#and then refuse to believe people when they say that they're not worth the trouble of loving

[cwritesforfun]

The Bear: Carmen 'Carmy' Berzatto x Fem!Reader: Business Dinner

Enjoy;) Masterlist

(YES, the plot has changed. I do not own The Bear characters.) Y/N = Your Name

Y/N's POV

You finish getting ready and you walk out to your living room where you see your boyfriend pacing. He was pacing earlier, but you were hoping he had stopped when you did your make-up. You exclaim, "Carmy, baby, what's wrong?" He turns to you, sees you, and says, "Wow honey, you're gorgeous. I mean, jaw-dropping stunning. Let me see you twirl." You twirl and he says, "I can't believe I'm your boyfriend. I'm so lucky that I have you in my life." You wrap your arms around his neck and say, "I'm lucky to have you in my life too. I've never been happier." He wraps his arms around your waist and kisses you gently. He asks, "Are you sure you want me as your plus one tonight? I'm sure one of your friends would go if you asked." You answer, "Yes, I'm sure. I can't wait to show you off. I'm so proud of you and your success with the Bear. You also said you couldn't wait to try the food at this restaurant, so I'm happy we get to try it together. Why? Where is this sudden hesitation coming from?" He replies, "I just ... I know that there are going to be a lot of business people tonight with their millionaire star boyfriends or girlfriends. I'm not even close to that. Everyone at the party doesn't have anxiety like us and I'm stressed I'll say something wrong. Times like these make me feel insecure about who I am and like being together doesn't work." You ask, "But if you ignore tonight, do you think we work together?" He answers, "Yeah, I mean sh** I love you. I haven't told you that, but I'm nervous and stressed. I don't want to lose you." You say, "I love you too, Carmen Anthony Berzatto. I think you're the sweetest and kindest boyfriend ever." He kisses you on the cheek and you continue, "I know you're nervous, but you'll be okay. We'll be together all night. You won't ever lose me. And I refuse to hear you talk about yourself as worthless and think that. You're worth the weight of the world in gold. You're the love of my life and you're perfect to me. I love every side of you." You kiss and he says, "Ok, if we are going, we should leave before I back out. And, warn me, next time you say my full-time, I felt like I was in trouble." You laugh and you leave the apartment.

Carmy drives you both downtown and you use the valet at the restaurant. It's free valet tonight, but we're allowed to tip.

Outside the restaurant, one of your coworkers waves and walks up with their partner. The coworker says, "Hi, I'm Pippa and I work with Y/N. This is my partner, Jennifer." I introduce Carmy to them and meet Jennifer. We all head inside and ask to be seated at the table together. I know Pippa and she's a good person. She's also very passionate about food. I've met Jennifer once or twice when she drops lunch off for Pippa at work. She seems cool. They should get along with Carmy and not make him feel anxious.

Drinks are being ordered. I know Carmy is still working on staying away from alcohol and being clean. I'm so proud of his journey with it so far. I lean over to Carmy and say, "Check out their Clean Cocktails. It's their version of mocktails and they're really good." He kisses me on the cheek and says, "Thanks babe."

We then get up to get a salad from the salad and appetizer bar. Carmy gets excited to see the fresh fruit and hot fresh bread. The restaurant has some pepper that makes him excited since it's hard to get, so he tells the chef behind the bar that he is the head chef at The Bear and he wants to know more about how they use it/cook it. The chef behind the salad bar says he will send the head chef to talk to Carmy about it after the salad servings are out. This excites Carmy and you're so happy that he is happy.

You both mingle with a few people as you walk back. You can tell some of their eyes linger on Carmy an extra second or just stare weirdly at you both, so you try to keep moving.

As you're eating the salad, the head chef of the restaurant walks up and asks if we want to see the exclusive inside of the preparation of the peppers as well as the meat. Pippa, Jennifer, Carmy, and I follow him to the back. We learn about their process and they let Carmy try, which makes the head chef intrigued. You all try them hot off the pan and they're so good. We then head back to our seats.

The entrees are served and you notice your boss walking over with his wife. Note about your boss, he thinks he's the best boss and the smartest person in the room at all times. His wife is super fake and clearly is only with your boss for the money. Your boss exclaims, "Hello Pippa and Y/N! I don't believe I have had the pleasure of meeting either of your plus ones yet tonight." Pippa says, "This is Jennifer and she's one of my best friends. You also might recognize her from The Chicago Bandits Pro Softball Team. She's the pitcher and the captain of the team." Jennifer shakes your boss' hand. Your boss says, "It's nice that you were able to make it. I'm sure practice keeps you busy." Jennifer replies, "It's the off-season, so I was able to be here. It's a lovely dinner." Your boss nods. To cut the tension, you exclaim, "It is a great event. This is my boyfriend, Carmen Berzatto. He's the head chef and owner of the restaurant, The Bear." Your boss' wife says, "One of my girlfriends said you had lovely appetizers and a fine wine selection." Carmy smiles and says, "I'm glad, tell her thank you. I helped hand-select our whole menu and think it all pairs well with our wines. Our sommelier hand selects it all as well." Your boss asks, "I'm glad to hear you have a sommelier. Do you think that we could get a reservation there for Tuesday at 7:15?" BRUH wtf?!?!?! The Bear is usually full at peak dinner times and most reservations are already fully booked. Carmy pulls out his phone and says, "Sure, enter your details. I'll send a confirmation of the reservation. We'd be pleased to have you." Your boss enters his details and asks, "Will you be working that night?" Carmy answers, "Yes sir, I will." Your boss hands Carmy his phone back and replies, "Good, we want the best experience." Carmy replies, "My staff is highly trained and all have completed training with chefs worldwide. And, my sous chef is the expediter as well. You have nothing to worry about." Your boss nods and then asks, "How did you go behind the scenes tonight? I saw that you all met the head chef too. It took me forever to meet him. I thought he was avoiding me." And for good reason lol ... You exclaim, "Carmen was talking to them about their peppers. The head chef had heard of The Bear and knew of Carmen's work from NYC as well as here, so he was excited to invite us back into the kitchen. They gave us a tutorial on preparing them, and we tried them hot fresh off the pan." Your boss nods and then leaves with his wife. That was weird, ok.

When they're far away, you ask, "Is there even space free at The Bear on Tuesday?" Carmy says, "We always save a few tables for walk-ins, so yes." You reply, "You should put them by the bathroom." Carmy replies, "No, I'm not that mean." Pippa says, "You should spit in their food." Carmy replies, "I don't want it to bite either of you in the butt if he hates it. They won't be at a prime table, but I'll make sure my staff are on their best behavior. I'll even stop by to check in on their meal." Pippa says, "Don't give them a discount. They have the money." Jennifer says, "You're so evil, babe." Pippa laughs. You say, "Yet there was no lie in what Pippa said."

Dinner finishes and light desserts are served. It's sorbet, which is cold and refreshing. Your boss thanks everyone on the microphone and everyone is reminded to pick up the free swag bags by the door prepared by his wife.

Pippa, Jennifer, Carmy, and I leave together. The swag bag includes a bottle of wine, soap made by the boss' wife, socks with your work logo, and extra pens with your work logo.

You tip the valet and you get in the car.

At your apartment, you strip off the dress and slide on one of Carmy's shirts and your pajama bottoms. You go into the bathroom to wash your face of make-up. Carmy walks in, wraps his arms around your waist, and says, "I'm glad I went tonight. I liked being with you. I also will admit that I liked your friends. Pippa and Jennifer were cool. I don't like your boss or his wife. They kind of suck." I laugh and reply, "Yeah, they're not the best. Why did you give them a table this week at your restaurant? Also, I need to rinse my face." You move slightly out of his arms to wash your face then you say, "Ok, we can go to bed." Carmy holds your hand and you both get into bed. You exclaim, "I loved being with you tonight. You're the best boyfriend for going and for putting up with my boss. I feel like I didn't get to show you off as much as I could have. I forget how many people I dislike at work and don't want to speak to. Ugh, I wanted to tell everyone how cool you are and why you're a catch." He laughs, kisses the side of your head, and says, "Baby, it's okay. I think you're a catch too. I'm sure people saw us together and thought we were just the hottest couple." You laugh and say, "I mean we are." He kisses you as he laughs with you.

Masterlist

[adozentothedawn]

It starts out small. The group of kids congregating around him as he shows off his skills. They're not friends, not really, but they're impressed and drawn to him, sticking around for the entertainment and for something they can't quite name yet. None of them would call him a friend, but they all agree he's the reason they are there. He's the centre point. But before it can go anywhere he is taken, ripped out from his home and bound.

It continues from there. He becomes a point of connection for the other kidnapped children. A thing to cling to when everything else around them crumbles. He's skilled, he is bitter and he is driven. He wants out and they hope sticking to him will get them out as well. There is something about him that makes them believe that he will manage even though all who tried before were killed. They're right. It takes years but he manages it, kills their master, their captor, frees them in turn, but the group breaks when he runs without them.

The next time it takes longer but it snowballs. It starts with one contact, a medic who doesn't ask questions, continues with a streetkid scouting for him for some coin, moves on to an escaped apprentice of the Overseers out for revenge, and before he knows it he has a group of 10 people in a uniform looking to him for answers, for leadership, for protection. Then 20, 30, 40 until there are more then 60 and they have to separate into multiple hideouts. Eventually they move into the flooded Chambers of Commerce, all together, all dressed the same, all loyal to death. Theirs or someone else's.

The Whalers break when he does, and though most eventually rekindle contact with him, there is a period of time after the reinstatement of the Empress when only two people know his location, Thomas and Montgomery. He runs after Corvo spares him, grabs only a small bag and takes the first ship to Serkonos, not even sure what he wants to do with the surprising rest of his life. He ends up staying on Bastilian for a while doing odd jobs. He meets an orphaned teen girl delivering papers to keep afloat and teaches her some basic tricks with a knife when she tells him how an Overseer had attacked her. He lets her keep the knife and she sticks around. Eventually he decides on a Vineyard. It takes him a while longer to find one and in the meantime a boy runs into him, fleeing from a gang member. They don't recognize him, but he makes an intimidating enough figure they decide the street rat isn't worth their trouble. The boy promises he knows the land around the Vineyard he's chosen and he doesn't chase him away. He buys the Vineyard, a while passes as he learns how to manage it and what counts for passable wine. A pair of teens hide in his shed, on the run from a father with a drinking problem. They promise to help with the imminent harvest. They don't leave afterwards. He has the space and can use the help.

Three years later there are 20 kids of varying ages running around the property, soon followed by a few Whalers that tracked him down and refuse to leave. He doesn't argue.

One night the Outsider appears to him, after years long silence.

"So. How is the new cult going? Better than the wine endeavour I hope."

"I don't have a-"

Daud doesn't say anything for the rest of the night. The Outsider laughs and lets him stew for a few hours.

[molsno]

something that bothers me about the concept of transandrophobia is that it's often defined as the intersection between transphobia and misogyny, which just isn't true. there's already a word for that intersection, and that's transmisogyny.

I see a lot of trans men who believe in the movement argue that their oppression is largely defined by misogyny, and I can definitely see where they're coming from. one common complaint I see from trans men is that they'll never be able to come out or transition because their family will punish them for "giving up their womanhood," essentially valuing them for their femininity instead of recognizing and accepting their inherent right to live according to their own desires. this kind of misogyny, where people refuse to view you as a fully independent person capable of making your own decisions about your life and your body due to the value they perceive in your potential desirability to men, is the foundation of patriarchy. and it's incredibly painful! knowing that many people won't take you seriously because they view you as a woman is frustrating!

it's just... that experience is not unique to trans men. that's just plain old misogyny. it's the same logic underlying the constant attacks on reproductive rights: if you have a uterus, then your destiny is to become breeding stock for men and be a dutiful housewife and mother for your husband's children, so you're not entitled to make choices about your body that would inhibit your ability to do so, such as getting a hysterectomy or having an abortion. it's not even unique to people who were afab; because of ray blanchard's transsexual typology, most trans women for decades were unable to access gender affirming care at all if they were unable to meet a very restrictive definition of womanhood that was entirely determined by their potential sexual desirability and willingness to be subservient to men, and ONLY men.

sure, it is blatantly transphobic to deny a trans man's right to self-identification, and it's misogynistic to refuse him this on the basis of his desirability to men. and I have no doubt that that's deeply painful! but the fact that these two forms of oppression are happening simultaneously does not mean they are intersecting. in order for that to be the case, they would have to compound on one another and form something new which is greater than the sum of its parts.

that's what transmisogyny is. because yes, people deny our right to self-identification, and decide our worth by our desirability to men, but transfeminine oppression is so much more than that. despite what people say, they don't really see us as men; they see us as a threat to the patriarchy because our mere existence stands in stark opposition to the notion that manhood and masculinity are superior to womanhood and femininity. they don't fully see us as women either, though; our inability to bear children means that we aren't entitled to the very few benefits afforded to cis women, so we have no place in society. as a result, we exist as women that you can abuse without consequence. we exist as fetish objects; just things that you can fuck when you're looking for an "exotic" sexual experience.

I'm more than aware that there are trans men who don't define transandrophobia as the intersection of transphobia and misogyny, and some even outright reject the notion that they experience misogyny at all, on the basis that it's misgendering. I can certainly understand that point of view, but the alternative definition would imply that misandry is a widespread form of oppression, which is undeniably false.

what I find most troubling, though, is that trans men who do state that misandry is real then assert that trans women's oppression is at least partially built upon it. I shouldn't have to state this, but if you're going to reject the notion that misogyny is a cause of your oppression on the basis that it's misgendering, then I have every right to reject the notion that misandry is a cause of mine.

that's really the problem with people who believe in transandrophobia, though: they're entitled. rather than recognize the common ground they have with others and stand in solidarity with them, they monopolize the conversation to claim that the oppression they experience is wholly unique. by doing so, they're able to talk over women by positioning themselves as experts who understand the subject far better than we ever could, which allows them to have a taste of the male privilege they feel they've been wrongfully deprived of. that's precisely why most transandrophobia truthers are white; trans men of color generally have a better understanding of intersectionality and are usually aware that this form of male entitlement will never be available to them because the racism they experience will result in them being perceived as a threat if they ever try to speak over white women.

trans liberation will never be achieved so long as you try to appeal to the patriarchy in the hopes of advancing in the gender hierarchy. even if you succeed, you will always find your new position is conditional; step out of line, be too trans, and it's gone. if you really want all trans people to be free, you need to acknowledge the people who have it worse than you and fight for them. if you want fellow trans men to have the freedom to come out and transition, you need to actively combat misogyny - even the kind that doesn't affect you personally: transmisogyny. if you want that freedom to be extended to all trans people, not just the white ones, you need to understand racism and stand against it whenever you see it. real liberation only happens when the white supremacist patriarchy is burned to the ground, so grab a torch.

[ashenvein-gate]

A meditation on chaos and order in popular storytelling

Trouble with contemporary stories about law/order versus chaos: even when writers seek nuance by not positioning law as intrinsic good, they still accept the Christian definition of chaos. It's a bad faith distortion meant to paint law as the only reasonable option.

Chaos, in both its original Greek sense and actuality, doesn't mean "rejection/destruction of order", it refers to the full range of possibilities and potential. Chaos is only "against" the Christian order because that order seeks to choke out all alternatives, to deny possibility and change.

While I'm on the subject, rejection of chaos is inherently transphobic, as it necessarily entails rejecting the possibility, or at least the worth, of becoming something other than what one presently appears to be.

And this is the core: "order", to define itself, must reject chaos. As part of this rejection, order's inventers always try to portray a symmetrical relationship, a duality--but that relationship doesn't exist. Chaos isn't innately opposed to order. It can't be, because order is a possibility, a potential outcome, which means it is an expression of chaos. Namely, order is a form of chaos that rejects all other forms of chaos.

This is why I call order "a very narrow chaos"--at the root, that's all it is. What we call "order" is the chaos of possibilities solid enough to endure for a while.

But if you just come out and say "I want these possibilities to persist because I like them and they work for me", well--it's pretty hard to use that as a foundation for a superiority complex, nor as a justification to trample the possibilities others like. "Order" is a construct invented to ennoble oppression, to paint the erasure of others' desires and potential as important work that upholds the cosmos.

A story accurately depicting the relationship between order and chaos would start with a community of people happily going about their lives, minding their own business, doing what works for them without trying to control anyone else, only for a bunch of armed raving fanatics to stampede in screaming, "How dare you degenerate vermin violate the natural order?! Justice will be swift!" and murder everyone who refuses to do as these invaders command.

Ordermongers need you to believe that "chaos" means "angry psychopaths barging into your life and destroying everything" because otherwise you'd very quickly realize that's what they do. The narrative of order has, from its inception, been a propaganda tool of empire and of fascist regimes.

And your reflex, because this is what most of you have been taught to assume, will be to say, "but total chaos is completely random, everything changes so fast--"

But see, now you're echoing that Christian caricature again. That's. Not. What. Chaos. IS.

Well, it can be--but it doesn't have to! True chaos is the continuous emergence and fostering of potential. Persistence is just as real and solid a form of potential as randomness is. Want to see a perfect chaos? Look at the room you're sitting in as you read this. Perfectly-manifest possibilities.

These misunderstandings are the entire point of the Christian caricature. The whole point is to make you assume that chaos means "scary bad thing that will destroy my reality and kill me," so that even if you don't like law and order, you'll see favoring chaos as equally unappealing.

The obvious example here are all the "morally grey" depictions of the conflict between God and the Devil, where, reliably, both are portrayed as equally asinine... which, in fairness, most Christian depictions make them out to be!

But, see, they're both a very narrow chaos--both "orderly." God does indeed embody Order, in the sense that Order is an invention, a made-up thing central to the Christian religion as a justification for forcing itself upon other people, but it's a fallacy to assume the Devil thus represents Chaos just because he stands against God. In most stories about their conflict, the Devil doesn't hate Order, he just hates God's order. He wants God deposed so he can make everything follow his plans instead, so he can narrow Chaos to express only the things that he likes.

So in the modern "morally grey" version, the "good" option usually ends up being rejecting both of them, which I agree with, so as to pursue one's own possibilities... which, if you've read this far, you already know I'm going to tell you IS CHOOSING YOUR OWN CHAOS.

Buuuuut framing it that way might lead to serious questions about why, if that's what chaos can be, we're so heavily discouraged from pursuing it in our own lives, and that would make it very hard to package milquetoast centrism as "morally grey" instead of just submissive and amiably defeatist.

[ruthlesslistener]

I have a question that I'm finding more and more concerning with you that I think you probably don't notice at all, but why is your judgement on what's right and wrong so heavily reliant on what your discord friends say? You made mistakes and as some have pointed it out, but the moment your discord friends say you haven't done anything wrong; then you believe in them completely. One of the things I learned as an autistic person is to listen and learn from others if my behavior is found to be on the bad side, but I'm starting to notice how easily you believe in your friends and ignore others for their sake. I don't wanna say examples here, but as an autistic person to another, its fine to ask friends for advice and judgment but sometimes they aren't always right and we should take note of that more often. Like you, I also have trouble reading between the lines so I also rely on friends to help me understand. But I also know well they aren't always right and try to analyse situations myself more and decide for myself whether I'm the one who is in the right.

Please don't get mad. I know I'm not the only one who pointed this out, but you act like such a jerk when your wrongs are pointed out and frankly I think it's time you ease down too.

(Quick note- my tone here is neutral and contemplative, not mad. This is something I've been thinking about on myself)

The main reason why I ask my friends for feedback is actually BECAUSE I put a lot of thought into social scenarios, but I've got a huge blind spot when it comes to how they actually work and how I'm coming off in them. I tend to treat them like a math problem, but alas, I'm very much not good at math. Because my friends have an outsider pov of not being me while also knowing me well enough to be aware of my flaws and inclinations, they're able to give me perspectives that I simply do not have that I can then factor into my analysis of the situation. The entirety of the misstep was my own, but since I was extremely confused as to how a mild statement from my end (to my eyes) computed to someone thinking that I called them a pedophile because to me that wasn't even CLOSE to what I was saying, I went to others for help.

It's also worth it to point out that my friends were the ones who said I was wrong and that I came off as saying something I didn't mean, but ALSO that the people I wronged were handling it really poorly and jumping to conclusions even after I apologized and clarified it, which is where I wasn't in the wrong. So they're hardly telling me I was innocent, and I don't view them as the end-all-be-all statement of what's right and wrong here. They just get factored into my calculations when I have a missing variable.

That isn't to say that I don't act like a jerk when defensive, but it's not triggered by being wrong, it's triggered by accusations and people not listening to what I have to say. I most certainly was in the wrong to assume malicious intent, but I'm not in the wrong to point out that the people who assumed malicious intent handled it just as poorly as I did, given that they continued to claim that I said something about them that I outright said was an error made in ignorance on my part, and that I had intentions that I really did not have (ie, redtagging them). That's not me refusing to take blame, that's just the reality of the situation. I was wrong, I was speaking from a place of ignorance that I really should have put more thought into, and I DID react defensively and like an absolute ass when I got a slew of aggressive messages about it, but the fact that I continued to get more aggressive messages after it that continued to assume malicious intent after clarification isn't where I fucked up, because I really can't do more than what I already apologized for.

[tenelese]

The Blessing of a Stranger

Justice or Revenge

Tabi's P.O.V.

Finally...I have her right where I want her...I will finally have my revenge! I tried to get her boyfriend or shall I say victim to realise that she's using him, but he's either to stubborn or to stupid to listen to me, so now I will kill the both of them! I bombed the whole restaurant...I wasn't surprised that Girlfriend survived. Just as I was about to advance on them, a tiny figure in a hooded jacket came in between us...are they protecting them? And who are they? Are they with theses two? No matter...I will give this tiny stranger a chance to leave and stay out of this, but if they refuse then I will kill them and then those brats!

"Who are you!?Nevermind! Listen to me and listen good! I need to end this right here right now! Leave Now!! Or Suffer The Consequences!!" I yelled, the figure looked down at the ground as if they were thinking for a minute then they look back up at me.

"Why...?" they asked, this caught me off guard.

"Why!? WHY!!!!??? THAT BRAT AND THAT PIECE OF TRASH SHE CALLS A FATHER USED ME!!!!! LOOK AT ME NOW!!! JUST A FLOATING SKULL WITH AN INVISIBLE!!!!! I LOST EVERYTHING!!!!"I shrieked.

"But did you lose everything?" they asked, I stared down at them in frustration, but in confusion. I stared at them for a moment.

"What?" I asked.

"Did you lose everything?" they asked again, what did they mean?

"Do you still have friends, family, and fans who loves you?" they continued, that got to me.

"SHUT UP AND LEAVE YOU TWERP!!!! WHAT I'M DOING IS JUSTICE!!!! WHY DON'T YOU UNDERSTAND!!!!!????" I screamed demandingly. This caused the little one to give me a small glare.

"Justice!? This is not justice! This is revenge! Two wrongs does not make a right! Don't be like Dearest!" she said firmly. How dare they...!

"Don't You Dare Compare Me To That Monster!! I'm Nothing Like Him!! I Would Never Go Around And Ruin Other People's Lives!! You Don't Understand The Pain And Torment I've Been Through!!" I yelled.

"Oh really!? Well you're acting just like him! Look around you! Look at the innocent lives you ruined, harmed, and killed for one girl! Do you not care about the lives of others? And what about the people who do care about you? How do you think they will react when they find out what you did? And I do understand! My older cousin was wrongly accused about attempted rape on my other older cousin even though he had witnesses! He got his revenge, but at what cost? He took his own life away just so the police couldn't catch him! And you what's worse? People still believe what he was trying to proof not to be...a monster." they finished shedding a tear with an emotionless glare. I had no idea...when you put like that...they do understand...could it be that they're right? My thoughts were cut off when they moved out the way leaving those two vulnerable, they then began leaving the burning restaurant with a small glance back at me.

"You can do whatever you want...but don't say I didn't warn you...you still have a chance to get your life back on track...I just feel sorry that you never realized that violence is never the answer and there are others ways for bringing justice and possibly revenge...farewell...I wish you happiness..." they then disappeared. I was shocked, but also...stupid...? I feel like I can trust that stranger...I don't know. I look at the two...still shaking in fear...I at the knife in my hand...then I look I around the burning restaurant with unconscious and dead people on the ground...oh my gosh...what have I done...? I killed innocent people for a stupid girl...I guess they were right...I was no better than Dearest...for me to go all through the trouble for revenge...I feel so stupid! I looked at the two again, I narrowed my eyes at them...mainly at Girlfriend...I looked at my knife then threw it to the ground. I then began walking out the burning restaurant before stopping and looking back at the two.

"The kid was right! You two aren't worth it!" I growled.

[smokeybrandcompositions]

Without Representation

Yo, this meme i posted about how billionaires don't pay taxes in the US, got flagged on Facebook for false information! I am absolutely beside myself right now. Like, the thing cited an article from The Dispatch (?), a Conservative biased, subscription based, online “newsletter,” stating that Zuck, in fact, only takes home a dollar a year in salary from his position as Facebook Overlord. You can't tax a dollar 's worth of income, bro. He's a billionaire because of his ownership stake in FB, and that's not income. See, that makes sense. Can't get taxed income taxes if that's not income. By the strictest, surface level, interpretation of current tax law, this article is correct. If you're an idiot who refuses to look deeper into any, boot-licking propaganda, this is more than enough for you to stan a Musk. The thing is, I'm not an idiot.

The bourgeoisie do that sh*t on purpose SPECIFICALLY to NOT pay their fair share BECAUSE of what i said above. You can have every bit of your opulence tied up in stocks, and never actually be taxed at your level of wealth, because it, technically, doesn't count toward it. It's not currency or actual money, but potential money. It's f*cking Schrodinger's fortune over here and you can't tax phantom numbers. If they sell some stock, cash it out, then, yeah, they're subject to income tax. They don't do that. They borrow against it. Take out massive loans they'll never pay back but, because those stocks are there, they're good for it. You don't pay taxes on loan money, bro. In fact, in some cases, you get a tax break for them! Another thing these assholes do is trade IN stocks. They exchange those stock for services and goods, but don't have to cash them out. Again, no cash out, no income tax! This sh*t is wild to me. Like, bro, are there people reading this rag and actually BELIEVING this nonsense? Are Conservatives this goddamn stupid? Yes, these robber barons and ultra capitalists don't pay income taxes because they technically don't receive income, but you're telling me the richest man in the world gets a pass on contributing to our society at a properly proportionate rate, because he's got accounts on his payroll who are good at exploiting technicalities?

Like, this isn't me being a "Coastal Liberal Elitist" or whatever. This is me being a smart person, who understand commerce. Any one can seek out federal tax returns from the richest motherf*ckers in the country. They're all saying pittance on the dollar, for their gross ass wealth! Bro, Trump was a billionaire when he got into his troubles and they released his tax records. Sh*t was national news. He hadn't paid a dime in close to two decades and only recently came out of pocket during his tenure as POTUS. During one of those rare, latter day years where he was at the mercy of the IRS, i paid more than he did! And Drumpf had a net worth laughably higher than mine! Bro boasted that he had four hundred million in liquid assets, that means, CASH, during one of his many, many, fraud depositions. Yet, here I am, turning over several times more in year end, government extortion, than he did. Now, his money doesn't necessarily come fro stocks. He grifts hard on real estate. Still, the game is the same. He borrows against those real estate evaluations, the same way someone like Zuck borrows against them FB stocks. Now, if Trump is on record ding that sh*t, the f*ck you think Elon is doing? Bezos? He makes his employees piss in bottles so he can have a super yacht so large, he had forced a country to dismantle a historic bridge so he could cruise it's riviera. A yacht that cost a couple hundred million to build. A yacht he thanked his grossly underpaid, laughably under insured, factory workers for basically trading their serfdom to be be built. Bro, telling me billionaires pay taxes, just because they receive paltry incomes during the year, is bullsh*t and intellectually dishonesty. sh*t is cartoonishly insulting. You f*cking know EXACTLY what we mean when we say these gluttonous leeches on society don't pay taxes.

[smokeybrand]

Without Representation

Yo, this meme i posted about how billionaires don't pay taxes in the US, got flagged on Facebook for false information! I am absolutely beside myself right now. Like, the thing cited an article from The Dispatch (?), a Conservative biased, subscription based, online “newsletter,” stating that Zuck, in fact, only takes home a dollar a year in salary from his position as Facebook Overlord. You can't tax a dollar 's worth of income, bro. He's a billionaire because of his ownership stake in FB, and that's not income. See, that makes sense. Can't get taxed income taxes if that's not income. By the strictest, surface level, interpretation of current tax law, this article is correct. If you're an idiot who refuses to look deeper into any, boot-licking propaganda, this is more than enough for you to stan a Musk. The thing is, I'm not an idiot.

The bourgeoisie do that sh*t on purpose SPECIFICALLY to NOT pay their fair share BECAUSE of what i said above. You can have every bit of your opulence tied up in stocks, and never actually be taxed at your level of wealth, because it, technically, doesn't count toward it. It's not currency or actual money, but potential money. It's f*cking Schrodinger's fortune over here and you can't tax phantom numbers. If they sell some stock, cash it out, then, yeah, they're subject to income tax. They don't do that. They borrow against it. Take out massive loans they'll never pay back but, because those stocks are there, they're good for it. You don't pay taxes on loan money, bro. In fact, in some cases, you get a tax break for them! Another thing these assholes do is trade IN stocks. They exchange those stock for services and goods, but don't have to cash them out. Again, no cash out, no income tax! This sh*t is wild to me. Like, bro, are there people reading this rag and actually BELIEVING this nonsense? Are Conservatives this goddamn stupid? Yes, these robber barons and ultra capitalists don't pay income taxes because they technically don't receive income, but you're telling me the richest man in the world gets a pass on contributing to our society at a properly proportionate rate, because he's got accounts on his payroll who are good at exploiting technicalities?

Like, this isn't me being a "Coastal Liberal Elitist" or whatever. This is me being a smart person, who understand commerce. Any one can seek out federal tax returns from the richest motherf*ckers in the country. They're all saying pittance on the dollar, for their gross ass wealth! Bro, Trump was a billionaire when he got into his troubles and they released his tax records. Sh*t was national news. He hadn't paid a dime in close to two decades and only recently came out of pocket during his tenure as POTUS. During one of those rare, latter day years where he was at the mercy of the IRS, i paid more than he did! And Drumpf had a net worth laughably higher than mine! Bro boasted that he had four hundred million in liquid assets, that means, CASH, during one of his many, many, fraud depositions. Yet, here I am, turning over several times more in year end, government extortion, than he did. Now, his money doesn't necessarily come fro stocks. He grifts hard on real estate. Still, the game is the same. He borrows against those real estate evaluations, the same way someone like Zuck borrows against them FB stocks. Now, if Trump is on record ding that sh*t, the f*ck you think Elon is doing? Bezos? He makes his employees piss in bottles so he can have a super yacht so large, he had forced a country to dismantle a historic bridge so he could cruise it's riviera. A yacht that cost a couple hundred million to build. A yacht he thanked his grossly underpaid, laughably under insured, factory workers for basically trading their serfdom to be be built. Bro, telling me billionaires pay taxes, just because they receive paltry incomes during the year, is bullsh*t and intellectually dishonesty. sh*t is cartoonishly insulting. You f*cking know EXACTLY what we mean when we say these gluttonous leeches on society don't pay taxes.

[animezinglife]

People don't like Nesta because of their trauma caused by a Nesta. If they didn't have trauma directly caused by a Nesta, at worst she'd likely just be a difficult pill to swallow or mildly disappointing. It's a different kind of cruelty and ignorance that ignores the poison she consistently injected throughout the years. Abuse isn't just physical: it never has been, and never will be.

It's a deflection though (much like Nesta herself tends to do): point the finger at everyone else and be loud enough and quieter people won't push the issue. It won't be worth the energy to them, and they've learned to pick their battles. Unfortunately, that enables Nestas and leads them to incorrectly believe they've "won" (something that made me cringe in ACOSF when Cassian decided to pick his battles with her petulant barbs--I'm always reminded of the "playing chess with a pigeon" analogy).

Nesta would never have grown or tried to make herself better in any way had she not had the people around her holding her accountable to a point she could no longer deflect or ignore. Her trauma isn't worse than everyone else's, and she doesn't have the right to inflict more on them because of her own.

But again, I can acknowledge that this is fiction, and because it's fiction I can acknowledge and accept the fact she finally grew. She finally lifted a finger and invested in giving herself some actual bite (her training) instead of mindlessly barking at everyone else. I'm assuming that because this is a fantasy book she won't go right back to her old ways. I'm sure if Elain ever brings her own trauma up and holds her accountable in the future, though, Nesta will twist it.

She's been too much of a pigeon for far too long for me to trust it. I think if she were not around Cassian, Gwyn, and Emerie, she would revert right back.

I don't judge her for her trauma responses of drinking, sex, and self-isolating either, but honestly, she was never a decent person to start with.

It's all of those characteristics: the selfishness, narcissism, and verbal and emotional abuse that I hold her accountable for. It's the laziness and arrogance; the insolence and immaturity. It's the complete refusal to be honest with herself beyond whining about how much she hates herself (I would too, if I had even a fraction of her traits--thank God most people don't).

They all deserve better than her.

On the plus side, when it comes to Feyre, Nyx will be a breeze to raise after having to take care of Nesta her whole life.

I've had a few true Nestas throughout my life. Some say everyone who's in your life is there for a reason and that there's something you can learn from them.

What Nestas have always taught and shown me is the person I never want to be (in who they are), how not to do anything, and who to never give a chance to protect myself and the people I love around me. They have taught and shown me they're who I need to steer clear of upon first glance because they aren't worth the trouble.

You get to an age and point in your life when you accept that some people are genuinely not worth anyone's effort or time unless they're getting paid to do so and trained to handle that specific kind of challenge. You get to an age and point in your life when you realize that even if it feels cruel or judgmental, that doubt is yet another tool they'll use to weaponize your compassion and empathy against you and that they'll continue to use.

Don't allow them to. They don't deserve it. Your health matters, too.

I have a hot take and it might piss some people off specially the ones who believe Nesta didn't need a redemption arc (???) so please don't read this if you have this mindset

You saving your sister at death bed doesn't have redeeming quality. Because anyone in that room, specially Rhysand, would've jumped to help her without hesitation if they had the power. Nesta herself would've helped even if she hadn't finished her healing journey and was still distancing herself from everyone.

I'm not talking about how in those 12 days she didn't help the IC to find a solution, I'm talking about her seeing her baby sister at death bed. Because she didn't helped Feyre for 5 years and let her put herself in danger because Nesta knew she would survive. But the moment Tam/in took her, Nesta goes after her and searches for her. And this is exactly what happened, Nesta thinking IC would find a solution so she didn't even bother to offer a little help. Or even think about it...

In both situations the moment Nesta sees Feyre in absolute danger and is sure there's a huge chance that she might not make it alive, she makes a move to help/save her. I don't want one single person to come here and tell me it's not her job or responsibility- just shut it... don't embarrass yourself

You know what would've been redeeming?

The moment she realized Feyre might die during the labor, she should've started searching alongside the IC, she was literally working in a library at the time.

She should've talked to them and convinced them to let Feyre know of the danger.

She, talking with her sister, properly apologizing and try to bond with her and mend the bridge that's been broken between them.

Not sucking your trainer's d*ck the moment you find out. Not climbing down 10000 steps because you were so "angry" of the injustice you were facing and tell your sister she's about to die and made it about yourself. Because you wanted to show her that IC doesn't "respect" her as much as they don't respect you. And put her in danger in the process because you knew how the stress might hurt the baby but again you were thinking about your own hurts and pains.

I love Nesta and her book helped me to understand her so much better and realizing how similar we are and how much I share trauma with her. Not my trauma response tho.

I just hate the way sjm wrote her healing journey because she made it about herself lol. She projected her trauma and her experience during her process of healing and wrote it into Nesta's story and never cared how it might look at the end. Now Nesta saving Feyre, her blood sister, sounds more like a favor she gave and give *some* people the opportunity to make what Feyre did for her sisters a chore, a responsibility, something she enjoyed to do because she wanted to hurt herself. (and that's definitely not true) Don't even try to deny I've seen it many many times and I have proof.

And that's my problem with her book. I love that she made friends along the process and had her own found family, it led us to meet two beautiful characters. Her book gave us context of the reason behind some of her actions. We get to read how ashamed and hateful she is toward herself for neglecting Feyre. But the rest? No.

Sjm could've give us Nesta, fixing her relationship with the people around her and making new friendship with her found family at the same time but instead she wrote so many smut scene that has no purpose and doesn't help the plot moving. I'm throwing hot takes after hot takes jeez

In conclusion acosf didn't help people to forgive Nesta. Understand her? Yes. But forgiving her and give them the opportunity to considee her as their favorite character? No. I'm not talking about all but the majority, because as you see even now people can't seem to forgive her even tho they understand her much better.

To be honest acosf is one of the weakest book sjm has ever written and she hasn't wrote one single good book ever since... I wanted to make all these takes in different posts but fuck it, we ball<3

[the-only-universe-here]

HELLO! Hello hello it's Valentine's day and I've already had my celebration but! In between studying and eating, I'm gonna bust out some Vday headcanons of all of my most recognizable characters that I have content for on my blog (so like, team KRML and my Arcana apprentices I guess?) Because I have exactly 0 self control and I wanna DO

Also this got really long so uhhhh HI all of this is going under the cut as to not flood people with this stuff alwietlaskdjg

Kasten:

Be ready because literally he is the most sappy person ever (as we've found) and will absolutely go feral finding whatever his s/o's favorite treats are (chocolates are classic but he likes to give more personal gifts)

Probably serenades his s/o at least once throughout the day, whether it be at home or in public singing along to the song playing over the shitty McDonald's speakers at lunch

Fancy dinner is a must, either homemade or at some high-end restaurant where he can spoil tf out of them

Will actually combust if he gets gifts or letters from "admirers"

Also he doesn't leave friends out! Valentine's days are shared with singles and his closest friends as well, he will spoil everyone to gifts n stuff, but his main focus is on his love(s) of course 😘

Riley:

Not really one to go all out for Valentine's day, in all honesty he most likely forgot about it entirely until someone at work mentioned it.

Will probably pick up a box of chocolates at the store, or specific treats his s/o likes if he sees them

Awkward bean is awkward, doesn't know how to properly be romantic so he'll just do his best to be a bit more affectionate than he usually is

Down for a dinner, he can cook pretty well but if his s/o want to go out he's good with that too (saves him from having to wash dinner lmao)

Doesn't know wtf to do when he's given gifts or love notes from admirers askdndidbxj he'll probably trip over his words and go silent in an attempt to preserve his dignity

Maru:

Excuse me what the fuck, Valentine's day?? I want no part in this?? Literally the most anti-Vday person out there alsndisbxj

At least until she starts dating 😉 aka when she meets Kasten and then she panics because why the hell do people even do this, she doesn't know what gifts to get people? Chocolates?? Other treats?? Probably just ends up buying one of those big bags of mixed Valentine-themed candies and calling it good

Doesn't bother trying to be romantic, you get what you get, take it or leave it but also lowkey being a little clingy because wow wtf Valentine's day is stressful

Screw going to fancy places or making a better-than-usual dinner for herself or her s/o, unless they wanna cook. At best they go to IHOP and get endless pancakes to devour until they're both too stuffed to move

Ahahahahahah what the fuck are you doing giving Maru presents for Valentine's day? She'll accept the fluffy teddy bear or candy but cards are just kinda tucked away for all eternity (she'll read them later and be confused and embarrassed on her own)

Lilac:

Poor girl literally doesn't even know what Valentine's day is for the longest time, and absolutely does not understand what the big deal is until she falls in with the team?

Surprisingly picky about what kind of gifts or treats to get her s/os and will disappear into the Valentine's sections in a store for like two hours trying to decide what would be right for everybody (friends and family included)

Doesn't really know how to do "romantic" but she finds herself being a bit more clingy, which she's glad to find out is generally a good thing?

Would prefer to not go out somewhere fancy for dinner, but doesn't mind as long as it's not too busy or crowded where they go

Will respond with the quietest 'thank you' if she's presented with gifts or cards from someone who isn't her s/o?? She's just a shy bab and akdnsidbxj but those who know her will know that she does appreciate the sentiment of the gifts even if she doesn't return romantic feelings they might have

Akaira:

Surprisingly enough Valentine's isn't a big thing for her usually? If she has someone to spend the day with she'll take part in some cheesy gift giving and such but generally she will most likely forget about it until the last minute and end up having a spontaneous day of romance... Unless she has plans specifically for it 👀

Any gifts given will be stuff that she randomly picked out while her and her s/o are just kinda out and about, more spontaneous than anything

Of course with Akaira, once she's in the groove of Valentine's day, her s/o will be getting some uhhhh surprise sex throughout the day. She's insatiable and this only gives her an excuse to be even more so

Will absolutely beg to stay in to either let her cook or get her s/o cook a homemade dinner for two. Depends on who's feeling up for it and who's a better cook

She's the master of socialization and honestly with her looks she's pretty used to getting gifts/cards and stuff x.x she has a pretty tried and true method of thanking people and staying as cool and friendly as ever... But RIP that person if they try to go after her, they'll have to deal with her own wrath if she's not single or doesn't want them

Aldafa:

Knows what Valentine's day is, doesn't care about it. Even if she has an s/o, unless they express that they want to do something for Valentine's she's just going to ignore all the gushy lovey dovey stuff around her and do her own thing

The furthest her gifting is going is probably going to be a teddy bear. Or, if she goes along with her own style, something actually useful but somewhat personal. Like a knife, or one of those dried meal kits of something that she knows her s/o likes.

Doesn't know how to be romantic, at all. Literally clueless but hhhh she'll hold,,, hands?? Like more in public n stuff? She's just trying her best but she doesn't know how to do affection in the first place

Screw going out. No way is she going to a restaurant, Aldafa can make food that's better and more filling than even the fanciest of places. It might not look pretty but who cares when it tastes good???

If she gets gifts or cards or anything from admirers they're usually met with an almost pained smile (god those muscles are so unused, this beanpole needs to smile more) and a mostly deadpan "thanks". She'll read the cards later but they'll probably make her awkward/uncomfy >_>

Verun:

Valentine's day with her s/o?? Great! She's entirely down to do sappy things, as long as the day ends with her and her s/o cuddled together in bed.

Most of her gifts will be handmade, or at least have something directly made by her included somewhere along the way. She might be a little awkward giving it to them but!!! She doesn't like just giving them any old thing she bought

Oh my god does she get clingy with her s/o on Valentine's?? It turns instantly into "hold me gimme hugs lemme get in your way as you do this thing so you'll pay attention to me" and like YEAH that's kind of her norm but. More.

Prefers being treated to homemade food, or takeout otherwise. Just wants to be able to sit close with her s/o and watch a show or something while they eat

Will stammer her way through a very shocked and awkward thanks if she gets anything from admirers alskddbdidh she's just awkward and doesn't know what to do with herself. Will likely keep the gifts though, especially if they're cute

Echo:

She is prepared for this. She's likely already planned out some sort of activity to go to for her Vday out with her s/o and is giddy with excitement when it comes around

Probably made some sort of matching jewelry for her and her s/o, according to their own usual style. Since she likes wire-wrapping stones or chunks of glass, her chosen pieces will probably be something her and her s/o found together 💕

Just like Verun she will be 300% more clingy than usual and will probably get Furia to let her out of work early in order to spend the day with her person. Will find some excuse to be close to you as much as possible akdjdidn

She's a disaster in the kitchen, so even though she'll probably try to cook for her s/o she'll most likely end up making the fire alarm go off. Restaurant dinner is mandatory to save her ruined dignity

Echo, baby as she is, will absolutely die of happiness on the spot if presented with gifts or letters from an admirer. Will insist on reading cards asap and if they're especially sappy, even if she doesn't know the person too well, there's a good chance of her crying because she's a mess and just loves people so much??

[cryptic-underground]

Red Son - Sitcom AU

Finally able to think about someone other than Sun Wukong or Macaque in this au, props to me!

Humor aside- I've been thinking of nothing but Red boyo so y'all get spur of the moment things about him for sitcom, though I can't promise it to be angst free- enjoy!

Is either high honors or principal's list in terms of grades (somewhere between 85-95 is his average)

He is so stressed all the time, my guy needs to chill

Gives himself his more homework in hopes of becoming better

Puts most of his self worth into getting good grades similarly to how he does in the show with schemes

Rich boy/girl, not necessarily the spoiled kind but definitely was a little entitled at the beginning

Has a curfew

Parents are the type to blow up her phone when their even just a few minutes late to coming home

Mk and Mei add him instantly to a group chat when they first meet

Says it's to communicate about their project without needing to be in first but it's mostly used to send memes, much to Reds dismay

They grow to find comfort in the group chat when she's having trouble with his parents

Gender fluid because ofc

Has a lot of books comprising of many different genres

Textbooks through the years, books they got to use for projects, a lot of ones on mechanics and engineering as well as just general science stuff

Is a big science nerd!

Mostly a big fan of chemistry and physics

Swk is still his uncle like in jttw but the ties between the bull family and wukong are complicated (talk about it in another post since it isn't red related)

Pif and dbk are still not good parents in this(at least until what would s3 of the au), I don't want to completely rewrite them since I want this to be close to lmk canon

I'm just going to have them be a tiny bit different

They are very strict to red and belittles him when he gets even a bit lower grade than expected

Red is very uncomfortable being touched by them like in the show

Mac is also kinda his uncle but they only briefly met when she was really young

Sucks at most art things, when they have to do an art project they tend to do something with mechanics

After she started hanging out with Mei and mk more frequently, and not just for school projects, he would try to find ways to show they were worthy of being their friend

Doing a lot of favors whenever they needed help with something, asking if they needed something fixed, using his allowance to buy them gifts or food as a way to convince em to let her stay

Is a stickler for rules and regulations

Will call someone out if they cheat at monopoly, will have them restart an entire game because someone broke a rule

Comes over to mks house whenever they hang out, the trio rarely go to red's or meis house

Mei and him confide in each other about their strict parents

Is one of the few people in the group to have a fashion sense

They got the pretty genes your honor

Gets acne breakouts from being overly stressed

Has multiple pairs of glasses in her bag incase they forget their usual pair at home

Is the type to go to sleep at seven or eight at night and wake up at like five in the morning

Is solely a tea drinker and refuses to drink coffee

Believed for the longest time that coffee stunts your growth

Has a full skin care routine

Puts hot sauce or something spicy in pretty much everything

Hates most cold foods

Literally heater

High pain tolerance

Very picky and tends to stays to a lot of their safe foods

Has MK and Mei's favorite and least favorite food memorized

Has said foods ready at her house when they're planned to visit

Will comment on how childish a show is, watches ironically to make fun of it in more detail, them finds them self hyper fixating on the show

The one that brings the shopping list to the store

Once mac gets redeemed, is thankful to have another person with a brain cell to converse with

Tutors mk sometimes

Struggles with basic money math but is able to do complex calculus in her sleep

Has given their two friends a scare because they went on a book reading binge and was too hyperfocused to answer their texts for a week

Phone background and home screen remains whatever the default was when he got the phone, doesn't see the importance of changing it

Until Mei stole their phone and changed everything, it was something he liked but still

Has one thing from every hyper fixation she's had in a box in their closet

Even though he's a heater, puts on thicker/warmer clothes at the briefest sign of fall or winter

She needs to set an example for the rest

Sandy's pets love them in the colder months, especially the cats

Owns both the girl's and boy's uniform for his school

Somehow extremely hated and liked at the school

Is far sighted(can see things that are far away) and has astigmatism

Can only sleep when their body is a plank and doesn't move in her sleep

Can cook since he gets left alone at home quite a bit

Is oldest out of the trio

Tw for the next few///

Hits self when frustrated or really angry

Picks at skin until they bleed

Has forgotten to eat or sleep for days because they were trying to perfect a project

[mixu]

Day 2 + Day 19 (Sunflowers + Travelling Together)

Summary: Naruto travels with Sasuke after the War

.-.-.-

It was Sasuke's fault. He should have refused Naruto but succumbed to a moment of weakness. Their fight, no, the aftermath of their fight had unleashed something inside him. He was tired of pushing Naruto away; he wanted to bask in the other's light after all the time spent in the darkness. Naruto had been impulsive, and Sasuke had been selfish.

Naruto had been full of energy and excitement in the beginning. He kept smiling at Sasuke as if he couldn't contain his happiness. He kept looking at their surroundings in awe, admiring every leaf of grass, every rock by the river and every star in the sky. It was as if he saw everything for the first time, and Sasuke was smitten with the sight. 

It had not lasted.

One afternoon, Naruto's demeanour changed. His smile had all but vanished, and his excitement had turned into contemplativeness. Sasuke didn't understand, was afraid of asking for the reason. Maybe a couple of days was all it had taken for Naruto to decide Sasuke was not worth the effort after all. Why should he abandon his life to keep Sasuke company? He didn't even know what he was looking for or how long it would take to find it.

Sasuke decided to offer him a way out.

"We are not far yet," Sasuke said one night around the third week of their journey as they contemplated the flames of their campfire. "You could go back still." 

Naruto looked away from the flames, directing his uncertain eyes towards Sasuke. "Do you want me to go back?"

"I think you miss Konoha."

Naruto fell silent for a moment, then said, "I don't- I mean, I miss Konoha, but I want to be here with you."

Sasuke's breath caught. The memory of the Valley of the End was still raw and tender, firing his hope. Sasuke pushed down the feeling. He refused to indulge himself any longer. Not if he was causing Naruto pain.

"You don't look as if you want to be here."

"I should have known you'd realize." Naruto smiled sadly and sighed. "But it's not what you think." He reached into his pocket and handed Sasuke the piece of paper he had been carrying.

Sasuke frowned when he read Nara's words. "You said you had permission."

Naruto looked away, rubbing the back of his neck. "I had... for one week."

"Usuratonkachi."

"I asked for an extension."

"And you didn't get it."

"Technically, I did."

"This says the only reason they have not sent someone after you is that they're short on staff." 

"Exactly!" Naruto brightened up. "If I were needed in Konoha, Kakashi-sensei wouldn't have sent a letter."

Sasuke couldn't argue against that. Although, he considered part of the reason Konoha had not tried was that there was literally no force in the world capable of forcing Naruto to return if he didn't want to. He was surprised Kakashi had not asked him to convince Naruto to return. 

Sasuke sighed. "What's with the gloomy face then, Dobe?"

"Well, they could come for me any moment." 

"Are you sure you still don't want to go back?" That would probably save everyone plenty of trouble.

"I am, believe it!" Naruto chirped. "This is not only about us. Like- I've been thinking. I don't want change only for Konoha. To change the Ninja World, I must understand all of it."

Sasuke hoped his admiration didn't show. "Well, we better make the most of the time you have."

So, Naruto had not left, and Sasuke had not suggested it again. 

*～*～*～*～*

They visited a dozen villages in Kusa. Naruto talked to people while Sasuke observed. At some point, Naruto started helping people with their daily tasks and dragged Sasuke along. They cut wood, looked for lost pets, painted houses, and pulled weeds. They got invited to the table of those they helped. Naruto said it was like clearing D-rank missions again. Sasuke admitted it was good training to regain the balance lost with their arms. 

It was in one of the larger markets Naruto saw the sunflowers for the first time. 

They were preparing to leave the area, buying supplies. Sasuke was trying to discern the right amount of rice to carry with them when Naruto ran towards a flower stall, leaving him alone to transport what they had already bought. Sasuke rolled his eyes. It was always the same, and even though he didn't care about the weight, it was still uncomfortable to carry everything with a single hand.

"If you do that again, you'll have to carry everything for a week. No clones." He pulled at Naruto's ear.

"Sorry, Sasuke." Naruto giggled. "Look! Had you ever seen sunflowers that big?"

"They are as big as your head. That's a lot."

"Teme-"

"You have a good eye, young man." The merchant interrupted whatever profanity Naruto was about to spit his way. "My family has grown this variety for generations."

"How much?" Naruto reached for one of the flowerpots —the largest, no less— but Sasuke stopped him.

"Don't even think about it."

"What! Why?" 

"It's huge."

"Please, Sasuke, I know we have a budget, but-"

"It's not about the budget, moron. Are you going to carry that everywhere? You won't be able to take proper care of it. What if we have to fight?"

"Yeah, you are right."

Sasuke didn't like how Naruto's face fell nor the way his heart clenched at the sight. "Now go get our things." He said, turning around. "We have to leave today."

Sasuke risked another glance at Naruto's back, then at the stupidly big flowers. He almost groaned. Was he actually going to spend money on something that might never make it to Naruto's apartment? Would it even fit? Sasuke hated futile efforts.

"Excuse me." The merchant called him.

"Hn."

"You can always buy the seeds."

Sasuke was sure the old lady charged him extra for the seeds, but he didn't care.

*～*～*～*～*

Naruto was still worried about the time Konoha would finally summon him. He feared he would never get to see the world like this again, to be this close to the people that needed his help. He feared routine and responsibility would overwrite these memories. He feared Sasuke's absence in his life.

Sasuke still couldn't make promises. He didn't know what would happen in the future. He didn't know if this would be all the time they would ever have. But that was the purpose of the seeds. Wherever they went, Naruto would manage to find a different variety of sunflowers. Then Sasuke would wait for him to look away and buy a pack of seeds that he would later hide among his belongings, waiting for the right time.

Sasuke had started to picture a garden full of life and overflowing sunflowers of all kinds. Blooms large as Naruto's face and small as a shuriken; orange, red and yellow petals among rarer ones like white and dark as chocolate. One-stem sunflowers and branched sunflowers; single and double petal sunflowers that resembled Naruto's messy hair. Each one was a reminder of the time they spent together.

That was what Sasuke carried with him: Seeds of hope for an uncertain future.

.-.-.-

All the chapters here: Ramen and Tomatoes

[anti-dazai-blog]

Hello! People are being stupid in your asks again so heres a theory (?) of mine about Dazais bs. I really don't think the real Oda would agree with a lot of the stuff that Dazais doing, mainly the manipulation. I think Dazai is enamoured with the idea of Oda but not the real Oda if that makes sense. My main example is beast because Dazai put everyone through hell so Oda could live and write a novel I highly doubt thats what Oda would want, it seems Dazai puts what he believes Oda would want over everyone including Oda himself (have a lovely day and don't listen to those anons they're not even brave enough to own what they're saying :))

Hi!! It’s great to have someone here in the asks who isn’t Anon Steve!  [Fun fact while I was writing this reply Anon Steve sent another 3 whole asks— if you stick around for another few minutes you’ll get to watch our friend Steve really go off the rails with these ones!]

I haven’t read Dark Era or Beast yet (although I do plan on reading both of them eventually), so I’m going to be basing my answer off of the anime version of Dark Era (which I watched over a year ago), along with what we know about Dazai in general. 

Dazai is enamored with the idea of Oda, in the sense that he’s fascinated by the concept of a mafioso who doesn’t kill. Most likely Oda is the only person in the entire mafia to have such a strong moral standpoint on murder— even people who work in non-violent departments of the mafia (such as intel gathering and organizing, any sort of tech department, whoever does their tax fraud taxes, etc.) probably wouldn’t outright refuse to kill anyone, because they understand what sort of organization they work for. Yet Oda, who works in the sort of department that would often require him to kill, somehow manages to get by without ever ending a life. And not only that, but he’s rather outspoken about his stance on never killing.

All people Dazai likes [or rather, all people he chooses to spend time with] are people who intrigue him. His whole thing is that he’s bored. He finds the world too predictable to be worth living in. So when he runs into someone who doesn’t fit his expectations of what they logically should be, he tries to keep them around. As mentioned in the previous paragraph, Oda fits this description perfectly.

The “real” Oda is a fully fleshed out person, while the Oda that Dazai’s interested in is the facet of him that’s contradictory to what he would expect. The “real” Oda is more than just a mafioso who doesn’t kill. But Dazai often sees people as the most interesting aspect of them. As do we all, so I can’t really fault him there. If I were to name a famou pop singer, you’d think of a famous pop singer— not the entire human being who happened to choose to sing as a career path. So if I were to get unnecessarily philosophical, technically we all see the idea of people [or the most interesting aspect of people], rather than the people themselves.

Regarding Dazai putting everyone through hell just so that Oda can write his novels— yeah Dazai does stuff like that sometimes. In doing so, he wasn’t looking for Oda’s stamp of approval on his moral standards, he was just looking for Oda, a person he cared about, to be happy. As I said, I haven’t read Dark Era or Beast— but I’ll assume that he cared about Oda. It wouldn’t make sense for him to go through all this trouble if he didn’t. And he gets tunnel vision when he’s working from an emotional standpoint rather than his typical logical one. Chances are it wasn’t his intention to destroy everything for everyone else in the process of helping Oda, but he couldn’t see beyond his own temporary goal.

Anyway. This was a great ask, but Anon Steve is probably updating his tumblr waiting desperately for me to reply to him. He sent me seven whole asks today.. I’m starting to suspect that he might have a crush on me 😳🫢 [I mean. Why else would he be so obsessed with me? A bit embarrassing for Steve though. I’m not into hate anons.]

[teamtrickster]

there's this necklace I want, fairly cheap, but I have no money of my own, my dad pays for everything I buy. normally he'd agree to buy it for me, but because it's a snake (it's gorgeous, you'd love it Loki, a golden snake necklace with diamond eyes) he refuses to buy it for me. he HATES snakes. he called them a sign of the devil, which is incredibly stupid, snakes aren't tied to that asshole, they're just animals! really cool animals that I love! anyway, I have an idea, and it isn't illegal, but it's kind of a dick move and I wanna know if I should do it or not. now, when I said I have no money, I really only meant in terms of dollar bills. I have so many jars of change. no, I am not planning on bringing a whole entire jar of change, that would be a thousand times worse, no, I'm thinking I bring like $6 worth of change. I sadly don't have any quarters, so it'd have to all be dimes. but people HATE when someone pays with only change, hence why I say it'd be a dick move. but I'd still get the necklace I want without having to go to the trouble of shoplifting it. should I go through with it, or would it be too dick-ish?

Well that's quite a tale. I think it would be worth it, what do you think, Lok? -Gabriel

I do believe that having an employee count out that many coins is worth such a fine necklace. After all, they are paid to service the exchange of money for goods, no matter how much math they have to do -Loki

You could count out the coins into manageable groups, then keep them separate, so it would be easier for them to count?

That is true, it would show you'd thought ahead of time, and that would go a long way in easing tensions.

I don't recommend shoplifting without magic, Spider Friend.

[lilbasthet]

OK, I have no clue if anyone has talked about the discussion on period products in Germany and recent developments. So let me do this here.

I think it's kinda nice of Druck to address this issue even if it's just in order to make Lou look like a bad influence (I'm not buying it) and to show us that Constantin has a job now.

Not only in Germany but also in other European countries people with periods have petitioned and demonstrated for free period products. In Germany period products were taxed at 19% because they were seen as luxury items(!) until 2020. After a lot of fighting feminist groups got that lowered to 7% (that's the tax on all necessary items like bread and stuff). But there was no reason to celebrate. Because all producers of such products (except for Einhorn Period which is kinda run by feminists for feminists) just raised the prices so that in the end all period products cost the same as before. Now we're just paying "pink tax" on them just like we do on loads of other products that are specifically marketed to women. (who of course aren't the only people with periods, but a big chunk of them)

So, I get it. Period products and their cost are a legitimate issue, and I'm glad we're getting a character like Lou who makes young people aware of the fact that this shit isn't fair. I didn't even dare think about such things when I was her age.

Another thing for all those people trying to say she's not stealing from big corporations and only hurting the shop assistants. I don't know how this works in your country, but I know enough people who work in retail (and specifically in one of our 2 big drugstore chains) in Germany. And believe me, the shop assistants usually don't get in trouble for people stealing from the shop (especially not if it's tampons rather than 50€ worth of makeup). The store has insurance for that. Loads of products aren't sold and have to be thrown out or taken home by the people who work there. That's why many shop assistants (at least in Berlin) don't even bother going after thieves in their stores. Too much hassle for a job that gives you a living wage and no more for a product that might be thrown in the trash anyway...

So believe me, the only thing Constantin should be worried about is the shopping baskets that fell over because he has to clean that up. And those were still neatly stacked so that's like a 5 minute job.

And don't get me wrong I don't condone stealing, but I'm also in the privileged position where I never had to steal to get by. (not saying that Lou has to steal)

I've been out of money for necessities like food, but I always had friends or family that could help me out. However, I have friends who don't have that luxury who sometimes steal from shops because they have to. And I know they're not hurting the workers with that (and usually not even the corporations). So I refuse to hold that against them.

So, long story short, I wouldn't praise Lou for stealing some tampons for herself and people from her school, but I also wouldn't demonize her for it. (Especially not when we see other crimes like underage drinking, smoking weed, trespassing and vandalism in Skam and Druck and celebrate it.)

[quiteriana]

speculation

not to be a Dumb Bitch but Silver is constantly suppressing himself and watering himself down, so much so that it's to the point where he appears so numb and apathetic because he really doesn't know himself or know his own personality and instead tries to find himself through the people in his life that he values. He tries to do what others wish him to do, and be who others wish him to be. He lacks his own motivations and individuality, and instead, he takes on the motivation of those around him, trying to fill himself with somebody else (the people he values), for he feels as though he, himself, isn’t worth much among others. He hallows out his own identity and numbs away every emotion because he feels as though he is too inedequate and then fills those voids with other people of who, to him, are the most valuable and vital in his eyes.

That "person he values" is Malleus. It's literally Malleus and idc how you interpret their relationship, you CANNOT DENY that Silver is bending himself to what he perceives is Malleus's need.

Silver values Lilia as well, but with Lilia it's different because he... loves him. They love each other, and Silver knows that he will always recieve unconditional love from Lilia, and his [Silver's] own love is shown through the way he tries so hard not to cause trouble for Lilia and how he wishes so badly for his happiness and health. Silver and Lilia love each other and they know that the other loves them (how could they not?) so Silver doesn't really have much reason to... "bend himself to the liking of Lilia" because they have such a strong foundation within one another.

But with Malleus, it isn't like that. Not at all. Silver doesn't know if he will always receive approval by Malleus, but he views him so highly, he values him so much, and he wants that approval, and thus he tries so hard to be that person he thinks Malleus needs him to be. He loses himself in the identity of a "royal guard" because he thinks that's the role he's meant to fill, and he replaces his entire person with that mere duty. He doesn't realize that his role of a guard is just a part of who he is and not the entirety, and he waters down all other aspects of himself to cling to this one identity until he's empty.... Seriously, he is almost nobody outside of this role. How do you guys not see that this is what he's doing to himself...

Silver replaces his own desires and dreams (and really... his personality) with his duty and role of serving Malleus in attempt to overcome that inevitable feeling of being less than and insignificant among all those that he’s grown up around, and among everything he's ever known (being a human among faes... try and tell me that didn’t screw with his esteem when he was young). He goes about life so passively, and so peacefully, for he wishes only to do as he must to please the people he admires so much. He hollows out and waters down his own desires so as not to be inconvenient for Lilia, who he adores, and Malleus, who he devotedly dedicates himself to. He loses himself and he forgets himself; he falls asleep to himself in the sense of his apathy and (the lack of truly feeling) his own emotions; filling his personality with his duty, and erasing the line between them while simultaneously trying to keep peace everywhere he stumbles, trying so hard not to be an inconvenience. Pushing himself further down, denying himself until he’s lost himself because somewhere in his life, he became so worried about displeasing and losing the ones he loves and views so highly because of the person he truly is, and he (unknowingly) combats this by suppressing his own desires and his own person, and instead replacing all of that with the qualities he thinks are more valuable for the role he feels he must fill for Malleus.

In terms of motivation, with Silver being around Sebek so much, he has most likely turned Sebek's motivation into his own since they have the same goal [to protect Malleus]. In a way, Silver feeds off the energy and passion that Sebek exudes for his role as a guard, and he uses that to get him through his position of the same role. By pretending and truly believing that Sebek's motivation is also his own motivation, he's able to continue and continue persevering in this duty he's been raised to fill. But it isn't his own. Sebek's goals are not Silver’s goals and their passions are not the same, but Silver has likely been watering down his own self for so long that he does not even see this or realize.

And he keeps on endlessly tuning himself more and more into what he thinks Malleus needs him to be. Because Malleus is the most important authority in his life; that's what he's been raised to believe, and thus he tries so hard to fit the mold of what Malleus needs in seek of approval and closeness to the person who's been made so important to him--so much that he pushes aside his own desires and his own personality in order to make room for whatever qualities he thinks Malleus needs. And unconsciously, he ends up incorporating bits of Malleus into himself and his own identity more and more because of this value that he's placed on him. Silver's forever glare? His subtly similar haircut to Malleus? These aren't him; these are not aspects of who Silver truly is or expressions of his own personality; these are things that he's lost himself in and has tried to take on the qualities of who he values because he doesn't know what he wants and he doesn't know himself. And the saddest thing is that he's likely not even aware that he is doing all this; it happens so unconsciously as a result of seeing little value in his own self.

For the sake of trying to make a clear point, I'm going to try and compare Silver to the other two hero-based characters: Rook and Kalim. Rook and Kalim, themselves, are actually very, very similar in my opinion in terms of their positivity, endless optimism, and their ability and desire to make others feel valued and recognized. Silver and Kalim are both kind hearted and gentle, but Kalim is obviously much more forward than Silver. Kalim actually has... personality. He has his motivations and he has his interests and he has the things he feels passionately about. Silver... doesn't. He doesn't have those things of his own. He shares with Kalim kindness and a desire to please others, but he lacks all ambition to act in the ways his heart desires; he doesn't even know what his heart desires. Probably, he has never thought of it before, as his role and his future was always right there for him: to be Malleus's guard and protector, and he accepted that with no refute, he accepted it happily and he put his efforts into being... what other people told him to be. Kalim is similar in that he easily accepts and goes along with the suggestions of others; he is also quite easily influenced by others, but he is his own person as well... he is his own person while Silver has lost who he is. (Silver is literally the lyrics "I do as I am told until I don't know who I want to be")

And for Rook. I actually see a lot more similarity between Silver and Rook. They are both peace-loving people; however Rook is a peacemaker while Silver is a peacekeeper. Rook goes out of his way to make peace and mediate between refuting people (Vil and Epel). He does so in a way that makes both parties seem heard and valued, and he does not stop until he has done so. He is stubbornly persistent in making peace, which is really such a wonderful thing in my opinion. Silver is almost there. He possesses the same desire and ache to have peace, but he does not work so hard for it. When he sees people opposing, he does try to say something to mediate, but as soon as someone bites back and refuses that peace he's trying to bring, he keeps silent. He says nothing more. He does this as a way to not further contribute to the conflict (because if he tries to mediate where it isn't desires, that will just cause more problem). He is so so so passive that he does not push through with the good things he is trying to do, and he settles instead for simply keeping some of that peace instead of going through and creating it where it needs to be. He settles for less than what he aims for in fear if creating more conflict.

Do you see what I'm trying to say? Even Silver's valuable and strong qualities (his compassion and kindness and ability to mediate between others) are being washed away by himself and himself only because these qualities are so different from what he sees in the people he values [MALLEUS], and so he doesn't think they're important or useful and he finds them even meaningless because these qualities are his and his alone; they are different and apart from the rest of the Diasomnia members but it's BECAUSE the others lack them that he sees them as invaluable. He sees himself and he sees his differences as bad things, and so he tries to rid of them and rid of himself to instead be more like the people he does value. He completely washes away all of his individuality (even the GOOD things that make him STRONGER than others) because he doesn't want to deviate or be too different from the people he values. He is pushing himself down, he is watering himself away, he is numbing every ability for the sake of filling himself with the needs of others [again, Malleus!]

I also want to briefly compare Kalim/Rook/Silver in terms of their grounded-ness. I feel as though all three of them are not quite in touch with reality. Kalim, I think, is quite capable of really living and feeling in the present moment, but his lack of sense-of-reality comes when he thinks too positively of things, not quite grasping the density of the things around him. Rook, I think, is very similar, but he is more aimless and less present. I think he stumbles without any real direction, but he focused his mind on seeing beauty (sight... paying attention to any of the 5 senses assists in grounded-ness, at least for me), but I feel like he could also get too much in his head at times and lose that stability in favor of gravity. But, it's temporary, and I think he is able to pull himself into reality quite easily when need be. However, with Silver, he... exceeds aimlessness. It's haziness, as if going through life in a fog. Only half-alive. Not just sleeping most the time, but even awake, his mind is out of focus and lost. He is not just out of touch with reality, he is out of touch with himself, and unlike Kalim and Rook, he has no energy or presence anywhere at all. "Almost always everywhere, never quite anywhere." That's how he lives his life. Asleep and half-alive.

Silver is honestly... a vacant shell for others people to flow through him. For others, this is good because they benefit from it, but for himself it's horrible because he numbs himself with it--his own emotions and even his sense of self. He becomes empty of his own identity, filled instead with the energy of others. Completely groundless and succumbing entirely to the gravity of his mind.

Not to mention that sleepiness is a common trait of people who regularly suppress their own personalities. Though they might not do much actively, they still take up a lot of their own energy to be that shell for others to fill, and they also stress themselves by doing this as well but their apathy and detachment from reality doesn't allow them to properly feel that stress, so it translates instead into tiredness and sleepiness, and it's actually common for these kinds of people to be napping most of the day. It's also literally "falling asleep" to their own desires and ambitions, their own feelings and own identity. It's a way of numbing themselves in order to be filled by others; like this is literally a real thing that happens to people, and I have no doubt in my mind that this is what's happening to Silver as well.

ALSO HIS NAME. his name is... Silver. That's all. No last name, no way of saying exactly where he belongs. Simple, bland, and separate from everyone. Just Silver. It's literally just his hair color. There's no sentimental significance in his name at all. And he... accepts this. He accepts this as his only identification with no question or fight.

I know this seems like such a minor detail and that I'm maybe looking too deep into it, but I promise you I am not. I promise there is more to his name than just "a fairy couldn't choose a name for a baby human". Sure, that's likely where the name came from, but the fact that Silver at his current age just accepts this holds so much significance. It shows that he. does. not. care. He does not care about who he is. He does not care about his own person; he has completely washed away his own identity that calling him "Silver" is good enough for him. No meaning behind it. Just an empty word to be addressed by. Do you understand how sad this is? He sees himself as nothing special--so much to the point where he almost becomes... nobody... for he waters down every individual thing about himself so that others can fill him instead.

How do y'all not see this in Silver... Seriously how do y'all not see this in Silver?? this is who he is; he is so empty and void because he is constantly hallowing himself out for the sake of others really HOW DO YOU NOT SEE he is drowning himself... Silver is drowning

I'm sorry agaksgahsk I know this was way longer than maybe necessary but thank you so much for sticking to the end 💗

Also, I'm really not trying to... enforce my ideas about Silver onto anyone. People have their own ways of interpreting characters (especially since we don't really know much about Silver as of yet), and I totally get it. Every interpretation is beautiful; I want you to know. I'm just trying to get my own thoughts out there in the hopes that someone else might also understand and agree. To me, this is the truth of who he is 💗💗 but anything can be possible! thank you for reading this