#and if anyone has some Fun Facts about other languages and how they work

[masked-disciple]

I both love and hate worldbuilding so much.

Like, I'm thinking about how I want to do languages in the Aethel, and I'm like, "there's language groups and usually language just drifts, it's rare people up and intentionally make a new language and it catches on, although trade and politics definitely can help a region's power swap from one common language to another" but if I want to make diverse languages, even if they don't actually appear front-and-centre, I have to do all this goddamn research.

Like, cuneiform looks like That because they used hexagonal 'pens' of sorts to press into clay, and kanji looks like That because they use brushes, and Irish ogham looks like That because it was typically carved into rocks, and Latin cursive looks like That because we used feather pens. But did we diverge alphabets from each other in the proto-indo-european days because of different tools, or was writing invented repeatedly in different places and that's why it's different?

Furthermore, what shapes language itself? Icelandic is a very gutteral language that hasn't really changed in a thousand years because it doesn't need to, but Japanese is a very melodic language with a very firm consonant-vowel-consonant-vowel structure. Why's that? They're both island cultures who kept to themselves for a good chunk of history. What made them different? Why is it that only like five languages use a tongue-click as a sound, and only some roll Rs? What happened to make these naturally happen, and why aren't they more common?

Why is it Japanese is an incredibly indirect language but also incredibly concise, whereas Hebrew and English are both typically pretty direct? Why do some languages not even have relational left/right, and only ever use cardinal directions? Aren't there a few completely atemporal languages? Why is it that English only has a few tonal indicators, but if you fuck up any tones at all in Cantonese, it changes everything you just said? Whose idea was that, and why did it stick around?

These are all questions that absolutely build and help make worldbuilding that much more natural and realistic. But answering them is going to require a goddamn linguistic anthropology degree. I can't just wikipedia this shit in one night and then keep going.

It's worse once you get different species in the mix. A draconic language is not likely to sound anything like a human language, and may not be at all possible for any human ever to speak. I've been writing Denellic almost entirely as "what if Icelandic people got the ability to roll every single consonant that exists, and also knew Latin, and aggressively wanted to insult Latin at every point, and was a language intentionally made to do so, but also the species that primarily speaks it has seven distinct arcanobiological genders with cultural meaning and expects you to stack them on every noun because being neutral on a topic is culturally unacceptable".

I'm literally dying. Am I having so so so much fun? Absolutely. But I'm also literally dying, and if anyone wants to help a worldbuilder out and knows the answers to some of these questions, please please please tell me it'll make my worldbuilding cooler.

[muffinsin]

hiya muffin!

would you be willing to write hcs for the dimitrescu sisters + donna (all seperately) gaining interest in mute/nonverbal, fem!reader, who uses sign language? Thank you! ^_^

-🃏🌀⭐️

Awhh, this one’s adorable :)! Absolutely, hon

Edit: yes I forgor Donna rip, bear with me, sleep’s starting to get to me XD

Let’s get into it!🙌

Masterlists

Bela

She isn't quite known to take interest in the maidens

She manages the staff, yes, but hardly ever looks into certain staff members herself

Unlike her sisters, she isn't known for sneaking about and plucking them like apples from a tree, isn't seen kissing them, isn't part of rumors of how certain maidens have caught the eyes of the Dimitrescu sisters

Of course, rarely, she does find herself interested in one, though often pushes these feelings aside

She continues on, continues focusing on her work instead

On her family, and on being there for her

She's convinced, romance is not something she needs, per say

And still, recently, she finds herself becoming more and more interested in one staff member in particular

A quiet, mute- in fact, staff member

A young woman

She can't help but leave her office more often than she normally would, as though to see her

Of course, Bela insists, even to herself, this is only to check up on her sisters and the staff

All to ensure everything is running smoothly, of course

But still, she just rarely moves to her sisters, to the library, where Daniela often lurks about, to the basement, where she knows Cassandra spends the majority of the time, to the main hall or kitchens, where many maidens are

No, instead, she finds herself moving along certain halls and hallways, her golden eyes finding you, always

She doesn't want to scare you away, doesn't want to come across as terrifying or odd

She just thinks you're cute...

She studies you, mostly from the shadows, day and night

In her spare time she picks up a book on sign language

And while in the beginning she's a little too anxious to speak to you directly, she does lurk in the shadows, studying your hand movements as if reading in on your conversations with others

She practices in her own room

She's sure, you've read to read from her lips, anyway, so it shouldn't matter if her sign language isn't quite perfect

Ah...

but she wants it to be perfect

For you

And soon, she’s ready to test her skills and show them off

It starts slow, subtle, when she’d include the gestures in her commands and sentences

You don’t notice, at first at least

And when you do, you can’t help but feel utterly flustered

Has she…taught herself sign language?

For you..?

You almost want to scold yourself and convince yourself you’re just acting silly now

But it almost seems like she did learn it only for you

She doesn't bother doing such things with others, and hardly ever learns for the sake of others, you know

In time, you notice, Bela spends more and more time with you

And you notice; you begin to crave her presence more and more, too

She sticks around often, or you are just conveniently appointed to her room or study when you work, tasked to organise this and that, dust off this and that

You secretly begin to look forward to work, knowing she will be there

Cassandra

She's called bold by many

Hell, even she would claim she's bold

Everyone would!

Bold, confident, a little cocky, playful, sadistic

She takes what she wants, whenever she wants it

What isn't given to her, she forcefully takes

She seduces easily, takes some of the staff members as though she was a girl collecting flowers from a flowerfield

They're rarely seen afterwards, but she doesn't care

She takes what she wants, seduces, indulges, terrifies easily

And then, there's you...

She spots you first in the armory

You're organising her weapons for her, almost as if lost in your own world

When she enters, though, you turn to her, bowing your head silently

She's fuming, ready to rip off just about anyone's head and scoop out the fleshy brain for fun

But you don't irritate her

You bow politely, even smile at her, and turn back to work

You don't speak out of turn, nor do you shiver and tremble in her presence, as most others do

She finds this relaxing, even

And so, you are the first who is not a Dimitrescu to survive an encounter with Cassandra Dimitrescu

You see her more often, then

She swarms into the armory often while you work, you realise

Sometimes, she plays with some of the blades, removing her glove and trailing her fingertips across the sharp blades

You're hesitant to admit, your eyes lingered on her hands more often than not

At other times, she moves to the small area in the corner, where a crack in the wall allows some light and warmth to shine through

You occaisonally lift your gaze as she does this, wondering whether the big, mighty Cassandra Dimitrescu might be sun bathing

The thought is an adorable one, but you don't allow it to distract you. While you've always felt that the Dimitrescus, Alcina especially, have never treated you wrong and even given you a great opportunity at life, granting you a place to sleep, eat, and call home even in the cold winters, Cassandra is every bit of the huntress she is known for

Cleaning her weapons on a daily and scrubbing blood and gore from them, you would know

You don't mind, though

She's dangerous, yes, but not irrational

She doesn't hurt you, and you find; she just rarely hurts people unprompted. Often, people think differently, not understanding to shut their mouth when the woman is visibly angry

You don't have that issue

You stay quiet, always. Sometimes she rambles on to herself, at other times her lips are sealed and her eyes, albeit a little hesitantly, slip shut, as though relaxed

it doesn't take her long to figure out one thing: she likes you

You're...unique

You're polite, kind. You stay out of trouble, never seek it out. Aside from her, of course

You're not scared of her, while remaining kind and polite

She attempts conversations with you multiple times, frowning in confusion when you mostly stick to nodding, shaking your head, and smiling or frowning

You know, she doesn't know sign language

She doesn't even know what it is, really, would possibly mistake your attempts at communication with attempted insult

That is, until one day she catches you with another staff member

She frowns, confused, as you move your hands, as though speaking a language of your own

She finds, almost pathetically, she wants to be a part of this world. Of your world, even as the thought alone is so cheesy to her, she nearly stabs herself in her frustrations

She turns to the only one she trusts as it comes to this, even as she finds herself a little unwilling to help at first

Namely, because her younger sister appears by the side of her bed in the middle of the night, asking her to teach her sign language. Or, as Cassandra refered to it as, "hand talk"

And while being kicked out originally, Cassandra is taught eventually

She struggles, at first, but finds it's a little easier than her attempts at learning another language, long ago

She learns as she goes, really, and becomes quite used to it quite soon. She even uses it to speak to Bela at the dinner table, giggling to herself when their younger sister whines and growls in frustration, telling on them and whining to their mother about this and that until they are made to speak their thoughts aloud

And in time, she dares speak to you this way, too

The first time she gestures in front of you, simply asking you if you like her newest blade, you feel your cheeks burn up and flush

She...has she learned it?

Why?

You can't help but hope, maybe a little naively, that she's done it for you

The two of you are closer than she is with any other maid

Or so you hope, quite selfishly

Little do you know, you're all who is on her mind

Daniela

She's not shy, certainly

And she's not known for holding back either, certainly

In fact, she's quite common knowledge that Daniela is by far the flirtiest of the three sisters in the castle

She's seductive, flirty, playful, cute, beautiful, of course. And for many, this outweights her mania, her delusions, her unpredictability, her bloodlust, and the fact that there is rarely a lover of hers dying of natural reasons, whereas the majority of those even remotely interested in her are killed by the girl herself, or dragged off to the dungeons by her overprotective sisters

In fact, it's quite rare to find her on her own, usually liking to keep one or two maidens around, if only to kiss and hold, to toy with, almost

And still, all know this is not due to her wanting to merely play with them, but her genuine belief and wish to find love

When Daniela's golden eyes find yours one day, it's hardly any different

It starts somewhat small, with subtle changes in your schedule

You'd swap to being tasked to clean up areas near her, the library, the east wing, the higher parts of the castle, rooms largely unseen by most common staff

Her room

The opera hall

The library

And you find her there, often

Whenever you dare sneak a glance at her, you find she's been looking already

Sometimes, whenever she's feeling particularly bold, she keeps looking at you

At other times she adverts her eyes, her cheeks adapting a pink hue and warmth

When she first interacts with you properly, it's in the library, too

You're cleaning off a shelf and pick up one of the books for easier access, when suddenly it's snatched from you

You turn, surprised, but your surprise turns to curiosity when you find Daniela by your side, standing quite possibly too close for it to be considered proper

She's smiling, her fingertips trailing along the book's leather cover

"Did you read this one?", she asks, her voice light. The phrase could easily be mistaken for something said in a more normal setting, by someone less dangerous

You only shake your head as your eyes flicker to the title of the book. A romance book, of course. You've noticed she seems to like those the most

"Will you read it? We could chat about it sometime! Or, you know, I could just tell you about it", she hums, and you're unsure whether she means to sound flirty as she makes her offer

You nod hesitantly and find yourself being moved suddenly

Boldy, she rests her hand on your hip as she guides you, and when you're eased to sit by one of the many large, comfortable sofas and armchairs in the library, you feel almost like slipping your eyes shut

It's so comfortable, so utterly relaxing, you almost forget yourself

And when you suddenly feel a light weight on top of you and open your eyes, you nearly flinch back in surprise to see her on top of you, sitting sideways on your lap, her back leaning against the armchair's arm rest

She too seems utterly comfortable, now

You begin to feel nervous as she rambles, unsure what to do. You know, if her sisters- or god forbid her overprotective mother- found her like this, you might just be dragged to the cellars

But there's no one in the library but the two of you, and as the minutes pass, you find yourself becoming more captivated in her

She's smiling as she speaks, and when she laughs, you see her eyes lighting up a little

She gestures with her hands a lot as she tells her tale and- funnily enough- it reminds you a little of sign language

Almost absently, you begin to gesture too, along with what she's saying, until she pauses, giggling when her hands suddenly cup yours

"Teach me, my darling?"

The words strike you, but they also have you smile a little

She's eager, at least

And really, how could you deny her the wish when she sends you such a beautiful, beautiful smile?

[bippiti]

catalyst clc16 x rockstar! reader

after the release of your new album, life has been hectic as you've been running around doing shows. only problem is you seem to have only one person on your mind. little do you know he's having the same issue

an part two! any feedback is appreciated and please like + rb!

if you want a visual guide for the band .

part one next part

tags @bloodyymaryyy @guiseppetsunoda @maxverstappendefender @charizznorizz

yourig

liked by king, charles_leclerc and 42,836,364 others

yourig thanks for coming out london! nyc see you soon x

view comments

user ughh i wish i couldve come :((

yourig next time lovee💜

user sounded so good

user anyone else gonna talk about the album afterparty???

user who cares bro😭 theyre adults and tbh they would be a power couple

user right?! ive been thinking the same thing, shes not a good influence on him

user im sorry do yk y/n??? how would u know that lmfao

king looking good!

liked by yourig

user where is the fit from???

user i think vivienne westwood!

view more comments

-

you sighed, scrolling through your comments. it had been almost a month after your albums release, and some people still were bringing up the hug with charles. i mean, seriously it was just a hug. it wasn't like you guys had made out or anything.

both your label and ferrari were sponsored by celsius, and your management had met with one of ferraris pr heads. they had agreed to work together to promote the new album, and had picked charles because he was a fan of your music.

you clicked instantly on the first day of set, but it also helped that you spoke fluent french (you had an obsession with indila when you were younger and forced yourself to learn it) the lack of a language barrier, coupled with the fact that you guys had similar interests made it inevitable that you both would become friends.

after the album launch party, you were exhausted. you had woken up at 4am for promo shoots, and had been running around all day before singing your whole album (which was around an hour long) to the attendees. it was fun, and you wouldnt trade your career for the whole world, but man you were tired.

as you were heading out, you spotted charles and you both stopped to talk

"tu as bien fait là-dedans" he said, smiling as he pushed his hands into his pockets (you did good in there)

"merci! les heures de pratique m’ont aidé. je pense que je pourrais oublier les paroles si j’essayais" you smile as he laughed (thanks! the hours of practice helped. i dont think i could forget the lyrics if i tried)

"en pratiquant son art on devient artisan" (practice makes perfect)

you nod, turning as you hear your bandmate siobahn call for you

you look back to him, saying your goodbyes and quickly hugging him before running after her.

that was it. just a friendly hug. it's not like he liked you, and if he knew you liked him, you doubt he would still be friends with you.

-

charles_leclerc

liked by yourig, pierregasly and 305,387 others

charles_leclerc i won. maybe next time @/pierregasly 😘

view comments

user just realized pierre had a chance to fork the king and the rook in

user not y/n liking this...

user so cute😍

pierregasly i almost had it

charles_leclerc of course you did

user my fav french men

view more comments

-

after having checkmate charles sat back, smiling smugly as he looked at pierre try and fail to make a move. giving up, he raised his hands in defeat.

"quand vais-je jamais te battre?" he said sighing as he chuckled (when will i ever beat you)

"peut-être dans une autre vie" (maybe in another life)

scoffing, pierre changed the subject.

"so i heard you're with some rockstar these days"

"i most definitley am not"

"sure, sure. you might not be dating her but i can tell you like her"

charles paused, having a mini crisis. ok. so maybe he did like you. he couldn't help it, honestly. throughout filming ,and even after he had grown to really admire you. not only just as an artist, but as a person as well. he honestly hoped you'd be able to meet up afterwards, but he hasnt been able to see you since. between his preseason training and your concerts, you both are rarely free, let alone in the same country.

he told all of this to pierre, who listened quietly, nodding along before telling him his masterplan. he was gonna help him out, what kindve friend would he be if he didnt?

-

hearing the notification sound go off on your phone, you picked it up. your eyebrows raised as you read it

part 3??

[lazycats-stuff]

Hiiii! I was wondering if u could do an male reader x batfam, where the reader is deaf and has to use sign language? P.s I love Ur work

Of course I can. Thank you for loving my work. Also, a heads up, I'm not deaf nor do I know anyone who is deaf and I have done my research on this. So, if there are some inaccuracies, I would like to say sorry in advance and if something is off, please bring it to my attention so I can correct it. And yes, it's a bit short, but I think I might be getting a writer's block... I hope not, but I think I might.😭

Summary: (Y/N) is deaf.

Warnings: none, a quick mention of death

Being deaf is not that easy. (Y/N) was deaf from birth and had learned ASL to communicate with others. It wasn't easy, but he managed. When his mom passed away and we went to his father Bruce to live with, all the boys had to learn ASL. Before, they used yes or no question that were either on their phones or pads of paper.

Of course, that doesn't manage when a deaf person is living with them full time. Alfred already knew ASL, having it learned when (Y/N) was born. Bruce as well. Both Bruce and Alfred knew it fluently and had fun communicating with their son and grandson. Not to mention, Bruce supported anything that had to do with deafness. And he was even the advocator for the deaf community in Gotham.

The boys?

Well... It was a tad more difficult. Jason and Dick had a bit of difficulty learning, but they were trying. Although still relying on pieces of paper and something similar until they learn the ASL. They know that (Y/N) can read lips so that it something that they also use to their advantage. Also, they listened to (Y/N)'s preferences in communication.

(Y/N) informed them that it would be nice of them to focus on his face, to not turn their heads away because he needs to focus on their lips, as much as signing too. Jason and Dick understood, more so when they understood how much he needed to focus on communication, despite not hearing.

And more importantly, patience. Jason and Dick understood that hearing is something that a lot of people, them included, take for granted.

And I can hear you asking about Tim and Damian.

Tim had no problem learning ASL, in fact, it was a lot of fun for Tim. He, alongside Bruce and Alfred, was the most fluent. It was fun figuring out how to let (Y/N) know when he is coming into his room. They decided on the approach of opening the door just enough so he could flick the lights on and off quickly, just so let him know he is entering.

They saw that from a father on YouTube who has a deaf daughter. And everyone has implemented that if they are entering (Y/N)'s room. A nice alternative to knocking was the general consensus when it came to the matter.

Damian, on the other hand, couldn't really bother to learn it because he thought that (Y/N) was defective, not really valuable to the family. So, he wasn't very well liked in the family at first. The family had a simple rule.

Don't insult (Y/N) and don't mess with him. Sure, fights are normal with siblings, every single family in the world has those fights. Whoever has siblings can atest to that.

But insults about (Y/N) are unacceptable. And sure, that looks like favoritism, but everyone had a soft spot for (Y/N). That's why. And besides, does anyone want to insult a deaf person?

Without a reason, a good one as well, majority would say no.

But back to Damian.

His mindset was, if you are weak, you are not useful for the family. Bruce and the others tried to erase that mindset out of Damian. And Damian himself wasn't that rude to (Y/N), simply ignoring him. (Y/N) couldn't understand why, but the rest told him about Damian's mindset and what happened to him.

(Y/N) understood from then on and tried to not take it to heart.

And Damian was slowly but surely changing. He got all the rules regarding (Y/N) and started following them. And, he slowly started learning ASL. Damian, found this to be a bit difficult, since he never had to use his hands to communicate, but he actually enjoyed it.

And it gave him a perfect excuse to bond with (Y/N), practicing his ASL. And his understanding of it in general. (Y/N) knew that Damian was trying, giving him an effort and (Y/N)'s heart was happy to see his brother trying and not being... Cold.

(Y/N) was very happy.

It was one lazy morning, lazy Saturday more specifically, for everyone. Everyone slowly migrated to the kitchen to get some coffee and food from Alfred. Everyone was down expect for (Y/N), who now slowly woke up due to the sun light in the room, coming from a window above his bed and on the opposite wall.

He made his way down slowly, attracting attention from everyone, who signed good morning to him. (Y/N) signed back as well, sitting down onto his spot, Alfred giving him some coffee and some food to eat.

" How is everyone? " (Y/N) signed, looking at the reactions and signing from everyone.

The answers were varied.

From ' I'm great, you? ' to ' I want more rest, but my body can't take anymore.'

(Y/N) smiled, happy to know that he couldn't fall asleep as well. For some reason, it was difficult to fall asleep last night. He didn't know why, he just couldn't fall asleep.

(Y/N) nodded as he dug into his meal, the usual bowl of something light that Alfred whipped up in the morning. (Y/N) always preferred something more lighter in the morning. Nothing really greasy and heavy.

" What are the plans for today? " (Y/N) signed and everyone stopped to think, making sure to be in (Y/N)'s line of sight.

" I'm just going to be in my study, I have something to finish up in regards to the Wayne Enterprises. " Bruce signed and (Y/N) nodded, turning to look at others, sipping his coffee.

" I'm going to train. " Damian signed back.

" I'm going out with some friends, " Dick signed and then turned to Jason.

" I'm going to be doing spring cleaning of my weapons. " Jason signed back to (Y/N).

" And I'm simply going to be in my room. We can hang out later if you want. " Tim signed with a big smile on his face and (Y/N) smiled back. The two didn't really hangout much recently. And this Saturday is going to be the perfect day to do it.

[court-jobi]

Backpack Privileges

((banner by me! I don't own Horikoshi's characters/stories))

Pairing: Bakugou x reader (biker! Pro-hero reader, some afab pronouns used)

Words: 3.2K

Rating: T+ (language, bc obviously)

Warnings: Pro-Hero Bakugou/Pro-Hero Reader, cursing as a love language, fluffy flirting and teasing, mutual pining, YEARNING, grumpy/sassy sunshine, give me soft Bakugou

Summary:

You loved sunset drives, and have teased your coworker here about the thrill that even a simple beach drive can bring– enough to corral him into making plans to accompany you sometime and see for himself. Plans anyone else with eyes and a working knowledge of chemistry would call a ‘date’… but clearly neither of you could toughen up and call that what this is. But the fact remains that you of all people convinced the Katsuki Bakugou-the man behind ‘Dynamight’s mask- to go on after-hours ride with you. And he's looking real nice in that helmet...

A/N: Bikertok has me in a chokehold on this one, babes. Meant to be read as gender-neutral as possible, but if you're like me and are itching for the idea of a fem!biker pro hero catching Kacchan's eye, then buckle up, buttercup~

It's been a minute posting, and my first fic back is for a new fandom? Who am I??

For my My Hero Academia Masterlist, check it out here!

Read on AO3

“First time going for a drive,” you got comfy on your seat- a bit closer to the throttle than you’d  normally be, “Nervous at all?”

“Tch, what do I have to be nervous about? You're not planning to wreck our asses, are you?”

“Suppose that brings us to safety first~” you muttered all the same and passed your rider -Katsuki Bakugou, the man behind ‘Dynamight’s mask- a helmet. He looked it distastefully while you donned yours: a steely blue that matches your current choice in quirk-fueled mech you're both about to set out on. 

“How's this damn thing supposed to fit?!”

You flipped up your visor to him, as you affix your -now backup- helmet to your jaw. 

“That's my newer one. The strap’s on the bottom– other side. Other other side.” Cheeks pushing up and all but confirming a smirk underneath, you poked fun at his expense, “I made sure to remove some of the crucial safety padding inside to make room for that hair of yours. Couldn’t bear to muss that up, yeah?”

A light growl emanated from him as he forced the thing into his head.  You'd done no such thing, of course. But even still, he flipped up the visor to glare at you, only to watch you bat your eyes at him then shut it back into place just as fast. 

The Bluetooth pairing between your helmets failed to hide his soft threat, 

“Shut up, angel eyes..”

 Heard that. 

As casual and in-control as you feel right now, you can't help but hold some nerves yourself… but not about the ride ahead of you. Piloting any kind of bike, car, or war machine that you could manifest with your quirk left you sitting right in the driver's seat and in your element. You loved sunset drives, and have teased your coworker here about the thrill that even a simple beach drive can bring– enough to corral him into making plans to accompany you sometime and see for himself. Plans he agreed to, and showed up ten minutes early to honor. Plans he even texted you about first thing this morning, as if you'd forget.

Plans anyone else with eyes and a working knowledge of chemistry would call a ‘date’… but clearly neither of you could toughen up and call that what this is. 

It's far too fragile and new of a thing to call it that, what you two have been feeling. You pull to each other like a magnet– both on and off the field. Maybe after some 100km/h winds and a healthy adrenaline boost, the sights from Mustafu Bay Bridge can break the ice where your banter and teasing couldn't. 

The constant hum of your quirk warming your body coupled with anticipation of Bakugou mounting the bike behind you brought your hands to drum absently atop the center hub of your bike– right where a gas tank would normally be. 

Now to see what he does with his hands. 

“Now we’re gonna take the freeway up here,” you call back to him, visor still up so he copies to see you better, “but I won't start drifting till you're cool enough with the feel, alright? Just lean into me, nothing shaky. No sudden moves.”

“Yeah yeah yeah.”

“You’ll tap me here if you need me to ease up?”

“Yes, mother.”

You smirked, adjusting your side mirrors, noting how he just flattened his hands on his thighs, aside yours. 

“--And you might have to get fresh with me eventually, ‘Dynamight’. It gets fast…”

“Eugh– none of that.”

You chuckled, but grasped his wrist to show him the inset handles he could hold onto instead of you, if he’d rather. Either way, he'd have to lean forward onto you to reach them at some point. 

But he'd learn that soon enough, because at his chiding for you to ‘get on with it already’, you heeled at the kickstand, pushed off, and forced his chest right onto your back with a grunt. 

This was going to be fun. 

The sky was just now starting to turn its lovely colors from behind the cloud breaks, but light poles and power lines still cut into the view down here by the business district. 

“YOU CAN’T POSSIBLY BE DOING THE SPEED LIMIT, ARE YOU?! EVERYONE’S PASSING US!”

Squinting at his yell over the road noise, you gave the pro hero some grace but also assured him firmly, 

“Call me cautious, hon, but I'm getting up to speed for my ‘backpack’s sake, not mine. And I can hear you just fine. The mic will pick you up~”

“... Oh.”

Giggling yourself, you revved up a few ticks and noted how he held firm to the handles. The first couple lane changes he acclimated like a champ, which gave you confidence to finally reach the top permissible speed. Maybe you could risk another five over, once you got out of city ordinances with those darned speed bump monitors… 

In a few clicks, you'd reach the offramp to the beach expressway, so you checked your mirrors for Bakugou’s face. The helmet he wore was tinted, but not fully opaque like yours. You could see his wary brows as he had his sights locked down onto the passing dashes of your lane, willing you to stay within them while silently stewing over it. 

“You good back there?” Your voice carries through assuring, but with a level of calm to prove to him all was operating fine. 

Brought out of his head, Bakugou flitted his gaze ahead, then down to where you'd tilted your head. Proving you were listening. 

“Yeah. M’good.”

He squeezed his arms in a little, to answer back. A step in the right direction. 

“Knew you'd be a natural,” you praised, earning a proud roll of his arms, “now we’re gonna make this loop, so just turn in with me, like you did before.”

“Got it.”

Rounding the exit, Bakugou admittedly might have pushed his lean too much  at first– not accounting for how much you lean and how much he weighs, so he immediately righted himself with a stiffness. Thankfully, you slow on every one of these to level out the overcorrect. And hey, at least his surprise caused him to latch that left arm around your waist, so that was… not unwelcome. 

Straightening out to the road, he reluctantly returned his hands to where they once were, but settled his posture  down onto your back comfortably.

He truly was doing well. Bakugou takes to new challenges with eagerness that betrays any hesitation. You count on him talking a big game to give you an ease in expectation for most missions you've provided support on. It's cocky, but confident, and oftentimes not without a good bit of truth and experience to back it up. When he calls out to you on patrol, it might be loud and proud, but it comes from a place of valuing teamwork- never once making you feel unappreciated for your services. It’s something he even confessed to you that he had to intentionally learn before entering the workplace. 

‘You shoulda seen me in high school. Pretty much a bully. Y’can't operate as a team that way all the time, though. But here I am- I'm on track to get top ten on the leaderboard according to Jeanist. “Even assholes can get the job done sometimes”– which, YES, is a compliment, by the way! Seems he’s finally thinkin’ better of me and given’ me some respect!’

Gee, can't imagine you being a hothead at all. 

Tell of his talent and accolades are well earned, you have to agree. To the asshole comment, you weren't so sold. Sure, he was harsh and pointed with just about anyone who throws a contrary opinion at him. Bakugou's reputation preceded him for not being the best to gel with.

But for all that bravado, the minute you teamed up after your first joint mission at the agency, you noticed how he cut the edge with you. Most times, he may growl and grunt at worst, but Bakugou usually spoke to you pretty even-keeled. Careful, you might call it. Wouldn’t call it ‘friendly’, but kind enough for you to choose to stick around him: make the offer to him for some company, talk through your routes together under the guise that you need a fresh set of eyes, even seek him out after hours when he opened up the invite to you to come for dinner and drinks with some alumni friends of his. 

…gentle enough for you to get a soft spot for the pro hero you'd have bet six months ago would’ve blown your head off without a second thought. 

Now, that same hero carries his head higher behind you. He’s not obsessed with watching the road anymore, taking comfort enough in your driving so he could watch the flock of geese pass over your left, with a hand rooted on hip for support. 

The thought warmed you, yet you didn't dare speak and break his bubble. Even pros deserved time to hit pause and just clear the head with a drive. That’s just what you loved to do, too.

Your chosen destination was mere minutes away now. Finding yourself slowing and cutting over to the beach access road, Bakugou’s grunts grew uneasy along with the bumps in the road. For a split second you think you should have warned him to ‘watch the rocky bits’, but like all things, he's a trooper and didn't say a word. 

Sliding onto the packed down sand, you adjusted your bike’s wheel type by sense alone to add a bit more traction in order to drive smoothly. With a low hum of acceleration, you were off in no time back to a comfortable speed: ocean to your left, sky ahead, dunes shielding you on your right from the rest of the city nightlife. You leave treads in your dust, but they are soon washed away as the incoming tide chases you. 

It’s here on familiar terrain that you sit up a bit more relaxed, free of asphalt and multi-lane traffic. Most folks must be out having dinner plans, so the beach is yours until the night beach walkers arrive. Flipping your visor up, the wind immediately hit your lashes, but the smell was incredible. Always was. 

You heaved a cleansing breath happily, reveling in the smooth thrum of the bike beneath you- perfect conditions and company. 

“Honest truth? I could get paid pennies for my transport work for all I care,” you confessed over a cry of some gulls, “--as long as I have enough time to get away for views like this.” You swung a relaxed arm out to the waves foaming alongside, “This–  is worth more than all the big bucks.”

You felt Bakugou’s hum on your back before you heard it. He mimicked your gesture too, making waves through the air as childlike as you could picture. From your rearview, you caught him smiling across the sea to the horizon line. 

He agrees with ease, “Yeah. Sure is a sight,” 

“Worth the wait, huh?”

Bakugou centered back, checking for you in the rearview mirror. With a little jerk of his head (a swallow), that gentler, gravelly voice he kept for you answered back, 

“Definitely.”

That sweet spot flipped in your stomach, even as his brows firmed up again and flicked one up at you,

“Bout time, I mean. You were holding out on me.”

There it was again: that pathetic pulse in your chest at his brand of teasing. 

Taking a breather from the constant exertion of your abilities, you cut all energy off to the fueling of the mech- letting it coast to a full stop after boosting up the ramp to the fishing overlook. It took you a couple manual strides of your feet to get you close to the edge before kicking the locking gear in place. 

Bravery you typically reserve for villain encounters and public speaking is summoned from your lips. You’re proud of yourself, but no less jittery inside,

“Tell ya a secret.”

“Oh yeah?”

You took off your helmet, but dare not look back. 

“If I ever take a hiatus from hero work,” you share, “I wanna figure out how I can drift on water. I already started making some notes after that Support Course workshop. Imagine how sick that'd be, right? Could do a lot of good with that. Hybrid water rescues, marine chases..”

“--If you don't get nabbed by sharks first,” Bakugou fired back with his helmet off now to match.

You had to laugh at the danger he presented, 

“Really? A quirk-ridden world and a villain presence more prominent than any generation before ours– and the idea of sharks scares you?”

Bakugou caught your stare defensively, “Sharks? Hell no! Death by sharks? What a dumbass way to die. I'd rather go out with-”

“--with a bang. Of course you would.”

To your sassy quip back, Bakugou simply smirked, laid a boldly set foot on either side of the bike to steady himself– and absolutely tickled the daylights out of your sides. 

After a decent punishment, you only settled your shrieks as he switched from assault to detainment, pulling you tight to his chest. 

He’s not actually offended; not by the way he’s locked his hand solidly around his own wrist to keep you in place.

“Got a smart mouth, you know that?” Bakugou snarked in your ear.

You do consider yourself a decent personality hire, after all. 

“I think it makes me fun at parties~”

“...You’re a good driver though.”

Even softer, you give a work of thanks. Bakugou doesn’t say more and doesn’t let go.

The sight of the sun finally started slipping out of the skyline, a wash of gold and pink and orange surrounding you both. At this time of year, the last bit of  setting sun isn’t enough to warm you through, even outfitted in leather and thick cordura. The only bits of exposed skin you showed were where your jacket opened to flash your shirt collar, and the tops of your hands your gloves couldn't cover– hands Bakugou was currently keeping warm as he comfortably held you. At rest for once, you wonder. 

“This is.. really nice,” the blond shared after a few centering breaths. 

From your angle, you couldn't really look back to see him. You tried, but his grip tightened slightly, so you sensed he was likely holding you this way on purpose. 

Giving in, you agreed and laid back. After all, you didn't think he got this sentimental unless he was truly relaxed– a marvel itself. 

Letting out a soothed breath yourself, you leaned inward, towards his neck, “Really is.”

“Mean it, y'know.” He tried again, “Not just gettin’ us out here. You're…  really damn good at your job. The agency’s lucky you’re the one who’s always there for pickups. I almost ate it with that landing last week, if you hadn't caught me in your– truck bed– tank.. whatever that  speed demon thing was you made–”

‘Inst-Transit’ was quite the desired quirk for heroes in evac-centered roles, like yours. What set you apart was the ‘razzle-dazzle’ you offered in that you could make your own custom vehicles; not just manipulate current cars to your will. No two were truly alike and could be altered even in the moment; the vehicle you set out at the start of the mission could very well have morphed over the course of the operation and come out completely different by the end.

Years upon years taught you all manner of land mechs to model your rides after, months more to change them mid-mission to accommodate transporting heroes four times your weight– plus any civilians you pick up along the way.

“-and can't forget how you caught up to that runner in just two blocks, too. Damn.”

For Bakugou to compliment you meant more than surface-deep flattery. He knows the inner technicality of how you perform. How you think. His words carry weight.

“Well, that’s awfully high praise. You’re not just trying to keep me in your good graces so I take you back to the office safely?”

Your ‘backpack’ bristles, but doesn’t shift away to let go, 

“M’tryna compliment you, dummy.”

Bakugou’s trademark temper sufficiently tested, you eased his embarrassment.

“Oh then, my apologies. Thank you~”

This satisfied him enough to take another cleansing breath of salt air. You studied the railing with particular interest, 

“--honestly, I'm just flattered you said yes to this.”

Bakugou tips his lips close to your crown, speaking more to your hairline than the space over your shoulder, “D’you think I'd say no to you?”

“I.. didn't know what you'd say,” you reasoned, “I mean, you are incredibly nice to me. We work decently together. I normally just consider myself lucky to be in that portion of the populace who you don't wanna blow up, and just roll along with it, but… this sorta thing… outside of work? The more I look at it, it’s– not just taking a break like we do all the time. I dunno. Could be reading things wrong, but it– definitely feels more and more like a-”

“A date.”

“Well… yeah.”

“... do you wanna call this a date.”

Your position was brutal- not being able to look at him. But looking down in your few moments of thought gave you your answer:

Bakugou’s thumb was caressing that little pocket of skin at your wrist. His pride’s keeping his mouth shut, but his powerful hands are silently swiping. Nudging you to ‘please say yes’. 

He needed you to simply say the word, it seems. 

“...I sure hope so, ‘Mr. Dynamight.”

Above you, your pro hero hid his reaction– but not the smile in his voice, 

“Katsuki. When it’s just you and me.”

A fluttering exhale left you. Upon hearing his first name (soon to be added to as your phone contact by a comically horrendous candid you already have of him), you’re now content to just rest against him; out of sight and up against his built chest. 

“N’I guess that means only one thing left to seal the deal, then.”

Before you could ask what that meant, Bakugou chipped your chin up and into place for him to set a firm, doting kiss to your forehead– before asking, 

“Hungry?”

Sufficiently charmed and encouraged at how the night’s going, your smirk turned much sweeter now, “I could eat~”

Crimson eyes softened at your sated reaction, proud of himself no doubt.  

“You get us there, I'm paying. No buts.”

“Yeah, okay.”

Your helmets donned, you set your sights further down the beach for the least populated popcorn shrimp stand you could manage, and backed up the bike with careful steps. 

Bakugou held onto your hips easily now… 

“Hey,” Katsuki called through the helmet, “Whatm’I supposed to call you when we’re off hours, huh?”

You shook your head, still beside yourself that you have the ‘Lord Explosion Murder God’ at your heels and hanging on your every word:

“I think if you call me anything other than ‘dummy’, I’m gonna assume you hate me!”

That got a belly laugh out of Katsuki.

“HAH! ‘Pretty Thing’ it is.”

[olderthannetfic]

I'm so glad that nobody in my native language pulls the "write for yourself! don't want comments, feedback, hits, bookmarks, or interaction!" thing. In English language fandoms it's apparently a big character flaw or a sign of immaturity to want someone to read what you wrote. Meanwhile in my fandoms we're all completely honest about the fact that... yeah. If you post it, you would like someone to read it. Otherwise, you wouldn't post it in the first place. And there's never this competition to be the least interested in what other people think that USAmericans feel the need to do. Irony poisoning isn't much of a problem in our country so you can outright say, "It makes me happy when someone comments." You're allowed to be proud of your work and think it's worthy of being looked at.

Idk, I'm sure it's cultural. Pride is a sin in Christianity and the US is very Christian. But it sounds rough. I don't think I'd enjoy having to constantly tell people how much I don't care what others think and how I don't care if anyone reads my work. It sounds so insincere to me. I doubt it's much fun to constantly have to act unenthused in order to seem cool. And it's definitely an act. People who actually believe something don't have to chant it like a mantra at every opportunity.

A part of me is honestly really sad for people who get this angry backlash whenever they want interaction with their works. Fandom may not be a social hobby in the US. It's more mainstream, so it's not the same as it is here. But I love gushing about comments. I love replying to comments. I smile when I see something of mine that I worked hard on has been thoroughly bookmarked and loved. My friends feel the same. We gush at each other about comments and responses. We don't have to act indifferent and uninterested and go, "I don't care if I get comments, I write for myself" at others so they know we're indifferent and uninterested and write for the 'right' reason. I feel sorry for writers in the US. Imagine being sad no one likes what you've made and the response is that not only are your feelings wrong, your very intentions as the writer must secretly have been to seek validation and praise and fame, otherwise you wouldn't admit to liking comments.

Whenever I see a post going "I write for myself but I wish people commented" it kind of reminds me of US cosplayers. They slather their pictures over every social media platform on Earth. They clearly would like recognition for their work. But they have to start any complaints with the disclaimer, "I cosplay because I love the character, but-" so everyone knows their intentions are pure and so are their actions. There's a level of nervousness, of 'what will people think that I think if I don't use a disclaimer?' that looks miserable to live with.

--

You know, I'm getting awfully tired of you puling infants repeatedly misinterpreting "write for yourself".

As I said here quite recently, it's standard writing advice from outside of fandom. It means that you should make aesthetic decisions based on what you like rather than on a hypothetical audience.

The observation underlying this stock advice is that writers who write what they themselves think is good produce art that is more likely to hook an audience. Writers who are chasing after some audience whose taste they don't even share usually produce limp, uninspiring work.

Yes, there are some wackadoos who are like "I have no feelings! Community is a lie!" and think that makes them sound grown up. This isn't an American problem but an edgy (wish-they-still-were-a) teenager problem.

I dislike stats-chasing nonsense because it's a hallmark of the people who want to turn fandom into influencer garbage. I suggest people obsess less over stats because caring too much about the numbers tends to make people sad when they look at some juggernaut ship from the first peak in some fandom and then have unrealistic expectations. But finding community through fandom and liking to know other people enjoyed your work is commonplace everywhere.

[deedeeznoots]

You’re? Correction! I’m Yours 

➺ Characters: Ryomen Sukuna, GN!Reader 

➺ Word Count: 900+ 

➺ Genre: Fluff

➺ Content: Non-Curse!AU, Nerd!Sukuna, Established Relationship (with some pre-relationship sprinkled in), Swearing

➺ A/N: Shout out to my wonderful mutual @heian-era-housewife for this post about Heian Era Sukuna doing poetry. If she’s reading this: I hope you don’t mind the tag but your post seriously inspired a huge chunk of these headcanons 🥹

➺ Synopsis: Headcanons of all the nerdy things Sukuna does because deep down inside that’s all he is and all he wishes to be ❤️

➺ At first glance he doesn’t read as someone who would be super nerdy or all that interested in learning. 

➺ I mean, can you blame anyone? No one really expects the dude constantly looking for a fight to pull up with some textbooks during his free time.

➺ Once you get to know him though, you realize that on the inside he is in fact a giant nerd about basically everything.

➺ It starts off subtly: at first you’d ask him questions and he’d be able to easily come up with answers without even giving it a second thought.

➺It could be a question about anything, regardless of the subject or perceived difficulty, and Sukuna would be able to explain it to you. Not only that, but he’d be able to explain it to you in a way that made it sound like the simplest thing in the world. 

➺ At one point you basically just started playing trivia and just started asking him stuff normal people didn’t know the answers for and he’d answer with ease, albeit he’d get really annoyed with your constant random questions.

➺ Sometimes if he’s really excited about a subject his explanations would turn into full lectures that’d put most college professors to shame.

➺ Although it was shocking at first, it started to make sense when you realized that the main reason why he takes time to learn about stuff is because he’s constantly bored and looking for new things to entertain him.

➺ He’s good at basically everything so long as it piques his curiosity, but his one and only love will forever be literature, mostly because of how infinite the possibilities are with the medium.

➺ He’s well versed in literature of all genres and different cultures, but he is the most drawn toward Japanese works (and let’s be honest, his favorites would probably come from the Heian Period).

➺ Ever since getting with you, he’s been leaning more toward the romance genre. Just in case he needs any inspiration on how to spice up your relationship, you know? 

➺ He’s taught himself multiple languages just for fun and to see how far he could go.

➺ He LOVES poetry, he both writes and reads it a lot and it’s his favorite hobby besides eating.

➺ Other than literature, he also has a huge fascination with art.

➺ He designed his own tattoos because he wanted to play with the idea of turning his body into a canvas. It also just so happened to make him look intimidating as hell which was a plus in his book.

➺ He also has a little journal that he carries around and he sketches a lot whenever he’s bored or sees something interesting.

➺ As for styles, he’s a really big fan of Sumi-e painting because he’s allergic to color but he basically just uses and does whatever he feels like at the moment. 

➺ He’s the type of person who draws what he sees, but he would especially enjoy drawing nature. 

➺ He would go out on hikes whenever he felt the need to draw and would walk until he found something interesting. 

➺ He’s really into meditation while he draws and he uses sketching as a way to keep himself level headed during particularly annoying days.

➺ He isn’t too fond of drawing people, but you’d be the exception. 

➺ He would 1000% draw you while you sleep. It’s the perfect time since you’d be still for most of it. 

➺ Sukuna is able to write really good cursive and also does calligraphy because he got bored one time (shocker) and so decided to see if he was able to do it well and to no one’s surprise, he was eventually able to.

➺ The reason why he leans towards the humanities so much is because they’re both subjects no one can really “master”. With both art and literature, there isn’t a point where someone knows absolutely everything about either subject. Since Sukuna loves a challenge, he wants to be the first person to go “Fuck you, I DO know everything about this”.

➺ One of the little things he does every day includes writing you short little romantic poems on a post it note and leaving them in out random spots for you to find. 

➺ Sometimes they would be in your pocket or other times on the bathroom mirror, wherever it is they would make you smile. 

➺ Though, sometimes he would stick them onto such odd spots that you’d wonder just how he did it?

➺ He has TONS of pride in his writing (to be fair, he’s prideful about basically anything he does) and he always appreciates it when you mention his little notes and complement the work he put into writing them.

➺ Sometimes when the both of you are talking together he’d say some of the most poetic sentences that you’ve ever heard like it’s nothing. 

➺ When you gasp he just goes “What? Why are you staring at me like that?” as if he didn’t randomly drop lines that sounded like they came from straight out of a novel.

➺ He’s a dick when it comes to spelling and grammar, especially during petty arguments.

➺ “How many times do I have to tell you, if your going to the restroom put the damn seat down afterwards” ➺ “It’s YOU’RE*, actually” ➺ “Fine, YOU'RE** a piece of shit Ryomen!”

➺ Don’t fret though, because while Ryomen Sukuna wants to know anything and everything there is to know about the world, he knows deep down inside that the best thing the world could have ever offered him was you.

-

➺ Edit: Okay I made this story quite a while ago but I HAVE ANOTHER HEADCANON TO ADD! I think his observation skills are super on point which is how he’s able to understand things so easily

A/N: Everyone list what you think Sukuna’s favorite book(s) would be 🗣️

A/N: If you enjoyed my thoughts on Sukuna, you’d love this story I also wrote paired with some headcanons! 

[x1nanzhua0]

Saw this trend on twitter and my first thought was — I need to do this with the gang so here we go

Deja and Cam join Juniper (my winter!mc) doodling all over her notes!

I don’t have much time to draw my MC and do her profile properly yet (blame my college quiz and assignments), I will tho, someday.

But, I did write down some basic facts and some random things about her :3

Starting w/ the basics — Juniper Clarke (she/her), 20 (DOB : 12 September/Virgo). Law major and Theatre minor. Korean.

and fun facts below the cut

12 Fun (?) Facts about Juniper Clarke

Is adopted by a gay couple, her pa is a lawyer and her dad works as a screenwriter.

The middle child; has an older brother (23) and a younger sister (8).

Got a Korean name from her pa (who is also Korean) that no one other than her family knows, even Deja and Cam.

Low spice tolerance. She once ate the buldak ramen and added a whole pack of the sauce, then ended up crying so hard that Deja started to feel sorry for her and got her some bobas.

Former child actress! (only got the supporting roles tho)

A mother of 3 children cats; Aurora (F), Apollo (M), and Anneliese (F)

Dyed her hair calico color to match Aurora because she is her first pet and raised by herself since 15. (yep she has her favorite but still loves all of them anyway)

No dating experience, nor has she ever felt any attraction to anyone in particular. However, she doesn’t mind dating and thinks about having a partner sometimes. There were some who tried to approach her but their approaches are ALWAYS either annoying or disgusting.

Musically gifted; has an angelic voice and plays many instruments (guitar, bass, piano, violin — the list goes on). Oh! She also likes dancing.

Learned foreign languages just to sing songs in that language perfectly.

Black belt in Taekwondo. It’s best to not mess with her or touch her without consent ;)

Dislikes bugs, but not as afraid of them as Deja is, she only avoids encounters as much as possible — Funny story; she accidentally stepped on a cockroach without noticing, but her two best friends saw everything (panicking even) and hesitated whether they should tell her or not. (they did, and Juniper almost fainted)

Juniper is my one and only MC for keyframes and I have no plans to create more. I ALSO can't choose which LIs I want to pursue but I'd like to see how things go and let future Juniper and the cast decide themselves (even though I kinda drew a meme about her and Jamie in a relationship *cough*). I'm a sucker for slow burn anyway! (Still, I like her chemistry with Percy and Jamie the most lol)

[54625]

I'm not sure if this is the end for the QSMP, but I wouldn't be surprised if it were shut down soon after this.

The eggs have been the lifeblood of the server since they were introduced, and having some of them permanently gone from the server is devastating for so many reasons, and bodes terribly for the future of this project. My optimism has run out. I will still wait for updates but I have no hope.

However, I wanted to write a piece for the community here on Tumblr. I know we're all very emotional right now, because while we have no confirmation that the QSMP will permanently close, we now have good reason to assume there might just be no other clear path out of this.

To the community:

Do not feel like you have to stop loving the server and everything it created. Do not stop creating art. Do not stop sharing why you loved the characters and the story and the world.

To completely boycott everything QSMP, you are discrediting the incredible work that the admins put into the server purely out of passion and the kindness of their hearts. Do not waste their sacrifices. Talk about the server and everything they did for it, give them recognition, let them know we love and appreciate all the time and care they poured into this project. Thank them by caring about their work that they put so much of themselves into.

To completely boycott everything QSMP, you are ignoring the beautiful friendships it created between content creators who otherwise would never have met, and the way it ignited such a fierce determination to learn about others' cultures in them. You are forgetting how much these streamers strived to tell engaging, relatable, fun stories, by themselves or with each other, and to have their fans talk about how much they liked their newest lore. You are refusing to acknowledge the effort put in by everyone on the project to tell amazing stories through the language barrier.

And to completely boycott the QSMP, you are denying yourself the fact that you loved this server; the eggs, the streamers, the stories, the cultural events, the laughter, the sadness, the friendships, the ship ships, the builds, the mods, the languages. You are part of this server for enjoying it's wonderful vitality and beauty and hilarity. As a community, we all are.

I have had my gripes with the QSMP fanbase, as anyone has gripes with the dysfunctional mad household they live in, but at the end of the day, I love it so much. This has been my first time actually being part of a fandom; interacting with people and sharing my art and my ideas, getting into silly debates and arguments, running my mouth off more than I should. I love this bizarre toxic fandom for all of it's worth; I love the fanfic writers (even if I think their characterisation is terrible), I love the fanartists (even if they give Pac those yellow scleras that always make me think of jaundice), I love the live bloggers (even if they clog up the main tag), I love the people who write analysis, the people who make animations and animatics, the people who webweave, and all the other things people in this fandom do to interact with the media we all collectively love and bond over.

We do not need to let this be the end of our community, as we can still share our admiration for the hard work put into this project, lift each other up, express praise where it is warranted.

And we can talk to each other, we can vent about how this has negatively effected us (provided we tag it appropriately 👁️👁️) and respond in kind to those seeking someone to speak to who relates.

The QSMP taught us the value of communication. While behind the scenes, it itself did not abide by it's own rules, we can. The QSMP itself is not the figurehead of communication; the content creators and the fans it sent this message to are. We can be an example of what the QSMP should have stood for.

I do not love the deeply flawed execution of the QSMP, but with my whole heart I love the idea; the ambition, the goal. It was noble. It, to some extent, worked.

It united communities.

Let it unite ours.

[grapejuicebrat]

“Was it real or just for show?” TEASER

PAIRING: famous!harry x famous!y/n

SYNOPSIS: baby i just gotta know how long has this been going on?

NOTES: be nice english isn’t my first language and this is my first work! I personally recommend listening to this song while reading “How long” by Charlie Puth. If you have any thoughts or ideas, I'm waiting for you in the inbox. or just to talk because I'm bored. feel free to do whatever you want x

WARNINGS: smut but not really (maybe some hints, but nothing like that will happen cause i’m not in the right mood), swearing, flirting, kinda friends to enemies to lovers, kissing, harry and reader being stubborn. i think that’s all if you found something else comment please.

“Harry, how do you feel about miss Y/n?”

Harry already knew how to answer. In fact, it had been the first question asked at almost every interview Harry had attended for the past few months. Jeff always said it's good for PR because all the fans are sure you're dating. I mean, isn't it? You flirt with each other on social media, write comments to each other on Instagram and hint at some kind of relationship on Twitter. Sometimes it seemed to him that it was so. You're just playing the game, waiting for the other person to give in and confess their feelings. Harry remembers the first time he mentioned you in an interview talking about celebrity crushes. Fans literally went crazy when they heard your name. For another week, the Internet was buzzing with rumors that the famous singer was dating an actress Y/N.

Of course, he didn't mention your name for nothing. By this point, you've been talking for a few months, almost immediately starting flirting via text. Surprisingly, it never devolved into anything more than just sex jokes.

“I mean she’s an incredible actress, you know? Have you seen her new movie? It’s amazing. I already told her that I wouldn't mind playing with her in the remake of "The Notebook". Personally, I think that we would be perfect for the main roles.” he laughs.

“So we should wait to see your chemistry on screen, am I right?” asks the interviewer and Harry shrugs.

“We’ll see”

“Y/n, please tell us more about Mr. Styles”.

You laugh and playfully roll your eyes. It seems to you that you will never get tired of playing this game. You flirt with each other in public and in private when no one is looking. At the same time, you have never been caught by the paparazzi together somewhere in a restaurant or on vacation. In fact, it's because you never went anywhere together. Harry never asked you out and you didn't have the guts to even ask him out for coffee. You didn't have any contact that required you to play couple in public. Personally, you did it because it was fun. It's fun to read some news about yourself, where you are married or pregnant. It's fun to watch fan speculation that isn't true. It's fun to pretend you don't understand anything at an interview and talk in riddles.

“I have no idea who are you talking about”

“Oh come on! You do know who is Harry Styles. In his last interview he told us that he wants to do a movie with you”

“Ok, I'm just kidding. Harry is a cool actor and singer. He is very talented. Have you seen his latest movies? To be honest, I watched "My Policeman" three times. It's not every day you see Harry shirtless, you know. Therefore, I would also not mind playing in the same movie with Mr. Styles. If anyone is looking for actors for the main roles, give us a call!” you smiled, looking at the people in the hall. Apparently, many of them are fans of your couple, because when they heard the name Harry, they literally went crazy.

What you didn't know was that this innocent game of flirting would turn into a race of hate and love. Both of you will have to come face to face with your fears and anxieties. You will have to learn to live with mistakes and without people with whom you planned your old age. You will have to meet again someone who was once everything to you. And will you be able to say "Goodbye" again?

Patiently waiting for your thoughts

[thebibliosphere]

Hi! How are you doing? Sorry to bother you, but i dont know many scottish people and idk who to talk to about this book I found on audible. It's called Imogène, by french author Charles Exbrayat. Do you know him /the book? I've started reading it but I had to pause because, while being sold as a "humorous spy story" I find the protagonist, a "very proudly scottish" woman, to be... an offensive caricature? Like she acts like a fool, honestly. This book contains some interesting points about sexism (it was published in 1959), and ridiculous british habits (such as employees forced to give money for princess anna's birthday or being socially scorned). I'm sure the shared dislike / distrust the protagonist and her british colleagues feel are (were?) realistic. But she is so extra, and the story keeps telling how lonely she is, even after working 20 years in london. She has No friends, most acquitances dont talk to her for various motivations, her bosses hates her ... idk I feel this book is actually mocking scottish people? Or scottish women??? I was SO there for a "strong woman protagonist who gives cutting remarks to her boss or peers", but this looks wrong. Idk. I didnt know whom ask for inputs. Maybe i'm reading too much into it. Feel free to ignore this mega rant. Have a good day!

I think cultural and historical context and time of publication-- which was almost 70 years ago --are important factors to take into consideration when we look at fiction through our current expectations.

I can’t speak to the book as I’ve never read it, but speaking as a Scots woman who worked for an English publishing house for a while, being made to feel alienated by my boss and others due to being Scottish was unfortunately still something going on in 2011.

I’d get lots of “Oh but you sound so eloquent” remarks regarding my thinned-out accent (something I did on purpose to avoid being told to “speak properly” which was also something I heard a lot in school if I ever used my native Scots language instead of “Queen’s English.”) and one time my boss referred to me as “their civilized Scot” to an American author, whose Scottish romance book I was supposed to be fixing the dialogue on.

The phrasing was along the lines of, “Don’t worry, you’ll be able to understand her. Joy is our civilized Scot.”

The author laughed and made another derogatory comment about how they just loved Scottish accents even if it was unintelligible a lot of the time. I kept my mouth shut because I didn't want to lose my first career job.

I kept my mouth shut a lot in that job.

In that regard I could very well empathize with the character being lonely and not engaging with anyone, even after 20 years.

The proud Scottish woman can be a bit of a caricature, but that doesn't necessarily mean it is intended as mocking.

Again, cultural/historical context matters.

I wasn’t alive in 1959, but I know there was a lot of Scottish media about the time that leaned into the stubbornness and pride of Scots women both for humor and to make societal commentary on the fact that women were strong and more independent than they’d ever been following two world two and a lot of men weren’t happy about it and wanted them to go back into their boxes. As a result the mouthy, proud Scots woman became a mockable caricature that turned women into shrill, over proud scolds.

Get back in your box or we’ll make fun of you, basically.

So is this book being mocking, or is it employing popular tropes of the time, knowing that audience will understand what it means and that the female protagonist is being subversive despite what others expect from her?

I can’t say. Again, haven’t read it. It could be utter dogshit and making total fun of my culture. But I do think when looking at older media we need to put our thinking caps on and think, “How would the audience of the time, 1959, have viewed and engaged with this?”

Expecting a “strong female protagonist” as we know it from media today isn’t going to work with media that’s almost 70 years old.

Hell, the “strong woman protagonist” wasn’t even something any piece of media could agree on when I was growing up in the 90s.

Times change. Literary tropes and preferences change. It helps to keep that in mind.

[herecirmsims]

Questions For Storytellers

I have (I think) finally caught up on my list of poses to make, so I wanted to do something a little fun (for me, not for anyone else LMAO) and entirely self-indulgent. I read stories and tell my own over on Instagram, but of course it's harder to post long-form text like this over there.

Special thanks to @freezerbnuuy as I'm copying their post. ❤️

What’s the last screenshot you’ve taken for your story?

This is from the middle of my last post, but it's the last screenshot I took because I went back and added this scene in after finally caving and making my own stupid poses for it hahah.

2. Describe your story in three words or less: Needlessly long tbh

3. Describe (insert character here) in three words or less: Uhhh I'll pick Saxen since he's my MC... wet cat energy (which I think is something @nefaricussims said actually??). Or "90s cocaine chic" as @southernsimmin so beautifully described him. 🤣

4. How did you choose the name of your story? It's called The Cottage because it's... based in and around a cottage. 🥲 I have a very imaginative mind!! 🤣 But also, the cottage plays an important role throughout the whole story and especially in the upcoming finale.

5. How do you choose your characters’ names? My Sim story is based on a novel I never had the confidence to finish - in that version, Sax is an ælf based on Anglo-Saxon belief. I made him a vampire in Sims because that was the only pack I owned at the time, besides base game, and for gameplay purposes I thought vamp put him close to how I imagined him. I now realise I could have easily used CC and my own damn imagination to make him an ælf but I didn't know much about CC at the time, either. 🤣 Because of this, the original story leant into fae lore and the stuff about never revealing your true name. Saxen isn't his real name anyway, but for an added layer it also isn't spelt how you might imagine if you heard it spoken. The same for Thom and Jac who are also characters who came over from the 'original'.

6. How long have you been working on your story for? A little over three years! I have learned soooo much in that time.

7. Whats the biggest risk you’ve taken with your story? Did it pay off? I dunno that I've taken any risks, other than putting it out there in the first place.

8. What about your story are you proud of? I think the fact it exists at all. I've been writing stories since I was a kid, but at some point I lost confidence in myself and have never finished anything/wanted to share it with people because I end up overthinking and deleting it. So I am proud of myself for having maintained a continuous story for three years, and for having other people read it. I think because there was no pressure with a Sims story - with a novel I kept thinking, this has to be perfect and polished so that I can publish it someday. With a Sims story, I'm free to just write the silly tropes I enjoy and allow myself to suck and learn and get better at it.

9. What about your story are you looking to improve on? I read a fantastic article about ma - including pauses in your visual storytelling, space for the characters to sit and breath and reflect. It's ma that makes Ghibli movies so wonderfully distinctive. Being able to make my own poses means that I can show a character's expression or body language in response to a situation, without the need for overlaying text. I'm trying really hard to move away from the "talking heads" style that reads more like a script, and letting the visuals tell the story for me instead. I'm not very good at it because I enjoy my blah blah, but it's fun to try!!

10. Is your story fully planned or are you still working things out? Is there a definitive end? I'm approaching the end of it now, which has been planned for the last three years, so yes - I know pretty much everything that's going to happen. Sometimes the characters still throw a little surprise for me though.

11. Why have you decided to tell this story? Are there any messages or meanings within it? When I got the Sims almost 4 years ago, I had absolutely no idea that there was a) a whole community around it or b) that people used it for storytelling. I'd already made Sax, Thom, and Jac in the game, because I'd wanted to see them come to life during gameplay. Then I discovered poses and started sharing random staged screenshots on Instagram, and became friends with the exceptionally talented TheSimmerKay (now making machinimas!) who showed interest in my silly little characters and suggested that I try telling a story too. I owe her a lot!! As for messages and meaning... I'm very interested in what makes people do the things they do, and how the hero of a story often depends on whose POV we're hearing the story from. There's a fine line between hero and villain sometimes, and a hero acting out of love can cross from protectiveness into control.

12. Do you actually play the game or do you just use it as a storytelling medium? Yep - I have a designated story save, which is the one I take all my screenshots in and which never has gameplay. Then I have a Happy Ever After save for Sax and Fen and another save for for my Globetrotter Challenge Sim, both of which are gameplay only. I think it's important to have that outlet; I can work on my story, make poses, or just play the game, depending on what I fancy.

13. From basic planning to a finished post, how long does that take you? 2-3 evenings. I tend to get everything laid out and text added, then let it sit for a day because I inevitably think of a way to do something better if I give it chance to breath. 🤣

14. Do you have any regrets about your story so far? If you could go back in time, how would you fix these? Not regrets, really, but there are some threads that I put in - fully intending to complete them later in the story - but never did, due to them just not fitting with the story or wanting to try and bring things to an end sooner. But similarly, there are times when I was going to put in a little hint or foreshadowing in and didn't, and then later in my story have wished I had! The tricky part of serialised storytelling is you have to just live with what you have (or don't have), you can't go back and remove or add scenes like you would with a drafted novel.

15. What have been the highlights of creating your story? I've met so many incredible people due to it, oh my goodness. Truly extraordinary Simmers who've shared their time and knowledge with me. We have a little mutual reading group on Insta where we all read and geek out over each other's stories and it's just wonderful. I was honestly shocked when i went to other platforms and realised how much drama there can be in the Sims community. 🤣

16. What about the process do you enjoy? Not that I don't enjoy the process... but I mostly love it when it's finished and I can share it, hahaha.

17. What about the process do you hate? I don't hate any of it... it's a hobby and I do it because I enjoy it. That being said, it does fuck me off when I have multiple Sims in a scene, everyone is in place and has poses queued, and then MCCC Dresser FREEZES MY GAME NOOOOOOOO WHY

18. Choose a song that reminds you of your story:

This is the unofficial theme... specifically this version in Old English, which is Saxen's first language. "It's our destiny then to find love again / Where we failed once before now we'll win"

19. Choose a song that reminds you of (insert character here):

Another one for Sax I guess because he's special. 😌🤣 "But you, a cinder of the fire that's yet to come / Will you just sit and mourn this fragile thing that you've become / Or instead will you consume the very things you can't outrun / Until you finally see all of the strength that you draw from?"

20. Choose your favourite shot from your story so far: Hmmm I think this one, which was me being lazy and reusing a screenshot from an older scene during a flashback-style narration. 🤣 I was trying to achieve something else with the editing but did this by accident and liked it.

21. Choose your least favourite shot so far: Too many to pick from LMAO

22. Choose a favourite character from your story so far: Sax, obviously, he's my lil chew toy/punching bag. But then there's also Idris, for whom I only wish the best. She's going through some trouble right now and I don't enjoy it. It's much more fun to bully Sax.

23. Choose your least favourite character so far: I don't have one! Although Vlad makes me deeply uncomfortable tbh. I find him to be a really creepy villain, and unlike any of my other villains, he's not in any way misrepresented or redeemable. I'm using a makeover version of him by WistfulCastle (I would link, but I don't think he's available anymore?)!

24. Are there any characters who remind you of yourself? No... well. Whenever baby El randomly info-dumps on a niche subject, that's mostly me taking advantage of a captive audience to tell them about karkadanns or medieval torture items or dead bodies on Everest. 🥲

25. What inspirations have you drawn on for your story? I honestly don't know - I can't name anything that I've consciously drawn on, though I know for sure I must have. Funnily enough people have told me things like "oh that's like in Vampire Diaries" or "that's like that part in the Harry Potter films" and I haven't watched either of those, so I think what's happening is we're all drawing from the same well of folklore and mythology and trope. There is occasional story drama about being copied and the thing is... unpopular opinion alert... many of us aren't as unique as we think we are. 😅 What we are unique at is taking a trope and telling it in our own distinctive way. No one else can tell your story quite like you can.

26. Have other sim stories inspired you? I have soooo many talented friends who inspire me to do better when it comes to visuals and storytelling!! @callmedomino is the queen of silent storytelling and a huge inspiration on my journey to discover ma. I really love how well she can tell a story with no words.

27. What genres would you describe your story as? I call it rural fantasy lmao

28. If you could reproduce your story in another medium (movie, novel, comic, etc.) what would you choose and why? I mean obviously I'd say movie because HOW COOL would that be?! Especially an animated one!

29. What would your story’s rating be? (G, PG, M etc.) Ummm probably M because there is the occasional spicy scene. Sometimes three a year LMAO.

30. If you were leaving simblr Simsta and had to choose another creator to continue the story for you, who would you ask? Well tbh I've given Sax and Fen to several good friends already; some of them have them in ongoing cameos in their own stories. I wouldn't ask anyone to continue mine, but I like to think that Sax and Fen could live on in my friend's stories and games if anything were to ever happen to me.

31. Drop some random trivia about your story: When I started I only meant to do short, random vignettes about daily life at the cottage. Somehow it snowballed into a three year epic. 🤣

32. Give a light spoiler: "This is who I am. If I was any other way, I would not be myself."

[idiotmf]

Ur world building is phenomenal ｡⁠.ﾟ⁠+(⁠｡⁠･⁠ω⁠･⁠)

Please tell me more abt xyon :3

Thank you so much! ( ◍＞◡＜◍)。✧♡

I am currently working on a story about Xyon (along with approximately fifty other things).

I usually write short scenarios with my characters for myself, sort of like different AUs, but they're in my native language, and I would like to make one that's Xyon x Reader specifically.

MDNI because my blog is 18+, the post itself shouldn't really be NSFW aside from biological aspects.

Uh, yeah... This is rather long for what I meant it to be (around 2.5k words excluding the notes at the beginning and end).

(Edit: Here is a link to the original lore dump for anyone wondering, since I reference it a lot.)

All that aside, here's a more in-depth look at my favorite biologist in the galaxy:

Appearance:

Since this is focused on just one Xenian, I can give a few more details about what he looks like. I really wish I was talented at drawing so I could give a visual representation of what I personally imagine, but I'll provide some images in case my words aren't clear enough (still working on that vocabulary, haha).

Let's start with his body!

As mentioned in the overall description, Xyon is around 2.5m (8'2), and if needed, he, like all other male Xenians, can stretch his torso up to 2.8m (roughly 9'2). If you're wondering which specific part gets stretched, it's the area just below the shoulders and above the stomach. (I'm using human anatomy here for convenience; if you're interested, I can definitely get into more in-depth Xenian anatomy, but I fear it might be boring.)

Whenever stretched, the skin gets damaged, sort of like horizontal stretch marks, but will shrink back to heal normally. Xenians don't do this often due to their high intelligence and lack of predators, causing it to be more of an evolutionary inconvenience these days.

While they still use it for mating displays, much like humans, they just prefer talking nowadays.

His overall body has a pretty slim, smooth look underneath the short fur. The muscles of Xenians are layered like thin sheets (muscle lasagna, anyone?) and don't bulge in the way human muscles would; instead, they just look broader and fuller.

Now, Xyon is considered skinny, even for his kind. I've mentioned it in the lore dump, but Xenians have moved past eating. They consume nutritional gel, which also explains why they are very lean, since they are literally only allowed to consume this gel, which covers their calculated daily needs.

If you know how nutrition works, though, you can probably see some holes forming in that logic. Xyon moves around a lot and therefore would technically require more, hence the skinny body.

His legs are long compared to his torso, especially below the knees (again, using human anatomy for convenience). His thighbones are rather short, the Xenian equivalent of Tibia and Fibula long (around 2/3rds of his legs; also, they don't have single bones but rather thousands of thin, long bones clustered together to form larger structures). It looks rather awkward when sitting or trying to crouch.

Fun fact: Xenians cannot kneel.

Well, technically, they can; once. And then not get back up without serious injuries. Their knees also cannot be fully bent back like a human's, but rather just enough to allow them to comfortably walk and sit. They actually also comfortably stand around in their strange crouching position whenever they are idle for long periods of time. Remember, they have a tail (sort of like this minus the scales) that they use for balance, resting in what I can only describe as a weird, tripod looking stance, sort of like they're leaning back and almost sitting on their tail.

I spent an hour trying to draw a representation of it, but it looked so goofy that I felt too embarrassed to share it. ( ´･ω･)

Anyway, his skull resembles that of an ocelot, complete with rows of sharp teeth, identifying his race as a once carnivorous one. (skull image) However, they don't have the typical cat whiskers, and their muzzle is less rounded.

Neat little tidbit, but technically, Xyon speaks with the Xenian equivalent of a lisp after sustaining an injury to his throat as a child (some of their sounds are formed in the throat, mainly the sheet metal-sounding one). However, since his words are translated into human speech for you to understand him, this doesn't carry over.

Xenian eyes also resemble those of cats; Xyon's are amber in color, but they can have various different ones. Of course he has a long, rough tongue due to their carnivorous roots.

Their entire body, except for their tails, genitalia, soles, and palms, is covered in a short, dark blue fur. (Imagine the fur of smooth, short coated dogs like a Doberman, Great Dane, Boxer, Beagle, etc. Just a bit softer.) If you want specifics on the color, I'd say the closest is #555C6C, ironically called Blue Planet. It looks sort of washed out due to their skin underneath being a dark gray.

His feet and hands are generally very similar in shape to those of a raccoon, except they have retractable claws and four fingers instead of five (a thumb and three fingers).

As mentioned in the species lore dump, they have retractable genitalia that are hidden underneath a layer of skin until they are exposed. It can actually harden while hidden, making their skin bulge. However, this can be quite painful since the space allowing for their phalluses isn't meant to support them in their full size.

If we're taking semen, it looks rather blueish in hue and the consistency is thicker and sort of slimy, designed to stick to a female's eggs.

Sources (cough cough) confirm it has a rather sweet-ish flavour, consuming too much of it does cause nausea in humans though.

Personality:

Xyon is an incredibly curious individual, especially later on (you'll see why in a second). He wants to know anything and everything about this planet and its inhabitants. He likes finding new plants, scanning them, and then observing for a while. He marvels at the strange animals that live on this planet (I should mention at this point that any story including Xyon is post-apocalyptic) and Earth's impressive landscapes.

Despite being very curious, he's still an extremely obedient follower of orders. For example, in one story I wrote, he was running out of his nutritional bio-gel and would simply refuse actual food, despite the scanner clearly telling him it was harmless for him to eat, choosing to starve rather than disobeying the directive to only consume the gel.

He does end up breaking one major rule, which ends up changing his entire life.

You see, while he is a biologist and was sent to earth to study and document flora and fauna for the intergalactic database, he is strictly forbidden from interacting with humans, whether positively or negatively, the only exception being for self-defense purposes. This is largely due to humans being known as primitive and extremely violent.

Xyon shares this narrative at first, since his research partner Xuan was murdered and subsequently eaten by humans after trying to peacefully interact with them.

That is, until he runs into, well, you. A lone human, injured, and on the brink of death. At first, he considers leaving you to die, then he considers observing you while you pass away, only to finally decide that even if you do attack him, he wants to help you.

Another bit of a flaw in his character is his naivety. Xenians don't have concepts like sarcasm; even lying isn't exactly something they do or consider, as it goes against their morals. This ends up with him believing everything you tell him, curiously inquiring about the most obvious of lies.

Not to mention, he speaks incredibly bluntly, which might come off as rude. This does actually improve after Xyon spends more time with you, since he learns to imitate the way you speak rather than sticking to the cold, scientific speech he uses at first.

I like to think this is a product of Xenian society, as scientists and research purpose tiers don't exactly experience individualism or even enough free will to build their own personalities to the point of even having distinguishing character traits.

I'm not sure how much I mentioned in the other lore dump (I tried to keep it short, so I kept cutting things out), but I do remember mentioning that Xenians practice culling unhatched eggs based on desirable base intelligence, health, etc. which is calculated based on your family tree, essentially. One's purpose is also determined by those stats.

Eggs far above the desired base intelligence usually become researchers and scientists, the highest "purpose" you can possibly have in their race. However, that also means that you not only get gaslit into thinking that's the only thing you're good at, you don't even get a chance to consider anything else.

Xyon is a biologist, and he cannot ever be anything but a biologist. He doesn't even have the mere choice of disliking his career, because it isn't just his job; it's his entire life.

Did I mention I love playing with such dystopian concepts?

Over the course of spending more time with you, he does eventually develop his own personality, or rather strengthen the few cracks that were present all along. But he can't help but look at you for guidance, despite being in the Xenian equivalent of his late twenties to early thirties. The concepts of being allowed to experience individualism and freely express himself are foreign to him.

I do want to mention that some Xenians do have their own personalities. This forced conformity is practiced in their general society, but only as bad as this on the higher purpose tiers, like the one he is in.

He does eventually turn into a gentle giant. I like to imagine him like a Disney princess, holding out one claw with a bird on it, like Snow White. Xyon does enjoy providing meat for you, which is a more primitive way to show that he is a suitable mate in his culture (though usually it goes both ways, or it used to, since they don't hunt anymore).

I like the concept of taking a step back from the highly intelligent life form and reverting to some more primitive practices as he develops individuality.

He never gets to the point of actively resenting his culture and planet, but rather accepts that this is one of its many differences from Earth and can be considered a flaw. In reality, he does find comfort in having a purpose, especially after you essentially tell him what life on earth was like. He finds the idea of having the freedom to try anything overwhelming, and not knowing what you're truly made for is terrifying in his eyes.

Beliefs and Values:

While a form of religion does still exist on his planet, due to the forced conformity and his purpose as a biologist, he was taught to disregard such matters for lack of logic.

Despite that, he does actually secretly believe in things like fate, especially in the context of finding one's mate.

Yet, mates are a pretty sore spot for him.

Due to their personalities, or rather lack thereof, and long absence from their planet in the name of science, higher-tier Xenians don't usually find a mate, often either living alone until death or dying during research.

Xyon does eventually express the belief that meeting you was fate and that you two were meant to end up as mates, despite being different in many ways.

He also believes that meeting you was meant to prove that humans weren't as destructive and savage as originally assumed.

(There is a whole other discussion of why earth became post-apocalyptic in the first place, and while the answer is a bit more convoluted than that, Xyon believes that the planetary representatives collectively decided that humans could not go on the way they were, and instead of risking a valuable planet that could host life being destroyed beyond repair, they would simply flatten major settlements and reset them to see whether they would grow from this experience or perish altogether.

Ironically, in reality, this was actually voted against in the end due to humans not having encountered extraterrestrial life yet and the promising scientific progression, but one race, fairly similar to humans themselves in nature (though not in looks), decided it would be for the better, carrying out the invasion on their own accord. While they weren't completely erased themselves, most of the higher-ranking beings from that planet were executed. This, however, is not common knowledge, as the representatives did cover it up in order to avoid other races being encouraged to disobey.)

While the race of Xenians does have values pertaining to open-mindedness and equality, they are fairly limited in nature. They do allow for sexual and romantic expression (on the lower tiers, mostly), but you can never, ever have the same standing as someone born with a higher tier purpose.

This means that even if you end up exceeding your calculated base intelligence by a lot, you will still be stuck in a purpose that isn't for you and have no chance of changing it.

Ironically, while a social hierarchy does exist, lower tiers are usually considered happier and have far more freedom than higher tiers. Because, again, they get stripped of all individuality to become mindless little researchers.

I purposely didn't specify Xyon's values in this case because, as you can imagine, being forced into a certain mindset does mean he has the same values as the collective, though it does change over time, with him expressing that while he does still support the tiers and purpose, he wishes it was less strict.

Family and Social Circle:

Xyon does actually have a family; he wasn't raised in a mating group. Unlike humans, Xenians don't have a close bond with their parents or siblings since they aren't fully raised by them but rather taken away early in life (around 4–7 in human years) to be trained for their purpose, which results in rather shallow bonds.

His father's purpose is to nurse and educate young Xenians that have either lost their parents or were abandoned, while his mother is the leader of their local tribe, which one can become regardless of tier, following an election process similar to that on earth.

Xyon does have irregular contact with them and even occasionally visits them while on Xen'jai, which is incredibly rare.

He had one older brother, who became a soldier and died very early on due to conflict between Xen'jai and their neighboring planet.

Xyon did have one friend, the female biologist Xuan, who was his assigned research partner.

Due to the nature of their work and purpose, social circles for their tier are small, if they exist at all.

This actually affects Xyon greatly. Now that his old partner is gone, he is alone on a foreign planet, and with Xenians being social creatures, it does make him feel lonely.

On several occasions, he has actually tried seeking out other research teams from his planet that were sent to Earth, and he briefly had contact with a male geologist named Xenon, who ended up being killed, or at least that's Xyon's assumption when his signal completely disappeared (hint hint nudge nudge, he is the other one I like writing about, and he is in fact not dead).

There is one more Xenian that Xyon is aware of on earth: a female meteorologist. He does not know her name; however, he has responded to several distress signals relating to her losing her bio-gel rations to humans.

Unfortunately, she was too far away for him to actually help (she is a character I want to write about in the future as well o(〃＾▽＾〃)o ).

Well, technically speaking, Xyon (and at some point Xuan), like any other research pair, does have a ship, but being the rule-following Xenian he is, he did not leave his assigned area (which is roughly central Europe in canon btw), though he briefly considered it until getting confirmation that the situation had sorted itself out.

It is likely due to this that he even considered helping you in the first place, because he was lonely and probably hoping deep down that a human could somehow keep him company.

Which... I mean... it worked out in his favor. Good for him.

•~•~•~•~•~•~•~•

Yeesh, this is quite a lot.

Can you believe I still left stuff out? I also ended up dumping more lore for the species itself. I promise one day I'll go back and rewrite both the Species info and probably this one as well. I kind of want to write another big info-dump for Xen'jai as a planet, because there's a lot I want to get into, like the hierarchy, religion, history and evolution of the planet, which felt too out of place here.

Anyway, thanks for reading. Feel free to always reach out for more info or suggestions, I am literally just waiting to write more lore no one really can do anything with. :3

[redivia]

'I think it's time for bed' Ghost x Reader

Summary: Simon fell asleep on the couch after coming home from work.

Authors note: Heyy! So this is my first ever story. I never thought I would write anything let alone post it, but here we are. Also it has to be said that I don't have a beta reader so if you notice any errors or mistakes kindly point them out in the comments. English isn't my first language so I might have missed some errors. Have fun reading! <3 This is also posted on AO3 .

You were sitting on the couch together with Ghost, or how he wants you to call him, Simon. Outside you could hear the wind blowing through the leaves of various bushes and trees surrounding your joint home. Since it’s been getting colder, the wind was accompanied by some light rain. Not the kind of rain that leaves you drenched if you even think about stepping outside, but the kind that makes the nicest pitter patter noises on your roof. If you listened carefully, you could even, make out the water making its way across the roof and cascading down the rain gutters that ran along the side of your home.

Simon came home a few hours ago, seemingly pretty tired and ready to go to bed, but his face lit up and adorned a fatigued smile once he saw you. You welcomed your boyfriend home with a much-awaited hug and a gentle kiss. Together you ate dinner. During your dinner you made sure to make light conversation with him. Talking about how the weather suddenly switched up on you while you were walking home, or how there was a sale on your favourite snack at your local store and you were therefore indirectly forced to stock up again.

Dinner wasn't really anything that took tons of effort, but it was still as comforting as ever. A simple one pot pasta had to make do for tonight, but for Simon, he might as well could have been at a Michelin star restaurant. Having to rely on MRE's as his main source of calories during his time at work, has set his standards for food very low. A warm meal? With his partner? At home? He might as well be in heaven. Simon made sure to show you his gratitude in the form of cleaning up the dishes afterwards.

Which in all honesty, could have just been shoved into the dish washer and called it a day, yet he insisted on doing them by hand. Meanwhile you were sat next to him on the countertop and listened to him complaining about some new recruits that were trying to turn everything into a competition.

Being able to look at his face and watch his emotions flicker across his face while he was telling a story has always been one of your favourite aspects of your relationship. Simon swore a long time ago that he won’t be wearing his mask around the house, and you’ve been grateful that he stuck to his promise. The privilege of getting to see his face wasn’t something Simon granted to just anyone, and you are well aware of the fact. Making it even more special to you.

The story about the recruits ended in them trying to sabotage and deliberately throw other comrades off of the obstacle course. Some poor rookie had to get stiches because he fell off of the wall they were meant to jump over. But Simon witnessed how the recruit behind him gave the guy in front a not-so-gentle push, because the poor guy was moving too slowly for his taste. It goes without saying that Ghost delivered a long and proper talking to and maybe some extra rounds of running for the saboteur.

While his story came to a close, Simon had also finished the dishes. You both agreed that you only had enough energy left for a movie before deciding on heading to bed.

So that's how you found yourself and your boyfriend sat on the couch in your living room, watching whatever action movie that was currently running on the TV. You listened to Simon ramble and rant about how inaccurate basically every single aspect of the movie was. How they held the guns wrong, shooting for 5 minutes straight without reloading once, not to mention the amount of ammunition they would need to carry with them for them to be able to shoot as much as they were.

All you could do was listen to him with a small grin on your face. Only Simon would be able to pick apart some movie that was clearly produced in some warehouse in Hollywood, with a plot that never even saw the inside of a writer’s room. But of course, you supported your boyfriend in his strong opinions and joined him in his rant.

It must have been about an hour into the movie when you noticed Simon had stopped talking to you. You risked a small glance over at him and saw he was properly passed out. The stress of the day at work must have finally caught up to him. Taking the liberty, you turned down the volume of the TV just a couple of notches, making it so that the movie was now just background noise.

When you were designing the living room you deliberately chose a three-seater couch, ensuring that there would always be enough space for you and Simon to stretch out without hogging the space from the other. Leaning into his side of the couch, your boyfriends arms sat limply at his sides, his right hand placed on your thigh just above your knee.

Normally he would be stroking his thumb gently from side to side as a reminder that he was still there. Honestly you should have noticed that he was asleep once his ministrations ceased. You took a moment to admire how is face changed depending on whatever light flickered across the screen in front of the both of you. In your opinion, he looked the nicest in a subtle orangish tone, the warm light bringing out his faint freckles and blond lashes. Although the universe refused to grace you with your all-time favourite feature of his, his eyes. You would have to make do with Simon’s for once peaceful expression.

Peaceful, but not relaxed, you noticed. There was still a light crease between his eyebrows, even while sleeping he still seemed stressed. Thinking of possibilities to diminish his stress, you gently picked up the hand that was previously placed on your thigh, without waking him up. Simon’s large and warm hand lay limply in yours, and you started to gently massage his hand.

Running your fingers across his knuckles and the back of his hand. Making sure to appreciate every single small cut and faded scar along the way. You carefully turned his hand palm side up and started to massage the palm of his hand with both of your thumbs. The rest of your fingers were supporting what was now the underside of his hand. Your thumbs dug into the muscles of his palm running across all of the folds and creases, before moving to his fingers.

Feeling his fingerprints underneath your fingertips made it feel like he was your missing puzzle piece you have been searching for all your life. Two separate people coming together to make a whole. You couldn’t stop the smile that was now plastered on your face.

Glancing back at Simon, his eyebrows seemed to have relaxed a bit, but not enough for your liking. You had to take drastic action. You lifted your dominant hand to his face you stroked your thumb across the space between his eyebrows in hopes of completely erasing his frown. Your mission was a success, he stopped frowning.

However, he was now blearily blinking awake. The universe obviously had chosen to show mercy today and decided to grace you with his dreamy eyes once again. Your hand slid a bit lower, now resting on his cheek, your thumb still lazily stroking the side of his face.

With a small smile you told him: 'I think it’s time for bed'.

[asuyaka]

SHUT THE FLIPPING FRONT DOOR-

I JUST SAW DLSK ON UR LIST AND NOW I FEEL OBLIGATED TO REQUEST

How about some general HCS for Saiki(we all saw that coming), Aiura and Teruhashi(all separately) for Reader spending quality time with them during the weekend or holidays, just some good fluff for this wacky and over-the-top anime(/pos ofc). Could be platonic or romantic, I don't mind either!

Also if you don't write for multiple characters then just quality time spending one-shot with Saiki is fine too.

- Sincerely, 🌈 Anon.

★ - aaaa!!! DLSK 's literally 'm comfort anime— m soso normal rn!!

☆ - Saiki Kusuo, Aiura Mikoto, & Teruhashi Kokomi x Male Reader! (Platonic !! :3 )

He’s honestly so confused because… why do you wanna spend time with him??

It isn’t like you’re all hanging out in your group (of friends he didn’t want) it’s just the two of you. 

He’s read your mind, maybe you had some sort of ulterior motive? Like maybe you wanted to hang out because of his… smarts or something? He’s made sure to be average in all forms of school, average enough for him not to fail and at the same time not be too noticeable.

But no. You want to hang out with him because he’s fun to hang out with.

It isn’t that he hates your company, you aren’t as dumb as the people he regularly hangs out with (Bless him and his ability to keep up with Nendou Riki of all people) and you know when to keep a comfortable silence if the situation calls for it.

Well… since you insist on spending the holidays, he has to let you, right?

“Ooh! What about these, Saiki?” You ask excitedly, holding up two pairs of matching heart-shaped glasses. 

There was a Christmas sale going on, and you decided it would be fun to go glasses shopping for no real reason, you just thought it would be fun.

Saiki, on the other hand, doesn’t seem to care what you get. He’s just here because you forced asked him to come. 

A soft smile adorns your face anyway. It doesn’t matter that Saiki is barely adding any input, you know him well enough— at least you hope so— to pick up the small details in his body language. 

“Can I take off your glasses for a second?” You know how protective Saiki is of his glasses and you assume it’s because his eyes are sensitive to light. 

Saiki takes the glasses from your hands, turns around, making sure to close his eyes the second he takes his glasses off, and puts on the Hello Kitty pair you gave him.

“Aww! You look adorable!” You coo, a pair of Kuromi glasses on your face. You assumed they were a matching pair, they were close enough on the shelves for it anyway. 

Saiki didn’t point out the fact that they were beach glasses, not because he wanted to keep the smile on your face— no, no, no, he’s psychic, he doesn’t care about anyone else’s feelings! 

…Though he can’t lie that the smile on your face makes him content in a way.

You pull him in, holding up your phone in a selfie position. Your hands making bunny ears behind Saiki’s head. “Merry Christmas!” You say happily as Saiki holds up a peace sign, his signature RBF never leaving.

You don’t mind though. RBF or not, Saiki’s face is very pleasing to look at. Saving the picture and saving it as your wallpaper, you look back at Saiki who still had the Hello Kitty glasses on, surprisingly.

“There’s a cafe nearby, and they’re having a Christmas sale. We can go there, or head back to your place?” 

“Cafe.” 

You nod, paying for the items and making your way to fill Saiki’s love for pastries.

Saiki’s lips curl upwards, a small— tiny– minuscule amount. 

Whatever this is, it’s nice. Just the two of you and the soft snowflakes of the winter. 

It’s a calming feeling. One he really enjoys.

 Yes, yes, yes, yes, and did I already say… yes?

She loves loves loves loves (!) spending time with people she cares about, so of course you aren’t any different!

 Her fortune-telling gig is always a bit busy during Christmas, but you don’t mind waiting!

When she finally gets off work, you two decide to go shopping, because… Christmas sales, hello???

Literally, the best and worst are crafted during that time together.

You two spend so much money, it really—seriously— isn’t funny.

“Mikoto! Here, try these!” You say excitedly, gaining some odd stares from other people who are shopping, but you two couldn’t care less.

It’s Christmas, you two have a shit ton of money saved up, and you’re planning to go broke.

Mikoto grins, holding up the outfit you got for her. It’s a black crop top with a small heart at the top that was bound to show some cleavage with how big her chest was, paired with denim shorts white legs, and hand warmers.

She takes it into the changing room and you go looking for more outfits, or some jewelry. You needed more earrings anyway. 

A few minutes later, Mikoto walks out and your expectations are immediately met. She looks nothing short of beautiful. 

“I like this one a lot! Think we can get a matching pair for you?” You shrug, but begin looking in the same area where you got the clothes for her.

It took a bit of time and a bit of accessory confusion, but your matching outfits were assembled. Your shorts were a bit longer because the store, unfortunately, didn’t have short shorts like the ones Mikoto had in the men's section.

Other than that, everything else matched to a T. From the shirt—which showed the slightest bit of your pectorals— to the shoes, to the rings and necklaces. 

Mikoto holds up her phone, a bright smile on her face. “Cheese!!” The two of you say, both of your hands together to make a heart. 

She sends it to you and Saiki because she wants him to be ‘jealous’ or whatever. 

“What do you say we go get bubble tea and dango?” 

You gasp. “I’m totally on board with that.”

The two of you laugh softly, take the clothes off, and go pay. Expensive? Hell yes, but working more shifts than you normally did paid off—literally.

Of course, you want to spend time with her! She’s the most perfect, quintessential pretty girl after all!

She won’t tell you that she’s surprised a guy just wants to hang out with her just to hang out. 

No funny business, not because you have a crush on her, but because you thought it would be fun to spend the holidays together.

(Un)Fortunately, she is God’s favorite so you two really can’t go outside unless you want to get stared at the entire time.

If you don’t mind, then she doesn’t mind either. She’s used to it anyway.

It’s odd at first, she thought you wanted to use her to boost your popularity, or impress your friends, but later into the sleepover(?) she realized you just wanted to spend time together, as friends.

As odd as it is—Saiki is the only man who seems to be weak to her charms, and it looks like you are too— it’s a… welcome feeling, to say the least.

You and Teruhashi are in your room, watching an old Christmas movie you found in your closet a few weeks ago. Both of you had hot cocoa in your laps, paired with a plate of gingerbread cookies and graham crackers.

“Teruhashi…” You start, keeping your eyes on the screen. “Do you want to make cinnamon rolls?”

Her eyes widen, having to push down the excitement so you don’t think she’s childish. “Yeah, of course!”

The two of you smile and rush downstairs, you make a quick pit stop to tell your mother what you two were planning to do and all she tells you is to not burn the house down.

You grab all the ingredients needed and Teruhashi grabs all the bowls, whisks, and whatever baking equipment you two may need.

“Alright! Now, let’s get started!” You say in confidence and Teruhashi nods.

A beat of silence stretches out between you two as you aimlessly stare at the glare in the mixing bowls. “...I can’t bake.” 

“...I can’t either.”

You two stare at each other with blank expressions before starting to laugh. It’s a nice, playful sound that you two share together. Teruhashi thinks it’s alright that she’s able to have fun without someone trying to impress her 24/7, but she’s not going to tell you that!

“You know what they say, right Teru?” 

She cocks her head confusedly. “Fake it ‘till you make it?”

You finger-gun at her. “Exactly! And if we do burn the house down, this was my brother’s idea, not mine!”

She rolls her eyes but takes out the flour, sugar, eggs, and milk. The two of you silently decide that you’re going to do all the mixing, and Teruhashi will do all the measuring/putting it in the bowl.

As the two of you work in tandem, you’re also singing Christmas songs along with her. From old to new, slight romantic undertones or not, it’s fun.

And that only gets better when you have to leave the dough to rise. Straight Karaoke the entire time. You’re sure your throat is going to hurt later from all the mild yelling you’re doing, but who cares? 

If you’re having fun with someone you care about, you’ll worry about pain later.

Surprisingly, you two didn’t burn the house down.

The cinnamon rolls do come out a tad, just slightly dry, but they taste amazing.

You and Teruhashi high-five. “We should do this again next year, but invite everyone else. What do you think?” You ask, taking a sip of your now slightly lukewarm hot cocoa.

Teruhashi is a bit conflicted. It would be nice if you invited the girls and Saiki over because she knows she can kind of be herself around them, but everyone else? 

You notice her nervousness because you immediately say: “Or it can just be the both of us. No worries.” You shrug, taking a bite of the cinnamon roll that is 100% too hot to be in your mouth at the moment.

Teruhashi smiles at that. “Just the two of us is fine.”

You bump hips with her, carrying the plate of cinnamon rolls upstairs and to your room. 

Teruhashi follows shortly after. The type of friendship you two have is something she would never give up. 

Not even to make Saiki say ‘Oh wow!’ to her face.

[rad-batson]

THIS IS FOR FANS OF CASSANDRA CAIN! PLEASE READ! I WANT YOUR THOUGHTS

(skip to the bottom if you just want silly headcanons about her :D)

Hello! So first, I want to thank everyone who read the Wayne pilot I made :) I appreciate your feedback, and I love you all.

As I'm preparing to post it on AO3, I decided to make a few (admittedly small) changes to the script, primarily around Cassandra Cain, because I haven't quite fleshed her out yet.

I don't have much experience with writing Cass, so I decided to do a bit of research on her yesterday, and wouldn't you know? I fell in love. 10/10. She didn't play a huge part in the pilot, but she will have a bigger one in the second episode, and there are a few things I think can or should be added so she doesn't feel too one-note.

There wasn't anyone who told me this, by the way. (In fact, I actually got some nice comments about her so thank you.) I just had it in the back of my mind while writing, and now that Cass is getting more screen time, I'm finding that my lack of knowledge might lead to mischaracterization.

SO TO COMBAT THIS, I MADE A GUIDE FOR MYSELF ON HOW TO WRITE CASS

Is this overkill? Probably Think of it as a silly headcanon list for my version of her. And I'm posting it here because I want your feedback before it's set in stone. (I know Cass isn't written well a lot, so this is my attempt to right these horrid wrongs.)

If you're going to give criticism, please be constructive. Tell me what you like or don't like. I'm all ears. Have fun :)

Writing Cass

(Btw I still gotta read Cass’s first Batgirl run by Kelley Puckett)

Has some sass, has a lot actually

Used to be awkward in social settings. she’s better at it when she’s with people so she can match their energy but she still prefers to just dip

Speaks in short-ish sentences, trying her best tho

I WILL BE ADDING THIS INTO THE PILOT, I JUST WANT TO KNOW TO WHAT DEGREE?? OR IS IT REALLY FINE

Mostly just relies on body language though

I WILL BE ADDING THIS INTO THE PILOT TOO, ESPECIALLY WITH THE ASL SCENE (BUT IT’S NOT REPLACING THE ASL)

also yes i know her using ASL isn't canon, it just works best for the scene, it would have been written the same whether she was in it or not, it is still a cute nod to fanon tho

Steph and Cass are extremely close BUT ALSO HAVE SEPARATE LIVES (I HAVE BEEN TOLD TO STRESS THAT AND I AGREE)

Messy, low-key gross. Bad-ish hygiene but she’s good at looking put-together so only those close know this about her (this is just my headcanon)

Often forgets bigger words so she occasionally uses the wrong one, she ALSO mixes up proverbs but no one corrects her because 1: it’s cute and 2: they don’t want to discourage her from speaking with them more casually (also my headcanon)

Cass: So I pulled the door off its…*makes motion with hand*…metal books. Steph: Do you mean hinge— Cass: Metal books.

Dick: Well that was a surprise. I didn’t know The Penguin would be here. Cass, nodding: Well life gives you grapes Dick: Wut Cass: You make grape juice. Get on the same book, Nightwing

I'M ON THE FENCE ABOUT ADDING THIS ONE BECAUSE IDK LET ME KNOW PLEASE

Is a cinnamon bun AND a little shit, it’s a balancing act

Production: She’s Wayne’s darling Princess Cass: *will break your fingers*

She does appear behind the camera crew to scare them on purpose, she thinks it’s funny, she likes seeing them freak out

She is super competitive, but she's always like "Oh I'm not that competitive" *proceeds to be very competitive*

Because she isn't super confident in her writing or speaking (or just uncomfortable communicating without seeing the other person's body language) she prefers to Facetime or simply reply to texts with selfies of her reaction. It is a thing now. when you need an honest opinion about an outfit, text a photo to Cass. She will either give back a photo of a thumbs up or a photo of a grimace and some not-so-flattering emojis

Her princess persona is her public cover persona in this show, parallel to Bruce’s “Brucie” and Dick’s “born for the cameras” thing

Is surprisingly vocal (and sometimes snippy) about her distaste with things but she mostly gets a pass because her morals align best with Bruce’s

Is most snippy when her family uses methods other than violence when violence is clearly the faster option, god they're such pacifists

Tim: *trying carefully to pick a lock* Cass: Just break through the wall? Tim: We can’t do that. We’re trying not to be noticed. Cass: Wimp

Bruce: Cass, why did you have to dislocate that man’s shoulder? Cass: I put it back. Bruce: That’s not the point. Cass: Fine, I’ll dislocate it again.

Is the best fighter, none of this “oh she’s the best fighter so when people do win against her, it makes them look cooler” thing, shut tf up, she could break their bones (not important to the show ofc but I need to add this because it is important in general)

Horrible at drawing, wretched (again a headcanon but I did see someone else mention it somewhere)

Also bad at writing, refuses to study to improve out of principle (i.e. she told Babs she doesn’t need to and now she refuses to admit Babs was right)

(AND SIDE-HEADCANON IF SHE IS HORRIBLE AT WRITING AND ACTIVELY HATED STUDYING HER ALPHABET THEN WHAT IF LIKE ONE DAY SOMEONE SAYS “hey can you grab me one of these files from last week’s case, it’s under M” SHE’S LIKE “fuck you, how could you do this to me” WHILE SEARCHING FOR M OR MORE SIMPLY *throws something at them*)

That's all I have right now. If you'd like to give me any recommendations, please do. I can't promise I'll add in every single one because this show is still about the whole Batfam, not just her, but I want to do her justice, and that definitely involves more fine-tuning on my part

OKAY THAT'S ALL LOVE YOU BYE