#and then realized he had to go out in public and interact with society

[audliminal]

Survivability Bias Pt 2

Masterpost

Danny spends the next few days exploring the town more, while he considers the implications of everything he’d learned  at the library. He’d taken notes, but they’re not exactly the best. Danny’s never been that good at taking notes, after all, but he has a pretty good memory, so the various key words and few quotes he’d scribbled down are plenty useful in reminding him of all the wild shit he’d read about.

There’d been a lot of history involved in the whole meta situation. It seems like these so-called meta humans, and various other races (species? Danny doesn’t know nearly enough about the cultural implications of that) have been around long enough to have had a significant impact on the world at large. And yet, at the same time, there really hadn’t been a lot of personal information on any of the heroes. Oh, there’d been plenty on some of the villains - and of course there’d still be villains here, he’s not lucky enough to escape that - but aside from various speculation about their romantic lives, and a few acknowledgements of family ties here and there, there’d been very few details about where most of them actually came from.

Superman, for example (he seemed to be this world’s go-to example of metas and superheroes), is listed as being an alien, who’s powers come from his biologies unique interaction with this planet’s atmosphere, although it doesn’t explain anything about what that means. Interestingly, there seems to be almost no speculation about Superman’s so-called secret identity. Only about half the listed heroes seem to have one according to the public, but Danny knows that song and dance too well to fall for it. Honestly, they’re even more likely to have a secret identity than Danny himself, seeing as Danny’s alter ego is literally dead. Not that ghosts seem to be much of a thing here.

He’d felt so silly looking up information about ghosts, right before leaving the library. Compared to the deep dive into recent history, googling “are ghosts real” must have looked insane if anybody could see it. The answer he’d returned had been not unlike the way things had been when he was ten or twelve. Before the portal, you’d see dumb ghost hunter shows where they never actually saw much of anything. Ghosts were, like, poltergeists that moved your furniture around and slammed the doors shut. The results here had been a little more interesting - clearly in a world where superheroes are a fact of life, fantastical stuff is a little more rational, and the speculation was clearly affected by that fact, but it still had been, seemingly, all speculation.

Of course, none of that really mattered when it came to Superman. Danny was at least ninety percent sure he wasn’t a ghost. And even if he somehow was, it didn’t change the fact that he either has a secret identity, or he basically never takes part in society. And if he doesn’t have a secret identity, then the question very much becomes why not. Because that means he either has no real reason to care about anyone here (which seems implausible), or he’s unable to spend that time in public. It’s that possibility that’s knocked out any chance of Danny approaching any of the heroes. Because there’s always the possibility that the endorsed heroes are being used to lure other metahumans in. And Danny doesn’t know nearly enough about this world to make any kind of judgment on what’s most likely here. After all, historically there’s plenty of examples of governments that  work with specific people among targeted groups, in order to more successfully take out the others. it tends not to end well for those people when it’s all over, but anyone who’s short-sighted or even just backed into a wall enough can fall for that.

Hell, the GIW had actually tried that line on Danny once or twice, not that he’d ever accepted. After all, they’d never realized that was actually sort of alive, so their pitches had always been... less than convincing. 

Danny blinks, reaching out to touch the brick wall in front of him. He hadn’t meant to come back here, but honestly at this point, he really shouldn’t be surprised. This random little alley on side street wouldn’t be interesting at all to anyone else. But if Danny stares long enough, he can almost see the green-tinged light of the portal that brought him here. Not that he’d ever seen the portal from this side. He hadn’t turned to look until after the light had faded. The idea of seeing his friends’ faces through the swirling green had been too much.

They had all known exactly what it meant when he came here. The difficulty of the journey was the point. Between the anti-ecto acts gaining not just mainstream awareness, but support, and the GIW gaining access to better funding and training, well, the second the GIW had started successfully ending ghosts, it seemed like all the denizens of the zone had collectively decided to stay the fuck home.

At first Danny had enjoyed it, had relaxed and been excited to finally be able to focus on just being a teen. But the GIW hadn’t calmed down, had just started going even more on the offensive, and the second he and Jazz had noticed agents showing up casually at their house, everyone had gone into full alert.

That’s how they found out that the next goal was to apparently take the fight to the zone itself.

The conclusion had been easy from that point. The portal needed to be destroyed, and fast. But with the ghost zone blocked off (and Danny’s death being the unknowing link that made the portal ever work in the first place), that would leave Danny as one of three remaining targets.

They’d all immediately agreed that Vlad could figure out his own solution. Dani- well, she had been traveling, but the second she turned up, the others had made plans to send her on her own one way portal trip too.

Of course, the likelihood that she’d end up here is probably minuscule. So he’s alone.

“Hey,” a stern voice cuts through Danny’s thoughts. He glances over to the person who’s standing at the door to a building. “There’s no loitering here.”

Right. It’s almost easy to forget, in the face of his life’s inescapable absurdity, that to everyone else in this town, he just seems like a possibly-homeless delinquent. Not that the delinquent part is unfamiliar.

“Sorry,” Danny mutters belatedly, realizing that the person is just waiting as he stares at them like a weirdo. He’s not very good with people anymore. Not that he was that good to begin with. Phantom had been a Ghostly Menace, constantly destroying the town with his fights, nobody had expected him to function as a person. Nobody had thought he was a person. But as Danny Fenton- well, he’d fallen short of just about every expectation set at Danny Fenton’s feet.

Distantly he wonders if his friends even bothered to disguise his disappearance. He’d always kind of wondered if his parents would ever notice if he and Jazz just- left. School definitely noticed, though most of the faculty would probably take it as completely expected. After all Danny Fenton was a terrible student, constantly skipping class and never doing his work, and even when he was in class he was usually halfway to falling asleep anyways. Lancer had certainly lectured him about his lack of discipline more than enough. So they might just come to the conclusion that he’d dropped out and run away.

He doesn’t know if he’d prefer that, honestly. The truth is messed up and complicated and frankly, unbelievable. But maybe if they knew the truth at least one person might feel a fraction of sympathy for all the bullshit that he’d been dealing with. Funny, Danny thinks, how coming here feels more like a death than when I actually died.

[milykins]

Sunshine

This is based on an AU where the turtles eventually did decide to take Chief Vincent's advice and go public. This also ties into my headcanon where they all have jobs and own their own businesses. This particular scene was actually from an RP with the lovely @danceingfae it was just begging to be written.

Michelangelo × female reader

No warnings - just Mikey being a sweetheart when his girlfriend is feeling insecure.

Aged up characters of course

It’s no secret that ever since the turtles had decided to come out of hiding and join common society that Mikey had become something of a celebrity. He attended parties and charity events. Hosted his own events at his comic book shops and flirted and met up with girls from time to time. This was his lifestyle for a while. He’d initially thought it was the best thing ever. He got to have his fun, finally have the life he’d dreamed of, meeting girls, having relationships, one-night-stands, whatever he liked.

This all changed when he met you, of course. He’d had a couple failed relationships under his belt that hadn’t lasted long. One crazy girl had cornered him in his shop after hours, stripped off all her clothes, and begged him to put a baby in her. That was kind of the turning point where he realized that maybe being a celebrity isn’t all it’s cracked up to be. Meeting you and falling in love with you brought the realization that this was all he needed and all he’d ever wanted.

He still had fans, of course, still had girls coming up in restaurants and coffee shops asking for a picture and his autograph, but it had slowed down considerably after the internet had found out he was taken. Mikey hadn’t minded that at all. It gave him more space to breathe and more time to spend spoiling and loving on his girlfriend.

On this particular day he’d taken you to a Panera Bread. He knew you were craving their signature broccoli soup in a bread bowl combo and had decided to treat you to lunch.

The two of you had been chatting, and you had been just about to steal one of his muffin tops when a gaggle of teen and older girls rushed their table asking for their usual pictures and autographs. Mikey was happy to oblige but did tell them to make it quick because he was having lunch with his girl, sending a flirty wink your way.

You blushed, giggling softly. He always made a point of making you feel special in situations like these.

One girl in particular wasn’t satisfied with just a picture and an autograph. She’d been giving you the side-eye during the entire interaction and blatantly slipped him her number right in front of you.

Now, this did sometimes happen, but Mikey was always quick to rebuff it. As the girl turned to leave, he had gotten up from the table to follow her.

Initially, the girl looked pleased, but her expression quickly turned sour when she found he was handing it back to her.

Mikey was unendingly kind about it. “Hey, thanks, but I’ve already found someone who has my heart. Here’s your number. You should save it for the right guy for you.”

Her face reddened in embarrassment as she snatched the number from him. Anger bubbling into rage she decided to be nasty. “You’re kidding, right? That’s your girlfriend?”

The unkind words were heard by everyone, especially you. You shrank in your seat, wishing you could disappear and wanted to forget about eating altogether and run.

Your boyfriend is stunned a moment at the venomous words but he is ever the gentleman as he answers. “Yes, she is my girlfriend, and I’m very proud that she chooses to be with me. Have a good day.”

Tears were threatening to spill over when he came to collect you, taking you out of the restaurant for a breather. “I am so sorry…” He softly spoke as you both sat on a bench nearby.

The words still stung as you clung to his orange hoodie and buried your face in his chest. You couldn't help but cry softly into him, feeling ugly and stupid. It seemed he knew exactly what to do to counter this, and it didn’t take long for you to realize you were being rocked. Mikey was singing to you.

“You are my sunshine… my only sunshine…”

The soft singing broke you out of your reverie as you wiped your eyes while simultaneously craning your neck to look at him.

Mikey actually was pretty good at singing, his voice was smooth, melodic and comforting as he continued.

“You make me happy… when skies are grey. You’ll never know dear, how much I love you. Please don’t take my sunshine away.”

A shaky breath is exhaled as tears threatened to overtake you once again.

“You okay, babycakes?” He whispered, caressing your face.

You answered, “Yes…” but it doesn’t sound at all convincing and he knows it. You can see him quietly asking you to be honest with him and find yourself confessing how you really feel. “I was just… feeling like I’m not… not good enough…”

Mikey calmly tucks your hair behind your ears so he can see your face. “Tell me why you feel that way.”

You’re unable to stop these feelings of shame and insecurity as you get all choked up again. “Why me? You… you could have anyone you want… but you chose me, why?”

His response is automatic like he’d been waiting for you to ask him this.

“Babe… you’re not just anyone. You’re mine. You’re all I want, and I think about you, like, all the time. Any other girl pales in comparison to you. Heck, they could be a playboy pinup, and I still would pick you. You are all I need.”

You can’t help but giggle as more tears spring to your eyes, the good kind this time and you have to kiss him because if you don’t in this moment, you’ll feel like you regret it.

The kiss is slow, sweet and passionate and you parted breathlessly, gazing at each other.

“I love you…” The confession catches him by surprise because neither of you had been the first to say it… until now.

Now, it’s Mikey’s turn to feel emotional. His voice is quiet and a little unsure as he asks for confirmation. “You love me?”

“Yes.” You answered without hesitation. “I love you, Michelangelo.”

Strong arms banded around you as he kissed you with even more fervor, before pulling back just as suddenly. “I love you too!” He’d been so caught up with kissing you that he’d forgotten to say it back.

You giggled and kissed his beak. “Well, I’m glad we got that out of the way, all it took was… a crazy fan.” She can’t help but laugh.

He laughed, too. “Just know, babe, that I’m proud to be with you, I’ll shout it from the rooftops if I have to… want me to? I’ll do it right now!” his smile and enthusiasm are infectious, and you are giggling as you shake your head.

“This is enough, I’m just glad you’re with me.” You had just snuggled into his embrace again when your stomach growled, reminding you both you still hadn’t eaten.

Mikey kissed your nose and stood, bringing you to your feet. “Let’s finish our lunch, babe.”

“That sounds perfect.”

From that moment on, nothing could shake your confidence in your relationship with Mikey. Nothing. He was there to stay, and so were you.

The End

@danceingfae @thelaundrybitch @iridescentflamingo @redsrooftopprincess @ninnosaurus @the-cauldron-witch @thepinkpanther83 @avery73 @adebauchedsloth @sophiacloud28 @definitely-canon @scholastic-dragon @truffle-reblogs

[yestrday]

the first thing I think of when Reader is portrayed as naive and innocent in an AU is how in the future they’re worse then all their hybrids combined, and I’m getting some major brainrot over the hybrid AU so just hear me out here ‼️‼️

Reader was of course innocent and naive, sheltered in every way, but that was before their father suddenly decided that playing the role of a doting father in public would boost his dying image more then keeping reader locked up

So Readers thrust into the life of an heir, forced to come to grips with the cold harsh reality that is the business world, and realize that they’re never going to have any true power or freedom as long as their father is still around

So they plan and scheme, analyzing their fathers greatest achievements and his worst failures, learning all about how to play the business world, and people in general, like a fine tuned instrument. Just patiently waiting till their fathers gradual cover ups over the years suddenly make their way into the public eye.

And when it’s revealed that Readers parent abandoned them and then picked them up again for his entertainment, forcing them to turn to mere hybrids for genuine human interaction?

Well, both those concerned for Reader, and those not, take note. Suddenly investigations are happening and their fathers tax fraud and million dollar bribes are revealed, and oh what’s that, he’s also involved in multiple different crime organizations? How horrible

Reader miraculously finds themself to be the CEO how every company that their father had, an owner of all of his properties, and immeasurably rich beyond belief when their father dies in jail under simply tragic circumstances.

Only this time, Reader won’t let the opportunity to take the world by storm pass by. After all, they have a rather beautiful collection of hybrids waiting at home for them, and you know how clingy beloved pets are when you make them wait.

You cant blame the poor darlings though, the public whispers behind lustful gazes and adoring stares, they just can’t get enough of their powerful owner

actually anon this ask (which has been fermenting in my ask for a year now) has been the inspiration in why there's been a whole heir sub plotline in my hybird works.

i like the idea of the hybrids subtly corrupting the innocent bird that's been in their cage for far too long, now able to spread their wings but just doesn't know how. they feed darling whispers about how their parent abandoned them, how they're the only family they have. and all of them are oh so eager to follow reader's convoluted schemes to bring down their father and the company's enemies.

i find that corrupting darling would have many benefits to the hybrids. one, well, corruption arc? it would be just so lovely to see your naivety crushed and broken, making you rely on them not as your protectors but also as your fellow sinners in this plan. two, since you're so influential, you'll be able to at least influence society's views on hybrids. you'll be in a high enough position to influence lawmakers to loosen their binds on hybrids, to make hybrids equal... idk, just a thought.

this only applies to zhongli, since he's bound by a contract to your father, but this could be the perfect opportunity to revenge. what better way to take revenge on the man who coerced you into a humiliating contract than watch his own flesh and blood (who he does love despite all his callousness) impeach him from his throne and throw him into jail. it's perfect. plus, he'll be able to spend freedom with you forever and ever <3

[dean-a-mean-tae]

Updated "Western" Friends | Stray Kids Additional Member AU

Nicholas is still friends with some of the other people from the 1st western friends post, but he's also made new ones.

WARNINGS: Let me be delusional. Mention of Cardi and Nicki scandal. "Fans" being weird about Nicholas and his friendship with women. I don't know if there's anything else.

Nicholas Ross Master List

✧*̥˚𝘽𝙞𝙡𝙡𝙞𝙚 𝙀𝙞𝙡𝙡𝙞𝙨𝙝*̥˚✧

Menaces To Society

Nicholas was a fan of Billie since Ocean Eyes. He eventually reached out to congratulate her on making it big, and give her a heads up on what to expectation versus reality on the spot light. He told her to reach out if she ever needed anything or just to talk to him.

Surprisingly, Billie reached out very randomly and just needed to rant. She claimed it felt "better to rant to someone not in the situation because then they wouldn't be biased." She was right. Nicholas was able to give her multiple perspectives on what she was going through while coming to a conclusion on how she felt. They've been friends since.

Nicholas kind of adopted Billie and now they have a great friendship. Unfortunately, there are some people who think it's creepy for Nicholas to be friends with Billie and continuously express that. It doesn't stop Billie from posting about Nicholas being a dumbass. "It's moments like this where I question your logic. Cause what made you think that was a good idea?"

Bonus: Billie is aware of some of Nicholas's trauma thanks to the few videos he's done on them, but she wants, and is waiting, for him to tell her himself.

✧*̥˚𝘾𝙖𝙧𝙙𝙞 ���*̥˚✧

I'm Not Fighting You, But She'll Do It For Me

Unsurprisingly, Megan is the one who introduced them to each other. She wanted to know if the three of them could do a collab. Unfortunately, JYP didn't approve of this so the idea was scrapped. But that didn't stop Cardi and Nicholas from keeping in touch.

The feud between Cardi and Nicki started the distance between Nicholas and Nicki. Nicholas knows the Barbz, or Nicki's fans, started the feud but it irritated him that the two continued it. He, of course, never spoke on it no matter how many times people asked about it. Nicholas's continuous stance of staying indifferent in the situation, even though he knew Nicki before Cardi, is also what pulled her further into nurturing him.

Shortly, after Nicholas and Nicki had a fall out, Cardi stepped in to help take care of him. When Nicki stopped checking in, Cardi checked in. When Nicki stopped responding, Cardi would respond and constantly reach out. "Listen, you ain't gotta worry about her no more, aight? Ima look out for you."

Bonus: Cardi made sure she told Nicholas about her pregnancy with Wave (her son) before he found about the news. She said it made it more special to hear it from the momma rather than some news person.

✧*̥˚𝘾𝙤𝙘𝙤 𝙅𝙤𝙣𝙚𝙨*̥˚✧

The Funniest and The Hottest

Nicholas is known by American Stays to say Coco Jones quotes. There are so many compilations of him quoting other famous people and eventually it got onto Coco's feed. She tweeted a clip of him quoting her word for word with a goofy look and all.

Their friendship isn't really known because they don't interact in public. With them living on different sides of the planet, the time zones, and the lack of interaction on the internet, it's not a easy thing to point out.

They're such bad influences on each other. Stay already knew Nicholas was a goofball, but when he met Coco and they did video collabs together with Terrell, everyone realized Nicholas was a idiot who needed to be protected at all costs.

Bonus: They communicate through memes and TikTok, which is amusing to the boys. Their whole message feed thingy is filled with pictures and videos.

✧*̥˚𝙇𝙖𝙮 𝘽𝙖𝙣𝙠𝙨*̥˚✧

Tall & Lean and Short & Slim

Ironically, Nicholas learned about her through TikTok because of her song Ick. He played the song in front of his father, and the man was disgusted that this was the music his son was listening to. For the whole time he visited his family, Nicholas had the song on repeat.

Nicholas sent Lay a DM to thank her for helping him piss his parents off. After explaining what happened after a very confused response from her, she found the situation hilarious and posted about it while making sure to keep his identity hidden.

If you thought people went crazy about Nicholas and Billie, imagine their reaction to his friendship with a 19 year old. After this Nicholas just kind of adopted Lay and added her to his list of adoptive children. It only consists of Billie and Lay, but it's the fact he has "kids" that leaves him tickled.

They're is a time difference so they kind of just spam each other and wait for the other to reply. Usually, Nicholas is up late so it means he can respond when Lay is getting up in the morning.

Bonus: Nicholas got Lay to help prank Chan by using a voice effect that made her sound like a kid. It went something along the lines of him telling Chan he needed help keeping his kid hidden with Chan being confused on when Nicholas had time to actually have a child without him knowing.

Nicholas Ross Master List | ©️DEANAMEANTAE2024

Tag List: @bada-lee-ily @jinnie-ret @hwxnghyynjin @foxilsdenn @rensahazard @mynameisnotlaura @lucianidealz @ziipzeepzop-eez @ilovejeongin007 @michelle4eve @leezanetheofficial @spookzyclown

You can be added by asking in the replies, sending me a message, or doing an ask thingy.

[kindheart525]

What are Nee and Dur’s adult lives like?

I’m so glad you asked, thank you so much! I previously joked that Nee and Dur were “in and out of jail and fleeing from the law” as adults, but that’s not exactly true. In reality they’re doing very well, no longer going on grandiose Mr. Frog-style rampages that make national news but now settled down and running a humble little laundromat. They’ve really turned themselves around.

That’s what the public sees, anyway. The real story is that their antics got them in a lot of trouble that only mounted as they got older. Their habit of biting people as children evolved into serious criminal offenses as they entered adulthood, in a lifestyle that was not sustainable. See, their childhood idol Mr. Frog can get away with such extreme violence because he’s a beloved TV star and former President of the United States, but ordinary citizens like Nee and Dur don’t enjoy such immunity. It eventually came to a point where the law caught up with them and they were facing life in prison, or even the death penalty.

They got out of it, of course. Daddy Pim had to blow his life savings on legal fees, but he managed to get their life-ruining sentences whittled down to 5 years + community service, because money fixes everything in this society. However, the experience made both Nee and Dur realize that they couldn’t carry on committing crimes in the open like this, because Daddy Pim was now dry on legal funds and next time they wouldn’t be so lucky. Knowing his boys needed help getting back on their feet, Pim suggested they establish a charity or business of sorts that serves the community in a positive way, much like the Smiling Friends company does. It would teach them how to care for their fellow citizens and grow as critters, he reasoned. 

So here they are running a laundromat, helping the community keep their clothes clean while keeping their images clean. It totally isn’t a money laundering front. I mean, laundromat, money laundering? That’s too on the nose. They aren’t that dumb. And so what if customers randomly disappear sometimes? They just operate in a bad neighborhood! It’s just a coincidence that everyone who’s disappeared had a particularly bad experience with the laundromat, or perhaps expressed unfounded suspicion about the business’s integrity. All of that has nothing to do with Nee and Dur. No, the Pimling Brothers are better than that. They’ve changed!

In all seriousness, Nee and Dur could never truly live a life free of crime. They would rather die than be deprived of the thrill of immorality. After Pim inadvertently planted the seed, it was Nee’s idea to establish the laundromat and he is also the one who interacts with the public the most. He has a certain charisma that easily deflects suspicion and makes folks believe he’s trustworthy and innocent. It’s how he got himself and his brother out of trouble with their dad, teachers, and other authority figures when they were young, and the skill is still serving him well now. You’ll often hear of Nee offering free laundry services for the local fire department or paying for dinners for the local hospital staff. In this way he’s spreading smiles like Daddy Pim wanted, and he does genuinely enjoy it. Not enough to quit crime, but it’s a nice bonus. While Nee came up with the idea, Dur is the muscle behind it, working behind the scenes to keep things running, including engaging in all the shady business deals that are the true reason this laundromat exists. He’s the Saul Goodman type, able to weasel his way into all the best deals and to keep the exorbitant amounts of money flowing no matter how much he’s screwing over others. 

While Nee’s people skills would not amount to much without Dur’s undercover dealings, Dur would be nowhere without Nee’s ingenious ideas and excellent deflection skills that allow him to do the work he does without trouble. It’s what makes them such a great team, knowing exactly what the other needs to succeed without even having to say so. It’s that twin intuition. And of course, when their work makes it necessary to kill (the definition of “necessary” being VERY loose), they’re both all in just like their childhood hero, just with better cover-up skills.

Does Daddy Pim know what’s really going on? Or their sisters? How would this affect the Smiling Friends if the truth came out? None of that matters because they won’t get in trouble. They’ve learned from last time. Plus, their family members know better than to ask questions. Sure, Pim might start to worry a little when he reads an article about the latest unsolved murder in town, but that could have been anything. He ought not to be so mistrusting of his darling boys. They wouldn’t do that anymore. But if they did, he can’t save them this time, so he’d rather not know.

[scyllas-revenge]

I've been encountering post comments of people flipping out over the Bridgerton S3 teaser clip where Anthony sneaks a kiss on Kate while dancing in front of the ton. It made me realize that Boromir was quite bold and brazen with the way he interacted with Reader (Aerdis) in "Breathe".

Getting so close and intimate, publicly, with a lady who was not his wife or even anything?? All the pearl clutching!! 👀😂

Real question, though: what are your thoughts, opinions, or headcanons about social protocols and restrictions in Gondor/Minas Tirith regarding interactions between unmarried men and women? Do you see it as a climate similar to the Regency Era, or something less restrictive? I guess it wasn't super conservative, considering the Farawyn public canoodling... unless that was a great scandal in itself. 😂

Oooh I love this question! (and I'm so excited for Bridgerton S3!!) Here are entirely too many of my thoughts XD

You know how much I love your Breathe fic, and I think acting a bit outside of social norms fits Boromir very well- he seems like the type to feel every emotion very intensely, and while he's very aware of social norms, he's not going to let them get in his way for long. (be still my heart, fetch me my smelling salts at once)

That being said I don't personally imagine Gondorian society to be quite as restrictive as regency-era England, just because the regency era was SO restrictive. There were SO many social taboos and particular ways you had to navigate social settings, and while I'm not an expert on them all, a lot of aspects of Jane Austen's books still stand out to me as just insane, like never referring to your spouse by their first name, even when you're just chilling at home with your kids. No hand touching if you're not wearing gloves, no dancing with someone more than twice in one setting (unless you're making your intentions VERY clear), etc. And alongside that, you get a lot of class restrictions too, like only certain pastimes being considered "proper," and everything from manners of speaking and sitting and chewing your food can mark you as uncouth and poor (I'm thinking of Emma here, and all the minute ways Emma has to teach Harriet to be an upstanding member of society. It's exhausting!).

I think some of these taboos would carry over to Gondor, like needing a chaperone to hang out with a person of the opposite sex before you're engaged, and minimal touching or displays of affection (and yes, I think the Farawyn kiss was VERY scandalous, people were probably gossiping about that one for ages lol). But some of the smaller more restrictive social norms of regency society probably don't apply (unless I want them to, for heightened drama).

Overall, I'm going to say that 1. social norms probably are bent out of whack a bit both during and a while after the war, just because people had more important things to worry about, and 2. Boromir and Faramir are a half-step away from royalty in Gondor, so their behavior probably gets a pass most of the time anyway.

As for the class restrictions, I think once again Boromir gets to bend a lot of rules here- he's probably very aware of how other nobles behave vs commoners, but I don't think he cares much and is probably a bit sick of all the hoops higher-class people have to jump through just to navigate a basic social situation. I also think that, because he's a soldier, he's more attuned to the rest of his citizens than other nobles might be. Plus he's had to cook his own meals, take care of his own horse, clean and sharpen his own weapons, mend his own clothes while on the road, etc. Nothing is beneath him by now. That was probably true for a lot of people during the war regardless of wealth or class, so I'm imagining a bit of the class division kind of dissolving, at least temporarily, after the war. Everyone emerged from it in different places with a different view of the world than when they started.

Finally, I personally really like the idea of some Ancient Roman influence on Gondor (they have aqueducts, I just know it! And I love the idea of Gondorian women wearing those Ancient Roman woven hairstyles) but unfortunately I haven't been able to find much on Ancient Roman societal norms online outside of how they approach meals (which we can tell from the books and films doesn't really apply anyway). So that idea might be a bit of a dead end.

Anyway, thanks for the ask!!! And sorry I wrote such a long rambling response, but you hit me with such an interesting question XD I couldn't help it!

[castlebyersafterdark]

I find the way they both interact with the concept of byler to be very interesting,sometimes eye brow raising, and even complicated in Noah’s case since he said playing Will essentially made him realize/accept (however he framed it) his own sexuality…

Wholeheartedly agree with vinny's response here as the mature and practical way to look at the strange vocation of acting. Its a very strange mix of professional AND personal - and this, i think, is what creates tension in the is RPF morally acceptable? debate. because if we're talking literal speculation about whether two people have the hots for each other... name a less groundbreaking pastime lmao. imagine the saucy gossip that would have been spreading through the roman baths in like... 78 BC lol. human love and connection have ALWAYS interested people.

but for some reason there is disapproval about discussing chemistry and potential attraction when it comes to actors who also portray fictional characters. you don't see frowns when people pair actors together in regular celeb gossip columns; it's only through the lens of 'fandom shipping', where fictional blends with real, that it gets hate. perhapss most see it as an extrapolation with no grounds, a crossing of boundaries? but for me, its a question of your emotional intelligence as an audience member: can you separate fiction from reality in a mature way while also acknowledging that you see something sparkling in the reality? it's not NOT possible. but are you being honest with yourself about the origin of the chemistry? for me, noah and finn have it in spades, and i dont need them to officially start a relationship to prove it, because that, for me, is not the only sign of two people having true feelings for each other.

and even though professionalism should be top priority on a film set - on s5 of ST - let's not discount the fact that actors are human first and foremost, and not only that, but creatives, storytellers, performers, who are most likely more sensitive and emotionally affected than most 'regular' non-creative folk. sure, noah and finn started acting as kids, so perhaps they're not passionate about the craft like someone who chose the career later in life might be. but in a way, that's MORE telling? because their authentic selves would have been spilling out accidentally on red carpets and in interviews as they grew, no matter how much media training they had. there are unique circumstances that mirror their real lives and the show; growing up together, noah's queerness. it's not like two middle aged actors who barely know each other, portraying a totally fictive romance where their chemistry is the only similarity.

anyway, no amount of professionalism is going to prevent real feelings potentially arising. having feelings is not unprofessional; it's about how you deal with those feelings. and their behaviour is very, very interesting.

Noah is very intense, and candid about his intensity, especially re: byler. I think his tweets are certainly marketing in some ways, but you can't deny that he's not exactly, to put it bluntly... cool about it haha! He's not a nerd like finn is a nerd, but he's not cool and collected, you know? He is clearly comfortable having a public image (whether fabricated or not) of being someone who wears his heart on his sleeve. He and his team have clearly chosen to go down the route of: 'this actor is a bubbly young man who has no filter'. Even without the many times he's accidentally spoiled the show (lmao), it seems to me like Noah's passion IS authentic precisely BECAUSE being a young male actor these days often IS about being too cool for school, and Noah exhibits many traits that do not fit our society's idea of a cool young guy.

He's clumsy. He says things that could be seen as cringe. He is passionate and open. He admits to crying a lot. He makes tiktok lives naked shirtless from his bed. He gushes about Harry Styles. He does silly dances on social media. He gushes about byler. None of these things are objectively uncool - that's not a thing - and tiktok dances are popular, sure, but it's the WAY he does them. If he and his team wanted to craft a different persona that might have launched him into higher echelons of the A-List cool list, they could have. But I personally love how authentic noah feels. He is living life for himself, going to college, speaking honestly, being totally real. I respect that a lot.

And I think Finn does too, even though they might have clashed as younger teens, because he speaks highly of noah's coming out especially, and Finn also lives life for himself. My eyebrows have raised many many times seeing how Noah handles byler, and quite honestly, I wonder if Finn was/is more than a little intimidated playing opposite this rambunctious, passionate guy who is most likely going to kiss him within an inch of his life when they finally get to the s5 byler scenes lmao.

Then we have Mr Wolfhard. Finn, Finn, Finn. This year during filming, he seems... calm. Happy, glowing. My instincts tell me that he's, at the very least, enjoying this season and getting artistic satiation from it, whether that's reuniting a final time with the gang, pure nostalgia, gratitude, or enjoying filming byler. Probably all of the above. Viewing his behaviour through the lens of his disgruntlement with mileven in prior seasons' press, however, is hilarious - because whereas at one time it could have seemed like he was a teen boy who was embarrassed to talk romance, it's now looking more and more Mike Wheeler-esque. He was a young guy who was sick to death of hearing 'mileven mileven mileven' non-stop, perhaps without really knowing why. Honestly, if Finn's life ends up echoing Mike's in the way Noah's has with Will's, it'd be so coincidental that it's almost ludicrous, yet so so beautiful; and no wonder they'd both be reeling from it for a very long time. We're only just in the midst of filming - perhaps the most telling events have yet to come?

I will agree that Finn's s4 interviews were very telling re: whether byler will happen - the giggling, as you mentioned, because eyes and smiles don't lie, even on actors when they're off the clock. Finn's responses, if will's romance storyline was going to be tragic, were nonsensical. As for a kiss, I think they have already filmed one. If not, their giggles were certainly anticipatory, and there's definitely a similarity between finn's gigglyness and noah's glee at byler, isn't there? Whether that's thrill at good storytelling, or a hint to Finn's queerness, or both... you decide! Because being passionate about a story is one thing, but being reduced to self-conscious giggles, especially at age 19 or so? When portraying a romance at a younger age did NOT make you giggly during press...??? Very interesting.

For me, it's the other aspects of Finn's personality that prevent people from seeing foah as a possibility. Finn is too cool for school, reserved and private. Half of his press responses to byler HAVE mirrored his one's for mileven - 'why would I ship my own show?' etc. But there's that cheeky other half of the time, where he giggles or looks discreetly right down the camera, as if he's trying to silently tell us something. Even if he just adores byler, I find that very endearing.

And let's not forget that they're both totally adorable. At the very least I expect s5 press where they respond to questions portraying this romance. Noah laughing and saying "I wasn't exactly complaining" on Jimmy Fallon or something. "I mean, look at him" as Finn points to a magazine cover with Noah splashed on the front for s5 promo.

Lastly, noah's storyline/real life convergence is impactful. There's no way that this isn't something that influences the rest of his life. And, seeing as he was a teenager growing up with Will, I can't see how he could have entirely separated finn from mike, will's love from his own feelings, whether they were an actual crush, or simply the love and trust that comes from a genuine transformative friendship. The crazy thing is that noah has admitted in interviews that he looks at finn and sees Mike - so, with regard to what I said about about noah having no filter, take that as you will. If this is what he is saying publicly, what on earth is going on inside that head of his?

They are both endlessly fascinating and for me, this doesn't simply feel like RPF but studying the human condition, love and connection itself. Ha! I have nothing but love and respect for the two of them, so I dont feel like my 'shipping' is a bad thing. I think vinny would agree, being the romantic sap he is <3

Posting this one because this says it all, what a thorough read and reflection on these two. Thank you for sharing, I have very little to add, right on right on. So I'll let this one stand alone as a good read!! ❤️❤️❤️

[wen-kexing-apologist]

7 Days Before Valentine Ep 6: Stray Thoughts

Sunshine

First of all, Sunshine, @respectthepetty and I are on the way, we've got bats with your name carved in them, so I'd advise you to start running.

Sunshine is one of the characters I hate the most this year, especially as a main character/protagonist. But I do think they are doing an incredible job with his characterization in that this is a man with no one in his life, he doesn't interact with his parents, he has no friends, and based off the way he behaves you can tell exactly why. This is the most impulsive, self-absorbed man I've seen in quite some time.

Sunshine reminds me of the guys in my life I've known who are deeply in need of help, but turn everything in to a joke and absolutely, willfully refuse to talk about anything real. Sunshine absolutely, willfully refuses to pause for long enough to actually think about how terrible of a person he is and how much he is harming those around him as a result of that.

I don't even think Sunshine knows what he wants. He had a chance in his previous wish to just completely try again, in the best possible scenario where marriage equality has been passed and Rain doesn't know who he is, Sunshine has a clean slate, but that isn't good enough, so he ruins society, and that doesn't work, so he hurts Rain in the most fundamentally cruel way by removing his best friend from existence. Sunshine is hurting Rain so that he can be in a relationship with Rain, which is all I need to know to decide that Rain and Sunshine better not fucking end up together in this.

The Flowers

gif by @save-the-data

Okay, I don't know why, but the way Jared talks about his flowers is making me this of this book I read years ago called Daughter of Smoke and Bone where the main character is like living in the real world but has connections to this other fantasy world, and she goes to her friend to make wishes (for example, she wishes that her hair would naturally grow blue) and she only learns way later that every time she makes a wish the wish is paid for with (I think?) someone's tooth. And she realized that people, creatures, etc had died or been tortured to have their teeth removed so that she could make silly little wishes.

I don't know that I want this, I don't know what it would do or what it would say, but for some reason I cannot get it out of my head that these flowers with names that Jared talks about so lovingly are actual people's souls. Especially after that one rose fucking screamed when Sunshine dropped it.

Metaphors

gif by @save-the-data

The back half of last episode and the first half of this episode were really heavy on the theme of conformity. And I don't think I have a lot of words for it right now, but it is feeling very much like metaphors for externalized/internalized homophobia and the closet. Like how the little girl draws this picture of herself in a pink dress and writes SOS, while walking neatly in a line, in the same boring uniform as all the rest of the kids. Like the vibrant ecclectically dressed property manager, also choosing to conform when she goes out in public because she doesn't want to be stared at. Like the busker getting hauled away/punished by the police for breaking free from society's order. Like Jared, bright, happily, bubbly, and (in my opinion) visibly queer man being terrified of being hauled away to be "corrected". And this is all stemming from snap decisions Sunshine is making out of petty bullshit with almost zero intelligent thought behind his wishes.

How I want this to end

gif by @pharawee

I think I want Sunshine to wish Q away from existence. Q's job is very clearly weighing on him, and he deserves rest. For fuck's sake, his clothing gets darker every episode Sunshine needs to accept that Rain is gone from him, that he fucked up and can't go back, and I do not want Rain getting together with someone that really seems to disregard the harm he is causing.

Anyway, I am really enjoying this show, but it is slow as fuck and if it wasn't filmed, written, and structured like a play I don't think I would have had as high a tolerance for it's pacing.

[letstalkhockey]

https://www.tumblr.com/letstalkhockey/741491604845641728/where-do-these-anons-get-their-information-about

Hi, these are the cold facts; for Parker, this was before I became a fan, so I don’t know how people realize they were friends. I think he and his brother followed her and had some friends in common, and there were rumors that she was seen with him numerous times. But when she turned her IG public, they saw that she had a post outside prudential posing with one of Nico’s posters and making fun, and he commented on it (this one was really friendly). Also, she had in her highlights a story of her and Nico eating pizza at someone's apartment alone (this seems relationshipish). But those are the only things on them (I think).

For Leyla, they were following each other (again, his brother followed her); she posted stories from a few games with one of her friends, and later on, said friend posted a story of her with Nico’s all-star hat (this was really what set everything on). Then people realized Nico was in some of her friend's stories on nights out, so everyone assumed they were hanging out. Obvs she didn't get a jacket for playoffs, which makes everyone believe she wasn't a wag, but it looks like she was on the Devils’ end-of-season rooftop party because she followed Dawson’s then gf (which people have mixed opinions on because they are the same age and from a similar background so they could have met at another time but the truth is that they follow each other that night). And then was Ibiza, where she met his sister and friends (we know this because both posted photos there, and she started following her sister). So everyone assumed again maybe they were close to confirming a relationship. Still, it seems that everything fizzled out because they were not seen together after that during the summer, and she unfollowed him and the jazz.

So, the short answer is that people assume something was going on because of these facts, but I think no one believes they are official relationships because, in none of these cases we see the girls interact with other wags. Nico is close to Jonas and his gf, and also to Bratter and his gf. People assume that if he were to introduce a SO to the team, it would first be to his closest friends also because it looks like he never goes to group gatherings with someone else. And he did all of this with his ex gf.

That's all 😂 that’s my contribution to society 😂 I'm on vacation and waiting to be picked by my bf, so no, it's not like I have anything better to do 😂😂.

^^*some information for everyone!🩵

You did a great job with explaining everything, so I’m just gonna leave this one too you. Thanks so so much for this!!🩵

[mdhwrites]

How would you imagine Caleb and Evelyn personalities?

OOH! I like this one! Admittedly more for Caleb than for Evelyn because we don't even get relations for Evelyn. We are almost entirely in the dark for even actions on her part besides falling in love with a human and taking them home. For Caleb, falling in love and leaving his brother behind is pretty much all we know about him too action wise but we can at least extrapolate a little from this.

Let's start with Caleb because he is the more robust topic and the honestly funnier one. So we have an orphan who was then adopted by a community of witch hunters, looked after his brother, was taught to hate all witches... And then fucked off without telling his brother so he could go bang a witch.

There's two main ways to make that sequence of events function AT ALL. The first is that you make him tired and kind of an asshole. Losing his parents, caring for his brother, etc. like that makes him want an escape. Want to just say fuck it to everything, even if it means breaking his morals. When a witch tempts him with a chance to leave it all behind, he takes it, even if it traps him with her.

The main problem is that that's a really unattractive personality (even if one could argue it's Luz's personality eventually) so why in the world a witch would choose to fall in love with that is pretty questionable, especially when the guy comes from a society of people who want to murder her. It'd be really difficult to justify a meet cute between them so... I think Caleb was a himbo.

The dude was too dumb to realize that Evelyn was a witch until he'd already fallen in love, decided love mattered more than anything else, didn't remember to tell his brother because how to broach the subject made him worried and his brother probably showed up on one of his various trips to the Isles, not a permanent one. It also explains why he'd have his guard down still so Belos could murder him eventually. Just... kind and stupid and good for him for that.

And honestly, that fits what extremely little we know about Evelyn. We have to assume she left the Titan's Blood and she left a puzzle leading to it. So, bare minimum, she's smart. She also interacted with a culture that was actively hostile to her and that she had nothing to gain from due to it being at least technologically similar, if not worse, than the Isles. Something about them must have either benefited or amused her and honestly, I'd lean into witch culture for that. That she was a trickster and a manipulator, looking for people she could play with with her magic and riddles because she enjoyed it. Then comes a guy who falls for literally everything and still sees her as a friend in the end. That means a lot to her and she falls in love, wanting to play little pranks on him for the rest of her days.

Her personality traits are another reason why I can't stand by world weary Caleb either because she wouldn't find his bitterness or seriousness charming. He'd be a stick in the mud who wouldn't play along. That'd make him different but it would also make him boring. Also this one lacks the moral compass that apparently EVERY Golden Guard has and none of them really betray Belos maliciously, at least if you want to go off of Hunter, but because of a moral obligation.

At least from what the show wants Hunter's arc to be for rejecting Belos. -_-

Thank you though! I love shit like this because I get a real kick out of character and concept creation. As always, you guys want a story or something, or at least how I'd do it, go ahead and ask. I am a writer first, analyst second.

======+++++======

I have a public Discord for any and all who want to join!

I also have an Amazon page for all of my original works in various forms of character focused romances from cute, teenage romance to erotica series of my past. I have an Ao3 for my fanfiction projects as well if that catches your fancy instead. If you want to hang out with me, I stream from time to time and love to chat with chat.

A Twitter you can follow too

And a Kofi if you like what I do and want to help out with the fact that disability doesn’t pay much.

[roses-in-the-shade]

What DO the public masses and the government think and do about Ingo now? Please tell me they are told the truth the sheer hilarity would be incredible. Would Ingo be considered his brother's age or three years old.

...Would Ingo have any problems interacting with people, considering he never really interacted with anyone outside of Emmet in his formative years and he lived on a mountain for the first 3 years of his life? That can't have been good for his development. Even when he did talk to people he just needed to act like Emmet and now he needs to be his own person (yay! But that seems like it would seem terrifying at first.).

OOH how do the depot agents react? They already interacted with Ingo, though they had no idea.

This is probably one of my favorite asks so far, because it gave me so much to think about. Which is also why it's taken me a bit longer to answer. I am trying to answer asks on a first come, first serve basis. To the best of my ability! Thank you for the ask!

Anyway, this post is VERRRRRY long, absolutely monstrous by my criteria, so under the read more it goes. You have been warned. I apparently can not shut up, lol.

So, the government. It doesn't take long for everyone to realize that Ingo, legally, does not exist. Without any identifications, there's a lot that you can't do that is important for thriving in modern society. So, yeah, they need to tell Unova's governing body the whole truth so that they can get Ingo on the fast track to the living life.

And unfortunately, the first destination on that journey is the hospital. Because Ingo spent the first three years of his new life in Sinnoh, a few centuries in the past. Man's health is either Not Good, or it's about to be. Which creates a lot of confusion for the health department, because. Well. Because. The explanation that this random haggard man needs all of his vaccines because he lived in the past for three years and didn't even have a corporeal body before that is a lot to take in, you know? And then there's the fact that the only existing documentation for this Mr. Ingo is a death certificate dated back to 28 years ago(?!?!?!).

The first solution they come up with to solve this conundrum is to do a DNA test and compare to other living family for proof of relation, and to just. Make sure they're not being made a clown.

Fun fact. When Arceus created Ingo's new body, he basically copy pasted Emmet's DNA, attached it to Ingo's soul with cosmic super glue, and called it a day. They're already twins, it's fine. :)

Yeah, they weren't ready for it when the results for Ingo's and Emmet's DNA results came out as a definitively exact match. Actually, they don't know what they were expecting.

During the few weeks that Ingo spends hospitalized for both acclimating and quarantine purposes, the identifications services go into a flurry of action to create documents for this new human adult person that spawned into existence from Arceus knows where. (See what I did there.)

Fun times. The government workers will literally never forget this for their entire lives. They will remember it as the most bizarre event they've ever experienced, bar none.

As for his official age now, since Ingo's body is physically 28, same as his brother, and he is mentally the same age, they just kinda shrug and say, yeah, sure, he's 28 years old. Never mind the fact that he's only been alive for three. Actually, don't think too hard on it. Don't.

Now, the depot agents. lmao

The day Emmet brings in Ingo for retraining and to "reinstate" him is a day of absolute chaos.

Emmet's first instinct, when he's formally introducing his brother to their employees during a meeting, is to gaslight them all into thinking Ingo had been their other boss the entire time three years ago. (When going into technicalities, it's hard to say if that's true or not. Which is the best part.)

"I am Emmet. I am getting down to business. Today, we will welcoming back Ingo to our work force. He went missing three years ago. He is back now. We will be resuming standard operating procedures with Ingo as the Subway Boss on the singles line again. Any questions?"

(Ingo, not having been forewarned of Emmet's plans, blinks and stares at his brother for a few moments, before mentally sighing and face-palming. He quickly decides to let Emmet get away with this, however. He's not immune to following along Emmet's whims, and he's not disinterested to see how this falls out.)

...

...

"A NEW SUBWAY BOSS?!

"WHAT DO YOU MEAN AGAIN?!"

"HE LOOKS EXACTLY LIKE YOU, WHO IS HE?!"

"How rude! I am offended for Ingo. You forgot about him! Unforgivable. Yup! This is verrrry sad. Terrrrrible. Ingo is my twin brother. I was in grief over his absence for three years. I am disappointed you did not notice."

"I didn't forget, Boss Emmet! I've never set a foot out of Gear Station my entire life, so of course I remember Boss Ingo! We loved working with Boss Ingo, I don't know how anyone could forget a kind and jovial man like him!"

(Depot Agent Jackie is most definitely in on it.)

All of the depot agents are reeling at this new reality that they have to force their brains to get used to. Some would keep swearing up and down that there was never a Boss Ingo, but then Emmet would wave around the proof of employment (that he typed up literally an hour before the meeting) and they'd just be reduced to a state of mental sputtering and questioning reality. Many are a flustered mess whenever they end up interacting with Ingo himself.

Emmet and Ingo let the depot agents stew in this prank for just the one day, at least until Ingo finally convinces Emmet to hold another meeting the next day to tell the agents the full truth and allow the poor guys some peace of mind. (Ingo does scold Emmet a little for being so mean-spirited with this particular joke, though it doesn't last too long when Emmet points out that Ingo didn't stop him.)

Funny enough, the truth ended up being even more of a bombshell than the prank had been. Who woulda thought.

From then on, the twins and the depot agents do their best to stay professional and help ease Ingo back into the work routine as something like a Deputy Subway Boss, and they're pretty successful! It doesn't take too long to get Ingo fully instated as an official Subway Boss, Ingo being as enthusiastic and dedicated to the job as he is, and, over time, the agents slowly realize that they did miss him without ever knowing it. Three years ago, they really did notice his disappearance, ironically enough. Ingo's "personality" was suddenly gone, Emmet was never the same, and the work environment changed. It's weird, but in the end, they all end up thinking, "I'm glad he's back."

The day of Ingo's official promotion, the depot agents throw him a party and make sure to tell him this:

"Welcome back. We missed you."

The public's reaction to Ingo is a mixed bag, predictably.

The day of Ingo's reintroduction to Gear Station, the official Battle Subway PokeTwitter account announces: "Attention all passengers! Starting today, a new Deputy Subway Boss will be conducting us to our destination on the Singles Line! Deputy Boss Ingo looks forward to future travels with challengers. Will you go on to victory or defeat? All aboard!" (Attached is a picture of Ingo in the signature point and call pose, right hand pointing forward and left hand out to the side pointing down.)

Most responses to the announcement are basically either, "isn't that just Emmet?", or "I had no idea Emmet has a twin brother!". There's a lot of chipper "Welcome!" and "All aboard!" comments and some competitive "Can't wait to see what he's made of!" remarks, so the reception is generally a mix of confusion and enthusiasm.

And then it all came crashing down when one person says, "Isn't this the same guy who ran the singles line years ago, tho? Did he come back?"

One person unintentionally does what Emmet did to the depot agents to an entire social media community. Thus restarts the conspiracy theories again, much to Ingo's and Emmet's exasperation. If they weren't already practically celebrities by this point, then they definitely are now.

Emmet ends up using his personal account to address questions and clear it up as much as he can, while skirting around the full truth as much as possible, sometimes even outright dodging certain inquiries altogether. Ultimately, he and Ingo had decided it was best to keep it private knowledge that only certain people would know. Emmet's best efforts certainly couldn't stop rumors from sprouting all together, but it did help to placate the internet riots and calm them down. It only took about a week before the twins were no longer all PokeTwitter could talk about.

Now, interestingly enough, Ingo himself isn't doing too bad, socially. Sure, he did live on a mountain for a few years, but he also visited Jubilife Village often! He assisted at the training grounds, helped teach the villagers to befriend and battle with pokemon, often did any needed shopping there. He made sure to check in with the Pearl Clan regularly, it'd be rude to essentially go AWOL on them when they took him in and bestowed him a position as important as warden of their Lady Sneasler.

Point being, Ingo got past most of his social struggles during his displacement in Hisui. Learning how to human when in an entirely unfamiliar setting and without his memories was a huge challenge for Ingo, but he gradually settled into the new experience. Which is why going to modern day Nimbasa is such a huge culture shock. There's so many more people, ranging from incredibly kind to brutish in behavior, sometimes critical, sometimes indifferent. Despite this, Ingo has been able to be himself without question, without backlash, without fear, and it's a marvel.

The people that Emmet and Ingo had surrounded themselves with never failed to make Ingo feel encouraged and supported, including Emmet himself. Especially Emmet. Ingo has no idea what he would do without Emmet. He loves and appreciates his brother immensely. With all the assistance Ingo has, he may be nervous about meeting his new future, but he's determined to do it. Stubbornly optimistic, even. No matter what set backs or adversities Ingo may face, he has the greatest safety net holding him up.

(If Emmet ever finds anyone antagonizing Ingo, he will most definitely give them a traumatic beat down in a pokemon battle, and terrify the living daylight out of them by promising them eternal despair if he ever sees them near Ingo ever again.

Basically, Ingo: sunshine, Emmet: sunshine protector.

I am right, and I should say it. Luckily for everyone, it doesn't happen often. Nobody in their right mind would want to be mean to Ingo.)

[religion-is-a-mental-illness]

By: Adam B. Coleman

Published: Sep 18, 2023

The real measure of an individual’s character isn’t what he portrays to the public but how he treats people in private.

Truly righteous people treat others with respect and dignity when there is no one else around and no social credit to be earned for doing the right thing.

This distinction matters — especially for people who’ve made a career lecturing others on the appropriate way to treat people, especially those perceived as having less power in society.

But when no one was looking and nothing was to be gained, it seems Ibram X. Kendi used his power and privilege as the director of a think tank to exploit and mistreat the people who worked under him as if they were people who are beneath him.

Amid confirmation of layoffs being made at Boston University’s Center for Antiracist Research, former and current faculty have spoken out about Kendi’s mismanagement, “exploitation” and enrichment.

“There are a number of ways it got to this point, it started very early on when the university decided to create a center that rested in the hands of one human being, an individual given millions of dollars and so much authority,” stated Spencer Piston, a BU political science professor. 

A Former assistant director of narrative at the center and a BU associate professor of sociology and African American and black diaspora studies, Saida Grundy, also described a lack of structure, leading to her working additional hours that were unreasonable, especially for the pay she was receiving.

“It became very clear after I started that this was exploitative and other faculty experienced the same and worse,” Grundy lamented.

With tens of millions of dollars flowing in from major donors shortly after the center’s founding in 2020 from Twitter founder Jack Dorsey, the Rockefeller Foundation and biotech company Vertex, Grundy also saw the missed opportunity to directly help black students at Boston University. 

“Those donations could have been going to benefit black students.”

Grundy is correct that much of the donation money could have been utilized in objectively more helpful ways to serve the people Kendi claimed to be advocating for. But the line between rhetoric and action was a line that Kendi never had any intentions of crossing.

Kendi used the dogma of antiracism to project a new moral standard at a time when many Americans momentarily questioned their behavior and culpability.

As he demanded that everyone should check their privilege and feel socially accountable for the exploitation of people, he was simultaneously exploiting the emotions of a nation to solidify his nobility status among the upper class in academia.

Kendi’s boutique moral philosophy on historical events and human interaction has only made him notable among the upper class.

Those elites declare racial enlightenment over the naïve majority who prefer to treat people like they’d want to be treated.

The antiracism think tank operated more like an antiracism piggybank with only one man listed as its financial beneficiary.

Kendi’s interests have become clearer as time has gone on: His “research center” was for the benefit of one black person, not black people.

Remember the $90 million windfall Patrisse Cullors and the Black Lives Matter organization scored and their frivolous spending habits with donation money, buying mansions and funneling cash to board and family members?

Activist Shaun King has also repeatedly been accused of raising money for recipients and causes that never saw it.

This is a similarly disappointing realization after tens of millions of dollars have been placed in the hands of an advocate who has shown little regard to produce a return for his bold aspirations.

Kendi had systemic control over his own research center yet used his position to take advantage of the people whom he was leading and continued to reap the academic clout that legitimizes his profiting in over $32,000 a speech.

Kendi suggests that people should become more race-conscious to be better anti-racists, but I believe it’s more important to be elitist-conscious.

We need to be aware of the behavioral patterns and condescending rhetoric of the people who think they know better than us about everything.

If we were all good anti-elitists, we’d ignore the utopian rhetoric of social progressives and anti-racists and focus on their behavior.

This readjustment would help us quickly realize that race is a tool to distract us from noticing they are getting rich from dividing us into categories of human characteristics.

The only remedy to moral elitism is moral anti-elitism: This is how we have an anti-elitist society.

Adam B. Coleman is the author of “Black Victim to Black Victor” and founder of Wrong Speak Publishing. Follow him on Substack: adambcoleman.substack.com.

==

It was never about doing anything useful. It was always akin to buying indulgences from the Catholic Church.

[boypussydilf]

thank you for the lore dump!! theses frogs and their planet drive me crazy. especially since I just watched the jirara ep and, GAH, he would choose to (fake) die to get out of the military goes to show how bad it is on keron!! like being an assassin had to be the very depths of dororos depression.

YEAAAAAAAAHHHHHHH GOD that reminded me of these tags courtesy of @/geroyu, public thank-you to my like 2 keroro followers who keep leaving excellent commentary on all my posts

i actually wanted to find a screenshot of the part of the manga that goes over “if a platoon fails they can be forced to never see or interact with each other ever again” but i couldn’t find where it is but i Do remember that happening. so far ive just thought of garuru blatantly allowing the keroro platoon to win and succeed and keep their jobs despite not being good at their jobs as just, being nice to giroro, his little brother wants this station so he’ll help him keep it, but this made me think Oh it would probably be SO MUCH WORSE. for All of them. if garuru did not opt to Greatly Exaggerate The Keroro Platoon’s Skills. They almost definitely could not officially quit their jobs even if they Wanted to because one way or another it would not. go well. Fail? Get permanently separated from your lifelong friends, at least. Quit and stay? Keron will just send in a new invasion team. (The good thing is, the Keroro Platoon consists of comic idiots who I’m not sure have all even fully realized they don’t want to invade, so they’re probably safe.)

Congratulations, you have been born on Keron! This is the complete list of options for what you can do with your life:

Join the military and continue to believe/convince yourself that it’s super great and the best thing ever and Keron is good forever

Join the military and realize the open secret that it sucks immensely but you’re literally stuck here now. Forever!

Join the military and then leave. You know, because you got unethically experimented on, or something else really fucked up like that. Become a hitman or fake your death or something.

Don’t join the military. No one knows what happens if you pick this option.

It’s just crazy fucked up. *shaking all the writers* i know this is most of the time a light hearted comedy jokes series and i like it that way i like the jokes but also come back here for a second. Explain yourselves. Is anyone going to elaborate on the disastrous state of Keron society or do i have to do it MYSELF

[narzissenkreuz-ordo]

mmmmm i dont have coherent thoughts rn but

nikolai parallels with the melusines. who were both ostracized by their origins or appearance.

nikolai finally meeting silvanus again and being nervous about walking around in public since he has a tail and visible scales/rashes but is encouraged by silvie and lyney/lynette/freminet to go out and do things with them.

like furina, he has Trauma when it comes to being on stage and preforming. but he little issue with doing his street preforming acts in other nation [to gather info for the house of hearth/the knave] but but has a hard boundary about doing anything public in fontaine.

thinking about him clumsily meeting the rest of the fontaine cast. and everyone is eager and friendly interacting with him. since a lot of them were there for silvanus' trial and very aware of both of their situations.

charlotte wants to do an interview about about nikolai's disappearance case and how lucky and happy it is to see the siblings reunited after so much pain and misfortune. silvanus quickly doges that and offering charlotte an interview with herself & neuvillette.

wrio has met niko once back when he was caught sneaking about in meropide. wrio is pretty casual/laid back and comments about niko made the right decision. and is very content with seeing silvanus so happy. sigewinne is also very friendly and curious and wants to do a medical exam to see if she could get any new info tohelp his & silvanus' medical condition

niko meets furina in passing while strolling the streets with silvanus. niko used to hateeee the hydro archon. seeing the archon who represented justice let so much injustice happen in fontaine, including his own situation.

Furina very much remembers silvanus' and was rather nonchalant during it all. but absolutely guilt ridden and terrified for silvanus' health. and is obviously terrified when running into both niko and silvanus in the streets. niko knows that she was faking being the archon for a bigger cause. and realizes now that she was a victim of constant performance (just like him, when he was owned by the Evil Circus)

so all those emotions he had towards the hydro archon & fontaine's government system as a whole all funnels to neuvillette instead. he heavily dislikes neuvi's relationship with silvanus and it shows when they interact. neuvi handles it so very awkwardly but neuvillette ends up deeply apologizing for being complicit with injustice that is fontainian high society. and makes it clear the since he has complete authority over the nation he will do everything in his power to stop political corruption that leads to injustice.

and in general i think it would be really cute for the melusines being absolutely enamoured with nikolai since hes also funny looking and has a tail

also dont get me started on the silvanus & nikolai narzissenkreuz adventures. then being the two to face jakob and rene/narzissenkreuz in the primordial see (and now exactly who they are), gives them the lore dump that they are distant relatives and that they have diluted abyssal god juice in their dna which is whats causing their incurable illness.

and after that nikolai goes on this conspiracy theory rabbit hole like an insane person connecting the dots with red string a bulletin board. over the harbinger sandrone who looks so much like mary ann and has an obsession with robotics just like alain guillotin and wants to figure out what the Fuck is up with that (its mostly a personal mission but the knave approves it because itll give HER more info on sandrone to keep in the back of her mind)

o h my god i rambled for so long holy shit. good night

[unrelatabledude]

THE GREAT OC ROUND UP!!!!

I might make this two parts orz because of the images but i finally!! got some basic stuff down about my most important ocs. Trust me, I could post the huge group pics too but i Wouldn't have Anything to Say about them!!

LETS GO

NAME: Ryouichi Tenma

AGE: Early Twenties

HEIGHT: 154cm

VIBE: Sleepy, plant obsessed, loves monsters and ghosts and especially Slime. Off-putting and shy, but very sweet. 

LIKES: Mold, fungi and carnivorous plants. Building terrariums and aquariums. Pixel art, cryptids and ghost stories. Frogs, snails and moths.

DISLIKES: Public bathrooms, loud noises. The smell of bleach.

SUMMARY:

Ryoutan started out as a Dangan Ronpa OC, a reserve student who would be thought to be the mastermind alongside his talented twin sister. Overtime, he’s morphed to be less angry and more strange. Ryou lives slowly and relaxed. He suffers from insomnia and reads ghost stories to make himself more okay with what could be creeping in the dark. Ryou is a fat, gay trans man, and has had trouble fitting in at school leading to some really unpleasant phobias. Ryou is probably my oldest OC and he means so much to me. He has been in more AUs than I can count and I refuse to stop <3. Ryou is the ambient man u need in ur life.

NAME: Setsuna Tenma

AGE: Early Twenties

HEIGHT: 156cm

VIBE: Punk rock, standoffish. Knows how to play the piano surprisingly well.

LIKES: Rollerblading, fighting games and sports like baseball and MMA. Cats, Ren fairs. Streams frequently.

DISLIKES: Overlyfriendly people (especially men). Cold weather. 

SUMMARY:

Setsuna started out as Ryouichi’s sister in a Dangan Ronpa killing game. She was the SHSL Astrologer. Now, her backstory has her as an old child star who quickly began to resent the fame. By the time she was in high school, Setsuna would begin getting into physical fights to protect her brother, and ended her career on her own terms. As she's grown up, she enjoys playing fighting games professionally, and rollerblading. Setsuna at her core is an extremely guarded person, believing she hurt her best friend via her own search for recognition in society. She loves deeply, but has a thick prickly outer shell that few can breach. She yearns for someone to hold her, and finds it easier to interact with people who are seemingly oblivious to her resting bitch face and sardonic humor. Setsuna is a bisexual cis woman.

NAME: Ciaran 

AGE: 19-20

HEIGHT: 175cm

VIBE: Repressed Catholic Demon. Anxious and overbearing.

LIKES: The routine of cleaning, the sensation of soft silk. Choir Music. Photography and sewing

DISLIKES: Cramped, dark spaces. The smell of dirt.

SUMMARY:

Ciaran was my second DnD character, but the first I really got attached to. A tiefling abandoned by his mother to a church that hated him, Ciaran’s life has been nothing but heartache and confusion. He serves a deity named the All-Father and has committed acts under duress to serve this deity. He’s pious, and a goody-two shoes, and his arc relies heavily on him exploring himself and breaking out of that cult mentality. Essentially a brainwashed Catholic raised in a magic cult compound, Ciaran is ill equipped to interact with the world in a healthy way. Almost as if someone wants him to end his pilgrimage to explore the world knowing he would stay by the church till the end. Haha, but he wouldn't be the target of manipulation…. Would he?

Ciaran is a transmasc bi guy. His gender is complicated.

NAME: Sorrel(-Sprouted-From-Spring) Augustine

AGE: 19-21

HEIGHT: 155 cm

VIBE: Runway princess. Rough around the edges and mysterious.

LIKES: Warm paths, chocolate. Being on the beach, sailing and fencing. 

DISLIKES: Nudity, slimy feeling things. The smell of incense. The taste of blood.

SUMMARY:

Imagine being sold on the idea of Divine Rights for Kings, in a world where being king means magical control equal to nuclear power. Then imagine that sense of superiority being taken away from you when you realize you will never get it, you’re gay as fuck, you’re about to be married to the worst man you know. I mean, then the only sensible option is to confront your fiance and try to leave right? 

In doing that, Sorrel left her kingdom disfigured and cursed to become a horrible monster, now set to be a dungeon crawler in hopes of ridding herself of her fiance’s influence. Originally a Dungeon Bitchs PC (Runaway Princess), Sorrel is now my main ttrpg character in a Heart campaign (Witch with Deadwalker flavoring). 

NAME: Jun Swiftriver

AGE: Mid Twenties

HEIGHT: 178cm

VIBE: A person who has nothing left to lose. Steals everything, gives nothing.

LIKES: Shiny baubles, hot meals. Jewelry, good fabric. The feeling of a feather pillow. The sensation of water on his skin.

DISLIKES: The smell of alcohol. Flames and ash. 

SUMMARY:

Jun started life out as a DnD concept. A water genasi who grew up as an unloved child in a noble family. When the common people finally took out his father and stepmother in an awful house fire Jun took it as a sign to be exactly what he wanted to be and form a new identity. Unfortunately, living completely destitute limited his options. Today, Jun has sold everything he can and stolen everything not nailed down. He’s the traveling companion of a scholar and relearning how to interact with others from a lifetime of being put down and isolated. Jun is a gay trans man.

NAME: Toulouse

AGE: 18-19

HEIGHT: 178 cm

VIBE: Clown!! Mime!! Jester!! Contortionist!! Don’t look behind you teehee!!!!!!

LIKES: Puppets!! Colors!! Aerobatics!! Gymnastics!! Stuffed animals!!! Real animals!! 

DISLIKES: Getting hurt :<!! Beetroot :<!! Sweeping!!!!!!!!

SUMMARY:

Toulouse is a creepy pasta concept come to life. Found by a traveling circus, Toulouse was unable to speak and couldn’t give himself a name. They decided to name him after the city they found him- Toulouse. Still mostly mute, Toulouse works as an acrobat, clown and contortionist for the circus. The catch being that the circus imbues its workers with magic, and it manifested in Toulouse a strong regenerative ability. Toulouse is a clown that simply cannot die. 

NAME: Vesper

AGE: 25

HEIGHT: 174cm

VIBE: God’s perfect little jester. Mean, off putting and pathetic.

LIKES: The sea, antique dolls, the smell of newspaper. Scarves and coats (bulky)

DISLIKES: Gore, braids, heights, tight spaces. Being Ignored.

SUMMARY:

A Magnus archives oc. Vesper was a mean girl until he transitioned at uni. During this time, he realised that for longer and longer periods he would literally be invisible to everyone, and that he wasn’t just being shunned. Eventually, Vesper spent 2 years being invisible to all of society. A chance meeting with a former victim- someone who could see him and someone experiencing similar changes and powers- set him on the path to discover more about Entities. Now, Ves is a pain in the ass to everyone, and constantly on the lookout. Think about him as the guy whose being infected with every disease at once, so none of them can get to him first. Still able to become invisible and spirited others away into fog.

NAME: Kjell Thorngren

AGE: 2000+ (Elf) Around 40-50 (Human)

HEIGHT: 196cm

VIBE: Sickly sweet incense, a smile that doesn’t reach the eye. I hate you for what you did, and I miss you like a little kid.

LIKES: Old books, cracking codes. The smell of snow and summer.

DISLIKES: Loss of control, dirt. The thought and feeling of pain.

SUMMARY:

Kjell is the enigmatic leader of Ciaran’s church. He takes in orphaned boys and raises them in the far north. His church is in a strange pocket of spring in a region that always snows. Kjell worships a fringe god, The All-Father, a parasitic vine god that has infested his old friend. Many of the boys are unaware of it’s true form, and are forced to participate in ritual sacrifice to it. Kjell is ego-driven, rude and considers himself superior to everyone around him. Deep inside, he feels deeply inadequate and has fostered these children to provide both the ego boost and sense of power over them. Kjell is obsessed with his old love, Caramel, to the point of obsessing over features Ciaran shares with him. A deeply abusive man, Kjell will do almost anything to ensure Ciaran returns to his fold. Kjell is a cis man wizard.

 

NAME: Caramel

AGE: 2000+ (Elf) Around 40-50 (Human)

HEIGHT: 188cm

VIBE: Dionysus, Hedonistic. A poet and muse, an inspiration and a deep well of creativity. 

LIKES: Life's simple and indulgent pleasures, the arts. Bodies of all shapes and sizes, the warmth of a good party.

DISLIKES: Overly clingy people. Rude comments, bad social etiquette.

SUMMARY:

Caramel started out as a backstory character for Ciaran’s main backstory antagonist. Kjell’s childhood friend turned somewhat lover turned murder victim, Caramel was a bright spark in Kjell’s life that really amped up Kjell’s possessiveness. Caramel was a poet, a scholar, easy going and smarter than Kjell, and for that Kjell both wanted to kill and immortalize him. The catalyst for Kjell’s life on the run, his murder and infestation with a parasitic god, serves as the backdrop for Kjell’s false religion. He started out as a nothing character, but I adored the idea and design of him so much that he became a larger and larger fixture in our AUs. Caramel is a bi cis man.

NAME: Von

AGE: 24

HEIGHT: 170cm

VIBE: Aloof older brother. Self serving, but as kind as he can be.

LIKES: MMA, Karate and other martial arts. Making flower crowns. Climbing trees. The clink of coins.

DISLIKES: Dependency. He really dislikes anyone touching his neck and back.

SUMMARY:

The other important church boy. The only boy that would stand up for him, and someone that actively ran away from the cult Ciaran was in. He’s still out there in the world, and often feels bad that he felt like he couldn’t take him with. He shows up a lot more in AUs. Von is a mlm cis man, and a human monk.

Here are all the boys at Ciaran's church (this is super old lmao)

See you for part two!

[someprideandprejudice]

I will say it once, and if I must I will say it as many times as I need to. I HATE misunderstandings.

There’s a reason I can’t stand sit-coms and rom-coms—misunderstandings are too often used as plot devices and it always involves some mess of head banging, incredibly uncomfortable, I’m-going-to-walk-through-this-wall-just-to-escape-this-hell second (and first) hand embarrassment. Whenever something like that happens in my shows I physically get up and leave until it passes, and while the situation between Elizabeth and Mr. Darcy wasn’t quite so bad that I’d felt the need to do that, it was still frustrating watching dear Mr. Darcy pine for Lizzy like a schoolboy while Elizabeth was hating his guts because her crush practically told her to.

As a fellow antisocial recluse, I can’t blame Mr. Darcy for his shyer tendencies that no doubt contributed to the mess of his and Elizabeth’s relationship. There are different conclusions people have come to about his attitude—ranging from social anxiety to undiagnosed autism—which I’m hardly knowledgeable enough about either to comment on without accidently offending anyone and setting a mob with pitchforks after myself, so I won’t. As shown in the book, however, Mr. Darcy truly doesn’t like socializing—he doesn’t like dancing, doesn’t like parties, doesn’t like listening to women entertaining said parties with random concertos when he could be reading a book in a quiet corner away from the throngs of society.

Which, mood.

However, the downside of this behavior in his pursuit of romance is that you can’t cultivate said romance without interacting with the object of your affections. Although Mr. Darcy didn’t realize it (and honestly, I love the man, but how can’t you recognize a women doesn’t like you romantically when she’s literally sending death glares at your back? Couldn’t he feel it? Her killing intent??? She practically wanted him castrated and six feet under—) but Elizabeth hadn’t liked him at all since their introduction. This was due to the first impression Mr. Darcy had given her, and which was only further supported in their future interactions as Mr. Darcy kept a cold facade and put distance between them so he’d stopped being so obsessed with her. While on one side it may have looked like a man desperately trying to get over his puppy love, on the other it looked like he was a cold, supercilious, prat of a man, and unfortunately that was the side Elizabeth had only managed to see.

Darcy, you poor, idiotic moron.

Mr. Darcy isn’t the only one to blame, however—if Elizabeth hadn’t stubbornly held to her prejudices of him and cared to 1) get to know and actually pay attention to him and 2) listen to wise big sis Jane, we could have avoided this whole goddamn mess. With as strong headed a woman as Elizabeth is, it’s understandable that she’d taken Mr. Darcy’s first impression at face value and held him to it for almost all of their relationship. Her pride had been hurt by his words and his own pride had offended her. Of course she held him in contempt.

But then Mr. Wickham happened.

Now, I actually like Mr. Wickham. He’s a lying, manipulative scumbag, but he’s smart, and his whole scheme was admittedly impressive. However that’s a ramble for another post—what I’m not impressed by was Elizabeth’s response to his manipulating. She completely, absolutely fell for it.

Elizabeth had practically fallen in love with Mr. Wickham on sight, and her affection for him clouded her judgement to truly think for herself. Mr. Wickham drove a wench between an already cracking foundation and fed on her already bad opinion of Mr. Darcy to make it even worse. If she’d cared to give it much thought initially, she could have wondered why Mr. Wickham was telling her clearly private affairs at all, and in a public space as well. Why would a handsome stranger come out of nowhere and gossip with her about Mr. Darcy, telling her things she technically should have no right to know?

Because of both Mr. Darcy’s shy boy attitude and Elizabeth’s chomping at the bit, their relationship had gone from tense to almost hostile. Although it all does get resolved eventually, a few misunderstandings had gone and derailed an entire relationship, as well as set up the entire plot of the story. I understand why people use misunderstandings as plot devices—they’re convenient. They’re easy to use. Still.

It’s just. So. ANNOYING—