#and now i'm right back in the kind of work environment i hate

[benchwarming]

what if i just quit my job. like what if i just......quit it.

[tiddiesoutwhenthetisout]

not me curling my laptop charger wire the way you curl band equipment cords HAHAHA god i miss it

[obeymeluv]

Been thinking about this eel and wanted to explore his character some.

-- Floyd realizing he likes you/falling in love with you --

Not proofread because it's late.

I was going to add two more but I'm tired and wanted to put something out.

Trying to decide if I'm going to put out more new stuff or circle back around to older stuff.

I.

Floyd is used to things being in black and white. No nuances. It's like survival of the fittest--you live or you die. You're living in one of the harshest environments and his brain is constantly circling back to HOW? It baffles him because you have no claws, your teeth aren't designed for raw catching, and he hasn't met a lander alive that could run fast enough to catch their food unless it was near death.

So HOW are you doing this with no magic?

Under the sea if you couldn't provide for yourself, you made yourself useful. If you worked for his family, that meant serving as muscle or as an informant. You looked better for getting information out of people than you did squeezing them.

Well, not the way he and Jade squeezed people, anyways. You squeezed them with kindness.

Yeah, he'd heard rumors that you were doing odd little jobs like the Savanaclaw runt. Mostly making little lunches and snacks. Sometimes you'd do a 'dorm night dinner' where you went over to another dorm and cooked!

Azul had been begging you to cook for the Lounge, to do a limited-time meal deal, but you could make more money cooking for the dorms. It was funny to see the Octomer practically foaming at the mouth as he tried to calculate earnings versus an enticing deal to get said earnings.

As long as they're not doing anything else, Floyd's relaxed eyes sharpened as his brows knotted together in a suggestion of annoyance. But why did he care, right? The law of the ocean, of the mers, was doing what you needed to do, right?

Why did it bug him so much? He knew you weren't doing anything else but why did the idea that you would--or could--make him want to take someone down in a death spiral?

The spaces between his fingers began to itch as the webbing threatened to emerge.

You shuffle your way into History of Magic wearing something that Crowley slapped together; it doesn't fit you as well as it could but Trein is the last one to make an issue of it. Floyd's gold eye twinkles with interest as he spots the cup in your hand. He likes to think the tea he smells is from Jade since you work at the Lounge with them but it could also be from Kalim or Goldfishy.

The fact that you can have tea, a small luxury in this foreign world, impresses him.

Yes, you do quite well, don't you?

"Hey Floyd," you sit down with a sleepy smile, setting out your meager supplies before holding the cup happily in both hands.

Ah. That's how.

Your smile makes him squirmy and he wonders if that's what his prey feels like before they meet his pharyngeal jaws.

---

II.

He only gets into fights because he's bored. Usually. Every now and then he and Jade will be called down to the Coral to help their father with a 'business venture'; that's an exception. The only other exception is when Azul sends them on a 'last call' visit.

Except for the occasions where he and Jade defended Azul himself, of course. That was way back in their childhood when he and Jade would terrorize the absolute shit out of those hateful mer-brats! Memories of pulling their scales off without getting caught or biting chunks out of their pretty tailfins when trying to go after smaller fish bring a smile to his lips.

Today he found a fourth reason he didn't expect: you.

He wasn't surprised to see Savanaclaw harassing you, not totally. These beastmen were at the mercy of their instincts and traits, too. Mainly stupidity, but having creature influence didn't always help things.

Just like he couldn't help himself from striking when it was convenient. When he was sure he couldn't lose. Moray eels were consumed with cowardice unless conditions were favorable and on land all fights were in his favor. The beastmen were strong, sure, and physically fit but there was a difference between being built for power and built for speed.

Jade may have taken to his land legs first but Floyd was still nimbler than people gave him credit for. The long legs were deceptive, he knew. It also helped that he spent a lifetime in the Coral where the sea sculpted muscle and got him used to dealing with a resistance that didn't exist on land.

"Kinda dumb to mess with the hand that feeds ya, huh?"

Leona would have their ASSES if he knew they were corning you and trying to bully you. Maybe cop a feel? Floyd swung his fist forward the second one of them turned their head to acknowledge him and it was one.

It was a blur but he was used to that. The Coral had obscuring kelp beds, bursts of water carrying all kinds of debris, and seafloor sediment that provided nice cover when needed.

All you needed were teeth and claws. And the scent of blood.

One of them was bound to get a good lick in. He'd be disappointed if they didn't, honestly. The one who tried to grab his earring would know he did something wrong tomorrow; at least two of his fingers were broken. Broken fingers don't matter to an unconscious guy, though.

"I didn't need your help!" you're glaring up at him. Floyd can't help but laugh. He blinks blood out of his eye. Somewhere near his eyebrow there's a wound throbbing.

"'Course ya did, shrimpy!" Floyd leans towards you, genuine smile showcasing pointy teeth.

"No, I didn't! They were starting to back off!" you hiss, pointing up at him.

"And now they're all the way off." Floyd shrugged, poking one with his foot.

"I'm telling Jade," you scoff. You both know Azul won't let him into the Lounge like this. Floyd detests the infirmary and had to be dragged there when he fell ill with his first stomach bug (Jade and Azul thought he was dying). The nurse gets on his case and the area smells too clean and chemical-y for his liking.

He flops down, waiting patiently and highly amused as you rummage through your thrift shop bag for medical supplies. You'd learned to start carrying stuff on you between Grim's overzealous fire-casting and Riddle's overblot. Floyd hums contentedly as you blot his face, nose wrinkling reflexively when he smells the alcohol wipe. You dab ointment on the wound above his eyebrow, scoffing and pulling his chin out of the crook of your elbow. Floyd snorts, pressing his cheek against your arm.

You smack a band-aid over the wound and he clicks his teeth as you glide your finger over the tender part. "You're such a good shrimpy, taking care of your moray," Floyd teases you, yelping when you pinch his cheek before starting off for the Lounge.

He lets you get a good distance ahead before launching off the ground. "Floyd?! Floyd, no! Stop! Don't do it!" you made the mistake of turning your head to look at him as the grass crunched under his shoes, breaking out into a run.

You shouldn't dart off in front of a predator. That activates the hunting instinct.

His laugh echoes as he catches you effortlessly, scooping you up and throwing you into the air like a toy. "Don't worry shrimpy, I got ya!" Floyd laughs, tossing you again.

---

III.

You're hard to find on your days off and that's really annoying to him. Sometimes Vil whisks you away for a spa day, sometimes you're holed up with that blue-burning recluse playing video games. Floyd has turned up empty-handed more often than not, which is impressive considering he's a hunter by nature.

The prey is illusive. And kind of offending him since you're dating but you're not here right now. He'd come find you if it wasn't that time of the month where they were stuck in their true forms, waiting restlessly for the latest delivery of the transformation potion.

No one knows how it happened, really, not even him. Most mers trade trinkets or hunt for their partners but he didn't do any of that. Not officially. He'd cook you something the second you stepped into the Lounge and comb the waters around Sage's for interesting stuff to give you but you didn't acknowledge those courting attempts so they didn't happen. You thought the way he opened and closed his mouth was just a sign of boredom and never did it back.

So yeah, it took forever for you guys to be a thing by mer standards.

You guys were dating by lander standards, though. Little things like you keeping him awake in class and him walking you to the next. He'd buy you something to put in your hair and you'd wear it the next day. When Azul found out you were the only one who could tie his bowtie without him complaining or undoing it, it was his favorite part of getting ready for a shift. If Crowley wasn't so stingy with the phone he gave you, Floyd would be blowing it up.

He continued his lazy laps in the Octavinelle pool, clicking his teeth and sighing sadly. A moray really shouldn't be without their shrimpy. It was cruel.

As if he'd summoned you, you showed up with a float. It meant you wouldn't be swimming with him today but Floyd could live with that. "Don't even think about it!" you warn, hearing the water pitter behind you as he breaks the surface. Floyd has yanked you in more than once on your 'float' days, blaming it on his predator nature. Leaning down to look through the awkward tent of your arm, one foot splayed across the float and trying to draw it close as you wiggled onto it, you met Floyd's mischievous gaze.

The fins at the side of his head flutter, your boyfriend ducking down until his heterchromatic eyes just touch the water. He pulls strong arms slowly and dramatically from the water, setting them softly on the deck as he flexes the muscles of his hands and lets the light play on his claws. "Think about what?" Floyd can barely get the question out, laughing already. His pupils thin as you successfully push off on the float, sending yourself across the water.

Just like that, he's gone. You peer over the top of your float to keep an eye on the lazy, winding shadow. He moves faster than that, you've seen it! What is he--

"Delightful to see you!" Jade pops up at your back and you yelp, losing your grip on the top of your float. If not for Floyd being on the other side and slinging his corded arms over you, you'd be in the water. He laughs at your near-heart attack and the little scrunch in your nose as water flings all over you. "Sam hasn't gotten our order in, I take it?"

"No," you glare at Jade. "He hasn't."

The calmer twin smiles in his usual unbothered way. You've learned to see the sadistic delight in it now. "I'll let Azul know. We'll be working on things below if you need us. Thanks for keeping my dearest brother company." Jade makes his way down and doesn't miss the chance to flick more water on you with the last bit of tailfin. You hiss, rolling over into Floyd's waiting lips.

"Shrimpy!" he sings, genuine delight slipping into a low purr as he peppers kisses up the side of your face and heaves his slick body onto your float. He's unexpectedly soft due to the weird 'hydration' coat they make. It doesn't dull the prominence of his scales and the feel of scale and slick against your skin makes your spine tingle.

He's either going to drown you or shred your float. You're bobbing in and out of the water, head thrust up to try and keep something dry. Floyd knew your prey instincts would kick in and make you flail; he's practically purring at the fact you've wrapped your arms and legs around him. He throws himself back, arms behind his head.

You relax when you realize he's become your personal float. A float that's very happy with himself. You've ridden on his back before but lying on his chest was new; even with your arms around him it still amazed you how strong his back was. Especially his shoulders.

"Happy?" you lay your cheek on him, eyes drifting along the swirls of blue and teal that surround the whitish-gray of his chest.

"Happy!" Floyd hums.

[mortalityplays]

I love the practice of requisitioning, remixing and reworking books, comics, movies etc. through any means you like, but I hate hate hate the way so much vocabulary that used to be rooted in individual creativity has been taken over by this kind of fucked up deference to mainstream publishing and ip.

easy example: everyone calls the characters they work up for their projects 'OCs' now. that genie is out of the bottle, I'm not even going to try and cram it back in. it's universal terminology. but I do want to reflect - why is the default position to assume that when someone says 'my characters' they mean something derivative, unless they specify 'my Original characters'?

similarly, all character relationships are 'ships'. but what's wrong with that? you say, it's just short for 'relationship'. and you would be right, by merit of completely ignoring the fandom ancestry and common understanding of that term in order to win an argument. because you know as well as I do that 'ships' aren't 'relationships', they're hypothetical romances that the speaker is rooting for. so why do I keep seeing people talk about shipping their OCs? why is a hypothetical relationship entertained and enjoyed by the creator of the work described using fan terminology?

I have for real no joke seen people talk about their 'headcanons' for their own characters, in their own stories. that's not a headcanon babe, that's canon!!! that's YOUR WORK. moreover, why are we even talking about the canonicity of your personal original writing? this isn't the star wars extended universe, why are international franchise IPs setting the baseline for the relationship you have with your writing and the terminology you use to conceptualise it?

tbc this is not a 'fandom brainrot' post. because I don't think it's fanwork that's the root of the problem. I think it's the insidious creep of capitalism and the ever more draconian weaponisation of copyright law that has rewritten our capacity for talking about creative work so that it revolves at all times around ownership and precedent. there is a deep learned anxiety about describing fictional works as fictional properties, that echoes in our vocabulary as we constantly make clear what is owned and what is not, what has been established on the record and what exists in the realm of speculation.

the reason 'fandom brainrot' is such a compeling stand-in for this issue is that it's really just one step downstream from all that voracious rent-seeking behaviour by publishers. if the only things you ever read or watch are in the milieu of those franchise copyright lawyers, that is the understanding of fiction-as-property you develop. if you're not exposed to a broader spectrum of art and artists, living and dead, who talk about their work as work - as expression, as experimentation, as a personal process and as a shared space with their audience - you will quickly be alienated from your own creative practice by design.

the point i want to make is this: going off the beaten track, exploring outside the franchises and bestsellers and box office babies, is not just a matter of good taste. imo it is a necessary act of solidarity with artists who still live, work and speak as individuals. it's a healthier environment for you as an artist. you deserve a relationship with your own work, not a ship.

[thesirencult]

Messages For The Divine Feminine 222

---------------------------------------------------------------------------

Dear Divine Feminines,

I've never felt called before to share this kind of message as I was always skeptical abaout collective messages and saw them as nonsense. This evening though, while doing a personal tarot reading I felt the energy of two important Divine Feminine archetypes: Aphrodite and Cleopatra.

As I was wrapping up my reading I felt called to share some messages with fellow Divine Feminines on their journey to ascension and spiritual fulfillment.

Think about tomorrow as the first day of a new life. If you want to welcome the new you have to let go of old stories and negative beliefs who are holding you back from reaching your true potential. New perspectives are opening up and the truth is available for you to uncover.

You've strayed away from your path and got carried away by attaching yourself to your current situation. You forgot that your goal should be manifesting your heart's desires and not getting stuck on emotional rollercoasters. You hold the reigns. Detaching from the situation doesn't mean letting go of a beautiful vision of the finale, it means not paying attention to the immediate responses of your environment. Also have this in mind when it comes to your relationship with your destined Divine Masculine.

You are choosing yourself now. You are choosing your own vision of a better future. You're crafting the grand finale! Remember, you are currently living in the energy you seeded yesterday, so if you want a better tomorrow start with "good seeds" now. Congratulations, you have cut the cord and cracked the code of what manifestation and alignment means. Don't destroy tomorrows dreams by analyzing them from the viewpoint of yestarday's broken thoughts. You are more powerful than that.

Hoarding won't bring you results. On the contrary, sharing yourself and your gifts with others and being generous with your time and energy will yield better results. This will help your energy flourish. Growing means being generous with the fruits of wisdom. Stop trying to "save yourself" from the future because it scares you, the future is much better than you think and you're just self-sabotazing. You are safe. This tower moment was needed because it is better to build on solid foundation. Goddess wants you to know that your Divine Masculine is also undergoing the same process. No, when I'm saying Divine Masculine I'm not talking about the dusty next door, but about your true pure soul connection, the one that demands growth and love from you, not hate, frustration and games. These are low vibrational connections. Games won't work when it comes to soulful connections. Drop the mask and share yourself bare... Step into the mindset of abundance. You're enough, you are safe and you have enough love to be vulnerable with it.

When it comes to your love life, you're currently learning to believe in love. You are in the energy of manifestation, mid-manifesting. You next connection will be a soul connection. You're NEW to this, cut yourself some slack. Focus on how you can grow and prepare for them. Your person will love the fact you're both learning how to love eachother properly, they won't make fun of your eager nature or you trying to do better, they ar eon the same boat.

Think about what YOU want, feel it and give it a shape. Create the mold and the Goddess will fill it in. Do not try to fit the clay in the mold. Even if you are in a relationship with your true soul connection know that he is and he becomes the product of your manifestation. Create the mold. Create the mold and they will follow. The situation holds lots of potential to grow into something beautiful-if you let it unfold. Roses bloom when the time is right, the moon holds different shapes each night, time runs in circles and cycles, cosmic timing...

Trust. Time, faith and belief are the solutions to your problems. How can the seed of love grow inside you? How are you going to water it? Are you even watering it my gorgeous Divine Feminine? Work your way up and let yourself grow into the ideal state of love. Let your vision of love adapt and change.

In a pure soul connection each one builds on the work of the other. A sacred entaglement of two equals with a common goal. Both alternate between leading and being lead. Swaying in the dance of mutually beneficial promises. If you want your love life to heal, seek to be helpful, seak to lead spiritually. Together you will bring to life something much greater than what you would create alone.

My Divine Feminine, let go of your doubts, accept yourself as a whole, mind-body and soul and water your potential.

[rodentluvrr]

Hello. I don't know if you write for Hawkins but can I request Hawkins x reader meeting at a bar, flirting and Hawkins telling the reader that it's destiny for them to be together because the cards told him.

The cards never lie

pairing: basil hawkins x reader CW: bar setting, alcohol, tarot card mysticism word count: 1.1k A/N: why hawkins kinda😏 I'm into tarot too so this was amazing

✩₊˚.⋆☾⋆⁺₊✧ PLEASE DON'T HATE ME😩I promise I’m working on the series. My dog is sick and in the hospital right now, and I just don’t have the time or the right mental space to write.✮ ⋆ ˚｡𖦹 ⋆｡°✩

The bar hummed with low chatter, the clink of glasses, and the lazy pull of a jazz tune from an old radio in the corner. Dim lighting reflected over polished wood, catching the amber of your drink as you traced the rim of your glass absentmindedly. You scanned the environment, taking in the people surrounding you. You hadn’t come here looking for anything—just solitude, just a moment away from the noise of the world.

And yet, the moment you saw him, solitude became the last thing on your mind.

A man you could recognize from his bounty poster.

Basil Hawkins.

He sat at the far end of the bar, a striking contrast to the warm, unrefined atmosphere around him. He didn’t belong in a place like this. Too composed. Too refined. Too untouchable. How was he even a pirate? A part of the worst generation? It was too absurd. Yet, here he sat, a vision of pale skin and golden waves that cascaded over his shoulders, striking against the dark fabric of his coat. He carried himself with a quiet, unshaken confidence, draped in his long coat, golden hair spilling over his shoulders in thick, luxurious waves. It caught the dim light, glowed like something otherworldly. He was the kind of man that turned heads without trying, not because he sought attention, but because he was simply different.

Oh, and also because half the bar recognized him from his very expensive bounty poster. Just like you did.

But it wasn’t just his appearance that held your gaze.

It was the way he sat alone with a single glass in front of him. It was the way he moved—slow, deliberate, as though he was never rushed by time the way others were. It was the way his fingers idly danced over a deck of tarot cards, a ritual so practiced it felt sacred. It was the fact that, despite your lingering gaze, he hadn’t looked at you once.

That should have been enough for you to lose interest. But the longer you sat there, the stronger the pull became.

Intriguing.

And a challenge.

Without hesitation, you motioned to the bartender. “Put his drink on my tab.”

A small, barely-there pause followed before the bartender nodded, setting a fresh glass in front of Hawkins. You watched him carefully, waiting for a reaction, but he merely stilled his hands, fingers halting over the cards.

He let the silence stretch, acknowledging the gesture in his own way.  

Then, finally, his golden eyes slid toward you.

You smiled, picking up your own drink as you stood, making your way toward him.

“You don’t seem like the type to accept free drinks.”

He studied you for a long moment, gaze sharp yet unreadable. Then, with a slow, deliberate motion, he lifted the glass—your glass—to his lips. Took a sip.

“I don’t,” he admitted.

Your smirk deepened. “And yet you’re drinking it.”

He set the glass down, tilting his head just slightly, golden strands slipping over his shoulder. “Would you rather I refuse?”

“Oh, absolutely not. I’d be devastated.” You leaned against the counter beside him, watching the way his fingers toyed with the deck of cards. ��But now I’m curious—what made you accept?”

He exhaled softly, fingers stilling. “Politeness. Or perhaps amusement.” His golden eyes flicked back to you, something like interest sharpening his gaze. “I haven’t decided yet.”

You chuckled, swirling your drink. “So I’ve caught your attention, but not enough to warrant a real reaction?”

“Attention is not the same as investment,” he countered smoothly.

Your lips curled. “And what would it take for you to be invested?”

His fingers resumed their idle shuffling of the cards. “Something compelling.”

You hummed, tilting your head. “And how do you know I’m not compelling?”

Hawkins exhaled a slow breath, his gaze settling on you in that measured way of his. “I suspect you are.” He glanced at his cards briefly before adding, “I simply enjoy confirmation before assumption.”

You leaned in slightly, your smile teasing. “You don’t strike me as the type to make assumptions about anything.”

He smirked—faint, barely-there, but real. “Perceptive.”

“I’d like to think so,” you mused, sipping your drink. “And here I thought I’d have to work a little harder to impress you.”

He tapped his fingers against the cards. “On the contrary. Most people are either too obvious or too unaware. You are neither.”

“That almost sounded like a compliment.”

“It was,” he admitted easily.

You let the silence stretch, studying him, the way he carried himself. There was something deeply composed about him—not the kind of quiet that came from shyness, but the kind that came from certainty. The kind of quiet that meant he knew things before others did.

“You observe people a lot, don’t you?” you asked.

“It would be unwise not to,” he said. “People reveal far more than they realize.”

“And what have I revealed?”

He let his fingers glide over the cards, slow and deliberate. “That you’re drawn to things that resist being understood.”

You felt your breath catch slightly—not at the words themselves, but at how effortlessly he unraveled you.

“Not just things,” you admitted, voice lower.

His golden gaze flickered. “No. Not just things.”

Something electric hummed between you, something unspoken but undeniable.

Then, finally, Hawkins glanced down at his cards again, the shift almost imperceptible. “Shall we test a theory?”

You raised an eyebrow. “What kind of theory?”

Without answering, he shuffled the deck once more before drawing a single card. He turned it over between his fingers, studying it for a moment before placing it face-up on the counter.

The Lovers.

A slow smirk touched his lips. “Interesting.”

You glanced at the card, then back at him. “That’s a bit dramatic, isn’t it?

“Perhaps,” he mused. “But the cards rarely mislead.”

You studied him, watching the way his expression remained composed, though there was the faintest hint of intrigue dancing in his eyes.

“Are you telling me this was inevitable?” you asked, voice softer now.

Hawkins tilted his head, golden strands catching the light. “I’m telling you that some things are simply fated.”

You didn’t look away. “And what do you make of this fate?”

He took a slow sip of his drink before answering. “That I was always meant to meet you.” A pause. “And you were always meant to find me.”

Your breath caught, something warm curling in your chest.

A beat of silence. Then—

“You’re quite the romantic for someone so composed,” you teased, though your voice lacked its usual playful edge.

He smirked, setting down his drink. “I prefer the term realist.”

You leaned in just slightly, close enough to test the waters, to see how far he’d let you go. “And what does your realism say about this moment?”

Hawkins met your gaze, unwavering.

“That if you kiss me,” he murmured, “I won’t stop you.”

And, well— You weren’t someone to deny fate.

[purgemarchlockdown]

I'm not really someone who enjoys participating in discourse. I find that the environment is too volatile and prone to ad-hominem to really work as any kind of reasoned debate. People look for the things that confirm their perspective and get mad when they don't. I do that. It's not really constructive and as such I don't really like writing anything about it.

Plus I enjoy writing things about what I care about, and what I find interesting. For obvious reasons, why would I put my energy into something that I find boring or makes me upset?

I'm saying all of this to state that I have a distinct frustration of the current discussion going around with Amane. Now, I'm biased. Amane is my favorite character. I have an inclination towards defending her. One could argue that should discount me from the discussions but then I think we'd have to discount everyone from it since Everyone Is Biased!

You can't have a discussion if you don't have an opinion, and attacks on someone's character based on what you Think their argument will be like is not constructive! Actually it's usually the opposite. Let's all be reasonable here, and not descend into baseless insults based on what we want our opponent to be like for the sake of our ego.

After all:

The fine line between "Hate" and "OK"Shouldn't you look beyond your EGO, before it all ends? After knowing all, I wonder Can you really say INNOCENT?

Let's establish my argument.

I find the reaction towards Amane Momose after the deaths of Haruka Sakurai, Mahiru Shiina, and Shidou Kirisaki to be disproportionate, and the mentalities and biases at play to be distressing.

I also find that the logic underlying the argument to be faulty and unconvincing most of the time. And this whole discourse to be a distraction from more important and interesting discussions to be had about this whole series!

For one, I don't think the argument of whether Amane should have been guilty or innocent in trial 2 to be relevant for trial 3 and its voting. As due to the fact trial 3 is going to be the Last Trial, any argument for or against the safety of the prison (a major factor in this discourse) is rendered Irrelevant by the fact they won't be in the prison after this.

This is their final verdict and their final fates will be decided here. The most relevant points of discussion for a trial 3 vote is their crime and their current mentality within the prison. As a result the vote that came to pass in Trial 2 is irrelevant to the Trial 3 voting situation.

This is why I think it's a distraction to argue about whether if people were right or not to do so in Trial 2. Now it's genuinely sad that these characters are dead but ultimately we have to live with that. I find it frustrating that people are harping on this so much as if it proves something about Amane's Character (moral or otherwise) that everyone else missed.

One can argue that Amane has shown how destructive her worldview in this moment (thus also connecting it back to the trial 3 voting and it's relevance,) and while I have my own qualms about immediately assuming Amane is at fault for this (we will get to this later) and I, again, find the argument surrounding if she should have been voted guilty or innocent a distraction. I do think it's important to acknowledge that.

One, all these people committing murder was already a showcase that their worldview's could be destructive. You can argue that they're on their best behavior, or that their crime was a circumstantial thing. But then we'd have to ask the same questions regarding Amane's circumstance before the murder she (presumably) committed against Shidou and the one she committed against her mom.

Shidou did not just die because she hated medicine. Shidou was someone who repeatedly made her feel small and talked down to her.

Amane: I warned you. I can no longer turn a blind eye to this wickedness taking place right in front of us. You’re bringing ruin unto yourself. Do you understand? Shidou: No, I don’t understand. It’s my job as an adult to teach you that throwing a temper tantrum isn’t going to make everything go your way. If it’s a test of endurance you want, I’m happy to oblige, Amane.

People might think that this reaction is unreasonable, but the point is not if she's right or not for feeling this way, but that she Did feel that way. And I would like to posit that the stressful conditions Amane was under exasperated the problem, thus pushing her more towards killing Shidou.

And either way, my point is that she's not inherently destructive she just holds the ability to cause destruction when under the right circumstances...like everyone else.

Arguing that she's more destructive because she's "too far gone" misses things like how Muu's worldview hasn't been examined all too much even with the trial 2 guilty, or how Shidou's worldview wasn't examined all too much and he's implied to have killed:

A lot of people.

One can say that they only did these things due to the circumstances surrounding them but that just goes back to my first point. Arguing that Amane is uniquely more dangerous, despite the fact that like everyone else her murder has a specific circumstance surrounding it feels like a double standard.

Two, characters like Kotoko have arguably more destructive worldviews, and while there Was Discourse surrounding how people should have voted her in trial 1, it is not nearly as debated as Amane's is. Which again feels like a double standard.

And ultimately, even if we ignore the double standards at play here and how this is stuff we have Known Since the Beginning, we still have no clue of Amane's Mentality Now, we don't know how she seems in Trial 3 at all.

We can't immediately assume she's dealing with all of this well just cause we Assume that she's the reason behind the events, for one she was close to Mahiru.

T2Q8: If you had to make one of the prisoners part of your family, who would you choose? A: Shiina Mahiru. Her innate goodness might have brought the two of us closer, maybe.

And this situation is really close to something sensitive to Amane. The death of the cat.

As a result we cannot use this to adequately determine her current mental state, my original criticism still stands. The relevance this has to a Trial 3 vote is pretty...lacking. As a result we can't say this discourse exists so that we can determine what should be done in trial 3. This firmly exists as an argument of who was right and who was wrong in Trial 2.

One can call it petty (I have) or a distraction (I just did) but since I'm writing a post on it I am participating in that distraction. We can now travel to the second part of this post. Which is a dissection of the arguments for Trial 2 now that people have died.

Now, obviously people should be allowed to have opinions and have passionate feelings about those opinions. However I think the reasoning behind opinions, me or yours, should be questioned. It's good for a nuanced debate for opinions to be questioned, and for the other party to listen.

I for one have seen a lot of questioning about T2 Innocent Amane now. Some of it being blatant ad-hominem mind you, but lets take a charitable look at the discussion. Do I have a good counterargument against common arguments I've seen about this? Well, sort of, for one I would like to question the assumption that if Amane did kill Shidou that she should hold all the blame for Mahiru's death, first of all.

If we are working under the assumption that Amane killed Shidou and that means she killed Mahiru. Then can't we also say Kotoko killed Mahiru? She's the one who beat her up in the first place after all. And if we're going to say that then putting the full weight of responsibility of the deaths on Amane feels unfair. She's not the one who beat her up after all.

Additionally, if we're really tracing the threads of consequences back to the source then really shouldn't we be the ones taking responsibility due to how we created a Trial one?

Arguing on these grounds inevitably leads to questions about the Audience's own moral integrity if followed to the logical conclusion. If we believe Amane should be punished for this and that the earlier act of voting innocent in Trial 2 is incorrect because we let her "do something bad" then shouldn't that apply to the Audience? To Kotoko? To Shidou for clearly not doing as much as he could to help considering that Mahiru was in his care for Twenty Nine Months? To Kazui for not doing anything to protect anyone even though he Said he would?

I think it's reasonable to say that if any of us put the full weight of blame on any of the other people I mentioned this would be contested. But I'm not saying they should have the full weight of the blame put on them. I'm pointing out a double standard here.

That Amane is treated as if she did all the work killing both Shidou AND Mahiru, assuming that she did kill Shidou and that lead to Mahiru's death. That she's being given a harsher treatment here regrading the consequences of her choices, despite the fact everyone else made their choices and they had consequences. Again, including the one who actually beat up Mahiru in the first place.

And before anyone brings up Kotoko is guilty and that means she's being treated harshly. That's not my point. I'm not saying Kotoko isn't being treated harshly. I'm saying Amane is being treated too harshly Despite the fact that other people and factors we're at play and Despite the fact we already Guilty Voted the one who arguably should have the most blame be put on her for the situation at hand.

Second thing, we...don't know if Amane killed Shidou?

I know that she's Said she's going to do it multiple times over, but this is a series known for pulling tricks on the Audience and giving red herrings to distract from more hidden things at play. Again I have already said that Mahiru has been injured for at least 29 months. That is not a normal time of recovery for the injuries she has received. That is more than 2 years. Even with Potential Milgram Time Weirdness considered it's still an unnaturally long time to be injured and Getting Worse despite being treated by a doctor.

Additionally, with Haruka's death we know with some certainty that the restraints on the guilty prisoners aren't as restrictive as we thought. And we have a certain prisoner here who has been very vocal about wanting to hurt people. Not to mention if Shidou is doing malpractice again then a lot of people probably want him dead.

However, my point here is not that "other people could have done the murder" cause ultimately that feels a bit weak as an argument, if you trust in Amane doing her murder then saying "it's possible that it wasn't her" isn't really convincing.

I wrote all of that to ask a question, why are we assuming Amane killed Shidou? That seems like something I've already answered, she said she would.

However, other characters, have been pretty blatant about what they were going to do and that was Ignored. For one, people didn't think Haruka was going to commit suicide, and even if he did the guilty restraints would protect him (despite the fact we knew from Amane's T2 VD that the restraints aren't as restrictive as we thought, an argument used FOR the idea that Amane should be guilty.)

A second example would also actually be Kotoko. Kotoko, was not exactly secretive about her intentions of beating up the people who Us, The Audience deemed as guilty. She was very clear actually about what teaming up with her meant. And yet we accepted it and then got mad at her when she did that.

When it came to Haruka that was due to infantalization and a belief it could have been prevented through other means, when it came to Kotoko that's cause her words aligned with most people's beliefs in the abstract that we were willing to ignore the warning signs regarding her.

So why then, when it comes to Amane, we take her words completely at face value? What about this situation has changed that make it so we Can't ignore what she says? Can't twist it to mean something else? Can't say "Oh its possible that" and have it be convincing.

We can't say it's because people's lives are on the line, we've already shown that with Haruka and Kotoko that's not enough, and again, we can't say it's because she was clear in her intentions. So what gives?

Now, what I'm about to say might be considered an ad-hominem to some. However, I think criticizing a mentality held by a group and direct attack against one person is different actually. If you've gotten this far and think I'm attacking you, no I'm not.

(You can say I'm straw-manning though if you want. I am holding an imaginary debate here.)

However, I think the reason why Amane is being treated, frankly, unfairly, is pretty simple.

She's a child that spoke out against someone who was older than her. Who's been Very Vocal about how much disdain she holds for Milgram as a prison system. Who in Trial 1 we voted guilty because the consensus was that we needed to "teach her to be better." Now, I'm not saying anyone here is an abusive parent or doomed to become one. If that's what you're thinking.

I am however saying, in our society, we have ingrained hierarchies when it comes to children and adults. Children are below the adults. They have to follow the rules set by adults. When they disobey they are punished by the adults.

This is brought up by Es themself to claim power over Amane.

Es: No matter what you do, no matter how grown-up you behave – you’re a child. That’s an unchangeable truth. Amane: You’re a child, too! Es: Wrong. I’m fifteen, so I’m an adult in Puerto Rico and Haiti. You’re twelve, so you’re a child no matter the country.

This is right after Amane attacks Es. A physical question of their authority over her. Es' response is to Claim that as her Superior she has to Listen To Them and Follow What They Say. That despite everything she is a Child while They Are Not.

I have said double standard so much in this post you're probably sick of me saying it. However, this is why I keep on saying it.

And it's not like Amane is the only victim of it! I already brought up that we ignored Haruka's voice due to infantalization! It just manifested differently here because the way to spite Haruka in Trial 2 was to Ignore What He Said. However the way to spite Amane in Trial 2 is to Accept what she says and Vote Her Guilty Based On it.

This is the crux of my problem. This is not just about what is good for the prison. This is about spitting a child who disobeyed against a perceived authority. I don't think this ideology should go unchallenged. Especially when the subject of it is an abuse victim. Like Haruka was.

Jackalope says it himself in the Trial 2 Report:

Whatever the circumstances may be, she is the one that has to bear the blame. That’s just how it is. Both in and out of MILGRAM, isn’t that right?

Now, look, if you're someone who genuinely voted Amane Guilty in Trial 2 because you understood that to be the best choice and are now upset that what you expected to happen did happen. That's fine.

However, I believe, the reason why we are still debating about this past the point it should be over. The reason why people still care despite me already illustrating that it doesn't really matter for Trial 3. Is because of this. It's because people are upset a child spoke up against them.

And I just find that to be unacceptable to leave unquestioned. Because people will say Anything to deflect from being questioned about this. That it's not that serious. That it doesn't really matter. That people are overreacting over some silly show.

But, you can look through my blog. I just made a few posts about this before I wrote this, most of them un-rebloggable to make sure No One saw them outside of who followed me. I've been writing this in an exceedingly formal tone partially out of fear of being harassed for this.

I'm not the one who brought this argument up again. I'm Responding to people who brought it up again.

Maybe it's just me but...doesn't that contradict that statement? And even so, Milgram is written To be taken seriously. And people Have taken the previous discussions seriously.

Why is it suddenly wrong when this one is taken seriously?

I think the people reading this are smart enough to figure out why.

[theladybrownstarot]

SPIRITUAL-WISDOM

A WAY TO SELF & IMPROVEMENT

Introduction: Namaste People! I'm brown , this post is quite different from others because this post is about spiritual wisdom which is needed a lot in life and without it we are always steps behind achieving what we need . I'm making this post In order to help out and share my wisdom with others to help them improve in their life !

Topic : The state of non-thinking

Overview : The majority of our problems arises due to thinking - a cause of suffering. We have forgotten and undervalued the core importance of quitetiude that's intrisic to our nature and life which has now caused serious problems around and in world and us - disappointment, regret , fight , war, hate , and more. We make the world so let's silence ourself first so we can create a difference altogether with the state of non thinking .

✧ What is it ?

The state of non-thinking refers to where are living in the present without worrying and thinking about the future and past rather in content with what is in front of us totally. It's like an acceptance and way ahead to understand yourself deeply and so your life and take actions accordingly. It's not totally about to stop thinking but rather thinking less.

✧ Why do we need it ?

The majority of the problem arises from our thinking, we can feel negativity only when we think , so wouldn't it be better of without thinking ? For example - You are going to have an exam tomorrow and you haven't prepared yet left with time if used could help out only if you stop thinking about the time and exam continously. Well there it is that positive state which will come out from you and intutive whispers helping you out to do what needs to be done . Hence when you follow that state of non-thinking you allow intuition to work in and connect with your innate natural state . When you practicse the non-thinking consistently you will see connecting with the truth and find answers to all your questions and so you find peace in your life too .

✧ Do we need to completely stop thinking ?

Well , it depends on what kind of life you want to live or what purpose you hold and how you want to change your life accordingly. In terms of survival we do need negative thinking to make us aware and alert . Therefore we may go to less thinking than to non-thinking and with consistent practisce you shall be able to maintain lesser thinking and non thinking for same .

✧ Is thought and thinking the same ?

No , they are completely different . The thought is divine and thinking is the cause of suffering from your head .

✧ How do I come to the state of non-thinking ?

You can do certain things :

1. Realise that thinking is the cause of suffering.

2. Eliminate that makes you prone to think like actions and things which do not inspire and excite you at all .

3. Create an environment and in your day that would help you come back in the state again. So when you wake up early in the morning keep your device aside and mediate .

©️ @theladybrownstarot 2023 all rights reserved. Any stealing or copying of work will be a punishable offence.

[hunn1e-bunn1e]

Dorm Heads - Sinbad (MAGI) Male Reader

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Sinbad has seven Djinn Equips and there just so happen to be seven characters in this ask, so I sorted each one to whomever fits it the best. The Reader is still from another world, but this time they're from MAGI as the king of Sindria. I hope this is adequate to what you wanted. —Benny🐰

                                                                                                   

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🌹 Please have mercy, Riddle doesn't know how to handle flirting at all! Seriously, stop that! Don't corner him against the wall and lean over him like that! Don't hold his chin between your fingers and lift his head that way! Don't whisper in his ear all sensual-like! Are you trying to kill him!? Really; Riddle might just explode if you continue like this, going by the steam that keeps billowing from his ears. He's never been the object of affection of such a handsome man before; it's flattering and overwhelming at the same time.

🌹 You're a king? You!? But you're so irresponsible; with the way you quite literally run from him every time he tries to make you do your homework. Riddle honestly thought you were lying at first but after seeing how diplomatic you were during the unbirthday party, he actually started to believe it. He later witnesses that when you do your work, you stay holed up in your room until it's completed to perfection. Oftentimes, Riddle will go to you for advice on how to be a better leader for the students of Heartslabyul.

🌹 A gift, for him? Riddle is a little flustered, he's not too used to people getting him things out of the kindness of their heart; it's usually fear that marks the occasion. But what did you get him? Show him, he hates surprises— WHAT THE HELL!? Where in the world did you get this!? How much did this cost you!? What do you mean 'it was only half a billion'!? Congratulations, Riddle is now malfunctioning; he's stuck between being flattered that you'd spend that much money on him and being furious that you didn't use it for something more important.

🌹 Excessive jewelry and other accessories are strictly forbidden; such things could become a distraction to yourself and other students! Wait! Those are weapons!? That's even worse! Riddle is losing his mind with you, right now! You can't bring weapons into a school environment, such things are against the law! He'll have to confiscate them. Unfortunately, Riddle's unique magic doesn't seem to work on you for some reason; so his efforts are always in vain.

🌹 Riddle has his first encounter with your Furfur Djinn Equip when you sapped the light out of his bedroom using its magic. From then onwards you used it to annoy him (read as try to make him relax a bit) whenever he's busy for more than four hours. He would say he hates it, but he can't deny that your demonic-looking appearance is very appealing to the eyes; not that he'd tell you. Riddle secretly wants to touch your horns but he's far too prideful to tell you; too bad you've already noticed his fleeting glances.

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"O‐oh, for me? Thats very kind of you, My Rose. W-wait, how much did you say this was? Half a billion! Why would you spend such a ridiculous amount of money!? My face isn't red— No— Listen to what I'm saying!"

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🦁 Oho? You're a flirt I see, Leona can certainly get behind that. It does help that you're one handsome man as well. Do you wanna lay the charms on him? Go right ahead and do your worst if you're brave enough to face this beast of a man. Just be prepared for when Leona decides to flirt back; too bad for you he's not exactly the chivalrous type. This lazy lion prince is ready to give you the most risqué tongue lashing of your life; figuratively and literally if you're down for it.

🦁 Leona could tell that you were royalty of some type just by the way you dressed, but you also had a certain about you that only natural-born leaders have. He completely understands your aversion to work, he feels it too, work sucks man. You once offered Leona to be your queen, since you were already the king, and to rule Sindria by your side; he may or may not be seriously considering it...

🦁 Being the second prince of the Sunset Savana, Leona is certainly no stranger to expensive gifts, so getting him anything expensive doesn't really surprise you too much. You're rich, he's rich, the gift only cost you half a billion— Wait... half a billion? Leona will absolutely give you a look of complete and utter confusion as to why you think half a billion is such a small sum of money. He can see Ruggie in the background salivating...

🦁 So you're telling him that the jewelry you're wearing can be used as a weapon? Sure.... you'll have to sit Leona down and explain to him about Djinn, metal vessels, dungeons and, dungeon capturing. Well... that is if you can convince him to stay awake long enough to let you explain it. Leona has a bunch of z's to catch, so if you don't mind he'll be taking his long overdue nap now.

🦁 Leona has a love-hate relationship with your Valefor Djinn Equip. On the one hand, he appreciates the beastman-like features that appear when it's equipped as well as the clothing style, but do you have to be so damn cold!? Don't get him wrong, Leona loves cuddling with his boyfriend but your skill has a natural chill to it in that form. It's gotten to the point where he'll refuse to touch you until you go back to normal.

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"AAGH! D‐dammit you're cold, let go of m‐me. How am I s'posed to fall asleep if 'm freezing my ass off? Go back to normal 'n I'll hold you as long 'n as tight as you want, kay?"

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🐙 You're flattery will get you absolutely nowhere! At least, that's what Azul wishes was the truth. Ugh! You're so damn suave and so damn fine that it's killing him! How is he supposed to talk you into signing a contract when you're leaning over his desk and looking at him like you'd eat him if Jade and Floyd weren't in the room!? Poor Azul is ready to pull out his hair with how many revisions you've sweet-talked him into making to the contract. He's got a business to run dammit!

🐙 Oho? A king you say? Perhaps if you would take him there, he could give your people an offer they couldn't refuse. Unfortunately for Azul, any plots he had for trapping you or your people in a deal were swiftly shut down by you holding a sword to his throat. He was equal parts terrified, disappointed, understanding and, really turned on. Azul still wants to go to Sindria though; maybe even as one of your vassals representing Twisted Wonderland's Coral Sea if you'd let him.

🐙 You got him a gift? You're not trying to bribe him or anything are you? Azul is definitely no stranger to attempted bribery considering it happens about once or twice per day. But eventually, after a bit of insisting on your part he'll accept it... and then promptly return it because there is no way you would give him something that looks so expensive for anything other than bribery. If you try an calm his nerves by telling Azul that it only cost you half a billion and it really wasn't that expensive; his blood pressure will skyrocket. Dear lord, save this man...

🐙 My, that's quite a bit of jewelry you have there, you wouldn't mind parting with a few items, would you? Now, now, Azul's only asking for a friend, no need to get up in arms about it. The cecaelia mer, being quite observant, did notice that your jewelry and a few weapons are where you get your otherworldly powers from. While Azul would love to have access to that power, since old habits die hard, he still restrains himself because he doesn't want you to distrust or dislike him.

🐙 Azul is very cautious about your Baal Djinn Equip; lightning and water are not too good a combination in this case. However, he admits must you look very dashing and handsome in the clothes and jewelry you wear; he can't help but take a few glances at your bare chest, your draconic features are also very eye-catching to him and he can't help but briefly think of a certain dragon fae. While Azul usually just observes you from a respectable distance; he's not entirely opposed to being in your arms.

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"H‐handsome? Me? I— if this is some kind of joke it's not funny! Y‐you're flattery will get you no nowhere. N‐now if you would just sign here... Hm? Revision? A D‐DATE! Hold on—!"

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🪲 Aww, you're so nice! Kalim doesn't quite understand why you're so fixated on complimenting him, but he really likes it! He definitely returns the favor tenfold; not just to repay you, but also because he thinks you're a very handsome man. Another thing he doesn't get is why Jamil keeps shooting you sharp looks when you give him some of the weirder compliments. But Kalim doesn't mind too much, even when you back him against a wall, he just takes it as an invitation to cling to you.

🪲 Wow! You're royalty too!? And a king no less! Kalim thinks that's so awesome! You should definitely expect a ton of questions about what it's like to rule an entire country. What kind of responsibilities do you have as king? Do you have to make any hard decisions that could impact your people? What kind of holidays do you have there? Can he go there one day? And so on, and so on. Wait! Where are you going? Kalim still has more questions to ask you; you can't leave yet!

🪲 Wow! Did you get him a gift? You're so nice, it looks so cool too! Kalim is absolutely ecstatic to receive anything from you, be it a conversation, a compliment, physical affection, a gift or even a simple hello! Huh? Half a billion Madol? Okay! Kalim will find you something just as expensive and go out of his way to get a job, save up a bunch of money, and buy it for you! He can't let the gift you gave him go unreciprocated!

🪲 You have genies in your jewelry!? That's so cool! Please call them out so that he can meet them all, Kalim has so many questions! Tell him about all of your dungeon-capturing adventures, he'll be entertained for hours on end. Jamil is crying tears of joy. He will also somehow convince your djinn to come out and share the many adventures that they had with you and their previous holders. Expect to have to tell him at least five of your adventures a day, Kalim doesn't care if you run out of them, you're such a good storyteller.

🪲 Poor Kalim was truly in shock when he saw your Zepar Djinn Equip for the very first time. You got so tiny after that huge light show; he was surprised. For him, this Djinn Equip is his favorite because you're basically a really cute living megaphone. Kalim thinks your round belly is really cute; when you're under a blanket you look like you're holding a pumpkin. He's glad to have a mini boyfriend he can carry around like a teddy bear, it's super fun.

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"WAH! You got small! You're so adorable now! Oh; and your ears are so long too! Can you hear better like that? Hey, what can you in this form? Is it like the other one's you've shown me so far?"

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🪞 Flattery will get you everywhere; especially with Vil! However, this pretty boy has definitely heard it all; or at least he thought he had before he met you. No one had ever been quite so bold with him before. You laid your intentions out on the table right off the bat, and frankly, he found that really hot. I mean, who wouldn't want to be swept off their feet by a handsome king such as yourself? You want to make Vil your queen, you say? Oh my, buy him dinner first, you sly devil.~

🪞 A king, you say? Well, Vil did notice that you had a regal air about you, even if it was a bit overshadowed by that boyish charm of yours. But now you've got him thinking about you're proposition to make him your queen. Were you really serious about that? If you are, Vil has a long list of suggestions that he believes would improve your future shared kingdom. So what if he's never been there before, he's got to make some changes now before he walks into what might be a hot mess.

🪞 Now Vil and his family are quite wealthy, nowhere near royalty, but they still have a hefty sum to their name. This means he is no stranger when it comes to expensive clothing, accessories, skincare, and food. He has absolutely no issues with you spending a ridiculous amount of money on a gift for him. Vil just gives you an ecstatic "Oh! You shouldn't have!"

🪞 What a lovely medley of jewelry you've got there, but um... don't you think it's just a tad bit excessive? Not that you don't look absolutely dashing just the way you are, but maybe take off one or two? Vil only wants the best for you and that means fashion-wise as well. They're your weapons as well? Well, weapon or not, Vil will not allow you to walk around with a clashing color scheme! Rose gold is out of season, you know.

🪞 You know how Vil hates Neige because he feels insecure about his appearance when he's around? Yeah... that's how he feels about your Vepar Djinn Equip. He's never seen such ethereal beauty before and it's eating him up inside! He's torn between admiring his handsome boyfriend and cursing you for being more visually appealing than he is. Vil eventually accepts it though, you are his after all, and as long as he has you he can let it slide, just this once.

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"I didn't call you old, listen closer to what I'm saying to you! I said you had a mature look about you; It's a compliment. Not many men can pull it off like you can, so you should be grateful."

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💀 Stop. Seriously, stop. You will actually kill this man if you start flirting with him in any aspect at all. Even a compliment is a death sentence for Idia. But if you really do desire to send him straight to an early grave, do as you wish. This poor man can barely even function around someone as handsome and imposing as you are. Idia can barely breathe around you, his palms are sweaty, his knees weak, not to mention all the blood loss from his ever-flowing nose due to your sparsely clothed chest.

💀 As if Idia needed any more of a reason to feel like he doesn't deserve to even be near you; he finds out you're a King. Why is this happening to him!? No, he can't go with you back to Sindria! Even if Idia really wants to because it sounds a lot like the kingdom from "WIZ - Maze of Sorcery" and its two sequels; "WIZ - Queendom of Sorcery" and "WIZ - Outings of Bob".

💀 You didn't have to buy him anything, you're going to make him feel bad! Idia doesn't need you to spend money on him, not that he doesn't appreciate it, because he really does. A new box set of a ton of animes that were just released on DVD? Well... you were the one who offered so Idia reluctantly says it's fine. W‐wait... d‐did you say... half a b‐billion... Oh! It looks like he fainted!

💀 Do you think— Would you mind if Idia used some of your magic jewelry for a few of his cosplays? He'll take good care of them, he promises! Actually, if you don’t want to lend him anything, could you... cosplay with him? Idia completely understands if you don't want to, I mean who wants to spend time with him anyway? But... the offer is still up if you ever consider it...

💀 After seeing your Crocell Djinn Equip, Idia finally understood why you weren't at all cautious about his hair. He accidentally went on a tangent about how you reminded him of a character from a manga he read once and how you were like his 'irl SSR Secret Quest Reward, Boyfriend', whatever that meant. Sometimes, Idia will ask you to go into your Djinn Equip so that you can play with his hair like that one scene in that Shoujo anime you both watched together.

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"That's way cool! A mystery boss stage with percentage boost in SSR gear and a companion character too! It's just like 'Last Delusion'! EH!? You've never heard of it!? Come on, I'll show you!"

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🐲 You're not scared of him? At all? You do know who he is right? Malleus Draconia: strongest mage in the NRC, prefect of the infamous Diasomnia dorm, heir to the throne of the Valley of Thorns? You do? Instead of finding him fear-inducing, you called him... gorgeous? Handsome? A sight for sore eyes? Consider Malleus a very flustered and confused dragon fae. He's used to getting compliments from Lilia and his vassals but from you? He feels like he's melting but in a good way. Well... he thinks so, at least.

🐲 A fellow royal? Oh, you're a king too? I hope you don't mind Malleus asking about the details of how you rule over Sidria because he has a lot of questions. He is also set to be the king of the Valley of Thorns in the future, so he wants to gain as much knowledge concerning ruling a country as possible. Malleus's ears are open; tell him anything and everything. How was Sindria established? How do you handle the punishment of your people who break the laws you set in place? Etcetera...

🐲 Malleus is quite wealthy due to his status as the prince of the Valley of Thorns, so he isn't exactly bothered by the thought of receiving expensive gifts. The price of said gift also doesn't seem to phase him. In fact, just like you, he sees such a sum of money as mere pocket change. Malleus is a dragon as well as exceptionally old, he and his grandmother have amassed quite a mountain of wealth in the many years that they have been alive. Nonetheless, he is very grateful for the gift.

🐲 That's quite the lovely set of jewels you have adorning your body there. Please spare this poor dragon boy, he's struggling to hold back his hoarding instincts. His brain is sounding the alarm bells and all he can think is "big shiny, big shiny, big shiny, bi–". Don't be too alarmed if a wild Malleus in his dragon form or otherwise swoops down and whisks you away. Though you may have to worry about leaving his hoard; it will be very difficult, I can assure you. You may just find yourself back where you started; trapped in Malleus's arms.

🐲 Malleus has seen each and every one of your Djinn Equips and if he had to pick a favorite, it would be your Focalor Djinn Equip, followed closely by your Baal Djinn Equip due to draconic appearance. The reason he favors Focalor's is that he can, instead of taking a moonlit stroll, fly through the night in the arms of his boyfriend without needing to go into his dragon form. Malleus had never been swept off his feet, but now he has, literally.

🐉•♡•🐉•♡•🐉•♡•🐉•♡•🐉•♡•🐉•♡•🐉•♡•🐉

"Child of man, these dungeons you speak of; did they perhaps house any gargoyles? I couldn't help but ask, what with all the fantastical creatures and items that you mentioned being within them."

🐇.•°•.🐇.•°•.🐇.•°•.🐇.•°•.🐇.•°•.🐇.•°•.🐇.•°•.🐇.

Wanna see similar content? Check out my Masterlist!

[dragon-susceptible]

Lissa

I'm having some thinky thoughts about Lissa, Viren's ex-wife, Soren and Claudia's mom.

So from the way Claudia talks about her in season 2, she and Viren fought a lot, it wasn't a good environment for kids, and then she and Viren pressured their kids (each no more than 5) to decide which parent to stay with. I'm a little suspicious of the details here because how are you remembering that much at 3 years old, Claudia, and why would any adult expect you to make that kind of decision when you're still learning how to make sentences? Anyways my suspicions on the details aside, the major events of them fighting and Lissa leaving are backed up in Viren's story in Arc 2.

Here's the thing. I trust Viren's account more not because I trust him all that much more, but because he didn't actually let anyone see it. I think he was genuinely being vulnerable, being weak, and that's why he couldn't let Soren actually see it in the end.

So in Viren's account, he and Lissa weren't fighting all the time. It was something that developed in their desperation to help Soren, who was suffering with his breathing illness. Ultimately, it explodes into Viren physically assaulting Lissa for her tears to work the spell to fix Soren's lungs, which he frames as saving him. Lissa left him very quickly after that.

So here's the thing. We don't know enough about Lissa to really judge her. I could see how this might be a case of an immigrant woman who found herself swept away by this charming Katolian aristocrat, who maybe had a temper but he wasn't violent with people, generally, and genuinely loved him and built a family with him. Then one day he snaps, and she finds out he can be violent with people too, actually, even with her, and she's terrified and horrified, but - but he did it to save their son. She can't stand staying with a man who would hurt her like that, but if he's willing to attack her for Soren, surely he'll be willing to do anything to protect their children. They'll be safe with him, they'll be well-off with him. So when Soren clings to him she lets them stay, but has to leave for her own safety no matter how much that hurts, and because she has to cut Viren out so much, she never realizes how badly this backlashes on the kids.

Or she could have resented Viren, resented their relationship because how dare fate hand her the suffering of her firstborn, and then her husband turning abusive on top of it, maybe she was glad to be rid of all of them when she left

Hell maybe it was all an excuse and she's just a transient asshole who was looking for a reason to leave, and Viren just gave her one on a silver platter when he assaulted her

Maybe she was a genuinely loving wife and mother right up until it came to the issue of dark magic, and she hated Viren for using it on Soren and believed Soren to be "tainted" with it and that's why she didn't fight for them. Or maybe it was only an issue because Viren targeted her for the materials for dark magic, and it's not about the magic but every time she looks at Soren now she sees his father's cold face while he hurt her.

There's so many ways she could be a fucked up individual, and some of them she's not even the asshole. Maybe she genuinely thought the kids would be better off with Viren and she just had to stay safe, and that it would be better for them if she just disappeared instead of making them deal with the complications of parents who won't see each other. They were so young when she left, I can follow the reasoning. I think she's wrong, but I can understand it. Or she could be a bitch for any number of reasons.

Both of the kids seem to remember her with some level of resentment, but Claudia was so young she's likely pulling mostly from Viren's feelings about her. Soren talks as if he resents her but he keeps a portrait of her tucked into his armor, so he must have some . . . Curiosity, at least, or hope. It's just really interesting to think about.

[lustkillers]

Hii! This has been invading my mind for WEEKS now and I’ve wanted to know how Simon would react to unrequited love, like the reader is in love but he doesn’t feel the same:( you ca ignore if you want i just wanted to get that off my chest and I’m a sucker for unrequited love angst☹️

Lynn😼

౨ৎ˚₊ can you see me? i'm waiting for the right time.

⊹₊ ⋆ summary. - you'll wait, even if he's not.

⊹₊ ⋆ pairing - simon / john q x fem!reader

✶ c.w. - sfw! sad sad angst! nothing more, nothing less. maybe ooc simon? but i think that's all. (let me know if i missed any!)

⊹₊ ⋆ note - back from the dead (again)... sorry it took so long to write this request! hopefully my writing isn't rusty (it is) and i hope i did this request justice! this is also my first piece of angst on my blog so WOOHOO! thank u so much for this req cuz i love me some unrequited angst >:p

requests are closed! <3

YOU clung to simon like a dog, begging to be loved by its owner, in which you were, but somehow that love bloomed into something that he didn't want.

yes, he loves you, he really does, but there’s a difference between love as in friends, and love as in… youwouldwannagetmarriedandhaveatrillionchildrenwitheachother. and sadly, simon didn’t want that future with you. you weren’t someone he would last a lifetime with, even though you told yourself different.

it wasn’t your fault, really. it was hard to differentiate love (friendship) and love (relationship). he was just too kind to you, and he hated everyone else, so you just assumed he… liked you back. you sat on that feeling for a while because your gut somehow knew he didn’t feel the same. being with him felt… impossible. the more you spent time with him, the more you’d fall in deep, and you didn’t want that.

you didn’t want that because he didn’t want that.

has he told you he didn’t want a relationship with you? no, but it was heavily implied in every conversation you two held.

“ah, you’re like a friend of mine y’know, that’s why i trust you.”

or, that time you confessed your feelings towards him and he said:

“c’mon, get up, you’re just drunk,” even though you said: “m’serious, simon! i doooo want you.”

there was just… no way around it.

so you went through it.

this very night was special to you and simon, as it was the one year anniversary of PSYOPS, and you were proud of him. they were performing a smaller gig, the bass boost echoing through your ears (and you could've sworn your hearing was about to fade away). so why not confess your feelings tonight? i mean, everyone would have their adrenaline kicking, so, this would be the best time to.

as simon finished vocals, he jumped down the stage; his presence creating a hyper environment. you laughed at his antics, automatically gluing yourself to his side. "si?" you spoke up, catching his attention.

he took off his ski mask to see you better, a dopey smile plastered across his face. "yeah?" he tilted his head, his face red and sweaty, and you could've sworn your face started to tingle from overheating.

"i-uhm, i need to tell you something," you bit your lip, "nothin' that important, but i just wanted to tell you something," you breathed out. were you nervous? fuck, yeah. but you got this in the bag. i mean, he doesn't really spend time with any other girl than you, so i mean... it's gonna work.

"spit it out." he nods to you, his patience sort of withering away. it wasn't your fault– it was just hot and loud, so it was a lot.

"ilikeyou." you mumbled, awkwardly laughing. he didn't get it.

"what?" he was confused; mostly because you blurted everything out at light speed.

"i... like you. scratch that– i love you." you laughed again, your eyes looking at him with longing.

all simon could do was stare. he just stared at you. he didn't say anything. he just stood there awkwardly while you thought you stood there like a fucking idiot.

"so..." you trailed off, weakly smiling amongst the loud crowd as some people were watching.

he licked his lips, slightly shaking his head. fuck, you were screwed.

"listen–" he started, "you're great and all," and all. and fucking all. "but i... i don't really see you like that." he finishes.

"no, no, yeah, i get it!" you squeak out, your throat suddenly getting dry. did it get hotter in here?

"i'm sorry–" he sighs.

"don't be," you let out the fakest smile ever, like worse than when you visited simon's family and they just hurdled insults at you, and all you could do was take it. "i'm just drunk." you lie.

he awkwardly nodded, "yeah, uh– its just because i'm sort of seeing this girl–"

oh.

"her name is patty. she's cool." she's cool. maybe that's what you lack.

"can't wait to meet her." you pursed your lips, "yeah. can't wait." you whisper. "listen, i think i'm gonna call it a night. i'll see you tomorrow?" you said quietly, yet he could hear you through this insane crowd.

"ah, not tomorrow." he awkwardly added, oh, great.

"awesome," awesome? "i'll just... see you when you wanna hang out, or whatever." you mumbled, your fists clenched and your feet turning away from him, continuing to walk away.

at least you weren't crying. you never cried in front of simon, so... why do it now over some stupid crush?

"aren't you wasted?" he called out, his voice rough.

you wagged your finger 'no' and continued walking away from the venue, your shoes dragging across the gravel.

fuck, this shouldn't be serious. you just misinterpreted it– it was no ones fault! you can't control where cupid shoots his arrow. his stupid, fucking arrow.

as you walked outside, your fists were still clenched– this time with tears glossing over your eyes. all you can do is cry.

cry, cry, cry over a boy who doesn't cry over you.

.☘︎ ݁˖ taglist .ᐟ

@fallout-girl219

[brunosaderogatory]

Hello.

So... What do you think of Daniela and/or Lorenzo?

Hello, and oh buddy don't get me STARTED /ref

Honestly, I do not know where to begin with these two. I love them. I hate them. I want to keep them in a controlled environment so I could conduct a study of them with a little microscope and also squeeze them until their eyeballs pop out as if they were a pair of Panic Petes. In other words, I like them a lot as characters in a narrative and characters in a world. My opinion of them as people differs from minute to minute, but that is because they reflect the morally ambiguous, and sometimes outright cruel--but equally often loving--world in which they exist.

That being said:

At first, Lorenzo seems to be a very two-dimensional character. He's just a goofy dad who is more concerned with his avocations than he is with his son or wife, a painfully overdone trope in the world of children's cinema, but a few key details (and a bit of useful input from Enrico Casarosa) reveal something more.

For starters, Lorenzo is a lot like Luca. Rather, he is Luca---or who Luca could have very easily become. Lorenzo is meek and lets his wife take the reigns when the situation gets tough. Lorenzo is often off in his own little world, not paying much attention to anything but his own interests and inclinations. Lorenzo is kind-hearted and seems to want change, but is too burdened by his own anxieties or past failures to work up the courage again. And, I do say "again" because the search for his son was not the first time Lorenzo was on the surface.

His older brother (and possibly twin) Ugo was not the only one in their family to have explored the surface world before; Lorenzo was, most likely, right along beside him. Now, we don't know what exactly happened that resulted in Lorenzo's parents sending Ugo to the deep nor Lorenzo to stop trying to get a taste of the human way of life, but Ugo was sent. And Lorenzo did stop. However, it is unlikely that any tragic event took place. Rather, I believe the conclusion to Lorenzo's explorations happened out of conformity to the rules and traditions of his culture because Lorenzo never once spoke ill of humans.

Daniela calls them bloodthirsty lunatics. She insists that Luca has a death wish, and, very explicitly, she insinuates that he will die trying to hang with the humans. On the other hand, Lorenzo only gawks at his son's audacity and tenacity. Lorenzo even tries to reel in Daniela as she threatens Luca with a trip to the deep, but, of course, it is a fruitless attempt because he is meek. He does not have his son's tenacity nor his audacity---those traits were derived from Daniela alone. And this impotence serves as his most abhorrent attribute.

No, he's not doing anything wrong, but he's being a willful bystander. He's compliant with the evils, and, when it gets down to it, he backs them up! He makes no decision for himself, but when he does, he either chickens out of it at the last minute or doesn't know how to bounce back from a failure. Despite being fully aware of what the deep sea can do to a person--despite very likely disagreeing with his wife--he allows her to almost put their son, his son, in a situation that will inevitably, undeniably, deform (translucent skin, eroded teeth, discolored eyes, discolored fins) and disable (cardiovascular issues) him with time.

I'm glad he changed his side for the brighter half in the end, but I didn't see any actual change happen. He's still following his wife around from the looks of it, and that isn't what's needed for him to grow as a person and as a character. Although he's a three-dimensional character that appears to have only two, he's a static character that's been played off as a dynamic for far too long. He was a meek follower in the beginning, and he was a meek follower in the end. The only reason he came onto the good side of things is that the person he was following changed paths, and that isn't enough for me to truly like him (but it sure as hell does give me a lot to work with as a fanfic author, so thank you, Luca crew!).

Now, Daniela. When I think of Daniela, I think of a girl that (for lack of a better metaphor) was raised in a church who could have very well turned out queer, but due to the teachings she was fed---and possibly a very messy lesbian breakup---turned into a very, very hateful woman who, years down the line, rediscovered her bisexuality after the boy she was raising to be a goody-two-shoes, god-fearing, church-going fellow come out to her as vivaciously gay. That is to say, if it wasn't for Massimo, Daniela would be the most dynamic character in the movie. And if it weren't for Alberto, Daniela would be the most complex character in the movie. This is because, like her husband, Daniela tried out the surface life before, but unlike her husband, Daniela is a cruel, unjust force actively working to destroy her son's hopes and happiness at whatever cost necessary--even if it means her son's mental, social, and physical wellbeing. However, the force is derived of only love, fear, and care.

Just as it was in Lorenzo's case, but now far more severe, we lack explicit information about Daniela's past. All we have are the behaviors and beliefs displayed in the movie and information graciously given to us by Enrico Casarosa. These behaviors, beliefs, and Casarosa-given information are: having previously been to the human world; calling humans "bloodthirsty lunatics"; believing humans only go out on the waters for murder; understanding the motions made with a harpoon; attempting to send Luca to the Deep; waiting for Ugo to arrive rather than confronting Luca when she first notices his whereabouts; helicopter-parenting her son; being aware of Luca's interest in the surface/dissatisfaction with the sea; ensuring that Luca stays "safer than safe" while still letting him run off to Genova.

Given these, we can begin to piece together the picture: In her youth, Daniela adventured up to the surface and explored the human way of life, but something went wrong. She was caught in some dangerous situation that likely involved harpoons, or she bore witness to the same thing Luca did as he walked into Portorosso---the statues, the wanted posters, the carvings, the propaganda strewn about, adorning every angle of the town. Regardless, she became terribly fearful of humans and never returned to the surface again.

Unlike Lorenzo, Daniela is not simply abiding by the rules and traditions of their underwater society. Her evasion of humans is born of a completely justifiable fear. Humans hunted sea monsters. Humans put up wanted posters worth $4.5k in today's money for sea monsters captured, dead or alive, and fishermen armed with harpoons lined the waters for a children's race. I feel this is an often forgotten fact when the topic of Daniela's control over Luca comes up: Luca was in real, mortal danger going into Portorosso. Daniela might have been wrong to send Luca to the Deep, but from there, it becomes a discussion of which is worse: possible disability or possible death. Such a discourse grows even more complex when you call to mind that Daniela might not have even been aware of the physical and physiological changes the Deep has on a sea monster before Ugo's arrival.

Daniela's attempted actions are cruel, no doubt, but they are not at all unwarranted. She wants Luca, who she adores and deeply cares for, to be as safe as possible. If she has to be the bad guy to keep her son alive, then she will be the bad guy.

However, Daniela does not stay the bad guy. When she realizes Luca is safe in Portorosso (rather, when Portorosso becomes safe for Luca), she becomes open to the possibility of allowing him to continue living on the surface. She even, after a bit of convincing from Alberto and Libera, allows him to attend school in Genova for nine months out of the school year. At the end of the movie, she is assured of Luca's safety and the humans' ability to change for the better---to stop all the killing, hunting, and fear and begin a peaceful coexistence. This stability allows her to relinquish control over her son and support him in his dreams, even if it means she'll only see him in the summer months.

Daniela is an intensely dynamic and intensely complex character. She's a beautiful foil to her husband, and, quite frankly, I'm obsessed with her and desperately wish to see more of her growth and her past.

Also, Daniela and Lorenzo are peak malewife x girlboss material and I will not be hearing any slander toward their relationship. no idea how Lorenzo managed to bag her, but so glad he did. beautiful. love it. 10/10.

[benchwarming]

i meant to reflect a bit before the end of 2024 about the experience of quitting my job last summer, but then my holidays were disrupted by norovirus AND conjunctivitis 🤪 so i didn't get around to it. until now!

i quit my job in august. i'd been at a startup for 6.5 years and had no plans to leave, buuuut then we were acquired in '23 by a big multinational firm. i won't get into all the ways that our new parent company eroded what had been to that point a pretty good place for me to work, but man, it fuckin sucked.

i was admittedly sensitive to it because "toxic legacy corporation led by sociopaths and staffed by mediocre assholes" was exactly the environment i was escaping when i'd joined the startup. but having to kowtow to a new c-suite of boomer-brained idiots with no sense, strategy, or discipline at a company i never wanted to work for in the first place was excruciating. especially bc i then had to turn around and try to make the best of their idiocy for a team of people* looking to me for reassurance and motivation.

i've never quit a job without having my next one lined up. it took like a month to admit to myself i was serious about the idea. then another month to be convinced by friends and fam that i was allowed to quit. then a few business days to calculate how long my finances would hold up. then another month to figure out what would have to happen for me to actually go through with it.

but of course something did happen, and i did quit. it was very scary!!! and i felt so guilty leaving my team. but i was able to kick off some freelance copywriting work right away, and a freelance consulting project came my way after that, and more things popped up after that. and while i have a lot to learn yet about how to make freelancing a sustainable long-term career, i'm extremely confident that it's worth it to try, at least for a while, bc uhhhh i am. SO much happier?!

i don't think it hit me exactly how much work i was doing, or how hard i was pushing myself to stay on top of it all, until i didn't have to do it anymore. i'm still getting used to that honestly. for the first few weeks i'd jolt awake worrying i'd forgotten something on my to-do list or automatically pull up zoom bc i felt sure i had a meeting to attend.

in comparison to that garbage, freelancing has been easy breezy. but i don't mean easy like mindless, i just mean like - i'm able to dictate the terms and scope of the work, and as a result it doesn't feel like "stuff i have to do" so much as "stuff i'm working on." that may be a distinction without a difference for a lot of people but it's turned out to be a pretty big deal for me: if i gotta work to live (and right now i do), then getting to call the shots and fully own the results makes it easier to conceptualize the work as an opportunity (fun! interesting! good use of time!) rather than an obligation (annoying! inflexible! standing between me and fun stuff!). and after years of managing a team it's such a relief to be responsible only for myself again.

of course the other thing i had at that job was a good salary. and i won't lie, i really miss the money. but i think i can get my income back up in that ballpark by the end of 2025 if i play my cards right. and even if i don't, i know now that enduring corporate agonies for that kind of money is no longer a worthwhile tradeoff for me.

since quitting there have been moments where i've felt dumb for not realizing sooner that freelance would be a better fit at this point in my professional life than a staff job. but i went into 2024 knowing i needed to take some kind of step forward in my career, and i did, and i learned stuff about myself in the process, and now i hate being alive at least 25% less per day than i used to. and that's sort of the whole point of everything, right?**

*by december, 80% of our department would be laid off, and the few left over would be desperate to leave. a really unfortunate end to an incredible marketing organization.

**of course now my therapist is like "so since 2023 was your Living Situation year, and 2024 was your Career year, does that mean 2025 is going to be your Relationship year?" and ughghghfhfhgf. like she's right, but. ugh. but she's right! but UGHHH

[fleverian]

Mermay? Nah it's fairy time

Here's some close ups

Been thinking about Fairytopia. Gotta be one of my favorite Barbie movies. I've wanted to draw a young Laverna and Enchantress for a while.

I'm gonna rant about nearly 20 year old Barbie movies. Man, I wish we got some more lore for these movies. Instead we got Mariposa, which was ok and I liked it but I didn't really care for, idk what to call it, the aggressive girliness? Where they bring in fairies obsessed with fashion and everything had to be covered in glitter. But at least I could consider it as maybe just a story Elina was telling Bibble or somewhere far away from Fairytopia. But the the next one ruined it by having Mariposa just straight up fly through Fairytopia and now there's some crystal fairy kingdom right in the middle of the Magic Meadow and the aesthetics and fashion completely clash with the first three Fairytopia movies. I like how the outfits in Fairytopia look like they are made from flowers and natural things. But in Mariposa and The Fairy Princess the outfits look like generic glittery modern Barbie princess aesthetic. Absolutely hate it. To me, it is not canon.

The older Barbie movies are super dated looking probably were even when they just came out. But they all had such well designed outfits and environments. They kind of have a liminal feeling to them. I love the aesthetics of them. The modern Barbie movies improved a bit in the animation, but never to the point where it looked that great. To me they end up looking more uncanny than the older ones. Because the older ones at least had a style to them but the newer ones just look generic. The fashion the backgrounds everything is just so soulless to me. Idk, maybe I'm just old and miss my childhood lol.

Really wish Mattel would revisit some of the old Barbie movie characters though. With a movie, books, or picture books. I fear them making anything with them with the new animation though. I need them to dust off their old stuff and bring back the crappy mid 2000's Barbie cgi. I neeeed it. It would probably be cheaper for them too since it's outdated. I need to see a new Barbie movie in all it's old

glory.

I need to see my girl Elina again. I want some more Fairytopia and Mermaidia lore.

Would love to see some backstory of Laverna and The Enchantress. I feel like there's something there. It just needs to be expanded on. What's Laverna's deal and why is The Enchantress the most useless fairy in all Fairytopia. I have to know.

I designed some younger versions of them. I saw this and wanted to draw my own versions. Gave The Enchantress a name too, Elvina. Read it means "elf or magical friend or noble being" and thought it fits really well.

Decided to try a new coloring style with these. I think it works pretty well for fairy characters. I don't think I'll use it much with other things because it takes a while and I like to use a simpler style.

Here are some versions with no backgrounds since the wings are transparent

[keepthedelta]

i've never thought of that, that lewis' fans hate nico or actively bad mouthed him. certainly it is interesting the way nico is the only one that spur that reaction, not even adrian sutil. i think, like you said, fans want to see lewis as a doll, someone pretty, fashionable being but that's that. and imho nico was the only person to bring to the public the human side of lewis, he looked broken in some pc, he looked sad in some pictures, he looked distraught in other, happy, petty, cruel, shy, and the common factor was nico. i think nico has the right to say "hey, i'm the man that make lewis stutter" , lewis is just human

i don't think it's necessarily people being close to lewis that inspires so much hatred from certain fans, i think it's people standing in opposition to him. obviously there was massive opposition to max verstappen when he was fighting lewis, but even if you just look at lewis's teammates, even just lewis's mercedes teammates, you see that basically all of them have been treated pretty terribly by certain sections of his fans.

it kind of seems to me that there is a level of entitlement amongst some LH fans, as in, they feel they lewis is entitled to preferential behaviour, the full and unwavering support of every single member of the team, the love and devotion of his teammate who is to sacrifice himself for lewis whenever called for. it's why the "betrayal" motif is called upon so often, because any action nico or valtteri or george might have taken for their own betterment (in this solo sport) when lewis could have had that pole or that win or that fastest lap or whatever is perceived as a slight against lewis.

nico rosberg is a teammate who can take a championship challenge down to the final race and provide great entertainment. well sure that's nice in theory but why is he trying to win? that's not his to win. oh lewis had one singular mechanical dnf in an entire 21 race season, clearly nico rosberg and the team are sabotaging lewis to give nico a win, it's so obvious. but hey look at this new guy, he's the perfect doormat for lewis, always gives up position when told to, even gives up wins when told to (not once from 2017 through 2020 did the wdc go down to the final race, or even the penultimate race btw, so lewis probably would have been alright without a few of those valtteri, it's james moments). i mean sure that's demoralising and depressing and the work environment is so toxic that he's really struggling with his mental health and they refuse to give him anything longer than a one year contract because you never know when you need to take out the trash. as long as it helps lewis it will all be worth it. oh but he's not really helping lewis enough there. yeah we don't want him anymore we want a shiny new doormat. but wait? the car's not great and george russell who has worked basically his entire life to be in f1 and get into a championship capable car and is finally living his dream only to find out that everything's harder than he was hoping but he has no choice but to keep going is doing better than lewis? what a self serving cunt, we should go back to valtteri, he was happy when james vowles held his head under the water to let lewis use it as a stepping stone. and hey, lewis is leaving anyway, he's maybe not 100% motivated right now and that could easily explain him being one hundredth of a second slower than george, but you know what else could explain it better? clearly george is fucking toto and if we send an email pretending to be mercedes staff members everyone will know that it's sabotage for toto's little gigolo (all real comments i've seen people make, not phrased exactly like this tho)

i don't think they're particularly interested in lewis as a person, or even lewis as a racing driver. i think for a lot of them it's what he can represent symbolically. he's successful and if they worship him enough they are a part of that success. he's been an activist in the sport, so if they worship him enough they'll be counted as good and moral people too. lewis is "fashionable" so if they worship him enough they will also have good fashion taste. it's just a cycle of worship worship worship. lewis must be the best in every way because if he's the best then so are they. and the easiest way to make him better is to attack those who expose complexity and nuance in his character, like nico.

i once wrote a post about the mclaren conflict between lewis and jenson, and i'm pretty sure it was on that post that someone commented that while it was true i was too focused on things that lewis "used" to do. and i remember it because when i saw it i immediately thought "is it used to do, or doesn't need to do?" is it genuine growth, or is it just the competition being easier?

nico took the championship fight down to the final race twice, and won one of those fights. no one, not valtteri bottas, not sebastian vettel, no one came anywhere close to that in the four years that followed. not until max verstappen came along was the challenge quite so fierce. and you know what lewis did then? when his back was against the wall he crashed max verstappen into the silverstone barriers at 51Gs and then cheered it on the podium (i am well aware that max was also not a docile lamb i'm not trying to victimise or villainise anyone here, i'm just making a point). that's the kind of racer lewis is, ruthless and singleminded. and when you like interesting "characters" that's not inherently a bad thing. i've recently seen much more enjoyment of the likes of lewis and charles being such poor losers because it's proof of how much they care about the sport and about winning.

i think nico forces complexity into our understanding of lewis. yes some of it is the shared childhood and the loneliness, but it's also about the ruthlessness, the public cruelty, the use of conspiracy theories (specifically about lewis being sabotaged for nico) as a psychological tool, the refusal to mention his name, the attempt of "well i've had tougher teammates than max verstappen but i won't say the name of the only teammate ever to beat me to a championship".

but if your interest in a person is how your worship of them can reflect better on you, nuance and complexity of character is not desirable. and if it's not desirable, it must be eradicated.

[rhonuscorner]

20 questions for writers

@sandcastlekings tagged me, thank yooouuuu <3 Let's see how well I can answer this while dealing with a migraine yaaaaay.

Tagging @certified-handler @scarredlove @driftingmoonmenace @justyourawkwardghost and whoever else wants to, consider yourselves tagged. No pressure of course.

1) How many works do you have on AO3?

Only 5 right now. There used to be more but I got rid of them, and what I have uploaded is only a small fraction of what I have written over the last 20+ years as most of it is kept between myself and friends.

2) What’s your total AO3 word count?

As of right now 480,939 but again, I don't consider this to be accurate in terms of how much I have truly written. We're talking millions of words.

3) What are your top 5 fics by kudos?

Considering I only have 5 works online right now and the one with the most kudos only has art in it, this is a weird one to answer lol.

4) What fandoms do you write for?

I've written for sooooo many fandoms but right now I only write for the DCA fandom. But I have also written for, just to name a few, Dragon Age, Dishonored, Cyberpunk 2077, Elder Scrolls, Fallout, Pokemon and MCU. I feel like I should also mention that before recently all of my writing was RP based because I love writing stories with someone else and some of those stories found their way onto AO3.

5) Do you respond to comments? Why or why not?

Always!!! I you take a moment to leave me a comment, you bet I will personally thank you for it in a reply!

6) What’s the fic you wrote with the angstiest ending?

None, I love me some good ol' angst but never at the very end. Happy endings only.

7) What’s the fic you wrote with the happiest ending?

Uuuuuhhhhhhhh... that's assuming I actually finish my fics lol.

8) Do you get hate on fics?

I've gotten some. Mostly from trolls bitching about the copious amounts of gay in my fics lmao.

9) Do you write smut?

Yes though I don't write it too often.

10) Do you write crossovers?

I've written a few, yes. The most notable ones were Dishonored/Assassin's Creed and Dishonored/Dragon Age. That latter one actually worked out really really well, it was a lot of fun to write.

11) Have you ever had a fic stolen?

Kiiiinda. I found my biggest Assassin's Creed fic on a Russian site once, translated into Russian, but I was credited with a link back to the original so I wasn't too upset about it. I also translated the comments underneath and people liked it, so yeah, I left it like that.

12) Have you ever had a fic translated?

One of my earlier RPs was translated into English by a friend, back when I still wrote exclusively in Dutch, and that same Assassin's Creed fic from the previous question was also translated into Chinese (but unlike question 11, this person asked for permission first).

13) Have you ever co-written a fic before?

That's like 99% of my stories lmao. RP makes for some of the best storytelling in my opinion and I really really REALLY love writing stories that way, but finding someone to write with, someone who shares a similar style and enjoys the same kind of tropes isn't all that easy. I'm always on the lookout though! Aaaaaand the ever amazing @scarredlove is hella indulging me right now lmao, writing out scenes with me involving our DCA OCs~

14) What’s your all-time favorite ship?

Yeah no, this is impossible to answer lol.

15) What’s the WIP you want to finish but doubt you ever will?

*nervous chuckle*

16) What are your writing strengths?

Dialogue, especially inner dialogue, a character's thoughts and observations.

17) What are your writing weaknesses?

Descriptions, particularly of environments. It's kinda boring to me so I struggle with it a lot.

18) Thoughts on writing dialogue in another language in a fic?

Sometimes, only when it makes sense for it to be part of the story.

19) First fandom you wrote for?

Lord of the Rings

20) Favorite fic you’ve ever written?

That was hands-down a very lengthy RP I wrote with a friend back in 2014 that was unfortunately never finished. It was very dark, very gritty, akin to a zombie apocalypse but instead of zombies we had crazed humanoid robots, in a world where humans and sapient robots co-existed and all the troubles that came with it. The character I wrote for this story is still my favorite character to write, ever and I would honestly would love nothing more but to rewrite this story with the same basic premise with someone. Because sometimes a plot just works, y'know?

Perhaps one day. Keeping my fingers crossed.