose things imaginable, partly as a way of dispensing with any long and realistic exposition. It doesn't take Alonzo long to realise his plan at the end of the film, mostly because Malabar outright says the plan aloud for him. Nanon unintentionally rubs salt into Alonzo's (literal) wounds when she says "I used to be afraid of Malabar's hands, but I love them now."

This excessiveness is one of my favourite elements of The Unknown. It operates in both directions - the excess of comedy becoming farce, and the excess of violence. When the performance with the horses at the end of the film goes awry, Browning cuts rapidly and close, drawing attention to the strain on Malabar's shoulders through close-up shots (and the version of the soundtrack used in the Criterion release piles on the kettledrums at this moment to underscore the tension. It feels like we're moments away from witnessing some terrific gore effects, even though those would be decades away when the film was produced. There are moments, though, where the emotional effect is deflated through farce. The moment Zanzi discovers that Alonzo still has his arms, Alonzo deals with this by... immediately hiding his arms behind his back. These moments sell the horror even more by contrasting them against the absurd.

Lon Chaney's acting is the heart of this film. It's the thing that lets us look past the absurdities of the plot, and buy into the emotional veracity of the film. Although many of the scenes of more fine motion were done with a stunt double, Chaney learned to manipulate things with his feet for wider shots, and it's deeply believable. Audiences at the time would have known that Chaney was not a double-amputee, but the opening scenes of the film sell this so well that the audience I was with murmured in shock when his arms were revealed. Chaney throws the whole of himself into the more emotional scenes, too, so that the intertitles are often superfluous to understanding the direction of a conversation. The performance has to carry a lot of weight throughout the film, too: Alonzo is a murderer and a con artist, driven to extremes by unrequited love, who then descends into hysterics when it is revealed that his extreme measures were unnecessary. In two minutes, he needs to go from hope that Nanon might intend to marry him, to shock that she has fallen for Malabar, to frenzied laughter when he realises he has had his arms chopped off for nothing. Are the emotions overplayed? Sure. But they're in proportion to the scope of the film, and Chaney has an ability to move between these emotions lightning-quick without being abrupt.

Browning does something really interesting with this film, though: he uses the cinematic tools to play into his themes. The best example of this is in the scene where Alonzo realises his plan to have his arms removed. Lost in thought over the idea that Nanon might reject him when she discovers he murdered her father, he absent-mindedly lights a cigarette with his feet. Cojo laughs at him, commenting that he's forgotten he has arms. Alonzo recoils at this, but in Chaney's performance, you can see the plan form (a slight widening of the eyes, a twitch at the mouth). A shift happens here: we move from a dialogue-heavy sequence to one where there are no intertitles at all. Alonzo continues to speak, giddy with realisation, but what he is saying is too horrifying for the intertitles. Cojo's expression turns to shock, and we do get an intertitle when he says "No, no, Alonzo! Not that! Never do that!", but the act itself cannot be spoken, or even written. In the very next scene, Alonzo and Cojo visit the surgeon, and once again there are no intertitles to describe the actual plan - the closest we get is a single ambiguous gesture Chaney makes at his left shoulder. You can sort of make out the words in the movement of his lips, but the audience never receives the confirmation of what has happened.

I find this fascinating. Usually, silent films don't have the luxury of holding anything back - they have to be repetitive and clear to the point of redundancy. Here, Browning has taken something shocking but admittedly rather mundane, and turned it into a taboo strong enough to abolish one of the tools normally at his disposal. The performances in these scenes, from Chaney, John George as Cojo and John St. Polis as the surgeon, are all so strong that it's easy to misremember the film as more explicit than it actually is. As a result, the film is far more subtle than a lot of Tod Browning's other collaborations with Chaney (ten in total), and probably the most restrained of all of Browning's horrors.

The Unknown is a genuine work of art, a film that moves from merely using its elements to portray a story to using its elements to enhance the story. I don't think it's quite like anything else from the silent era. Is it stagey and melodramatic? Yes, but those aren't bad things, and I'd argue they're necessary to make the film's more subtle elements work. This is a film that's well worth seeing; a little Halloween treat that I'm really glad has been rediscovered.

[insufferableprotagonistpoll]

Propaganda why Caillou is insufferable:

Horrible, whiny, mean (I know they're like three but that's no excuse)

He's the absolute worst bratty child I've ever seen in a kids show, his voice is suuuper annoying.

You know and I know why, he's the poll's icon for a reason.

Propaganda why Elena Gilbert is insufferable:

I wouldn't have such a problem with her if she didn't get others involved. Liking two people at once isn't a problem. Stringing them along is a problem. Constantly hanging around people that she knows is actively trying to kill her/want her dead or their relatives is so stupid like don't do that maybe. Having people stop what they are doing and dropping everything(especially if it's important) because she is in danger/trouble. Making people have to make tough decisions, sometimes affecting other people, and then not even offering up an apology about it(looking at you season 3)

The first 3 seasons made her so bad!! I understand the trauma but stringing along 2 brothers was ridiculous. Like, make up your mind and stop toying with their emotions. And then everything was about her! Every time she was in trouble, everything had to be put on hold to find her and help her and sometimes she wasn't even grateful about it and would end up in stupid situations again and again and again. Lowkey, she's the reason why Bonnie has been through the wringer, especially in the 3rd season. But as the seasons progressed, she did start to warm up my cold little heart

have you seen the show? she has little to no common sense, no standards, makes the most boring choices for every scenario, and isn't a good person. the show acts like she's a golden child when she's really just a boring child. dating adult men. who stalk her. and her biggest personality trait is saying ""Stefan!"" and ""Damon!"" when she experiences any emotion. idk man Nina Dobrev did NOT get the role for her acting skills (or lack thereof) that's for sure

[minobe-household]

so i believe i mentioned minobe's illness here and there, but the thing about it is that i can't really think of a way to make it clear with my usual wacky storytelling. or asks, since yuuto — the one who Has it — actually doesn't even know much of it herself. her parents never spared her the details, they just told her something was wrong. and also THAT has a lot to do with her family relationship which is a whole nother can of worms. so i'm just doin this shit infodump style.

when she was born, most of her vitals were starkly low. her parents thought this would mean she was to die whilst in infancy, but she stuck through almost exactly like that of a typical child. (cont under cut so i don't annoy the fuck outta people who don't wanna scroll through it)

essentially, her body runs off of a 'bare minimum'. just about enough that she'd be (comfortably not fucking unconscious) able to move and all. which still isn't a very good look, but it meant she was still able to take up work with her family. though an important part of this is how that affects her functioning as she grew up.

on a positive note, it makes it so that she is capable of exerting herself further before experiencing exhaustion and such, so it may provide some extra edge in some cases. her strength and speed are both quite good in this regard (probably comparable to that of the pillars, but i can't quite scale her with them since it varies a lot and at a pretty big deal o range), and her stamina is bordering inhuman entirely.

also because of this she has a surprisingly good compatibility with total concentration (although she doesn't use total constant as it's kind of something she utilizes as a diversion tool with her breathing style). however, this requires she warms herself up before being able to reach these points, adding onto her more non-offensive fighting style early on.

as for its downsides, she is extremely susceptible to conditional factors such as illness or environment. and while she does get some extra leverage in skill, inactivity following it, as well as just in general, can take a bad toll on her. it might explain why she acts so different in the day compared to during missions... and also why she didn't do as much work in her household...... :^)

note this also applies to the demon slayer mark. especially so. when it activates, she's a huge force to be reckoned with - although due to the conditions it requires, it takes a lot more work out of her to awaken it. and the second it goes away... with the sudden change in bodily state, i think it's safe to say it's not gonna look pretty. think like a drug withdrawal but like... all of them. at once. and you don't get to die from all the damn drugs in your system or lack thereof.

i haven't really thought about if her condition makes any change to the mark's curse. of course, whether it actually is legit isn't really like... confirmed considering the only account being with himejima and kokushibo's interaction (iirc i might be forgetting something) but in the assumption it does exist it may push the 25 limit a bit closer, or even further, i don't really know. probably the former lol

[jellybeansconghosts]

I’m bored and thinking thoughts so have this messy piece as I try to find a foothold in the personalities of cod men that isn’t just what they act like in smut (Not trying to hate on Smut I just don't think/know if that should be my main source outside of the games)

Imagine being in the zombie apocalypse by yourself, barely surviving and on the brink of losing it. The only upside to this all is a strange immunity to a zombie’s bite, the couple bites on your arms still itch, veins more pronounced around them, but you still have a clear mind…as clear as it can be when in an environment like this.

You’ve given up on trying to make friends, either finding people who have less than kind intentions or people who try to “mercy” kill you the moment they notice the bites, not listening to any arguments that they’re clearly healed and you’re no threat. Recently you’ve found shelter in a little gas station, snacking on what hasn’t been ransacked already, sleeping behind the counter as you hope this place will keep you secure for at least another day or two. Zombies sometimes wander in but they leave you be, almost blind to your presence, after a while they’re somehow a safer sight than other humans, at least you can tell a zombie’s intentions, you can predict their thoughts, or lack thereof.

It’s dreary, and taxing, but you get by fine.

Until one day you meet a soldier, the first encounter is a little rough, as any encounter in this situation is bound to be, his skull mask scared you half to death, but you go from barely surviving on your own to having some mildly off-putting man help take at least a little of the burden of survival. Sure, providing for two is a little more annoying, being even more mindful of supplies, the constant fear of weighing him down and being a burden isn't the best thing in the world, but it's company. It's a break in the solitude that could have driven anyone at least a little insane.

It's a bit of extra safety, having someone watching your back, especially someone who's actually capable, even if he at times gets snappy due to the difference in survival skills, you have someone looking out for you. And when he notices the bites, even if he too jumped to a conclusion he actually heard you out, even if you did have to reassure him multiple times that you wouldn't suddenly turn rabid when he wasn't watching, that you didn't mean to hide anything from him but were too scared to mention it, everything worked out in the end. You have a buddy, even if he's a little scary.

[nova-starcutter]

based on your answer to the fight to the death poll and this blog’s theming i am gonna go ahead and guess that your discord icon is something to do with the lor

whats the deal with magolor anyways

1. Yeah, it’s one of my favorite frames of any cutscene ever.

(Just as a little bonus before I get to the second part of your ask, that little “Lor gets unexpectedly close to the viewer for no apparent reason” sequence is actually what made me headcanon her as nearsighted. Originally it was just a “soft” headcanon that I had no intention of entirely subscribing to but nowadays it’s actually become one of my favorites.)

2. Ok so there’s a whole lot of ways that can be interpreted and it is almost 2 AM as im starting this so I’ll go with just one for now and elaborate on others if asked. Halcandra— at least the part of it where he lived— was hardly the sort of place anyone would reasonably choose to live in, let alone try to have a family or raise kids. Resources were scarce, dangers weren’t, and really the primary types you’d find staying there were those who wanted to live out their lives away from civilization, criminals hiding from authorities, and those who just wanted to be somewhere less permeated by the government’s influence and prying eyes. As a result, Magolor never really knew anyone close to his own age growing up, on top of just not knowing many folks aside from his parents to begin with. Though his upbringing was otherwise relatively positive— on good terms with his parents, well-educated, given opportunities to learn and practice various skills and hobbies, etc— not having peers to connect with and grow alongside did leave him somewhat socially stunted.

One of the ways this manifests is his maturity, or seeming lack thereof. He has the experience and knowledge to act like an adult at this point, but never really had the social cues to begin doing so. Like that guy in highschool who still acts like a 6th grader in senior year while everyone else has moved on to bigger and better things. Of course his perspective has changed after what he’s gone through, but he’s always going to act less mature than other Halcandrans his age would be expected to.

NOT 2 AM UPDATE: The above doesn’t mean he can’t convincingly act like he had a normal/actually existent childhood, the main indicator that he didn’t would just be that he never brings up his personal life back on Halcandra, definitely treats Kirby as his very first friend ever™️, and doesn’t really have a distinct hanging with friends mode vs interacting with peers/colleagues/etc. In other words he kinda treats everyone the same, exceptions being Lor and people he either actively dislikes or finds intimidating. This can definitely be offputting for some because often comes off as him not being genuine, akin to someone using their customer service voice at all times, but no he is in fact just Like That™️. It does certainly help him a bit when he’s actually scheming, given that his normal already comes off as dubious plottingcore, with the trade off that he’s always the first person everyone suspects when shenanigans are afoot. This guy can never win at Among Us

[bluegekk0]

So how exactly did Zote get into this AU? I feel like I see him in quite a bit of the artwork. I feel like none of the pale family wouldn't want to be around him, so is he just there and they can't get rid of him or is he like the one family member they all like to bully?

Well, if there's anything that brings together the family, it's trauma and emotional damage. And yes, Zote is extremely unpleasant, but I do believe there are things in his past that made him push everyone away and act like a jerk. And deep down, he's just as hurt as everyone else in the AU.

This might be a long one cause I also want to get into how each family member sees him, as I rarely get the chance to talk about Zote.

I guess I'll start with his past. I'm aware that he's 100% meant to be a joke character in the game, that much is clear from his portrayal, dialogue and his role in the game. But I think if you read into some of his precepts, they paint a pretty interesting picture. And yes, I'm also aware that he lies about himself all the time, but some of those are way too specific in my opinion. I'll start in the order of the precepts since that's how I wrote them down.

"Laughter spreads like a disease, and soon everyone is laughing at you." - sounds to me like he has some experience with being bullied. Looking at his fighting skills, or lack thereof, I don't think it's that unreasonable to think he would be a laughing stock for his peers.

"The past is painful, and thinking about your past can only bring you misery." - this one is a lot more vague, but it's clear that he doesn't have fond memories of his past.

"You can rely on nobody, and nobody will always be loyal." - if this is his mindset, it would explain why he's so unpleasant to everyone. He doesn't trust them, perhaps out of fear that they'll bully and make fun of him?

"Mothers Will Always Betray You" and "Fathers believe that because they created us we must serve them and never exceed their capabilities." - these two are, in my view, the heart of the problem. The way I interpret it, he was seen as a disappointment by his father, who wanted to control his life, and his mother did nothing to defend him. If you feel like not even your own parents value you, it's only reasonable that you'd grow bitter towards everyone. And in his case, he also deluded himself into thinking that he's better than what he's perceived as. Not the most healthy coping habit, for sure.

"Do not linger in the nest. There is nothing for you there." - and it's not surprising that you'd get the hell out of your home as soon as you could.

"If someone asks forgiveness of you, for instance a brother of yours, always deny it." - yeah, makes sense that he wouldn't want to forgive them. The brother here is most likely just an example, but maybe there's more to it than that?

I may be looking too hard into a meme character, but I really like the idea of him being an outcast that decided to cope with his trauma by being incredibly unpleasant and pushing everyone away. And it only makes sense that he'd find family in another group of outcasts that all cope with their own issues.

Now, I also want to mention that I don't see him as an old man like a lot of people call him. To me, he's probably in his species' equivalent of 20s. So still quite young, and thus with a lot of potential to heal and become a better person, which is an arc he goes through in the au. Albeit slowly, i mean, it's Zote after all.

---

As for how the rest of the family sees him:

Holly is their closest friend, so i'll start with them. Before Vyrm moved to Dirtmouth, they didn't have any familiar face that would talk to them. They desperately wanted someone to acknowledge their presence, and being talked to was, to them, exactly what they needed. Hornet was still very distant, she didn't really speak a lot, and in general it felt like she ignored them. Grimm, while much more open to conversations, was busy - at that point, he and the Troupe were still slowly preparing to go elsewhere to finish the interrupted ritual. So Holly had to find what they were looking for elsewhere - and it just so happens that a very talkative bug was right there, in the town. Of course, he was only talking about himself and lying through his teeth, but Holly didn't mind that. plus, they related to his wish to love up to his father's expectations. And over time, the pair became good friends, to the point that even Zote began to act a bit less unpleasant towards them. He wasn't used to having friends, so it was definitely a struggle for him.

Hornet hated him at first. He was irritating, simply put. She responded to him with mean things, which would often end in arguments between the two. But as time passed, and Zote became a honorary part of the family, her attitude changed a little - makes sense, she does soften a bit over the course of the AU. Their current dynamic is a bit sibling like. Well, the kind where one bullies the other, but is equally as defensive if anyone else tries to do the same. They still bicker all the time, it's inevitable as their personalities clash with each other, but there is a degree of understanding between them. Hornet can see through his lies easily, and relates to his wish to push everyone away as a response to trauma.

Vyrm, similarly, can also relate to some parts of Zote's past, mainly the desire to live up to his parents' expectations and to prove himself. But at the same time, he does find Zote's rambling to be a bit much. He tolerates his presence and even acts friendly towards him, and he definitely sees him as a member of the family, but they're not very close. Zote is a bit afraid of him since he was the one who first found him in Greenpath, and he can't get rid of the mental image of Vyrm covered in blood, ripping an animal to shreds. Especially since he's right about the size of what Vyrm usually hunts.

Grimm sees Zote as entertaining. He doesn't exactly bully him, that's not his style and he does feel pity towards him, but he enjoys hearing him make stuff up about various things. His tales from his travels are particularly amusing to Grimm, as they're almost always completely made up. Grimm likes to "fact-check" him, which usually ends in Zote struggling to keep his narrative and giving up. But since he's part of the family, it means Grimm is still protective of him. Even if Zote himself finds him unsettling and is afraid of being left alone with him hahaha

I love the idea of Zote finally accepting that there might still be family he could belong to, he spent all those years thinking he's better than that, but deep down he really needed to be a part of one. It just so happens that he got "adopted" by a bunch of traumatized freaks, but maybe that's exactly the kind of family he needed

[greetings-inferiors]

Kouki Midori (HIS NAME IS LITERALLY MR GREEN LMAOOOOOOOOO) is one of the protagonists for my Personal Persona Project, Persona: Green. He’s an 18/19 year old first year uni student, average height, medium length hair, pretty average guy really. He’s kind hearted, with some trickster energy when he’s in a funny mood. He’s very empathetic, and loves hanging out with and interacting with others. He’s quite the optimist, too, believing that worrying about things only leads to too much worrying, and it’s best to move forward and tackle problems. This leads to a problem when he has issues which can’t be easily solved, in which case he tends to just… ignore them. He’s looking forward to his time at uni, being quite skilled at both the arts and sciences, though he intends to pursue solely the sciences. If only he had reason to, say, tutor someone studying literature (foreshadowing). He wears bright colours, like green and yellow, though his wardrobe is pretty basic once you get past the bright colour palette, shirts, jumpers, shorts, and trousers. He gravitates towards people that need his help, so the party members he forms social links with, Miyuki, Safie, Nenji, and Tsuneko, are all those that he can help find purpose and meaning in life, whether that be helping Safie find a passion in the human world, or helping Tsuneko cope with and live around her disability.

His persona is Arthur, of the Sun arcana, legendary king of England. He manifests as a knight in smooth, gleaming white and yellow armour, with a helmet in one hand and jewelled sword in the other, his hair flowing behind him. He is atop a steed, or at least half a steed, made of that same metal. His element is Holy/light, but he also functions as a healer. He maybe even buffs others, idk.

Kouki himself wields a sword, obviously. The foliage that lets him summon Arthur manifests as a wreath atop his head, that he slashes with his sword (because he just has to be that cool). His fighting style is strategic and graceful, fitting for the leader, and he’s ready to support his teammates that focus more on offence.

At the start of the story he’s just moved to a new city, when he notices a cough, and going for a check up, is informed he has caught a very early lung cancer, and that he should consider himself lucky he caught it so early, and so his chances of living are very optimistic with treatment. He has faith in humanity, having been shown kindness all his life, and he’s more than happy to repay that kindness to others, a belief goaded by a tad unprofessional doctor waxing poetic about humanity’s advancements when it comes to saving lives. Across his journey he sees both the good and bad in humanity, learning that while not everyone always are what they seem, everyone has the potential to do good, no matter who they are.

If I had to sum up his relationship with each of the party members:

Miyuki: The strongest bond on the team, he’s able to see through her walls and teasing and see who she really is. He’s determined to bring out the best in her, while not letting her off the hook easily when she messes up. He sees the best in everyone, but you have to put in work to be the best, y’know? He does genuinely really respect her, too, and finds her funny lol

Safie: She kinda forced herself into his life and is crashing at his place, but can see that she’s a lovely person, even if her grasp (or lack thereof) of humans, society, and boundaries can make it hard to get along. They’re practically siblings.

Nenji: They hang out at restaurants quite a lot, they just like to shoot the shit. Nenji is quite unconfident and Kouki helps him to come out of his shell and have confidence in himself, and stand up for himself.

Shin: Appreciates Shin’s professionalism and tactical combat style. Very much respects him in an academic context as well, constantly asking for insight into maths coursework, which Shin happily provides.

Yoshie: Kind of terrified of her, she acts quite manic around him. She’s a great fighter and her bubbly enthusiasm is great for the group, she’s just… a lot.

Tsuneko: He helps her counteract and live with her fatigue, and enjoys seeing her have more and more energy as the year goes on. Also enjoys listening to her rambling about whatever thing she’s interested in recently.

Johnny: Loves how enthusiastic Johnny is, and it drives Miyuki insane so he’ll go along with any of his antics. They have matching cowboy hats that Johnny bought for him.

[aewrie]

i've gone so far off the rails but we're in too deep now too late to turn back

or, long ass tirade re: writing consent and lack of thereof and weird nuanced situations is go

(who died and made me the boss? no one. but ppl keep telling me i write this stuff good so presumably i'm doing something right)

first off: if you think deriving enjoyment/catharsis of any kind from fictional nonconsent scenarios is gross and wrong: you're not gonna like me, please go away

second off: i am approaching the majority of this from the angle of writing (hopefully) engaging fiction. this is personal thoughts flavoured by my preferences, not a universally applicable how-to guide and not a consent 101 for real life purposes

ty

also, for context

--

'excplicit on-screen consent is awkward'

skill issue

but yes. it can be. very much so. 

i'll start off with that i have put words into characters' mouths at times bc i felt the need to tell others something (even if intended audience for a given message might never stumble across it) and will do it again, But good luck trying to figure out what those instances are,

but anyhow i think that's where a big part of the problem stems from. people (writers) try to tell their audience things (educating them on consent) at the expense of their story and characterizations. and then when they try to make it sound less awkward they attempt shortcuts like a handful of specific Sexy Ways To Ask For Consent lines that i saw people lamenting about in the notes of that post, rather than, again, trying to think of how these characters might have this interaction happen and if it serves the story and its purposes

(what i mean by 'a story's purposes' is what's the goal here. is it to explore these characters. is it to make the audience feel a certain way, or to have them think about something. and bc we're talking about smut here too is the point to get off and that's it)

if i try to think back i can remember exactly one (1) pwp smut fic where a character stopping abruptly in the middle of business to ask for consent in an somewhat questionable situation was entertaining, and that's bc the other one's response was basically that ship sailed ages ago don't you fucking dare leave me hanging here

'fiction influences how people act irl'

"...and therefore all sex scenes should have on-screen consent to help model healthy communication"

to a degree, yes, fiction can influence people when information on a topic is otherwise scarce, but the solution here isn't to turn porn into sex ed, it's to provide better sex ed outside fiction. if you write explicit enthusiastic consent SOLELY because you think your average reader needs help grasping the concept, i worry. to paraphrase a post i can't be assed to dig up bc it was years and years ago: if we rely on people's chance encounters with pornography as a means to educate the masses on safe sex, we've already lost the ball. grievously.

and i need to stress that i LIKE writing explicit consent, when it makes sense, and in ways that make sense. i'm not opposed to showing what attempts at healthy communication can look like in fiction. i think there should be stories like these! i think they can be great in introducing people to new ideas and encourage learning more outside fiction. but also i think in many situations it's just better to share educational resources separately and let the stories be stories, even if the aim is to have the communication etc reflect what you'd generally want/expect irl.

one thing i like to include (when applicable) is the term edgeplay in my descriptions/tags; it's a small thing but maybe someone not familiar will see it and realize that maybe they shouldn't be diving into what my characters are doing headfirst, even if it works out in the story

i do think mainstream porn especially could use more things like brief scenes after the main meat of a film where the actors are just chilling and stuff. a little grounding moment when it's time to 'return to reality', particularly with more hardcore stuff.

but we're primarily talking smutty fanfic, a niche within a niche, and like. honestly a lot of fanfic does better on this front already, bc we tag for these things. the understanding is already there that the fic is following tropes and kinks and specific crafted scenarios regarding consent. #sex pollen is the author telling you here will be that particular kink/trope, but also that someone's decision making is influenced/impaired by some substance belonging under the sex pollen category 

wait i thought a good way to highlight the key point here; 

> author's wanting to include on-screen consent because they prefer that, or want to encourage people, even if on a small scale, to think more about this more, etc: awesome! go for it! i do this too!

> other people pushing an expectation that fanfic smut writers of all people are responsible for educating the masses in order to fix a society-wide problem: please get a grip

i have written a pretty wide range of situations where there was on-screen consent but i'll get more onto that later,

and then i've also written/drawn stuff where there's absolutely no whiff of anything resembling healthy discussion or concern for boundaries, and a good chunk of that has been smut. i do love pwp fic/erotic art where you can read into it what you want to read into it; eg i have a fic that *could* be read as the pov character is really into it, the consent just isn't explicit on screen OR yeah that's just straight up noncon and brainwashing, just subtle about it -- i tagged for power imbalance. readers can read and imagine further details as they like. a one shot pwp with no wider narrative attached to it lends itself particularly well for something like this.

when there is a bigger story attached, i gotta start considering more how characters interact with each other and what their relationships are like, but even then, please refer to the diegetic vs non-diegetic bdsm fic post

and of course the one part of this wank that only noncon enjoyers seem to even notice: i'm more worried about the people who write ""consensual"" sex scenes that are in fact dubcon at best, because they genuinely do not seem to realize this, than the ppl writing wildly not-appropriate-to-replicate-irl scenes with full awareness that this is the case. and often, you can tell. even if it's not spelled out in the text itself.

'consent is sexy'

i am facepalming and groaning (in frustration, just for the sake of clarity) and glaring at my screen

rl? consent isn't sexy. it's necessary. it absolutely CAN be sexy but that's not a prerequisite. in fact sometimes these discussions can be actively unsexy and THAT'S FINE (trust a cnc kinkster to be the one voice of sanity in the notes of that post and be the one to bring up this point; you, random tumblr user, are a real one) bc being sexy is not the point. the mutual agreement and knowing what you're getting into is the point

(i get this phrase is less or more something created with the purpose of basically marketing consent but still)

in fiction, it can be many fucking things. including the worst boner killer you've seen. refer back the where we started, and also the whole, when the reader's here just to get off chances are they aren't in the mood for a lowkey lecture in consent (and/or safe sex)

also!!

i wouldn't say character gasping i want you in the middle of making out is sexy bc it's explicit consent, but rather it's sexy bc they're needy. because they can't contain how much they desire the other person and are emotionally vulnerable in expressing that. and does leaning into something like that not make for a more interesting and engaging (including in the sense of being arousing) storytelling than 'yes, i, a mature adult of legal age to consent and not currently under the influence of any substances that might impede my judgement, enthusiastically consent to performing the sex with this person who is my equal in every way'?

(i am exaggerating for comedic effect but that's how reading some examples i've seen feels like at times. and if someone out there thinks that is sexy i want to study them under a microscope. fully solidified brain risk centers has me fucking weeping.)

people writing things with consent/boundary issues that aren't straight up noncon (moderately spicy opinions time)

you see here' the thing with me being comfortable acknowledging that something can be noncon AND sexy: i am also perfectly content acknowledging more grey area type situations that so many others completely miss on their crusade against the Problematic noncon (and age gaps. let's be real fandom loves to hate on age gaps even when they're a completely non-issue, and then is damn oblivious to often far more glaring potential red flags. (see hannigram. apparently some people think the ship is Bad because of the age gap and no other reason.))

coffeeshop aus being the ~fluffiest most wholesome trope~ that's actually problematic bc that's just sexually harassing a service worker who may not be able to do shit about it is just one oft used example. other such things include: teacher/student or mentor/student relationships, doctor/medic/healer + their patient relationships, gods + their followers/priests, spiritual leaders + regular people of the applicable faith, ceo/evil overlord/whathaveyou and their employees/staff/underlings, the list goes on, wrt consent these are all at the very least sketchy by irl standards even if everyone was an adult and technically consented, and i didn't even list nearly every scenario imaginable,

and oh boy i almost forgot to mention things like love potions, sex pollen, aphrodisiacs, characters in heat, etc etc

BUT in fic, if we're not all fixated on being Pure and Unproblematic, these can be fucking great and romantic and sexy. for a moment we can pretend that getting flirted on by the cute regular and writing your number on the back of a receipt to hand with their drink you have memorized bc that person always orders the same thing is the pinnacle of romance. we can imagine that a follower in their blind devotion isn't a prime target for exploitation but rather their god's favourite pet who gets special treatment. you get the idea.

just, don't whine about problematic fic if you can't face the iffy parts in your own favourite romance/sex fantasies?? we're all freaks here and slapping a BUT my characters EXPLICITLY STATE that they consent on yours doesn't change that my dubcon pwp and your coffee shop au both inherently have a certain disregard of boundaries built in. it's a feature. it makes the story better at what it is supposed to be. that is: a fantasy. trying to shoehorn in standardized explicit on-screen consent can get weird beyond a superficial level of wholesome, unless you're willing to acknowledge the fact that this is actually at least a little Problematic. you don't have to spell it out in the fic, but. at least think about it, if depicting only the most wholesome consensual educational intimate encounters is so very important??

back onto depicting attempts at healthy communication/consent for a bit

the thing is, care and communication and respecting boundaries and trusting each other and all that can just as much be a fantasy explored in a story(!)

and i say 'attempts at healthy communication' rather than 'healthy communication' for a reason. even when i try to go for something grounded in how these things can look like in reality, characterization and narrative comes first. i've cut banger lines bc they felt too much like we're trying to do therapy and i'll damn well do it again. same with consent. i'm here to tell a story. even when it's grounded in realism. i'm not First And Foremost trying to model a healthy relationship even if my story has an element of hey, practising good consent *can* look something like this. characters can and should stumble and make mistakes and have conflicts that don't have perfect solutions, and that applies here too. we apply suspension of disbelief everywhere else in fiction. this is no different.

!! and, in insisting on reading this kind of fictional intimacy as Educational, people are going to miss more subtle ways in which the scenario may not be ideal. i shouldn't have to explain why that's Not Good

you can have fun with this actually And make it another tool of characterization etc

and on-screen consent doesn't have to look the same for every scenario and character. in fact it shouldn't. bc if it does, now you've probably stumbled into the pitfall of writing consent 101, possibly with an attempt at making it more sexy, rather than story.

like, just some ideas off of the top of my head that aren't 'yes, i consent':

normally abrasive character who needs to be in control at all times becomes more subdued and allows another to get intimate. just maybe a reserved 'you can', and them not fighting like they usually do with everything just out of habit

characters who cannot keep their hands off of each other because they're just desperately wanting to get as close and intimate as possible. no time for words. no chance for words because between kisses they're too out of breath anyway. (how is there any argument about this sort of scenario leaving consent 'vague'??)

normally reserved & quiet character making a subtle first move that, when coming from them, is Big

character is too excited and aroused and struggles to make the words go but their actions very much scream Want, while the other is going on about how sexy they are

honestly, nala giving simba the bedroom eyes in tlk style situation is a good one if you're just fading to black

'i want you', 'i need you', 'let me have you'

actually i'm providing some examples by yours truly;

my longfic is just. there's two sex scenes. one character is very experienced and the other is aroace and has not had an intimate relationship of any kind prior to this. i put emphasis on the curiosity and uncertainty and the more experienced character wanting to be sure that everything's fine, because he cares about that. for how i wrote these characters and this relationship, this approach made sense. i have lines like:

"You would give me this experience with you, then?" "Is this alright?" "I know my boundaries. That includes knowing which ones I am willing to bend." "Go slow at first and it's all good." "Tell me how it feels?"

I wouldn't necessarily label ^this scene smut in a conventional sense tbh. it's more the characters trying to figure things out and being a bit awkward about it at points.

and then i have this example later on of how a lack of clear 'yes' can be more fun:

If they think they are going to get a coherent answer out of him, they are wrong. The sight between his legs demands his attention, and he knows nothing sensible would come out of his mouth now, if he tried. The best he manages to give is a whine that maybe was supposed to be a 'please', but who knows. He certainly doesn't.

from a different story with same characters, we have 

"You are so responsive to simple touch, my friend." Simple, he says. Distracting. That it is.

closely followed by

"If I should stop, will you tell me?" They look up. Tell him? They don't bother, often, with trying; so many don't pay attention. Most keep a distance anyway. But some, they don't care if they push away or try to leave, unless they want to go away themselves; don't care that they hold a weapon until they use it, they know how to use it, it is not an idle threat. Easier to fight or run away, depending. Not to bother, when others deny their mind, their decisions. But he wants to know? "Three taps. Or something else, but still thrice. Somewhere I can feel it. I will know, then." So simple. They can do that. "Will you?" He wants to know. Nod; yes. They will.

in which we establish a safeword without calling it a safeword! to have a clear way of communicating no/stop when these two aren't that familiar with one another and the pov character is nonverbal. again, bc it made sense for my characterizations. frankly(!) leading up to this there's little things that are less good consent, like pov character feeling they have to decide on the spot if they engage or not when they realistically would have liked more time to think (and did not expect further checking ins along the line bc Unfamiliar Territory) but for the oneshot fic it works, bc it gets things moving along at a decent pace.

also good spot to go on a tangent about how perhaps im just too aroace for all this nonsense bc I KNOW the gag is that oh you're reading this very filthy smut? we all know what you're here for ;) ;) and i'm legitimately like. good character writing?? yes?? with tasty word building on the side as a bonus maybe?? i Do Not look at sexual content as inherently or even primarily as something that exists for the sake of sexual gratification, it's just another thing you can include in a story. if it's sexy for others and all that awesome, if not, that's a you problem lol.

then less plotty more smutty ones;

The King parts his legs, then, just enough to allow access. 

^depending how you kinky you'd like something like that, it could be an invitation or a command. depends on the surrounding context

He listens to the raspy breaths above him; they do not betray much, but he knows the subtle differences in the pattern, knows when he is getting close. / They would expect him to do something. They delight in the spontaneity, -- / -- watching how their hands twitch, listening to their little sounds. How he adores those sounds.

a selection of small things implying these characters are familiar with each other. and, that there's not so much of a point in confirming consent for everything every time. you can have it in there without spelling it out if you want, and especially with established relationships, that just makes sense, unless it's a Thing for them to go over the details each time. in which case: why. explain the logic and convince me (is it a kink for them? you could make it a kink thing if you want to play up the sexiness, but do realize that's going to be a niche thing.)

ooc is ooc. how would your character show or not show that they want to get nasty?

sidenote for kink etc: if your story isn't set in present-day real world or something close enough, you can implement a system that the readers will understand is a safeword, even if you don't call it that. is there something unique to your setting/characters that they might use instead, that might even make more sense in-universe? ALSO, in scifi/fantasy settings particularly you can possibly take stuff MUCH further than would be plausible or possible irl. don't be restricted to real world rules for kink, and with that, consider how this might impact stuff like negotiation. eg, 'anything that doesn't leave a permanent mark goes' carries a whole lot of different meanings when you have access to magic healing that leaves your skin looking perfectly unharmed. (this is for if your characters are aware that they are doing kink; if your characters aren't aware of this, proceed accordingly)

fixating on a verbal 'yes' like it's some kind of magic word just shows a fundamental misunderstanding of what consent even is

[cw for talk about sexual abuse etc from here out]

(if you're not familiar, please look up the fries model of consent. it's not a be all end all, but a solid starting point, particularly for vanilla scenarios.)

you can have a character go through the motions of consenting without it meaning jack shit due to the circumstances that lead them there. this partially ties to the whole people writing noncon without realizing. bc fiction generally involves conflicts of some kind, the things that drive your story forward can at the same time be what makes consent between your ship-to-be iffy, even if we all know that it's actually fine and no one's really being hurt (again, we apply suspension of disbelief etc), or just not good consent by any stretch of imagination.

is my neglected and emotionally abused ~late teens oc meaningfully consenting to sex when she's being pressured to 'earn her keep' by her caretakers and then getting pimped by her boyfriend who manipulates her? she says she's consenting. must be fine, then. right? right? (hint: No.)

another oc initiated what was at first a consensual encounter, voiced discomfort when things started going sideways, and when things Really went to shit, started fawning (among other things). is a yes, go ahead, i like that good consent here, or later in different situations, when this trauma rears its head and they're fawning again? (hint: No.)

and don't get me started on the 'verbal' part of a verbal 'yes' bc apparently some people out there genuinely insist that that's the only thing that matters- like YES, irl, if someone's body is responding to stimulus but they're saying no, that verbal no is what you pay attention to. but communication is so much more than plain spoken words. ffs.

writing lack of consent (spicy opinions incoming)

disclaimer addendum: if you're writing based on personal experiences, do whatever makes you comfortable. and i mean whatever. hell, even if it's not personal experiences or you're not sure, still that applies. i sure as fuck know it isn't so simple knowing if your experiences 'count' sometimes. again, personal thoughts/preferences re: fiction. not an edict to follow.

so, with fictional sexual abuse/nonconsent, i find a common point of struggle with this is a) person is writing noncon smut and they try too hard to make it Sexy, b) person is writing a story focusing on trauma and they try too hard to Be Sensitive

like honestly the best ones i've read, regardless of what the purpose of the story was, are the ones where the author approached it like just another topic to write about. go into detail when it serves the story you're telling. be vague when it serves the story you're telling. let the characters react in a way that makes sense rather than in a way that tells the reader how sexy and/or terrible this situation is. even if you're keeping things off screen, show what's going on in the character(s) heads.

for smut, trying too hard to make it sexy can come off as awkward and at times comical. and i'll wager, not in a way that's intended. not a noncon exclusive phenomenon, but perhaps more obvious here with the tone issues that come from that.

trying too hard to be sensitive is. it can come off as condescending? i don't want to chew up anyone for being uncomfortable, but i do take issue when people act like their way of dealing with their trauma is the Only Correct One (please shut up) and anyone who disagrees is Not A Real Survivor (please shut up), and especially if anyone more removed tries to dictate how to supposebly be respectful as if trauma worked the same for everyone

...have you ever watched a crime drama featuring sexual abuse and the general vibe that the whole situation has is just this oh you poor pitiable thing :( wrapped in a package of copaganda dressed as revenge fantasy. and it isn't even that the victim wants revenge, or anything really, for that matter, they're just kinda there to look vaguely sad. it's all just a side note to the getting the fix of Justified Corporeal Punishment

adjacent to that, is what comes with the territory of writing a sensitive topic with care: people beating around the bush and using vague euphemisms instead of describing ANYTHING. i'm not saying every single instance of depicting sexual abuse has to be graphic, but when it comes across like this is something so terrible and gross that you can't even mention it, are you being sensitive, or are you being avoidant? not every story that features sexual abuse in some capacity focuses on that, but with the ones that DO, worth considering why something is being left offscreen/underscribed.

(like i can straight up say when i've been Avoidant it was bc *i* was not in the spot to be dealing with that particular scenario in depth OR bc i was pre-emptively wanting to appease hypothetical others. for daring to include something a touch more personally vulnerable in art/fiction. neither was exactly the best mental place to be creating something planned to publicly share from.)

uh oh it's complicated

idk if i'll make any sense but i'll try to words

a somewhat tame example: unexpected kiss that gets handsy. we could have rough division of scenarios as such

1) character didn't consent to this, but actually wanted it so it's fine, 2) character didn't consent to this, and aggressively makes it clear, 3) character didn't consent to this, and it's complicated

scenario 1, when done well, is the surprise affection is sexy situation. characters know exactly what the other wants. there's a fantasy in that, of not having to voice your desires to have them realized, and whatnot.

with scenario 2, when do things pause to give it some weight? character in the receiving end shoves the other away and yells at them, or someone else does it for them, and then the whole matter gets brushed off after maybe a quick are you ok, feels like the usual way it goes. from a storytelling perspective, even a brief moment to show discomfort would make that land far better, if the point is to show that this is creepy and unwelcome?

and 3 is. what if it is unwanted, but the response doesn't scream get off of me. what if the character has complicated reactions, for a possibly wide variety of reasons. where things get messy. this compels me. but it's very different from both the prior ways to go about the same scenario and easily the most complicated, because we don't get that immediate simple dramatic 'resolution' either way, if you do this properly.

i love good dubcon/soft noncon/technically consensual/things of that nature. and i will argue that you can't really do those well if you don't have a decent understanding of consent. you can't properly navigate the nuance and grey areas and technicalities and it isn't consensual, but it's complicated or consensual but not safe or sane for a compelling, believable story if you don't have a solid grasp of how these things work

depicting sexual trauma without showing anything or even directly naming it

a while there was a post about how if you can't bring yourself to use words like 'kill', instead opting for euphemisms like 'unalive', then you probably aren't mature enough to write about death with any grace, and shared there was the sentiment that this applies to sexual abuse as well. absolutely valid point but also i had happened to finish a fic relevant to that discussion recently and Now i'm getting out that particular yes but there's also this other angle to consider

which is: does it make sense for the characters to describe things using a given phrasing?

my character who's just been slapped in the face with a significant trauma and is struggling not to dissociate probably isn't going to talk about it the same way as someone who's had time to process and heal and just had an epiphany in therapy. probably.

but i'm getting sidetracked from getting sidetracked so onto the next point (for now?)

if you're not allowed to write it badly, are you actually allowed to write it?

do your research and approach these topics with care and all that, yes, but also, are we demanding that people potentially writing about their own trauma and lived experiences are masters of their craft? does a vent fic or an autobiographical work have to stand up to scrutiny of representing sexual abuse 'respectfully'??

like, a bunch of people have pointed out how demanding people publicly disclose their trauma to be judged by complete strangers in order to determine if they're allowed to write something is all sorts of shitty, but hey, here's a thought adjacent to that i don't think i've seen anyone bring up. because seriously. if someone's screaming that they're hurting why the fuck should the primary concern be but are your creative skills up to par??

(i'll be blunt again and say this is in part why i've been extremely hesitant up until recently to include these sorts of things in my stories in much detail, but far more so, i'm thinking about all the fucking awful treatment i've seen others receive for talking about/depicting fictionalized retellings of their traumas ""incorrectly"".)

i'll admit it: my first attempts at depicting sexual trauma even as a sidenote to another story just plain sucked. there was an attempt but it was no good. in part i was young and less aware of everything, in part i was poorly mimicking existing examples that were generally meh 

i'll also admit that what was genuinely most helpful at getting better was reading graphic noncon smut/angst. the well written stuff. because those fics aren't afraid to go into detail; rather, they enthusiastically dive into all the little and not so little things that make it more worse. they present the whole thing without dressing it to be palatable, and the jump from side note to copaganda to brutally honest survivor story was- i think the first really graphic one was the first time i could sympathize with the character and root for them in their journey to overcome the trauma. as opposed to almost voyeuristically (ironically enough) observe from a distance and then forget about it when the rest of the plot moved forward and forgot about it too.

and then one more thing relating to that that's been rattling around in the back of my mind for probably years now: there's one fic from years ago in particular that i think of when i consider the topic of fanfic depicting rape inappropriately. because that fic is not so different from noncon kink works i at times see from the type people arguably disrespected in said fic, just more novice in execution.  it also makes me think of how i handled various areas of this whole consent/communication/boundaries jumble in my earliest attempts vs now. which is just one of those reasons i'm reluctant to judge intentions in these situations, at least outside mainstream entertainment where standards/expectations should be completely different.

in conclusion 

this has been an i was exhausted and the filter was off ramble that got too damn long

have good day/night/whatever