#and that was a very small part of the fandom thankfully - and most of us dragged them

[rebelliousstories]

Roses

ValenFics

Relationship: Logan Howlett/ Wolverine x Reader

Fandom: X-Men

Request: No

Warnings: Fluff

Word Count: 1,891

Main Masterlist: Here

X-Men Masterlist: Here

Summary: There is only one person in this world that James Logan Howlett is soft for. Anyone else who finds out, very quickly learns not to blab.

Consider Donating: Here

Everyone at the school knew one thing, and they knew it well; Logan does not do holidays. At least, not in the traditional sense. He will show up for the parties occasionally, and he may even give a gift in public at Christmas. But for the most part, he liked keeping that part of his life private. And not because he did not trust anyone, but rather, that was just how he was.

With Valentine’s Day right around the corner, the school was busy putting together cards for their valentines, or simply working up the courage to ask the object of their affection. Pink, red, and white hearts littered the walls, with paper garland of the same colors on the banisters. Punny drawings were hung outside of classrooms. All in all, the whole school was in love.

“Come on, Logan. Just tell me. What are you doing for her?” Storm pleaded, following after him as he made his way to his girlfriend’s classroom. The sounds of music and singing began pouring out of the room the closer the pair got.

“And as I told you, Storm. It’s no one’s business but ours.” He protested, leaning against the wall next to the door. According to his watch, he only had another couple of minutes before she would be free for lunch.

“Yeah, but-”

“Storm, seriously. If it makes you happy,” Logan cut her off, “we’re going to have a small date night in our room.”

“Are you going to come to the Valentine’s Day party?” He groaned. If it had just been left to Wolverine, he would not be going. He would take his girlfriend on his bike, drive somewhere far away, and spend the weekend together without any distractions.

“I don’t know.” Thankfully, Logan was spared from any other questions as students began to file out of the classroom. Nodding towards the white- haired woman, he ducked inside, smiling at the kids. Kindergarten grade music was a good class to come in on as all the kids were young enough to just view Logan as a big, scary, teddy bear. They knew he was someone to fear, but that did not stop them from happily exclaiming his name as they left.

“I was wondering why there was a commotion outside my door.” She smiled, rounding her desk once she saw her boyfriend walk in.

“Thought I’d come get you for lunch.” He muttered softly, hands going to her waist, and lips going to her own.

Pulling away reluctantly after a moment, she smiled. “I could do with some food.”

During their lunch together, the couple sat in a peaceful, and comfortable silence. After so many years together, and being with each other nearly every second of every day, sometimes they just needed some silence. However, shockingly, it was Logan that broke it.

“So, Storm was asking about us going to the Valentine’s party they’re throwing.” He began hesitating, like he was unsure of how to breach the subject.

“Yeah…” her eyebrow arched at his words. “Do you want to go?”

“If you want to, I won’t stop you.” Logan replied.

“That’s not an answer, Wolvie.” She protested. “If you don’t wanna go, we don’t have to.”

There was a long period of silence after she finished. Piercing her chicken with a fork, she continued to eat while her boyfriend was pushing his own meal around. “We can go.”

Looking at him, she was hesitant to accept that answer. But Logan just kissed her forehead instead, and then got back into his sandwich.

The closer the fourteenth got, Logan began trying to think of what he wanted to get his girlfriend. He did not want to get her something perishable, but he knew that she did like flowers. What did not help was the fact that it seemed everyone and then some in this school was interested in knowing what he was going to do.

Purely from being in the kitchen at the right time, he knew that Jean was going to be getting Scott a specialty pair of his iconic red glasses. Storm was badgering him about what he was getting his girlfriend. When he finally decided on what he was going to get her, he did not tell anyone. Regardless of how much the women bugged him about it.

Which is why when Rogue found an order meant to go to Logan on the doorstep of the school after her morning jog, she was extra excited. The massive bouquet, snuggled inside of an earthenware style vase, was in her hands, and a smile was on her face as she strutted through the school. She really did try to find Logan, but that did not mean that she stumbled upon him first.

“Who’s the secret admirer, Rogue?” Jean pondered, coming up to the young girl.

“It’s not for me. A certain Wolverine got these.” She proclaimed proudly.

“Oh. Let me know how that goes.” The older woman teased, noticing that mischievous expression on her face.

Rogue continued on her merry way through the school, finally finding the big burly man that she needed to. To make everything better, he was in one of the studies with Storm and Charles, going over something that looked like intel on Magneto, but she could not be sure.

“Logan!” She called, practically floating over. Peaking above the line of the flowers, the expressions Rogue saw was priceless.

Storm was impish. Charles looked intrigued. And Logan… well, Logan was mortified.

“Where did you get those?” He hissed, storming over to snatch the bouquet from Rogue’s grasp.

“They were on the front porch. Found them after my run.” Rogue shrugged, sitting down at the unoccupied seat.

Charles, from his spot observing everything, simply chuckled. “Go put those in your room, Logan. Somewhere she won’t find them.”

Sending a glare towards Rogue, and one to Storm for good measure, Logan followed the professor’s advice and left. Thankfully, his girlfriend was not in their room when he got there, but he still snuck around. He could only hope that Rogue and Storm would keep their mouths shut about this. It was not that he cared terribly for his image, but it did help to keep up appearances.

For a couple more days, Logan checked on the flowers, hidden in his closet. And that entire time, he kept his ears open. Waiting to hear the rumors start up from the bouquet being delivered for him. Waiting for people to start calling him a sap or soft. But nothing of the sort came of it. Everyone operated normally. It did not stop him from being a little paranoid, but it never panned out. By the time that Valentine’s Day came, he had not heard anything that he could attribute as to coming from Rogue or Storm.

That morning, he had awoken extra early. With her still sleeping, Logan kissed her forehead before crawling out of their bed. Getting down into the kitchen, there were no people in there which was a blessing. All he was able to do was some simple bacon, toast, and eggs, but it was going to be enough. Grabbing a small bowl of fruit to go along with it, Logan tried to balance the food on a tray as well as a coffee for her on his way back up to their room.

When he got back in the bedroom, she was already up. Rubbing her eyes, she smiled sleepily up at her boyfriend as he came in with a tray full of goodies. “Hey, Log.”

“Hey, princess. Set your legs out straight for me, will ya?” He guided gently, watching her close. Once she set her legs out, the tray was placed on top of them and Logan came to her other side.

“Ooo, full spread. You are spoiling me.” She complimented, leaning up for a quick kiss.

“Anything for you. Eat up.” Passing her some utensils, he grabbed his own to also begin eating. Wrapping one of his arms around her shoulders, Logan enjoyed pressing kisses to her head while they ate. As much as she enjoyed kissing his scruffy jawline.

“Oh, Log, I’ve got you something.” She exclaimed happily. Pushing the food into his lap inside, she got up and went over to the dresser where she kept the majority of her clothing. Well, everything that could be folded and did not need to be hung.

As cliche as it was, she began to dig around in the sock drawer before she finally pulled something out. Plopping back down on their bed, she passed over a box to his hands. Logan, with curious eyes and a confused mind, opened the box and was even more baffled by what he found. A small figurine of something that looked like a badger.

“What is it?” He asked finally after a few moments.

“It’s a wolverine.” Her words were proud as she showed it off. The figure was no larger than a piece on a chess board, but it was still incredibly detailed.

“Thank you,” came his whisper. Logan nuzzled his nose into her cheek in acknowledgment. He was a man of few words, but he preferred actions anyways.

“Wait here.” It felt like a game of musical chairs but with the food tray. He passed it back to her, and then got up himself. Grabbing the gift that was just inside the door of his closet, underneath a flannel he used in case she needed something from inside, Logan came back.

She gasped once she saw what was in his hands. “Oh, Logan.”

Her eyes twinkled when she saw the vase and flowers. What appeared to be roses sat in a clay- type vase, but they were not normal roses. Scrunching her brows, she looked up at her boyfriend with a question behind her eyes.

“They’re resin coated. Supposed to make them last forever. They’re not supposed to wilt or decay.” Logan explained. In an instant, the food was moved to the foot of the bed, the flowers set on the floor beside them, and she launched herself into his arms.

She kept repeating her thank you’s over and over, pressing kisses to her boyfriend’s skin where ever she could. He just chuckled, letting her get her expressions out. Once she began to lose steam, he just grabbed her to kiss her lips.

“Thank you, Logan. I really appreciate these.” She repeated.

“So you’ve said. Glad you like them, princess.” Howlett whispered huskily, reaching a hand up to caress her cheek.

“I love them.”

Later in the evening, once all the classes had been finished, the Valentine’s party was in full swing. Hanging near the back, Logan had his girlfriend tucked underneath one arm, and a beer in the other hand. They had enjoyed a peaceful night, and talking to their friends. At one point in the evening, Rogue, Storm, Jean and Scott all came to hang out with the couple.

“So…” Rogue drawled, getting an impish grin, “how did she like the flowers?”

“Huh?” She questioned, looking up at her boyfriend.

“Rogue, if you told anyone-”

“I didn’t, okay!” The southerner held up her hands in defense. “But now that you’ve given them to her, can I talk about it now?”

“No.”

“Okay. Bobby, come here!” She yelled, rushing off before Logan could stop her.

[sleepingdeath-light]

queen smut hcs ; 18+

requested by ; anonymous (17/01/24)

fandom(s) ; deltarune

fandom masterlist(s) ; here

character(s) ; queen

outline ; “REQUESTS ARE OPEN FOR DELTARUNE YOU SAY??? MAY I IMPLORE SOME QUEEN SMUT HCs?? (from deltarune's second chapter) (also I am 19)”

warning(s) ; sexually explicit content, dominant!queen, edging and orgasm denial, praise kink, brief allusion to punishment (spanking), use of sex toys, invasion of privacy (queen looking up reader’s search history), sexting

minors and ageless blogs will be blocked

queen is a robotic entity, meaning that she doesn’t exactly have the same facilities that organic organisms do and has to get a bit more creative when it comes to how she approaches sexual intimacy with you. thankfully, she does derive a great deal of satisfaction from your pleasure when she’s the one responsible for it so she settles quite well into the role of pleasure-dominant with you — though there are, naturally, some times where she drifts into other related roles depending on the mood of the evening and whether the two of you want to try something different for a change

she’s very good at reading your body language and is able to predict (within a very small margine of error) when you’re about to cum — a fact that she uses to her advantage when she’s decided to punish you for being a brat or some other such misdemeanour. in other words, she excels at edging and denying you and can easily do so for hours at a time without stopping until you give her the response she wants… after all she’s not limited by stamina like a human lover would be so she’s got all the time in the world to wait for you to fold

she’s just as playful with her language in the bedroom as she is outside of it, both being extremely liberal with her praise when you’re doing well and very unconventional in the ways she goes about complimenting your performance and appearance when you’re in the midst of pleasure. it’s a big strange at first, but once you get used to her quirks you’ll come to find it all to be more than reassuring and flustering enough to keep you in the moment as you approach your nth orgasm of the night

queen is the type of partner who prefers indulgence over punishment, but that doesn’t mean she won’t reprimand you for acting out of line. sure she’s pretty lenient for the most part, and sure it takes a lot to shift her focus from fucking you all giggly and dumb to spanking your ass red raw, but when she reaches her limits she won’t be talked out of a punishment unless you actively call out the agreed upon safe word. firm but fair, with plenty of chances to correct yourself and apologise, how very befitting for a monarch

as she doesn’t really have the facilities to bottom, she defaults to the role of top between the two of you, but she’s more than capable of putting what she does have to good use. for example, thigh riding and hand jobs are the main ways she goes about pleasuring you, and on the rare occasion where she decides to reward you by getting down on her knees you’ll find her to be startlingly good at it

she’s also not opposed to using toys or modifying her body for short stints of time to spice things up in the bedroom — e.g. using a strap on with you or modifying her hands or her tongue so that she can make them vibrate at will… little things like that

when she does fuck you properly there are a few positions that she enjoys more than the rest. those are as follows: cowgirl and missionary/mating press (so she can see your face more clearly), and doggy style (so she can hit even deeper inside of you with each thrust and, thus, coax more of her favourite sounds out of you)

her body isn’t really sensitive and can’t exactly be marked up like a lightner’s can, but if you happen to wear makeup and leave a few lipstick marks on her neck and chest when you’re having sex then she’s certainly not going to complain about it

will use your search history to enhance your sex life and she’s more than happy to recreate any spicy scenes you’ve read about or watched online… even if her natural speech pattern may not be an exact match for the love interest in the original material

loves sexting with you and saves each and every scandalous photograph you send her way — securely, of course, she’s very keenly aware of the dangers of sending and keeping things like that online

[rivereverie]

Just a personal post about my experience on this site

The only social media I’ve ever really used my whole life has been YouTube and Pinterest, and I only joined Tumblr a few months ago because my sibling encouraged me to. The internet has always kind of been an overwhelming place for me; too many people, too many ideas. And I used to get really insecure when interacting with or even perceiving fandom. I struggled a lot with the feeling of “I really love this piece of media/character, and the fact that other people love it too makes me feel like it’s somehow an intrusion upon my profoundly personal connection with this thing” (thankfully I've mostly grown out of that). Online spaces made the world feel too big and me feel too small. Maybe a part of the reason I joined Tumblr was to combat that. I often felt a little like the odd one out in that the internet was never this place of community and connection for me like it is for so many others. I’ve always just felt overwhelmed by it. Now, I’ve curated a nice little corner of the internet for myself, although I do have to keep things in check sometimes and not overwhelm myself through overexposure to content.

Since joining the site and creating this blog, I’ve learned a lot. I have a lot of bad days when I second-guess my wording in every post I make (which I know is silly, because I just make fandom content and random stuff that only a few people will ever see, so the stakes are incredibly low, but anxiety doesn’t care). I have days where the world still feels too big and it's overwhelming to look at posts. But I’ve also begun to learn to express myself more, and that’s vital for me, especially as an autistic person learning to unmask more in my daily life. It feels silly to say that being on this site has been a rollercoaster, but that’s the truth of how I feel. This whole experience has forced me to confront my issues with self-expression, my relationship with external validation and people-pleasing, rejection-sensitive dysphoria, and figuring out healthy self-regulation. Again I feel very silly saying all this about Tumblr of all things. But it’s true.

That's not even to mention how freeing and encouraging it has felt to see how shamelessly people express themselves on here. It's a landscape of radical self-expression, fearless passion, and a kind of transparency I haven't really seen anywhere else. As someone who has repressed myself all my life and am doing the work to unmask more... I can only look on in awe. It's nothing short of inspiring and beautiful, in all it's unfiltered, deranged glory. Thank you to all the people who are openly unhinged on here, because it makes this a safe space for everyone else to express themselves, too. I aspire to that.

All this has also shown me that people are much kinder than I always expect them to be. People here listen to what I have to say, and most are so encouraging and welcoming. Having a few mutuals who always at least like my posts makes me feel… seen. Like I exist and someone else cares at least enough to take a second to give a little positivity. (Shout out to my very kind mutuals. You all always brighten my day when we get to chat in the comments. It genuinely means a lot to me). Not to be too vulnerable, but I've always struggled a lot to make friends, and while I may not be there yet, it’s been lovely to connect with anyone at all. Just getting to like and comment on other people’s posts feels like a nice bit of socialization in my day, however small it may be. It's really encouraging. Makes me feel more human, I suppose.

I guess what I’m trying to say is that I went outside my comfort zone in joining this site, and really realized that (shockingly) going outside your comfort zone does in fact lead to growth. That is, when you don’t push too far and end up overwhelmed. I’m looking forward to growing more. Making posts about things I care about, or just nonsense. Writing fanfiction. Being feral about bg3 and other art I love. It’s all really been pushing me in a good way. Maybe someone else relates.

[mercars-musings]

20 questions for fanfiction writers

Hewwo!!! TYSM to the lovely @sunny374940 & @andthekitchensinkao3 for tagging me in this!!! ;0; I appreciate youse so much ! <3 Answers under the cut ! <3

1) How many works do you have on AO3?

Only 8 so far! My disabilities can stop me from writing as much as I'd like to sadly but I hope to get at least 1 out a month from here on out!

2) What's your total AO3 word count?

Apparently: 20,635 ! I didn't actually expect it to be that much lmfao

3) What are your top five fics by kudos?

Would You Fall In Love With Me Again? - Emrook Angst / Comfort: After trying to claw his way out of the fade for the past 7 years, Rook is pulled back into Thedas only to be confronted by the fact that time passes differently outside of the Fade. {Ft. Fade Prison Trauma Nightmares!}

2. Market Memories - Emrook Angst / Comfort: Rook takes Emmrich to a small market nearby where Rook grew up, however shit hits the fan when they run into someone from Rooks past. that he'd rather forget.

3. Trust & Fish Sticks - Fluffy Sad That heavily features Emrook: This is a short sad & fluffy piece I wrote on Rook Mercar taming & adopting the angry dog that keeps barking outside of the dog crates in Dock Town.

4. Gone Too Soon - A short sad hurt/comfort piece I wrote on Rook Grieving the loss of a friend {Post Cage for Gods - Davrin}. Funny how my fave pieces are all the most popular haha, I need to trust my gut more it seems!

4) What fandoms do you write for?

I only write for Dragon Age atm! I am heavily influenced by Epic the Musical so who knows maybe I'll do some Epic Fanfic in the future! Or something else, I DAV tore me out of a like several year writers block so I'm just taking what comes inspo wise atm!

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

Omg ofc! The comments always give me a huge inspirational boost and is honestly a large reason I've managed to write more after the first piece! Checking my comments & kudos is one of my favourite things to do honestly - it's the least I can do to respond once I see them!

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

Okay so, most of my endings are all fluffy lmfao. I START with angst and then let the boys comfort eachother by the end! Though I guess the one that would class is "Gone Too Soon" since it leaves both Emmrich and Rook still heavily grieving Davrin. This fic was so hard to write it made me so sad :<

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

"Trust & Fish Sticks" for sure!!! Manfred and Doggo are besties, Doggo gets to be part of a loving family, the events of Veilguard are over & Rook & Emmrich have a very fun night ahead of them! ;)

8) Do you get hate on fics?

Thankfully no & I hope I never do! I still can't fathom that some people are that cruel honestly :<

9) Do you write smut?

I *used to* back when I was writing fic years ago, but that was a different fandom & my comfort with sex has evolved over the years as I've realised I'm like a sex neutral GrayAce lmfao. Shit doesn't cross my mind 90% of the time XD

10) Do you write crossovers?

I *used to* not since I returned to fanfic though!

11) Have you ever had a fic stolen?

I don't *think* so? I certain hope not!

12) Have you ever had a fic translated?

Not to my knowledge!

13) Have you ever cowritten a fic before?

Nah, maybe at some point in the future though! Guess it depends on how my latest fanfic journey goes in future! :3

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

Oh shit why would you ask me thiiiiiis!!! ;0; /lh I think ATM it's definitely Emrook BUT I've had so many in the past honestly!

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

I WILL finish it I promise, I'm desperate too ;0; Anyway it's a fic that goes through My Rook Mercars 7 years stuck in the fade. There will be 7 chapters - 5 with each one being an exploration of 1 of the 5 Stages of Grief & how it relates to Az's time in The Prison. Then the last 2 chapters exploring some of the after effects that I haven't covered in prev fics yet! :3

16) What are your writing strengths?

I hear I'm great at making people suffer asdfgjkl; On a serious note I think I'm really good at editing? Honestly proof reading & editing is when I get most of my better work in fics done imo! My works usually AWFUL till then haha

17) What are your writing weaknesses?

Actually getting shit STARTED!!! I struggle to actually put fingies to keyboard and start the process more often than not. Once I've started though I can lose myself in the flow and shit becomes a lot easier! Oh and punctuation for sure. I like weird sentence structure I'm sure I'd be stripped of my Degree if any of my old writing proffs saw me now lmfao

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

I have never tried it, though I can barely manage writing in my own language in general SO I think I'll stick to that lmfao.

19) First fandom you wrote for?

Tim Burtons Alice & Wonderland! I'll actually go further: My next were Charlie McDonald x Matt Smith's Dr Who; BBC's Sherlock & then CW's Supernatural asdfghjkl. Yes I was a SuperWhoLockian & YouTuber Obsessed Child, try not to bully me too hard lmfao

20) Favorite fic you’ve ever written?

It's definitely "Would You Fall In Love With Me Again?" I went into some sort of wild trance and it suddenly existed. I barely had to edit it for once & it is 2 of my current special interests {DAV & Epic The Musical} so likeeeee lmfao

Here's some no pressure taggies! @hyperions-light ; @ofcrowsanddragons ; @taashyvashedan ; @thedissonantverses ; @caughtnyact ; @fangbangerghoul ; @redheadsramblings ; @basedonconjecture

[pandafishao3]

Hi friends, I miss you! I'm on a little break because of health and work stuff, but yesterday I sloooowly started to write again. I'll be updating my fics in the pace that I finish them, so just sit tight and I'll have them all out eventually <3

But here's something I wanted to say:

I loved writing and posting Kinktober, but some fandom-related stuff came with that whole thing that had me needing to take a step back for a moment unfortunately. Ao3 and fandom spaces on Discord have been my safe little world for a long while and I feel my happiest when I get to be here and interact with other writers and readers. I started this particular tumblr a small while back to be able to post and talk even more about fanfics, and while it really has made me become closer to some really awesome people out there, it has also sadly opened me up to that less-nice part of tumblr. I've been on my other tumblr account for about a decade now, and I've kept it extremely anonymous which has allowed me to escape a lot of negative energy so far. But this account is under my "name", under Pandafish, and that made things different.

I don't have any wish to go into details, but anyone who is familiar with tumblr or just open fandom spaces knows the kind of people I'm talking about. People who want to make things into fights simply for the sake of fighting, or people who take advantage of the feeling of fandom spaces being safe and friendly. I tend to trust people within the fandom, I like living in a world where it's rewarding to trust people, and I spend too much of my work time needing to pick fights to want to do that in my spare time. But I've started to feel more uneasy on Tumblr specifically because of some people. Thankfully only very few, but still. This is why I've turned off anon comments. This is also why commissions won't be opening up again for the forseeable future.

Like many other fanfic writers, I work several jobs. Like many other fanfic writers, I'm disabled. I'm not saying this because I want sympathy; I'm saying it because I want people to understand what it takes to continue to write and publish fanfics like so many of us do. I write because it's my favourite hobby - it makes me happy and I love it. What I love even more is the friends I've made because of it. I love how I've found people to be silly with, to be honest with, to be safe with. Fandom spaces have been - and are to an extent still - the only space where I've been able to fully express myself.

For that, thank you.

Here's the rule I want for my online spaces: if you don't have anything nice to say, be quiet and find something you like instead. If you dislike an author or their work, simply leave it alone. If you want more of something I've written, that's awesome, of course you're allowed to tell me you want more. But if I don't respond right away, be okay with that. Sometimes requests can feel pressuring; other days they feel uplifting. I promise never to be rude about a well-meaning comment, if you promise not to leave rude comments.

I want to post more on here. I want to talk to you guys more. And most of all, I want to trust that everyone who messages me wants us to be friends.

If you want the same thing, you're welcome to stay. If not, the internet is a big place. You're free to find a space that doesn't include me.

[blondtaylorfritz]

as the eldest daughter of a poc family, raised by a working mom who served as the primary breadwinners in my family, and whose mom was so busy most of the time as a kid, that I usually only ever see her during late evenings and is mostly taken care of by other adults during the day, the "tashi is a bad mother" takes piss me off a lot, and I take it as a personal offense

like tashi as a mom, reminded me so much of my mother, and the way she treated lily was so similar to how she treated me and my siblings when we were younger, and I fail to understand how any of her actions came off as negligent or uncaring, because nobmatter how I see it, I only see tenderness and softness.

like idk if anyone else who've been raised by a working mom, can also attest, but observing my mom as I was growing up, I could see how she worked so hard to attain a career that would allow her to sustain a family of five, and I've observed how she's tired and and exhausted all the time. but most of all, I became very hyperaware (especially as an eldest daughter™) how much women are made to dangle a balance or to choose between their own personhood, hobbies, and dreams vs. the societal demands of being a wife and mother (in my mom's case, she had to sacrifice her own hobbies and interests in exchange for motherhood). and imo it's so unfair when people are forcing women to either choose between the two, or force them to exhaust themselves to death trying to "have it all", and then condeming them when they don't succeed in either.

and it's like, when people say that tashi is neglecting her family for tennis, they're reflecting that whole misogynistic expectations thing. and I'm like, fine, idc if you dislike tashi, but if you take what you see on screen at face value and conclude that she's a bad mom... like do these people hear themselves?? 😭😭😭

i'm so protective of tashi in general, but i'm especially sensitive to negative commentary on tashi as a mother because so much of it is based on misogynoir. also, i just genuinely believe that the source material DOES indicate tashi is a good, loving mother in the very brief moments we see her in that role. it ALSO doesn't escape my notice that some people will wax poetic about art donaldson as a girldad but condemn tashi as a bad mom, even though between the two donaldson parents, only one is seen on screen directly interacting with lily. (this isn't a slight on people who believe in girldad art because i'm a big girldad art truther, but i'm also just as passionate of a girlmom tashi truther, so my issue isn't with girldad art truthers - it's with those who use the source material to prove art is an amazing father and tashi is a bad mom. thankfully, the people who do this aren't a part of the fandom, and it's a very rare take, but i've still unfortunately seen it.)

the point of the movie also isn't to prove tashi's worth as a parent. it's not a movie about family dynamics. it's very much a movie about art, tashi, and patrick and THEIR dynamics, so whenever people show up trying to prove that art is a good dad but tashi's a bad mom...that just doesn't make sense to me. we purposely don't see a lot of scenes with art and lily or tashi and lily or art, tashi, and lily because that's not the point of the movie. and yes, it DOES make me look at people a different way when they start in on tashi's parenting because ofc the Black biracial woman is the one getting whacked while the white blond man gets praised lol so yes, i do think a lot of the backlash about tashi as a mom comes from misogynoir. we see tashi making so many small choices to make lily's life better, and i think they really do show how much tashi loves her daughter. the lily bracelet, the insistence on staying in hotels, having her mom come along with them instead of hiring a nanny, making time to watch a movie with lily, having lily as her lockscreen, the way she tucks lily into bed at night...all of that shows tashi loves her daughter. (that's also why i PERSONALLY believe that tashi chose to have a baby and actively wanted her baby, but that's a different topic for a different day)

tashi is a successful businesswoman, coach, wife, and mother. she puts a lot of love into her family and her life, and she fights to keep them. she shouldn't have to choose to be JUST a mother or JUST a coach/businesswoman. she's doing both, and she's doing it in a way that works best for her and her family in their very specific, weird situation. because let's be real, the donaldsons' situation is extremely rare. the average person isn't super rich travelling the world to play elite tennis.

anyway, this is my very longwinded way of saying i agree with you. what we see of tashi indicates she's a loving mother, and i personally believe the source material supports that. tashi loves her daughter. she's balancing taking care of her child and being a working person in an absolutely unusual world. people who are going to die on the hill that she's a bad mom maybe need to think about what it's like to be in her shoes in a more empathetic way!!

[rosainta]

Day 4 of Rosain Quivan’s Daily Logs

Started December 10th, 2023 at 8:24PM, Home Finished December 10th, 2023 at 10:45PM, Home Log #4

Author's Notes: Originally, I planned for this short story to be only a two-parter. However, I got so carried away with writing backstory and researching facts about the Siberian Mountains and the USSR that I ended up having enough for two more parts. I hope you don't mind, but hey, at least that means more Heavy and Medic-centred interaction in the future, heehee!

I won't say much more, but I hope you enjoy this history-compliant log, as well as all the little references sprinkled here and there!

Title: King of Hearts (Part Two) Fandom: Team Fortress 2 New Mexico, Badlands, Teufort City, The Cap Point 6:45PM, sometime during the Gravel War

"Well", Heavy begins, "it all starts when I first begin to live in Siberian Mountains with family, after escaping shoot-out in gulag."

Sniper nods, acknowledging the tough living conditions his friend had to endure to provide for his family. If he wasn't so curious about the toughened man's relationship with the team doctor, he would have diverged into another conversation entirely, mostly about survival tips. Ever since he was a child, had always dreamed of living in the mountains one day, just him and his camper van... but that is a story for another day.

"Anyway, our father had just been killed, and we had no money. We could not show face to society, or Soviets would put family back in gulag, so we head to Urals."

"Life was very hard on us, but Heavy had to protect family at all cost. We found small but safe community on far outskirt of Soviet city Magadan, where we meet with kind lady who let us settle in her late husband's house in exchange for manual work and company."

Heavy shifts in his chair and pulls a worn, leather wallet out of his pocket. Flipping through a few cards and other minuscule belongings, he eventually retrieves a small, faded picture.

"Here, this is lady", the robust Russian says softly, holding the photo out for the marksman to see and pointing at an aged figure. "Behind is woman's shoppe. If ever you visit Siberia, you must visit. Is very cozy."

The full image was of a youthful Heavy and his sisters and mother, alongside another woman wearing a red hood and light-brown coat. She seemed to be in her late 40's, but she would most likely be a lot older now, considering the aged quality of the picture. Everyone was smiling happily, with frosty snow cozily blanketing their feet. Behind them was a furnished wooden cabin, with the name "магазин джугджур", which roughly translates to "Jugjur Shop."

"Wow", the bushman half-whispered, "you must owe a lot to her if you kept a shot of her all these years."

Heavy smiles, putting the photo and the wallet back. "Yes, is true. Without her, Heavy and family would have probably frozen to death, or be captured and tortured in another city."

Sniper takes a sip of his martini. "I do have a question, though."

"Go ahead."

"How'd you make sure she wasn't a Soviet? She might'a been a secret agent and turned you in to the police, or maybe even captured you herself?"

"Ah, Heavy had same doubts too at time", he says, tipping the waitress as she brings him his drink.

"Luckily, lady was as anti-Soviet as I was. Her son, who was abroad in Moscow at time, was shot by Soviet officer during civilian massacre. It had ruined her husband, and he had committed suicide only a year after."

"The Soviets had ruined her life and her family, and she hated them with passion that is remarkable for such a nice lady. Maybe it was reason she was so eager to help us when she found out we were refugees."

"Oh. I see. I'm sorry to have brought that up, that must've been hard to recount," Sniper replies silently, slightly stunned and uncomfortable from the sudden change in mood that sprang from his question. Thankfully, Heavy senses his mood and puts his bottle of vodka down next to his martini.

"Do not worry, she is strong woman. Heavy's family takes good care of her, because she is part of us now", the giant says gently.

Sniper worried expression softens to a smile. "That's good to hear, mate."

"Anyway," Heavy continues, "family continues to live in mountains in secret for some time. We hunt bear, and... well, mostly bear, and we cut wood and help run shoppe with lady for a few years before only visiting once a month."

"Is nice, but eventually, family gets bored of seeing snow and killing bear all the time, you know?"

"Ah, yeah," the shartpshooter replies, though he doesn't quite know what to make of that, seeing as he's never done that before. Not minding, Heavy goes on.

"So, one day, Heavy takes family to go out and visit city of Magadan on mother's birthday. At time, I was blinded by boredom, and I did not consider how highly dangerous it was to bring family back to place where we could get imprisoned again."

"But, we were all hungry for something more than food, and it was special occasion after all, so we decided we would hide ourselves with thick coat hood and keep away from guards and populous area."

"At first, we were very excited to be back in a community again. We could see buildings, hear people talking everywhere, smell food that was not killed with fist. But sister Bronislava, who was still quite young at time, was most excited of us all, and she really loved being in city."

"She was always pointing at different stores we pass by, and her laughter when she heard choir boys singing near churches was infectious. However, her most favourite sight of all were boats at the port of Magadan."

"Even when she was very little, Bronislava loved travelling. She read many books on world, and her dream was to visit Paris one day and become pilot. Of course, she knew because of how Russia was at time that this dream could not be possible, but this did not stop her from dreaming."

"So," Heavy says, uncapping his vodka and pouring it into a glass "she was begging for us to go closer to port to see boat. 'Please, brother Misha, let us go on boat and sail!', she would say. But I said no- there were too many guards nearby and we would get caught for sure."

"Aw, can't let a little girl have some fun?," Sniper interrupts, teasing.

"If you don't want to be killed, then no," the towering man replies blatantly.

"Right, sorry, go on," Sniper says quickly, blushing.

"Sister Bronislava would not listen, though, no matter what Heavy or mother or sisters said to her. She would insist and insist, and we had to hold her back at one point so she would not run away herself, but she continued."

"She really wanted to go on the boats. Her whining turned to crying, and her crying turned to screaming, until it was certain a guard would catch us anyway because of how loud she was being. It was miserable and terrifying sight, and Heavy could already feel regret for having endangered and hurt family like this."

"But luckily," Heavy says with a chuckle, "her tantrum did not last very long. Just as family was about to leave and hide from inevitable imprisonment, a very interesting, travelling man tapped my shoulder from behind."

Just as Heavy utters the words, someone really does tap his shoulder. Heavy turns to meet their eyes, and immediately, he grins.

"Eavesdropping again, doktor?", he asks, pulling a chair for him to sit next to him and Sniper.

"Ooh, I simply couldn't resist! Mostly because I can still picture ze face you made when you turned around like a frightened deer", Medic exclaims, laughingly.

Heavy groans and rolls his eyes, whilst his two seatmates look at each other, both surprised and amused.

"The big, tough, scary Heavy, frightened? I'd never imagine such a thing!" Sniper chuckles, clinking his martini glass to cheers with the doctor's fizzing sparkling water.

"It was not as bad as doktor puts it, okay?", Heavy grumbles, eyes averted to their playful gazes. Still, you could tell by the way his face reddened and, again, the way his eyebrows lifted that it was, in fact, as bad as he put it.

"Whatever floats your boat, mein friend", Medic says, no pun intended. Sniper downs his martini in one go, signaling the waitress for another glass.

Wanting to change the subject, the flustered giant gets up to grab a deck of cards on a nearby table. He returns, shuffling the cards in his large, calloused hands.

"Let us continue story over game of cards, yes? I find that it will fit in well with next part."

To be continued in RQDL 5... Credits: Team Fortress 2 by Valve Image source: Team Fortress 2 Written by Rosain Quivan Cross posted on Amino ( Rosain Quivan )

[shrinkthisviolet]

3, 11, 17?

3: What are your top three most commonly used tags on AO3?

Canon Compliant (24), Canon Divergence (19), Brother-Sister Relationships (18). It's hilarious that two completely opposing tags are both my most popular lol but I do write a lot of fics, so that makes sense

(Also Podfic Welcome (51), though that says less about the fics themselves, hence why I highlighted the next top 3)

11: What makes a fic 'successful' in your opinion?

Oooh well usually with fics, I'm trying to tell a certain story and elicit a certain feeling (or feelings). And if it does that, I consider the fic a success! In particular, I rely on the small but loyal audience I've built up to tell me so. But ofc, hearing it from others is very sweet too

It's especially heartening if the fic in question is experimental or out of my usual comfort zone. Ex: the Barry POV fic, which was tackling one of my least favorite tropes, Miscommunication, in a way that I didn't hate (the trope is usually done in a very contrived/unbelievable way, and is often completely brushed over afterwards, both of which I wanted to avoid here). Which people thankfully seemed to like! It's not my favorite fic by any means, but it got across the intended message and feeling

17: What is something you recently felt proud of in your writing?

Taking part in a fandom event, @yearoftheotpevent! And writing two substantial Westallen fics for it (with more probably to come, though I'll probably also switch up ships during the event) :D I always want to take part in fandom events, but they usually take place during busy months, and only during those months, so committing to them is hard. But the format of this makes it really accessible, which I appreciate! Especially since they're very understanding of stragglers 😅 which I also dearly appreciate

fanfic/author ask game!

[beevean]

Please don't ever apologize for your rants! I find them so complete; often having links for other posts where you go deep in a subject. It's so cool! I kind of wish I had a blog like that. You articulate your thoughts very well and in a very cohesive way. I'm actually interested in the possible fic that writes Lenore as an actual character who is held accountable for her actions! I'll surely take a look if you ever post it here <3

goddd i honestly kind of love fandom spaces and creating because of that. The fun discussions and points being made, recreation of something that might have more potential if used or though as x and not y. It's amazing, really.

Be proud of your hard work! I'm trying to be more proud of mine (which is usually a bunch of oc x canon loose scenes in my head), and I know it's difficult. I hope you have an amazing day/night, remember to stay hydrated, and I'm happy to see you ramble!

— 🌻 sunflower anon! (if possible) <33

(🌻 is totally cool! And it's a cute moniker :3)

Yeah, it's because I fear to go in circles, and I'm like "okay, I already talked about this, don't make me rant again". Thankfully I had the big brain idea of tagging Lenore/Lenector posts with their special tags for easier finding. Sadly, I haven't done the same for other characters/concepts lmao.

In all seriousness I'm relieved that you also read the post I link! I fear that, since they're sometimes too many, most skip them and so the point is less clear. I have this problem called "inability to shut up once the sleeper agent in my brain is activated" lmao. But I do try to write clear essays, even if long and full of sources. Thank you for saying that I do <3

As for the fic I started, it all began with me obsessing over some scenes enough that I started thinking on how to rewrite them. And, well, dialogue is easy. Writing everything around it is not lol, especially when it's more of a "rebuilding a character" project. Plus, I obviously want to focus on other projects - I am trying to kick Brain into writing a Hector/Julia fic which I would obviously be more invested in lmao. But sometimes, the brainworms wriggle in a different direction 😔 and well, sadly, it's fun. It's fun to turn Lenore into my own OC while valorizing the good ideas the canon story had, it's a good way to write without expectations and so reduce my perfectionism levels which freeze me like a deer in the headlights with projects I care more about lol; but most importantly, it's fun because I like to put my money where my mouth is. It's one thing to bitch and complain, and another to turn spite into positive motivation, which is IMO the best thing you can do with it.

Can definitely confirm that I can't be thankful enough to have found this corner on Tumblr, where the climate encourages you to think and analyze and gush and create :> my mutuals are the most supportive people <3

I posted some snippets here and there, if you're curious! I found 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 and 6 :3 haven't gotten to the "being held accountable for her actions" part yet, but I did recently rewrite in my drafts the dialogue to make Hector point out that you know, she lied to him for no reason and he's still hurt over it. Sadly he doesn't get much edge into the conversation because Lenore is a bastard and knows how to dodge responsibility and prey on his emotional vulnerabilities (I don't really want him to turn him into my mouthpiece for intellectual honesty), but even a small act of rebellion counts in his situation. I just want that. Not even a whole spine, one hint of a vertebra lol

Good luck with your OC/canon stuff! Remember to not be ashamed of it, and create with passion and love! And I will try to be more proud of my work too! Thank you again for popping into my inbox and having this in-depth conversation, you made my day <3

[thessalian]

Thess vs Lack of Accessibility

Is it petty to just be, like, really really sad right now?

I came to Tumblr because of the Dragon Age fandom. I hadn't been in a fandom in so long, not after the first one, which ... look, getting into a fandom while having a nervous breakdown is a bad thing, okay? Especially when that fandom has named you a BNF for some reason and the responses end up going from "nagging daily to finish a fic" to "long essays shitting on everything you ever wrote" and you're a people-pleaser by nature. Just ... that on top of everything else is ... not recommended. You have no idea how phobic I was of the very idea of fandom. I literally flinch when the media in question comes up (though I have some very good friends because of that fandom and I would not be without them; just ... I will avoid that particular piece of media the same way I do anything overly zealously Christian and conversations about politics with my mother, and for the same reason - my sanity).

Anyway, point is that the Dragon Age fandom gave me back my love of and, more importantly, trust in fandoms. Sure, there's some toxic bullshit, but it isn't like that. Y'all have been so wonderful, and between how awesome the fandom is and how DA: O itself really helped me cope during a particularly dark time, for all I flag up its flaws, I'm always going to have a soft spot in my heart for this franchise.

So of course it makes me happy that everyone's finding something to love about Veilguard and spreading it all over Tumblr. Picking their blorbos and squeeing about Assan and all of that, and it's everywhere. And on one level, I'd love to join in. I'd like to start thinking about what my Rook would be like - which of my internal presets would I send after Solas first? What faction would a Molly be a part of? A Jessie? A Jallira?

...Just ... why, when I probably won't even be able to play it?

One of the reviews had the reviewer literally screw up a livestream by getting knocked over a cliff because her reflexes weren't up to it, and highlighted just how much you need those reflexes and that dodge to actually get through the game. And she couldn't manage. And she's not, as far as I'm aware, fucking disabled. I, on the other hand, am. And it doesn't sound like easy mode and accessibility options are going to get me out of "you have to constantly dodge-roll or experience Death By Cliff".

For most things, I can budget my spoons appropriately. If I want to go to a convention - a big one like MCM or a small one like Dragonmeet - I can plan my life accordingly. But that's a one-off. So is "I'm going to bake things", or "I'm going to make soup", or "I'm going to Borough Market". I can have rest breaks after these things. I can plan them for good days. Most of the time, I can cope with this. I hate it, but I can cope.

But ... I mean, how do you do that kind of thing for a video game that runs so many hours? Too many breaks and you lose the momentum - far too many abandoned playthroughs of BG3 have taught me that. Waiting for good days could have me waiting a week or more before I'm up to even touching it again. If it's not a bad pain day, it could still be a day where I'm having spasms, and believe me, I don't touch anything that requires precision when I'm having spasms ... but sometimes I don't know until I'm trying to do a thing, so I could end up dodge-rolling myself off a cliff if I go to the spasm place.

Thankfully, I'm not the sort of person who turns around and resents the people who are looking so forward to it when I can only sit here and dither over what I'm going to do about this whole mess. I'm glad people are enjoying the anticipation. Just seeing it makes me sad, and I don't want to block the tags because a) I still have some tiny shred of hope and b) that's too many tags.

I resent the fuck out of EA and Bioware, though. I get that they couldn't necessarily go back to DA:O's real-time-with-pause tactical structuring, but moving us to something that's ... probably closer to Kingdoms of Amalur than anything Souls-like but there's still an element of that latter ... anyway, it's a giant fuck-you to the disabled. I've had one of those before. I got chosen for the closed beta of Secret World: Legends when Funcom was making its changes to The Secret World. I was not alone in flagging up that everything from the reticle targeting to the particle effects to the random-roulette light-up stuff all over the UI was a massive trigger for vertigo and migraines. And we all got the same response: "This is what we're doing and we're not changing it; sucks to be you". And it really wasn't that much more polite than my paraphrase, either. (Which is another problem with Veilguard for me, because even that first gameplay trailer full of prologue gave me a migraine that lasted for like two days; part of it was the particle effects, part of it was the glowy redesigns of all the demons, but mostly it was the dodge-rolling making the camera bounce around like a fucking squash ball.)

I resent EA and Bioware for jumping so entirely on the ARPG train that even the best their accessibility options can do don't help. I also resent them for not giving us a fucking demo. I know that AAA games don't do that anymore, for some reason, but how the fuck am I supposed to know whether or not I can play it if I don't have a demo? Steam gives a two-hour return window, and adding the time taken in character creation plus the prologue, that doesn't give that much time to really get a feel for whether or not it's playable, especially not when it depends on the kind of day I'm having.

There are a lot of reasons I hate being disabled. I think most of them boil down to "the people who make accessibility a fucking nightmare". That thing about Borough Market, for example, where I'd have to take a fairly roundabout route to even get there because the most direct route is via a train station that has raised platforms and no elevators, and those stairs were a nightmare even before the cane. And of course, video games. Far too many video games. Including, it seems, the franchise that really got me back into video games in the first place, and one of the first things that really gave me joy after fleeing the abusive ex.

Fuck my life entirely.

[foolishbean]

In my bed at almost 2 in the morning seething over the movie adaptation of Wonder instead of going to bed, so you get to hear my complaining. God they did such a piss poor job on his appearance. Rambling below the cut.

His appearance makes kids run and scream, and then the movie makes him look like the most bland, nonthreatening face in the world. And it's not like it wasn't clear! The book gives a detailed description of what he looks like! So descriptive that the fandom wiki page just gives THAT QUOTE FROM THE BOOK in the section for his appearance!

And it's based on a real syndrome!!! There are people alive with Treacher Collins syndrome!! You can find them! Use them as a starting point! Don't prance about with this fancy label if you're not willing to commit to making the actor LOOK LIKE THAT when his appearance is a CENTRAL POINT OF THE NOVEL YOU'RE BASING YOUR MOVIE ON.

"Ah but Henry it's a lot of work to make an actor look like that... So much makeup.." Tough. You've sterilized your character and it's an insult to the people he's based on. ALSO. Those people you're basing him on? They can act! Find one, or do better!

I think nothing is more damning evidence than the description itself, so the following is pasted straight from the (admittedly fandom) wiki page:

"His eyes are about an inch below where they should be on his face, almost to halfway down his cheeks. They slant downward at an extreme angle, almost like diagonal slits that someone cut into his face, and the left one is noticeably lower than the right one. They bulge outward because his eye cavities are too shallow to accommodate them. The top eyelids are always halfway closed, like he's on the verge of sleeping. The lower eyelids sag so much they almost look like a piece of invisible string is pulling them downward: you can see the red part on the inside, like they're almost inside out. He doesn't have eyebrows or eyelashes. His nose is disproportionately big for his face, and kind of fleshy. His head is pinched in on the sides where the ears should be, like someone used giant pliers and crushed the middle part of his face. He doesn't have cheekbones. There are deep creases running down both sides of his nose to his mouth, which gives him a waxy appearance. Sometimes people assume he's been burned in a fire: his features look like they've been melted, like the drippings on the side of a candle. Several surgeries to correct his palate have left a few scars around his mouth, the most noticeable one being a jagged gash running from the middle of his upper lip to his nose. His upper teeth are small and splay out. He has a severe overbite and an extremely undersized jawbone. He has a very small chin. When he was very little, before a piece of his hip bone was surgically implanted into his lower jaw, he really had no chin at all. His tongue would just hang out of his mouth with nothing underneath to block it. Thankfully, it's better now."

Got that in your head? Envisioning it?

Good. Now, his portrayal in the movie:

Like, what the hell man. Go look up what people with Treacher Collins syndrome actually look like if you want to see exactly how far off it is.

Anyway rant about an 8 year old movie over. Henry out

[cooperscreosote]

@flashfictionfridayofficial

I feel like I kind of missed the point of the story, but I had to think about a certain quote when I thought about what I could write for the prompt, so, uh... I hope it's still alright. ^^

Fandom: The Beatles

Words: 881

Fic under the cut!

~~~

As usual they went out onto the stage, welcomed by frantic screams from thousands of throats. It was deafening, and sometimes it forced them to rely on their other senses instead, mostly their eyes.

The one who couldn't really do that was John. Partly due to his own vanity and partly due to a request of their manager Brian he had never once dared to wear his glasses on stage. Glasses he urgently needed in everyday life...but a singer in a band that was popular with girls, wearing glasses? It seemed like an contradiction in itself.

That was why all John could see as he emerged from the catacombs of the stadion and went up to the stage was bright light and a sea of motion. Waving hands and jumping girls, most likely. He couldn't make out what it was, and he didn't care.

But fortunately there were other senses a human could use. Well, smell and taste wouldn't help him much here, but touch...that was a different matter.

Because one thing he could clearly feel was the sensations of fingers resting on his arm. Of course they belonged to Paul. He was always next to him and navigated him towards the stage. John had always meant to tell Paul that he could easily find that short way himself, but if it meant that this light, careful touch of slender fingers would be a thing of the past...well, being honest wasn't always the best policy.

By now they had reached the stage, welcomed the audience and started playing their first song. And that was when John's world, despite these thousands of screaming girls all around and the vast open sky above them, suddenly became very small.

And frankly, he didn't want it any other way.

As they were singing into the same microphone John's face was extremely close to Paul's. The face of his band mate was all he could see. No girls, no George, no Ringo...no one but the two of them. Apart from the singing he could fully concentrate on taking in the details right in front of his eyes.

So many people said that Paul was the prettiest Beatle, and in John's opinion they had a point. Of course he knew that Paul was a human just like everyone else. He made mistakes and he could be rude, cruel, unfair...no, he wasn't always perfect, but John wasn't going to fault him for it. However, anyone would forget about his sins for a moment if they looked into that face that could be almost called angelic.

It was a familiar sight, and yet John always took it in all over again, as if he saw him for the first time. There was his profile, the cheekbones, the nose...all the features that, put together, created a handsome face. Such a handsome face that made John torn between the need to envy the man and the wish to state his admiration for this abundant prettiness.

His eyes wandered to Paul's eyes. He could clearly see the long, well-formed eyelashes. Girls would kill to look like him, he thought. But instead they love him. Isn't that weird? No, he decided. After all he could relate to their feelings.

Then, as he lowered his gaze a little bit more he fixed his eyes on the part he liked the most of all the features of that pretty face.

The lips.

Even as Paul was singing it wasn't hard to admire them. Using them to sing wasn't the worst way to use that mouth, but there were other options, right?

He had often thought about how he could easily kiss Paul, if he wanted to do so. They were so close, and he wondered if these lips really were as soft as they looked if he'd just-

No. Here he had to stop himself. Thankfully they were done with one song and Paul turned away to announce the next one. Which meant the tantalising sight was gone, at least for the moment.

Not that it helped much. It wasn't just seeing him, really. John could also feel Paul's presence. Even if he closed his eyes, he still knew that the other man was right there, beside him. His presence was the one fixture among the often chaotic scenes around them.

He could hear his voice, even over the cacophony of other voices. He could smell a mixture of aftershave and sweat, as Paul was always completely exhausting himself on stage. Sometimes he felt that fleeting touch of fingers again, as Paul lightly patted his arm to bring something to his attention.

About ten songs and half an hour later they had finished another concert. John thought that it was a shame. Another occasion to be so extraordinarily close to Paul was over.

And one thing was pretty sure: thinking back later he most likely wouldn't be able to remember their setlist or their stage banter or whether the girls had screamed especially loud. But he would remember the gentle curve of Paul's long eyelashes and the sight of his soft lips moving to form the words he was singing.

It was odd, but at some point he had realised that these small things mattered more than everything else.

[spookystarfishzombie]

Just a little 'hello & welcome to my blog' post.

Most people have a pinned introduction post & I thought I should probably get on that. This will also double up as a FAQ post too.

Also, if you wanna buy me tea, you can -> (green tea of course)

First & foremost: FREE PALESTINE! I won't hear any different, go argue with a wall (no it's not performative, as I have been accused of in the past (all because I criticised actors/singers/etc.), I've attended marches, signed petitions, written to my local MPs, attended meetings & help set up fund raising events, so fuck off with your 'performative activism' buzz words, I'm not here for it).

As I run a Stranger Things page, it's worth noting that I do not support the zi0nists/pro-isr*el folks in the show, most notably No*h Schnapp (tagged as 'he who shall not be named (you can blame his stans for that tag)) & Br*tt Gelman (tagged as 'the other 'he who shall not be named''. I honestly think he's downright insane). If you're one of these people that downplays what was said & done by them then this page probably isn't for you. And since some children in the fandom can't tell the difference between criticism and hatred/being an anti, I don't hate these people (well maybe Gelman because he's actively causing my community a terrible reputation), I just hope that through education & compassion they see how wrong & hurtful their words/actions have been.

Thankfully, I've been educated my whole life about isr*el through the Holocaust legacy we have in our family, my great-grandmother having survived it & actively fought against the idea of isr*el, how it's just going end up brainwashing so many youths into thinking they can just turf indigenous people from their literal homes. I've unfortunately been to isr*el when I was a child because my dead beat father seemed to think it was a good idea, even if my beloved great-grandmother pleaded with him not to. Luckily my mom did the right thing & left him & my step-father has been great. He used to blindly support isr*el until he finally educated himself & has felt terrible that this was his mindset for so long. Change can happen, but you need to detangle yourself from isr*el's cluthes & realise that it's more important to protect the real indigenous people of Palestine. Listen to the Rabbi's out in the streets, protesting. Listen to the Jewish Community when we tell you that Zi0nism is a dangerous thing that has weaponised Judaism & played the victim to use as a shield ... okay that got heavy. Moving on!!!!!

Secondly, Hi, I'm Kay (she/her), I'm a veteran of Tumblr, unfortunately. I love watching films, I love to draw, read & have green fingers, yes I'm a plant mama, I just love plants. My prized plant is my monstera because she started off so small & now she's doubled in size. So happy! I also put the B in LGBTQ, I'm very proud of the bi community & love being part of it (biphobes, especially within the queer community, are truly baffling to me - so take your biphobia elsewhere, or better yet, you know, educate yourself? It's not a hard thing to do). I also have crippling anxiety & I'm irritatingly shy, I wish I wasn't but I've always been shy, so if you want to talk to me, you're going to have to be the one to reach out otherwise I'm radio silent (I'm working on it). I'm an adult, so if you're a minor, sorry, I won't be forging friendships. But you're awsome, just know that!

I used to have Texts From Last Night (TFLN) blog for Stranger Things a few years back that was basically the same as this blog (except back then I had thousands of followers *sigh*). I deleted it because a) people were annoying about it, b) people didn't seem to understand that this wasn't to be taken seriously & c) I got chased off the site because apparently labelling Mike as bi was a death sentence. I said fuck it, & deleted. I started it around when season 2 came out & deleted just before season 4. But I'm hoping the fandom is a little more mature now & I can start up with a fresh, new Stranger Things TFLN blog again, mainly because I miss making edits. Making edits helps take my focus off my anxiety. Yay anxiety.

I take texts from the site Texts From Last Night (it's no longer being maintained, unfortunately), then I take screencaps from my own laptop or from a site called screencapped, then throw it altogether (if you want to look at the site for yourself, just a trigger warning, some of the texts are either gross or bigoted - so just a heads up, I obviously filter out those ones from my blog, I don't want that on here).

I do sometimes edit the original TFLN to fit the screencap, so if the original TFLN mentions a name, I'll change the name to say, for example, Lucas or Nancy. I'll change it if it includes ages & place names too, just to fit with Stranger Things. I also sometimes add my own Text to make it flow smoother, for example this one with Steve & Eddie (the post), the original TFLN only had the 'Eddie' part but I didn't think it flowed well, so I made up a 'Steve' text with a made up area code, so it made more sense that 'Eddie' was responding to 'Steve' rather than just having it as a stand alone text (I really over-complicate my descriptions, huh?).

The numbers on the posts are area codes, & the texts aren't colour coded, I just use what ever colour stands out against the background. I also don't do it by ships; I'll find a text that I think is funny & find a screencap that roughly matches up, so please don't request ship/character posts. I'll maybe do submissions at a later date, where you can send in your funny texts but right now, I'm just making my way through the TFLN site.

Not a particularly interesting introduction post but there you go. I ain't got much to say, I guess. But I will say thanks for your support so far on here, you guys seem to be enjoying the posts & that's all that really matters. Much love!

Kay

x

[ouatsnark]

saw someone claim that emma wasn't herself in s6 because the show claimed that she was emotionally healed and happy and have the photos of her in distress and that the whole time hook and her being engaged to him was the source of her issues (it def wasn't lolz) and that s1 emma was perfect all she had to do was to learn to trust those around her and open up to family and she was there at the end of s1 without hook....uh she was barely there and her arc wasn't even over...weridos

When did the show claim she was emotionally healed? The bull shit they come up with...

So this sounds like what we deal with when the SQers try to tear down Emma's looks by using carefully selected screen caps:

If Emma was perfect in S1 then she wouldn't have had to learn anything.

But Emma did learn a lot about herself, her family and what she wanted in life. She learned how to trust, love and not fear the future. She went from someone who was closed off with a small world view to someone who was very open, empathetic and realizing that the world wasn't as small as she once believed. How does that not change you?

It's crazy that SQ believes that character growth can happen without having a significant impact on you. People change. Life changes us.

Oh but wait, Regina supposedly went through a whole ass redemption and she never changed at her core (still a condescending bully). But thankfully on this side of the fandom we stan characters that grow and emulate that growth.

It's really crazy when you think about their infatuation with saying Season 1 Emma is the better Emma because that Emma was not anymore in love with Regina than Emma in later seasons. Season 1 Emma hated Regina and was trying to save her son from Regina.

The only reason they want Season 1 Emma is because that Emma wasn't attached to a man. Or she was, Graham, but he died pretty quickly so they can just ignore it.

Regina is more to blame for Emma's problems than Hook.

In order to claim that Hook is the source of Emma's issues they have to completely ignore Emma's visions of her death and completely ignore that it is part of Regina that is actively trying to hurt her parents.

Killian Jones isn't causing any of this.

And yes, I 100% agree with this.

Emma will always have a significant weight on her shoulders because she has taken up her cause of ensuring that everyone gets a happy ending. It is her job to protect the entire town when there is trouble. That is a lot of pressure.

But that's OK because at the end of the day she's found happiness with the man that is beside her and supports her in every way

This is also covered in the first link up there. It's not only Regina stans that say this but Rumeblle too which is just even more hilariously hypocritical.

But to answer your plea for them to stop... No, no they can't and they never will stop. It's one of the most popular talking points they use to try and prop up their toxic ship.

[kmze]

I know exactly which panel you're talking about.Never watched the full video but YouTube algorithm brought one of those Insta-story type videos to my timeline. I think the only way to handle this level of behaviour is by hoping they'd reflect on how they acted while deluding themselves into thinking they were cool and edgy.I think it is fans like these that the writers took a dig at through their writing.In 8×03,When Caroline and Bonnie went wedding dress shopping,Bonnie said "I'm honoured to be your maid of honour and not because my main competition is in a coma till I die" This is them calling out the fandom's belief that Bonnie and Caroline were Elena-substitute or replacements in every step of the way so much so that they actually believed Caroline would make Elena her maid of honour and Bonnie didn't stand a chance.And the same goes for the ~Stefan dated caroline because Nina left~ because Candice was replacing Nina.They refused (& still do) to acknowledge Caroline and Bonnie as individual characters and Candice and Kat as actors who deserved respect.And this sentiment stems from a very mean-mindedness that people are replaceable.And they do so because they think they are demeaning Caroline and Bonnie while they fail to understand that they are objectifying Elena in the process.Everyone is unique in their own way.Each of these women played a different part and they were all equally important in the story.

God algorithms are the bane of my online existence, like I started using Tumblr again because this seems to be the only site I can avoid them and search for what I want. I have seen that small snippet from that panel so many times in Google or Twitter if I search "steroline" but I had to dig for that one of Marguerite doing Liz's letter because that wasn't something to be used as a weapon against a ship. Google is the worst if I search Google the main stuff that comes up is from Reddit which is FLOODED with D*bsley shippers and one of the first things that comes up is "Do people actually like steroline" like eat a dick! This fans just pounce on anything they can use for negativity because they are still crying inside about the endgame, like people use that clip of Candice to say she doesn't like SC and prefers KC as if there's not MULTIPLE gifsets of Candice throughout the years hating that ship. Even Paul calling it forced (which is EVERYWHERE on Twitter and YouTube now) even though there's an interview he did while filming S6 calling it such a slow burn it's almost glacial.

The way the actresses have been treated by fandom for years has always been disgusting, for the most part I think that's why Kat, Candice and Nina avoided cons for so many years and they still don't attend with the frequency of the male actors because. I remember sometimes in S8 there was a video released of Kat calling some storyline garbage and a certain fandom was calling for her to be fired on Twitter with pitchforks and telling her she should be grateful for the job she has and fam THE SHOW WAS OVER! What is she gonna get fired from IT'S OVER! But Paul could drag the show and the writers constantly and it's always seen as funny and "telling it like it is" that's how deep the misogyny goes with this fandom. And I think JP & Co deserve a lot of the blame for that because they perpetuated it especially with her terrible treatment of Bonnie/Kat and the way she continues to cater to ship wars. Watching that panel she did with Carina and Marguerite talking about how much influence social media had on DE and KC being ships is just sad. I don't know if the network really influenced her a lot because they were concerned about ratings, or it was just her in general not being able to mute them but it's just like why are letting online brats influence your story that you created?

I remember when Cami was killed of on TO and then an episode or so later Davina was also killed (and her death was brutal to watch thankfully she came back) an article came out like "why are we killing so many women on TV this week" and yet they still didn't get the wake up call.

[the-kipsabian]

you're genuinely a great writer, and you've improved a lot since i've been following you. you're really very talented! you get low engagement because you write for a rarepair, in an already not-so-big fanbase. the whole thing with fanfiction is that people read about what they know, stories that expand the media that they already like. if you want to write about something you're passionate about: continue going the way you are. you're improving, and learning, and getting experience. if you want engagement, write for a popular fandom. you have to choose your path. i understand it's frustrating, but not even the most skilled, perfectly articulate and endlessly evocative writer can get engagement in a tiny fandom. 's just how this works, man. it sucks.

like see. i totally understand this. trust me this isnt my first rodeo with stuff like this, unfortunately

the thing thats mostly frustrating to me is that the interactions have stopped almost entirely. that they used to be there once. yeah most notes in any of my posts are still my own reblogs, but there used to be actual interactions there. there were tags in reblogs. there were reblogs and likes. now theres barely anything when i do share something

like yes i get it, this is a very small rarepair in a niche fandom, and im not expecting a lot. im expecting the bare minimum above nothing. and for the most part there isnt anything there anymore. i know theres a lot of reasons for this, and im not blaming anyone or whatever, i dont want it to sound like that - i just want to be seen and i dont think that should be too much to ask even in the case of a small rarepair in a niche fandom

that being said, yeah no im not changing anything im doing. this is where my passion and my heart is and this is what i enjoy doing and what makes me happy. i never wanted to be "popular"; again, i just wanted to be seen. and seeing the curve of interactions going down from the previously already small numbers just makes me sad. ive thankfully gotten into the mindset of wanting to really only write for myself and one other person who i know genuinely likes my work, and thats good enough for me. which i guess is contradictory to what ive been saying, but i think despite that im allowed to be a little sad about this whole thing. i think every artist just wants to be seen and heard at times, no matter what

anyways, i appreciate you nonnie. im just sad cause the amount of energy it takes to put something out there and then not getting anything back, when im already hanging by a thread at almost all times so its very taxing. so like. i dont know